ABSTRACT
The project “An Inquiry-Based Simulation Learning Environment for the Ecology of Forest Growth” consisted of three main stages of approximately one year each: software development, curriculum development, and classroom implementation. We evaluated the software, SimForest, in clinical and college classroom settings, then ran a professional development program to support eight secondary school teachers in incorporating the software and curriculum into their classes. This paper focuses on our results from the clinical trials in which we analyzed the strategies used by an expert teacher. A primary goal of this phase of our research was to document a variety of successful inquiry-based methods for using simulations in the classroom.
