Research Spotlight: Daryn Dever
Q & A with Daryn Dever, Ph. D., Assistant Professor in the School Teaching and Learning
What research are you currently working on?
I am currently focused on the enhancement of K-16 STEM education using game-based learning environments. Most recently, I have examined how a computer-based game has enhanced high-school and undergraduate students’ knowledge about infectious diseases and how they spread. My work looks at how students’ use of self-regulated learning strategies and processes changes over time captured via multimodal methodologies, such as eye-tracking, physiological responses, facial expressions of emotions, and log files. Through this, I can identify the behavioral and cognitive patterns indicative of optimal learning with game-based learning environments.
What is the broader impact of your research?
By identifying what optimal behaviors and cognitive processes look like in learning with a game, my research supports the understanding of how we can create personalized, adaptive, and dynamic scaffolds within these environments. Ultimately, my research aims at developing these self-regulatory skills that cross educational domains and learning technologies so that students can be empowered to take an active role in their learning as well as be critical consumers of information.
What other research topics are you interested in?
I like to say that my research is domain-agnostic. I enjoy working with all domains and ages for identifying how we can best improve advanced learning technologies to support the individual learner. However, I am currently interested in pursuing research on identifying the cognitive hallmarks of effective leadership and team communication in medical resident training simulations.
