Promoting Higher Learning Outcomes in Computing Subjects

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Promoting Higher Learning Outcomes in Computing
Subjects

• Terry King
• Dept of Information Systems
• University of Portsmouth
• LTSN-ICS Conference
• London Aug 2001

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Session Aims

• Background
• What do we mean by Higher Learning Outcomes
• Activity-Centred Curriculum
• Ideas-Centred Curriculum
• Conclude

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Background

• NTFS award from ILT in July 2000
• Reflection on teaching style especially with
  postgraduates
• Preoccupation with curriculum developments and
  students achieving higher learning outcomes
• SLONE project and research

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Higher Learning Outcomes
John Biggs (1999). Teaching for Quality Learning
at University.
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Upgrading Learning through appropriate
TLAs J.Moon (1999)
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Activity-Centred Curriculum
IDEAS
IDEAS
IDEAS
Activities
IDEAS
IDEAS
IDEAS
IDEAS
IDEAS
IDEAS
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Activities?

• Critiques (Crits)
• On-line Learning Journals
• Use of Computer-aided Formative Assessment

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Crits

• In Art and Design - each students work is
  critiqued by the whole group - personally defend
  your decisions
• Adapted to group-built multimedia artefacts
• Each group, 2 crits each semester
• Discussion on basis for the crit
• Assessed group prepare report
• Successful. Very rewarding

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On-Line Learning Journal

• Assessment
• Journal Structure
• Double-entry journal
• WebCT (VLE) as a recording medium
• Bulletin Board - Entry/Reply structure
• Guidelines
• Activities for Reflection
• Initial task - start strongly

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Stages of Reflection (J.Moon, 1999)
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Reflections on Journals?

• Success - rewarding - reduce plagarism
• Serendipitous outcomes
• Make need for evaluation/stages explicit
• Accommodate different forms of reflection eg.
  mind maps, images, media
• Must more direction at beginning (eg views from
  past students)

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Computer-Aided Formative Assessment

• For computer-based testing need to try and relate
  learning outcomes to levels of learning and their
  relative complexity - easy to apply Blooms
  Taxonomy
• Revision to Blooms to give an improved focus for
  objective questions
• Examples of computer-based questions for higher
  learning outcomes

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Applying Blooms Taxonomy to Objective Testing
Hierarchy of levels of learning
calculate
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Current Approaches to Designing Questions for
HLOs

• From Verbs associated with HLOs
• identify, categorise, distinguish, judge,
  compare, contrast, determine, decide .
• Adapted current exam questions
• Use of exemplars

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Modification to Blooms Taxonomy
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Knowledge Dimension

• Factual
• Terminology, Specific Details
• Conceptual
• Categories, Principles, Theories Models
• Procedural
• Skills/algorithms, Techniques/Methods, Criteria
• Metacognitive Knowledge

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Modified Blooms Taxonomy
X X X
X
1 2 3
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Analyse/Evaluate

• Analyse
• Differentiate
• Organise
• Attribute
• Evaluate
• Check
• Critique

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Learning Journal Conclusion

• Do not need CAA to deliver objective questions
  for higher learning outcomes but .. it helps
  ..enhanced features
• Very positive student response
• Good for formative assessment but needs
  monitoring/ evaluation
• Considerable overhead in terms of training, time
  and expertise - results unclear as yet
• Even if commercial software - scripting
  experience can be very useful
• Use with care for summative assessment

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Problems with Activity-Centred Curriculum

• Teacher-led
• Reductionist
• Ideas are drawn in on the basis of the activities
  suggested- may not foster students own research/
  knowledge building to wider ideas base or
  innovation

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Ideas-Centred Curriculum
ACTIVITIES
ACTIVITIES
ACTIVITIES
ACTIVITIES
Ideas
ACTIVITIES
ACTIVITIES
ACTIVITIES
ACTIVITIES
ACTIVITIES
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Knowledge Building?

• Pedagogical approach - Shifts of focus away from
  tasks and activities to knowledge creation.
• Allows students to create, examine and improve
  ideas, and engage directly with problems of
  understanding
• Fosters processes of knowledge creation in
  day-to-day life - encourages innovation
• Provides social supports for knowledge creation
• Sustains student work at the cutting-edge of
  abilities and disciplines

M. Scardamalia, Ontario Institute for Studies in
Education, University of Toronto
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Knowledge Building (KB) Principles

• 12 principles
• Eg. Community Knowledge, Democratising Knowledge,
  Idea Diversity, Improveable Ideas, etc
• Expressed as the value-added to standard best
  practice

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Example Knowledge Building (KB) Principle
Example Constructive Use of Authoritative
Sources Standard best practice Participants
critically evaluate information sources and
recognise that even the best are fallible KB
Value Added Participants use authoritative
sources, along with other information sources as
data for their own KB and idea-improving
processes. Knowledge Building Indicators
Contributing new information referencing and
building-on authoritative sources building
bibliographies
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Knowledge Forum (KF)

• Technology which models a KB Community and
  enables KB
• Students activities expressed as problems or
  points of focus which can be researched and
  developed
• Generate a database of nodes which holds all the
  student entries. Entries are explicit.
• Super-discussion group
• Computer-Supported Intentional Learning
  Environment (CSILE)

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Example of layout for a post-graduate course
Knowledge Forum
Views
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Knowledge Forum Database views
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Student Entry on aWeekly Reading
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Student Entry on aWeekly Reading
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Annotated Entry
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Advantages of KF

• Ideas-centred learning relates to the SLONE model
  for on-line collaborative group learning
• Give a group a performance challenge around
  which they can negotiate meaning using KF
• Democratisation of knowledge. Facilitates an
  individuals identification with the group and
  their sense of belonging. Feel less like
  outsiders.
• Promotes and enables group members to work with
  others to improve their own performance, helping
  students to buy into the group project.
• Applicable to all subject areas

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Conclusion

• An activity-centred curriculum cannot take
  students past standard best practice.
• Worth experimenting with KF and KB in conjunction
  with activities. Especially assessment metrics.
• Example Systems Analysis and Design case study
  for group solution.
• Use KF -Tease out possible solutions, make more
  interesting, bring in a wider range of
  information, help weaker students etc?

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KF URLs
www.learn.motion.com/lim/kf/KF0.html
csile.oise.utoronto.ca/