scholarly journals Teaching and Learning Without a Textbook

2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Hong Lin
Keyword(s):  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Course Design ◽  
Self Regulation ◽  
Cost Savings ◽  
Open Educational Resources ◽  
Instructional Materials ◽  
Introductory Course ◽  
Internet Connections ◽  
Study Participants

Given the upsurge of textbook costs, college students increasingly expect universities and instructors to offer alternatives to traditional textbooks. One textbook alternative is using open educational resources (OER). While OER unquestionably save students money, the question remains whether the adoption of OER (instructional materials) is aligned with open pedagogy (methods). This study investigated 46 undergraduate students’ perceptions of using only OER in an introductory course in a large American public university. As reported by study participants, advantages of using OER include textbook cost savings, access to dynamic and plentiful OER materials, that OER enabling mobile learning, and that OER foster the development of self-directed skills and copyright guidelines. Challenges reported include lacking a tactile sense with OER, slow Internet connections, unclear instruction and guidance, and insufficient self-regulation skills. Course design and implementation considerations were discussed.

scholarly journals Flipped Higher Education Classroom: An Application in Environmental Education Course in Primary Education

2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 93 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ozkan Yilmaz
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Learning Environment ◽  
Primary Education ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Flipped Classroom ◽  
Instructional Materials ◽  
Effective Learning ◽  
Instruction And Learning ◽  
Faculty Of Education ◽  
Study Participants

Usage of technology in educational settings is becoming a standard for 21st century’s learners. Flipped classroom presents an entirely new learning environment based on technology for students, thus requiring different research for establishing effective learning and teaching.This paper aimed to explore usability of flipped classroom in higher education from the perspective of students’ experience. The study participants are undergraduate students who are enrolled department of primary education in faculty of education. In study used a mixed-method to answer research questions. Students were post tested on usage of flipped classroom model in the frame of instructional materials attitude. And, focus group interview used to get students’ perceptions. One of the more significant findings to emerge from this study is that students’ attitude toward the flipped classroom were positive. The second major finding was that flipped classroom model is effective on: (1) Instruction and learning environment, (2) Individual changes.

scholarly journals Strategic Design toward Foundational Learning Goals in Introduction to Sociology

2019 ◽  
Vol 48 (1) ◽  
pp. 40-53
Author(s):  
Kimberly B. Rogers ◽  
Adam Nemeroff ◽  
Kelly Caputo
Keyword(s):  
Student Learning ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Course Design ◽  
Learning Goals ◽  
Introductory Courses ◽  
Present Evidence ◽  
Personal Learning ◽  
Introductory Course ◽  
Strategic Design

Scholars of teaching and learning in sociology have argued that introductory courses should teach toward foundational learning goals instead of providing an exhaustive review of the discipline. Nevertheless, prior research has provided far more guidance on what instructors ought to teach than how they can cohesively support learning across the goals advocated. Additionally, few studies have considered whether introductory course designs adequately address students’ diverse reasons for enrolling. To address this gap in the literature, we offer insights from our experiences with a redesigned introductory course tailored to support student learning in the areas recommended by earlier work. After describing our learning goals and the elements of our course design, which are grounded in empirical findings from the literature, we present evidence for the efficacy of this design in achieving key disciplinary learning goals, serving students’ personal learning goals, and attracting new and existing majors and minors.

scholarly journals Topology-Optimization-Based Learning: A Powerful Teaching and Learning Framework under the Prism of the CDIO Approach

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (7) ◽  
pp. 348
Author(s):  
Evangelos Tyflopoulos ◽  
Cecilia Haskins ◽  
Martin Steinert
Keyword(s):  
Topology Optimization ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Cost Savings ◽  
Optimization Method ◽  
The Finite Element Method ◽  
Educational Benefits ◽  
Learning Framework ◽  
Educational Framework ◽  
Academic Year

Topology optimization (TO) has been a useful engineering tool over the last decades. The benefits of this optimization method are several, such as the material and cost savings, the design inspiration, and the robustness of the final products. In addition, there are educational benefits. TO is a combination of mathematics, design, statics, and the finite element method (FEM); thus, it can provide an integrative multi-disciplinary knowledge foundation to undergraduate students in engineering. This paper is focused on the educational contributions from TO and identifies effective teaching methods, tools, and exercises that can be used for teaching. The result of this research is the development of an educational framework about TO based on the CDIO (Conceive, Design, Implement, and Operate) Syllabus for CAD engineering studies at universities. TO could be easily adapted for CAD designers in every academic year as an individual course or a module of related engineering courses. Lecturers interested in the introduction of TO to their courses, as well as engineers and students interested in TO in general, could use the findings of this paper.

scholarly journals Experiences with Using Videos in Distance Education. A Pilot Study: A Course on Human-Computer Interaction

10.28945/3472 ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 13 ◽  
pp. 269-277
Author(s):  
Herman Koppelman
Keyword(s):  
Distance Education ◽  
Pilot Study ◽  
Human Computer Interaction ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Information Science ◽  
Online Courses ◽  
Open Educational Resources ◽  
Introductory Course ◽  
On Line ◽  
Computer Interaction

The number of online resources available for teaching and learning in higher education has been growing enormously during the last decade. A recent development is the emergence of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) and of Open Educational Resources (OER). The result is a huge number of videos that are available on line. Can these videos enrich learning? As a pilot study we added sixteen videos to an existing introductory course in Human-Computer Interaction. This course is mandatory in the Bachelor programs Computer Science and Information Science (second year). Watching the videos was optional for the students. The videos originated for the most part from the MOOC Human-Computer Interaction, produced by Stanford University. We offered this course to a pilot group of eight students. The educational context was problem-based learning in distance education. The videos were welcomed by all of the students and were found to be useful in their learning process. The students watched the videos intensively and appreciated them very well. A main reason for the students to be positive about the videos was that they liked to alternate reading texts and watching videos.

Strategies for Effective Online Teaching and Learning

2022 ◽  
pp. 495-510
Author(s):  
Juan Carlos Mavo Navarro ◽  
Breeda M. McGrath
Keyword(s):  
Online Education ◽  
Online Instruction ◽  
Alternative Assessment ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Course Design ◽  
Universal Design For Learning ◽  
Open Educational Resources ◽  
Key Factors ◽  
Design For Learning ◽  
Accessibility Guidelines

This chapter provides readers with a comprehensive review of strategies for effective design in online instruction. The authors explore the traditional debate between advocates and critics of online education and discuss effectiveness in retention, engagement, and overall academic performance. The chapter differentiates between “online-first” course design and emergency remote delivery, as experienced in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Key factors include identifying engagement and communication strategies such as “ask me anything” sessions and tailored selection of resources. Open educational resources (OER), pre-recorded lectures, podcasts, and “online-first” textbooks are presented as appropriate and cost-conscious content options. Also included are alternative assessment ideas and universal design for learning (UDL) and accessibility guidelines. The chapter provides a continuum model for the transition of in-person courses to online instruction while conscious of both instructor workload/instructional support and expected level of learner workload and engagement.

scholarly journals Student-led development and evaluation of a community pharmacy-based cardiovascular risk assessment

2015 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Christine Filion-Murphy ◽  
Lyndsey Hands ◽  
Lyndsey Hockham ◽  
Laura Kirkpatrick ◽  
Sinead McNamara ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Risk Assessment ◽  
Cardiovascular Risk ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Course Design ◽  
Technical Skills ◽  
Adverse Outcomes ◽  
Cardiovascular Risk Assessment ◽  
Depth Analysis ◽  
The Ideal

Robert Gordon University’s key strength is employability (reflecting close liaison with the professions) and courses must therefore offer opportunities for work-based learning, which can be challenging in the current financial climate. This is a particular problem for Pharmacy: opportunities for placement are extremely limited and tend to be focused on the later years of the course. This ‘late and limited’ exposure to practice is thought to be responsible for significant failures in the ability of students and newly-qualified pharmacists to take their knowledge of science and medicines and apply it in the context of solving clinical problems. Furthermore, a lack of engagement with practice makes it difficult for the theoretical learning (especially the underpinning science) to be effectively contextualised, leading to an artificial segregation of the science and practice sections of the course. While pharmacists must be technically capable, success depends on a broader range of non-technical skills, including communication and empathy as well the ability to deal with the unexpected.  Simulation is used as a partial alternative to the practice environment, but there are often vast differences between these highly-managed scenarios and the real situations encountered in practice.  Since there is no ‘ideal’ setting for a pharmacist, students should be educated and trained with an understanding, at the forefront of their minds, of human factors - something which challenges existing course design. Teaching and learning activities must allow students to explore the differences between the ‘ideal’ and ‘real’ clinical environments and to recognise when deviations from the ideal are likely to affect patient safety. This paper discusses a piece of action research by MPharm undergraduate students, exploring ways in which such activities may be developed.  These new activities are based upon an existing cardiovascular risk assessment, currently used to deliver scientific theory and develop technical skills, and involving the identification of modifiable and non-modifiable risk factors and the use of these to calculate the ten-year risk of cardiovascular disease.The approach involved the building of two simulated scenarios, one representing an ‘ideal’ risk assessment and the other reflecting adverse outcomes arising as a result of practice-based problems.  Developing the simulations required an in-depth analysis of factors contributing to outcomes, and a combination of interviews with healthcare professionals and peer-peer focus groups were used to explore this. This paper discusses the challenges and learning points arising from this work, as well as an evaluation of the ways in which the work was used to enhance teaching in the academic session 2013-14.

Mobile Technologies Course Design

2020 ◽  
pp. 232-256
Author(s):  
Ozlem Zengin
Keyword(s):  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
English Language ◽  
Course Design ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
English Language Teaching ◽  
Mobile Technologies ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Ict Skills ◽  
Efl Teachers ◽  
Study Participants

Mobile learning has the potential to increase the opportunities to make teaching and learning available beyond the traditional classroom. The main aim of this study was to develop a mobile technologies course delivered online and explore the effects of this online course designed on mobile technologies on the use of ICT skills, attitudes, and views of EFL instructors. While employing mixed methodology, explanatory sequential research design was applied. In this study, participants were selected through convenient sampling and the data were collated through a questionnaire used as pre- and post-tests, followed by semi-structured interviews and class observations. The results of this study indicated that the online training course on mobile technologies had a positive impact on the use of ICT skills and EFL teachers' views in general. Further, attending the mobile technologies course delivered online was very beneficial and effective for the instructors in that it helped them to develop their skills on the use of mobile technologies in English language teaching.

scholarly journals Experiences with Using Videos in Distance Education. A Pilot Study: A Course on Human-Computer Interaction

10.28945/3438 ◽  
2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Herman Koppelman
Keyword(s):  
Distance Education ◽  
Pilot Study ◽  
Human Computer Interaction ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Information Science ◽  
Online Courses ◽  
Open Educational Resources ◽  
Introductory Course ◽  
On Line ◽  
Computer Interaction

The number of online resources available for teaching and learning in higher education has been growing enormously during the last decade. A recent development is the emergence of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) and of Open Educational Resources (OER). The result is a huge number of videos that are available on line. Can these videos enrich learning? As a pilot study we added sixteen videos to an existing introductory course in Human-Computer Interaction. This course is mandatory in the Bachelor programs Computer Science and Information Science (second year). Watching the videos was optional for the students. The videos originated for the most part from the MOOC Human-Computer Interaction, produced by Stanford University. We offered this course to a pilot group of eight students. The educational context was problem-based learning in distance education. The videos were welcomed by all of the students and were found to be useful in their learning process. The students watched the videos intensively and appreciated them very well. A main reason for the students to be positive about the videos was that they liked to alternate reading texts and watching videos.

scholarly journals An Analysis of EFL Learners’ Needs for Student-Centered Translation Course Design

2014 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 76
Author(s):  
Hui-chuan Wang
Keyword(s):  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Course Design ◽  
Skill Training ◽  
Descriptive Analysis ◽  
Cultural Knowledge ◽  
Instructional Materials ◽  
Learning Goals ◽  
Student Centered ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
Central Taiwan

<p><em>In recent years, translation learning has been a main focus of university language learners, but no studies in students’ needs have been explored for translation course design. Thus, the current research aimed to analyze EFL learners’ needs for student-centered translation course design. The subjects were 90 juniors from the Department of Applied Foreign Languages at a technological university in central Taiwan. The instrument was a 45-item questionnaire on learning goals, course planning, instructional materials, teaching and learning, and evaluation. Descriptive analysis was conducted on the Likert-scale questionnaire items to calculate frequencies, percentages, means, ranks, and standard deviations. The results showed that English-major students believed translation courses are required for both language and working skill training. The findings also implied that translation curriculum should involve more authentic materials, learning activities, and evaluation. The genres and topics selection need to take learners’ interests and small ‘c’ cultural knowledge into account. It is also suggested that classes be smaller to increase interactions between teachers and students. With explicit guidelines, group work in a translation course can lead to success in translation learning. The practical implications of the current study were also discussed. </em></p>

scholarly journals OER Awareness and Use: The Affinity Between Higher Education and K-12

2018 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Constance Blomgren
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Cost Savings ◽  
Learning Opportunities ◽  
Open Educational Resources ◽  
Educational Resources ◽  
Learning Activities ◽  
Teaching Culture ◽  
Open Educational Practices ◽  
K 12

Educators within Higher Education (HE) and K-12 share in the need for high quality educational resources to assist in the pursuit of teaching and learning. Although there are numerous differences between the two levels of education, there are commonalties in the perceptions of the purpose, practical uses, and challenges that abide in the use of Open Educational Resources (OER). Observations made while producing podcasts and videos for OER awareness, use, and championing, form an exposition of the merits of OER for HE and K-12. Benefits include cost-savings in acquiring resources for teaching and learning as well as user-generated content, instructor creativity, and contextualized and responsively timely learning opportunities. Additionally, the teaching culture of K-12 has historically supported the sharing of learning activities and learning resources. At all levels of education, OER awareness requires a deeper understanding of the changes to teaching and learning borne by open educational practices.

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