Clickers, Best Uses and Benefits

<p>This study provides an analysis of the use student response systems in undergraduate and postgraduate classrooms. Research was conducted utilising a qualitative analysis approach, grounding theories by reviewing related literature, interviewing lecturers and conducting class observation. The study was carried out over two consecutive trimesters, summer 2010 and first trimester of 2011, at Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand. By conducting this research it is hoped to help improving the quality of teaching. Within this study, it was determined that student response systems are useful for both engaging student and increasing their overall enjoyment of the class. The benefit of using student response systems in the classroom was also found to be dependent on preserving the novelty of the technology and keeping students’ responses anonymous, by redesigning lecturers to have proper student response system questions in order to make the most out of the technology. Overall, this study determined that the decision whether or not to utilise student response systems in the classroom should be made based on the level of education of the class and its objectives, whether it is a lecture, tutorial or seminar, with clickers working best in large size, undergraduate classrooms.</p>

Re-imagining Technology Education for Student Teachers Using Human-Centered Design

This design case describes the implementation of the Human-centered Design process, developed by the world leading design firm IDEO and Stanford d. school. The process describes the technology integration onto a teaching credential program course at a university in Central California. It reports the thought process to adopting HCD in the course with a focus on a semester-long assignment called Technology Leap Project (TLP). The preliminary design decisions and the design process in depth. Each phase of the HCD process (i.e. Inspiration, Ideation, Implementation) was defined and its manifestation into the TLP was articulated and assembled with samples of students’ work. The case also discusses various merits and challenges for the design team of applying the HCD process in engaging student learning and responding to their learning needs. Finally, the revision plan was discussed.

IMPACT OF THE MATHEMATICAL MODELING ON CONCEPTUAL UNDERSTANDING AMONG STUDENT-TEACHERS

The present study investigates the effect of mathematical modeling on conceptual understanding among student-teachers. Also, the study proposes relevant materials and activities in mathematical modeling. Two classes of 140 student-teachers participated in the study. Mathematical modeling instruction was used in the treatment group, while the comparison group was taught by a teacher-centered method. T-Test results showed a difference between the treatment and comparison groups in terms of conceptual understanding. Moreover, the mathematical modeling group showed improvement in the knowledge, comprehension, and application of geometry and measurement concepts. The results of this study are novel as they are introduced to student-teachers to facilitate teaching mathematics among children. The researchers suggested engaging student-teachers in rich modeling activities, which would deepen their students' mathematics learning.

Engaging student employee expertise to improve Wikipedia edit-a-thons

Although academic skepticism of Wikipedia’s value as an information resource is widespread, the collaboratively created online encyclopedia is in fact one of the most frequently used health information resources in the world, including among students and professionals. As a result, the U.S.-based Network of the National Library of Medicine (NNLM) has, since 2018, organized biannual “#CiteNLM” edit-a-thons aimed at strengthening Wikipedia’s health pages by adding content and citations to trusted sources of information. The first #CiteNLM edit-a-thon was a one-day virtual event in April 2018; since then NNLM’s edit-a-thons have evolved into month-long campaigns engaging primarily academic libraries with in-person edit-a-thons as well as virtual events. Hundreds of students, faculty, and library staff across the country (many of whom were new to Wikipedia editing) have collaborated in NNLM’s efforts to support universal access to high-quality health information. To date, over 600 health articles have been edited by over 400 editors. The current #CiteNLM campaign structure makes it easy for either individuals or groups to contribute or host affiliated events, which can include classroom exercises, citizen science projects, or library engagement efforts.

Engaging student employee expertise to improve Wikipedia edit-a-thons

Since 2007, the University Libraries at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, has had a student employee peer learning program composed of six to seven undergraduate students. The Mason Undergraduate Peer Research Coaches, known as peer coaches, work within the instruction and outreach department co-teaching library instruction sessions and connecting with students through cocurricular outreach activities. When three librarians decided to plan their first Wikipedia edit-a-thon in 2017, the peer coaches became their collaborators. Since then, the peer coaches have developed lists of resources, identified notable individuals, evaluated Wikipedia pages, and worked with students during the event at orientation, citation, information, creation, and translation stations. They have also engaged in extra projects like creating playlists, designing swag, developing a trivia game, and pop-up tabling. Because of the collaboration with the peer coaches, the edit-a-thons have developed and grown far beyond initial expectations. In this chapter, we will share the background and institutional context for our university and Wikipedia program; detail the collaborative efforts of library faculty, staff, and peer coaches at each stage; and share reflections and recommendations from the peer coaches themselves.

Minecraft Education Edition’s Ability to Create an Effective and Engaging Learning Experience

Effective game-based learning is possible and incredibly important, as it provides effective, engaging, student-centered learning. While it has been successful for history learning, effective game-based learning for STEM subjects is scarce. This study explored Minecraft Education Edition's chemistry features and their ability to create an effective and engaging learning experience, as Minecraft's game mechanics along with Education Edition's chemistry features may provide a solution to the lack of effective game-based learning. The study was conducted with a lesson in Minecraft Education Edition, and participants took a quiz and reflection survey after the lesson to gauge Minecraft Education Edition's viability as a learning tool. While the data in the study was too limited to garner a conclusion on how Minecraft Education Edition affects the engagement and effectiveness of a lesson, it provides insight that not all students/players engage with Minecraft the same way, and discusses many factors that should be considered when creating a Minecraft-based education model.

A Bricklayer-Tech Report

Technology is playing an increasingly prominent role in all human endeavors, including education. Tech enables the realization of educational environments that are adaptive, interactive, and immersive. Such environments are well-suited for appropriately engaging student populations comprised of digital natives. Bricklayer is an educational ecosystem whose focus is on the development of visuospatial, mathematical, and computational abilities foundational to computer science. This article gives an updated report on the core (Ed)Tech elements comprising the Bricklayer educational ecosystem.