Using multimedia concept maps to enhance the learner experience in Business Law Jennifer O’Reilly (Business & Economics) and Gayani Samarawickreme (CeLTS)

Overview Context Rationale Development process The maps in use Evaluation Challenges faced

Context Multi-campus + off-campus + off-shore Large enrolment First-year compulsory unit Analysis of problems requires more than memory/comprehension Perceived by student as a difficult unit GOLD project

Rationale A method of organising acquiring and remembering information Convey structure by making links and relationships obvious Assist with summarising and consolidating information Quick, convenient overview with little text and reading

Rationale (continued) Provide a non-linear approach to note-taking Offer a non-linear navigational approach to a body of knowledge Provide a method of relating, remembering and reviewing information Provide a method of building on existing information

Rationale (continued) Graphical representation of information Linking other media Exploit the hypermedia environment Wider access via the web

Development process Approached in 2 stages  Phase 1: 2 maps with mouse roll-overs and audio  Phase 2: 9 more maps with mouse roll- overs and audio

The concept maps

Evaluation  Stage 1  Online survey  Telephone interviews with 10% of the off- campus learners  Stage 2  Focus group interviews with students in Malaysia and Peninsula (just completed)  Online survey

Challenges faced  WebCT and the content module tool  Software in student computer labs  The job was unfamiliar to the academic

Back to reality One student comment “I’m not a diagram person so I didn’t use them”.