Exploring Place for Online Learners in Hawaiʻi

Session Description
Place-based learning is a pedagogy and a learning strategy through which learners engage with themselves, with each other, their larger communities, and with the natural environment. Real-life learning experiences enhance and anchor learning and increase student engagement. Current social time-constraints and individual’s abilities to learn in convenient environments have aided a proliferation in distance education programs as a popular and preferred path to learning. Online courses may be convenient for the busy 21st century student. However, there is still a need for online courses to create and foster community. Can these two learning strategies, which seem so distant in scope from one another, come together in one blended course?

Rather than just reading about local plants and their uses, learners can go into the field and experience it for themselves. Native Plants of Hawaiʻi: Exploring Waikīkī was created to inspire inquiry of the local culture and environment, while supporting and enhancing learners’ cognitive abilities. This course seeks to incorporate online, asynchronous learning with a required field day. The online learning orients students to identification knowledge of native plants they encounter and their traditional (historical and contemporary) uses. The physical encounter assists with recall for students’ future application. The dual experience strengthens knowledge from simply “knowing” as they have had physical, active encounters with what they were learning. This session will share relevant, place-based assessment and what that could look like for local learning communities in online courses.

Presenter(s)
Kūʻiʻolani Cotchay
Kūʻiʻolani Cotchay, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, HI
Kūʻiʻolani Cotchay is a graduate student in the M. Ed. Learning Design and Technology program at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, where she received a BA in Hawaiian Studies. She is an alternative educator, interested in creating and fostering learning environments external to the typical classroom. Future plans include creating an online Girls Rock Camp, developing educational content for Kānaka Maoli, and obsessing more about Kānaka Color Theory.
Sarah Nakashima
Sarah Nakashima, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, HI
Sarah Nakashima regularly looks for strange articles revolving around animals and cults. As a Humanities Librarian at Hamilton Library at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa (UHM), she uses the found information to engage undergraduate students in the research process. Her excitement for student engagement and her desire to broaden the library’s reach motivated her to pursue online learning. Currently, Sarah is finishing as a Master’s candidate in the UHM College of Education, Learning Design and Technology department. Her research focused on incorporating online learning strategies into current library instructional roles.
Session Type
LTEC Session
Audience
All Audiences

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Developing an Online Training: U.S. Passport Application Acceptance Agent Pre-Certification

Session Description
U.S. Passport Application Acceptance agent candidates are asked to attend the certification training workshop at the Honolulu Passport Agency and take the exam the same day. Candidates will be attending the class without any prior knowledge of the content and will be taking the certification exam the very same day. Candidates feel that a one-day training workshop and being tested the same day is not realistic to pass the certification exam. By giving the candidates pre-training, it will lessen their stress and pressure by giving them the idea of what is to come. This online course will prepare the candidate with basic knowledge of accepting U.S. Passport applications and increase the pass rate for the certification exam.

The purpose of this online training module is to prepare the employees at Kapiolani Community College (KapCC) in the Hospitality and Tourism Education department to be a certified U.S. Passport Application Acceptance agent so the KapCC U.S. Passport Application Acceptance office can service and meet the growing demand of U.S. citizens to obtain Passports. This training uses the Social-Cognitive Learning theory. The learners learn by the examples the instructors give and activities using picture images, videos on youtube, flipgrid and H5P hotspot. The assessment of their learning will be done using Kahoot!, and a traditional multiple-choice test. The whole training course will be held online on Laulima. The highlight of the training will be the activity using Flipgrid to create a fun interactive discussion.

Presenter(s)
Julie Takeda
Julie Takeda, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, HI

Jessica Lum
Jessica Lum, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, HI

Session Type
LTEC Session
Audience
All Audiences

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Local Literatures of Hawaiʻi: A “Talk Story” and Place-Based Approach to an Online Literature and Culture Course

Session Description
Drawing upon the concept of “Talk Story” and place-based pedagogy, this instructional design focuses on a 16-week English 272: Introduction to Culture and Literature course (ENG 272) at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. Themed as “Claiming Culture and Place Through Local Literatures of Hawaiʻi,” ENG 272 explores the ways local literatures establish local identities and complicate issues regarding whose voices are privileged within local communities, challenging metaphors of Hawaiʻi as a “melting pot” or “mixed plate.” ENG 272’s designation as a Writing Intensive course also emphasizes the development of students’ abilities to read, analyze, and interpret literary text through written form.

The focus of this course draws upon place-based writing theory and practices to facilitate students’ connections to Hawaiʻi. Scholars in the field of composition have advocated for place-based writing to be integrated into classrooms because writing that’s tied to place and community encourages students to seriously consider the effects of their interactions, their intended audiences, and underlying purposes of their content (Esposito, 2012). Through the course’s Canvas website, students will engage in “Talk Story” activities through Flipgrid that analyze works from both Native Hawaiian and local scholars and writers while responding to the ideas and questions posed by their peers. By engaging with place and literature, students can explore their relationships and responsibilities to the communities in Hawaiʻi, which are lessons students from Hawaiʻi, the continent, and other countries can benefit from.

Presenter(s)
Avree Ito-Fujita
Avree Ito-Fujita, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, HI

Session Type
LTEC Session
Audience
All Audiences

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Pre-Arrival Learner (PAL) Online Course

Session Description
The opportunity to study English in Hawai’i is an appealing option for many international students seeking to improve their English language skills. However, by choosing to live abroad, these same students could possibly face pragmatic communication difficulties and encounter acculturative stress, which has the potential to negatively impact their English studies. This online course hopes to address these issues by familiarizing English language learners about culture shock and the different issues they may have living abroad before departing from their home country.

The target audience for this course are English learners with a High Basic to Low Intermediate level of English proficiency currently enrolled in a 4-year college within their respective home country. The technological tools for the course are Canvas as the LMS, various Google Apps (e.g., Google Docs, Google Slides), and Kahoot. In addition to Zoom as the main video application for the course, other video applications such as Flipgrid and VoiceThread may be used.

The course takes a constructivist approach to the content by having the students collaborate and build upon their existing knowledge of Hawai’i and English. Course topics include the issues of living abroad and culture shock, as well as Hawai’i’s history, traditions, and pop culture. There will be two summative assessments at the end of the course: a reflection essay and a project-based final presentation video. One component of interest will be a synchronous, community-building activity called interchange, which provides international students the opportunity to interact and communicate with authentic UH student interchangers.

Presenter(s)
Patrick Agullana
Patrick Agullana, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, HI

Session Type
LTEC Session
Audience
All Audiences

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Mana‘olana Website: A Usability Study

Session Description
Caring for a child with a mental illness can be extremely time-consuming and challenging for parents, especially in Hawai’i, where there is a shortage of mental health care providers. In addition, parents may not feel comfortable speaking openly about their child’s mental illness, and they may not know where to find help for their child or support for themselves. For these reasons, a need exists to provide readily accessible resources for parents in Hawai‘i who care for children with mental illness. To address this need, an online instructional resource named Mana‘olana was designed and developed. The online instructional resource includes four main components: information about service providers for psychological testing, information about service providers for children with a mental health diagnosis, parental support, and informational resources. The final version of the website was created using Wix.com, a free online site for designing websites.

As part of the instructional design process, a usability study was conducted to evaluate the website’s ease of navigation and the ability of users to locate pertinent and relevant information. In total, nine (n = 9) participants completed the study. These participants were asked to interact with the website by completing six tasks, as well as give feedback on the website’s organization and visual aesthetic. Preliminary results from the study suggest the online instructional resource is informative, useful, and relevant for parents and caregivers of children with mental illness in Hawai‘i. This presentation will summarize the usability study’s methods and results, as well as highlight key aspects of the latest version of the website.

Mana‘olana.info is considered public domain and can be shared with parent support groups, school administrators and counselors, and mental health care providers throughout the state of Hawai`i.

Presenter(s)
Joy Aiwohi
Joy Aiwohi, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, HI
Joy Aiwohi is a teacher at Kamehameha Schools Kapalama, and has been teaching at the middle school level for 22 years. She earned a Bachelor of Education degree in Secondary Social Studies and a Master of Education degree in Curriculum Studies from the University of Hawai‘i at Manoa. Joy is in her final year of the Learning Design and Technology M.Ed. Program at the University of Hawai‘i at Manoa.
Session Type
LTEC Session
Audience
All Audiences

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Kindergarten Classroom Website: A Usability Study of a Teacher Website

Session Description
Communication between a teacher and families is critical for a positive learning environment. Various forms of communication between the teacher and families can encourage parent participation as well as foster the growth of existing relationships. It is important for parents to have access to important school and classroom information in one convenient location. The current school website has limited features and design capabilities for teachers to provide information to parents.

To address this need, a teacher-created classroom website was created. The purpose of this usability study was to develop and evaluate the ease-of-use and navigation of a Kindergarten Classroom Website: A Usability Study of a Teacher Website (https://kinderclasswebsite.weebly.com) designed to provide parents with one convenient location to find all important and necessary school and classroom information. The website was created using Weebly, a cloud-based web development platform. The design of the website used Gestalt’s Principles with components from Rosena and Purinton to focus on the cognitive parts of the design. Three rounds of usability testing were conducted with three participants in each round. Data was collected via surveys and during the walkthrough sessions. Revisions were made based on feedback received from participants to improve the overall site and user experience. Based on the data, minor revisions were made to the site. The methods, participant data, design implications, and website modifications will be further discussed in this presentation.

Presenter(s)
Morisha Ogata
Morisha Ogata, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, HI

Session Type
LTEC Session
Audience
All Audiences

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Medical Simulation Specialist 1

Session Description
The Medical Simulation Specialist I is a 5-week online course created to fulfill the need to train technical assistants in medical simulation. Simulation using patient manikins can place a high cognitive load on medical educators facilitating students in a scenario. Medical subject matter experts who facilitate simulation often benefit from assistance with the computer-manikin interface and simulation environment. Volunteers, staff or students can be trained to assist facilitators as simulation specialists. The standards of best practice in simulation operations list criterion specific to the role of simulation specialist’s including understanding of the principles of simulation in education and teaching methods, set up, operating and maintaining equipment, staging, and the use of moulage. This course introduces the student to the use of simulation as a strategy to train healthcare providers, terminology, technology, robotics and a practicum. Merrill’s principles of instruction (2002) were used to plan student learning centered on relevant real-world tasks. Bloom’s Taxonomy revised in 2001 was used to develop the cognitive framework and objectives in the curriculum. Laulima was used as the learning management system (LMS). Since the last week of the online course is a practicum in a simulation room, it was a challenge to develop a method to allow students who were off-site to complete this module. However, various methods were developed to enable the student to fulfill the final checklist and will likely be refined through instructor and leaner collaboration.
Presenter(s)
Kris Hara
Kris Hara, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, HI
Kris Hara is the chief simulation specialist at SimTiki Simulation Center located at the John A Burns School of Medicine in Honolulu, Hawaii. She grew up in Pupukea, HI and earned her respiratory therapy degree from Loma Linda University and Wayland Baptist University. She is currently a masters candidate at the University of Hawaii in Education, learning design and technology (LTEC). Her background as a registered respiratory therapist, pulmonary rehab specialist allowed her to actively engage in patient and staff education and clinical service for many years. In beginning a career in medical simulation in 2006 she fell even more in love with education. As a certified healthcare simulation operation specialist by the Society for Simulation in Healthcare she loves supporting medical students and faculty as the operations director of the simulation lab at JABSOM. Being a part of the LTEC ohana (family) has been a privilege and a joy!
Session Type
LTEC Session
Audience
All Audiences

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Dungeons and Dragons in Education: A Usability Study

Session Description
When it comes to this generation of learners, common challenges that often arise for educators include engaging learners, helping them process information, and getting them to apply that information. Game-based learning has been defined as learning that utilizes games to encourage students to be self-motivated and self-driven by presenting learning material as something enjoyable and thus facilitates engagement (Game-Based Learning: latest evidence and future directions).

In order to address these issues, a web-based instructional resource was developed on the topic of Dungeons and Dragons (D&D) in education. The target audience of the instructional resource includes educators seeking a way to facilitate learning engagement and assess learning transfer. The web-based resource is located at (https://tasian1.wixsite.com/dndineducation).

A usability test was conducted to evaluate multiple aspects of the web-based instructional resource. The researcher conducted two rounds of usability testing with a total of eight participants. Data collected from the study indicated an overall positive reception towards the content, graphics, and layout of the web-based instructional resource. Revisions were made according to user feedback.

This session will discuss the overall design of the project as well as the usability study’s methods, data, and results. By conducting this study, the researcher was able to obtain data that improved the instructional design of the website. Ideally, this helped provide a site for teachers looking to try a different method of engagement and learning assessment. Through this project, the researcher was able to expose teachers to this new method of teaching and in turn, has learned how to better present this material so that it is more accessible for educators.

Presenter(s)
Tasia Nakasone
Tasia Nakasone, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, HI

Session Type
LTEC Session
Audience
All Audiences

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Health Sciences Library Website Using LibGuides: a usability study

Session Description
The purpose of this usability study was to determine the ease of use and navigation of a new Health Sciences Library website, using the LibGuide platform, for biomedical students, faculty, researchers, and staff at the John A. Burns School of Medicine. The main functions of the HSL are to provide its patrons with the information they need to complete assignments, teach, conduct research, and facilitate patient care. The HSL specializes in collecting and subscribing to biomedical information. With the bulk of the library’s collection being available online it is important that the library’s website is easy to learn and use. Approval to conduct the study was received by the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa Institutional Review Board. For this usability study, in an effort to reduce cognitive load on users, the HSL website was consolidated to a single platform called LibGuides, and a new discovery tool/search interface was implemented. This usability study evaluates the learnability, efficiency, and users’ satisfaction of the new website and discovery tool through online questionnaires and in-person think aloud sessions. Results from the usability study show that the new website is easier to use and participants rated a higher satisfaction with the new website compared to the old website.
URL: https://libguides.jabsom.hawaii.edu/library
Presenter(s)
Melissa Kahili-Heede
Melissa Kahili-Heede, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, HI
Melissa Kahili-Heede is a final year masters student in the Learning Design and Technology program in the College of Education at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. Melissa is also a librarian at the Health Sciences Library at the John A. Burns School of Medicine, University of Hawaii at Manoa.
Session Type
LTEC Session
Audience
All Audiences

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The Design of a Mini Course of Basic Photography

Session Description
Nowadays, visual arts are becoming more and more important in all different areas in our life and study. In universities, visuals are often needed when students to do their academic presentations regardless of their major, or to share their happy school lives through social media, or to make posters for their university clubs, and so on. The advanced development of digital tools allow people to take photos in a much easier and quicker way. Since most mobile phones have the ability to take pictures, photo-taking has become more affordable.

However, there is still differences between taking photos and taking good photos. With better quality photos, the camera person can communicate the message with their audience easily and correctly. I created a course to teach College Freshmen (in all majors) to gain basic photography knowledge and skills. Through this one credit course, the students will be able to tell the differences between the good and better photos, and more importantly, they will be able to take great photos by themselves.

How to deliver the content effectively online without fact to face opportunities to do the lectures and hands-on practices, is an interesting challenge for creating this mini course. In this session I will talk about the major design of this course which I created on Canvas.

Presenter(s)
Hongwei Shimizu
Hongwei Shimizu, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, HI
Hongwei Shimizu received BA in Visual Media and MFA in Film & Electronic Media both from AU (American University). She has big passion in teaching, so she also gained Oxford Seminars’ TESOL/TESL/TEFL (100-HOUR) Certificate and Certificate in Greenburg PH.D. Teaching Seminar. Hongwei Shimizu now is a second year LTEC Master student at UH. She hopes she can contribute more and more in the education field of her Visual Media techniques and Multi-languages (Japanese, Chinese, and English) skills.
Session Type
LTEC Session
Audience
All Audiences

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