There has been no lack of study in the use of WinEcon in the ...

Case Study Report:
The Use of WinEcon/MathEcon in
the EC 103 (Maths for Economics) Course
(Funded Under Work Plan 47-49) Principal Investigator:
Cher Ping, Lim
University of Bristol
Nanyang Technological University CONTENTS Table of figures 2
Table of extracts 2
Table of appendices 2
1 The EC103 Course in University of Leicester 3 1.1 The EC103 Course 4
1.2 The Computing Sessions 5
1.3 The Tutors 6
1.4 The Students and their Problems 6 2 Design and Methods 8 2.1 Observations 9
2.2 Face-to-Face Interviews with Tutors 10
2.3 Students' Questionnaire 11
2.4 Focus Group Interviews with Students 12 3 The Use of WinEcon/MathEcon in the EC103 Course 13 3.1 Supporting ICT and non-ICT Resources 14
3.1.1 Aims of the Lesson 15
3.1.2 Structure and Flexibility of the Worksheet 16
3.1.3 Immediate Feedback and Critical Reflection of the Online Quiz 19
3.2 Dialogic Dimension of Learning 20
3.2.1 Tutor-Student Interactions 21
3.2.2 Student-Student Interactions 26
3.3 Pivotal Role of the Tutor/Co-ordinator 27
3.3.1 Customising WinEcon 28
3.3.2 Design of Web Worksheets 29
3.3.3 Role in the Computing Sessions 29 4 Considerations for the Design of the WinEcon Package 30 4.1 Supporting Materials 31
4.1.1 Worksheets 31
4.1.2 Documentation of WinEcon Package 32
4.2 Professional Development of Tutors 32
4.3 Tutor-Student-Developer Collaboration 33 5 Conclusion 34
References 35
Table of Figures Figure 1: Laurillard's (1993) Conversational Framework 23
Figure 2: MathEcon Screen - Example One on Maximum Profit 25 Table of Extracts Extract 1: One-to-One Dialogue Between Jean and Johnny (Student) 23
Table of Appendices appendix one: an example of the computing session worksheet 38
appendix two: an example of the computing session QUIZ 39
appendix three: tutors' interview questions 40
appendix four: students' questionnaire 41
appendix five: semi-structured interviews with students 43 There has been no lack of studies in the use of WinEcon in Economics
courses since its introduction in 1994 (Soper 1997; Brooksbank, Clark,
Hamilton, and Pickernell 1998; Lim 1998; MacDonald and Shields 1998).
Although these studies documented the learning outcome or surveyed the
students' views on their experiences of using WinEcon, they lacked the
detailed investigation and description of what actually took place in the
learning environment. WinEcon does not exist in isolation; it is
interwoven with the rest of the tools, and the participants in the learning
environment (Salomon 1993, p.189). Moreover, Papert (1993) warns
"measuring the effectiveness of computers in learning by the achievements
in present-day classrooms makes it certain that tomorrow will always be the
prisoner of yesterday" (p.29). Based on a case study of the EC103 (Using Maths in Economics) course in
University of Leicester, this report provides a descriptive and
interpretive account of the context within which WinEcon is used; and
hence, avoids the kind of reductionism that assumes that a holistic picture
of WinEcon in economic education can ultimately be explained on the basis
of a set of variables and learning outcome. By linking the 'successful' or
'unsuccessful' activities in which WinEcon is embedded, the study provides
accumulated and helpful information for existing and prospective adopters
of WinEcon in the Economics course. It also provides crucial feedback to
the WinEcon Consortium regarding the design of the ICT package, supporting
materials, and professional development of economic educators. After all,
the best use of any physical support systems, including WinEcon, is an art;
and it is necessary to acquaint economic educators with this art (Perkins
1993, p.95). The EC103 Course in University of Leicester
The Economics department in University of Leicester is one of the largest
in England and provides 4 specialist undergraduate degrees in Economics:
B.A. (Economics), B.A. (Business Economics), B.Sc. (Economics) and B.Sc.
(Business Economics). The admission requirements for all 4 degrees are
grades B, C, C at A-level. As the B.Sc. courses adopts a more mathematical
and statistical treatment of the subject, they are restricted to students
with a minimum of grade C for A-level Mathematics. The department also has
a joint degree with the Faculty of Law, and offers certain modules for
students from the Arts and Science faculties. 1 The EC103 Course
The EC103 course is to enable first-year Economics students understand how
mathematics can be used in economic analysis. Mathematics is a useful tool
for the analysis of all economic problems and practically indispensable for
some. In Economics, the most important mathematical concepts are calculus,
linear algebra, difference and differential equations (Oliver 1973). The
prerequisite for the course is a grade C in GCSE Maths. The one-semester
module consists of 11 lectures and 11 tutorials. The lectures illustrate
how mathematics is useful in economic analysis, using examples from the
handout given to students at the beginning of the course. The handout can
also be accessed from the course website
(http://www.le.ac.uk/ec/teach/EC103/EC103.html). All new concepts are introduced in the lectures before the tutorial
lessons. Of the 11 tutorials, 5 are computing sessions conducted with
WinEcon, online quiz and virtual workbook, and the other 6 are non-ICT
ones. 2 tutorial groups are combined for each computing session with an
average of 20 students, whereas only one tutorial group is scheduled for
each non-ICT lesson. All tutorial lessons are one hour and are compulsory.
The tutors usually discuss the questions in the handout during the non-ICT
lessons, and explain the concepts that students may have difficulties with
during the lectures. 2 The Computing Sessions
The computing sessions are scheduled on alternate weeks in the 2 computer
rooms of the Economics department. The smaller computer room has 24
workstations, while the bigger one has 36. The layout of the two rooms
varies considerably; the bigger one is more for open access learning and
the smaller one is more for teaching purposes. During the computing
sessions, students work through the web worksheet (see Appendix One) that
guides them through the MathEcon screens and the quiz (see Appendix Two). MathEcon is a selection of screens from WinEcon that can be accessed on the
University network by choosing the Mathematics for Economics and Business
course on the WinEcon start up screen. MathEcon reinforces and extends
students' understanding of Mathematics and how it is used in Economics.
The online interactive quiz is designed with the CASTLE toolkit[1] to allow
students to test themselves on the topics that they have gone through in
the lectures, tutorials and MathEcon. It also allows students to monitor
their own progress by providing constructive feedback after they have
completed the quiz. The worksheet provides a structure for students by first setting out the
aims of the lesson, followed by the tasks to be completed. Most tasks are
set for all students to work at their own pace through the MathEcon screens
and the quiz. However, some tasks are set at different levels to cater to
the learning needs of different groups of students: . Students without Algebra or Calculus background are encouraged to
work through additional WinEcon screens.
. Students with better Algebra and Calculus foundations are
encouraged to attempt the more challenging questions or activities. For all the computing sessions, students are encouraged to work at their
own pace, and according to their own learning style. They are also
reminded to refer to their lecture notes, course handouts and textbooks, as
well as to work out their answers for the quiz with paper and pen.
Therefore, both ICT and non-ICT tools complement MathEcon during these
lessons. 3 The Tutors
The course co-ordinator and the sole lecturer of this module is Jean Soper,
a member of the WinEcon consortium. She has been involved in its
development since the project began in 1992, and has been using it in
Introductory Economics courses since 1994. 3 research students from the
departments, who serve as tutors for both the ICT and non-ICT lessons,
assist Jean in running the course. Only Jean and one other tutor are
involved in the case study. Sarah[2] is a final-year PhD student who has
been teaching in the EC103 course and other introductory Economics courses
for the past 3 years. 4 The Students and their Problems
There are 150 students in the EC103 course. Although the prerequisite of
the course is at least a grade C for GCSE Mathematics, the grade itself may
not be a clear indication of the mathematical abilities of students with
respect to algebraic manipulation and calculus. A desire to rank highly in
the league table may have encouraged many schools to register their
students in the Intermediate GCSE Mathematics papers with little Algebra
and Calculus rather than the more difficult papers with more Algebra