Digitalization and Development

This book examines the diffusion of digitalization and Industry 4.0 technologies in Malaysia by focusing on the ecosystem critical for its expansion. The chapters examine the digital proliferation in major sectors of agriculture, manufacturing, e-commerce and services, as well as the intermediary organizations essential for the orderly performance of socioeconomic agents. The book incisively reviews policy instruments critical for the effective and orderly development of the embedding organizations, and the regulatory framework needed to quicken the appropriation of socioeconomic synergies from digitalization and Industry 4.0 technologies. It highlights the importance of collaboration between government, academic and industry partners, as well as makes key recommendations on how to encourage adoption of IR4.0 technologies in the short- and long-term. This book bridges the concepts and applications of digitalization and Industry 4.0 and will be a must-read for policy makers seeking to quicken the adoption of its technologies

Cooperative learning projects as a strategy to foster oral interaction in EFL learners

146 Páginas.La interacción oral tiene un papel importante en el aprendizaje de idiomas. Estudios previos han resaltado que los estudiantes deben ser involucrados en actividades más motivantes, significativas y auténticas como forma de promover y mejorar la interacción oral. Sin embargo, poca atención y valor se le ha dado al aprendizaje cooperativo como estrategia para involucrar a los estudiantes en la interacción oral. El presente estudio de investigación-acción educativa empleó registros de audio, diarios del docente y entrevistas grupales para recolectar datos sobre el impacto que los proyectos cooperativos tuvieron sobre el desarrollo de la interacción oral en los estudiantes. Los datos fueron analizados a la luz de la teoría fundamentada y los resultados demostraron que los estudiantes mejoraron significativamente su interacción oral trabajando cooperativamente en proyectos. Esto justifica la noción de que el aprendizaje cooperativo es un enfoque efectivo para mejorar la interacción oral en niños, por lo tanto, este debería ser ampliamente adoptado por la comunidad educativa

Managing Intellectual Property to Foster Agricultural Development

Over the past decades, consideration of IPRs has become increasingly important in many areas of agricultural development, including foreign direct investment, technology transfer, trade, investment in innovation, access to genetic resources, and the protection of traditional knowledge. The widening role of IPRs in governing the ownership of—and access to—innovation, information, and knowledge makes them particularly critical in ensuring that developing countries benefit from the introduction of new technologies that could radically alter the welfare of the poor. Failing to improve IPR policies and practices to support the needs of developing countries will eliminate significant development opportunities. The discussion in this note moves away from policy prescriptions to focus on investments to improve how IPRs are used in practice in agricultural development. These investments must be seen as complementary to other investments in agricultural development. IPRs are woven into the context of innovation and R&D. They can enable entrepreneurship and allow the leveraging of private resources for resolving the problems of poverty. Conversely, IPRs issues can delay important scientific advancements, deter investment in products for the poor, and impose crippling transaction costs on organizations if the wrong tools are used or tools are badly applied. The central benefit of pursuing the investments outlined in this note is to build into the system a more robust capacity for strategic and flexible use of IPRs tailored to development goals