ICTs and Gamification in the English classroom

This Final Degree Project, I focus on the investigation of gamification resources, in the educational field. In the same way, this project also includes a practical approach in which the English language is the used to teach subjects such as Social Sciences, Natural Sciences as well as Arts and Crafts. This proposal is aimed at 3rd Year of Primary Education and is composed of ten lessons per subject, also by two main applications, ClassDojo and ClassCraft. Thanks to students will be able to discover all the contents that are worked on. Finally, a student and a teacher evaluation proposal is included.Este Trabajo Fin de Grado (TFG) se centra en la investigación de recursos de una metodología nueva, la gamificación, en el ámbito educativo. Del mismo modo, este trabajo también abarca un planteamiento práctico donde la lengua inglesa es el instrumento transmisor de contenidos en las asignaturas de Ciencias Sociales, Ciencias de la Naturaleza y Educación Plástica. Esta propuesta va dirigida a 3º de Educación Primaria y está compuesta por diez sesiones por asignatura, en las que se utilizarán principalmente dos aplicaciones, ClassDojo y ClassCraft. Gracias a los cuales los alumnos podrán conocer todos los contenidos que se trabajan. Por último, se incluye una propuesta de evaluación por parte del profesor y por parte del estudiante.Grado en Educación Primari

A Community Outreach Through Social Media: Green2Growth “Viral Video Challenge”

The goal of Green2Growth is to transform Worcester, Massachusetts into a sustainable community by actively promoting sustainable living to the residents of the city. To help achieve their goal, they sponsored an interactive qualifying project (IQP) at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI). The IQP involved preparing a plan for a Viral Video Challenge. The challenge will use local middle school students in the production of short videos that convey a message about sustainability. The IQP consisted of the following steps: background research, hosting interviews, developing a lesson and promotional plan, and assembling a list of recommendations and contacts. By completing this IQP, the team has prepared a Viral Video Challenge for implementation in WorcesterÂ’s middle schools

El desarrollo de habilidades blandas y el inglés a través de ICLES: revisión de la literatura y propuesta pedagógica para estudiantes de ingeniería

Mastering English is a must for all engineers in the current globalized world where English is the language of science, communication and business. In an engineering syllabus, however, in addition to technical skills and English proficiency, the development of other competences also needs to be considered. To adequately equip engineering students for their careers, we also have to promote the development of soft skills such as communication, problem-solving, teamwork, time-management or leadership, among others. ICLHE (Integrating Content and Language in Higher Education), which is itself evocative of CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning) approach extensively used in other educational levels, appears as an alternative to integrate language learning in non-language subject curriculums in higher education and to develop soft skills. This paper makes a literature review to find out the main aspects that engineering instructors should consider to properly implement ICLHE to enhance learners’ development of soft-skills through the active methodologies of Project-Based Learning and Flipped Classroom. In the last part of the study, a 10-step guideline is proposed, which will help teachers to integrate these active methodologies in an ICLHE engineering subject.Tener una buena competencia en inglés es una necesidad para los ingenieros en un mundo globalizado donde el inglés es la lengua de la ciencia, la comunicación y los negocios. Sin embargo, en el plan de estudios de una ingeniería se debe tener en cuenta otras competencias además de las habilidades técnicas y el inglés. Para preparar adecuadamente a los estudiantes de ingeniería para sus carreras profesionales, debemos fomentar también el desarrollo de sus habilidades blandas tales como la comunicación, la resolución de problemas, el trabajo en equipo, la gestión del tiempo o el liderazgo, entre otras. ICLES (Integración de Contenido y Lengua en Educación Superior), el cual es si mismo evoca el enfoque AICLE (Aprendizaje Integrado de Contenido y Lengua) ampliamente utilizado en otros niveles educativos, aparece como una alternativa para integrar el aprendizaje de lenguas en currículos de asignaturas donde no se enseña lengua en la universidad y desarrollar las habilidades blandas. Este artículo hace una revisión de la literatura con el objetivo de encontrar los aspectos más importantes que los docentes de ingeniería deberían considerar para, de forma adecuada, implementar ICLES para mejorar el desarrollo de las habilidades blandas mediante las metodologías activas del aprendizaje basado en proyectos y la clase invertida. En la última parte del trabajo, se propone una guía de 10 pasos que ayudará a los docentes a integrar estas metodologías activas en una asignatura ICLES de ingeniería

Developing capabilities for social inclusion: engaging diversity through inclusive school communities

The effort to make schools more inclusive, together with the pressure to retain students until the end of secondary school, has greatly increased both the number and educational requirements of students enrolling in their local school. Of critical concern, despite years of research and improvements in policy, pedagogy and educational knowledge, is the enduring categorisation and marginalization of students with diverse abilities. Research has shown that it can be difficult for schools to negotiate away from the pressure to categorise or diagnose such students, particularly those with challenging behaviour. In this paper, we highlight instances where some schools have responded to increasing diversity by developing new cultural practices to engage both staff and students; in some cases, decreasing suspension while improving retention, behaviour and performance

Engaging Students in Energy Related Topics Using Contextualized Lessons in Physics

The goal of this project is to design curriculum for secondary level (i.e. high school) physics that will lead to increased student engagement with energy related concepts and, in turn, more student interest and performance in energy-related STEM topics. It has been shown that lessons which engage students lead to better understanding and knowledge retention among students. In order to promote student engagement, these lessons are designed to be delivered in contexts such as clean and renewable energy, climate change, and life sciences. This project proposes a model to test whether the delivery of these contextualized lessons will lead to increased student performance as measured through various forms of assessment

Learning Strategies of Secondary School Technology Education Teachers and Their Students

The United States has long been known as a nation of innovators and doers, supported by an educational system based on these concepts; however, our school systems have had problems producing students prepared to retain the United States as a global leader. Technology Education is an exception. Technology Education provides the opportunity to apply knowledge, theory, and concepts to real-world applications through the use of activities that encourage innovation and creativity. This study used a quantitative causal comparative design to investigate the learning strategies of secondary school Technology Education teachers and their students, distribution of learning strategies in the Technology Education courses, and the differences in learning strategies across the International Technology and Engineering Educators Association (ITEEA) program areas. Technology Education teachers and students in selected programs across Virginia took the Assessing the Learning Strategies of Adults (ATLAS) instrument, which placed them in a learning strategy category of navigator, problem solver, or engager, and completed a short demographic survey about gender, Technology Education program, grade, and age. A Chi Square Test of Independence was used to see if there were significant differences in the learning strategies of Technology Education teachers and their students, and also if there was a significant difference in learning strategies among the ITEEA program areas. It is hoped that this study will provide insight into the learning strategies in Technology Education so that programs and curriculum can be developed that improve the overall effectiveness of the instructional process

Renewable Energy SMART Lessons: An Educational Approach to a Sustainable Future in Namibia

This project assisted EduVentures Trust in developing four renewable energy SMART modules to expand sustainability awareness throughout Namibia. The team created the modules based on background research, local high school observations, rural school pre-visit surveys, and stakeholder interviews. After implementing the modules in the Ombombo mobile classroom, this project evaluated module effectiveness using pre-tests and post-tests, a learner evaluation, and module observations during field tests at Okondjatu Combined School. Results showed significant knowledge retention by the learners from the renewable energy modules. The evaluations revealed that the learners enjoyed the lessons and planned to continue their renewable energy education after the completion of the program

Engineering for Sustainable Energy Education within Urban Secondary Schools

In regards to mitigating global climate change it is evident that the transition to sustainable technologies is critical. Integrating sustainable energy engineering (SEE) within secondary school curriculum can have many lasting advantages for the future of global sustainability. There are numerous studies relating to aspects within SEE, not to mention the different demographics of secondary schools of which they are implemented. Our work focuses with the urban secondary school demographic. We use quantitative and qualitative research methods throughout our research to assess student\u27s hope for sustainable development and interest in engineering after engaging with SEE problem-based curricula

Report of the Global Strategy Task Force

The Global Strategy Task Force created a final report documenting its findings and recommendations. The intent of this report is to provide a framework through which the University can articulate and pursue an ambitious set of institutional goals that will increase its global connectivity and impact.To guide our work, the Task Force articulated a Global Vision for 2020:To establish Northwestern as one of the world's premier universities. To develop a culture and an infrastructure that link our intellectual communities to larger international idea and innovation networks and enable our faculty, students, and staff to lead and to learn from global advancements in research and teaching critical to human development and understanding.The Task Force identified three guiding principles for how we enact our vision.An ambitious intellectual agenda, not an economic one, must drive Northwestern's global investments. Northwestern should hire new faculty and staff, open new facilities, and initiate new dialogues and collaborations to the extent that it has a clear and compelling intellectual mission guiding each decision.Northwestern must focus on excellence to gain greater prominence in the world's leading innovation and idea networks, by identifying and investing deeply in select areas of strength and impact.Being global requires a bi-directional orientation. Northwestern must, with equal focus and vigor, expand its outward horizons while integrating global perspectives into the rich intellectual life of its US campuses and activities