Increasing Student Engagement and Performance using Active Learning Platform [18-167] Home : ALT Annual Conference 2018

Increasing Student Engagement and Performance using Active Learning Platform [18-167]

Public Group Active 4 years ago

Tue, Sep 11 2018, 11:30am – 12:30pm

Authors: Kulari Lokuge, and Sharon Whippy

Room: Theatre B

Theme: Participation through Learning Technology

Type: Short presentation – 20mins

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Description

Session Description

Over 80% of the college student cohort are international students who face challenges of studying in a second language. The use of Active Learning Platform (ALP) has created an environment where students can engage in authentic learning experiences, and which has shown to increase performance.

The ALP allows the integration of content, interactive polling activities, lecture capture and engagement analytics. A key feature of the platform that has proved to be of the greatest benefit is the interactive questions function that enables real time feedback on students’ comprehension.

A case study approach was used to investigate a holistic pedagogical perspective of the experiences of the participants, and to allow the gathering of insights through the combined use of qualitative and quantitative data collection methods.

The tool has enabled teaching staff to support their students in building communicative confidence; asking questions, developing collaboration skills as well as indicating when they are confused. The use of engagement analytics within the ALP, have provided staff insight that has transformed teaching and learning methods in the classroom.

This session presents the findings of the participant’s views and experiences using the ALP, and how it has supported students understanding of complex concepts. Session participants will experience firsthand how staff engage students through the use of interactive polling tasks, the ability to take notes, ask questions and flag confusion.

Session content: evaluation and reflection

The use of the ALP started as a pilot It was decided research from this project would benefit from a case study methodology which is a particularly useful method for evaluative inquiry. The case study approach is widely used because allows researchers the intention of further exploration of ideas that are limited in the industry (Lokuge Dona, Gregory and Pechenkina, 2017). The ability to use new technology to engage international students from different disciplines and the findings from this, could support other staff in understanding this experience and developing their own conclusions (Stake & Cisneros‐Cohernour, 2000).

Data was gathered using qualitative and quantitative methods, including an evaluative student survey of the ALP usability, focus groups and semi-structured interviews. The teaching staff also provided their perspective on their students’ experiences. The instrument used to gather the students’ feedback was an online survey using Google forms. The survey consisted of close ended and open-ended questions which enabled both depth and breadth of the data collected. The survey data was analysed using a mixed method approach which drew conclusions through the combined analysis of quantitative and qualitative data. This analysis will be shared during the session.

References

Lokuge Dona, K., Gregory, J., & Pechenkina, E. (2017) Lecture-recording technology in higher education: Exploring lecturer and student views across the disciplines Australasian Journal of Educational Technology, 33(4).

Stake, R. E., & Cisneros-Cohernour, E. J. (2000). Situational evaluation of teaching on campus. New directions for teaching and learning, 2000(83), 51-72.