Course Portfolio
The Learning Technologies & Computing Education Research Group is working in two areas: Learning Technologies and Didactics of Computer Science. The courses offered for the area of Learning Technologies revolve around the concepts, principles, methods and tools for the development of innovative learning environments, their architecture or their components. This also includes courses on learning theories and didactic models as the theoretical basis as well as programming languages, web technologies, and data analytics as the technical basis.
The lecture Elearning requires programming skills and experience with web technologies. The lecture Introduction to Web Technologies is an introductory lecture teaching competences in developing web applications. The lecture Advanced Learning Technologies deals with web development frameworks.
For specialization we offer constantly changing seminars, labs, research focus classes, and Bachelor & Master theses in our research field of learning technologies, combining and deepening the skills of all of these lectures.
Teaching in Didactics of Computer Science
The lecture Didactics of Computer Science 1 is meant for students of teacher training courses with teaching subject Computer Science. It gives an overview on Computer Science as science, classifies it and gives reason for its general educational value. It treats exemplary topics of Computer Science and how to prepare them for giving class in school, both with a strong relation to practice. It will also discuss the problem of didactic reduction as well as various principles of and models for giving class. The accompanying exercise will give you the opportunity to develop your first class units and materials for various class levels.
The Preparational Seminar for the Practical Semester focuses on specific class concepts for various topics of Computer Science and their exemplary testing. You will develop the following topics in theory and practice: Gender and Diversity, Elearning, promoting individually, and focus on inclusion. Additionally, the seminar will prepare the part of school research for the subsequent practical semester.
The subsequent Accompanying Seminar for the Practical Semester supports the students during the six-monthly practical phase at regional schools. It will pick up specific situations of giving class, reflect on pratical experience in school, and accompany the school research projects of the students.
In Computer Science, the concept Fascination of Technology in Computer Science is rendered as part of the Practical Training in the Students Lab for Computer Science Infosphere or alternatively as part of the Practical Project Elearning.
Programming for non-computer-scientists: Java (expires in winter term 20/21)
The course Introduction to Programming for non-computer-scientists introduces a systematic design of Java programs as a preparation for object-oriented software development. Furthermore, it addresses the fundamentals of programming languages.
Teaching and Learning Philosophy
Our research group mainly deals with the description, the production, the development processes, and the evaluation of eLearning systems, which target to create learning environments for intrinsically motivated, active learners, according to a moderately constructivist learning theory. Intrinsically motivated learners primarily learn because of their own, inner drive and for their personal satisfaction. Their motivation is not merely based on the need to achieve a good grade.
That is why we increasingly try to integrate new learning concepts in our own courses:
A lecture is not presented as traditional teacher-centered instruction. Rather, we try to integrate activating elements to achieve interaction and transform the passively listening audience into rather active participants of the lecture. Furthermore, blended learning is applied, that is, a mixture of methods integrating elearning components, for example web based learning opportunities supporting and extending the options for preparing and revising the lecture. Additionally, they can be used to consolidate or outsource some topics of the lecture. For this, we use L²P, the elearning platform of RWTH Aachen University, often extended with prototypical new elearning components.
An exercise for reinforcing the learning experience follows a project pattern, partially accompanying the lecture as a block course during the semester. Here, students have the opportunity to carry out their own projects using the theories and solution strategies from the lecture. Exams, then, are partially based on the project results. That is why an exercise is more like a practice-oriented project with seminary character.