Promoting Diagnostic Skills with the Video-Based Learning Environment ViviAn

Abstract

The aim of the present research project is to investigate whether diagnostic skills of pre-service mathematics teachers can be enhanced by using the video-based learning environment ViviAn (https://vivian.uni-landau.de). For this purpose, short video vignettes which show different groups of students working in the mathematics lab “math is more” were recorded. The video vignettes show students of class 5, 6 und 11 working on different tasks. To solve the tasks the students have to determine lengths, areas and spatial volume of geometric figures. Those video vignettes were cut and implemented with appropriate contextual information in the learning environment ViviAn (https://vivian.uni-landau.de). The pre-service teachers are supposed to diagnose how the students solve the tasks and which difficulties they have in doing so. Content-based diagnostic assignments guide the pre-service teachers through the video analyses. The diagnostic skills were operationalized through the subcomponents of describing, interpreting, finding causes and deriving consequences. The pre-service teachers can compare their answers to expert solutions. Thus, the development of their diagnostic skills should be supported. To test the effectiveness of the video-based learning environment a quasi-experimental study with a control group was conducted. The results show that working with the video-based learning environment contributes to a significant learning development of the pre-service teachers in terms of their diagnostic skills. In contrast, no learning effect was measured for the control group. We conclude that working with the video-based learning environment ViviAn can support students by developing their diagnostic skills.