Education Commons^™

Some Big Questions About Design In Educational Technology, Andrew S. Gibbons Iii

Faculty Publications

This article asks five questions that lead us to the foundations of design practice. Design processes structure time, space, place, activity, role, goal and resource. For educational technology to advance in its understanding of design practice, it must question whether we have clear conceptions of how abstract conceptions are turned into physical artifacts capable of inspiring the intellect and the emotions to facilitate learning. These five questions hopefully supply topics for design conversations.

A Multi-Institutional Study Of The Impact Of Open Textbook Adoption On The Learning Outcomes Of Post-Secondary Students, Lane Fischer, John Hilton Iii, T. Jared Robinson, David Wiley

Faculty Publications

In some educational settings, the cost of textbooks approaches or even exceeds the cost of tuition. Given limited resources, it is important to better understand the impacts of free open educational resources (OER) on student outcomes. Utilizing digital resources such as OER can substantially reduce costs for students. The purpose of this study was to analyze whether the adoption of no-cost open digital textbooks significantly predicted students’ completion of courses, class achievement, and enrollment intensity during and after semesters in which OER were used. This study utilized a quantitative quasi-experimental design with propensity-score matched groups to examine differences in outcomes …

Historical Thinking Inside The Box: Preservice Elementary Teachers Use Journey Boxes To Craft Counter Narratives, Jeanette Alarcon, Kathlene Holmes, Eric Ruiz Bybee

Faculty Publications

This article details the “journey box” project process enacted by two elementary preservice teacher cohorts. Engaging in activities and projects that promote a sense of investment in not only consuming but producing historical narratives, preservice teachers potentially become interested in sharing this type of learning with their students.

Exploring Intensive Longitudinal Measures Of Student Engagement In Blended Learning, Charles R. Graham

Faculty Publications

In this exploratory study we used an intensive longitudinal approach to measure student engagement in a blended educational technology course, collecting both self-report and observational data. The self-report measure included a simple survey of Likert-scale and open-ended questions given repeatedly during the semester. Observational data were student activity data extracted from the learning management system. We explored how engagement varied over time, both at the course level and between students, to identify patterns and influences of student engagement in a blended course. We found that clarity of instruction and relevance of activities influenced student satisfaction more than the medium of …

Identifying High School Physical Education Physical Activity Patterns After High School, David Barney, Francis Pleban Dr., Carol Wilkinson, Keven A. Prusak

Faculty Publications

National standards for physical education (PE) encompass five principles for the purpose of defining what high school students should recognize and be able to perform as a result of a quality PE program. The expectation is that youth will develop as active healthy lifestyle into adulthood from activities and skills taught in PE. Researchers from the United Kingdom and the United States have identified team sports as the primary curricular design in high school P.E. However, it has been suggested the use of team sports is not as effective way to encourage students to be physically active throughout their lives. …

Physical Education Major's Knowledge Of Appropriate Instructional Practices In Middle School Physical Education, David C. Barney, Robert Christenson, Frank Pleban

Faculty Publications

For many years students have been exposed to inappropriate instructional practices in physical education, resulting in bad experiences and inadequate learning. Introducing pre service physical education (PE) majors to Appropriate Instructional Practices (AIP) is a recommended method of preparation. Unfortunately, many PE majors have been exposed to inappropriate instructional practice; thus they perceive those practices as appropriate to use in their teaching. To determine PE majors' understanding of AIP, 313 PE majors (161 males & 152 females) from 7 different institutions participated in this study. Based on incorrect responses it was found that PE majors believed that organizing students in …

Processes And Outcomes Of Theistic Spiritually Oriented Psychotherapy: A Practice-Based Evidence Investigation, Peter W. Sanders, P. Scott Richards, Jason A. Mcbride, Troy Lea, Randy K. Hardman, Daniel V. Barnes

Faculty Publications

Various approaches for incorporating spirituality into psychotherapy have been devel- oped, but few have been submitted to empirical scrutiny. The present article reports the results of a practice-based evidence (PBE) study, and demonstrates the value of PBE as a research strategy for the empirical evaluation of spiritually oriented psychothera- pies (SOPs). This approach involves examining the effectiveness of SOPs in routine settings, providing more externally valid results than randomized controlled trials. Outcome and process data for 304 clients at a private, religious, university counseling center were examined using a PBE methodology. Clinicians integrated a wide variety of spiritual interventions with …

Best Practices For Using Global Virtual Teams, Holt Zaugg, Randy Davies, Alan Parkinson, Spencer Magleby

Faculty Publications

As global economies and interactions increase, there is a developing need for students to have a variety of cross-cultural experiences. Traditionally these experiences have occurred through study abroad experiences and internships. With the advent of virtual technologies global virtual teams are an opportunity to provide students with a cross-cultural experience. However, stakeholders need to be aware of their roles and responsibilities in such an endeavor.

This article discusses findings from a three-year study seeking to integrate global virtual teams into regular classrooms. The roles and responsibilities of institutions, faculty, and students are discussed in this article.