Academic staff are increasingly called upon to improve the digital and data literacy of their students. The UTS Library are prototyping workshops and building a collection of kits to turn your students into digital creators and problem solvers.
Case studies of how we've been building these literacies in with UTS Students.
To thrive in a digital society, students need to learn a suite of core skills in digital creation and problem solving. The UTS Library are building a collection of kits to develop digital and data literacy skills in students. These kits empower students to design and prototype projects, learn coding and computational thinking skills as well as build softer skills such as problem solving, creativity and communication.
Academics can book the kits to use in their teaching. You can also contact your Faculty Librarian if you would like us to develop a digital and data literacy session with you.
Tinker Kit Expo
Our most popular class! The Expo is a taster activity for the Tinker Kits where students can experiment and play with different technologies. Students rotate through different technology stations in groups, completing activities and reflecting on what they experienced. This activity encourages group work, curiosity and play, while exposing students to technologies like simple circuitry, drag and drop code, robotics and virtual reality.
We have run this session for Bachelor of Technology and Innovation, Bachelor of Creative Intelligence students, Digital literacies FASS students and academic staff events.
Data Collection, Robots and Coding for Mathematics
Mathematics Teaching Methods (013415)
Graphing skills in mathematics are often taught with data taken out of context, and therefore the process of graphing and charting information lacks meaning and depth. Library staff worked with School of Education to develop a workshop to combined science, robotics and mathematics skills to make connections between how data is collected and then analysed.
Students worked in groups to run experiments in collecting data about the environment using the science journal app, or through programming our sphero robots. They then exported the data, cleaned, and graphed it in Excel. Each group presented back to the class about their activities, their graphs and reflected on how they could adapt the lesson in their teaching.
Data Literacy
54052 Economy, Society and Globalisation
Library staff developed this workshop to build data literacy in undergraduate Communications students. Their assignment involved tracking a commodity through it’s lifecycle, and the workshop covered finding and evaluating open datasets, using Excel to clean and interrogate data for trends and patterns, and then visualised using graphs. Students then applied their learning by finding and investigating their data sources for their group topics.
Data Visualisation
Introduction to Tableau Public
In this class we use the free data visualisation software Tableau Public to manipulate some simple data on the elevations of cities and their rainfall in Spain. Using the software we form a union between the data point common to the cities and then graph them to see if there is any trend of rainfall rising as the altitude of the cities decreases.
Finally, we use the mapping function in Tableau to visualize the rainfall and altitude across Spain by using colours and icons.
This class was presented to staff and students at the LX Labs hosted Reshub event in Spring 2018. In the class, spreadsheet data on widget sales was manipulated into graphs and maps using Microsoft's Power BI software.
Materials
Reshub Data Viz Power BI Handout 2018.pdf
BCII Capstone Project 2017
In Spring 2017 librarians assisted 4th year BCII students in visualising survey data using Excel and Tableau Public. Survey data collected using Survey Monkey was exported into CSV and cleaned before being formatted into pivot tables. Pivot tables were chosen for their ability to cross reference demographic data with the qualitative data supplied by survey recipients, to look for patterns and trends. Heat maps were also used to further expose these patterns. Tableau was then used as a tool to render the same kind of information in a slightly different way, using bar graphs and colours with line thickness to indicate the amount of respondents answering a particular question.
Online Privacy & Data Security Workshop
This workshop was originally developed for Postgraduate researchers, but is relevant for everyone in the UTS Community! It builds awareness around how to keep your information safe from prying eyes, as well as hands-on practice of a diceware password generation scheme to develop secure passwords.
Invention and technology kits you can borrow!
Book a kit to use in your class (Staff only)
ArduinoMicrocontroller kit for building electronic projects.
| littleBitsSnap together magnetic modules that create circuits. | Makey MakeyConnect computer programs with everyday objects. |
SpheroRobot you can control with your phone!
| Virtual RealityVR headsets | 360 Degree CameraRecord 360 degree footage with your phone or tablet
|
PocketLab VoyagerMeasure motion, light, magnetic fields, weather and temperature
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Digital Capabilities and the Growth Mindset
Class Description
This class will introduce learners to the growth mindset. This is followed by an engaging activity combining craft, circuitry and basic coding where participants will create an interactive artwork that produces sound effects using a Makey Makey.
Materials
Introduction to JavaScript
Class Description
This activity is designed for people who have never programmed before. It aims to build confidence and develop a basic understanding / mental model of programming.
Materials
Introduction to Data Collection and Visualisation
Class Description
This is an introductory session that provides an entry level look at robotics, coding and data collection. Students will work collaboratively in groups through guided exploration, investigating their data collection tool and using basic skills in data visualisation using Excel. They will then present their learning and justify their decisions to develop communication and collaboration skills.
Materials
- UTS Library - Introduction to data collection and visualisation - Lesson Plan (2019-02).docx
- UTS Library - Introduction to data collection and visualisation - Handouts combined (2019-02).docx
- UTS Library - Introduction to data collection and visualisation - Sphero toss and catch - Handout (2019-02).docx
- UTS Library - Introduction to data collection and visualisation - Sphero square - Handout (2019-02).docx
- UTS Library - Introduction to data collection and visualisation - Sphero pong - Handout (2019-02).docx
- UTS Library - Introduction to data collection and visualisation - PocketLab light intensity - Handout (2019-02).docx
- UTS Library - Introduction to data collection and visualisation - PocketLab temperature - Handout (2019-02).docx
Creating Soundscapes with littleBits Synth Kits
Class Description
This lesson introduces students to digital music creation using circuitry and recording software. Students will create digital soundscapes using littleBits Synth Kits and then record them using Audacity. They are then asked to reflect on how they can use digital tools to solve creative challenges.
While the main focus of the lesson is on creating a digital music artefact, students will also gain an understanding of learning and creativity as a process.
Materials
Power BI for Digital Humanities
Class Description
This workshop demonstrates how to create a number of visualisations in Power BI, with a focus on digital humanities.
Materials
- UTS Library - Power BI for Digital Humanities - Presentation (2019-02).pptx
- UTS Library - Power BI for Digital Humanities - Lesson Plan (2019-02).docx
- UTS Library - Power BI for Digital Humanities - Handout (2019-02).docx
- UTS Library - Power BI for Digital Humanities - Excel Datasheet (2019-02).xlsx
- UTS Library - Power BI for Digital Humanities - Example (2019-02).pbix
Please contact your Faculty Librarian if you would like to organise a workshop or demonstration of the Tinker Kits for a subject, or your school and faculty area.
