Effects of student‐generated diagrams versus student‐generated summaries on conceptual understanding of causal and dynamic knowledge in plate tectonics

This research examines the beneficial effects of student‐generated diagrams versus student‐generated summaries on conceptual understanding in the domain of plate tectonics. Fifty‐eight Grade 5 students read a brief expository text about plate tectonics. During their reading of the text, students were asked to either draw diagrams, produce written summaries, or simply read the text (control). Conceptual understanding was measured by the diagrams and summaries which were generated during students' reading of the text, as well as by a posttest which assessed students' understanding of both spatial/static and causal/dynamic knowledge of the domain. Results indicated that the summaries generated during the reading of the text contained more domain‐related information than the diagrams which were generated during the reading of the text. However, on the posttest measures, the diagram group outperformed both the summary and text only groups in terms of understanding both the spatial/static as well as causal/dynamic aspects of the domain. Results are discussed with regard to the differential effects that generating diagrams as compared to generating summaries or simply reading has on both on‐line comprehension during reading and resulting conceptual understanding of the domain. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 36: 39–53, 1999.     

The good,the bad and the wiki: Evaluating student‐generated content for collaborative learning

This paper explores the potential for wiki‐type open architecture software to promote and support collaborative learning through the use of student‐created content. It delineates some of the affordances and constraints of wiki software as an open architecture that has the potential to facilitate collaborative learning through community‐focused enquiry. It seeks to promote debate in this key area of development, and highlights some recent key contributions to the developing discourse on social software in what has been termed ‘the architecture of participation’.     

Reaching the students that student‐centred learning cannot reach

Student‐centred learning has the potential to engage a more academically diverse student body than the more conventional teacher‐centred approaches. In spite of the evidence in favour of student‐centred learning, a recent study showed that it was ineffective for around 30% of undergraduates in a large and diverse group studying business operations management. The possible reasons for this are explored in two ways. First, the literature relating to student engagement and participation is reviewed from three different perspectives: the sociological, the epistemological and the approaches to learning perspectives. Second, all three perspectives are applied to data generated from the original study within the context of a post‐1992 university. The advantages of a three‐perspective approach over a single‐perspective approach are discussed. Finally, the development of a holistic model integrating all three perspectives is called for, to be used as a guide for further empirical research into student engagement and as a tool for evaluating and developing inclusive and engaging learning environments.     

The Thinking Frames Approach: a case study of inclusion using student‐generated multiple‐representations

Many teachers struggle to provide equitable opportunities for students with special educational needs (SEN) to learn science concepts in the inclusive classroom. This study examines the experience of teaching in an inclusive classroom using a conceptual change approach, the Thinking Frames Approach (TFA), incorporating the use of discrepant events, social construction of scientific conceptions followed by the production of multiple student‐generated representations of their understanding. An in‐depth case study is presented of the experience of Wayne, a student with complex SEN and the effect on his behaviour and science learning based on video/audio recordings of lessons, teacher journal entries, student artefacts, questionnaire results and interviews. It was found that there were positive effects for Wayne's learning using this approach including improved behaviour, greater feelings of self‐efficacy, increased participation in small group and class discussions and improved outcomes on the same assessment tasks as peers. It is suggested that the structured approach of the TFA, the communication of understanding in different modalities, particularly drawing, and the support of peers enabled Wayne to more deeply engage in construction of understanding and may provide teachers with an easy and effective approach to authentic inclusion where real conceptual gains are made by all students.     

An investigation of knowledge‐building activities in an online community of practice at Subaru of America

Current approaches to workplace learning emphasize designing communities of practice that are intended to support both formal and informal knowledge acquisition. This article presents the design and research of a knowledge‐based community of practice for Subaru, based on principles outlined by Scardamalia (2002) and Zhang, Scardamalia, Lamon, Messina, and Reeve (2007). The purpose of this study was to investigate the extent to which participants' interactions in the online community showed evidence of individual and collective knowledge building. We found evidence of knowledge building within online discussions in these areas: interactions around improvement of ideas, connection to workplace knowledge and practices, and building on or adopting the ideas of others. We also found significant gains in scores on an assessment of workplace customer service after participation in the online community of practice.     

Developing medical students as teachers: An anatomy‐based student‐as‐teacher program with emphasis on core teaching competencies

Teaching is an increasingly recognized responsibility of the resident physician. Residents, however, often assume teaching responsibilities without adequate preparation. Consequently, many medical schools have implemented student‐as‐teacher (SAT) programs that provide near‐peer teaching opportunities to senior medical students. Near‐peer teaching is widely regarded as an effective teaching modality; however, whether near‐peer teaching experiences in medical school prepare students for the teaching demands of residency is less understood. We explored whether the anatomy‐based SAT program through the Human Structure didactic block at Mayo Medical School addressed the core teaching competencies of a medical educator and prepared its participants for further teaching roles in their medical careers. A web‐based survey was sent to all teaching assistants in the anatomy‐based SAT program over the past five years (2007–2011). Survey questions were constructed based on previously published competencies in seven teaching domains – course development, course organization, teaching execution, student coaching, student assessment, teacher evaluation, and scholarship. Results of the survey indicate that participants in the anatomy‐based SAT program achieved core competencies of a medical educator and felt prepared for the teaching demands of residency. Anat Sci Educ 6: 385–392. © 2013 American Association of Anatomists.     

The relative effects of experimenter and subject generated questions on learning from museum case exhibits

Fifty-five undergraduate education majors were randomly assigned to one of three treatment conditions as they entered the “walk-through” cave exhibit at The Florida State Museum. Subjects in treatment I received set induction materials directing them to enter the cave, to observe the cave carefully, and finally to read the information in five case exhibits after exiting the cave. Subjects in treatment II observed the cave exhibit, read the information in the five case exhibits, and answered two experimenter generated questions about each case exhibit immediately after reading the information in it. Subjects in treatment III observed the cave exhibit, read the information in the five case exhibits, and generated two questions about each case exhibit and answered them immediately after reading the information in each exhibit. All subjects received an immediate 20-item posttest. Seven of these items focused on observations from the “walk-through” portion of the cave exhibit. The remaining 13 items covered the information in the case exhibits. Analysis of variance indicated no significant differences between groups on the observation questions; however, a significant difference was detected for the case exhibit questions (p < 0.02). Follow up analyses indicated that subjects who answered the experimenter generated questions performed significantly better than subjects who did not answer any questions. Although no other differences were detected at the 0.05 level, the trend of results indicated that subjects who answered experimenter generated questions performed better than subjects who generated their own questions. These latter subjects performed better than subjects who read the case exhibits without answering any questions.     

Engaging students as partners in developing online learning and feedback activities for first-year fluid mechanics

Much learning takes place outside of formal class settings, yet students starting in higher education are not always well equipped with independent learning skills, appropriate self-knowledge or the required levels of intrinsic motivation This project used students as partners to develop resources that could be used by first-year undergraduates in fluid mechanics, using activities and receiving feedback through the virtual learning environment (VLE), in order to build these three attributes of independent learners. While there were significant benefits to the students who developed the resources, the target students saw much lower benefits as a result of poorer than expected engagement. The challenge this research presents is to develop activities that maximise engagement in large classes, as well as develop appropriate independent learning skills.     

Effects of mobile-app learning diaries vs online training on specific self-regulated learning components

Self-regulated learning (SRL) is associated with increased academic achievement and improved learning outcomes for students. Thus, it is import to find ways to improve SRL, such as through training. Face-to-face training, discipline-dependent training, and paper-and-pencil diaries are limited in the number of students they can reach. The current randomised control study implemented discipline-independent online training and novel mobile-app based diaries and tested SRL motivation and perceived strategy use in 73 University students from mixed disciplines and study mode. Results showed that participants in the combined condition (training with diaries) improved more than other conditions. Specifically, they improved on SRL knowledge, metacognitive strategies, cognitive strategies (elaboration, organisation and critical thinking), and resources management strategies (time-management and effort regulation). The present study extends previous findings, showing that positive effects can be found for SRL when a discipline-independent approach is used coupled with online training and a mobile-app based daily diary.

     

An online adaptive learning environment for critical‐thinking‐infused English literacy instruction

Critical thinking (CT) and English literacy are two essential 21st century competencies that are a priority for teaching and learning in an increasingly digital learning environment. Taking advantage of innovations in educational technology, this study empirically investigates the effectiveness of CT‐infused adaptive English literacy instruction using a Moodle system. A one‐group pretest–posttest design was employed to evaluate the effect of the treatment on students' acquisition of CT skills (CTS) and English literacy. A total of 83 students enrolled in two sections of a general studies course at a large university in Taiwan participated in the semester‐long experiment. Adaptive learning was achieved through the use of an online Moodle system for (1) online grouping (based on pretest English literacy scores), (2) delivery of specifically designed adaptive learning materials for each group and (3) provision of individualised feedback. CT‐infused language activities based on social constructivist principles were designed for each level of adaptive instruction, whereas direct instruction for fostering CTS was provided in class and practiced or reflected upon in groups. Empirical results demonstrate that CT‐enhanced adaptive English literacy instruction simultaneously improved students' CTS and English literacy and that students' online discussions developed towards higher levels of interaction. This paper illustrates an effective blended learning model for adaptive instruction and offers recommendations for designing CT‐infused language learning activities that can successfully foster both CT and English literacy outcomes.     

Adult learners in the workplace: online learning and communities of practice

Seven in‐employment postgraduate Master's level students in an e‐learning unit participated in this research, designed to identify tensions between participation in a community of learning that was part of their studies, and participation in the communities of practice that they were engaged in at their workplaces. It was hypothesised that participation in both these forms of community in their different contexts may enhance each other, or could potentially have a disrupting effect on each. The research employed an interviewing technique. The students' perceptions of the impact of participation in the one form of community on their participation in the other was mixed, with some suggesting that it was enhancing, and others suggesting the contrary, or that there was no impact. The findings indicate that the enhancing effect of participation in communities of learning relevant to a learner's workplace community of practice occur when the learning tasks are designed to enable negotiation of tasks and collaboration with learners who have similar workplace issues.     

The dynamics of online learning at the workplace: Peer-facilitated social learning and the application in practice

Research stresses the importance of social components in learning. The social contact with peers and tutors stimulates reflection and supports higher processes of learning necessary for the internalisation and application of new knowledge. However, merely proposing opportunities for interaction does not necessarily lead to fruitful discussion and collaboration. Social presence and facilitation are key concepts for successful mutual learning. Both are represented in Murphy’s collaboration model; social presence forms the basis of collaboration on which discussions and co-construction of knowledge evolve. Facilitation supports the entire collaboration process. In this paper, an adjusted version of Murphy’s model was applied to analyse 1085 comments shared in an online course between career practitioners of a public employment service. The results show that without a dedicated tutor, learners can still be involved in collaborative learning and co-construction of new knowledge provided that the topic under discussion is highly relevant and controversial. Learners themselves take over social presence and facilitation activities, but less frequently than when a professional tutor facilitates discussions. Ex post summative evaluation revealed that only a few learners applied the gained knowledge in the long-term. As comparisons with related research suggest, higher facilitation support leading to a higher cognitive interaction with the learning could have better supported the transfer to practice.     

Teachers' personal learning networks (PLNs): exploring the nature of self‐initiated professional learning online

In the field of Literacy Studies, online spaces have been recognised as providing many opportunities for spontaneous and self‐initiated learning. While some progress has been made in understanding these important learning experiences, little attention has been paid to teachers' self‐initiated professional learning. Contributing to the debates about learning online, this article explores three teachers' self‐initiated professional learning about digital technologies through their Personal Learning Networks. It reports the findings from a larger qualitative project and examines how the participants' digital literacy practices shaped their deliberate professional learning. The analysis identified several attributes of the participants' learning which, according to them, made professional learning appealing and effective: social, personalised, active and reciprocal, ongoing and blended. The article concludes by discussing how these findings can be used to draw out implications for teachers' professional learning.     

在线学习准备度对大学生在线学习投入度的影响

在线学习投入是保证"停课不停学"期间在线教学质量的重要条件。对大学生开展调查,运用描述统计和回归分析法对疫情期间大学生在线学习准备度的现状、大学生在线学习投入度的现状进行分析,可以发现在线学习准备度对大学生在线学习投入度的影响以及在线学习自我效能感、感知教师支持、在线学习平台体验在其中的中介作用。结果表明:大学生在线学习准备不足;大学生在线学习投入整体不高;大学生在线学习准备度对大学生在线学习投入度具有显著影响;在线学习自我效能感、感知教师支持、在线学习平台体验在在线学习准备度和在线学习投入度之间存在中介效应。因此,可以从技术支持维度、在线学习资源设计维度、教师支持维度着手提升学生的在线学习投入度。     

Effects of feedback on collaborative writing in an online learning environment

The need for supporting student writing has received much attention in writing research. One specific type of support is feedback—including peer feedback—on the writing process. Despite the wealth of literature on both feedback and academic writing, there is little empirical evidence on what type of feedback best promotes writing in online environments. This article reports on research that tries to determine what type of feedback best improves the quality of collaborative writing and what the effects of feedback are on student learning in an environment based on asynchronous written communication. The results reveal that concerning the type of feedback, epistemic feedback or epistemic and suggestive feedback best improve the quality of collaborative writing performance. The nature of the feedback-giver (whether teacher feedback or teacher and peer) makes a difference to the final text only when the feedback is epistemic, or epistemic and suggestive.     

A comparison between paper‐based and online learning in higher education

To date researchers have had difficulty establishing reliable conclusions in studies comparing traditional forms of learning (eg paper‐based or classroom based) vs online learning in relation to student learning outcomes; no consistent results have emerged, and many studies have not been controlled for factors other than lesson mode. This paper compares the effects of presenting two versions of lessons on punctuation that differed only in their mode of presentation. 59 students completed a pre‐lesson questionnaire, and after the lessons completed another questionnaire plus the NASA‐TLX which tests subjective cognitive workload stress. The results showed that students who sat the lessons on paper performed 24% better than those who sat the lessons online. Reasons for this difference in learning outcomes are considered, but no clear reason is apparent in the data from this study. The study sounds a note of caution in terms of the move by tertiary institutions to online and/or blended learning, and suggests further studies are required which assess learning outcomes in different mode of learning.     

The effects of practice and orienting activities on learning from interactive video

The purpose of this study was to examine the combined effects of orienting activities and levels of practice on learning from interactive video. Participants were 72 college students. Each participant was randomly assigned to an orienting activity group and to one of three practice groups: No Practice, Limited Practice, or Elaborate Practice. The lesson, which focused on characteristics of various artists and art periods, included practice for one half of the facts and applications cued initially via the orienting activity. The posttest included both new and repeated items for both facts and applications taught during the lesson. Results indicated significant main effect differences related to item familiarity and practice. In addition, interactions were detected between type of learning and practice, and item familiarity and practice.     

Effects of online note taking formats and self-monitoring prompts on learning from online text: Using technology to enhance self-regulated learning

This study explored conditions under which note taking methods and self-monitoring prompts are most effective for facilitating information collection and achievement in an online learning enviornment. In experiment 1 30 students collected notes from a website using an online conventional, outline, or matrix note taking tool. In experiment 2 119 students collected notes from a larger, more ecologically valid set of learning materials using the conventional, outline, or the matrix tool. One half of the students also received prompts designed to encourage self-monitoring. Results of both experiments indicated that the matrix note taking device was a superior tool for collecting information and for achievement. Results of experiment 2 indicated that self-monitoring prompts have a significant positive impact on notes taken and achievement as well. Results are discussed relative to self-regulated learning and perceptual enhancement theories.