Document Type

Other

Rights

This item is available under a Creative Commons License for non-commercial use only

Disciplines

5.3 EDUCATIONAL SCIENCES, *training

Publication Details

DIT Teaching Fellowship Reports 2010-2011. ISBN 978-1-900454-51-3: 30-37.

Abstract

This paper examines the potential of pedagogically designed video demonstrations in supporting the learning requirements of students in the Spatial Information Sciences (DSIS). Currently, over three hundred full and part-time students in the College of Engineering and Built Environment undertake a module in Land Surveying each semester and although these students range in discipline and academic level (NQAI 6 - 8), they all share a need for basic information and instruction in the area of practical land-surveying techniques. To accommodate this highly practical subject area, fifty per cent of contact time is normally dedicated to group-based field exercises, the results of which are formally assessed. To enhance the students’ practical learning experience in Land Surveying modules and provide a mobile (m)learning resource a number of short videos with voice-over instruction have been developed. These YouTube clips, of approximately three minutes in duration each, show the correct use of automatic levels and digital theodolites and can be directly accessed in the field via a web and video enabled mobile platform. This study highlights the effectiveness of designing high quality mlearning resource material for use in a wide range of disciplines by undergraduate students during their basic Land Surveying modules. Furthermore, it evaluates the effectiveness this student-centric approach to practical learning in terms of learners’ potential for mlearning, learner motivation and also perceptions of understanding and retention with regard to course content for both fulltime students and professional learners. Outcomes of the study indicate that the use of videos hosted on YouTube is very positive as it presents few barriers to learners in terms of access and useability.

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