UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — The learning sciences is an area of scholarship that focuses on how learning happens in a variety of learning contexts — in classrooms, online, museums, clubs, the workplace and many other formal and informal locations. A significant strand of research in this area tends to focus on the role of design and design principles in education, including educational interventions, curricula, spaces and exhibits, or technologies.
Read about the many ways in which the College of Education is furthering the field of the learning sciences, in the "2017 Report on the Learning Sciences," available online via issuu.com, with individual stories posted to the Penn State News website.
This edition features:
— McDonald to convene Learning Sciences Initiative
The goal is to make Penn State a national leader in learning sciences scholarship.
— Methods by which students learn science undergoing revision
Penn State now is part of Advancing Coherent and Equitable Systems of Science Education.
— Intelligent Tutor technology helps students increase reading comprehension
Technology is helping to implement structure strategy in classrooms in grades 4-8.
— Researcher explores learning habits of skateboarders
Informal learning is just one of the many components of the learning sciences.
— Doctoral candidates help create online studio for graphic design course
Course highlights how important the design of education in online spaces is to students.
— New computer program to examine collaborative online learning
Marcela Borge is part of ground-breaking research about the usefulness of online communities within learning programs.
— Research exploring race and gender in video games is first of its kind
Study attempts to understand different types of exclusionary practices in gaming across gender and race.
— Virtual reality lessons can help students become better real-life teachers
The TeachLivE program gives prospective teachers a feel for classroom situations.
— Quality Talk increases critical thinking in high school STEM classrooms
The approach has experienced success in improving elementary students’ comprehension of text and writing skills.
— Dual-title degrees provide options
The college offers a dual-title degree in comparative and international education (CIED); learning sciences might be next.
— Entrance into NAPLeS aids college's visibility
To increase international visibility and opportunities for international collaborations with other learning sciences sites, the College of Education now is a member of the Network of Academic Programs in the Learning Sciences (NAPLeS).
Stories about the College of Education's continued work in the learning sciences can be found at https://ed.psu.edu/news/learning-sciences online. As always, we welcome your feedback at edrelations@psu.edu.