Framing Emerging Technologies for Science Education Toward Inquiry-Rich Pedagogical Practices; Augmented Reality-based Inquiry; Virtua Reality-based Inquiry

About the Project

Rational and background

Extended Reality (XR), encompassing Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR), is rapidly emerging as a transformative force in education. Its unique affordances, such as immersive visualization, interactive manipulation, and embodied engagement, allow students to overcome traditional limitations in science learning. XR can simulate hazardous or inaccessible experiments, overlay abstract scientific concepts onto real-world contexts, and make phenomena visible and manipulable, thereby enabling new possibilities for data collection, reasoning, and model construction.

Despite these affordances, most XR research has focused narrowly on specific topics such as chemical bonding or astronomy and lacks a pedagogical framework that guides teachers in systematically integrating XR into inquiry lessons. Teachers therefore face challenges in deciding when and how XR should be used, how activities should differ depending on the type of inquiry, and how XR can be aligned with epistemic goals. Given that scientific inquiry involves varied reasoning processes—from observing phenomena to analyzing relationships and constructing models —a one-size-fits-all approach is insufficient.

Research Aims and Focus

This project aims to bridge that gap by developing and validating an integrative pedagogical framework for XR-based inquiry, clarifying how lessons should be designed differently depending on whether they are phenomenon-based, relation-based, or model-based. It is guided by three questions: What are the pedagogical elements of such a framework? How should these elements vary depending on the epistemic focus of inquiry? And how do teachers’ use of the framework impact teaching practices and student learning outcomes? Ultimately, the project seeks to ensure XR technologies are not used superficially but harnessed to cultivate authentic scientific inquiry, strengthen teacher professionalism, and prepare students for future learning.

As part of our commitment to advancing research in science education and immersive technologies, we warmly welcome aspiring researchers to join our team. Applications for the PhD programme commencing in August 2026 are now open. Candidates with interests in science education, XR/AR/VR for learning, inquiry-based pedagogy, discourse and multimodal analysis, and teacher professional development are especially encouraged to apply. This is an excellent opportunity to work within a dynamic and interdisciplinary team, contribute to impactful projects, and develop expertise at the cutting edge of educational research.

Important Note

We welcome you to have a conversation with Assistant Professor Jina Chang (jina.chang@nie.edu.sg) to discuss this PhD project further. You are strongly encouraged to reach out to her at least 3 months in advance of application deadline (i.e. 25 June 2026) as the process of confirming the supervision and preparing your proposal for application may take longer than you anticipate.

When you email Assistant Professor Jina Chang, please:

1. Introduce yourself
2. Share about your academic background
3. Provide information on your research interests and how it is aligned with this project
4. And how you hope to achieve your PhD aspirations

We regret to inform you that only suitable PhD candidates for this project will be shortlisted for further consideration.

Minimum Entry Requirement

A Bachelor's degree with honours at least at Second Class Upper level, Master's degree in the relevant areas and the ability to pursue research in the candidate's proposed field of advanced study.

Shortlisted applicants will undergo an interview session as part of the selection process.

A valid GRE score is required for applicants who are not graduates of the Autonomous Universities in Singapore. See detailed requirements for English language on competency and GRE requirements here.

Funding Notes

Prestigious scholarships offered by the Nanyang Technological University allows outstanding PhD students to pursue their research endeavours at a world-class university. At NTU, we recognize academic excellence and research potential that will help you focus on making groundbreaking discoveries in your field.

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