Behavior Change Apps for Gestational Diabetes Management : Exploring Desirable Features

Publisher Copyright: © 2021 The Author(s). Published with license by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) has considerable and increasing health effects as it raises both the mother’s and offspring’s risk for short- and long-term health problems. GDM can usually be treated with a healthier lifestyle, such as appropriate dietary modifications and engaging insufficient physical activity. While telemedicine interventions requiring weekly or more frequent feedback from health care professionals have shown the potential to improve glycemic control amongst women with GDM, apps without extensive input from health care professionals are limited and have not shown to be effective. We aimed to improve the efficacy of GDM self-management apps by exploring desirable features in a review. We derived six desirable features from the multidisciplinary literature and we evaluated the state of implementation of these features in existing GDM apps. The results showed that features for increasing competence to manage GDM and for providing social support were largely lacking.Peer reviewe

SARSCEST (human factors)

People interact with the processes and products of contemporary technology. Individuals are affected by these in various ways and individuals shape them. Such interactions come under the label 'human factors'. To expand the understanding of those to whom the term is relatively unfamiliar, its domain includes both an applied science and applications of knowledge. It means both research and development, with implications of research both for basic science and for development. It encompasses not only design and testing but also training and personnel requirements, even though some unwisely try to split these apart both by name and institutionally. The territory includes more than performance at work, though concentration on that aspect, epitomized in the derivation of the term ergonomics, has overshadowed human factors interest in interactions between technology and the home, health, safety, consumers, children and later life, the handicapped, sports and recreation education, and travel. Two aspects of technology considered most significant for work performance, systems and automation, and several approaches to these, are discussed

Connecting to Educational Resources Online with QR Codes

Quick Response (QR) codes are two-dimensional barcodes which can be scanned with web-enabled mobile devices. These codes connect directly to a website, video, phone number, or text message, providing instant access to information resources whenever and wherever needed. This paper will examine to what extent QR codes are currently being used in schools, and will explore the possibilities of integrating QR codes in school settings. Embedded in this discussion are descriptions of the next evolution of this form of technology

Introductory programming: a systematic literature review

As computing becomes a mainstream discipline embedded in the school curriculum and acts as an enabler for an increasing range of academic disciplines in higher education, the literature on introductory programming is growing. Although there have been several reviews that focus on specific aspects of introductory programming, there has been no broad overview of the literature exploring recent trends across the breadth of introductory programming. This paper is the report of an ITiCSE working group that conducted a systematic review in order to gain an overview of the introductory programming literature. Partitioning the literature into papers addressing the student, teaching, the curriculum, and assessment, we explore trends, highlight advances in knowledge over the past 15 years, and indicate possible directions for future research

Augmented Reality and Context Awareness for Mobile Learning Systems

Learning is one of the most interactive processes that humans practice. The level of interaction between the instructor and his or her audience has the greatest effect on the output of the learning process. Recent years have witnessed the introduction of e-learning (electronic learning), which was then followed by m-learning (mobile learning). While researchers have studied e-learning and m-learning to devise a framework that can be followed to provide the best possible output of the learning process, m-learning is still being studied in the shadow of e-learning. Such an approach might be valid to a limited extent, since both aims to provide educational material over electronic channels. However, m-learning has more space for user interaction because of the nature of the devices and their capabilities. The objective of this work is to devise a framework that utilises augmented reality and context awareness in m-learning systems to increase their level of interaction and, hence, their usability. The proposed framework was implemented and deployed over an iPhone device. The implementation focused on a specific course. Its material represented the use of augmented reality and the flow of the material utilised context awareness. Furthermore, a software prototype application for smart phones, to assess usability issues of m-learning applications, was designed and implemented. This prototype application was developed using the Java language and the Android software development kit, so that the recommended guidelines of the proposed framework were maintained. A questionnaire survey was conducted at the University, with approximately twenty-four undergraduate computer science students. Twenty-four identical smart phones were used to evaluate the developed prototype, in terms of ease of use, ease of navigating the application content, user satisfaction, attractiveness and learnability. Several validation tests were conducted on the proposed augmented reality m-learning verses m-learning. Generally, the respondents rated m-learning with augmented reality as superior to m-learning alone