Machine learning for medical ultrasound: status, methods, and future opportunities.

Science.gov (United States)

Brattain, Laura J; Telfer, Brian A; Dhyani, Manish; Grajo, Joseph R; Samir, Anthony E

2018-04-01

Ultrasound (US) imaging is the most commonly performed cross-sectional diagnostic imaging modality in the practice of medicine. It is low-cost, non-ionizing, portable, and capable of real-time image acquisition and display. US is a rapidly evolving technology with significant challenges and opportunities. Challenges include high inter- and intra-operator variability and limited image quality control. Tremendous opportunities have arisen in the last decade as a result of exponential growth in available computational power coupled with progressive miniaturization of US devices. As US devices become smaller, enhanced computational capability can contribute significantly to decreasing variability through advanced image processing. In this paper, we review leading machine learning (ML) approaches and research directions in US, with an emphasis on recent ML advances. We also present our outlook on future opportunities for ML techniques to further improve clinical workflow and US-based disease diagnosis and characterization.

Fostering Sustained Learning among Undergraduate Students: Emerging Research and Opportunities

Science.gov (United States)

Chemosit, Caroline; Rugutt, John; Rugutt, Joseph K.

2017-01-01

Keeping students engaged and receptive to learning can, at times, be a challenge. However, by the implementation of new methods and pedagogies, instructors can strengthen the drive to learn among their students. "Fostering Sustained Learning Among Undergraduate Students: Emerging Research and Opportunities" is an essential publication…

The Impact on Career Development of Learning Opportunities and Learning Behavior at Work.

Science.gov (United States)

Van der Sluis, Lidewey E. C.; Poell, Rob E.

2003-01-01

Survey responses were received in 1998 (n=63) and 1999 (n=98) from master's of business administration graduates. Hierarchical regression and difference of means tests found that career development depended on learning opportunities at work and on individual learning behavior. Behavior was more predictive of objective career development measures,…

Game based learning for 21st century transferable skills: challenges and opportunities

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bellotti, Francesco; Bottino, Rosa Maria; Nadolski, Rob; Fernández Manjón, Baltasar

2012-01-01

Bellotti, F., Bottino, R. M., Nadolski, R. J., & Fernández Manjón, B. (2012, 4-6 July). Game based learning for 21st century transferable skills: challenges and opportunities. Presentation at the Workshop Game based learning for 21st century transferable skills: challenges and opportunities, 12th

E-Learning: opportunity or end of field classes?

Science.gov (United States)

Bloemertz, Lena; Kuhn, Brigitte; Kuhn, Nikolaus J.

2013-04-01

E-Learning is often seen as an opportunity to avoid the costs of field classes by using new digital media to communicate content to students that otherwise could only be seen in the field. However, feeling, tasting and smelling soil on a farm or in a forest cannot be substituted via the internet. To achieve some teaching efficiency, an course on e-learning introduced at the University of Basel therefore took an opposite approach: instead of compromising the field experience, the opportunities to broaden access and generate flexibility for the students and instructors during the lecture room section of a soil science and land use course were maximised. The course has six topics, each e-learning element is designed to take one week of the studentśself study time devoted to the course. Three one-day field classes spread over the term offer an opportunity to the students to become acquainted with common soil types in the region of Basel and typical land use. The latter emphasizes visits to farms to ensure that the perspective of the farmers on their and soils and business is communicated to the students. The field classes also ensure sufficient contact time between instructors and students. The informal time spend together during the days in the field also ensures to address individual questions of the students. Overall, the format of the course ensures that the field experience and instructor presence are offered where needed and that e-learning is used to replace formal contact time where self-study is possible.

FACTORS THAT INFLUENCE THE SELECTION OF LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES FOR STUDENT NURSES IN PRIMARY HEALTH CARE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

H. lita

2002-11-01

The study therefore focused on the following objective: To identify the factors that influence the selection of learning opportunities for primary health care in hospital units. A qualitative research design utilising focus group discussions were used. The population consisted of conveniently selected lecturers, student nurses and registered nurses. The same initial question was asked in each focus group to initiate the discussions. The data were analysed according to Tesch's method. The results indicated that there is positive commitment from the lecturers and registered nurses to be involved in selecting appropriate learning opportunities. The student nurses also demonstrated a willingness to learn and to be exposed to learning opportunities in primary health care. There were however certain constraints that emerged as themes, namely: • Managerial constraints • Educational constraints Under the theme "managerial constraints" categories such as workload, nursing staff shortages and communication problems were identified. Under the theme "educational constraints" categories such as a lack of guidance, and the correlation of theory and practice emerged. Recommendations based on this research report include improvement of in-service education on managerial and educational aspects to facilitate the primary health care approach in hospitals.

Opportunities to Learn for Teachers’ Self-Efficacy and Enthusiasm

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Daniela Mahler

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The aim of this study was to identify opportunities to learn for teachers’ motivational orientations. Motivational orientations are relevant characteristics of psychological functioning, which are important for the behavior of a teacher and mandatory for effective teaching. We focus on three domains: self-efficacy, subject-specific enthusiasm, and enthusiasm for teaching the subject. Self-efficacy covers the belief of an individual that he or she is capable of performing required behaviors to produce a desired outcome. Teacher enthusiasm is an affective teacher orientation that is related to a specific subject and to teaching this specific subject. Different opportunities to learn are considered for teachers’ motivational orientations. Since teacher education particularly focuses on the acquisition of professional knowledge, we added a further exploratory focus to the study and investigated the relationships between motivational orientations and professional knowledge (content knowledge and pedagogical content knowledge. 134 biology teachers participated in the study. The results reveal that teacher education at university, the attendance in professional development courses, and self-study provide opportunities to learn for self-efficacy and enthusiasm for teaching the subject. Moreover, we found self-efficacy and subject-specific enthusiasm to be positively related to pedagogical content knowledge.

Connecting through Comics: Expanding Opportunities for Teaching and Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Bolton-Gary, Cynthia

2012-01-01

When students are faced with learning abstract contents, creating meaningful teaching and learning opportunities is a challenge for many educators. Concerns for how to get students to connect theoretical constructs and apply them to the "real world" is especially critical for those students studying to be teachers. This descriptive study…

Interprofessional team meetings: Opportunities for informal interprofessional learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Nisbet, Gillian; Dunn, Stewart; Lincoln, Michelle

2015-01-01

This study explores the potential for workplace interprofessional learning, specifically the learning that occurs between health professionals as part of their attendance at their regular interprofessional team meetings. While most interprofessional learning research to date has focused on formal structured education programs, this study adds to our understanding of the complexities of the learning processes occurring between health professionals as part of everyday practice. Through observations of team meetings and semi-structured interviews, we found that the interprofessional team meeting provided a practical, time-efficient, and relevant means for interprofessional learning, resulting in perceived benefits to individuals, teams, and patients. The learning process, however, was influenced by members' conceptions of learning, participation within the meeting, and medical presence. This study provides a basis for further research to assist health professionals capitalize on informal learning opportunities within the interprofessional meeting.

Professional Development across the Teaching Career: Teachers' Uptake of Formal and Informal Learning Opportunities

Science.gov (United States)

Richter, Dirk; Kunter, Mareike; Klusmann, Uta; Ludtke, Oliver; Baumert, Jurgen

2011-01-01

This study examined teachers' uptake of formal and informal learning opportunities across the career cycle. Analyses were based on data from 1939 German secondary teachers in 198 schools. Results showed that formal learning opportunities (in-service training) were used most frequently by mid-career teachers, whereas informal learning opportunities…

Digital Learning Environments: New possibilities and opportunities

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Otto Peters

2000-06-01

Full Text Available This paper deals with the general problem whether and, if so, how far the impact of the digitised learning environment on our traditional distance education will change the way in which teachers teach and learners learn. Are the dramatic innovations a menace to established ways of learning and teaching or are they the panacea to overcome some of the difficulties of our system of higher learning and to solve some of our educational problems caused by the big and far-reaching educational paradigm shift? This paper will not deal with technical or technological achievements in the field of information and communication which are, of course, revolutionary and to be acknowledged and admired. Rather, the digital learning environment will be analysed from a pedagogical point of view in order to find out what exactly are the didactic possibilities and opportunities and what are its foreseeable disadvantages.

Collaborative work and medical talk: opportunities for learning through knowledge sharing.

Science.gov (United States)

Nilsen, Line Lundvoll; Ludvigsen, Sten R

2010-01-01

Teleconsultations provide new opportunities for learning in medical settings. This study explores the conditions under which learning among physicians takes place. The empirical context is 47 real-time video conferences carried out to examine collaborative work and the medical talk involved. Sixteen of the observations were consultations wherein general practitioners (GPs) and specialists shared knowledge with the purpose of solving a medical problem related to a patient under treatment. In this exploratory study, the learning opportunities are seen as what medical practitioners with different types of expertise achieve through interaction while working with patients over periods of time. The analysis of medical talk in consultations shows that collaborative work among GPs and specialists creates a shared understanding of the patient's clinical history and treatment trajectory. As knowledge is demanded and attributed and gaps of knowledge become shared, consultations create a work tool that expands the medical work and talk. Collaborative work in and between different levels of the health care service expands knowledge, creates opportunities for learning in everyday settings, and improves the quality of knowledge distribution in the health care system.

Teaching and Learning Jewish History in the 21st Century: New Priorities and Opportunities

Science.gov (United States)

Jacobs, Benjamin M.

2018-01-01

New 21st-century circumstances in the Jewish world--including the changing nature of Jewish identification, the retreat from identity and continuity as singular aims of Jewish education, the democratization of Jewish learning opportunities, increased emphasis on informal and experiential Jewish education activities, and demonstrable interest among…

E-LEARNING CHANGE MANAGEMENT: Challenges and opportunities

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alaattin PARLAKKILIC

2013-10-01

Full Text Available The role of e-learning technologies entirely depends on the acceptance and execution of required-change in the thinking and behaviour of the users of institutions. The research are constantly reporting that many e-learning projects are falling short of their objectives due to many reasons but on the top is the user resistance to change according to the digital requirements of new era. It is argued that the suitable way for change management in e-learning environment is the training and persuading of users with a view to enhance their digital literacy and thus gradually changing the users’ attitude in positive direction. This paper discusses change management in transition to e-learning system considering pedagogical, cost and technical implications. It also discusses challenges and opportunities for integrating these technologies in higher learning institutions with examples from Turkey GATA (Gülhane Askeri Tıp Akademisi-Gülhane Military Medical Academy.

Situation Creator: A Pedagogical Agent Creating Learning Opportunities

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Miao, Yongwu; Hoppe, Ulrich; Pinkwart, Niels

2007-01-01

Miao, Y., Hoppe, H. U., & Pinkwart, N. (2007). Situation Creator: A Pedagogical Agent Creating Learning Opportunities. In R. Luckin, K. Koedinger & J. Greer (Eds.), Proceedings of the 13th International Conference on Artificial Intelligence in Education (pp. 614-617). Amsterdam, The Netherlands: IOS

Learning Opportunities And Learning Behaviours Of Small Business Starters: Relations With Goal Achievement, Skill Development, And Satisfaction

NARCIS (Netherlands)

A.M. van Gelderen (Marco); L. van der Sluis; P. Jansen (Paul)

2004-01-01

textabstractLearning is a vital issue for small business starters, contributing to short term and long term business performance, as well as to personal development. This study investigates when and how small business starters learn. It specifies the situations that offer learning opportunities, as

Professional Development for Early Childhood Educators: Efforts to Improve Math and Science Learning Opportunities in Early Childhood Classrooms

Science.gov (United States)

Piasta, Shayne B.; Logan, Jessica A. R.; Pelatti, Christina Yeager; Capps, Janet L.; Petrill, Stephen A.

2014-01-01

Because recent initiatives highlight the need to better support preschool-aged children’s math and science learning, the present study investigated the impact of professional development in these domains for early childhood educators. Sixty-five educators were randomly assigned to experience 10.5 days (64 hours) of training on math and science or on an alternative topic. Educators’ provision of math and science learning opportunities were documented, as were the fall-to-spring math and science learning gains of children (n = 385) enrolled in their classrooms. Professional development significantly impacted provision of science, but not math, learning opportunities. Professional development did not directly impact children’s math or science learning, although science learning was indirectly affected via the increase in science learning opportunities. Both math and science learning opportunities were positively associated with children’s learning. Results suggest that substantive efforts are necessary to ensure that children have opportunities to learn math and science from a young age. PMID:26257434

Toward Self-Regulated Learning in Vocational Education: Difficulties and Opportunities

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Jossberger, Helen

2011-01-01

Jossberger, H. (2011). Toward Self-Regulated Learning in Vocational Education: Difficulties and Opportunities. Doctoral Thesis. June, 24, 2011, Heerlen, The Netherlands: Open Universiteit in the Netherlands.

Special ways of knowing in science: expansive learning opportunities with bilingual children with learning disabilities

Science.gov (United States)

Martínez-Álvarez, Patricia

2017-09-01

The field of bilingual special education is currently plagued with contradictions resulting in a serious underrepresentation of emergent bilinguals with learning disabilities in professional science fields. This underrepresentation is due in large part to the fact that educational systems around the world are inadequately prepared to address the educational needs of these children; this inadequacy is rooted in a lack of understanding of the linguistic and cultural factors impacting learning. Accepting such a premise and assuming that children learn in unexpected ways when instructional practices attend to culture and language, this study documents a place-based learning experience integrating geoscience and literacy in a fourth-grade dual language classroom. Data sources include transcribed audio-taped conversations from learning experience sessions and interviews that took place as six focus children, who had been identified as having specific learning disabilities, read published science texts (i.e. texts unaltered linguistically or conceptually to meet the needs of the readers). My analysis revealed that participants generated responses that were often unexpected if solely analyzed from those Western scientific perspectives traditionally valued in school contexts. However, these responses were also full of purposeful and rich understandings that revealed opportunities for expansive learning. Adopting a cultural historical activity theory perspective, instructional tools such as texts, visuals, and questions were found to act as mediators impacting the learning in both activity systems: (a) teacher- researcher learning from children, and (b) children learning from teachers. I conclude by suggesting that there is a need to understand students' ways of knowing to their full complexity, and to deliberately recognize teachers as learners, researchers, and means to expansive learning patterns that span beyond traditional learning boundaries.

Parents’ and Experts’ Awareness of Learning Opportunities in Children’s Museum Exhibits

Science.gov (United States)

Golinkoff, Roberta Michnick; Stuehling, Amara; Resnick, Ilyse; Mahajan, Neha; Hirsh-Pasek, Kathy; Moynihan, Nora

2017-01-01

Informal learning outside of school are crucial for a child’s development. Children’s museums, in particular, are environments conducive to this sort of learning, especially when parents guide children’s exploration. However, research suggests a gap between parents’ and experts’ perceptions of the value of informal learning. In Study 1, we asked groups of parents and experts (i.e., individuals in the community connected with the field of education or those with training in child growth and development) to rate the presence of learning opportunities available in two museum exhibits, finding that parents consistently provided lower ratings. In Study 2, we explored whether signage aimed at orienting parents toward the learning potential in these exhibits would have an impact on their ratings. Results suggested that signage made parents’ ratings look more like those of experts. Taken together, these studies show that a simple intervention can help parents perceive the learning opportunities in children’s museum exhibits as experts do. PMID:28970647

Using assistive technology adaptations to include students with learning disabilities in cooperative learning activities.

Science.gov (United States)

Bryant, D P; Bryant, B R

1998-01-01

Cooperative learning (CL) is a common instructional arrangement that is used by classroom teachers to foster academic achievement and social acceptance of students with and without learning disabilities. Cooperative learning is appealing to classroom teachers because it can provide an opportunity for more instruction and feedback by peers than can be provided by teachers to individual students who require extra assistance. Recent studies suggest that students with LD may need adaptations during cooperative learning activities. The use of assistive technology adaptations may be necessary to help some students with LD compensate for their specific learning difficulties so that they can engage more readily in cooperative learning activities. A process for integrating technology adaptations into cooperative learning activities is discussed in terms of three components: selecting adaptations, monitoring the use of the adaptations during cooperative learning activities, and evaluating the adaptations' effectiveness. The article concludes with comments regarding barriers to and support systems for technology integration, technology and effective instructional practices, and the need to consider technology adaptations for students who have learning disabilities.

Effects of increased self-regulated learning opportunities on student teachers’ metacognitive and motivational development.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Vrieling, Emmy; Bastiaens, Theo; Stijnen, Sjef

2017-01-01

This intervention study focused on the relationships between student teachers’ self-regulated learning (SRL) opportunities, their use of metacognitive learning strategies and their motivation for learning. Results indicate that student teachers’ use of metacognitive learning strategies increases

Opportunity to learn English and mathematics in Ghanaian primary ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Opportunity to learn English and mathematics in Ghanaian primary schools: implications for teacher education programmes. ... teachers' instructional practices and management of instructional time, and • teachers' preparedness to implement the content standards. These inefficiencies could be attributed to the fact that the ...

Case study as a learning opportunity among nursing students in a ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

research were observed in order to maintain the integrity of the research. The research fi ndings suggest that the case study as a learning opportunity is effective in facilitating learning, as indicated by the following three categories: increase in critical thinking skills, increased theory and practice integration and increased ...

Combining theories to reach multi-faceted insights into learning opportunities in doctoral supervision

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kobayashi, Sofie; Rump, Camilla Østerberg

The aim of this paper is to illustrate how theories can be combined to explore opportunities for learning in doctoral supervision. While our earlier research into learning dynamics in doctoral supervision in life science research (Kobayashi, 2014) has focused on illustrating learning opportunitie...

Homebound Learning Opportunities: Reaching Out to Older Shut-ins and Their Caregivers.

Science.gov (United States)

Penning, Margaret; Wasyliw, Douglas

1992-01-01

Describes Homebound Learning Opportunities, innovative health promotion and educational outreach service for homebound older adults and their caregivers. Notes that program provides over 125 topics for individualized learning programs delivered to participants in homes, audiovisual lending library, educational television programing, and peer…

The Use of Twitter in the Creation of Educational Professional Learning Opportunities

Science.gov (United States)

Ross, Carrie R.; Maninger, Robert M.; LaPrairie, Kimberly N.; Sullivan, Sam

2015-01-01

This study sought to examine how educators are using Twitter to increase their professional learning opportunities beyond the boundaries of traditional professional development offers, and whether educators feel a greater sense of fulfillment receiving professional development through networking and community learning than they do through…

Opportunities for learning in an introductory undergraduate human anatomy and physiology course

Science.gov (United States)

Montplaisir, Lisa Marie

2003-10-01

The purpose of this study was to explore the course conditions that support the development of meaningful student learning in an introductory undergraduate human anatomy and physiology course. The study was conducted during an 8-week summer-session at a small mid-western university. Classroom observations and taped recordings of class sessions were used to determine content episodes within the instructional unit, opportunities for learning created by the instructor, demonstrations of information processing by the students, and the ways in which the instructor used the Personal Response System (PRS). Student interviews were used to determine students' level of understanding of pre-test and post-test items. Student interviews and a questionnaire were used to determine students' perceptions of the PRS as a learning tool. Findings reveal that the instructor had different expectations of students when posing verbal questions in-class than he had when posing PRS questions. The use of verbal questions did not permit demonstrations of student understanding; however, the use of the PRS did result in demonstrations of student understanding. Questions posed via the use of the PRS were categorized according to cognitive level. The cognitive level of the questions increased with time over the instructional unit and within the content episodes. Students demonstrated deeper understanding of the topics after instruction than they did before instruction. Students reported more in-class thinking about the content, more discussion of the content with their neighbors, more regular class attendance, more opportunities for deeper learning, and a general preference for the PRS over traditional lectures. Findings of the study indicate that the instructional decisions about the use of questions influences the opportunities for students to process information and demonstrate their understanding of the content and that students valued these opportunities. A better understanding of the

Math Is More than Numbers: Beginning Bilingual Teachers' Mathematics Teaching Practices and Their Opportunities to Learn

Science.gov (United States)

Yeh, Cathery

2017-01-01

In this article, the author provides results from a 3-year, longitudinal study that examined two novice bilingual teachers' mathematics teaching practices and their professional opportunities to learn to teach. Primary data sources included videotaped mathematics lessons, teacher interviews, and field notes of their teacher preparation methods…

Collaborative work by using videoconferencing: opportunities for learning in daily medical practice.

Science.gov (United States)

Lundvoll Nilsen, Line

2011-08-01

In this article, I explore what happens when general practitioners (GPs) and specialists meet using videoconferencing to collaborate on a patient's treatment. By using videoconferencing, GPs and specialists are offered opportunities to share and produce knowledge. The data corpus was 42 videotaped videoconferences. The treatment of one specific patient was selected.This patient was discussed over a period of 9 days, which constituted five videoconferences. I describe how GPs and specialists discuss treatment strategies and exemplify how knowledge sharing creates opportunities for learning in boundary zones across activity systems as a part of daily practice.The talk about the treatment occurs by information exchange and by consultation. Information exchange without any dilemmas presented might support decisions already made. Consultations wherein dilemmas are presented and solved by bridging knowledge gaps between the general practitioner and the specialist create opportunities for learning.

Classroom Composition and Racial Differences in Opportunities to Learn

Science.gov (United States)

Minor, Elizabeth Covay

2015-01-01

Black and White advanced math students leave high school with disparate math skills. One possible explanation is that minority students are exposed to different learning opportunities, even when they are taking classes with the same title. Using a convenience sample of the Mathematics Survey of the Enacted Curriculum (SEC), this study found that…

Ecosystem Services Valuation as an Opportunity for Inquiry Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Taylor, Zachary P.; Bennett, Drew E.

2016-01-01

Teaching ecosystem services provides an ideal opportunity to use inquiry-based learning to help students make connections between ecological, geological, and social systems. The idea of ecosystem services, or the benefits nature provides to society, has emerged as a key concept in a host of environmental fields and is just beginning to gain…

UDENTE (Universal Dental E-Learning) a golden opportunity for dental education.

Science.gov (United States)

Reynolds, Patricia

2012-01-10

The incorporation of technological advancements in higher education has started to bridge the gap in local, national and global delivery of dental courses. This gap, including the global decrease in senior clinical academics, has influenced the development of new teaching and learning techniques. Institutional virtual learning environments (VLE) and other e-learning resources are now in higher demand. This paper describes how one such innovative solutions has been IVIDENT (International Virtual Dental School), has enabled secure and seamless access to high quality e-content and tools through an innovative, universal flexible learning platform. IVIDENT, now UDENTE (Universal Dental E-learning) has been shown to offer new learning experiences for students of dentistry, but its approach can apply across all educational domains. UDENTE also benefits staff as it allows them to contribute and access resources through peer reviewed publishing processes, which ensure the highest quality in education. UDENTE was developed thanks to a £2.3 million grant from the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) and the Department of Health. http://www.udente.org. This academically led educational research project involved dental schools in seven countries. An initially scoping of requirements was followed by elaboration of the tools needed. Pilot testing of the tools, systems and learning resources in particular and the impact of the UDENTE in general were carried out. The pilots revealed evidence of positive impact of a space for learning, teaching, development and communication, with tools for planning of electives and administrative support. The results of these initial pilots have been positive and encouraging, describing UDENTE as an accessible, user friendly platform providing tools that otherwise would be difficult to access in a single space. However, attention to supporting faculty to embrace these new learning domains is essential if such technology enhanced

Exploring home visits in a faith community as a service-learning opportunity.

Science.gov (United States)

du Plessis, Emmerentia; Koen, Magdalene P; Bester, Petra

2013-08-01

Within South Africa the Psychiatric Nursing Science curriculum in undergraduate Baccalaureate nursing education utilizes home visits as a service-learning opportunity. In this context faith communities are currently unexplored with regards to service-learning opportunities. With limited literature available on this topic, the question was raised as to what are these students' and family members' experience of home visits within a faith community. To explore and describe nursing students' and family members' experiences of home visits within a faith community. A qualitative approach was used that was phenomenological, explorative and descriptive and contextual in nature. The research was conducted within a faith community as service learning opportunity for Baccalaureate degree nursing students. This community was situated in a semi-urban area in the North-West Province, South Africa. Eighteen (n=18) final year nursing students from different cultural representations, grouped into seven groups conducted home visits at seven (n=7) families. Comprehensive reflective reporting after the visits, namely that the students participated in a World Café data collection technique and interviews were conducted with family members. Three main themes emerged: students' initial experiences of feeling overwhelmed but later felt more competent; students' awareness of religious and cultural factors; and students' perception of their role. Two main themes from the family members emerged: experiencing caring and growth. There is mutual benefit for nursing students and family members. Students' experiences progress during home visits from feeling overwhelmed and incompetent towards a trusting relationship. Home visits in a faith community seems to be a valuable service learning opportunity, and the emotional competence, as well as spiritual and cultural awareness of nursing students should be facilitated in preparation for such home visits. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights

The Presentation Assignment: Creating Learning Opportunities for Diverse Student Populations.

Science.gov (United States)

Spencer, Brenda H.; Bartle-Angus, Kathryn

2000-01-01

Finds the presentation assignment to be an effective method of providing students with the opportunity to apply the literacy skills they are learning in ways that are personally meaningful. Describes the presentation assignment framework and provides an example of an assignment that required students to analyze and interpret works of literature…

The Effect of Conversation Engagement on L2 Learning Opportunities

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Wenxue

2017-01-01

This article reviews patterns of interaction (i.e. learner role relationships) in peer communicative tasks, and uses data collected from different tasks to explain what happens in peer interaction and its impact on the learning opportunities interlocutors create for each other. It proposes that, with L2 peer interaction gaining popularity in…

How Do Clinicians Learn About Knowledge Translation? An Investigation of Current Web-Based Learning Opportunities.

Science.gov (United States)

Damarell, Raechel A; Tieman, Jennifer J

2017-07-13

Clinicians are important stakeholders in the translation of well-designed research evidence into clinical practice for optimal patient care. However, the application of knowledge translation (KT) theories and processes may present conceptual and practical challenges for clinicians. Online learning platforms are an effective means of delivering KT education, providing an interactive, time-efficient, and affordable alternative to face-to-face education programs. This study investigates the availability and accessibility of online KT learning opportunities for health professionals. It also provides an analysis of the types of resources and associated disciplines retrieved by a range of KT synonyms. We searched a range of bibliographic databases and the Internet (Google advanced option) using 9 KT terms to identify online KT learning resources. To be eligible, resources had to be free, aimed at clinicians, educational in intent, and interactive in design. Each term was searched using two different search engines. The details of the first 100 websites captured per browser (ie, n=200 results per term) were entered into EndNote. Each site was subsequently visited to determine its status as a learning resource. Eligible websites were appraised for quality using the AACODS (Authority, Accuracy, Coverage, Objectivity, Date, Significance) tool. We identified 971 unique websites via our multiple search strategies. Of these, 43 were health-related and educational in intent. Once these sites were evaluated for interactivity, a single website matched our inclusion criteria (Dementia Knowledge Translation Learning Centre). KT is an important but complex system of processes. These processes overlap with knowledge, practice, and improvement processes that go by a range of different names. For clinicians to be informed and competent in KT, they require better access to free learning opportunities. These resources should be designed from the viewpoint of the clinician, presenting KT

Risks and opportunities of virtual learning: the experience of UOC

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Adela Ros Híjar

2001-06-01

Full Text Available In this article, I have tried to give answers to the question of what the risks and opportunities of virtual learning are. In this sense, the UOC's experience has been of great value to analyse several key issues such as the new ways of accessing quality education, the new ways of participation, the new values of educational processes as well as some of the structural factors on which e-learning is based, but which place its very model in jeopardy. Direct observation of some key processes as well as contact with the main actors (e.g. students, teachers and technicians have provided valuable information about some factors to consider when analysing the social implications of virtual learning.

INDIVIDUAL ACCOUNTABILITY IN COOPERATIVE LEARNING: MORE OPPORTUNITIES TO PRODUCE SPOKEN ENGLISH

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Puji Astuti

2017-05-01

Full Text Available The contribution of cooperative learning (CL in promoting second and foreign language learning has been widely acknowledged. Little scholarly attention, however, has been given to revealing how this teaching method works and promotes learners’ improved communicative competence. This qualitative case study explores the important role that individual accountability in CL plays in giving English as a Foreign Language (EFL learners in Indonesia the opportunity to use the target language of English. While individual accountability is a principle of and one of the activities in CL, it is currently under studied, thus little is known about how it enhances EFL learning. This study aims to address this gap by conducting a constructivist grounded theory analysis on participant observation, in-depth interview, and document analysis data drawn from two secondary school EFL teachers, 77 students in the observed classrooms, and four focal students. The analysis shows that through individual accountability in CL, the EFL learners had opportunities to use the target language, which may have contributed to the attainment of communicative competence—the goal of the EFL instruction. More specifically, compared to the use of conventional group work in the observed classrooms, through the activities of individual accountability in CL, i.e., performances and peer interaction, the EFL learners had more opportunities to use spoken English. The present study recommends that teachers, especially those new to CL, follow the preset procedure of selected CL instructional strategies or structures in order to recognize the activities within individual accountability in CL and understand how these activities benefit students.

Consequences of increased self-regulated learning opportunities on student teachers’ motivation and use of metacognitive skills.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Vrieling, Emmy; Bastiaens, Theo; Stijnen, Sjef

2017-01-01

This intervention study focused on the relationships between primary student teachers’ self-regulated learning (SRL) opportunities, their motivation for learning and their use of metacognitive learning strategies. The participants were 3 teacher educators and 136 first-year student teachers.

An investigation into the opportunity to learn that is available to Grade 12 mathematics learners

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gerrit Stols

2013-01-01

Full Text Available This study investigated the opportunity to learn (OTL that is available to Grade 12 mathematics learners. Learner workbooks were analysed in terms of time on task, curriculum coverage, curriculum coherence, and cognitive demand. Based on these elements, experienced mathematics teachers judged the opportunity that the learners have to achieve more than 60% for each topic. According to the workbooks, the average number of active learning days in this sample was 54.1 days per annum. This resulted in limited curriculum coverage in almost all sections in 16 of the 18 under-performing schools. In these schools, learners spent most of their time practising routine procedures. The high correlation of 0.95 (p < 0.001 between the experts'prediction about the opportunity to learn in the different schools (based on the learner workbooks and learners' actual performance in the Grade 12 exam shows that the number, the coverage, the cognitive level, and the coherence of activities play a major role in understanding learner performance.

TOWARDS THE FORMULATION OF A PROPOSAL FOR OPPORTUNITY-TO-LEARN STANDARDS IN EFL LEARNING AND TEACHING

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rosalba Cárdenas Ramos

2011-08-01

Full Text Available This paper focuses on the need to formulate and implement a proposal for opportunity-to-learn standards (OTL in the field of language learning and teaching in Colombia, with the aim of ensuring the necessary conditions for the implementation and achievement of the performance standards, issued by the Ministry of Education as part of the National Bilingual Program in this area. First, it reviews the concept, origins, composition and models of OTL standards, and then it examines the Colombian situation to make a case for OTL in this country.

Consequences of Increased Self-Regulated Learning Opportunities on Student Teachers' Motivation and Use of Metacognitive Skills

Science.gov (United States)

Vrieling, Emmy; Bastiaens, Theo; Stijnen, Sjef

2012-01-01

This intervention study focused on the relationships between primary student teachers' self-regulated learning (SRL) opportunities, their motivation for learning and their use of metacognitive learning strategies. The participants were 3 teacher educators and 136 first-year student teachers. During one semester, teacher educators and student…

Learning Opportunities in PhD Supervisory Talks: A Social Constructionist Perspective

Science.gov (United States)

Tian, Wenwen; Singhasiri, Wareesiri

2016-01-01

Although PhD supervision has been recognised as an educative process and a complex pedagogy for decades, there is little research into on-site pedagogic processes. Informed by social constructionism and a Foucauldian approach, this qualitative case study explores how learning opportunities were created by analysing both a supervisor's verbal…

Learning Opportunities for Group Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Gil, Alfonso J.; Mataveli, Mara

2017-01-01

Purpose: This paper aims to analyse the impact of organizational learning culture and learning facilitators in group learning. Design/methodology/approach: This study was conducted using a survey method applied to a statistically representative sample of employees from Rioja wine companies in Spain. A model was tested using a structural equation…

Opportunities to Learn: Inverse Relations in U.S. and Chinese Textbooks

Science.gov (United States)

Ding, Meixia

2016-01-01

This study, focusing on inverse relations, examines how representative U.S. and Chinese elementary textbooks may provide opportunities to learn fundamental mathematical ideas. Findings from this study indicate that both of the U.S. textbook series (grades K-6) in comparison to the Chinese textbook samples (grades 1-6), presented more instances of…

Effects of Opportunities for Word Retrieval during Second Language Vocabulary Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Barcroft, Joe

2007-01-01

Research suggests that memory for an item improves when one is allowed to retrieve the item (Slamecka & Graf, 1978). This study explored benefits of providing opportunities for target-word retrieval during second language vocabulary learning. English speakers studied new Spanish words while viewing 24 word-picture pairs. They first viewed all 24…

The Perceived Effect of Duty Hour Restrictions on Learning Opportunities in the Intensive Care Unit.

Science.gov (United States)

Sabri, Nessrine; Sun, Ning-Zi; Cummings, Beth-Ann; Jayaraman, Dev

2015-03-01

Many countries have reduced resident duty hours in an effort to promote patient safety and enhance resident quality of life. There are concerns that reducing duty hours may impact residents' learning opportunities. We (1) evaluated residents' perceptions of their current learning opportunities in a context of reduced duty hours, and (2) explored the perceived change in resident learning opportunities after call length was reduced from 24 continuous hours to 16 hours. We conducted an anonymous, cross-sectional online survey of 240 first-, second-, and third-year residents rotating through 3 McGill University-affiliated intensive care units (ICUs) in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, between July 1, 2012, and June 30, 2013. The survey investigated residents' perceptions of learning opportunities in both the 24-hour and 16-hour systems. Of 240 residents, 168 (70%) completed the survey. Of these residents, 63 (38%) had been exposed to both 24-hour and 16-hour call schedules. The majority of respondents (83%) reported that didactic teaching sessions held by ICU staff physicians were useful. However, of the residents trained in both approaches to overnight call, 44% reported a reduction in learner attendance at didactic teaching sessions, 48% reported a reduction in attendance at midday hospital rounds, and 40% reported a perceived reduction in self-directed reading after the implementation of the new call schedule. A substantial proportion of residents perceived a reduction in the attendance of instructor-directed and self-directed reading after the implementation of a 16-hour call schedule in the ICU.

Opportunities for Inquiry Science in Montessori Classrooms: Learning from a Culture of Interest, Communication, and Explanation

Science.gov (United States)

Rinke, Carol R.; Gimbel, Steven J.; Haskell, Sophie

2013-08-01

Although classroom inquiry is the primary pedagogy of science education, it has often been difficult to implement within conventional classroom cultures. This study turned to the alternatively structured Montessori learning environment to better understand the ways in which it fosters the essential elements of classroom inquiry, as defined by prominent policy documents. Specifically, we examined the opportunities present in Montessori classrooms for students to develop an interest in the natural world, generate explanations in science, and communicate about science. Using ethnographic research methods in four Montessori classrooms at the primary and elementary levels, this research captured a range of scientific learning opportunities. The study found that the Montessori learning environment provided opportunities for students to develop enduring interests in scientific topics and communicate about science in various ways. The data also indicated that explanation was largely teacher-driven in the Montessori classroom culture. This study offers lessons for both conventional and Montessori classrooms and suggests further research that bridges educational contexts.

Stakeholder Perceptions, Learning Opportunities, and Student Outcomes in Three Clinical Learning Models.

Science.gov (United States)

Hendricks, Susan; DeMeester, Deborah; Stephenson, Evelyn; Welch, Janet

2016-05-01

Understanding the strengths and challenges of various clinical models is important for nursing education. Three long-standing clinical models (preceptored, hybrid, and traditional) were compared on several outcome measures related to satisfaction, learning opportunities, and student outcomes. Students, faculty, and preceptors participated in this study. Although no differences were noted in satisfaction or standardized examination scores, students in the preceptored clinical model were able to practice more psychomotor skills. Although participants in the preceptored model reported spending more time communicating with staff nurses than did those in the other models, students in the traditional model spent more time with faculty. No differences were noted among groups in student clinical observation time. All clinical learning models were focused on how clinical time was structured, without an emphasis on how faculty and preceptors work with students to develop nursing clinical reasoning skills. Identifying methodology to impact thinking in the clinical environment is a key next step. [J Nurs Educ. 2016;55(5):271-277.]. Copyright 2016, SLACK Incorporated.

Talking back to theory: the missed opportunities in learning technology research

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Martin Oliver

2011-12-01

Full Text Available Research into learning technology has developed a reputation for being drivenby rhetoric about the revolutionary nature of new developments, for payingscant attention to theories that might be used to frame and inform research, andfor producing shallow analyses that do little to inform the practice of education.Although there is theoretically-informed research in learning technology, this isin the minority, and has been actively marginalised by calls for applied designwork. This limits opportunities to advance knowledge in the field. Using threeexamples, alternative ways to engage with theory are identified. The paper concludesby calling for greater engagement with theory, and the development of ascholarship of learning technology, in order to enrich practice within the fieldand demonstrate its relevance to other fields of work.

Open Educational Resources and the Opportunities for Expanding Open and Distance Learning (OERS-ODL

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jameson Mbale

2013-05-01

Full Text Available Distance learning (DL was a teaching modality which utilized technology to deliver teaching to students who were not physically present such as in a traditional classroom setting. DL was not constrained by geographic considerations and therefore offered unique opportunities to expand educational access. The University of Namibia (UNAM and International Training and Education Center for Health (I-TECH partnered to examine DL at UNAM, to assess strengths and weaknesses, and to make recommendations for improvement. The primary method used in this assessment was interviews with staff at centers and units engaged in Distance Learning at UNAM. It was analyzed how interactions vary between instructor and learner, among learners, and between learners and learning resources. DL at UNAM was categorized into five approaches including: 1 Outreach, 2 Print-based, 3 Computer based, 4 Internet-based, and 5 Digital Video Conferencing (DVC. All-in-all, a strategy of “starting small” was envisaged to allow individual instructors to voluntarily use collaborative software such as Google Groups to enhance print-based instruction and progressively expand DL at UNAM.

Machine Learning for Precision Psychiatry: Opportunities and Challenges.

Science.gov (United States)

Bzdok, Danilo; Meyer-Lindenberg, Andreas

2018-03-01

The nature of mental illness remains a conundrum. Traditional disease categories are increasingly suspected to misrepresent the causes underlying mental disturbance. Yet psychiatrists and investigators now have an unprecedented opportunity to benefit from complex patterns in brain, behavior, and genes using methods from machine learning (e.g., support vector machines, modern neural-network algorithms, cross-validation procedures). Combining these analysis techniques with a wealth of data from consortia and repositories has the potential to advance a biologically grounded redefinition of major psychiatric disorders. Increasing evidence suggests that data-derived subgroups of psychiatric patients can better predict treatment outcomes than DSM/ICD diagnoses can. In a new era of evidence-based psychiatry tailored to single patients, objectively measurable endophenotypes could allow for early disease detection, individualized treatment selection, and dosage adjustment to reduce the burden of disease. This primer aims to introduce clinicians and researchers to the opportunities and challenges in bringing machine intelligence into psychiatric practice. Copyright © 2017 Society of Biological Psychiatry. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Extending Basic Learning Opportunities: Challenge and Response. UNESCO-UNICEF Co-operative Programme Digest No. 16.

Science.gov (United States)

Prakasha, Veda; And Others

This digest focuses on problems encountered in the expansion of facilities for universal primary education and responses being developed to overcome these problems. The central message of the document is that nonformal structures of learning and community involvement play a key role in the expansion of basic learning opportunities in the…

Profiles of Opportunities to Learn for TEDS-M Future Secondary Mathematics Teachers

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Ting-Ying; Tang, Shu-Jyh

2013-01-01

This study used the data set from the Teacher Education and Development Study in Mathematics to identify the profiles of opportunities to learn (OTL) regarding topics studied in teacher preparation programs by future secondary mathematics teachers from 15 participating countries. The topics of inquiry covered tertiary-level mathematics,…

The rise of E-learning and opportunities for Indian family physicians

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chayan Datta

2012-01-01

Full Text Available The IT (information technology revolution is sweeping across the globe. Distance, location and costs have become irrelevant. With availability of newer communication tools, medical education and practice are bound to be transformed. Rapid advancement of science requires medical professionals to update their knowledge constantly. Online interface for CME (Continued Medical Education presents an exciting opportunity as an E learning tool.

The Effect of Banking Personnel's Access to E-Learning Opportunities on Their Professional Achievement

Science.gov (United States)

Karaaslan, Ilknur Aydogdu

2013-01-01

Developments in information and communication technology create the spread of education and economic opportunities. E-learning is one of them. For companies in the banking sector, web-based training is a new

Engineering Computer Games: A Parallel Learning Opportunity for Undergraduate Engineering and Primary (K-5 Students

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mark Michael Budnik

2011-04-01

Full Text Available In this paper, we present how our College of Engineering is developing a growing portfolio of engineering computer games as a parallel learning opportunity for undergraduate engineering and primary (grade K-5 students. Around the world, many schools provide secondary students (grade 6-12 with opportunities to pursue pre-engineering classes. However, by the time students reach this age, many of them have already determined their educational goals and preferred careers. Our College of Engineering is developing resources to provide primary students, still in their educational formative years, with opportunities to learn more about engineering. One of these resources is a library of engineering games targeted to the primary student population. The games are designed by sophomore students in our College of Engineering. During their Introduction to Computational Techniques course, the students use the LabVIEW environment to develop the games. This software provides a wealth of design resources for the novice programmer; using it to develop the games strengthens the undergraduates

The Relationships between Indonesian Fourth Graders’ Difficulties in Fractions and the Opportunity to Learn Fractions: A Snapshot of TIMSS Results

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ariyadi Wijaya

2017-11-01

Full Text Available This paper reports an exploration into Indonesian fourth graders’ difficulties in fractions and their relation to the opportunity to learn fractions students got at schools. The concept of ‘opportunity to learn’ is often considered as a framework to investigate possible reasons for students’ difficulties. The data for this study was drawn from TIMSS 2015 that comprised test results and teachers’ responses to TIMSS Teacher Questionnaire. The test and questionnaire data were analysed by using descriptive statistics. In addition to test and questionnaire, this study also included an analysis of Indonesian textbooks in order to get a broader scope of the opportunity to learn. Qualitative approach was used to analyse the textbooks. The analysis of the TIMSS results shows Indonesian students’ low conceptual understanding of fractions. Three possible reasons for students’ low conceptual understanding were revealed. First, the content of Indonesian curriculum that gave low emphasis on basic concepts of fractions and introduced operations of fractions too early. Second, the Indonesian mathematics textbooks only presented one definition of fractions, i.e. fractions as parts of wholes. Third, there is a limited use of models or representations of fractions in the classroom practices.

Disability and eLearning: Opportunities and Barriers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mike Kent

2015-02-01

Full Text Available This paper explores the current rising rates of online learning in higher education. It examines how disability is activated differently online and the impact of this on learning and teaching through the internet and the accessibility of two of the most popular learning management systems, Blackboard and Moodle, and the different approaches, benefits and problems associated with each system. It then explores the eLearning environment beyond the structure of a LMS to a broader digital campus that includes social networks, video hosting sites and micro blogging, where students and staff are increasingly expanding the learning and social environment in higher education. It also questions the legal and moral responsibilities of universities to make all their online activities accessible to all students, regardless of disability.

The Relationships between Indonesian Fourth Graders' Difficulties in Fractions and the Opportunity to Learn Fractions: A Snapshot of TIMSS Results

Science.gov (United States)

Wijaya, Ariyadi

2017-01-01

This paper reports an exploration into Indonesian fourth graders' difficulties in fractions and their relation to the opportunity to learn fractions students got at schools. The concept of "opportunity to learn" is often considered as a framework to investigate possible reasons for students' difficulties. The data for this study was…

Biomass accident investigations – missed opportunities for learning and accident prevention

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hedlund, Frank Huess

2017-01-01

The past decade has seen a major increase in the production of energy from biomass. The growth has been mirrored in an increase of serious biomass related accidents involving fires, gas explosions, combustible dust explosions and the release of toxic gasses. There are indications that the number...... of bioenergy related accidents is growing faster than the energy production. This paper argues that biomass accidents, if properly investigated and lessons shared widely, provide ample opportunities for improving general hazard awareness and safety performance of the biomass industry. The paper examines...... selected serious accidents involving biogas and wood pellets in Denmark and argues that such opportunities for learning were missed because accident investigations were superficial, follow-up incomplete and information sharing absent. In one particularly distressing case, a facility saw a repeat accident...

E-learning in neurology education: Principles, opportunities and challenges in combating neurophobia.

Science.gov (United States)

Chhetri, Suresh Kumar

2017-10-01

Neurophobia, the fear of clinical neurology, affects not only medical students but also non-career neurologists globally. This can have significant implications on patient care, especially given the increasing burden of chronic neurological disorders. The negative perception and lack of confidence amongst general practitioners and hospital physicians may lead to increased referrals to neurology, thereby increasing waiting times and inpatient stay. The onus, therefore, should be on improving training and stimulating interest in neurology. There is emerging evidence that integrating e-learning to traditional pedagogies can improve delivery of neurology education and help combat neurophobia. However, embracing e-learning may be challenging for contemporary neurologists, mostly 'digital immigrants', involved in the training of tomorrow's doctors who are largely 'digital natives'. This paper reviews the principles, opportunities and challenges of incorporating e-learning in neurology education to help improve learners' perception of clinical neurology, facilitate delivery of self-directed experiential learning and perhaps breed 'neurophilia'. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Strengths Weaknesses Opportunities and Threats of Blended Learning: Students’ Perceptions

Science.gov (United States)

Hande, S

2014-01-01

Background: Blended learning (BL) in a cell biology course of the premedical program at the Kasturba Medical College International Centre, Manipal, India, commenced in 2006. The program provides training in basic sciences to students, especially from the United States and Canada. The approach to the study was phenomenographic, with a qualitative study design using an open-ended questionnaire, focused interviews and empirical observations. Aim: The aim of this study was to identify the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT) of BL in a premedical class. Subjects and Methods: It was a cross-sectional study. Ninety six students in a premedical cell biology class participated in the study. SWOT analysis of students’ perceptions was conducted manually. Statistical analysis included content analysis of qualitative data to classify data and aligning them into the SWOT analysis matrix. Results: The outcomes of the study revealed student perceptions in terms of SWOT of BL and the potential uses of this strategy. Conclusions: The study provides background for educators and curriculum experts to plan their modules while incorporating a BL approach. PMID:24971204

Strengths weaknesses opportunities and threats of blended learning: students' perceptions.

Science.gov (United States)

Hande, S

2014-05-01

Blended learning (BL) in a cell biology course of the premedical program at the Kasturba Medical College International Centre, Manipal, India, commenced in 2006. The program provides training in basic sciences to students, especially from the United States and Canada. The approach to the study was phenomenographic, with a qualitative study design using an open-ended questionnaire, focused interviews and empirical observations. The aim of this study was to identify the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT) of BL in a premedical class. It was a cross-sectional study. Ninety six students in a premedical cell biology class participated in the study. SWOT analysis of students' perceptions was conducted manually. Statistical analysis included content analysis of qualitative data to classify data and aligning them into the SWOT analysis matrix. The outcomes of the study revealed student perceptions in terms of SWOT of BL and the potential uses of this strategy. The study provides background for educators and curriculum experts to plan their modules while incorporating a BL approach.

Medical students' opportunities to participate and learn from activities at an internal medicine ward: an ethnographic study.

Science.gov (United States)

Hägg-Martinell, A; Hult, H; Henriksson, P; Kiessling, A

2017-02-14

To optimise medical students' early clerkship is a complex task since it is conducted in a context primarily organised to take care of patients. Previous studies have explored medical students' perceptions of facilitation and hindrance of learning. However, the opportunities for medical student to learn within the culture of acute medicine care have not been fully investigated. This study aimed to explore how medical students approach, interact and socialise in an acute internal medicine ward context, and how spaces for learning are created and used in such a culture. Ethnographic observations were performed of medical students' interactions and learning during early clerkship at an acute internal medicine care ward. Field notes were taken, transcribed and analysed qualitatively. Data analysis was guided by Wenger's theory of communities of practice. 21 medical students and 30 supervisors participated. Two themes were identified: Nervousness and curiosity- students acted nervously and stressed, especially when they could not answer questions. Over time curiosity could evolve. Unexplored opportunities to support students in developing competence to judge and approach more complex patient-related problems were identified. Invited and involved -students were exposed to a huge variation of opportunities to learn, and to interact and to be involved. Short placements seemed to disrupt the learning process. If and how students became involved also depended on supervisors' activities and students' initiatives. This study shed light on how an acute internal medicine ward culture can facilitate medical students' possibilities to participate and learn. Medical students' learning situations were characterised by questions and answers rather than challenging dialogues related to the complexity of presented patient cases. Further, students experienced continuous transfers between learning situations where the potential to be involved differed in a wide variety of ways. Published

Demand Management Opportunities in E-fulfillment: What Internet Retailers Can Learn from Revenue Management

NARCIS (Netherlands)

N.A.H. Agatz (Niels); A.M. Campbell (Ann Melissa); M. Fleischmann (Moritz); J.A.E.E. van Nunen (Jo); M.W.P. Savelsbergh (Martin)

2008-01-01

textabstractIn this paper, we explain how Internet retailers can learn from proven revenue management concepts and use them to reduce costs and enhance service. We focus on attended deliveries as these provide the greatest opportunities and challenges. The key driver is service differentiation.

ICT AND MODERN FOREIGN LANGUAGES: LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES AND TRAINING NEEDS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Graham Davies

2002-06-01

Full Text Available This article is divided into two main sections. The first section considers why technology has not lived up to its expectations in bringing about improvements in language learning. Many learning opportunities are offered by new technologies but they are not fully exploited, mainly owing to the lack of relevant training offered to teachers. In addition, with the advent of the Web, there is a disturbing trend towards removing the teacher from the learning process - which is simply not acceptable. The second section of the article looks at a website that offers a considerable volume of ICT training materials or language teachers, namely the ICT4LT website: http://www.ict4lt.org. The author examines the aims behind the site as a whole and the pattern of site visits, discussing the key issues and drawing conclusions based on an analysis of the pattern of visits to different modules of the site. Some important lessons have been learned regarding the type of training that teachers appear to need, for example: the continued interest in multimedia and the high demand for introductory courses. It is also evident that Web traffic is predominantly one-way and confined to certain sectors of the world, indicating that much more has to be done in order to stimulate discussion and to make the Web accessible to underserved regions of the world.

Nutrition education in medical school: a time of opportunity.

Science.gov (United States)

Kushner, Robert F; Van Horn, Linda; Rock, Cheryl L; Edwards, Marilyn S; Bales, Connie W; Kohlmeier, Martin; Akabas, Sharon R

2014-05-01

Undergraduate medical education has undergone significant changes in development of new curricula, new pedagogies, and new forms of assessment since the Nutrition Academic Award was launched more than a decade ago. With an emphasis on a competency-based curriculum, integrated learning, longitudinal clinical experiences, and implementation of new technology, nutrition educators have an opportunity to introduce nutrition and diet behavior-related learning experiences across the continuum of medical education. Innovative learning opportunities include bridging personal health and nutrition to community, public, and global health concerns; integrating nutrition into lifestyle medicine training; and using nutrition as a model for teaching the continuum of care and promoting interprofessional team-based care. Faculty development and identification of leaders to serve as champions for nutrition education continue to be a challenge.

Peer reviewing e-learning: opportunities, challenges, and solutions.

Science.gov (United States)

Ruiz, Jorge G; Candler, Chris; Teasdale, Thomas A

2007-05-01

Peer review is the foundation of academic publication and a necessary step in the scrutiny of any scholarly work. Simply defined, peer review is the attentive, unbiased assessment of any scholarly work that is submitted for formal scrutiny. Although medical school faculty increasingly use technology in clinical teaching, e-learning materials are often not subjected to a rigorous peer review process. The authors contrast peer review of e-learning materials with that of print materials, describe peer review issues regarding e-learning materials, propose approaches to address the challenges of peer review of e-learning materials, and outline directions for refinement of the e-learning peer review process. At its core, the peer review of e-learning materials should not differ substantially from that of traditional manuscripts. However, e-learning introduces new demands that impel reviewers to consider aspects that are unique to educational technology, including pedagogy, format, usability, navigation, interactivity, delivery, ease of updating, distribution, and access. Four approaches are offered to ease the burden and improve the quality of e-learning peer review: develop peer review training, embrace multidisciplinary peer review, develop guidelines, and provide incentives and compensation. The authors conclude with suggestions about peer review research.

Can Technology Help Promote Equality of Educational Opportunities?

Science.gov (United States)

Jacob, Brian; Berger, Dan; Hart, Cassandra; Loeb, Susanna

2016-01-01

This chapter assesses the potential for several prominent technological innovations to promote equality of educational opportunities. We review the history of technological innovations in education and describe several prominent innovations, including intelligent tutoring, blended learning, and virtual schooling.

ASBO Eagle Institute: A Leadership Opportunity

Science.gov (United States)

Scharff, James

2012-01-01

Each summer, ASBO International conducts an Eagle Institute leadership session in the Washington, D.C., area that provides a group of about 25 participants, including Eagle Award recipients, an opportunity to network with and learn from exemplary leaders inside and outside the field of school business management. Each year, the focus of the…

Analysis of e-learning opportunities in Slovenia during the years 2006 and 2015

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tina Godina

2016-12-01

Full Text Available The author examines the characteristics of e-learning opportunities for adults in Slovenia during the years 2006 and 2015. At the outset, some of the characteristics of this form of education and its development are described. E-learning is a form of education, which is characterized by openness and flexibility, and is as such particularly suitable for the adult population. The year 2006 was chosen as a starting point because this was also the year when the last analysis of the e-learning provisions in Slovenia was published (Zagmajster, 2006. The author compared this year with the year 2015. Data were obtained from the catalogue of the educational offer, which can be accessed at the web portal “Kam po znanje? [Where to Get Knowledge?]”, the latter being is managed by Slovenian Institute for Adult Education.

Non-Formal Education, Out-of-School Learning Needs and Employment Opportunities: Evidence from Mali

Science.gov (United States)

Weyer, Frederique

2009-01-01

Non-formal education (NFE) is now considered as playing a critical role in the achievement of the objective of Education for All, by reaching the learning needs of youth and adults who do not have access to formal education, increasing their employment opportunities and therefore contributing to poverty alleviation. Yet there is still insufficient…

Impact of the Extended Learning Opportunities Summer Adventures in Learning (ELO SAIL) Program on Student Academic Performance: Part 1, Results from Fall 2012 to Fall 2015

Science.gov (United States)

Cooper-Martin, Elizabeth; Wolanin, Natalie; Jang, Seong; Modarresi, Shahpar; Zhao, Huafang

2016-01-01

Extended Learning Opportunities Summer Adventures in Learning (ELO SAIL) is a Montgomery County Public Schools summer program for students in all Title I elementary schools; it targets students who will be in kindergarten-Grade 2 in the fall following the program. This report analyzed demographic characteristics of attendees and the impact of the…

Addressing Barriers to Learning and Teaching to Enhance Equity of Opportunity. Report from the National Summit on ESSA and Learning Supports

Science.gov (United States)

Center for Mental Health in Schools at UCLA, 2017

2017-01-01

Passage of the "Every Student Succeeds Act" (ESSA) provides opportunities to improve how schools address barriers to learning and teaching and re-engage disconnected students and families. Of particular relevance to these concerns, ESSA replaces what has been described as a maze of programs with a "Student Support and Academic…

Opportunities and Challenges of Multiplex Assays: A Machine Learning Perspective.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Junfang; Schwarz, Emanuel

2017-01-01

Multiplex assays that allow the simultaneous measurement of multiple analytes in small sample quantities have developed into a widely used technology. Their implementation spans across multiple assay systems and can provide readouts of similar quality as the respective single-plex measures, albeit at far higher throughput. Multiplex assay systems are therefore an important element for biomarker discovery and development strategies but analysis of the derived data can face substantial challenges that may limit the possibility of identifying meaningful biological markers. This chapter gives an overview of opportunities and challenges of multiplexed biomarker analysis, in particular from the perspective of machine learning aimed at identification of predictive biological signatures.

Development of an instrument to assess the impact of an enhanced experiential model on pharmacy students' learning opportunities, skills and attitudes: A retrospective comparative-experimentalist study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Collins John B

2008-04-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Pharmacy schools across North America have been charged to ensure their students are adequately skilled in the principles and practices of pharmaceutical care. Despite this mandate, a large percentage of students experience insufficient opportunities to practice the activities, tasks and processes essential to pharmaceutical care. The objective of this retrospective study of pharmacy students was to: (1 as "proof of concept", test the overall educational impact of an enhanced advanced pharmacy practice experiential (APPE model on student competencies; (2 develop an instrument to measure students' and preceptors' experiences; and (3 assess the psychometric properties of the instrument. Methods A comparative-experimental design, using student and preceptor surveys, was used to evaluate the impact of the enhanced community-based APPE over the traditional APPE model. The study was grounded in a 5-stage learning model: (1 an enhanced learning climate leads to (2 better utilization of learning opportunities, including (3 more frequent student/patient consultation, then to (4 improved skills acquisition, thence to (5 more favorable attitudes toward pharmaceutical care practice. The intervention included a one-day preceptor workshop, a comprehensive on-site student orientation and extending the experience from two four-week experiences in different pharmacies to one eight-week in one pharmacy. Results The 35 student and 38 preceptor survey results favored the enhanced model; with students conducting many more patient consultations and reporting greater skills improvement. In addition, the student self-assessment suggested changes in attitudes favoring pharmaceutical care principles. Psychometric testing showed the instrument to be sensitive, valid and reliable in ascertaining differences between the enhanced and traditional arms. Conclusion The enhanced experiential model positively affects learning opportunities and competency

Social Issues and Problem-Based Learning in Sociology: Opportunities and Challenges in the Undergraduate Classroom

Science.gov (United States)

Eglitis, Daina S.; Buntman, Fran L.; Alexander, Dameon V.

2016-01-01

This article discusses the use of problem-based learning (PBL) in the undergraduate sociology classroom. PBL shifts students from the role of passive listeners and learners to active knowledge builders and communicators through the use of concise and engaging social problem cases. PBL creates opportunities for building substantive area knowledge,…

Distance Learning Delivery Systems: Instructional Options.

Science.gov (United States)

Steele, Ray L.

1993-01-01

Discusses the availability of satellite and cable programing to provide distance education opportunities in school districts. Various delivery systems are described, including telephones with speakers, personal computers, and satellite dishes; and a sidebar provides a directory of distance learning opportunities, including telecommunications…

Nutrition education in medical school: a time of opportunity1234

Science.gov (United States)

Van Horn, Linda; Rock, Cheryl L; Edwards, Marilyn S; Bales, Connie W; Kohlmeier, Martin; Akabas, Sharon R

2014-01-01

Undergraduate medical education has undergone significant changes in development of new curricula, new pedagogies, and new forms of assessment since the Nutrition Academic Award was launched more than a decade ago. With an emphasis on a competency-based curriculum, integrated learning, longitudinal clinical experiences, and implementation of new technology, nutrition educators have an opportunity to introduce nutrition and diet behavior–related learning experiences across the continuum of medical education. Innovative learning opportunities include bridging personal health and nutrition to community, public, and global health concerns; integrating nutrition into lifestyle medicine training; and using nutrition as a model for teaching the continuum of care and promoting interprofessional team-based care. Faculty development and identification of leaders to serve as champions for nutrition education continue to be a challenge. PMID:24646826

Stealth Learning: Unexpected Learning Opportunities through Games

Science.gov (United States)

Sharp, Laura A.

2012-01-01

Educators across the country struggle to create engaging, motivating learning environments for their Net Gen students. These learners expect instant gratification that traditional lectures do not provide. This leaves educators searching for innovative ways to engage students in order to encourage learning. One solution is for educators to use…

Learners' Use of Communication Strategies in Text-Based and Video-Based Synchronous Computer-Mediated Communication Environments: Opportunities for Language Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Hung, Yu-Wan; Higgins, Steve

2016-01-01

This study investigates the different learning opportunities enabled by text-based and video-based synchronous computer-mediated communication (SCMC) from an interactionist perspective. Six Chinese-speaking learners of English and six English-speaking learners of Chinese were paired up as tandem (reciprocal) learning dyads. Each dyad participated…

How International Studies Contributed to Educational Theory and Methods through Measurement of Opportunity to Learn Mathematics

Science.gov (United States)

Suter, Larry E.

2017-01-01

The international comparative studies in 1959 were conducted by International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) researchers who recognized that differences in student achievement measures in mathematics across countries could be caused by differences in curricula. The measurements of opportunity to learn (OTL) grew…

When are workload and workplace learning opportunities related in a curvilinear manner? The moderating role of autonomy

NARCIS (Netherlands)

J. van Ruysseveldt (Joris); M.H. van Dijke (Marius)

2011-01-01

textabstractBuilding on theoretical frameworks like the Job Demands Control model and Action Theory we tested whether the relationship between workload and employees’ experiences of opportunities for workplace learning is of an inverted u-shaped nature and whether autonomy moderates this

20 CFR 670.520 - Are students permitted to hold jobs other than work-based learning opportunities?

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 20 Employees' Benefits 3 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Are students permitted to hold jobs other than work-based learning opportunities? 670.520 Section 670.520 Employees' Benefits EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR THE JOB CORPS UNDER TITLE I OF THE WORKFORCE INVESTMENT ACT...

Corporate governance for trillion dollar opportunities

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hugh Grove

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Boards of Directors will have to play a key role in the technological survival and development of companies by asking corporate executives about their plans and strategies for these emerging technological changes and challenges. Key challenges and opportunities discussed in this paper, with corresponding corporate governance implications, included Big Data, Artificial Intelligence (AI with Industry 4.0, AI with the Internet of Things (IoT, Deep Learning, and Neural Networks. Survival should not be the goal, but it may be the necessary first step for today’s companies. Potential winners seizing these trillion dollar opportunities will be company executives and Boards of Directors who can incorporate these technological changes into specific new business models, strategies, and practices. While the awareness on boards regarding risks originating from disruptive innovation, cyber threats and privacy risks has been increasing, Boards of Directors must equally be able to challenge executives and identify opportunities and threats for their companies. This shift for companies is not only about digital technology but also cultural. How can people be managed when digital, virtual ways of working are increasing? What do robotics and Big Data analysis mean for managing people? One way to accelerate the digital learning process has been advocated: the use of digital apprentices for boards. For example, Board Apprentice, a non-profit organization, has already placed digital apprentices on boards for a year-long period (which helps to educate both apprentices and boards in five different countries. Additional plans and strategies are needed in this age of digitalization and lifelong learning. For example, cybersecurity risks are magnified by all these new technology trends, such as Big Data, AI, Industry 4.0, and IoT. Accordingly, the main findings of this paper are analysing the challenges and opportunities for corporate executives, Boards of Directors

Educational Opportunities for Clinical Counseling Simulations in Second Life

Science.gov (United States)

Walker, Victoria L.; Rockinson-Szapkiw, Amanda

2009-01-01

Counseling students must learn and practice basic counseling skills, including attending, listening, empathizing, and demonstrating warmth and respect. For online educators, providing opportunities for students to develop these skills in realistic counseling situations can be difficult. Victoria L. Walker and Amanda Rockinson-Szapkiw describe how…

Deep learning for healthcare: review, opportunities and challenges.

Science.gov (United States)

Miotto, Riccardo; Wang, Fei; Wang, Shuang; Jiang, Xiaoqian; Dudley, Joel T

2017-05-06

Gaining knowledge and actionable insights from complex, high-dimensional and heterogeneous biomedical data remains a key challenge in transforming health care. Various types of data have been emerging in modern biomedical research, including electronic health records, imaging, -omics, sensor data and text, which are complex, heterogeneous, poorly annotated and generally unstructured. Traditional data mining and statistical learning approaches typically need to first perform feature engineering to obtain effective and more robust features from those data, and then build prediction or clustering models on top of them. There are lots of challenges on both steps in a scenario of complicated data and lacking of sufficient domain knowledge. The latest advances in deep learning technologies provide new effective paradigms to obtain end-to-end learning models from complex data. In this article, we review the recent literature on applying deep learning technologies to advance the health care domain. Based on the analyzed work, we suggest that deep learning approaches could be the vehicle for translating big biomedical data into improved human health. However, we also note limitations and needs for improved methods development and applications, especially in terms of ease-of-understanding for domain experts and citizen scientists. We discuss such challenges and suggest developing holistic and meaningful interpretable architectures to bridge deep learning models and human interpretability. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Examining Opportunity-to-Learn and Success in High School Mathematics Performance in California under NCLB

Science.gov (United States)

Gavrilovic, Daniel Miodrag

2013-01-01

The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 has put many schools under a lot of pressure to meet its high demands. In this quantitative study, the effects that the NCLB act has had on students' opportunity to learn (OTL) and Subject Level Success (SS) from 2004 to 2012 in 9th, 10th, and 11th grade math coursework (Algebra 1, Geometry, Algebra 2, and…

Learning behavior and learning opportunities as career stimuli

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van der Sluis, E.C.

2002-01-01

This paper presents some preliminary findings of a study in the field of work-related learning and management development from a managerial perspective. The interaction between individual and organisational characteristics builds the frame of reference to establish a management learning model, which

When Are Workload and Workplace Learning Opportunities Related in a Curvilinear Manner? The Moderating Role of Autonomy

Science.gov (United States)

van Ruysseveldt, Joris; van Dijke, Marius

2011-01-01

Building on theoretical frameworks like the Job Demands Control model and Action Theory we tested whether the relationship between workload and employees' experiences of opportunities for workplace learning is of an inverted u-shaped nature and whether autonomy moderates this relationship. We predicted that--at moderate levels of…

Using Tests as Learning Opportunities.

Science.gov (United States)

Foos, Paul W.; Fisher, Ronald P.

1988-01-01

A study involving 105 undergraduates assessed the value of testing as a means of increasing, rather than simply monitoring, learning. Results indicate that fill-in-the-blank and items requiring student inferences were more effective, respectively, than multiple-choice tests and verbatim items in furthering student learning. (TJH)

Opportunities for Learning Math in Elementary School: Implications for SES Disparities in Procedural and Conceptual Math Skills

Science.gov (United States)

Bachman, Heather J.; Votruba-Drzal, Elizabeth; El Nokali, Nermeen E.; Castle Heatly, Melissa

2015-01-01

The present study examined whether multiple opportunities to learn math were associated with smaller socioeconomic status (SES) disparities in fifth-grade math achievement using data from the NICHD Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development (SECCYD; N = 1,364). High amounts of procedural math instruction were associated with higher…

Nothing Succeeds Like Success? Equity, Student Outcomes, and Opportunity to Learn in High- and Middle-Income Countries

Science.gov (United States)

Santibañez, Lucrecia; Fagioli, Loris

2016-01-01

A strong relationship between article background and educational outcomes fuels a negative inequality cycle. This paper explores the interplay between student socioeconomic status and educational outcomes, and the mediating role of Opportunity-to-Learn (OTL) in high- and middle-income countries. Using data from PISA 2012, we find that the…

Corporate governance for trillion dollar opportunities

OpenAIRE

Hugh Grove; Maclyn Clouse

2017-01-01

Boards of Directors will have to play a key role in the technological survival and development of companies by asking corporate executives about their plans and strategies for these emerging technological changes and challenges. Key challenges and opportunities discussed in this paper, with corresponding corporate governance implications, included Big Data, Artificial Intelligence (AI) with Industry 4.0, AI with the Internet of Things (IoT), Deep Learning, and Neural Networks. Survival should...

Informal Learning from Error in Hospitals: What Do We Learn, How Do We Learn and How Can Informal Learning Be Enhanced? A Narrative Review

Science.gov (United States)

de Feijter, Jeantine M.; de Grave, Willem S.; Koopmans, Richard P.; Scherpbier, Albert J. J. A.

2013-01-01

Learning from error is not just an individual endeavour. Organisations also learn from error. Hospitals provide many learning opportunities, which can be formal or informal. Informal learning from error in hospitals has not been researched in much depth so this narrative review focuses on five learning opportunities: morbidity and mortality…

Opportunity Evaluation through Experiential Learning (OETEL): An Analysis of Perceived Desirability, Perceived Feasibility, and Entrepreneurial Intention

OpenAIRE

Krisakorn Sukavejworakit; Triyuth Promsiri; Thanaphol Virasa

2018-01-01

The entrepreneurial intention is recognized as the best predictor of entrepreneurship activity. This study aims to extend the understanding of entrepreneurial intention within the context of entrepreneurship education. The role of opportunity evaluation on entrepreneurial intention was explored with the application of Experiential Learning Theory. The conceptual framework was developed based on the integrated entrepreneurial intention model, where perceived desirability and perceived feasibil...

Experiential learning in physical therapy education

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Smith SN

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Susan N Smith, Amy F Crocker School of Physical Therapy, University of the Incarnate Word, San Antonio, TX, USA Background and purpose: Experiential learning can provide students in entry-level physical therapy (PT education programs the opportunity to practice skills and techniques, learned in the classroom, in a real-world setting. Experiential learning is currently being utilized in all entry-level PT programs in the form of professional practice experiences but may be integrated throughout the curriculum to enhance student engagement and knowledge application and retention. The purpose of this paper is to express the need for increased integration of experiential learning into entry-level PT education curricula. Position and rationale: Experiential learning can effectively replace a portion of in-class laboratory time in entry-level PT education programs. Several methods of experiential learning exist, including simulation, integrated clinical experiences, service learning, community patient resource groups, and professional practice opportunities. Students benefit from the ability to practice hands-on skills in a safe, nonjudgmental environment. Students can still experience consequences of poor decisions but can have multiple opportunities to master the skill without the fear of negative outcomes. Incorporation of high-risk age ranges and diagnoses can be achieved through simulation. Discussion and conclusion: Experiential learning can be integrated into any PT curriculum if faculties are committed and flexible. Experiential learning may be particularly useful in specialty practice areas where there are fewer opportunities for students to practice skills. The practice of reflection upon experiences that is commonly performed in conjunction with experiential learning will help prepare students for the type of reflective practice that is essential to transition from novice to expert practitioners. Keywords: simulation, integrated clinical

The Relationships between Indonesian Fourth Graders’ Difficulties in Fractions and the Opportunity to Learn Fractions: A Snapshot of TIMSS Results

OpenAIRE

Ariyadi Wijaya

2017-01-01

This paper reports an exploration into Indonesian fourth graders’ difficulties in fractions and their relation to the opportunity to learn fractions students got at schools. The concept of ‘opportunity to learn’ is often considered as a framework to investigate possible reasons for students’ difficulties. The data for this study was drawn from TIMSS 2015 that comprised test results and teachers’ responses to TIMSS Teacher Questionnaire. The test and questionnaire data were anal...

Learning from Schools That Close Opportunity Gaps

Science.gov (United States)

LaCour, Sarah E.; York, Adam; Welner, Kevin; Valladares, Michelle Renée; Kelley, Linda Molner

2017-01-01

The Schools of Opportunity Project recognizes public high schools that employ research-based practices to close opportunity gaps. The commended schools illustrate how school quality can and should be measured by far more than just test scores. In doing so, they offer exemplars and a path forward for the nation's schools. The selection criteria for…

Looking in on Music: Challenges and Opportunities for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Susan Wharton Conkling

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Whereas most articles in this special issue demonstrate careful and close-up views of Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL in a performing arts or humanities discipline, my approach is opposite; I look in on music teaching and learning to interrogate current conceptions of SoTL. I begin with Sloboda’s cognitive explanation of music expertise and consider how music expertise is established relatively early in life. I then proceed to develop two case studies of music in higher education showing how each case illustrates expertise, and highlighting experts’ desires for progressively greater challenges. I argue that collaboration with other expert performers is one sort of challenge that meets such desires. By drawing attention to collaboration, I then reframe music as social practice, and I highlight the qualities of participatory performance. In the latter part of the article, I turn my attention toward explaining what it means to think about learning as participation in a community of practice, and I draw on the case studies to demonstrate that such a view presents both challenges and opportunities for SoTL.

District Decision-Makers' Considerations of Equity and Equality Related to Students' Opportunities to Learn Algebra

Science.gov (United States)

Herbel-Eisenmann, Beth A.; Keazer, Lindsay; Traynor, Anne

2018-01-01

Background/Context: In this article we explore equity issues related to school district decision-making about students' opportunities to learn algebra. We chose algebra because of the important role it plays in the U.S. as a gatekeeper to future academic success. Current research has not yet explored issues of equity in district-level…

E-service learning: A pedagogic innovation for healthcare management education.

Science.gov (United States)

Malvey, Donna M; Hamby, Eileen F; Fottler, Myron D

2006-01-01

This paper proposes an innovation in service learning that we identify as e-service learning. By adding the "e" to service learning, we create a service learning model that is dynamic, mediated by technology, and delivered online. This paper begins by examining service learning, which is a distinct learning concept. Service learning furnishes students with opportunities for applied learning through participation in projects and activities in community organizations. The authors then define and conceptualize e-service learning, including the anticipated outcomes of implementation such as enhanced access, quality, and cost effectiveness of healthcare management education. Because e-service learning is mediated by technology, we identify state of the art technologies that support e-service learning activities. In addition, possible e-service learning projects and activities that may be included in healthcare management courses such as finance, human resources, quality, service management/marketing and strategy are identified. Finally, opportunities for future research are suggested.

Advancing medical education: connecting interprofessional collaboration and education opportunities with integrative medicine initiatives to build shared learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Templeman, Kate; Robinson, Anske; McKenna, Lisa

2016-12-01

BackgroundImproved teamwork between conventional and complementary medicine (CM) practitioners is indicated to achieve effective healthcare. However, little is known about interprofessional collaboration and education in the context of integrative medicine (IM). MethodsThis paper reports the findings from a constructivist-grounded theory method study that explored and highlighted Australian medical students' experiences and opportunities for linking interprofessional collaboration and learning in the context of IM. Following ethical approval, in-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted with 30 medical students from 10 medical education faculties across Australian universities. Results Medical students recognised the importance of interprofessional teamwork between general medical practitioners and CM professionals in patient care and described perspectives of shared responsibilities, profession-specific responsibilities, and collaborative approaches within IM. While students identified that limited interprofessional collaboration currently occurred in the medical curriculum, interprofessional education was considered a means of increasing communication and collaboration between healthcare professionals, helping coordinate effective patient care, and understanding each healthcare team members' professional role and value. Conclusions The findings suggest that medical curricula should include opportunities for medical students to develop required skills, behaviours, and attitudes for interprofessional collaboration and interprofessional education within the context of IM. While this is a qualitative study that reflects theoretical saturation from a selected cohort of medical students, the results also point to the importance of including CM professionals within interprofessional collaboration, thus contributing to more person-centred care.

[Clip Sheets from BOCES. Opportunities. Health. Careers. = Oportunidades. Salud. Una Camera En...

Science.gov (United States)

State Univ. of New York, Geneseo. Coll. at Geneseo. Migrant Center.

This collection of 83 clip sheets, or classroom handouts, was created to help U.S. migrants learn more about health, careers, and general "opportunities" including education programs. They are written in both English and Spanish and are presented in an easily understandable format. Health clip-sheet topics include the following: Abuse; AIDS;…

A Decade of Technology Enhanced Learning at the University of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania: Challenges, Achievements, and Opportunities

Science.gov (United States)

Mtebe, Joel S.; Raphael, Christina

2017-01-01

For a decade past, integration of technology in teaching and learning has been received with both apprehension and skeptism from academics and student majority at the University of Dar es Salaam (UDSM). The study recounts real, professional and practical experiences, challenges, and opportunities of integrating educational technologies using…

Identifying Opportunities for Peer Learning: An Observational Study of Medical Students on Clinical Placements.

Science.gov (United States)

Tai, Joanna H; Canny, Benedict J; Haines, Terry P; Molloy, Elizabeth K

2017-01-01

Phenomenon: Peer assisted learning (PAL) is frequently employed and researched in preclinical medical education. Fewer studies have examined PAL in the clinical context: These have focused mainly on the accuracy of peer assessment and potential benefits to learner communication and teamwork skills. Research has also examined the positive and negative effects of formal, structured PAL activities in the clinical setting. Given the prevalence of PAL activities during preclinical years, and the unstructured nature of clinical placements, it is likely that nonformal PAL activities are also undertaken. How PAL happens formally and informally and why students find PAL useful in this clinical setting remain poorly understood. This study aimed to describe PAL activities within the context of clinical placement learning and to explore students' perceptions of these activities. An ethnographic study was conducted to gather empirical data on engagement in clinical placement learning activities, including observations and interviews with students in their 1st clinical year, along with their supervising clinicians. Thematic analysis was used to interrogate the data. On average, students used PAL for 5.19 hours per week in a range of activities, of a total of 29.29 hours undertaking placements. PAL was recognized as a means of vicarious learning and had greater perceived value when an educator was present to guide or moderate the learning. Trust between students was seen as a requirement for PAL to be effective. Students found passive observation a barrier to PAL and were able to identify ways to adopt an active stance when observing peers interacting with patients. For example, learners reported that the expectation that they had to provide feedback to peers after task observation, resulted in them taking on a more critical gaze where they were encouraged to consider notions of good practice. Insights: Students use PAL in formal (i.e., tutorial) and nonformal (e.g., peer

Study on state grouping and opportunity evaluation for reinforcement learning methods; Kyoka gakushuho no tame no jotai grouping to opportunity hyoka ni kansuru kenkyu

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yu, W.; Yokoi, H.; Kakazu, Y. [Hokkaido University, Sapporo (Japan)

1997-08-20

In this paper, we propose the State Grouping scheme for coping with the problem of scaling up the Reinforcement Learning Algorithm to real, large size application. The grouping scheme is based on geographical and trial-error information, and is made up with state generating, state combining, state splitting, state forgetting procedures, with corresponding action selecting module and learning module. Also, we discuss the Labeling Based Evaluation scheme which can evaluate the opportunity of the state-action pair, therefore, use better experience to guide the exploration of the state-space effectively. Incorporating the Labeling Based Evaluation and State Grouping scheme into the Reinforcement Learning Algorithm, we get the approach that can generate organized state space for Reinforcement Learning, and do problem solving as well. We argue that the approach with this kind of ability is necessary for autonomous agent, namely, autonomous agent can not act depending on any pre-defined map, instead, it should search the environment as well as find the optimal problem solution autonomously and simultaneously. By solving the large state-size 3-DOF and 4-link manipulator problem, we show the efficiency of the proposed approach, i.e., the agent can achieve the optimal or sub-optimal path with less memory and less time. 14 refs., 11 figs., 3 tabs.

How do e-book readers enhance learning opportunities for distance work-based learners?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gabi Witthaus

2011-12-01

Full Text Available We report on the incorporation of e-book readers into the delivery of two distance-taught master's programmes in Occupational Psychology (OP and one in Education at the University of Leicester, UK. The programmes attract work-based practitioners in OP and Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages, respectively. Challenges in curriculum delivery included the need for more flexibility in the curricula, better access to essential readings and maximising the benefit of learners' limited study time. As part of a suite of pilot changes to curriculum design and delivery, 28 Sony PRS-505™ e-book readers were pre-loaded with course materials and sent out to students. The evidence suggests that the students' learning experiences improved as a result of four key benefits afforded by the e-book readers: enhanced flexibility in curriculum delivery to accommodate the mobile lifestyle of our learners, improved efficiency in the use of study time, especially short breaks during the working day, new strategies for reading course materials and cost. We discuss the opportunities and limitations associated with the e-book readers used and the challenges encountered in the study.

Research and learning opportunities in a reactor-based nuclear analytical laboratory

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Robinson, L.

1994-01-01

Although considered by many to be a mature science, neutron activation analysis (NAA) continues to be a valuable tool in trace-element research applications. Examples of the applicability of NAA can be found in a variety of areas including archaeology, environmental science, epidemiology, forensic science, and material science to name a few. Each stage of NAA provides opportunities to share numerous practical and fundamental scientific principles with high school teachers and students. This paper will present an overview of these opportunities and give a specific example from collaboration with a high school teacher whose research involved the automation of a gamma-ray spectroscopy counting system using a laboratory robot

Image analysis and machine learning in digital pathology: Challenges and opportunities.

Science.gov (United States)

Madabhushi, Anant; Lee, George

2016-10-01

With the rise in whole slide scanner technology, large numbers of tissue slides are being scanned and represented and archived digitally. While digital pathology has substantial implications for telepathology, second opinions, and education there are also huge research opportunities in image computing with this new source of "big data". It is well known that there is fundamental prognostic data embedded in pathology images. The ability to mine "sub-visual" image features from digital pathology slide images, features that may not be visually discernible by a pathologist, offers the opportunity for better quantitative modeling of disease appearance and hence possibly improved prediction of disease aggressiveness and patient outcome. However the compelling opportunities in precision medicine offered by big digital pathology data come with their own set of computational challenges. Image analysis and computer assisted detection and diagnosis tools previously developed in the context of radiographic images are woefully inadequate to deal with the data density in high resolution digitized whole slide images. Additionally there has been recent substantial interest in combining and fusing radiologic imaging and proteomics and genomics based measurements with features extracted from digital pathology images for better prognostic prediction of disease aggressiveness and patient outcome. Again there is a paucity of powerful tools for combining disease specific features that manifest across multiple different length scales. The purpose of this review is to discuss developments in computational image analysis tools for predictive modeling of digital pathology images from a detection, segmentation, feature extraction, and tissue classification perspective. We discuss the emergence of new handcrafted feature approaches for improved predictive modeling of tissue appearance and also review the emergence of deep learning schemes for both object detection and tissue classification

Business and Industry for Continuous Learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Wiswell, Albert K.

1990-01-01

Witting and unwitting contributions to the learning community by business and industry include learning opportunities for employees and nonemployees, involvement in educational partnerships, corporate museums, trade shows and exhibitions, and support for the arts. Although the company intent may be public relations or marketing, making use of…

Using Photovoice to Include People with Profound and Multiple Learning Disabilities in Inclusive Research

Science.gov (United States)

Cluley, Victoria

2017-01-01

Background: It is now expected that projects addressing the lives of people with learning disabilities include people with learning disabilities in the research process. In the past, such research often excluded people with learning disabilities, favouring the opinions of family members, carers and professionals. The inclusion of the voices of…

Psychologists and detainee interrogations: key decisions, opportunities lost, and lessons learned.

Science.gov (United States)

Pope, Kenneth S

2011-01-01

After the 9-11 terrorist attacks, U.S. psychologists faced hard choices about what roles, if any, were appropriate for psychologists in the detainee interrogations conducted in settings such as the Bagram Airbase, the Abu Ghraib Prison, and the Guantanamo Bay Detention Camps. The American Psychological Association (APA) sparked intense controversy with its policies and public statements. This article reviews APA decisions, documents, and public statements in this area, in the context of major criticisms and responses to those criticisms. The review focuses on key issues: how the APA created and reported policies in the areas of ethics and national security; transparency; psychologists' professional identities; psychologists' qualifications; ethical-legal conflicts; policies opposing torture; interpretations of avoiding harm; and effective interrogations. It suggests lessons learned, missed opportunities, and questions in need of a fresh approach. © 2011 by Annual Reviews. All rights reserved

Transition From Peer Review to Peer Learning: Experience in a Radiology Department.

Science.gov (United States)

Donnelly, Lane F; Dorfman, Scott R; Jones, Jeremy; Bisset, George S

2017-10-18

To describe the process by which a radiology department moved from peer review to peer collaborative improvement (PCI) and review data from the first 16 months of the PCI process. Data from the first 16 months after PCI were reviewed: number of case reviews performed, number of learning opportunities identified, percentage yield of learning opportunities identified, type of learning opportunities identified, and comparison of the previous parameters between case randomly reviewed versus actively pushed (issues actively identified and entered). Changes in actively pushed cases were also assessed as volume per month over the 16 months (run chart). Faculty members were surveyed about their perception of the conversion to PCI. In all, 12,197 cases were peer reviewed, yielding 1,140 learning opportunities (9.34%). The most common types of learning opportunities for all reviewed cases included perception (5.1%) and reporting (1.9%). The yield of learning opportunities from actively pushed cases was 96.3% compared with 3.88% for randomly reviewed cases. The number of actively pushed cases per month increased over the course of the period and established two new confidence intervals. The faculty survey revealed that the faculty perceived the new PCI process as positive, nonpunitive, and focused on improvement. The study demonstrates that a switch to PCI is perceived as nonpunitive and associated with increased radiologist submission of learning opportunities. Active entering of identified learning opportunities had a greater yield and perceived value, compared with random review of cases. Copyright © 2017 American College of Radiology. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Balancing Bologna: opportunities for university teaching that integrates academic and practical learning outcomes

Science.gov (United States)

Probst, Lorenz; Pflug, Verena; Brandenburg, Christiane; Guggenberger, Thomas; Mentler, Axel; Wurzinger, Maria

2014-05-01

In the course of the Bologna Process, the quality of university teaching has become more prominent in the discourse on higher education. More attention is now paid to didactics and methods and learner-oriented modes of teaching are introduced. The application of knowledge, practical skills and in consequence the employability of university graduates have become requirements for university teaching. Yet, the lecture-style approach still dominates European universities, although empirical evidence confirms that student-centred, interdisciplinary and experiential learning is more effective. Referring to the learning taxonomy introduced by Bloom, we argue that standard approaches rarely move beyond the learning level of comprehension and fail to reach the levels of application, analysis, synthesis and evaluation. Considering the rapid changes and multiple challenges society faces today, responsible practitioners and scientists who can improve the current management of natural resources are urgently needed. Universities are expected to equip their graduates with the necessary skills to reflect and evaluate their actions when addressing 'real world' problems in order to improve impact and relevance of their work. Higher education thus faces the challenge of providing multi-level learning opportunities for students with diverse practical and theoretical learning needs. In this study, we reflect on three cases of university teaching attempting to bridge theory and practice and based on the principles of systemic, problem based learning. The described courses focus on organic farming, rural development and landscape planning and take place in Uganda, Nicaragua and Italy. We show that being part of a real-world community of stakeholders requires hands-on learning and the reflection and evaluation of actions. This prepares students in a more effective and realistic way for their future roles as responsible decision makers in complex social, economic and ecological systems. We

Learning Analytics: opportunities for schools

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Giovanni Fulantelli

2014-12-01

Full Text Available La valutazione delle esperienze di apprendimento che avvengono in ambienti in cui le interazioni sono mediate dalle tecnologie è una sfida ardua che deve essere affrontata con approcci adeguati. Le tecniche di Learning Analytics si sono sviluppate recentemente con l’obiettivo di fornire gli strumenti necessari per ottimizzare le esperienze di apprendimento. Queste tecniche supportano i docenti nel prendere tempestivamente quelle decisioni che rendono il processo didattico più efficace, permettendo di intervenire sull’intero processo o sui singoli studenti in modo personalizzato. Sebbene le tecniche di Learning Analytics si siano sviluppate principalmente nei contesti di alta formazione online, questo articolo mette in evidenza come l’impiego di tali tecniche può portare benefici anche nei contesti scolastici. Di fatto, in questi contesti, le tecnologie sono sempre più utilizzate per supportare le esperienze di apprendimento formali e informali, come quelle basate su dispositivi mobili, serious game e social network, e i dati generati sono sempre più numerosi, richiedendo nuovi approcci di analisi che traggono vantaggio dall’impiego delle tecniche di Learning Analytics.

Cyberlearning for Climate Literacy: Challenges and Opportunities

Science.gov (United States)

McCaffrey, M. S.; Buhr, S. M.; Gold, A. U.; Ledley, T. S.; Mooney, M. E.; Niepold, F.

2010-12-01

Cyberlearning tools provide cost and carbon-efficient avenues for fostering a climate literate society through online engagement with learners. With climate change education becoming a Presidential Priority in 2009, funding for grants from NSF, NASA and NOAA is leading to a new generation of cyberlearning resources that supplement existing online resources. This paper provides an overview of challenges and opportunities relating to the online delivery of high quality, often complex climate science by examining several existing and emerging efforts, including the Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network (CLEAN,) a National Science Digital Library Pathway, the development by CIRES Education and Outreach of the Inspiring Climate Education Excellence (ICEE) online course, TERC’s Earth Exploration Toolbook (EET,) DataTools, and EarthLab modules, the NOAA Climate Stewards Education Program (CSEP) that utilizes the NSTA E-Learning Center, online efforts by members of the Federation of Earth Science Information Partners (ESIP), UCAR’s Climate Discovery program, and the Climate Adaptation, Mitigation e-Learning (CAMeL) project. In addition, we will summarize outcomes of the Cyberlearning for Climate Literacy workshop held in Washington DC in the Fall of 2009 and examine opportunities for teachers to develop and share their own lesson plans based on climate-related web resources that currently lack built-in learning activities, assessments or teaching tips.

Examining Quality Management Audits in Nuclear Medicine Practice as a lifelong learning process: opportunities and challenges to the nuclear medicine professional and beyond.

Science.gov (United States)

Pascual, Thomas N B

2016-08-01

This essay will explore the critical issues and challenges surrounding lifelong learning for professionals, initially exploring within the profession and organizational context of nuclear medicine practice. It will critically examine how the peer-review process called Quality Management Audits in Nuclear Medicine Practice (QUANUM) of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) can be considered a lifelong learning opportunity to instill a culture of quality to improve patient care and elevate the status of the nuclear medicine profession and practice within the demands of social changes, policy, and globalization. This will be explored initially by providing contextual background to the identity of the IAEA as an organization responsible for nuclear medicine professionals, followed by the benefits that QUANUM can offer. Further key debates surrounding lifelong learning, such as compulsification of lifelong learning and impact on professional change, will then be weaved through the discussion using theoretical grounding through a qualitative review of the literature. Keeping in mind that there is very limited literature focusing on the implications of QUANUM as a lifelong learning process for nuclear medicine professionals, this essay uses select narratives and observations of QUANUM as a lifelong learning process from an auditor's perspective and will further provide a comparative perspective of QUANUM on the basis of other lifelong learning opportunities such as continuing professional development activities and observe parallelisms on its benefits and challenges that it will offer to other professionals in other medical speciality fields and in the teaching profession.

Expanding CTE Opportunities through Blended Learning

Science.gov (United States)

McKinstry, Elizabeth

2012-01-01

The global economy, 21st century skills, knowledge society, college and career readiness, digital and project-based learning are all common terms to educators who are expanding their learning environments beyond the classroom to meet the needs of all students. It is common knowledge that the rapid technological advances of this century have…

Blended Learning as Transformational Institutional Learning

Science.gov (United States)

VanDerLinden, Kim

2014-01-01

This chapter reviews institutional approaches to blended learning and the ways in which institutions support faculty in the intentional redesign of courses to produce optimal learning. The chapter positions blended learning as a strategic opportunity to engage in organizational learning.

How Organizations Provide Learning Opportunities for Children and Families

Science.gov (United States)

Caspe, Margaret; Lopez, M. Elena

2014-01-01

Today we know much more about how children learn than ever before, including the types of motivation and support they need to thrive, the ways that digital media and technology enhance their creativity, and the ways that families and educators, both within and outside of school settings, can share responsibility to facilitate new knowledge and…

The Use of Online Citizen-Science Projects to Provide Experiential Learning Opportunities for Nonmajor Science Students

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Donna M. Kridelbaugh

2015-11-01

Full Text Available Citizen science is becoming even more accessible to the general public through technological advances in the development of mobile applications, facilitating information dissemination and data collection. With the advent of “big data,” many citizen-science projects designed to help researchers sift through piles of research data now exist entirely online, either in the form of playing a game or via other digital avenues. Recent trends in citizen science have also focused on “crowdsourcing” solutions from the general public to help solve societal issues, often requiring nothing more than brainstorming and a computer to submit ideas. Online citizen science thus provides an excellent platform to expand the accessibility of experiential learning opportunities for a broad range of nonmajor science students at institutions with limited resources (e.g., community colleges. I created an activity for a general microbiology lecture to engage students in hands-on experiences via participation in online citizen-science projects. The objectives of the assignment were for students to: 1 understand that everyone can be a scientist; 2 learn to be creative and innovative in designing solutions to health and science challenges; and 3 further practice science communication skills with a written report. This activity is designed for introductory science courses with nonmajor science students who have limited opportunities to participate in undergraduate research experiences.

Three visual techniques to enhance interprofessional learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Parsell, G; Gibbs, T; Bligh, J

1998-07-01

Many changes in the delivery of healthcare in the UK have highlighted the need for healthcare professionals to learn to work together as teams for the benefit of patients. Whatever the profession or level, whether for postgraduate education and training, continuing professional development, or for undergraduates, learners should have an opportunity to learn about and with, other healthcare practitioners in a stimulating and exciting way. Learning to understand how people think, feel, and react, and the parts they play at work, both as professionals and individuals, can only be achieved through sensitive discussion and exchange of views. Teaching and learning methods must provide opportunities for this to happen. This paper describes three small-group teaching techniques which encourage a high level of learner collaboration and team-working. Learning content is focused on real-life health-care issues and strong visual images are used to stimulate lively discussion and debate. Each description includes the learning objectives of each exercise, basic equipment and resources, and learning outcomes.

Developing scholarship of teaching and learning through a ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

A growing interest in the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) in higher education requires the seeking of opportunities for its development within and across disciplines and institutions. However, rewards for individual competitiveness in research publications, including the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning ...

Elementary teachers' perceptions of science inquiry and professional development challenges and opportunities

Science.gov (United States)

Jones, Kathleen M.

Inquiry science, including a focus on evidence-based discourse, is essential to spark interest in science education in the early grades and maintain that interest throughout children's schooling. The researcher was interested in two broad areas: inquiry science in the elementary classroom and the need/desire for professional development opportunities for elementary teachers related to science education, and specifically professional development focused on inquiry science. A cross sectional survey design was prepared and distributed in May 2005 and usable responses were received from 228 elementary teachers from the south-central area of Pennsylvania which was a representative sample of socio-economical and geographical factors. Areas of particular interest in the results section include: (1) The use of Science Kits which is popular, but may not have the desired impact since they are "adjusted" by teachers often removing the opportunity for evidence-based discourse by the students. This may be partly based on the lack of time dedicated to science instruction and, secondly, the teachers' lack of comfort with the science topics. Another issue arising from science kits is the amount of preparation time required to utilize them. (2) Teachers demonstrated understanding of the high qualities of professional development but, when it came to science content professional development, they were more inclined to opt for short-term opportunities as opposed to long-term learning opportunities. Since elementary teachers are generalists and most schools are not focusing on science, the lack of attention to a subject where they are least comfortable is understandable, but disappointing. (3) There is a great need for more training in evidence--based discourse so teachers can implement this needed skill and increase students' understanding of science content so they are more able to compete in the international science and math measurements. (4) Professional development, especially

e-Learning in nursing education--Challenges and opportunities.

Science.gov (United States)

Kokol, Peter; Blazun, Helena; Micetić-Turk, Dusanka; Abbott, Patricia A

2006-01-01

Quick changes on the field of informational communication technologies forces educational and other institutions to think about different ways of teaching and learning in both formal and informal environments. It addition it is well known that due to fast advancement of science and technology the knowledge gained in schools is getting out-of-date rapidly, so life long learning is becoming an essential alternative. As a consequence we are facing a rapid development and use of new educational approaches such as e-learning, simulations, virtual reality, etc. They brought a revolution to learning and instruction. But in general the empirical results of e-learning studies are somewhat disappointing. They cannot prove the superiority of e-learning processes over traditional learning in general, neither in specific areas like nursing. In our international study we proved that e-Learning can have many benefits and that it can enhance learning experience in nursing education, but it has to be provided in correct manner.

Moving beyond the Reflectivity of Post-Lesson Mentoring Conferences in Teacher Education and Creating Learning/development Opportunities for Pre-Service Teachers

Science.gov (United States)

Ciavaldini-Cartaut, Solange

2015-01-01

This longitudinal case study suggests ways to move beyond the reflective process usually associated with post-lesson mentoring conferences by describing the modalities likely to generate real learning/development opportunities. Based on cultural-historical activity theories (CHAT) and using methodologies from sociodiscursive interactionism, this…

New York: Expanding Time, Increasing Opportunities for Achievement

Science.gov (United States)

Miller, Tiffany D.

2014-01-01

New York is poised to take an important step to improve student achievement by expanding learning time for students attending high-poverty, low-performing schools. Recent district- and state-level investments in expanded learning time--a promising strategy to close achievement and opportunity gaps--will give students more time to learn core…

The Relationship between Socioeconomic Status at Age One, Opportunities to Learn and Achievement in Mathematics in Fourth Grade in Peru

Science.gov (United States)

Cueto, Santiago; Guerrero, Gabriela; Leon, Juan; Zapata, Mayli; Freire, Silvana

2014-01-01

Using Young Lives longitudinal data from Peru, this paper explores the relationship between socioeconomic status (SES) measured at the age of one, opportunities to learn (OTL) and achievement in mathematics ten years later. Four variables of OTL were measured: hours of class per year, curriculum coverage, quality of teachers' feedback, and level…

A strategic approach to developing e-learning capability for healthcare.

Science.gov (United States)

Clarke, Angie; Lewis, Dina; Cole, Ian; Ringrose, Liz

2005-12-01

This article examines a strategic approach to developing e-learning capability to enhance learning opportunities for the workforce of a healthcare organization. Emphasis is given to the procurement of a bespoke Managed Learning Environment (MLE). Strategic organizational issues impacting on future e-learning developments are considered. The 2-year implementation plan was evaluated through a two phase external research project. The first phase focused on the effectiveness of a training programme designed to build capacity for e-learning within the Northern area and also included a virtual learning environment usability study which informed the MLE specification. The second phase evaluation is ongoing during 2005 and interim findings are presented. The MLE has been piloted and on-line learning packages have been acquired. There has been a phased take-up of e-learning opportunities and e-tutor training. Some virtual Communities of Practice have been established. Key organizational issues have been identified and ongoing findings are informing strategic planning. The healthcare MLE is offering enhanced learning opportunities and assisting area healthcare providers in training their dispersed workforces. Blended learning strategies are most successful. The need for protected time for e-learning is a key issue, financial savings are available. Progress has been slowed by identified organizational constraints-the MLE's benefits are widely recognized.

Working Together: Librarian and Student Collaboration for Active Learning in a Library Eclassroom

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marcie Lynne Jacklin

2010-06-01

Full Text Available Active learning strategies based on several learning theories were incorporated during instruction sessions for second year Biological Sciences students. The instructional strategies described in this paper are based primarily on sociocultural and collaborative learning theory, with the goal being to expand the relatively small body of literature currently available that discusses the application of these learning theories to library instruction. The learning strategies employed successfully involved students in the learning process ensuring that the experiences were appropriate and effective. The researchers found that, as a result of these strategies (e.g. teaching moments based on the emerging needs of students students’ interest in learning information literacy was increased and students interacted with information given to them as well as with their peers. Collaboration between the Librarians, Co-op Student and Senior Lab Instructor helped to enhance the learning experience for students and also revealed new aspects of the active learning experiences. The primary learning objective, which was to increase the students’ information skills in the Biological Sciences, was realized. The advantages of active learning were realized by both instructors and students. Advantages for students attained during these sessions include having their diverse learning styles addressed; increased interaction with and retention of information; increased responsibility for their own learning; the opportunity to value not only the instructors, but also themselves and their peers as sources of authority and knowledge; improved problem solving abilities; increased interest and opportunities for critical thinking, as a result of the actively exchanging information in a group. The primary advantage enjoyed by the instructors was the opportunity to collaborate with colleagues to reduce the preparation required to create effective library instruction sessions

Distance learning: the future of continuing professional development.

Science.gov (United States)

Southernwood, Julie

2008-10-01

The recent development of a market economy in higher education has resulted in the need to tailor the product to the customers, namely students, employers and commissioning bodies. Distance learning is an opportunity for nurse educators and institutions to address marketing initiatives and develop a learning environment in order to enhance continuing professional development. It provides options for lifelong learning for healthcare professionals--including those working in community settings--that is effective and cost efficient. Development of continuing professional development programmes can contribute to widening the participation of community practitioners in lifelong learning, practice and role development. This paper considers the opportunities that web-based and online education programmes can provide community practitioners to promote professional skills while maintaining a work-life balance, and the role of the lecturer in successfully supporting professionals on web-based learning programmes.

Learning in professionally 'distant' contexts: opportunities and challenges.

Science.gov (United States)

Mausz, Justin; Tavares, Walter

2017-08-01

The changing nature of healthcare education and delivery is such that clinicians will increasingly find themselves practicing in contexts that are physically and/or conceptually different from the settings in which they were trained, a practice that conflicts on some level with socio-cultural theories of learning that emphasize learning in context. Our objective was therefore to explore learning in 'professionally distant' contexts. Using paramedic education, where portions of training occur in hospital settings despite preparing students for out-of-hospital work, fifty-three informants (11 current students, 13 recent graduates, 16 paramedic program faculty and 13 program coordinators/directors) took part in five semi-structured focus groups. Participants reflected on the value and role of hospital placements in paramedic student development. All sessions were audio recorded, transcribed verbatim and analyzed using inductive thematic analysis. In this context six educational advantages and two challenges were identified when using professionally distant learning environments. Learning could still be associated with features such as (a) engagement through "authenticity", (b) technical skill development, (c) interpersonal skill development, (d) psychological resilience, (e) healthcare system knowledge and (f) scaffolding. Variability in learning and misalignment with learning goals were identified as potential threats. Learning environments that are professionally distant from eventual practice settings may prove meaningful by providing learners with foundational and preparatory learning experiences for competencies that may be transferrable. This suggests that where learning occurs may be less important than how the experience contributes to the learner's development and the meaning or value he/she derives from it.

Opportunities in the Fusion Energy Sciences Program [Includes Appendix C: Topical Areas Characterization

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

None

1999-06-01

Recent years have brought dramatic advances in the scientific understanding of fusion plasmas and in the generation of fusion power in the laboratory. Today, there is little doubt that fusion energy production is feasible. The challenge is to make fusion energy practical. As a result of the advances of the last few years, there are now exciting opportunities to optimize fusion systems so that an attractive new energy source will be available when it may be needed in the middle of the next century. The risk of conflicts arising from energy shortages and supply cutoffs, as well as the risk of severe environmental impacts from existing methods of energy production, are among the reasons to pursue these opportunities.

Improving Preservice Teachers' Self-Efficacy through Service Learning: Lessons Learned

Science.gov (United States)

Bernadowski, Carianne; Perry, Ronald; Del Greco, Robert

2013-01-01

University students have been barraged with service learning opportunities both as course required and as volunteer opportunities in recent years. Currently, many universities now require students to participate in engaged learning as a graduation requirement. Situated in Bandura's theory of self-efficacy, this study examines the effects service…

Learning through Teaching: A Microbiology Service-Learning Experience

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ginny Webb

2015-11-01

Full Text Available Service learning is defined as a strategy in which students apply what they have learned in the classroom to a community service project. Many educators would agree that students often learn best through teaching others. This premise was the motivation for a new service-learning project in which undergraduate microbiology students developed and taught hands-on microbiology lessons to local elementary school children. The lessons included teaching basic information about microbes, disease transmission, antibiotics, vaccines, and methods of disease prevention. This service-learning project benefitted the college students by enforcing their knowledge of microbiology and provided them an opportunity to reach out to children within their community. This project also benefitted the local schools by teaching the younger students about microbes, infections, and handwashing. In this paper, I discuss the development and implementation of this new microbiology service-learning project, as well as the observed impact it had on everyone involved.

Improving family medicine resident training in dementia care: an experiential learning opportunity in Primary Care Collaborative Memory Clinics.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Linda; Weston, W Wayne; Hillier, Loretta; Archibald, Douglas; Lee, Joseph

2018-06-21

Family physicians often find themselves inadequately prepared to manage dementia. This article describes the curriculum for a resident training intervention in Primary Care Collaborative Memory Clinics (PCCMC), outlines its underlying educational principles, and examines its impact on residents' ability to provide dementia care. PCCMCs are family physician-led interprofessional clinic teams that provide evidence-informed comprehensive assessment and management of memory concerns. Within PCCMCs residents learn to apply a structured approach to assessment, diagnosis, and management; training consists of a tutorial covering various topics related to dementia followed by work-based learning within the clinic. Significantly more residents who trained in PCCMCs (sample = 98), as compared to those in usual training programs (sample = 35), reported positive changes in knowledge, ability, and confidence in ability to assess and manage memory problems. The PCCMC training intervention for family medicine residents provides a significant opportunity for residents to learn about best clinical practices and interprofessional care needed for optimal dementia care integrated within primary care practice.

EC6 safety enhancement - including impact of Fukushima lessons learned

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yu, S.; Zemdegs, R.; Boyle, S.; Soulard, M., E-mail: stephen.yu@candu.com [Candu Energy Inc., Mississauga, Ontario (Canada)

2012-09-15

The Enhanced CANDU 6 (EC6) is the new Generation III CANDU reactor design that meets the most up to date regulatory requirements and customer expectations. EC6 builds on the proven high performance design inch as the Qinshan CANDU 6 units and has made improvements to safety and operational performance, and has incorporated extensive operational feedback including Fukushima. The Fukushima Dai-ichi March 11, 2011 event has demonstrated the importance of defence-in-depth considerations for beyond-design basis events, including severe accidents. The EC6 design is based on the defence-in-depth principles and provides further design features that address the lessons learned from Fukushima. (author)

A reflexive evaluation of technology-enhanced learning

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Suzanne Young

2017-11-01

Full Text Available This article explores the lived experiences of two academics in a UK Higher Education Institution who have embedded digital learning approaches within their curriculum delivery. Achieving student excellence can be impeded by a lack of engagement and sense of identity on large courses. Digital learning strategies can offer opportunities to overcome these challenges by empowering students to engage self-confidently. Through an evaluation of the authors’ own experiences of using social media, polling and web-conferencing software, the article shows how interacting with students via a range of learning technologies can create more inclusive and engaging learning environments. Including feedback from students within this article provides evidence that diversification of communication within teaching and learning practice gives students more choice and opportunity to interact with both their peers and teaching staff. The article concludes with recommendations for embedding technology, whilst acknowledging the well-established value of face-to-face interaction.

Learning Organizations, Employee Development and Learning Representative Schemes in the UK and New Zealand

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Bill; Cassell, Catherine

2009-01-01

Purpose: Disparities in learning opportunities endure. This paper aims to investigate whether the learning representative schemes in the UK and New Zealand (NZ) may redress disparate opportunities for learning. Design/methodology/approach: An interview study of UK trade unions' educational officers and an interview study of representatives of…

Improving Preservice Teachers’ Self-Efficacy through Service Learning: Lessons Learned

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Carianne Bernadowski

2013-07-01

Full Text Available University students have been barraged with service learning opportunities both as course required and as volunteer opportunities in recent years. Currently, many universities now require students to participate in engaged learning as a graduation requirement. Situated in Bandura’s theory of self-efficacy, this study examines the effects service learning has on students teaching self-efficacy when required to participate in an activity (course connected, compared to when they chose to volunteer in service learning projects. As instructors of preservice teachers it is our commitment to prepare these students to their maximum potential. Identifying best practices for teacher preparation is an overarching goal of this study. A pre/post survey examined students’ self-perceptions for each service opportunity in regards to their perceived teaching self-efficacy. Results indicate that students’ self-efficacy improved when service learning was connected or imbedded in the context of learning and connected to a specific course. These findings indicate course connected service learning has a greater impact on preservice teachers’ perceptions of their ability to be effective future classroom teachers. Therefore course connected service learning can be viewed as a best practice in preservice teaching instruction.

Inclusive Education for Children with Specific Learning Difficulties: Analysis of Opportunities and Barriers in Inclusive Education in Slovenia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marija Kavkler

2015-03-01

Full Text Available Inclusive education allows for universal inclusion, participation and achievement of all children, including children with specific learning difficulties (SpLD. Children with SpLD form a heterogeneous group with diverse cognitive deficits, special educational needs (SEN and strengths, and have a legislated right to the continuum of both assistance and support programmes. Although their intellectual capacity is average or above average, their learning achievements in some learning domains are modest, and they are poorly integrated into their social environment, which often results in their discrimination. Barriers and opportunities in the area of SpLD were analysed with the aid of Ball’s model (1994, with factors and conditions being analysed within the contexts of policy influence, text production and practice. The contexts of policy influence and text production provide the basic conditions for the in clusive education of children with SpLD. The context of influence on in clusive policy for children with SpLD represents a systematic approach to policy initiation and to the prerequisites for its implementation in practice. The context of policy text production focuses on professionals and their impact on the enactment of the rights of children with severe SpLD. The context of practice concerns barriers and opportunities for implementing inclusion in practice. Early identification and diagnosis of pupils’ strengths, deficits and SEN, together with intensified treatment corresponding to the SEN of children with SpLD, could significantly influence the efficiency of the educational process. Barriers, primarily of an immaterial nature, are mainly encountered in those schools that do not implement the five-tier Response to Intervention (RTI approach. This approach enables children with SpLD a continuum of team-based diagnostic evaluation, effective adaptations and assistance. The main reasons for the unfavourable situation concern education

Connected and Ubiquitous: A Discussion of Two Theories That Impact Future Learning Applications

Science.gov (United States)

Bair, Richard A.; Stafford, Timothy

2016-01-01

Mobile media break down traditional barriers that have defined learning in schools because they enable constant, personalized access to media. This information-rich environment could dramatically expand learning opportunities. This article identifies and discusses two instructional design theories for mobile learning including the major…

The Future of e-Learning in Medical Education: Current Trend and Future Opportunity

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sara Kim

2006-09-01

Full Text Available A wide range of e-learning modalities are widely integrated in medical education. However, some of the key questions related to the role of e-learning remain unanswered, such as (1 what is an effective approach to integrating technology into pre-clinical vs. clinical training?; (2 what evidence exists regarding the type and format of e-learning technology suitable for medical specialties and clinical settings?; (3 which design features are known to be effective in designing on-line patient simulation cases, tutorials, or clinical exams?; and (4 what guidelines exist for determining an appropriate blend of instructional strategies, including online learning, face-to-face instruction, and performance-based skill practices? Based on the existing literature and a variety of e-learning examples of synchronous learning tools and simulation technology, this paper addresses the following three questions: (1 what is the current trend of e-learning in medical education?; (2 what do we know about the effective use of e-learning?; and (3 what is the role of e-learning in facilitating newly emerging competency-based training? As e-learning continues to be widely integrated in training future physicians, it is critical that our efforts in conducting evaluative studies should target specific e-learning features that can best mediate intended learning goals and objectives. Without an evolving knowledge base on how best to design e-learning applications, the gap between what we know about technology use and how we deploy e-learning in training settings will continue to widen.

Volunteer Service and Service Learning: Opportunities, Partnerships, and United Nations Millennium Development Goals.

Science.gov (United States)

Dalmida, Safiya George; Amerson, Roxanne; Foster, Jennifer; McWhinney-Dehaney, Leila; Magowe, Mabel; Nicholas, Patrice K; Pehrson, Karen; Leffers, Jeanne

2016-09-01

This article explores approaches to service involvement and provides direction to nurse leaders and others who wish to begin or further develop global (local and international) service or service learning projects. We review types of service involvement, analyze service-related data from a recent survey of nearly 500 chapters of the Honor Society of Nursing, Sigma Theta Tau International (STTI), make recommendations to guide collaborative partnerships and to model engagement in global and local service and service learning. This article offers a literature review and describes results of a survey conducted by the STTI International Service Learning Task Force. Results describe the types of service currently conducted by STTI nursing members and chapters, including disaster response, service learning, and service-related responses relative to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The needs of chapter members for information about international service are explored and recommendations for promoting global service and sustainability goals for STTI chapters are examined. Before engaging in service, volunteers should consider the types of service engagement, as well as the design of projects to include collaboration, bidirectionality, sustainability, equitable partnerships, and inclusion of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. STTI supports the learning, knowledge, and professional development of nurses worldwide. International service and collaboration are key to the advancement of the nursing profession. Culturally relevant approaches to international service and service learning are essential to our global organization, as it aims to impact the health status of people globally. © 2016 Sigma Theta Tau International.

Student Trade Missions: An Experiential Learning Opportunity

Science.gov (United States)

Audet, Josée; Marcotte, Geneviève

2018-01-01

In response to the criticisms addressed to business schools, teaching formulas that foster experiential learning are increasingly being put forward. The Missions Commerciales de l'Université Laval (MCUL--Université Laval Trade Missions) is a training program designed to foster experiential learning. This program extends over an entire academic…

Opportunities for Socioemotional Learning in Music Classrooms

Science.gov (United States)

Jacobi, Bonnie S.

2012-01-01

The elementary music class is an ideal setting for building socioemotional skills in children. These skills can assist children in their early music learning through brain development, and they become increasingly important as students reach higher levels of musicianship. Socioemotional learning programs are currently being used to reduce at-risk…

Individual and Social Requirement Aspects of Sustainable eLearning Systems

OpenAIRE

Alharthi, Ahmed D.; Spichkova, Maria

2017-01-01

Internationalization of the higher education has created the so-called borderless university, which provides better opportunities for learning and increases the human and social sustainability. eLearning systems are a special kind of software systems, developed to provide a platform for accessible teaching and learning, including also online access to learning materials and online support for learning and teaching. The aim of our current work is to extract, analyse, and combine the results fr...

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning in Radiology: Opportunities, Challenges, Pitfalls, and Criteria for Success.

Science.gov (United States)

Thrall, James H; Li, Xiang; Li, Quanzheng; Cruz, Cinthia; Do, Synho; Dreyer, Keith; Brink, James

2018-03-01

Worldwide interest in artificial intelligence (AI) applications, including imaging, is high and growing rapidly, fueled by availability of large datasets ("big data"), substantial advances in computing power, and new deep-learning algorithms. Apart from developing new AI methods per se, there are many opportunities and challenges for the imaging community, including the development of a common nomenclature, better ways to share image data, and standards for validating AI program use across different imaging platforms and patient populations. AI surveillance programs may help radiologists prioritize work lists by identifying suspicious or positive cases for early review. AI programs can be used to extract "radiomic" information from images not discernible by visual inspection, potentially increasing the diagnostic and prognostic value derived from image datasets. Predictions have been made that suggest AI will put radiologists out of business. This issue has been overstated, and it is much more likely that radiologists will beneficially incorporate AI methods into their practices. Current limitations in availability of technical expertise and even computing power will be resolved over time and can also be addressed by remote access solutions. Success for AI in imaging will be measured by value created: increased diagnostic certainty, faster turnaround, better outcomes for patients, and better quality of work life for radiologists. AI offers a new and promising set of methods for analyzing image data. Radiologists will explore these new pathways and are likely to play a leading role in medical applications of AI. Copyright © 2017 American College of Radiology. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Interprofessional Education: Opportunities and Challenges for Psychology.

Science.gov (United States)

Ward, Wendy; Zagoloff, Alexandra; Rieck, Cortney; Robiner, William

2018-02-16

This manuscript is an outgrowth of an invited panel presentation at the national Association for Psychologists in Academic Health Centers Conference in 2017 on Interprofessional Education (IPE). IPE is a structured and transformative educational strategy designed to provide active learning experiences where trainees from diverse healthcare professions gain shared content knowledge plus collaboration skills as they learn about, from, and with each other. Collaboration skills include understanding professional role distinctions and overlap, effective team-based communication, shared values/ethics and respect for each other's expertise, and teamwork dynamics. It is increasingly important to expand training beyond the intraprofessional activities in which psychology trainees engage to prepare them to participate in interprofessional collaborative care. As healthcare systems move to team-based collaborative practice and value-based reimbursement models, the profession of psychology needs leaders at every academic health center to facilitate the design and/or implementation of IPE activities. The panel of psychologists presented roles that psychologists play in IPE institutional program design and implementation, graduate training programs, and the perspectives of an early career psychologist and psychology trainee. Opportunities and challenges are highlighted, culminating in a call to action. Psychologists must embrace their identity as health professionals and engage their learners in IPE so that the emerging cognitive schemata of healthcare that is developed includes the profession of psychology. Otherwise, healthcare teams and health professionals will not understand the value, roles, or potential contributions of psychologists in enhancing patient care outcomes, ultimately jeopardizing psychologists' referrals, involvement in healthcare delivery, and career opportunities.

Building a future full of opportunity for blind youths in science

Science.gov (United States)

Beck-Winchatz, B.; Riccobono, M. A.

Like their sighted peers many blind students in elementary middle and high school are naturally interested in space This interest can motivate them to learn fundamental scientific quantitative and critical thinking skills and sometimes even lead to careers in SMET disciplines However these students are often at a disadvantage in science because of the ubiquity of important graphical information that is generally not available in accessible formats the unfamiliarity of teachers with non-visual teaching methods lack of access to blind role models and the low expectations of their teachers and parents In this presentation we will describe joint efforts by NASA and the National Federation of the Blind s NFB Center for Blind Youth in Science to develop and implement strategies to promote opportunities for blind youth in science These include the development of tactile space science books and curriculum materials science academies for blind middle school and high school students internship and mentoring programs as well as research on non-visual learning techniques This partnership with the NFB exemplifies the effectiveness of collaborations between NASA and consumer-directed organizations to improve opportunities for underserved and underrepresented individuals Session participants will also have the opportunity to examine some of the recently developed tactile space science education materials themselves

Community in Online Higher Education: Challenges and Opportunities

Science.gov (United States)

Arasaratnam-Smith, Lily A.; Northcote, Maria

2017-01-01

Exploring the challenges and opportunities associated with the concepts of community and communication in online higher education, this paper reconsiders the intention to replicate face-to-face learning and teaching strategies in online learning environments. Rather than beginning with the assumption that face-to-face education is the prototype…

STEM-related, Student-led Service Learning / Community Engagement Projects: Examples and Benefits

Science.gov (United States)

Swap, R. J.; Wayland, K.

2015-12-01

Field-based, STEM-related service learning / community engagement projects present an opportunity for undergraduate students to demonstrate proficiencies related to the process of inquiry. These proficiencies include: appreciation of the larger project context, articulation of an informed question/hypothesis, project proposal development, interdisciplinary collaboration, project management (including planning, implementation reconfiguration and synthesis) and lastly the generation and handing off of acquired knowledge. Calls for these types of proficiencies have been expressed by governmental, non-governmental as well as the private sector. Accordingly, institutions of higher learning have viewed such activities as opportunities for enriching the learning experience for undergraduate students and for making such students more marketable, especially those from STEM-related fields. This institutional interest has provided an opportunity to support and expand field-based learning. Here we present examples of student-led/faculty-mentored international service learning and community engagement projects along the arc of preparation, implementation and post-field process. Representative examples that draw upon environmental science and engineering knowledge have been selected from more than 20 international undergraduate student projects over past decade and include: slow-sand water filtration, rainwater harvesting, methane biodigesters, water reticulation schemes and development and implementation of rocket stoves for communal cooking. We discuss these efforts in terms of the development of the aforementioned proficiencies, the utility of such proficiencies to the larger enterprise of STEM and the potential for transformative student learning outcomes. We share these experiences and lessons learned with the hope that others may intelligently borrow from our approach in a manner appropriate for their particular context.

E-Learning Change Management: Challenges and Opportunities

Science.gov (United States)

Parlakkilic, Alaattin

2013-01-01

The role of e-learning technologies entirely depends on the acceptance and execution of required-change in the thinking and behaviour of the users of institutions. The research are constantly reporting that many e-learning projects are falling short of their objectives due to many reasons but on the top is the user resistance to change according…

Reconstructionist Analysis on the Relevance of Secondary School Learning Opportunities in Promoting National Cohesion among Students in Machakos Town Sub-County, Kenya

Science.gov (United States)

Mwanzia, Ruth Mutunge; Mwangi, Simon Nyagah

2016-01-01

The study investigated the relevance of secondary school learning opportunities in promoting national cohesion. The study was based on the ideals and principles of a school curriculum as advocated by Brameld Theodore on reconstructionism philosophy. Descriptive survey research design was adopted for the study. A sample size of four hundred and…

Analysis of live cell images: Methods, tools and opportunities.

Science.gov (United States)

Nketia, Thomas A; Sailem, Heba; Rohde, Gustavo; Machiraju, Raghu; Rittscher, Jens

2017-02-15

Advances in optical microscopy, biosensors and cell culturing technologies have transformed live cell imaging. Thanks to these advances live cell imaging plays an increasingly important role in basic biology research as well as at all stages of drug development. Image analysis methods are needed to extract quantitative information from these vast and complex data sets. The aim of this review is to provide an overview of available image analysis methods for live cell imaging, in particular required preprocessing image segmentation, cell tracking and data visualisation methods. The potential opportunities recent advances in machine learning, especially deep learning, and computer vision provide are being discussed. This review includes overview of the different available software packages and toolkits. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Learning Situations in Nursing Education: A Concept Analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Shahsavari, Hooman; Zare, Zahra; Parsa-Yekta, Zohreh; Griffiths, Pauline; Vaismoradi, Mojtaba

2018-02-01

The nursing student requires opportunities to learn within authentic contexts so as to enable safe and competent practice. One strategy to facilitate such learning is the creation of learning situations. A lack of studies on the learning situation in nursing and other health care fields has resulted in insufficient knowledge of the characteristics of the learning situation, its antecedents, and consequences. Nurse educators need to have comprehensive and practical knowledge of the definition and characteristics of the learning situation so as to enable their students to achieve enhanced learning outcomes. The aim of this study was to clarify the concept of the learning situation as it relates to the education of nurses and improve understanding of its characteristics, antecedents, and consequences. The Bonis method of concept analysis, as derived from the Rodgers' evolutionary method, provided the framework for analysis. Data collection and analysis were undertaken in two phases: "interdisciplinary" and "intra-disciplinary." The data source was a search of the literature, encompassing nursing and allied health care professions, published from 1975 to 2016. No agreement on the conceptual phenomenon was discovered in the international literature. The concept of a learning situation was used generally in two ways and thus classified into the themes of: "formal/informal learning situation" and "biologic/nonbiologic learning situation." Antecedents to the creation of a learning situation included personal and environmental factors. The characteristics of a learning situation were described in terms of being complex, dynamic, and offering potential and effective learning opportunities. Consequences of the learning situation included enhancement of the students' learning, professionalization, and socialization into the professional role. The nurse educator, when considering the application of the concept of a learning situation in their educational planning, must

affective variables of language learning

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

李文敬

2011-01-01

why people enjoy different degrees of success in second language learning,given similar opportunities.in the presence of overly negative emotions such as anxiety,fear,stress,anger or depression,our optimal learning potential maybe compromised.the affective domain refers to the emotional domain that has to do with the emotional behavior of human beings.it includes such factors as self-confidence,extroversion,anxiety,attitudes and motivation.three major factors are introduced here:self-confidence,anxiety and motivation.

Towards a Lifelong Learning Society through Reading Promotion: Opportunities and Challenges for Libraries and Community Learning Centres in Viet Nam

Science.gov (United States)

Hossain, Zakir

2016-01-01

The government of Viet Nam has made a commitment to build a Lifelong Learning Society by 2020. A range of related initiatives have been launched, including the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization Centre for Lifelong Learning (SEAMEO CELLL) and "Book Day"--a day aimed at encouraging reading and raising awareness of its…

Customer Aggregation: An Opportunity for Green Power?

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Holt, E.; Bird, L.

2001-02-26

We undertook research into the experience of aggregation groups to determine whether customer aggregation offers an opportunity to bring green power choices to more customers. The objectives of this report, therefore, are to (1) identify the different types of aggregation that are occurring today, (2) learn whether aggregation offers an opportunity to advance sales of green power, and (3) share these concepts and approaches with potential aggregators and green power advocates.

Blending Formal and Informal Learning Networks for Online Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Czerkawski, Betül C.

2016-01-01

With the emergence of social software and the advance of web-based technologies, online learning networks provide invaluable opportunities for learning, whether formal or informal. Unlike top-down, instructor-centered, and carefully planned formal learning settings, informal learning networks offer more bottom-up, student-centered participatory…

Effective post-literacy learning: A question of a national human resource strategy

Science.gov (United States)

Ahmed, Manzoor

1989-12-01

Initial literacy courses must be followed by opportunities for consolidating the mechanics of literacy skills and practical application of three skills in life. Experience has shown that these `post-literacy' objectives can be achieved, not by a second stage of the literacy course, but by a range of opportunities for learning and application of learning through a network of continuing education opportunities geared to the diverse needs and circumstances of different categories of neo-literates. A taxonomy of learner categories and learning needs is seen as a basis for planning and supporting the network of post-literacy learning. Examples from China, India and Thailand demonstrate the importance of recognizing the continuity of literacy and post-literacy efforts, the need for commitment of resources for this continuum of learning, the role of an organizational structure to deal with this continuum in a coordinated way, and the value of a comprehensive range of learning opportunities for neo-literates. A necessary condition for success in building a network of continuing learning opportunities and contributing to the creation of a `learning society' is to make human resource development the core of national development. It is argued that the scope and dimensions of post-literacy continuing education are integrally linked with the goal of mass basic education and ultimately with the vision of a `learning society'. Such a vision can be a reality only with a serious human resource development focus in national development that will permit the necessary mobilization of resources, the coordination of sectors of government and society and the generation of popular enthusiasm. A radical or an incremental approach can be taken to move towards the primacy of a human resource strategy in national development. In either case, a functioning coordination and support mechanism has to be developed for the key elements of mass basic education including post-literacy learning.

Promoting ‘Learning’ Literacy through Picturebooks: Learning How to Learn

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gail Ellis

2016-11-01

Full Text Available Picturebooks provide a rich and motivating resource to develop children’s early language learning such as basic understanding, vocabulary and phrases related to the content of a story, but they can also be used to develop multiple literacies. These include visual, emotional, cultural, nature, digital, moving image literacy and ‘learning’ literacy, which is linked to learning how to learn and learner autonomy. ‘Learning’ literacy is described as an ethos, a culture and a way of life and involves being ready to develop learning capacities and the behaviours individuals need, including being willing to learn continuously, as competencies essential to thriving in a globally connected, digitally driven world. The Important Book (Brown & Weisgard, 1949 is used as an example of how learning literacy can be integrated into primary English language pedagogy by applying the Plan, Do, Review model of reflection. Working through the three stages of the Plan Do Review cycle, children are informed of the aims of the activity; they identify success criteria, draft and refine their own paragraphs about an important object, review what they did, what they learnt and how they learnt and then assess their performance to identify next steps. This process enables the teacher to create learning environments that develop learning literacy, by providing opportunities for systematic reflection and experimentation and the development of metacognitive and cognitive learning strategies.

Toward Project-based Learning and Team Formation in Open Learning Environments

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Spoelstra, Howard; Van Rosmalen, Peter; Sloep, Peter

2014-01-01

Open Learning Environments, MOOCs, as well as Social Learning Networks, embody a new approach to learning. Although both emphasise interactive participation, somewhat surprisingly, they do not readily support bond creating and motivating collaborative learning opportunities. Providing project-based

Medical student service learning program teaches secondary students about career opportunities in health and medical fields.

Science.gov (United States)

Karpa, Kelly; Vakharia, Kavita; Caruso, Catherine A; Vechery, Colin; Sipple, Lanette; Wang, Adrian

2015-12-01

Engagement of academic medical centers in community outreach provides the public with a better understanding of basic terms and concepts used in biomedical sciences and increases awareness of important health information. Medical students at one academic medical center initiated an educational outreach program, called PULSE, that targets secondary students to foster their interest in healthcare and medicine. High school student participants are engaged in a semester-long course that relies on interactive lectures, problem-based learning sessions, mentoring relationships with medical students, and opportunities for shadowing healthcare providers. To date, the curriculum has been offered for 7 consecutive years. To determine the impact that participation in the curriculum has had on college/career choices and to identify areas for improvement, an electronic questionnaire was sent to former participants. Based on a 32% response rate, 81% of former participants indicated that participation in the course influenced their decision to pursue a medical/science-related career. More than half (67%) of respondents indicated intent to pursue a MD/PhD or other postgraduate degree. Based on responses obtained, additional opportunities to incorporate laboratory-based research and simulation sessions should be explored. In addition, a more formalized mentoring component has been added to the course to enhance communication between medical students and mentees. Health/medicine-related educational outreach programs targeting high school students may serve as a pipeline to introduce or reinforce career opportunities in healthcare and related sciences. Copyright © 2015 The American Physiological Society.

Learning How to Learn

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lauridsen, Karen M.; Lauridsen, Ole

Ole Lauridsen, Aarhus School of Business and Social Sciences, Aarhus University, Denmark Karen M. Lauridsen, Aarhus School of Business and Social Sciences, Aarhus University, Denmark Learning Styles in Higher Education – Learning How to Learn Applying learning styles (LS) in higher education...... by Constructivist learning theory and current basic knowledge of how the brain learns. The LS concept will thus be placed in a broader learning theoretical context as a strong learning and teaching tool. Participants will be offered the opportunity to have their own LS preferences established before...... teaching leads to positive results and enhanced student learning. However, learning styles should not only be considered a didactic matter for the teacher, but also a tool for the individual students to improve their learning capabilities – not least in contexts where information is not necessarily...

Research opportunities in simulation-based medical education using deliberate practice.

Science.gov (United States)

McGaghie, William C

2008-11-01

There are many opportunities for the academic emergency medicine (EM) community to engage in simulation-based educational research using deliberate practice (DP). This article begins by defining and giving examples of two key concepts: deliberate practice and mastery learning. The article proceeds to report six lessons learned from a research legacy in simulation-based medical education (SBME). It concludes by listing and amplifying 10 DP research opportunities in academic EM. A coda states that the research agenda is rich and ambitious and should focus on the goal of educating superb, expert clinicians.

Assessing Opportunities for Student Pharmacist Leadership Development at Schools of Pharmacy in the United States.

Science.gov (United States)

Feller, Tara T; Doucette, William R; Witry, Matthew J

2016-06-25

Objective. To summarize student pharmacist leadership development opportunities delivered by pharmacy programs, to describe selected opportunities, and to assess how these opportunities meet leadership development competencies. Methods. A multi-method study was conducted that comprised a systematic content analysis of pharmacy education journals, pharmacy program websites, and telephone interviews with key informants, which included open-ended questions and scaled responses. Results. Review of six articles, 37 American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP) Annual Meeting abstracts, and 138 websites resulted in the identification of 191 leadership development opportunities. These consisted of courses, projects/programs, and events/speaker series. Interviews with 12 key informants detailed unique events that developed leadership competencies. Formal assessments of student leadership development were limited and primarily focused on informal feedback and course evaluations. Conclusion. Most US pharmacy programs offer their students an array of opportunities to develop leadership abilities. Pharmacy programs should consider expanding opportunities beyond elective courses, learn from the successes of others to implement new leadership development opportunities, and bolster the assessment of student leadership competencies and outcomes.

Meeting the challenge of continuing education with eLearning.

Science.gov (United States)

Levesque, David R; Kelly, Gina

2002-01-01

For many of us, the concept of "e" anything invokes a sense of skepticism and even dread. However, the Web and all it has to offer is certainly an integral part of modern life and, once reconciled, offers great opportunities for commerce and knowledge building. One particular area of promise is that of online learning or "eLearning" as it is referred to in the literature. Particularly for sonographers and technologists, the ability to travel to seminars and conferences on hospital budgets and time is a distant memory. Conversely, the pressure to stay current with CE requirements is greater than ever. With the growing phenomena of accreditation and the use of that as standard for quality care, these staff members are under more pressure than ever to maintain their certification. There is also the issue of accountability. What is being done to track employee training and assist in on-going development? How do we know that the program was appropriate for that particular employee and that an adequate ROI was achieved from a learning perspective? With eLearning, the opportunity to track the employee's progress, scores and areas of interest are possible. This can assist the administrator in "managing" the learning within the group and taking an active role in the development of the staff. The ultimate eLearning experience provides the right content at the right time. It motivates people to learn and apply their knowledge and skills to improve their individual and organizational performance. This is achieved by providing learners with easy and immediate access to the content. The design elements of the site should include a friendly format that facilitates easy navigation through the content. Other helpful features are: book-marking that allows the student to return to the last page studied, interactivity, visualization technologies, and feedback throughout the learning experience. The opportunities for the utilization of eLearning in the global medical community are

The Promise of Process. Learning through Enterprise in Higher Education

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Frederiksen, Signe Hedeboe

Entrepreneurial process increasingly attracts attention as an opportunity to learn in higher education. Students learn “through” enterprise, when they actively engage in an entrepreneurial process while reflecting on their actions and experiences. In this qualitative field study, I investigate how...... postgraduate students pursued opportunities to learn in a process-driven entrepreneurship module. Drawing on situated learning theory, I find that students tried to access learning opportunities through a constant dynamic of participation which involved contradictory participatory stances. The learning through...... paradigm in enterprise education imposes conditions on the learning environment and involves images of a particular learner, who is able to take advantage of this learning opportunity. The findings indicate a contradictory process of becoming a legitimate entrepreneurial learner which is more uncertain...

LBGTQ Funding Strategies and Opportunities

Science.gov (United States)

Vincent, Nelson C.

2004-01-01

Funding one's dream and making a difference for the LGBTQ community is a journey that involves persistence, learning new skills, rejection, challenges, opportunities and, above all, the willingness to form strategic partnerships. One must identify his grant-writing assets. For the balance of what one needs to get started, one should seek alliances…

Conceptualizing reasoning-and-proving opportunities in textbook expositions : Cases from secondary calculus

OpenAIRE

Bergwall, Andreas

2017-01-01

Several recent textbook studies focus on opportunities to learn reasoning-and-proving. They typically investigate the extent to which justifications are general proofs and what opportunities exist for learning important elements of mathematical reasoning. In this paper, I discuss how a particular analytical framework for this might be refined. Based on an in-depth analysis of certain textbook passages in upper secondary calculus textbooks, I make an account for analytical issues encountered d...

Developing leadership as a trainee- opportunities, barriers and potential improvements.

Science.gov (United States)

Doherty, Rachel; Lawson, Sara; Mc Laughlin, Laura; Donaghy, Grainne; Courtney, Julia; Gardiner, Keith

2018-05-01

The General Medical Council explicitly state that doctors completing training should demonstrate capabilities in leadership and teamwork. 1 However, most trainees receive little formal training in leadership. In March 2017, at the Faculty of Medical Leadership and Management (FMLM) Northern Ireland Regional Conference, a workshop on developing leadership skills as a trainee was hosted and the views of doctors in training regarding current opportunities, potential barriers and improvements were sought. In Northern Ireland presently there are a number of opportunities available for trainees to gain experience in leadership - both by learning through observation and learning through experience. These range from informal activities which do not require significant time commitment to focused, immersive leadership experiences such as ADEPT (Achieve Develop Explore Programme for Trainees) 2 , and the Royal College of Physicians' Chief Registrar scheme. 3 Several barriers to developing leadership have been identified, including limited understanding of what constitutes leadership, a lack of senior support and little formal recognition for trainees leading teams. Time pressures, frequently rotating jobs, limited resources and difficulty upscaling can also undermine the sustainability of improvement and other leadership projects. Incorporating awareness of and training in leadership skills, as well as greater engagement with senior leaders and managers, at an early stage in training could promote understanding and encourage trainees. Formalising leadership roles within training posts may improve experience. Deaneries and Trusts can also enable leadership opportunities by facilitating study leave, raising awareness amongst supervisors, and providing career enhancing incentives for interested trainees.

Understanding, Evaluating, and Supporting Self-Regulated Learning Using Learning Analytics

Science.gov (United States)

Roll, Ido; Winne, Philip H.

2015-01-01

Self-regulated learning is an ongoing process rather than a single snapshot in time. Naturally, the field of learning analytics, focusing on interactions and learning trajectories, offers exciting opportunities for analyzing and supporting self-regulated learning. This special section highlights the current state of research at the intersection of…

E-Learning as an Opportunity for the Public Administration

Science.gov (United States)

Casagranda, Milena; Colazzo, Luigi; Molinari, Andrea; Tomasini, Sara

In this paper we will describe the results of a learning project in the Public Administration, highlighting the methodological approach based on a blended training model in a context that has never experienced this type of activities. The observations contained in the paper will be focused on the evaluation results of this experience and the redesign elements in term of alternation between the classroom and distance training, methodologies, the value and use of the e-learning platform and learning evaluation. The elements that emerge will also provide the basis for the design of future teaching actions for this context (in which at this moment we are involved). The objective is to identify a "learning model", related also to the use of technological tools that are able to support lifelong learning and to define dynamics and process relating to facilitating learning activities of teachers and tutors.

Creative and Playful Learning: Learning through Game Co-Creation and Games in a Playful Learning Environment

Science.gov (United States)

Kangas, Marjaana

2010-01-01

This paper reports on a pilot study in which children aged 7-12 (N = 68) had an opportunity to study in a novel formal and informal learning setting. The learning activities were extended from the classroom to the playful learning environment (PLE), an innovative playground enriched by technological tools. Curriculum-based learning was intertwined…

Skill learning and the evolution of social learning mechanisms.

Science.gov (United States)

van der Post, Daniel J; Franz, Mathias; Laland, Kevin N

2016-08-24

Social learning is potentially advantageous, but evolutionary theory predicts that (i) its benefits may be self-limiting because social learning can lead to information parasitism, and (ii) these limitations can be mitigated via forms of selective copying. However, these findings arise from a functional approach in which learning mechanisms are not specified, and which assumes that social learning avoids the costs of asocial learning but does not produce information about the environment. Whether these findings generalize to all kinds of social learning remains to be established. Using a detailed multi-scale evolutionary model, we investigate the payoffs and information production processes of specific social learning mechanisms (including local enhancement, stimulus enhancement and observational learning) and their evolutionary consequences in the context of skill learning in foraging groups. We find that local enhancement does not benefit foraging success, but could evolve as a side-effect of grouping. In contrast, stimulus enhancement and observational learning can be beneficial across a wide range of environmental conditions because they generate opportunities for new learning outcomes. In contrast to much existing theory, we find that the functional outcomes of social learning are mechanism specific. Social learning nearly always produces information about the environment, and does not always avoid the costs of asocial learning or support information parasitism. Our study supports work emphasizing the value of incorporating mechanistic detail in functional analyses.

Cultural Challenges in Developing E-Learning Content

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marianne Amir Azer

2011-03-01

Full Text Available Education is an important component of any nation’s development process. Society has been credited with creating technology, but technology is simultaneously creating society. One of the key benefits of such technology creation includes learning and curriculum development, which is otherwise referred to as e-leaning, and more appropriately referred to as global e-learning. Global e-learning raises some implications, which include communication, culture, and technology, that must be addressed before successful implementation and outcome can occur. In this paper, we discuss cultural related issues such as culture influence on e-learning and the dimensions of cultural variability. In addition, we present the main challenges to provide e-learning opportunities. Finally, a case study for facing the cultural challenges is presented; this will be followed by concluding remarks at the end of this paper.

How medical students learn from residents in the workplace: a qualitative study.

Science.gov (United States)

Karani, Reena; Fromme, H Barrett; Cayea, Danelle; Muller, David; Schwartz, Alan; Harris, Ilene B

2014-03-01

To explore what third-year medical students learn from residents and which teaching strategies are used by excellent resident teachers in their interactions with students in the clinical workplace environment. In this multi-institutional qualitative study between January and March 2012, the authors conducted focus groups with medical students who were midway through their third year. Qualitative analysis was used to identify themes. Thirty-seven students participated. Students contributed 228 comments related to teaching methods used by residents. The authors categorized these into 20 themes within seven domains: role-modeling, focusing on teaching, creating a safe learning environment, providing experiential learning opportunities, giving feedback, setting expectations, and stimulating learning. Role-modeling, the most frequently classified method of teaching in this study, was not included in three popular "Resident-as-Teacher" (RAT) models. Strategies including offering opportunities for safe practice, involving students in the team, and providing experiential learning opportunities were not emphasized in these models either. Almost 200 comments representing the knowledge and skills students learned from residents were categorized into 33 themes within nine domains: patient care, communication, navigating the system, adaptability, functioning as a student/resident, lifelong learning, general comments, career/professional development, and medical content. Most of these areas are not emphasized in popular RAT models. Residents serve as critically important teachers of students in the clinical workplace. Current RAT models are based largely on the teaching behaviors of faculty. The content and teaching strategies identified by students in this study should serve as the foundation for future RAT program development.

A Case Study of Job-Embedded Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Hess, Amanda Nichols

2016-01-01

Librarians recognize the importance of professional learning as their roles and responsibilities evolve in the shifting teaching and learning environments of the twenty-first century. However, the literature on meaningful, job-embedded learning opportunities for academic librarians is scant, and opportunities are especially scarce in the fields of…

Customer Aggregation: An Opportunity for Green Power?; TOPICAL

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Holt, E.; Bird, L.

2001-01-01

We undertook research into the experience of aggregation groups to determine whether customer aggregation offers an opportunity to bring green power choices to more customers. The objectives of this report, therefore, are to (1) identify the different types of aggregation that are occurring today, (2) learn whether aggregation offers an opportunity to advance sales of green power, and (3) share these concepts and approaches with potential aggregators and green power advocates

In it together: Organizational learning through participation in environmental assessment

Science.gov (United States)

Fitzpatrick, Patricia

2005-07-01

Can organizations learn through participation in environmental assessment (EA)? This was the central research question of a study that explored the linkages among sustainable development, EA, public participation, and learning. To address this question, the research design involved a comparative case study of two concurrent but geographically separate projects, the Wuskwatim generation station and transmission lines projects (Wuskwatim projects), and the Snap Lake Diamonds Project (Snap Lake project). The Wuskwatim projects involve the construction of a low head dam and three 230 kV transmission line segments in Northern Manitoba, Canada. The Snap Lake Project involves the construction and operation of a diamond mine 220 km northwest of Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada, at the headwaters of the Lockhart River drainage system. The EAs of these proposed developments provided multiple opportunities for public (and organizational) involvement in the review, including comments on the scope of the assessment, information requests, and public hearings. Data collection included participant observation, semi-structured interviews with EA participants, and documentation generated through the course of the reviews. Data were organized using QSR Nvivo, a database software system. In this dissertation, three key contributions are made. The theoretical framework that draws together a number of separate but related fields of study---communicative action, discursive democracy, transformative learning, organizational learning---is the first contribution. The second is verification that organizations learn through participation in EA. Third, empirical support is presented far the assertion that transformative learning can address change beyond that experienced by the individual, to account for both policy-oriented and organizational learning. Related to the second contribution, results indicate that participants of EA engage in Teaming on multiple scales. Furthermore

Networked Learning in 70001 Programs.

Science.gov (United States)

Fine, Marija Futchs

The 7000l Training and Employment Institute offers self-paced instruction through the use of computers and audiovisual materials to young people to improve opportunities for success in the work force. In 1988, four sites were equipped with Apple stand-alone software in an integrated learning system that included courses in reading and math, test…

Learning Dynamics in Doctoral Supervision

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kobayashi, Sofie

investigates learning opportunities in supervision with multiple supervisors. This was investigated through observations and recording of supervision, and subsequent analysis of transcripts. The analyses used different perspectives on learning; learning as participation, positioning theory and variation theory....... The research illuminates how learning opportunities are created in the interaction through the scientific discussions. It also shows how multiple supervisors can contribute to supervision by providing new perspectives and opinions that have a potential for creating new understandings. The combination...... of different theoretical frameworks from the perspectives of learning as individual acquisition and a sociocultural perspective on learning contributed to a nuanced illustration of the otherwise implicit practices of supervision....

Opportunities to Create Active Learning Techniques in the Classroom

Science.gov (United States)

Camacho, Danielle J.; Legare, Jill M.

2015-01-01

The purpose of this article is to contribute to the growing body of research that focuses on active learning techniques. Active learning techniques require students to consider a given set of information, analyze, process, and prepare to restate what has been learned--all strategies are confirmed to improve higher order thinking skills. Active…

THE USE OF BLENDED LEARNING MODELS IN THE PROCESS OF FOREIGN LANGUAGE LEARNING

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Oleksandra Bezverkha

2017-09-01

Full Text Available In the article, the acute problem of implementation of pedagogical innovations and online technologies into the educational process is analyzed. The article explores the advantages of blended learning as a latter-day educational program in comparison with traditional campus learning. Blended learning is regarded worldwide as the combination of classroom face-to-face sessions with interactive learning opportunities created online. The purpose of the article is to identify blended learning transformational potential impacting students and teachers by ensuring a more personalized learning experience. The concept of blended learning, as a means to enhance foreign language teaching and learning in the classroom during the traditional face-to-face interaction between a teacher and a student, combined with computer-mediated activities, is examined. In the article, the main classification of blended learning models is established. There are four main blended learning models which include both face-to-face instruction time and online learning: Rotation Model, Flex Model, A La Carte Model, and Enriched Virtual Model. Once implemented successfully, a blended model can take advantage of both brick-and-mortar and digital worlds, providing significant benefits for the educational establishments and learners. To integrate any of the blended learning models, a teacher can create online activities that enable learners to explore the topic online at home, and then develop face-to-face interactions to dig deeper into the subject matter at the lesson. The use of blended learning models in order to expand educational opportunities for students while the foreign language acquisition, by increasing the availability and flexibility of education, taking into account student individual learning needs, with some element of student control over time, place and pace, is explored. The realization of blended learning models in regards to age and physiological peculiarities of

Big Opportunities and Big Concerns of Big Data in Education

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Yinying

2016-01-01

Against the backdrop of the ever-increasing influx of big data, this article examines the opportunities and concerns over big data in education. Specifically, this article first introduces big data, followed by delineating the potential opportunities of using big data in education in two areas: learning analytics and educational policy. Then, the…

Identifying predictive features in drug response using machine learning: opportunities and challenges.

Science.gov (United States)

Vidyasagar, Mathukumalli

2015-01-01

This article reviews several techniques from machine learning that can be used to study the problem of identifying a small number of features, from among tens of thousands of measured features, that can accurately predict a drug response. Prediction problems are divided into two categories: sparse classification and sparse regression. In classification, the clinical parameter to be predicted is binary, whereas in regression, the parameter is a real number. Well-known methods for both classes of problems are briefly discussed. These include the SVM (support vector machine) for classification and various algorithms such as ridge regression, LASSO (least absolute shrinkage and selection operator), and EN (elastic net) for regression. In addition, several well-established methods that do not directly fall into machine learning theory are also reviewed, including neural networks, PAM (pattern analysis for microarrays), SAM (significance analysis for microarrays), GSEA (gene set enrichment analysis), and k-means clustering. Several references indicative of the application of these methods to cancer biology are discussed.

The Tablet for Second Language Vocabulary Learning: Keyboard, Stylus or Multiple Choice

Science.gov (United States)

Van Hove, Stephanie; Vanderhoven, Ellen; Cornillie, Frederik

2017-01-01

Mobile technologies are increasingly finding their way into classroom practice. While these technologies can create opportunities that may facilitate learning, including the learning of a second or foreign language (L2), the full potential of these new media often remains underexploited. A case in point concerns tablet applications for language…

Clinical learning environments: place, artefacts and rhythm.

Science.gov (United States)

Sheehan, Dale; Jowsey, Tanisha; Parwaiz, Mariam; Birch, Mark; Seaton, Philippa; Shaw, Susan; Duggan, Alison; Wilkinson, Tim

2017-10-01

Health care practitioners learn through experience in clinical environments in which supervision is a key component, but how that learning occurs outside the supervision relationship remains largely unknown. This study explores the environmental factors that inform and support workplace learning within a clinical environment. An observational study drawing on ethnographic methods was undertaken in a general medicine ward. Observers paid attention to interactions among staff members that involved potential teaching and learning moments that occurred and were visible in the course of routine work. General purpose thematic analysis of field notes was undertaken. A total of 376 observations were undertaken and documented. The findings suggest that place (location of interaction), rhythm (regularity of activities occurring in the ward) and artefacts (objects and equipment) were strong influences on the interactions and exchanges that occurred. Each of these themes had inherent tensions that could promote or inhibit engagement and therefore learning opportunities. Although many learning opportunities were available, not all were taken up or recognised by the participants. We describe and make explicit how the natural environment of a medical ward and flow of work through patient care contribute to the learning architecture, and how this creates or inhibits opportunities for learning. Awareness of learning opportunities was often tacit and not explicit for either supervisor or learner. We identify strategies through which tensions inherent within space, artefacts and the rhythms of work can be resolved and learning opportunities maximised. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd and The Association for the Study of Medical Education.

The Optimum Blend: Affordances and Challenges of Blended Learning For Students

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nuray Gedik

2012-03-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this study was to elicit students’ perceptions regarding the most facilitative and most challenging features (affordances and barriers in a blended course design. Following the phenomenological approach of qualitative inquiry, data were collected from ten undergraduate students who had experiences in a blended learning environment. Data were collected from the students’ weekly reşection papers, interviews with students, and documents, and analyzed by structurally and texturally describing the resulting experiences and perceptions. The findings of the study indicate that used together, online and face-to-face course structures offer several opportunities and challenges for students. The participating students mentioned interaction and communication opportunities, increased motivation, increased opportunities to voice their opinions, and reinforcement of learning as the affordances in the blended learning environment. The barriers included increased workload, cultural and technical barriers, and the inter-dependence of the two environments. Implications and suggestions are offered for instructors in higher education settings

The Optimum Blend: Affordances and Challenges of Blended Learning For Students

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nuray Gedik

2012-07-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this study was to elicit students’ perceptions regarding the most facilitative and most challenging features (affordances and barriers in a blended course design. Following the phenomenological approach of qualitative inquiry, data were collected from ten undergraduate students who had experiences in a blended learning environment. Data were collected from the students’ weekly reflection papers, interviews with students, and documents, and analyzed by structurally and texturally describing the resulting experiences and perceptions. The findings of the study indicate that used together, online and face-to-face course structures offer several opportunities and challenges for students. The participating students mentioned interaction and communication opportunities, increased motivation, increased opportunities to voice their opinions, and reinforcement of learning as the affordances in the blended learning environment. The barriers included increased workload, cultural and technical barriers, and the inter-dependence of the two environments. Implications and suggestions are offered for instructors in higher education settings.

E-learning Sudan, formal learning for out-of-school children

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Stubbé, Hester; Badri, Aiman; Telford, Rebecca; van der Hulst, Anja; van Joolingen, Wouter

2016-01-01

E-Learning Sudan (ELS) is a custom-built computer/tablet game that provides alternative learning opportunities to Sudanese children who are excluded from education. Unique in ELS is that children can learn mathematics, in their own remote village, without a teacher. This research study assessed the

Shifting workplace behavior to inspire learning: a journey to building a learning culture.

Science.gov (United States)

Schoonbeek, Sue; Henderson, Amanda

2011-01-01

This article discusses the process of building a learning culture. It began with establishing acceptance and connection with the nurse unit manager and the ward team. In the early phases of developing rapport, bullying became apparent. Because bullying undermines sharing and trust, the hallmarks of learning environments, the early intervention work assisted staff to recognize and counteract bullying behaviors. When predominantly positive relationships were restored, interactions that facilitated open communication, including asking questions and providing feedback-behaviors commensurate with learning in the workplace-were developed during regular in-service sessions. Staff participated in role-play and role modeling desired behaviors. Once staff became knowledgeable about positive learning interactions, reward and recognition strategies began to reinforce attitudes and behaviors that align with learning. Through rewards, all nurses had the opportunity to be recognized for their contribution. Nurses who excelled were invited to become champions to continue engaging the key stakeholders to further build the learning environment. Copyright 2011, SLACK Incorporated.

Professional Development on a Budget: Facilitating Learning Opportunities for Information Literacy Instructors

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lisa Shamchuk

2015-06-01

Full Text Available How do you stay on top of evolving trends and changes to information literacy delivery, especially while coping with shrinking professional development allocations? This article details various in-house, professional development opportunities created for MacEwan University’s library staff. Low-cost, practical ideas are given to help jump-start a library's information literacy professional development offerings. Included are details about organizing an Information Literacy Community, internal Library Professional Development Days and an information literacy event open to local library professionals.

Problembased learning (PBL) including drama games as a motivating learning approach in interprofessional education (IPE)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hansen, Bodil Winther; Hatt, Camusa

The university have years of experience with interprofessional student groups, from seven different health professions, learning through participating in an interprofessional module. Evaluations have shown a continuos massive challenge concerning the student´s motivation for learning...... and their level of participation in this three-week course of “Conflict management”. To meet these challenges the university started a project within the frame of problembased learning and drama games. The idea was to develop strategies to motivate students and create a dynamic and stimulating learning...... as an important aspect of carrying out a successful PBL course. Among the students, there was a significantly higher level of satisfaction in the experimental classes than in the comparison classes, regarding 10 out of 12 questions asked about both academic achievement and satisfaction with the learning...

Embedding an institution-wide capacity building opportunity around transition pedagogy: First Year Teaching and Learning Network Coordinators

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jennifer Clark

2015-03-01

Full Text Available A First Year Teaching and Learning Network was established in a regional university with a strong focus on distance education for a very diverse student cohort.  The purpose of the Network, which consisted of a Coordinator in each of nine schools, was to support staff teaching students transitioning into tertiary education. The paper explores the theoretical bases of the structure, its current method of operation, its impact so far, and future plans. The development of the Network illustrates how a university can consciously embed opportunities for staff to take ownership of transition pedagogy and thus encourage widespread capacity building amongst their peers. The experiences of the Network in its first two years provide a case study of how institutional support for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, in particular scholarship around capacity building, can be used as a mechanism to promote both staff and student engagement with transition pedagogy resulting in a shift from a second generation approach towards a third generation approach to transition.

Organizational Learning in Rare Events

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Andersen, Kristina Vaarst; Tyler, Beverly; Beukel, Karin

When organizations encounter rare events they often find it challenging to extract learning from the experience. We analyze opportunities for organizational learning in one such rare event, namely Intellectual Property (IP) litigation, i.e., when organizations take disputes regarding their intell......When organizations encounter rare events they often find it challenging to extract learning from the experience. We analyze opportunities for organizational learning in one such rare event, namely Intellectual Property (IP) litigation, i.e., when organizations take disputes regarding...... the organization little discretion to utilize any learning from past litigation success. Thus, learning appears be to most beneficial in infringement cases. Based on statistical analysis of 10,211 litigation court cases in China, we find support for our hypotheses. Our findings suggest that organizations can learn...

Embracing Service-Learning Opportunities: Student Perceptions of Service-Learning as an Aid to Effectively Learn Course Material

Science.gov (United States)

Currie-Mueller, Jenna L.; Littlefield, Robert S.

2018-01-01

Educators are aware of the benefits of service learning such as retention or application of course concepts. Students enrolled in courses with a service learning assignment may not be aware of the benefits or may not view the assignment as beneficiary. This study examined student perceptions of service learning to determine if students'…

Web 2.0 in e-Learning

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. Tariq Banday

2013-10-01

Full Text Available Web 2.0 tools have created fresh opportunities for governments, education, businesses and individuals to enhance efficiency and improve effectiveness while executing respective professional duties. The key features of these tools include online character and access through a web browser, supportive for open content licenses, open sharing and social interaction, and often free to use or support free features. These have created novel prospects for teachers to combine face-to-face teaching and online materials via social media such as discussion forums, blogs and wikis. The web 2.0 educational design is based on socio-cultural learning theories such as interaction, joint creation of content, critical thinking, learning by doing and collaboration. This paper makes an appraisal of ICT adoption in education, emergence of Web, improvements in Web and its effect on the e-Learning. It explains gradual integration of ICT into education through various stages. The paper presents the content and communication dimensions of e-learning for its classification. It discusses various opportunities created by Web 2.0 tools in education for effective teacher-learner, learner-learner and teacher-teacher communication, interaction and collaboration. It presents various cases and projects involving use of some Web 2.0 tools for enhancing learning. Furthermore, it lists some challenges for successful implementation of e-learning through Web 2.0 tools and discusses some possible solutions for its control.

Community Languages in Europe : Challenges and Opportunities

NARCIS (Netherlands)

McPake, J.; Martyniuk, W.; Aarts, R.; Broeder, Peter; Latomaa, Sirkku; Mijares, Laura; Tinsley, Teresa

2004-01-01

This paper reviews issues affecting school students’ learning of community languages across Europe, with the aim of identifying both challenges and opportunities inherent in the current context. Language education pol icy has become more inclusive of late, addressing the full range of languages

Common Mobile Learning Characteristics--An Analysis of Mobile Learning Models and Frameworks

Science.gov (United States)

Imtinan, Umera; Chang, Vanessa; Issa, Tomayess

2013-01-01

Mobile learning offers learning opportunities to learners without the limitations of time and space. Mobile learning has introduced a number of flexible options to the learners across disciplines and at different educational levels. However, designing mobile learning content is an equally challenging task for the instructional designers.…

The Sociocultural Contexts of Learning in the Workplace.

Science.gov (United States)

Bierema, Laura L.

2002-01-01

Outlines demographic dimensions of the work force: aging, gender, race, sexual orientation, immigration, language, religion. Suggests a workplace pedagogy that is sensitive to sociocultural context and includes the concept of workplace learning as a lifelong process, socioculturally sensitive policies, equal opportunity development, and diversity…

Recasting Distance Learning with Network-Enabled Open Education: An Interview with Vijay Kumar

Science.gov (United States)

Morrison, James L.; Kumar, Vijay

2008-01-01

In an interview with James Morrison, "Innovate's" editor-in-chief, Vijay Kumar describes how rethinking distance learning as network-enabled open education can catalyze a whole new set of learning opportunities. The growing open-education movement has made an increasing number and variety of resources freely available online, including everything…

Learning from the Unfamiliar: How Does Working with People Who Use Mental Health Services Impact on Students' Learning and Development?

Science.gov (United States)

Asghar, Mandy; Rowe, Nick

2018-01-01

Service learning is an experiential pedagogic approach that is predicated on students learning in authentic situations. It is often problem-orientated and provides opportunities for community engagement in ways that enhance a student's capacity as a socially aware individual. There is evidence that such learning opportunities can enhance personal…

Developing models to predict 8th grade students' achievement levels on timss science based on opportunity-to-learn variables

Science.gov (United States)

Whitford, Melinda M.

Science educational reforms have placed major emphasis on improving science classroom instruction and it is therefore vital to study opportunity-to-learn (OTL) variables related to student science learning experiences and teacher teaching practices. This study will identify relationships between OTL and student science achievement and will identify OTL predictors of students' attainment at various distinct achievement levels (low/intermediate/high/advanced). Specifically, the study (a) address limitations of previous studies by examining a large number of independent and control variables that may impact students' science achievement and (b) it will test hypotheses of structural relations to how the identified predictors and mediating factors impact on student achievement levels. The study will follow a multi-stage and integrated bottom-up and top-down approach to identify predictors of students' achievement levels on standardized tests using TIMSS 2011 dataset. Data mining or pattern recognition, a bottom-up approach will identify the most prevalent association patterns between different student achievement levels and variables related to student science learning experiences, teacher teaching practices and home and school environments. The second stage is a top-down approach, testing structural equation models of relations between the significant predictors and students' achievement levels according.

Residents’ perceptions of simulation as a clinical learning approach

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Catharine M Walsh

2017-02-01

Results: Residents’ perceptions of simulation included: 1 simulation serves pragmatic purposes; 2 simulation provides a safe space; 3 simulation presents perils and pitfalls; and 4 optimal design for simulation: integration and tension. Key findings included residents’ markedly narrow perception of simulation’s capacity to support non-technical skills development or its use beyond introductory learning. Conclusion: Trainees’ learning expectations of simulation were restricted. Educators should critically attend to the way they present simulation to learners as, based on theories of problem-framing, trainees’ a priori perceptions may delimit the focus of their learning experiences. If they view simulation as merely a replica of real cases for the purpose of practicing basic skills, they may fail to benefit from the full scope of learning opportunities afforded by simulation.

Agile learning for the attention challenge in classrooms

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Chongtay, Rocio

2015-01-01

Nowadays, in many educational institutions, students can be connected to the Internet continuously, thus giving them the opportunity to access relevant course material as needed. However this scenario also allows them to access any other type of online distractions, which makes harder to compete...... for the students’ attention and more challenging to engage them in the learning process. This paper presents an instructional design that includes elements from Project-Based Learning (PBL) and Agile methodologies to provide collaborative and practical learning skills during a product development process......-PBL improves the learning experience, which is reflected in a higher attendance rate as well as higher percentage of students passing the course. However possible issues implementing Agile-PBL need to be taken into consideration and are also discussed here, including planning and time constraints in trying...

Preventing Learned Helplessness.

Science.gov (United States)

Hoy, Cheri

1986-01-01

To prevent learned helplessness in learning disabled students, teachers can share responsibilities with the students, train students to reinforce themselves for effort and self control, and introduce opportunities for changing counterproductive attitudes. (CL)

Teaching and Learning: Using Experiential Learning and Reflection for Leadership Education

Science.gov (United States)

Guthrie, Kathy L.; Jones, Tamara Bertrand

2012-01-01

Leadership experiences, arguably some of the most significant developmental opportunities in college, are ripe for helping students move from mere engagement to making meaning of and learning from their leadership experience. The International Learning Association's teaching and learning area asks: "what methods are most appropriate to ensure…

Career Development and Learning Pathways of Paralympic Coaches With a Disability.

Science.gov (United States)

Douglas, Scott; Falcão, William R; Bloom, Gordon A

2018-01-01

The purpose of this study was to gain an understanding of the career development and learning pathways of Paralympic head coaches who previously competed as Paralympic athletes. Each coach participated in a semistructured interview. A thematic analysis of the data revealed three higher order themes, which were called becoming a coach, learning to coach, and lifelong learning and teaching. Across these themes, participants discussed interactions with other coaches and athletes with a disability, learning from mentors and coaching clinics, as well as limited formal educational opportunities they experienced transitioning from athlete to head coach. The findings revealed that they acquired most of their knowledge from a combination of knowledge gained as athletes and informal sources, including trial and error. They also stressed the need for enhanced recruiting of parasport coaches and parasport coach education opportunities that would enhance programs for athletes with physical disabilities, from grassroots to Paralympic levels.

Mobile learning in Malaysian schools: opportunities and challenges

OpenAIRE

Mohamad, Mariam; Woollard, John

2011-01-01

This study established the emerging themes in implementing mobile learning via mobile phones to support English Language learning in Malaysian schools. The findings were gathered from English subject leaders, ICT subject leaders, head teachers and deputy head teachers from 4 schools in the United Kingdom. In addition, the study also gathered the perspectives from English subject leaders, ICT subject leaders, head teachers, deputy head teachers from 9 schools and the officers in the Ministry o...

In-Course Instructor-Guided Service Learning in a Community College General Psychology Class

Science.gov (United States)

Goomas, David T.; Weston, Melissa B.

2012-01-01

Students enrolled in two general psychology classes at El Centro College (ECC) of the Dallas County Community College District (DCCCD) were offered the opportunity to earn extra credit by performing up to 20 hours of service learning. Benefits of service learning were observed in student development, including exploration of career possibilities,…

Unveiling the Mobile Learning Paradox.

Science.gov (United States)

Mather, Carey; Cummings, Elizabeth

2015-01-01

A mobile learning paradox exists in Australian healthcare settings. Although it is increasingly acknowledged that timely, easy, and convenient access to health information using mobile learning technologies can enhance care and improve patient outcomes, currently there is an inability for nurses to access information at the point of care. Rapid growth in the use of mobile technology has created challenges for learning and teaching in the workplace. Easy access to educational resources via mobile devices challenges traditional strategies of knowledge and skill acquisition. Redesign of learning and teaching in the undergraduate curriculum and the development of policies to support the use of mobile learning at point of care is overdue. This study explored mobile learning opportunities used by clinical supervisors in tertiary and community-based facilities in two Australian States. Individual, organisation and systems level governance were sub-themes of professionalism that emerged as the main theme and impacts on learning and teaching in situ in healthcare environments. It is imperative healthcare work redesign includes learning and teaching that supports professional identity formation of students during work integrated learning.

Missed opportunities for diagnosis: lessons learned from diagnostic errors in primary care.

Science.gov (United States)

Goyder, Clare R; Jones, Caroline H D; Heneghan, Carl J; Thompson, Matthew J

2015-12-01

Because of the difficulties inherent in diagnosis in primary care, it is inevitable that diagnostic errors will occur. However, despite the important consequences associated with diagnostic errors and their estimated high prevalence, teaching and research on diagnostic error is a neglected area. To ascertain the key learning points from GPs' experiences of diagnostic errors and approaches to clinical decision making associated with these. Secondary analysis of 36 qualitative interviews with GPs in Oxfordshire, UK. Two datasets of semi-structured interviews were combined. Questions focused on GPs' experiences of diagnosis and diagnostic errors (or near misses) in routine primary care and out of hours. Interviews were audiorecorded, transcribed verbatim, and analysed thematically. Learning points include GPs' reliance on 'pattern recognition' and the failure of this strategy to identify atypical presentations; the importance of considering all potentially serious conditions using a 'restricted rule out' approach; and identifying and acting on a sense of unease. Strategies to help manage uncertainty in primary care were also discussed. Learning from previous examples of diagnostic errors is essential if these events are to be reduced in the future and this should be incorporated into GP training. At a practice level, learning points from experiences of diagnostic errors should be discussed more frequently; and more should be done to integrate these lessons nationally to understand and characterise diagnostic errors. © British Journal of General Practice 2015.

Education projects: an opportunity for student fieldwork in global health academic programs.

Science.gov (United States)

Fyfe, Molly V

2012-01-01

Universities, especially in higher-income countries, increasingly offer programs in global health. These programs provide different types of fieldwork projects, at home and abroad, including: epidemiological research, community health, and clinical electives. I illustrate how and why education projects offer distinct learning opportunities for global health program fieldwork. As University of California students, we partnered in Tanzania with students from Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Science (MUHAS) to assist MUHAS faculty with a curricular project. We attended classes, clinical rounds, and community outreach sessions together, where we observed teaching, materials used, and the learning environment; and interviewed and gathered data from current students, alumni, and health professionals during a nationwide survey. We learned together about education of health professionals and health systems in our respective institutions. On the basis of this experience, I suggest some factors that contribute to the productivity of educational projects as global health fieldwork.

Towards a lifelong learning society through reading promotion: Opportunities and challenges for libraries and community learning centres in Viet Nam

Science.gov (United States)

Hossain, Zakir

2016-04-01

The government of Viet Nam has made a commitment to build a Lifelong Learning Society by 2020. A range of related initiatives have been launched, including the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization Centre for Lifelong Learning (SEAMEO CELLL) and "Book Day" - a day aimed at encouraging reading and raising awareness of its importance for the development of knowledge and skills. Viet Nam also aims to implement lifelong learning (LLL) activities in libraries, museums, cultural centres and clubs. The government of Viet Nam currently operates more than 11,900 Community Learning Centres (CLCs) and is in the process of both renovating and innovating public libraries and museums throughout the country. In addition to the work undertaken by the Viet Nam government, a number of enterprises have been initiated by non-governmental organisations and non-profit organisations to promote literacy and lifelong learning. This paper investigates some government initiatives focused on libraries and CLCs and their impact on reading promotion. Proposing a way forward, the paper confirms that Viet Nam's libraries and CLCs play an essential role in promoting reading and building a LLL Society.

Learning during Tourism: The Experience of Learning from the Tourist's Perspective

Science.gov (United States)

Van Winkle, Christine M.; Lagay, Katya

2012-01-01

The purpose of the research described in the paper was to explore the learning experience that occurs during leisure tourism from the tourist's perspective. Learning throughout the lifespan occurs in diverse contexts and travel presents a unique learning environment enabling both unplanned and planned opportunities. The Husserlian phenomenology…

Gendered learning environments in managerial work

OpenAIRE

Gustavsson, Maria; Fogelberg Eriksson, Anna

2010-01-01

The aim is to investigate female and male managers’ learning environments with particular focus on their opportunities for and barriers to learning and career development in the managerial work of a male-dominated industrial company. In the case study 42 managers, 15 women and 27 men in the company were interviewed. The findings demonstrate that the male managers were provided with significantly richer opportunities to participate in activities conducive to learning and career development tha...

Opportunities of Continuing Adult Education

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lidija Ušeckienė

2011-04-01

Full Text Available After becoming the member state of the European Union, Lithuania undertook all the obligations of a member state. One of them is the implementation of The Lisbon Strategy aiming at the worlds most dynamic and competitive knowledge– based economy by 2010. Under the strategy, a stronger economy will drive job creation, sustainable development, and social inclusion. These changes demand the modernisation of education systems in the E U states, Lithuania among them. To achieve this objective, political forces came to an agreement on the future of Lithuanian education. In 2003 The Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania approved of National Education Strategy 2003–2012. This strategy is special not only because it is based on the experiences of the reform, addresses current and future world’s challenges and opportunities, maintains links with other strategic national reforms, but also emphasises efforts to ensure quality lifelong education for Lithuanian population and striving to become a partner in modern knowledge-based economy. Therefore, an extensive discussion on lifelong education strategies on individual and institution levels in all spheres of social and personal life has started in the E U and Lithuania. Nowadays lifelong learning is not just one aspect of education and training; it gradually is becoming the most important principle in the continuum of complex learning contexts. Such vision must be implemented this decade. The object of the research: the preconditions for the development of continuing adult education. The aim of the research: to examine the peculiarities of the preconditions for the development of continuing adult education in Pakruojis region. The methods of the research: analysis of references and documents on education; an anonymous survey in written form (a questionnaire; statistical analysis of data. The sample. The research was conducted in Pakruojis region in January-April, 2006. 300 respondents of different age

Social Phenomenon of Community on Online Learning: Digital Interaction and Collaborative Learning Experience

Science.gov (United States)

Aleksic-Maslac, Karmela; Magzan, Masha; Juric, Visnja

2009-01-01

Digital interaction in e-learning offers great opportunities for education quality improvement in both--the classical teaching combined with e-learning, and distance learning. Zagreb School of Economics & Management (ZSEM) is one of the few higher education institutions in Croatia that systematically uses e-learning in teaching. Systematically…

MOOCs for Language Learning-Opportunities and Challenges: The Case of the Open University Italian Beginners' MOOCs

Science.gov (United States)

Motzo, Anna; Proudfoot, Anna

2017-01-01

Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) are a fairly recent development in online education. Language MOOCs (LMOOCs) have recently been added to the ever-growing list of open courses offered by various providers, including FutureLearn. For learners, MOOCs offer an innovative and inexpensive alternative to formal and traditional learning. For course…

MOBILE LEARNING IN THE FOREIGN LANGUAGE CLASSROOM – CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Diana COJOCNEAN

2017-06-01

Full Text Available The article focuses on how foreign language teachers could use mobile learning in formal and informal learning environments. One of the key aims of the article is the focus on defining the pedagogy of mobile learning in the context of foreign language teaching and learning through the use of mobile learning tools during the foreign language lessons but also in informal learning contexts, encouraging learner autonomy and involvement in the learning task. Thus, the article presents how language teachers could try mobile learning based activities during foreign language lessons and outside the class, using students’ own devices through the implementation of a Bring Your Own Device Policy (BYOD within foreign language lessons.

From Equal Educational Opportunity to Diversity Advantaged Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Hawley, Willis D.

2007-01-01

The case for desegregation has been based largely on research showing its contributions to the educational opportunities and life chances of students of color. However, this has led to remedies that have placed much of the burden of desegregation on people of color and has failed to develop awareness that there are substantial advantages to all…

Project Interface Requirements Process Including Shuttle Lessons Learned

Science.gov (United States)

Bauch, Garland T.

2010-01-01

Most failures occur at interfaces between organizations and hardware. Processing interface requirements at the start of a project life cycle will reduce the likelihood of costly interface changes/failures later. This can be done by adding Interface Control Documents (ICDs) to the Project top level drawing tree, providing technical direction to the Projects for interface requirements, and by funding the interface requirements function directly from the Project Manager's office. The interface requirements function within the Project Systems Engineering and Integration (SE&I) Office would work in-line with the project element design engineers early in the life cycle to enhance communications and negotiate technical issues between the elements. This function would work as the technical arm of the Project Manager to help ensure that the Project cost, schedule, and risk objectives can be met during the Life Cycle. Some ICD Lessons Learned during the Space Shuttle Program (SSP) Life Cycle will include the use of hardware interface photos in the ICD, progressive life cycle design certification by analysis, test, & operations experience, assigning interface design engineers to Element Interface (EI) and Project technical panels, and linking interface design drawings with project build drawings

Competences for All: Recognizing and Developing Competences of Young People with Fewer Opportunities

Science.gov (United States)

Usakli, Hakan

2016-01-01

This qualitative study clarifies opinion of 32 European volunteer youth leaders on concepts of competence, fewer opportunities and enlargement strategies on competence of fewer opportunities. Leaders underline main competencies as follows: tongue, languages, mathematical, digital, learning, social, entrepreneurship, cultural. Key competences are…

Linking Complex Problem Solving to Opportunity Identification Competence within the Context of Entrepreneurship

Science.gov (United States)

Baggen, Yvette; Mainert, Jakob; Lans, Thomas; Biemans, Harm J. A.; Greiff, Samuel; Mulder, Martin

2015-01-01

Today's working life is increasingly characterized by entrepreneurial challenges. Entrepreneurial challenges start at an individual level with the identification of entrepreneurial opportunities, which is acknowledged as one of the key competencies for lifelong learning. Since the identification of entrepreneurial opportunities relies heavily on…

Expanding Opportunities to Learn to Support Inclusive Education through Drama-Enhanced Literacy Practices

Science.gov (United States)

Kilinc, Sultan; Farrand, Kathleen; Chapman, Kathryn; Kelley, Michael; Millinger, Jenny; Adams, Korbi

2017-01-01

This study examines how the Early Years Educators at Play (EYEPlay) professional development (PD) programme supported inclusive learning settings for all children, including English language learners and students with disabilities. The EYEPlay PD model is a year-long programme that integrates drama strategies into literacy practices within…

Borderland Spaces for Learning Partnership: Opportunities, Benefits and Challenges

Science.gov (United States)

Hill, Jennifer; Thomas, Greg; Diaz, Anita; Simm, David

2016-01-01

This paper uses case studies and secondary literature to critically examine how learning spaces inhabited by geographers might be used productively as borderland spaces for learning partnership. Borderland spaces are novel, challenging, permissive and liminal, destabilizing traditional power hierarchies. In these spaces, students gain confidence…

Leveraging e-learning in medical education.

Science.gov (United States)

Lewis, Kadriye O; Cidon, Michal J; Seto, Teresa L; Chen, Haiqin; Mahan, John D

2014-07-01

e-Learning has become a popular medium for delivering instruction in medical education. This innovative method of teaching offers unique learning opportunities for medical trainees. The purpose of this article is to define the present state of e-learning in pediatrics and how to best leverage e-learning for educational effectiveness and change in medical education. Through addressing under-examined and neglected areas in implementation strategies for e-learning, its usefulness in medical education can be expanded. This study used a systematic database review of published studies in the field of e-learning in pediatric training between 2003 and 2013. The search was conducted using educational and health databases: Scopus, ERIC, PubMed, and search engines Google and Hakia. A total of 72 reference articles were suitable for analysis. This review is supplemented by the use of "e-Learning Design Screening Questions" to define e-learning design and development in 10 randomly selected articles. Data analysis used template-based coding themes and counting of the categories using descriptive statistics.Our search for pediatric e-learning (using Google and Hakia) resulted in six well-defined resources designed to support the professional development of doctors, residents, and medical students. The majority of studies focused on instructional effectiveness and satisfaction. There were few studies about e-learning development, implementation, and needs assessments used to identify the institutional and learners' needs. Reviewed studies used various study designs, measurement tools, instructional time, and materials for e-learning interventions. e-Learning is a viable solution for medical educators faced with many challenges, including (1) promoting self-directed learning, (2) providing flexible learning opportunities that would offer continuous (24h/day/7 days a week) availability for learners, and (3) engaging learners through collaborative learning communities to gain

Using Deep Convolutional Neural Networks to Predict Goal-Scoring Opportunities in Soccer

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wagenaar, Martijn; Okafor, Emmanuel; Frencken, Wouter; Wiering, Marco

2017-01-01

Deep learning approaches have successfully been applied to several image recognition tasks, such as face, object, animal and plant classification. However, almost no research has examined on how to use the field of machine learning to predict goal-scoring opportunities in soccer from position data.

E-Learning in Higher Education--Opportunities & Challenges for Dubai

Science.gov (United States)

Gokah, Theophilus K.; Gupta, Namrata; Ndiweni, Esinath

2015-01-01

E-Learning is becoming a popular delivery method across various universities and colleges in Dubai as the region is experiencing a rapid growth of e-Learning in higher education. Adequate infrastructure, changes in demographic profile, globalization, government initiatives, outsourcing and increasing demand for IT knowledge based jobs are the…

e-Learning objects in the cloud: SCORM compliance, creation and deployment options

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stephanie Day

2017-12-01

Full Text Available In the field of education, cloud computing is changing the way learning is delivered and experienced, by providing software, storage, teaching resources, artefacts, and knowledge that can be shared by educators on a global scale. In this paper, the first objective is to understand the general trends in educational use of the cloud, particularly the provision of large scale education opportunities, use of open and free services, and interoperability of learning objects. A review of current literature reveals the opportunities and issues around managing learning and teaching related knowledge in the cloud. The educational use of the cloud will continue to grow as the services, pedagogies, personalization, and standardization of learning are refined and adopted. Secondly, the paper presents an example of how the cloud can support learning opportunities using SCORM interoperable learning objects. The case study findings show that, while the use of SCORM enables a variety of trackable learning opportunities, the constraints of maintaining the currency of the learning also need to be considered. It is recommended that the SCORM content are combined with cloud based student activities. These learning objects can be used to support alternative learning opportunities within blended and online learning environments.

The Army Learning Organisation Workshop

Science.gov (United States)

2013-06-01

learning • Sharing information • Learning resulting in purposeful action • Creating environments that promote learning • Technology and resources...individual and collective learning • Exploiting and investing in technology to facilitate learning (i.e. blended and E- learning ) • Lifelong or...opportunities provided by training and education programs. More significantly, participants noted the multi-layered nature of informal and formal learning

2nd International Workshop on Learning Technology for Education in Cloud

CERN Document Server

Tao, Yu-Hui; Yang, Hsin-Chang; Ting, I-Hsien

2014-01-01

Proceedings from the 2013 LTEC conference in Kaohsiung,Taiwan. The papers examine diverse aspects of Learning Technology for Education in Cloud environments, including social, technical and infrastructure implications. Also addressed is the question of how cloud computing can be used to design applications to support real time on demand learning using technologies. The workshop proceedings provide opportunities for delegates to discuss the latest research in TEL (Technology Enhanced Learning) and its impacts for learners and institutions, using cloud technolgies.

E-Learning versus Blended Learning in Accounting Courses

Science.gov (United States)

Megeid, Nevine Sobhy Abdel

2014-01-01

E-learning provides opportunities for developing countries like Egypt that expect a promising future in its educational process from the use of modern information and communication technologies. The aim of this research is to investigate and identify factors that influence the use of e-learning in accounting education and to assess students'…

Blended Learning: Deficits and Prospects in Higher Education

Science.gov (United States)

Cuesta Medina, Liliana

2018-01-01

This article examines the nature and evolution of the term blended learning (BL), which encompasses numerous connotations, including its conception as a strategy, delivery mode, opportunity, educational shift, or pedagogical approach. Although much has been said in this field, very few studies examine the different types of blends behind their…

Opportunities and obstacles for deep learning in biology and medicine

Science.gov (United States)

2018-01-01

Deep learning describes a class of machine learning algorithms that are capable of combining raw inputs into layers of intermediate features. These algorithms have recently shown impressive results across a variety of domains. Biology and medicine are data-rich disciplines, but the data are complex and often ill-understood. Hence, deep learning techniques may be particularly well suited to solve problems of these fields. We examine applications of deep learning to a variety of biomedical problems—patient classification, fundamental biological processes and treatment of patients—and discuss whether deep learning will be able to transform these tasks or if the biomedical sphere poses unique challenges. Following from an extensive literature review, we find that deep learning has yet to revolutionize biomedicine or definitively resolve any of the most pressing challenges in the field, but promising advances have been made on the prior state of the art. Even though improvements over previous baselines have been modest in general, the recent progress indicates that deep learning methods will provide valuable means for speeding up or aiding human investigation. Though progress has been made linking a specific neural network's prediction to input features, understanding how users should interpret these models to make testable hypotheses about the system under study remains an open challenge. Furthermore, the limited amount of labelled data for training presents problems in some domains, as do legal and privacy constraints on work with sensitive health records. Nonetheless, we foresee deep learning enabling changes at both bench and bedside with the potential to transform several areas of biology and medicine. PMID:29618526

Opportunities and obstacles for deep learning in biology and medicine.

Science.gov (United States)

Ching, Travers; Himmelstein, Daniel S; Beaulieu-Jones, Brett K; Kalinin, Alexandr A; Do, Brian T; Way, Gregory P; Ferrero, Enrico; Agapow, Paul-Michael; Zietz, Michael; Hoffman, Michael M; Xie, Wei; Rosen, Gail L; Lengerich, Benjamin J; Israeli, Johnny; Lanchantin, Jack; Woloszynek, Stephen; Carpenter, Anne E; Shrikumar, Avanti; Xu, Jinbo; Cofer, Evan M; Lavender, Christopher A; Turaga, Srinivas C; Alexandari, Amr M; Lu, Zhiyong; Harris, David J; DeCaprio, Dave; Qi, Yanjun; Kundaje, Anshul; Peng, Yifan; Wiley, Laura K; Segler, Marwin H S; Boca, Simina M; Swamidass, S Joshua; Huang, Austin; Gitter, Anthony; Greene, Casey S

2018-04-01

Deep learning describes a class of machine learning algorithms that are capable of combining raw inputs into layers of intermediate features. These algorithms have recently shown impressive results across a variety of domains. Biology and medicine are data-rich disciplines, but the data are complex and often ill-understood. Hence, deep learning techniques may be particularly well suited to solve problems of these fields. We examine applications of deep learning to a variety of biomedical problems-patient classification, fundamental biological processes and treatment of patients-and discuss whether deep learning will be able to transform these tasks or if the biomedical sphere poses unique challenges. Following from an extensive literature review, we find that deep learning has yet to revolutionize biomedicine or definitively resolve any of the most pressing challenges in the field, but promising advances have been made on the prior state of the art. Even though improvements over previous baselines have been modest in general, the recent progress indicates that deep learning methods will provide valuable means for speeding up or aiding human investigation. Though progress has been made linking a specific neural network's prediction to input features, understanding how users should interpret these models to make testable hypotheses about the system under study remains an open challenge. Furthermore, the limited amount of labelled data for training presents problems in some domains, as do legal and privacy constraints on work with sensitive health records. Nonetheless, we foresee deep learning enabling changes at both bench and bedside with the potential to transform several areas of biology and medicine. © 2018 The Authors.

Adventure Learning: Theory and Implementation of Hybrid Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Doering, A.

2008-12-01

Adventure Learning (AL), a hybrid distance education approach, provides students and teachers with the opportunity to learn about authentic curricular content areas while interacting with adventurers, students, and content experts at various locations throughout the world within an online learning environment (Doering, 2006). An AL curriculum and online environment provides collaborative community spaces where traditional hierarchical classroom roles are blurred and learning is transformed. AL has most recently become popular in K-12 classrooms nationally and internationally with millions of students participating online. However, in the literature, the term "adventure learning" many times gets confused with phrases such as "virtual fieldtrip" and activities where someone "exploring" is posting photos and text. This type of "adventure learning" is not "Adventure Learning" (AL), but merely a slideshow of their activities. The learning environment may not have any curricular and/or social goals, and if it does, the environment design many times does not support these objectives. AL, on the other hand, is designed so that both teachers and students understand that their online and curriculum activities are in synch and supportive of the curricular goals. In AL environments, there are no disparate activities as the design considers the educational, social, and technological affordances (Kirschner, Strijbos, Kreijns, & Beers, 2004); in other words, the artifacts of the learning environment encourage and support the instructional goals, social interactions, collaborative efforts, and ultimately learning. AL is grounded in two major theoretical approaches to learning - experiential and inquiry-based learning. As Kolb (1984) noted, in experiential learning, a learner creates meaning from direct experiences and reflections. Such is the goal of AL within the classroom. Additionally, AL affords learners a real-time authentic online learning experience concurrently as they

Online citizen science games: Opportunities for the biological sciences.

Science.gov (United States)

Curtis, Vickie

2014-12-01

Recent developments in digital technologies and the rise of the Internet have created new opportunities for citizen science. One of these has been the development of online citizen science games where complex research problems have been re-imagined as online multiplayer computer games. Some of the most successful examples of these can be found within the biological sciences, for example, Foldit, Phylo and EteRNA. These games offer scientists the opportunity to crowdsource research problems, and to engage with those outside the research community. Games also enable those without a background in science to make a valid contribution to research, and may also offer opportunities for informal science learning.

Towards AI-powered personalization in MOOC learning

Science.gov (United States)

Yu, Han; Miao, Chunyan; Leung, Cyril; White, Timothy John

2017-12-01

Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) represent a form of large-scale learning that is changing the landscape of higher education. In this paper, we offer a perspective on how advances in artificial intelligence (AI) may enhance learning and research on MOOCs. We focus on emerging AI techniques including how knowledge representation tools can enable students to adjust the sequence of learning to fit their own needs; how optimization techniques can efficiently match community teaching assistants to MOOC mediation tasks to offer personal attention to learners; and how virtual learning companions with human traits such as curiosity and emotions can enhance learning experience on a large scale. These new capabilities will also bring opportunities for educational researchers to analyse students' learning skills and uncover points along learning paths where students with different backgrounds may require different help. Ethical considerations related to the application of AI in MOOC education research are also discussed.

ENERGY-NET (Energy, Environment and Society Learning Network): Best Practices to Enhance Informal Geoscience Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Rossi, R.; Elliott, E. M.; Bain, D.; Crowley, K. J.; Steiner, M. A.; Divers, M. T.; Hopkins, K. G.; Giarratani, L.; Gilmore, M. E.

2014-12-01

While energy links all living and non-living systems, the integration of energy, the environment, and society is often not clearly represented in 9 - 12 classrooms and informal learning venues. However, objective public learning that integrates these components is essential for improving public environmental literacy. ENERGY-NET (Energy, Environment and Society Learning Network) is a National Science Foundation funded initiative that uses an Earth Systems Science framework to guide experimental learning for high school students and to improve public learning opportunities regarding the energy-environment-society nexus in a Museum setting. One of the primary objectives of the ENERGY-NET project is to develop a rich set of experimental learning activities that are presented as exhibits at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (USA). Here we detail the evolution of the ENERGY-NET exhibit building process and the subsequent evolution of exhibit content over the past three years. While preliminary plans included the development of five "exploration stations" (i.e., traveling activity carts) per calendar year, the opportunity arose to create a single, larger topical exhibit per semester, which was assumed to have a greater impact on museum visitors. Evaluative assessments conducted to date reveal important practices to be incorporated into ongoing exhibit development: 1) Undergraduate mentors and teen exhibit developers should receive additional content training to allow richer exhibit materials. 2) The development process should be distributed over as long a time period as possible and emphasize iteration. This project can serve as a model for other collaborations between geoscience departments and museums. In particular, these practices may streamline development of public presentations and increase the effectiveness of experimental learning activities.

Proceedings of the 1998 IPPSA annual conference: Opportunities in the new electricity marketplace : the race for the customer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1998-01-01

This fourth annual conference of IPPSA was devoted to an exploration of the opportunities that the new deregulated electric marketplace is expected to provide. Conference speakers included industry experts with significant experience in an open energy marketplace and representatives from the recently deregulated telecommunications industry. The conference was divided into six sessions. Session titles were as follows: (1) power in the twenty first century, (2) western Canadian response, (3) breaking down the barriers: the opportunities deregulation provides, (4) telecommunications competition: lessons learned and new battles, (5) electricity as a commodity, and (6) the new buying power of retail customers. Tabs., figs

THE ROLE AND PLACE OF DISTANCE LEARNING IN E-LEARNING

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vladyslav Velychko

2016-11-01

Full Text Available The article discusses the role and place of distance education in electronic learning. The implementation of such important components as e-learning and e-education in the education system is an important tool to achieve the objectives of global education and requires specific knowledge. Teaching staff of educational institutions must learn new teaching tools such as cloud, Virtual Reality, Augmented Reality, mobile technology, Internet technology, designing distance learning courses, etc., or increase the level of this category. We consider the relevance and benefits of the use of distance education in electronic learning, and the need of its implementation at all levels of the educational process and basic steps for it. Distance learning courses have several types that differ in the degree of farness, individualization and its efficiency: "educational institution → Internet" (includes full-time training using Internet resources, videlicet to find things on the Internet and communicate with other network users; "educational institution → Internet → educational institution" (used in the full-time study, but has occasional problem with the mandatory use of the Internet; "the one who learns → Internet → the one who teaches" (distance learning complements the full-time education, it has an episodic format as consultations in a case of need; "the one who learns → Internet → Center" (full-time complement of training and has additional opportunities to strengthen the disclosure of a special creativity; "the one who learns → Internet" (it can serve as an additional training to full-time education, but can also be transformed into an independent "institution" that takes into account individual needs and capabilities of the individual and a flexible adjustment under her needs and interests using the educational resources on the Internet . There has been proved the necessity of mastering of the teaching staff of educational institutions

Blended Learning - An Opportunity to Take the Best of Both Worlds

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J. Lapuh Bele

2007-09-01

Full Text Available The paper presents theoretical foundations for effective ICT supported learning content development and course design. The practical use of these tools is described in the development of blended learning courses for improvement of computer literacy of unemployed people in Slovenia. The results of the survey about the efficiency of learning within these courses and about user satisfaction in the described courses are also presented. Findings indicate that a great majority of the participants of the courses find blended learning a convenient and efficient approach to learning and that most of them plan to use it for learning in the future.

Opportunities and Resources for Scientist Participation in Education and Public Outreach

Science.gov (United States)

Buxner, Sanlyn; CoBabe-Ammann, E.; Shipp, S.; Hsu, B.

2012-10-01

Active engagement of scientists in Education and Public Outreach (E/PO) activities results in benefits for both the audience and scientists. Most scientists are trained in research but have little formal training in education. The Planetary Science Education and Public Outreach (E/PO) Forum helps the Science Mission Directorate support scientists currently involved in E/PO and to help scientists who are interested in becoming involved in E/PO efforts find ways to do so through a variety of avenues. We will present current and future opportunities and resources for scientists to become engaged in education and public outreach. These include upcoming NASA SMD E/PO funding opportunities, professional development resources for writing NASA SMD E/PO proposals (webinars and other online tools), toolkits for scientists interested in best practices in E/PO (online guides for K-12 education and public outreach), EarthSpace (a community web space where instructors can find and share about teaching space and earth sciences in the undergraduate classroom, including class materials news and funding opportunities, and the latest education research), thematic resources for teaching about the solar system (archived resources from Year of the Solar System), and an online database of scientists interested in connecting with education programs. Learn more about the Forum and find resources at http://smdepo.org/.

Social learning and evolution: the cultural intelligence hypothesis

Science.gov (United States)

van Schaik, Carel P.; Burkart, Judith M.

2011-01-01

If social learning is more efficient than independent individual exploration, animals should learn vital cultural skills exclusively, and routine skills faster, through social learning, provided they actually use social learning preferentially. Animals with opportunities for social learning indeed do so. Moreover, more frequent opportunities for social learning should boost an individual's repertoire of learned skills. This prediction is confirmed by comparisons among wild great ape populations and by social deprivation and enculturation experiments. These findings shaped the cultural intelligence hypothesis, which complements the traditional benefit hypotheses for the evolution of intelligence by specifying the conditions in which these benefits can be reaped. The evolutionary version of the hypothesis argues that species with frequent opportunities for social learning should more readily respond to selection for a greater number of learned skills. Because improved social learning also improves asocial learning, the hypothesis predicts a positive interspecific correlation between social-learning performance and individual learning ability. Variation among primates supports this prediction. The hypothesis also predicts that more heavily cultural species should be more intelligent. Preliminary tests involving birds and mammals support this prediction too. The cultural intelligence hypothesis can also account for the unusual cognitive abilities of humans, as well as our unique mechanisms of skill transfer. PMID:21357223

Social learning and evolution: the cultural intelligence hypothesis.

Science.gov (United States)

van Schaik, Carel P; Burkart, Judith M

2011-04-12

If social learning is more efficient than independent individual exploration, animals should learn vital cultural skills exclusively, and routine skills faster, through social learning, provided they actually use social learning preferentially. Animals with opportunities for social learning indeed do so. Moreover, more frequent opportunities for social learning should boost an individual's repertoire of learned skills. This prediction is confirmed by comparisons among wild great ape populations and by social deprivation and enculturation experiments. These findings shaped the cultural intelligence hypothesis, which complements the traditional benefit hypotheses for the evolution of intelligence by specifying the conditions in which these benefits can be reaped. The evolutionary version of the hypothesis argues that species with frequent opportunities for social learning should more readily respond to selection for a greater number of learned skills. Because improved social learning also improves asocial learning, the hypothesis predicts a positive interspecific correlation between social-learning performance and individual learning ability. Variation among primates supports this prediction. The hypothesis also predicts that more heavily cultural species should be more intelligent. Preliminary tests involving birds and mammals support this prediction too. The cultural intelligence hypothesis can also account for the unusual cognitive abilities of humans, as well as our unique mechanisms of skill transfer.

E-learning benefits nurse education and helps shape students' professional identity

OpenAIRE

McKenzie, Karen; Murray, Aja

2010-01-01

E-learning is increasingly used in nurse education and practice development. This method can enhance learning opportunities for students and qualified nurses. This article examines the features of this technology and the ways in which it can be harnessed to maximise learning opportunities.

E-learning benefits nurse education and helps shape students' professional identity.

Science.gov (United States)

McKenzie, Karen; Murray, Aja

E-learning is increasingly used in nurse education and practice development. This method can enhance learning opportunities for students and qualified nurses. This article examines the features of this technology and the ways in which it can be harnessed to maximise learning opportunities.

Peer tutors as learning and teaching partners: a cumulative approach to building peer tutoring capacity in higher education

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sherran Clarence

2016-06-01

Full Text Available Peer tutors in higher education are frequently given vital teaching and learning work to do, but the training or professional development and support opportunities they are offered vary, and more often than not peer tutors are under-supported. In order to create and sustain teaching and learning environments that are better able to facilitate students’ engagement with knowledge and learning, the role of peer tutors needs to be recognised differently, as that of learning and teaching partners to both lecturers and students. Tutors then need to be offered opportunities for more in-depth professional academic development in order to fully realise this role. This paper explores a tutor development programme within a South African writing centre that aimed at offering tutors such ongoing and cumulative opportunities for learning and growth using a balanced approach, which included scholarly research and practice-based training. Using narrative data tutors provided in reflective written reports, the paper explores the kinds of development in tutors’ thinking and action that are possible when training and development is theoretically informed, coherent, and oriented towards improving practice.

Understanding Local Energy Initiatives and Preconditions for Business Opportunities

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jablonska, B. [ECN Policy Studies, Petten (Netherlands); Oostra, M. [TNO, Delft (Netherlands)

2013-09-15

More and more local bottom-up energy initiatives are emerging. Those involved encounter many barriers during the realization of their ideas. As the generation of renewable energy is mostly included, these local initiatives contribute to the targets set at regional, national and EU level. At the same time, they are an indication that end-users themselves want to be part of the energy transition. What are the reasons for citizens to organize themselves and start and initiative? What kind of barriers do they encounter? What does this mean for roles and responsibilities of professionals? And to what kind of opportunities does this lead for products and services? Answers to these questions provide a solid starting point to develop methods and instruments to stimulate, facilitate and upscale local energy initiatives. This paper bundles the outcomes of three workshops and three additional interviews in the Netherlands as part of the European E-hub project. Conclusions can be drawn on needs and drivers, barriers, risks and solutions (lessons learned), possible roles for professionals and opportunities for new products and services.

Opportunity to Teach and Learn Standards: Colombian Teachers' Perspectives (Estándares de oportunidad para la enseñanza y el aprendizaje: perspectivas de profesores colombianos)

Science.gov (United States)

Cárdenas Ramos, Rosalba; Hernández Gaviria, Fanny

2012-01-01

The aim of this article is to present the outcomes of an exploration of in-service teachers' perspectives in relation to an opportunity to teach and learn standards in English. A workshop for English teachers from Cali (Colombia) and the neighboring rural sectors was designed and carried out in order to collect the information. Teachers'…

Characterisation: Challenges and Opportunities - A UK Perspective

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Emptage, Matthew; Loudon, David; Mcleod, Richard; Milburn, Helen

2016-01-01

Characterisation plays a very important role in the nuclear industry supporting: the development and implementation of decommissioning strategies/plans (and the optimisation of associated costs through reduction in technical risks); regulatory compliance demonstration; waste prevention/minimisation; evaluation and optimisation of worker radiation doses; and maintaining public confidence. Recognising these important drivers, the UK regulators are working with the UK Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) to undertake a review of characterisation practice in the UK nuclear (decommissioning) industry. The objective of the characterisation review is to understand the current characterisation challenges and to determine strategic and tactical opportunities (including sharing of standards and guidance, capabilities, learning from experience, good practice, research and development, training, quality assurance) to optimise characterisation practice. The work is being undertaken through review of nuclear operator's characterisation practice, with input from the NDA, the UK regulators, nuclear operators and representatives from the supply chain, and through consideration of good practice case studies. To support this, a catalogue of relevant national/international guidance documents is also be compiled. Finally a workshop with representatives from all parties has taken place to consider the findings and establish a common understanding of challenges and opportunities and to start to consider how they can be addressed. The review is establishing a collective (UK regulator's, NDA; nuclear operator's and supply chain) understanding of opportunities to improve characterisation practice in the UK. The characterisation review process is described and early results are presented and discussed. Subsequent work in 2016 will be required to prioritise the opportunities and to build a consensus to facilitate development and implementation of an improvement plan. The aim

ONLINE READING COMPREHENSION: CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Julie Coiro/

2014-12-01

Full Text Available This paper details a number of challenges and opportunities for today’s learners when reading for information on the Internet. After defining online reading comprehension from a new literacies perspective and how it appears to be different than offline reading comprehension, I highlight details about four of the biggest challenges for today’s learners. These include 1 understanding and becoming proficient with the new literacy skills and practices needed for online research; 2 developing a special kind of digital wisdom that focuses on learning how to learn with the Internet; 3 taking on new roles in a digital culture that expects learners to actively participate and contribute with new knowledge as a member of their community; and 4 developing positive attitudes toward using the Internet for academic work. The second part of the paper shares examples of how skilled online readers can use the steps of online inquiry to think more deeply about topics that interest them; develop a personal voice as they share ideas with others; and work collaboratively to build meaning and new digital products that enable them to make a difference in their world, or matter. You can explore the research and resources from this presentation in more depth at .

Games in Language Learning: Opportunities and Challenges

Science.gov (United States)

Godwin-Jones, Robert

2014-01-01

There has been a substantial increase in recent years in the interest in using digital games for language learning. This coincides with the explosive growth in multiplayer online gaming and with the proliferation of mobile games for smart phones. It also reflects the growing recognition among educators of the importance of extramural, informal…

Partnering International Universities to Enhance Climate Literacy through Interdisciplinary, Cross-Cultural Learning

Science.gov (United States)

North, L. A.; Polk, J.; Strenecky, B.

2015-12-01

The climate change phenomenon will present complex, far-reaching challenges and opportunities, which will require leaders well-versed in interdisciplinary learning and international understanding. In an effort to develop the next generation of future leaders prepared for these challenges and opportunities, faculty from Western Kentucky University (WKU) and the University of Akureyri (UNAK), Iceland partnered to co-teach a course in climate change science and communication in Iceland. Students from both Institutions participated in the course to further enhance the cross-learning opportunity presented to the students. The 11-day course stationed out of three cities in Iceland, including Reykjavík, Vik, and Akureyri, the Icelandic gateway to the Arctic. In addition to undertaking field experiences such as hiking on glaciers, exploring ice caves, and touring geothermal plants, the group also hosted forums to discuss climate change with members of the Icelandic community, and completed The $100 Solution™ service-learning projects. A culminating point of the study abroad experience was a presentation by the students to persons from the University of Akureyri and representatives from the neighboring Icelandic communities about what they had learned about climate change science and communication during their travels. Through this experience, students were able to share their knowledge, which in turn gave them a deeper understanding of the issues they were learning throughout the study abroad program. In short, the program combined interdisciplinary learning, service-learning, and international understanding toward the goal of preparing the leaders of tomorrow with the skills to address climate change challenges.

Educational Opportunities in Pro-Am Collaboration

Science.gov (United States)

Fienberg, R. T.; Stencel, R. E.

2006-08-01

While many backyard stargazers take up the hobby just for fun, many others are attracted to it because of their keen interest in learning more about the universe. The best way to learn science is to do science. Happily, the technology available to today's amateur astronomers — including computer-controlled telescopes, CCD cameras, powerful astronomical software, and the Internet — gives them the potential to make real contributions to scientific research and to help support local educational objectives. Meanwhile, professional astronomers are losing access to small telescopes as funding is shifted to larger projects, including survey programs that will soon discover countless interesting objects needing follow-up observations. Clearly the field is ripe with opportunities for amateurs, professionals, and educators to collaborate. Amateurs will benefit from mentoring by expert professionals, pros will benefit from observations and data processing by increasingly knowledgeable amateurs, and educators will benefit from a larger pool of skilled talent to help them carry out astronomy-education initiatives. We will look at some successful pro-am collaborations that have already borne fruit and examine areas where the need and/or potential for new partnerships is especially large. In keeping with the theme of this special session, we will focus on how pro-am collaborations in astronomy can contribute to science education both inside and outside the classroom, not only for students of school age but also for adults who may not have enjoyed particularly good science education when they were younger. Because nighttime observations with sophisticated equipment are not always possible in formal educational settings, we will also mention other types of pro-am partnerships, including those involving remote observing, data mining, and/or distributed computing.

Defining Levels of Learning for Strengths Development Programs in Pharmacy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kristin K. Janke, Ph.D.

2010-01-01

Full Text Available The Clifton StrengthsFinder® is an online measure of personal talent that identifies where an individual’s greatest potential for building strengths exists. This paper describes a framework for strengths education in pharmacy which includes introductory, intermediate and advanced levels of learning. The use of the StrengthsFinder® assessment and supporting workshops aids student pharmacists, pharmacy residents and practitioners in identifying and refining their talents and connecting talents to roles in the profession. Additional learning strategies support a learner’s progression to intermediate and advanced levels of learning, which focus on the application of strengths in teams, leadership, and organizational development. By articulating and recognizing levels of learning around strengths-related content and skills, strong instructional design is fostered. Optimal design includes development of a sequence of learning opportunities delivered over time, a roll-out plan and consideration of the instructional resources required.

Defining Levels of Learning for Strengths Development Programs in Pharmacy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kristin Janke

2010-01-01

Full Text Available The Clifton StrengthsFinder™ is an online measure of personal talent that identifies where an individual's greatest potential for building strengths exists. This paper describes a framework for strengths education in pharmacy which includes introductory, intermediate and advanced levels of learning. The use of the StrengthsFinder™ assessment and supporting workshops aids student pharmacists, pharmacy residents and practitioners in identifying and refining their talents and connecting talents to roles in the profession. Additional learning strategies support a learner's progression to intermediate and advanced levels of learning, which focus on the application of strengths in teams, leadership, and organizational development. By articulating and recognizing levels of learning around strengths-related content and skills, strong instructional design is fostered. Optimal design includes development of a sequence of learning opportunities delivered over time, a roll-out plan and consideration of the instructional resources required. Type: Idea Paper

Teaching Service Learning in the Geosciences: An On the Cutting Edge Workshop Report

Science.gov (United States)

Bruckner, M. Z.; Laine, E. P.; Mogk, D. W.; O'Connell, S.; Kirk, K. B.

2010-12-01

Service learning is an instructional method that combines community service and academic instruction within the context of an established academic course. It is a particularly effective approach that uses active and experiential learning to develop the academic skills required of a course of study and to simultaneously address authentic community needs. Service learning projects can energize and motivate students by engaging a sense of civic responsibility by working in concert with community partners. The geosciences provide abundant opportunities to develop service learning projects on topics related to natural hazards, resources, land use, water quality, community planning, public policy, and education (K-12 and public outreach). To explore the opportunities of teaching service learning in the geosciences, the On the Cutting Edge program convened an online workshop in February 2010. The goals of the workshop were to: 1) introduce the principles and practices of effective service learning instructional activities; 2) provide examples of successful service learning projects and practical advice about "what works;" 3) provide participants with the opportunity to design, develop, and refine their own service learning courses or projects; 4) develop collections of supporting resources related to the pedagogy of service learning; and 5) support a community of scholars interested in continued work on service learning in the geoscience curriculum. The workshop consisted of a series of web-based synchronous and asynchronous sessions, including presentations from experienced practitioners of service learning, panel discussions, threaded discussions, and editable web pages used to develop new material for the website. Time was also provided for small group and individual work and for participants to peer-review each others' service learning projects and to revise their own activities based on reviewer comments. Insights from the workshop were integrated into new web pages

Learning Process and Learning Outcomes of Video Podcasts Including the Instructor and PPT Slides: A Chinese Case

Science.gov (United States)

Pi, Zhongling; Hong, Jianzhong

2016-01-01

Video podcasts have become one of the fastest developing trends in learning and teaching. The study explored the effect of the presenting mode of educational video podcasts on the learning process and learning outcomes. Prior to viewing a video podcast, the 94 Chinese undergraduates participating in the study completed a demographic questionnaire…

Teachers' Personal Learning Networks (PLNs): Exploring the Nature of Self-Initiated Professional Learning Online

Science.gov (United States)

Tour, Ekaterina

2017-01-01

In the field of Literacy Studies, online spaces have been recognised as providing many opportunities for spontaneous and self-initiated learning. While some progress has been made in understanding these important learning experiences, little attention has been paid to teachers' self-initiated professional learning. Contributing to the debates…

Professional International Service Learning as an International Service Learning Opportunity Appropriate for Graduate or Professional Students

Science.gov (United States)

Lightfoot, Elizabeth; Lee, Hee Yun

2015-01-01

Graduate and professional schools are increasingly using short-term international study abroad courses as one way for internationalizing their curriculum. While international service learning can be a means for improving students' engagement in international learning experiences and providing a structure for learning, it is difficult to design…

Hydrogen Fuel Cell Analysis: Lessons Learned from Stationary Power Generation Final Report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Scott E. Grasman; John W. Sheffield; Fatih Dogan; Sunggyu Lee; Umit O. Koylu; Angie Rolufs

2010-04-30

This study considered opportunities for hydrogen in stationary applications in order to make recommendations related to RD&D strategies that incorporate lessons learned and best practices from relevant national and international stationary power efforts, as well as cost and environmental modeling of pathways. The study analyzed the different strategies utilized in power generation systems and identified the different challenges and opportunities for producing and using hydrogen as an energy carrier. Specific objectives included both a synopsis/critical analysis of lessons learned from previous stationary power programs and recommendations for a strategy for hydrogen infrastructure deployment. This strategy incorporates all hydrogen pathways and a combination of distributed power generating stations, and provides an overview of stationary power markets, benefits of hydrogen-based stationary power systems, and competitive and technological challenges. The motivation for this project was to identify the lessons learned from prior stationary power programs, including the most significant obstacles, how these obstacles have been approached, outcomes of the programs, and how this information can be used by the Hydrogen, Fuel Cells & Infrastructure Technologies Program to meet program objectives primarily related to hydrogen pathway technologies (production, storage, and delivery) and implementation of fuel cell technologies for distributed stationary power. In addition, the lessons learned address environmental and safety concerns, including codes and standards, and education of key stakeholders.

Accountability studies of air pollution and health effects: lessons learned and recommendations for future natural experiment opportunities

Science.gov (United States)

Rich, David Q.

2017-01-01

To address limitations of observational epidemiology studies of air pollution and health effects, including residual confounding by temporal and spatial factors, several studies have taken advantage of ‘natural experiments’, where an environmental policy or air quality intervention has resulted in reductions in ambient air pollution concentrations. Researchers have examined whether the population impacted by these air quality improvements, also experienced improvements in various health indices (e.g. reduced morbidity/mortality). In this paper, I review key accountability studies done previously and new studies done over the past several years in Beijing, Atlanta, London, Ireland, and other locations, describing study design and analysis strengths and limitations of each. As new ‘natural experiment’ opportunities arise, several lessons learned from these studies should be applied when planning a new accountability study. Comparison of health outcomes during the intervention to both before and after the intervention in the population of interest, as well as use of a control population to assess whether any temporal changes in the population of interest were also seen in populations not impacted by air quality improvements, should aid in minimizing residual confounding by these long term time trends. Use of either detailed health records for a population, or prospectively collected data on relevant mechanistic biomarkers coupled with such morbidity/mortality data may provide a more thorough assessment of if the intervention beneficially impacted the health of the community, and if so by what mechanism(s). Further, prospective measurement of a large suite of air pollutants may allow a more thorough understanding of what pollutant source(s) is/are responsible for any health benefit observed. The importance of using multiple statistical analysis methods in each paper and the difference in how the timing of the air pollution/outcome association may impact which

Accountability studies of air pollution and health effects: lessons learned and recommendations for future natural experiment opportunities.

Science.gov (United States)

Rich, David Q

2017-03-01

To address limitations of observational epidemiology studies of air pollution and health effects, including residual confounding by temporal and spatial factors, several studies have taken advantage of 'natural experiments', where an environmental policy or air quality intervention has resulted in reductions in ambient air pollution concentrations. Researchers have examined whether the population impacted by these air quality improvements, also experienced improvements in various health indices (e.g. reduced morbidity/mortality). In this paper, I review key accountability studies done previously and new studies done over the past several years in Beijing, Atlanta, London, Ireland, and other locations, describing study design and analysis strengths and limitations of each. As new 'natural experiment' opportunities arise, several lessons learned from these studies should be applied when planning a new accountability study. Comparison of health outcomes during the intervention to both before and after the intervention in the population of interest, as well as use of a control population to assess whether any temporal changes in the population of interest were also seen in populations not impacted by air quality improvements, should aid in minimizing residual confounding by these long term time trends. Use of either detailed health records for a population, or prospectively collected data on relevant mechanistic biomarkers coupled with such morbidity/mortality data may provide a more thorough assessment of if the intervention beneficially impacted the health of the community, and if so by what mechanism(s). Further, prospective measurement of a large suite of air pollutants may allow a more thorough understanding of what pollutant source(s) is/are responsible for any health benefit observed. The importance of using multiple statistical analysis methods in each paper and the difference in how the timing of the air pollution/outcome association may impact which of these

Social Learning Analytics

Science.gov (United States)

Buckingham Shum, Simon; Ferguson, Rebecca

2012-01-01

We propose that the design and implementation of effective "Social Learning Analytics (SLA)" present significant challenges and opportunities for both research and enterprise, in three important respects. The first is that the learning landscape is extraordinarily turbulent at present, in no small part due to technological drivers.…

Informal learning in SME majors for African American female undergraduates

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ezella McPherson

2014-11-01

Full Text Available This research investigates how eight undergraduate African American women in science, math, and engineering (SME majors accessed cultural capital and informal science learning opportunities from preschool to college. It uses the multiple case study methodological approach and cultural capital as the framework to better understand their opportunities to engage in free-choice science learning. The article demonstrates that African American women have access to cultural capital and informal science learning inside and outside of home and school environments in P-16 settings. In primary and secondary schools, African American girls acquire cultural capital and access to free-choice science learning in the home environment, museums, science fairs, student organizations and clubs. However, in high school African American female teenagers have fewer informal science learning opportunities like those such as those provided in primary school settings. In college, cultural capital is transmitted through informal science learning that consisted of involvement in student organizations, research projects, seminars, and conferences. These experiences contributed to their engagement and persistence in SME fields in K-16 settings. This research adds to cultural capital and informal science learning research by allowing scholars to better understand how African American women have opportunities to learn about the hidden curriculum of science through informal science settings throughout the educational pipeline.

Multimodal Learning Analytics and Education Data Mining: Using Computational Technologies to Measure Complex Learning Tasks

Science.gov (United States)

Blikstein, Paulo; Worsley, Marcelo

2016-01-01

New high-frequency multimodal data collection technologies and machine learning analysis techniques could offer new insights into learning, especially when students have the opportunity to generate unique, personalized artifacts, such as computer programs, robots, and solutions engineering challenges. To date most of the work on learning analytics…

Professional Development Opportunities for Two-Year College Geoscience Faculty: Issues, Opportunities, and Successes

Science.gov (United States)

Baer, E. M.; Macdonald, H.; McDaris, J. R.; Granshaw, F. D.; Wenner, J. M.; Hodder, J.; van der Hoeven Kraft, K.; Filson, R. H.; Guertin, L. A.; Wiese, K.

2011-12-01

Two-year colleges (2YCs) play a critical role in geoscience education in the United States. Nearly half of the undergraduate students who take introductory geoscience do so at a 2YC. With awide reach and diverse student populations, 2YCs may be key to producing a well-trained, diverse and sufficiently large geoscience workforce. However, faculty at 2YCs often face many barriers to professional development including lack of financial resources, heavy and inflexible teaching loads, lack of awareness of opportunities, and few professional development resources/events targeted at their needs. As an example, at the 2009 GSA meeting in Portland, fewer than 80 of the 6500 attendees were from community colleges, although this was more than twice the 2YC faculty attendance the previous year. Other issues include the isolation described by many 2YC geoscience faculty who may be the only full time geoscientist on a campus and challenges faced by adjunct faculty who may have even fewer opportunities for professional development and networking with other geoscience faculty. Over the past three years we have convened several workshops and events for 2YC geoscience faculty including technical sessions and a workshop on funding opportunities for 2YC faculty at GSA annual meetings, a field trip and networking event at the fall AGU meeting, a planning workshop that examined the role of 2YCs in geoscience education and in broadening participation in the geosciences, two workshops supporting use of the 'Math You Need, When You Need It' educational materials that included a majority of 2YC faculty, and marine science summer institutes offered by COSEE-Pacific Partnerships for 2YC faculty. Our experience indicates that 2YC faculty desire professional development opportunities when the experience is tailored to the needs and character of their students, programs, and institutions. The content of the professional development opportunity must be useful to 2YC faculty -workshops and

Experiential Learning in Accounting Work-Integrated Learning: A Three-Way Partnership

Science.gov (United States)

Elijido-Ten, Evangeline; Kloot, Louise

2015-01-01

Purpose: Work-integrated learning (WIL) helps improve the work readiness of accounting graduates. The purpose of this paper is to explore the role played by large and small-to-medium enterprise (SME) employers in providing experiential learning opportunities to accounting students in an Australian higher education context.…

Nurturing Opportunity Identification for Business Sophistication in a Cross-disciplinary Study Environment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Karine Oganisjana

2012-12-01

Full Text Available Opportunity identification is the key element of the entrepreneurial process; therefore the issue of developing this skill in students is a crucial task in contemporary European education which has recognized entrepreneurship as one of the lifelong learning key competences. The earlier opportunity identification becomes a habitual way of thinking and behavior across a broad range of contexts, the more likely that entrepreneurial disposition will steadily reside in students. In order to nurture opportunity identification in students for making them able to organize sophisticated businesses in the future, certain demands ought to be put forward as well to the teacher – the person who is to promote these qualities in their students. The paper reflects some findings of a research conducted within the frameworks of a workplace learning project for the teachers of one of Riga secondary schools (Latvia. The main goal of the project was to teach the teachers to identify hidden inner links between apparently unrelated things, phenomena and events within 10th grade study curriculum and connect them together and create new opportunities. The creation and solution of cross-disciplinary tasks were the means for achieving this goal.

Using online learning networks to promote self-regulated learning in primary teacher education

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Vrieling, Emmy; Bastiaens, Theo; Stijnen, Sjef

2017-01-01

Many recent studies have stressed the importance of students’ self-regulated learning (SRL) skills for successful learning. Consequently, teacher educators have begun to increase student teachers’ SRL opportunities in educational pre-service programs. Although primary teacher educators are aware of

Learning through Teaching: Challenges and Opportunities in Facilitating Student Learning in Food Science and Nutrition by Using the Interteaching Approach

Science.gov (United States)

Goto, Keiko; Schneider, Julie

2010-01-01

Interteaching is a new pedagogical strategy for classroom instruction that demonstrates great effective student learning outcomes in the field of psychology. It is a 20 to 30 min student-to-student discussion addressing the main points in a specified body of reading materials. Interteaching includes elements such as reciprocal peer tutoring,…

Learning paradigms in workplace e-learning research

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Isabella Norén Creutz

2014-09-01

Full Text Available The objective of this paper is to explore the discourses of learning that are actualized in workplace e-learning. It aims to understand how learning is defined in research within this field. The empirical material consists of academic research articles on e-learning in the workplace, published from 2000 to 2013. The findings are presented as four metaphors highlighting four overlapping time periods with different truth regimes: Celebration, Questioning, Reflection and Dissolution. It is found that learning as a phenomenon tends to be marginalized in relation to the digital technology used. Based on this, we discuss a proposal for a more critical and problematized approach to e-learning, and a deeper understanding of the challenges and opportunities for employees and organizations to acquire knowledge in the digital age.

e-Learning initiatives to support prescribing

Science.gov (United States)

Maxwell, Simon; Mucklow, John

2012-01-01

Preparing medical students to prescribe is a major challenge of undergraduate education. They must develop an understanding of clinical pharmacology and acquire knowledge about drugs and therapeutics, as well as the skills to prescribe for individual patients in the face of multiple variables. The task of delivering the learning required to achieve these attributes relies upon limited numbers of teachers, who have increasingly busy clinical commitments. There is evidence that training is currently insufficient to meet the demands of the workplace. e-Learning provides an opportunity to improve the learning experience. The advantages for teachers are improved distribution of learning content, ease of update, standardization and tracking of learner activities. The advantages for learners are ease of access, greater interactivity and individual choice concerning the pace and mix of learning. Important disadvantages are the considerable resource required to develop e-Learning projects and difficulties in simulating some aspects of the real world prescribing experience. Pre-requisites for developing an e-Learning programme to support prescribing include academic expertise, institutional support, learning technology services and an effective virtual learning environment. e-Learning content might range from complex interactive learning sessions through to static web pages with links. It is now possible to simulate and provide feedback on prescribing decisions and this will improve with advances in virtual reality. Other content might include a student formulary, self-assessment exercises (e.g. calculations), a glossary and an on-line library. There is some evidence for the effectiveness of e-Learning but better research is required into its potential impact on prescribing. PMID:22509885

Flipping and Still Learning: Experiences of a Flipped Classroom Approach for a Third-Year Undergraduate Human Geography Course

Science.gov (United States)

Graham, Marnie; McLean, Jessica; Read, Alexander; Suchet-Pearson, Sandie; Viner, Venessa

2017-01-01

The flipped classroom approach, a form of blended learning, is currently popular in education praxis. Initial reports on the flipped classroom include that it offers opportunities to increase student engagement and build meaningful learning and teaching experiences. In this article, we analyse teacher and student experiences of a trial flipped…

Student perceptions of independent versus facilitated small group learning approaches to compressed medical anatomy education.

Science.gov (United States)

Whelan, Alexander; Leddy, John J; Mindra, Sean; Matthew Hughes, J D; El-Bialy, Safaa; Ramnanan, Christopher J

2016-01-01

The purpose of this study was to compare student perceptions regarding two, small group learning approaches to compressed (46.5 prosection-based laboratory hours), integrated anatomy education at the University of Ottawa medical program. In the facilitated active learning (FAL) approach, tutors engage students and are expected to enable and balance both active learning and progression through laboratory objectives. In contrast, the emphasized independent learning (EIL) approach stresses elements from the "flipped classroom" educational model: prelaboratory preparation, independent laboratory learning, and limited tutor involvement. Quantitative (Likert-style questions) and qualitative data (independent thematic analysis of open-ended commentary) from a survey of students who had completed the preclerkship curriculum identified strengths from the EIL (promoting student collaboration and communication) and FAL (successful progression through objectives) approaches. However, EIL led to student frustration related to a lack of direction and impaired completion of objectives, whereas active learning opportunities in FAL were highly variable and dependent on tutor teaching style. A "hidden curriculum" was also identified, where students (particularly EIL and clerkship students) commonly compared their compressed anatomy education or their anatomy learning environment with other approaches. Finally, while both groups highly regarded the efficiency of prosection-based learning and expressed value for cadaveric-based learning, student commentary noted that the lack of grade value dedicated to anatomy assessment limited student accountability. This study revealed critical insights into small group learning in compressed anatomy education, including the need to balance student active learning opportunities with appropriate direction and feedback (including assessment). © 2015 American Association of Anatomists.

Solar Thermal Energy Exploitation: An Opportunity to Enhance Conceptual Learning in Physics

Science.gov (United States)

Rodrigues, M. A.; Cravino, J. P.; Liberato, M. L. R.

2010-05-01

In a society mainly driven by Science and Technology it is becoming consensual the idea that scientific education should include three components: Education in Science, Education about Science and Education through Science. Some authors suggest that, in education, everyday objects should be used to illustrate scientific issues (e.g. Andrée, 2005). Thus the goal of this study is two-fold: first, to develop a teaching and learning strategy, in the framework of Education for Sustainable Development (ESD), concerning the renewable energy issue, while showing the importance of using everyday situations in the improvement of students' motivation in Physics learning. Energy is the core concept in this study. Energy conservation includes the concepts applied to sustainable balance between environment and the energy availability and use. Dias et al. (2004) stress that education is one of the best ways to transform the human behavior for the rational use of energy, which represents a long-term investment. In this work students become aware and recognize the importance and value of energy in everyday life, they identify energy transfer and transformation processes, confirm energy availability, relating these topics to present human needs and climate change issues. A didactic model of a solar thermal panel has thus been built, using cheap, common materials, by 15-16 year-old Physics students, from a Portuguese secondary school. Students had to plan the experiments, in small groups, to identify and estimate physical magnitudes and to explore how to maximize the solar thermal panel efficiency. The experimental activities took place in the school's playground, in a place where there were no obstacles to capturing solar radiation. Finally, students had to deal with experimental data acquisition and analysis, they had to prepare a report, as well as to answer a survey, to evaluate their learning success. Results show that students appreciated the proposed themes and activities

Coaching Model + Clinical Playbook = Transformative Learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Fletcher, Katherine A; Meyer, Mary

2016-01-01

Health care employers demand that workers be skilled in clinical reasoning, able to work within complex interprofessional teams to provide safe, quality patient-centered care in a complex evolving system. To this end, there have been calls for radical transformation of nursing education including the development of a baccalaureate generalist nurse. Based on recommendations from the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, faculty concluded that clinical education must change moving beyond direct patient care by applying the concepts associated with designer, manager, and coordinator of care and being a member of a profession. To accomplish this, the faculty utilized a system of focused learning assignments (FLAs) that present transformative learning opportunities that expose students to "disorienting dilemmas," alternative perspectives, and repeated opportunities to reflect and challenge their own beliefs. The FLAs collected in a "Playbook" were scaffolded to build the student's competencies over the course of the clinical experience. The FLAs were centered on the 6 Quality and Safety Education for Nurses competencies, with 2 additional concepts of professionalism and systems-based practice. The FLAs were competency-based exercises that students performed when not assigned to direct patient care or had free clinical time. Each FLA had a lesson plan that allowed the student and faculty member to see the competency addressed by the lesson, resources, time on task, student instructions, guide for reflection, grading rubric, and recommendations for clinical instructor. The major advantages of the model included (a) consistent implementation of structured learning experiences by a diverse teaching staff using a coaching model of instruction; (b) more systematic approach to present learning activities that build upon each other; (c) increased time for faculty to interact with students providing direct patient care; (d) guaranteed capture of selected transformative

Face-to-Face Activities in Blended Learning

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kjærgaard, Annemette

While blended learning combines online and face-to-face teaching, research on blended learning has primarily focused on the role of technology and the opportunities it creates for engaging students. Less focus has been put on face-to-face activities in blended learning. This paper argues...... that it is not only the online activities in blended learning that provide new opportunities for rethinking pedagogy in higher education, it is also imperative to reconsider the face-to-face activities when part of the learning is provided online. Based on a review of blended learning in business and management...... education, we identify what forms of teaching and learning are suggested to take place face-to-face when other activities are moved online. We draw from the Community of Inquiry framework to analyze how face-to-face activities contribute to a blended learning pedagogy and discuss the implications...

Opportunities Matter: Exploring Youth’s Perspectives on Their Long-Term Participation in an Urban 4-H Youth Development Program

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Theresa M. Ferrari

2009-09-01

Full Text Available This article highlights a study which explored youths’ perspectives on their long-term involvement at Adventure Central, a comprehensive 4-H youth development program based at an urban park facility. We conducted four focus groups with 16 youth between the ages of 12 and 16 who had participated in the program between three and seven years. The youth experienced a wide range of opportunities including nature-related activities, jobs at park facilities, and travel. They spoke positively of their experiences and described how they benefited from their participation. Novelty, challenge, and leadership were key features of these opportunities. The youth noted the connection between learning and fun. In the process, they learned new skills, such as teamwork and public speaking, and developed personal qualities, such as responsibility, that helped them as they were growing up, transferred to other settings, and would benefit them in the future. Findings from this study suggest some clear implications for youth development professionals.

Restrictive Citizenship: Civic-Oriented Service-Learning Opportunities for All Students

Science.gov (United States)

Mann, Jay A.; Dymond, Stacy K.; Bonati, Michelle L.; Neeper, Lance S.

2015-01-01

Citizenship education that uses service-learning continues to be implemented in a manner that may restrict many students from full, meaningful participation. The authors contend that much of the literature on civic-oriented service-learning unnecessarily positions successful projects at the extremes: (a) political socialization versus civic…

Supporting Adaptive Learning Pathways through the Use of Learning Analytics: Developments, Challenges and Future Opportunities

Science.gov (United States)

Mavroudi, Anna; Giannakos, Michail; Krogstie, John

2018-01-01

Learning Analytics (LA) and adaptive learning are inextricably linked since they both foster technology-supported learner-centred education. This study identifies developments focusing on their interplay and emphasises insufficiently investigated directions which display a higher innovation potential. Twenty-one peer-reviewed studies are…

Learning and Skills: Opportunities or Threats for Disabled Learners? FEDA Responds.

Science.gov (United States)

Mace, Jackie, Ed.

Challenges will be created by proposed changes to post-school education and training for people with learning difficulties and disabilities. Two important bills have been proposed. The Learning and Skills Bill (LSB) changes the whole architecture of the post-school education and training sector. LSB sets up the Learning and Skills Council (LSC)…

International Mentoring Programs: Leadership Opportunities to Enhance Worldwide Pharmacy Practice.

Science.gov (United States)

Ubaka, Chukwuemeka; Brechtelsbauer, Erich; Goff, Debra A

2017-07-01

Health-system and community pharmacy practice in the United States is experiencing transformational change; however, this transformation is lagging in the international arena. As a result, efforts are being made to provide support and education to the international pharmacy leaders and practitioners. This article describes one effort, the Mandela Washington Fellows Program, and suggests areas where pharmacy leaders can be involved to help advance the practice of pharmacy on an international level. The Mandela Washington Fellows Program for young Africa leaders consists of a US-Africa pharmacy-mentoring program identified ranging from educational opportunities to collaboration for implementation of patient care programs. The specifics of the mentoring program include daily meetings, clinic and ward rounds, round table discussions with mentors, and visits to various hospital care systems. Lessons were learned and strategies for sustaining the program are discussed. These types of programs represent leadership opportunities that may not be apparent to most pharmacy directors, but expanding their view to helping international pharmacists expand their practice only strengthens the professional goal of providing patient-centered pharmacy services.

Lifelong Learning in Colombia and Denmark

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Olesen, Henning Salling

2004-01-01

The article examines education and learning opportunities in Colombia against the backdrop of Danish modernisation and reform experiences from second half of 20th Century. The article discusses possibilities to learn from Danish experiences in the development of a Colombian lifelong learning policy...

Effective Team Learning in the Cloud

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Spoelstra, Howard; Van Rosmalen, Peter; Sloep, Peter; Van de Vrie, Evert

2018-01-01

Learning in the cloud can be a lonely activity for self-directing and self-organizing learners. Lack of sustained learner motivation can lead to less effective, less bond-creating learning experiences. By providing collaborative project-based learning opportunities these shortcomings can be

Learning Strategy Instruction Innovation Configuration

Science.gov (United States)

Schumaker, Jean B.

2011-01-01

One way of helping students with learning disabilities and other struggling students to be independent life-long learners is to teach them how to use learning strategies in efficient ways. Learning strategy instruction can provide students the opportunity to succeed in today's schools and meet rigorous standards, transforming ineffective learners…

Test Framing Generates a Stability Bias for Predictions of Learning by Causing People to Discount their Learning Beliefs

Science.gov (United States)

Ariel, Robert; Hines, Jarrod C.; Hertzog, Christopher

2014-01-01

People estimate minimal changes in learning when making predictions of learning (POLs) for future study opportunities despite later showing increased performance and an awareness of that increase (Kornell & Bjork, 2009). This phenomenon is conceptualized as a stability bias in judgments about learning. We investigated the malleability of this effect, and whether it reflected people’s underlying beliefs about learning. We manipulated prediction framing to emphasize the role of testing vs. studying on memory and directly measured beliefs about multi-trial study effects on learning by having participants construct predicted learning curves before and after the experiment. Mean POLs were more sensitive to the number of study-test opportunities when performance was framed in terms of study benefits rather than testing benefits and POLs reflected pre-existing beliefs about learning. The stability bias is partially due to framing and reflects discounted beliefs about learning benefits rather than inherent belief in the stability of performance. PMID:25067885

Learning in Cultural Context: Developing Destinies

Science.gov (United States)

Rogoff, Barbara

2012-01-01

Over more than three decades spent researching cultural aspects of how children learn, the author has had the opportunity to learn about how individuals and cultural communities change and continue. During her research on children's learning by observing and "pitching in" in a Mayan community in Guatemala, the author learned a great deal…

OPTIMAL practice conditions enhance the benefits of gradually increasing error opportunities on retention of a stepping sequence task.

Science.gov (United States)

Levac, Danielle; Driscoll, Kate; Galvez, Jessica; Mercado, Kathleen; O'Neil, Lindsey

2017-12-01

Physical therapists should implement practice conditions that promote motor skill learning after neurological injury. Errorful and errorless practice conditions are effective for different populations and tasks. Errorful learning provides opportunities for learners to make task-relevant choices. Enhancing learner autonomy through choice opportunities is a key component of the Optimizing Performance through Intrinsic Motivation and Attention for Learning (OPTIMAL) theory of motor learning. The objective of this study was to evaluate the interaction between error opportunity frequency and OPTIMAL (autonomy-supportive) practice conditions during stepping sequence acquisition in a virtual environment. Forty healthy young adults were randomized to autonomy-supportive or autonomy-controlling practice conditions, which differed in instructional language, focus of attention (external vs internal) and positive versus negative nature of verbal and visual feedback. All participants practiced 40 trials of 4, six-step stepping sequences in a random order. Each of the 4 sequences offered different amounts of choice opportunities about the next step via visual cue presentation (4 choices; 1 choice; gradually increasing [1-2-3-4] choices, and gradually decreasing [4-3-2-1] choices). Motivation and engagement were measured by the Intrinsic Motivation Inventory (IMI) and the User Engagement Scale (UES). Participants returned 1-3 days later for retention tests, where learning was measured by time to complete each sequence. No choice cues were offered on retention. Participants in the autonomy-supportive group outperformed the autonomy-controlling group at retention on all sequences (mean difference 2.88s, p errorful (4 choice) sequence (p error opportunities over time, suggest that participants relied on implicit learning strategies for this full body task and that feedback about successes minimized errors and reduced their potential information-processing benefits. Subsequent

Studying Language Learning Opportunities Afforded by a Collaborative CALL Task

Science.gov (United States)

Leahy, Christine

2016-01-01

This research study explores the learning potential of a computer-assisted language learning (CALL) activity. Research suggests that the dual emphasis on content development and language accuracy, as well as the complexity of L2 production in natural settings, can potentially create cognitive overload. This study poses the question whether, and…

Seven Affordances of Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning: How to Support Collaborative Learning? How Can Technologies Help?

Science.gov (United States)

Jeong, Heisawn; Hmelo-Silver, Cindy E.

2016-01-01

This article proposes 7 core affordances of technology for collaborative learning based on theories of collaborative learning and CSCL (Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning) practices. Technology affords learner opportunities to (1) engage in a joint task, (2) communicate, (3) share resources, (4) engage in productive collaborative learning…

Determining the Effects of LMS Learning Behaviors on Academic Achievement in a Learning Analytic Perspective

OpenAIRE

Mehmet FIRAT

2016-01-01

Two of the most important outcomes of learning analytics are predicting students’ learning and providing effective feedback. Learning Management Systems (LMS), which are widely used to support online and face-to-face learning, provide extensive research opportunities with detailed records of background data regarding users’ behaviors. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of undergraduate students’ LMS learning behaviors on their academic achievements. In line with this pur...

Online Dutch L2 Learning in Adult Education: Educators' and Providers' Viewpoints on Needs, Advantages and Disadvantages

Science.gov (United States)

De Paepe, Liesbeth; Zhu, Chang; Depryck, Koen

2018-01-01

This study critically addresses the assumptions made by educators and providers in the field of Dutch second language (L2) acquisition about the online learning of Dutch L2. These include assumptions about advantages and disadvantages of online language learning, such as flexibility, learner autonomy, enhanced opportunities for remediation and…

Learning from Simulation Design to Develop Better Experiential Learning Initiatives: An Integrative Approach

Science.gov (United States)

Canhoto, Ana Isabel; Murphy, Jamie

2016-01-01

Simulations offer engaging learning experiences, via the provision of feedback or the opportunities for experimentation. However, they lack important attributes valued by marketing educators and employers. This article proposes a "back to basics" look at what constitutes an effective experiential learning initiative. Drawing on the…

Collaborative Visualization Project: shared-technology learning environments for science learning

Science.gov (United States)

Pea, Roy D.; Gomez, Louis M.

1993-01-01

Project-enhanced science learning (PESL) provides students with opportunities for `cognitive apprenticeships' in authentic scientific inquiry using computers for data-collection and analysis. Student teams work on projects with teacher guidance to develop and apply their understanding of science concepts and skills. We are applying advanced computing and communications technologies to augment and transform PESL at-a-distance (beyond the boundaries of the individual school), which is limited today to asynchronous, text-only networking and unsuitable for collaborative science learning involving shared access to multimedia resources such as data, graphs, tables, pictures, and audio-video communication. Our work creates user technology (a Collaborative Science Workbench providing PESL design support and shared synchronous document views, program, and data access; a Science Learning Resource Directory for easy access to resources including two-way video links to collaborators, mentors, museum exhibits, media-rich resources such as scientific visualization graphics), and refine enabling technologies (audiovisual and shared-data telephony, networking) for this PESL niche. We characterize participation scenarios for using these resources and we discuss national networked access to science education expertise.

Assessment of Emotion States During e-Learning

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Rothkrantz, L.J.M.; Datcu, D.

2010-01-01

In recent years many systems for distance learning have been developed. Even though students have access to learning material any time and any place, current tools for e-learning still have their limitations. The main shortcoming, compared to real life learning is the limited opportunity for human

Lending, Learning, Leading: Developing Results-Based Leaders in Opportunity Finance

Science.gov (United States)

Annie E. Casey Foundation, 2015

2015-01-01

This report tells the story of the CDFI Leadership Learning Network, a Casey Foundation initiative to equip leaders of community development finance institutions with the tools of results-based leadership (RBL). The Foundation shares lessons learned from the network, core RBL concepts and profiles of CDFI leaders as they apply RBL skills and tools…

Mobility in Learning: The Feasibility of Encouraging Language Learning on Smartphones

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Keith Barrs

2011-09-01

Full Text Available With normalised technology in language learning contexts there is an unprecedented opportunity to re-define the nature of learning. Traditional ideas of classroom-based learning are giving way to modern ideas of ‘24/7 anywhere, anytime’ learning which is accessed and managed in part or in whole by the learners themselves, primarily on mobile devices. This is a "work in progress" article detailing the initial stages of a study investigating normalisation of smart phones in a language classroom in Japan.

Reflections on the Constraints and Opportunities in Therapy in Rett Syndrome

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alison M. Kerr

2006-01-01

Full Text Available More than 20 years of clinical and research experience with affected people in the British Isles has provided insight into particular challenges for therapists, educators, or parents wishing to facilitate learning and to support the development of skills in people with Rett syndrome. This paper considers the challenges in two groups: those due to constraints imposed by the disabilities associated with the disorder and those stemming from the opportunities, often masked by the disorder, allowing the development of skills that depend on less-affected areas of the brain. Because the disorder interferes with the synaptic links between neurones, the functions of the brain that are most dependent on complex neural networks are the most profoundly affected. These functions include speech, memory, learning, generation of ideas, and the planning of fine movements, especially those of the hands. In contrast, spontaneous emotional and hormonal responses appear relatively intact. Whereas failure to appreciate the physical limitations of the disease leads to frustration for therapist and client alike, a clear understanding of the better-preserved areas of competence offers avenues for real progress in learning, the building of satisfying relationships, and achievement of a quality of life.

Barriers, Opportunities, and Strategies for Urban Ecosystem Restoration: Lessons Learned from Restoration Managers in Rhode Island, U.S.A.

Science.gov (United States)

Urban ecosystem restoration can be especially difficult to accomplish because of complications like industrial pollutants, population density, infrastructure, and expense, however, the unique opportunities in urban settings, including the potential to provide benefits to many peo...

E-Learning in Architecture

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Juvancic, Matevz; Mullins, Michael; Zupancic, Tadeja

2012-01-01

the communication abilities of the actors involved, holding their attention, ingraining sustainable principles and getting the messages across the invisible, but perennial expert / non-expert divide. E-learning in and about architecture not only offers opportunities for both sides to learn but also to get to know...

A Review of Adventure Learning

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

George Veletsianos

2009-12-01

Full Text Available Adventure learning (AL is an approach for the design of digitally-enhanced teaching and learning environments driven by a framework of guidelines grounded on experiential and inquiry-based education. The purpose of this paper is to review the adventure learning literature and to describe the status quo of the practice by identifying the current knowledge, misconceptions, and future opportunities in adventure learning. Specifically, the authors present an integrative analysis of the adventure learning literature, identify knowledge gaps, present future research directions, and discuss research methods and approaches that may improve the AL approach.The authors engaged in a systematic search strategy to identify adventure learning studies then applied a set of criteria to decide whether to include or exclude each study. Results from the systematic review were combined, analyzed, and critiqued inductively using the constant comparative method and weaved together using the qualitative metasynthesis approach.Results indicate the appeal and promise of the adventure learning approach. Nevertheless, the authors recommend further investigation of the approach. Along with studies that investigate learning outcomes, aspects of the AL approach that are engaging, and the nature of expert-learner collaboration, future adventure learning projects that focus on higher education and are (a small and (b diverse can yield significant knowledge into adventure learning. Research and design in this area will benefit by taking an activity theory and design-based research perspective.

Student talk and opportunities for mathematical learning in small group interactions

OpenAIRE

Wood, M.; Kalinec, C.

2012-01-01

Small group interactions are an important tool for mathematical learning and yet researchers have neither examined small group talk across entire lessons nor have they focused on moments of mathematical learning in small groups. We examined such talk and identified kinds of interactions and connections between interactions and mathematical learning. We differentiated talk based upon its focus: mathematical objects (mathematizing), people (subjectifying), or more specifically, people’s attribu...

Quantitative learning strategies based on word networks

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Yue-Tian-Yi; Jia, Zi-Yang; Tang, Yong; Xiong, Jason Jie; Zhang, Yi-Cheng

2018-02-01

Learning English requires a considerable effort, but the way that vocabulary is introduced in textbooks is not optimized for learning efficiency. With the increasing population of English learners, learning process optimization will have significant impact and improvement towards English learning and teaching. The recent developments of big data analysis and complex network science provide additional opportunities to design and further investigate the strategies in English learning. In this paper, quantitative English learning strategies based on word network and word usage information are proposed. The strategies integrate the words frequency with topological structural information. By analyzing the influence of connected learned words, the learning weights for the unlearned words and dynamically updating of the network are studied and analyzed. The results suggest that quantitative strategies significantly improve learning efficiency while maintaining effectiveness. Especially, the optimized-weight-first strategy and segmented strategies outperform other strategies. The results provide opportunities for researchers and practitioners to reconsider the way of English teaching and designing vocabularies quantitatively by balancing the efficiency and learning costs based on the word network.

Research opportunities to advance solar energy utilization.

Science.gov (United States)

Lewis, Nathan S

2016-01-22

Major developments, as well as remaining challenges and the associated research opportunities, are evaluated for three technologically distinct approaches to solar energy utilization: solar electricity, solar thermal, and solar fuels technologies. Much progress has been made, but research opportunities are still present for all approaches. Both evolutionary and revolutionary technology development, involving foundational research, applied research, learning by doing, demonstration projects, and deployment at scale will be needed to continue this technology-innovation ecosystem. Most of the approaches still offer the potential to provide much higher efficiencies, much lower costs, improved scalability, and new functionality, relative to the embodiments of solar energy-conversion systems that have been developed to date. Copyright © 2016, American Association for the Advancement of Science.

NASA GSFC Opportunities for STEM Professionals Using the Vantage Point of Space

Science.gov (United States)

Meeson, Blanche W.; Robbins, Geraldine B.

2012-01-01

NASA has a variety of learning opportunities for STEM professionals. Three opportunities at GSFC are examined in this chapter: 1) standard summer research and development internship for undergraduates, 2) senior internship for undergraduate and graduate students and 3) a workshop series for informal learning center professionals. We describe these programs, examine their evolution with respect to most effective education practices and their assessment and evaluation, and identify the similarities and differences between them. The internship programs highlight authentic project-based research and development experiences with the senior internship providing a richer, deeper, and more demanding experience that has greater professional value. The workshops for informal learning center professionals on-the-other hand, focus on building knowledge of GSFC s science and engineering strengths among these professionals, and on building enduring partnerships between individuals (participants and GSFC scientist, engineers and educators) and between organizations (GSFC and the informal learning center). Finally, we examine the characteristics of these programs from a design and management perspective. Through this examination we identify a general structure that provides insight into more effective design and management of similar education programs.

Learning to Play, Playing to Learn: Comparing the Experiences of Adult Foreign Language Learners with Off-the-Shelf and Specialized Games for Learning German

Science.gov (United States)

De Grove, Frederik; Van Looy, Jan; Mechant, Peter

2013-01-01

Learning opportunities offered by digital games have become an important research topic in recent years. Language learning is one of the areas in which games could prosper but the question then is whether these should be specialized language-learning games or commercial off-the-shelf games for entertainment. The goal of this paper is to compare…

E-Learning for SMEs: Competition and Dimensions of Perceived Value

Science.gov (United States)

Roffe, Ian

2004-01-01

E-learning is such an attractive opportunity for training providers to reconfigure delivery and support that it presents compelling reasons to engage with the practice. A broad range of provision is therefore available for every type of market segment, including small firms. Sustaining a competitive advantage from a host of offers is a practical…

Shakespeare and the Common Core: An Opportunity to Reboot

Science.gov (United States)

Turchi, Laura; Thompson, Ayanna

2013-01-01

The Common Core generally eschews mandating texts in favor of promoting critical analysis and rigor. So it's significant that Shakespeare is the only author invoked in imperatives. His explicit inclusion offers a significant opportunity for educators to rethink how we approach Shakespearean instruction. Rather than the traditional learning of…

Machine learning and data science in soft materials engineering

Science.gov (United States)

Ferguson, Andrew L.

2018-01-01

In many branches of materials science it is now routine to generate data sets of such large size and dimensionality that conventional methods of analysis fail. Paradigms and tools from data science and machine learning can provide scalable approaches to identify and extract trends and patterns within voluminous data sets, perform guided traversals of high-dimensional phase spaces, and furnish data-driven strategies for inverse materials design. This topical review provides an accessible introduction to machine learning tools in the context of soft and biological materials by ‘de-jargonizing’ data science terminology, presenting a taxonomy of machine learning techniques, and surveying the mathematical underpinnings and software implementations of popular tools, including principal component analysis, independent component analysis, diffusion maps, support vector machines, and relative entropy. We present illustrative examples of machine learning applications in soft matter, including inverse design of self-assembling materials, nonlinear learning of protein folding landscapes, high-throughput antimicrobial peptide design, and data-driven materials design engines. We close with an outlook on the challenges and opportunities for the field.

Machine learning and data science in soft materials engineering.

Science.gov (United States)

Ferguson, Andrew L

2018-01-31

In many branches of materials science it is now routine to generate data sets of such large size and dimensionality that conventional methods of analysis fail. Paradigms and tools from data science and machine learning can provide scalable approaches to identify and extract trends and patterns within voluminous data sets, perform guided traversals of high-dimensional phase spaces, and furnish data-driven strategies for inverse materials design. This topical review provides an accessible introduction to machine learning tools in the context of soft and biological materials by 'de-jargonizing' data science terminology, presenting a taxonomy of machine learning techniques, and surveying the mathematical underpinnings and software implementations of popular tools, including principal component analysis, independent component analysis, diffusion maps, support vector machines, and relative entropy. We present illustrative examples of machine learning applications in soft matter, including inverse design of self-assembling materials, nonlinear learning of protein folding landscapes, high-throughput antimicrobial peptide design, and data-driven materials design engines. We close with an outlook on the challenges and opportunities for the field.

e-Learning initiatives to support prescribing.

Science.gov (United States)

Maxwell, Simon; Mucklow, John

2012-10-01

Preparing medical students to prescribe is a major challenge of undergraduate education. They must develop an understanding of clinical pharmacology and acquire knowledge about drugs and therapeutics, as well as the skills to prescribe for individual patients in the face of multiple variables. The task of delivering the learning required to achieve these attributes relies upon limited numbers of teachers, who have increasingly busy clinical commitments. There is evidence that training is currently insufficient to meet the demands of the workplace. e-Learning provides an opportunity to improve the learning experience. The advantages for teachers are improved distribution of learning content, ease of update, standardization and tracking of learner activities. The advantages for learners are ease of access, greater interactivity and individual choice concerning the pace and mix of learning. Important disadvantages are the considerable resource required to develop e-Learning projects and difficulties in simulating some aspects of the real world prescribing experience. Pre-requisites for developing an e-Learning programme to support prescribing include academic expertise, institutional support, learning technology services and an effective virtual learning environment. e-Learning content might range from complex interactive learning sessions through to static web pages with links. It is now possible to simulate and provide feedback on prescribing decisions and this will improve with advances in virtual reality. Other content might include a student formulary, self-assessment exercises (e.g. calculations), a glossary and an on-line library. There is some evidence for the effectiveness of e-Learning but better research is required into its potential impact on prescribing. © 2012 The Authors. British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology © 2012 The British Pharmacological Society.

Lifelong Learning Experience and Level of Social Exclusion or Inclusion of Asian Communities Living in Denmark and the United Kingdom

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Singla, Rashmi; Klein, Sonia; Panesar, Jasbir

2005-01-01

This article reflects the situation of Asian communities in Denmark and the United Kingdom which is influenced by global trends, the patterns of differing learning they participate in which are influenced by the concept of LifeLong Learning within each country, educational opportunities, socio......-economic positions of this target group and entrepreneurship activities taking place. Global trends influence disadvantaged learners level of participation in learning within Europe. The Asian communities in Denmark and the United Kingdom, despite the differences in migration period, have made the decision to live......, including Asian communities, have been negatively affected in the recent years due to the increased political restrictions and media coverage. In comparison, despite the recent immigration policies in the UK, many members of the Asian communities have embraced the opportunities LifeLong Learning has...

The flipped classroom: practices and opportunities for health sciences librarians.

Science.gov (United States)

Youngkin, C Andrew

2014-01-01

The "flipped classroom" instructional model is being introduced into medical and health sciences curricula to provide greater efficiency in curriculum delivery and produce greater opportunity for in-depth class discussion and problem solving among participants. As educators employ the flipped classroom to invert curriculum delivery and enhance learning, health sciences librarians are also starting to explore the flipped classroom model for library instruction. This article discusses how academic and health sciences librarians are using the flipped classroom and suggests opportunities for this model to be further explored for library services.

Opportunities and barriers to public health nutrition education in Vietnamese universities.

Science.gov (United States)

Pham, Quynh Th; Worsley, Anthony; Lawrence, Mark; Marshall, Bernie

2017-05-01

A core challenge for low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) in combating the negative effects of the nutrition transition is to implement appropriate prevention strategies to halt the increasing prevalence of obesity and non-communicable diseases (NCDs), against a background of prevailing under nutrition. There have been several proposals for the enhancement of university nutrition education for future health and related professionals who are expected to communicate knowledge of health risks to the broad community. However, little is known about university nutrition education in LMICs. The present study aimed to investigate professional development opportunities and barriers for university nutrition lecturers to teach public health nutrition (PHN). An online survey was conducted among 242 Vietnamese health and education professionals and university nutrition lecturers across Vietnam. Purposive sampling was used to recruit participants. Comparisons of between the groups' responses were examined via SPSS Crosstabs. The structures of the perceived barriers and desired PHN training topics were examined via factor analyses. Multiple linear regression examined the influences on lecturers' learning interests in nutrition areas. The lecturers' learning interests spanned four areas: basic nutrition, basic food, food policy and 'new' trends (e.g. food policy, marketing). Major impediments to nutrition teaching in universities divided into two groups: resource limitations and professional constraints (e.g. lack of relevant training opportunities). The lecturers' perceptions of professional constraints influenced their interest in learning about 'new' trends. The results highlighted the need and opportunities to enhance PHN professional development for nutrition lecturers in Vietnam.

Inclusive science education: learning from Wizard

Science.gov (United States)

Koomen, Michele Hollingsworth

2016-06-01

This case study reports on a student with special education needs in an inclusive seventh grade life science classroom using a framework of disability studies in education. Classroom data collected over 13 weeks consisted of qualitative (student and classroom observations, interviews, student work samples and video-taped classroom teaching and learning record using CETP-COP) methods. Three key findings emerged in the analysis and synthesis of the data: (1) The learning experiences in science for Wizard are marked by a dichotomy straddled between autonomy ["Sometimes I do" (get it)] and dependence ["Sometimes I don't (get it)], (2) the process of learning is fragmented for Wizard because it is underscored by an emerging disciplinary literacy, (3) the nature of the inclusion is fragile and functional. Implications for classroom practices that support students with learning disabilities include focusing on student strengths, intentional use of disciplinary literacy strategies, and opportunities for eliciting student voice in decision making.

Language learning apps or games: an investigation utilizing the RETAIN model

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Glenda A. Gunter

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract: Combining games with mobile devices can promote learning opportunities at the learners' fingertips and enable ubiquitous learning experiences. As teachers increasingly assign games to reinforce language learning, it becomes essential to evaluate how effective these applications are in helping students learn the content or develop the skills that the games are reinforcing. This article examines two English language learning apps under the RETAIN model (GUNTER; KENNY; VICK, 2008. The findings indicate that although these apps offer some language learning opportunities, they do not present scenario-based quality or gameplay, among other elements, if they are to be considered games.

Ecotourism in an Educational Context: Promoting Learning Opportunities through Travel

Science.gov (United States)

Coles, Tim; Poland, Roger H. C.; Clifton, Julian

2015-01-01

The global expansion and diversification of the travel market has opened up new opportunities to deliver educational programmes through tourism. Applying the principles and practices commonly associated with ecotourism enables students to gain lasting benefits through their active participation in conservation-oriented activities. In many cases,…

Nurturing Opportunity Identification for Business Sophistication in a Cross-disciplinary Study Environment

OpenAIRE

Karine Oganisjana; Tatjana Koke

2012-01-01

Opportunity identification is the key element of the entrepreneurial process; therefore the issue of developing this skill in students is a crucial task in contemporary European education which has recognized entrepreneurship as one of the lifelong learning key competences. The earlier opportunity identification becomes a habitual way of thinking and behavior across a broad range of contexts, the more likely that entrepreneurial disposition will steadily reside in students. In order to nurtur...

Improving Accessibility for Seniors in a Life-Long Learning Network: A Usability Study of Learning Websites

Science.gov (United States)

Gu, Xiaoqing; Ding, Rui; Fu, Shirong

2011-01-01

Senior citizens are comparatively vulnerable in accessing learning opportunities offered on the Internet due to usability problems in current web design. In an effort to build a senior-friendly learning web as a part of the Life-long Learning Network in Shanghai, usability studies of two websites currently available to Shanghai senior citizens…

E-Learning in Massachusetts

Science.gov (United States)

Graziano, April

2005-01-01

This document presents some of the many ways schools are using online technologies. The report illustrates how Massachusetts educators are taking advantage of e-learning opportunities to improve student learning. Educators across the state are using online courses and resources, engaging in online events and projects, and showing interest in…

El aprendizaje on-line: oportunidades y retos en instituciones politécnicas Apprenticeship Students Learning On-line: Opportunities and Challenges for Polytechnic Institutions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Martha Burkle

2011-10-01

challenges and opportunities of delivering on-line and virtual content to apprentices in a Polytechnic institution. Due to the current financial recession, apprentices are going back to academia in order to update their skills, but these potential students are not willing to leave their workplace or their personal lives behind to study. In this context on-line delivery represents an opportunity to provide access to content without leaving the work environment. However, in order to be successful in providing on-line materials for apprentices, polytechnics around the world are facing two challenges: How to transform hands-on Learning skills to online Learning material, and how to provide a rich-engaging environment for this group of learners. But not only the learner expectations should be taken when designing on-line learning. Instructors play also a crucial role in this endeavor, as Web 2.0 technologies offer the instructor an entirely new role in teaching: that of a facilitator. In order to analyze apprenticeship students’ on-line learning, 57 on-line surveys were distributed among a group of students registered for on-line apprenticeship programs. The paper presents research findings and a comparison of these with a what the literature states regarding the new generation of learners and their use of technologies, and the behavior (learning preferences, learning styles, use of IT presented by the research sample. Innovative opportunities for learning at the workplace (such as recommendations and future areas of research are suggested.

Active Learning in Engineering Education: A (Re)Introduction

Science.gov (United States)

Lima, Rui M.; Andersson, Pernille Hammar; Saalman, Elisabeth

2017-01-01

The informal network "Active Learning in Engineering Education" (ALE) has been promoting Active Learning since 2001. ALE creates opportunity for practitioners and researchers of engineering education to collaboratively learn how to foster learning of engineering students. The activities in ALE are centred on the vision that learners…

Learning Opportunities for Nurses Working within Home Care

Science.gov (United States)

Lundgren, Solveig

2011-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to explore home care nurses' experience of learning in a multicultural environment. Design/methodology/approach: The study was based on qualitative research design. Data were collected through repeated interviews with registered home care nurses working in a multicultural area. The data were analyzed through a…

The WebQuest: constructing creative learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Sanford, Julie; Townsend-Rocchiccioli, Judith; Trimm, Donna; Jacobs, Mike

2010-10-01

An exciting expansion of online educational opportunities is occurring in nursing. The use of a WebQuest as an inquiry-based learning activity can offer considerable opportunity for nurses to learn how to analyze and synthesize critical information. A WebQuest, as a constructivist, inquiry-oriented strategy, requires learners to use higher levels of thinking as a means to analyze and apply complex information, providing an exciting online teaching and learning strategy. A WebQuest is an inquiry-oriented lesson format in which most or all of the information learners work with comes from the web. This article provides an overview of the WebQuest as a teaching strategy and provides examples of its use. Copyright 2010, SLACK Incorporated.

Towards collaboration as learning: evaluation of an open CPD opportunity for HE teachers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chrissi Nerantzi

2015-08-01

Full Text Available Flexible, Distance and Online Learning (FDOL is an open online course offered as an informal cross-institutional collaboration based on a postgraduate module in the context of teacher education in higher education. The second iteration, FDOL132, was offered in 2013 using a problem-based learning (PBL design (FISh to foster collaborative learning. How this was experienced by participants and how it affected learning within facilitated small groups are explored in this paper. Findings show that authentic learning in groups can be applied directly to practice, and greater flexibility and a focus on the process of collaborative learning has the potential to increase engagement and learning.

Putting Opportunism in the Back Seat

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Foss, Nicolai; Weber, Libby

2013-01-01

TCE and its applications in management research put more emphasis on opportunism than on bounded rationality. By augmenting the bounded rationality assumption to include interpretive limitations, we show that there are sources of costly conflict that are not rooted in opportunism. Moreover, we show...... that bounded rationality may drive opportunism. All hierarchal forms are inherently subject to specific bounded-rationality-based conflicts, thus have different capacities to mitigate bounded-rationality-based transaction costs....

Physiotherapy students' perceptions about the learning ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The clinical education introductory module provided valuable opportunities, where students learnt productively in a non-threatening learning environment. Junior students linked theoretical and practical concepts to clinical implementation. Peer mentoring and progressive mastering were valuable learning strategies.

Opportunities for learning about animal welfare from online courses to graduate degrees.

Science.gov (United States)

Siegford, Janice M; Cottee, Stephanie Yue; Widowski, Tina M

2010-01-01

Knowledge of animal welfare has become essential for veterinarians. However, there is no clear consensus about how to provide veterinarians and students with this critical information. The challenges associated with finding qualified instructors and fitting additional courses into an already full curriculum mean that options for learning about animal welfare beyond the veterinary school classroom must be explored. Online courses can be excellent ways for veterinary students and graduate veterinarians to become familiar with current animal-welfare science, assessment schemes, and regulations while removing geographical barriers and scheduling difficulties. Faculty at Michigan State University have created an online animal-welfare course with lecture material from experts in welfare-related social and scientific fields that provides an overview of the underlying concepts as well as opportunities to practice assessing welfare. However, to develop expertise in animal welfare, veterinarians need more than a single course. Graduate degrees can be a way of obtaining additional knowledge and scientific expertise. Traditional thesis-based graduate programs in animal-welfare science are available in animal-science departments and veterinary colleges throughout North America and offer students in-depth research experience in specific areas or species of interest. Alternatively, the University of Guelph offers a year-long Master of Science degree in which students complete a series of courses with a specialization in animal behavior and welfare along with a focused research project and paper. In summary, a range of options exist that can be tailored to provide graduate veterinarians and veterinary students with credible education regarding animal welfare beyond the veterinary curriculum.

Deep Learning through Concept-Based Inquiry

Science.gov (United States)

Donham, Jean

2010-01-01

Learning in the library should present opportunities to enrich student learning activities to address concerns of interest and cognitive complexity, but these must be tasks that call for in-depth analysis--not merely gathering facts. Library learning experiences need to demand enough of students to keep them interested and also need to be…

Putting Opportunism in the Back Seat

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Foss, Nicolai; Weber, Libby

2013-01-01

TCE and its applications in management research put more emphasis on opportunism than on bounded rationality. By augmenting the bounded rationality assumption to include interpretive limitations, we show that there are sources of costly conflict that are not rooted in opportunism. Moreover, we show...

Case Study of a Service-Learning Partnership: Montana Tech and the Montana State Prison.

Science.gov (United States)

Amtmann, John; Evans, Roberta; Powers, Jack

2002-01-01

As a service learning project, Montana Tech students deliver a wellness program for older inmates in Montana State Prison. Outcomes identified in student interviews included improved interpersonal skills (tact, diplomacy, communication, assertiveness) and opportunities to apply knowledge. Students recognized the value of the program for…

IT Education as an Opportunity for Uprising of Serbian Economy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Božidar Radenković

2014-07-01

Full Text Available The analysis of IT market in Serbia indicates an increase in exports of IT services. Consequently, the need for experts with competitive skills in modern information and communication technologies rises. International priorities related to the application of IT in business and science until the year 2020 include: e-education, cloud computing, mobile technologies, internet of things, ubiquitous and pervasive computing, social media, virtual reality, and big data. Designing environment for providing IT services in these fields can be an opportunity for the development of Serbian economy, because it does not require high infrastructural investments, only investments in education. This paper gives a proposal for leveraging higher education and lifelong learning in Serbia, with respect to the demands of the IT market.

Customization of Curriculum Materials in Science: Motives, Challenges, and Opportunities

Science.gov (United States)

Romine, William L.; Banerjee, Tanvi

2012-02-01

Exemplary science instructors use inquiry to tailor content to student's learning needs; traditional textbooks treat science as a set of facts and a rigid curriculum. Publishers now allow instructors to compile pieces of published and/or self-authored text to make custom textbooks. This brings numerous advantages, including the ability to produce smaller, cheaper text and added flexibility on the teaching models used. Moreover, the internet allows instructors to decentralize textbooks through easy access to educational objects such as audiovisual simulations, individual textbook chapters, and scholarly research articles. However, these new opportunities bring with them new problems. With educational materials easy to access, manipulate and duplicate, it is necessary to define intellectual property boundaries, and the need to secure documents against unlawful copying and use is paramount. Engineers are developing and enhancing information embedding technologies, including steganography, cryptography, watermarking, and fingerprinting, to label and protect intellectual property. While these are showing their utility in securing information, hackers continue to find loop holes in these protection schemes, forcing engineers to constantly assess the algorithms to make them as secure as possible. As newer technologies rise, people still question whether custom publishing is desirable. Many instructors see the process as complex, costly, and substandard in comparison to using traditional text. Publishing companies are working to improve attitudes through advertising. What lacks is peer reviewed evidence showing that custom publishing improves learning. Studies exploring the effect of custom course materials on student attitude and learning outcomes are a necessary next step.

Mapping Learning Outcomes and Assignment Tasks for SPIDER Activities

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lyn Brodie

2011-05-01

Full Text Available Modern engineering programs have to address rapidly changing technical content and have to enable students to develop transferable skills such as critical evaluation, communication skills and lifelong learning. This paper introduces a combined learning and assessment activity that provides students with opportunities to develop and practice their soft skills, but also extends their theoretical knowledge base. Key tasks included self directed inquiry, oral and written communication as well as peer assessment. To facilitate the SPIDER activities (Select, Prepare and Investigate, Discuss, Evaluate, Reflect, a software tool has been implemented in the learning management system Moodle. Evidence shows increased student engagement and better learning outcomes for both transferable as well as technical skills. The study focuses on generalising the relationship between learning outcomes and assignment tasks as well as activities that drive these tasks. Trail results inform the approach. Staff evaluations and their views of assignments and intended learning outcomes also supported this analysis.

Fulbright Opportunities in the Physical Sciences

Science.gov (United States)

Dewindt, Katrin

2013-03-01

The Fulbright Scholar Program is sponsored by the United States Department of State and is principally funded by taxpayer contributions. Bi-national in nature, it includes academic year opportunities for both American and foreign scholars. More than 800 grants in 125 countries are available each year. The Program supports research, teaching and lecturing opportunities in all academic disciplines, numerous professional fields and the arts. American academics and administrators have multiple opportunities to internationalize their campuses and their discipline points of view. Further, Fulbright not only sends American scholars abroad but also brings scholars to the United States and should be considered a strategic internationalization opportunity both for individuals and for campuses. During the 2013-14 competition cycle there were 33 awards available in physics and astronomy and 175 all discipline awards. The presentation will guide attendees in identifying appropriate opportunities through the Fulbright Scholar Program and will make suggestions as to how to be successful in a proposal. Special attention will be given to opportunities available for specialists in physics. The workshop will also cover non-Core Fulbright Scholar opportunities for physicists and university administrators, including a number of short-term, innovative programs that send an additional 400 scholars from the United States to universities and research institutes abroad to offer expertise on issues of global interest from cutting-edge research to policy, to technical expertise in curriculum development, institutional planning, program assessment, and institutional capacity building.

Learning and Communicative Rationality

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rasmussen, Palle

The paper is an attempt to outline Habermas' contributions to a theory of learning. Such contributions are found in his work on individual learning and socialization, the constitution and reproduction of lifeworlds, the character of social evolution, the processes of public delibearation...... and democracy and the idea and role of universities. A "theory of learning" is not taken in a very formalised sense, rather the idea is to identify themes where Habermas' theoretical framework provide the opportunity for locating important aspects of learning in modern society....

Volunteer Educators' Influence on Youth Participation and Learning in 4-H STEM Learning by Design Programs

Science.gov (United States)

Worker, Steven Michael

The purpose of this study was to describe the co-construction of three 4-H STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) learning by design programs by volunteer educators and youth participants in the 4-H Youth Development Program. The programs advanced STEM learning through design, a pedagogical approach to support youth in planning, designing, and making shareable artifacts. This pedagogical approach is a special case of project-based learning, related to the practices found in the science learning through design literature as well as the making and tinkering movements. Specifically, I explored adult volunteer educators' roles and pedagogical strategies implementing the 4-H Junk Drawer Robotics curriculum (Mahacek, Worker, and Mahacek, 2011) and how that, in turn, afforded and constrained opportunities for youth to display or report engagement in design practices; learning of STEM content; strengthening tool competencies; dispositions of resilience, reciprocity, and playfulness; and psychological ownership. The curriculum targeted middle school youth with a sequence of science inquiry activities and engineering design challenges. This study employed naturalist and multiple-case study methodology relying on participant observations and video, interviews with educators, and focus groups with youth within three 4-H educational robotics programs organized by adult 4-H volunteer educators. Data collection took place in 2014 and 2015 at Santa Clara with an educator and seven youth; Solano with three educators and eight youth; and Alameda with an educator and seven youth. Data analysis revealed six discrete categories of pedagogy and interactions that I labeled as participation structures that included lecture, demonstration, learning activity, group sharing, scripted build, and design & build. These participation structures were related to the observed pedagogical practices employed by the educators. There was evidence of youth engagement in design

Building Learning Communities: Foundations for Good Practice

Science.gov (United States)

Davies, Alison; Ramsay, Jill; Lindfield, Helen; Couperthwaite, John

2005-01-01

The School of Health Sciences at the University of Birmingham provided opportunities for the development of student learning communities and online resources within the neurological module of the BSc Physiotherapy degree programme. These learning communities were designed to facilitate peer and independent learning in core aspects underpinning…

Identify and analyze the opportunities and threats of social networks for shahid Beheshti University students

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

R. Tavalaee

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Due to the growth of information and communication technology in societies Especially among students, the use of these technologies has become as part of regular working people. Social networks as one of the most important and widely in cyberspace which is Used by many people in various fields. application of social network by students as young and educated population is important.In this regard, this study aimed to investigate and identify the opportunities and threats for shahid Beheshti University students in social network. This study aims to develop a practical and descriptive methodology. Information obtained from the questionnaires using SPSS statistical analysis software in two parts: descriptive and inferential statistics were analyzed.The results indicate that five variables related to social networking opportunities, including e-learning, leisure, organized social groups, the possibility of dialogue and culture, as well as five variables related to social networking threats, including transfer value unethical, abusive, spreading false information, internet & Communications destructive addiction, has a significant positive effect on students.

Opportunities for electric utilities in telecommunications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Meehan, C.M.

1994-01-01

This article examines the opportunities for utility participation in the telecommunications market on private microwave systems and hybrid microwave and fiber systems. The topics of the article include entering the market, national information infrastructure, business opportunities and considerations, levels of participation in telecommunications market, and regulatory objectives

Experiences of Students with Specific Learning Disorder (Including ADHD) in Online College Degree Programs: A Phenomenological Study

Science.gov (United States)

Bunch, Seleta LeAnn

2016-01-01

Enrollment in online degree programs is rapidly expanding due to the convenience and affordability offered to students and improvements in technology. The purpose of this hermeneutical phenomenological study was to understand the shared experiences of students with documented specific learning disorders (including Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity…

Learning in later life: Universities, teaching, intergenerational learning and community cohesion

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Keith Percy

2013-07-01

Full Text Available There are no settled concepts in the field of learning in later life. The paper begins by suggesting that generalised statements about older people’s learning are suspect and that the way in which we talk about it shifts over time. In particular, there is a range of claims about methods of learning and teaching appropriate to older people but most have little support from empirical research. The paper then focuses on the evaluation of a small innovation project, funded by national government, at Lancaster University, 2009-10. The project sought to involve members of a local University of the Third age group in learning activity on the nearby university campus, partly using undergraduate teaching provision. It aimed to test ideological reservations within the U3A group about association with a public institution of higher education and about mixing the ‘purity’ of self-help learning for older adults, in the British U3A tradition, with more formal methods of learning. The outcomes of the project evaluation suggested that most older learners participating valued their opportunity to use university learning resources and that the British U3A ideology did not inhibit them from doing so. It also suggests that the University benefited from the presence of the older learners and that the surrounding community potentially might have done. A brief discussion of implications for intergenerational learning, community cohesion and marginalised older people follows. The paper concludes that British universities should and, perhaps, could relate more dynamically and emphatically with the provision of opportunities for learning in later life.

Learning environment: the impact of clerkship location on instructional quality.

Science.gov (United States)

Prunuske, Jacob P; Deci, David M

2013-03-01

Students provide variable feedback on instructional quality at ambulatory training sites. We hypothesized several strengths and weaknesses of placing students at resident and non-resident training sites, including differences in faculty behaviors, patient characteristics, work environment, learning opportunities, and levels of student engagement. We systematically assessed for differences in learning quality between clerkship sites with and without residents. Students completed the MedED IQ, a validated survey assessing four domains of instructional quality, after completing a required primary care rotation. We calculated descriptive and summary statistics and two sample tests of proportion analyzing student agreement with each MedEd IQ item with respect to the presence or absence of resident learners. Of 149 total, 113 (75.8%) students completed the MedEd IQ site survey. A greater percentage of students at resident training sites (25.8%) than at non-resident sites (7.3%) agreed with the statement "The opportunities were too diverse, preventing me from developing proficiency." A greater percentage of students at resident training sites (19.4%) than at non-resident sites (1.2%) agreed with the statement "The health care team was not supportive of my learning." There were no differences between sites with or without residents on 14 items measuring preceptor actions or seven items measuring student involvement. Ambulatory clerkship sites with and without residents provide comparable quality learning experiences and precepting. Students placed at resident training sites may be overwhelmed with diverse opportunities and have a less supportive learning environment than students placed at non-resident sites. Future research should evaluate the impact of health care team development programs designed to foster a more supportive training environment for medical students. Ways of aligning residency and medical student education goals within the training setting should be

Mobile Learning: Challenges for Teachers of Indian Open Universities

Science.gov (United States)

Awadhiya, Ashish Kumar; Miglani, Anshu

2016-01-01

"Mobile Learning" (m-Learning) has emerged as a trend in the field of Open and Distance Learning (ODL). It is removing the time and geographical barriers for learning by placing learning opportunities at the fingertips of learners. ODL institutes in India are also adopting m-learning in different forms; however, it is not fully…

Constructivism and Learning in the Age of Social Media: Changing Minds and Learning Communities

Science.gov (United States)

Schrader, Dawn E.

2015-01-01

Social media provide new means and opportunities for learning that are consistent with major tenets of both social and cognitive constructivism, and extend the process of learning and meaning construction to more diverse communities and universally accessible shared activities that are jointly and concurrently engaged in by both peers and experts.

Learning from Somaliland? Transferability of learning from volunteering to national health service practice in the UK.

Science.gov (United States)

Tillson, Esther; van Wees, Sibylle Herzig; McGowan, Charlotte; Franklin, Hannah; Jones, Helena; Bogue, Patrick; Aliabadi, Shirin; Baraitser, Paula

2016-03-22

Capacity building partnerships between healthcare institutions have the potential to benefit both partners particularly in staff development. Previous research suggests that volunteering can contribute to professional development but there is little evidence on how learning is acquired, the barriers and facilitators to learning in this context or the process of translation of learning to the home environment. Volunteers from a healthcare partnership between the UK and Somaliland reported learning in communication, interdisciplinary working, teaching, management, leadership and service development. This learning came from observing familiar practices in unfamiliar environments; alternative solutions to familiar problems; learning about Somali culture; opportunities to assume higher levels of responsibility and new professional relationships. There was variability in the extent of translation to NHS practice. Time and support available for reflection and mentoring were important facilitators of this process. The professional development outcomes documented in this study came directly from the experience of volunteering. Experiential learning theory suggests that this requires a complex process of critical reflection and new knowledge generation, testing and translation for use in new contexts. This process benefits from identification of learning as an important element of volunteering and support for reflection and the translation translation of learning to UK contexts. We suggest that missed opportunities for volunteer learning will remain until the volunteering process is overtly framed as part of continuing professional development.

Candlestick and Faces: Aspects of Lifelong Learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Hunt, Cheryl

1999-01-01

Government policies view lifelong learning in terms of economic development. A SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) analysis of the environment of British community education councils revealed other views of lifelong learning: it takes time and political expediency and national policy can adversely affect what and how people learn.…

Opportunity Design

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Louise Møller; Lassen, Astrid Heidemann; Tollestrup, Christian

2012-01-01

Creating and growing new businesses is basically about turning an entrepreneurial opportunity into future business. In literature the emergence of opportunities is often described as opportunity recognition or opportunity discovery, which points to the understanding that opportunities are out the...

Equality of Opportunity for Well-Being

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mahler, Daniel Gerszon; Ramos, Xavier

2017-01-01

A growing literature has tried to measure the extent to which individuals have equal opportunities to acquire income. At the same time, policy makers have doubled down on efforts to go beyond income when measuring well- being. We attempt to bridge these two areas by measuring the extent to which...... individuals have equal opportunities to achieve a high level of well-being. We use the German Socio-Economic Panel to measure well-being in four different ways including incomes. This makes it possible to determine if the way well-being is measured matters for identifying who the opportunity......-deprived are and for tracking inequality of opportunity over time. We find that, regardless of how well-being is measured, the same people are opportunity-deprived and equality of opportunity has improved over the past 20 years. This suggests that going beyond income has little relevance if the objective is to provide equal...

Mobile Learning: Can Students Really Multitask?

Science.gov (United States)

Coens, Joke; Reynvoet, Bert; Clarebout, Geraldine

2011-01-01

The advent of mobile learning offers opportunities for students to do two things at once in an educational context: learning while performing another activity. The main aim of the reported studies is to address the effect of multitasking on learning with a mobile device. Two experiments were set up to examine the effect of performing a secondary…

A Generational Opportunity: A 21st Century Learning Content Delivery System

Science.gov (United States)

McElroy, Patrick

2007-01-01

This paper describes a collaboratively developed, open marketplace for network-based learning and research content for the higher education community. It explores how available technologies and standards can facilitate a new knowledge creation industry for higher education learning content that engages all stakeholders in new ways. The Advisory…

Student Talk and Opportunities for Mathematical Learning in Small Group Interactions

Science.gov (United States)

Wood, Marcy B.; Kalinec, Crystal A.

2012-01-01

Small group interactions are an important tool for mathematical learning and yet researchers have neither examined small group talk across entire lessons nor have they focused on moments of mathematical learning in small groups. We examined such talk and identified kinds of interactions and connections between interactions and mathematical…

Modelling Digital Knowledge Transfer: Nurse Supervisors Transforming Learning at Point of Care to Advance Nursing Practice

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Carey Mather

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Limited adoption of mobile technology for informal learning and continuing professional development within Australian healthcare environments has been explained primarily as an issue of insufficient digital and ehealth literacy of healthcare professionals. This study explores nurse supervisors’ use of mobile technology for informal learning and continuing professional development both for their own professional practice, and in their role in modelling digital knowledge transfer, by facilitating the learning and teaching of nursing students in the workplace. A convenience sample of 27 nurse supervisors involved with guiding and supporting undergraduate nurses participated in one of six focus groups held in two states of Australia. Expanding knowledge emerged as the key theme of importance to this group of clinicians. Although nurse supervisors regularly browsed Internet sources for learning and teaching purposes, a mixed understanding of the mobile learning activities that could be included as informal learning or part of formal continuing professional development was detected. Participants need educational preparation and access to mobile learning opportunities to improve and maintain their digital and ehealth literacy to appropriately model digital professionalism with students. Implementation of mobile learning at point of care to enable digital knowledge transfer, augment informal learning for students and patients, and support continuing professional development opportunities is necessary. Embedding digital and ehealth literacy within nursing curricula will promote mobile learning as a legitimate nursing function and advance nursing practice.

Machine learning, social learning and the governance of self-driving cars.

Science.gov (United States)

Stilgoe, Jack

2018-02-01

Self-driving cars, a quintessentially 'smart' technology, are not born smart. The algorithms that control their movements are learning as the technology emerges. Self-driving cars represent a high-stakes test of the powers of machine learning, as well as a test case for social learning in technology governance. Society is learning about the technology while the technology learns about society. Understanding and governing the politics of this technology means asking 'Who is learning, what are they learning and how are they learning?' Focusing on the successes and failures of social learning around the much-publicized crash of a Tesla Model S in 2016, I argue that trajectories and rhetorics of machine learning in transport pose a substantial governance challenge. 'Self-driving' or 'autonomous' cars are misnamed. As with other technologies, they are shaped by assumptions about social needs, solvable problems, and economic opportunities. Governing these technologies in the public interest means improving social learning by constructively engaging with the contingencies of machine learning.

Institutional, Financial, Legal, and Cultural Factors in a Distance Learning Program.

Science.gov (United States)

Blakeman, Rachel; Haseley, Dennis

2015-06-01

As psychoanalytic institutes evolve, adapting to the contemporary financial and social environment, the integration of new technologies into psychoanalytic education presents opportunities for expansion to candidates residing beyond the usual geographic boundaries. While the teaching of analytic content through distance learning programs appears to be relatively straightforward, factors including legalities, traditional mind-sets, and cross-cultural issues need to be considered as complicating the situation, as illustrated by one U.S. institute's distance learning initiative with a group in South Korea. © 2015 by the American Psychoanalytic Association.

Integrating Opportunities: Applied Interdisciplinary Research in Undergraduate Geography and Geology Education

Science.gov (United States)

Viertel, David C.; Burns, Diane M.

2012-01-01

Unique integrative learning approaches represent a fundamental opportunity for undergraduate students and faculty alike to combine interdisciplinary methods with applied spatial research. Geography and geoscience-related disciplines are particularly well-suited to adapt multiple methods within a holistic and reflective mentored research paradigm.…

Review of the status of learning in research on sport education: future research and practice.

Science.gov (United States)

Araújo, Rui; Mesquita, Isabel; Hastie, Peter A

2014-12-01

attend to the complexity of this process. Key PointsDespite research regarding has showed students' improvements during the participation in Sport Education seasons, it remains somewhat equivocal.The studies included in this review show students' improvements on skill, knowledge and tactical development, as we as game play, during the participation in Sport Education units.Some studies report superior learning opportunities to boys and higher skill-level students while other studies exposed superior learning opportunities to girls and lower skill-level students.The effect of time on students' learning and the control of the teaching-learning process within Sport Education units can explain these equivocal results.Future research is encouraged to consider the implementation of protocols for student-coaches' preparation, hybrid models, a retention test, the interaction of gender and skill level, and use research designs that attend to the complexity of the teaching-learning process.

Using social media to enhance career development opportunities for health promotion professionals.

Science.gov (United States)

Roman, Leah A

2014-07-01

For health promotion professionals, social media offers many ways to engage with a broader range of colleagues; participate in professional development events; promote expertise, products, or services; and learn about career-enhancing opportunities such as funding and fellowships. Previous work has recommended "building networking into what you are already doing." This article provides updated and new social media resources, as well as practical examples and strategies to promote effective use of social media. Social media offers health promotion professionals cost-effective opportunities to enhance their career by building communities of practice, participating in professional development events, and enriching classroom learning. Developing the skills necessary to use social media for networking is important in the public health workforce, especially as social media is increasingly used in academic and practice settings. © 2014 Society for Public Health Education.

Bootcamp EMMA MOOC Assessment for learning in practice

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Firssova, Olga; Brouns, Francis

2016-01-01

Formative assessment or assessment for learning is a relevant theme for teachers and educationalists. Formative assessment is a valuable tool for supporting the learning process. It is applied during learning and offers you more and better opportunities to guide your students. Formative assessment

Organisational aspects and benchmarking of e-learning initiatives: a case study with South African community health workers.

Science.gov (United States)

Reisach, Ulrike; Weilemann, Mitja

2016-06-01

South Africa desperately needs a comprehensive approach to fight HIV/AIDS. Education is crucial to reach this goal and Internet and e-learning could offer huge opportunities to broaden and deepen the knowledge basis. But due to the huge societal and digital divide between rich and poor areas, e-learning is difficult to realize in the townships. Community health workers often act as mediators and coaches for people seeking medical and personal help. They could give good advice regarding hygiene, nutrition, protection of family members in case of HIV/AIDS and finding legal ways to earn one's living if they were trained to do so. Therefore they need to have a broader general knowledge. Since learning opportunities in the townships are scarce, a system for e-learning has to be created in order to overcome the lack of experience with computers or the Internet and to enable them to implement a network of expertise. The article describes how the best international resources on basic medical knowledge, HIV/AIDS as well as on basic economic and entrepreneurial skills were benchmarked to be integrated into an e-learning system. After tests with community health workers, researchers developed recommendations on building a self-sustaining system for learning, including a network of expertise and best practice sharing. The article explains the opportunities and challenges for community health workers, which could provide information for other parts of the world with similar preconditions of rural poverty. © The Author(s) 2015.

Heutagogy: An alternative practice based learning approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Bhoyrub, John; Hurley, John; Neilson, Gavin R; Ramsay, Mike; Smith, Margaret

2010-11-01

Education has explored and utilised multiple approaches in attempts to enhance the learning and teaching opportunities available to adult learners. Traditional pedagogy has been both directly and indirectly affected by andragogy and transformational learning, consequently widening our understandings and approaches toward view teaching and learning. Within the context of nurse education, a major challenge has been to effectively apply these educational approaches to the complex, unpredictable and challenging environment of practice based learning. While not offered as a panacea to such challenges, heutagogy is offered in this discussion paper as an emerging and potentially highly congruent educational framework to place around practice based learning. Being an emergent theory its known conceptual underpinnings and possible applications to nurse education need to be explored and theoretically applied. Through placing the adult learner at the foreground of grasping learning opportunities as they unpredictability emerge from a sometimes chaotic environment, heutagogy can be argued as offering the potential to minimise many of the well published difficulties of coordinating practice with faculty teaching and learning. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Evolution of Facebook groups: Informal e-learning among medical laboratory scientists in Nigeria

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jarret Cassaniti

2014-09-01

Full Text Available Most people think of online courses when they talk about e-learning, but aspects of social media can also be considered e-learning. In 2011 the Knowledge for Health Project (K4Health began work with local partners to implement an e-learning and professional development policy for Medical Laboratory Scientists based on the needs identified by United States Agency for International Development (USAID/Nigeria. Six e-learning courses were developed and promoted through several channels including social media. A Facebook Group was created to share information about accessing and navigating the courses and attracted 8,500 members in 18 months. As the Group grew, the topics discussed evolved to include trade union news, employment opportunities and technical resources. Another Facebook Group provided insights that Facebook Groups could be used to facilitate interactions focused on continuing professional development. The findings show that Facebook Groups accommodate an informal learning style, allowing individuals to learn through peer support in flexible ways. It has also shown that the use of Facebook Groups is associated with high levels of engagement with e-learning courses.

Immigrant Capital and Entrepreneurial Opportunities

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Malavika Sundararajan

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Objective: The main objective of this study is to define and operationalize the concept of immigrant capital, a key factor that differentiates immigrant from host country entrepreneurs in how they recognize and start new ventures. Research Design & Methods: A detailed analysis of contemporary immigrant entrepreneurship and opportunity recognition literature was carried out. Using grounded theory, we synthesized the outcomes from the analysis of eight Canadian and U.S. case studies of successful immigrant entrepreneurs with the key findings from the literature to define and develop a model of immigrant capital. Findings: Based on our grounded theory development process we show that the concept of immigrant capital as a distillate of human, cultural, economic and social capital that goes beyond expected opportunity recognition (OR drivers like prior knowledge and prior experience to differentiate and enhance the immigrant entrepreneur’s ability to recognize business opportunities compared to host country entrepreneurs. We found immigrant capital to be a consequence of being boundary spanners in host and home country networks. Implications & Recommendations: Understanding a unique resource like immigrant capital, will help immigrant as well as host country entrepreneurs further develop their opportunity recognition ability by bridging gaps and fulfilling the needs for both, immigrant and host country consumers. Contribution & Value Added: The main contribution is the theoretical development, identification and definition of the immigrant capital model and propositions that will articulate the factors that lead to the conceptualization and operationalization of immigrant capital. Furthermore, the immigrant capital model can serve host country entrepreneurs to develop cross-cultural networks and jump-start entrepreneurial activities in their home countries as well as learn how to expand their operations into global markets.

Relations between blended learning possibilities and teachers' approaches to blended learning

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Stenalt, Maria Hvid; Nielsen, Tobias Alsted; Bager-Elsborg, Anna

Higher Education has embraced blended learning as a way of enhancing quality in teaching and helping students to learn. This presentation addresses relations between blended learning possiblities presented to teachers in a teacher training project and teachers’ approaches to blended learning. We...... suggest that in order to identify the level of impact of integrating technologies in teaching and learning, we need to understand the factors influencing approaches to design of courses for blended contexts. Participants in the teacher training project come from the Department of Law at Aarhus University......: • Optain locally-embedded knowledge about blended learning • Develop opportunities for law students to receive (more) feedback • Comply with strategic aims The results so far suggest that teachers provide a disciplinary perspective on the key dimensions of blended learning, which influences...

Students’ views of learning about an interprofessional world café method

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J Frantz

2016-11-01

Full Text Available Background. Interprofessional education (IPE and practice were conceived as a means to improve quality of care by bringing together the health and social professions to learn and work collaboratively in teams. This collaboration in turn would assist in overcoming negative stereotypes, and promote an understanding and value of the roles of the different professions.Objective. To highlight a specific methodology to advance the interprofessional learning of senior students across five disciplines. By sharing the views of students engaged in a world café model of IPE, the authors highlight this strategy as a new concept in instilling core competencies in students. Thisin turn may assist other higher education institutions in their own processes of creating interprofessional curricula opportunities.Methods. The participants included senior students from university departments of physiotherapy, oral health, social work, pharmacy and nursing. At the conclusion of the world café sessions, students evaluated the process by means of a questionnaire, using associative group analysis methodology. The responses were analysed into themes according to questions posed to students in an evaluation questionnaire.Results. It was evident that students understood the terminology of IPE and learnt from others in terms of their roles and responsibilities within a team. Overall, students valued the experience; however, they emphasised the need for additional authentic learning opportunities throughout their student training.Conclusion. It is evident that although higher education institutions create opportunities for interprofessional learning, similar opportunities need tobe provided in the practice setting.

Reflections from Graduate Adult Learners about Service Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Alston, Geleana Drew; Clegg, T. E.; Clodfelter, Roy J., Jr.; Drye, Kimberly C.; Farrer, J. V.; Gould, Derek; Mohsin, Nidhal M.; Rankin, Tomiko N.; Ray, Sherri L.

2016-01-01

Adult education is grounded in responding to the needs of others, and the field places emphasis on adult learning theories such as transformative learning and experiential learning. Service learning is an educational approach that balances formal instruction and direction with the opportunity for adult learners to serve in the community as a…

Hydrogen and fuel cells: threat or opportunity to power company core business?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Grant, A.

2004-01-01

'Full text:' It is noted that many utilities at this conference will discuss the problems with fuel cells (and the hydrogen economy) that revolve around interconnection of fuel cells as distributed generation resources. Interconnection details, both commercial and technical, are a major market barrier and a key problem for electric utilities as these technologies come to market. However, I would like to offer an opportunity to examine a broader subject area. Specifically, I would submit that one key issue is the need to look at the hydrogen and fuel cell market as a new opportunity for electric utilities. At BC Hydro we see that both the hydrogen market and the fuel cells market are potential threats and potential opportunities for our core business. We therefore believe it is prudent to learn more about these markets and 'learn by doing' by participating in demonstration projects with other partners where we can leverage our investments and spread the risk. In my talk I would like to explore the various elements of the BC Hydro fuel cell activities within this context of an evolving business model for a power utility. (author)

Professionals learning together with patients: An exploratory study of a collaborative learning Fellowship programme for healthcare improvement.

Science.gov (United States)

Myron, Rowan; French, Catherine; Sullivan, Paul; Sathyamoorthy, Ganesh; Barlow, James; Pomeroy, Linda

2018-05-01

Improving the quality of healthcare involves collaboration between many different stakeholders. Collaborative learning theory suggests that teaching different professional groups alongside each other may enable them to develop skills in how to collaborate effectively, but there is little literature on how this works in practice. Further, though it is recognised that patients play a fundamental role in quality improvement, there are few examples of where they learn together with professionals. To contribute to addressing this gap, we review a collaborative fellowship in Northwest London, designed to build capacity to improve healthcare, which enabled patients and professionals to learn together. Using the lens of collaborative learning, we conducted an exploratory study of six cohorts of the year long programme (71 participants). Data were collected using open text responses from an online survey (n = 31) and semi-structured interviews (n = 34) and analysed using an inductive open coding approach. The collaborative design of the Fellowship, which included bringing multiple perspectives to discussions of real world problems, was valued by participants who reflected on the safe, egalitarian space created by the programme. Participants (healthcare professionals and patients) found this way of learning initially challenging yet ultimately productive. Despite the pedagogical and practical challenges of developing a collaborative programme, this study indicates that opening up previously restricted learning opportunities as widely as possible, to include patients and carers, is an effective mechanism to develop collaborative skills for quality improvement.

Model-based machine learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Bishop, Christopher M

2013-02-13

Several decades of research in the field of machine learning have resulted in a multitude of different algorithms for solving a broad range of problems. To tackle a new application, a researcher typically tries to map their problem onto one of these existing methods, often influenced by their familiarity with specific algorithms and by the availability of corresponding software implementations. In this study, we describe an alternative methodology for applying machine learning, in which a bespoke solution is formulated for each new application. The solution is expressed through a compact modelling language, and the corresponding custom machine learning code is then generated automatically. This model-based approach offers several major advantages, including the opportunity to create highly tailored models for specific scenarios, as well as rapid prototyping and comparison of a range of alternative models. Furthermore, newcomers to the field of machine learning do not have to learn about the huge range of traditional methods, but instead can focus their attention on understanding a single modelling environment. In this study, we show how probabilistic graphical models, coupled with efficient inference algorithms, provide a very flexible foundation for model-based machine learning, and we outline a large-scale commercial application of this framework involving tens of millions of users. We also describe the concept of probabilistic programming as a powerful software environment for model-based machine learning, and we discuss a specific probabilistic programming language called Infer.NET, which has been widely used in practical applications.

A Case Study on Learning Difficulties and Corresponding Supports for Learning in cMOOCs

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Shuang; Tang, Qi; Zhang, Yanxia

2016-01-01

cMOOCs, which are based on connectivist learning theory, bring challenges for learners as well as opportunities for self-inquiry. Previous studies have shown that learners in cMOOCs may have difficulties learning, but these studies do not provide any in-depth, empirical explorations of student difficulties or support strategies. This paper…

The Opportunities Map at Cornell University: finding direction in dairy production medicine.

Science.gov (United States)

Mitchell, Hilda M; Nydam, Daryl V; Reyher, Kristen; Gilbert, Robert O

2004-01-01

Discussion between faculty and interested students revealed the existence of a multitude of opportunities in dairy production medicine at the College of Veterinary Medicine at Cornell University. Many of these were not well known to students, or even to some of the faculty, and the means of accessing specific learning experiences were sometimes obscure. Together, an informal group of faculty, students, and alumni set about cataloging available educational opportunities, resulting in a 31-page publication referred to as the "Opportunities Map." Essentially a student handbook for production medicine students, the Opportunities Map at Cornell helps guide the travel of food animal-interested students through the curriculum without missing the important highlights along the way. The map was originally developed to chronicle the opportunities and resources available to students, but it has also been used to foster face-to-face communications between students and faculty, to welcome incoming students with production animal interests, and to provide a baseline description for further discussion about the curriculum.

Participatory Common Learning in Groups of Dairy Farmers in Uganda (FFS approach) and Danish Stable Schools

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Vaarst, Mette

on a Master Thesis in Health Anthropology and a mini manual to the so-called Stable Schools. Improvements of farming practices should be based on the context of the individual farm and include the goals of the farmer and the farming system. This should be the case in all types of farming systems. Viewing...... learning as a social phenomenon and process, as well as an interaction between the learner and the learning environment (including other farmers) may give opportunities for context based innovations and developments towards a common goal in a group of farmers....

Trading fund opportunities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1986-01-01

The paper concerns the operation of the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA) as a trading fund. The changes and anticipated effects of this role are discussed, including the financial arrangements, UKAEA skills, customers, Department of Energy sponsorship and new business opportunities. (U.K.)

Positive Beliefs about Errors as an Important Element of Adaptive Individual Dealing with Errors during Academic Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Tulis, Maria; Steuer, Gabriele; Dresel, Markus

2018-01-01

Research on learning from errors gives reason to assume that errors provide a high potential to facilitate deep learning if students are willing and able to take these learning opportunities. The first aim of this study was to analyse whether beliefs about errors as learning opportunities can be theoretically and empirically distinguished from…

Learning on the Fingertips: The Opportunities and Challenges of Educational Apps

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Jinlong; Liao, Boqin

2015-01-01

Today, using spare time to learn is the key demands of mobile education field. With the characteristics of portability, educational Apps highly fit for this kind of demands, and contribute to the learning style on the fingertip, it becoming the new growth direction and growing point of mobile education. The understanding of the present situation…

Teaching Social Media Journalism: Challenges and Opportunities for Future Curriculum Design

Science.gov (United States)

Bor, Stephanie E.

2014-01-01

In response to the growing demand for digitally competent employees in the news media industry, journalism schools are cautiously integrating social media reporting into their curriculum. This study explores techniques for teaching news reporting on social media platforms focusing on challenges and opportunities for learning engagement that…

The learning and mentoring experiences of Paralympic coaches.

Science.gov (United States)

Fairhurst, Katherine E; Bloom, Gordon A; Harvey, William J

2017-04-01

Participation in the Paralympic Games has grown substantially, yet the same growth and development has not occurred with empirical literature for coaching in disability sport. The purpose of the current study was to explore Paralympic coaches' perceptions of their learning and educational experiences, including their formal and informal mentoring opportunities. Six highly successful and experienced Paralympic coaches were individually interviewed in this qualitative study. The interview data were analyzed following Braun and Clarke's guidelines for thematic analysis. Results demonstrated that Paralympic coaches faced several challenges to acquire disability specific coaching knowledge and skills. These challenges led the participants to utilize an array of informal learning situations, such as actively seeking mentoring relationships when they first entered the field. After becoming expert coaches, they gave back to their sport by making mentoring opportunities available for aspiring coaches. The results of the current study address the value and importance of mentoring as a structured source of education and career development for aspiring Paralympic coaches. Crown Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Analyses of Student Learning in Global Change

Science.gov (United States)

Takle, E. S.; Moser, H.; Sorensen, E. K.

2004-12-01

The Global Change course at Iowa State University is a senior undergraduate and graduate level course that has been delivered over the internet with online dialog and learning activities since 1995. Students may enroll in the course as a distance education course, but in doing so they engage in dialog with students in the conventional on-campus face-to-face course. Online delivery and student participation offer opportunities for promoting use of critical thinking skills and collaborative learning not available in face-to-face environments. Students are required to research, post, and defend with authoritative information their positions on a variety of global change issues and specifically identify how they have demonstrated use of critical thinking skills in their online postings. Threaded dialog is used for structuring interactions toward promoting collaborative learning. We analyze collaborative learning by use of a rubric based on the theory of language games. By random selection of 1,350 online dialog comments posted over the last 10 years we evaluated student response to requirements for demonstrating critical thinking skills and collaboration in learning. We found that, by itself, the requirement of demonstrating critical thinking skills in online dialog was insufficient in promoting collaborative learned as measured by the standards of language game theory. But we also found that if an online comment clearly defines a situation and makes a clear expectation of a response, the likelihood is high that a game will be created. And if a game is established, there is a high probability that it will be closed, thereby giving evidence that collaborative learning had occurred. We conclude that a key component in collaborative online learning lies in establishing a lead-off comment that provides sufficient background information to clearly define an engaging situation. It also must include a clear expectation that a response is expected that will provide dialog

A causal link between prediction errors, dopamine neurons and learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Steinberg, Elizabeth E; Keiflin, Ronald; Boivin, Josiah R; Witten, Ilana B; Deisseroth, Karl; Janak, Patricia H

2013-07-01

Situations in which rewards are unexpectedly obtained or withheld represent opportunities for new learning. Often, this learning includes identifying cues that predict reward availability. Unexpected rewards strongly activate midbrain dopamine neurons. This phasic signal is proposed to support learning about antecedent cues by signaling discrepancies between actual and expected outcomes, termed a reward prediction error. However, it is unknown whether dopamine neuron prediction error signaling and cue-reward learning are causally linked. To test this hypothesis, we manipulated dopamine neuron activity in rats in two behavioral procedures, associative blocking and extinction, that illustrate the essential function of prediction errors in learning. We observed that optogenetic activation of dopamine neurons concurrent with reward delivery, mimicking a prediction error, was sufficient to cause long-lasting increases in cue-elicited reward-seeking behavior. Our findings establish a causal role for temporally precise dopamine neuron signaling in cue-reward learning, bridging a critical gap between experimental evidence and influential theoretical frameworks.

Determining the Effects of LMS Learning Behaviors on Academic Achievement in a Learning Analytic Perspective

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mehmet FIRAT

2016-02-01

Full Text Available Two of the most important outcomes of learning analytics are predicting students’ learning and providing effective feedback. Learning Management Systems (LMS, which are widely used to support online and face-to-face learning, provide extensive research opportunities with detailed records of background data regarding users’ behaviors. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of undergraduate students’ LMS learning behaviors on their academic achievements. In line with this purpose, the participating students’ online learning behaviors in LMS were examined by using learning analytics for 14 weeks, and the relationship between students’ behaviors and their academic achievements was analyzed, followed by an analysis of their views about the influence of LMS on their academic achievement. The present study, in which quantitative and qualitative data were collected, was carried out with the explanatory mixed method. A total of 71 undergraduate students participated in the study. The results revealed that the students used LMSs as a support to face-to-face education more intensively on course days (at the beginning of the related lessons and at nights on course days and that they activated the content elements the most. Lastly, almost all the students agreed that LMSs helped increase their academic achievement only when LMSs included such features as effectiveness, interaction, reinforcement, attractive design, social media support, and accessibility.

Machine Learning

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chikkagoudar, Satish; Chatterjee, Samrat; Thomas, Dennis G.; Carroll, Thomas E.; Muller, George

2017-04-21

The absence of a robust and unified theory of cyber dynamics presents challenges and opportunities for using machine learning based data-driven approaches to further the understanding of the behavior of such complex systems. Analysts can also use machine learning approaches to gain operational insights. In order to be operationally beneficial, cybersecurity machine learning based models need to have the ability to: (1) represent a real-world system, (2) infer system properties, and (3) learn and adapt based on expert knowledge and observations. Probabilistic models and Probabilistic graphical models provide these necessary properties and are further explored in this chapter. Bayesian Networks and Hidden Markov Models are introduced as an example of a widely used data driven classification/modeling strategy.

Online Collaborative Learning in Health Care Education

Science.gov (United States)

Westbrook, Catherine

2012-01-01

At our University, the Faculty of Health, Social Care and Education has delivered a variety of undergraduate and postgraduate courses via flexible distance learning for many years. Distance learning can be a lonely experience for students who may feel isolated and unsupported. However e-learning provides an opportunity to use technology to…

Evaluation of a Coaching Experiential Learning Project on OT Student Abilities and Perceptions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Erin A. Phillips

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Innovative teaching methods to address emerging practice needs are critical components of effective occupational therapy education. Experiential learning strategies can enhance skill development and translation of knowledge into OT clinical practice. In addition, skills such as coaching may provide important links to health promotion practices. Thirty-two occupational therapy students took part in an experiential project to connect occupational engagement and health for a community of older adults. A pretest/posttest design was used to evaluate program outcomes in student perceived abilities, and narrative reflection papers provided postexperience qualitative information. The students improved in all 10 areas of abilities selfassessment with mean total scores from pretest (M = 42 improving significantly at posttest (M = 58. Themes from reflection papers indicated a positive response to experiential learning and a desire for more opportunities to prepare for clinical practice, including the use of interprofessional training. The students improved in their abilities to use coaching and health promotion strategies through the use of experiential learning methods. Outcomes suggest that experiential learning opportunities are an effective way to enhance student competencies in coaching, improve readiness for wellness programming, and increase student confidence in application of skills in future clinical practice.

Residents' perceptions of simulation as a clinical learning approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Walsh, Catharine M; Garg, Ankit; Ng, Stella L; Goyal, Fenny; Grover, Samir C

2017-02-01

Simulation is increasingly being integrated into medical education; however, there is little research into trainees' perceptions of this learning modality. We elicited trainees' perceptions of simulation-based learning, to inform how simulation is developed and applied to support training. We conducted an instrumental qualitative case study entailing 36 semi-structured one-hour interviews with 12 residents enrolled in an introductory simulation-based course. Trainees were interviewed at three time points: pre-course, post-course, and 4-6 weeks later. Interview transcripts were analyzed using a qualitative descriptive analytic approach. Residents' perceptions of simulation included: 1) simulation serves pragmatic purposes; 2) simulation provides a safe space; 3) simulation presents perils and pitfalls; and 4) optimal design for simulation: integration and tension. Key findings included residents' markedly narrow perception of simulation's capacity to support non-technical skills development or its use beyond introductory learning. Trainees' learning expectations of simulation were restricted. Educators should critically attend to the way they present simulation to learners as, based on theories of problem-framing, trainees' a priori perceptions may delimit the focus of their learning experiences. If they view simulation as merely a replica of real cases for the purpose of practicing basic skills, they may fail to benefit from the full scope of learning opportunities afforded by simulation.

Supporting Professional Learning in a Massive Open Online Course

Science.gov (United States)

Milligan, Colin; Littlejohn, Allison

2014-01-01

Professional learning, combining formal and on the job learning, is important for the development and maintenance of expertise in the modern workplace. To integrate formal and informal learning, professionals have to have good self-regulatory ability. Formal learning opportunities are opening up through massive open online courses (MOOCs),…

Radiologists' preferences for just-in-time learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Kahn, Charles E; Ehlers, Kevin C; Wood, Beverly P

2006-09-01

Effective learning can occur at the point of care, when opportunities arise to acquire information and apply it to a clinical problem. To assess interest in point-of-care learning, we conducted a survey to explore radiologists' attitudes and preferences regarding the use of just-in-time learning (JITL) in radiology. Following Institutional Review Board approval, we invited 104 current radiology residents and 86 radiologists in practice to participate in a 12-item Internet-based survey to assess their attitudes toward just-in-time learning. Voluntary participation in the survey was solicited by e-mail; respondents completed the survey on a web-based form. Seventy-nine physicians completed the questionnaire, including 47 radiology residents and 32 radiologists in practice; the overall response rate was 42%. Respondents generally expressed a strong interest for JITL: 96% indicated a willingness to try such a system, and 38% indicated that they definitely would use a JITL system. They expressed a preference for learning interventions of 5-10 min in length. Current and recent radiology trainees have expressed a strong interest in just-in-time learning. The information from this survey should be useful in pursuing the design of learning interventions and systems for delivering just-in-time learning to radiologists.

Attitudes toward English & English Learning at an Iranian Military University: A Preliminary Survey

Science.gov (United States)

Mahdavi Zafarghandi, Amir; Jodai, Hojat

2012-01-01

This study intends to represent attitudes toward English and English learning at an Iranian military university. Iranian military staff is required to study English in a social environment where there is little immediate need or opportunity to use the language for real communicative purposes.The subjects included 34 Iranian military personnel who…

A Blended Learning Approach to the Teaching of Professional Practice in Architecture

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Murray Lane

2015-05-01

Full Text Available This paper reports on a number of blended learning activities conducted in two subjects of a Master of Architecture degree at a major Australian university. The subjects were related to “professional practice” and as such represent a little researched area of architectural curriculum. The research provides some insight into the student perceptions of learning opportunity and engagement associated with on-line delivery modes. Students from these two subjects were surveyed for their perceptions about the opportunity for learning afforded by the on-line components, and also for their perceived level of engagement. Responses to these perceptions of traditional and on-line modes of delivery are compared and analysed for significant differences. While students were generally positive in response to the learning experiences, analysis of the results shows that students found the traditional modes to assist in their learning significantly more than on-line modes. Students were neutral regarding the opportunity for engagement that on-line modes provided. Analysis of the students’ gender, age and hours of paid work was also conducted to ascertain any relationship with attitudes to the flexibility of on-line delivery; no significant relationship was detected. This study has shown that students were generally resistant to on-line engagement opportunities and their ability to support learning.

Equal Educational Opportunity?

Science.gov (United States)

Morris, Lorenzo

1980-01-01

Holds that the "Bakke" decision simply reaffirmed an insufficient commitment to equal opportunities for Blacks in higher education. Reviews several studies, including research conducted at the Institute for the Study of Educational Policy (ISEP) that has focused on the social and economic context of educational discrimination. (GC)

Rites of Passage, Aboriginal Education and Learning for the 21st Century: Walkabout as a Radical-and Workable-Alternative

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Blane DESPRS

2008-07-01

Full Text Available The Walkabout Program is an alternative and experiential learning practice that helps students to develop necessary skills for authentic learning and real world preparation through the completion of six learning passages. This aboriginal-based program celebrates the vital transition-or passage-from adolescence to adulthood. The six learning passages include philosophical, practical, emotional/physical/spiritual challenge, career exploration, community/global response, and creative endeavour. Although its primary focus is to challenge First Nations educators to rethink status quo schooling, the Program has equally beneficial opportunities for all students.

An Invitation to Look at Enhancement in Technology-Enhanced Learning

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Gauttier, Stéphanie Emilie Joëlle; Arnedillo-Sanchez, Inmaculada

2016-01-01

The Internet, e-learning and now mobile learning are seen as opportunities for individual to access information and engage in learning anytime, anywhere. However, digital devices and technologies are also perceived as detrimental for learning (Dror, 2007), memory and attention (The Telegraph, 2015).

Customization of Education through Online Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Rayburn, Kalim

2011-01-01

The educational opportunities provided through connectivity to the internet that did not previously exist make way for many opportunities to expand curricular options. Through the use of technology and the internet students are able to receive education through a tailored learning approach delivered via online resources. The purpose of this study…

Family caregiver recruitment via social media: challenges, opportunities and lessons.

Science.gov (United States)

Hansen, Dana; Sheehan, Denice K; Stephenson, Pam

2017-02-02

Illness blogs are a way seriously ill people communicate publicly about their illness journey. As communication about serious illness increases on social media, it is important to evaluate how this affects the family caregiver. However, identifying and accessing family caregivers remains challenging, especially via social media. The aim of this article is to report the opportunities, challenges and lessons learned from using social media to recruit family caregivers. Recruitment methods included posting study invitations on illness blogs, advertising through Facebook and placing study fliers in the community. Using social media to recruit was inexpensive and provided a wide geographical reach. One important finding was discovering the importance of using language in the recruitment materials that family caregivers could identify with to help deem themselves as eligible to participate in the study.

Clinical Learning Environment at Shiraz Medical School

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sedigheh Ebrahimi

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Clinical learning occurs in the context of a dynamic environment. Learning environment found to be one of the most important factors in determining the success of an effective teaching program. To investigate, from the attending and resident's perspective, factors that may affect student leaning in the educational hospital setting at Shiraz University of Medical Sciences (SUMS. This study combined qualitative and quantitative methods to determine factors affecting effective learning in clinical setting. Residents evaluated the perceived effectiveness of the university hospital learning environment. Fifty two faculty members and 132 residents participated in this study. Key determinants that contribute to an effective clinical teaching were autonomy, supervision, social support, workload, role clarity, learning opportunity, work diversity and physical facilities. In a good clinical setting, residents should be appreciated and given appropriate opportunities to study in order to meet their objectives. They require a supportive environment to consolidate their knowledge, skills and judgment.

Clinical learning environment at Shiraz Medical School.

Science.gov (United States)

Rezaee, Rita; Ebrahimi, Sedigheh

2013-01-01

Clinical learning occurs in the context of a dynamic environment. Learning environment found to be one of the most important factors in determining the success of an effective teaching program. To investigate, from the attending and resident's perspective, factors that may affect student leaning in the educational hospital setting at Shiraz University of Medical Sciences (SUMS). This study combined qualitative and quantitative methods to determine factors affecting effective learning in clinical setting. Residents evaluated the perceived effectiveness of the university hospital learning environment. Fifty two faculty members and 132 residents participated in this study. Key determinants that contribute to an effective clinical teaching were autonomy, supervision, social support, workload, role clarity, learning opportunity, work diversity and physical facilities. In a good clinical setting, residents should be appreciated and given appropriate opportunities to study in order to meet their objectives. They require a supportive environment to consolidate their knowledge, skills and judgment. © 2013 Tehran University of Medical Sciences. All rights reserved.

Learning experiences of physiotherapy students during primary ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Background. Primary healthcare (PHC) is necessary to address the health needs of communities. It creates the opportunity for the attainment of curricular outcomes through community-based education. Appropriate learning opportunities are needed to enable students to develop the necessary skills to attain these outcomes ...

Promoting a Culture of Scholarship among Educational Developers: Exploring Institutional Opportunities

Science.gov (United States)

Patel, Fay

2014-01-01

Educational developers tend to be located in centres and units of teaching and learning outside the academic mainstream. They have little opportunity to engage in scholarship. Through an overview of the literature on educational development and educational professional roles and responsibilities, the author suggests that promoting a culture of…

Uniting Community and University through Service Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Arney, Janna B.; Jones, Irma

2006-01-01

At its core, service-learning is about creating opportunities for students to apply theory they learn in the classroom to real-world problems and real-world needs. A service-learning project was initiated with the CEO of the Brownsville Chamber of Commerce. The project required 2nd-year business communication students to interview community…

Nigerian Dental Students' Assessment of their Clinical Learning ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Clinical learning in medical and dental education provides students with ... clinical learning opportunities and environment, level of patient care experience and ... the stress of fulfilling procedural requirements were identified as weaknesses of ...

Designing Online Teaching and Learning Activities for Higher Education in Hong Kong

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kevin Downing

2008-06-01

Full Text Available Instruction using the Web as a vehicle for content dissemination has increasingly dominated debates related to online learning (Nash, 2004 and there is little doubt that the exponential growth in the use of the internet and web-based instruction continues to present educators with considerable opportunities and challenges (Boettcher, 1999; McNaught & Lam, 2005. Many teachers and researchers (Wood, 1997; Littlejohn et al., 1999 point out that the organization and reflection necessary to effectively teach online often improves an instructor’s traditional teaching. This is a theme continued by Downing (2001 who identifies the eventual success or failure of online teaching as largely due to the same factors that have always been central to the provision of a quality learning experience. These factors include the energy, commitment and imagination of those responsible for providing the teaching and learning environment, whether it is virtual or actual. It is within this context that the authors of this paper set themselves the task of designing innovative online teaching and learning activities which add value to the student experience and genuinely assist learning traditionally difficult and dynamic concepts. The increasing adoption of outcomes based teaching and learning environments in universities around the world has provided wide-ranging opportunities to reflect on current learning and teaching practice. Whilst outcomes based teaching and learning is not a new idea (Biggs, 1999, many academic colleagues are actively seeking ways to leverage information technology solutions to design constructively aligned online teaching and learning activities which add value to the student learning experience and significantly assist in the understanding of difficult concepts and processes. This paper will describe and demonstrate the innovative development of online teaching and learning activities which adhere to the principles of both outcomes based

THE DOMAINS FOR THE MULTI-CRITERIA DECISIONS ABOUT E-LEARNING SYSTEMS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Murat Pasa UYSAL

2012-04-01

Full Text Available Developments in computer and information technologies continue to give opportunities for designing advanced E-learning systems while entailing objective and technical evaluation methodologies. Design and development of E-learning systems require time-consuming and labor-intensive processes; therefore any decision about these systems and their analysis needs systematic and structured guidance to lead to better decisions. Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA techniques are applicable in instructional technology-related research areas as well as in other academic disciplines. In this study, a conceptual domain model and a decision activity framework is proposed for E-learning systems. Instructional, technological, and administrative decision domains are included in this model. Finally, an illustrative example is given to show that AHP is an effective MCDA method for E-learning-related decisions.

Blended Learning at the Boundary: Designing a New Internship

Science.gov (United States)

Heckman, Robert; Østerlund, Carsten S.; Saltz, Jeffrey

2015-01-01

This paper explores how blended learning can enhance learning at the boundary between academia and industry, and make possible the design of a new kind of internship. Boundary theory proposes that socio-cultural discontinuities between different environments create opportunities for learning. Blended learning pedagogy makes it possible to make the…

Motivation, students' needs and learning outcomes: a hybrid game-based app for enhanced language learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Berns, Anke; Isla-Montes, José-Luis; Palomo-Duarte, Manuel; Dodero, Juan-Manuel

2016-01-01

In the context of European Higher Education students face an increasing focus on independent, individual learning-at the expense of face-to-face interaction. Hence learners are, all too often, not provided with enough opportunities to negotiate in the target language. The current case study aims to address this reality by going beyond conventional approaches to provide students with a hybrid game-based app, combining individual and collaborative learning opportunities. The 4-week study was carried out with 104 German language students (A1.2 CEFR) who had previously been enrolled in a first-semester A1.1 level course at a Spanish university. The VocabTrainerA1 app-designed specifically for this study-harnesses the synergy of combining individual learning tasks and a collaborative murder mystery game in a hybrid level-based architecture. By doing so, the app provides learners with opportunities to apply their language skills to real-life-like communication. The purpose of the study was twofold: on one hand we aimed to measure learner motivation, perceived usefulness and added value of hybrid game-based apps; on the other, we sought to determine their impact on language learning. To this end, we conducted focus group interviews and an anonymous Technology Acceptance Model survey (TAM). In addition, students took a pre-test and a post-test. Scores from both tests were compared with the results obtained in first-semester conventional writing tasks, with a view to measure learning outcomes. The study provides qualitative and quantitative data supporting our initial hypotheses. Our findings suggest that hybrid game-based apps like VocabTrainerA1-which seamlessly combine individual and collaborative learning tasks-motivate learners, stimulate perceived usefulness and added value, and better meet the language learning needs of today's digital natives. In terms of acceptance, outcomes and sustainability, the data indicate that hybrid game-based apps significantly improve

Medical education for rural areas: Opportunities and challenges for information and communications technologies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sargeant Joan

2005-01-01

Full Text Available Resources in medical education are not evenly distributed and access to education can be more problematic in rural areas. Similar to telemedicine′s positive influence on health care access, advances in information and communications technologies (ICTs increase opportunities for medical education. This paper provides a descriptive overview of the use of ICTs in medical education and suggests a conceptual model for reviewing ICT use in medical education, describes specific ICTs and educational interventions, and discusses opportunities and challenges of ICT use, especially in rural areas. The literature review included technology and medical education, 1996-2005. Using an educational model as a framework, the uses of ICTs in medical education are, very generally, to link learners, instructors, specific course materials and/or information resources in various ways. ICTs range from the simple (telephone, audio-conferencing to the sophisticated (virtual environments, learning repositories and can increase access to medical education and enhance learning and collaboration for learners at all levels and for institutions. While ICTs are being used and offer further potential for medical education enhancement, challenges exist, especially for rural areas. These are technological (e.g., overcoming barriers like cost, maintenance, access to telecommunications infrastructure, educational (using ICTs to best meet learners′ educational priorities, integrating ICTs into educational programs and social (sensitivity to remote needs, resources, cultures. Finally, there is need for more rigorous research to more clearly identify advantages and disadvantages of specific uses of ICTs in medical education.

Using Online Learning for At-Risk Students and Credit Recovery. Promising Practices in Online Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Watson, John; Gemin, Butch

2008-01-01

Online learning programs are designed to expand high-quality educational opportunities and to meet the needs of diverse students. While the primary reason online courses are offered in school districts is to expand offerings to courses that would otherwise be unavailable, the second most commonly cited reason for offering online learning is to…

Incorporating Speech Synthesis in the Development of a Mobile Platform for E-learning

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Roux, Justus; Scholtz, Pieter; Klop, Daleen

2010-01-01

training component, particularly focusing on an African language, isiXhosa. The high penetration rate of mobile phones within the African continent has created new opportunities for delivering various kinds of information, including e-learning material to communities that have not had appropriate......This presentation and accompanying demonstration focuses on the development of a mobile platform for e-learning purposes with enhanced text-to-speech capabilities. It reports on an international consortium project entitled Mobile E-learning for Africa (MELFA), which includes a reading and literacy...... infrastructures. Aspects of the mobile platform development are described paying attention to basic functionalities of the user interface, as well as to the underlying web technologies involved. Some of the main features of the literacy training module are described, such as grapheme-sound, correspondence...

Real-time individualized training vectors for experiential learning.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Willis, Matt; Tucker, Eilish Marie; Raybourn, Elaine Marie; Glickman, Matthew R.; Fabian, Nathan

2011-01-01

Military training utilizing serious games or virtual worlds potentially generate data that can be mined to better understand how trainees learn in experiential exercises. Few data mining approaches for deployed military training games exist. Opportunities exist to collect and analyze these data, as well as to construct a full-history learner model. Outcomes discussed in the present document include results from a quasi-experimental research study on military game-based experiential learning, the deployment of an online game for training evidence collection, and results from a proof-of-concept pilot study on the development of individualized training vectors. This Lab Directed Research & Development (LDRD) project leveraged products within projects, such as Titan (Network Grand Challenge), Real-Time Feedback and Evaluation System, (America's Army Adaptive Thinking and Leadership, DARWARS Ambush! NK), and Dynamic Bayesian Networks to investigate whether machine learning capabilities could perform real-time, in-game similarity vectors of learner performance, toward adaptation of content delivery, and quantitative measurement of experiential learning.

Homework through a network: designing technologies to support learning activities within the home and between home and school

OpenAIRE

Fraser, Katie C.

2009-01-01

Government policy and academic research both talk about transforming learning through networked technologies – sharing newly available information about the learning context with new partners to support lifelong learning activities, and giving learners increased power and autonomy. This thesis examines how such learning opportunities might be supported. In order to ground these learning opportunities in current educational activity it studies homework, which is an example of a learning activi...

Strategic value assessment and explorative learning opportunities with customers

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Nijssen, E.J.; Hillebrand, B.; Jong, de J.P.J.; Kemp, R.G.M.

2012-01-01

This study recognizes that collaboration with customers for new product development may bring important financial benefits to firms, but at the same time may seriously hamper explorative learning. Many firms are approached by customers with requests to develop new products for them. While such

Strategic Value Assessment and Explorative Learning Opportunities with Customers

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Nijssen, E.J.; Hillebrand, B.; Jong, de J.P.J.; Kemp, R.G.M.

2012-01-01

This study recognizes that collaboration with customers for new product development may bring important financial benefits to firms, but at the same time may seriously hamper explorative learning. Many firms are approached by customers with requests to develop new products for them. While such

Digital Production and Students as Learning Designers

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sørensen, Birgitte Holm; Levinsen, Karin

2014-01-01

Today’s digitalization allows users to interact, collaborate, communicate and create user-generated content. The technology is intuitive and easy to use even for young children, and new learning opportunities emerge. Particularly, students’ production as a learning form benefits from digitalization...

High-Quality Learning Environments for Engineering Design: Using Tablet PCs and Guidelines from Research on How People Learn

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Enrique Palou

2012-04-01

Full Text Available A team of several faculty members and graduate students at Universidad de las Amricas Puebla is improving engineering design teaching and learning by creating richer learning environments that promote an interactive classroom while integrating formative assessment into classroom practices by means of Tablet PCs and associated technologies. Learning environments that are knowledge-, learner-, community-, and assessment-centered as highlighted by the How People Learn framework, have been developed. To date, the redesign of the undergraduate course entitled Introduction to Engineering Design has signicantly (p<0.05 increased student participation; formative assessment and feedback are more common and rapid; and instructors are utilizing the information gained through real-time formative assessments to tailor instruction to meet student needs. Particularly important have been opportunities to make student thinking visible and to give them chances to revise, as well as opportunities for "what if" thinking.