Category: edci335 (Page 1 of 2)

• Comment 1 – Bashr Kabd – https://bashar.opened.ca/post-4/#comments
• Comment 2 – Charles Dawson – https://dawsoncharles.opened.ca/2025/03/04/blog-post-4/#comment-19

Using Video-Based Learning to Understand Alzheimer’s Disease

I found an educational video titled “Alzheimer’s Disease: Risk Factors, Testing, Treatments” by Mass General Brigham on YouTube. This video explains what Alzheimer’s disease is, its symptoms, how it is diagnosed, and the available treatments. It is a great resource for helping students understand the basics of Alzheimer’s in a clear and engaging way.

How Students Will Interact with the Video

This video does not require direct interaction, but students will likely take notes, think critically, and reflect on how the disease affects individuals and families.

Activity After Watching

After watching, students can write a short reflection answering these questions:

• What are three key facts you learned about Alzheimer’s disease?
• How does early diagnosis help in managing the disease?
• What are some ways to support someone with Alzheimer’s?

This activity helps students develop critical thinking and empathy while reinforcing their understanding of the topic.

Technology & Feedback

Students can submit their reflections using Google Docs, a learning management system (LMS) like Brightspace, or a discussion forum. Feedback can be given through peer reviews or instructor comments.

Improving Video-Based Learning

The video could encourage more engagement by including quizzes, case studies, or real-life stories of caregivers.

Making It Inclusive

To ensure accessibility, captions should be available, and students could have the option to read a transcript instead of watching the video.

This approach makes learning interactive, engaging, and meaningful, helping students better understand Alzheimer’s disease. 🚀

Blog Post 1

• Comment 1 – Katelyn Grove – https://klgrove20.opened.ca/post-1/?unapproved=3&moderation-hash=92980f399a65e2cdefd9d43465a9029e#comment-3
• Comment 2 – Bashar Kabd – https://bashar.opened.ca/blog-1/#comment-10
• Comment 3 – Theresa Turac – https://ttaruc.opened.ca/blog-post-1-best-learning-experience/#comment-3

Blog Post 2

• Comment #1 – Bashar Kabd – https://bashar.opened.ca/post-2/#comment-11
• Comment #2 – Theresa Turac – https://ttaruc.opened.ca/blog-ii-direct-instruction/

Blog Post 3

• Comment 1: Bashar Kabd: https://bashar.opened.ca/post-3/#comment-13
• Comment 2: Charles Dawson: http://dawsoncharles.opened.ca/2025/02/25/blog-post-3/#comment-13

Blog Post 4

• Comment 1 – Bashr Kabd – https://bashar.opened.ca/post-4/#comments
• Comment 2 – Charles Dawson – https://dawsoncharles.opened.ca/2025/03/04/blog-post-4/#comment-19

• Comment 1: Bashar Kabd: https://bashar.opened.ca/post-3/#comment-13
• Comment 2: Charles Dawson: http://dawsoncharles.opened.ca/2025/02/25/blog-post-3/#comment-13

Designing for Inclusion in Learning

Creating an interactive learning resource requires removing barriers rather than expecting learners to overcome them. My experience as a software engineering student and my co-op at INSPIRE UVic, where I helped develop a web platform for neurodivergent students, reinforced the importance of building flexibility and accessibility into design from the start.

A well-designed learning resource should provide multiple ways to engage with content. Some learners prefer text-based materials, while others benefit from visual aids, interactive exercises, or audio explanations. During my work at INSPIRE UVic, we built customizable study tools that allowed students to adjust how they consumed information, making the experience more inclusive. Applying this idea to learning design means offering diverse content formats and allowing learners to control their experience, such as adjusting font size, contrast, or playback speed.

Scaffolding is also crucial. Just as my INSPIRE project included progress tracking and task breakdowns, learning activities should gradually increase in complexity while providing necessary supports. Tools like guided exercises, real-time feedback, and multiple submission options can help students engage without feeling overwhelmed.

If students had to shift to remote learning, the resource should support asynchronous engagement through recorded lessons, structured readings, and discussion forums. Well-organized content and clear navigation help reduce cognitive load, making it easier for students to stay on track even in uncertain situations.

A common challenge is rigid assessment methods. Offering multiple ways to demonstrate knowledge, such as coding exercises, presentations, or project-based tasks, ensures that different learning styles are accommodated. Breaking content into smaller, digestible sections also prevents information overload.

Inclusive design benefits everyone. Just as curb cuts were initially designed for wheelchair users but now help cyclists and parents with strollers, accessible learning resources improve education for all students. By removing barriers instead of just accommodating them, we create a learning environment where everyone can engage, succeed, and feel included.

1. Comment #1 – Bashar Kabd – https://bashar.opened.ca/post-2/#comment-11
2. Comment #2 – Theresa Turac – https://ttaruc.opened.ca/blog-ii-direct-instruction/

Learning is most effective when it is active, engaging, and rooted in real-world experiences. Experiential learning, a theory developed by David Kolb, is a hands-on approach that allows learners to gain knowledge by doing, reflecting, and adapting their understanding based on experiences. Rather than passively receiving information, students in experiential learning environments engage in activities that simulate real-world challenges, fostering deeper comprehension and skill development.

Characteristics of Experiential Learning

Experiential learning is grounded in four key stages:

1. Concrete Experience – The learner actively participates in an experience.
2. Reflective Observation – The learner reflects on the experience, identifying successes and challenges.
3. Abstract Conceptualization – The learner connects the experience to theories, models, or frameworks.
4. Active Experimentation – The learner applies what they have learned in new situations.

This cycle encourages critical thinking, problem-solving, and adaptability—skills essential in today’s rapidly evolving world.

Experiential Learning and My Context

As a software engineering student and educator, experiential learning is deeply relevant to my field. In courses like ECE 270: Cyber-physical and IoT Systems and ECE 356: Engineering System Software, I integrate experiential learning through hands-on labs, projects, and real-world problem-solving exercises. For instance, in my operating systems course, students learn about process scheduling not just by reading theory but by implementing a task scheduler using POSIX threads. This approach ensures that students develop a deep, working understanding of concepts through direct application.

Beyond the classroom, I have also seen experiential learning play a critical role in hackathons, where participants learn by building solutions under time constraints. My recent participation in a game development hackathon using Godot was a perfect example—learning new tools and frameworks by actively creating a project rather than just reading documentation.

Experiential Learning in Our Interactive Learning Design

For our interactive learning resource, experiential learning is a natural fit. Whether we design an AI-driven study tool, a hands-on coding simulation, or an interactive problem-solving activity, experiential learning will enhance engagement and retention. Unlike direct instruction, which focuses on passive absorption of knowledge, this approach will encourage learners to build, test, and refine their understanding dynamically.

Final Thoughts

Experiential learning is not just a theory—it is a powerful way to bridge the gap between knowledge and application. Whether through project-based learning, simulations, or real-world case studies, this approach ensures that learners retain knowledge in a meaningful and lasting way. In our interactive learning design, integrating experiential learning will empower learners to engage deeply, reflect on their experiences, and apply their knowledge in innovative ways.

• Comment 1 – Katelyn Grove – https://klgrove20.opened.ca/post-1/?unapproved=3&moderation-hash=92980f399a65e2cdefd9d43465a9029e#comment-3
• Comment 2 – Bashar Kabd – https://bashar.opened.ca/blog-1/#comment-10
• Comment 3 – Theresa Turac – https://ttaruc.opened.ca/blog-post-1-best-learning-experience/#comment-3

Learning is a multifaceted process that cannot be neatly encapsulated by any single theory. The readings offered an insightful exploration of behaviorism, cognitivism, and constructivism, each presenting distinct approaches to understanding and fostering learning. Behaviorism, with its focus on observable outcomes and reinforcement, provides a structured approach to mastering foundational skills. However, it often feels too rigid, reducing learning to a series of stimulus-response interactions without fully accounting for the complexities of individual thought processes and creativity.

Cognitivism takes this a step further, emphasizing the mental structures and processes that underlie learning. Its focus on how knowledge is received, organized, and retrieved resonated with me. Concepts like scaffolding and connecting new information to prior knowledge are critical, especially in more advanced learning contexts. The idea of using tools such as analogies or hierarchical relationships to facilitate understanding feels not only logical but also essential for teaching problem-solving and critical thinking.

Constructivism, however, stood out as the most compelling perspective. Its emphasis on learning as an active, context-driven process aligns closely with how I’ve seen meaningful learning occur. The idea that knowledge is constructed through interaction with the environment and personal experiences is particularly powerful. It suggests that learning is deeply personal, shaped by the unique lens through which each individual views the world. This makes it especially effective for tackling ill-structured problems, where collaboration and real-world context are vital.

Ultimately, the best instructional design isn’t tied to one theory. Instead, it requires a thoughtful blend of approaches tailored to the learners and the task at hand. The readings reminded me that understanding these theories isn’t just about applying them—it’s about using them to empower learners, fostering curiosity, critical thinking, and the ability to navigate an ever-changing world.

My name is Mansahaj, I am a 3rd year seng student, im doing this course for my complementary elective and it looked interesting, and also it is fully online