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Instructional Materials (instructional + material)
Selected AbstractsDeveloping Web-based Interdisciplinary Modules to Teach Solid Waste/Residue Management in the Food ChainJOURNAL OF FOOD SCIENCE EDUCATION, Issue 3 2003C.W. Shanklin ABSTRACT: A Web-based interdisciplinary instructional resource was developed to provide information that will increase food science educators' knowledge of waste management in the food chain. The 4 modules are: legal implications for management of wastes/residues; identification, quantification, and characterization of wastes/residues; management of wastes/residues; and economic ramifications of wastes/residues. Instructional materials are available for faculty and GTAs for use in teaching the 4 modules. Food science educators can use this Web-based instructional tool as an educational resource in their undergraduate classes to enhance students' knowledge and ability to solve critical environmental problems in the food chain. Seehttp://www.oznet.ksu.edu/swr/home/welcome.htm [source] The effects of animations on verbal interaction in computer supported collaborative learningJOURNAL OF COMPUTER ASSISTED LEARNING, Issue 5 2008M. Sangin Abstract This paper focuses on the interaction patterns of learners studying in pairs who were provided with multimedia learning material. In a previous article, we reported that learning scores were higher for dyads of an ,animations' condition than for dyads of a ,static pictures' condition. Results also showed that offering a persistent display of one snapshot of each animated sequence hindered collaborative learning. In the present paper, further analyses of verbal interactions within learning dyads were performed in order to have a better understanding of both the beneficial effect of animations and the detrimental effect of the presence of persistent snapshots of critical steps on collaborative learning. Results did not show any differences in terms of verbal categories between the two versions of the instructional material, that is, static versus animated pictures. Pairs who were provided with persistent snapshots of the multimedia sequences produced fewer utterances compared to participants without the snapshots. In addition, the persistent snapshots were detrimental both in terms of providing information about the learning content and in terms of producing utterances solely for the purpose of managing the interaction. In this study, evidence also showed that these two verbal categories were positively related to learning performances. Finally, mediation analyses revealed that the negative effect of persistent snapshots was mediated by the fact that peers of the snapshots condition produced less information providing and interaction management utterances. Results are interpreted using a psycholinguistic framework applied to computer-supported collaborative learning (CSCL) literature and general guidelines are derived for the use of dynamic material and persistency tools in the design of CSCL environments. [source] Instructional Tools in Educational Measurement and Statistics (ITEMS) for School Personnel: Evaluation of Three Web-Based Training ModulesEDUCATIONAL MEASUREMENT: ISSUES AND PRACTICE, Issue 2 2008Rebecca Zwick In the current No Child Left Behind era, K-12 teachers and principals are expected to have a sophisticated understanding of standardized test results, use them to improve instruction, and communicate them to others. The goal of our project, funded by the National Science Foundation, was to develop and evaluate three Web-based instructional modules in educational measurement and statistics to help school personnel acquire the "assessment literacy" required for these roles. Our first module, "What's the Score?" was administered in 2005 to 113 educators who also completed an assessment literacy quiz. Viewing the module had a small but statistically significant positive effect on quiz scores. Our second module, "What Test Scores Do and Don't Tell Us," administered in 2006 to 104 educators, was even more effective, primarily among teacher education students. In evaluating our third module, "What's the Difference?" we were able to recruit only 33 participants. Although those who saw the module before taking the quiz outperformed those who did not, results were not statistically significant. Now that the research phase is complete, all ITEMS instructional materials are freely available on our Website. [source] Thinking Globally, Acting Locally: Selecting Textbooks for College-Level Language ProgramsFOREIGN LANGUAGE ANNALS, Issue 3 2008John Angell Abstract: This article examines the process by which college-level foreign language programs evaluate and select instructional materials for beginning level courses. A review of the relevant literature reveals an ambivalent relationship with textbooks, often the default curriculum for language courses. Despite textbooks' apparent key role in language programs, there is a surprising lack of cohesive recommendations from the field on evaluating and selecting textbooks. Results of an informal survey illustrate how the textbook selection process, individuals involved, and individuals' satisfaction with the selection process varied across programs. Respondents with established selection processes involving more stakeholders tended to be more content with process and selection. The authors conclude that there is a need for greater transparency and a broader professional discussion of this critical matter in language learning and teaching. [source] An Algorithmic Approach to Error Correction: An Empirical StudyFOREIGN LANGUAGE ANNALS, Issue 1 2006Alice Y. W. Chan This article reports on the results of a research study that investigated the effectiveness of using an algorithmic approach to error correction to help Hong Kong English-as-a-second-language (ESL) learners overcome persistent lexico-grammatical problems. Ten error types were selected for the experiment, and one set of remedial instructional materials was designed for each error type. The materials were implemented with more than 450 students at both secondary and tertiary levels. Pretests, posttests, and delayed posttests were administered to test the effectiveness of the approach, and a plenary review meeting was organized to gather feedback. The results showed that the approach was versatile and effective and that the students showed significant improvements for the items taught. It is argued that form-focused remedial instruction is effective in enhancing learners' language accuracy in their second language (L2) output. [source] How students and instructors using a virtual learning environment perceive the fit between technology and taskJOURNAL OF COMPUTER ASSISTED LEARNING, Issue 3 2008T.J. McGill Abstract Virtual learning environments (VLEs) are widespread in higher education today, typically used to deliver instructional materials and facilitate communication within a course. This study aimed to investigate the task,technology fit of VLEs for their two main groups of users: instructors and students, using the VLE WebCT. Task,technology fit, user satisfaction, attitude towards use and anticipated consequences of use were found to be significantly higher for students than for instructors. Instructors were found to have higher perceptions of social norms and higher perceptions of facilitating conditions than students. However, there was no difference between the instructors and students in level of utilization of the VLE. Students perceived that the VLE had higher impacts on their learning compared with instructors' perceptions regarding their teaching. These results suggest that despite high levels of support acknowledged by instructors, they may still be unsure about the contribution of VLEs to their teaching. [source] 95 Development of macroalgal (seaweed) taxonomic keys utilizing digital & media technologyJOURNAL OF PHYCOLOGY, Issue 2003R. L. Lehman Digital, user-friendly seaweed identification keys and instructional materials can provide information that allows students and researchers to enhance and improve marine field and ecological studies by including macroalgae. In much of the scientific literature, the seaweeds are only characterized to division (red, green, and brown), sometimes to genus, and very rarely to species; so there is clearly a need for a reference that facilitates the identification of the seaweeds. Many of the problems occur because of the lack of user-friendly identification keys. However, it is not necessary to be an expert to identify seaweeds as many of the key characteristics used in their identification can be ascertained with the naked eye, a hand lens and an inexpensive microscope. What is needed is an identification guide that uses and displays important characters and identification structures visually (both macroscopic and microscopic) so that research scientists, students, teachers and the general public will be able to identify the seaweeds with confidence. We are using Lucid Professional software to construct digital keys for the identification of macroalgae from the Texas Coastal Bend. The advantages include: 1) key characters along with descriptions and images for specific macroalgae may be chosen from a geographic area of choice, 2) the user may evaluate the characters in any order and difficult or uncertain characters may be ignored, 3) descriptive pages of images, definitions, video clips and illustrations may be included for each taxon, and 4) the key can be displayed as a website or packaged as a CD to be used with laptop computers in the field. [source] Establishing experiences to develop a wisdom of professional practiceNEW DIRECTIONS FOR TEACHING & LEARNING, Issue 108 2006Joan M. T. Walker This study evaluated students' perceptions of two types of instructional materials focused on engineering professionalism: a passage of advice about professionalism and the same passage with a video enacting the advice. The role of experience in learning about professionalism is discussed, with particular emphasis on how educational materials might be tailored to meet the needs of first-year and advanced undergraduates. [source] LO + EPSS = just-in-time reuse of content to support employee performancePERFORMANCE IMPROVEMENT, Issue 6 2007Frank Nguyen Those involved in training know that creating instructional materials can become a tedious, repetitive process. They also know that business conditions often require training interventions to be delivered in ways that are not ideally structured or timed. This article examines the notion that learning objects can be reused and adapted for performance support systems. By doing so, a performance technologist can develop content for just-in-case training and reuse it for just-in-time performance support. [source] Reading information graphics: The role of spatial contiguity and dual attentional guidanceAPPLIED COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 9 2009Jana Holsanova In a naturalistic newspaper reading study, two pairs of information graphics have been designed to study the effects of (a) the spatial contiguity principle and (b) the dual scripting principle by means of eye tracking measurements. Our data clearly show that different spatial layouts have a significant effect on readers' eye movement behaviour. An integrated format with spatial contiguity between text and illustrations facilitates integration. Reading of information graphics is moreover significantly enhanced by a serial format, resulting from dual attentional guidance. The dual scripting principle is associated with a bottom-up guidance through the spatial layout of the presentation, suggesting a specific reading path, and with a top-down guidance through the conceptual pre-processing of the contents, facilitating information processing and semantic integration of the material. The integrated and serial formats not only attract readers' initial attention but also sustain the readers' interest, thereby promoting a longer and deeper processing of the complex material. The results are an important contribution to the study of the cognitive processes involved in text-picture integration and offer relevant insights about attentional guidance in printed media, computer-based instructional materials and textbook design. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Matching/mismatching revisited: an empirical study of learning and teaching stylesBRITISH JOURNAL OF EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY, Issue 1 2001Nigel Ford This paper presents results of a research project that explored the relationship between matching and mismatching instructional presentation style (breadth-first and depth-first) with students' cognitive style (field-dependence/-independence) in a computer-based learning environment. 73 postgraduate students were asked to create Web pages using HTML, using instructional materials that were either matched or mismatched with their cognitive styles. Significant differences in performance on a multiple choice test of conceptual knowledge were found for students learning in matched and mismatched conditions. Performance in matched conditions was significantly superior to that in mismatched conditions. However, significant effects were found for gender, matching mainly affecting male students. Performance on a practical test of Web page creation was not linked to matching or mismatching, but was linked to an interaction between gender and instructional presentation style. The findings provide support for the notion that matching and mismatching can have significant effects on learning outcomes. The paper concludes with suggestions for further research. [source] 16 A Novel Approach to "See One, Do One": Multimedia Presentations before Procedure Workshops and SimulationACADEMIC EMERGENCY MEDICINE, Issue 2008Amita Sudhir We propose that residents and medical students are likely to gain more from a simulation experience or procedure workshop if they are given educational materials conveying key concepts to review beforehand. Several multimedia formats are available to accomplish this task. Digital video and Powerpoint presentations can be converted to podcasts with or without audio tracks using programs like Profcast, GarageBand, Camtasia, and Keynote. There are also procedure videos available from sources like the New England Journal of Medicine. Participants are provided these instructional materials via a secure web server or email attachment several days prior to the educational session. These presentations are kept short in length (no greater than 10-15 minutes) to optimize compliance while delivering information efficiently. They can be reviewed at the learner's convenience on a personal computer or on an iPod with video capability. This method can significantly reduce the time required for didactic teaching in a procedure workshop; for example, when medical students review a video on basic suturing before attending a suturing workshop, they are prepared to begin practicing with minimal initial instruction. Furthermore, conveying the same information repeatedly through different instructional methods can help learners consolidate knowledge, as in the case of a presentation provided to residents before a simulation session containing the basic clinical teaching points of the case. Participant feedback regarding these resources has been favorable. [source] | |||||||||||||