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Abstract |
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1. Introduction The project has introduced a blended learning approach, which incorporates traditional and new elements. Learning objects were incorporated into the modules, designed to improve student learning, and to provide online materials that would support their face-to-face teaching (which was not reduced). More traditional changes included the move to a common base curriculum that would teach Java in all the modules, changes to the assessment strategy, and organisational changes that would provide more effective tutorial support for students. The multimedia learning objects won a European Academic Software Award (EASA) in September 2004. |
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2. The learning objects A set of 54 learning objects was created with the aim of helping students to understand the more abstract and complex aspects of Java programming. Many are text-based objects authored as html pages, each focusing on a single topic and providing clear explanations and examples of Java code and how it is constructed. These are complemented by 14 multimedia objects authored in Macromedia Flash that use animations and interactive simulations to provide visual examples of Java concepts and program code. A number of multimedia techniques are employed to engage the students in the subject matter and to help them understand these complex and abstract programming concepts (Boyle 1997). Figure 1 below shows four of the screens from the multimedia learning object on 'While loops'. |
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3. How the learning objects were incorporated into student modules |
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The new modules were delivered to students from September 2002. Student pass rates in the first year of implementation dramatically increased on all modules, compared to the previous year, as shown in Table 1 below. There was an increase of 19 percentage points for the HND module, 15 for the BSc module, and 12 for the MSc module. |
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Use of the modules has been accompanied by thorough evaluation. The rest of this paper will focus on the evaluation and present some of the results, particularly relating to the use and reception of the learning objects. To students, these are known as ‘learning aids’, and this is the terminology used in the evaluation data that follows. More detailed evaluation data can be found in Bradley and Boyle 2004. |
![]() Table 1. Increase in pass rates |
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4. The evaluation process A substantial amount of data was gathered during the first semester of use by over 600 students. Relatively large completion rates on the questionnaires provide us with large samples on which the results are based. The questionnaires and interviews with students give us a rich coverage of data relating to their attitudes and views. The tracking data has provided evidence of the access levels of the learning objects and of WebCT. |
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5. Evaluation results Student opinions of the learning objects |
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![]() Figure 3. Usefulness of module components to students |
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![]() Figure 4. Helpfulness of the learning aids in learning Java |
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![]() Table 2. How learning aids were used |
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![]() Figure 5. Student access of learning aids (sample of 18 students) |
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6. Conclusion One notable feature of the picture that emerges is the variety across the large student cohort involved. The extent of use varies from practically none to very high levels of access. The general pattern of use is that the student organises the use of the learning objects around the focal concerns of their study. In programming the focal activity is writing programs in assisted laboratory sessions and outside formal contact hours. There is an important lesson here for the use of learning objects. Our experience suggests that the nature and pattern of use will be shaped strongly by the focal concerns in the subject domain. These vary across subjects and this suggests that we might expect strong differentiation in patterns of use across different subject domains. It is also apparent that students welcome these e-Learning components within their modules. They like having support materials online that they can access where and when they want to, and they particularly like multimedia that provides visual examples that they can understand. Having such materials enables them to take more control over their own learning, allowing more flexible study patterns at times that suit them. |
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8. Acknowledgements |
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9. Learning object website |
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