Education Commons^™

Towards A Context Agnostic Platform For Design And Assessment Of Educational Games, Tyler Baron, Corey Heath, Ashish Amresh

Ashish Amresh

The majority of the games designed for improving, acquiring or transferring knowledge rely heavily on building game mechanics that are grounded deeply in the content or subject matter being taught. There is a growing need for educational practitioners and pedagogical experts to have the ability to easily map learning outcomes by choosing from a pallet of functioning game mechanics without having the need to redesign them from scratch. In this paper, we present the current state of the art in context agnostic design and assessment of educational games, and propose three strategies that educators can take advantage of during the …

Toward A Unified Validation Framework In Mixed Methods Research, Amy B. Dellinger, Nancy L. Leech

Nancy Leech

The primary purpose of this article is to further discussions of validity in mixed methods research by introducing a validation framework to guide thinking about validity in this area. To justify the use of this framework, the authors discuss traditional terminology and validity criteria for quantitative and qualitative research, as well as present recently published validity terminology for mixed methods research. The authors discuss the rationale for their framework and how it unifies thinking about validity in mixed methods research. Finally, they discuss how the framework can be used.

The Cu Online Handbook: Teaching Differently, Create And Collaborate, Patrick R. Lowenthal, David Thomas, Anna Thai, Brian Yuhnke, Susan Giullian, Donna Sobel, Connie L. Fulmer, Phil Antonelli, Laura Summers, Joanna C. Dunlap, Ellen Stevens, Dorothy Garrison-Wade, Patrick R. Lowenthal, Brent G. Wilson, Farah A. Ibrahim

Joanna Dunlap

No abstract provided.

Is Teaching Parallel Algorithmic Thinking To High School Students Possible? One Teacher’S Experience, Shane Torbert, Uzi Vishkin, Ron Tzur, David Ellison

Ron Tzur

All students at our high school are required to take at least one course in Computer Science prior to their junior year. They are also required to complete a year-long senior project associated with a specific in-house laboratory, one of which is the Computer Systems Lab. To prepare students for this experience the lab offers elective courses at the post-AP Computer Science level. Since the early 1990s one of these electives has focused on parallel computing. The course enrolls approximately 40 students each year for two semesters of instruction. The lead programming language is C and topics include a wide …

Interactive Tutorials In Canvas, Kate Conerton, Susan Schulz

Kate Conerton

No abstract provided.

Innovating Today’S Learning And Teaching To Engage Tomorrow’S Learners And Teachers, Daniela Signor, Kulari Lokuge, Anne-Marie Chase

Dr Anne-Marie Chase

The Brief & Expansive History (And Future) Of The Mooc: Why Two Divergent Models Share The Same Name, Rolin Moe

Rolin Moe

Within popular media, the massive open online course (MOOC) is presented as a novel idea created by maverick professors and further developed with a goal to further democratize education on bases of quality and cost. The perception of this sequence of events as modular history has perpetuated a difficulty in developing MOOC-related research and critique within the fields of distance and online education. At the center of this struggle is the MOOC acronym: its initial development was in 2008, and its use today happens in opposition to the theoretical and pedagogical elements of the 2008 MOOC. This paper endeavors to …

Business Model Design Games: Rules And Procedures To Challenge Assumptions And Elicit Surprises, Sune Gudiksen

CW Tsai

Previously well-established companies are currently struggling to secure profits, mainly due to the pressure from new communication technology-based business models. Because of this, the business model research field has flourished in recent years, but most of the applied approaches still rely on linear, rational conceptions and causal reasoning. Through three games and three business cases, it is argued that experimental game-like innovation activities can lead the way into another approach to business model development, called ‘business model design games’. This paper illustrates how the application of game rules and procedures can challenge business assumptions and evoke surprises that lead to …

Using Theory To Improve Design Instruction In A New Common First-Year Programme For Engineers, Una Beagon, Ted Bruke, Shannon M. Chance, C. Fionnuala Farrell, John Mcgrory

Shannon M. Chance

We represent a group of lecturers teaching a design module in a new common first-year engineering programme, delivered for the first time in the 2014-5 academic year, which provides a single entry point for all honours Bachelor of Engineering majors at our institution. In this paper, we describe the rationale and format of the Design Projects module. We explain how we used theories by Crismond and Adams [1] in the module and what we observed in doing so. The Design Projects module comprises three separate group-based design projects. It has four weekly contact hours over the entire academic year and …

Culture In Design, Technology, And Environment: Reflecting On Field Experiences, Kurt W. Seemann

Kurt W Seemann

Culture is a fuzzy kind of idea. We all point to it when we see it among others, but when asked to place a universal boundary around it to define it as framing much of what we do ourselves, we run into trouble. When we design and develop made worlds with, and for, other cultures, or when we think how we engage in the worlds made by others, the opportunity manifests itself to see how culture can be embedded not only in the choices made to create the artifacts, systems, or symbols but significantly in the socio-cultural and even natural …

Computer Game Design And The Imaginative Play Of Young Children, Irina M. Verenikina, Jan Herrington

I. Verenikina

This paper discusses preliminary findings of the study of computer game design in relation to current understanding of imaginative play and its developmental value for young children. The crucial role of children's play in their development is well documented. A number of criteria, which are essential in building a foundation for children's cognitive development in play, were identified based on a literature review of the theoretical and empirical studies of child's play. The identified criteria were utilized to observe two young children playing various types of computer games to explore the opportunities that the games provide for imaginative play in …

Where Learning Analytics Meets Learning Design, Lori Lockyer, Shane Dawson

Professor Lori Lockyer

The wealth of data available through student management systems and eLearning systems has the potential to provide faculty with important, just-in-time information that may allow them to positively intervene with struggling students and/or enhance the learning experience during the delivery of a course. This information might also facilitate post-delivery review and reflection for faculty who wish to revise course design and content. But to be effective, this data needs to be appropriate to the context or pedagogical intent of the course - this is where learning analytics meets learning design.

A Technology-Enhanced Multiliteracies Learning Design For Geography Education, Lori Lockyer, Barry Harper

Professor Lori Lockyer

Educators are being challenged to prepare students to effectively participate in our increasingly globalised society. Contemporary views of pedagogy suggest supporting learners by providing scaffolds for their engagement in real world tasks - tasks that provide opportunities to both explore and apply their learning through multi-modal expressions' within their diverse contexts. This article describes a project that draws upon the emerging views of multiliteracies in the design of a K-12 education excursion program. The multiliteracies learning design developed for .the program is applied to specific discipline-focused learning objectives and implemented within a technology-enhanced environment, which provides learners with access to …

Investigating University Teachers' Design Practices, Sue Bennett, Shirley Agostinho, Lori Lockyer, Lisa Kosta, Jennifer Jones, Barry Harper

Professor Lori Lockyer

No abstract provided.

A Journey Through A Design-Based Research Project, Wayne Cotton, Lori Lockyer, Gwyn J. Brickell

Professor Lori Lockyer

This paper discusses how Design-Based Research was utilised to inform the methodological design of a completed project conducted at the University of Wollongong in New South Wales, Australia. The project focused on the systematic development of an Electronic Performance Support System (EPSS) to assist K-12 teachers as they incorporated learning objects into a pedagogically effective learning design – a WebQuest. The paper specifically details the background of the project, the history of Design-Based research, why a Design-Based Research approach was adopted and how the approach was implemented. The paper also includes a discussion about the practical problems, issues and advantages …

Delivering Health Education Via The Web - Design And Formative Evaluation Of A Discourse-Based Learning Environment., Lori Lockyer, John Patterson, Barry Harper

Professor Lori Lockyer

Constructivist learning theory suggests that important components of the learning process are learner interaction and discourse. The nature of health education is such that emphasis is placed on discussion of health attitudes, beliefs, values, and behaviours as a key instructional strategy. It follows then, that health education learning environments designed using constructivist learning principles and employing instructional strategies that allow for learner discourse and interaction should contribute to knowledge construction and attitude change. The rapid development of the World Wide Web and its increasing use for educational purposes provides a unique medium for such a learning environment. This increasing utilisation …

Establishing Design Principles For Online Synchronous Literacy Learning For Indigenous Learners, Michelle Eady, Anthony Herrington, Caroline Jones

Michelle Eady

Synchronous learning has the potential to provide literacy and essential skills training to Indigenous learners living in remote and isolated communities. Although there is considerable research completed in the area of internet-based learning technologies in general, there is very little research in the area of online synchronous learning opportunities for remote Indigenous learners. This paper presents the results and theoretical framework of the first and second phases of a four phase design-based research approach that aims to establish design principles to guide the future development of synchronous online literacy services for Indigenous learners living in remote Australian communities.

Bringing The University Into The Rural Community, The Value And Dangers Of Taking Design Education Out Of The Classroom, B. Canniffe, D. Adams, B. Wiley

Brian M. Wiley

Art and design education prepares students for careers that increasingly don't exist, and further compounds this issue by purveying the myth that these supposed opportunities exist in major cities where jobs are scarce and cost-of-living is overwhelming. While there are many potential reasons for this, the end result is that students, already saddled with an increased debt-load, are progressively destined to fail.

During the summer of 2012, the Minneapolis College of Art and Design (MCAD) in partnership with the Bush Foundation engaged with two rural communities in the Western and Northern areas of Minnesota, USA, to develop meaningful partnerships that …

A School-Based Intervention To Promote Physical Activity Among Adolescent Girls: Rationale, Design, And Baseline Data From The Girls In Sport Group Randomised Controlled Trial, Anthony D. Okely, Wayne G. Cotton, David R. Lubans, Philip J. Morgan, Lauren M. Puglisi, Judy Miller, Jan Wright, Marijka Batterham, Louisa Peralta, Janine Perry

Dr Marijka Batterham

Background: Physical activity levels decline markedly among girls during adolescence. School-based interventions that are multi-component in nature, simultaneously targeting curricular, school environment and policy, and community links, are a promising approach for promoting physical activity. This report describes the rationale, design and baseline data from the Girls in Sport group randomised trial, which aims to prevent the decline in moderate-to-vigorous intensity physical activity (MVPA) among adolescent girls. Methods/design: A community-based participatory research approach and action learning framework are used with measurements at baseline and 18-month follow-up. Within each intervention school, a committee develops an action plan aimed at meeting the …

How Design Can Get Kids On The Path To Tech Careers: A Conversation With Dr. Stephanie Pace Marshall, The Founder Of A New Type Of Science And Math Academy, Stephanie Marshall

Stephanie Pace Marshall, Ph.D.

An interview with Dr. Stephanie Pace Marshall about educational design and the design of the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy. "IMSA sought not only to develop decidedly different scientific minds, but also to develop a decidedly different residential learning community -- one that was nurturing and innovative, and one that instilled a sense of stewardship, and an obligation to give back. As a dynamic teaching and learning laboratory, IMSA continues to evolve, yet the roots of our founding ideas and goals remain."

The Power To Transform: Leadership That Brings Learning And Schooling To Life, Stephanie Pace Marshall

Stephanie Pace Marshall, Ph.D.

The Power to Transform is a call to re-conceive and re-design schooling. Rather than offer “best practices” or “prescriptive solutions,” it invites leaders of all ages and walks of life to think differently about learning and schooling. It illuminates the “why” and “what” of educational transformation and explores its deepest roots. It offers new language, new design principles, a new framework, and a new map for creating vibrant, imaginative and adaptive learning landscapes that integrate the dynamic properties of living systems with the generative principles of learning. It is from this natural integration that the new story of learning and …

Igniting And Nurturing The Next Generation Of Stem Talent, Innovation And Leadership, By Design, Stephanie Pace Marshall

Stephanie Pace Marshall, Ph.D.

Regrettably, most American students experience STEM learning as an exclusive, individual, theoretical and “formulaic” enterprise. By decoupling STEM education from the human experience, we have distorted the essential nature of the scientific enterprise and advanced instrumentalist and utilitarian rationales for pursuing STEM careers—global economic superiority and technological competition.

A Semi-Automatic Approach For Project Assignment In A Capstone Course, Mark Chang, Allen Downey

Mark L. Chang

This paper presents a semi-automatic approach to assigning students to project teams for a year-long, industry-sponsored senior capstone course. Successful assignment requires knowl- edge of at least individual project requirements, student skills, student personalities, and student project preferences. This mix of hard skills, soft skills, and interpersonal impres- sions requires human involvement to produce a high-quality assignment. The importance of faculty input often requires that the assignment process be labor- and time-intensive.

Our approach attempts to reduce the time required to perform this assignment by selectively automating parts of the task flow. An automated search uses a randomized greedy algorithm …

Work In Progress - Synthesizing Design, Engineering, And Entrepreneurship Through A Mobile Application Development Course, Mark L. Chang

Mark L. Chang

In this paper, we describe our experiences in designing and delivering a course that blends together design, engineering, and entrepreneurship through the use of mobile devices. The significance of this work is in advocating for and demonstrating the motivational and educational benefits of using a mobile platform, and describing how to utilize the mobile marketplace to provide an authentic, real-world experience across these three domains.

How Can We Nurture And Develop Creativity In First Year Design Students?, Kerry Meakin

Kerry Meakin

This research paper investigates the perceptions of first year third level design students in regards to their creative thinking and use of creative strategies, while studying a first year design based curriculum in an Institute of Technology in Dublin. The research aimed to question students in a three-phase, sequential project. The first phase, questioned twenty seven students by issuing anonymous questionnaires to gather data on their methods of incubating design ideas, if they experienced any levels of anxiety when doing so, and their satisfaction levels in their design and creative abilities. Literature was reviewed to discover the attributes of those …

A School-Based Intervention To Promote Physical Activity Among Adolescent Girls: Rationale, Design, And Baseline Data From The Girls In Sport Group Randomised Controlled Trial, Anthony D. Okely, Wayne G. Cotton, David R. Lubans, Philip J. Morgan, Lauren M. Puglisi, Judy Miller, Jan Wright, Marijka Batterham, Louisa Peralta, Janine Perry

A. D. Okely

Background: Physical activity levels decline markedly among girls during adolescence. School-based interventions that are multi-component in nature, simultaneously targeting curricular, school environment and policy, and community links, are a promising approach for promoting physical activity. This report describes the rationale, design and baseline data from the Girls in Sport group randomised trial, which aims to prevent the decline in moderate-to-vigorous intensity physical activity (MVPA) among adolescent girls. Methods/design: A community-based participatory research approach and action learning framework are used with measurements at baseline and 18-month follow-up. Within each intervention school, a committee develops an action plan aimed at meeting the …

Designing Professional Development For Better Pedagogy: A Higher Education Experience In Pakistan, Imran Anjum Chaudary, Shahida Imran

Dr Imran Anjum

The mission of the Designing Professional Development for Better Pedagogy is to make a contribution to the understanding of Pakistani professional development in tertiary and higher education sectors. The inspiration for this book came from a research project on teacher development conducted by us in 2009 at the Melbourne Graduate school of Education, the University of Melbourne, Australia. This ethnographic case study, conducted in 2011, not only refreshes the results of our previous research, but also moves the debate forward by analysing the problems and practices of Pakistani professional development, cataloguing the voices of tertiary/higher education teachers, introducing a new …

Understanding The Design Context For Australian University Teachers: Implications For The Future Of Learning Design, Susan Bennett, Lisa Thomas, Shirley Agostinho, Lori Lockyer, Jennifer Jones, Barry Harper

Professor Lori Lockyer

Based on the premise that providing support for university teachers in designing for their teaching will ultimately improve the quality of student learning outcomes, recent interest in the development of support tools and strategies has gained momentum. This article reports on a study that examined the context in which Australian university teachers design in order to understand what role design support tools and strategies could play. In-depth interviews were conducted with 30 academics across 16 Australian universities. The findings suggest that most Australian university teachers have a high degree of flexibility in their design decisions suggesting that opportunities exist for …

An Examination Of Learning Design Descriptions In A Repository, Shirley Agostinho, Susan J. Bennett, Lori Lockyer, Lisa Kosta, Jennifer Jones, Barry Harper

Professor Lori Lockyer

The past decade has seen a significant expansion of flexible learning in higher education as new communication technologies have broadened the scope and potential for online learning. With this expansion has come the need for pedagogically sound learning experiences and an interest in reusing effective pedagogical designs. The concept of a ‘learning design’ - a formalism for documenting educational practice to facilitate sharing and reuse by teachers, is being researched as one way of supporting dissemination of ‘best practice’. This paper reports an analytical study that sought to advance understanding of what constitutes an effective learning design description based on …

Learning Designs: Bridging The Gap Between Theory And Practice, S. Bennett, S. Agostinho, Lori Lockyer, Lisa Kosta, J. Jones, R. Koper, Barry Harper

Professor Lori Lockyer

This paper summarises the work being conducted in an ongoing research agenda focused on exploring how the ‘learning design’ construct can be used to support university educators to create both pedagogically sound and interoperable e-learning experiences. The premise of this work is that a learning design can be used to support the pedagogical design process and the integration of international e-learning standards, such as learning object metadata and IMS-LD, enabling resources and tools to be technically interoperable across different standards-compliant systems. The paper presents the rationale guiding this research focus, describes the features of the research that is underway, and …