Harnessing technology to support student learning has been a major focus of my research. This does not mean merely placing instructional materials on the web or providing discussion boards to students. My interest is instead in investigating how multimedia capabilities of computers and the reach of the web can be exploited in developing and delivering interactive, expository presentations that students can use for self-paced learning. I have used my observations of difficulties undergraduate students have in learning as a driving force for research on technologies for learning. My research on the design of effective algorithm visualizations illustrates this. A course I have taught almost continuously at Auburn is on the design and analysis of algorithms. This junior-level course introduces students to fundamental algorithms of computer science, helps them learn how to think "algorithmically" and provides them with mathematical tools for analyzing algorithm performance. It is the third in a series of three core courses that computer science, computer engineering and software engineering majors take. It is the most abstract and mathematically oriented among these three core courses, requiring students to understand and analyze the behavior and complexity of over fifty algorithms. They have to also become proficient in detecting errors in algorithms, correcting the errors and implementing algorithms in a programming language. The abstract nature of algorithms and their mathematical and logical aspects make this a difficult course for the average student. As a result of my interest in making this material more accessible to students, I embarked on a research program to develop interactive multimedia explanations and animations of algorithms that learners can use for self-paced study. This research project has since been supported by the National Science Foundation through two grants. Research results from this project have influenced the pedagogical techniques I employ in the algorithms course. Students from this course have volunteered to participate in experiments to evaluate the efficacy of several prototypes of web-based interactive algorithm visualizations. I am gradually incorporating somewhat unconventional (from the perspective of traditional computer science instruction) techniques such as role playing, individual construction and collaborative critiquing of expository representations of algorithms, and interactive algorithm visualizations as integral parts of my course. This is an example of how teaching motivated research, the findings from which have subsequently influenced my teaching practices. Eventually I want to introduce these pedagogical techniques to earlier and more introductory courses on computing intended for majors and non-majors.
In graduate level courses I usually have students do a variety of individual and group projects to improve their analytical, design, self-learning and team-work skills. For instance, in the graduate level Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) course I teach, there are three major projects. There is an individual literature critiquing project in which each student is given an anonymized HCI research paper submitted to an actual conference, to critically analyze, write a review and make recommendations. Each student also has to select an advanced topic, do a thorough literature review and present the results to the entire class, to be followed by a written report. The third project is a group project in which two to three students design, prototype and evaluate an interactive system.
In the future I plan to design and offer courses using pedagogical techniques fashioned from educational research, e.g., by adapting and adopting techniques such as inquiry learning, problem-based learning and reciprocal teaching, and offering courses in the "studio" format commonly employed in architecture schools. Such classes will take place in a laboratory rather than a classroom, and the instructor's role will be more as a "guide by the side" instead of a "sage on the stage". To summarize, I strive for balance in research and teaching by integrating the two, and use research to make difficult subjects comprehensible and enjoyable to students. This symbiosis of teaching and research is an aspect of my academic career that will continue to be a focal point in the future.
(C) Hari Narayanan; All Rights Reserved; Last Updated 7.30.2006