Development and Evaluation of Case Method Teaching Materials

using Manga on Tablet PCs

A Trial with Pointing Type Annotations

Takafumi Daikoku

, Hideo Funaoi

, Fusako Kusunoki

, Makiko Takenaka

and Shigenori Inagaki

Doshisha Women’s College, Kyōtanabe, Japan

Soka University, Hachiōji, Japan

Tama Art University, Tokyo, Japan

Oita University, Ōita, Japan

Kobe University, Hyōgo, Japan

Keywords: Tablet PC, Pointing, Annotation, Manga, Case Method, Teacher Education.

Abstract: The purpose of this research was to develop and evaluate a system that could be used to support university

students and graduate school students desiring to become teachers by providing the knowledge and skills

necessary for them to provide instructions for scientific experiments; the system involved sharing awareness

of issues using easy to use tablet PCs. The system required learners to perform touch operations by pointing

at locations with pins of four colors, at which time they became aware of issues within the scenes of the

experiments involving the pupils depicted in the manga displayed on the screen. The learners mutually shared

the things they noticed using the sharing function. The manga displayed on the screen is a case method

learning material, developed for the purpose of educating teachers. It is embedded with a diverse amount of

knowledge and skills necessary to become a science teacher, while enabling learners to acquire the

observation skills of teachers. The sharing function and the color-sorted frame advancing function of this

system were rated positively by the students. Furthermore, learners suggested that the system could be

improved by adding a memo function as well as a function for an overall view and for viewing arbitrary

pages.

1 INTRODUCTION

Currently, the greatest challenge for teacher

education in Japan is nurturing the qualifications and

abilities of teachers in order to increase their degree

of specialization. The concept of pedagogical

content knowledge (PCK) is widely known with

regard to the qualifications and abilities of teachers

(e.g., Gess-Newsome and Lederman, 1999; Mishra

and Koeher, 2006). PCK is quite simply the

knowledge that links directly to the abilities and

levels of a teacher’s specialty. The understanding of

knowledge pertaining to experimental tools and

educational materials, as well as experimental skills,

is essential for teachers, particularly in the field of

science education. Teaching materials for teacher

education designed to nurture such power of

execution, however, are lacking.

Technologies, including information and

communication technologies (ICT) and digital

content, on the other hand, have been widely

implemented in the field of education, right from

elementary schools to universities. Tablet PCs, such

as iPads and Androids, are starting to become

popular as tools for learning, particularly in recent

years. Many of the methods employed for such uses

are knowledge communication types of multimedia

educational materials or drill and tutorial type

systems, developed with consideration for

individualized support in an environment with

simultaneous instructions (e.g., Ostashewski and

Reid, 2010; O’Loughlin, 2011).

Each individual learner, however, can handle a

tablet PC and communicate with others, as well as

share information, regardless of whether they are

linked by Bluetooth or are configured into a server-

client setup. This is the reason tablet PCs have been

utilized as tools to promote sharing and externalizing

and building knowledge in learning communities

(e.g., Kim et al., 2009; Reid and Ostashewski, 2011).

The biggest feature of tablet PCs, however, is the

convenient operations involving touching and

557

Daikoku T., Funaoi H., Kusunoki F., Takenaka . and Inagaki S..

Development and Evaluation of Case Method Teaching Materials using Manga on Tablet PCs - A Trial with Pointing Type Annotations.

DOI: 10.5220/0004351905570563

In Proceedings of the 5th International Conference on Computer Supported Education (CSEDU-2013), pages 557-563

ISBN: 978-989-8565-53-2

 2013 SCITEPRESS (Science and Technology Publications, Lda.)

gesturing. This aspect must therefore be fully

considered when tablet PCs are utilized as tools for

learning, through such means as keeping the entry of

text to a minimum. A learning system intended for

nurturing the practical instructional abilities of

teachers who teach science was developed by

utilizing the features of tablet PCs, such as touching

and gesturing, to create a collaborative learning

environment intended for teachers of elementary

schools, university students and graduate school

students desiring to become teachers.

The specific educational materials utilize manga

as a communication tool with the aim of enabling

effective interaction with tablet PCs. This is because

students can read and interpret manga stories in

relatively short periods of time; moreover, it is

possible to provide information that is focused on

the portions that should be read by the students. This

characteristic of manga can be displayed effectively

on tablet PCs and awareness of the students can be

easily displayed and shared by performing touching

or gesturing operations. These educational materials

were case method educational materials developed

by Daikoku and his associates (2010), which use

manga that depicts scenes of learning actually

occurring in experiments by pupils. The acquisition

of situational decision-making abilities is supported

by integrating the learners into the stories as the

main characters in charge of solving problems.

These case method educational materials were

developed and evaluated as paper-based materials

and their effectiveness has already been confirmed

(e.g., Daikoku et al.,2011).

Learners in the community can use this system to

share pins indicating their awareness from images

representing scenes from science experiments in

their elementary school and their thoughts. The pins

represent what the students in the community

thought about and what they became aware of.

The idea was to utilize these more effectively on

tablet PCs. A system for visualizing and sharing

locations, which learners notice in manga

educational materials for the case method by

inserting annotations through touch operations, was

therefore developed and its effectiveness was

examined for the purpose of this research.

2 OUTLINE OF SYSTEM

2.1 Development Environment

The development environment for tablet PCs was

Adobe Flash CS5.5. It was therefore possible to

release publications as applications for iOS and

Android, respectively. The development

environment on the server side comprised Windows

7 (Professional), Apache 2.2, PHP 5.3 and MySQL

5.5. As long as the same level of service can be

provided, it will also be possible to create an

environment on other operating systems.

2.2 System Configuration

Figure 1 shows the configuration of this system.

Figure 1：The configuration of this system.

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Although only one tablet PC is depicted here,

multiple tablet PCs were actually connected to the

server, making it possible to share data, for instance,

with placed pins. Once logged into the system,

clients are able to browse any arbitrary page of

manga and operate a variety of functions, primarily

the pin placement function on any arbitrary location

in the frames—wherever they feel problems exist.

Information of such operations is sent to the server

via the network and then stored in the MySQL

database via the Control unit on PHP. Once the

“show others’ pins” command is sent from a tablet

PC, the information on all pins placed on the manga

being viewed is read from the MySQL database and

loaded onto the tablet PC. Those pins are then

displayed on the tablet PC. The sharing of pins that

represent awareness locations among the learners

becomes possible in this manner.

2.3 User Interface and Functions

Figure 2 shows the condition of how locations where

individuals have become aware of issues are

represented by the positioning of pins using the user

interface (for iPads) of this system. The operation

section for various functions located in the upper

section of the interface is shown in Figure 3.

2.3.1 Pin Placement Function

Pins of four colors, blue, green, yellow, and red, are

arranged as shown in Figure 3. These pins are

dragged

and dropped onto the manga to add

Figure 2: User interface after pin placement.

annotations. Pins in four colors were developed to

allow learners to use them according to their

arbitrary observation points. Blue has been assigned

to lesson instructions; green, to experimental skills;

yellow, to lesson environments; and red, to others

for the purpose of facilitating a common

understanding on the observation points in our

practical implementation.

Assigning such meanings to pins clarifies the

observation points that led to the placement of pins

on locations.

2.3.2 Pin Relocation and Deletion Functions

Pins that have been placed can be relocated.

Furthermore, pins can be dragged and dropped into a

trash bin located in the operating section, shown in

Figure 3b, when they have to be deleted.

2.3.3 Manga Page Manipulation Function

Users can flip forward through the manga by

swiping a page to the right and move backward by

swiping pages to the left (Figure 3d). No buttons

have been specially set up for these purposes.

Figure 3: Operating section for various functions.

2.3.4 Awareness Sharing Function

Touching the “Other pins” button, shown in Figure

3c, displays pins placed by other learners on the

same page as semi-transparent pins (Figure 4). This

operation enables learners to share annotations using

pins. Conversational activities can be promoted by

focusing on the relocations and colors of pins.

The locations of the focus and their categories

can be represented using pins of four colors and

shared through touching and gesturing operations of

this system, which can be considered to be fully

utilizing the conveniences of tablet PCs.

3 EVALUATION OF THE

SYSTEM

3.1 Evaluation Subjects and Period

The study involved a total of six subjects from 4

university students and 2 graduate school students

DevelopmentandEvaluationofCaseMethodTeachingMaterialsusingMangaonTabletPCs-ATrialwithPointingType

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Figure 4: User interface after sharing.

desiring to become teachers, a national university

located in Japan. None of the subjects had any

experience using this system or the case method

educational materials that use manga. The study

conducted in October 2012.

3.2 Procedure of the Experiment

Operations were explained to the learners before the

relationship between the colors of pins and

observation points was explained. They were then

instructed to read through the manga once, swiping

pages to flip through it. Next, learners were given 10

minutes to perform the task of placing the pins at

locations in the frames of the manga where they

became aware of issues. Discussions were held by

having learners mutually share the pin placements.

A discussion that focused on different locations

selected for the awareness of issues, as well as how

pins of different colors were placed even in the same

frames, was held for about 30 minutes. Figure 5

shows the evaluation of the experiment. All the

subjects were interviewed immediately after the

experiment.

3.3 Procedure of the Survey

An interview survey was conducted in order to

clarify the validity of the system, focusing primarily

on the functions of the system, from the perspective

of the learners. The duration of the interview was

about 10 minutes per person. The responses were

video-taped and then transcribed.

Figure 5: Evaluation of experiments.

4 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

The results of the study are discussed from the

perspective of the advantages and improvements for

learners

4.1 Advantages of the System

The trends of responses pertaining to the advantages

of the functions of this system, from the perspective

of the learners, are summarized by the following

three aspects. They are individually examined, with

a typical interview protocol cited in Table 1.

4.1.1 Ease of Sharing Awareness of Issues

Six subjects all cited the ease of sharing pins for

indicating awareness of issues. A in Table 1 depicts

a typical protocol relating to the ease of becoming

aware of the issues indicated by pins in frames.

Regarding the use of sharing functions for the

awareness of issues, KI, YA, HI, AN, IN, and KE

positively evaluated the aspects of ease of gaining

knowledge differences in the awareness of issues in

frames indicated by pins, as well as differences in

observation points. On the other hand, AN cited the

benefits of having a comprehensive overview of

others’ awareness of issues at a glance, which made

it possible to improve efficiency in discussions,

along with the ease for specifying particular frames.

4.1.2 Color-coded Pins Placed in Frames

Facilitated Easy Identification of

Observation Points

Two people positively evaluated the color coding of

pins placed in frames. B in Table 1 depicts a typical

protocol relating to the ease of seeing the

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observation points, due to the color coding of the

pins used in frames. AN and IN both evaluated the

clarification of observation points using color-coded

pins in frames to be a positive aspect that made it

easier to determine the differences in frames.

4.1.3 Several Pins can be Placed on

Locations of Concern

Two people evaluated the fact that a lot of pins can

be placed on a location positively. C in Table 1

depicts a typical protocol relating to the fact that

many pins can easily be placed on locations of

concern. AN and IN both positively evaluated the

fact there is no limit on the number of pins that can

be placed on locations where an awareness of issues

exists.

4.2 System Improvements

Trends of the responses pertaining to improvements

in the functions provided by this system, from the

perspective of learners, are summarized into the

following three aspects. They are individually

examined, with a typical interview protocol cited in

Table 2.

4.2.1 Memo or Sticky Note Function is

Desirable

Three people cited the necessity of adding a new

memo or sticky note function to the pin placement

function of this system. A in Table 2 shows a typical

protocol for such a memo or sticky note function. HI

and KE both cited the necessity of retaining details

of awareness on issues in frames as memos. This can

be interpreted as an indication that issues can be

forgotten with the current specification of noting

observation points using only pins with four color

codes.

Table 1: Advantages of this system from the perspective of learners.

A. Ease of sharing

KI: I thought it was very interesting how I could share my observations with the people around me. I notice

how other people placed their pins at locations different from mine or they noticed things different from me

and when I became aware of them, I could often figure out what they must have been thinking when they

placed their pins, just by looking at those pins.

YA: There were a few places that I overlooked, so I think it was very good.

HI: I thought it was good that I could clearly see how other people used different color codes from mine on the

same locations or where others also placed their pins on the same locations as me.

AN: The fact that things can be clearly seen and that the system allows you to see the opinions of other people

all at once, I believe, shortens the time of discussion in comparison with ordinary debates. It was good tha

the details could be pointed out properly and clearly simply by referring to specific pins in particular frames.

IN: It was good because viewpoints and opinions of other people could be seen at a glance and be very easily

understood.

KE: When you notice that other people have placed their pins at locations different from yours, you wonde

why, which leads you to have a new awareness of issues.

B. Ease of seeing observation points with color-coded pins in frames

AN: Simply put, I think you can become develop a completely different awareness of issues, even in the same

frame, by clarifying them using pins, since they are color coded blue, green, yellow, red, and so on.

IN: What I thought was good about the system is that since four colors were available for the pins, even when

multiple pins were placed on the same frame, it was clear to see the differences in perspective, which led to

the placing of those pins.

C. Ability to place many pins on locations of concern

AN: There is a benefit in the fact that many pins can be used to cover places where concerns exist.

IN: Since pins can be placed many times, it allowed me to place pins at many locations and also allowed other

people to place their pins in many places. Thus, it was not about one place or the other on any given page,

but we were able to place our pins for a variety of reasons.

* The two alphabetical characters placed in front of the protocols represent the initials of the names of the test subjects.

(The same applies hereinafter.)

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Table 2: Improvements to this system suggested by

learners.

A. Memo or sticky note function

HI: I think it would have been better to have some

kind of sticky note, on which you can ente

memos, rather than pins. When you have so many

pins placed on a frame, you may forget why you

laced your own pins, so it would be handy to

have a memo when sharing with other people late

on.

KE: It would probably be useful if memos could be

entered, especially for people who tend to be a

bit forgetful.

B. Ability to viewing all pages and select particula

pages

HI: It would have been good if we were able to have

an overview of all the pages and then select

articular pages, but instead we had to flip one

age at a time, which made the task quite

cumbersome.

KI: I would like a function that makes it possible to

view a previous page.

C. Function to change colors of pins.

KE: It would be good if it was possible to select a

desired frame in a similar fashion as right

clicking on a computer or selecting colors with

right click, etc.

IN: When I was performing the task, I actually

experienced situations where I thought and did

change colors of particular pins; these changes

were reflected on my own display but not on my

neighbor’s display.

4.2.2 Functions for Viewing All Pages and

Selecting Particular Pages

Two people mentioned the need to add new

functions for viewing pages in their entirety to the

system. B in Table 2 shows a typical protocol for

adding the option of displaying an overall view of all

the pages to the manga page manipulation functions.

HI stated that it was cumbersome to flip pages,

whereas KI cited the need to view previous pages

immediately. Thus, a function that allows users to

jump to a page or to open an arbitrary page across

the entire file and improve efficiency is needed,

since at the present time the page manipulation

functions for the manga only allow learners to flip

one page at a time.

4.2.3 Function to Facilitate the Changing of

Colors of Pins

Two people stated that they would like to be able to

change the color of pins while performing their

tasks. C in Table 2 shows a typical protocol for

changing the colors of pins after placing pins and

also while sharing them. KE requested a function

that enables the changing of colors instantly

whenever a need to do so arises, whereas IN cited

that the changing of colors while sharing awareness

on the issues should be reflected on the screen

shared with other people. This feedback points to

poor efficiency of the system, due to the fact that in

order to modify the color of a pin, it must first be

deleted and a new pin then be placed. Moreover,

once sharing starts, it is not possible to alter the

colors of the pins in frames.

5 CONCLUSIONS

A system that displays case method educational

materials in the form of manga on tablet PCs and

allows users to add annotations on the points of

observations using pins placed on frames to be

shared via a network was developed in this study.

The system was evaluated from the perspectives of

learners and all test subjects validated the utility of

the function for sharing awareness on issues.

Furthermore, other features, such as clear indication

of points of observations by placing color-coded

pins on frames and having an unlimited number of

pins that can be placed onto frames, were also

positively evaluated.

Suggestions for improvement included requests

for additional functions, such as a function for

providing an overview of all the pages at a glance

and for displaying a particular page, as well as a

function for easily changing the colors of the pins

placed in frames. We would like to refer to

incorporate these opinions by making relevant

additions and improvements to the system.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

This work was supported by JSPS KAKENHI Grant

Number 24330521．

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