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Attention span is the amount of time an individual can sustain focus on, or stay engaged with, a particular task or stimuli before becoming distracted or experiencing a decline in their concentration. Attention span varies widely based on a variety of factors such as device distractions, engagement, relatability, motivation, interactivity, mood, and time of day. Learn more about Attention Span below! ... View more

Non-cognitive skills are also referred to as non-academic skills, soft skills, college readiness and workplace skills. They often consist of behavioral skills, such as study skills; personal development skills, such as motivation or social skills, and skills that aid with the transition from high school to college. They are distinct from traditional measures of academic success, such as GPA; they are also distinct from “cognitive” skills that encompass measures of learning and intellect. Learn more about Non-cognitive skills below! ... View more

Student success in higher education encompasses course performance, acquisition of relevant personal and career skills, student satisfaction in their education and institution, retention, and post-graduation performance. It is most commonly measured by course performance, GPA, and retention rates, though more recent models of success also incorporate non-academic indicators. Early prediction of student success--through both traditional instructor monitoring of progress or more advanced predictive analytics tools such as early warning systems--is crucial for timely interventions. Learn more about Student Success below! ... View more

Digital reading is the ability to access and engage with written content in a digital format on devices such as desktops, mobile devices, laptops, or tablets. With a digital format, there are opportunities for interactivity which can increase engagement and enhance the overall reading experience. Learn more about Digital Reading below! ... View more

Microlearning consists of delivering content in focused and easily digestible chunks. These microlearning sessions are designed around learning objectives or natural learning pauses and ideally last between 5-7 minutes, with chunks lasting longer as the learner gains more knowledge or the topic becomes more complex. The most effective number of chunks within a learning session is debated, but general consensus is anywhere from 3-5 chunks of information, as this amount can be sustained within working memory. Learn more about Microlearning below! ... View more

Engaging students in active learning, whereby they take an active role in the learning process rather than passively participating, has been shown to benefit students’ academic success. Active learning occurs when students reflect on their own thinking, assess their comprehension, and gain new knowledge through participation. Previous research has shown that active learning significantly increases students’ sense of belonging, motivation, and reduces achievement gaps for students from underrepresented groups. Methods for implementing active learning include class discussion, group work, and problem-solving/ inquiry-based activities. Learn more about the research on Completing more iClicker Activities Leads to Improved Academic Performance below! ... View more

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Planning falls into the forethought phase of self-regulated learning (SRL), where a learner is responsible for setting goals for a task, identifying critical features of a task and planning strategies accordingly. Setting task-specific goals allows students to have a self-generated criterion against which to assess, monitor, and guide their learning. Identifying the critical features of a task allows students the opportunity to first search their memory for relevant prior knowledge before they begin, as well as judge the relevance of the task and how easy or difficult it will be to accomplish. This sets the stage for recognizing what learning strategies they can use, how these strategies can be performed, and when and why to use them. Learn more about the research on Self-regulated Learning: Planning below! ... View more

Monitoring is a skill associated with self-regulated learning (SRL). Self-monitoring skills fall into the performance phase of SRL, where an individual is responsible for tracking their current state of performance, deploying learning strategies, and monitoring their progress towards a goal. To do this, students need to recognize whether they understand information and identify gaps in their knowledge in order to self-select a strategy to bring performance closer to the goal. Monitoring skills can be broken down into self-control skills, such as self-instruction or attention focusing, and self-observation skills, such as self-recording and systematically varying behaviors to change performance Learn more about the research on Self-regulated Learning: Monitoring below! ... View more

Learner experience (LX) design is a multidisciplinary approach to design, incorporating user experience, instructional design, and learning science pedagogies to create digital learning experiences that effectively manage cognitive load and foster student understanding. LX shifts the focus from what learners need to know and be able to do, to ways in which instruction or tools can support learners as they construct their knowledge. LX design cycles are done in rapid iterations and include participatory design from students. The goal of LX is to create experiences that center the learner—not just through instruction and assessment that accomplishes the learning outcomes, but also in the aesthetics, enjoyability, and quality of the learning experience. Learn more about the research on Learner Experience Design below! ... View more

Formative assessment fulfills the “iterative processes of establishing what, how much and how well students are learning in relation to learning goals and expected outcomes in order to inform tailored formative feedback and support further learning.” (Gikandi et al., 2011, p. 2337). It is comprised of both feedback (external) and self-monitoring (internal). The goal of instruction should be to facilitate the transition from feedback to self-monitoring by teaching students to: Understand the learning goal Compare actual performance to learning goal Take action to close this gap Learn more about the research on Formative Assessment below! ... View more