Collaborative-Inquiry Learning in the Environment. Design Experiment with Distributed Face-to-Face and Mobile Scaffolds

In this study, learning with mobile technologies is grounded in theories of cognitive tools and distributed scaffolding, which were applied to scaffold collaborative-inquiry learning on a nature trail. The general aim of this study was to design, implement and evaluate the case for collaborative inquiry into learning in the environment. The group (n=22) of primary school pupils worked for two hours, in six triads and two dyads, observing traces of animate and inanimate objects in the wild. The results showed considerable differences in the nature of the discourse and inquiry learning. It can be concluded that minimally guided instruction where scaffolds are distributed among pupils is not enough to advance a collaborative inquiry learning.