Browsing by Author "Mildenhall, Paula"
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Item Higher Education Student's Use of Technologies for Assessment Within Personal Learning Environments (PLEs)(2015-12-01) Anderson, Alan; Northcote, Maria T.; Bolton, David; Mildenhall, Paula; Lounsbury, LynnetteHigher education students' use of technologies has been documented over the years but their specific use of technologies for assessment-related tasks has yet to be fully investigated. Researchers at two higher education institutions recently conducted a study which sought to discover the technologies most commonly used by students within their Personal Learning Environments (PLEs). A specific aim of the study was to determine which of these technologies the students used when they complete and submit assessment tasks such as assignments and examinations. Results from questionnaires, focus groups and mapping exercises are reported and the implications of the findings for developing institutional infrastructure to engage students and support their learning are highlighted.
Item Interactive Whiteboards: Interactive or Just Whiteboards?(2010-01-01) Swan, Paul; Marshall, Linda; Mildenhall, Paula; Northcote, MariaOver the last decade, interactive whiteboards have become popular teaching and learning tools, especially in primary school classrooms. Research studies from recent literature report on high levels of student motivation, teacher enthusiasm and wholeschool support associated with these technological tools. Much research to date has reported on the potential of interactive whiteboards (IWBs) to improve the quality of teaching and learning processes by enhancing levels of interaction, communication and collaboration. Whether these claims have been substantiated has not yet been fully investigated. This paper reports on the findings from a collaborative research project between university lecturers, school-based primary school teachers and principals, preservice teachers and district education consultants who worked together on a small, school-based research project. The researchers involved in this project had three main purposes: (1) to investigate different ways that IWBs are used in primary schools; (2) to share ideas and expertise on the use of IWBs; and (3) to document teachers’ current practice with IWBs. Field notes from professional development meetings and classroom observations were analysed using a grounded theory methodology. Findings from this research are reported in this paper and compared to other recent research. The paper concludes with recommendations for practice and future research. [from publisher's website]
Item Podcasting: Links to Literacy Teaching and Learning(2007-06-01) Mildenhall, Paula; Swan, Paul; Dobozy, Eva; Marshall, Linda; Northcote, Maria T.The term podcasting was only created in 2004, and was noted as the word of year in 2005 by the New Oxford American Dictionary. In the same year, podcasting was touted as 'the next big thing' in educational technology, even taking over blogging in popularity. As Balas suggests, 'blogging is so last year: now podcasting is hot'. Podcasting is one of the newest trends in online computing, and is at home with other recently coined terms such as e-learning, mobile learning, web-based learning and third-generation learning technologies. At the time of writing this article, a Google search for the word 'podcasting' produced almost 40 million results, whereas an identical search in 2005 yielded just over one million. [Author abstract]
Item Tuning into Podcasts: Collaborative Research into the Value Adding Nature of Podcasts in Teacher Education(2007-07-01) Mildenhall, Paula; Swan, Paul; Dobozy, Eva; Marshall, Linda; Northcote, Maria T.Digital pedagogy has become an increasingly viable, popular and effective component of higher education teaching and learning at Edith Cowan University and elsewhere. Components of digital pedagogy are diverse with new examples, such as podcasts, regularly being created, released for use and adopted in educational, recreational and business contexts. Consequently, university students use much of this technology both in their employment and recreational lives. This study explored processes of using and developing the students’ existing technological skills within their university studies. This paper documents the processes and findings of a collaborative research project that was implemented across six units of study during two semesters in an undergraduate teacher education course. During this period, podcasts were produced and broadcast to purposely increase student reflection and involvement in their own learning processes. These podcasts included question and answer sessions, teacher-student and student-student conversations, lecture presentations, summaries and reviews. Students were provided with opportunities to contribute to and nominate the content of these podcasts. Data was gathered and analysed from both the students’ and the teachers’ perspective about the perceived effectiveness of podcasts. Findings from this data were considered especially in terms of the value-adding nature of podcasts in undergraduate courses to better engage students. Finally, the research study’s results will be compared with findings from other recent studies using podcasts for educational purposes.
Item Virtual Manipulatives on the Interactive Whiteboard: A Preliminary Investigation(2008-01-01) Marshall, Linda; Northcote, Maria; Swan, Paul; Mildenhall, PaulaAn outline of how virtual manipulatives and interactive whiteboards can be used in the classroom.
Item What Offline and Online Technologies do Higher Education Students Use to Complete Assessment Tasks?(2015-11-01) Northcote, Maria T.; Mildenhall, Paula; Bolton, David; Lounsbury, LynnetteA Personal Learning Environment (PLE) is a system, usually self-constructed, that enables learners to manage their own learning and may include tools, services, online resources and communities. The aim of the project: to determine which technologies students use when they prepare, complete and submit assessment tasks such as assignments and examinations.
The participants (n=39): 24 students from Edith Cowan University in WA and 15 students from Avondale in NSW. All students were undergraduate, on-campus students from Education and Arts courses, mainly female, most were aged between 20-24 years.
Previous research has defined PLEs (Dabbagh & Kitsantas, (2012), especially in social constructivist contexts using learner-centred pedagogies (van Harmelen, 2008; Wild, Mdritscher, & Sigurdarson, 2008). Gosper et al. (2013; 2014) have outlined the use of technologies for learning in higher education in general. The methodology of the project used a mixed methods approach using a modification of Clark et al.’s (2009) methods:
1) online questionnaire;
2) focus group; and
3) mapping exercise.
Students used a moderate range of formal (provided by the institution) and informal (student-selected) technologies that were used in social and individual contexts, but most technology use was informal. The range of locations in which technologies were used was wide, and reflected a high value placed on mobility and Wi-Fi connectivity.