Persistence and Extensibility of Web-Based PSI Courses while Maintaining a Sense of “Presence”
PRESENTED BY:
Dr. Mitch Pryor, Lecturer for Mechanical Engineering
Dr. Billy Koen, Professor for Mechanical Engineering
OVERVIEW: This Academic Development Funds funded effort
examined and improved the implementation of a Personalized System of Instruction
(PSI) course, ME205 – Computers and Programming, to address its presence,
persistence and extensibility. Addressing these critical properties improves the
course’s long-term stability in the curricula and effective usage in distance
learning programs. PSI courses are based on an asynchronous, self-paced learning
strategy that is well suited for ME205 due to the broad range of incoming
programming experience and large number (approx. 120-170) enrolled each
semester. Presence is a technical term for the difference in the relationship
between the facilitator and the audience in, for example, a live interaction and
a recorded interaction. Presence is an important, if not critical, component of
an effective web-based PSI course. This fact should be additionally emphasized
since ME205 enrollees are predominantly first-year students where presence is a
key factor in retention. Presence in ME205 is maintained by making the
department, professor and proctors visible through the web site, interactivity
applications, web cams, short video segments, continually refreshing content,
and imbuing content with a consistent style that is engaging to the current
audience. Persistence and Extensibility are complimenting characteristics that
allow the course to be easily managed and modified by instructors other than the
original content/course creator. This ensures that the course can be a stable
and continually relevant component in the department’s curricula.
Dr. Pryor is a Lecturer for Mechanical Engineering where he has taught
undergraduate courses in programming, numerical methods and a graduate course
robot dynamics. He holds a second appointment as the Program Manager for the
Robotics Research Group. His research has focused on generalized operational
software and analytics for robots and robotic workcells. Recent projects have
included a DARPA sponsored automated surgical cell for deployment on the
battlefield and flexible/precision automation for applications within the
Department of Energy.
Dr. Koen is a Professor for Mechanical Engineering and a pioneer in the
application of artificial intelligence to nuclear reactor reliability. In 1969,
he introduced to engineering education a method of self-paced instruction (PSI).
His current research is in applying PSI to web-based, asynchronous learning and
international collaboration over the Internet. His monographs include Definition
of the Engineering Method (1985) and Discussion of the Method (2003). He
received the Chester F. Carlson Award for Innovation in Engineering Education,
and the W. Leighton Collins Award for service to education in engineering, both
awards from American Society of Engineering Education (ASEE). He is a Fellow of
the American Nuclear Society and a Fellow of the American Society of Engineering
Education (ASEE).
If you plan on attending this seminar please contact
Terri Lavorgna or call the
Academic Affairs Office at 471-7995 at least one day before the seminar.