Medgar Evers College, CUNY

Physical, Environmental and Computer Sciences Department

Student preparing Geiger counter for balloon flight

Project Description

 

 

Implementation

 

The main academic initiative tied to the mobile technology project has been the integration of CSE tools such as Agent and Stella in the lecture to foster improvement in student problem solving abilities in the physical and computer sciences. The testbed courses, Computer Applications in Earth and Space Science, used a similar model with visualization tools that students accessed during the lecture. The mobile technology project is being tied to introductory level science courses and selected CS courses. Outcomes also include improvement in understanding of the material and enhanced problem-solving ability as evidenced by performance on exams, projects and homework and as well as an attitudinal change in terms of students' ability to do science.

 

 

Impact on Teaching

 

Prior to the HP Technology for Teaching award, for many participating faculty, lecture-only teaching styles persisted. This award coupled with an increased emphasis on the wide-spread integration of computational science education methodologies and tools, innovative and engaging embedded projects and support from the office of Academic Computing has stimulated a transformation in teaching and learning methodologies beyond the scope of the initial award. The use of adhoc peer-to-peer networks and related software provided faculty with increased flexibility in the integration of interactive visualization and simulation tools as well as mini-labs to support abstract lecture material during classes as opposed to postponing student engagement until external labs. This has stimulated faculty initiatives in teaching in non-traditional ways. Examples include the use of Stella and Agent for modeling in Chemistry courses, interactive computer-based labs and visualizations in Physics and Astronomy courses and increased use of computer simulation tools in Computer Science courses.  Remote Sensing curriculum has been enhanced by integrating lab examples and data acquisition directly in the lectures. Overall, this project has motivated faculty to explore and implement teaching methods that stimulate active learning.

 

 

Impact on Student Learning

 

Integration of mobile technology with supporting visual learning materials has had a positive impact on student learning. The project which included transformation in teaching styles has had a positive impact on student retention. Faculty summaries of project to support evidence of improved student performance includes more time on task for classroom projects with significantly improved completion rates, improved completion of externally assigned projects, and more consistent homework submission in project-related courses.  Student observations indicate a strong preference for courses integrating interactive problem-solving using technology with lecture material. 

 

Setting up launch tracking