Presentation at GCGS 2022

Presentation at the Georgia Council of Graduate Schools Spring Conference 2022

Georgia Institute of Technology (May 20, 2022) — Today (2022, May 20), members of the Interactive Research Methods Lab have presented the paper titled "Hopscotch and the Interactive Research Methods Lab," at the Georgia Council of Graduate Schools Spring Conference 2022.

Abstract: The presentation has introduced participants to the Interactive Research Methods Lab (IRML), an initiative in the Bagwell College of Education at Kennesaw State University that offers an innovative space for students and faculty to collaborate in personalized instruction in and practical experience of generating core qualitative, quantitative, and mixed-methods research designs, using Augmented Reality interactive contents (ARC). 
The IRML provides both physical and virtual interactive spaces. The physical space presents an itinerary organized around the nine steps of Hopscotch. Each step is placed on a customized decal on a dry-erase surface, where users can write down ideas and make decisions based on the information provided via original augmented reality contents. The IRML's virtual space includes a 360° virtual tour that replicates the physical space. The system used to create the virtual lab space allows the seamless integration of the lab into Desire2Learn (D2L), the content management system used by our institution. As a result, the IRML can be used as an embeddable resource for faculty using D2L to teach research methods courses or any other aspect of research (literature review, article critique, etc.), allowing online students to benefit from the lab remotely. 

In addition to the virtual space of the lab, the IRML Team has developed and will share instructional materials: a) a set of guides and resources curated by our graduate research librarian for each of the nine steps of the process to expand on the information and resources included in the multimedia AR contents; b) a set of instructional resources, or didactic units, of
learning activities/lessons that instructors may implement with students “as is” or collaborate with the IRML Team to create units to suit their instructional needs, and; c) a “pocket version” of the lab which can be downloaded and printed by users interested in having an “IRML-lite” version of the contents to use in their own classes and projects. 

To assess the impact of the IRML on the teaching and learning of research methods and to identify opportunities to enhance the lab’s utility and effectiveness, an evaluative case study was conducted. The following three questions drove the investigation: a) Is the IRML helping faculty to teach research methods in an innovative and meaningful way? b) Is the IRML helping students to understand the complexities involved in generating quantitative, qualitative, and mixed-methods research designs in education? c) Which aspects of the IRML need to be enhanced to better support the teaching and learning of research design in education? Results will be shared.