6,831 research outputs found
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Enactivism and ethnomethodological conversation analysis as tools for expanding Universal Design for Learning: the case of visually impaired mathematics students
Blind and visually impaired mathematics students must rely on accessible materials such as tactile diagrams to learn mathematics. However, these compensatory materials are frequently found to offer students inferior opportunities for engaging in mathematical practice and do not allow sensorily heterogenous students to collaborate. Such prevailing problems of access and interaction are central concerns of Universal Design for Learning (UDL), an engineering paradigm for inclusive participation in cultural praxis like mathematics. Rather than directly adapt existing artifacts for broader usage, UDL process begins by interrogating the praxis these artifacts serve and then radically re-imagining tools and ecologies to optimize usability for all learners. We argue for the utility of two additional frameworks to enhance UDL efforts: (a) enactivism, a cognitive-sciences view of learning, knowing, and reasoning as modal activity; and (b) ethnomethodological conversation analysis (EMCA), which investigates participants’ multimodal methods for coordinating action and meaning. Combined, these approaches help frame the design and evaluation of opportunities for heterogeneous students to learn mathematics collaboratively in inclusive classrooms by coordinating perceptuo-motor solutions to joint manipulation problems. We contextualize the thesis with a proposal for a pluralist design for proportions, in which a pair of students jointly operate an interactive technological device
Exploring STEM Kit Diagrams for braille readers in inclusive classrooms
Diagrams appears in many school subjects but more prominent in science and mathematics taught in schools. Accessing these diagrams in an inclusive classroom has been identified to be problematic for blind students partly due to the teaching resources available and personnel type, support and sufficiency. Diagrams are mostly omitted by teachers leaving the blind person out in such classroom to access portion of education received by their peers. In many instances, questions with diagrams are treated as bonus for blind students in some countries which is not fair to them. This study explored the efficacy of STEM Kit diagrams on participation and inclusion of blind students in science lessons in two case schools in Nigeria. Data were collected through classroom observations and teacher and student interviews. The accessible diagrams in the STEM Kit were found to provide relevant solutions to problems militating against adequate accessibility of diagrams to blind students in inclusive classrooms
Dynamic Composite Data Physicalization Using Wheeled Micro-Robots
This paper introduces dynamic composite physicalizations, a new class of physical visualizations that use collections of self-propelled objects to represent data. Dynamic composite physicalizations can be used both to give physical form to well-known interactive visualization techniques, and to explore new visualizations and interaction paradigms. We first propose a design space characterizing composite physicalizations based on previous work in the fields of Information Visualization and Human Computer Interaction. We illustrate dynamic composite physicalizations in two scenarios demonstrating potential benefits for collaboration and decision making, as well as new opportunities for physical interaction. We then describe our implementation using wheeled micro-robots capable of locating themselves and sensing user input, before discussing limitations and opportunities for future work
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Networked Living: a new approach to teaching introductory ICT
The course T175 Networked Living is a 300 hour, multiple media, distance learning course offered by the UK
Open University. The first presentation of the course, in 2005, attracted over 1600 students. T175 introduces
students to general concepts of information and communication technology in a range of contexts, including:
communication and identity; entertainment and information; and health, transport and government. It is an
introductory (level 1) course for a variety of bachelors’ degrees, including the BSc programmes in: Information
and Communication Technology; IT and Computing; and Technology; as well as the BEng engineering
programme. The course was designed with a focus on retention of students and preparing them for further study.
Student workload and pacing was carefully planned and there is a significant study skills component. The course
uses a range of media, including: text, audio, computer animation and other software, and a website. Active
learning is encouraged by means of activities, online quizzes, animations, spreadsheets and a learning journal.
Continuous assessment is carried out via a mix of multiple-choice assignments (to test factual and numerical
skills) and written assignments (which include elementary research into new topics). The course culminates with
a written end-of-course assessment. This includes a major reflective component, as well as more traditional
questions designed to test knowledge and understanding
Enhancing Academic Performance of Disabled Students through Multiple Intelligences Based Programmes
This study investigated the effectiveness of multiple intelligences based programme in enhancing academic performance of disabled learners 5th and 6th year elementary of Omoyeni special school, Orita Aperin, Ibadan Oyo State, Nigeria. The study utilized pre-post quasi experimental design. A total of 120 disabled learners, 60 experimental 60 control group were the participants of the study. The experimental group consists of 15 visually impaired, 20 hearing impaired and 25 intellectually and developmentally disabled participants the age range of the participants was between 12 and 22 with average age of 17years. Multiple regression scale (MIS) was the instrument used for data collection. Three research hypotheses and a research question guided the study. Multiple regression analysis and ANCOVA were the statistical tools used to process the data collected. The results of the findings indicate that multiple intelligences based programme was effective with disabled learners in improving their academic performance. Findings from this study also indicated that treatment was most effective with the learners with visual impairment followed by learners with visual impairment and it was least effective with the intellectually and developmentally disabled. On the basis of these findings, it was observed that multiple intelligence based programme could assist in enhancing academic performance of the disabled learners. Keywords: Multiple intelligences, academic performance, disabled students
Modular 3-D-printed education tool for blind and visually impaired students oriented to net structures
Contribution: This article presents the design, creation, testing, and results after the use of a 3-D-printed educational tool that helped a blind student learning electric circuits theory in higher education. Background: Educational tools oriented to visually impaired and blind students in higher education are limited or even nonexistent in the STEM area. Previous developments on the field present in the literature, including other 3-D printing solutions, have been revised and compared to the proposed educational tool. Intended Outcomes: The tool was tested by a blind student in order to test the potential of the design to achieve a better understanding of the topology and performance of electric circuits. The main purpose of the tool described in this work is helping to increase the resources available in the field of teaching students with visual impairments. Application Design: 3-D technology has the potential to be used to create accessibility tools for visually impaired and blind individuals. Modular systems can be used to create complex structures using simple elements. A modular 3-D-printed tool was fabricated to help blind and visually impaired students to learn net structures. Findings: The 3-D tool has allowed the blind student to work autonomously in the study of simple electric circuits and supplies the teacher with a resource to communicate with the student in an easy and fast way. Updated design can be used to describe more complex net structures that can be applied to most electric circuits despite their complexity. The use of the modular system provided the blind student with a direct representation of the whole subject, even when it involved a great amount of graphical information and manipulation.This work was supported by the "Programa de Atención a Estudiantes con Discapacidad" from Universidad Carlos III de Madrid
Modified Administration of the WAIS-IV for Visually Impaired Examiners: A Validity Study
Opportunities in all areas of life including education, vocation, and access to general information have historically been slower for minorities. The visually impaired have continued to struggle with access to education, equal opportunities at work, and access to general information. Significantly fewer blind and visually impaired individuals pursue graduate education with the most commonly pursued graduate degree being psychology (American Federation for the Blind, 2010). A core area of graduate training [defined by the American Psychological Association (APA)] is declarative knowledge, which is not accessible for the visually impaired student for neurological assessments (Johnson-Greene, Braden, Dial, Fitzpatrick, Leung, Schneider, & Willis, 2007). The same 27 participants (all with at least 19 years of education) were given both the standardized and the modified WAIS-IV. Participants scored significantly lower on the full scale IQ, the verbal comprehension index, and the processing speed index of the modified version. Validity of the modified WAIS-IV was assessed by comparing the correlation between it and the WIAT-II and the correlation between the standardized WAIS-IV and the WIATII. Despite the significant differences between the modified and standardized WAIS-IV, the standardized WAIS-IV and the WIAT-II, suggesting the modified WAIS-IV is a valid intellectual assessment instrument. The differences between the modified WAIS-IV and the standardized WAIS-IV can be accounted for by three predominate factors: the modifications of the block design and symbol search subtests, the multiple examiners that both administered and scored the WAIS-IV, and potential practice effects resulting from the high level of education of the participants. These findings suggest that the modified WAIS-IV should be further explored as a viable assessment option for visually impaired examiners due to the similarities found between the standardized and modified versions. These findings also highlight exciting potential opportunities for the field as a whole and more specifically for the visually impaired psychology doctoral student and professional psychologist
3D Resources for Visually Impaired Students
This paper analyzes a process of development of three-dimensional didactic resources created and tested with visually impaired students VIS from Brazilian public schools in which involved designers Middle and High School teachers and students in a collaborative way of creation The importance of interaction among the areas of Engineering Design and Education was analyzed as well The central results were the creation or adaptation of effective teachin
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