Assignment 3: Emotion Design Probe

We are tasked to improve the learning experience in lecture theatres. At first, it seems very technical to improve the learning experience in lecture theatres but after much thought, I realised that there are many aspects to this issue. My group member, Joel, and I decided to employ an ethnographic approach to this issue. The details can be found in the powerpoint presentation uploaded in the workbin.

I shall summarise the points here.

Learning experience in lecture theatres(LT) is about the interactions inherent in an LT learning situation. Observations were made during typical lectures in the LT to see the behaviour and reactions of students and lecturers. We found that the learning experience is influenced by human behaviour(students, lecturers), time and environment.

 

Observations of factors affecting the learning experience:

Human Behaviour:
Students
Seating behavior – trend to sit at the sides/ends of the rows of seats or at the back.
Late-Coming – arriving late after lectures have started
Students’ Absence from Lectures – especially if lectures are webcasted
Passivity to Speak Up – when lecturer asks questions
Noise-Making – by students
Lecturer
Delivery Style – may be monotonous, non-interactive, with chunks of words on the slides
Lecture Notes – are provided only after the lectures, in some cases
Guest Lecturers – may be unappreciated as seen from lower student attendance

Time:
Early Lectures – more latecomers and sleepy students
Late Lectures – tired students after a long day

Environment:
Front Door – distracting when latecomers walks in
Seats – spoilt chairs, first few rows of seats unutilised
Table (attached to LTs) – table generally too small
Air-Conditioning – air-con temperature may be too cold
Look of LT – some LT looks run-down
Sound Level (sound system) – lecturer’s voice may be projected too loudly or softly
Lighting – dimmed lighting may make students more sleepy
Seats Layout – limited space between rows of seats

 

Suggested Solutions:

Cultural:

Seating Behaviour:
Have students sit in the front and middle of the rows

Late-Coming:
Take attendance during first 15 mins of lecture
Encourage the early students to sit in front
Play interesting video clips at the start of the lecture when applicable

Absence from lectures:
Mark attendance during lectures
Leave blanks in the lecture notes for students to fill
Make students do graded reaction papers

Passivity to Speak Up:
Emphasize that there are no right or wrong answers
Give small rewards for lecture participation

Noise-Making:
Have students seek clarification from the lecturer regarding doubts on announcements, concepts etc
Have breaks for the students to rest/chat with friends

Lecturer’s Delivery Style:
Engage students more actively
Incoporate more multi-media in the slides
Reduce the amount of words on the slides

Lecture Notes:
Provide lecture notes early to enable students to have sufficient time to print them if they wish to

Guest Lecturer:
Lecturer should explain how the guest lecturers’ speech relates to the course material
Guest lecturer could perhaps lecture for about one hour only
Invite more “famous” guest lecturers where applicable

Lecture Timeslots:
Timetable committee to avoid planning for early/late lecture slots as much as possible, especially for large classes

Technological:

Front Door:
Students who are late should come in by the back door
Oil the doors to lessen the creaking

Seats:
Faulty chairs to be replaced
Checks to be done regularly for fault equipment

Tables:
Bigger table for each seat in the LT

Air-Conditiong:
Tweak the air-con temperature when possible
Otherwise, students can bring their own jackets

Look of LT:
Refurbish the older LTs where possible (The feel and structure of the run-down LT26 has now been entirely renovated.)

Sound Level:
Lecturers to make sure sound system is functioning properly
Technicians to conduct regular checks

Lighting:
To be kept at appropriate levels at all times

Seats Layout:
Install shorter rows of seats with gaps in between every 5-10 seats or so
Widen space between rows

 

Conclusion:

It should be noted that not all of the problems can be solved by the solutions we proposed. Students should do their part to pay attention and be considerate to their classmates. Only then can learning experience be enhanced.