journal article
LitStream Collection
Lai, Chiu-Lin; Hwang, Gwo-Jen; Tu, Yi-Hsuan
doi: 10.1007/s11423-018-9585-ypmid: N/A
Recently, researchers have demonstrated the benefits of technology-enhanced science inquiry activities. To improve students’ self-regulation and assist them in controlling their own learning pace through inquiry activities, in this study, a self-regulated science inquiry approach was developed to assist them in organizing information from their real-world exploration. A quasi-experimental design was conducted in an elementary school natural science course to evaluate the students’ performance using the proposed learning approach. One class assigned as the treatment group learned with the self-regulated science inquiry approach, while the other class assigned as the control group learned with the conventional science inquiry approach. The students’ learning achievement, tendency of information help seeking, tendency of self-regulation, and self-efficacy were evaluated. The results of the study revealed that the self-regulated science inquiry approach improved the students’ learning achievement, especially for those students with higher self-regulation. In addition, the students who conducted inquiry with the self-regulated learning strategy increased their tendency of information help seeking, self-efficacy, and several aspects of self-regulation, including time management, help seeking, and self-evaluation. Accordingly, this study demonstrated the effectiveness of the self-regulated learning strategy, an approach with high learner control, in terms of improving students’ learning achievement and their self-regulation.
Shadiev, Rustam; Hwang, Wu-Yuin; Liu, Tzu-Yu
doi: 10.1007/s11423-018-9590-1pmid: N/A
A learning activity supported by a mobile multimedia learning system (MMLS) was designed in this study. We aimed to test the effectiveness of the learning activity to enhance autonomous language learning in quasi-experimental Study 1 using a pretest/posttest design. Two groups participated in the learning activity: the students in a control group (n = 27) completed the activity using traditional approach whereas the students in an experimental group (n = 26) completed the activity using MMLS. The results of Study 1 showed that the experimental students outperformed their counterparts on the post-test (F = 29.602, p < 0.005, partial eta-squared = 0.372). In a non-experimental Study 2, the experimental students (n = 26) were assigned two learning tasks, the first task was completed individually and the second task in collaboration. We aimed to investigate which learning approach to complete tasks (i.e. individual vs. collaborative) enhances learning performance better by comparing students’ scores on two tasks. In addition, we explored students’ perceptions towards MMLS. The results of Study 2 showed that the students had better learning performance when they completed tasks in collaboration than individually. The results also showed that the students had high perceptions towards MMLS. Based on our results, we make suggestions and provide directions for future research.
Liu, Kuo-Ping; Tai, Shu-Ju; Liu, Chen-Chung
doi: 10.1007/s11423-018-9592-zpmid: N/A
This study explored how a free-space digital storytelling approach that advocates autonomy and creativity can be implemented in a formal elementary classroom and how it impacts students’ language learning motivation and performances. Participants of the study were 64 sixth grade students in Taiwan. Following an experimental design, the data collected from three data sources, including motivation surveys, achievement test scores, and digital stories, were analyzed and triangulated. Two performance indicators of the digital storytelling, levels of language usage and levels of creativity, were found to have significant but different impacts on language learning. While the students’ language usage performance in digital storytelling was significantly related to their achievement test scores, their creativity performance were significantly related to multiple motivation components, including extrinsic motivation, task value and elaboration. It was also found that the proposed digital storytelling approach had a positive impact on students’ language performance and contributed to an increase to students’ motivation in two dimensions: extrinsic goal orientation and elaboration, rather than intrinsic goal orientation. The results suggest that the positive impact of the proposed storytelling pedagogy resides in allowing students to stretch their creativity while demonstrating their language productivity, with the leverage of a holistic assessment scheme.
Wang, Shu-Ling; Hong, Hui-Ting
doi: 10.1007/s11423-018-9593-ypmid: N/A
Research has suggested that self or co-regulated learning is very helpful for the development of students’ autonomy, and is particularly important in online learning environments, because such non-linear environments tend to lack focus and teachers’ monitoring. The social cognitive research suggests that highly self-regulated learners have higher motivation and more control of their learning behaviors, and thus generate better outcomes on an individual basis rather on a group basis. This study thus attempts to extend the social cognitive perspective of self-regulated learning to collective regulated learning, and to investigate the relationships among collective beliefs (i.e., collective task value, a newly developed group motivation), collaborative behaviors (i.e., group cohesion, cognitive quality of collaborative interactions), and collaborative performance through collaborative creation in the CSCL environment. A total of 96 college students participated in this study. Both quantitative and qualitative analyses were applied. The results indicate that collective task value is a reliable and valid construct. The results also show that collective task value significantly predicts students’ group cohesion and collaborative performance, although it does not predict students’ cognitive quality of collaborative interactions. Students’ group cohesion and higher level of cognitive quality in collaborative interactions also both significantly predict their collaborative performance through collaborative creation in the CSCL environment.
Chen, Gwo-Dong; Fan, Cheng-Yu; Chang, Chih-Kai; Chang, Yun-Hsuan; Chen, Yen-Hua
doi: 10.1007/s11423-018-9597-7pmid: N/A
In traditional learning, students passively absorb the materials provided by their teachers or textbooks. Thus, their learning autonomy is insufficient, and this affects learning motivation. Students find it difficult to absorb the knowledge taught in a classroom and apply it to real life. We combined situated learning and learning through drama to help realize students’ autonomy and ownership. A situational learning system using a comic play was devised to help students learn through scriptwriting in groups. When learning through drama, the visual aids on stage can provide students with a sense of immersion, which strengthens their knowledge application. This method was applied during English-language courses of fifth-grade students at an elementary school in Taiwan. Students’ questionnaire responses demonstrated that using this system helped their autonomous learning. The students’ sense of identification with their own work and their learning impressions were substantially improved. Examination results of the students from the experimental group were significantly higher from those from a control group taught using traditional teaching methods.
doi: 10.1007/s11423-018-9600-3pmid: N/A
The paper reports on an empirical study adopting a mixed research method, aiming at improving primary students’ collaborative problem solving competency in project-based learning with productive failure (PF) instructional design in a seamless learning environment. Two Grade Six classes participated in a project-based learning of “Plant Adaptations”. In Class 1 with 27 students, the project-based learning was conducted with PF instructional design; in Class 2 with 26 students, the project-based learning was conducted without PF instructional design. The learning activities spanned across farm, class, home and online spaces supported by mobile devices. Data collection includes various students’ created artifacts in groups in the inquiry process, student reflections, student focus group interviews and pre- and post-domain tests. Both qualitative and quantitative data analysis methods were employed. The research findings show that compared to Class 2, the students in Class 1 gained deeper understanding of conceptual knowledge and produced better group artifacts in collaborative problem-solving quality than those in Class 2; and the students in Class 1 were more positive in facing the challenges in their project-based learning process, and developed a sense of ownership of their learning. The findings imply that PF instructional design is conducive to developing primary students’ collaborative solving competency in science learning in a seamless learning environment.
Liu, Ming-Chi; Huang, Yueh-Min; Xu, Yo-Hsin
doi: 10.1007/s11423-018-9601-2pmid: N/A
Digital storytelling has been shown to be an effective tool in achieving learner autonomy during language learning. Studies have focused on providing students with multimedia authoring tools for unbinding their imagination when developing stories, but the complexity of digital story construction still presents a number of challenges to students. Anxiety about speaking a foreign language can have a debilitating effect on students’ autonomous behavior and learning performance. This study therefore introduced group work to relieve anxiety about exposing individual work to an entire class. An experiment was conducted with 55 sixth-grade students involved in a digital storytelling learning task, where 28 students worked individually and 27 cooperatively. The aim was to examine the effect of learner grouping pattern on learning outcomes, such as knowledge achievement, autonomy in language learning, and emotional experience. The students working cooperatively were discovered to outperform those working individually in all outcomes.
Nacu, Denise; Martin, Caitlin; Pinkard, Nichole
doi: 10.1007/s11423-018-9603-0pmid: N/A
With the growing emphasis on developing 21st century skills among today’s youth, there is continued optimism about the possibilities granted by increasing access to networked technologies, particularly for encouraging youth to pursue their interests and take ownership of their learning. Yet, research demonstrates the importance of adult support in realizing the promise of achieving these outcomes. Designers of such systems are thus faced with the need to create youth-centered spaces that also provide adult facilitation of learning. This paper presents an adaptation of the traditional heuristic evaluation method which provides designers of online learning systems with a holistic view of how adult learning support is enabled across the system. We describe how the heuristic evaluation method was adapted, and through a case example analyzing one online social learning system used in a middle school context, we demonstrate how it can be used to help identify areas for improvement and promising areas for further research. We also present a framework of heuristics which reflect specific educator learning support roles that have been found to be important for youth learning, particularly for supporting 21st century skills. This work contributes a novel heuristic evaluation method that can help designers of online learning platforms attend not only the experiences of learners, but also to how educators are enabled to support their learning.
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