969 research outputs found
A Case Study on the Differences in Scores of Undergraduate Students in Traditional, Online, and Hybrid Classes
The primary purpose of this research was to ascertain whether there are variances in academic performance between students taking an educational technology course in traditional, online, and hybrid learning environments. As a secondary goal, the study assessed the differences in academic performance of male and female students in these classes.
All students in this study held an undergraduate status of junior or above. They had earned a minimum of 45 hours and had a minimum 2.75 overall GPA. These students also passed the certification test for state educators and had been accepted as teacher candidates of the College of Education in the Teacher Education Department at a state university in the southwestern part of the United States. The state university was designated by the United States Department of Education as a postsecondary minority institution. The students were given identical instructions and rubrics for a WebQuest project. Two different instructors taught each of the three types of classes in the study. The results were analyzed through quantitative investigation of the students’ scores for their individual projects. The WebQuest scores of a total of 1,052 students were collected over 14 semesters (fall 2009 through spring 2016). The scores involved students in 48 one-semester classes (16 traditional, 16 online, and 16 hybrid). Each instructor taught the students in eight of each of the three types of classroom settings, for a total of 24 classes for each instructor. The study was a casual-comparative research (ex post facto). Findings from the study may provide educators and curriculum specialists a resource for building better curricula and instruction for undergraduate classes offered in either traditional, online, or hybrid format; encourage academic institutions and policymakers to invest in learning systems in a variety of forms; and encourage students to access online and hybrid classes without concern about quality implications
Social Studies Preservice Teachers’ Views on and Experiences with WebQuest
The current study aims to determine prospective teachers’ opinions about WebQuest applications by both introducing them to the WebQuest teaching materials and obtaining their experiences in the WebQuest design process. This study employs phenomenology as a qualitative research approach. The study was conducted in the spring semester of the 2017-2018 academic year with the third year undergraduate students in the social studies education department of a state university in Ankara. Two different data collection tools, a Peer Evaluation Form and an Interview Form, were used. Content analysis was used to analyze the data obtained. According to the findings of the study, social studies preservice teachers think that teacher supervision of Webquest teaching activities is advantageous. Preservice teachers defined the specific principles of WebQuest teaching activities as a weak factor. Additionally, preservice teachers emphasized that WebQuest teaching activities are difficult to implement in environments where Internet and computer facilities are not available. Even though almost half of the participants stated that they wanted to include WebQuest teaching activities in their classes when they started the teaching profession, they expressed about their concerns
Web-Based Tools and Effective Delivery of Distance Learning for Tertiary Education in Nigeria
Nigerian Universities cannot admit more than a quarter of candidates seeking places in the Universities. There is, therefore, the need for evolving an alternative means of providing University education for this marginalized group. The paper dealt with the form Distance Learning should take in this regard and the media that can be utilized. There are avalanche of web-based tools that can be effectively used to enhance communication, demonstrate concepts in interesting way, get other teachers’ opinions about teaching issues, help students develop team work skills, and learn the use of internet responsibly, manage students records, enhance participation and assignments; improve students’ writing and research skills; motivate students to learn; create websites, send e-newsletters, and write collaborative documents with colleagues or students. These web-based tools include on-line forums, chats, conference management, learning management system, mailing list, weblog, simulation, collaborative management, on-line survey; wiki; webquest; school management; picture management; and content management system. Despite the availability of these tools, most Nigerian Universities are not adequately utilizing them. Factors militating against their application and use and how they can be remedied were suggested. The paper identified the features and workings of some of the tools and how they can be used to facilitate effective delivery of Distance learning, and how they can be adopted or adapted to suit our peculiar situations. Key Words: Universities, Media, Nigeria, Education, Distance learning, Tertiary education, Technologies and Admission
ESP For Ecotourism: Discourse Skills,Technology,And Collaboration For Job Contexts
This capstone’s primary aim was to design a companion instructional guide for teachers of English for Specific Purposes for ecotourism professionals in Mexico. It identified gaps left by traditional EFL courses that tend to lack strong connections between language instruction and real-world job requirements for English usage. It looked at curricular reform efforts in other world regions with the intention to innovate ESP instruction in Mexico. Findings include recommendations for student-centered curricula that incorporate multimodal learning activities and authentic contexts for tourism jobs. Multiliteracies pedagogy drove the creation of the instructional guide’s components, which provide support in conducting small-group projects to develop interactive discourse, online research, and digital design skills within communities of practice. The guide includes resources, materials, and instructions to conduct needs analysis, foster mutual support, build collaboration among stakeholders, facilitate situated practice with applied technology, and increase knowledge for cross-cultural communication
Design of online practical lessons in colorimetry
Applied colorimetry is an important module in the program of the elective subject "Colour Science: industrial applications”. This course is taught in the Optics and Optometry Degree and it has been used as a testing for the application of new teaching and assessment techniques consistent with the new European Higher Education Area. In particular, the main objective was to reduce the attendance to lessons and encourage the individual and collective work of students. The reason for this approach is based on the idea that students are able to work at their own learning pace. Within this dynamic work, we propose online lab practice based on Excel templates that our research group has developed ad-hoc for different aspects of colorimetry, such as conversion to different colour spaces, calculation of perceptual descriptors (hue, saturation, lightness), calculation of colour differences, colour matching dyes, etc. The practice presented in this paper is focused on the learning of colour differences. The session is based on a specific Excel template to compute the colour differences and to plot different graphs with these colour differences defined at different colour spaces: CIE ΔE, CIE ΔE94 and the CIELAB colour space. This template is implemented on a website what works by addressing the student work at a proper and organized way. The aim was to unify all the student work from a website, therefore the student is able to learn in an autonomous and sequential way and in his own pace. To achieve this purpose, all the tools, links and documents are collected for each different proposed activity to achieve guided specific objectives. In the context of educational innovation, this type of website is normally called WebQuest. The design of a WebQuest is established according to the criteria of usability and simplicity. There are great advantages of using WebQuests versus the toolbox “Campus Virtual” available in the University of Alicante. The Campus Virtual is an unfriendly environment for this specific purpose as the activities are organized in different sectors depending on whether the activity is a discussion, an activity, a self-assessment or the download of materials. With this separation, it is more difficult that the student follows an organized sequence. However, our WebQuest provides a more intuitive graphical environment, and besides, all the tasks and resources needed to complete them are grouped and organized according to a linear sequence. In this way, the student guided learning is optimized. Furthermore, with this simplification, the student focuses on learning and not to waste resources. Finally, this tool has a wide set of potential applications: online courses of colorimetry applied for postgraduate students, Open Course Ware, etc
Instructional technology portfolio (PDF)
Demonstrates the author's knowledge of and background in the field of instructional technolog
Exploring the impact of the implementation of a webquest for learning english in a 5th grade classroom of a public school in Pereira Risaralda
El propósito de este estudio fue explorar el impacto de la implementación de una WebQuest para el aprendizaje del inglés en un aula de grado 5° de una escuela pública en Pereira, Risaralda. Seis estudiantes utilizaron la WebQuest "Exploring the Matecaña Zoo", diseñada por las investigadoras, como estrategia de aprendizaje para practicar, mejorar y desarrollar su competencia comunicativa en inglés, teniendo como apoyo el uso de recursos de internet y la facilitación de las docentes durante el proceso de enseñanza-aprendizaje. Uno de los objetivos del estudio fue documentar las reacciones y las percepciones de los estudiantes sobre el uso de esta estrategia de enseñanza y aprendizaje, incluyendo las ventajas y desventajas derivadas de la utilización de la WebQuest. Para ello se realizaron observaciones participantes, entrevistas abiertas y un diario de campo de las investigadoras. Otro propósito de este estudio tuvo que ver con la idea de establecer el nivel de competencia comunicativa en Inglés de los participantes antes y después de participar en el Proyecto de la Webquest, con el fin de determinar el impacto de esta estrategia en el desempeño de los estudiantes en el área de inglés. Para ello, las pruebas iniciales y finales se llevaron a cabo. El estudio empleó técnicas tanto cualitativas como cuantitativas en el análisis de datos con el fin de responder a dos preguntas de investigación que implicaron la documentación y el análisis de la estrategia de instrucción, los resultados de aprendizaje de los estudiantes y sus reacciones y percepciones en relación con el uso de la WebQuest para aprender inglés. El análisis de los datos arroja los siguientes resultados: 1. Que la WebQuest tuvo un impacto positivo en el desarrollo de las habilidades orales y escritas en inglés. 2. Respuesta entusiasta de los estudiantes hacia el aprendizaje del inglés utilizando una WebQuest.
3. Que los estudiantes consideraron la webquest como una estrategia interesante y motivadora.
4. Que la WebQuest promovió el trabajo colaborativo de los estudiantes. En este sentido, el presente estudio hace recomendaciones pedagógicas para la implementación de WebQuests en las aulas de inglés como lengua extranjera y continuar la investigación en relación con esta estrategia.The purpose of this study was to explore the impact of the implementation of a WebQuest for learning English in a 5th grade classroom of a public school in Pereira Risaralda.
Six students used the WebQuest "Exploring the Matecaña Zoo", designed by the researchers as a learning strategy to practice, improve and develop their communicative competence in English, having as support the use of Internet resources and the facilitation of teachers during the teaching-learning process.
One of the objectives of the study was to document the reactions and perceptions of students towards the use of this teaching and learning strategy, including the advantages and disadvantages they found from the WebQuest. For this purpose, participant observations, open-ended interviews and field notes were conducted.
Another purpose that guided this study had to do with the idea of establishing the students’ level of communicative competence in English before and after participating in the Webquest Project, in order to determine the impact of this strategy on students’ proficiency in English. For this purpose, initial and final tests were implemented. The study used both qualitative and quantitative techniques to data analysis in order to answer two research questions that involved the documentation and analysis of the instructional strategy, participants’ learning outcomes and their reactions and perceptions regarding with the use of the WebQuest for learning English.
Data analysis shows the following results:
1. Positive impact of the WebQuest strategy on the development of writing and oral skills in English. 2. The WebQuest as an interesting and motivating strategy.
3. The WebQuest as a trigger for students’ collaborative work.
4. Enthusiastic response of students towards learning English using a WebQuest.
This way, this study makes teaching implications for implementing WebQuests in the EFL classrooms and for further research on this topic
WebQuests as an Integrative Experience in Introductory Environmental Engineering
An Integrative Experience was developed as part of an introductory environmental engineering course at Harvey Mudd College. The Integrative Experience was developed to help the college students consider the relationship of science and technology with contemporary society. Junior and senior students enrolled in the course designed WebQuests for middle school students. The WebQuests involved the integration of an environmental issue, problem, or technology and societal effects. WebQuests were designed for a middle school audience in order to expand the amount of engineering outreach that is done at the K-12 level. The HMC students chose WebQuests topics including nuclear and alternative energy; the Los Angeles aqueduct; farming practices and conservation; a cyanide spill in Romania; deforestation; air pollution; and energy conservation and planning. The WebQuests were tested by middle school students in Fontana, California to determine their usefulness in introducing engineering to middle-school students, and feedback was received
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