title: Academic literacies and the A-B-C-D Formula: Engineering students' use of online activities for critical reading skills development

authors: Busteed, Sheila

subjects: academic literacies

abstract: Academic literacies are linked to core graduate attributes for engineering programmes, and it is essential for students to develop them so they can meet the professional literacy expectations of the engineering field (Ministry of Education, 2020). Specifically, critical reading and academic writing are interconnected practices, and they require considerable time and training to master. However, some programmes provide few opportunities for students to practice these competencies (Craig & Bielenberg, 2015). Others rely on a bolt-on approach that disconnects academic literacy needs from the discipline (Wingate, 2006). This study takes a more proactive approach by embedding the academic literacies model in a first-year engineering course. 

An action research intervention was designed, using blended learning as the vehicle through which engineering students practiced an original reading-to-write formula called the A-B-C-D Formula for Critical Reading. This combination aimed to create stronger connections between the practice of academic literacies, discipline-specific content, and related assessments. Two research questions were explored via this approach:
1. How might undergraduate engineering students' critical reading skills be enhanced by online practice of the A-B-C-D Formula as formative assessment? 
2. How does online practice of the A-B-C-D Formula influence student attitudes towards critical reading and the academic writing process?

Quantitative and qualitative data were collected at different stages throughout the intervention via numerous instruments. These included two surveys, interview transcripts, the critical reading rubric, the feedback comment library, the critical reading online activities, my teaching log, and Moodle's tracking function. Even though this study yielded some statistical data, the resulting trends were viewed in relation to qualitative results through the larger lens of thematic analysis. 

Data analysis underwent several stages, which established links between results and generated the study's five key themes:
- the need to practice academic literacies in advance of an assessment; 
- students' desire for varied and interactive learning experiences; 
- the need for plenty of time dedicated to practice; 
- the expectation of receiving high-quality feedback;
- connections between the intervention and students' budding professional identity.

Insights gleaned from this action research have aided the refinement of its teaching and learning resources. An updated version is shared as a model for other educators to adapt and use in their courses. In summary, this thesis serves as a bridge between the fields of academic literacies and engineering by developing the communication skills of students who will build the tools and world of our future. It also illuminates student attitudes towards the role of academic literacies in engineering education, including connections to their evolving identity.

text: Academic literacies and the A-B-C-D Formula: Engineering students' use of online activities for critical reading skills development Academic literacies are linked to core graduate attributes for engineering programmes, and it is essential for students to develop them so they can meet the professional literacy expectations of the engineering field (Ministry of Education, 2020). Specifically, critical reading and academic writing are interconnected practices, and they require considerable time and training to master. However, some programmes provide few opportunities for students to practice these competencies (Craig & Bielenberg, 2015). Others rely on a bolt-on approach that disconnects academic literacy needs from the discipline (Wingate, 2006). This study takes a more proactive approach by embedding the academic literacies model in a first-year engineering course. 

An action research intervention was designed, using blended learning as the vehicle through which engineering students practiced an original reading-to-write formula called the A-B-C-D Formula for Critical Reading. This combination aimed to create stronger connections between the practice of academic literacies, discipline-specific content, and related assessments. Two research questions were explored via this approach:
1. How might undergraduate engineering students' critical reading skills be enhanced by online practice of the A-B-C-D Formula as formative assessment? 
2. How does online practice of the A-B-C-D Formula influence student attitudes towards critical reading and the academic writing process?

Quantitative and qualitative data were collected at different stages throughout the intervention via numerous instruments. These included two surveys, interview transcripts, the critical reading rubric, the feedback comment library, the critical reading online activities, my teaching log, and Moodle's tracking function. Even though this study yielded some statistical data, the resulting trends were viewed in relation to qualitative results through the larger lens of thematic analysis. 

Data analysis underwent several stages, which established links between results and generated the study's five key themes:
- the need to practice academic literacies in advance of an assessment; 
- students' desire for varied and interactive learning experiences; 
- the need for plenty of time dedicated to practice; 
- the expectation of receiving high-quality feedback;
- connections between the intervention and students' budding professional identity.

Insights gleaned from this action research have aided the refinement of its teaching and learning resources. An updated version is shared as a model for other educators to adapt and use in their courses. In summary, this thesis serves as a bridge between the fields of academic literacies and engineering by developing the communication skills of students who will build the tools and world of our future. It also illuminates student attitudes towards the role of academic literacies in engineering education, including connections to their evolving identity.

year: 2025

title: How to survive a plague of flesh-eating rats: An introductory guide to studying remediated ‎gameplay imaginations of medieval folklore and beliefs in A Plague Tale: Innocence

authors: Schott, Gareth R.

abstract: Popular digital games such as Assassin’s Creed: Origins (2017), Total War: Three Kingdoms (2019), and Red: Dead Redemption (2010) possess merit for their faithful and authentic interactive representations of elements of the past that furnish games with pedagogical value. Both digital game studies and historical game studies have contributed research furthering understanding of the pedagogical value and applications of historical games for students’ learning of history in school education, particularly secondary schools and universities (Kee, 2014, McCall, 2013, &amp; Schrier, 2014). Despite the growing interest in the new forms of knowledge contained within games, and gameplay, the educational application of historical digital games can be limited to supplementary visual aids that do not fully account for the range and forms of historical investigation associated with the game development process. We forward a multi-modal perspective on the varied ways in which historical knowledge is present in both game design and the gameplay experience. Our approach is demonstrated with one of several under-investigated (yet valuable) modes of historical exploration, namely ‘Imaginative History.’ This is achieved using images from several sequences of recorded game footage in the Medieval historical fantasy game A Plague Tale: Innocence as a case example alongside supporting historical literature. This Medieval game is suitable for addressing this conference’s theme of crises or disasters as it is set in a re-imagination of the Black Death plague roughly within the south-western region of fourteenth century France, but one that personifies the real Black Death with a plague of supernatural flesh-eating rats and places players into the role of two fictional orphan children. This presentation seeks to demonstrate historical games’ value for teaching and learning by discussing A Plague Tale: Innocence’s fantastical adaptation of the plague as a model for exploring the role of re-mediation, and subversion, of past pre-modern folklore imaginations and beliefs. Fantasy or folkloric treatment of historical events or periods can provide insight into the experiential dimensions of a period in history re-told as an interactive folktale.

text: How to survive a plague of flesh-eating rats: An introductory guide to studying remediated ‎gameplay imaginations of medieval folklore and beliefs in A Plague Tale: Innocence Popular digital games such as Assassin’s Creed: Origins (2017), Total War: Three Kingdoms (2019), and Red: Dead Redemption (2010) possess merit for their faithful and authentic interactive representations of elements of the past that furnish games with pedagogical value. Both digital game studies and historical game studies have contributed research furthering understanding of the pedagogical value and applications of historical games for students’ learning of history in school education, particularly secondary schools and universities (Kee, 2014, McCall, 2013, &amp; Schrier, 2014). Despite the growing interest in the new forms of knowledge contained within games, and gameplay, the educational application of historical digital games can be limited to supplementary visual aids that do not fully account for the range and forms of historical investigation associated with the game development process. We forward a multi-modal perspective on the varied ways in which historical knowledge is present in both game design and the gameplay experience. Our approach is demonstrated with one of several under-investigated (yet valuable) modes of historical exploration, namely ‘Imaginative History.’ This is achieved using images from several sequences of recorded game footage in the Medieval historical fantasy game A Plague Tale: Innocence as a case example alongside supporting historical literature. This Medieval game is suitable for addressing this conference’s theme of crises or disasters as it is set in a re-imagination of the Black Death plague roughly within the south-western region of fourteenth century France, but one that personifies the real Black Death with a plague of supernatural flesh-eating rats and places players into the role of two fictional orphan children. This presentation seeks to demonstrate historical games’ value for teaching and learning by discussing A Plague Tale: Innocence’s fantastical adaptation of the plague as a model for exploring the role of re-mediation, and subversion, of past pre-modern folklore imaginations and beliefs. Fantasy or folkloric treatment of historical events or periods can provide insight into the experiential dimensions of a period in history re-told as an interactive folktale.

year: 2021

title: Accelerating success and promoting equity through the ako (note 1): Critical contexts for change

authors: Berryman, Mere

abstract: Achieving equity and excellence for all young people remains the major challenge of education systems across the world. This paper contends that equity and excellence for students currently underserved by our system needs transformative school reform. In response, we outline the ako: critical contexts for change. This model has been applied across five dimensions for transformative reform within Kia Eke Panuku (Note 2). This paper focuses on how this model can be understood and applied alongside curriculum implementation. We draw evidence from wider research of the impact on improving student achievement when individual aspects of the ako: critical contexts for change have been applied. We have found that when all three contexts are applied simultaneously and spread throughout the school, pedagogical reform can be accelerated, even for those students most underserved.

text: Accelerating success and promoting equity through the ako (note 1): Critical contexts for change Achieving equity and excellence for all young people remains the major challenge of education systems across the world. This paper contends that equity and excellence for students currently underserved by our system needs transformative school reform. In response, we outline the ako: critical contexts for change. This model has been applied across five dimensions for transformative reform within Kia Eke Panuku (Note 2). This paper focuses on how this model can be understood and applied alongside curriculum implementation. We draw evidence from wider research of the impact on improving student achievement when individual aspects of the ako: critical contexts for change have been applied. We have found that when all three contexts are applied simultaneously and spread throughout the school, pedagogical reform can be accelerated, even for those students most underserved.

year: 2017