Professional perspectives survey
Digital Support for Sustained STEM Inquiry
Professional Perspectives Survey | Study 1, 2026
Richard Pedley | PhD Candidate, Monash University
Estimated time: 15 to 20 minutes
Join 38 educators who have already responded
Explanatory statement
What this research is about
This survey is part of PhD research at Monash University into what a STEM inquiry tool should actually do — from the perspective of people who work in education every day. It's centred on Kōkiri Lab, a digital STEM inquiry platform for Year 7 and 8 students in Aotearoa New Zealand, and draws on the experience of educators, researchers and professionals working across learning design, AI and educational technology.
Who is being asked
Anyone with relevant professional experience in education, educational technology, learning analytics or data ethics. You do not need to have taken part in any earlier survey or consultation to take part in this one.
Something you should know before you start
Full transparency: I built Kōkiri Lab, so I have a stake in what this research finds. The survey is designed to make criticism easy, my Monash supervisors oversee the analysis, and findings are published regardless of how they reflect on the platform.
What taking part involves
The survey takes about 15 to 20 minutes. It asks about your background, then routes you to one of two versions depending on whether you have direct experience teaching Year 7 and 8. There are no right or wrong answers. Every question includes a way to indicate something is outside your experience, and you are asked to use that option rather than guess.
Before the questions begin you will be shown a short overview, one to two minutes, of the kind of digital support tool this survey asks about, so that later questions have a shared reference point.
Taking part is your choice
Taking part is voluntary. You may leave the survey at any time without submitting, and without giving a reason. Declining or withdrawing has no effect on any other relationship you may have with Monash University, Kōkiri Lab or Regenpreneur Ltd.
What happens to your answers
Responses are anonymous. No names are collected or associated with responses. If you choose to provide an email address to receive a summary of findings, that address is stored separately from your survey answers, with no link back to what you wrote. Data is stored securely on Monash University systems and retained for five years after the project finishes, then destroyed.
Findings are shared with everyone who requests them: what the whole group thought mattered most, where views diverged, and what changed in the design as a result.
Questions or concerns
If you have a question about the research, contact Richard Pedley at richard.pedley@monash.edu.
Ethics contact details
Consent
By continuing to the survey, you confirm that you have read this explanatory statement and consent to take part on the terms described above.
Before you begin
Watch a short overview, one to two minutes, of the kind of digital support tool this survey asks about: a tool that tracks a student's inquiry work over time and gives automatic feedback on their reasoning, for example through a dashboard a teacher can check, or automated comments a student receives. This gives you a reference point for later questions. You may also explore the Kōkiri Lab homepage directly, no account or class code needed.
Overview video (~2 minutes). Captions available in the player.
Terms used throughout this survey
In sustained STEM inquiry, students investigate real-world questions over time. They collect evidence, interpret data, revise their thinking, and build responses based on what they discover.
- Inquiry reasoning means the thinking a student does to make sense of evidence, for example connecting a claim to data, noticing a pattern, or revising an idea when new evidence appears.
- Inquiry practice means a specific reasoning skill within that process, such as comparing observations, handling uncertainty, or explaining how parts of a system affect each other.
Preview the Kōkiri Lab platform
Not required for the survey. The homepage shows inquiry pathways, community science platforms, and examples of the learning environment this research is exploring, no sign-in required.
Visit Kōkiri Lab homepage →