Measuring the value of “all play and no work”: can rigorous assessment of simulation games drive innovative teaching in construction?

The construction field is dynamic and dominated by complex, ill-defined problems for which myriad possible solutions exist. Teaching students to solve construction-related problems requires an understanding of the nature of these complex problems as well as the implementation of effective instructional strategies to address them. Traditional approaches to teaching construction planning and management have long been criticized for presenting students primarily with well-defined problems - an approach inconsistent with the challenges encountered in the industry. However, growing evidence suggests that employing innovative teaching approaches, such as interactive simulation games, offers more active, hands-on and problem-based learning opportunities for students to synthesize and test acquired knowledge more closely aligned with real-life construction scenarios. Simulation games have demonstrated educational value in increasing student problem solving skills and motivation through critical attributes such as interaction and feedback-supported active learning. Nevertheless, broad acceptance of simulation games in construction engineering education remains limited. While recognizing benefits, research focused on the role of simulation games in educational settings lacks a unified approach to developing, implementing and evaluating these games. To address this gap, this paper provides an overview of the challenges associated with evaluating the effectiveness of simulation games in construction education that still impede their wide adoption. An overview of the current status, as well as the results from recently implemented Virtual Construction Simulator (VCS) game at Penn State provide lessons learned, and are intended to guide future efforts in developing interactive simulation games to reach their full potential.

Mapania sapuaniana (Cyperaceae), a new sedge species from Sarawak

Mapania sapuaniana, a spectacular new sedge species from Lanjak Entimau, Sarawak, is described and illustrated. It is closely related to M. richardsii and M. bomeensis but differs in having broad leaves with a distinct pseudopetiole, reddish purple or maroon coloration on the underside of the leaf and petiole and an inflorescence composed of several spikes.

Inclusive approaches to teaching and learning mathematics

This chapter explores the role of mentors in supporting pre-service teachers to include all children in mathematics teaching, no matter what their individual needs.

Teaching programming to beginners in a massive open online course

The University of Reading’s first Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) “Begin Programming: Build your first mobile game” (#FLMobiGame) was offered in Autumn 2013 on the FutureLearn platform. This course used a simple Android game framework to present basic programming concepts to complete beginners. The course attracted wide interest from all age groups. The course presented opportunities and challenges to both participants and educators. While some participants had difficulties accessing content some others had trouble grasping the concepts and applying them in a real program. Managing forums was cumbersome with the limited facilities supported by the Beta-platform. A healthy community was formed around the course with the support of social media. The case study reported here is part of an ongoing research programme exploring participants’ MOOC engagement and experience using a grounded, ethnographical approach.

Secondary school teachers' perspectives on teaching about topics that bridge science and religion

The question of where to locate teaching about the relationships between science and religion has produced a long-running debate. Currently, Science and Religious Education (RE) are statutory subjects in England and are taught in secondary schools by different teachers. This paper reports on an interview study in which 16 teachers gave their perceptions of their roles and responsibilities when teaching topics that bridge science and religion and the extent to which they collaborated with teachers in the other subject area. We found that in this sample, teachers reported very little collaboration between the curriculum areas. Although the science curriculum makes no mention of religion, all the science teachers said that their approaches to such topics were affected by their recognition that some pupils hold religious beliefs. All the RE teachers reported struggling to ensure students know of a range of views about how science and religion relate. The paper concludes with a discussion about implications for curriculum design and teacher training.

Using drama techniques for the teaching of early years science : a case study

This paper investigates the effect of drama techniques when employed to facilitate teaching and learning early years science. The focus is a lesson intervention designed for a group of children aged between four and five years old. A number of different drama techniques, such as teacher in role, hot seating and miming, were employed for the teaching of the water cycle. The techniques were implemented based on their nature and on what they can offer to young children considering their previous experiences. Before the beginning of the intervention, six children were randomly selected from the whole class, who were interviewed, aiming to identify their initial ideas in regards to the water cycle. The same children were interviewed after the end of the intervention in an attempt to identify the ways in which their initial ideas were changed. The results appear to be promising in terms of facilitating children’s scientific understanding and show an improvement in the children’s use of vocabulary in relation to the specific topic.