1Jun. 20, 2016 © 2016 Alex Edgcomb / Frank Vahid – UCR / zyBooks Simplifying a Course to Reduce Student Stress so Students Can Focus Again on Learning Alex Edgcomb and Frank Vahid Dept. of Computer Science and Eng., University of California, Riverside Also with: zyBooks, Los Gatos, California (zyBooks.com)

Students X X X X X X X Nov. 12, 2015 © 2015 Frank Vahid / Alex Edgcomb -- UCR / zyBooks 2

“Take students like Vanessa, who do moderately well on standardized tests — scoring between 1,000 and 1,200 out of 1,600 on the SAT. If those students come from families in the top-income quartile, they have a 2 in 3 chance of graduating with a four-year degree. If they come from families in the bottom quartile, they have just a 1 in 6 chance of making it to graduation.” © 2015 Frank Vahid / Alex Edgcomb -- UCR / zyBooks Nov. 12, 20153

“It used to be...” Nov. 12, 2015 © 2015 Frank Vahid / Alex Edgcomb -- UCR / zyBooks Homework Questions  (Bookstore) 4

Today Nov. 12, 2015 © 2015 Frank Vahid / Alex Edgcomb -- UCR / zyBooks Buy or rent? New or used? Company or private? Delivery option? What if not received? Electronic version? Access key issues Platform issues Old edition free pdf? Skip entirely? 5 Our data: 30% don’t acquire

Other costs increased too Nov. 12, 2015 © 2015 Frank Vahid / Alex Edgcomb -- UCR / zyBooks Source: Collegeboard.org 6

Today Nov. 12, 2015 © 2015 Frank Vahid / Alex Edgcomb -- UCR / zyBooks Buy or rent? New or used? Company or private? Delivery option? What if not received? Electronic version? Access key issues Platform issues Old edition free pdf? Skip entirely? Login Announcements Access / digest Univ / private account Excessive s Spam Discussion board All above plus… Required / optional posts Participation reqs Public / private posts Another login (Piazza) Assignments / quizzes Class calendar PowerPoint slides Wikis Peer grading Videos (lectures, supplements) Gradebook monitoring Other posted items LMS / Web Homework systems WebAssign, MyXYZLab, etc. Login Grade transfer Platform issues Clickers Paper handouts Longer docs No cost Ex: 14-page syllabus More? 7

Modern design: Simplify It’s not done when nothing more can be added. It’s done when nothing more can be removed. © 2015 Frank Vahid / Alex Edgcomb -- UCR / zyBooks 8Nov. 12, 2015

Example © 2015 Frank Vahid / Alex Edgcomb -- UCR / zyBooks 9Nov. 12, 2015

Course design – Simplify! 1.Recognize the problem 2.Build with less “stuff” Require? Free? Integ. hk/lab? Minimize logins / postings / req. items (keep quality – bang for the buck) 3.Reduce: Spend effort! Remove stuff / text / announcements Less is more. Nov. 12, 2015 © 2015 Frank Vahid / Alex Edgcomb -- UCR / zyBooks Important: For Monday, everyone should do Sections 1.1 – 1.9 in the textbook before lecture starts at 8:30 a.m. Also, I would like everyone to bring the textbook to lecture because we plan to use it during class. Do Sec 1.1 – 1.9 by 8:30a Mon. Bring textbook to lecture. 10 Student

Start with syllabus Strive for 1 page Nov. 12, 2015 © 2015 Frank Vahid / Alex Edgcomb -- UCR / zyBooks 11

Assignments Nov. 12, 2015 © 2015 Frank Vahid / Alex Edgcomb -- UCR / zyBooks Remove extraneous requirements Simplify submission process Focus learning objectives 12

Real-world example UCR Intro to Computer Science (C++) –1-page syllabus Was 4 Concise wording, less unnecessary text –Single gdoc folder with all materials Was on blackboard, piazza, adobe connect Syllabus, lecture recordings, past exams, etc. –Integrated textbook/homework/labs in single “zyBook” Was book, plus hk system, plus lab system Students just “Do Chpt 1” All due dates also integrated (was in gcalendar) –Delayed / removed items Intro to C++ environment (3 rd week) Discussion of academic dishonesty (4 th week) Removed weekly course surveys (low value) –Minimize # and length of announcements Previously 2-page “welcome letter”, 1-2 announcements/week –Required attendance Removes a tough decision for young students Nov. 12, 2015 © 2015 Frank Vahid / Alex Edgcomb -- UCR / zyBooks 13

Study setup Surveyed student stress before/after simplify 528 participants (survey required) Anonymous responses Students blind to experimental conditions Survey: 9 agreeability-scale questions, 0.74 Cronbach's alpha More details in paper. Jun. 20, 2016 © 2016 Alex Edgcomb / Frank Vahid – UCR / zyBooks Not simplified (Spring 2015) Simplified (Fall 2015) All-online offering 8771 In-person offering

All-online results: Reduced student stress Not simplifiedSimplifiedp-value I enjoy the class < The number of tools and websites for this class are somewhat overwhelming I have missed a deadline because I thought it was another time I feel anxious about the Final exam Nov. 12, 2015 © 2015 Frank Vahid / Alex Edgcomb -- UCR / zyBooks Higher is better Lower is better 15 7-point scale: 6 = Strongly agree; 0 = Strongly disagree

In-person results: Reduced student stress Nov. 12, 2015 © 2015 Frank Vahid / Alex Edgcomb -- UCR / zyBooks Not simplifiedSimplifiedp-value I enjoy the class < This class is an appropriate amount of work per week for the number of units < The number of tools and websites for this class are somewhat overwhelming < I have looked for class info but couldn’t find it I have missed a deadline because I thought it was another time < Higher is better Lower is better 16

Henceforth: Curated list of class “stuff” Like to contribute? Jun 22, 2016 © 2015 Frank Vahid / Alex Edgcomb -- UCR / zyBooks 17 List of class “stuff” and what/how to simplify: Contribute your ideas: Subject: Simplify lists

Conclusion Simplifying significantly reduced student stress Summary –Course organization has become complex Detracts from academic content –Put self in student’s shoes / Build minimized courses (bang for the buck) / Spend time reducing Future: Survey more courses/colleges, student outcomes Jun. 22, 2015 © 2015 Frank Vahid / Alex Edgcomb -- UCR / zyBooks Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication Leonardo da Vinci 18 Gratefully acknowledge NSF: SBIR / and a Google faculty research award