Blended learning blir allt vanligare inom högskoleutbildningar och majoriteten av kurser äridag kopplade till onlineportaler. För att enkelt kombinera klassrumsundervisning medonline learning används olika learning management system (LMS). Lärare kan dock intealltid förlita sig på att studenterna har en inre motivation och entusiasm till att lära, det finnsdock möjligheter att påverka den inre motivationen med hjälp av yttre faktorer. Medgamification används yttre motiverande faktorer för att skapa en rolig och engagerandemiljö utan att påverka studiernas trovärdighet. Gamification innebär att komponenter avspeldesign används utanför spelkontexten. Detta kan leda till ökad motivation hos studenterna.För att förstå olika typer av motivation bättre används Self-determination theory (SDT).Utifrån spelelement som lyfts fram i litteratur bekräftar eller bestrider och kompletterardenna uppsats detta med en empirisk studie som utgår ifrån en gamifierad kurs på högskolenivå.Spelelementen analyseras med SDT för att se hur de påverkar de tre inre psykologiskabehoven. Utifrån detta skapades tre designmönster som är till för att stödja utvecklare ochadministratörer av LMS då en gamifierad kurs utformas. / Blended learning is becoming more common within university education and the majoritiesof courses today are connected to an online portal. To easily combine teaching in theclassroom with online learning different types of learning management systems (LMS) arebeing used. Even though teachers cannot always put their trust in the students’ intrinsicmotivation and enthusiasm for learning, it is possible to affect the intrinsic motivation withthe help of extrinsic factors. With gamification extrinsic factors are used to create a fun andengaging environment without affecting the credibility of the studies. Gamification meansthat components of game design are used outside the context of gaming. This can lead to anincrease in motivation for the students. To better understand different types of motivationSelf-determination theory (SDT) is used. Based on the gameplay elements identified inscholarly texts this thesis confirms or denies, and complements this with an empirical studybased on a gamified course at university level. The gameplay elements were analyzed withSDT to see how they affected the three intrinsic psychological needs. Based on this, threedesign patterns were created to support developers and administrators of LMS whenforming a gamified course.

Submitted in fulfillment of the requirements of the Degree of Master of Information & Communications Technology, Durban University of Technology, Durban, South Africa, 2017. / Computer-programming dexterity is an essential skill for students of computer science, information technology and engineering who are intrinsically expected to be able to do programming. However, teaching and learning computer-programming concepts and skills have been recognised as a great challenge for both teachers and students, for many reasons. Computer-programming requires new ideas in thinking and conceptualising practical solutions. It requires creative skills in solving practical, but often difficult problems. Moreover, computer-programming students, generally lack problem-solving skills and self-efficacy. They typically find it difficult to use artificial programming languages to solve challenging problems. There is the problem of poor background in science and mathematics that would help students to rapidly understand the intricacies of computer-programming. Students are not motivated to overcome the fear of the bizarre syntax of computer-programming codes. These challenges, coupled with the huge potential of computing applications in the society have made the development of effective pedagogies and environments for computer-programming courses, an important issue. To address this issue in a unique way, this study proposes to explore a web-based, blended learning technique with minimal instructor intervention, to improve the computer-programming competence of information technology students. These students are expected to have developed an acceptable level of computer-programming competence at university to be job ready and to be self-reliant in their future careers. The technique being proposed in this study was implemented in a blackboard ™/®/© web-based environment. The effectiveness of the technique was demonstrated using experimentation coupled with the data analysis method that is based on the three-parameter item response theory and retrospective pretest. The method used in this study to evaluate computer- programming competence of students reflects the perspective of the students in the evaluation process. The results of the study indeed show that using the proposed technique, information technology students dynamically collaborate with their peers with minimal instructor intervention towards improving their computer-programming competence. / M

需求高度時間彈性、學習時數低的華語成年學習者漸增，對混成遠距教學的需求增加，然而網路科技輔助的工具繁多，功能多樣而混雜。本研究蒐集各種科技輔助數位教學工具，運用其平台的多媒體、計時、評分、社群互動、角色對話、語音識別等功能，針對這類學習時數少、高度需求時間彈性的華語學習者，創造出高互動性的非同步學習活動，以提升學生動機、趣味及溝通意願，與同步教學相輔相成。並以ADDIE模式，進行教學實驗，透過觀察、訪談、課程錄影以及測驗，分析此教學設計模式及活動的學習體驗，並總結最能有效鼓勵學習動機的遠距教學模式設計。 本研究結果發現，在非同步學習活動設計中，若能提升學生的自主學習願望、細部經營遠距的人際互動方式，並關注回饋機制的設計，並運用同步課程在科技問題、學習內容上輔助非同步的學習活動，如此能有效調動學習者的學習動機。提升自主學習願望的方式包含運用競爭心理、社交願望，並透過資源整合增加學生感知的活動學習效率。在遠距人際互動方面，需仔細經營互動氣氛，提供恰當的工具，在回饋機制的設計上，關注獎勵的間隔時間、及回饋的即時性。 / There are more and more adult learners who require time flexibility for Mandarin learning. The demand for distant learning has increased. There are various online technological tools to assist learning, however, the features on the various websites are often disorganized. This study collects different kinds of technology assisted digital learning websites, and applies their features - such as multimedia players, timers, scoring systems, social interaction, role playing, and speech recognition - into Mandarin teaching. It is designed for adult learners who have fewer learning hours and require time flexibility to learn Mandarin. It aims to create asynchronous learning activities, with high interaction, in order to increase students’ motivation, interest, and communication willingness along with synchronous lessons. It applies the ADDIE model for systematic instructional design and concludes with the most efficient distance lesson model that could best encourage students’ motivation. It draws conclusions from the students’ interview about their learning experience, the teacher’s observations during the lessons, and from the recordings of the experimental lessons. The study result reveals the keys to foster motivation in distance Mandarin lessons: raising learner autonomy, undertaking distant social interaction, focusing on the design of a feedback mechanism, and utilizing synchronous lessons to help solve their learning or technical problems during asynchronous self-learning time. Making good use of students’ tendency for competition, willingness to socialize, and increasing the students’ awareness of learning efficiency, effectively fosters motivation for self-learning in distance Mandarin lessons.

ICTs have had a tremendous impact on our educational environment. There have been a huge number of developments and support in implementation of ICT in Higher Education teaching and learning, also referred to as e-learning. Similarly there appears to be quite a number of research conducted on the use of ICTs in blended learning settings worldwide and as well as in South Africa. Very little research however, has focussed on the experiences of lecturers with e-learning, specifically as it relates to Learning Management Systems (LMS). In trying to meet the requirements of its academic programmes and be in line with new developments worldwide, the University which is the focus of this study pilot projected the use of an LMS in a blended learning approach which integrates face-to-face classes with Blackboard, an ICT-based system or tool. Following the implementation of the pilot project, this study explores the experiences of lecturers in their blended learning environments at this university in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. The research design was that of an interpretative paradigm within a qualitative research approach in a case study methodology. Purposive sampling of six lecturers from departments within faculties across two campuses was done. The data was gathered through interviews, a follow-up questionnaire and document analysis was employed. Using Critical and Social Realism as meta-theories the study employed aspects of Activity Theory as substantive theory to understand particular experiences of blended learning environments and identify conditions which enable and constrain engagement in these environments so as to explore potential lessons to inform the kind of educational support which could be offered to facilitate uptake of the LMS.

Tertiary institutions in South Africa are currently faced with several challenges: Student numbers are increasing, funding is not necessarily sufficient and the type of student who enters Higher Education is part of a generation which grew up with technology (Prensky, 2001). Expectations are that tertiary education institutions need to keep up with the changing environment, whilst still maintaining high standards. Interaction within the learning environment is essential, both from an academic, as well as a social point of view. Students who leave the institution need to be able to function in a working environment, with all the challenges that accompany it, as well as be academically qualified for their careers. Universities, and specifically Economics departments, are often accused of being ivory towers with no regard for the real world (Fullbrook, 2003). The design for this study is a case-study within a qualitative research design. The study focuses on the use of an LMS to aid the learning process in a blended learning environment at the department of Economics, at the University of the Free State. In this study, several tools were used to support students and add another dimension to learning economics. Data-collection instruments include a literature review, focus group meetings, semi-structured questionnaires and observations. The value of this study is that it forms a basis for lecturers in other disciplines to include aspects of blended learning in their courses. The findings of the research include the usability of the different LMS tools, students’ experiences of these tools and the effect that these tools have on their understanding and integration of economics. The rationale of this study is based on the fact that students who attend university come from a generation identified as Digital Natives (Prensy, 2001) and have certain methods of data integration. The purpose of this study is, therefore, to focus and analyse students’ experiences of using WebCT tools as an additional aid to the course. The target group for the study was the Economics firstyear, second semester, English medium of instruction students. The course runs over a full semester, with two traditional facetoface classes, as well as tutor groups. In addition to two semester tests and an examination, students had to participate in a biweekly discussion forum, based on economic events and four online, multiple choice quizzes. They also had access to class notes, additional readings, informal discussions and a forum for questions. This research makes use of a qualitative approach and a casestudy, because it studies a “…human activity embedded in the real world which can only be studied or understood in context … which exists in the here and now that merges in with its context so that precise boundaries are difficult to draw” Gillham (2000). This study falls within the Interpretivist paradigm (Burrel and Morgan). Data were collected by means of focus group meetings, informal discussions, openended questionnaires, observations and a course evaluation. In this way, students’ attitudes towards the LMS could be gauged. Three categories were identified during the data analysis and coding process. The first category relates to interaction between students and lecturers (or tutors), the second to peerinteraction and the last category refers to contentstudent interaction. The findings of this study concludes that students need interaction with lecturers, peers and content in order to make sense of what they are learning, to link the theory with realworld issues and to enhance generic skills. Lecturers should consider making use of a hybrid learning system, but must consider their specific course content before deciding which of the available tools to use. / Thesis (PhD (Curriculum Studies))--University of Pretoria, 2006. / Curriculum Studies / unrestricted

Dissertation focuses on issues of ICT skills in relation to the development of hybrid forms of teaching (education), its potential application in developing skills, education and practice. The work focuses mainly on methodological issues and approaches to capacity, information and communication technologies to effectively deploy and use in improving skills of future and current workforce. The main goal of the thesis is based on the results of surveys and analysis of statistical data suggest methodological solutions for qualifying projects respecting the development of the newly defined needs of computer science, or other qualification, taking account of new technologies in ICT. The analytical part is devoted to a comprehensive view on the issue of education in computer science. The classification of roles and professions in computer science is defined, the knowledge domain and analytical conclusions followed with the application of job classification and specified uses. Concepts in project management qualification are analyzed and unified. Surveys of the current situation in the management skills of ICT professionals in the world and the CR are also presented and analyzed. There are identified trends in improving the management skills of projects in connection with the development and promotion of ICT technologies and tools. The application part is devoted to methodological design solutions and builds upon the results of the analysis. There are the major components of the methodology defined and the qualifying phase of the project at the conceptual level designed. The following are classified ICT tools supporting the educational processes in the project management skills. The final part of the doctoral thesis is focused on the evaluation of proposals processed and experience of implementing new approaches and technologies in education in computer science. This section summarizes and evaluates the results of the surveys carried out consecutively evaluated experiences are associated with implementations of qualifying projects using ICT technologies.

The goal of this study was to analyze the impact of instructional format and pedagogical approach on students' learning and motivation within the introductory communication course. Three hundred eighty-five students participated in this study within one of four contexts: face-to-face instruction with service-learning, face-to-face instruction without service-learning, blended instruction with service-learning, and blended instruction without service-learning. A series of MANOVAs was utilized for the study. Results of the study, possible explanations for the results, limitations, and guidelines for future research are presented.

<p></p><p>In this dissertation, I argue that there is value in treating students as implementors during processes of educational innovation. I lay the groundwork for this argument through a review of literature comparing best practices in the implementation of innovations in higher education with best practices from active learning, blended learning, and collaborative learning research. This is followed by a phenomenographic and narrative analysis: a deliberate combination of phenomenography and narrative analysis methods for the interpretation of data and representation of findings, leveraging the strengths of each approach to account for the other’s shortcomings. The result of this work is an outcome space containing a hierarchical framework typical of phenomenography describing the various ways in which the participating students experienced implementation within the context of a blended learning environment called <i>Freeform</i>. The presentation of this framework is followed by a series of constructed narratives which contextualize how the hierarchical framework may be evidenced in student experiences of implementation in higher education. </p> <p><br></p><p>The hierarchical framework contains six categories of description: Circumstantial Non-Adoptive, Circumstantial Adoptive, Preferential Non-Adoptive, Preferential Adoptive, Adaptive, and Transformative. Proceeding from Circumstantial Non-Adoptive and Circumstantial Adoptive to Transformative, each subsequent category of the model characterizes implementation experiences that are increasingly impacted by students’ own self-awareness of their personal learning needs and subsequent self-directed learning behavior. This represents a departure from previous implementation research in engineering education for a number of reasons. First, it demonstrates that there is value in considering students’ roles as implementors of educational innovations, rather than tacitly treating them as subjects to be implemented upon. Second, the use of the word “circumstantial” intentionally acknowledges that the external (environmental) factors that influence implementation can be distinct to individual implementors while remaining contextual in nature. Third, it demonstrates that the processes of implementation which students undergo can lead to concrete changes in learning behavior that extend beyond the scope of the implementation itself.</p><p><br></p><p>Narrative analysis is used to develop a series of narratives that embody the implementation experiences communicated by student participants. These narratives are constructed using disparate ideas, reflections, and tales from a variety of participants, emplotting representative characters within constructed stories in a way that retains the student perspective without adhering too closely to any individual participant’s reported experience. This approach serves two goals: to encourage readers to reflect on how the categories of the hierarchical framework can be demonstrated in students’ experiences, and to reinforce the fact that individual students can exhibit implementation experiences and behaviors that are characteristic of multiple categories of the framework simultaneously. It is important to remember that the categories included in the framework are not meant to characterize students themselves, but rather to characterize their interactions with specific pedagogical innovations. </p><p></p><p> </p><p><br></p><p>The study concludes by interpreting these results in light of literature on implementation and change, proposing new models and making suggestions to faculty to inform the future implementation of educational innovations. Faculty are encouraged to treat students as implementors, and to exercise best practices from implementation literature when employing educational innovations in the classroom. This includes adopting practices that inform, empower, and listen to students, intentionally employing strategies that allow students to exercise their own agency by understanding and utilizing innovations effectively. Prescribing specific innovations and forcing students to use them can be detrimental, but so can freely releasing innovations into the learning environment without preparing students in advance and scaffolding their resource-usage behaviors. Instructors and researchers alike are encouraged to consider implementation from a new perspective, students as implementors, and faculty as facilitators of change. </p><p><br></p>

1 Unterstützung der Lernhandlung zur Förderung der beruflichen Handlungskompetenz in der universitären Ausbildung Ein Großteil der Hochschulabsolventen ist nach Beendigung des Studiums in Unternehmen tätig. Diese fordern von den Absolventen neben fachlichen Kompetenzen vor allem Methoden- und Sozialkompetenz. Fachspezifische Kompetenzen bilden gemeinsam mit Methoden- und Sozialkompetenzen die Grundlage für die Berufsfähigkeit im Sinne beruflicher Handlungskompetenz der Absolventen. In einer Studie des Institutes der deutschen Wirtschaft Köln aus dem Jahre 2010 gaben rund zwei Drittel der befagten Unternehmen an, dass sie es im Bereich der Fach- und Methodenkompetenzen für sehr wichtig halten, dass die Absolventen in der Lage sind, sich in neue Fachgebiete selbstständig einzuarbeiten und vorhandenes Wissen auf neue Probleme anwenden zu können. Das Vorhandensein speziellen Fachwissens spielt hingegen für die Arbeitgeber eher eine untergeordnete Rolle (Konegen- Grenier, Placke & Stangl, 2011, S. 86 ff.). In einer repräsentativen Befragung unter Studierenden im Jahre 2010 gaben ca. 25 Prozent der Befragten an bisher nicht oder eher nicht gefördert worden zu sein (Heine, Woisch & Ortenburger, 2011, S. 31). Einen entscheidenden Einfluss auf die Kompetenzförderung hat die Lernhandlung. In Anlehnung an Richter (2001, S. 46) werden Lernhandlungen in diesem Aufsatz als zielgerichtete Handlungen angesehen, welche sich auf die bewusste und reflektierte Weiterentwicklung der eigenen Handlungskompetenz (Berufsbefähigung) beziehen. Die Lernhandlung zeichnet sich durch die Merkmale des handlungsorientierten Lernens aus. Handlungsorientiertes Lernen ist gekennzeichnet durch Selbststeuerung, Wahl von Handlungsalternativen und Vollständigkeit, im Sinne von Zielbildung, Planung, Durchführung und Kontrolle. Es ist auf Lernzuwachs und Wissenserwerb ausgerichtet und erfolgt bewusst und reflexiv (Richter, 2001, S. 47). [...]

This dissertation rationalizes the best use of Web-based instruction (WBI) for teaching music theory to private piano students in the later primary grades. It uses an integrative research methodology for defining, designing, and implementing a curriculum that includes WBI. Research from the fields of music education, educational technology, educational psychology, and interaction design and children receive primary consideration. A synthesis of these sources outlines several research-based principles that instructional designers can use to design a complete blended learning environment for use within the piano studio. In addition to the research-based principles, the precise methods of determining instructional tasks and implementing the program online are described in detail. A full implementation is then deployed, and piano teachers evaluate the extent to which the online program fulfills the research-based principles. This dissertation does not argue for the complete migration of theory instruction from traditional workbook approaches to an entirely Web-based medium but rather outlines the best use of face-to-face instruction, collaboration amongst students, teachers, and parents, and interaction with a Web-based program. This formative research provides a complete model of integrating WBI within the piano studio that can guide instructional designers and music educators.