Noticing by NYSCI

As a leader in the science museum field, the New York Hall of Science (NYSCI) is a destination for hands-on, interactive exhibitions and innovative programs. NYSCI’s Design-Make-Play (DMP) pedagogical approach to STEM learning recognizes that what is essential is not only the content—what is being taught—but how teaching and learning are imagined through the curriculum. This commitment to practice builds off of interest-based learning research, which emphasizes that all learners should feel a sense of efficacy and possibility. The hallmarks of this approach include deep personal engagement, personal choice, iterative design practices, and improvements on existing work (Honey and Kanter 2013).

This approach, which is used to tackle concepts that are often the most difficult or abstract for students to master and where they often lose their enthusiasm for STEM, has guided the development of the Noticing by NYSCI initiative.

Noticing by NYSCI was developed to foster deeper learning and deeper engagement through DMP, using a suite of five specialized, iPad-based mobile apps called Noticing Tools.