How to design for persistence and retention in MOOCs?

Design of educational interventions is typically carried out following a design cycle involving phases of investigation, conceptualization, prototyping, implementation, execution and evaluation. This cycle can be applied at different levels of granularity e.g. learning activity, module, course or programme. In this paper we consider an aspect of learner behavior that can be critical to the success of many MOOCs i.e. their persistence to study, and the related theme of learner retention. We reflect on the impact that consideration of these can have on design decisions at different stages in the design cycle with the aim of en-hancing MOOC design in relation to learner persistence and retention, with particular attention to the European context

‘A double-edged sword. This is powerful but it could be used destructively’: Perspectives of early career education researchers on learning analytics

Learning analytics has been increasingly outlined as a powerful tool for measuring, analysing, and predicting learning experiences and behaviours. The rising use of learning analytics means that many educational researchers now require new ranges of technical analytical skills to contribute to an increasingly data-heavy field. However, it has been argued that educational data scientists are a ‘scarce breed’ (Buckingham Shum et al., 2013) and that more resources are needed to support the next generation of early career researchers in the education field. At the same time, little is known about how early career education researchers feel towards learning analytics and whether it is important to their current and future research practices. Using a thematic analysis of a participatory learning analytics workshop discussions with 25 early career education researchers, we outline in this article their ambitions, challenges and anxieties towards learning analytics. In doing so, we have provided a roadmap for how the learning analytics field might evolve and practical implications for supporting early career researchers’ development

Effects of regular use of scalable, technology enhanced solution for primary mathematics education

Mathematics is one of the key subjects in any school curriculum and most teachers agree that mathematical skills are important for students to master. There is an abundance of research in learning mathematics and a consensus exists among researchers that technology can enhance the learning process. However, many factors need to be taken into consideration when introducing technology into teaching mathematics. Developing a more natural collaboration between learning technology experts, teachers, and students ensures all stakeholders are considered. Involving teachers early on helps develop enduring commitment to innovations and practical solutions. Moreover, creating a culture of collaboration between experts in the field and teachers brings to bear the best of what both worlds have to offer. This thesis synthesizes six papers and offers additional findings that focus on how technology experts can collaborate with elementary teachers to improve student learning outcomes. We focus on managing educational change in ways that improve the sustainability of innovations. We also explore how technical and teaching experts co-create effective lesson plans. In one of the six papers we collected and reported teachers’ responses to survey questions covering typical usage patterns on a platform. Teachers’ direct feedback was collected and incorporated to improve technical solutions. Moreover, one study was conducted abroad to measure the effect of culture on the teaching and learning process. Evidence of effectiveness of technologically enhanced lessons and corresponding homework was based on multiple studies in grades 1 - 3, covering 379 students. The effectiveness of educational technology was measured based on two variables: student performance in mathematics, based on the learning objectives specified in the curriculum, and arithmetic fluency measured by how rapidly and accurately students solved basic arithmetic operations. Statistically significant findings show that educational technology can improve two target variables when comparing students who did not use educational technology to students who did. An additional effect size analysis was conducted to verify and compare results with previous research. Based on these results, platform use produced the same or better effect than previous studies. Based on teacher feedback and user growth on the platform, we managed to integrate technology into the regular school classroom in meaningful and sustainable ways. We were clearly able to support teachers in their practice in a manner that resulted in noticeable student achievement gains. A survey revealed a need to emphasize new features that were introduced to the platform in teacher training programs. Teachers also reported having a positive attitude towards the platform and the initiative gained wide acceptance among their peers.Matematiikka on yksi tärkeimmistä kouluaineista pelkästään tuntimääräisesti mitattunakin. Matematiikan osaamista ja oppimista pidetään yleisesti tärkeänä ja arvostettuna taitona. Matematiikan oppimisesta on valtavasti tutkimusta ja tutkijoiden keskuudessa vallitsee yhteisymmärrys tietotekniikan positiivisista mahdollisuuksista edistää matematiikan oppimista. Tietotekniikan ja oppimisen vuorovaikutus on kuitenkin monisyinen vyyhti ja sen onnistunut hyödyntäminen vaatii tutkijoiden, opettajien ja oppilaiden välistä tiivistä ja vuorovaikutteista yhteistyötä. Uusien innovaatioiden ja kokeilujen onnistumiselle ja niihin sitoutumiselle luodaan vahva pohja, kun opettajat otetaan mukaan kehitystyöhön ensimetreiltä lähtien. Tällaisen tiiviin yhteistyökulttuurin vaaliminen mahdollistaa käytännön työn ja teorian vahvuuksien hyödyntämisen. Tämä väitöstyö koostuu kuudesta artikkelista. Artikkelit kuvaavat, kuinka tutkijat ja opettajat työskentelivät yhdessä parantaakseen oppilaiden matematiikan oppimista. Tavoitteenamme oli muuttaa koulun käytänteitä pitkäjänteisesti ja kestävällä tavalla. Tutkimme kuinka tutkijat ja opettajat pystyivät yhdessä luomaan onnistuneita ja tehokkaita oppimiskokonaisuuksia. Opettajat olivat koko ajan kehitystyön keskiössä. Yhdessä kuudesta artikkelista tutkittiin kyselytutkimuksen avulla opettajien kokemuksia ja käyttötottumuksia. Näitä vastauksia hyödynnettiin teknisessä kehitystyössä ja hyvien käytänteiden hiomisessa. Yksi väitöskirjan tutkimuksista tehtiin ulkomailla opetus- ja oppimiskulttuureista vaikutusten huomioimiseksi. Sähköisten oppituntien ja kotitehtävien vaikuttavuuden arviointi perustuu useisiin 1.-3. luokilla tehtyihin tutkimuksiin ja kaikkiaan 379 oppilaan vastauksiin. Sähköisten oppituntien vaikuttavuutta arvioitiin kahden eri mittarin perusteella. Ensin matematiikan taitojen perusteella, eli kuinka hyvin kunkin luokka-asteen oppimistavoitteet olivat täyttyneet ja myöhemmin myös laskusujuvuuden perusteella, eli kuinka nopeasti ja tarkasti oppilaat pystyivät laskemaan peruslaskutoimituksia. Tulokset osoittavat, että opetusteknologian avulla pystytään parantamaan oppilaiden suoriutumista edellä mainittujen osa-alueiden osalta verrattuna oppilaisiin, jotka eivät käyttäneet opetusteknologiaa. Tulokset olivat tilastollisesti merkitseviä. Näiden tulosten varmistamiseksi laskettiin vaikuttavuuden suuruus ja sitä verrattiin aiempiin alan tutkimuksiin. Tulosten perusteella sähköisillä oppitunneilla oli sama tai parempi vaikuttavuus kuin aiemmissa tutkimuksissa. Opettajien palautteiden ja kasvavan käyttäjämäärän perusteella voidaan sanoa, että onnistuimme tavoitteessamme integroida opetusteknologiaa mielekkäällä tavalla osaksi koulutyötä. Onnistuimme myös tukemaan ja auttamaan opettajia opetustyössään ja samalla merkittävästi parantamaan oppilaiden suoriutumista. Kyselytutkimuksen perusteella huomasimme, että uusien ominaisuuksien kouluttamiseen tulee kiinnittää enemmän huomiota. Samassa tutkimuksessa opettajat raportoivat olevansa tyytyväisiä alustaan ja sähköiset oppitunnit näyttävät saaneen vankan jalansijan suomalaisessa opettajakunnassa

Cracking the Code: Synchronizing Policy and Practice for Performance-Based Learning

Proposes a policy framework for integrating performance-based learning into the education system, synchronizing policy and practice, and ensuring collaborative state leadership and flexible federal leadership. Lists state policy issues and exemplars

A framework to maximise the communicative power of knowledge visualisations

Knowledge visualisation, in the field of information systems, is both a process and a product, informed by the closely aligned fields of information visualisation and knowledg management. Knowledge visualisation has untapped potential within the purview of knowledge communication. Even so, knowledge visualisations are infrequently deployed due to a lack of evidence-based guidance. To improve this situation, we carried out a systematic literature review to derive a number of “lenses” that can be used to reveal the essential perspectives to feed into the visualisation production process.We propose a conceptual framework which incorporates these lenses to guide producers of knowledge visualisations. This framework uses the different lenses to reveal critical perspectives that need to be considered during the design process. We conclude by demonstrating how this framework could be used to produce an effective knowledge visualisation

AI in Learning: Designing the Future

AI (Artificial Intelligence) is predicted to radically change teaching and learning in both schools and industry causing radical disruption of work. AI can support well-being initiatives and lifelong learning but educational institutions and companies need to take the changing technology into account. Moving towards AI supported by digital tools requires a dramatic shift in the concept of learning, expertise and the businesses built off of it. Based on the latest research on AI and how it is changing learning and education, this book will focus on the enormous opportunities to expand educational settings with AI for learning in and beyond the traditional classroom. This open access book also introduces ethical challenges related to learning and education, while connecting human learning and machine learning. This book will be of use to a variety of readers, including researchers, AI users, companies and policy makers

Studying in a Virtual Mobility Context:An International Pilot in the Domain of Educational Science

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An International Study in Competency Education: Postcards from Abroad

Acknowledging that national borders need not constrain our thinking, we have examined a selection of alternative academic cultures and, in some cases, specific schools, in search of solutions to common challenges we face when we consider reorganizing American schools. A wide range of interviews and e-mail exchanges with international researchers, government officials and school principals has informed this research, which was supplemented with a literature review scanning international reports and journal articles. Providing a comprehensive global inventory of competency-based education is not within the scope of this study, but we are confident that this is a representative sampling. The report that follows first reviews the definition of competency-based learning. A brief lesson in the international vocabulary of competency education is followed by a review of global trends that complement our own efforts to improve performance and increase equitable outcomes. Next, we share an overview of competency education against a backdrop of global education trends (as seen in the international PISA exams), before embarking on an abbreviated world tour. We pause in Finland, British Columbia (Canada), New Zealand and Scotland, with interludes in Sweden, England, Singapore and Shanghai, all of which have embraced practices that can inform the further development of competency education in the United States