Implementing Guided Inquiry Learning and Measuring Engagement Using an Electronic Health Record System in an Online Setting

In many courses, practical hands-on experience is critical for knowledge construction. In the traditional lab setting, this construction is easy to observe through student engagement. But in an online virtual lab, there are some challenges to track student engagement. Given the continuing trend of increased enrollment in online courses, learning sciences need to address these challenges soon. To measure student engagement and actualize a social constructivist approach to team-based learning in the virtual lab setting, we developed a novel monitoring tool in an open-source electronic health records system (EHR). The Process Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning (POGIL) approach is used to engage students in learning. In this paper, we present the practice of POGIL and how the monitoring tool measures student engagement in two online courses in the interdisciplinary field of Health Information Management. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first attempt at integrating POGIL to improve learning sciences in the EHR clinical practice. While clinicians spend over 52% of a patient visit time on computers (called desktop medicine), there is very little focus on learning sciences and pedagogy to train clinicians. Our findings provide an approach to implement learning sciences theory to eHealth use training

A pilot study on the impact of teaching assistant led CS1 study sessions using Peer Instruction

James Madison University’s Computer Science program strives to be a student-centered learning environment with a focus on creating a community for undergraduate success. National data reveals computer science has the lowest student retention rate compared to other STEM majors. The National Center for Women and Information Technology (NCWIT) has compiled a list of ways to retain students in Computer Science. In particular, NCWIT calls for collaboration indicate that “a sense of belonging, or a feeling of fit, is important for supporting student interest and persistence.” One aspect of creating community is the department’s longstanding commitment to provide undergraduate teaching assistants (TAs). Traditionally, TAs provide one-on-one help in the classroom and also hold supplementary lab hours in the evenings to answer questions. As part of this honors project, we have developed a new program called “The Fourth Hour” to increase student retention. Led by TAs using Peer Instruction (PI), these weekly study sessions provide a structured review of introductory topics. The aim of this research is to discover if weekly study sessions promote an environment in which students feel an increased sense of belonging and improved course material retention. In the Fall 2019 semester, JMU offered ten sections of CS149, the introductory programming course, also known as “CS1” in the literature. Each section had approximately 30 students enrolled. Four TAs were chosen to lead one study session each week using the same lesson materials. Three attitudinal surveys were administered over the duration of the semester to collect data on student demographics, self-efficacy, and sense of belonging. Pre- and post assessment results were recorded to test student course material retention. Study session attendance was also collected to discern if there was a correlation with student demographics, self-efficacy, sense of belonging, and/or course material retention. Anomalies in the data and inconsistent attendance rates limited the statistical significance of our results. However, our qualitative analysis suggests that the study sessions had a positive impact on students. As a result, the CS department is planning to continue offering the Fourth Hour program

An exploration of process oriented guided inquiry learning in undergraduate Chemistry classes

The research study explored student’s understanding of stereochemistry and their perceptions of learning chemistry in first year undergraduate chemistry classes following a modified Process-Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning (POGIL) that included group work. A 5-item two-tier stereochemistry concept diagnostic test (SCDT) was developed and administered to explore their understanding of stereochemistry concepts. The students’ perception of POGIL learning was gauged in an effort to establish construct and convergent validity to the SALG instrument

Pandemic Pedagogy in Online Hands-on Learning for IT/IS Courses

Due to the coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, many educational institutions have transitioned to online instruction. As a result, instructors need to investigate online small group learning opportunities to bond with their students who feel isolated from their peers due to social-distancing guidelines. In this paper, we discuss three key issues in online hands-on learning: 1) interactions, 2) equity and inclusive participation, and 3) students’ readiness for hands-on or higher-level cognitive learning. We reflect on our teaching experience during the COVID-19 pandemic and offer suggestions to help instructors plan and implement online small group hands-on learning

Flipped classroom teaching methods in medical education

BACKGROUND: Recent rapid increases in technology development have become increasingly prevalent in education. As a result of online education resources, classroom teaching dynamics have begun to shift away from traditional lecture. In particular, flipping the classroom has become popular in higher education. Flipping the classroom consolidates standard lectures into at-home self-study modules, and utilizes class time for engaging students in critical thinking exercises. Some research suggests that this style of teaching has led to increased student satisfaction and higher exam scores. OBJECTIVES: The objective of this study is to compare flipped classroom modules to traditional lecture in PA and medical student didactic education. METHODS: This study is a crossover interventional study that includes first year PA students and second year medical students from Boston University. Students will be randomly assigned to either a control group or experimental group. Both groups will take three tests throughout the study: a pre-test prior to intervention, a test following the first week prior to crossover, and a final exam after crossover completion. Each exam will consist of 30 multiple choice questions and a Likert scale questionnaire assessing student satisfaction. The control group will be exposed to traditional lecture while the experimental group will be exposed to a flipped classroom module. Content will be identical between groups, and following module completion, the groups will crossover for exposure to opposing treatment. RESULTS: Each cohort’s exam scores will be evaluated based on mean score and standard deviation at all three time points. Additionally, Likert scale responses will be evaluated at all three time points. Values will be assessed to determine if a relationship between lecture style, exam scores, and student satisfaction exist. DISCUSSION: Results from this study will help to determine the significance of flipped classroom learning in medical education

Teaching Tip: Promoting Inclusive Online Learning for Students with Disabilities in Information Systems Courses

It is important to ensure educational equity for students with disabilities in online courses as more courses are taught online during the pandemic. This conceptual paper describes the key barriers for instructors to implement inclusive online classes, particularly technology courses, during the COVID-19 pandemic and suggests specific strategies to mitigate the negative impact on students with disabilities. We hope that this paper will motivate more Information Technology/Information Systems (IT/IS) instructors to implement more inclusive and accessible online courses to keep all students, including students with disabilities, motivated and engaged in online environments throughout the pandemic

Communication Patterns and Strategies in Software Development Communities of Practice

Some of the greatest challenges in the relatively new field of software development lie in the decidedly old technology of communication between humans. Software projects require sophisticated and varied communication skills because software developers work in a world of incomplete, imperfect information where teams evolve rapidly in response to evolving requirements and changing collaborators. While prescriptive models for software process such as Agile suggest ways of doing, in reality these codified practices must adapt to the complexities of a real workplace. Patterns, rather than rules of behavior within software process are more suitable to the varied and mutable nature of software development. Software development communities are also learning communities, attempting to sustain themselves through internal ambiguity and external changes. We study different types of software development communities to fulfill our goal of understanding how these communities implement and evolve different communication strategies to sustain themselves through change. We observe student software development projects, open source software development, and a professional, rigorously Agile software development community. We employ Wenger\u27s concept of Community of Practice to frame our understanding, especially focusing on the notions of identity, participation, reification, negotiation of meaning and trajectory of the participants of the software development communities. From these different sources, we identify the emergent themes of mentoring and knowledge management as critical for sustainable communities. Through our long running, immersive, participant observer, ethnographic study of the Agile software development community, we contribute both a quantitative and qualitative analysis of the their communication practices and depict the evolving nature of their onboarding and mentoring strategies. We share our experience of implementing such an immersive industry ethnographic study. We employ a pattern language approach to capturing, analyzing and representing our results, thereby contributing and relating to the larger bodies of work in Scrum and Organizational Patterns. This work also informs our concurrent efforts to enhance our undergraduate computer science and software engineering curriculum, exposing students to the communication challenges of real software development and help them to develop skills to meet these challenges through practice in inquiry, critique and reflection

Guided Inquiry Learning in an Introductory Chemistry Course

Foundations of Chemistry (FoC), the University of Adelaide’s introductory chemistry pathway, recently underwent a complete restructure to assume no prior chemistry knowledge in order to better cater to students with little or no chemistry background. The restructure introduced Process-Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning (POGIL) style activities in lectures to deliver the majority of the course content and a new online learning platform for summative assessment. Three entirely new FoC courses were developed, one in each of semester 1 (FoC IA), semester 2 (FoC IB) and the University’s Summer Semester (FoC IS). Successful completion of all three courses provides students with a pathway into second year Chemistry in addition to the pathway provided by completing Chemistry IA and IB. To date, FoC IS has run from 2013 to 2015, with half of the students in each of these classes progressing to level II Chemistry courses. This paper outlines the restructure process that led to the creation of three new courses and how these developments have impacted student learning outcomes. Students have responded positively to the restructured courses, and end-of-semester results for FoC IA and IB have seen an increase in the proportion of Distinction and High Distinction grades

Personalized Learning, The New Look of a Classroom in the Twenty-First Century

The personalized learning approach is beneficial for all students in the twenty-first century because it consists of instruction in the form of technology, collaboration, and small group instruction. In addition to representing content in a variety of modalities the personalized learning approach also incorporates student choice in their learning.There are two personalized learning models present in this project. The first model is considered a three station rotation because students will visit a technology, collaboration, and small group instruction station during the lesson. The second model is called a flex model which still consists of technology, collaboration, and small group instruction sections but students are given a list of assignments and get to choose which ones they complete. This capstone project contains twelve different lesson plans and supplemental material that follow the personalized learning model. Each lesson has a technology, collaboration, and small group instruction component that is ready to be shared with any Regents Chemistry student

Adapted Living Environment Lessons to Support All Students: A toolkit of strategies and scaffolds for teaching science to students with learning disabilities in an inclusive setting

Students with disabilities continue to lag behind their non-disabled peers in academic achievement. Continued support is required to help them bridge this gap, and realize academic success. Increasingly, students with mild to moderate disabilities are spending the majority of their school day mainstreamed into integrated, inclusive classes. While there are potential benefits for all parties to this arrangement, it can present challenges to the educator trying to balance multiple interest levels, learning styles and ability levels in the same classroom. The vast majority of special education students don’t require classroom modifications, or changes to the content delivered or expectations; but many do need accommodations or adaptations, changes to how material is learned. This project reviews available literature to determine the most successful accommodations for helping special education students be successful in inclusive science classes, and investigates how the principles of universal design can be utilized to apply suggested strategies to lessons for all students. The final project includes sample lessons and activities illustrating the use of the most recommended strategies for accommodating special educations students in a high school living environment class unit on cells and genetics. There is a special focus on active learning and hands on activities