Qiyun Wang

A generic model for guiding the integration of ICT into teaching and learning

Effective integration of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) into teaching and learning is becoming an essential competency for teachers. However, teachers do not usually follow linear instructional design models when they are planning for ICT integration. This paper proposes a generic model, which consists of three fundamental elements: pedagogy, social interaction and technology. Sound design of these components should help teachers to integrate ICT into their curricula in effective ways. Constructivist learning theories, the design of interactivity and the notion of usefulness provide the theoretical foundations for the construction of this model. Some examples of applying this model to the design of Web‐based learning environments, facilitation of online discussions and comparison of ICT tools are presented.

Comparing asynchronous online discussions and face-to-face discussions in a classroom setting

The purpose of this study is to investigate the perceived differences between asynchronous online discussions and face-to-face discussions in a classroom setting. The students’ reflections were analysed by following a qualitative research approach. The results showed that atmosphere, response, efficiency, interactivity and communication were the top five themes that differ between asynchronous online and face-to-face discussions. Implications for designing asynchronous online and face-to-face discussions are discussed.

Design and evaluation of a collaborative learning environment

Collaboration becomes an essential competency in the current knowledge society. In this study, a collaborative learning environment was designed to facilitate students in group collaboration. Instructional support strategies of friendship and meaningful learning tasks were applied to promote collaboration. Scaffolding strategies such as writing progress reports and developing product versions were used to coordinate and monitor the collaborative learning environment. In addition, the online file sharing tool DriveHQ was used to facilitate collaboration. Four classes of students used the learning environment to complete their final project in pairs. Results showed friendship and meaningful learning tasks helped to promote individual accountability and positive interdependence, and the use of progress reports and product versions was useful for coordinating and monitoring the learning process. However, additional strategies might be needed for more effective collaboration to take place. Issues involved in this study are discussed.

Designing a Web-Based Constructivist Learning Environment

The constructivist learning environment was designed on three perspectives: pedagogical, social and technological. A group of 24 trainee teachers used the environment and participated in the formative evaluation. Results showed that the trainee teachers liked the design specifications and perceived the learning environment to be useful. The purpose of this paper is to describe the design specifications, implementation processes and formative evaluation results of the learning environment. Issues and implications for designing web-based learning environments are discussed.

Using online shared workspaces to support group collaborative learning

The ability to work collaboratively is highly valued in todays workplace. However, collaboration does not often naturally happen in a group. Certain strategies must be applied to coordinate individual efforts and monitor the learning process so that effective collaboration can take place. 34 groups from 4 PGDE (Post Graduate Diploma in Education) classes at NIE (National Institute of Education) in Singapore participated in this study. Each group of four members used an online shared workspace to collaborate. Results showed that about half groups actively used the workspaces to share resources, negotiate ideas, and coordinate their collaboration. On the other hand, using the workspaces helped the teacher to easily track and monitor the collaborative learning process, as the workspaces documented what group members did and how they gradually completed the assignment. The students were also required to write weekly progress reports. Results showed that writing progress reports helped group members to reflect on what they had done and also provided additional information for the teacher to confirm their individual contributions. Issues involved in coordinating and monitoring the collaborative learning process are discussed.

Student-facilitators' roles in moderating online discussions

Intellectual, social, managerial and technical are four commonly reported categories of facilitation in online discussions. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether these four broad categories of facilitation were equally applied in online discussions and which specific skills were perceived to be more important. In this study, students were facilitators of online discussions. Each student-facilitator led a group discussion and participated in two additional discussions moderated by other student-facilitators. Three groups of students were selected for data collection. Results indicated that the intellectual, social and managerial categories of facilitation were highly applied, while technical facilitation was less used in the online discussions. Also, summarising discussions was perceived to be the top facilitation skill. This paper presents findings of the study and discusses issues involved in the study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using Facebook for teaching and learning: a review of the literature

Considerable interests in exploring the affordance of Facebook for teaching and learning arise from researchers and educators. This paper reviews the existing empirical research studies on the use of Facebook for teaching and learning. Twenty one journal articles have been reviewed and most of the studies reported in the literature are descriptive and conducted in higher education settings. Results show that the use of Facebook makes a difference in the students’ affective outcomes. However, research on the potential of Facebook for improving student performance outcomes is just the beginning. The result suggests that more empirical research on effective use of Facebook for teaching and learning should be conducted in the future.

An exploration of three-dimensional integrated assessment for computational thinking

Computational thinking (CT) is a fundamental skill for students, and assessment is a critical factor in education. However, there is a lack of effective approaches to CT assessment. Therefore, we designed the Three-Dimensional Integrated Assessment (TDIA) framework in this article. The TDIA has two aims: one was to integrate three dimensions (directionality, openness, and process) into the design of effective assessment tasks; and the other was to assess comprehensively the three dimensions of CT including computational concepts, practices, and perspectives. Guided by the TDIA framework, we designed three pairs of tasks: closed forward tasks and closed reverse tasks, semiopen forward tasks and semiopen reverse tasks, and open tasks with a creative design report and open tasks without a creative design report. To further confirm each task’s applicability and its advantages and disadvantages, we conducted a test experiment at the end of the autumn semester in 2014 in a primary school for 3 weeks. The results indicated that (a) the reverse tasks were not more superior than the forward tasks; (b) the semiopen tasks and the open tasks were more effective than the closed tasks, and the semiopen tasks had higher difficulty and discrimination than the others; (c) the self-reports provided a helpful function for learning diagnosis and guidance; (d) the scores had no significant difference between the schoolboys and the schoolgirls in all six tasks; and (e) the six tasks’ difficulty and discrimination were all acceptable, and the semiopen tasks had higher difficulty and discrimination than the others. To effectively apply them, the following suggestions for teachers to design computational tasks are proposed: motivating students’ interest and enthusiasm, incorporating semifinished artifacts, involving learning diagnosis and guidance, and including multiple types of tasks in an assessment.

Surveying Chinese In-Service K12 Teachers’ Technology, Pedagogy, and Content Knowledge

Technology, pedagogy, and content knowledge (TPACK) has been considered as a promising theoretical framework to guide teacher educators in designing and developing in-service K12 teacher education programs. However, it seems unclear whether in-service teachers have different TPACK perceptions when entering the education programs. This study surveyed the TPACK perceptions of 2,728 Chinese in-service K12 teachers. A questionnaire adapted from Koh, Chai, and Tsai’s survey was validated by reliability and validity tests. Exploratory factor analysis revealed that Chinese in-service K12 teacher’s TPACK perceptions could be grouped into five scales. Analyses of means and standard deviation of all the variables of the TPACK construct to examine Chinese in-service K12 teachers’ TPACK perceptions showed that teachers had rated themselves as slightly above five points for all the variables. Independent sample t tests to examine the relationships between in-service K12 teachers’ gender and the TPACK variables indicated that male teachers rated themselves higher than female teachers for the variable content knowledge (CK) and lower for the variable pedagogical content knowledge. F tests to examine the relationships between in-service K12 teachers’ years of service and the TPACK variables revealed that young in-service K12 teachers tended to perceive better in the capacities of applying technology and worse in the capacities of teaching method and subject matter. Hierarchical regression analysis to explore which variables (technological knowledge, pedagogical knowledge, CK, pedagogical content knowledge, technological content knowledge, and technological pedagogical knowledge) could predict the variable of TPACK showed that in-service K12 teachers’ perceptions of pedagogical knowledge, technological knowledge, and CK had the largest positive effect on the TPACK variable.

The impact of social factors on pair programming in a primary school

Abstract Pair programming (PP) is a usefulness approach to fostering computational thinking (CT) for young students. However, there are many factors to impact the effectiveness of PP. Among all factors, the social factors are often ignored by researchers. Therefore, this study aimed to explore the impact of two social factors (gender and partnership) on PP in a primary school setting. To that end, we conducted PP experiments in four classes from the sixth grade in a Chinese primary school. The research results indicated: (a) there was no significant difference on compatibility among the gender pairs, but a significant difference among partnership pairs; (b) there was no significant difference on programming achievement and confidence among different pairs, and girls became more productive and confidence in PP; and (c) PP tightened up the partnership within pairs. These findings suggest that teachers should take partnership into account as an important factor in PP or other collaborative learning, and adopt PP as an effective approach to decrease the gender gap in programming courses, and make students socialize.