Organized by Technology-Enriched Learning Initiative
Speakers:
Professor Irwin King, Principal Investigator of KEEP,
Associate Dean (Education), Faculty of Engineering, CUHK
Professor Ricky Kwok, Associate Vice-President (Teaching and Learning), HKU
Date : 21st September, 2015 (Monday) Time : 12:30pm – 2:00pm Venue : Room 223, 2/F, Knowles Building
Abstract:
KEEP, the Knowledge and Education Exchange Platform, is an initiative developed by The Chinese University of Hong Kong in collaboration with all UGC-funded institutions in Hong Kong. KEEP serves as an e-learning aggregator, providing a single gateway to online learning and diverse education content around the globe. In this seminar, Professor Irwin King, Principal Investigator of KEEP, is going to walk participants through the platform, introduce its major features, and share on how KEEP showcases innovative technologies in education.
The second part of the seminar will focus on the latest development in one aspect of pedagogical innovation at HKU – gamification. From the blending of animation into our Chinese Philosophy MOOC to the development of serious games in our upcoming e-learning modules, the Technology-Enriched Learning Initiative (TELI) team at HKU has been trying to bring a new dimension of immersive learning experiences for our students. At his presentation, Professor Ricky Kwok, together with our tech and multimedia teams will discuss best practices in gamification, and present their work in this area to-date. They will share the challenges encountered in balancing entertainment and education, driving competition in game-based learning to inspire achievement of learning outcomes, and creating a gaming space that might draw learners closer together.
About the Speakers:
Professor Irwin King is the Associate Dean (Education) of the Engineering Faculty and Professor in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, CUHK. He is also the Director of Rich Media and Big Data Key Laboratory at the Shenzhen Research Institute. His research interests include machine learning, social computing, Big Data, data mining, and multimedia information processing. Recently, Professor King has been an evangelist in the use of education technologies in eLearning for the betterment of teaching and learning.
Professor Ricky Kwok is Associate Vice-President (Teaching and Learning) at HKU, assisting the Vice-President and Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Teaching and Learning) in various endeavors related to e-learning (e.g., MOOCs). He leads the Technology-Enriched Learning Initiative (TELI) team which consists of e-learning technologists, researchers in learning analytics, specialists in systems development, and multimedia talents.
Dr. Masato Kajimoto is an Assistant Professor at the Journalism and Media Studies Centre at the University of Hong Kong. Masato specializes in news literacy education, multimedia storytelling, and social media in journalism. His MOOC, “Making Sense of News”, started on May 19, 2015.
We are delighted to have read Dr. Masato Kajimoto’s blog piece in Comunicar Journal about the data collected from his MOOC HKU04x Making Sense of News (ran between May 19 and June 23, 2015). MOOCs are definitely “the New World” for researchers. Enjoy the article.
I’ve recently finished teaching my first Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) on news literacy for the public on edX, the non-profit education portal founded by Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
The six-week course, titled Making Sense of News, attracted thousands of students from 147 countries. It comprised 63 short lecture video clips (mostly between 2 to 4 minutes), exercises, readings, five graded assignments (two of which were peer-reviewed) and discussion forums (964 comment entries were made by the final week).
More than 7,500 students from all over the world signed up for the course.
The massive collection of students’ behavioral data aggregated at the end of the course made me realize the potential of online-based media education research.
The following blog post sketches out some of the many possibilities this emerging form of teaching and learning can be used.
The big data gathered through MOOCs, in my view, would shed light on certain elements that could have not been examined through the conventional research methods.
1. Correlations, correlations, correlations.
The MOOC provides an all-in-one platform for media education research whereby the researchers can gather everything — from entrance/exit surveys to demographic information to learning patterns (access time, clicking behaviors, etc) to the results of knowledge tests to commentaries in the class discussions (forums) to academic performance (assignment grades).
The data indicate that obtaining higher degrees do not necessarily make people smarter news consumers.
This gives the researchers the dataset that can be examined in a wide variety of ways to explore whether there is a correlation among different variables. For example, the relationships between two of the followings can be examined.
Selected demographic variables
News literacy skills (assessed by the assignment results)
Frequency of forum posts
Forum engagements
Video playback patterns
Click-through behaviors
2. Control group recruitment? A/B testing? Double-Blind test? Not so difficult.
The online platform makes it possible and easy to test different instructional designs, a variety of video-based communications and other pedagogical methods to teach news literacy.
For example, a researcher could produce two or three different instructional video clips with the same script – one with the instructor talking with his/her face shown, one with an avatar replacing the instructor’s face, and one with a professional TV talent taking the role of the instructor.
The three clips can be randomly assigned to different students. Later, the effectiveness of each clip could be measured by the results of quizzes that follow immediately after the video. Such A/B testing normally won’t work in a lab setting as standardizing the test-takers’ individual abilities would be next to impossible, but the whopping sample size that a MOOC can provide could possibly alleviate such concerns greatly.
With the same method, two different news articles can be given to the students with only one word changed. It would be interesting to see if the choice of one word over the other would affect the ways students detect and evaluate media biases. The possibilities of using the online platform for both teaching and research at the same time are limitless here.
3. Who is communicating with whom? Qualitative insights into the minds of students and their learning behaviors.
Every single communication can be mapped on MOOC.
The written communications among the students can be tracked down, mapped and combined with other variables, which could form a foundation for qualitative research.
The dataset allows researchers to see how each student engages with one another through peer-reviewed assessments and forum discussions easily.
Once certain patterns are identified, researchers can delve into the content of their written communication.
Say, for example, let’s suppose there are two clusters of engagements among high news literacy skill students (group A) and low news literacy skill students (group B) that were organically formed. If the data shows that they (the group A and B) are not communicating with each other, we can qualitatively analyze their digital conversations and possibly distinguish some key elements that might tell us why certain instruction works for some students and not others.
4. What works? What doesn’t? Improving our teaching.
The detailed video playback data reveals many things. For instance, the learning analytics system developed at Hong Kong University of Science and Technology called VisMOOC can let us visually see each video clip’s “forward seeks” and “backward seeks.”
VisMOOC visualizes video playback data.
We could see the exact points where students paused, fast-forwarded and rewound the clip, which indicates not only how students interacted with the video lectures but also what visual cues disappeared too hastily for them (pause), which parts seemed to have been considered redundant or unnecessary (fast-forward or “forward seeks”), and what concepts and explanations were difficult to understand (rewind or “backward seeks”).
The click through data and other web analytics data also reveal many other factors that would inform us of the students’ learning: say, for instance, which reading assignments students tried to read (click), how much time students spent to complete different exercises and assignments, what time/day they accessed the teaching materials and so much more, all of which could provide valuable information for us to improve our teaching.
Possibilities endless
The above four ideas are only a fraction of what we can do with the online-based news literacy education and research. By taking advantage of the detailed behavioral data with a large sample size, researchers can now track down, aggregate, and investigate the varying patterns of news literacy skill acquisition. The implications and possible future directions of internet-based teaching and research are, I dare to say it, endless.
Ultimately, this kind of research could evolve into a computer modeling that pinpoints specific variables as predictors. We could measure the effectiveness of educational intervention in the field of news and media literacy and improve our teaching strategies accordingly, as our goals are to nurture the future generation of discerning media consumers who also produce and distribute content.
In today’s technologically interconnected societies, I believe the computer modeling would give great insight into the design of effective online pedagogy while presenting opportunities for news literacy scholars to test a multitude of pedagogical designs, teaching methods and research hypotheses in a large scale.
To provide new University staff with useful information about the wide range of services offered by Information Technology Services (ITS), a series of orientation activities will be conducted between late August and mid-September. All new University members are welcome to join.
1. Use of AV/IT Equipment in Central Classrooms
To familiarize themselves with the classroom facility, new teachers and class instructors are encouraged to join one of the training sessions on the use of AV/IT equipment in central classrooms. Through this session, they will be able to learn how to use the control panel, visualizer and other AV/IT equipment in the centrally timetabled classrooms.
The seminar on “Introduction to Information Technology Services (ITS)” gives an introduction of the comprehensive range of central IT and network services offered by ITS.
On top of the introductory session, the following parallel sessions will be arranged on the same dates. They are-
About the University’s Research Support Computing Environment and the HPC/HTC Facilities
Introduction to IP Telephony and Video Conferencing Services
Chi Wah Learning Commons guided tour
Another series of training on “Introduction to Moodle Learning Management System and Panopto Lecture Capture System” specifically for new colleagues will also be conducted.
An exhibition booth will be arranged in the first two weeks of the first semester (September 1 – 11, 2015) with display boards showing the core IT Services, in particular the support for teaching and learning and research with University.
Date: September 1, 2015 (12:00 noon) to September 11, 2015 (5:00 pm)
Venue: G/F, Chi Wah Learning Commons, Central Podium Level, Centennial Campus
Veronica Yick
User Services
Information Technology Services
Dinosaurs are a popular theme for Hollywood movies and museum exhibitions, but how do we extend that facsination when it becomes a topic to teach? Our new MOOC Introduction to Dinosaur Ecosystems has taken on this challenge to bring you right to a place where dinosaurs once roamed.
Course Instructor Dr. Michael Pittman and Professor Xu Xing of the Chinese Academy of Science’s Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology completed an expedition to the Chinese Gobi desert this summer to collect new fossils and rock samples from the Upper Cretaceous dinosaur-dominated ecosystem of Erlian, Inner Mongolia. Against this backdrop Dr. Pittman, Prof. Xu and several guest experts recorded many of the MOOC’s lectures giving viewers a glimpse into what expeditions are like and what palaeontologists see in the burning desert landscape.
On 13 August, Dr. Pittman and videographer Cameron Dueck (first and second from the right) had a meeting with the Technology-Enriched Learning Initative (TELI) team to review the footage taken in the Gobi.
Here are some still shots for your previewing:
Dr. Pittman talking to the local wildlife
Prof Xu Xing excavating a dinosaur fossil (Dr. Pei Rui [HKU] in the distance)
Dinosaur bones on the desert floor!
Dr. Pittman sorting through previous Erlian dinosaur finds with Drs. Corwin Sullivan (IVPP) and Pei Rui
HKU undergraduate Fion Ma helping Dr. Pittman sort through past Erlian fossil finds.
A mounted skeleton of a therizinosauroid theropod. Theropod dinosaurs like T. rex are known for their carnivory, but this animal was a herbivore!
Click to see the interactive map
Dr. Pittman, Prof. Xu and their colleagues investigated Upper Cretaceous rocks in the desert northeast of Erlian (Erenhot), Inner Mongolia.
Want to join us on an adventurous ride back to the dinosaur-era? Stay tuned.
A renewed E-learning Strategy is now available to guide Faculties and Departments in judiciously setting priorities, experimenting with ideas, and formulating action plans for e-learning.
In response to the 2011 Senate recommendation that an institutional review be conducted on our E-learning Strategy at a three-yearly interval, as well as to acknowledge the rapid changes in the landscape of higher education within and beyond the University, an E-learning Review Group was constituted in January 2015 to put forward an enhanced strategy with the input from Faculties, The Hong Kong University Students’ Union and the Postgraduate Student Association. The Senate endorsed the Review Group’s submission in July.
With the support from Senate, we are now ready to go ahead with the implementation. Please check back this blog often to learn more about projects that we are doing, as well as the types of support that are made available to you.
As HKU03x Humanity and Nature in Chinese Thought is drawing to a close, we are going to round up the journey with an exciting online debate! You can join us in the audience simply by clicking on YouTube.
As remarked by course instructor Professor Chad Hansen, ‘For a teacher, it is a big change getting to know most of you by “handles” on your posts and [be] awed by the global reach and diversity of our online community.’ This debate goes in line with our dedication to achieving extensive global reach, while keeping the high-touch personalized interaction that you would expect in traditional classroom teaching.
Debaters from around the world will present their arguments on the topic
“We should follow the social conventions of our society”, followed by comments and summary by Professor Chad Hansen.
Date: August 15, 2015 (Saturday)
Time: 22:00 HKT / 14:00 UTC
Language: English
Click the above link and then choose the YouTube live stream: HKU03x Online Debate: We should follow the social conventions of our society.
Depending on your YouTube time zone setting, you will see “Watch the live stream!” and the time of the event, with the number of hours left to the debate underneath.
Contribute to the live chat on your right and share with us your thoughts during the debate!
Let the countdown begin and we are looking forward to meeting you online.
Don’t miss out on the grand finale of our first MOOC in Philosophy!
South China Morning Post recently interviewed our teachers on how e-learning has taken off at HKU and will bring unprecedented learning experience to learners both on and off campus. The first MOOC, an introductory public health course entitled Epidemics, showcased the University’s strength in the global context, and was “hugely successful”.
The initiative turned out to be headlights into how online learning can be widely and effectively incorporated into on-campus education. The article highlighted the valuable statistics collected from MOOCs. Leveraging a treasure of both quantitative and qualitative data collected from an impressive number of MOOC learners, teachers were able to evaluate and refine course materials and assessments, which can then be repurposed for their on-campus counterparts, laying the groundwork for “flipped classroom” teaching.
The data also provided insights into how some e-learning tools for on-campus students can be improved. For example, compared to the underused Moodle online forum, the MOOC discussion forums encouraged students to ask questions in a comfortable way since they allowed a certain level of anonymity.
Drawing on the Chinese philosophical concepts developed in the course, six debaters coming from around the world will discuss the topic “We should follow the social conventions of our society” from the affirmative and negative perspectives. Course instructor Professor Chad Hansen will adjudicate the debate and summarize the ideas presented.
Details of the debate:
Date: August 15, 2015 (Saturday) Time: 22:00 HKT / 14:00 UTC Language: English
Organized by e-learning Pedagogical Support Unit, CETL
Speaker: Dr. Jingli Cheng, e-learning Pedagogical Support Unit Date : 13 August, 2015 (Thursday) Time : 12:45pm – 2:00pm Venue : Room 321, Run Run Shaw Building
Abstract:
Communities of practice as an approach to informal learning has received attention from various types of organizations, including higher education institutions. A fundamental process underlying successful communities of practice is knowledge sharing. Yet, empirical understanding of motivations for knowledge sharing is lacking, especially with regard to an important subset of participants in these communities, the experts. Based on a research study that the speaker conducted with Google and Symantec, this presentation will highlight the key factors that motivated expert participants’ knowledge sharing behaviors in the two companies’ online user communities.
Colleagues who are considering implementing communities of practice or knowledge sharing initiatives in and beyond their organizations may get useful insights from this presentation. Teachers who are thinking about motivating student participation in online communities may also find this workshop beneficial. All are welcome.
About the Speaker:
Dr. Jingli Cheng has extensive experience applying instructional design theories and best practices in various organizational settings to help learners improve their knowledge and skills. Before joining HKU’s e-learning Pedagogical Support Unit, he worked as Instructional Designer at Stanford University, the Hewlett Packard company and several other organizations in the United States. His research interests include motivation for knowledge sharing in online communities and informal learning in organizational settings.
Message from Centre for Information Technology in Education within the Faculty of Education
CITE Seminar Series 2015/2016
Seminar 1
Title: Automated Citation Opinion Analysis for Scientific Writing
Date: 17 July 2015 (Friday)
Time: 12:45 pm – 2:00 pm
Venue: Room 101, 1/F., Runme Shaw Building, The University of Hong Kong
Speaker: Dr. Bei Yu, Associate Professor, School of Information Studies, Syracuse University, USA
Chair: Dr. Xiao Hu, Assistant Professor, Faculty of Education, HKU
About the Seminar
With the fast growth of academic publications, researchers face the increasingly difficult task of comprehensive literature review. Current bibliographic databases provide citation linkages but no further citation context analysis to help researchers find the most relevant citations and organize different kinds of academic opinions expressed in citation context. The Citation Opinion Retrieval and Analysis (CORA) project aims for building an automated tool that can extract the citation statements, separate substantial citations from perfunctory ones, and categorize substantial citation opinions by their purposes, topic aspects, polarities, and the opinion holders and targets. CORA is expected to save researchers a significant amount of time to find the most useful comments from a large number of citations. CORA will also provide a new, qualitative approach for assessing research impact and tracking problematic phenomena such as citation bias.
Seminar 2
Title: DoodleBook: A New Tool for Science Education
Date: 17 July 2015 (Friday)
Time: 2:00 pm – 3:15 pm
Venue: Room 101, 1/F., Runme Shaw Building, The University of Hong Kong
Speaker: Dr. Jun Wang, Research Scientist, School of Information Studies, Syracuse University, USA
Chair: Dr. Xiao Hu, Assistant Professor, Faculty of Education, HKU
About the Seminar
There is growing evidence to show that drawing to learn, a visual and constructive learning strategy, is both engaging and effective. Emerging research is now suggesting that drawing should be recognized alongside writing, reading, and speaking as a key element in science education. This talk will present our recent work on drawing to learn in science (www.doodlebook.org). Developed with funding from the National Academies, DoodleBook serves two goals: (1) to make science more accessible and engaging through art; (2) to provide science students and educators, from kindergarten to college, with a free online space to create, collaborate, and share their own digital drawings. We will present our findings on how art students create drawings for scientific concepts, and how science teachers and students use the web tool in their classes.
