Digital accessibility across Kuwait’s software development landscape

When designing and developing digital services it is important to consider equity and inclusion. However, in practice adopting and sustaining the development of accessible digital solutions has always been challenging, more so in countries that are relatively new to the concept of universal design, and physical and digital accessibility, and where legal sanctions are not yet established. This work investigates the software development scene in the State of Kuwait and analyses the responses of computing professionals regarding their skills, best practices, and procurement of accessible tech, and to their level of awareness towards people with disabilities. The findings reveal a low level of awareness of disability and digital accessibility amongst tech professionals. They also highlight a lack of available guidance, time management, training, legal enforcement, and coverage of fundamental concepts in higher education

Evaluating the Effectiveness of the E-learning Experience in Some Universities in Saudi Arabia from Male Students’ Perceptions

ABSTRACT This study applies social science methodology to the innovation of e-learning so that decision makers and other stakeholders can assess aspects of its effectiveness, to provide a more secure base for action. In this study, e-learning’s effectiveness was evaluated at two universities in Saudi Arabia, through male learners’ perceptions. Some account was taken of variables to assess statistically significant differences in their views. The data was collected by mixed methods: using a questionnaire from a sample of 300 learners and a focus group interview attended, later, by 21 learners. The findings showed that e-learners believe that they are able to learn autonomously using all features made available by the technology. They reported that they were motivated by the interactivity of e-learning and pursued their courses with intensity and success. There was positive agreement in all four dimensions considered by the research. Significant variables within this positive rating were previous e-learning experience and ICT skills. The study also collected learners' views about the positives and negatives of e-learning, its requirements and barriers, as well as learners' suggestions for the development of e-learning. Learners appreciated the opportunities offered by e-learning and the way it supported their studies, facilitating communication and accommodating their learning needs and circumstances. They recognised that it helped to meet an increased demand for learning. On the other hand, they noted some hazards to physical and social health and some confusion arising from the diversity of information accessible through ICT. They felt improvements could be made by planning, training and by specialized personnel. Most of the barriers they noted arose from infrastructural weaknesses and lack of acceptance of e-learning. Respondents said they were aware of financial constraints and of language barriers. Universities, working closely with communities and the private sector, could address many of these identified issues in products and infrastructure. This study concludes with some recommendations as well as suggestions for future research

AN EXPLORATORY STUDY OF E-LEARNING STAKEHOLDERS’ EXPERIENCES OF DEVELOPING, IMPLEMENTING, AND ENHANCING E-COURSES IN ONE SAUDI UNIVERSITY

The use of e-learning technologies is gaining momentum in all educational institutions of the world, including Saudi universities. In the e-learning context, there is a growing need and concern among Saudi universities to improve and enhance quality assurance for e-learning systems. Practicing quality assurance activities and applying quality standards in e-learning in Saudi universities is thought to reduce the negative viewpoints of some stakeholders and ensure stakeholders’ satisfaction and needs. As a contribution to improving the quality of e-learning method in Saudi universities, the main purpose of this study is to explore and investigate strategies for the development of quality assurance in e-learning in King Khalid University (KKU) in Saudi Arabia, which is considered a good reference university using best and ongoing practices in e-learning systems among Saudi universities. In order to ensure the quality of its e-learning methods, KKU has adopted Quality Matters Standards as a controlling guide for the quality of its blended and full e-course electronic courses. Furthermore, quality assurance can be further improved, if a variety of perspectives are taken into consideration from comprehensive viewpoints of faculty members, administrative staff, and students. This qualitative research involved the use of different types of interviews, as well as documents that contain data related to e-learning methods in the KKU environment. This exploratory case study was undertaken, from the perspectives of various participants, to understand the phenomenon of quality assurance using an inductive technique. The purposive sample comprises a total of 30 female and male participants to answer the research questions and provide robust information in terms of how the quality of e-learning development has been met in the KKU environment. The thematic analysis method developed by (Braun & Clarke, 2006) was carried out to analyse the data from the interviews and documents. The results revealed six main supportive factors that assist in ensuring the quality of e-learning in the KKU environment. Essentially, these factors are: institutional support, faculty member support, evaluation of faculty, quality of e-course design, technology support, and student support, which together have a remarkable positive effect on quality, forming intrinsic columns, connected by bricks leading to quality e-learning. In addition, in the course of improving e-learning quality, KKU encountered various challenges, some of which were overcome while others were not. Generally, Quality Matters standards are considered to have a strong impact on improving faculty members' skills and on the development of high-quality blended and full e-courses. It is, therefore, the recommendations and implications of the present study that quality assurance practices in e-learning methods can be enhanced and that future researches might shed more light on these recommendations

Computer-assisted language learning in Saudi Arabian secondary schools

A thesis submitted to the University of Bedfordshire in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of PhilosophyAdopting new technology and integrating it into foreign language (English) teaching in a conservative Muslim society (Saudi Arabia) that is resistant to change is not an easy matter. However, the Saudi government has adopted progressive initiatives to develop the education system including the introduction of Information Communication Technology (ICT) into secondary schools. This study identifies factors that influence the adoption and integration of computer-assisted language learning (CALL) in the Saudi secondary schools context. It provides a much needed window into the overt factors influencing CALL adoption and integration, such as CALL facilities, Ministry of Education support, CALL training, and the lack of specific plans and projects for CALL. It also provides insight into the covert factors that hinder the introduction of innovation, such as attitudes towards CALL and cultural barriers. Guided by the theoretical framework provided by the Diffusion of Innovation Theory, the study collected both quantitative data through surveys (n = 298) and in-depth interview data from stakeholders in English language learning, including teachers, inspectors of English, and MOE policymakers

Business Education Lecturers’ Perception of Learning Management Systems for Effective Teaching and Learning Accounting in Universities in South-East, Nigeria

Literature revealed that ICT if properly integrated into teaching and learning have the potential to improve students’ academic performance. This study focused on determining business education lecturers’ perception of learning management systems (LMS) for effective teaching and learning of accounting in universities in South-East Nigeria. Structured questionnaire was used to elicit information from 232 lecturers from 9 universities from South-East Nigeria. The data collected were analyzed using percentages and mean to answer the research questions, while null hypotheses were tested using ANOVA at 0.05 level of significance. The findings revealed that business education lecturers’ perceived LMS as an effective learning environment. Thus, 184 (79%) of them maintained that constant use of LMS in teaching improves their professional practice, while 194 (83%) lecturers agreed that using LMS in instructional delivery increases ICT skills of the students. The findings also revealed a low mean score of skills possessed by business education lecturers for effective usage of LMS for teaching and learning. Inadequate ICT trainings, poor power supply, and poor internet connection were identified as the major barriers to LMS usage. The implication of underutilization of LMS by lecturers in instructional delivery is that many students are graduated without 21st century skills required for employment. The study recommended among others that integration of LMS into all accounting courses should be made compulsory in all the universities in Nigeria. Again, both government and administrative of the universities should create special funds for sponsoring the lecturers for workshops and LMS training to improve their skill

Knowledge Communities in Online Education and (Visual) Knowledge Management: 19. Workshop GeNeMe‘16 as part of IFKAD 2016: Proceedings of 19th Conference GeNeMe

Communities in New Media started in 1998 as a workshop series at TU Dresden, and since then has annually dealt with online communities at the interface between several disciplines such as education and economics, computer science, social and communication sciences, and more. (See Köhler, Kahnwald & Schoop, 2015). The workshop is traditionally a forum for interdisciplinary dialogue between science and business and serves to share experiences and knowledge among participants from different disciplines, organisations, and institutions. In addition to the core themes of knowledge management and communities (in the chapters of the same name), the main focus of the conference is also on the support of knowledge and learning processes in the field of (media-assisted) higher education. This is complemented by an informational perspective when it comes to more functional and methodological approaches - use cases, workflows, and automation in knowledge management. In addition, systems and approaches for feedback, exchange, and ideas are presented. With the focus of knowledge media design and visual research as well as creative processes, this time there is also a highlight on visual aspects of knowledge management and mediation. For IFKAD 2016, three GeNeMe tracks were accepted which focus on the interface of knowledge communities and knowledge management as well as knowledge media design in science, business, or education. In this conference volume you will find detailed information about these three tracks: -- Knowledge Communities I: Knowledge Management -- Knowledge Communities II: Online Education -- Visual Knowledge Management [From the Preface.]:Preface IX Vorwort XIII Knowledge Communities I: Knowledge Management 1 Process Learning Environments 1 Two Steps to IT Transparency: A Practitioner’s Approach for a Knowledge Based Analysis of Existing IT Landscapes in SME 13 Social Media and Sustainable Communication. Rethinking the Role of Research and Innovation Networks 26 Consolidating eLearning in a Higher Education Institution: An Organisational Issue integrating Didactics, Technology, and People by the Means of an eLearning Strategy 39 How to treat the troll? An empirical analysis of counterproductive online behavior, personality traits and organizational behavior 51 Knowledge Communities II: Online Education 64 Sifa-Portfolio – a Continuing Education Concept for Specialists on Industrial Safety Combining Formal and Informal Learning 64 Analysing eCollaboration: Prioritisation of Monitoring Criteria for Learning Analytics in the Virtual Classroom 78 Gamifying Higher Education. Beyond Badges, Points and Leaderboards 93 Virtual International Learning Experience in Formal Higher Education – A Case Study from Jordan 105 Migration to the Flipped Classroom – Applying a Scalable Flipped Classroom Arrangement 117 MOOC@TU9 – Common MOOC Strategy of the Alliance of Nine Leading German Institutes of Technology 131 A Survey on Knowledge Management in Universities in the QS Rankings: E-learning and MOOCs 144 Visual Knowledge Media 157 Generating implications for design in practice: How different stimuli are retrieved and transformed to generate ideas 157 Behind the data – preservation of the knowledge in CH Visualisations 170 Building a Wiki resource on digital 3D reconstruction related knowledge assets 184 Visual media as a tool to acquire soft skills — cross-disciplinary teaching-learning project SUFUvet 196 Graphing Meeting Records - An Approach to Visualize Information in a Multi Meeting Context 209 HistStadt4D – A four dimensional access to history 221 Ideagrams: A digital tool for observing ideation processes 234 Adress- und Autorenverzeichnis 251Gemeinschaften in Neuen Medien hat 1998 als Workshop-Reihe an der TU Dresden begonnen und seither jährlich das Thema Online-Communities an der Schnittstelle mehrerer Disziplinen wie Informatik, Bildungs- und Wirtschaftswissenschaften, Informatik sowie Sozial-und Kommunikationswissenschaft u.a.m. thematisiert (vgl. Köhler, Kahnwald & Schoop, 2015). Der Workshop ist traditionell ein Forum für den interdisziplinären Dialog zwischen Wissenschaft und Wirtschaft und dient dazu, Erfahrungen und Wissen unter den Teilnehmern aus verschiedenen Disziplinen, Organisationen und Institutionen zu teilen. Die inhaltlichen Schwerpunkte der Konferenz widmen sich neben den Kernthemen Wissensmanagement und Communities (in den gleichnamigen Kapiteln) auch der Unterstützung von Wissens- und Lernprozessen im Bereich der (mediengestützten) Hochschullehre. Ergänzt wird diese eher organisationswissenschaftliche durch eine informatorische Perspektive, wenn es um stärker funktionale bzw. auch methodische Ansätze geht – Use Cases, Workflows und Automatisierung im Wissensmanagement. Darüber hinaus werden Systeme und Ansätze für Feedback, Austausch und Ideenfindung vorgestellt. Mit den Schwerpunkten der Wissensmediengestaltung und visuellen Forschungs- sowie Kreativprozessen wird diesmal auch ein Schlaglicht auf visuelle Aspekte von Wissensmanagement und -vermittlung geworfen. Für die IFKAD 2016 wurden drei GeNeMe-Tracks angenommen, die sich auf das Interface von Wissensgemeinschaften und Wissensmanagement sowie die Wissensmediengestaltung in Wissenschaft, Wirtschaft oder Bildung konzentrieren. Im vorliegenden Tagungsband finden Sie detaillierte Informationen zu diesen drei Tracks: -- Knowledge Communities I: Knowledge Management -- Knowledge Communities II: Online Education -- Visual Knowledge Management [Aus dem Vorwort.]:Preface IX Vorwort XIII Knowledge Communities I: Knowledge Management 1 Process Learning Environments 1 Two Steps to IT Transparency: A Practitioner’s Approach for a Knowledge Based Analysis of Existing IT Landscapes in SME 13 Social Media and Sustainable Communication. Rethinking the Role of Research and Innovation Networks 26 Consolidating eLearning in a Higher Education Institution: An Organisational Issue integrating Didactics, Technology, and People by the Means of an eLearning Strategy 39 How to treat the troll? An empirical analysis of counterproductive online behavior, personality traits and organizational behavior 51 Knowledge Communities II: Online Education 64 Sifa-Portfolio – a Continuing Education Concept for Specialists on Industrial Safety Combining Formal and Informal Learning 64 Analysing eCollaboration: Prioritisation of Monitoring Criteria for Learning Analytics in the Virtual Classroom 78 Gamifying Higher Education. Beyond Badges, Points and Leaderboards 93 Virtual International Learning Experience in Formal Higher Education – A Case Study from Jordan 105 Migration to the Flipped Classroom – Applying a Scalable Flipped Classroom Arrangement 117 MOOC@TU9 – Common MOOC Strategy of the Alliance of Nine Leading German Institutes of Technology 131 A Survey on Knowledge Management in Universities in the QS Rankings: E-learning and MOOCs 144 Visual Knowledge Media 157 Generating implications for design in practice: How different stimuli are retrieved and transformed to generate ideas 157 Behind the data – preservation of the knowledge in CH Visualisations 170 Building a Wiki resource on digital 3D reconstruction related knowledge assets 184 Visual media as a tool to acquire soft skills — cross-disciplinary teaching-learning project SUFUvet 196 Graphing Meeting Records - An Approach to Visualize Information in a Multi Meeting Context 209 HistStadt4D – A four dimensional access to history 221 Ideagrams: A digital tool for observing ideation processes 234 Adress- und Autorenverzeichnis 25

The Internationalisation of Higher Education in the Mediterranean

The internationalisation of higher education is aimed at enhancing the quality and standards of teaching and research. This study addresses mobility and cross-border education trends in the Euro-Mediterranean region, with special emphasis on academic exchange, involving students, scholars and administrative staff, as well as on the strategic international partnerships across the globe. The study focuses on 10 countries: Algeria, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Palestine and Tunisia. It aims to investigate the internationalisation of higher education focusing especially on resources and opportunities available at the national and regional levels, to identify obstacles and challenges and to outline transferable inspiring practices and finally to make a series of recommendations for the Union for the Mediterranean to foster regional integration. As for the methodology, a survey investigating teaching and administrative staff as well as student mobility was submitted to a sample of universities representing the 10 target countries; further interviews with international and regional stakeholders were conducted, focus groups were established, involving the universities covered by the study and a thorough desk research was undertaken. As a result, the report presents a detailed context analysis with a focus on mobility flows to and from the 10 target countries, complemented by a wide range of inspiring and scalable practices, as well as an overview of the role played by regional organisations in providing opportunities, creating synergies and making resources available for the higher education institutions in the Mediterranean. Country-specific recommendations were designed in order to address national challenges. At the end of the research and consultative process, a number of common themes for the Euro-Mediterranean region were also identified, in relation to which additional recommendations were drafted, with the aim of enhancing the internationalisation of higher education in the region. We are still far from the finish line and this report has the ambitious goal to represent a building block for those willing to further explore the issue. Here follow the main findings, which are common to more than one country: Erasmus+ emerged as the programme generating the largest impact on the internationalisation strategies of higher education institutions; the need for university leadership to consider the administrative staff as a key element to support internationalisation; the high fragmentation in the procedures and systems of credit recognition and assessment of qualifications; difficulties were encountered in collecting reliable and comparable data. Obtaining visas for international mobility, especially for MENA countries to access Europe, has always been a serious obstacle to exchanges and international cooperation should focus more on human and social sciences, often neglected compared to hard sciences. Above all, the study highlights how, in most cases, internationalisation is simply identified as mobility, while a more comprehensive internationalisation strategy would be highly beneficial for institutions and staff and may increase attractiveness and participation