Introduction: Finding common ground beyond fragmentation

This chapter begins with an outline of the European context within which the twenty six research papers presented in this book emerged. A particularly important aspect of this context is Network 27 on Didactics, Learning and Teaching of the European Educational Research Association (EERA) which formed the core of the research community in which this work was developed over a five year period (2006-11). The next part of the chapter provides an overview of the six sections which make up the structure of the book as a whole. A discussion then follows of the clear continental divide with respect to didactics, learning and teaching in the European landscape which is based on the references used by the contributors to this book. This leads to a consideration of the historical origin of present-day didactics which can be traced back to a common heritage in the work of Jan Amos Comenius (1592-1670) in order to provide a platform in the search for common ground. In the section which then follows there is a discussion of the didactic triad as a tool for holding the complexity of teaching-studying-learning situations and this is considered in an expanded context in which classroom interaction in the school is placed within a wider societal context. Based on a review of the contributions to this book, the final parts of this chapter consider existing knowledge gaps between different national traditions and also identify themes that form the basis for building and extending common ground. The themes that have been identified through this process of synthesis relate to pedagogical content knowledge, learner knowledge, joint didactical action, curriculum research, the so called shift from teaching to learning, the philosophy of Bildung and its practical implications, links between theory and practice and the significant role of experimental schools. Finally these themes are proposed for consideration within the wider research, policy and practice community as the basis for future international co-operation that offer the potential to advance mutual understanding and common insights in this fiel

Rapid prototyping as a faculty-wide activity: An innovative approach to the redesign of courses and instructional medthods at the University of Twente

At the Faculty of Educational Science and Technology (Toegepaste Onderwijskunde, T.O.) of the University of Twente a revolutionary process of institutional change is occurring. Under the banner of C@MPUS+, we have made a commitment to blend the best of our old values of good teaching and an attractive campus life with new didactics and advanced technologies so that we can extend our already unique curriculum and instructional practice over distance and time, as well as enrich it

From participation to dropout

The academic e-learning practice has to deal with various participation patterns and types of online learners with different support needs. The online instructors are challenged to recognize these and react accordingly. Among the participation patterns, special attention is requested by dropouts, which can perturbate online collaboration. Therefore we are in search of a method of early identification of participation patterns and prediction of dropouts. To do this, we use a quantitative view of participation that takes into account only observable variables. On this background we identify in a field study the participation indicators that are relevant for the course completion, i.e. produce significant differences between the completion and dropout sub-groups. Further we identify through cluster analysis four participation patterns with different support needs. One of them is the dropout cluster that could be predicted with an accuracy of nearly 80%. As a practical consequence, this study recommends a simple, easy-to-implement prediction method for dropouts, which can improve online teaching. As a theoretical consequence, we underline the role of the course didactics for the definition of participation, and call for refining previous attrition models

A Dodecalogue of Basic Didactics from Applications of Abstract Differential Geometry to Quantum Gravity

We summarize the twelve most important in our view novel concepts that have arisen, based on results that have been obtained, from various applications of Abstract Differential Geometry (ADG) to Quantum Gravity (QG). The present document may be used as a concise, yet informal, discursive and peripatetic conceptual guide-cum-terminological glossary to the voluminous technical research literature on the subject. In a bonus section at the end, we dwell on the significance of introducing new conceptual terminology in future QG research by means of `poetic language'Comment: 16 pages, preliminary versio

Multiphase procedure for landscape reconstruction and their evolution analysis. GIS modelling for areas exposed to high volcanic risk

This paper – focussed on the province of Naples, where many municipalities with a huge demographic and building density are subject to high volcanic risk owing to the presence of the Campi Flegrei (Phlegrean Fields) caldera and the Somma-Vesuvius complex – highlights the methodological-applicative steps leading to the setting up of a multiphase procedure for landscape reconstruction and their evolution analysis. From the operational point of view, the research led to the: (1) digitalisation, georeferencing and comparison of cartographies of different periods of time and recent satellite images; (2) elaboration and publication of a multilayer Story Map; (3) accurate vectorisation of the data of the buildings, for each period of time considered, and the use of kernel density in 2D and 3D; (4) application of the extrusion techniques to the physical aspects and anthropic structures; (5) production of 4D animations and film clips for each period of time considered. A procedure is thus tested made up of preparatory sequences, leading to a GIS modelling aimed at highlighting and quantifying significant problem areas and high exposure situations and at reconstructing the phases which in time have brought about an intense and widespread growth process of the artificial surfaces, considerably altering the features of the landscape and noticeably showing up the risk values. In a context characterised by land use conflicts and anomalous conditions of anthropic congestion, a diagnostic approach through images in 2D, 3D and 4D is used, with the aim to support the prevention and planning of emergencies, process damage scenarios and identify the main intervention orders, raise awareness and educate to risk, making an impact on the collective imagination through the enhancement of specific geotechnological functionalities of great didactic interest