Background:

Swiss schools are required to develop students’ digital competencies in each discipline (CIIP, 2018).However, teachers in Geneva, Switzerlandaren’t supplied with many official resources or recommendations to help them implement these requirements. This article presents a project that developed a theoretical framework referringto three types of digital educationskills (DES): (DES A)new approaches to building or validating knowledge, (DES B)critical-thinking skills, (DES C)new didactic methodsand elaborated proposals to help biology teachers comply with the requirements.Building and discussing models is a core scientific practice and can developunderstanding of scientific phenomena andthe nature of disciplinary knowledge(Schwarz et al.,2009). The digitisation of biology and affordable3D printers make it possible to produce tangible models of most proteins mentioned in secondary biologyeducation from freely available, authentic research data.This combination opens unprecedented opportunities for classroom activities, allowing students to (DES A)practice digital biology methods based on a discussion of solid evidence (DES A)and (DES B)support the development of critical thinking.

Purpose:

This article first presentsatheoretical perspectivedeveloped to reveal the learning potential of digital biology, focuses onitsfeasibility, and finally discussesthe educational potential offered by scenarios, with some data from a proof-of-principle example. Based on how biology research nowadaysbuilds knowledge and on research showing educational benefits of using authentic research dataand 3D models (better questions, more discussion of models, enhancing motivation), this article presents technicalstep-based course-of-actionscenarios(CoAscenarios) that were tested in classrooms, helping teachers and learners to access and use authentic data to address difficult learning issues such as evolution or the form–function problem, by manipulating authentic research data and physical,tangible mod-els.With a focus on strengtheningstudents’skillsinbuilding andvalidating knowledgeusing the new digital approaches(DES A), theCoAscenarioscontributeto the ongoing change processrather than pedagogical guidelines, whichcome fromeducationalauthorities. They are designed to be used independently of teachers’methods. This article seeksto stimulate discussion of these opportunities andthechallenges that many schools face.

Sample/setting:

In a proof-of-principle example, we describe one possible use ofselectedCoAscenarios (Nos. 17, 20, 21) tested in three pilot classes in upper secondaryschool(N=48studentsin total, 2016-2019)and improved in over 20 in-service teacher training courses(since 2002). These activities,including hypothesis testing and discussions of data