BUILDING ACADEMIC STAFF CAPACITY TO SUPPORT ONLINE LEARNING IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES

2013 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Greig Krull ◽  
Brenda Mallinson
Keyword(s):  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Tertiary Education ◽  
Academic Staff ◽  
Online Communication ◽  
Distance Teaching ◽  
Online Learners ◽  
Web Technologies ◽  
Course Material ◽  
Practical Experiences ◽  
Online Communication Tools

Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in Africa face the challenge of responding to the expanding demand for tertiary education while maintaining or enhancing the quality of their course offerings. This has led to some HEIs introducing interactive web technologies to support their distance teaching and learning practices. However, academic staff at these institutions may struggle to provide sufficient support to online learners in part due to inadequate staff capacity in terms of familiarity with and use of online communication tools. This paper reports the practical experiences of building academic staff capacity within three southern Africa institutions, in order to initiate skills development and introduce foundational concepts in support of engaging online learners. The design of the course material is discussed and the experiences of the facilitators and participants are examined.

Education

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
José van
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Public Education ◽  
Big Five ◽  
Common Good ◽  
Business Models ◽  
Learning Processes ◽  
Online Course ◽  
Publicly Funded ◽  
Knowledge Based ◽  
Course Material

This chapter investigates how platformization is affecting the idea of education as a common good on both sides of the Atlantic. The growth of online educational platforms has been explosive, in both primary and higher education. Most of these educational platforms are corporately owned, propelled by algorithmic architectures and business models. They have quickly gained millions of users and are altering learning processes and teaching practices; they boost the distribution of online course material, hence impacting curriculums; they influence the administration of schools and universities; and, as some argue, they change the governance of (public) education as a whole. The chapter explores how, powered by the Big Five, these educational platforms are pushing a new concept of learning that questions values that are fundamental to publicly funded education: Bildung, a knowledge-based curriculum, autonomy for teachers, collective affordability, and education as a vehicle for socioeconomic equality.

scholarly journals Designing a scaffold for mechanistic reasoning in organic chemistry

2020 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicole Graulich ◽  
Ira Caspari
Keyword(s):  
Organic Chemistry ◽  
Contrasting Cases ◽  
Chemistry Teaching ◽  
Surface Approach ◽  
Reasoning Process ◽  
Mechanistic Reasoning ◽  
Key Factor ◽  
Course Material ◽  
Asking Questions ◽  
Deep Reasoning

AbstractDesigning problems and learning activities is a key factor to initiating students’ engagement with the course material and influencing their reasoning processes. Although tasks and problems are a central part of teaching and assessments in the chemistry classroom, they may not engage students in deep reasoning or in a way that is intended through a task. Some problems may cause an algorithmic or a surface approach. Even with designing clever problems, students may not use a larger variety of chemistry ideas and connect them in meaningful ways. Here the idea of scaffolding students’ answering process comes into play. Structuring students’ reasoning process through instructional prompts or structured worksheets supports students in activating and connecting knowledge pieces in a more meaningful way and positively slows down their fast decision-making process. This paper will discuss the importance of asking questions in chemistry teaching and highlights the idea of contrasting cases, drawn from cognitive psychology, as a task design principle. In addition to having contrasting cases as a good problem format, the idea of scaffolding students’ reasoning while solving contrasting cases through the use of instructional prompts that scaffold the reasoning process will be exemplarily showcased for mechanistic reasoning in organic chemistry.

The Syllabus Reconstructed: An Analysis of Traditional and Visual Syllabi for Information Retention and Inclusiveness

2021 ◽  
Vol 49 (2) ◽  
pp. 173-183
Author(s):  
Jerrod H. Yarosh
Keyword(s):  
Nontraditional Students ◽  
Critical Evaluation ◽  
Information Retention ◽  
Analytic Procedure ◽  
Lower Division ◽  
Visual Approach ◽  
Course Material

The current research examines whether a visual syllabus aids in information retention compared to a traditional text-based syllabus. The data derive from two lower-division sociology classes, each having a different syllabus format. Utilizing a syllabus quiz during the first week of the class provides the data about whether syllabus format matters. The data suggest the visual syllabus class retained more information given that students exposed to the visual approach scored significantly higher on a quiz than the traditional syllabus class. The current research presents an overview of why visuals may help in information retention with emphasis on the importance of inclusive course material and nontraditional students; an explanation of the data, methods, and analytic procedure followed by the findings; as well as a critical evaluation of and points to consider when creating a visual syllabus.

Nitrogen Fixation: Fixing the Gap between Concept- & Evidence-Based Learning with Legume Biology

2019 ◽  
Vol 81 (4) ◽  
pp. 250-255
Author(s):  
Christopher P. Krieg ◽  
Rebecca A. Valls ◽  
Sarah Vatland ◽  
Jennifer Gordinier ◽  
Stephanie S. Porter ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
High School Students ◽  
Student Attitudes ◽  
Environmental Science ◽  
School Students ◽  
Research Skills ◽  
Science Courses ◽  
Hands On ◽  
Course Material ◽  
Classroom Inquiry ◽  
Post Hoc

Students often struggle to connect concepts with evidence, sometimes because development of research skills has not been emphasized in their science courses. We developed a strategy and protocol to train high school students in research and experimental investigation of questions related to course material on legume biology. The richness of this subject matter allows for adaptations of our framework to address diverse areas of science, including principles in ecology, environmental science, agriculture, microbiology, and evolution. Our framework includes a hands-on classroom inquiry that investigates the symbiotic relationship between nitrogen-fixing rhizobial bacteria and legumes. This student-led, inquiry-based project employs an intellectually demanding, hands-on method of education to build critical research skills using an adaptable model and inexpensive materials. We also report positive student feedback from a post hoc survey to gauge student attitudes toward the activity and the effectiveness of this framework.

scholarly journals The Development of Instructional Materials E-Learning Based On Blended Learning

2017 ◽  
Vol 10 (7) ◽  
pp. 10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andi Kristanto ◽  
Mustaji Mustaji ◽  
Andi Mariono
Keyword(s):  
Blended Learning ◽  
Lesson Plan ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Instructional Materials ◽  
Media Specialists ◽  
Instructional Activity ◽  
Development Methodology ◽  
Global Issue ◽  
E Learning ◽  
Course Material

The use of e-learning is becoming the global issue now. In an educational field, there are many institutions already use it. The study very important aimed to test the feasibility and effectiveness the development of instructional materials e-learning based on the blended learning in audio/radio media development course. The background laid behind the problem is the experience the students had that is having difficulties in developing the audio/radio media manuscript. This caused by the limited time lecturer had to explain the screenwriting material, and duration the students had to write the audio/radio script, so it affected the lack of students’ understanding of the course material also to the students’ scriptwriting result which is not feasible to produce yet. Standard mastery of the subject specified within 6 (six) weeks in maximum, and the students should have been able to develop the script established on the rules of production. Thus, the outcome of this research would be the e-learning-based instructional materials based on blended learning, Semester Lesson Plan (SLP) audio/radio media. This inquiry aims at the improvement of the quality of the work of the audio/radio manuscript. This study implements the Research and Development methodology which is based on the steps generally refers to the opinion of Borg and Gall. The R & D steps was done with modified to simplify it into three main stages, namely the introduction, the development, and testing. Data obtained from the learning experts get the percentage of 91.67%, the course professionals and media specialists each earn a percentage of 100%. Based on these data, the model of blended learning instructional materials for the development of audio/radio media course that have been developed could be the solution of the research question stated that blended learning models of instructional materials that have been evolved are practical for use in learning instructional activity.

Open-Ended Curiosity-Driven Fluids Lab Project

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas G. Shepard ◽  
Christopher Haas ◽  
Rajagopala Menon
Keyword(s):  
Fluid Mechanics ◽  
Undergraduate Curriculum ◽  
Self Determination Theory ◽  
Field Trips ◽  
Student Interest ◽  
Great Opportunity ◽  
Hands On ◽  
Design Build ◽  
Course Material ◽  
Positive Results

The lab component of a fluid mechanics course permits a great opportunity for students to engage with course material. These labs can take many forms including field trips, guided inquiry exercises, formulaic lab exercises, practical/hands-on skill development, CFD and design-build-test projects to name a few. Previous literature on self-determination theory suggests that many positive results can be gained by giving students a choice in their studies. Related literature on the importance of curiosity in students suggests similar benefits. This paper describes a multi-week lab experience where students were given the opportunity to study anything remotely related to fluid mechanics with very few restrictions on implementation. The project goals were proposed by a student, or a team of two students, and then refined with the assistance of the course instructor to ensure proper scope. Pre-project surveys were used to gage the importance students place on studying material which is of personal interest and to determine how other parts of the undergraduate curriculum match up with student interest. Post-project surveys were used to gather input on the student experience of completing the curiosity project. This paper details the results from the various assessments and discusses feedback from the course instructor, lab instructors and students relating to project implementation, opportunities for improvement and some of the advantages of such a lab experience.

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