Pre-Education Programs: A Comprehensive Project at Henry Ford Community College

Henry Ford Community College (HFCC) in Dearbom, Michigan is a two-year institution of higher education serving a diverse student population of approximately 13,000 students. In addition to providing a broad array of technical and vocational programs, the College provides the first two years of a baccalaureate program. However, the transferability of these programs is not assured. In the absence of a mandated state-wide curriculum, two- and four-year colleges and universities in Michigan develop courses and programs independently, and the transfer of courses between institutions is determined independently by the respective departments. The end result is often loss of credit when a community college student transfers. Other problems faced prospective education majors as well. Students were justifiably apprehensive about the suitability of their academic preparation for the challenges they would confront at the four-year institution. To address this and other problems, HFCC initiated a comprehensive project to develop a structured teacher education program. The project consisted of two components: 1) creation of pre-education programs and 2) institution of articulated transfer agreements as a result of collaboration with neighboring universities. The success of this reform is underscored by a dramatic increase in HFCC pre-education majors from 354 students in 1994 to 697 in 1997, with 80 students designating minority status in 1994 and 179 in 1997

Using cross-lingual information to cope with underspecification in formal ontologies

Description logics and other formal devices are frequently used as means for preventing or detecting mistakes in ontologies. Some of these devices are also capable of inferring the existence of inter-concept relationships that have not been explicitly entered into an ontology. A prerequisite, however, is that this information can be derived from those formal definitions of concepts and relationships which are included within the ontology. In this paper, we present a novel algorithm that is able to suggest relationships among existing concepts in a formal ontology that are not derivable from such formal definitions. The algorithm exploits cross-lingual information that is implicitly present in the collection of terms used in various languages to denote the concepts and relationships at issue. By using a specific experimental design, we are able to quantify the impact of cross-lingual information in coping with underspecification in formal ontologies

The art object does not embody a form of knowledge

This paper makes explicit the claim that the proper goal of visual arts research is visual art. This claim is consistent with the view held by many scholars in the visual arts community, who see art as a form of research (cf. K. Macleod and L. Holdridge, Thinking through Art: Reflections on Art as Research, London: Routledge, 2006), but accept that research is an original investigation undertaken in order to gain knowledge and understanding. This being the case, the knowledge acquired either resides in the art object and/or secondary outcomes (e.g., a texts). This paper argues against the proposition that the art object is a form of knowledge. Although consistent with Biggs' (2002) paper 'The role of the artefact in art and design research', published in International Journal of Design Sciences and Technology. 10:2, 19-24 (which did not actually appear in print until 2004), Biggs holds to the above definition of research and subsequently focuses on experiential knowledge (2004). However, if, as claimed here, the proper goal of visual arts research is visual art, and if visual art is not a form of knowledge, then visual arts research is not in essence a knowledge acquisition process. This dilemma is resolved by proposing that visual art making serves a different purpose to knowledge acquisition and that visual arts research would be better described as original creation undertaken in order to generate novel apprehension, thus developing the fundamental proposition presented a paper published by the author in the International Journal of Design Sciences and Technology in 2002. Biggs, M. A. R. (2004). Learning from Experience: approaches to the experiential component of practice-based research. Forskning-Reflektion-Utveckling. H. Karlsson. Stockholm, Swedish Research Council: 6-21. Scrivener, S.A.R. (2002) Characterising creative-production doctoral projects in art and design. International Journal of Design Sciences and Technology, 10(2), pp. 25 - 44. (appeared 2004

Digital learning resources and ubiquitous technologies in education

This research explores the educators' attitudes and perceptions about their utilisation of digital learning technologies. The methodology integrates measures from ‘the pace of technological innovativeness’ and the ‘technology acceptance model’ to understand the rationale for further ICT investment in compulsory education. A quantitative study was carried out amongst two hundred forty-one educators in Malta. It has investigated the costs and benefits of using digital learning resources in schools from the educator’s perspective. Principal component analysis has indicated that the educators were committed to using digital technologies. In addition, a step-wise regression analysis has shown that the younger teachers were increasingly engaging in digital learning resources. Following this study’s empirical findings educational stakeholders are better informed about how innovative technologies can support our students. In conclusion, this paper puts forward key implications and recommendations for regulatory authorities and policy makers for better curricula and educational outcomes.peer-reviewe

410 Romanian Managers’ Opinion Regarding the Place and Role of the Organizational culture in the Sustainable Development Management

In the sustainable development management, the following important elements are present and operate: rules of conduct, values, aspirations and expectations, beliefs, specific myths, learned behavior patterns, habits, visible symbols of the company, motivation / reward systems, rights and obligations, components of the organizational culture. These generate the way the activities of sustainable development are structured. The organizational culture influences the sustainable development at the economic, social and environmental level. It contains sustainable values for change, oriented towards the sustainable development management.organizational culture; sustainable development management; the determinants of the organizational culture; human capital; organizational culture dimensions.