Optimizing the Learning Experience: Examining Interactions Between the Individual Learner and the Learning Context

Author(s):  
Summer Rebensky ◽  
Maria Chaparro ◽  
Meredith Carroll
2021 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Elif Aydoğan ◽  
Ali Derya Atik ◽  
Ergin Şafak Dikmen ◽  
Figen Erkoç

Abstract Objective Mobile applications, social media platforms are changing Internet user behavior; creating a new era of education in a connected world. We have previously reported training needs of health providers in the climate change. Aim is to develop and test an Android® Mobile app as an effective smart learning environment for climate change health impacts. Materials and methods The quasi-experimental design method was used in five phases: easy-to-reach, rich content Mobile app design and development for Android® operating system, scale development, finalizing scales to be used, implementation, data collection, analysis. Dependent t-test of pre-test and post-test awareness scores was analyzed. Usability and satisfaction were assessed with two scales; quantitative data with descriptive statistics. Results The developed Mobile app was effective in enhancing students’ learning experience, and well-received in terms of adopting and using such technology for educational purposes. Pre-test and post-test scores different statistically (p<0.05); increasing participants’ awareness level and were satisfied. Conclusion We conclude that our Mobile app, m-learning project, is successfully incorporated into the learning context; when tested, raised awareness about climate change and health effects for the public. To our knowledge, no currently existing tool to provide new mobile application for climate change education and promote awareness exists.


2021 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 134-148
Author(s):  
Natasha Tzanova ◽  
◽  
Nadezhda Raycheva ◽  
Isa Hadjiali ◽  
◽  
...  

In historical aspect, the skill is among the key categories in the realm of human practice, which are often an object of different researches – psychological, pedagogical, and last but not least methodological. This is a fact, because the skill is a vital term for the description of productivity of learning experience at least in two dimensions – personally fundamental, guaranteeing its effective functioning in different situations and personally pragmatic, as a multi-level transformation of the cognitive experience, for the completion of certain social roles and the necessary qualities of the subject for this. The skill is a blend between those two dimensions of productivity both in higher education and in secondary school. The reflective skills are a structural and functional part of the transformation of the cognitive, affective, and psycho-motor experience and as such are included in the individual educational reality of the subject, and to a higher degree it defines it. This is the reason why the constructive-prognostic analysis of the reflective skill in the area of Methodology is pointing at the answer of the questions: What is this, what is its structure, how does it get integrated in the system of skills, how does it form and develop. The answers of those questions are basis of its methodological decoding in the process of training teachers and students in Biology. All of this describes the territory of the methodological context of analysing the reflective skill.


2016 ◽  
pp. 792-815
Author(s):  
Raymond Szmigiel ◽  
Doris Lee

Avatars are virtual agents or characters that graphically represent users within virtual environments. Avatars can be implemented in three-dimensional (3-D) virtual environments for training purposes. While there are promising findings indicating that avatars can enhance the learning experience, conclusive and generalized evaluations cannot be made at this time. The effectiveness of these virtual agents in a learning context remains an open question. The purpose of this chapter is to present background information on the definitions and use of avatars in e-based, virtual learning environments and to address the applicability of avatars to ubiquitous learning (u-learning). This chapter examines the available empirical research on the effectiveness of avatars in facilitating social interactivity, motivation, and collaborative learning in 3-D environments. Finally, this chapter provides suggestions for future studies on the design of avatars in both e- and u-learning.


Author(s):  
Tara Laughlin

Current systems of education, both K12 and postsecondary, are leaving learners unprepared for the future of work. Standardized, compliance-oriented approaches to teaching and learning are inequitable and are not responsive enough to meet individual learner needs. A learner-centered educational paradigm has emerged which seeks to disrupt traditional models of education by centering the individual needs of learners in all learning experiences. At the same time, the alternative educational model of micro-credentialing holds great promise to improve workforce readiness. While the fields of learner-centered education and micro-credentials are simultaneously gaining traction, their possible intersections have yet to be fully explored. Micro-credentials have the potential to ready learners for the future of work while providing a deeply relevant, learner-centered experience. This chapter lays out a vision for exactly what this might look like and why it matters for learners.


2013 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 19-26 ◽  
Author(s):  
Muzammil M. Baig

Personal Learning Environments (PLEs) help the learners to take control of their learning. PLEs enable the learners to set their own leaning targets and manage their learning by communicating with others in the process of learning. As latest technological advancements have brought revolution in every field of life, so as in the PLEs. Modern PLEs are the integration of a number of latest technologies i.e. blogs, Wikis, RSS feeds, where content is shaped as per the individual needs and interests of the students. Focusing on these latest aspects of the PLEs, University of South Australia initiated a three year new learning platform project in 2010, called LearnOnline, which will replace the University's current online teaching environment UniSAnet. LearnOnline was launched with a vision to foster richer learning through promoting students' active involvement in their courses and involving the students in a deeper learning experience. LearnOnline is built on modular approach and consists of different components i.e. ePortfolio, Course Outline, Lecture Recording, Copyright Monitoring, Student Email, Assessment and Feedback, Virtual Classroom, Course and Teacher Evaluation. Each component is developed separately and is fully independent. This methodology is helping the incremental implementation of the LearnOnline. As soon as a component is completed, after testing, it becomes the part of LearnOnline. In this paper, the author explains the features and workings of LearnOnline in detail and also evaluates its design methodologies.


2019 ◽  
Vol 37 (2) ◽  
pp. 543-559
Author(s):  
Tomás Izquierdo Rus ◽  
Elena Asensio Martínez ◽  
Andrés Escarbajal Frutos ◽  
Javier Rodríguez Moreno

La universidad es un contexto de aprendizaje, en el que el alumnado es el responsable de tomar sus propias decisiones, controlar su propio proceso de aprendizaje y las interacciones que intervienen en él. En los grados como el de Educación Primaria, el progreso del aprendizaje no depende sólo de un individuo, sino del esfuerzo conjunto de un grupo de iguales, cuyo desempeño se ve reflejado en el aprendizaje individual. Así, los objetivos del presente trabajo han sido establecer cómo se desarrolla el concepto de trabajo en grupo y las estrategias que ponen en marcha para llevarlo a cabo en función de su satisfacción. Los participantes de esta investigación han sido 523 estudiantes del Grado de Educación Primaria de las Universidades de Murcia y de Jaén. Para ello se ha utilizado un cuestionario tipo Likert con cuyos resultados se ha establecido una comparación entre el alumnado que inicia el grado en Educación Primaria y aquellos que ya tienen varios años de experiencia en el ambiente universitario. Destacar como principales resultados y conclusiones que el alumnado desarrolla un concepto del trabajo en grupo que se mantiene estable en el tiempo. Sin embargo, la utilidad que creen que les reporta el trabajo en grupo sí puede cambiar, influenciados por las exigencias del contexto. Así mismo, cuando el alumnado está satisfecho con el trabajo de su grupo confían más en sus propias habilidades y capacidades para construir su conocimiento. The university is a learning context, where the students are responsible for making their own decisions and controlling their own learning process and the interactions that intervene in it. Not only that, in degrees such as Primary Education, the progress of learning does not depend only on an individual, but on the joint effort of a peer group, whose performance is reflected in the individual learning. Thus, the objectives of this paper have been to establish how the concept of group work is developed and the strategies that are put in place to carry it out according to their satisfaction. The participants of this research have been 523 students of the Degree of Primary Education of the University of Murcia and the University of Jaen. To this end, a Likert questionnaire has been used, with the results of which a comparison has been established between the students who start the degree in Primary Education and those who already have several years of experience in the university environment. The main results and conclusions confirm that the students develop a concept of group work that remains stable over time. However, the usefulness that they believe that group work brings can change, influenced by the demands of the context. Additionally, when students are satisfied with the work of their group, they rely more on their own skills and abilities to build their knowledge.


2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah Atayero ◽  
Kate Dunton ◽  
Sasha Mattock ◽  
Amanda Gore ◽  
Sarah Douglas ◽  
...  

PurposeInterdisciplinary approaches to health education are becoming increasingly common. Here, the authors describe an arts-based approach designed by academics and artists to both supplement the study of mental illness and support the individual mental health of undergraduate and postgraduate university students, by raising the visibility of mental illness in an innovative way.Design/methodology/approachThrough workshops, university students were guided in a sensory and physical way to discuss psychological health and vulnerability. This was followed by the creation of physical representations of mental distress through art pieces.FindingsStudents were able to design their own art pieces and discuss mental health issues in an open and creative way. Students reported that the arts-based initiative was beneficial to their practice as future professionals and provided a holistic learning experience. At the same time, artists were able to generate powerful images which facilitated further discussions within the faculty.Practical implicationsThis project provides an innovative model for workshops which could be employed to raise the visibility of common mental health disorders among university students while providing a safe space to discuss and support wellbeing. Additionally, variations could be implemented to enhance the teaching of affective disorders within a university curriculum.Originality/valueThis paper presents the results of collaboration between academics and artists, who together generated an innovative way to both support students' mental health and provide an alternative way to supplement experiential learning about common mental health conditions such as anxiety and depression.


2017 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
pp. 40-44 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karl K. Szpunar

Mind wandering—a mental phenomenon characterized by the spontaneous shift of attention away from external stimulation toward self-generated thought—has been consistently shown to have a negative impact on learning, yet little is known about how to reduce or redirect the experience in educational settings. In this article, I distinguish between approaches to directing mind wandering that focus on either the detection of lapses of attention (reactive) or restructuring of the learning environment (proactive) and argue that proactive approaches avoid issues of implementation that currently limit reactive approaches. I then review emerging research on a proactive approach to reducing and redirecting mind wandering that involves interpolating lecture-based content with brief memory tests, and further elaborate on the benefits of interpolated testing in other educationally relevant contexts. I conclude by highlighting that proactive approaches to creating attentive learning environments will also need to take into account characteristics of the individual learner.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document