Education Commons^™

What Interactive Web Features Are Most Used, Travis Tyler

Experiential Learning Projects

The use of interactive features in websites has become common place on the internet. People use these tools to help navigate and understand the content related to that website. However, due the large variety of websites it can be tricky to understand what features are best to utilize based on the topic of your site. This paper seeks to address this issue by researching how users interact and utilized different features on different websites. Research is gathered via scholarly articles and direct data gathered from volunteers. This data shows users tend to favor more interactive tools to help with navigation, …

The Blaeser Training Taxonomy, Timothy Blaeser

Doctorate in Education

This research was undertaken to determine the efficacy of using andragogy, assessment, and quality control for training in a modern industrial workplace, with findings indicating that these modern training techniques can be implemented with success in this context. While andragogy, pioneered by Knowles, has been used in many areas of adult education, it has not been found to be commonly used in the industrial workplace. The study focused on Finnish trainers using the Blaeser Training Taxonomy – a training program utilizing elements of andragogy and assessment wrapped into quality control. Using a mixed methods questionnaire, trainers reported their training results, …

An Exploration Of Levels Of Choice In Online Assignments And The Relationship To Students' Work And Their Thoughts About Motivation, Jonathan Crocker

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

This case study explored the relationship between levels of content choice in three high school online English language arts courses and evidence of student motivation in student work and students’ thoughts about motivation. These courses were designed around the main components of Self-Determination Theory (autonomy, competence, relatedness) and with a personalized learning framework. During the 2020-2021 school year, students in the courses were given reading options and writing prompts that offered “no choice” (zero options), “low choice” (2-3 options), and “high choice” (4+ options). Forty students completed anonymous end-of-course surveys designed to gather details about the relationship between motivation and …

Closing The Contextual And Chronological Gap: A Design And Development Study Of A Systematic Tool For The Selection Of Learning And Performance Support Interventions, James Knapp Iii

STEMPS Theses & Dissertations

Gaps in human performance resulting from a lack of skills and knowledge require solutions – interventions. The process of selecting the most effective intervention (solution) for closing a skills and knowledge gap—such as classroom training, e-Learning, Structured on-the-job Training (SOJT), or job-aid—is a fundamental and vital practice for Human Performance Technology (HPT) practitioners. Unlike other activities in the Performance Improvement/HPT (PI/HPT) model, the activity of intervention selection is ambiguous. Meaning, there is currently no systematic process or tool in place for selecting learning and performance-improvement solutions that is reflective of the learning science. Consequently, the critical activity of intervention selection …

Participatory Learning: Measuring Learning And Educational Technology Acceptance, Erick Sanchez Suasnabar

Dissertations

Participatory Learning (PL) integrates several learning approaches, engaging students throughout the entire assignment process for both online and face-to-face courses. Beyond simply providing a solution, students also craft a problem (problem-based learning), grade each other (peer assessment and feedback), evaluate themselves (self-assessment), and can view others’ work (learning by example). This dissertation research explores the resulting learning effects. Contributions to both educational and Information Systems research include extending an early PL model and experiments that applied the PL approach to examinations, by validating and testing new constructs based on user activity and critical thinking. In addition, the study explores a …

Student Learning Behaviors In A Biology Gateway Course: A Mixed Methods Examination Of An Adaptive Courseware Environment, Ross C. Teller

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore how student behaviors, while using an adaptive courseware system, influenced performance in a gateway biology course. This study used a mixed methods approach. Quantitative data was collected from the courseâ??s learning management system (LMS) and the adaptive courseware. This data was analyzed using correlations between several metrics, including student course average, exam scores, total time spent using the adaptive courseware, the number of times the participants accessed both LMS content and adaptive courseware content, and the average score of activities and assessments within the adaptive courseware. The quantitative data included semi-structured interviews …

Understanding Teacher Sense-Making Discourse During Collaborative Professional Development Of An Expansively-Framed Computer Science Curriculum, Courtney Stephens

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Elementary school teachers are being increasingly asked to teach computer science—something that most teacher certification programs do not prepare them for. In an attempt to study how elementary teachers learn to teach computer science, I analyzed the ways that teachers behaved during a professional development accompanying the implementation of a fifth-grade computer science curriculum. My findings suggest that teachers benefit from professional development that encourages collaboration and active participation in teachers through discussion and modeling. Furthermore, my findings suggest that teachers benefit from using curriculum that deliberately connects new concepts to content that they are already familiar and comfortable with—a …

The Moderating Effect Of Intraoffice Group Dynamics On The Ambulation Of Sms-Prompted Utah Tech Professionals, David Collins Moore

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This research examined the extent to which group membership affects the impact of text message activity prompts on daily step count. Two 17-member convenience samples were recruited from various software companies in Utah. The participants in the cohesive group unit sample worked in close proximity to one another in a single office, while the lone participants were recruited from and worked in separate offices. Participants’ daily step count baselines were established during the initial 2 weeks of the experiment, after which they were sent text message activity prompts twice per workweek day for the remaining 4 weeks. Step count data …

Beyond The Program: A Case Study Evaluating The Learning Transfer Of A Collaborative Online Course Development Program, Christie W. Nicholas

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The primary purpose of this study was to evaluate a collaborative online course development program, Digital Learning Collaborative, utilizing the first three levels of Kirkpatrick’s training evaluation model. Although there is a growing body of research that supports collaborative models of online course design, there are few studies that evaluate these models and even fewer that consider the potential learning transfer to other teaching contexts.With faculty being increasingly asked to teach in varying and dual modalities, it is necessary to evaluate online course development programs to understand how the skills and practices obtained within them can transfer to other courses …

Online Faculty Development: Disorienting Dilemmas In Learning To Teach Online, Katalin Wargo

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

This dissertation explores how faculty development for online teaching in higher education might facilitate transformative learning and the transfer of instructional practices across teaching modalities. The first manuscript examines how the essential constructs of transformative learning are promoted in online faculty development and which elements of faculty development help to foster transformative learning. The second manuscript describes a case study that emerged from a university faculty development seminar to prepare instructors to teach online. The purpose of this study was to examine how, if at all, the Online Faculty Development Seminar changed five participants’ perspectives of teaching. This study found …

Towards Failure-Based Instructional Design: A Phenomenological Study Of The Perceptions Of Drone Pilots About The Use Of Simulations To Promote Failure-Based Learning, Nikisha Watson

STEMPS Theses & Dissertations

Simulations have become increasingly popular in many contexts, particularly for performance optimization, testing, and safety (Aldrich, 2003). By nature, simulations immerse the learner in an environment that is an approximate imitation of the situation or process to be learned (Baek, 2009). In the literature, there is a lack of qualitative research on the perceptions of learners regarding the use of failure-based learning in simulations. The idea of learning through failure experiences is not a new concept, yet, to date, no instructional design models have discussed how to employ failure strategically within education (Tawfik, Rong, & Choi, 2015).

This study utilized …

Caracterización Del Proceso De Enseñanza Y Aprendizaje De La Automatización Industrial. Un Estudio Con Estudiantes De La Asociación Nacional De Estudiantes De Ingenierías: Industrial, Administrativa Y De Producción En Bogotá, Cristian Alejandro Zafra Rodriguez, Katherine Urrego Parra

Maestría en Docencia

El desarrollo industrial de Colombia en el marco de la llamada “cuarta revolución industrial” exige que las empresas cuenten con personal capacitado en el área de la automatización industrial; por tanto, las instituciones de educación superior están en la obligación de brindar, a aquellos alumnos que trabajan en esos campos, herramientas suficientes para desempeñar sus actividades de manera propositiva y adecuada con el fin de que contribuye a la transformación industrial del país. No obstante, para el momento no existe un estudio adecuado de la enseñanza o del aprendizaje de la automatización industrial en Colombia; falencia que dificulta la planeación …

Emotional Intelligence Development Program For Designers, Chloe Heinz

Graphic Communication

What sets great designers apart from the rest is their ability to empathize with the user they’re designing for. Formal education doesn’t teach the soft skills that help a designer effectively communicate with the client and connect with the user. To bridge this educational gap, I designed a piece of interactive instructional media in the form of a customizable emotional intelligence development program to enhance designers’ self- awareness, emotional regulation, motivation, empathy, and social skills. This program is based upon the intentional change theory by Richard Boyatzis, so the program duration is left up to the program user to meet …

Using Film As A Multimodal Text In The Language Classroom, Kate Marie Steckmest

MA TESOL Collection

Film is a powerful medium for language acquisition; Not only does viewing films allow learners to experience language used in various real-life contexts, but the medium of film itself is a form of communication. Through the active viewing of films, students can explore how people with diverse backgrounds, accents, and cultures communicate using multiple modes such as gestures, images, and sounds. When learners are familiar with the techniques used by filmmakers to convey meaning, they can use the medium of film themselves to tell their stories and share their perspectives through filmmaking projects. Such projects can be collaborative and engaging …

Equity By Design And Delivery Model In Online Learning: Educator And Student Perceptions And Behaviors As Leading Indicators Of Systemic Change, Miebeth Bustillo-Booth

Ed.D. Dissertations in Practice

The purpose of this study is to explore educator and student perceptions of and behaviors in the Equity by Design and Delivery (EDD) model and its online courses as leading indicators of systemic change. The EDD model is a pilot intervention to eliminate opportunity to learn gaps at the program level in a mid-sized northwestern college in the United States. It shifts instructional behavior from individual efforts to collective approaches to limit quality variances in online courses, theorized to be a major contributor of missed opportunities to learn at high levels, by developing and delivering reliable quality courses based on …

Creating An Engaging Environment For Adult Esl Learners In E-Learning Settings: Reducing Affective Filters And Cognitive Overload, Qian Liu

Master's Projects and Capstones

Countless online ESL programs targeting adult learners have emerged during the COVID-19 pandemic, especially since the unemployment crisis made people start thinking about self-improvement. This emergence of online education is a life-changing chance not only for the ESL education industry and teachers, but also for countless learners. This field project includes appropriate background, a review of relevant literature, and ultimately presents a free, online self-training session for novice online ESL teachers who teach adults.

Research that informed the creation of this project indicated that online second language education programs that use technological tools can lead to positive learning outcomes. Adult …

The Role Of Aesthetics In Classroom Design: Implications For Engagement And Equity, Giuliana Barraza

Master's Theses

The desire for achieving greater equity in education has been a prevalent topic of research, with many studies indicating that the current education system in this country is designed in a way that exacerbates initial inequities and has a negative impact on student motivation and engagement (EOCD, 2012). While existing scholarship mostly discusses equity and engagement through the lens of curriculum and instruction, the power of physical classroom environments and aesthetic elements present in those environments is less explored. With student populations becoming more diverse, there is a greater need for new tools for teachers to utilize in pursuit of …

Faculty Job Satisfaction Related To Online Course Design, April Marie Hixson

School of Education Doctoral Projects - Higher Education

Online education has expanded and evolved slowly through the decades, but the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020-2021 put online education at the forefront of teaching and learning worldwide and sped up the design and delivery of online courses. This study sought to examine faculty attitudes and opinions (amid a global pandemic) toward online course design that may affect their job satisfaction levels. Specifically, it explored factors that could inhibit or contribute to faculty job satisfaction during their engagement in online instructional design. Further, the study was designed to gain an understanding of how pedagogical and technological changes influence the degree of …

Power Of Near-Peers: Conceptualizing And Testing A Near-Peer Mentoring Model In Raising Youths' Self-Efficacy In Computer Programming, Chongning Sun

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Self-efficacy is seen as a barrier for youth, females in particular, to enter computer science (CS). In this study, I presented a near-peer mentoring model that focused on changing the mentee’s self-efficacy in CS. The present study had three objectives: (a) to design a near-peer mentoring model (i.e., a conceptual model) around the sources of information that influence self-efficacy, (b) to develop a mentor training model based on the conceptual model, and (c) to test the effectiveness of the training model in increasing mentees’ self-efficacy in the context of a summer App programming camp. The present study adopted a mixed-methods …

The Efficiency Of Using Three-Dimensional Models To Teach Lifting And Rigging Concepts To Learners Of Varying Spatial Ability, Matthew Atherton

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

In the literature on instructional media and its effects on learning, there is debate regarding whether a particular choice of media is essential for any given learning task. However, most studies that show conflicting results have not accounted for a differentiating learner characteristic known as spatial ability and its impact on the learner’s cognitive load when visualization is required. In this study, the interaction between instructional media and the learner’s spatial ability (specifically, their spatial visualization ability) was examined when the learner was required to work out a rigging problem in one of three ways: by manipulating a physical 3D …

Closing The Gap: A Course Design To Prevent Social Media Mishaps In The Clinical Setting, Stacy Gabbard

Morehead State Theses and Dissertations

A capstone submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Education in the Ernst and Sara Lane Volgenau College of Education at Morehead State University by Stacy Gabbard on April 8, 2021

Sculpting Organs: An Arts-Based Educational Activity For Anatomy Learning, Annika Gupta

Senior Theses

As an integral component of healthcare, a comprehensive understanding of anatomy is necessary for accurate clinical diagnoses and medical procedures. Beginning in undergraduate classrooms (premedical), there is a need to explore new ways of teaching and learning anatomy to train healthcare professionals. Traditional methods of attending a lecture and reading a textbook may not be the most effective method to learn about anatomical structures—or to engage learners. However, recent studies have reported promising results in the use of arts-based approaches to enhance anatomy learning. Of these, clay sculpting can provide an opportunity for students to participate in an active and …

Perceptions Of Burden In Needs Assessment: An Exploration Of Measurement Creation And Validation, Kim N. Pinckney-Lewis

STEMPS Theses & Dissertations

Needs assessment is a valuable tool in the instructional designer and performance improvement practitioner toolbox. However, it is often avoided due to perceived burdens associated with the needs assessment process. The current research explores needs assessment participants’ perceptions of four proposed components of burden, including: 1) duties, obligations, and responsibilities; 2) cost; 3) needs assessment facilitator skills; and 4) needs assessment facilitator systemic sensitivities. The researcher also developed and tested a Perceived Burden for Needs Assessment Participants Survey (PBNAPS) as a potentially reliable and valid measure of this phenomena. The PBNAPS proved to be both internally consistent (a= 0.86) and …

A Multi-Case Examination Of Training Of Self-Explanation When Combined With Worked Examples, Laura Leveridge Stapleton

STEMPS Theses & Dissertations

As more students enter higher education unprepared for college level mathematics, amelioration of deficiencies may be a key barrier which, once faced, will increase overall college graduation rates (Attewell, Lavin, Domina, & Levey, 2006). Corequisite courses offer the opportunity for the underprepared learner to take the gateway mathematics course with support (Complete College America, 2012). Upon passing, mathematics and STEM courses will “unlock,” thus allowing the learner to successfully complete their degree requirements. Faculty are challenged to retain the rigor of college-level coursework while supporting learners who possess a wide range of mathematics levels (Daugherty, Gomez, Carew, Mendoza-Graf, & Miller, …

Design, Development, And Evaluation Of An Artificial Intelligence-Enabled Chatbot For Honors College Student Advising In Higher Education, Reginald Saint-Aude Lucien

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Academic advising is seen increasingly as an essential function supporting the educational mission of universities. Institutions have made significant investments supporting academic advisors and student success initiatives by leveraging technology resources such as Canvas and Degreeworks. There is a rising need for technology that can assist academic advisors in their responsibility to guide students along the path to academic success and AI resources that promote more efficient use of human capital are positioned to meet that need. Chatbot applications can serve as a technology-mediated intervention for delivering information and interactive content to support student success.

This study aimed to design, …

Social Cues In Animated Pedagogical Agents For Second Language Learners: The Application Of The Embodiment Principle In Video Design, Sahar M. Alyahya

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study investigated the involvement of the Social Agency Theory within a multimedia learning environment to improve English language proficiency. The primary aim of this study is to find the effects of designing language learning instructional videos following the embodiment principle on language learners’ motivation, cognitive load and performance in production of the target language. According to Social Agency Theory, when multimedia learning includes social cues like an on-screen agent with humanlike features (e.g., hand gestures, body movements, eye contact, and facial expressions), the quality of learning will be increased. To examine the effect of the embodiment principle, the study …

Investigating Whether The Flipped Classroom Instructional Approach In Conjunction With Gender, Satisfy Students’ Basic Psychological Needs And Influence Their Chemistry Achievements In High School, Jordan Salhoobi

Theses and Dissertations

The current study aims to investigate whether the instructional approach (flipped or traditional) and gender (male or female) influence students’ sense of autonomy, relatedness, and competence, or influence their achievements in high school chemistry. Merrill’s First Principles of Instruction theory was used to design the flipped classroom (FC) implemented in this study as recommended by Lo, Lie, and Hew in 2018. The theoretical framework for the study is the self-determination theory (SDT) which posits that satisfaction of individuals’ psychological needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness, enhance their intrinsic motivation and performance (Deci & Ryan, 2002). Ninety participating students who enrolled …

An Asset-Based Approach To Problem-Based Learning In K-12 Stem, Samantha Heller

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-

Educators and policymakers advocate for the implementation of problem-based approaches to STEM education in K-12 classrooms to help students develop 21st-century skills such as the ability to think critically, collaborate, and problem-solve. The first exploratory case study in this three-article dissertation examines how students engage in STEM-focused PBL experiences and the meaning of these experiences for the development of their STEM identities. The second study utilizes Braun and Clarke's reflective thematic analysis framework to explore the experience of a model STEM teacher at a high-performing STEM-focused elementary school as she implemented problem-based learning in the first year of a school-wide …

Secondary Educator Experiences Using Social Media To Influence Students’ Empowerment Skills, Jacqueline Mary Roehl

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Social media is a sociopolitical phenomenon with the potential to impact people’s psychological empowerment. The problem is that little is known about the experiences of secondary educators who teach students to use social media in empowering ways for social change. The purpose of this study was to explore secondary educator experiences using social media to influence students’ psychological empowerment skills to understand diverse opinions about community issues and proactively work for social change. This study’s conceptual framework was connectivist theory that learning occurs through online connections and the psychological empowerment principle that people feel in more control when they understand …

Effectiveness Of Digital Interactive Experiment In Learning Outcomes And Engagement, Matin Salemirad

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-

Despite some ongoing debates over the positive or negative impact of digital games, educational games are powerful tools to increase engagement and improve learning outcomes. Scientific concepts about the weather are complicated for younger learners and deep learning often requires long-term cultivation. This thesis presents a novel interactive educational simulation called the Science of Meteorology with Interactive Learning Experience (SMILE). In it, students interact with a touchscreen monitor to change weather conditions and learn about clouds and weather science. The relationship between engagement and learning outcomes and the effectiveness of the experience is evaluated using a formal user study. Online …