How to interweave accessibility with didactic and technological quality of digital educational materials

Accessibility is a quality requirement for digital educational materials (or contents) in interactive learning environments. It ensures that students with disabilities do not face barriers when using such content. However, guaranteeing the accessibility of these materials is no easy task, at least for a significant part of the producers, evaluators, and users of educational materials, such as teachers. Proof of this can be found in the results of the case studies on the usability and reliability of technological accessibility evaluation standards conducted by Spanish Association for Standardisation (UNE) during the development of the Spanish Standard for the Quality of Digital Educational Materials UNE 71362. The results obtained show the difficulty of ensuring a good level of accessibility to digital educational materials, concluding that most creators and evaluators did not apply the guidelines due to either ignorance or difficulties. In order to minimise this problem, a new research approach has been taken based on unifying and abstracting the technology accessibility indicators from the regulations in force and integrating them, according to their applicability, transversally in the teaching and technological criteria of the new standard. This paper presents, explains and justifies this new approach in which the accessibility criteria are not isolated.Peer Reviewe

Book Review: E. Martín-Monje, I. Elorza, I. and B. García Riaza (eds) (2016). Technology-Enhanced Language Learning for Specialized Domains. Practical applications and mobility. New York: Routledge, pp. 286, ISBN: 978-1-315-65172-9.

Computers have had a significant presence in language teaching since the 1960s, while the obvious emerging development of “educational technology” can be established in the early 1980s. By then, this term began to obtain significant popularity, since instructional media started to get a wider impact on educational practices. Since then, terminology has shifted significantly, from the initial Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL) to Technology-Enhanced Language Learning (TELL), subtly considering the fact that present computers are transforming less obvious “on the surface” while, at same time, being completely necessary. Computers lead other kinds of technology, such as audio, video and the World Wide Web, so that the current focus is on the communication which is facilitated by the computer rather than the machine itself

Assessment of the effects of digital educational material on executive function performance

The Learning Analytics system of the Smile and Learn platform recorded the students'use during class. According to the usage analysis, the results obtained show preference of using activities from Logic and Spatial worlds. In the external analysis of the effect of the learning material, the results record a significant effect using activities in Logic and Spatial worlds with the Gray Trails task, which involves spatial perception, processing speed, and working memory, among others. A second analysis to contrast the results with a post hoc design approaches relationships among executive functions as involved in tasks like Gray Trails, Interference, and Ring Tasks within the usage of Spatial and Logic activities. The need for further research to improve these materials for enhanced learning and the extrapolation of training from executive functions to other tasks is discussed. Likewise, limitations of the implementation and design of these materials are pointed out.This study is part of the project IND2017/SOC-7874 for assessment and improve the digital material design, funded by the Community of Madrid by 'Industrial Ph.D' grants

Subtitles in virtual reality : guidelines for the integration of subtitles in 360º content

Immersive content has become a popular medium for storytelling. This type of content is typically accessed via a head-mounted visual display within which the viewer is located at the center of the action with the freedom to look around and explore the scene. The criteria for subtitle position for immersive media still need to be defined. Guiding mechanisms are necessary for circumstances in which the speakers are not visible and viewers, lacking an audio cue, require visual information to guide them through the virtual scene. The aim of this reception study is to compare different subtitling strategies: always-visible position to fixed-position and arrows to radar. To do this, feedback on preferences, immersion (using the ipq questionnaire) and head movements was gathered from 40 participants (20 hearing and 20 hard of hearing). Results show that always-visible subtitles with arrows are the preferred option. Always-visible and arrows achieved higher scores in the ipq questionnaire than fixed-position and radar. Head-movement patterns show that participants move more freely when the subtitles are always-visible than when they are in a fixed position, meaning that with always-visible subtitles the experience is more realistic, because the viewers do not feel constrained by the implementation of subtitlesLos contenidos inmersivos se han convertido en un medio interesante para contar historias. A este tipo de contenido normalmente se accede con unas gafas de realidad virtual, a través de las cuales el usuario, que se encuentra en el centro de la acción, tiene la libertad de mirar y explorar la escena libremente. Los criterios para determinar la posición de los subtítulos en contenidos inmersivos todavía no se han definido. También se necesitan mecanismos de guía para indicar dónde está la persona que habla cuando está fuera del campo de visión y los usuarios no pueden contar con el audio para guiarse. El objetivo de este estudio de recepción es comparar diferentes estrategias de subtitulación: subtítulos siempre visibles con subtítulos colocados en posiciones fijas, y flechas con radar. Para ello, se han recopilado los comentarios de 40 participantes (20 oyentes y 20 con pérdida auditiva) sobre las preferencias, la inmersión (con el cuestionario ipq) y los patrones de movimiento de cabeza. Los resultados muestran que los subtítulos siempre visibles con flechas son la opción preferida. Además, estas soluciones obtuvieron mejores puntuaciones en el cuestionario ipq. Los patrones de movimientos de cabeza muestran que los participantes se movían más libremente con los subtítulos siempre visibles, lo que supone que con este tipo de subtítulos la experiencia es más realista ya que los usuarios no se sienten cohibidos por la integración de los subtítulosLes contenus immersifs sont devenus un moyen intéressant de raconter des histoires. Ce type de contenu est généralement accessible avec des lunettes de réalité virtuelle, avec lesquelles l'utilisateur est au coeur de l'action et à la liberté de regarder et d'explorer la scène librement. Les critères pour définir la position des sous-titres dans ce contenu n'a pas encore été définie. Des mécanismes de guidage sont également nécessaires pour indiquer où se trouve le locuteur lorsqu'il est hors du champ de vision et que les utilisateurs ne peuvent pas se fier à l'audio pour être guidés. L'objectif de cette étude de réception est de comparer différentes stratégies de sous-titrage : des sous-titres toujours visibles avec des sous-titres placés à des positions fixes et des flèches avec le radar. À cet égard, les commentaires de 40 participants (20 auditeurs et 20 malentendants) ont été recueillis sur les préférences, l'immersion (avec le questionnaire ipq) et les schémas de mouvements de la tête. Les résultats montrent que les sous-titres qui sont toujours visibles avec des flèches sont l'option préférée. En outre, ces solutions ont obtenu de meilleurs résultats dans le questionnaire ipq. Les modèles de mouvements de la tête montrent que les participants se sont déplacés plus librement avec les sous-titres toujours visibles, ce qui signifie qu'avec ce type de sous-titres, l'expérience est plus réaliste car les utilisateurs ne sont pas gênés par l'intégration des sous-titre

Digital educational resources supporting higher education students' learning

Com este artigo apreciou-se a importância atribuída à utilização de recursos educativos digitais, bem como a frequência de utilização desses recursos a partir de dados obtidos por questionário, numa amostra de estudantes do ensino superior. Aprofundou-se o conceito de recurso educativo digital e apresentaram-se os resultados da avaliação da importância dos recursos educativos digitais no apoio à aprendizagem de estudantes de licenciatura, em aspetos associados a estratégias de aprendizagem, motivação e tarefas de aprendizagem. Concluiu-se que a maioria dos sujeitos da amostra atribuiu grande importância a todos os aspetos apreciados, tendo-se verificado diferenças significativas entre os estudantes de 1.º ano e os de 2.º ano, relativamente ao item estudar individualmente, tendo-lhe atribuído maior importância os de 2.º ano. A frequência de utilização dos recursos educativos digitais foi analisada relativamente a diversos recursos, sendo os mais utilizados, muitas vezes ou sempre, por mais de metade dos sujeitos da amostra, motores de pesquisa, redes sociais e sites de vídeo. Comparando os resultados por grupos de estudantes há diferenças significativas, entre os grupos de 1.º ano e de 2.º ano, nas variáveis enciclopédias online, blogues, repositórios científicos e plataformas de elearning e entre os grupos de estudantes de 2.º ano e de 3.º ano, na variável redes sociais.The aim of this work was to assess the importance given to the use of digital educational resources as well as the use frequency of such resources. Data was obtained through a questionnaire conducted within a sample of higher education students. We fleshed out the concept of digital educational resource and presented the results regarding the assessment of the importance of digital educational resources as a support to license degree students' learning. We analyzed aspects associated with learning strategies, motivation, and learning tasks. We concluded that most of the sample subjects gave great importance to all the aspects assessed. Significant differences were found between 1st and 2nd year students regarding the item study individually, as 2nd year students were found to give this item more importance. The use frequency of digital educational resources was analyzed with regard to various resources. The most used, many times or always, by more than half of the sample subjects were search engines, social networks, and video sites. Comparing the results by groups of students, significant differences were found between the groups of 1st year and 2nd year students in the variables online encyclopedias, blogs, scientific repositories, and e-learning platforms. Significant differences were also found between the groups of 2nd and 3rd year students in the social networks variable.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

B-learning quality: dimensions, criteria and pedagogical approach

Measuring the quality of a b-learning environment is critical to determine the success of a b-learning course. Several initiatives have been recently conducted on benchmarking and quality in e-learning. Despite these efforts in defining and examining quality issues concerning online courses, a defining instrument to evaluate quality is one of the key challenges for blended learning, since it incorporates both traditional and online instruction methods. For this paper, six frameworks for quality assessment of technological enhanced learning were examined and compared regarding similarities and differences. These frameworks aim at the same global objective: the quality of e-learning environment/products. They present different perspectives but also many common issues. Some of them are more specific and related to the course and other are more global and related to institutional aspects. In this work we collected and arrange all the quality criteria identified in order to get a more complete framework and determine if it fits our b-learning environment. We also included elements related to our own b-learning research and experience, acquired during more than 10 years of experience. As a result we have create a new quality reference with a set of dimensions and criteria that should be taken into account when you are analyzing, designing, developing, implementing and evaluating a b-learning environment. Besides these perspectives on what to do when you are developing a b-learning environment we have also included pedagogical issues in order to give directions on how to do it to reach the success of the learning. The information, concepts and procedures here presented give support to teachers and instructors, which intend to validate the quality of their blended learning courses

Using evaluation criteria and rubrics as learning tools in subtitling for the D/deaf and the hard of hearing

This paper focuses on the use of evaluation criteria and rubrics as tools for training in an audiovisual translation mode: subtitling for the D/deaf and the hard of hearing (SDH). Following an introduction to the current conception of and research carried out on quality assurance and assessment both in the translation industry and academia, a brief overview of the assessment processes and instruments used in SDH university training and in the professional sector is provided. This is followed by a case study of SDH assessment practices in Spain. Two questionnaires were filled in by five service providers and 12 university trainers, and the data gathered has enabled a better understanding of how assessment is currently being performed. These results, together with the Spanish SDH standards and a competence-based training approach, informed the design of two assessment instruments: a set of evaluation criteria and a rubric, which are both presented here. We also present a series of graduated tasks which are designed to enable students to gain an understanding of and be able to use the instruments to assess SDH

Airtightness performance of the building envelope of dwellings in Spain. Characterisation and energy impact of air infiltration

Este trabajo aborda la caracterización de permeabilidad al aire de la envolvente de los edificios residenciales en España. Para ello, se propone una metodología con la que se ha estudiado una muestra representativa de casos, que ha generado una base de datos. El grado de permeabilidad al aire, evaluado mediante ensayos de presurización por medio de ventilador, muestra el comportamiento dispar de los edificios y un considerable potencial de ahorro energético. También se ha estudiado la relación entre diferentes características constructivas y el grado de permeabilidad al aire, y se han identificado los focos de filtración más comunes. El diseño inadecuado de las soluciones constructivas, así como la descuidada ejecución de los encuentros entre diferentes elementos, se han señalado como las principales causas que impiden envolventes más herméticas, y, en consecuencia, suponen los principales retos a afrontar en el futuro.Departamento de Construcciones Arquitectónicas, Ingeniería del Terreno y Mecánica de los Medios Continuos y Teoría de EstructurasDoctorado en Arquitectur