Effective Learning Activities Research Articles

Online Learning from the Learning Cycle Perspective: Discovering Patterns in Recent Research

We propose a method for automatically extracting new trends and best practices from the recent literature on online learning, aligned with the learning cycle perspective. Using titles and abstracts of research articles published in high ranked educational journals, we assign topic proportions to the articles, where the topics are aligned with the components of the learning cycle: engagement, exploration, explanation, elaboration, evaluation, and evolution. The topic analysis is conducted using keyword-based Latent Dirichlet allocation, and the topic keywords are chosen to reflect the nature of the learning cycle components. Our analysis reveals the time dynamics of research topics aligned on learning cycle components, component weights, and interconnections between them in the current research focus. Connections between the topics and user-defined learning elements are discovered. Concretely, we examine how effective learning elements such as virtual reality, multimedia, gamification, and problem-based learning are related to the learning cycle components in the literature. In this way, any innovative learning strategy or learning element can be placed in the landscape of the learning cycle topics. The analysis can be helpful to other researches when designing effective learning activities that address particular components of the learning cycle.

How Motivation for Undergraduate Physics Interacts With Learning Activities in a System With Built‐In Autonomy

ABSTRACTSupporting student participation and learning in STEM involves motivating students to engage in the most effective learning activities. In this article, we study how student motivation interacts with learning activities, and we pay special attention to active learning and the Scandinavian context where participation in learning activities is largely voluntary. Twenty‐one undergraduate physics students at a large, research‐intensive university in Norway participated in nine focus group interviews at the beginning and end of the spring term of 2020. With self‐determination theory as a lens, our thematic analysis resulted in three themes: First, students' autonomous motivation came from mastery experiences and perceived learning, such as the joy of solving a problem. Second, active learning activities enabled students' autonomous motivation when these activities supported competence, for example through optimal challenge or with evident learning gains. In contrast, students experienced low or controlled motivation when excessive challenge and lack of mastery threatened their sense of competence. Third, students' sense of competence was strengthened by being part of a community of learners. The community ensured that help and mastery experiences were available, and interactions with the community made evident that other students struggle too. The emphasis on mastery and competence for these students is discussed considering how physics is associated with difficulty and extraordinary cleverness. We argue that the main threat for students who do not feel competent enough in physics is the threat of not belonging in physics due to this perceived lack of competence. Implications for teaching and research are discussed.

Inclusion in the learning game: Applying considerations from cognitive neuroscience, educational psychology, and SLA to language learning activity and materials design

Considering the need for pedagogically effective learning activities and materials to support language learning, particularly within teacher-led instruction, it is curious that at present there is no overarching, research-based framework available to educators to draw from when designing and implementing such activities and materials. To address this gap, the authors of this paper have drawn from a host of relevant research pertaining to cognitive neuroscience, educational psychology, and second language acquisition to establish a framework for designing and implementing activities and learning materials capable of facilitating enhanced language learning outcomes within an inclusive classroom. Incorporating ten key considerations – attention and focus, desirable difficulty, depth of processing, deliberate practice, novelty and surprise, wakeful rest, visible learning, meaningful feedback, affective engagement, and strategic choice and use – this versatile framework not only provides teachers with necessary knowledge for designing language learning activities and materials in an engaging and efficacious manner but may also embolden them to do so.

Challenges in Promoting Learner Autonomy in Blended Learning: Perspectives from English as a Foreign Language Teachers in China

Blended learning is gaining popularity as a prevailing practice in higher education worldwide. This study explores the challenges faced by experienced English as a Foreign Language teachers in promoting learner autonomy within blended learning environments. Drawing from interviews and classroom observations conducted with five EFL teachers at a private university in China, the study identifies four key challenges: technological, pedagogical, cultural, and institutional. Technological challenges revolve around concerns regarding technical support, internet reliability, and hardware availability, highlighting the need for sturdy technical infrastructure and supportive mechanisms. Pedagogical challenges include designing effective blended learning activities that balance teacher-led instruction with opportunities for student autonomy, emphasizing the importance of scaffolding learning tasks, and providing adequate support for independent learning. Cultural challenges underscore the influence of cultural factors on student attitudes towards autonomy and authority in the classroom, emphasizing the necessity for culturally responsive teaching practices. Institutional challenges highlight barriers stemming from rigid curriculum requirements, limited professional development opportunities, and a lack of administrative support, underscoring the importance of systemic support and organizational change. The findings offer valuable guidance for institutions, administrators, and EFL teachers on how to design more effective blended EFL courses. Limitations and suggestions for future studies such as larger sample size, rigorous data collection method, and longitudinal studies are provided to enhance our understanding of promoting learner autonomy in blended learning environments.

Incorporating Social Needs Screening in Simulation for Family Nurse Practitioner Students.

A pilot simulation was implemented at a private university school of nursing to provide an opportunity for family nurse practitioner (FNP) students to apply their knowledge of assessing and addressing social determinants of health (SDOH). The Social Needs Screening Tool (SNST), developed by the American Academy of Family Physicians, and SDOH content were incorporated into a tele-health simulation-based learning experience. Using Zoom [Zoom Video Communications, Inc.], students encountered a standardized patient who sought care for shoulder pain and shared concerns about transportation and finances. Thirty-nine FNP students individually completed the simulation. Evaluation was conducted via an adapted Simulation Effectiveness Tool-Modified and written feedback to assess confidence and skills. Eighty-nine percent of students reported they felt more comfortable using the SNST following the simulation. Incorporating SDOH content and the SNST within simulation-based learning is an effective learning activity to enhance FNP student confidence and skills in assessing and addressing SDOH. [J Nurs Educ. 2024;63(X):XXX-XXX.].

Adapting the ‘study and research path’ methodology in strength of materials to online teaching and resource-constrained scenarios

The Study and Research Path (SRP) methodology, emphasizing exploration of answers to open questions, has recently gained recognition as an effective active and inquiry-based learning approach, notably in the realm of Mechanical Engineering education. This study investigates the adaptation of SRPs to online and resource-constrained environments. We present and compare eight SRP-based Strength of Material courses conducted before, during, and after the COVID-19 pandemic. Our analysis focuses on the transformations observed in SRPs, encompassing shifts in course organization, question-answer maps, media-milieu dialectics, resource utilization, and inquiry procedures. Our findings demonstrate the successful adaptation of the SRP course to online teaching during the unprecedented remote conditions brought about by the pandemic. This adaptation resulted in a more guided Q-A map, innovative practical experiences with homemade setups, increased use of simulations, and parallelized inquiry by different groups. Importantly, materials and strategies developed during this transformation proved invaluable in subsequent post-pandemic courses, particularly in hybrid or constrained space and cohort settings. Our study highlights the adaptability and efficacy of SRPs in diverse teaching environments, providing valuable insights for educators seeking to implement SRPs and other active-learning, inquiry-based methodologies to challenging ecological conditions.

Effective Active Learning Method for Spiking Neural Networks.

A large quantity of labeled data is required to train high-performance deep spiking neural networks (SNNs), but obtaining labeled data is expensive. Active learning is proposed to reduce the quantity of labeled data required by deep learning models. However, conventional active learning methods in SNNs are not as effective as that in conventional artificial neural networks (ANNs) because of the difference in feature representation and information transmission. To address this issue, we propose an effective active learning method for a deep SNN model in this article. Specifically, a loss prediction module ActiveLossNet is proposed to extract features and select valuable samples for deep SNNs. Then, we derive the corresponding active learning algorithm for deep SNN models. Comprehensive experiments are conducted on CIFAR-10, MNIST, Fashion-MNIST, and SVHN on different SNN frameworks, including seven-layer CIFARNet and 20-layer ResNet-18. The comparison results demonstrate that the proposed active learning algorithm outperforms random selection and conventional ANN active learning methods. In addition, our method converges faster than conventional active learning methods.

FICOM: an effective and scalable active learning framework for GNNs on semi-supervised node classification

Active learning for graph neural networks (GNNs) aims to select B nodes to label for the best possible GNN performance. Carefully selected labeled nodes can help improve GNN performance and hence motivates a line of research works. Unfortunately, existing methods still provide inferior GNN performance or cannot scale to large networks.Motivated by these limitations, in this paper, we present FICOM, an effective and scalable GNN active learning framework. Firstly, we formulate the node selection as an optimization problem where we consider the importance of a node from (i) the importance of a node during the feature propagation with a connection to the personalized PageRank (PPR), and (ii) the diversity of a node brings in the embedding space generated by feature propagation. We show that the defined problem is submodular, and a greedy solution can provide a (1-1/e)\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$(1-1/e)$$\\end{document}-approximate solution.However, a standard greedy solution requires getting the node with the maximum marginal gain of the objective score in each iteration, which incurs a prohibitive running cost and cannot scale to large datasets. As our main contribution, we present FICOM, an efficient and scalable solution that provides (1-1/e)\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$(1-1/e)$$\\end{document}-approximation guarantee and scales to graphs with millions of nodes on a single machine. The main idea is that we adaptively maintain the lower- and upper-bound of the marginal gain for each node v. In each iteration, we can first derive a small subset of candidate nodes and then compute the exact score for this subset of candidate nodes so that we can find the node with the maximum marginal gain efficiently. Extensive experiments on six benchmark datasets using four GNNs, including GCN, SGC, APPNP, and GCNII, show that our FICOM consistently outperforms existing active learning approaches on semi-supervised node classification tasks using different GNNs. Moreover, our solution can finish within 5 h on a million-node graph.

The Effect Of Song Mnemonic On Students’ Vocabularymastery Of MTsN Tanjungbalai

The objective of this research to identify the faced by the seventh grade students’ at MTsN Tanjung Balai, to identify the causes of students' difficulties in improving vocabulary mastery of seventh grade students at MTsN Tanjung Balai in the 2023/2024 academic year. The population was 54 students and the researcher took a 2 class random sampling design, namely: control class and experimental class to carry out pre-test post-test. Material about describing something. In collecting data, researchers used tests to apply the song mnemonic method for several weeks and compared the pre-test and post-test to determine the effect of applying the song mnemonic method. Then the data obtained was analyzed through five stages, namely normality test, homogeneity test, hypothesis test, effect size test and statistical hypothesis. Finally the researcher found that it showed that the value of the T-test was 7.659 and the degree of freedom (df) was 54 (df-2;54-2=52). The value of T is significant 5% of T-table of db= 2.00. Therefore, the alternative hypothesis (Ha) is accepted and the null hypothesis (H0) is rejected. It can be concluded that the influence of using the song mnemonic method has an influence on increasing students' mastery of English vocabulary. So the suggestion is that teachers must be more creative in developing appropriate learning methods to be taught to support effective learning activities in the classroom.

DEVELOPING AN ENGLISH E-BOOK FOR YOUNG LEARNERS BY USING FLIPBOOK MAKER APPLICATION AT SDN 001 SAMBALIUNG

This research aims to develop an English e-book for young learners at SDN 001 Sambaliung using the Flipbook Maker application. The study addresses potential challenges in creating English e-books, such as engaging students with short attention spans and limited early literacy skills. Additionally, it explores the need for teacher and student training to use the Flipbook Maker technology. The research utilizes a qualitative approach combined with the ADDIE (Analysis, Design, Development, Implementation, Evaluation) model and Research and Development (R&D) methodology. Participants include students and teachers at SDN 001 Sambaliung. The findings reveal that using interactive e-books through Flipbook Maker offers advantages, including increased student interest and engagement. Moreover, the e-books can be adapted for other foreign language materials and provide easy accessibility for teachers, facilitating effective learning activities. This research successfully achieves its goal of developing an interactive and effective English e-book for young learners, integrating ADDIE principles and an R&D approach. The results can serve as a foundation for further development in utilizing Flipbook Maker technology in education.

Analisis Keterampilan Dasar Mengajar Guru untuk Meningkatkan Hasil Belajar Siswa di UPTD SD Negeri Pailelang

This research aims to examine the influence of teachers' teaching skills on student learning outcomes in elementary schools. This research will specifically examine teaching skills and learning readiness as factors that can influence student learning outcomes. Teachers' teaching skills are very important in the learning process because it is one way teachers can do it so that the learning process in the classroom fosters effective student learning activities and learning outcomes can be as appropriate as possible. what to expect. Learning activities are not enough to just listen and take notes, but must be more complex than that. This shows that the teacher's teaching skills must be able to enable students to stimulate various learning activities. In writing this article, we used a qualitative approach with a literature study based on several scientific journals, electronic books and other sources whose accuracy has been confirmed. The results of this study describe that there is an influence of teacher teaching skills on student learning outcomes in elementary schools. By mastering basic teaching skills, teachers can distribute all learning materials so as to achieve the learning objectives themselves

Analytical Study: the Use of Digital Technology-Based Learning Media at Alam Surya Mentari Elementary School

This research is motivated by examining the use of digital technology-based learning media at Alam Surya Mentari Elementary School, where the existence of digital technology-based learning media is important for teachers to use in the current 4.0 era. Digital technology-based learning media is a means of supporting learning activities using digital media as a tool used by teachers in providing effective, creative and efficient learning activities to students according to the learning that will be discussed. Therefore, this research aims to analyze the use of digital technology-based learning media that teachers have used during learning activities with students at SD Alam Surya Mentari, because basically the school is a natural school that adheres to a direct learning system with nature. This research uses qualitative research methods, with a case study design. The data that has been collected in this research was carried out using interview data, observation and documentation. The analysis technique uses three stages, namely data reduction, data presentation and drawing conclusions. The results of this research show that teachers at SD Alam Surya Mentari have carried out teaching and learning activities using digital technology-based learning media as a tool if learning material media for students cannot be obtained directly around the school. So from this research it is concluded that learning media with a learning system with nature remains the main media for Alam Surya Mentari Elementary School teachers, while learning media based on digital technology is only used to support visual material.

Desain Pembelajaran Model Dack and Carey Terhadap Pemahaman Konsep Matematika Pada Materi Menyederhanakan Bentuk Aljabar

This article examines the development of mathematics learning design using the Dick and Carey model in material simplifying algebra forms for class VII SMPN 217 Jakarta. Learning design refers to the process of planning and developing effective learning structures, strategies and activities to achieve desired learning goals. The purpose of writing this article is to explain the steps for developing learning design by applying the Dick and Carey model in designing mathematics learning on material that simplifies algebraic forms. The results of developing designs using the Dick and Carey model in developing mathematics learning designs can help teachers in designing and implementing learning.

Rome: The Game. Creating an online course as an interactive adventure game

Abstract In this article, we focus on the development of Rome: The Game – a large, lower-division online course crossed-listed in the History of Art and Architecture Department and Writing Program at the University of California, Santa Barbara – that features a choose-your-own-adventure-style interactive narrative. We explore the design principles underpinning the development of this type of gamified course, the mechanics of the course itself, student experiences, and learning outcomes. Citing relevant research in several fields – such as game studies, educational psychology, and communication studies – we argue that creating an online course in the style of an interactive, narrative-driven digital game presents a model for engaging and effective active learning in an online environment – one that goes beyond conventional virtual learning to offer an innovative, active, and deeply immersive model for online teaching.

Everyone can draw: An inclusive and transformative activity for conceptualization of topographic anatomy.

Anatomical drawing traditionally involves illustration of labeled diagrams on two-dimensional surfaces to represent topographical features. Despite the visual nature of anatomy, many learners perceive that they lack drawing skills and do not engage in art-based learning. Recent advances in the capabilities of technology-enhanced learning have enabled the rapid and inexpensive production of three-dimensional anatomical models. This work describes a "drawing on model" activity in which learners observe and draw specific structures onto three-dimensional models. Sport and exercise sciences (SES, n = 79) and medical (MED, n = 156) students at a United Kingdom medical school completed this activity using heart and femur models, respectively. Learner demographics, their perceptions of anatomy learning approaches, the value of the activity, and their confidence in understanding anatomical features, were obtained via validated questionnaire. Responses to 7-point Likert-type and free-text items were analyzed by descriptive statistics and semi-quantitative content analysis. Learners valued art-based study (SES mean = 5.94 SD ±0.98; MED = 5.92 ± 1.05) and the "drawing on model" activity (SES = 6.33 ± 0.93; MED = 6.21 ± 0.94) and reported enhanced confidence in understanding of cardiac anatomy (5.61 ± 1.11), coronary arteries (6.03 ± 0.83), femur osteology (6.07 ± 1.07), and hip joint muscle actions (5.80 ± 1.20). Perceptions of learners were independent of both their sex and their art-based study preferences (p < 0.05). Themes constructed from free-text responses identified "interactivity," "topography," "transformative," and "visualization," as key elements of the approach, in addition to revealing some limitations. This work will have implications for anatomy educators seeking to engage learners in an inclusive, interactive, and effective learning activity for supporting three-dimensional anatomical understanding.

The Analysis of Training Issues on Learning Engagement: The Case of Mongolia

Our research focuses on how to support and implement active learning methods used in learning activities. Effective learning activities vary from person to person, as individuals have different learning styles and preferences. However, we studied the methods that tend to be effective for many people. Through our research work, in providing participants with the basic understanding and imagination of professional foundation, professional, and specialization courses, coachers supported the use of methods such as dialogue, learning from real examples, posing problems, solving problems, role playing, and encouraging participation rather than using traditional coaching methods.

Bibliometric Analysis: Research Trends in Creative Thinking Behavior in Learning

The ability to think outside the box, create something that has never existed before, and apply knowledge and skills creatively and inventively. Effective learning activities require a balance between several aspects, namely cognitive, affective, and psychomotor aspects. Creative thinking behavior is a manifestation of creativity, and creativity refers to the ability to generate new, unique ideas. Related to the importance of behavior on creative thinking, it is necessary to analyze the extent of the development of research on creative thinking behavior. Bibliometric analysis using Publish of Perish (PoP) and VOSviewer for the last 10 years (2014-2023) keyword “creative thinking behavior. The analysis took from the google scholar and scopus databases. Bibliometric analysis is a technique that is realized in 2 categories, namely performance analysis and science mapping. The results of the analysis are stored in a small database used in this study. Since this research only uses Google Scholar and Scopus databases, the research methodology of thinking behavior is also limited. The research results can be expanded by using alternative databases and keyword searches. This study may be useful for future researchers who want to investigate creative thinking behavior.

Journey of a drug: teaching pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics

BackgroundPharmacology is a challenging course for nursing students, especially when considering the pharmacologic principles of pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics (PK/PD). Active learning strategies including the use of manipulatives aimed at increasing knowledge and engagement may improve learning outcomes in a pharmacology course. AimThe aim of this study was to determine if an interactive ‘Journey of a Drug’ (JoaD) activity using manipulatives to represent key components of PK and PD processes was more effective than textbook readings and asynchronous video lecture for teaching PK/PD. MethodsThe efficacy of this activity was evaluated using a pretest-posttest design to compare students’ scores on a PK/PD knowledge test, as well as student self-reported engagement and perceptions of the JoaD activity compared to asynchronous PK/PD video lecture. ResultsThere were significant improvements in PK/PD knowledge, student engagement, and students’ perceptions of the JoaD activity compared to asynchronous video lecture. ConclusionsThese results suggest that the JoaD activity is an effective active learning intervention that improves knowledge of PK/PD principles and enhances student engagement.

Cooperative Learning in an Interior Architecture Studio

Design studio in interior architecture education is rarely conducted as a group learning activity, despite the benefits of preparing students for team-based industry work environments. Students have learnt to be protective of their design ideas and are not always encouraged to share resources, although theories on social learning indicate a deeper learning experience is achieved through collaboration. The theoretical framework for cooperative learning, as a form of collaboration, is extensive and positively supports the virtues of group work as an effective learning activity. This paper describes an action research cycle of preparation, implementation and reflection of a cooperative learning project with third year interior architecture students. For the purposes of this research, cooperative learning is defined as a structured group work activity, with participants working together towards a series of common objectives. The main objectives were for students to experience a typical interior architecture work environment, to promote deeper learning and foster a culture of sharing ideas and resources.

READING INTEREST CHARACTER OF PROSPECTIVE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL TEACHERS AT UNIVERSITAS PENDIDIKAN INDONESIA

Reading interest is one of the fundamental skills in language and is a highly effective learning activity for acquiring knowledge and literacy. Reading literacy is an essential skill, particularly for prospective educators; however, many students experience challenges in cultivating a reading habit. This research aims to: (1) describe the reading interest conditions of prospective teacher students at Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia (UPI), (2) elucidate the supporting and inhibiting factors for prospective teacher students (PTS) at UPI in their reading activities. This study employs a quantitative approach with a survey design. The research subjects are UPI PGSD (Elementary School Teacher Education) students. Data collection methods include questionnaires, surveys, and interviews. Data analysis involves descriptive analysis, frequency distribution, and percentage calculation. The findings reveal that: (1) the overall reading interest of PTS is categorized as low, (2) students' activities on campus before class hours mainly involve waiting and chatting with friends; only a small portion of students utilize their free time to read books or visit the library. (3) PTS' preferred books are novels and fiction, while scientific texts are less favored due to unappealing design and layout, (4) the time spent on reading books by PTS is relatively short, with less than 1 hour daily, and some do not allocate any time for reading, except when there are assignments or exams, (5) the major inhibiting factors for PTS in reading are internal, indicated by low reading habits or preferences for other interests over reading.