Learning as Identity Formation: Interesting presentation by Jochen Rick and Colleagues (video)

The above video is from a presentation from the recent ICLS 2012 conference, held in Sydney, Australia.


RELATED
Paper: "Learning as Identity Formation: Implication for Design, Research, and Practice"


Authors
Jochen Rick, Saarland University
Ben DeVane, University of Florida
Tamara Clegg, University of Maryland
Vanessa L. Peters, University of Michigan
Nancy Butler Songer, University of Michigan
Susan R. Goldman, University of Illinois
Cindy E. Hmelo-Silver, Rutgers University




Cross posted on the Interactive Multimedia Technology blog.

BlogHer '11: Topics include technology& parenting, moms as chief home CTOs, social media for social good, and more!

The BlogHer '11 conference is full swing in San Diego, California. If you haven't heard of BlogHer, it is a "participatory news, entertainment and information network for women online", with a directory of over 22,000 blogs and a publishing network.


If I was at the BlogHer '11, I'd probably attend the track sponsored by Verizon, Parenting Magazine, and BlogHer:  "The Tie that Binds Parents and Child",  a topic that explores the use of technology by mom and kids.  

Here is the conference track description:

"Technology has revolutionized parenting. According to BlogHer's research, it's an incredible boon to most parents... helping them feel like they're in close contact with their children. In this session, Lynne Fleck-Seitz from TeleCommunication Systems, Inc. will moderate a discussion with Carrie Jacobson from Verizon, Catherine McManus from Parenting Magazine, and Jane Collins from BlogHer, who together will introduce their latest research on how moms feel about technology's role in their own lives, and in their relationship with their kids. Come find out if you're on the cutting edge of modern parenting!"

Below is a slide presentation from the BlogHer '11 conference:

E moms blogher and parenting 8 2, jkc  View more presentations from BlogHer

RELATED

Tara Egan, blogger and fellow school psychologist, is the author of  the humorous blog, "Do These Kids Make Me Look Crazy".  I'm sure she's having a great time at BlogHer '11. 

BlogHer '11 Virtual Conference

Videos

Conference Blog Posts

Podcasts

The following chart is from an AdAge article about the above presentation:
"Start of the Day:  25% of Toddlers Have Used a SmartPhone"   Matt Carmichael, AdAgeStat, 8/4/11

Thoughts about Emerging Ed. Tech: CLASSMATE ASSIST and WAYANG OUTPOST - Sensors, AI, and Context Awareness for Learning -and Teaching

Brief background: I've been following developments in intelligent tutoring systems for a while,  and find it interesting to see how researchers are combining artificial intelligence, learning theory, affective computing, and sensor networks to create applications that might prove to be useful and effective.  


The advantage of using intelligent tutoring applications in some cases is that it provides students with additional support and feedback the moment it is needed, something that is difficult for teachers to provide to students in large classrooms.  With the increase in use of smartphones and other mobile devices such as the iPad, there is a good chance that this sort of technology will be used to support learning anywhere, anytime.


Although most intelligent tutoring systems are geared for 1-1 computing, I think there are some components that could be tweaked and then transfered to create intelligent "tutoring" systems for collaborative learning.  Students like game-based learning, and what could be more fun than playing AND learning with a partner or group of peers? (I plan to revisit the research in this area in an upcoming post.)

Some thoughts:

I envision a system could support learning as well as important skills useful to students in life beyond the school walls, such as positive social interaction, teamwork, and problem-solving skills.   The path of least resistance?  Most likely applications that support the learning of pairs or small groups of students working at one display.  However, in this era of the "21st Century Learner", there is a growing need for applications that can support small groups of students for collaborative groups and project-based learning activities.   


There are a few applications developed for collaborative learning activities around a multi-touch table, such as the SMARTTable or the Surface, and more are needed.   Also needed are intelligent systems that can support video conferencing and collaborative learning between students who are not physically co-located.

There are some problems that have yet to be solved.  For example, the use of multiple sensors for an application designed for young people might be too intrusive. There are serious issues related to privacy/security.  Who would have access to data regarding a student's emotional or physiological state?  How would this data be utilized?  How would this information be protected?    Many school districts have security vulnerabilities, so it is possible that this information could be misused, if in the wrong hands.

Below I've highlighted two "intelligent" tutoring systems that incorporate the use of sensors in one form or another to generate information about student learning in a way that simulates what good teachers do every day. The ClassroomAssist application was developed by researchers at Intel, in collaboration with several universities.  The Wayang Outpost application was developed by researchers at UMASS, and is aligned with the principles of Universal Design for Learning.

CLASSMATE ASSIST

ClassmateAssist is an application developed by Intel's Everyday Sensing and Perception team.  Here is the description of the application from Intel Research:

"The advent of 1:1 computing in the classroom opens the door for teachers to set up individualized learning for their students who have a wide spectrum of interests and skills.  ClasmateAssist technology uses computer vision and image projection to assist and guide students in a 1:1 learning environment, helping them to independently accomplish tasks at their own pace, while at the same time allowing teachers to be apprised of student progress."

In the following video, Richard Beckwith, a developmental psychologist at Intel, demonstrates a prototype of an application that uses video-sensing to track student's hand movements during a coin sorting lesson. The application provides feedback to the student, and also tracks data about the student's progress that can be transformed into a report for the teacher.  The system can also monitor student's facial expression, note attention levels, and provide feedback.


Intel Research: Everyday Sensing and Perception
Socially and Physically Aware Interaction Systems (SPAIS)
Intel Research Press kit
SPAIS Publications:
Theocharous, G., Beckwith, R., Butko, N., Philipose, M. Tractable POMDP Planning Algorithms for Optimal Teaching in "SPAIS". International Joint Conferene on Artificial Intelligence (IJCAI) workshop on Plan Activity, and Intent Recognition (PAIR), Pasadena, California, July 2009.
Theocharous, G., Butko, N., Philipose, M. Designing a Mathematical Manipulatives Tutoring System using POMDPS. (pdf). POMDP Practitioners Workshop: Solving Real-world POMDP Problems, International Conference on Automated Planning and Scheduling (ICAPS). Toronto, May 2010


Wayang Outpost: Web-based Interactive Math/Intelligent Tutoring System, with Sensors.
I've followed the work of Beverly P. Woolf and her colleagues for some time.  Much of their research has centered around a web-based application, Wayang Outpost, an intelligent electronic tutoring system that incorporates multimedia and animated adventures while providing activities designed to prepare teens for standardized math tests, such as the SAT and state-mandated end-of-course exams.


In recent years, the team has been using non-invasive sensors in their research, including a camera that views facial expressions, a posture-sensing device located in the seat of the student's chair, and a pressure-sensitive mouse, and a wireless skin conductance wristband. Data collected through all of these sensors can provide useful information about student learning.  The system can also note when students try to "game" the system.
Related Publications
Woolf, B.P., Arroyo, I., Muldner, K., Burleson, W., Cooper, D., Dolan, R., Christopherson, R.M (2010)The Effect of Motivational Learning Companions on Low Achieving Students and Students with Disabilties (pdf) International Conference on Intelligent Tutoring Systems, Pittsburgh.
Abstract "We report the results of a randomized controlled evaluation of the effectiveness of pedagogical agents as providers of affective feedback. These digital learning companion were embedded in an intelligent tutoring system for mathematics, and were used by approximately one hundred students in two public high schools. Students in the control group did not receive the learning companions. Results indicate that low-achieving students—one third of whom have learning disabilities—had higher affective needs than their higher achieving peers; they initially considered math problem-solving more frustrating, less exciting, and felt more anxious when solving math problems.  However, after they interacted with affective pedagogical agents, low-achieving students improved their affective outcomes, e.g., reported reduced frustration and anxiety."
Arroyo, I., Cooper, D.G., Burleson, W., Woolf, B.P., Muldner, K., Christopherson, R. (2009)
Emotion Sensors Go To School. AIED 2009. Pp. 17-24. IOS Press.
Low-tech description of Wayang Outpost, the math application used in the above publication: 

How's Your Math Mood?  Math software senses students' anxiety, boredom 

Paul Franz, Recoder.Com 5/16/09
Cooper, D.G., Arroyo, I., Woolf, B.P., Muldner, K., Burleson, W., Christoperson, R.  Sensors Model Student Self-Concept in the Classroom (pdf) UMass Amherst, June 22, 2009/UMAP 2009

Cross-posted on the Interactive Multimedia Technology blog.

Sir Ken Robinson's presentation about education and creativity in the 21st century

The following video is an "Animate" of a talk by creativity expert Sir Ken Robinson at the RSA (Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures, and Commerce).  How do we educate our children to take their place in the economies of the 21st century, given that we can't anticipate what the economy will look like at the end of next week? 
(Cross-posted on the Interactive Multimedia Technology blog)

 FYI: An Animate is a video in which a talented illustrator draws images related to the content of a speaker's presentation. (It is a great way to engage visual thinkers, in my opinion.)

The video explains it all.

RELATED
The following video is the longer original presentation by Sir Ken Robinson, responding to the question about how change can happen in education, and what we might do to make it last:

Thanks to Ewan McIntosh for the link!

About the RSA:

"For over 250 years the Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA) has been a cradle of enlightenment thinking and a force for social progress.  Our approach is multi-disciplinary, politically independent and combines cutting edge research and policy development with practical action. 

- We encourage public discourse and critical debate by providing platforms for leading experts to share new ideas on contemporary issues, through our public events programme, RSA Journal and RSA Comment.

- Our projects generate new models for tackling the social challenges of today.

- Our work is supported by a 27,000 strong Fellowship - achievers and influencers from every field with a real commitment to progressive social change."

"Five Rules" for Engaging and Meaningful PowerPoint Presentations, Featuring PPT 2010 Beta

I came across the video of the following "5 Rules" presentation on Long Zheng's "I Started Something" blog. This presentation created by Duarte, a company that focuses on visual stories and corporate branding.  The presentation can be found embedded in the public beta version of Microsoft Office 2010 Microsoft Office 2010.  The new version of PowerPoint features a DirectX-powered graphics engine, which supports smooth animations.

The concepts shared in the presentation are useful for students, teachers, and anyone else who has the challenge of creating an engaging and meaningful presentation. At the end of the video, the last slides provide more specific "how-to" information regarding the nuts and bolts of putting together a quality presentation.   You'll probably need to view the presentation Office 2010 Beta in the PowerPoint format if you have the urge to dig deeper. You can find it in the Sample Templates section.

Duarte's Five Rules for Creating World-Changing Presentations

Office Powerpoint 2010 "Five Rules" sample presentation from Long Zheng on Vimeo.

RELATED
Duarte Blog



(Cross-posted on the Interactive Multimedia Technology blog.)

Video Modeling and Social Skills Development: Scott Bellini and Tom Buggey's Resources

Scott Bellini is an assistant professor in the area of School Psychology in the Counseling and Educational Psychology department at Indiana University. His work focuses on social skills development with children and teens who have autism spectrum disorders. He is known for his research in the area of video modeling. He is also the author of the book, Building Social Relationships: A Systematic Approach to Teaching Social Interaction Skills to Children and Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorders and Other Social Difficulties.

Dr. Bellini is involved with the Indiana Institute on Disabilities, which sponsors the Autism Resources website.

It is worth taking the time to explore the Autism Resources website/blog. There you will find a descriptions of resources for children, teens, parents, and teachers. The resources include books, videos, websites, and related events. Some of the links are to education-related websites that also include information related to autism spectrum disorders, such as links to fairly recent article on the Edutopia website by Fran Smith that highlights the problem facing public schools schools in dealing with the increase in the number of students with autism spectrum disorders.

Tom Buggy is the Siskin Chair of Excellence in Early Childhood Education at UT-Chattanooga. Like Scott Bellini, he also focuses on video self-modeling with young people who have autism spectrum disorders. Dr. Buggy is the author of "Seeing is Believing: Video Self-Modeling for People with Autism and Other Developmental Disabilties", authored by Tom Buggey.

According to the description of the book, "VSM involves filming and editing footage to create a video of a person's ideal performance of a skill. The person then can watch whenever they please and gather valuable information about the skill. Seeing is Believing offers and step by step guide about how to get the equipment to begin the technique, how to plan the film, how to edit the video and much more."

Tom Buggey's "how-to" presentation about video self-monitoring can be downloaded at http://www.utc.edu/Faculty/Tom-Buggey/vsmorlandoclean.ppt

RELATED

If you are interested in free software that allows for detailed annotation of video, you might be interested in the Video Note Taker, which is free and open-source. It was developed by IBM researcher Eben Haber. I might give it a try.

In my job as a school psychologist, I use video to record some of my assessments, especially when I'm assessing students who have autism spectrum disorders. I also use it to develop video self-modeling activities and content for digital social stories. I find it to be useful when I conduct functional behavioral assessments. More recently, I have been using it to document student response to intervention, paying close attention to things that are difficult to record in real-time using traditional methods. What results is lots of video footage!

I think the Video Note Taker might help me with my work with young people who have suffered traumatic brain injuries.

I learned about the Video Note Taker from Harry Brignull's blog, "90 percent of everything". Harry is a User Experience Consultant. You can download the application from the SourceForge website.

Here is the description:

"The basic function is to allow the user to take notes while watching a computer video file. The program combines a video playback window and a very simple text editor. Keyboard shortcuts can control playback, e.g. pause/resume, skip back, etc."

This looks pretty cool, considering that video footage of assessments completed by a team, such as the ADOS, require a good deal of collaboration, and of course, rewinding, forwarding, and rewinding video! According to the software's author:

"This software has one other interesting feature: if two people at remote locations are watching the same video file, it can synchronize their players, so that if one person pauses the video, it pauses the other, and if one person skips ahead, the other player shows the same thing. This can be handy for going over a video with someone remote."