Western Kentucky University
Department of Physics and Astronomy

Colloquium

Dr. Adam Bennion

Department of Physics and Astronomy
Brigham Young University

"Technology as a Gateway to Scientific Sensemaking"

March 23, 2026 @ 4:00 pm in KTH 2038 (Zoom ID: 93595838321)

About the Speaker

https://science.byu.edu/directory/adam-bennion

Abstract

Sensemaking is a central aim of science education, yet an important question remains: how can teachers use emerging technologies to deepen disciplinary sensemaking rather than bypass it? In this talk, I examine that question across two recent studies of teacher learning. The first investigates preservice secondary science teacher AI readiness in science teaching and their planned use of AI as a sensemaking tool. The second explores how secondary teachers in a technology-rich professional development reimagined sensemaking through tools such as 3D printing, coding, and robotics. Across both studies, I argue that emerging technologies are most powerful when they function as gateways into modeling, explanation, and student agency. I conclude with implications for science teacher education in a time of rapid technological change.