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Leveraging Technology for Chemical Sciences Education: An Early Assessment of WebCT Usage in First-Year Chemistry Courses
Abstract
In this article, early results of combining information technologies with the intent of improving the science-learning environment in terms of student motivation and learning are presented. The assessment focuses on student reactions to these instructional innovations. Results show that students appreciate the scheduling flexibility found in technology supported learning (TSL) and take advantage of this to maximize their scores on online quizzes and exams. Results also show that students perceive a more positive impact on their learning and confidence when using the TSL environment. Keywords (Audience): First-Year Undergraduate / General
... They also suggested that academic staff feel reassured by the implication that face-to-face contact with students is preserved in a blended learning approach. The rationale that is recommended is that online learning be used to complement other methods, not replace them, and that it should only be incorporated if it enriches and enhances learning (Charlesworth & Vician, 2003). ...
... Lovatt et al. (2007) describe how a VLE was used in conjunction with a drop-in science clinic to provide additional learning support to first year students. Several other authors already mentioned have described similar initiatives , Charlesworth & Vician, 2003 in which a coordinated approach is undertaken that involves online support, quizzes and/or assessment as a central feature. It has been shown that students appreciate the flexibility and easy access to learning materials and that this approach results in an improvement in their confidence in relation to the subject. ...
... Chin (2003) has produced guidelines for using VLEs in the physical sciences. Charlesworth and Vician (2003) described their introduction of a WebCT VLE to attempt to improve motivation and learning on a first year chemistry programme. Students appreciated the flexibility that the system allowed and, as a result of the online tests and tutor communication tools introduced, they reported having less anxiety about exams and improved confidence and perceived learning. ...
Two recent initiatives from the EU, namely the Bologna Process and the Lisbon Agenda are likely to have a major influence on European Higher Education. It seems unlikely that traditional teaching approaches, which supported the elitist system of the past, will promote the mobility, widened participation and culture of 'life-long learning' that will provide the foundations for a future knowledge-based economy. There is therefore a clear need to seek new approaches to support the changes which will inevitably occur. The European Chemistry Thematic Network (ECTN) is a network of some 160 university chemistry departments from throughout the EU as well as a number of National Chemical Societies (including the RSC) which provides a discussion forum for all aspects of higher education in chemistry. This handbook is a result of one of their working groups, who identified and collated good practice with respect to innovative methods in Higher Level Chemistry Education. It provides a comprehensive overview of innovations in university chemistry teaching from a broad European perspective. The generation of this book through a European Network, with major national chemical societies and a large number of chemistry departments as members make the book unique. The wide variety of scholars who have contributed to the book, make it interesting and invaluable reading for both new and experienced chemistry lecturers throughout the EU and beyond. The book is aimed at chemistry education at universities and other higher level institutions and at all academic staff and anyone interested in the teaching of chemistry at the tertiary level. Although newly appointed teaching staff are a clear target for the book, the innovative aspects of the topics covered are likely to prove interesting to all committed chemistry lecturers.
... The use of Moodle platform in the general (traditional) course of education has been repeatedly described by both Russian (Tyukina, Babayan and Lazović, 2020) and foreign scientists. Moreover, the vast majority of authors noted an improvement in academic performance and an increase in motivation for students to learn a foreign language (Vician and Charlesworth, 2003). ...
... Distance learning technologies are understood as educational technologies implemented mainly with the use of information and telecommunications networks in the indirect interaction of students and teachers. Organizations engaged in educational activities have the right to apply these types of teaching in the implementation of educational programs in accordance with the procedure established by the federal executive authority (Vician and Charlesworth, 2003). ...
... virtual library with -lectures; exercises; multimedia sources; movies; presentations; tests; glossaries; links to other web-base on-line resources etc. Many Higher-Education institutions have adopted the use of virtual learning environments and incorporate e-learning into their traditional teaching mechanisms as part of a blended-learning approach (Charlesworth & Vician, 2003;Lovatt et al. 2007;Evans, 2008). ...
... The online self-study quizzes as online self-directed learning to construct knowledge and skills are often one of a series of measures implemented to support first year undergraduate chemistry students and to scaffold their learning (Lovatt et al., 2007). Several other authors have described a coordinated approach undertaken that involves online support, quizzes and/or assessment as a central feature of the blended learning that offer Charlesworth & Vician, 2003). ...
... 16 Students generally have favorable responses to online course material which supplements the more traditional course material. 14,17,18 Previous studies have indicated that students feel more prepared for laboratory classes when online prelab activities are available. 4,15,19,20 Interactive prelab activities have also been shown to reduce the technical and analytical errors made by students in the laboratory. ...
... Again, this reflects previous research into online learning, which identifies its flexible nature as a key strength. 14,15 Although the methods of laboratory preparation reported by students were largely similar at the start and end of the subject, at completion of the subject fewer students reported doing additional calculations beyond those within the prelab exercises. This suggests that the prelab exercises were well-integrated with the laboratory material, and that students gained enough confidence from doing the prelabs to not need to carry out additional calculation work. ...
This project utilizes visual and critical thinking approaches to develop a higher-education synergistic prelab training program for a large second-year undergraduate analytical chemistry class, directing more of the cognitive learning to the prelab phase. This enabled students to engage in more analytical thinking prior to engaging in the analytical action in the laboratory, motivating students to arrive at classes prepared to engage in the material rather than the mechanics (physical processes) of the practical exercises. This reduced the likelihood of cognitive overload at the beginning of the class. Video demonstrations were developed providing both visual demonstrations with audio explanations to reinforce each concept, and students were guided to these through compulsory prelab e-quizzes. The effectiveness of the program was evaluated by academic performance and an attitudinal survey. Attitudes toward the prelab program were very positive, particularly for the e-quizzes. There was no improvement on academic performance in laboratory reports; however, students reported that the prelab material had a positive effect on their learning, and that they were able to enter the laboratory with high levels of perceived preparedness. Given that student experiences in the laboratory are arguably as important as assessable outcomes, an attitudinal study such as this is extremely important. © 2016 The American Chemical Society and Division of Chemical Education, Inc.
... virtual library with -lectures; exercises; multimedia sources; movies; presentations; tests; glossaries; links to other web-base on-line resources etc. Many Higher-Education institutions have adopted the use of virtual learning environments and incorporate e-learning into their traditional teaching mechanisms as part of a blended-learning approach (Charlesworth & Vician, 2003;Lovatt et al. 2007;Evans, 2008). ...
... The online self-study quizzes as online self-directed learning to construct knowledge and skills are often one of a series of measures implemented to support first year undergraduate chemistry students and to scaffold their learning (Lovatt et al., 2007). Several other authors have described a coordinated approach undertaken that involves online support, quizzes and/or assessment as a central feature of the blended learning that offer Charlesworth & Vician, 2003). ...
The virtual learning environment (VLE) in the Technical College of Yambol has been created using Moodle software platform and has been applied. In order to improve the quality of student training, this year start a project " Introducing Interactive Teaching Methods in Inorganic Chemistry and Investigation the Effect on the Quality of Knowledge ". The project has the aim: to create e-learning data base of General and Inorganic Chemistry; to apply new interactive devices during lecture activities; innovative possibilities for self preparation of students as well as new assessments of acquire knowledge of students. The inspection of the opinion of students enrolled in e-learning supported courses, in the TC – Yambol, showed that 80% of students support the idea of blended learning supported by Web-based e-learning materials, they found e-learning more interesting. Approximately 80% of students gave positive answer about the e-quizzes for self preparation, followed by 70% for video materials and the same range of 70% for lecture presentations. We expect that through the creation of new approaches for teaching and self preparation will give novel possibilities to improve the quality of education furthered in the College. 1. Introduction The key to education is to find ways to have both ordinary information and natural memory work together (King, 2011). The use of ICT for learning-teaching-assessment, have some potential benefits (Vlada M. at all 2009): With regard to teachers, facilitation of learning objectives; facilitation of teacher's activity; the modernization of the educational process is not seen by teachers as an important argument for using ICT in designing, teaching and assessment activities; With regard to students, classes in the computer laboratory are useful because they facilitate students' understanding; development of computer use skills; the new technologies attracting and motivating students for higher achievement; With regard to the organization of the education process, the benefits of ICT are in connection with active, participative learning, as well as with cooperative learning; the contribution of ICT to individual or personalized learning is surprisingly ranked last, although the majority of educational applications are more suitable for individual learning. The use of ICT can support the learning process and enhance communication. It facilitates the transformation from the classical teacher-centered process characterized by teacher-to-student communication flow, separated working forms, guided tutorials and closed experiments to a flexible student-centered learning process in which the student constructs his or her knowledge using different sources (Brouwer, 2006). In order to satisfy the new trends and requirements for the fast oriented, flexible and suitable education in the Technical College of Yambol are applying efforts to develop and organize educational system with the new approaches and technology.
... Several authors have discussed the use of VLEs in higher Chemistry education (Chin, 2003;Charlesworth & Vician, 2003;McDonnell & O'Connor, 2005;Brouwer & McDonnell, 2009;Donoso et al., 2010). Chin (2003) has produced guidelines for using VLEs. ...
... Chin (2003) has produced guidelines for using VLEs. Charlesworth and Vician (2003) described their introduction of a Web CT VLE to attempt to improve motivation and learning on a first year chemistry programme. ...
This paper presents an educational project (" Introducing Interactive Teaching Methods in Inorganic Chemistry and Investigation the Effect on the Quality of Knowledge ") of blended learning in the studies of " Food Technology " in Technical College of Yambol. The blended learning model is established and supported by e-learning on-line materials. The multimedia courses, lessons and e-quizzes have been created. Moodle platform is used for the management of on-line educational process. We propose the innovative devices that can be apply in Chemistry lessons and by integrated audio – video tools, specific programs and interactive whiteboards, virtual labs to create simulations of chemistry experiments and solving different problems.
... Emendu [15] and Fanzo et al. [16] have proven the crucial role of chemical knowledge in solving food-related and other problems. Some researchers have focused on improving the education process with regard to the chemical training of agrarian university students [17][18][19][20]. Green chemistry education (GCE) is currently being actively developed in many countries. ...
The impact of agricultural production on the ecological condition of vast territories is of concern to the entire world community. Therefore, the concept of sustainable development should become the basis for the training of agricultural specialists. This article examines the transformation of the system of chemical training of agricultural students in Russia, taking into account the transition to the concept of sustainable development. The study of the history of the development of chemical training of agricultural specialists in Russia helped us to see the causes of the current crisis and highlights what should be preserved. The analysis of the modern needs of the agro-industrial complex made it possible to identify ways to modernize the system of teaching chemical disciplines in agricultural universities. As a result, the main trends of modernization of chemical training of future agricultural specialists in the context of the concept of sustainable development are identified. The chemical competencies of specialists of the agro-industrial sector working in the field of production, processing, and quality control of agricultural products are differentiated. The conditions of their formation are determined, and the effectiveness of the application of the principles of green chemistry for the formation of selected competencies is shown. The theoretical significance of the research is the development of the concept of ecological chemical education (green chemistry) for agricultural education. The practical significance of this work lies in the development of practical examples of the application of the principles of green chemistry in the educational process of an agrarian university. The originality of this research lies in determining the pedagogical conditions for the formation of chemical competencies of agricultural specialists in the context of orientation to the concept of sustainable development.
... Online homework provides a possible solution where students work on problems and are graded and given feedback by the online system. Additionally, online homework has been found to have a positive impact on student learning (Charlesworth & Vician, 2003). Furthermore, online homework positively impacts students' success in a course which could be due to the extra effort students put in solving problems (Kuhn, Watson, & Walters, 2013). ...
... Online homework is one of the most effective learning tools which can assist students in practicing, exercising and reviewing previously studied lessons of coursework (Cheng, Thacker, Cardenas, & Crouch, 2004;Fynewever, 2008;Penn, Nedeff, & Gozdzik, 2000). Currently, the use of online homework is commonly found in many university courses because it creates supportive learning environments (Charlesworth & Vician, 2003) and yields more learning opportunities (Dohn, Lund, Lindhardt, & Degnebolig, 2016). In addition, some features of online systems, for instance, automatic grading responses and responsive answer keys, can help instructor save time (Cole & Todd, 2003;Hall et al., 2001;Lonn & Teasley, 2009; Muñoz de la Peña, González-Gómez, Muñoz de la Peña, Gómez-Estern, & Sánchez Sequedo, 2013;Olivier, Herson, & Sosabowski, 2001). ...
This study examined the effects of the introductory organic chemistry online homework on first year pre-service science teachers’ learning achievements. The online homework was created using a web-based Google form in order to enhance the pre-service science teachers’ learning achievements. The steps for constructing online homework were approximately described. The participants were 76 first year pre-service science teachers at Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University (SSRU). A quasi-experimental pretest-posttest design was performed in this study. The research instruments were pre- and post-tests and online homework relevant to the introductory organic chemistry. The findings unfolded that the pre-service science teachers’ performance significantly improved after the implemented treatment and the online homework was an effective learning aid for improving the achievements of introductory organic chemistry learning. The correlations between online homework score and the various course elements were investigated. The moderate and statistically significant correlations were found between the online homework score of the students and the normalized gain and between the online homework score and their post-test achievements. Hence, the score results of the online homework were considered as a predictor of student test scores. A statistically significant correlation between their achievements in introductory organic chemistry chapter and their overall grades was found. In term of learning behavior, this implied that students’ learning habits improved when they completed their online homework. This study also proposes that introductory organic chemistry is the hardest chapter in this general chemistry course sequence at SSRU.
... This may be because immediate feedback is shown to help students retain content information (Cole and Todd 2003;Gebru et al. 2012). Further more, studies have also shown an increase in perceived learning with online homework systems (Charlesworth and Vician 2003;Hall et al. 2001). ...
Students in a first-semester general chemistry course at a large southwestern university completed a 3-week homework assignment using MindTap, a Cengage Learning product. MindTap is the first major electronic system that has homework questions embedded in the text, such that students read a short section of the textbook and then answer a question set. Prior to MindTap, electronic homework systems were stand-alone or contained questions with links to the textbook. Next, students completed two 2-week homework assignments in Online Web Learning (OWL) version 1 also from Cengage Learning. The OWL system shows homework questions with a link to the textbook in a separate window. Both the MindTap and OWL systems contain the same or similar questions. After the students used both homework systems, a survey was given that included Likert-scaled and open-response questions that dealt with students’ perceived level of understanding using the different systems, how easy the systems were to use, and the advantages/disadvantages of each system. A delayed survey was given at the end of the second semester of general chemistry, during which students had used OWL for the complete semester. This paper investigates the effects of the arrangement (embedded vs. linked) on student preferences and perceived learning in this pilot study with a 300-person class. Based on the results of the study, it was found that students perceived that they learn more with MindTap and prefer the embedded text in MindTap over the linked text in OWL.
... Education institutions and universities have started using collaborative Web tools such as Moodle or Blackboard to allow instructors and students to benefit from the advantages they offer in the learning process. An overview of what can be done in a course using the Web is presented in refs 2−4 and an assessment of learning management systems (LMS) usage in first-year chemistry courses is found in ref 5. LMS are effective in distributing material and collecting student assignments; however, they offer limited evaluation functionalities. ...
The application of an innovative Web-based system, Goodle GMS, designed for automating the collection and assessment of laboratory exercises is presented. This Web-based system has been extensively used in engineering courses such as control systems, mechanics, and computer programming. Goodle GMS allows the students to submit their results to a server via a Web-based form from any networked computer and receive their grade, feedback, and an indication of where mistakes may have been made. To design new exercises, basic Matlab knowledge is required. As an example, we describe the development and application of Goodle GMS in an advanced analytical chemistry laboratory to determine the nitrite concentration in water samples by using a flow injection analysis (FIA) system, with photometric detection, based on the Griess reaction.
... However, as displayed in Table 2 and 3, after the computer-assisted chemistry applications, their knowledge concerning environmental issues had increased. In applications, students realized active learning and reached knowledge sources that were determined by the researchers (Charlesworth & Vician, 2003). ...
In this study, the degree to which computer-assisted education affects the environmental knowledge and awareness of university students was investigated. In this way, individual and student-centered learning in environmental studies is encouraged, and the students’ success and knowledge are subsequently increased. This methodology is important for the students who will soon become chemistry teachers and will make contributions to environmental education. In this study, an environmental knowledge test of 35 questions and an environmental awareness scale of 13 questions were applied as a pre-test to 88 students. Following the pre-test, the students worked for 15 hours per week in an Internet class, in which they intensively applied computer-assisted methods for 2 weeks. The environmental knowledge test and the awareness scale, which were taken as pre-test modules, were applied again as a post-test and the results were compared. It was determined that after the computer-assisted instruction, students’ environmental knowledge and awareness were increased, but the power of environmental awareness to describe the level of success is decreased. [Chem. Educ. Res. Pract.: 2004, 5, 99-110]
... Some institutions have established collaborations at departmental or college levels to integrate library resources into their institutions' course management software to encourage students, particularly nonresident students, to make better use of the library resources (Buehler, 2004; Kraemer, 2003 ). Faculty who teach courses with large enrollments (e.g., introductory geology, chemistry, etc.) have reported that course management software, when used as a complementary learning environment, alleviates some customary burdens that these courses impose on instructors while increasing the confidence of students in their learning (Cervato, 2003; Charlesworth & Vician, 2003; Cole, 2000; Henly & Reid, 2001; Pienta, 2003). Foreman and Widmayer (2000), in their account of how a course management system was implemented in a college-level business English course, contend that although the course site had all the materials that a committed student needed to excel, face-to-face interactions and activities were overlooked. ...
This paper describes an analysis of the ideas and attitudes of preservice teachers about the integration of technology into foreign language classroom instruction. Specifically, this study focuses on the usefulness, strengths, and weaknesses of web-based instruc-tional environments (WBIEs) facilitated by course management systems such as We-bCT. Sources that were used for data analysis include interviews, field notes, and WebCT postings. This study demonstrates that preservice teachers perceive the advantages of using courseware tools in the methods class. They feel that these tools greatly enhance their experiences by providing (a) greater interactivity and connectivity between the instructor and students as well as among the students themselves and (b) more oppor-tunities for academic exchanges.
... Students have access to the educational material whenever and wherever they want. An additional advantage of VLEs is that teachers track the time that students spend in an online assessment/assignment and/or their participation in an online discussion (Bunce et al., 2006; Charlesworth & Vician, 2003;). ...
In Chemistry, practical work is a highly demanding process in which students should be well-prepared before and alert during,
laboratory sessions. Various general difficulties such as the limited laboratory time and the lack of connections between theory
and practicals often do not allow students to actively participate in the learning process. The aim of this investigation is to study
how an online general pre-laboratory training course inspired by cognitive load theory influenced the teaching of first year
chemistry students engaged in laboratory work. Two different groups of chemistry students (experimental group (EG) and
control group (CG)) from the University of Manchester participated in this investigation. The EG group participated in the online
pre-laboratory course before entering the laboratory, while the CG group performed the experiments following the traditional
teaching procedure. The comparison of students’ responses to the same assessments of fundamental chemical and basic
laboratory knowledge showed that overall the performance of the EG group of students was higher than that of the CG
students. Overall, the EG students valued the opportunity to have an online training course. By creating a flexible learning
environment which included animations, simulations and self-assessments, the general laboratory difficulties were overcome.
These interactive learning features gave students the opportunity to engage in independent study, by which restrictions of time
and place were overcome.
... In addition to its organizational and information dissemination benefits, the WebCT course sites allowed us to administer weekly quizzes and all exams electronically on WebCT. A number of studies have shown that on-line quizzes are beneficial to the learning experience (5,6,14). WebCT allowed us to give "datesensitive" quizzes, e.g., quizzes became available on WebCT immediately after the lecture and typically closed 1 wk later. ...
Today's neuroscience faculty member wears multiple hats and requires diverse skills to succeed in the competitive environment in which they find themselves. A common refrain from graduates is that there is a need for better training in the diverse, multiple skills that they will need to succeed in obtaining a faculty position and excelling in that position once it is obtained. Our university recently developed a new neuroscience graduate program that allowed us to create a curriculum and core courses de novo and that could be tailored to provide training in diverse skills used by everyday neuroscience faculty members. The current article details our rationale, design, and implementation of this new curriculum and its two major core courses. The genesis of the new curriculum also provided an opportune time to introduce and test new teaching technology in the two neuroscience core courses. The technology incorporated included on-line WebCT course sites, computer performance system, and the Tegrity system. Herein, we elaborate on our experiences with the use of this technology in the small class graduate course setting and provide insight on student feedback on the perceived effectiveness of the technology. The mechanisms and considerations that are needed for incorporation of such technology are also discussed. While no single curriculum or technology incorporation scheme will be applicable to all programs, it is hoped that our experiences in curriculum design and technology incorporation will be beneficial to other universities as they consider refining existing programs or beginning new ones.
Translation competence is crucial for both academic and professional success. After exploring the deficiencies in current college English translation teaching, this paper proposes to strengthen translation teaching for non-English majors in college English teaching in the e-learning era, which is also in line with the requirements of Guidelines on College English Teaching. A translation teaching experiment was conducted based on the PACTE translation competence model. The results of the data analysis showed that translation teaching based on this model really made a difference in non-English majors’ translation competence.Keywordstranslation competencetranslation teachingPACTEe-learning era
Chemistry laboratory experiences provide students the opportunity to engage all three domains of learning: psychomotor, cognitive and affective. However, they are often stressful environments where students are expected to quickly...
Three academic years have been considered for the evaluation of the impact of an online tutoring course of general and inorganic chemistry for freshmen students of the University of Camerino (Italy). The online material mainly consists of video tutorials, other open source web tools and multi-choice self-assessment exercises. During the academic year 2016-2017, the e-Learning course was not available yet, but then the online course was first implemented (2017/18) and fully adopted (2018/2019).The online tutoring support was activated alongside a traditional general chemistry course, adopting a blended mode, with the aims of: (i) homogenizing freshmen's chemistry knowledge; (ii) fostering the most appropriate method of study in a multi access modality; (iii) implementing the Johnstone's three levels' knowledge and (iv) increasing students' self-confidence, by the means of a self-evaluation training process. Differently from previous studies, the online course herein aimed mainly to develop a correct method of study of chemistry topics, with a punctual description of what-and-how to do. The results, i.e. the exam's scores, the time spent in the platform, and the successful percentage of students per year, have been collected and analysed through qualitative and quantitative methods. Apart a general satisfaction of the students perceived by the answers to a survey questionnaire, the analysis of the data shows an increase of 11 % of students passing the final exam within three exam sessions together with an improvement and a positive correlation between the time spent on the platform and the mid-term scores achieved.
Numerous online resources provide a variety of content for a wide range of STEM topics; however, they tend to function as isolated tidbits that provide content-specific knowledge. Application-based science education videos address the overlooked issue of concept to application by implementing experimental components in their videos and fostering connections with everyday applications. We utilized the Journal of Visualized Experiments (JoVE) peer-reviewed science education videos as homework assignments to supplement lectures on the topics of enthalpy, entropy, rate laws, and Le Châ telier's principle in a second-term general chemistry course. Student learning was assessed through the analysis of pre-and post-video conceptual quizzes, and value surveys were also conducted to gather student feedback about the videos. Our investigation shows that using these videos in the course significantly improved student learning and reinforced conceptual understanding for important foundational concepts, and these results hold even for students who did not feel positively toward the videos.
As a fundamental part of their chemical education, first-year undergraduate students are substantially involved in laboratory activities. Despite the specific teaching staff choices on the main laboratory aims, students normally...
We investigated whether use of an adaptive-responsive online homework system (OHS) that tailors homework to students’ prior knowledge and periodically reassesses students to promote learning through practice retrieval has inherent advantages over traditional-responsive online homework. A quasi-experimental cohort control post-test-only design with nonequivalent groups and propensity scores with nearest neighbor matching (n = 6,114 pairs) was used. The adaptive system was found to increase the odds of a higher final letter grade for average, below average, and failing students. However, despite the learning advantages, students self-reported less favorable attitudes toward adaptive-responsive (3.15 of 5) relative to traditional-responsive OHS (3.31). Specific to the adaptive OHS, the following were found: (i) student attitudes were moderately and positively correlated (r = 0.36, p < 0.01) to final letter grade, (ii) most students (95%) reported engaging in remediation of incorrect responses, (iii) a majority of students (69%) reported changes in study habits, and (iv) students recognized the benefit of using adaptive OHS by ranking its assignments and explanations or review materials as two of the top three most useful course aspects contributing to perceived learning. Instructors can use our findings to inform their choice of online homework system for formative assessment of chemistry learning by weighing the benefits, disadvantages, and learning pedagogies of traditional-responsive versus adaptive-responsive systems.
The idea of simultaneous renewal articulated in the work of John Goodland (1994) has guided the Benedum Collaborative, a 20-year-old school-university partnership at West Virginia University. A strategic plan was developed in 2007 and updated in 2009 to guide simultaneous renewal activities. A rationale for simultaneous renewal is provided followed by a summary of the Collaborative's coordination features and governance structure. Previous program evaluation efforts are summarized. How the strategic plan was evaluated is followed by an analysis of the plans and reports across the ten goals. The current dean of the college taps her lenses and experiences in qualitative research, teacher education, and technology integration to comment on what has been done to support simultaneous renewal. The chapter recommends a program evaluation structure utilizing dynamic logic models be implemented in school-university partnerships to inform practice and understand the complexities of simultaneous renewal.
Two large sections of first-semester general chemistry were assigned to use different homework systems. One section used MindTap, a Cengage Learning product, which presents short sections of the textbook with embedded homework questions; such that students could read the textbook section then answer one or more questions in the same screen. The other section used Online Web Learning (OWL-version 2) also from Cengage Learning, which presents homework questions that contains links to open the textbook in a separate window. Findings showed no difference between the groups in any course grades, with both groups strongly indicating that they learned from their system. During a second-semester chemistry course taught by the same instructor, all students used OWLv2. At the end of the second semester, students who had used MindTap during the first semester were given a delayed survey, containing Likert-scaled and open-response questions dealing with students’ perceived learning/perceived level of understanding with each system, how easy each system was to use, and the advantages/disadvantages of each system. In addition, students were asked to compare the two systems giving their homework preference. Students were heavily positive towards the MindTap system. Further data was collected to compare students who used MindTap for the first semester and OWL for the second-semester with those who used the systems in reverse order, using the same survey. Results showed that students indicated significantly higher perceived learning with MindTap and better attitudes and opinions of MindTap, with its single window arrangement, often citing that they read more with MindTap.
During the past few years, the New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) has initiated several projects to determine best practices in distance learning education and to apply them to courses in the Newark College of Engineering. The engineering college has lagged behind other colleges within the university in developing and implementing distance learning courses, and concerns about the quality of distance learning courses are one of the main reasons for this. The Office of Institutional Research and Planning at NJIT has undertaken a study of distance learning courses offered during the 2003-2004 academic year. The study examines a total of 150 courses, 3, 491 students and 7,701 course enrollments; approximately 1/5 of the enrollments are in distance learning courses and the remaining students enrolled in traditional face-to-face courses and served as a control group. The study examines a wide variety of parameters, including overall course performance, student satisfaction with the course and the instructor, delivery format for distance learning courses (multimedia, text, multimedia + text), instructor rank, instructor training for distance learning instruction, distance learning platform (WebCT® and WebBoard®), and ease of use of technology. This paper presents the results of this study and how they can be applied to produce improved distance learning courses in the engineering college, in all colleges within NJIT, and at other universities. Among its most significant results, the study highlights the need for instructors to receive training in teaching, learning, and technology; the preference of students for courses that use multiple delivery formats; and the greater student satisfaction at NJIT for courses that use WebCT as their asynchronous learning network platform.
A web-based course was developed in order to improve pre-service teachers' knowledge concerning complexation and masking in analytical chemistry. This course was designed to enhance students' achievement by promoting individual and student-centered learning through the use of a series of web-based modules in the subject area. A chemistry achievement test of 10 questions was developed and administered as a pre-test to assess student knowledge in the general area of complexation and masking. Eighty-four students were randomly divided into two groups. One group, referred to hereafter as the experimental group, learned about the specified material within the Web-based course that was developed for this study. The control group was traditionally taught using a lecture format. The increase in the achievement of the control and experimental groups was then assessed through the administration of the chemistry achievement test of 10 questions which was used as a post-test. Significant differences in group achievement scores, favoring the experimental group, were observed between the post-test achievement averages of the control group and the treatment group.
Chemistry education research requires a great deal of planning, coordination among students, faculty and institutions, as well as permission from the Institutional Review Board (IRB). The process is not quickly duplicated when an experiment yields statistically nonsignificant results. A check of the experimental design, analysis, and theoretical framework should be conducted before either accepting the nonsignificant results as valid or deciding that the experiment must be redesigned and re-implemented. This chapter discusses a two-pronged approach of Planning and Post-hoc analysis for dealing with nonsignificant research results before making that decision. Included in this approach is the importance of developing well constructed experimental designs that are not dependent on the results of a single low power statistical test and are grounded in appropriate theoretical frameworks. It also includes strategies for re-examination or re-analysis of nonsignificant results when a solid research design has been employed.
In general, laboratory activities are costly in terms of time, space, and money. As such, the ability to provide realistically simulated laboratory data that enables students to practice data analysis techniques as a complementary activity would be expected to reduce these costs while opening up very interesting possibilities. In the present work, a novel methodology is presented for design of analytical chemistry instrumental analysis exercises that can be automatically personalized for each student and the results evaluated immediately. The proposed system provides each student with a different set of experimental data generated randomly while satisfying a set of constraints, rather than using data obtained from actual laboratory work. This allows the instructor to provide students with a set of practical problems to complement their regular laboratory work along with the corresponding feedback provided by the system's automatic evaluation process. To this end, the Goodle Grading Management System (GMS), an innovative web-based educational tool for automating the collection and assessment of practical exercises for engineering and scientific courses, was developed. The proposed methodology takes full advantage of the Goodle GMS fusion code architecture. The design of a particular exercise is provided ad hoc by the instructor and requires basic Matlab knowledge. The system has been employed with satisfactory results in several university courses. To demonstrate the automatic evaluation process, three exercises are presented in detail. The first exercise involves a linear regression analysis of data and the calculation of the quality parameters of an instrumental analysis method. The second and third exercises address two different comparison tests, a comparison test of the mean and a t-paired test.
Online homework assignments have been shown to enhance student performance. Our research on gendered responses to these assignments adds new and useful information. We investigated differences between male and female students' responses to online homework in large-enrollment general chemistry courses. Replacing in class quizzes with online homework assignments significantly improved general chemistry success rates for both sexes—however, male students' average success rate improvement was double that of female students'. Therefore, online homework use decreased the female–male achievement gap, previously in favor of female students, to a difference that was no longer significant. Males self-reported less effective study habits than females; thus, we hypothesize that online homework might encourage more effective study habits for male students. However, in spite of greater performance gains for male students, females self-reported more positive views toward online homework use than males. Therefore, females might benefit from online homework's positive impact on their confidence in understanding the material. In addition to improving student performance, online homework also appeared to enhance student retention in the course. Overall, online homework provides a time and cost effective means to enhance pedagogy in large classes for both male and female students.
Online course management systems, such as WebCT and Blackboard, provide instructors and students with new opportunities for academic freedom. With this freedom comes the potential for abuse, which many instructors believe will manifest itself as increased levels of cheating. This paper investigates what students define as cheating, why students cheat, and their perceptions of a course management system's effect on the level of cheating in a first-year chemistry program. Our results suggest that students define cheating primarily as copying or receiving answers from another student. The primary reasons for cheating include lack of motivation, desperation, and the pressure to obtain good grades. Statistical analyses show that although students with a grade-point average in the range of 2.4–3.0 were more likely to cheat on assignments, students do not believe a course management system will have any significant impact on the level of cheating that occurs in a Web-enhanced course. Keywords (Audience): First-Year Undergraduate / General
Over the course of three semesters, the tutorials for introductory organic chemistry at McGill University evolved significantly with the input from student surveys. The tutorials changed from “chalk talks” in the first semester to a lecture capture format in the second in which PowerPoint slides, ink annotations, and associated audio were recorded, and uploaded online to be viewable by any student at any time. As expected, the later format reached more students, though fewer came in person to the live tutorial. In an effort to continue to reach as many students as possible, while at the same time providing a more engaging environment for students at the live event, the format changed once more. Demonstrations, discussions, and other personalized interactions not accessible online were incorporated in the third semester to provide a more meaningful experience for students physically present, without compromising the online content. This third tutorial format in the final semester did indeed encourage more students to come in person. Herein, we follow the evolution of these tutorials, discuss the impetus for changing formats, document student use (both online and in person) and conclude that lecture capture technology is an effective means of delivering optional course content and it can be effectively supplemented by demonstrations and other personalized interactions to reach students with different learning styles.
General Chemistry I historically had one of the highest failure and withdrawal rates at Penn State Berks, a four-year college within the Penn State system. The course was completely redesigned to incorporate more group work, the use of classroom response systems, peer mentors, and a stronger online presence via the learning management system (ANGEL). Five years of data about the redesigned course were compared with the previous five years. The redesigned course significantly improved student success as measured by the average GPA and lower withdrawal rates. Student achievement in the subsequent course, General Chemistry II, has also improved, suggesting that not only are more students completing the first course, but they are also completing the course with better preparation for the next course. Student ratings have improved for the course, showing increased satisfaction with both the course and the instructor. The findings from 10 years of data suggest significant improvements in student success are possible for General Chemistry I.
Two distinct student groups, in terms of academic performance, were identified early in the semester as either being under-performing students or over-performing students using an online homework system. The students who are identified as under-performing received, on average, lower grades than their fellow students but spent more time completing the homework assignments. These students are great candidates for targeted advertisement of student resources such as tutoring services. The students who are identified in the over-performing student population received higher grades than their fellow students, but spent less time completing the homework assignments. These students are great candidates for honors programs, independent research projects, and peer-tutoring programs. Incorporating these evaluation criteria to online homework systems will allow instructors to quickly identify students in these academic student populations.
This chapter explores the insights gained by a group of teachers from their lived experience as eLearners participating in a blended module on Designing eLearning. An understanding of the student perspective on online learning was obtained but we were also able to reflect on our participation in the module on the basis of our other roles; as teachers and potential eTutors and as course designers. As a result, important considerations were identified for the design and facilitation of online courses. These include; the support provided to online learners, particularly over the first few weeks, appropriate assessment methods, facilitation of online collaboration, access to the Internet, time management and contextualising and scaffolding learning activities. Some issues relating to implementation of effective eLearning in Higher Education Institutions were also considered. Our lived experience as eLearners was invaluable to our development as eTutors and module designers and this approach is strongly recommended to achieve effective learning on how to be an effective online tutor and facilitator and how to design and develop online programmes and activities that make full use of the strengths of online learning.
Computer-enhanced learning as noted by Cole and Todd (5) is ``somewhat less effective at the precollege level'' (p 1339). Progress is slow due to a number of factors, including instructors who are resistant to change, the complexity of the subject, and the handling of chemistry laboratories. Many of our students politely go through the motions but are not actively engaged with the lesson. Simply listening to chemistry lectures may provide students with little in the way of substantial learning gains, because lectures do not necessarily actively involve students in the activity (9), yet with the incorporation of today's technology into our curriculum and the flexible, asynchronous environment of online learning with the advantages immediate feedback provides (6) many students will expand their knowledge and skills. Careful monitoring by the instructor and setting of internal deadlines for students involved in online learning are known to encourage higher completion rates than are generally reported (10). We should take advantage of today's advances, embrace them, and be the ones to change---set the pace and avoid the trap of ``it's not the way I learned to do it!''
This presentation reports on the outcomes of a project to implement a system of delivery of immediate, automated, explanatory feedback comments for online MCQ tests in Human Biology. Guidelines were developed for the writing of feedback comments on the basis of surveys of the attitudes and expectations of first year students concerning feedback and of the nature of errors committed in previous years’ MCQ exams. The value of the feedback was evaluated through surveys of student opinion, through analysis of patterns of use revealed in the automated logging functions of web platforms and through analysis of test and final exam performance on sections of the course addressed by the feedback compared with other sections. We found that students in paid employment (approx 70% of cohort) expected to get lower
marks from the outset of the course, and obtained them. Students speaking languages other than English (LOTE) at home (22% of cohort) had unrealistically high expectations of the grades they would obtain in the course, and had difficulty readjusting these expectations in the light of subsequent test performances. The speed with which international students completed online tests provided a reliable indicator of their eventual course grades. Use of formative versions of the tests by males and low achievers was improved significantly by reduction in the length of the tests from 30 to 10 items. The feedback was extremely well regarded by students and has been shown to benefit learning in a number of contexts.
Support for this project has been provided by The Carrick Institute for Learning and Teaching in Higher Education Ltd, an initiative of the Australian Government Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations. The views expressed in this report do not necessarily reflect the views of The Carrick Institute for Learning and Teaching in Higher Education.
Business school expenditures related to online learning environments continue to rise at a somewhat unabated pace. Yet, little is known about the nature of learning in these technology-mediated learning environments. Prior research has generally assumed that the effects of technology-mediated learning (TML) are uniform across students and learning objectives. Using Bloom and Anderson et al.'s taxonomy, we focus on the lower-level learning objectives – for which TML tools are particularly appropriate – to investigate whether the effectiveness of TML is related to students' prior academic performance. Our results indicate that for the learning objectives examined, use of the online environment is of greatest benefit to students with a history of lower achievement. These findings lend credence to the assertion that the benefits of learning in TML environments are contingent upon the individuals and the technologies involved. Implications for research and practice are discussed.
Lecturers had shifted from the traditional lecture to the use of portable computers and digital projectors. A lecture delivery system called lecture templates was reported that utilizes two forms of PowerPoint lecture presentations, a complete version used by the lecturer during classes, and a corresponding partial version available in advance to the students in undergraduate- and graduate-level chemistry courses. This type of lecture delivery helps students to stay more on the topic, cover more of the required material and providing the structure and organization of the students.
The use of web-based software and course management systems for the delivery of online
assessments in the chemistry classroom is becoming more common. IMMEX software, like other
web-based software, can be used for delivering assessments and providing feedback, but differs in
that it offers additional features designed to give insights and promote improvements in problem
solving strategies. This report describes some of the features offered with IMMEX software and
provides a detailed description of how IMMEX problems are best implemented into the organic
laboratory.
The rising costs of education often lead to the call for a change from the traditional, space-and-time bound institutions to ones that offer increasingly cost-effective, technologically enhanced programs. As institutions of higher education turn to technology, primarily Internet-based, to address these challenges, the use of electronic courseware is dramatically increasing. In order to effectively utilize electronic courseware in the classroom, educators not only need to be aware of terminology, functions, and uses of the most popular types of electronic courseware, but also (and perhaps more importantly) educators need to develop and critique pedagogically based research that can, at the broader level, help educators at various levels of technological expertise learn and adapt their teaching styles to maximize student learning. In this paper we consider electronic course management systems from a pedagogical perspective, with the goal of aiding educators to effectively utilize electronic courseware in the classroom. By discussing the basics (such as terminology, functions, and uses of the most popular types of electronic courseware) and examining pedagogically based research we hope, at the broader level, to help educators at various levels of technological expertise learn and adapt their teaching styles to maximize student learning.
This is a conference paper. The use of online assessment tasks in a summative context can create tensions between the institution’s need for security to ensure the validity of individual evaluations and the student’s need for flexibility of access. This is especially the case in recent years, with the upsurge of students engaged in paid employment while enrolled in full-time study. The lowest rate of engagement of students in paid employment at the three institutions in which our study was based was 65%, the highest 75%. One quarter of all students at this institution spent more than 20 hours a week in paid employment. Ninety seven percent of students in paid work were enrolled on a full-time basis. This study determined from automatically recorded times of logon, individual question submission and whole test submission the patterns of use of online feedback-enriched MCQ tests by 656 students across the three institutions in Perth, Western Australia. The conditions under which the tests were available to students varied from a strictly secured, summative task available for a limited time on campus within hours governed by the accessibility of automatically locked-down computer rooms and the availability of staff for live or video invigilation to a freely accessible formative learning exercise. Mismatches between preferred and available times severe enough to exclude some external students from assessment were identified. Evidence was found that for younger (16-18 year old) students especially, meaningful engagement with test-structured tasks lasts no more than 10 minutes, one third of the designed time of our current summative online tests. The one third, approximately, of enrolled students who did not use the online test facility had significantly poorer academic outcomes. The advantage granted by test use increased substantially with repetition. The question of how to ensure the security and validity of online testing while increasing real flexibility of access remains unresolved for us. We accept the social responsibility of finding a solution. Published
Research into student dropout rates has attempted to identify factors that influence a student's chances of dropping out. Student engagement has emerged as an important aspect of academic success. It would seem that the development of friendship networks, based on socializing, could also be important, however, there has been little research in this area. This study looks at whether students who participated in online tutorial discussions, in addition to face-to-face tutorial meetings, made more friends through the class than students who did not. Using a quasi-experimental research design, students in Introductory Sociology were divided into two experimental groups with additional online tutorial activities and a control group without. I found that students in both experimental groups were more likely to make friends through their tutorial than control group students, who were more likely to make friends through the lecture. I also found that older students who were in the experimental groups reported making greater numbers of friends than those who were not.
Two studies examined the relationship between undergraduates' perceptions of their classroom environment, their adoption of achievement goals for the course, and their graded performance and intrinsic motivation. Results revealed a distinct antecedent profile for each goal in the trichotomous framework: Mastery goals were linked to the presence of lecture engagement and the absence of an evaluation focus and harsh evaluation, performance-approach goals were linked to the presence of evaluation focus, and performance-avoidance goals were linked to the presence of evaluation focus and harsh evaluation. When the perceived classroom environment and achievement goal variables were tested together as predictors of graded performance and intrinsic motivation, the results clearly demonstrated that the influence of the perceived classroom environment on these outcomes measures was indirect; the perceived classroom environment influenced achievement goal adoption, and achievement goal adoption, in turn, directly influenced graded performance and intrinsic motivation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Information technology is slowly becoming a part of educational classrooms and corporate training facilities. The current study examines the use and outcomes of computer-based instructional technology in the context of graduate business education. Case study data is gathered to explore how computer technology is used in the university classroom, and how computer-based teaching methods differ from traditional teaching methods in terms of class interaction and in-class learning. The study found that there are many potential computer-based teaching methods and that the methods can have different outcomes. The use of computer-based teaching methods requiring hands-on student use appear to offer an advantage over traditional methods and over computer-based methods not requiring hands-on student use in providing a forum for exploratory analysis during class and for acquiring technical procedural knowledge. A model of in-class learning is developed for future research.
To use information technology to improve learning processes, the pedagogical assumptions underlying the design of information technology for educational purposes must be understood. This paper reviews different models of learning, surfaces assumptions of electronic teaching technology, and relates those assumptions to the differing models of learning. Our analysis suggests that initial attempts to bring information technology to management education follow a classic story of automating rather than transforming. IT is primarily used to automate the information delivery function in classrooms. In the absence of fundamental changes to the teaching and learning process, such classrooms may do little but speed up ineffective processes and methods of teaching. Our mapping of technologies to learning models identifies sets of technologies in which management schools should invest in order to informate up and down and ultimately transform the educational environment and processes. For researchers interested in the use of information technology to improve learning processes, the paper provides a theoretical foundation for future work.
Two studies examined the relationship between undergraduates' perceptions of their classroom environment, their adoption of achievement goals for the course, and their graded performance and intrinsic motivation. Results revealed a distinct antecedent profile for each goal in the trichotomous framework: Mastery goals were linked to the presence of lecture engagement and the absence of an evaluation focus and harsh evaluation, performance-approach goals were linked to the presence of evaluation focus, and performance-avoidance goals were linked to the presence of evaluation focus and harsh evaluation. When the perceived classroom environment and achievement goal variables were tested together as predictors of graded performance and intrinsic motivation, the results clearly demonstrated that the influence of the perceived classroom environment on these outcomes measures was indirect; the perceived classroom environment influenced achievement goal adoption, and achievement goal adoption, in turn, directly influenced graded performance and intrinsic motivation.
Basic speech course students at a mid‐sized, midwestern university (N = 245) reported preparation strategies and amounts as they readied themselves to demonstrate communication knowledge on the final exam for the course. In this exploratory study, two strategies led to significantly higher scores on the final exam: reviewing the concepts delineated on the study guide and silent reading of class notes. Overall grade point average correlated positively with final exam scores. A second study examined the relationship between students' motivation toward the course and their demonstration of communication knowledge and public speaking skill. Student motivation (N = 263) was positively related to public speaking competence, but not to the demonstration of communication knowledge.
Technology-mediated distance learning is becoming increasingly important to business curricula. However, little theoretical development or empirical research has examined teaching effectiveness in distance learning. Thus, this article draws from research in management communications, education, and information systems to develop an initial conceptualization of influences on technology-mediated distance learning outcomes. It then reports on an exploratory study utilizing both qualitative and quantitative techniques to examine 247 students' reactions to such distance learning.
This article describes a type of problem which may be useful to students who are reviewing topics in chemistry. By directing students to a few selected topics which are integrated in one problem, the task of review becomes less daunting. Allowing students to work on problems outside of class, then including the problems as extra credit exam questions provides further motivation for the students to review. Keywords (Audience): High School / Introductory Chemistry