Student-Centric Teaching - Perspectives of Students on the Teaching Strategies

This research was conducted to find students’ viewpoints toward different teaching strategies used in higher education. The research method used to collect data was through a questionnaire. It involved two sections: one aimed to evaluate effectiveness of different teaching strategies. The other was about identifying which class activities are mostly liked by students that help them to understand the topics better. The subjects for the research were students since the student is the primary outcome of the teaching process. The data was collected from a random sample of three hundred fifty students for the research at an undergraduate college. The findings were analyzed using statistical tool-ANOVA analysis, coefficient of variance, tables and charts. Based on the findings, it is clearly inferred that there is no particular teaching strategy that derives effectiveness neither an absolute class activity that helps students to absorb the material better. All depends on many circumstances such as the learning environment, level of students and the content to be delivered

Wiring the Writing Center

As computers have brought important developments to composition studies, writing centers have found themselves creating and improvising applications for their own work and often for the writing programs and institutions in which they live. Online tutorials, websites with an array of downloadable resources for students, scheduling and email possibilities--all of these are becoming common-place among writing centers across the country. However, in spite of impressive work by individual centers, exchange on these topics between and among writing centers has been sporadic. As more writing centers approach getting wired and others continue to upgrade, the need for communication and collaboration becomes ever more obvious, and so does the need to understand theoretical implications of choices made.https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/usupress_pubs/1122/thumbnail.jp

Evaluation of computer aided instruction: Assessing the value and effectiveness of operational systems

This thesis investigated a number of performance measures for computer-aided instruction (CAI) systems. These "evaluation metrics" are intended to assess the worth and value of teaching systems. An operational accounting tutor (which teaches marginal costing) was used to develop the metrics and a replication study was conducted on Application Program Tutor (a tutoring system designed to teach courses). Although, CAI is a mature technology which has evolved in a variety of fields and forms since the 1950s, its potential remains untapped. Factors attributed to this include resistance from teachers, lack of student involvement in design, and insufficient imagination in curriculum design. Inadequate system standards and a deficiency of good software tools, lack of documentation, maintenance and education value have also been key limiting factors. The overall picture seems akin to a cottage industry than a co-ordinated enterprise. Evaluation is significant, to developers and users in this field, because in the short-term it improves the usability and life-span of the numerous systems that have been developed and in the long-term it focuses attention (away from the impetus to deliver) towards issues of appropriateness and quality in system design. Different traditions of evaluation are explored, including the selection criteria used in educational technology and the impact of the quality philosophy on software engineering. This research was conducted using the Before-after Two-group design on forty-two accountancy students, where a conventionally taught group was compared with the accountancy tutor group. Performance on a number of marginal (or variable) costing problems was measured before and after both groups were taught. Moreover, the experimental group was given a questionnaire to complete (which was designed to capture their assessment of the system). The results derived from the well- crafted questionnaire were indicative of the systems strengths and weaknesses and supplied useful criteria for future research

An adaptive domain-independent agents-based tutor for Web-based supplemental learning environments

Thesis (Ph. D .)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering, 2003.Includes bibliographical references (p. 170-185).The Physics Interactive Video Tutor (PIVoT) is a Web-based multimedia resource for college-level Newtonian mechanics. The Personal Tutor (PT) is an intelligent tutoring system (ITS) integrated into PIVoT, assisting students and teachers in navigating through, understanding, and assessing PIVoT's educational media. PT is adaptive in that it personalizes its functionality to the preferences of its user. The combined PIVoT / PT system was designed to be domain-independent with respect to the style of pedagogy, models of user learning, and instructional algorithms. Thus, this design is easily adapted for use beyond the tested domain of introductory college physics. PT is designed in the object-oriented paradigm, building upon the recent work in multi-agent systems (MAS). This agents-based approach, along with innovations in negotiating student-agent control and communication, allow current and future competing pedagogical strategies and cognitive theories to coexist harmoniously. New efficient, domain-independent techniques for discovering, updating, and presenting students' contextual interests improve information retrieval and site navigation. Unlike other computer-based instruction systems used as a tool for primary learning and assessment, PIVoT is used as a supplementary resource focusing on providing formative assessment to both student and educator alike. The PIVoT / PT system leverages reusability and system independence, two often-overlooked strengths of agent-based approaches to intelligent tutoring systems. Combined, PIVoT and the Personal Tutor provide an effective proving ground for innovations in intelligent tutoring system design that also reduces the cost of making such software.by Steven Niemczyk.Ph.D

Analogical specification reuse during requirements analysis

This thesis investigates analogy as a paradigm for retrieving, understanding and customising reusable specifications during requirements engineering. Cooperation between software engineers and support tools is necessary for effective analogical reuse. Retrieval uses a computational implementation of analogical reasoning to search and match many reusable specifications. On the other hand understanding, transferring and adapting specifications requires cooperation between the tool and software engineer. Cooperative support was designed for less-experienced software engineers with most to gain from successful specification reuse. Deliverables from this research have implications for software engineering, artificial intelligence, cognitive science and human-computer interaction. Specification retrieval is founded on a framework of software engineering analogies. This framework includes a set of domain abstractions describing key facts about software engineering domains. A computational model of analogical reasoning which matches domain descriptions to these abstractions was designed, implemented and evaluated during user studies with a prototype reuse advisor. An intelligent dialogue acts as a front-end to this retrieval mechanism by acquiring key domain facts prior to retrieving domain abstractions. This dialogue was designed from empirical studies of software engineering behaviour during requirements capture and modelling. Design of support tools for specification understanding and transfer was based on cognitive task and reasoning models of software engineering behaviour during analogical reuse and mental models of analogical understanding. Two empirical studies of inexperienced software engineers identified problematic mental laziness manifest as specification copying. A third study of expert software engineers who successfully reused specifications identified strategies for effective reuse. Detailed findings from all three studies informed the design of tool-based support for specification understanding and transfer. Findings also have implications for the design of tools to support other requirements engineering activities

The use of problem-based learning in graduate programs of higher education

This study was intended to discover what Problem-Based Learning (PBL) looks like in graduate departments of higher education according to faculty who use PBL methodology in their curriculum and graduate students who experience PBL in their courses. This study also attempted to further understand the advantages, disadvantages, and challenges of PBL as perceived by both faculty and graduate students; After a comprehensive review of literature, two surveys were constructed, one for faculty and one for graduate students. The questions for both surveys were composed based on the information gleaned from the review of literature. The American Association of Higher Education (AAHE) was selected as the population to be surveyed because it was an accessible population that could easily be controlled and many of the 189 members offered graduate programs in Higher Education; Once the population was determined, surveys were sent to both faculty and graduate students who agreed to participate. A qualitative comparative analysis was also conducted with three cooperating professors; The data revealed many similarities between faculty and graduate student responses in relation to research studies previously conducted on the use of PBL. Both faculty and graduate students favorably agree that PBL provides critical thinking, as well as offers opportunities to use real-world problems and therefore, hones readiness for on-the-job experiences. The results of the data did show, however, that there is a discrepancy as to what type of PBL faculty use in the classroom and what type of PBL students perceive they are receiving; There is a need for continued research on the use of PBL and further quantitative studies on how it affects the student learner. PBL has limitations, which were discussed in the study. The researcher concluded that PBL is another type of teaching methodology that can be used in the classroom to embellish constructivist learning and provides opportunities for adults to use their previous knowledge and skills. PBL, however, is not the panacea for student learning although it can provide an alternative path of education

The effects of the medium of planning on the written performance in an EFL context.

Chan, Ying Shan.Thesis submitted in: October 2006.Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2007.Includes bibliographical references (leaves 112-117).Abstracts in English and Chinese; appendix also in Chinese.ACKNOWLEDGEMENT --- p.iABSTRACT IN ENGLISH --- p.iiABSTRACT IN CHINESE --- p.ivLIST OF TABLES --- p.vLIST OF FIGURES --- p.viChapter CHAPTER ONE --- INTRODUCTION --- p.1Chapter 1.1 --- Introduction --- p.1Chapter 1.2 --- Statement of Problem --- p.3Chapter 1.3 --- Purpose and Method of Study --- p.4Chapter 1.4 --- Significance of the Study --- p.6Chapter 1.5 --- Organization of the Dissertation --- p.7Chapter CHAPTER TWO --- LITERATURE REVIEW --- p.8Chapter 2.1 --- Introduction --- p.8Chapter 2.2 --- Previous Research on Planning and Oral Performance --- p.9Chapter 2.2.1 --- Conceptual Framework of Planning Studies --- p.9Chapter 2.2.2 --- Aspects of Linguistic Performance --- p.10Chapter 2.3 --- The Role of Planning in Writing --- p.13Chapter 2.3.1 --- Writing Models --- p.14Chapter 2.3.2 --- The Role of L2 in Writing Models --- p.16Chapter 2.3.3 --- The Role of L1 in L2 Writing --- p.18Chapter 2.4 --- Different Types of Planning --- p.22Chapter 2.5 --- The Importance of Planning --- p.23Chapter 2.6 --- The Relationship between Planning and Written Performance --- p.24Chapter 2.6.1 --- Planning Types --- p.26Chapter 2.6.2 --- Research on Pre-task Planning --- p.26Chapter 2.6.3 --- Research on Online Planning --- p.27Chapter 2.6.4 --- Other Research --- p.28Chapter 2.7 --- Chapter Summary --- p.29Chapter CHAPTER THREE --- METHODOLOGY --- p.30Chapter 3.1 --- Introduction --- p.30Chapter 3.2 --- Safeguards for the Research Design --- p.31Chapter 3.2.1 --- Classroom Situation --- p.32Chapter 3.2.2 --- Purposeful Sampling --- p.33Chapter 3.2.3 --- Voluntary Participation and Guarantee of Anonymity --- p.33Chapter 3.3 --- The Participants --- p.33Chapter 3.4 --- Sources of Data --- p.38Chapter 3.4.1 --- Pre-task Questionnaires --- p.39Chapter 3.4.2 --- Written Products --- p.39Chapter 3.4.3 --- Reflective Questionnaires --- p.40Chapter 3.4.4 --- Semi-structured Interviews --- p.40Chapter 3.5 --- Procedures of Data Collection --- p.41Chapter 3.5.1 --- Selecting the Subjects --- p.41Chapter 3.5.2 --- Gathering the Basic Information of the Participants --- p.42Chapter 3.5.3 --- Conducting Pilot Studies --- p.43Chapter 3.5.4 --- Writing Sessions --- p.44Chapter 3.5.5 --- Semi-structured Interviews --- p.47Chapter 3.5.6 --- Collecting Questionnaires and Written Products --- p.48Chapter 3.6 --- Analysis of the Data --- p.48Chapter 3.6.1 --- Eliciting the Questionnaires and Interviews --- p.48Chapter 3.6.2 --- Analyzing the Written Products --- p.49Chapter 3.6.3 --- Processing the Data --- p.52Chapter 3.7 --- Chapter Summary --- p.52Notes --- p.53Chapter CHAPTER FOUR --- RESULTS --- p.55Chapter 4.1 --- Introduction --- p.55Chapter 4.2 --- Effects of the Medium of Planning on Written Performance --- p.55Chapter 4.2.1 --- The Effects of Task Sequences on Written Performance --- p.55Chapter 4.2.2 --- The Effects of the Medium of Planning without the Consideration of Proficiency --- p.57Chapter 4.2.3 --- The Effects of the Medium of Planning with the Consideration of Proficiency --- p.59Chapter 4.2.4 --- The Effects of the Medium of Planning and Proficiency Level on Written Performance --- p.65Chapter 4.3 --- The Comparison between Two Proficiency Groups on Each Task --- p.67Chapter 4.4 --- Questionnaires and Interviews --- p.73Chapter 4.5 --- Chapter Summary --- p.75Chapter CHAPTER FIVE --- FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION --- p.77Chapter 5.1 --- Introduction --- p.77Chapter 5.2 --- The Relationship between the Medium of Planning and Written Performance --- p.77Chapter 5.2.1 --- The Effects of the Medium of Planning on Fluency --- p.78Chapter 5.2.2 --- The Effects of the Medium of Planning on Accuracy --- p.88Chapter 5.2.3 --- The Effects of the Medium of Planning on Complexity --- p.92Chapter 5.3 --- Comparison of the Two Proficiency Groups on Each Task --- p.94Chapter 5.3.1 --- Two Groups Performing in English Task --- p.94Chapter 5.3.2 --- Two Groups Performing in Chinese Task --- p.96Chapter 5.4 --- Chapter Summary --- p.100Chapter CHAPTER SIX --- "CONCLUSION, IMPLICATIOINS AND RECOMMENDATIONS" --- p.102Chapter 6.1 --- Introduction --- p.102Chapter 6.2 --- Conclusion of the Study --- p.102Chapter 6.3 --- Implications for Teachers --- p.105Chapter 6.3.1 --- Ways to Improve Fluency --- p.106Chapter 6.3.2 --- Ways to Improve Accuracy --- p.108Chapter 6.4 --- Limitations and Recommendations --- p.109Chapter 6.5 --- Chapter Summary --- p.110REFERENCES --- p.112APPENDICES --- p.11

Designing Embodied Interactive Software Agents for E-Learning: Principles, Components, and Roles

Embodied interactive software agents are complex autonomous, adaptive, and social software systems with a digital embodiment that enables them to act on and react to other entities (users, objects, and other agents) in their environment through bodily actions, which include the use of verbal and non-verbal communicative behaviors in face-to-face interactions with the user. These agents have been developed for various roles in different application domains, in which they perform tasks that have been assigned to them by their developers or delegated to them by their users or by other agents. In computer-assisted learning, embodied interactive pedagogical software agents have the general task to promote human learning by working with students (and other agents) in computer-based learning environments, among them e-learning platforms based on Internet technologies, such as the Virtual Linguistics Campus (www.linguistics-online.com). In these environments, pedagogical agents provide contextualized, qualified, personalized, and timely assistance, cooperation, instruction, motivation, and services for both individual learners and groups of learners. This thesis develops a comprehensive, multidisciplinary, and user-oriented view of the design of embodied interactive pedagogical software agents, which integrates theoretical and practical insights from various academic and other fields. The research intends to contribute to the scientific understanding of issues, methods, theories, and technologies that are involved in the design, implementation, and evaluation of embodied interactive software agents for different roles in e-learning and other areas. For developers, the thesis provides sixteen basic principles (Added Value, Perceptible Qualities, Balanced Design, Coherence, Consistency, Completeness, Comprehensibility, Individuality, Variability, Communicative Ability, Modularity, Teamwork, Participatory Design, Role Awareness, Cultural Awareness, and Relationship Building) plus a large number of specific guidelines for the design of embodied interactive software agents and their components. Furthermore, it offers critical reviews of theories, concepts, approaches, and technologies from different areas and disciplines that are relevant to agent design. Finally, it discusses three pedagogical agent roles (virtual native speaker, coach, and peer) in the scenario of the linguistic fieldwork classes on the Virtual Linguistics Campus and presents detailed considerations for the design of an agent for one of these roles (the virtual native speaker)