Reviewing the Impact of the National Strategies Design and Technology Framework for Key Stage Three: A small-­‐scale evaluation of the Design and Technology Framework in England

Since the beginning of Design and Technology (D&T) in the English secondary school curriculum, the teaching of design has been identified as less effective than that of making. Research Questions: What are the experiences of pupils between the ages of 12 and 14 of design learning? Purpose of Study: In 2004 as part of the National Strategies, the D&T framework was launched, aiming to support the teaching of design skills. This is a small-­‐scale study, which begins to explore the experiences of pupils and teachers in four schools in the Northwest of England. Research Methods: The study used a mixed methods approach, gathering quantitative and qualitative data in a questionnaire with a convenience sample of school pupils. The questionnaire responses are analysed alongside qualitative interviews with D&T teachers from the schools. Findings: The findings indicate that many pupils had a clear understanding of the role of designing. However, some common assumptions of the nature of design activity centering on the act of sketching or drawing were evident. The majority of pupils were unable to accurately identify the names of many of the design activities introduced as part of the framework. Conclusions: Whilst some progress has been made in the teaching of design, through the use of design activities introduced in the D&T Framework, the support experienced by teachers was limited and were not sustained beyond the initial training. There are implications for initial teacher educators in supporting beginning teachers and balancing the tensions trainees experience whilst on placements in school. Key Words: Design, designing, pedagogy, teacher educatio

Experts on e-learning: insights gained from listening to the student voice!

The Student Experience of e-Learning Laboratory (SEEL) project at the University of Greenwich was designed to explore and then implement a number of approaches to investigate learners’ experiences of using technology to support their learning. In this paper members of the SEEL team present initial findings from a University-wide survey of nearly a 1000 students. A selection of 90 ‘cameos’, drawn from the survey data, offer further insights into personal perceptions of e-learning and illustrate the diversity of students experiences. The cameos provide a more coherent picture of individual student experience based on the totality of each person’s responses to the questionnaire. Finally, extracts from follow-up case studies, based on interviews with a small number of students, allow us to ‘hear’ the student voice more clearly. Issues arising from an analysis of the data include student preferences for communication and social networking tools, views on the ‘smartness’ of their tutors’ uses of technology and perceptions of the value of e-learning. A primary finding and the focus of this paper, is that students effectively arrive at their own individualised selection, configuration and use of technologies and software that meets their perceived needs. This ‘personalisation’ does not imply that such configurations are the most efficient, nor does it automatically suggest that effective learning is occurring. SEEL reminds us that learners are individuals, who approach learning both with and without technology in their own distinctive ways. Hearing, understanding and responding to the student voice is fundamental in maximising learning effectiveness. Institutions should consider actively developing the capacity of academic staff to advise students on the usefulness of particular online tools and resources in support of learning and consider the potential benefits of building on what students already use in their everyday lives. Given the widespread perception that students tend to be ‘digital natives’ and academic staff ‘digital immigrants’ (Prensky, 2001), this could represent a considerable cultural challenge

Plumbing the depths: stories, e-portfolios; pedagogy, ownership

Over the course of this academic year, a colleague and I implemented an eportfolio pilot with 82 students aged 17 to 50 on a team-taught 30-credit Level 1 core course on behalf of the University of Greenwich. The students are studying for a degree in Education Studies and come from a wide range of backgrounds. The module comprises elements of PDP interwoven with lectures on contemporary education issues and was originally designed as a paper-based course. The pilot navigated the PebblePad system as part of a wider trial of a number of different systems by the university. This paper presents the results of research combining mixed methodologies mainly allied to the interpretive paradigm but incorporating elements of critical theory. The research evaluates the differing experiences of students and lecturers using this e-portfolio system for learning, teaching, reflection and assessment. Methods used include initial and final student reflections, surveys, interviews and critical analysis including the narrative ‘soundings’ of sample experiences from student blogs and visual analysis of some student portfolios. We used the PebblePad as a mini VLE, uploading course documents and lecture presentations and sending messages as well as creating online gateways for formative and summative assessment submission. It was accessed externally to the university systems. In a scaffolded process, students constructed and submitted blogs and e-portfolios composed of a number of assets. The process of interactions with an eportfolio system has raised substantial and complex challenges for course design and learning outcomes relating to pedagogy and assessment as well as challenges of implementation, resistance to change and around concepts of ownership. As a commentary on academic practice, an element of personal reflection on the project and the research is included in the form of a dialogic interlocution with these narratives, raising questions about the way in which we might use e-portfolios in Higher Education and considering how we evaluate online learning. As a process of evaluation, the research does not offer hypotheses or answers as such but aims to create space for different views by raising complex questions and challenges for consideration in the process of contextualising and making sense of the users’ different experiences, of plumbing the depths. Drawing on diverse genres and media the paper presents the results of the research and samples some of the work produced

Персональне освітнє середовище – як один із трендів сучасної освіти

To meet the needs of the modern information society one must constantly improve the education system. The effectiveness of teaching today’s students fully depends on the implementation and use in the study of modern information and communication technologies, including network services that allow you to create an appropriate pedagogy and technology support base of modern information systems for educational purposes, and effectively organize the electronic learning university environment. An analysis of e-learning environments of modern domestic and foreign universities demonstrates quite a high level of qualitative and quantitative indicators of the implementation of electronic resources for educational purposes. However, despite the relatively high level of organization and content of university portals, the creation and implementation of students‘ personalized e-learning environment, which in turn is based on personalization in a global network, student-centered learning, which acts as a basis for the formation of ICT and key competencies of modern student, is still an open issue. The selfspontaneous creation of personalized e-learning environment does not cover the training needs of students, but is only partially able to satisfy them, as knowledge students cannot improve the quality of both formal and informal learning. This paper focuses on the study of students‘ ICT competencies and their ability to use information and communication technologies to carry out information activities in their professional field. The authors also discuss the results of studies on personalized and adaptive learning, based on consideration of learning styles. Based on a statistical analysis of the pedagogical experiments, some recommendations are suggested for technology training for teachers and students in order to to improve training efficiency

Usability framework for mobile augmented reality language learning

After several decades since its introduction, the existing ISO9241-11 usability framework is still vastly used in Mobile Augmented Reality (MAR) language learning. The existing framework is generic and can be applied to diverse emerging technologies such as electronic and mobile learning. However, technologies like MAR have interaction properties that are significantly unique and require different usability processes. Hence, implementing the existing framework on MAR can lead to non-optimized, inefficient, and ineffective outcomes. Furthermore, state-of-the-art analysis models such as machine learning are not apparent in MAR usability studies, despite evidence of positive outcomes in other learning technologies. In recent MAR learning studies, machine learning benefits such as problem identification and prioritization were non-existent. These setbacks could slow down the advancement of MAR language learning, which mainly aims to improve language proficiency among MAR users, especially in English communication. Therefore, this research proposed the Usability Framework for MAR (UFMAR) that addressed the currently identified research problems and gaps in language learning. UFMAR introduced an improved data collection method called Individual Interaction Clustering-based Usability Measuring Instrument (IICUMI), followed by a machine learning-driven analysis model called Clustering-based Usability Prioritization Analysis (CUPA) and a prioritization quantifier called Usability Clustering Prioritization Model (UCPM). UFMAR showed empirical evidence of significantly improving usability in MAR, capitalizing on its unique interaction properties. UFMAR enhanced the existing framework with new abilities to systematically identify and prioritize MAR usability issues. Through the experimental results of UFMAR, it was found that the IICUMI method was 50% more effective, while CUPA and UCPM were 57% more effective than the existing framework. The outcome through UFMAR also produced 86% accuracy in analysis results and was 79% more efficient in framework implementation. UFMAR was validated through three cycles of the experimental processes, with triangulation through expert reviews, to be proven as a fitting framework for MAR language learning

Proceedings TLAD 2012:10th International Workshop on the Teaching, Learning and Assessment of Databases

This is the tenth in the series of highly successful international workshops on the Teaching, Learning and Assessment of Databases (TLAD 2012). TLAD 2012 is held on the 9th July at the University of Hertfordshire and hopes to be just as successful as its predecessors. The teaching of databases is central to all Computing Science, Software Engineering, Information Systems and Information Technology courses, and this year, the workshop aims to continue the tradition of bringing together both database teachers and researchers, in order to share good learning, teaching and assessment practice and experience, and further the growing community amongst database academics. As well as attracting academics and teachers from the UK community, the workshop has also been successful in attracting academics from the wider international community, through serving on the programme committee, and attending and presenting papers. Due to the healthy number of high quality submissions this year, the workshop will present eight peer reviewed papers. Of these, six will be presented as full papers and two as short papers. These papers cover a number of themes, including: the teaching of data mining and data warehousing, SQL and NoSQL, databases at school, and database curricula themselves. The final paper will give a timely ten-year review of TLAD workshops, and it is expected that these papers will lead to a stimulating closing discussion, which will continue beyond the workshop. We also look forward to a keynote presentation by Karen Fraser, who has contributed to many TLAD workshops as the HEA organizer. Titled “An Effective Higher Education Academy”, the keynote will discuss the Academy’s plans for the future and outline how participants can get involved

Proceedings TLAD 2012:10th International Workshop on the Teaching, Learning and Assessment of Databases

This is the tenth in the series of highly successful international workshops on the Teaching, Learning and Assessment of Databases (TLAD 2012). TLAD 2012 is held on the 9th July at the University of Hertfordshire and hopes to be just as successful as its predecessors. The teaching of databases is central to all Computing Science, Software Engineering, Information Systems and Information Technology courses, and this year, the workshop aims to continue the tradition of bringing together both database teachers and researchers, in order to share good learning, teaching and assessment practice and experience, and further the growing community amongst database academics. As well as attracting academics and teachers from the UK community, the workshop has also been successful in attracting academics from the wider international community, through serving on the programme committee, and attending and presenting papers. Due to the healthy number of high quality submissions this year, the workshop will present eight peer reviewed papers. Of these, six will be presented as full papers and two as short papers. These papers cover a number of themes, including: the teaching of data mining and data warehousing, SQL and NoSQL, databases at school, and database curricula themselves. The final paper will give a timely ten-year review of TLAD workshops, and it is expected that these papers will lead to a stimulating closing discussion, which will continue beyond the workshop. We also look forward to a keynote presentation by Karen Fraser, who has contributed to many TLAD workshops as the HEA organizer. Titled “An Effective Higher Education Academy”, the keynote will discuss the Academy’s plans for the future and outline how participants can get involved