Full Research Paper - Engineering students experience a wide range of learning practices through technical and analytical thinking and a process of reflection is needed to support them with their meaning-making process. In this study, we analyzed students’ perceptions on the role of empathy in human-centered design thinking processes. The reflection assignment took on a learning community pedagogical approach which can help students gain nuanced and deeper understanding of empathy. By situating the design experience within a community of peers, there are increased opportunities for norming and exchange, shared strategies and resources, and a sense of collective progress. We explored how the diversity in the dispositions and experiences of students played a unique and major role in framing and shaping design problems and perspective-taking. This paper reports the findings through a qualitative content analysis of reflective essays written by students in a sophomore engineering design course offered in two semesters. Through such assignments, instructors and curriculum integrators can understand the different ways their students are experiencing the curriculum.

This Research paper presents results from a Critical Discourse Analysis of ten engineering design courses' syllabi from an undergraduate engineering program that would like to foster a learning community through their design courses. The analysis found the syllabi are giving mixed and incoherent messages to students in becoming contributing community members. The syllabi as a tool should be able to motivate and prepare students to collaborate and thrive within a learning community.

Digitally augmented physical spaces (e.g., smart classrooms) offer opportunities to engage students in novel and potentially transformative learning experiences. This paper presents an immersive rainforest simulation and collective inquiry activity where students collect observational data from the environment and explore their peers' data through large visualization displays and personal mobile devices. Two iterations of the design were tested, which resulted in higher quality student explanations constructed. Images were found to be an important source of evidence for the explanations, more so than text-only evidence. We also found that patterns of collective ideas influenced student performance, and that visualizations, as ambient or plenary displays, supported both teacher and students in reviewing patterns of collected data.

This paper presents our research of a pedagogical model known as Knowledge Community and Inquiry (KCI), focusing on our design of a technological infrastructure for the orchestration of the complex CSCL scripts that characterize KCI curricula. We first introduce the KCI model including some basic design principles, and describe its dependency on real time learning analytics. Next, we describe our technology, known as SAIL Smart Space (S3), which provides scaffolding and analytic support of sequenced interactions amongst people, materials, tools and environments. We outline the critical role of the teacher in our designs and describe how S3 supports their active role in orchestration. Finally we outline two implementations of KCI/S3 and the role of learning analytics, in supporting dynamic collective visualizations, real time orchestrational logic, and ambient displays.

This paper describes our efforts to develop a new lab-based course format for computer science instruction. Building on learning science research, we created a flexible new technology platform to support students and their instructor as they participated in this new form of instruction. Students work collaboratively on Web-based activities while the instructor interacts with students in a tutorial role. The paper describes our system in detail, outlines the organization of the course that used it, and reviews and evaluates the pilot results. We then discuss the implications for computer science instruction and research in higher education.