1. Remote Work System for High School Students Jason Yeung, B.A.Sc. Bertha Konstantinidis, B.Sc. http://www.ryerson.ca/pebbles Ryerson University 350 Victoria Street Toronto, Ontario Canada M5B 2K3

2. Agenda 1. Introduction/motivation 2. PEBBLES for elementary students 3. Needs analysis  Questionnaire  Wizard of Oz simulation 4. High school PEBBLES 5. Concluding remarks

3. Introduction Videoconferencing technology is widespread but not used (e.g. ICQ, MSN Messenger) Seems difficult to setup, unreliable Interface design does not promote use Videoconferencing has perceived advantages over text or audio only (Hirsh, Sellen, & Brokopp, 2005)  More social interaction  Follow conversation  More resources available for interaction

4. Presence The sense of “being there” (Sheridan, 1992) “Perceptual illusion of non-mediation” (Lombard & Ditton, 1997) Psychological and technological factors determine sense of presence Communication needs only require optimum (rather than maximum) technology

5. Videoconferencing and Education Majority of videoconferencing technology designed for professional settings Limited development of videoconferencing technology specifically for educational settings Assumed that students will use the technology like professionals do

6. PEBBLES P roviding E ducation B y B ringing L earning E nvironments to S tudents

8. PEBBLES Targeted at elementary age students Promotes social interaction Aids re-integration into classroom Friendly industrial design Commercialized

9. Limitations of PEBBLES Works well for elementary students, but not for high school students Industrial design and limited functionality not suited for high school students  Rotary schedule impacts size and portability of system  Emphasis on group projects promotes communication with peers at and outside of school

10. Research Objectives Understand current behaviour, needs, and work practices of high school students Determine functionality and design to extend elementary school version Produce high school version

11. Current Practices and Behaviours 24 high school students were surveyed 5 main tasks identified:  Notetaking (primary activity identified by 92%)  Group work (1-2 group projects assigned per week)  Class participation  Delivering presentations  Exams/tests 75% communicate through email/chat when doing group work

12. Goals/Functions of High School PEBBLES Goals Communication Group work Minimize classroom disruptions Research Functions Real-time audio/video Tools for collaborating Workspace separate from communication space Smaller size

13. Framework Purpose is to confirm our initial hypothesis Observed students while they were asked to learn about and complete a task on video production during half-hour sessions

14. Results of Study 2 out of 3 students found system easy to use Not reluctant to work with student using system Difficulty monitoring 2 screens simultaneously Poor audio and video quality Instant messenger distracting Confusion with application sharing

15. Implications for Design Use better quality cameras and microphones Simpler procedure for application sharing Communication and workspace screens remain separate Instant messaging removed

16. High School PEBBLES Carrying Handle Hand/Attention- Getting Device Communication Screen High Quality Controllable Camera Workspace Screen/Tablet Weight: 40 lbs. (20 kg) vs. 140 lbs. (60 kg)

17. Concluding Remarks Retained PEBBLES’ functionality Added new features for high school students’ needs Next steps  Further field studies in actual high school classroom setting  Improve industrial design

18. Acknowledgements NSERC #184220-01 Student study participants Bertha Konstantinidis, Danny Lee, Jennie Cross, Imran Hasan, and Quan Zhang.

19. Q&A Jason Yeung - jyeung@ryerson.ca Bertha Konstantinidis - bkonstan@ryerson.ca http://www.ryerson.ca/pebbles