Technology tools are critical to contemporary education, but they never function in a vacuum. Even the best, most intuitive tools need to be used in the appropriate context with the right support and guidance.
The Learning Science Lab is running several pilot programs in collaboration with faculty to explore promising software platforms, identify optimal use cases for them, and create supporting materials and documentation so that faculty can deploy them effectively and with minimal difficulty.
These tools currently include the following.
Ed Discussion
Ed Discussion is a discussion forum tailored to educational environments that offers more specialized functionality than the Brightspace Discussion tool.
PeerCeptive
Peerceptiv is a peer feedback tool that supports several different use cases including peer grading, intra group feedback, and live presentation feedback.
Both of the tools above work toward a common aim, which is retaining the collaboration, dynamic discussion, and group learning opportunities of an in-person classroom even when education takes place in a hybrid or online environment.
By identifying, promoting, and supporting best practices within these platforms, the Learning Science Lab aims to facilitate a full range of teaching strategies regardless of where instruction takes place.