According to Linn, Clark and Slotta WISE creates a “technology-enhanced, research-based, flexibly adaptive learning environment…incorporating things like modeling tools and hand-held devices.“ WISE was created in response for the need of more technology-enhanced learning experiences in science. It teaches as students click through the short lessons on multiple science topics. The library is expanding as teachers add features, resources and lessons to it, which I see as one of its great features. It will evolve as long as it is used and supported by the designers who created it, as open-source projects do. It is driven through a knowledge integration perspective where the user learns concepts and facts as they are immersed in the lesson. WISE teaches through reading and models and then applying the knowledge through reflection and questioning. The goal of WISE is make learners inquire about their surroundings long after they graduate from school.

WISE lessons unfold through clicking through a set of web pages as you might look through a textbook, but the textbook is somewhat interactive. There are videos to watch (like the Jasper project), graphs to manipulate (not just read) and activities to complete throughout which are embedded into the site. The Jasper series used technology strictly as information. You were shown a problem then sent off to solve it. WISE teaches concepts and builds on them throughout the lesson steps.

I found WISE to be quite sequential, which is actually my preferred way of learning. The knowledge and concepts are very visual and somewhat interactive. It feeds the learner passively through clicking through the lessons. Some knowledge is gleaned but may be soon forgotten, similar to watching television or viewing a YouTube video. I see the value in it as a direct teaching tool. If a student was struggling with a specific concept they could look it up in WISE and try to get a better understanding from another perspective before moving forward. I would like to see what my students have accomplished in WISE as well as where they struggle. Trial and error will get them through many of the assignments, but may not be the  best way to learn the concepts. I think WISE is a useful tool for teaching but would not build a science unit around it as it presents information and offers opportunities for reflection but does not complete the constructivist model of learning.

Reference:

Linn, M.C.,Clark, D., Slotta, J.D. 2003). Wise design for knowledge integration. Science Education, 87(4), 517-538.