Highlighting the possibilities of partnership between developers and instructors, Materia was created at UCF to enhance online learning. A catalog of simple, powerful "widgets" can be customized by users to suit their needs, and developers work directly with instructors and students to create new tools for their benefit.
At UCF we're committed to developing impactful new technologies to support online learning. One of these technologies we're extra passionate about is called Materia. It allows for the design, production, and distribution of interactive tools called "widgets." Instructors and students can make use of a large catalog of widgets to create customized learning content for their course. We author new widgets through a collaborative relationship with instructors. In doing so, we seek to fill specific knowledge gaps and provide an open-source toolkit for all manner of course content.
An effective relationship between instructors and developers has many potent benefits. We've discovered the tools we author are most impactful when faculty actively partner with us, no matter the complexity. Widgets like crossword puzzles or "choose your own adventure" games are employable by many subject matters. Materia also supports widgets focused on specific concepts, like psychology experiments or nursing simulation. Join us as we share the processes and lessons learned on our journey. Opportunities for discussion on this key relationship are welcome.
During the presentation, we will also cover the original problems we designed Materia to solve. We'll highlight how we use game-based learning to improve outcomes, and showcase some current use-cases of Materia both inside and outside the classroom.