Implementing UCLA's Instructional Enhancement Initiative: Experiences in the Department of Economics*
Department of Economics
University of California at Los Angeles
While many UCLA faculty had recognized the potential of internet technology to enhance the learning experience, and had begun to harness it several years prior to the initiative, the inception of IEI has signaled the growing institutional acceptance of the use of technology, or computer assisted instruction (CAI) in the learning process. The primary focus of IEI is on the mitigation of general administrative tasks and the enrichment of student-faculty interaction common to all UCLA courses. A concurrent theme of the initiative is a commitment to support and reward the development of promising pedagogical applications, e. g. through grants offered through UCLA's Office of Instructional Development.
The Department of Economics is currently involved in a long-term effort to revamp the entire undergraduate curriculum, and is pursuing the increased use of information technology. We believe a large-scale effort to supplement the infrastructure put in place by the IEI with web-based pedagogical applications has the potential to enhance the educational experience of students by providing interactive supplementary materials which can a) help clarify and make accessible some of the more difficult-to-grasp topics, and b) provide continuity as students progress from elementary to advanced courses. Unlike the traditional static chalkboard, interactive java applets and cgi scripts can enhance the educational experience of students by providing real-time feedback as students manipulate model parameters or take a practice exam. The applications may also be used as part of lecture if an overhead computer display is available.
In addition to discussing the IEI-dictated technology that is already in place, we describe and provide links to applications already being used to enhance courses. We also outline the Department of Economics' implementation plan, and discuss the use of student evaluation surveys to provide feedback data for future web development.
The Structure of IEI MyUCLA, Library, and other Services Social Sciences Computing: Courseware for Social Sciences Departments The Standard IEI Tools Enhancements to the Standard Tools Pedagogical Support
The Value of CAI Development Using Java The Costs of CAI Development Web Materials CAI Efforts by the Authors
A Tour of Efforts by the Authors: CAI with Java and CGI Forms Principles of Economics Applied Regression Analysis Linear Models in Economics Outside Web Resources Efforts by Others Future Plans
Student Surveys Faculty Surveys Some Observations
Instructional Computing Committee, UCLA College of Letters and Science Sample class web sites at the college Continuity report IEI Looking back, looking ahead UCLA Office of Instructional Development (OID) Scholarship in a New Media Environment (SIANME)