Locating image presentation technology within pedagogic practice

This article presents data gathered through a University for the Creative Arts Learning and Teaching Research Grant (2009-2010); including a study of existing image presentation tools, both digital and non-digital; and analysis of data from four interviews and an online questionnaire. The aim of the research was to look afresh at available technology from the point of view of a lecturer in the visual arts, and to use the information gathered to look more critically at the available technology

Toward future 'mixed reality' learning spaces for STEAM education

Digital technology is becoming more integrated and part of modern society. As this begins to happen, technologies including augmented reality, virtual reality, 3d printing and user supplied mobile devices (collectively referred to as mixed reality) are often being touted as likely to become more a part of the classroom and learning environment. In the discipline areas of STEAM education, experts are expected to be at the forefront of technology and how it might fit into their classroom. This is especially important because increasingly, educators are finding themselves surrounded by new learners that expect to be engaged with participatory, interactive, sensory-rich, experimental activities with greater opportunities for student input and creativity. This paper will explore learner and academic perspectives on mixed reality case studies in 3d spatial design (multimedia and architecture), paramedic science and information technology, through the use of existing data as well as additional one-on-one interviews around the use of mixed reality in the classroom. Results show that mixed reality can provide engagement, critical thinking and problem solving benefits for students in line with this new generation of learners, but also demonstrates that more work needs to be done to refine mixed reality solutions for the classroom

Older Adults with AMD as Co-Designers of an Assistive Mobile Application

In the UK, 20% of people aged 75 years and over are living with sight loss and age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the most common cause of sight loss in the UK, impacting nearly 10% of those over 80; regrettably, these figures are expected to increase in coming decades as the population ages (RNIB, 2012). This paper reports on the authors’ design activities conducted for the purpose of informing the development of an assistive self-monitoring, ability-reactive technology (SMART) for older adults with AMD. The authors reflect on their experience of adopting and adapting the PICTIVE (Plastic Interface for Collaborative Technology Initiatives through Video Exploration) participatory design approach (Muller, 1992) to support effective design with and for their special needs user group, reflect on participants’ views of being part of the process, and discuss the design themes identified via their PD activities

A bluetooth educational content distribution system modelled on a service-oriented architecture

In this research, we design and prototype an educational content distribution system modeled on a Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA) paradigm and implemented using Web services, XML and Bluetooth technology. In the prototype, we use an Open Source Learning Management System (LMS) Sakai implemented in Java and branded Vula for the University of Cape Town (UCT). Web services and its specification of SOAP, XML and Bluetooth technology are used to integrate the disparate technologies that form the service architecture. The disparate technologies include among others Bluetooth enabled mobile phones and PDAs, services (modules) which may be running on different operating systems, and deployed over Local Area Networks (LANs) or Internet. The service is meant to leverage the existing infrastructure to provide a new, cheap channel for education content distribution to mobile devices in learning institutions especially Universities in the developing world and Africa in particular. We design, implement and evaluate the prototype for performance and scalability. During the designing and implementation of the architecture, we incorporate SOA principles of service/module re-use, service composition, loose-coupling, standard data exchange within the system or services, and extensibility of the services among others. The aim of the service is to distribute education content uploaded in Learning Management Systems (LMSs) to Bluetooth enabled mobile devices that are increasingly held by students in developing world Universities. The service is intended to supplement existing Web-based and lecture room content distribution channels by opening up the mobile device space. For the prototype, we focus on repackaging structured text content and distributing it to Bluetooth enabled phones and PDAs using Bluetooth technology. We evaluate our prototype for performance using experimental studies

How Do Teachers and Students Perceive The Utility of Blackboard as a Distance Learning Platform? (Case Study from Taibah University, Saudi Arabia)

This research explores the role of Knowledge Management within the education field with a specific focus on the use of Learning Management Systems in the Distance Learning (e-learning) process. The aim of this study is to thoroughly examine how teachers and students perceive the utility of the Blackboard system as a distance learning platform. To achieve this, the study conducted qualitative interviews and quantitative questionnaire surveys with the teachers and students of Taibah University, Saudi Arabia. Questions in both data collection tools were geared towards gaining insight about how these two groups of Blackboard users view its usefulness as a distance learning tool. The results of the research revealed that Blackboard is viewed as a positive influence on distance learning, and that students view this application as an opportunity to avoid traditional, classroom learning activities. Also, the research discovered that teachers generally have a positive viewpoint about Blackboard, and believe it makes teaching a lot easier. Nevertheless, few issues were also mentioned by both groups of users, particularly the challenge of slow internet connections and difficulty of creating exams (teachers) or accessing and completing exams in a time-effective manner (students). To address these challenges, and any other as well, this research recommended that universities or learning institutions that decide to adopt LMS systems such as Blackboard for distance learning have to conduct a thorough analysis of their current structure, and determine how this new method of teaching/learning can be integrated into existing learning activities in a seamless manner. A thorough investigation will aid in forestalling any future challenges such as poor internet connections, as the school would have implemented measures to ensure this does not occur

The Use of Multiple Slate Devices to Support Active Reading Activities

Reading activities in the classroom and workplace occur predominantly on paper. Since existing electronic devices do not support these reading activities as well as paper, users have difficulty taking full advantage of the affordances of electronic documents. This dissertation makes three main contributions toward supporting active reading electronically. The first contribution is a comprehensive set of active reading requirements, drawn from three decades of research into reading processes. These requirements explain why existing devices are inadequate for supporting active reading activities. The second contribution is a multi-slate reading system that more completely supports the active reading requirements above. Researchers believe the suitability of paper for active reading is largely due to the fact it distributes content across different sheets of paper, which are capable of displaying information as well as capturing input. The multi-slate approach draws inspiration from the independent reading and writing surfaces that paper provides, to blend the beneficial features of e-book readers, tablets, PCs, and tabletop computers. The development of the multi-slate system began with the Dual-Display E-book, which used two screens to provide richer navigation capabilities than a single-screen device. Following the success of the Dual-Display E-book, the United Slates, a general-purpose reading system consisting of an extensible number of slates, was created. The United Slates consisted of custom slate hardware, specialized interactions that enabled the slates to be used cooperatively, and a cloud-based infrastructure that robustly integrated the slates with users' existing computing devices and workflow. The third contribution is a series of evaluations that characterized reading with multiple slates. A laboratory study with 12 participants compared the relative merits of paper and electronic reading surfaces. One month long in-situ deployments of the United Slates with graduate students in the humanities found the multi-slate configuration to be highly effective for reading. The United Slates system delivered desirable paper-like qualities that included enhanced reading engagement, ease of navigation, and peace-of-mind while also providing superior electronic functionality. The positive feedback suggests that the multi-slate configuration is a desirable method for supporting active reading activities

Designing tabletop applications for collaboration in non-collaborative learning tasks in the classroom : learning persuasive writing

PhD ThesisLearning in a face to face collaborative setting can have many benefits, such as leveraging differing peer proficiency to obtain an outcome not reachable by the individuals involved. Including expertise provided by teachers decreases this gap between potential and current ability, while also providing opportunity for the expert to impart timely and appropriate assistance to the learners. In the fields of Human Computer Interaction and Educational Technology, digital tabletops have come to the fore as a medium for facilitating small groups of collaborative learners, and suitable applications can provide at least some of the support that the teacher’s expertise would in the learning process. Previously, most explorations in this area have concentrated on learning tasks that are already collaborative in nature, and have focused on single group deployments, and usually in controlled settings such as a research lab. This thesis focuses on two main aims: (i) investigating the design of such applications, and how learning tasks not normally considered collaborative, such as Persuasive Extended Writing, might be adapted to a digital tabletop mediated collaborative learning task; and (ii), how to expand this application from a single group to a classroom scenario, and overcoming all the challenges that an “in the wild” deployment of this kind might entail. A review of previous literature on collaborative learning and collaborative learning technology inform a learner centred design process of an application for the collaborative learning of Persuasive Extended Writing. This design process was conducted with three groups of three learners aged 13 – 15 in the lab. Based on this investigation of the literature around collaborative learning, there is a potential learning impact from allowing collaboration in a usually non-collaborative learning setting. The application incorporates factors designed to elicit collaborative behaviours, such as visuospatial representations and decision points. The work then sets about identifying and evaluating these collaborative behaviours, with a view that they are potentially in line with this ultimate learning goal. iii The Collocated Collaborative Writing application (CCW) is deployed and evaluated in an “in the wild” classroom setting. This involved two studies in real classrooms in schools, with eight digital tabletops allowing for a class-wide deployment. In the first study, participants were students of mixed ability, year 8 (aged 13-14), studying English, Geography and History. In the second study, participants were mixed ability year 8 students (aged 13-14) studying English. Studies were facilitated by teachers who had created the material for the studies based on their current teaching and curriculum. The process identified the issues and challenges involved in this kind of “in the wild” deployment. The lessons learned from this process about the differing expectations of the stakeholders involved in the first study informed the second deployment. A combination of addressing the issues directly, forming a more equal partnership with the school and teacher, and differences in culture between the schools lead to a study in which the collaborative writing application is evaluated. There are two main contributions of this work. Firstly, a set of design guidelines derived from lessons learned during the design process. Their intention is to assist in the process of making a normally non-collaborative learning task into a collaborative one, by exploiting affordances of the technology. The second contribution comes from lessons learned from two “in the wild” classroom studies. It outlines a deeper understanding of how this kind of application can be extended to the classroom by gaining insight into expectations of the parties involved, understanding the culture of the school and making the process a partnership rather than an imposition. The work also evaluated the Collaborative Writing Application in terms of the type and quality of the collaborative behaviours of the participants, and how they changed over time, as well as the adoption of the technology by the teacher, eventually being seen as a tool for their own agenda rather than an external element in the classroom

Towards a collaborative web-based learning system

The Internet can play an important role in providing education and new opportunities.The availability of the web-enabling technologies has influenced the success of e-learning strategies. The Internet may make the larger world more tangible and give strong foundation to extend traditional learning methods with dynamic learning using web technologies or electronically.E-learning consists of Web-based teaching tools that allow students and instructors access to course materials, assessment tools, activities and various communication options electronically.E-learning continues to work its way into the curriculum of many institutions of higher learning across the country.Focus of this paper is the discussion of the e-learning implementation, including future development and enhancement of e-learning.A review of the literature concerned the role of ICT in enhancing and promoting learning in or using the World Wide Web (WWW or Web) is also included.The e-learning platform used does provide a paradigm shift in facilitating student-lecturer interactio