Analysis of an Inquiry-Based Design Process for the Construction of Computer-Based Educational Tools: The Paradigm of a Secondary Development Tool Negotiating Scientific Concepts

The new generation of educational tools, based on easily accessible open source software, has enriched the teacher’s role with the quality of a designer of targeted – regarding the negotiation of cognitive concepts – artifacts. The genesis of such artifacts is subject to dynamic multilevel negotiations informed by pedagogical theories and practices and necessitates a deep understanding of the cognitive subject. The applied pedagogy and awareness of the cognitive subject are expected to guide and determine the selection of the instrumental ‘generator’. Although many studies have been conducted focusing on the use and the targeted selection of effective educational tools, there is a lack of information on the design process followed by each designer as well as an analysis of the influences governing his decisions during the process.