Volume 1, Issue 2, April 2010

ABSTRACT

This paper provides a conceptual framework for a systemic change process, both to help researchers advance knowledge about how school districts can engage in paradigm change, and to help educators and policy makers understand the big picture for such change. The conceptual framework is comprised of key ideas that have emerged from the authors’ experiences in facilitating change in school districts, and from a review of the educational change literature. The authors first present an argument for the need for systemic change. They then present the conceptual framework, which is comprised of six elements that are important for any systemic change process to succeed: broad stakeholder ownership, learning organization, understanding the systemic change process, evolving mindsets about education, systems view of education, and systems design. The description of each element includes suggested activities for implementation. Finally, the authors recommend that policy makers address each of the elements within the framework, and that educators and scholars explore how the interrelationships and interdependencies of the elements can lead to successful educational reform.

Keywords: Systemic Change, Educational Change, Educational Reform, Conceptual Framework, Change Process

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to investigate the constructs of edutainment applications and their relationships during marketing communication courses. A sample of 347 undergraduate students completed a 27-item questionnaire to gather research data. The confirmatory factor analysis revealed five valid constructs: Participation and interaction, perceived learning effects, drama and practice, instructor and classroom atmosphere, and story and material. These constructs were further analyzed by the structural equation modeling (SEM), which indicated that four of the constructs were found to be effective on the perception of learning. Instructor and classroom atmosphere was revealed to have a direct (mediating) impact on perceived learning, whereas other constructs had an indirect effect on perceived learning. It appears that the research findings would help tertiary institutions to develop more learner-centered approaches to learning, and will certainly help marketing individual courses at the micro level.

Keywords: Edutainment, Entertainment, Marketing Communication Education, Experiential Learning

ABSTRACT

Students complete courses or entire programs in instructional design (ID) and enter the professional arena confident they are prepared to wrestle with the complexities and demands of ID. What many of those fresh to the profession discover is that in addition to applying what they learned in school, they are called upon to carry out a number of additional tasks, often in areas where they have no training or previous experience. This paper reports on the results of an investigation carried out with 22 instructional designers practicing in post-secondary institutions in Canada and the United States. The purpose was to reveal the aspects of professional practice that instructional designers felt were important, but that were outside the traditional boundaries and training of instructional design. Through focus groups and e-mail discussions, we identified several roles that instructional designers described as important, but were peripheral to the traditional standards of practice and competencies in instructional design.

Keywords: Instructional design, ID, Professional practice, Experience, Interviews, Research

ABSTRACT

Adaptive Web-Based Learning Environments (A-WBLEs) provide mechanisms to individualize instruction (e.g., content, interface, strategies, and assessment) for learners based on their individual differences. In this paper, various adaptive methods influencing the design of AWBLEs are explained and how these methods aim to address individual differences is discussed. Empirical evaluations of adaptive systems are synthesized and four levels for categorizing AWBLEs are created to provide a guideline for future design and development of A-WBLEs.

Keywords: Adaptive Web-based learning environments, Individual differences, Online learning, Individualized instruction, Adaptive hypermedia

ABSTRACT

This study examined the effectiveness of a professionally developed comprehensive reading comprehension strategies program when compared to traditional reading comprehension instruction presented to 865 fourth and fifth graders (682 with full data sets) in 34 classrooms in the United States. The treatment included a strong, technology-based teacher training component as well as highly motivational materials for 53 classroom-delivered student lessons. The research design was a randomized trial at the classroom level, with classes randomly assigned to either the treatment (classroom n=17) or control (classroom n=17) conditions. Hierarchical Linear Modeling was performed on student achievement data, nested within classrooms within treatment conditions, for the intact classes. HLM analyses using experimenter-designed achievement tests as the outcome variable showed a significant effect for condition, with students in the treatment condition scoring higher than students in the control condition across all the different student groups (gender, ethnicity, and English Language proficiency).

Keywords: DVD, Teacher training, Reading comprehension, Strategies

ABSTRACT

This paper describes the impact of the degrees of realism (unrealistic, moderately realistic and highly realistic) of the pedagogical agent on student’s achievement during online learning in terms of gender. Three modes of the e-learning portal with appropriate degrees of realism, namely, Online Learning with a Cartoon Pedagogical Agent (OLCPA), Online Learning with a Moderately Realistic Pedagogical Agent (OLMRPA) and Online Learning with a Highly Realistic Pedagogical Agent (OLHRPA) were developed and implemented. A quasi-experimental 3x2 factorial design was employed; independent variables were three degrees of realism, the dependent variable was achievement scores, and the moderator variable was gender of students. The subjects were 130 Form Four students (16 years old) from Malaysian secondary schools who were randomly assigned to groups. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was employed to analyze data. The findings of the study suggest that there was no significant difference in the students’ achievement among the three degrees of realism in terms of their genders; both genders achieved almost the same across different degrees of realism. The reasons for the observed results are discussed and elaborated.

Keywords: Online learning, Pedagogical agent, Degree of realism, Gender issues

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