Unit information: Digital Design for Mind, Brain and Education in 2014/15

Unit name	Digital Design for Mind, Brain and Education
Unit code	EDUCM5811
Credit points	20
Level of study	M/7
Teaching block(s)	Academic Year (weeks 1 - 52)
Unit director	Professor. Howard-Jones
Open unit status	Not open
Pre-requisites	None
Co-requisites	None
School/department	School of Education
Faculty	Faculty of Social Sciences and Law

Description including Unit Aims

This unit will introduce students to the principles of effective user-based design. It will include issues of Human Computer Interaction (HCI) as well as providing opportunities to apply concepts encountered elsewhere on the course, such as learning principles and theory. It will also draw upon insights from non-educational contexts such as gaming. Through critical analysis of existing products and case studies that provide insights into design processes, the unit offers engagement with the many interacting factors that contribute to effective and innovative applications of technology within educational contexts. The unit will: Introduce students to the processes of designing effective computer-based learning environments such as virtual learning environments and web-based resources; Provide students with an understanding of pedagogical issues influencing the successful design, development and implementation of technology intended to support learning; Provide students with the knowledge and skills required to design, develop and evaluate computer-based learning environments.

The unit will:

• Introduce students to the processes of designing effective computer-based learning environments such as virtual learning environments and web-based resources.

• Provide students with an understanding of pedagogical issues influencing the successful design, development and implementation of technology intended to support learning.

• Provide students with the knowledge and skills required to design, develop and evaluate computer-based learning environments

Aims:

• To develop an awareness of how current models of learning can support the design of technology aimed at supporting learning.

• To develop a critical awareness of the many, complex and interacting factors influencing effective design of technology aimed at supporting learning.

Intended Learning Outcomes

By the end of the module the students will be able to:

• Follow a user-based process in the design and development of a learning resource for implementation on a computer platform.

• Integrate user feedback, concepts from educational research and knowledge regarding human-computer-interaction to make reflective and cogent design decisions regarding educational technology.

• Reflect critically upon processes and outcomes arising from attempts to design and implement educational technology, demonstrating a critical awareness of the relationship between design and learning in context.

Teaching Information

The course will be taught face-to-face, but will be supported by a virtual online learning environment. All students will be required to use the VLE as standard, to communicate with fellow students, with the lecturing staff, to obtain administrative details about the course, to access course materials and, in some instances, for submission of coursework. Students will be encouraged to work in groups to support collaborative learning and to provide user feedback on design ideas. The principle teaching and learning methods will include the following:

• Lectures: to present the main concepts of the syllabus.

• Tutorials and workshops: to reinforce ideas and encourage understanding through individual and group work

• Case studies: to ground the work within the professional context and provide real life examples

• Engagement with online resources: to reiterate face-to-face activities, to supplement and support, to provide revision or associated materials and resources, and to offer extension activities and links to further sector-specific information.

Assessment Information

The assignment will arise from reflective account (4000 words or equivalent) of the students’ attempt to follow a user-based process in the design and development of a learning resource for implementation on a computer platform. This account should detail how the final design integrates user feedback, concepts from educational research and knowledge regarding human-computer-interaction, with details about the various design decisions that were made along the way. The account should demonstrate a critical awareness of the relationship between design and learning in the context chosen by the student, and provided a balanced appraisal of the final outcome in these terms.

Reading and References

• Aldrich, C. (2005). Learning by Doing: A Comprehensive Guide to Simulation, Computer Games, and Pedagogy in e-Learning and Other Educational Experiences, San Fransisco, CA: Pfeiffer Wiley

• Druin, A. (2002). The Role of Children in the Design of New Technology, Behaviour and Information Technology, 21(1) 1-25.

• Facer, K and Williamson, B. (2004) Designing Educational Technologies with users, Bristol: NESTA Futurelab.

• Gee, J.P. (2003) What video games have to teach us about learning and literacy, London: Palgrave Macmillan.

• Laurillard, D., (2002). Rethinking University Teaching: a Framework for the Effective Use of Educational Technology, London: Routledge.

• Shneiderman, B. and Wald, C. (2005) Designing the user interface: strategies for effective human-computer interaction, 4th Edition, Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.