THE UNIVERSITY OF THE WESTERN CAPE

1. THE UNIVERSITY OF THEWESTERN CAPE The Use of Artefact Production to achieve learning objectives in a second-year Zoology course at UWC Daniels, A. D., Holtman, L. B. & Keats, D. W. Biodiversity and Conservation Biology Department

2. Background • 2004 • Zoo211 course in BCB • Introduction to animal diversity • Objectives: understanding of taxonomy and systematics • 50 students, small group techniques • Divided into 10 groups of 5

3. research questions: • How can one use technology to get students participating in research/learning? • How can artefact production be used to positively impact the uptake of subject content? • Does artefact production meet the learning objectives of the course? • What is a suitable model for the introduction of technology in a teaching-and-learning environment?

4. Hardware • 30 Workstation Computer lab • Analogue Sony handycam videorecorder • Still cameras • Thumbdrives • Streaming Server

5. Software • PowerPoint 2003 • MS Producer • Windows 2000 operating system • 8mm tapes

6. Theoretical framework • Activity theory • Learning is a human activity that is socially-situated and artefact-mediated. At its heart is the idea that internal activities such as thinking, emerge out of practical external activity and therefore the unit of analysis must include the individual and their culturally defined context. In essence tools mediate the processes between subject and object; rules mediate the processes between subjects and community; and division of labour mediates the processes between community and object (Rizzo, 2003).

7. What is an artefact? • any object constructed for a purpose, and validated within a community of practitioners.

8. Methodology • Zoo211 course • 10 groups of 5 students • organisms included, invertebrate groups, well researched, not commonly known to all students. • Team leaders had to draw a scientific name out of a box and come up with the common name. • PPT or MSP presentation choice • Answer 3 questions about the organism

9. Methodology continued • +/- 20% of the class had no PPT experience • 30% of the students had computers at home • Even fewer had access to video or still cameras • 2 primary artefacts to produce was the PPT and MSP of which they had a choice.

10. Zoo211 class Observation presentations I presentation II

11. Aquarium visit

12. Results and Discussion • 4 of 5 groups completed MSP’s • 3 groups presented MSP’s in the class while the rest had their sessions recorded for insertion into MSP later.

13. Results continued • Q: Why?(do you remember it better) • Brenda: It’s like something that sticks. • Candice: It’s because you continuously do the same thing and you are doing research basically. • Brenda: Ja, if you are researching things yourself it sticks. • Q: Why do you think that is? • Brenda: And especially the way that you set it up…It just seems so much easier. • Abbi: I think it sticks because it was more for interest sake. It wasn’t like studying. Doing research we found out interesting things about our organism.

14. Results continued • Q: Did you find that using the technology made learning fun/ exciting or did it hinder your learning • Abbi: More exciting. Much more exciting. • Abbi: Working with PPT and setting up the information you are going through it again you’re organizing the information so that it all flows but you can also add sound effects and time it… • Brenda: You are setting it up in way that it is interesting for the people you are presenting it to but also for yourself. It kind of helped with the project. Student presentations

15. Conclusion • How can one use technology to get students participating in research? • How can artefact production be used to positively impact the uptake of subject content? • What is a suitable model for the introduction of technology in a teaching-and-learning environment? • Does artefact production meet the learning objectives of the course?

16. THANK YOU