Helping your students engage with self-study tools Emily Marshman Chandralekha Singh dB-SERC lunch discussion February 1, 2016

What types of self-study tools have you Developed for use in your own classes? Implemented in your own classes? What were the advantages of using self-study tools in your classes? What were the difficulties you faced when using self-study tools in your classes?

PROs Self-paced Can help students who lack prerequisites “catch up” Interactive – breaks problems into sub-problems, students have the option to go forward/backward Adaptive – tools provide guidance and feedback based upon students’ prior knowledge to ensure that students do not get frustrated or bored CONs Students may not use the tool Students may not use the tool as intended Students who need to engage with the self-study tools the most may not engage with the tool for various reasons

When developing/implementing self-study tools, what characteristics of the tool did you feel were the most important to ensure that your students engaged with the tool effectively?

Important characteristics of the tool that make the self-study tool effective for student learning Takes into account constraints (user characteristics) and builds on them (providing affordances, i.e., qualities of systems that can support interactions and therefore present possible interactions for an individual’s participation) These two factors are often taken into account when developing/implementing self-study tools focus mainly on the user characteristics and how the tool itself takes user characteristics into account BUT are there other constraints that need to be taken into account? Factor I. Self-Study Tool Characteristics that directly focus on knowledge / skills to be learned  Adaptive tools based on “cognitive apprenticeship model” to promote mastery of material for a variety of students  Includes material providing scaffolding support  Involves efficiency and innovation in learning  Incorporates elements of productive engagement and productive struggle  Involves formative assessment Factor II. User characteristics  Prior knowledge / skills o Prior preparation o Goals o Motivation to learn o Cognitive / Metacognitive skills  Self-efficacy and other affective characteristics  Epistemological beliefs Factors which Promote Self-Regulated Learning Affordances Constraints

Other important characteristics that make the self-study tool effective for student learning (besides the characteristics of the tool itself)

Factor III. Self-Study Tool Characteristics that indirectly assist learning by providing motivation for engagement and support  Embed motivational features within self-study tools conducive to effective learning  Embed features to frame the importance of learning from self-study tools and get buy-in  Reinforce learning from self-study tools by coupling this learning with those of others via creation of learning communities  Make explicit connection between self-paced learning and other in-class lessons or out of class assignments and assessments  Incentives to engage with self-study tools via grades and other motivational factors  Support to manage students’ time better  Support to improve self-efficacy and epistemological beliefs Factor IV. User-environment interaction characteristics  Self-management o Regulating Socialization o Minimizing “not important, but urgent” activities o Maximizing “important, but not urgent” activities  Balancing other coursework or work  Family encouragement and support  Support of mentors, advisors and counselors Important characteristics of the implementation that make the self-study tool effective for student learning Students’ environments also play a role in whether they use self-study tools effectively Factors which Promote Self-Regulated Learning Affordances Constraints

Factor I. Self-Study Tool Characteristics that directly focus on knowledge / skills to be learned  Adaptive tools based on “cognitive apprenticeship model” to promote mastery of material for a variety of students  Includes material providing scaffolding support  Involves efficiency and innovation in learning  Incorporates elements of productive engagement and productive struggle  Involves formative assessment Factor II. User characteristics  Prior knowledge / skills o Prior preparation o Goals o Motivation to learn o Cognitive / Metacognitive skills  Self-efficacy and other affective characteristics  Epistemological beliefs Factor III. Self-Study Tool Characteristics that indirectly assist learning by providing motivation for engagement and support  Embed motivational features within self-study tools conducive to effective learning  Embed features to frame the importance of learning from self- study tools and get buy-in  Reinforce learning from self-study tools by coupling this learning with those of others via creation of learning communities  Make explicit connection between self-paced learning and other in-class lessons or out of class assignments and assessments  Incentives to engage with self-study tools via grades and other motivational factors  Support to manage students’ time better  Support to improve self-efficacy and epistemological beliefs Factor IV. User-environment interaction characteristics  Self-management o Regulating Socialization o Minimizing “not important, but urgent” activities o Maximizing “important, but not urgent” activities  Balancing other coursework or work  Family encouragement and support  Support of mentors, advisors and counselors Factors which Promote Self-Regulated Learning Affordances Constraints Internal factors External factors