Efficiency of learning environment using GeoGebra when calculus contents are learned in collaborative groups

In this paper we present a modern approach of teaching mathematics based on the computer supported collaborative learning (CSCL) of calculus contents. The collaborative learning was used in calculus course at the University of Novi Sad, Serbia, for examining functions and drawing their graphs. In 2012 the authors decided to improve the collaborative learning introducing GeoGebra application. Small four member groups were formed by using Kagan's (1994) principles. Two groups of students, the experimental, and the control one were observed. The students in the experimental group learned with the help of GeoGebra, and the students in the control group learned without using GeoGebra.Comparison between those two groups of the first year calculus students, regarding their way of learning and the results achieved, is described below. Before the students' collaborative learning, they were tested with a pre-test and their knowledge necessary for examining functions was verified. The pre-test showed that there was no significant statistical difference between the experimental and the control group. The experimental group worked with the help of the computer and the control one without it. After the collaborative learning, the students were tested with a test (colloquium) and the results of the experimental group were significantly better than the results of students in the control group. At the end of the course the students did their exams (post-test), and the results of the experimental group were significantly better than the results of students in the control group.Some students from the experimental group had to answer questions in an interview related to the use of GeoGebra during their collaborative learning. In order to see the students' difficulties in solving problems, students in the experimental group were asked to cross out incorrect parts of solutions, not to erase them. The teachers reviewed the students' tasks done during the collaborative learning and after that the students who had corrected their mistakes were invited for an interview about using GeoGebra for overcoming their difficulties. Based on the students' results in the tests, answers in the questionnaire and in the interview, it can be concluded that GeoGebra has enabled an easier learning of this material. The GeoGebra package enables the students to check whether each step in the process of solving a task was correctly done or not. The results of our research show that GeoGebra can help those students having insufficient knowledge (necessary for solving those tasks) to improve it.We can say that our research shows that the students' learning achievement in examining functions and drawing their graphs is better when they use GeoGebra, working in collaborative groups than without using it. Also, GeoGebra enables creation of effective learning environment for examining functions and drawing their graphs.     

Evaluating the use and impact of lecture recording in undergraduates: Evidence for distinct approaches by different groups of students

Lecture recordings are increasingly used to supplement lecture attendance within higher education, but their impact on student learning remains unclear. Here we describe a study to evaluate student use of lecture recordings and quantify their impact on academic performance. Questionnaire responses and online monitoring of student's access to recordings indicate that ∼75% students use this material, the majority in a targeted manner. In contrast, a small subset of students (∼5%) are highly dependent on recordings downloading every lecture, and viewing the material for long periods, such that this represents a large proportion of their independent study. This ‘high user’ group is atypical, as it contains a high proportion of dyslexic and Non-English Speaking Background students. Despite high usage, lecture recordings do not have a significant impact on academic performance, either across the cohort or with students that use the recordings. Overall, this approach appears to be beneficial, but may reduce lecture attendance and encourage surface learning approaches in a minority of students.     

Informal feedback rather than performance measurements – user-centred evaluation in Scrum projects

The main features of the Scrum process are intense communication between different stakeholders, and rapid feedback based on regular delivery of working software. The integration of traditional user-centred evaluation activities in this context is challenging. Hence, this paper presents an interview study of 21 informants, categorised in four different professional roles. The main contribution of the paper is an overview of the types of user-centred evaluation conducted by information technology professionals in various Scrum projects. Results show that various forms of feedback are indeed gathered on the usability and user experience of the software, system or service being developed. However, the user-centred evaluations conducted typically are informal with few users, gathering empirical qualitative data and performed during short unplanned sessions. Performance measurements gathering quantitative data are seldom used. The informants in the business specialist role merely ask users about their opinion, whereas the other roles use several user-centred evaluation activities to gather feedback on their design. Generally, feedback is gathered throughout the whole project, but often evaluation is conducted early in the project or even before the actual development starts. Finally, these results are discussed in relation to previous studies in the area.     

Information administrative support of decision processes in organizations

Twenty-four high-level managers, working with information administration, from twenty large organizations of different kinds, were interviewed about how they perceived information administration and present information administrative practices. ADP-managers saw greater promise in the concept of information administration than did information managers. Many informants were concerned that planned information administration could lead to control and restriction of the information flow rather than to a supportive and facilitative approach. Furthermore, most informants reported various deficiencies in current information handling practices. The consequences of the results for improved IT use in organizations are discussed.     

Information administrative support of decision processes in organizations

Twenty-four high-level managers, working with information administration, from twenty large organizations of different kinds, were interviewed about how they perceived information administration and present information administrative practices. ADP-managers saw greater promise in the concept of information administration than did information managers. Many informants were concerned that planned information administration could lead to control and restriction of the information flow rather than to a supportive and facilitative approach. Furthermore, most informants reported various deficiencies in current information handling practices. The consequences of the results for improved IT use in organizations are discussed.     

Examining gender differences in attitudes toward interactive classroom communications systems (ICCS)

An interactive classroom communication system (ICCS) involves the use of remote devices that permit all students in a class to respond to multiple choice questions displayed on a LCD projector. After responses are clicked in, the results are instantly aggregated and displayed in chart form. The purpose of this study was to examine gender differences in attitudes toward ICCSs for 659 secondary school students. The initial results suggested that male students had significantly more positive attitudes than female students with respect to student involvement, assessment, and perceived learning. However, a number of these differences disappeared when computer comfort level and type of use were added as covariates. Male students still perceived that ICCSs improved the overall learning process more than female students regardless of computer comfort level or type of use.     

Naked into the World: IT experiences on a final primary school teaching practice—a second survey

Abstract This study reports a survey of 103 student teachers who were asked about their experiences of IT on their final teaching practice. Data are related to those from an earlier survey of the same group of students on their first teaching practice. The use of IT was higher than before, but still unacceptably low. A large majority of students will graduate with no classroom experience of databases and other applications software; a significant number will graduate without any classroom experiences using IT whatsoever. The patterns of IT use in class were most disappointing. A predominant use was for pupils to work on tasks unrelated to lesson plans, often practising basic skills.
Those students who had taken a course in computer studies were more confident in their use of IT, made more use of IT in class, and experienced fewer technical problems than students who had not taken this course. However, students who had taken this course were no more likely to use a computer in class than those who had not. Students who do use IT in class reported increased confidence and a desire to make greater use of IT in the future. It is concluded that compulsory courses on the educational uses of IT, and use of IT early in teaching practice will help improve the current unacceptable situation, so long as they address the problem of ensuring appropriate classroom use of IT by students.     

Making assistive reading tools user friendly: a new platform for Greek dyslexic students empowered by automatic speech recognition

This work presents our effort to incorporate a state of the art speech recognition engine into a new platform for assistive reading for improving reading ability of Greek dyslexic students. This platform was developed in the framework of the Agent-DYSL, IST project, and facilitates dyslexic children in learning to read fluently. Unlike previously presented approaches, the aim of the system is not only to enable access to the reading materials within an inclusive learning system but to promote the development of reading skills by adjusting and adapting in the light of feedback to the system. The idea is to improve speech recognition performance so that gradually increase the reading capabilities of the user, gradually diminish the assistance provided, till he is able to read as a non-dyslexic reader. The evaluation results show that both learners’ reading pace and learners’ reading accuracy were increased.     

Computer-based spelling remediation for dyslexic children

Abstract The SelfSpell programs provide a multi-media environment for dyslexic children which uses synthesised speech to augment the written text. In earlier research we established that by encouraging users to enter a rule to help them remember how to spell each word, SelfSpell was very effective in improving spelling ability. The evaluation study reported here confirmed the efficacy of the rule-based approach using a group of 11-year-old dyslexic children with severe impairments in spelling. Of particular theoretical significance, however, was the finding that use of a mastery learning technique for learning spellings was just as effective as the rule-based approach. These findings are interpreted in the light of Frith's influential framework for the development of reading and spelling ability. It is suggested that the multimedia presentation approach may provide a uniquely effective method for helping dyslexic children to acquire the 'alphabetic' stage of linguistic processing.     

The effects of spatial contiguity within computer-based instruction of group personalized two-step mathematics word problems

This study investigated the effects of the spatial contiguity principle within computer-based instruction (CBI) of group personalized two-step mathematics word problems on the achievement and attitude of 98 sixth-grade predominantly Hispanic students. Students were randomly blocked by ability level based on their pretest scores to a spatially contiguous or non-spatially contiguous version of the CBI. The results revealed students who received the spatially contiguous treatment made significantly greater pretest-to-posttest gains than students who received the non-spatially contiguous treatment. In addition, lower-ability students made significantly greater pretest-to-posttest gains than higher-ability students. Findings from the student attitude survey revealed no significant difference in treatment responses to the two survey factors on CBI Satisfaction and Attitude About Math. Student comments from the open-ended questions on the attitude survey and the focus group interview indicated that the spatially contiguous version of the CBI was more helpful and less confusing than the non-spatially contiguous version.     

Computer‐assisted learning of Chinese idioms

Abstract Chinese idioms play an important role in Chinese vocabulary learning as well as having cultural and social functions. However, researchers found that Hong Kong students seldom use idioms. Not only are students writing characters incorrectly, they are using the idioms both incorrectly and inappropriately. A survey was conducted to examine the attitudes of Hong Kong students and teachers to learning Chinese idioms. According to the survey, primary teachers believed that computers can assist students in learning Chinese idioms more effectively than an idiom dictionary. Consequently, an experimental program for learning Chinese idioms was designed for students between 9 and 11 years old. As an evaluation, usability tests were carried out by interview and by survey. Both evaluations produced positive responses from the dependent and independent group of subjects which is an encouraging first step.     

The SuperShrink interview: Active versus passive questioning and student satisfaction

Many attempts have been made to simulate and study human behavior using computers. SuperShrink, an educational simulation of a clinical interview for undergraduate psychology students, is described and evaluated with special attention to the optimal balance of interview structure and realism created by how students question the simulated patient. An empirical study of three questioning methods is reported. Data from between-group and within-subjects comparisons indicate students prefer typing suggested questions to menu-driven or automatic methods, suggesting the make-believe aspects of a realistic simulation are more important to users than efficiency, once enough structure is provided to keep frustration within comfortable limits. Empirical analysis of student behavior in computer based educational settings is advocated to aid the development of these instructional aids and as convenient laboratories in which to study personality and cognitive topics of interests to psychologists.     

Computer-assisted learning of Chinese idioms

Abstract Chinese idioms play an important role in Chinese vocabulary learning as well as having cultural and social functions. However, researchers found that Hong Kong students seldom use idioms. Not only are students writing characters incorrectly, they are using the idioms both incorrectly and inappropriately. A survey was conducted to examine the attitudes of Hong Kong students and teachers to learning Chinese idioms. According to the survey, primary teachers believed that computers can assist students in learning Chinese idioms more effectively than an idiom dictionary. Consequently, an experimental program for learning Chinese idioms was designed for students between 9 and 11 years old. As an evaluation, usability tests were carried out by interview and by survey. Both evaluations produced positive responses from the dependent and independent group of subjects which is an encouraging first step.     

A survey of attitudes to,knowledge about and experience of computers

There is some concern that relatively few students in the U.K. elect to study computing and that this number is declining despite the high pay levels of computer staff and emphasis on computing in education. Variables known to be associated with the extent to which an individual is likely to make use of computers are background discipline, attitude to computers and IT, attitude to technology in general, experience of computers and gender. The present study investigates the relationships between these variables for 928 students at an institution of higher education. Subjects had been selected to fall into four discipline areas: COMP (computer/electronic studies), SCIENCE (science courses), HI-IT (non-science courses making heavy use of IT) and LOW-IT (non-science courses making relatively low use of IT). Results indicated that on entry to college, students in the COMP category had more experience with computers than students in other categories and that across all categories, except HI-IT, males had more experience with computers on entry than females. Students in the COMP category also had significantly more knowledge about computers than other students and across all categories males had more knowledge than females on entry. There were relatively minor differences in attitudes to computers and IT with COMP students being slightly more positive than students in the other categories, and there were no differences in attitudes to technology in general across the four categories. There were no consistent gender differences on the attitude variables. Results were discussed with relation to vocational choice and it was concluded that females on computer courses may, in general, be rather less interested in computers per se than their male peers.     

Investigation of Chinese students' O2O shopping through multiple devices

This study aims to dig out user needs in cross-channel and cross-device shopping environments. To achieve this goal, 20 college students reported their shopping habits of choosing channels and using devices in the interview. The results were complemented by the focus group where seven college students discussed their implicit shopping needs. Based on that, five college students were observed for one week in the anthropology study. Four findings were derived. First, price difference mainly contributed to the participants' shopping choice in the online channel, while the experience of offline shopping and time-cost savings did in the offline channel; Second, smartphones were not the core device of every participant's ecosystems; Third, participants with lower work engagements preferred to shop online and enjoyed sharing shopping information compared to those with higher work engagements; Fourth, female participants, especially those with lower work engagements, had more cross-device interactions than male participants. These findings were integrated into four personas which would be of reference value for practitioners.     

Getting it from the Web: why and how online resources are used by independent undergraduate learners

Abstract Undergraduate students access the Internet for a range of purposes, many unrelated to their studies. Increasingly, learners are using the Internet to find information and resources for coursework, whether or not this is promoted or endorsed by their teachers. This article reports an interview study that investigated why and how independent learners use Web‐based resources, exploring not only the academic context of the courses studied, but also any relevant personal, domestic and employment‐related circumstances. Factors were identified, which enhanced or competed with study activities, acting as incentives or disincentives for learners. The findings suggest that it is not technologies per se, but a combination of various contextual factors, that determine students' use of Web resources for learning. Of the academic factors that emerged from the interviews, assessment requirements and pedagogic approach were particularly important.     

Effectiveness of a Virtual Laboratory as a preparatory resource for Distance Education chemistry students

Many have argued that interactive 3D virtual environments have great educational potential due to their ability to engage learners in the exploration, construction and manipulation of virtual objects, structures and metaphorical representations of ideas. Although learning benefits have been demonstrated in research settings, and substantial usage has occurred in workplace training contexts, there are few published evaluations of applications of such environments within university contexts. This article reports on studies exploring the effectiveness of a virtual environment based on a chemistry laboratory as a tool to prepare university chemistry students studying at a distance for their on-campus residential schools, in response to evidence suggesting that many of these students experienced a lack of confidence and a sense of anxiety approaching these sessions. In an experimental study it was found that the environment was able to be effective as a tool for familiarising students with the laboratory. However, when the resource was provided to distance students, less than half of the students chose to use it, possibly due to the fact that use of the resource was not required for the assessment in the subject. Questionnaire and interview data suggested that most of those who used the resource found that it was a valuable preparatory tool and would recommend its further use. For many students, however, a lack of familiarity with the laboratory was not seen as the major source of their anxiety and therefore a resource allowing them to become familiar with the laboratory did not have a major impact on their learning experience. Given that the ability to apply mathematical techniques and chemistry concepts within the practical sessions emerged as a major source of students’ anxiety, it is suggested that the incorporation of instruction or scaffolding for these aspects of the task can be provided, and would make a valuable enhancement to the virtual environment.