2024 Conference Program

OVERVIEW

Keynote Speech
Connecting Learners to Their Internal Motivations for Success

Christina Katopodis, Ph.D.
Senior Postdoctoral Research Associate
CUNY Humanities Alliance
New York, NY, USA

For deep and meaningful learning to happen, students need to feel that they have a stake in learning, some skin in the game. How do we make the transition from the top-down, hierarchical, inequitable, output-driven academy and workforce we inherited from the nineteenth century to models that empower all learners to be their own best selves, building a more democratic, flourishing, and just society? How do we make this transition in our own classrooms and offices? In this interactive keynote, Dr. Christina Katopodis, coauthor with Cathy N. Davidson of the award-winning book The New College Classroom (Harvard University Press, 2022), presents what the latest science of learning tells us about inclusive learning. She shares teaching strategies that anyone can adapt easily and effectively into their classes and office meetings to make structural changes as well as grab-and-go activities that educators around the world are using successfully every day to ensure learners’ lifelong success--and to revitalize their own commitment to a better world. 

Using the BRAIN to LEARN: Utilizing What We Know about What We Know

Jeremy Boles, Kentucky Farm Bureau, Louisville, Kentucky, USA

The Brain is a remarkable tool for learning, but we often fail to utilize the science of how the brain works in a learning environment. Activity-based learning utilizes what we know about the regions of the brain and uses that to create learning experiences meant for retention and understanding. Implementing research by Eric Jensen and David Rock. Utilized correctly, this approach will first examine the purpose of the learning objectives. At that point we use our knowledge of regions and functions of the brain to inform the types of learning activities that will be incorporated. The difference is that we don’t simply create activities that “get people out of their seat” or make them work in groups. In this approach we will create specific environments and activities that will accomplish what we want them to. The goal is to create neural connections. This concept has been implemented at a variety of companies and settings (Even an NGO in Kenya). One specific example was in Kenya. I created a training activity to teach communication through various levels of an organization (9 African Countries were represented). The activity gives teams a simple project to complete, but has inherent obstacles embedded into the activity. Without knowing it, participants are given different types of instructions. Although they are complete, as a group, they are not aware of that. The objective is to create a sense of frustration and tension. This affects the part of the brain that deals with problem solving in addition to long term memory…

Design Training to Enable Neural Circuits to Accept and Retain New Learning for Retention without Resistance

Sharon-Drew Morgen, Morgen Facilitations, Inc., Portland, Oregon, USA

Training design offers models to learn new information. Yet too often the new information isn't retained. Why? Because brains reject 'new' if it 1. doesn't conform with what's already there; 2. 'offends' the underlying (and unconscious) beliefs and systems of the existing neural circuits that hold that type of content. In fact, anything new is a risk to the existing system, regardless of its efficacy or the need for it.

Information doesn't cause change unless someone's circuits are set up to accept something new.

I've developed a wholly unique Learning Facilitation model that gets directly to the relevant neural circuits first, garners acceptance for something new, and then offers the new information where it will be welcomed.

By starting programs with specific exercises that enable learners to discover where in their brains the new knowledge will be captured, it's possible to offer new information in a way that avoids resistance and maintains learning permanently.

Developing Prompt Engineering Skills in Business Forecasting Course: A SoTL Initiative

Subhadra Ganguli, Ph.D., Penn State Lehigh Valley, Center Valley, Pennsylvania, USA

The presentation discusses various initiatives where AI has been applied in learning and teaching at Penn State University during 2023-24 academic year. It also studies the application of AI in the learning and teaching of economics and business forecasting course at Penn state University at Lehigh Valley. Students have practiced prompt engineering to evaluate the use and application of generative AI (Perplexity in particular) in research, analysis, and presentations in the course. In the process they have developed important skills in prompt engineering for future work in business. Students have also evaluated the role of AI in the process of applying AI in their assignments and projects. During the semester they explored how AI can be useful in certain situations for business analysis and forecasting. The presentation discusses student reflections and evaluations of the application of AI to study real world companies using quantitative methods in economics.

How Storytelling Can Help Leaders Communicate, Motivate and Inspire

Ben Walden, Olivier Mythodrama, London, United Kingdom

In this constantly changing landscape, organisations are seeking innovative ways to enhance personal development and develop leadership skills to make them fit for the future. Teams are not uniting around goals and there is often a lack of trust. Leaders are no longer able to motivate and inspire and are struggling to adapt to new ways of working. Organisations need a captivating and impactful method for individuals and organisations to unlock their potential, develop their narratives, and align their vision, mission, and values with those of their teams to promote organizational transformation. 

In this case study session, we’ll show you how to draw out your personal leadership styles and identify how these may impact those around you.  Participants reflect on their values, and behaviors, and how these align with their leadership roles. By exploring characters' journeys within classic stories, individuals gain insights into their own strengths and areas for growth. This self-awareness paves the way for improved decision-making, effective communication, and authentic leadership practices. This not only supports growth and development within the team but has the ability to develop their narratives, and align their vision, mission, and values with those of their teams to promote organizational transformation.

The case study we’ll use is Shakespeare’s Henry V. This story provides a case study for leading in a complex and changing world, looking at the common challenges of leadership and encouraging participants to focus on their own leadership dilemmas and explore strategies for managing them…

An AI-Supported Adaptive Study System for Individualized University Services

Christian-Andreas Schumann, Ph.D., West Saxon University of Zwickau, Chemnitz, Germany

In the context of digital transformation, the targeted use of AI-based or AI-supported technologies in the areas of "teaching & learning" and "administration & service" holds considerable potential for organizational change and quality improvements at universities. The use of AI in university teaching and services lags behind the state of research. Therefore, holistic solutions must be planned and implemented in the unity of teaching and research for AI-based support of stakeholders, including administration, the further development and establishment of new digital degree programs and offerings as well as the future qualification of university staff in the field of AI. Existing applications are increasingly being embedded in the process landscape at universities using integrated architectures with adaptive services.

In an interdisciplinary project, a cross-university, transdisciplinary and modular system approach will be pursued over several years in order to transfer AI methods as supporting technologies into the regular operation of teaching and the associated services at the university. From study orientation to the implementation of new degree programmes, the processes at various process and structural levels of the university are being made more flexible with the help of AI and transformed into adaptive services for the individualization of learning and teaching. The article explains the results of a new study system at a university with the help of generative AI. Selected case studies on content-related and administrative study orientation and information serve as illustrations.

Feedback Reimagined: Generative AI and Conversational Avatars as Your New Training Partners

Fernando Salvetti, Ph.D., Barbara Bertagni, e-REAL Labs at Logosnet, Houston, Texas, USA, and Roxane Gardner, Center for Medical Simulation, Boston, Massachusett, USA

At the e-REAL labs, jointly with the  Harvard Center for Medical Simulation, we are pioneering the next frontier of educational technology by introducing intelligent avatars, also known as digital humans, which serve as embodied conversational agents (ECAs) within highly realistic scenarios. These ECAs are dynamic models of human thinking, perception, and action - not mere scripts or pre-programmed responses. They are designed to interact with medical simulation instructors in an immersive training environment, leveraging the nuances of human communication and pedagogy.

Our ECAs are equipped with generative artificial intelligence, allowing them to provide real-time, contextually relevant feedback – based on conversational and behavioral indicators - to expert learners. This transformative approach transcends traditional feedback mechanisms by offering a personalized, adaptive, and interactive learning experience. By simulating complex interpersonal interactions, these digital humans can assess the instructor's performance, offer constructive feedback, and even engage in dialogue about the nature and quality of the feedback itself…

Developing a Hyper-personal Team Building Curriculum for Multicultural Remote Working: Theorization and Tentative Application in Progress 

Zhichao (Jacob) Lei, Seoul National University, Seoul, South Korea, and Huiling (Elin) Jin, Adam Smith Business School, University of Glasgow, UK

The thrifty growth of international corporations and other transnational organizations stands out as a profound angle of globalization, which has deeply engaged current scholars and organization managers across cultures in the discourse of multicultural management. Meanwhile, the notion of remote working, which draws on access to the Internet and computer technologies, especially prevailing during the COVID-19 pandemic period in response to the long-lasting shutdown of physical workplaces, continues to produce rich topics for computer-mediated communication (CMC) research. A broadly reported tendency in CMC practices is that people tend to idealize others in absence of nonverbal cues, which is referred to as the hyper-personal model by CMC scholarship; CMC participants tend to take advantage of hyper-personal effects to manage impressions and facilitate desired relationships, especially in text-based CMC. Combining the multicultural context and the CMC framework, this study proposes to apply hyper-personal effects to multicultural teamwork of virtual group, as a potential solution for culture-based in-group conflicts, and, moreover, reflects upon some of the classic Hofstede’s cultural dimensions, originally based on traditional, face-to-face workplaces…

Building Digital Efficiency with Effectiveness for Learning and Leadership in a Primary (Elementary) School Setting

Gavin Beere, Hillpark School, Manurewa, Auckland, New Zealand

Hillpark school’s motto or ‘whakatauki’ as expressed in New Zealand’s indigenous language Te Reo Māori, is ‘Kia Mataara, Ka Tipu, Ka Taea’ or ‘Aspire, Grow , Achieve’. Our digital curriculum journey involves all levels of the school from office administration, school leadership’, teachers , children to our caretaker. This presentation will describe the processes and outcomes of a focus on incrementally improving the use of digital tools, to drive efficiencies and effectiveness at every level of the school.

The school’s journey to become a ‘Microsoft Showcase School’ will be highlighted, particularly in the areas of vision development, facilitator selection and the design of school programmes. Examples of children working within software programmes such as ‘Minecraft, to design real world portrayals of thoughtful design and function, such as input into the construction of a local public playground, will feature. The change in leadership structure needed to deliver improvement will also be discussed.

The leadership team at the school, are constantly questioning the role of ‘digital’ in the school setting, not merely trying to replicate established ways of operating. Exploiting and rationalising the true potential of school management systems and existing software programmes has been a challenge we have set ourselves. One particular triumph in this area has been the discontinuation of the traditional school report. This has been replaced by real time reporting through our HERO portal in which parents are able to chart a child’s progress and achievements more readily. This information being shared  on a digital framework means wider family are stakeholders in this progress.

The presentation will include authentic video pieces that demonstrate our progress with integrating student voice, and other graphics related to the presentation abstract. It should also give a unique insight into the New Zealand educational setting and how innovation is possible in a ‘self managing’ school setting.

Beyond Distance: Fostering Community in Online Art Courses through 3D Virtual Spaces

Zena Tredinnick-Kirby, Ph.D., Anna Divinsky, Nicole Cingolani, Brendan Berthold, and Courtney Redding, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, USA

Penn State 2022-24 Teaching and Learning with Technology Faculty Fellows, Zena Tredinnick-Kirby Ph.D., Anna Divinsky, and Courtney Redding, are exploring an innovative approach to student engagement and active learning in online education. They use virtual reality (VR) technologies, specifically 3D virtual spaces through the Spatial.io platform, to build a class community. Spatial.io is a cross-platform application that runs from a desktop web browser, a mobile app, or a VR headset, allowing users to create personalized avatars. In this presentation, technology and instructional design experts, Brendan Berthold and Nicole Cingolani, will demonstrate how the fellows used VR to build community in asynchronous online art courses through peer feedback, customized art spaces, and individual presence. By fostering a creative and inclusive virtual class space, the fellows aim to build close connections with their students, where they can learn from one another and develop a personal voice. This methodology not only bridges the digital divide but also encourages critical thinking and collaboration among students.

Learning Experiences to Prepare People for the Workforce: a Quasi-Experiment at the National Roman Museum (Italy)

Eliana Maria Torre, Sapienza University (Rome), Rome, Italy

This piece of research was developed at the National Roman Museum (MNR) in Rome, Italy, and is part of an ongoing Ph.D. project on promoting mental well-being, social inclusion, and active citizenship for different museum targets, especially for those at risk of marginalization. The study aims to provide the MNR personnel with tools for inclusive educational activities that are easily applicable to each visit. Three research questions were set: i) do specific learning experiences for museum professionals impact their well-being, the 4 C’s Skills (i.e. Communication, Collaboration, Critical Thinking, Creativity), and sense of purpose at the workplace? ii) if yes, how? iii) how can these learning experiences help museum professionals become more flexible and competent? The study is based on empirical research. Museum professionals participated in a tour of the permanent collections. It was conducted by applying the Visual Thinking Strategy (VTS) to provide them with practical knowledge of this inclusive teaching and learning methodology. Subsequently, the museum professionals were shortly given a theoretical framework on the methodology they tried firsthand as well as a reference list on VTS for autonomous learning. The evaluation measured the levels of well-being, 4 C’s Skills, and the perceived usefulness of the experience through the UCL Museum Wellbeing Measures Toolkit, an assessment grid, and a focus group. The UCL questionnaires were administered right before and after the experience to detect possible increases in individuals' well-being. The assessment grid was filled by the evaluator during the tour and considering the group's dynamics. Finally, the focus group took place after the tour. Data were analyzed according to descriptive statistics and thematic analysis. Quantitative and qualitative results are discussed in the paper and provide insight into possible ways of building up the competencies of museum professionals.

Insights into Early Higher Education Dropouts: A Qualitative Analysis of a Computer Science Degree Program

Igor Miladinovic, Ph.D., and Sigrid Schefer-Wenzl, Ph.D., University of Applied Sciences Campus Vienna, Vienna, Austria

Higher education dropouts are a global phenomenon, exhibiting diverse patterns across countries. Notably, the United States, Spain, France, and Austria report dropout rates of 30 to 50 percent, while Switzerland and Finland show lower rates at 7 to 30 percent and 10 percent, respectively. Although dropout occurrences are most prevalent in the first semester, the initial three semesters are critical for preventive measures.

This study aimed to discern early dropout reasons in computer science programs through literature analysis and document existing countermeasures. Qualitative interviews at our university probed specific reasons behind dropouts in our computer science program. A systematic literature search across scientific databases yielded some pertinent papers amid numerous irrelevant results.

In-depth qualitative studies explored dropout rates in our computer science bachelor's program. Fourteen former students participated in 20-30 minute interviews, detailing reasons for dropout and potential deterrents. Literature analysis revealed early dropout factors in technical programs, categorized as: prior knowledge, uncertainty about program expectations, not fitting into the IT field, tutoring, study habits, employment status, social integration, and teaching quality…

SMALO: An AI-Powered Learning Assistant for Logistics

Michael Huss, M.I.T e-Solutions GmbH, Friedrichsdorf, Germany

In Germany there is a high demand for skilled workers in logistics. To keep up with the accelerating transformation of the logistic business, employees and companies are faced with the challenge of appropriate and need-based training. The aim of the SMALO project is to develop a platform-based training assistant for employees in logistics, which uses AI methods to identify individual needs. Based on this, training formats are suggested to provide tailored and flexible learning paths. 

The SMALO learning ecosystem bundles a large part of logistics training offers in Germany. In a first step learners can visit the platform´s catalog to get an overview of available training offers. By creating a profile, they are able to generate individual learning paths according to their interests and previous experience. 

The SMALO platform sees itself as a “digital learning ecosystem” that, due to its structure, integrates various learning formats as well as various interests of the actors (companies, training institutions, employees). The aim of the project, funded by the federal government in Germany, is to use selected professional fields in logistics to develop a digital training space…

Application of Virtual Reality in Kyokushin Karate Training with HTC VIVE

Nicolas Hollmann, Erik Jenning, Atilla Wohllebe, Ph.D., and Marcus Riemer, University of Applied Sciences Wedel, Wedel, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany

As virtual reality (VR) becomes more widespread, the technology is increasingly being used in sports. As a sport with no physical components required for its basic practice, Karate is particularly suitable for this purpose. This paper shows how VR can be applied to the training of Kyokushin Karate.  For this purpose, a virtual training environment is developed that enables automatic evaluation of movement sequences. The evaluations are matched with human judgments from two karate instructors (1st dan and 2nd dan). The training room is developed using the Unity game engine and the SteamVR plugin. The HTC VIVE Pre-Headset is used for the presentation. Using the HTC VIVE Tracker 3.0, the motion data of 14 subjects for 10 karate techniques are recorded, normalized and compared with reference data using the DTW algorithm. Algorithmic evaluation is performed on a scale of 1 (very poor) to 5 (very good) stars. The comparison with the karate trainers shows an agreement of the evaluations in 79% of the test cases. Furthermore, the participants are asked about their experiences after the VR-supported training. The results show a high willingness to use VR training tools. Occasionally, subjects felt disturbed by the VR trackers. The VR glasses are not perceived as a hindrance. The results are contextualized in the existing literature and ideas for further research are outlined.

Advanced Entrepreneurial Leadership for STEM Students

Justinus Pieper, Ph.D., Universität Siegen, Siegen, Germany

STEM students become entrepreneurs and / or managers. For both career paths, they need to acquire (entrepreneurial) leadership skills.

Whether you want to found a start-up or a state – there is always a consistent set of principles-which might best be learnt from historical examples. These are easier to memorise in crisis leadership situations. In addition, they deepen cultural education and, through this, the ability to connect and integrate, allowing intercultural commonalities to be discovered instead of deepening divisions.

Founding figures such as Romulus, Cyrus and Alexander the Great, Napoleon and Steve Jobs, among others, are thoroughly studied. What opportunities do they seize, what expectations do they meet, what stories do they spin in order to (1) impress supporters and heralds, (2) turn customers into convinced followers/evangelists and (3) keep competitors at a distance.

Each of these groups needs to be convinced of the entrepreneurial leader's smart, proactive ability to send clear, coherent messages in fluid, ambivalent situations. This begins with the person of the founder, whose role is legitimized by his pedigree. Romulus, e.g., as the “son” of a local god with serious expertise (war), suckled with the mother's milk not of a muskrat or a doe, but of a she-wolf, whose typical characteristics are passed on to him. Again it is always about deterrence and discouragement of opponents, decision-making aid for the undecided, image and self-confidence for the ""buyers"" as followers / evangelists…

Strategic Use of Smart Factory Concepts for Flexible and Hybrid Learning for Engineering Students in the Field of Automation Technology

Natali Becker, Ph.D., University of Siegen, Chair of Technical Vocational Didactics, Siegen, Germany

The increasingly digitalized world of work is creating new requirements that impact engineering education. The promotion of applied professional competences includes the engagement of students in industry-specific technologies, the development of methodological approaches for the information and technological support of teaching and the integration of smart factory concepts to prepare engineering students for the current challenges of transformation processes (sustainability, digitalization, artificial intelligence, heterogeneity, inclusion).

This article analyses the following research question: What methodologies for fostering students' competences are needed to make it possible to increase the effectiveness of integrated forms of engineering education based on collaboration with industrial companies and other universities and colleges, including at international level? The focus is on the synergy between traditional teaching approaches and modern technologies to create an interactive and practice-orientated learning environment. The concept presented here combines the cyber-physical system (CP-Lab from Festo) as the basic technology of smart factories with the mobile robotics platform Robotino and augmented reality glasses HMT-1 from RealWear. This provides learners with flexible opportunities to deepen theoretical concepts and develop practical skills by controlling production equipment, collecting data and performing analyses…

Empowering Student Learning through AI: Building Chatbots for Enhanced Problem-Solving Skills

Sandra Metzger, Ed.D., Inspired Pathways Group, LLC, Marion, Indiana, USA and Andrew Jones, Fishers High School, Indiana, USA

Integrating Artificial Intelligence (AI) into classroom activities presents a novel approach to enhancing student engagement and learning outcomes in the rapidly evolving educational landscape. This presentation showcases a pioneering educational initiative where high school students, guided by their teacher and an educational consultant, delve into the intricacies of AI to create personalized chatbots. These AI assistants are not merely tools but active participants in the students' problem-solving journey, tailored to address real-world challenges.

This demonstration will unfold within an online session, illustrating the step-by-step process undertaken by students from conceptualization to the development of functional AI chatbots. By engaging in this immersive experience, students not only grasp the fundamentals of AI and machine learning but also refine their critical thinking, creativity, and technological skills. The presentation aims to provide educators and educational leaders with insights into implementing similar AI-driven projects, emphasizing the transformative potential of AI in fostering a dynamic, interactive, and impactful learning environment.

Panel Discussion

The panel discussion topic will be posted soon.

Panel Chair: David Guralnick, Ph.D., Kaleidoscope Learning, New York, New York, USA

Panelists:

Panelists will be announced later!

Make Learning Infectious through Student Agency

Todd Brown, Ed.D., Operation Outbreak, Staunton, Virginia, USA

This presentation will explore the multidisciplinary components of Operation Outbreak. This free educational program can teach and train members of public health departments, universities, colleges, and middle and high schools. It will underscore students' pivotal role in using cutting-edge technologies, including big data analytics and modeling, to guide collaborative and cooperative learning strategies. Using hands-on activities, teachers and students will understand how fostering collaborations and streamlined communication networks are critical pillars within various containment strategies. Also, the presentation will highlight the significance of teacher and student involvement in the community through real-world simulations that will help bolster healthcare infrastructure and teach how to mount effective responses during crisis scenarios.

Attendees will go through practical activities to provide valuable insights into proactive measures, the importance of partnerships, and the critical role of data-driven decision-making through easy-to-use tabletop and technology-based activities, helping the students understand their crucial role in fighting infectious diseases in their school and community. Students will also be able to help inform data scientists and epidemiologists to understand the human dynamics that drive or quell the spread of infectious diseases.

From Satisfaction to Impact: Evolving Evaluation Practices in Executive Education at The Ivey Academy

Rosa Cendros, Ph.D., The Ivey Academy at Ivey Business School, London, Ontario, Canada

In this session, The Ivey Academy presents a comprehensive examination of their transformation in impact evaluation methodologies, highlighting the shift from traditional satisfaction-based metrics to more holistic impact assessments. 

Initially, the session will describe the growing importance of impact evaluation in the executive education sphere, setting the stage for an in-depth exploration of the prevalent satisfaction-centric approach. It will explain the limitations of this conventional method, advocating for a more comprehensive evaluation paradigm.

The session will then delineate the conceptual foundations and practical steps undertaken in implementing a holistic evaluation strategy that includes broader metrics, emphasizing the real-world impact of executive education programs. The presenter will discuss the challenges encountered at The Ivey Academy during this transition, including resistance to change, practical limitations, and ensuring the reliability of new metrics. The presentation will outline the critical role of stakeholder engagement, continual iteration, and aligning evaluations with organizational objectives…

Developing Sustainable Microcredentialing for the Workforce of the Future

Laura E. Hakala, Magic EdTech, New York, New York, USA

Recent studies have shown a significant reductions in university and college enrollment. Yet, these individuals will form a large part of the workforce in the years to come. Where are all the potential university students going? Some of this drop can be attributed to the rise of microcredentialing and learners finding alternate and more personalized ways to develop the skills they need to enter the workforce.

Experts have questioned whether microcredentials can sustain the workforce in the long run. Can a course of 8-10 weeks provide learners with the breadth and depth of knowledge they need to perform their jobs well enough? In this presentation, we discuss microcredentialing and ways to make it sustainable. We examine some major questions and challenges within microcredentialing, and whether or not microcredentials are valid measures of learning. Once we establish the efficacy of microcredentials, we examine how they can help resolve worker shortages and support all workers (especially those who do not have a higher education degree). Lastly, we’ll discuss ideas on how we can move forward, both in education and workforce readiness, by using microcredentials to empower skill-based hiring and competency-based employment.

Furhat Robot as an Empathic Learning Aid (Virtual Talk)

Paul Clark, Central New Mexico Community College, Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA

We describe the development of an interactive quiz learning aid using the Furhat robot. The Furhat SDK includes a virtual robot integrated with the coding IDE. Most Furhat skills are developed for the physical robot. Our quiz skill is available individually to all students of a class using virtual machine logins. We intend the quiz skill as an updated version of flashcard exam preparation. Empathic responses include facial expressions and voice tone. Sentiment analysis of the human spoken words along with analysis of student success with the quiz questions informs the choice of words and tone of the robot response. Facial expressions consistent with the spoken words make the empathic responses credible. Logs of the student quiz sessions reveal problem areas. Generally, these fall into the categories of question set and programming. Questions and answer options may contain words and symbols difficult to process through the speech recognition, language understanding and text to speech output cycle of each interaction. Acronyms may be usable for text to speech but difficult for the speech recognizer as are utterances of specialized and technical vocabulary. Question set problems are solved by editing the questions and answer options. Programming updates continue when we can improve the conversation flow between human and robot.

Stop Grading Essays, Start Grading Chats

Mike Kentz, Benedictine Military School, Savannah, Georgia, USA

The advance of AI tools into the education space has left many Humanities teachers fearful that students will lose all critical thinking and analysis skills as a result of AI's incredible capabilities in the areas of brainstorming, researching, outlining. However, there is a new approach to Humanities-based assignments that will still teach and monitor the development of critical thinking skills in students. Instead of grading our students' essays, we must inspect, monitor, and evaluate their chat transcripts with AI tools for evidence of critical thinking and analysis. As stated in a recent New Yorker article, "working with GPT is more like an instrument you must learn to play...[you have to] break down your problem into specific, abstract, un-ambiguous sub-problems that, together, will give you what you want." In practice, this would require that teachers front-load the teaching of prompt engineering and the process of breaking down problems into bite-sized chunks to leverage the power of AI tools in the classroom. Then, they should require that students use ChatGPT and other AI tools within various essay assignments or projects -- rather than ban or limit the tools -- and subsequently require that they submit the chat transcript for grading. Teachers should attach rubrics to each assignment that specifies how to "talk" to ChatGPT in a way that demonstrates critical thinking of a large problem, and then focus the majority of their evaluation efforts on the chats themselves. This will ensure that students increase AI literacy, maintain the guided development of critical thinking skills, demystify AI in the classroom, remove temptations for cheating, and assist students in developing relevant skills for the future.

That's Refreshing! An Investigation into Student Satisfaction with Refreshed Online Course Environments

Matthew Marmet, Ph.D., Utica University, Utica, New York, USA and Heather Breittholz, Ph.D., University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut, USA

Online learning has cemented its place in the educational landscape.  With the rise of online educational offerings, online course designers and faculty members alike have been forced to answer the call to deliver high-quality online learning experiences for students.  With a focus on system quality, this paper attempts to establish a connection between efforts made to refresh online course environments and the satisfaction of the learners immersed in these environments.  Data for this study were collected from 64 graduate students enrolled in a blended (hybrid) MBA program at a small, private, not-for-profit university in the northeastern United States.  These students were enrolled in two separate courses, one with a refreshed learning environment and the second without.  Given the timing of delivery of the courses, there was no overlap between the groups of survey respondents, resulting in two distinct student groups.  Data were collected using a survey designed specifically for this study, which students completed anonymously via Google Forms during the Spring, Summer, and Fall semesters of 2022.  Although the results were in the anticipated direction, an independent samples t-test yielded a p-value of .07.  The authors attribute this marginal finding to the complex nature of the Online Learning Satisfaction (OLS) construct, where the design and quality of the course make up only a fragment of the entire framework.  Implications of these findings, along with directions for future research, are presented.

How Do You get 90% of Engineers in the Room to Agree? (Virtual Talk)

Ben Zimmer and Nick Tanchuk, Sidekick Training, Milton, Ontario, Canada

Engineering stands at the forefront of progress, shaping our world and addressing global challenges. Engineers of Tomorrow, a national charitable organization, has pioneered a transformative approach to inspire the next generation of engineers. This presentation explores their groundbreaking training initiative, the Engineers in Residence Program, and the pivotal role played by Sidekick in overcoming training challenges.

The Engineers in Residence Program, a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) outreach initiative, connects teachers with local engineers to create personalized learning experiences. This addresses the crucial gap in exposure to engineering role models for a significant number of students. Engineers of Tomorrow faced challenges in volunteer training, which were effectively addressed through their partnership with Sidekick.

This presentation delves into four critical challenges faced by Engineers of Tomorrow and how Sidekick revolutionized their training approach. From enhancing engagement and deep learning to providing real-time data and ensuring consistency, Sidekick emerged as a comprehensive solution.

The fall kick-off training event, a collaborative effort between Engineers of Tomorrow and Sidekick, showcased a remarkable success story. Through multimedia experiences, dynamic presentations, and interactive games facilitated by Sidekick, participant readiness surged from 67% to an impressive 90%…

Bringing Conceptual Knowledge of Biostatistics into the Zone of Proximal Development via Integrated Computing Exercises

Qi Zheng, Ph.D., Texas A&M University School of Public Health, College Station, Texas, USA

Math Educators believe that math ability is universal. My experience convinces me that computing ability is universal too and every student has an innate inclination to enjoy the beauty of computing. Many students in public health schools are often relatively weak in math and computing on enrollment because they have never been given much opportunity to develop their math and computing minds. These fundamental ideas have allowed me to innovate biostatistics teaching methods and create refreshing course content.

Many current methods of teaching biostatistics at public health schools focus on knowledge in declarative or procedural form. Public health students also need conceptual biostatistical knowledge to enable them to use statistical tools correctly and efficiently,  but teaching conceptual knowledge to public health students has been hampered by students' poor mathematical preparedness. Remedial math classes are an ineffective and impractical way to address this issue, because higher mathematics falls far outside the zone of proximal development for most students. However, by translating the task of learning conceptual statistical knowledge into a process of doing carefully designed computing exercises that involve only basic math and first principles, we can bring conceptual biostatistical knowledge into the zone of proximal development for public health students…

Supercharge Your L&D Efforts by Building a Community of Learners

Natalie Brooks Powell, IBM, Bolingbrook, Illinois, USA

The whole is greater than the sum of its parts. Consider the difference between The Beatles as a rock band versus John, Paul, George, and Ringo’s solo careers — successful, but rarely at the levels of when they were “The Fab Four.” 

It’s the same challenge for workplace learning: Your employees could continue their education individually, but when people come together to learn, that community is empowered to learn faster, easier, and see better outcomes.

The IBM Center for Cloud Training has first-hand experience creating and educating communities. We know that learning outcomes are vastly improved when learners are part of a collaborative learning environment. That is why our award-winning L&D division is exploring and building community-based programming that helps learners earn certifications in Cloud technologies, skills, and roles, from entry-level to advanced specialty subjects…

This session will offer examples of innovative community learning experiences…

David Guralnick, Ph.D.
President and CEO
Kaleidoscope Learning
New York, New York, USA