Intramural, collaborative learning systems

This thesis focuses on three related concepts: problem-based collaborative learning; the use of multimedia tools in learning systems; and participatory design as a software engineering methodology to create multimedia tools to be used in learning systems. A literature review of the three areas is followed by an overview of the pedagogical, technological, and business trends that affect the direction of innovation in education, including problem-based learning. A discussion of a software engineering project to develop a multimedia application that enhances the learning of geography skills and puts the programming, interface design and multimedia systems capabilities of college students into action ensues. The project results are presented, and suggestions for future research are proposed

Mobile Robotics

The book is a collection of ten scholarly articles and reports of experiences and perceptions concerning pedagogical practices with mobile robotics.“This work is funded by CIEd – Research Centre on Education, project UID/CED/01661/2019, Institute of Education, University of Minho, through national funds of FCT/MCTES-PT.

The simulation method : a teaching technique for environmental education in secondary schools

Bibliography: pages 196-203.The need to establish teaching techniques for Environmental Education in the South African secondary school context was perceived. The simulation method was identified as one such technique which became the focus of this study, because it was believed by the researcher to be compatible with the aims and objectives of Environmental Education. A simulation activity aimed at Standard 9 pupils was devised (based on a particular environmental issue i.e. nuclear vs coal-powered electricity generation). To demonstrate that this activity could affect pupils' environmental knowledge, concepts, attitudes and behavioural intentions, a series of 3 questionnaires was designed to capture the results of the simulation activity. A pilot test was conducted using both the simulation activity and the questionnaires. The results of the pilot test were then analysed after which appropriate changes were made, particularly concerning ambiguity and design problems in the questionnaires. The revised simulation activity and questionnaires were then implemented in 8 Cape Education Department English-speaking secondary schools with a sample population of some 206 pupils. Results analysed from the 3 questionnaires indicated that statistically significant changes had occurred among the pupils. This confirmed that the simulation activity could be utilised as a means of teaching various aspects of environmental education. However, the research also showed that the simulation activity is a teaching technique which needs to be used in conjunction with other supportive methodologies

Virtual Architecture: Designing and Directing Curriculum-Based Telecomputing

Is it worth it, all this Internet stuff? Worth the time and energy it takes? Worth it because your students will learn more? Worth it because you\u27ll be a better teacher? The answer to these questions-yes and no-can be found in this readable, conversational, practical, and slyly revolutionary work. The author proposes that integrating computer-mediated technology into your classroom is well worth it if accomplished in a way that helps new and worthwhile things happen there. And then she shows you how to do just that. You\u27ll begin building with a flexible framework-clear, strong, and simple activity structures-that becomes your foundation for designing and implementing powerful curriculum-based telecomputing projects. Don\u27t expect a project directory, general reference, or manual. This is a book you\u27ll read from start to finish and be glad you did. It\u27s worth it

Back to the drawing board? : exploring process drawing and pathways to drawing participation in higher education for graphic design students

“I can’t draw”. “Idon’tdraw.” While facilitating my first brainstorming session with undergraduate Visual Communication, Designstudents at Western Sydney University (WSU), I was struck by the absence of any drawing activity in the classroom. Technological innovations have significantly reduced the role of drawing in the design process since the mid-eighties; however, research confirms sketching, or indeed any form of hand-eye coordination provides valuable cognitive and communication functions in the creative process. The ambiguous nature of a freehand sketch allows for creative interpretation, encourages ‘fluency’ and iteration, and provides a ‘thinking trail’ for evaluation. The physical act of drawing can also aid concentration and memory. Many professional designers recognise process drawing as a vital ingredient in their creative thinking processes and those of new graduates. Through a literature review and reflection on my creative practices, this thesis identifies the benefits of process drawing to think, create, communicate and collaboratein the design process. So, if drawing is so useful, why don’t design students use rough sketches and thumbnails in the classroom?Through a practice-led enquiry, I reflect on observations made as both “insider” and “outsider” within my communities of practice. As a professional design practitioner, visual artist, teacher and researcher, I investigate the role and value of process drawing in the twenty-first-century classroom.The attitudes, behaviours and ‘designerly’practices of WSU design students are explored through a multiple-choiceWhy draw?questionnaireconducted over six years.The interviews and group discussions with final-year, high achievingWSU designstudents help clarify the creative thinking practicesof these participants and identify possible barriers to wider drawing participation. The observations,interpretation of theliterature and questionnaire and interview findings underpin the studio exploration into possible pathways to foster drawing participationin the classroom. ASpeed Squigglingactivity was designed to demonstrate the value of drawing and to encouragedivergent thinking, iteration, creative flow, and design thinking skills. APre-and Post-Why draw?questionnaire was collected from second-year WSU Design students before and after theSpeed Squigglingtrial. An analysis of students’ written and visual responses explores the effectiveness of this kind of drawing activity to encourage and foster drawing participation.Back to the drawing board?adds to the critical discourse in drawing research and design education that argues process drawing has an important role to play in the twenty-first century classroom and should continue to be clarified, demonstrated and encouraged in design education

The Preservation of Malaysian Traditional Sport and Games through Design

Academic research is still overlooking the subject of Malaysian traditional sports and games (MTSG). The scarcity of academic publications addressing MTSG demonstrates the importance of this research. Globalisation and technological advancement have introduced ever-increasing attractions, such as digital gaming, which has lessened the general interest in MTSG. When the researcher observed the local community in Malaysia, he discovered that it was difficult to find children and young people playing MTSG compared to the researcher's childhood. Although a personal observation may not be pragmatic in rationalising the research, it did serve as the catalyst for researching MTSG. Despite the lack of academic references and preliminary findings, the Malaysian government, local organisations, and even individual Malaysians have highlighted the importance of keeping MTSG alive. It is envisaged that active participation in MTSG activities ensures the longevity of cultural assets, thereby preserving them. However, current attempts are limited, and MTSG remains unappealing to children, teenagers, and adults as a modern leisure activity. This realisation prompted the researcher to consider alternative solutions by using design as a creative method to help reintroduce MTSG into society. The research was conducted with a pragmatic approach, including literature reviews, interviews, field experiments, design workshops, and design evaluation. The framework presented in this research provides a strategy for the potential re-introduction of MTSG. The research concludes that the MTSG can be re-introduced through design intervention on the activities using the models developed from the research framework

Remote Access to a Prototyping Laboratory

There is a growing global demand for continuing adult higher education particularly in science and engineering subjects. New technologies are emerging which would enable the development of a Remote Access Laboratory for rapid prototyping of Artificial Intelligence, as a learning environment for mechatronic engineering, in which high precision electromechanical devices are designed to exhibit autonomous behaviour. Secondary research investigated the learning theories for a Remote Access Laboratory, and the current practices for distance learning, involving groupware in shared activity 'collaboratories'. Having determined that the laboratory would need a multi-user interactive environment architecture, with the requirement for adaptability to rapid developments,a distributed software architecture was selected. The laboratory design was subsequently argued to be best served by Intelligent Agents in a Multi-Agent system. The aims of the research were to establish the viability of a Remote Access Laboratory for mechatronic experimentation, and to evaluate the technologies required to implement such a laboratory environment for rapid prototyping. These were achieved by developing a novel user interface, based on a multi-functional screen layout, and a graphical specification facility to provide robotic navigation that is intuitive to use and does not require text-based programming. The research investigated the prototyping of robotic behaviour, which used Programming by Demonstration as an innovative technique to prototype robot navigation. The method of designing behaviours met an anticipated need to allow the robot to interact with an environment, to achieve goals under conditions of uncertainty, while requiring a level of abstraction in the behaviour design. The interface structured a composite of the designed behaviours into prototype Artificial Intelligence using a hierarchical behaviour architecture, which complied with the principles of Object Orientated programming. This was subsequently a new and original programming method to facilitate rapid prototyping of Artificial Intelligence design and structuring. Experimentation involved 20 participants attempting to accomplish a series of tasks which involved using the prototyped interface and an existing text-based robot programming system. The participants were profiled by their formal qualifications, knowledge and experience. The experimental data obtained were used to establish a comparative measure of the prototype interface success compared with an existing distance-learning, home experiment kit, in the form of a small controllable model vehicle. The data obtained provided strong evidence to support the hypothesis that a Programming by Demonstration based system for rapid prototyping is more flexible and easier to use than a previously existing distance learning text-based system. The Programming by Demonstration system showed great promise, being quicker for prototyping, and more intuitive. The learning interface design pioneered new techniques and technologies for rapid prototyping of Artificial Intelligence in a Mechatronics Remote Access Laboratory

Mediated activity and the role of technology in peer-to-peer learning at the University of Fort Hare

Includes bibliographical references.The following calls for research into the ways in which South African university students use technology for peer-to-peer learning (Czerniewicz and Brown, 2005). This study aims to explore the ways in which students mediate one another's learning and the ways in which they use (and don't use) information and communications technology (ICT) to do so. This study provides a snapshot of eleven University of Fort Hare students' peer-to-peer learning strategies. In exploring this phenomenon in context, the social and cultural factors are analysed using Activity Theory, most notably building on the work of Sharples et al (2007). Semi-structured interviews were conducted with students identified as early adopters of ICT for peer-to-peer learning, selected from 375 respondents to the Access and Use Survey questionnaire (Czerniewicz and Brown, 2007). An analytical framework was developed using categories developed from high-level Activity Theory concepts. Sub-categories were developed using key concepts from Sharples, Taylor and Vavoula (2007), Laurillard's (2003) work, as well as, inductively and deductively in relation to the data, following Hardman's (2008) approach. Three key peer-to-peer learning patterns were identified: A group of students preparing for an exam or a test were found to adopt cooperative learning strategies, while students working together towards a tangible output, such as an assignment, adopted collaborative learning strategies. Peer-to-peer tutoring was found to occur where one student is assisted by a moreable peer. Most interviewees' peer-to-peer learning activities were found to occur face-to-face, and the extent and level of interviewees' ICT use was less than anticipated. The findings are not generalisable beyond this small sample, but serve to advance understanding of the processes involved in students' peer-to-peer learning practices

Working Notes from the 1992 AAAI Spring Symposium on Practical Approaches to Scheduling and Planning

The symposium presented issues involved in the development of scheduling systems that can deal with resource and time limitations. To qualify, a system must be implemented and tested to some degree on non-trivial problems (ideally, on real-world problems). However, a system need not be fully deployed to qualify. Systems that schedule actions in terms of metric time constraints typically represent and reason about an external numeric clock or calendar and can be contrasted with those systems that represent time purely symbolically. The following topics are discussed: integrating planning and scheduling; integrating symbolic goals and numerical utilities; managing uncertainty; incremental rescheduling; managing limited computation time; anytime scheduling and planning algorithms, systems; dependency analysis and schedule reuse; management of schedule and plan execution; and incorporation of discrete event techniques

A study into year 8 student motivation to continue class music in Perth, Western Australia

Post compulsory music education courses in Western Australia have undergone major curriculum reform. Reform has included a shift from a prescriptive curriculum based upon the Western canon to a more embracing practical and creative one, due for full implementation in 2009. As the numbers of students undertaking elective post compulsory music in Western Australia has been traditionally low, education authorities anticipate that more students will elect to undertake the new course. However, given previous research into motivational issues associated with the transition to secondary school, low post compulsory enrolment numbers may be reflective of retention issues arising from lower secondary class music, as much as the previous post compulsory course structure. Large numbers of students opt to discontinue music studies beyond their first year in secondary school. This study examined the motivation of students to elect.to continue class music studies beyond their first year in secondary school (Year 8). Following an extensive review of the current literature on achievement motivation in education, the study employed Expectancy-value theory as its theoretical basis for examining the values and competence beliefs of 276, Year 8 students across eight secondary schools in Perth, Western Australia. The study included the development of an instrument to examine student values and beliefs towards class music activities at the commencement and conclusion of Year 8. In addition, for triangulation, the study employed focus groups to examine issues arising from findings associated with the instrument. The study found that while Year 8 student values declined over the course of Year 8, their beliefs remained relatively stable. These findings implied that in many instances, students increasingly devalued the activities they undertook in class music over the course of the year, regardless of their competence beliefs. This in tum impacted upon their subsequent enrolment choices into elective music courses from Year 9. Therefore, declining valuing of class music in lower secondary school may be the major determinant of enrolment numbers in post compulsory class music, as values have been demonstrated in previous research to be accurate predictors of subsequent emohnent decisions. The implications of this study suggest that curriculum reform may not necessarily succeed in increasing participation rates in post compulsory music education courses in Western Australia until motivational issues associated with the teaching of class music in lower school are addressed