Peer Review

SciTrain U

Material Detail page

Reviewed:: Feb 22, 2016 by Teacher Education

Bookmark

Ratings

Overall Rating:

Content Quality:

Effectiveness:

Ease of Use:

Overview:: The SciTrain U Accessible Classroom Course provides techniques that will assist you in creating universally accessible classrooms and laboratories for students with diverse abilities and learning skills. The philosophy behind "accessibility" and the related concept of "universal design" originated with the idea of adapting the environment to accommodate the user. Within the context of education, it has evolved to encompass the idea that accommodations for students with disabilities can benefit non-disabled students as well. We will provide numerous examples of how this works in the real world. This course provides quick access to practical information on ways of teaching that will increase your students’ knowledge retention, in-class participation, and understanding of class material the first time they encounter it. SciTrain U focuses on classrooms and labs for science, mathematics, engineering, and computer science, but many of these techniques and technologies are applicable elsewhere.
Registration and cost are free.
Type of Material:: Online Course
Recommended Uses:: An individual teacher may look at the material, but it might be better used as part of a program to help online science and math teachers work with ADA students. In-class, individual, online and blended learning environments would be able to use this material.
Technical Requirements:: Students will need a computer with an Internet connection.
Identify Major Learning Goals:: Students will be able to: • understand the disabilities that are encountered in the college classroom • implement Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles in the college classroom and other learning environments • adjust teaching approaches and class resources to ensure all students with disabilities are well-served • In class, individual , online and blended learning environments
Target Student Population:: • College / University Instructors (especially those specializing in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.)
Prerequisite Knowledge or Skills:: While the material is targeted to science and math teachers, it could be of use to all teachers.

Content Quality

Rating:
Strengths:: • Four free online courses are availed: o Accessible STEM Teaching 101 o Improved Teaching for Large Lecture Classes o Improving Online STEM Learning Environments o Improving STEM Labs • The content is current ad explains critical issue in higher education today – UDL and accessible curriculum and instruction in higher education. • The content is well written and effectively conveys the concepts. • Additional resources include links to a variety of assistive technology and UDL resources.
Concerns:: The owners of the material have included surveys that are no longer active. Since these surveys collected data for the owners purpose only it does not interfere with the use of the materials. A few sources are cited but a more detailed reference section would be helpful.

Potential Effectiveness as a Teaching Tool

Rating:
Strengths:: The authors state that: "This course provides quick access to practical information on ways of teaching that will increase your students’ knowledge retention, in-class participation, and understanding of class material the first time they encounter it. SciTrain U focuses on classrooms and labs for science, mathematics, engineering, and computer science, but many of these techniques and technologies are applicable elsewhere.". We find this to be true. Objectives are clearly stated at the start of each lesson. The presentation of material is concise and efficiency explains the concepts. Practical examples as to how the concepts described in the content may be integrated into the university curriculum are provided.
Concerns:: • It was not clear what the prerequisite sills for each course was but pre- and post- course surveys were available. • Assessments are self-check and do not provide customized feedback to the individual learner.

Ease of Use for Both Students and Faculty

Rating:
Strengths:: • The website loads very quickly. • The layout is intuitive and navigation is easy. • The use of simple fonts, colors and charts makes the learning material easy to read. • The learning material is accessible to low vision users. It responds well to the View / Zoom menu options in Internet Explorer 11 by rescaling the content without cutting it off the screen. This material was sponsored by a grant from the US Department of Education and developed by CEATA, A Center for Assistive Technology and Environmental Access at the Georgia Institute of Technology College of Architecture and thus has been peer reviewed. The site has a great deal of useful information.
Concerns:: • The courses could be more engaging with the inclusion of more interactivity and user feedback. • The addition of more images to some of the courses would make them more visually appealing. It is not clear whether the CEATA will maintain and update this web site once the grant ends.

Other Issues and Comments:: • The site is funded through a grant from the U.S. Dept. of Education. Upon registration it is noted that continued funding depends partly on the number of people who visit the site and log in. • Instructions for obtaining continuing education credits for courses taken on the site are provided.
Creative Commons: