scholarly journals Effective approach in making Capstone project a holistic learning experience to students of undergraduate computer science engineering program

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 420 ◽  
Author(s):  
Deepamala N ◽  
Shobha G

Final year or Capstone Project is an important and final phase of the undergraduate curriculum in Computer Science Engineering program. Final year project is a course where all the skills learnt by the students in previous semesters are applied and evaluated. The important aspects in the delivery of course are i) developing a model to train the students to deliver quality project work and documentation, ii) effective evaluation of the student based on rubrics which are mapped to course outcomes iii) Map the feedback from stakeholders as per graduate attributes and measure performance. This paper discusses the approach followed for three academic years 2014-2017 on a batch of 250 students per year. Training sessions, evaluation rubrics, usage of project management tools, mapping of their performance with the outcomes of the course and program, feedback from the stakeholders like companies and students themselves gives a clear view of improvement of the performance of the students after the Final Year Project course in three years.

Author(s):  
Josef Buchner ◽  
Julia Weißenböck

Augmented Reality has the potential of transforming teaching. By applying this technology themselves, students progress from consumers of technology to producers of their own digital content, and they can make it available to a large audience and create an immersive learning experience. After a language trip to Scotland, teachers and two classes of 17-year-old students from a school in Salzburg, Austria, decided to present the outcome of their project work from their stay abroad in a more interactive and innovative way. Instead of inviting parents and friends to an evening of PowerPoint, the students designed AR posters and visitors were invited to an interactive gallery walk during which they had the chance to explore thematic posters related to Scotland. While at first glance the posters seem rather bland, digital content, which the students produced, opens up by scanning the pictures on the poster with a special AR app. This project successfully combines language and digital skills and has shown to motivate students to engage even deeper with their topic.


2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (12) ◽  
pp. 353
Author(s):  
Shaya Wolf ◽  
Andrea Carneal Burrows ◽  
Mike Borowczak ◽  
Mason Johnson ◽  
Rafer Cooley ◽  
...  

Research on innovative, integrated outreach programs guided three separate week-long outreach camps held across two summers (2018 and 2019). These camps introduced computer science through real-world applications and hands-on activities, each dealing with cybersecurity principles. The camps utilized low-cost hardware and free software to provide a total of 84 students (aged 10 to 18 years) a unique learning experience. Based on feedback from the 2018 camp, a new pre/post survey was developed to assess changes in participant knowledge and interest. Student participants in the 2019 iteration showed drastic changes in their cybersecurity content recall (33% pre vs. 96% post), cybersecurity concept identification within real-world scenarios, and exhibited an increased ability to recognize potential cybersecurity threats in their every-day lives (22% pre vs. 69% post). Finally, students’ self-reported interest-level before and after the camp show a positive increase across all student participants, with the number of students who where highly interested in cybersecurity more than doubling from 31% pre-camp to 65% post-camp. Implications for educators are large as these activities and experiences can be interwoven into traditional schooling as well as less formal camps as pure computer science or through integrated STEM.


Author(s):  
Aaron Simon Blicblau ◽  
Tracey Louise Nelson ◽  
Kourosh Dini

This study investigated the impact of two arrangements of work experiences; short term (over 12 weeks, STIE) and long- term (over 52 weeks, LTIE) on both final academic grades and capstone project grades. The results from this work will inform future approaches of determining the benefits to students of the usefulness of industry placed learning experiences (short or long term) as both an indicator of academic performance, and success in capstone project work. Outcomes have shown that engineering graduates without substantial industrial experience often find employment difficult to find in the short time after completing their studies.


2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 63-73 ◽  
Author(s):  
Simon Grey ◽  
David Grey ◽  
Neil Gordon ◽  
Jon Purdy

This paper offers an approach to designing game-based learning experiences inspired by the Mechanics-Dynamics-Aesthetics (MDA) model (Hunicke et al., 2004) and the elemental tetrad model (Schell, 2008) for game design. A case for game based learning as an active and social learning experience is presented including arguments from both teachers and game designers concerning the value of games as learning tools. The MDA model is introduced with a classic game- based example and a non-game based observation of human behaviour demonstrating a negative effect of extrinsic motivators (Pink, 2011) and the need to closely align or embed learning outcomes into game mechanics in order to deliver an effective learning experience. The MDA model will then be applied to create a game based learning experience with the goal of teaching some of the aspects of using source code control to groups of Computer Science students. First, clear aims in terms of learning outcomes for the game are set out. Following the learning outcomes, the iterative design process is explained with careful consideration and reflection on the impact of specific design decisions on the potential learning experience. The reasons those decisions have been made and where there may be conflict between mechanics contributing to learning and mechanics for reasons of gameplay are also discussed. The paper will conclude with an evaluation of results from a trial of computer science students and staff, and the perceived effectiveness of the game at delivering specific learning outcomes, and the approach for game design will be assessed.


2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah Atayero ◽  
Kate Dunton ◽  
Sasha Mattock ◽  
Amanda Gore ◽  
Sarah Douglas ◽  
...  

PurposeInterdisciplinary approaches to health education are becoming increasingly common. Here, the authors describe an arts-based approach designed by academics and artists to both supplement the study of mental illness and support the individual mental health of undergraduate and postgraduate university students, by raising the visibility of mental illness in an innovative way.Design/methodology/approachThrough workshops, university students were guided in a sensory and physical way to discuss psychological health and vulnerability. This was followed by the creation of physical representations of mental distress through art pieces.FindingsStudents were able to design their own art pieces and discuss mental health issues in an open and creative way. Students reported that the arts-based initiative was beneficial to their practice as future professionals and provided a holistic learning experience. At the same time, artists were able to generate powerful images which facilitated further discussions within the faculty.Practical implicationsThis project provides an innovative model for workshops which could be employed to raise the visibility of common mental health disorders among university students while providing a safe space to discuss and support wellbeing. Additionally, variations could be implemented to enhance the teaching of affective disorders within a university curriculum.Originality/valueThis paper presents the results of collaboration between academics and artists, who together generated an innovative way to both support students' mental health and provide an alternative way to supplement experiential learning about common mental health conditions such as anxiety and depression.


Comunicar ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 19 (38) ◽  
pp. 83-91 ◽  
Author(s):  
John Potter ◽  
Shakuntala Banaji

The widespread uses of social media have been celebrated as a unique opportunity to redesign innovative learning environments that position students at the center of a participatory, multiliteracy and peer learning experience. This article problemitizes the connection between the social uses of new media and relevant educational practices and proposes more rigorous theoretical frames that can be used to guide future research into the role of social media in education. This article reports on a case study of a small group of students who use an online module to study media, culture and communication as part of a wider master’s programme. The students were invited to reflect in a more reflexive and theoretical manner than is commonly used in a standard course evaluation about their experiences of engaging with social media as both the medium and the subject of the course. The article discusses the student experience as it unfolded in the context of an assessed piece of project work. In discussing the findings the authors locate the arguments in the context of debates about new literacies, pedagogy and social media as well as in an emergent theory of self-curatorship as a metaphorical frame for understanding the production and representation of identity in digital media.El uso de los medios sociales se ha extendido notablemente y se considera ya como una oportunidad única para el diseño de entornos innovadores de aprendizaje, donde los estudiantes se conviertan en protagonistas de experiencias de multialfabetización participativas y entre iguales. El trabajo cuestiona la conexión entre los usos sociales de los nuevos medios y las prácticas educativas relevantes, y propone marcos teóricos más rigurosos que puedan orientar en futuras investigaciones sobre el papel de los medios sociales en la educación. El trabajo reflexiona sobre el estudio de caso llevado a cabo en un grupo de alumnos en un módulo on-line como parte de un programa de máster sobre medios de comunicación, cultura y comunicación. Se invitó a los estudiantes a desenvolverse en estrategias de evaluación más allá de las convencionales, con el fin de teorizar y reflexionar sobre sus experiencias con los medios sociales como soporte y materia del curso. El artículo analiza la experiencia de los estudiantes evaluados en el conjunto del proyecto. Durante la exposición de resultados, los autores situaron los argumentos en el contexto del debate sobre las nuevas alfabetizaciones, la pedagogía y los medios sociales, así como en el marco de la teoría emergente de la autogestión del individuo en estos contextos, como marco metafórico para comprender la producción y la representación de la identidad en los medios digitales.


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