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Does comparative judgement reduce students' perceived cognitive load when evaluating mathematics solutions?
Get PDFComparative judgement can be used as a method of facilitating peer evaluation in educational settings. Early empirical findings indicate that evaluating peer work comparatively leads to improved learning outcomes when compared to evaluating peer work sequentially. This study explored the role of perceived cognitive load as a potential contributing factor in explaining why comparative judgement enhances learning outcomes. Undergraduate mathematics students were randomly assigned to one of three conditions: a sequential condition where students evaluated solutions one-at-at-time (N = 164), a pairs condition where students evaluated solutions in pairs that shared structural features (N = 186), or a second pairs condition where solution-pairs did not share commonalities (N = 182). To measure perceived cognitive load, students completed a questionnaire and provided written reflections on their experience of evaluating worked solutions. From these, we identified instances where students expressed difficulty during evaluation. Results indicate that presenting solutions to questions as pairs reduced the perceived cognitive load compared to presenting solutions sequentially, and the effect was more pronounced when the paired solutions shared common features. These differences were small, indicating that cognitive load may only play a small role in the effectiveness of comparative judgement for learning
Beyond bushfire preparedness: Evaluating the impact of a higher education sustainability unit on bushfire-related attitudes and behaviours
No full textBACKGROUND
Sustainability education plays a key role in addressing the sustainability crisis: it supports an empowered and informed citizenry who actively negotiate, create, and implement solutions. However, to achieve this, sustainability education must do more than transmit knowledge: it must empower and motivate students to take action. This raises key questions for sustainability educators: (1) how can we design units that change behaviours (and/or the antecedents of behaviours) so that students can be informed and active agents for sustainability in their communities; and (2) are units that have been designed to facilitate such changes successful in doing so? Despite considerable investment of resources in sustainability education, few units are evaluated rigorously for impact. Thus, gaps exist in our understanding of the contextual and pedagogical determinants of effectiveness, and the complexities of students’ perceptions and responses to the competing values inherent in sustainability challenges. This study seeks to expand knowledge in this field through a case study of a unit offered via the University of Tasmania’s Diploma of Sustainable Living: Living with Fire (LwF).
AIMS
This study aims to understand how LwF impacts student attitudes, self-efficacy and behaviours related to bushfire, and generate learnings for sustainability and bushfire preparedness education.
DESCRIPTION OF INTERVENTION
LwF is a fully online undergraduate diploma unit, targeted primarily at non-traditional adult learners. Its design is based on personally relevant, authentic experiential learning, grounded in global sustainability concepts and a transdisciplinary perspective on wildfire. The unit encourages critical reflection and assessment of bushfire risk in one’s own home and community through practical activities and assessments, and contextualises bushfire risk reduction through a sustainability lens.
DESIGN AND METHODS
We address our research questions using a before-after mixed methods approach. This combines: (1) a survey capturing bushfire related attitudes, perspectives and behaviours, applied at course commencement, course completion, and twelve months after completion; and (2) online focus groups. We will apply these methods initially to three cohorts in 2023 (approx. 90 students/cohort), with multivariate quantitative analysis and qualitative thematic analysis used to assess the data.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS
The first tranche of data collection is currently underway with Semester 1 2023 students. This presentation will present preliminary results from this initial cohort, providing quantitative and qualitative insights on the impacts of LwF on the perspectives and behaviours of this group. These initial findings will provide insights into the capacity of a fully online unit, based on experiential learning, to assist students to build capacity to engage with complex sustainability challenges such as bushfire
Future-proofing career readiness in science graduates: where, when and how?
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To ensure future career readiness, students must develop a range of skills and capacities including technical expertise, problem-solving abilities, effective communication, social and professional network building, interpersonal and cultural awareness, resilience, and adaptability (Jackson, 2018; Roberts, 2016; Tomlinson, 2017) as well as develop a well-grounded self-identity (Jackson, 2017). Given that careers are continuously evolving and perpetually fluid (Starr-Glass, 2019), graduates also need to critically perceive, engage, and reflect on their own identity and self-efficacy (Sarkar et al., 2016). However, recent research has shown that there is a lack of generic skill development in undergraduate science curricula (Sarkar et al., 2020) and academics have expressed concerns about their ability to provide reflective practice opportunities for students. This project, funded by the Australian Council of Deans of Science, aims to enhance the confidence and capability of academics to enhance their students career readiness; promote collaborative curriculum development between industry partners, graduates, and students; and develop national best practice guidelines for the enhancement of science graduate employability skills.
THE WORKSHOP
You are invited to join us for a collaborative and interactive workshop to explore where, when, and how employability skills could be implemented within the Sciences curriculum. We have used insights from students, graduates, industry employers and academics to propose possible best practice guidelines. This workshop will specifically road-test the co-created guidelines while also providing an opportunity for participants to further explore the following aspects:
development of generic skills identified as more difficult to teach (such as metacognitive and reflective abilities, resilience and adaptability)
enhancing the knowledge of career pathways and connecting with employers
scaffolding and integration of work integrated learning activities into the curriculum (both in the workplace and in the classroom).
REFERENCES
Jackson, D. (2017). Developing pre-professional identity in undergraduates through work-integrated learning. Higher Education, 74, 833–853.
Jackson, D. (2018) Developing graduate career readiness in Australia: Shifting from extra-curricular internships to work-integrated learning. International J Work-Integrated Learning, 19, 23-35.
Roberts, S. (2016). Capital limits: Social class, motivations for term-time job searching and the consequences of joblessness among UK university students. Journal of Youth Studies, 20, 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1080/13676261.2016.1260697
Sarkar, M., Overton, T., Thompson, C. D., & Rayner, G. (2016) Graduate employability: View of recent science graduates and employers. International Journal of Innovation in Science and Mathematics Education, 24(3), 31-48.
Sarkar, M., Overton, T., Thompson, C. D., & Rayner, G. (2020). Academics’ perspectives of the teaching and development of generic employability skills in science curricula. Higher Education Research & Development, 39(2), 346–361.
Starr-Glass D (2019) Doing and being: future graduates, careers and Industry 4.0. On the Horizon, 27, 145–152.
Tomlinson M (2017) Forms of graduate capital and their relationship to graduate employability. Education + Training, 59, 338-352
ChatGPT: Force for good in assessment: AI benefits in a large first year human biology assessment task
Get PDFPROBLEM
The advent of open-access AI has created a complex challenge to assessment strategies used in higher education. Concerns associated with academic integrity and potential student use (Crawford et al., 2023; Sullivan et al., 2023) provided an urgent imperative to re-imagine assessment for a large and diverse, first-year Australian Human Biology course.
PLAN
Redesigned an assessment item to achieve the following: (i) To use AI to develop digital proficiencies but maintain academic integrity (ii) Low stakes early assessment task (iii) Engaging and interesting topic options (iv) Provide flexibility for personal buy-in (v) Incorporate an artistic component (vi) Develop oral and written communication skills (vii) Provide educational support to students that included content concepts, academic integrity and transition-to-university support mechanisms.
ACTION
The assignment was developed to meet the design brief made of two components.
Part 1: Preparation for Interactive Oral Discussion - Students were required to: (i) select an interesting human body fact (ii) use an open-access AI art creation program of their choice to create an artwork that represented their interesting fact and (iii) create a dialogue with ChatGPT to develop a 300-word paragraph. This paragraph needed to clearly articulate the anatomy and physiology of the interesting fact, discuss how the artwork represented the interesting fact, be written to communicate with a general audience and to provide content citation. Students were then provided with a variety of validation methodologies they were required to implement.
Part 2: Interactive Oral Discussion - Students engaged in a one-on-one conversation with an academic staff member to provide evidence using examples from their Part 1 submission of how they validated a variety of information. Critical reflection on the positive, negative, and ethical considerations of using open-access AI for university assignments was also required.
REFLECTION
Students developed a wide skill-base through assessment completion that supported content knowledge, communication capabilities, self-efficacy, adult learner strategies, support resource awareness, academic integrity requirements and digital proficiencies. The opportunity to provide a one-on-one conversation with a university staff member early in their academic journey had surprising benefits from an academic perspective. These included a reduction in the marking time, opportunity to correct misconceptions about how university works and what support resources are available, develop a sense of connection and belonging through normative conversations.
REFERENCES
Crawford, J., Cowling, M., & Allen, K. (2023). Leadership is needed for ethical ChatGPT: Character, assessment, and learning using artificial intelligence (AI). Journal of University Teaching & Learning Practice, 20(3). https://doi.org/10.53761/1.20.3.02
Sullivan, M., Kelly, A., & McLaughlan, P. (2023). ChatGPT in higher education: Considerations for academic integrity and student learning. Journal of Applied Learning & Teaching, 6(1). https://doi.org/10.37074/jalt.2023.6.1.1
From virtual to practical: Integrating an online simulation and face-to-face learning to enable hemocytometer proficiency
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Accurately identifying and counting cells using a hemocytometer are essential skills for cell biology students (Delgado et al., 2021). Learning to use a hemocytometer can be challenging for students, while confirming that the correct technique has been used is challenging for the educator. Students must correctly identify different cell types, disregard cellular debris, and distinguish between viable vs dead cells. These challenges make it difficult for students to attain proficiency in this vital skill.
AIMS
On completing the online exercise, students should understand how a hemocytometer can quantify cells; how to count different cell populations correctly; evaluate, analyse and interpret experimental data; understand how variations in samples can affect the quality of the cell count; and identify errors in the counting process.
DESCRIPTION OF INTERVENTION
First-year Laboratory Medicine students at the University of South Australia (UniSA) were first taught the principles of a hemocytometer, how it works, how cells are counted, and how cell density and viability are calculated. Students then used an online virtual hemocytometer to count two samples containing enriched lymphocytes and neutrophils. All samples had red blood cell and platelet contamination. Detailed instructions on how to use the virtual hemocytometer, count viable and trypan blue dead cells, and undertake cell density and viability calculations were also included. Student feedback was obtained through a 5-point Likert questionnaire with free text responses.
DESIGN AND METHODS
As part of the online training report, students calculated the cell count, density, and viability for two samples counted using the virtual hemocytometer. Students then completed a 5-point Likert-style questionnaire with free text responses to assess student understanding, benefits to their learning when faced with a F-2-F laboratory setting and perception of strengths/weaknesses of the teaching approach. Likert data were converted to a numeric scale, averaged across all responses, and compared using a Student t-test where possible. Written responses were assessed through a thematic analysis.
RESULTS
In most cases, cell density and viability data calculated using the online hemocytometer closely matched the expected computer-generated results. The online simulation faithfully replicated issues typically seen when using a real hemocytometer. This included contaminating cells, cell clumps, and cells falling across two adjacent grids. Students strongly indicated that the virtual hemocytometer training would aid their use of a hemocytometer in an F-2-F setting. Students responded as “strongly enjoying” the approach, finding it engaging and able to replicate a real-world experience. Student confidence increased significantly after using the simulation in all aspects, especially in calculating cell density and viability, two common areas of mistakes.
CONCLUSIONS
An online hemocytometer faithfully taught all aspects of hemocytometer use. Students were better able to count cells correctly and perform all required calculations. Moving forward, this approach will continue to be used, but we will improve the graphical representation of the individual cell types.
REFERENCES
Delgado, T., Bhark, SJ., & Donahue, J. (2021). Pandemic Teaching: Creating and teaching cell biology labs online during COVID‐19. BAMBED, 49(1), 32-37
Python for chemists: a problem-orientated introduction to scientific programming
Get PDFProgramming is an essential skill in modern science, yet it is not routinely or systematically taught as part of most undergraduate science courses. Many students pick up an outside interest in programming, but those who do not may be left behind, and lose access to an essential part of the modern scientist’s toolbox. A compulsory programming module for all first-year science students is one possible solution, but such a general education may prove remote from specific disciplinary needs. The most useful skills for non-specialists using programming in their research or work are different from those needed by specialist computer scientists, with more emphasis on data generation, processing, exploration, analysis, and visualisation.
Within the University of New South Wales School of Chemistry, we have designed a Python in Chemistry Honours module for final-year undergraduates and research students, designed to directly tackle these challenges and offer an alternative to, or complement, earlier structured programming training. There are three main learning activities supported by class discussions, workshops, and explicit incorporation of meta-cognition and communication within assessment.
Self-paced online modules, self-selected with beginning and advanced modules to support diverse student programming backgrounds;
Discipline-specific challenges as assignments;
A capstone major project designed by the student usually to support their disciplinary research
Building the STEM pipeline from the ground up: The confluence of First Nations Perspectives and Sustainability in science teacher training
Get PDFThere are global concerns regarding students’ declining engagement in STEM subjects as they transition from primary to secondary school (Freeman et al., 2015). This comes at a time when increasingly complex global socio-scientific issues and future labour markets demand scientifically literate citizens (Timms et al., 2018). According to the Australian Office of the Chief Scientist, transforming STEM education begins in primary schools, through a capable STEM teaching workforce (Prinsley & Johnston, 2015).
In this presentation, we draw on two concurrent developments in education to highlight the considerations for the content, design, and delivery of science education units for future primary science teachers. The first involves the growing interest in the place-based knowledges and wisdoms inherent in First Nations cultures across the globe (e.g., Cajete, 2000). These knowledges not only provide insights on the natural world, but are also complementary with contemporary ways of teaching and learning science (Cirkony et al., in press). The second involves a (re)vision of the factory model of the education system, towards a new paradigm where students contribute to the well-being of their communities and the planet (OECD, 2019). Instead of simply acquiring knowledge, young people learn the relevance of science through their exploration of socio-scientific issues (OECD, 2019, 2020).
With this backdrop, we highlight key content and considerations for the design and delivery of science education units for future primary science teachers in the University of Tasmania Bachelor of Education program. Through this approach, we aim to develop teachers’ capability to engage all students through ‘multiscience’ (Ogawa, p. 594) perspectives that not only offer unique knowledges and innovations (Mistry & Berardi, 2016), but also build cultural awareness and competencies for respectful collaborations with First Nations communities in order to address complex socio-scientific issues.
REFERENCES
Cajete, G. A. (2000). Indigenous Science: Natural Laws of Independence. Clearlight Publishers.
Cirkony, C., Kenny, J., & Zandvliet, D. (in press). Two-eyed seeing for science education. The Canadian Journal of Science, Mathematics, and Technology Education.
Freeman, B., Marginson, S., & Tytler, R. (2015). The Age of STEM. New York, NY: Routledge.
Mistry, J., & Berardi, A. (2016). Bridging indigenous and scientific knowledge. Science, 352(6291), 1274–1275. https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.aaf1160
OECD (2019), Education at a Glance 2019: OECD Indicators, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/f8d7880d-en.
OECD (2020), Education at a Glance 2020: OECD Indicators, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/69096873-en.
Ogawa, M. (1995). Science education in a multiscience perspective. Science Education, 79, 583–593. https://doi.org/10.1002/sce.3730790507
Prinsley, R. & Johnston, E. (2015). Transforming STEM teaching in Australian primary schools: everybody’s business. https://www.chiefscientist.gov.au/sites/default/files/Transforming-STEM-teaching_FINAL.pdf
Timms, M. J., Moyle, K., Weldon, P.R. & Mitchell, P. (2018). Challenges in STEM learning in Australian schools: Literature and policy review. https://research.acer.edu.au/policy_analysis_misc/28
Plenary Panel: Empowered or overpowered: How should students and educators respond to AI?
Get PDFJoin Liam McLaren (University of Tasmania Student Association President and honours student in geography), Sarah-Jane Gregory (Lecturer in the School of Environment and Science, Griffith University), Miriam Sullivan (Learning Advisors Team Leader, Edith Cowan University), Ryan Brunton (Manager Digital Futures in the College of Sciences and Engineering, University of Tasmania), and Danny Liu (Associate Professor in the DVC (Education) Portfolio, University of Sydney) for a frank discussion about generative AI impacts on educators, leaders, and students. Bring your tricky questions and open minds to consider whether generative AI is overpowering or empowering – or both
Scholarly Responses to ‘Students’ experiences of Open Distance Learning: A Samoan case study’
Get PDFScholarly Responses to ‘Students’ experiences of Open Distance Learning: A Samoan case study
Social Construction of Technology: An Experience for Development of Critical-thinking and Nature of Science and Technology
Get PDFThis research aims to contribute to the development of critical thinking skills and concepts of the nature of science and technology through joint work based on primary school curriculum content (energy). It has a mixed design in methodological terms, applying a variety of techniques such as surveys, interviews, participant observation and documentary analysis. The total sample of participants is 130 students aged 11-12 from five different schools. The results of the study show improvements in the concepts of the nature of science and technology (dependence on the use of new technologies and control of technological development by individuals), as well as in critical thinking skills (thinking as hypothesis testing and argument analysis), among participants. For example, there is a perceived increase of 0.34 (2-point scale) in the mean between the initial and final assessment of dependence on the use of new technologies This leads us to conclude that the teaching design implemented is effective for improvement in both areas