March 25, 2012, 10:17 pm
Anthony E. Kelly, Office of Educational Technology, US Department of Education, and George Mason University
This post builds on analyses of two use cases by Barbara Means of SRI. One case describes the testing of a multimedia intervention in a college-level course. The other case describes course redesign using longitudinal data analysis.
Drawing on these two cases, I propose some new approaches to design-based research, including increased collaboration through shared design and data repositories. I seek feedback on these nascent analyses, and welcome similar cross-case analyses using these and other use cases. READ MORE
March 25, 2012, 9:51 pm
Challenge: Provide best learning approach for each student
Stakeholders: Researchers, Developers, Teachers, Students
Tech Affordances: Rapid Prototyping
Methods: A/B Testing; Learning Analytics
Author: Barbara Means based on an interview with Ken Koedinger and references below.
The Challenge: Researchers at LearnLab, the Pittsburgh Science of Learning Center, set out to see whether they could improve the effectiveness of an online chemistry course by applying design principles based on research. Within a chemistry course developed by Carnegie Mellon University’s Open Learning Initiative (OLI), they identified the portion that deals with equilibrium as being particularly challenging for students. READ MORE
March 19, 2012, 2:31 pm
Challenge: Timely Feedback for Every Level of the Education System
Stakeholders: Developers, Corporate Decision Makers, Teachers, Students
Tech Affordances: Immediate feedback from end users at scale; Longitudinal measures
Methods: Controlled trials of new approaches
Author: Barbara Means based on a presentation by Bror Saxberg for the February 12 convening of the Next Generation Learning Challenges Wave 1 Grantees, Austin, TX.
The Challenge: Kaplan Inc. has grown from a small test preparation business to a major provider of online learning. Bror Saxberg, Kaplan’s Chief Learning Officer, points out that most commercial providers of services for K-12 and higher education face a “double-buyer situation” since they need to satisfy two kinds of stakeholders. READ MORE
December 23, 2011, 6:23 am
Fourth-grade teachers at Oakville Elementary School use a reading program that calls for 90 minutes of literacy instruction a day, with students rotating between using a reading software program, working with the teacher in a small group, and doing silent sustained reading, each for 30 minutes.
One of the school’s fourth-grade teachers, Ms. Griffin, looks at the student and class reports generated by the reading software every week. These reports give her a detailed view of the reading subskills that each student has mastered, attempted, and still not reached and a whole-class view of where her students stand. READ MORE
December 23, 2011, 6:22 am
Like the sequencing of topics and subtopics in regular instruction, sequencing in online courses is usually based on the judgments of experienced instructors. Often times, online courses use a mastery-based approach, allowing students as much time as they need to learn a skill or concept to mastery before moving them to new content. This individualized pacing can be particularly helpful for learners who need more time, but there can be a downside to this approach; students can get stuck on a particular topic and become discouraged or bored if not allowed to move on.
The Kaplan Test Prep group decided to examine the validity of the sequence of topics and subtopics in their online MCAT preparation course. READ MORE
