Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42317680›Full record

ArticleDiscover education2026

Empowering precollege data science education with an innovative learning portal.

Mohammad Assadi Shalmani, Craig Berg, Michael J Carvan, Renee A Hesselbach, David Petering, Kevin Schiebenes, Rekha Shukla, Henry G Tomasiewicz, Daniel N Weber, Jake Luo

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Discover education, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

10 authors.

Mohammad Assadi Shalmani *Health Informatics Program, Zilber School of Public Health, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Milwaukee, WI USA.
Craig BergSchool of Education, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Milwaukee, WI USA.
Michael J CarvanSchool of Freshwater Sciences, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Milwaukee, WI USA.
Renee A HesselbachDepartment of Chemistry and Biochemistry Science Education Partnership Award Program, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Milwaukee, WI USA.
David PeteringDepartment of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Wisconsin- Milwaukee, Milwaukee, WI USA.
Kevin SchiebenesAlexander Hamilton High School, Milwaukee, WI USA.
Rekha ShuklaBarbara Goldberg and Associates, LLC, Milwaukee, WI USA.
Henry G TomasiewiczChildren's Environmental Health Sciences Center, University of Wisconsin- Milwaukee, Milwaukee, USA.
Daniel N WeberChildren's Environmental Health Sciences Center, University of Wisconsin- Milwaukee, Milwaukee, USA.
Jake Luo *Health Informatics Program, Zilber School of Public Health, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Milwaukee, WI USA.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background: Data science education in K-12 settings often lacks authentic, hands-on experiences that allow students to meaningfully engage with data practices such as data collection, organization, visualization, and interpretation. Project-based learning provides a pedagogically grounded approach for developing these skills by situating data work within real scientific inquiry. The NIH SEPA-funded WInSTEP-SEPA (Wisconsin Inquiry-based Science Teacher Education Partnership-Science Education Partnership Award) portal was designed to operationalize this approach by embedding data science and data literacy instruction directly into environmental health research projects conducted by high school students. Methods: A multidisciplinary team of scientists, educators, and developers co-designed a web-based portal that supports student-led experimental design, structured data entry, visualization, and cross-study data exploration. The portal explicitly scaffolds core data literacy and introductory data science practices, including data generation, data management aligned with FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable) principles, descriptive statistics, and graphical analysis. Learning outcomes were evaluated using matched pre- and post-instruction student surveys focused on data literacy and FAIR principles, along with teacher feedback. Results: Our portal successfully supported hands-on data science and data literacy learning for students. High school students used the portal to investigate the effects of environmental exposures such as nicotine, caffeine, and ethanol on zebrafish embryo development. Students actively engaged in collecting, organizing, visualizing, and interpreting their own experimental data and comparing results across studies. Moreover, our pre-post survey analysis showed statistically significant gains in students' understanding of foundational data literacy concepts, particularly related to the meaning of data and FAIR data practices. Conclusion: By integrating hands-on experimentation with structured data workflows, the WInSTEP-SEPA portal connects project-based learning to concrete data science and data literacy practices in K-12 education. The evaluation demonstrates measurable improvements in students' data literacy and supports the portal's effectiveness as a scalable model for introducing authentic, data-driven scientific inquiry in secondary classrooms.

Indexed as

Data science educationEnvironmental healthHands-on educationInquiry-based learningK-12 students

Identifiers

PMID42317680
PMCPMC13272206

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.