Symposium Abstracts

In 2001, the program was developed further with the addition of the Online Prelab resources - modules of questions and animations, which students must complete before undertaking each laboratory class. The objective was not to replace direct laboratory time or experience for our students, but to increase the effectiveness of this core but expensive aspect of our undergraduate teaching program. Examples from the now over 40 ChemCAL and 16 Prelab modules will be described and demonstrated.

Our evaluation incorporates observations of patterns of use of the product, pre-use and post-use questionnaires and focus group interviews with users. Results indicate that students find the product extremely valuable in their learning and that the inclusion of graphics and interactive features that cannot be found in other media are of particular benefit. Some guidance on possible enhancements is also provided from the analysis. The results are discussed in the context of the wider student experience, especially the now established need for campus-based, full-time students to have access to high quality learning resources that they can access and use flexibly.

Sokoloff, D. R. and Thornton, R. K. (1997) Using Interactive Lecture Demonstrations to Create an Active Learning Environment, The Physics Teacher, 35, 340 - 347.
Johnston, I. and Millar, R. (2000) Is There a Right Way to Teach Physics?, in CAL-laborate (UniServe Science's International Newsletter), Vol. 5.

Foster, E. and Stephenson, J. (1998) Work-based learning and universities in the UK: a review of current practice and trends. Higher Education Research and Development. 17(2). 155-170.
Martin, E. (1997) The Effectiveness of Different Models of Work-based University Education. Evaluations and Investigations Project. no. 96/19.

Principles relate to:

• Application of a common sequence of events for how learners learn;
• Accommodating different learning styles;
• Adopting a purposeful approach to teaching and learning;
• Using assessment as a central driving force in the curriculum and as an organising structure leading to coherence of teaching and learning approach;
  and
• The increasing emphasis that is being placed on the development of generic graduate competencies over and above discipline content knowledge.

The principles are particularly significant in relation to adult learning. The paper will use three specific applications as illustrations to help you to learn how these principles can be applied. The illustrations are taken from a second year subject in supercomputing that uses scientific case studies. The subject has been developed (with support from Silicon Graphics Inc. and Intel) to be taught entirely via the Internet.

Formative evaluation, such as the use of minute papers and a feedback box, has helped to improve the workshops. The students provide a “snap-shot” of a particular workshop by filling in a minute paper, which allows that workshop to be revised and improved. Summative assessment of the workshops has been provided by Likert scale surveys and focus groups. The surveys have been administered to large numbers of students and provide a broad overview of the workshops. The focus groups, run by the Institute of Teaching and Learning at The University of Sydney, provide in-depth information from a small number of students. The information from the focus groups and the surveys has enabled the expansion of the project both within and beyond The University of Sydney.

We have designed a flexible curriculum that uses real sources within the discipline of the participating students. The teaching and learning experiences can be adapted to any situations where students need to interact with statistical material but don't need to produce the statistical analysis themselves. Students develop critical reading skills, including reading and understanding the statistical content, of research papers.

The curriculum design uses four theoretical frameworks. The first is a study of students' conceptions of statistics (Petocz and Reid, 2001). Petocz and Reid found that final year students who had studied statistics had three levels of conception about the subject, an extrinsic technical conception, extrinsic meaning and intrinsic meaning. This influenced the students' interaction with the discourse of statistics. Careful design of questions assists students to progress to higher levels of both language and statistics.

The second framework uses Fairclough's three-dimensional conception of discourse (Fairclough, 1975:73) to design learning activities to help students understand:

• how the texts that they read are constructed;
• how they themselves can construct and interact with text; and
• how these constructions and interactions become the material or substance of that discipline.

Another framework to inform the design of curriculum is the increasing amount of work investigating graduate profiles and professional competencies. Both universities and professional societies are developing lists of graduate competencies that can be developed through degree programs. The development of academic and professional discourse skills connects well with the types of capabilities needed by graduates of quantitative disciplines.

The final framework connects the ideas of equity, equal opportunity and non-discrimination which have become part of teaching and learning at university. For many lecturers these are principles they have adhered to throughout their lives however the changes have been in the legislative and social acceptance of these principles. Universities are no longer for the elite and importance is given to teaching and learning initiatives that are inclusive and assist students to reach their academic potential whatever their background.

Petocz, P. and Reid, A. (2001), Students' Experience of Learning in Statistics, Questiones Mathematicae. Supp 1, 37-46.
Fairclough, N. (1995) Discourse and Social Change. London: Polity Press.

The Course is to target established science teachers with science degrees and teaching qualifications. These teachers will be sourced from anywhere in NSW and consequently the course will be delivered online. All teachers taking the course are fully funded by the NSW DET. Enrollments for 2002 are 32 with the prospect of a similar number for 2003. Designing such a course is a significant responsibility, as it could influence how physics will be taught in over 60 schools in NSW in the immediate future.

In this paper we will discuss the intended objectives and content of the course, our philosophy behind the course content as well as the technicalities of how the course will be presented online.

Details for two curricula will show how this instructional technology is used to deliver robotics as a subject to third-year and Honours-year tertiary level students. This includes how the students are assessed and evaluated in their performance during the coursework. Examples are given of possible projects that students can undertake (e.g. mobile robots, industry robots, autonomous robots, search and rescue vehicles, transportation vehicles, competitive and soccer robots, etc.). Finally, a brief review of both Lego and Fischertechnik kits and their potential are presented.

Details from several examples of different classes of robots will be given. Each project may take the form of either autonomous mobile robots or dynamic industry robots. In addition, these projects will be ranked as easy, moderate or difficult depending on the prerequisites required to complete them. The prerequisites may include multidisciplinary areas from applied computing and mechatronics (e.g. parallel computing, intelligent systems, microelectronics, image processing, etc.). The different types of robotic themes used as instructional technology covered in this paper are, soccer robot, search-and-rescue, all-terrain explorer, walking robots (i.e. biped, quadpod, six-legged, hexapod), industry robots and cooperative-collective robots.

The project is based on an action research model with in-depth evaluation of the teaching reforms and associated learning outcomes as a priority. The evaluation strategy for the project uses Kirkpatrick's four-level model as a guide. The levels being: level 1 - reaction; level 2 - learning; level 3 - transfer; and level 4 - value to the organisation. We are particularly interested in levels 3 and 4.

The project is funded by a Teaching Improvement Fund 2001/2002 Grant to the Faculty of Science and Faculty of Science support for UniServe Science.

Kirkpatrick, D. L. (1994) Evaluating Training Programs: The four levels. Berrett-Koehler, San Francisco.
Kirkpatrick, D. (1996) Techniques for evaluating programs, part of Great Ideas Revisited series in Training & Development, January, 54-59.
Kirkpatrick, D. (1996) Revisiting Kirkpatrick's four-level model, part of Great Ideas Revisited series in Training & Development, January, 54-59.

In order to improve student learning the pre-laboratory work has been adapted for web delivery. The aims were to:

• Provide instant feedback to students on their understanding of the material;
• Ensure the entire laboratory time was available for experimental work; and
• Offset the effects of a contracting cohort of laboratory demonstrators.

The motivation and financial background to the application of IT to this course will be discussed together with the capabilities of the application and the advantages it offers to both students and instructors.

Teaching of Chemistry, especially first year, has been found to be greatly enriched by demonstrations of chemical phenomena. The lecturer explains what is happening and uses Power Point to display computer generated images relating to the chemical phenomena being demonstrated. This closely links experimental observations with the theory.

A large lecture theatre at Burwood is being refurbished to enable chemical demonstrations to be performed. The facilities are based on those developed at Rusden and will include a demonstration bench with sink, gas, and water and a mobile fume cupboard. A mini digital video camera will be used to record demonstrations and to display them on a large screen in real time. The recorded demonstrations would then be available for students to access via videostreaming or by viewing in the library.

Both the Field School and the e-sim have multiple objectives, including substantive learning about development and environmental challenges as experienced and dealt with by different social actors in the six countries of the Mekong Region and by Australian and other external interests in that region. Another significant objective is to give students experiential skills in dealing with cultural difference, particularly in the field of environmental and natural resource management. Two dimensions of culture are part of this process: the cultures of different societies and countries, and the discipline cultures of the social and natural sciences.

Additional information is available at http://www.phys.ksu.edu/perg/

* Supported by the National Science Foundation under grant CETP 98-76676, Eisenhower Professional Development Program and the United States Dept. of Education “Preparing Tomorrow's Teachers to use Technology” Grants.

Although the material selection is specifically for Radiation Safety training the CD has also been used in bridging courses, as reinforcement for first year students, and within our Engineering Technology Instrumentation program. The number of students who have used the CD-ROM is not statistically significant but student feedback on the material is very positive.

In this note we discuss a process of developing a useful method of teaching of Mathematical Statistics to undergraduates in order to improve their skills and understanding.

A modular, interactive multimedia software package has been produced containing:

• Experimental simulations including a first level practical on the effects of light quality on photosynthesis in the aquatic plant Egeria and a third level module on the use of chlorophyll fluorescence techniques to measure photosynthesis;
• An annotated animation of photosynthetic electron transport with optional voice-over; and
• Up-to-date theory modules with dynamic figures, on “sun and shade leaves” and “excess light”.

Current instructional technology based on information technology, enables instantaneous and unbiased feedback from students during a lecture. Such systems are called classroom communication systems (CCS). In this paper we will discuss the implementation and evaluation of such an interactive lecturing system. The CCS will be evaluated in several ways. Student experiences will be evaluated using a written questionnaire and minute papers. Focus groups will be used to determine student perceptions of the CCS. The effectiveness of the CCS will be evaluated by comparing the results of examination questions addressed by the CCS during the lecture course with those from examination questions that probe similar concepts but which have not been addressed by the CCS.

Interrelations between these different factors form a broad picture of student learning and groups of students with distinct patterns of experience have been identified. In 2002 we are repeating this study with the aim of examining any qualitative or quantitative changes in these patterns of experience that coincide with the changeover to the new NSW Higher School Certificate syllabus. An understanding of our students' experiences will provide the necessary background to review our own tertiary physics courses and tune them to meet the needs of future students.