Powering the Academic Web

Context: Locating resources on the Web has become increasingly difficult for users and poses a number of issues. The sheer size of the Web means that despite what appears to be an increase in the amount of quality material available, the effort involved in locating that material is also increasing; in effect, the higher quality material is being diluted by the lesser quality. One such group affected by this problem is post-graduate students. Having only a finite amount of time to devote to research, this reduces their overall quality study time. Aim: This research investigates how post-graduate students use the Web as a learning resource and identifies a number of areas of concern with its use. It considers the potential for improvement in this matter by using a number of concepts such as: collaboration; peer reviewing and document classification and comparison techniques. This research also investigates whether by combining several of the identified technologies and concepts, student research on the Web can be improved. Method: Using some of the identified concepts as components, this research proposes a model to address the highlighted areas of concern. The proposed model, named the Durham Browsing Assistant (DurBA) is defined, and a number of key concepts which show potential within it are uncovered. One of the key concepts is chosen, that of document comparison. Given a source document, can a computer system reliably identify other documents which most closely match it from other on the Web? A software tool was created which allowed the testing of document comparison techniques, this was called the Durham Textual Comparison system (DurTeC) and it had two key concepts. The first was that it would allow various algorithms to be applied to the comparison process. The second concept was that it could simulate collaboration by allowing data to be altered, added and removed as if by multiple users. A set of experiments were created to test these algorithms and identify those which gave the best results. Results: The results from the experiments identified a number of the most promising relationships between comparison and collaboration processes. It also highlighted those which had a negative effect on the process, and those which produced variable results. Amongst the results, it was found that: 1. By providing DurTeC with additional source documents to the original, as if through a recommendation process, it was able to increase its accuracy substantially. 2. By allowing DurTeC to use synonym lists to expand its vocabulary, in many cases, it was found to have reduced its accuracy. 3. By restricting those words which DurTeC considered in its comparison process, based upon their value in the source document, accuracy could be increased. This could be considered as a form of collaborative keyword selection. Conclusion: This research shows that improvements can be made in the accuracy of identifying similar resources by using a combination of comparison and collaboration processes. The proposed model, DurBA would be an ideal host for such a system

The Implementation of a TBLT Didactic Unit and its Effect on Student Motivation in 4th of ESO

Màster Universitari de Formació del Professorat de Secundària Obligatòria i Batxillerat, Facultat d'Educació, Universitat de Barcelona. Curs: 2021-2022. Tutora: Anna Marie Zanatta[eng] This paper aims to analyse a didactic unit specifically designed and carried out in a 4th of ESO group in l’Institut 9 located in Santa Coloma de Gramenet. One of the main objectives of the didactic unit was to increase student motivation by using the TBLT approach in the classroom. To this purpose, the present study is focused on analysing the effect that the final task, the role of the teacher and the use of group work – had on students’ motivation. Before designing and implementing the didactic unit, an observation phase took place and a pre-questionnaire was administered to the students. Both the pre-questionnaire and the observation phase were key to determine that the students’ motivation was rather low. Therefore, the didactic unit had the aim to tackle this issue. Finally, a post-questionnaire was administered to the students to check the effectiveness of the unit in terms of motivation. Findings support the continued use of TBLT since it results in an improvement in students’ motivation.[cat] El present treball té com a objectiu analitzar una unitat didàctica dissenyada per a un grup de 4t d'ESO a l'institut 9 ubicat a Santa Coloma de Gramenet. Un dels principals objectius de la unitats didàctica augmentar la motivació dels alumnes utilitzant la metodologia TBLT. Per aconseguir aquest propòsit, el present estudi analitza l’efecte que – la activitat final de la unitat didàctica, el rol del professor i l’ús de treball col·laboratiu va tenir en la motivació de l’alumnat. Abans de la seva implementació, una fase d'observació i un pre-qüestionari van ser administrats als estudiants. Tots dos –el pre-qüestionari i la fase d'observació– van ser clau per determinar que la motivació dels alumnes era més aviat baixa. Per tant, la unitat didàctica tenia com a objectiu abordar aquest tema. Finalment, es va administrar un post-qüestionari als alumnes per comprovar l'eficàcia de la unitat en relació amb la motivació de l’alumnat. Els resultats suggereixen que seria recomanable continuar aplicant la metodologia TBLT perquè té un resultat positiu en la motivació dels estudiants

Dynamics in Logistics

This open access book highlights the interdisciplinary aspects of logistics research. Featuring empirical, methodological, and practice-oriented articles, it addresses the modelling, planning, optimization and control of processes. Chiefly focusing on supply chains, logistics networks, production systems, and systems and facilities for material flows, the respective contributions combine research on classical supply chain management, digitalized business processes, production engineering, electrical engineering, computer science and mathematical optimization. To celebrate 25 years of interdisciplinary and collaborative research conducted at the Bremen Research Cluster for Dynamics in Logistics (LogDynamics), in this book hand-picked experts currently or formerly affiliated with the Cluster provide retrospectives, present cutting-edge research, and outline future research directions

Special Area Teachers’ Perceptions Of Performance Evaluation Feedback And Professional Development Provided

There is significant research showing that teachers are motivated to grow intrinsically through the feedback and professional development opportunities they receive from their principals following the evaluation cycle. The quality of this feedback greatly influences their willingness to continuously improve their practices. However, limited research exists on whether special area teachers receive meaningful feedback and professional development opportunities from their principals, who may lack specialized content knowledge, following their evaluations. The primary purpose of this qualitative study was to explore special area teachers’ perceptions of the feedback and professional development opportunities their principals provided following the evaluation cycle. Participants included teachers who were employed as elementary school music teachers, had previous experience with FS County’s teacher evaluation system, and taught in an A rated school. Analysis of the data revealed that the music teachers neither received musical feedback nor were offered musical professional development opportunities by their principals following the evaluation cycle. However, it was revealed that the participants felt overwhelming support from their principals when they asked and were permitted to attend specialized professional development focused on teaching music, which in turn, promoted individual growth

Large-scale citizen science provides high-resolution nitrogen dioxide values and health impact while enhancing community knowledge and collective action

We present outcomes from a large-scale air quality citizen science campaign (xAire, 725 measurements) to demonstrate its positive contribution in the interplay between advances in exposure assessment and developments in policy or collective action. A broad partnership with 1,650 people from communities around 18 primary schools across Barcelona provided the capacity to obtain unprecedented high-resolution NO2 levels and an updated asthma Health Impact Assessment. It is shown that NO2 levels vary considerably with at some cases very high levels. More than a 1,000 new cases of childhood asthma could be prevented each year by lowering NO2 levels. Representativity of site selection and the minimal number of samplers for land use regression modelling are considered. Enhancement of community knowledge and attitudes towards collective response were observed and identified as key drivers for successful large-scale monitoring campaigns. The results encourage strengthening collaboration with local communities when exploring environmental health issues

Training and support for inclusive practices: Transformation from cooperation in teaching and learning

Indexación ScopusIn this article, we present the four-year actions carried out at a public school in Meco (Madrid, Spain). Through the research contract (LOU, Art. 83) “Cooperative teaching and learning to respond to the diversity of students”, during the years 2014 and 2018, various actions were carried out by the school in its process of methodological and organizational transformation towards a more inclusive model based on the cooperation of teachers and students. A journey was made from the actions aimed at traditional training through courses and seminars to the accompaniment actions in the classroom to implement the cooperative learning methodology. Results of the actions and analysis of the interviews carried out with teachers participating in the process during the four years of work as well as field observation notes are presented. The results show the transformation and improvement of teaching practices based on inclusion and the cooperative learning methodology. Among the central conclusions, there is evidence of internal improvement in organizational management and inclusive teaching practices from the involvement, support, and continuous training of teachers in educational quality towards students. © 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/5/258

Engaging Science: Innovative Teaching for Responsible Citizenship

This book “ENGAGING SCIENCE: Innovative teaching for responsible citizenship” provides a detailed overview of key pedagogical tools for Science Educators in Europe. This open licensed content translated in various languages and localised to address various national curricula has been implemented through MOOC in various countries in Europe. The ENGAGE “CPD on/for RRI” framework demonstrates its relevance to RRI teaching/learning content and structure by helping secondary science teachers address contemporary science issues, develop beliefs and knowledge for RRI and enrich their practices through teaching strategies based on inquiry pedagogies

Current Trends in Game-Based Learning

A myriad of technological options can be used to support digital game-based learning. One popular technology in this context is the mobile device, considering its high penetration rate in our societies, even among young people. These can be combined with other technologies, such as Augmented Reality (AR) or Virtual Reality (VR), to increase students’ motivation and engagement in learning processes.Due to this, there is an emergent need to know and promote good practices in the development and implementation of game-based learning approaches in educational settings. This was the motto for the proposal of the Education Sciences (ISSN: 2227-7102) Special Issue “Current Trends in Game-Based Learning”. This book is a reprint of this Special Issue, collecting a set of five papers that illustrate the contribution of innovative approaches to education, specifically the ones exploring the motivational factors associated with playing games and the technology that may support them

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