This paper details a long-term evolving effort to provide evaluation instruction designed to address specific information needs for selected target groups from a centralized location within a networked environment. Additionally, this paper examines a content design process that focuses on user-centered data-appropriate evaluation methods where the content of the instructional system is comprehensive, organized, and presented for use by library researchers and practitioners in a variety of library settings and situational contexts. Specific examples of web-based evaluation instructional systems
DATE:
TEAM MEMBERS:
John SneadCharles McClureJohn BertotPaul Jaeger
In 2009, the North Carolina Virtual Public Schools worked with researchers at the William and Ida Friday Institute to produce and evaluate the use of game creation by secondary students as a means for learning content related to career awareness in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) disciplines, with particular emphasis in computer science areas. The study required the development of various forms of multimedia that were inclusive of content and activities delivered in a distance environment via the Internet. The team worked with a game art and design graduate class to
Modern zoological gardens have invested substantial resources in technology to deliver environmental education concepts to visitors. Investment in these media reflects a currently unsubstantiated belief that visitors will both use and learn from these media alongside more traditional and less costly displays. This paper proposes a model that identifies key factors theorized to influence the likelihood of visitors engaging in technology-delivered media. Using data from two case studies of large National Science Foundation-funded projects in zoos, the authors argue key factors in predicting
We describe OctoPocus, an example of a dynamic guide that combines on-screen feedforward and feedback to help users learn, execute and remember gesture sets. OctoPocus can be applied to a wide range of single-stroke gestures and recognition algorithms and helps users progress smoothly from novice to expert performance. We provide an analysis of the design space and describe the results of two experiments that show that OctoPocus is significantly faster and improves learning of arbitrary gestures, compared to conventional Help menus. It can also be adapted to a markbased gesture set
To conserve species, we must first identify them. Field researchers, land managers, educators, and citizen scientists need up-to-date and accessible tools to identify organisms, organize data, and share observations. Emerging technologies complement traditional, book-form field guides by providing users with a wealth of multimedia data. We review technical innovations of next-generation field guides, including Web-based and stand-alone applications, interactive multiple-access keys, visual-recognition software adapted to identify organisms, species checklists that can be customized to
DATE:
TEAM MEMBERS:
New England Wild Flower SocietyElizabeth FarnsworthMiyoko ChuW. John KressJason BestJohn PickeringRobert StevensonGregory CourtneyJohn VanDyckAaron Ellison
This report was completed by the Program Evaluation Research Group at Endicott College in October 2013. It describes the outcomes and impacts of a four-year, NSF-funded project called Go Botany: Integrated Tools to Advance Botanical Learning (grant number 0840186). Go Botany focuses on fostering increased interest in and knowledge of botany among youth and adults in New England. This was being done through the creation of an online flora for the region, along with the development of related tools, including PlantShare, and a user-friendly interface for ‘smartphones’. In January 2012, the PI
DATE:
TEAM MEMBERS:
Judah LeblangNew England Wild Flower Society
This report combines the views of education researchers, technology developers, educators, and researchers in emerging fields such as educational data mining and technology-supported evidence-centered design to present an expanded view of approaches to evidence. It presents the case for why the transition to digital learning warrants a re-examination of how we think about educational evidence. The report describes approaches to evidence-gathering that capitalize on digital learning data and draws implications for policy, education practice, and R&D funding.
DATE:
TEAM MEMBERS:
U.S. Department of EducationOffice of Educational Technology
This report is the National Education Technology Plan (NETP) submitted by the U.S. Department of Education (ED) to Congress. It presents five goals with recommendations for states, districts, the federal government, and other stakeholders. Each goal addresses one of the five essential components of learning powered by technology: Learning, Assessment, Teaching, Infrastructure, and Productivity. The plan also calls for "grand challenge" research and development initiatives to solve crucial long-term problems that the ED believes should be funded and coordinated at a national level.
DATE:
TEAM MEMBERS:
U.S. Department of EducationDaniel AtkinsJohn BennettJohn Seely BrownAneesh ChopraChris DedeBarry FishmanLouis GomezMargaret HoneyYasmin KafaiMaribeth LuftglassRoy PeaJim PellegrinoDavid RoseCandace ThilleBrenda Williams
In this article, Christine L. Brandenburg, of Rice University's Center for Technology in Teaching and Learning, discusses her research of the use of computer technology in children's museums. Bradenburg focuses on the research methods used to address how and why visitors use computer technology in children's museums. The first section of the article presents the research methods, placing them in the context of the naturalistic inquiry design of the research. The second section discusses the research methods with respect to visitor studies and to studies of computer technology in museums.
This paper reports the results of a study designed to determine people's preferences for different types of Web-based educational activity. Researchers identified six activity types for comparison: Creative Play, Guided Tour, Interactive Reference, Puzzle/Mystery, Role-playing Story and Simulation. They collected two sets of data: 1) user exit surveys evaluating the study site and preferred genre or type of learning activity and 2) serve statistics indicating the duration of stay. Researchers found clear differences in preferences between adults and children.
This paper describes ways that computers currently are used (and misused) in museums as interpretive support devices and the potential role computers can play in museums to improve the quality of visitor attention, involvement, and learning. Where and when computers can productively serve interpretive functions are discussed. However, it is pointed out that computers are not always cost-effective. Printed text with imbedded questions, interactive labels, and other nonelectronic methods often serve these functions as well or better than computers. References for follow-up study are included.
Roto, an exhibition design and production firm, contracted Randi Korn & Associates, Inc. (RK&A) to conduct a front-end evaluation of Speed, an exhibition being developed for The Science Museum of Virginia (SMV) in Richmond, Virginia. RK&A explored visitors’ thoughts, perceptions, and understandings of exhibition concepts related to speed, defined as change over time. How did we approach this study? RK&A worked closely with Roto to identify the goals and objectives for the Speed exhibition. Findings from the front-end evaluation were designed to help Roto and SMV find common ground between