Case Study - WISSENSCHAFT in progress

Goethe’s “Elective Affinities” as E-Learning
Developing Exercises for German Classes in the Secondary School Level 2
eLearning Baltics 2009 – Rostock – 2009/06/18
University of Rostock
Faculty of Arts
Institute of Communication Sciences
Schröderplatz 3/4
18055 Rostock
Wiebke Schwelgengräber, M.A.
Mario Donick, M.A.
Franziska Schönfeld

I
Aims of this Talk
2009/06/18 Developing Exercises for German Classes in the Secondary School Level 2

Aims of this Talk Overview
I Aims of this Talk
II Exercise Development and E-Learning – Theory & Methods
III Case Study: Goethe’s “Elective Affinities” as E-Learning
IV Conclusion: Generalization and Further Possibilities
2009/06/18 Developing Exercises for German Classes in the Secondary School Level 2

Aims of this Talk Problem
How can we develop exercises for electronic and blended
learning situations in a reflected way?
2009/06/18 Developing Exercises for German Classes in the Secondary School Level 2

Aims of this Talk Main Case Study
Goethe’s “Elective Affinities” as Virtual Environment
2009/06/18 Developing Exercises for German Classes in the Secondary School Level 2

II
Exercise Development and E-Learning –
Theory & Methods
2009/06/18 Developing Exercises for German Classes in the Secondary School Level 2

Theory & Methods Views on Exercise Development
Metadata
Standards
Technical
Question
Standards
Technical
Communication
Standards
Selected
Perspectives
Specialized
Didactics
Conceptual
Psychology
Linguistic
Design
e.g. [AGH09, CCB05, Cu08] e.g. [Kö07, Schä06, Fr03, Wi03, JS08]
2009/06/18 Developing Exercises for German Classes in the Secondary School Level 2

Theory & Methods Views on Exercise Development
Metadata
Standards
Technical
Question
Standards
Technical
Communication
Standards
Focused
Perspective
Specialized
Didactics
Conceptual
Psychology
Linguistic
Design
e.g. [AGH09, CCB05, Cu08] e.g. [Kö07, Schä06, Fr03, Wi03, JS08]
2009/06/18 Developing Exercises for German Classes in the Secondary School Level 2

Theory & Methods Scientific Embeddedness
Reading & Writing Process Research
Communication Scientists
Linguists
Psychologists
Teachers
Related Projects
PISA study
VERA 6
2009/06/18 Developing Exercises for German Classes in the Secondary School Level 2

Theory & Methods Simplified Competence Model
Dimension/
Step
Enhanced model based on [Kö05]
Find
Information
(textual close 1)
Step 1 Localize explicit
information
Step 2 Recognize
relations
Step 3 Infer hidden
information
Interpret in
relation to text
(textual close 2)
Reflect and
Judge
(textual distant)
Restate main topic Draw connection
to everyday life
knowledge
Integrate parts of
text
Understand details
of unknown texts
Assess text
properties
Discuss the text
2009/06/18 Developing Exercises for German Classes in the Secondary School Level 2

Theory & Methods Exercise Types
Test Exercises
Reliable
Objective
Valid
Exam Exercises
Learning Exercises
2009/06/18 Developing Exercises for German Classes in the Secondary School Level 2

Theory & Methods Exercise Designs
Closed
Half-open
Open
Examples This design supports …
multiple choice
right/wrong
matching
cloze texts
tasks that require short
phrases as answer
standardized operators,
such as “interpret”,
“analyze”, “discuss”
etc.
Test Situations
search for information inside or outside the text (ref. to text specific knowledge
vs. general knowledge)
orientation on reading competencies to lower the writing barrier
motivation of learners: most learners like to solve closed exercises
evaluation of reading achievements both by the teacher and the learner
Exams and Test Situations
applied mixture of reading and writing competencies
learner’s autonomous interpretation of read texts
evaluation of reading achievements by the teacher
analysis of central topics and coherence in parts larger than one sentence
Learning Situations
open, but topic-related association in regard of text
open interpretation of the read text
discussion & development of new topics in a group
development & application of individual reading strategies
embodiment of the text (creative writing, drama etc.)
learner’s motivation to be allowed to be creative
2009/06/18 Developing Exercises for German Classes in the Secondary School Level 2

Theory & Methods Exercise Designs
Closed
Half-open
Open
Examples This design supports …
multiple choice
right/wrong
matching
cloze texts
tasks that require short
phrases as answer
standardized operators,
such as “interpret”,
“analyze”, “discuss”
etc.
Test Situations
search for information inside or outside the text (ref. to text specific knowledge
vs. general knowledge)
orientation on reading competencies to lower the writing barrier
motivation of learners: most learners like to solve closed exercises
evaluation of reading achievements both by the teacher and the learner
Exams and Test Situations
applied mixture of reading and writing competencies
learner’s autonomous interpretation of read texts
evaluation of reading achievements by the teacher
analysis of central topics and coherence in parts larger than one sentence
Learning Situations
open, but topic-related association in regard of text
open interpretation of the read text
discussion & development of new topics in a group
development & application of individual reading strategies
embodiment of the text (creative writing, drama etc.)
learner’s motivation to be allowed to be creative
2009/06/18 Developing Exercises for German Classes in the Secondary School Level 2

III
Case Study:
Goethe’s “Elective Affinities” as E-Learning
2009/06/18 Developing Exercises for German Classes in the Secondary School Level 2

Case Study Goal
To provide pupils in German classes in the Secondary
School Level 2 additional interactive perspectives on the
novel “Elective Affinities” by J. W. Goethe
2009/06/18 Developing Exercises for German Classes in the Secondary School Level 2

Case Study Overview
Technical Concept
Text-based virtual environment
Realization as Interactive Fiction (IF)
Implementation using Inform 7 with GerX Extension
2009/06/18 Developing Exercises for German Classes in the Secondary School Level 2

Case Study Overview
Inform 7
Natural language
(although very
“Denglisch” with GerX)
Usable without
programming knowledge
Preprocessor; creates Cstyle
Inform 6 code
More info: inform7.com
2009/06/18 Developing Exercises for German Classes in the Secondary School Level 2

Case Study Overview
Advantages
IF valuable for classes in which reading and writing
texts are in the center of interest
Original text forms the core of the virtual world
Users need no special technical requirements
IF facilitates voluntary development
2009/06/18 Developing Exercises for German Classes in the Secondary School Level 2

Case Study Overview
Text internal Topics (from Goethe’s Novel)
Marriage and Society
Architecture and Design
Sciences
Arts and Education
2009/06/18 Developing Exercises for German Classes in the Secondary School Level 2

Case Study Overview
Text external Topics (Related to Goethe’s Novel)
Fall of the Holy Roman Empire
Development of a Civil Society
The “Demoniac”
Romanticism and Anti-Romanticism
2009/06/18 Developing Exercises for German Classes in the Secondary School Level 2

Case Study Some Sketches (Spring 2008)
Basic World Structure
Two Rooms
Implemented Places
2009/06/18 Developing Exercises for German Classes in the Secondary School Level 2

Case Study Screenshot of current Alpha
2009/06/18 Developing Exercises for German Classes in the Secondary School Level 2

Case Study Screenshot of current Alpha
Decontextualisation of original text
objects
complex reading situation
Competencies for successful Re-
Contextualisiation:
Textual close 1 and 2, steps 2 and 3
2009/06/18 Developing Exercises for German Classes in the Secondary School Level 2

Case Study How to develop an Exercise – Example
The Intuitive Way
“This is an internal topic, thus it
addresses reading comprehension.”
“The Pupil should use the original
novel to solve the exercise.”
“How could I verbalize the exercise?”
“I don’t want to assess the pupil.”
“It should cover Goethe’s way to
reflect on the topics marriage and
society.”
2009/06/18 Developing Exercises for German Classes in the Secondary School Level 2

Case Study How to Develop an Exercise – Example
The Structured Way
2009/06/18 Developing Exercises for German Classes in the Secondary School Level 2

Case Study How to Develop an Exercise – Example
„Überprüfe, wer diesen Brief verfasst
hat und an wen er adressiert ist. Dazu
kannst du die anwesenden Personen
befragen und überprüfen, welche
Gegenstände in diesem Raum dir
Informationen liefern könnten.“
“Check who has written this letter and who the letter’s adressee
is. You can interview the persons and check the items in this
room for information.”
2009/06/18 Developing Exercises for German Classes in the Secondary School Level 2

IV
Conclusion:
Generalization and Further Possibilities
2009/06/18 Developing Exercises for German Classes in the Secondary School Level 2

Conclusion Further Possibilities
… by a tutor in
a LMS
… by a teacher
in relation to elearning
media
Exercise
offered …
… in an offline
e-learning
medium
Although different fields require different competence
models, the structured algorithm proves very helpful.
2009/06/18 Developing Exercises for German Classes in the Secondary School Level 2
…

Conclusion
Developing exercises is an intense process.
Research on exercise development offers structured ways to
sharpen the formely intuitive development process.
2009/06/18 Developing Exercises for German Classes in the Secondary School Level 2

Thank you for your interest!
Questions?
Remarks?
2009/06/18 Developing Exercises for German Classes in the Secondary School Level 2

Contact
University of Rostock
Faculty of Arts
Institute of Communication Sciences
Schröderplatz 3/4
D-18055 Rostock
http://www.phf.uni-rostock.de/komm
Wiebke Schwelgengräber, M.A.
Mario Donick, M.A.
Franziska Schönfeld
firstname.lastname@uni-rostock.de