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Journal ArticleDOI

On researching activity tracking to support learning: a retrospective

14 Jan 2019-Vol. 120, pp 133-154
TL;DR: A topical intersection between the information and learning sciences is demonstrated, how self-tracking can be recruited for instructional settings is illustrated, and concerns that have emerged in the past several years as the technology related to activity tracking begins to be used for educational purposes are discussed.
Abstract: Purpose This paper aims to discuss research and design of learning activities involving activity tracking and wearable activity tracking technology. Design/methodology/approach Three studies are summarized as part of a program of research that sought to design new learning activities for classroom settings. The first used data from a qualitative interview study of adult athletes who self-track. The second used video excerpts from a designed learning activity with a group of fifth grade elementary students. The third study draws largely on quantitative assessment data from an activity tracking unit enactment in a rural sixth grade class. Findings Activity tracking appears to provide opportunities for establishing benchmarks and calibration opportunities related to intensity of physical activities. Those features of activity tracking can be leveraged to develop learning activities where elementary students discover features of data and how data are affected by different distributions. Students can show significant improvement related to statistical reasoning in classroom instructional units that centralize the use of self-tracked data. Originality/value As activity tracking is becoming a more ubiquitous practice with increased pervasiveness and familiarity with mobile and wearable technologies, this paper demonstrates a topical intersection between the information and learning sciences, illustrates how self-tracking can be recruited for instructional settings, and it discusses concerns that have emerged in the past several years as the technology related to activity tracking begins to be used for educational purposes.
Citations
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01 Jan 2019
TL;DR: This paper proposes a technology-enhanced learning ecosystem called UbiCoS that supports learner help-giving during face-to-face collaboration and across three different digital learning environments: an interactive digital textbook, an online Q&A forum, and a teachable agent.
Abstract: With the growing integration of technology in the classrooms, learners can now develop collaboration skills by applying them across diverse contexts. While this represents a great opportunity, it also brings challenges due to an increased need to support individual learners across multiple learning activities. We propose a technology-enhanced learning ecosystem called UbiCoS that supports learner help-giving during face-to-face collaboration and across three different digital learning environments: an interactive digital textbook, an online Q&A forum, and a teachable agent. In this paper, we present a first step in the development of UbiCoS: five co-design sessions with 16 learners that give insight into learners’ perceptions of help-giving. The findings provided us with technology-related and curriculum-related design opportunities for facilitating learner interaction across multiple platforms.

41 citations


Cites background from "On researching activity tracking to..."

  • ...…of learning environments that allow students to attend to and understand data in relation to the local contexts in which it is collected or is about, particularly by establishing personal relationships to data (see Kahn, 2017; Craig, 2017; Lee, 2019; Roberts et al., 2014; Shapiro et al., 2018)....

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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, sociocultural and sociopolitical considerations of how young people understand, represent, and use data by presenting findings from a social design research study about how stu...
Abstract: This article centers sociocultural and sociopolitical considerations of how young people understand, represent, and use data by presenting findings from a social design research study about how stu...

30 citations


Cites background from "On researching activity tracking to..."

  • ...Lee (2019) has explored not just how students’ thinking and behaviors may shift when they learn about data through their use of activity trackers and other wearable devices but also the sociotechnical arrangements that these new practices entail (see also Ching et al., 2016)....

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  • ...A number of researchers have looked toward schools to support youth in learningwith and about data, particularly data they collect themselves (e.g., Lee, 2019) and that reflect their cultural, embodied, and lived experiences and knowledge (e.g., Ching, Stewart, Hagood, & Rashedi, 2016)....

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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors argue that these discussions of teaching and learning must attend to the human dimensions of the students' work with data, and they propose a method to better prepare K-12 students to work with the data.
Abstract: There is growing interest in how to better prepare K–12 students to work with data. In this article, we assert that these discussions of teaching and learning must attend to the human dimensions of...

29 citations


Cites background from "On researching activity tracking to..."

  • ...Over many years, Lee has developed a program of research and development to engage elementary school students in data analysis through their collection of physical activity data during recess using commercially manufactured wearable devices (Lee, 2019)....

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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This commentary considers ways mobile technologies can support learning with a focus on understanding the affordances to of the mobile technologies develop new learning practices that could not be accomplished without this technology.

27 citations

Proceedings ArticleDOI
21 Jun 2020
TL;DR: A case study exploring the design of a personal informatics app (LifeMosaic) by a group of 14 to 16-year-olds, shaped through youth concerns around privacy, social support, flexibility and self-expression as well as the desire to support mental wellbeing.
Abstract: While a growing number of technologies offer personal data to the user, little is known about how such tools can be harnessed for and by adolescents Prior work has focused on implementations, in which youth experience is subordinated to the prescribed aims of adults Few studies have engaged with the concerns and motives of the young people themselves Co-design can be a powerful method for exploring beyond such limits, informing design that reflects the voices and values of the designed-for population This paper presents a case study exploring the design of a personal informatics app (LifeMosaic) by a group of 14 to 16-year-olds LifeMosaic lets users set any focus they personally care about and track it using colours and stickers The design was shaped through youth concerns around privacy, social support, flexibility and self-expression as well as the desire to support mental wellbeing This work illustrates new opportunities and understandings for personal informatics with youth: framing the data as mediating transindividual meaning making

16 citations


Cites background or methods from "On researching activity tracking to..."

  • ...Prior work on uses of PI with youth broadly fall into two strands: framing the tools as either a teaching resource to illustrate STEM concepts [18; 47; 53; 69], or else as a part of a behaviour change intervention (for instance, nudging youth to be more active) [22; 25; 42; 81]....

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  • ...The potential of PI for learning has been explored more fully in a separate strand of work, implementing PI tools as a teaching resource: to teach a concept like heart rate or a skill like reading a graph [18; 47; 53; 69]....

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References
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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The lion's share of my current research program is devoted to the study of learning in the blooming, buzzing confusion of inner-city classrooms, and central to the enterprise is that the classroom must function smoothly as a learning environment before the authors can study anything other than the myriad possible ways that things can go wrong.
Abstract: (1992) Design Experiments: Theoretical and Methodological Challenges in Creating Complex Interventions in Classroom Settings Journal of the Learning Sciences: Vol 2, No 2, pp 141-178

3,738 citations

Proceedings ArticleDOI
06 Apr 2008
TL;DR: This work has developed a system, UbiFit Garden, which uses on-body sensing and activity inference and a personal, mobile display to encourage physical activity to address the growing rate of sedentary lifestyles.
Abstract: Recent advances in small inexpensive sensors, low-power processing, and activity modeling have enabled applications that use on-body sensing and machine learning to infer people's activities throughout everyday life. To address the growing rate of sedentary lifestyles, we have developed a system, UbiFit Garden, which uses these technologies and a personal, mobile display to encourage physical activity. We conducted a 3-week field trial in which 12 participants used the system and report findings focusing on their experiences with the sensing and activity inference. We discuss key implications for systems that use on-body sensing and activity inference to encourage physical activity.

1,173 citations

Proceedings ArticleDOI
10 Apr 2010
TL;DR: A stage-based model of personal informatics systems composed of five stages (preparation, collection, integration, reflection, and action) is derived and barriers in each of the stages are identified.
Abstract: People strive to obtain self-knowledge. A class of systems called personal informatics is appearing that help people collect and reflect on personal information. However, there is no comprehensive list of problems that users experience using these systems, and no guidance for making these systems more effective. To address this, we conducted surveys and interviews with people who collect and reflect on personal information. We derived a stage-based model of personal informatics systems composed of five stages (preparation, collection, integration, reflection, and action) and identified barriers in each of the stages. These stages have four essential properties: barriers cascade to later stages; they are iterative; they are user-driven and/or system-driven; and they are uni-faceted or multi-faceted. From these properties, we recommend that personal informatics systems should 1) be designed in a holistic manner across the stages; 2) allow iteration between stages; 3) apply an appropriate balance of automated technology and user control within each stage to facilitate the user experience; and 4) explore support for associating multiple facets of people's lives to enrich the value of systems.

925 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This work addresses 4 challenges for scientists who collect and use video records to conduct research in and on complex learning environments, and investigates how to encourage broad video sharing and reuse while adequately protecting the rights of research participants who are recorded.
Abstract: Focusing on expanding technical capabilities and new collaborative possibilities, we address 4 challenges for scientists who collect and use video records to conduct research in and on complex learning environments: (a) Selection: How can researchers be systematic in deciding which elements of a complex environment or extensive video corpus to select for study? (b) Analysis: What analytical frameworks and practices are appropriate for given research problems? (c) Technology: What technologies are available and what new tools must be developed to support collecting, archiving, analyzing, reporting, and collaboratively sharing video? and (d) Ethics: How can research protocols encourage broad video sharing and reuse while adequately protecting the rights of research participants who are recorded?

826 citations

Proceedings ArticleDOI
26 Apr 2014
TL;DR: A qualitative and quantitative analysis of 52 video recordings of Quantified Self Meetup talks to understand what they did, how they did it, and what they learned, and several common pitfalls to self-tracking are highlighted.
Abstract: Researchers have studied how people use self-tracking technologies and discovered a long list of barriers including lack of time and motivation as well as difficulty in data integration and interpretation. Despite the barriers, an increasing number of Quantified-Selfers diligently track many kinds of data about themselves, and some of them share their best practices and mistakes through Meetup talks, blogging, and conferences. In this work, we aim to gain insights from these "extreme users," who have used existing technologies and built their own workarounds to overcome different barriers. We conducted a qualitative and quantitative analysis of 52 video recordings of Quantified Self Meetup talks to understand what they did, how they did it, and what they learned. We highlight several common pitfalls to self-tracking, including tracking too many things, not tracking triggers and context, and insufficient scientific rigor. We identify future research efforts that could help make progress toward addressing these pitfalls. We also discuss how our findings can have broad implications in designing and developing self-tracking technologies.

678 citations