[publication] Development of an Amazon Alexa App for a University Online Search #alexa #research #tugraz

Our chapter about „Development of an Amazon Alexa App for a University Online Search“ for the HCII 2022 conference got published.

Abstract:
Today, our homes become smarter and smarter. We started to interact with our home with Intelligent Personal Assistants, like Amazon Alexa. In this paper we want to present and give a review on the Alexa skill developed for an online search for resources like rooms, courses, and persons. The goal is to provide the users an easy-to-use way to ask for information like phone numbers, e-mail addresses, room details, … and the Alexa Skill should provide this information also in an easy understandable way. We will describe how we solved to formulate suitable search queries from spoken Alexa commands and how we presented them to the user accordingly. Other obstacles like the presentation of the search results, due to the limited context and prioritization for individual search results, to the user will be discussed.

[full article @ book’s homepage]
[draft @ ResearchGate]

Reference: Rupitz, J., Ebner, M., Ebner, M. (2022). Development of an Amazon Alexa App for a University Online Search. In: Zaphiris, P., Ioannou, A. (eds) Learning and Collaboration Technologies. Designing the Learner and Teacher Experience. HCII 2022. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 13328. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-05657-4_10

[publication] The ReDesign Canvas as a tool for the didactic-methodological redesign of courses and a case study #edil22 #tugraz

Our research, we presented at EdMedia + Innovate Learning 2022, about „The ReDesign Canvas as a tool for the didactic-methodological redesign of courses and a case study“ is now online available:

Abstract:
Initially, in March 2020, when COVID-19 forced conventional face-to-face to pure online teaching, didactic matters were only of secondary importance. At Graz University of Technology (TU Graz, Austria) both the support team for Educational Technology as well as the instructors were mostly concerned with solving technical challenges. Nevertheless, a special tool, the ReDesign Canvas, was available to support lecturers in their endeavor to also address the didactic aspects of their teaching systematically. The article presents the work of the Educational Technology team of TU Graz within the March 2020 COVID-19 crisis as well as the application of the canvas in a redesign of an exemplary lecture.

[full article @ conference homepage]
[draft @ ResearchGate]

Reference: Schön, S., Braun, C., Hohla, K., Mütze, A. & Ebner, M. (2022). The ReDesign Canvas as a tool for the didactic-methodological redesign of courses and a case study. In T. Bastiaens (Ed.), Proceedings of EdMedia + Innovate Learning (pp. 1048-1055). New York City, NY, United States: Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education (AACE). Retrieved July 13, 2022 from https://www.learntechlib.org/primary/p/221410/.

[presentation] Mixed Reality im Distance Learning in der Hochschullehre

Im Rahmen seiner Masterarbeit hat Stefan Thurner den Einsatz eines Mixed Reality Handbuchs evaluiert. Seine Präsentation steht hier zur Verfügung und wir gratulieren zur erfolgreichen Verteidigung:

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[master] Development of a WCAG theme for a learning management system #tugraz #research #moodle

Bernhard defended his masterthesis about „Development of a WCAG theme for a learning management system“ successfully and did a great job. Find his find final slides here:

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[publication] Evaluation of Mixed Reality Technologies in Remote Teaching #VirtualReality #tugraz #education

Our chapter for the HCII conference 2022 about „Evaluation of Mixed Reality Technologies in Remote Teaching“ got published.

Abstract:
The trend towards remote teaching is steadily increasing and intensified by the current situation of the global pandemic. This is a particular challenge for subjects with a high practical relevance, such as mining engineering education, as practical experiences and on-site excursions are an integral part of the curriculum. In face-to-face teaching settings, mixed reality technologies are already considered a promising medium for the implementation of e.g., virtual field trips. Based on this, the current study addresses the question to what extent the integration of mixed reality technologies is suitable for remote teaching and which strengths and challenges are perceived by students and teachers. For this purpose, two 60-min remote lectures in the field of mining engineering were conducted, in which the use of mixed reality was tested on the basis of shared 360° experiences and 3D models and evaluated by students and teachers. Results reveal that the use of mixed reality in remote teaching was perceived as useful, enabled a realistic experience and improved students’ understanding of presented theory compared to traditional teaching methods. In this paper, we discuss possible potentials and risks of using mixed reality in remote teaching and derive directions for further research.

[full article @ book’s homepage]
[draft @ ResearchGate]

Reference: Daling, L.M., Khoadei, S., Kalkofen, D., Thurner, S., Sieger, J., Shepel, T., Abdelrazeq, A., Ebner, Markus, Ebner, Martin & Isenhardt, I (2022). Evaluation of Mixed Reality Technologies in Remote Teaching. In: Zaphiris, P., Ioannou, A. (eds) Learning and Collaboration Technologies. Novel Technological Environments. HCII 2022. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 13329. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-05675-8_3

[publication] Introduction to ‘The Future of Learning’ #education #book #chapter

I manged the section „Future of Learning“ for the book Learning with Technologies and Technologies in Learning:

This section deals with the “future of learning” and asked for contributions dealing with meta-studies ore forecasts. This is not a simple task because we all know from the pandemic that changes are unpredictable sometimes. Anyway, we are very happy that seven groups of researchers out of more than 23 proposals tried to give us insights to their research. Those 7 publications deal with different topics—meta studies, Social Interaction and communication, Open Educational Resources, Augmented and Virtual Reality.

[chapter @ book’s homepage]
[draft @ ResearchGate]

Rerference: Ebner, M. (2022). Introduction to ‘The Future of Learning’. In: Auer, M.E., Pester, A., May, D. (eds) Learning with Technologies and Technologies in Learning. Lecture Notes in Networks and Systems, vol 456. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-04286-7_1

[book] micro:bit – Das Schulbuch #digitaleGrundbildung

Das „micro:bit – Das Schulbuch“ ist nun in der zweiten Auflage online verfügbar und gründsätzlich auch für den Lehrplan des neuen Unterrichtsfaches „Digitale Grundbildung“ geeignet:

Auf diesem WIKI finden sich Beispiele und weiteres Material zum österreichischen Schulbuch über den BBC micro:bit. Seit September 2022 gibt es eine zweite adaptierte und erweitere Auflage des Buches. Das gedruckte Buch dient dabei als Ideengeber und kann ausreichen, um alle darin vorgestellten Aufgaben zu lösen. Sollten Hinweise, Tipps oder Lösungen zu den Aufgaben gesucht werden, wird man auf dieser Webseite fündig. Die erste Auflage des Buches stellt exemplarisch 22 Projekte vor, in der zweiten Auflage finden sich 39 Beispiele, die in der Sekundarstufe I in einem fächerübergreifenden, projektorientierten Unterricht eingesetzt werden können. Es ist kein reines Informatik- oder „Programmierlernbuch“. Es verwendet den BBC micro:bit als Grundlage für spannende und kreative Projekte. Der notwendige Code kann, wenn man einmal eine Idee für den Algorithmus gefunden hat, ganz einfach direkt im Webbrowser erstellt, getestet und danach bei Bedarf heruntergeladen und auf einem realen micro:bit installiert werden.

Das ganze Buch und das Wiki findet man hier: https://microbit.eeducation.at/wiki/Hauptseite

Weiters gibt es auf iMooX.at auch einen MOOC der Lehrer:innen beim Einsatz unterstützen soll: [Link zum kostenlosen Online-Kurs]

[publication] Making of an Open Makerspace in a Secondary Vocational School in Austria: Development, Activities, User Behaviour and Gender Balance #makereducation #making #edil21

Our contribuation to this year ED-Media 2021 conference about „Making of an Open Makerspace in a Secondary Vocational School in Austria: Development, Activities, User Behaviour and Gender Balance“ got published. The slides are already here online.

Abstract:
This research shows the development process of an open makerspace on the premises of a higher secondary vocational school (HTL) in Austria from 2017 till today. It illustrates the need for this space, the acquisition of initial funding and the legal framework. User policy and machinery are presented, as well as safety and security systems. An insight on the organizational structure is given. We present regular dedicated maker classes and curricular integration of the makerspace for K-12 students. Makerspace activities like maker challenges and holiday camps for divergent participants like primary school children and girls are discussed and the role of females in engineering education and makerspaces is reviewed. Qualitative observations of different stakeholders are reproduced and supplemented by statistical data. We also show setbacks and difficulties due to the Corona crisis and give an overview of future maker initiatives.

[draft @ ResearchGate]
[final publication @ lerntechlib]

Reference: Sagbauer, N.N., Stocker, K., Pollak, M. & Ebner, M. (2021). Making of an Open Makerspace in a Secondary Vocational School in Austria: Development, Activities, User Behaviour and Gender Balance. In T. Bastiaens (Ed.), Proceedings of EdMedia + Innovate Learning (pp. 467-479). United States: Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education (AACE). Retrieved August 1, 2021 from https://www.learntechlib.org/primary/p/219695/.

[publication] Learning Experience Design – zur Gestaltung von technologiegestützten Lernerfahrungen mit Methoden der Design-Entwicklung #LXD #UX #design #tugraz

Wir haben in einem Beitrag für das E-Learning Handbuch unsere langjährige Erfahrungen zusammen geschrieben, um damit einen besseren Überblick über die Notwendigkeit von Learning Experience Design in Zusammenhang mit den Lehr- und Lernsystemen der Zukunft zu geben.

Zusammenfassung:
Learning Experience Design (LXD), also die bewusste, auf Grundlagen und Methoden der Designdisziplin erfolgten Gestaltung von Lernerfahrungen, ist ein Begriff der immer häufiger bei der Gestaltung von (digitalen) Lernumgebungen genannt wird. Zielsetzung ist dabei, das Lernen zu einer positiven, spannenden Erfahrung für die Lerner/innen zu machen. Dieser Beitrag beschreibt den Prozess des Learning Experience Designs im deutschsprachigen Raum und erläutert, wie sich diese Designdisziplin zur Gestaltung von Lernerfahrungen mit Lernenden anwenden lässt und nennt Bezüge zu Design im Allgemeinen, Learning Experience Design, Interaction Design, User Experience Design sowie Grafikdesign. Es werden dazu Fachbegriffe erläutert, Abläufe, Methoden und Verfahren zur Umsetzung, sowie zahlreiche Beispiele, u.a. aus unterschiedlichen Umsetzungen der Technischen Universität Graz (TU Graz) dargestellt. Der Beitrag schließt mit einer Beschreibung von Herausforderungen sowie einen Ausblick auf die aktuellen Professionalisierungsbestrebungen und -entwicklungen.

[Vorabversion @ ResearchGate]

Referenz: Jacqueline Kircher, Eva-Maria Burger, Martin Ebner und Sandra Schön (2021). Learning Experience Design – zur Gestaltung von technologiegestützten Lernerfahrungen mit Methoden der Design-Entwicklung. In K. Wilbers & A. Hohenstein (Hrsg.), Handbuch E- Learning. Expertenwissen aus Wissenschaft und Praxis – Strategien, Instrumente, Fallstudien, 93. Erg.-Lfg. Oktober 2021, Beitrag 4.78.