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In this paper, we present the development and validation of a new measure of attitudinal learning--the Attitudinal Learning Inventory (ALI). While specific scales are available for measuring attitudes, they largely focus on established attitudes, not the impact of instruction on those attitudes. We developed the inventory with two explicit objectives: (1) to measure a broad range of attitude constructs representing a holistic view of attitudinal learning and instruction; and (2) to facilitate the measurement of attitudinal learning that can be useful for educational researchers beyond traditional metrics. The ALI was developed and validated across two samples of a total of 1009 participants with diverse demographics. The ALI comprises 15 scale items and exhibited good psychometric properties and conformed to the theoretical four-dimensional structure of attitudinal learning: cognitive, affective, behavioral, and social. The ALI was also shown to correlate with behavioral metrics of class engagement. Future uses of the new measure are discussed. Participants were taken from entirely online populations, and while demographically diverse, implementation of the scale with face-to-face instruction, in varied settings, and across different groups of learners is needed to provide additional evidence of its intended generalizability and consider possible biases.

How to provide effective attitudinal learning in large-enrollment classrooms is a continuing question in higher education. This qualitative single case study investigated instructional design strategies and activities that could effectively be applied to attitude change in large-enrollment learning contexts. By evaluating an undergraduate sustainability course from multiple perspectives, this study focused on answering four research questions: 1) Did students perceive that their attitudes towards sustainability changed after taking the course? 2) From expert instructional designers' perspectives, to what extent was the course design aligned with the first principles for attitudinal instruction? 3) From both the instructor and students' perspectives, what instructional activities were most effective for attitude change? 4) From the instructor's perspective, what were the key instructional design strategies for promoting effective attitudinal instruction? Results showed that despite the challenges a large course might present, this course successfully helped students change their attitudes towards sustainability. A variety of instructional strategies and activities were applied in this course, including active learning, instructional videos, collaborative projects, and teamwork. This case study set a successful example of incorporating active learning strategies and activities in large classroom contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Massive open online courses (MOOCs) have gained significant attention in recent years for their potential to impact education at a global scale. This paper presents the findings from a study that examined the cases of three MOOCs, including Human Trafficking, US Food System, and Animal Behavior and Welfare, that were specifically designed to effect attitudinal change in its participants, specifically focusing on the three aspects of attitudinal change, cognitive, affective and behavioral as well as general learning. The study examined learners’ perceptions of attitudinal change, including according to the MOOC they took, the instructional method utilized, and the influence of attitudinal components on each other. The findings from this research provide a number of implications that could be helpful for understanding instruction and instructional design of MOOCs, particularly those MOOCs addressing attitude change. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This study examines the case of an Animal Behavior and Welfare MOOC that specifically targeted attitudinal change in its learners. Attitudinal learning outcomes were evaluated using an author-developed survey with questions on perceptions in the four areas of attitudinal learning: General Learning, Cognitive Learning, Affective Learning, and Behavioral Learning. The survey also examined learner goals for enrolling in the course and their perceptions of the instructional methods implemented in the course. Results showed that learners perceived positive learning outcomes across all four areas. Statistically significant differences were found in relation to perceptions of attitudinal learning based on their reason for enrolling in the MOOC and its relation to attitude formation. There were also significant differences in learners' reasons for enrollment based on whether they intended to change animal welfare related behaviors due to their MOOC experience. Learners overwhelming indicated that the instructor videos were the most impactful instructional strategy regardless of whether they had a higher perception of learning, or a lower perception. Finally, learners with higher perceptions primarily enrolled in the MOOC in order to form a viewpoint on animal welfare, while lower perception learners enrolled to earn a formal certificate of completion. Implications are discussed for instructional design for attitude change as well as for the use of MOOCs for learning regarding social topics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. Engagement in praxis, the process of acting and reflecting in a cyclical fashion, fosters the development of critical thinking and problem-solving skills among educational game designers. Resulting from this process, designers can apply their learned skills to create highly engaging educational games.Aim. This study examines the game development process of 22 international game designers from business, government, and academia as they describe their engagement in praxis when designing educational games.Method. Building upon research on reflective practice, this article provides insights on how engagement in praxis can be framed as a tool for educational game design that naturally promotes learning and motivation during gameplay. The researchers examine common threads that illustrate the process that educational video game designers use to create games.Results. Four common threads or themes were pulled from in-depth interviews with each designer. In this article, we focus on engagement in designing and applying game mechanics, engagement in content and context in educational games, feedback as an indicator of motivation and engagement, and working within project constraints to create engaging experiences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Systems engineering increasingly addresses the system lifecycle, as opposed to its more traditional role focusing on design and development. This new situation results in part from the recognition that upstream design and deployment decisions have potentially significant cost and performance implications post-deployment. For military systems, the role that typically addresses post-deployment issues is the logistician. Over the system lifecycle, it is important that the traditional roles of systems engineer and logistician understand issues faced by one another, as well as joint cost and performance implications. This paper presents the design of a role-based experiential learning environment for logisticians involved in military sustainment. This design leverages the generic components of an existing single-learner technology base, the Experience Accelerator, for presenting and controlling the learner experience, plus simulating program outcomes resulting from learner decisions. This technology base has been used to create a learning experience for a lead systems engineer in charge of designing and developing a new unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) system. In this new environment, the logistician learner interacts with systems engineers during UAV system acquisition and sustainment, learns about systems engineering issues and their effect on logistics, tries to influence upstream systems engineering decisions, and also performs logistics functions. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]