Elena Stoll

Elena Stoll, Dietrich Kammer

Building and maintaining knowledge about specific interface technologies is a challenge. Current solutions include standard file-based document repositories, wikis, and other online tools. However, these solutions are often only available in intranets, become outdated and do not support the acquisition of knowledge in an efficient manner. The effort to gain an overview and detailed knowledge about novel interface technologies can be overwhelming and requires to research and read many technical reports and scientific publications. We propose to implement open source online knowledge bases that include building blocks for creating custom workshops to understand and apply the contained knowledge. We demonstrate this concept with a knowledge base for shape-changing interfaces (SCI-KB). The SCI-KB is hosted online at GitHub and fosters collaborative creation of knowledge elements accompanied by practical exercises and workshop elements that can be combined and adapted by individuals or groups of people new to the topic of shape-changing interfaces.

Dietrich Kammer, Elena Stoll, Adam Urban

We report our experience in two installations of a course on data visualization that featured project-based learning. Given the rationale of this approach, we show which input was provided when necessary for the students to achieve their goals. We also discuss and compare the tools we found useful for students to accomplish their goals. Fitting project-based learning into the standard schedule of a semester at University is a particular challenge, because it is hard for students to devote longer periods of time when working on their projects. Furthermore, online learning was a challenge to effectively perform group activities and work. We address didactic considerations, our course structure, tools, and student projects. Finally, we draw conclusions on the results and improvements in the course structure.