The role of mentoring in facilitating the process of repurposing OER

This paper presents the initial data analysis of a research that is work in progress. It discusses the role of mentoring and peer support in facilitating the process of repurposing open educational resources (OER). It also reports on the lessons so far learned from the analysis of two distinct but related case studies on working with learners to use and disseminate OER. The first case study is based on the 2009 presentation of the distance learning Masters’ course of the Institute of Educational Technology of the Open University UK (from now on OU) entitled “Technology Enhanced Learning: Practices and Debates”. In this course the registered students were guided through the repurposing of content within the OER repository of the OU, OpenLearn, as part of their course activities. The aim was to provide the students with substantial information about and knowledge of finding, using and repurposing OER. The second case study relates to the activities of the online community COLEARN, an initiative of the Knowledge Media Institute of the OU which started in 2006. COLEARN is an online community hosted within the OpenLearn platform, bringing together researchers and practitioners from Brazil, Portugal and Spain mostly. The aim of COLEARN is to offer a community-supported environment in which research and ideas about the use of collaborative technologies for learning can be shared. All the activities in COLEARN are available to the world as OER, as well as all the resources shared the by participants. Mentoring in these two cases happen in different ways. In the first case we term it ‘formal mentoring’ because the mentoring is part of the course activities of registered students in the course. The students are guided step by step on how to find OER, assess its relevance and how to make use of web 2.0 technologies to modify the content to fit specific purposes. In particular, they are prompted to use an in situ editing tool offered by OpenLearn to modify and re-publish content. The mentoring in this case is offered through the task design of the course material and through the tutoring available. In the case of COLEARN, the mentoring process happens through peer and tutor support from the community to the community. This is why we term it ‘informal mentoring’, although at a times the user performing the mentor’s role is a tutor of another learning setting (e.g. a tutor associated with a higher education institution). By means of pre-booked learning sessions (e.g. brainstorming sessions based on a web-videoconference tool such as Flashmeeting ), workshops and discussion forums the participants of this community get substantial support and guidance on how to use OER and technologies that facilitate OER repurposing. By analysing the activities of the mentors and participants in the two case studies, we aim to explore how both forms of mentoring seem to address the needs of the practitioners/students in terms of learning how to work with OER

Reflections on developing a tool for creating visual representations of learning designs: towards a visual language for learning designs

Over the past four years we have been developing CompendiumLD, a software tool for designing learning activities using a flexible visual interface. It has been developed as a tool to support lecturers, teachers and others involved in education to help them articulate their ideas and map out a design or learning sequence. CompendiumLD is a specialised version of Compendium, a tool for managing connections between information and ideas, which has been applied in many domains including the mapping of discussions and arguments. As most of the core knowledge mapping facilities provided by Compendium are included within CompendiumLD, it can be used for learning design, and applied it to other information mapping and modelling problems. Evidence gathered since CompendiumLD’s first release has shown the many conditions in which it is likely to be applied and appreciated by users, and that the need for visualising learning designs as a solution to understanding how all components of planned learning and teaching fit together may continue to grow. Furthermore, the use of technology is making the process of creating courses more complex. We explore these challenges and conclude with some reflections on the developments in visual representation needed to further facilitate the modelling of today and tomorrow’s complex learning situations

Karakterisasi Sifat Fisis Lumpur Panas Sidoarjo Dengan Aktivasi Kimia Dan Fisika

Lumpur panas Sidoarjo merupakan bencana yang mengakibatkan kerugian yang cukup besar. Salah satu upaya untuk mengurangi dampak kerugiannya adalah dengan memanfaatkannya. Dari hasil penelitian sebelumnya lumpur mampu dimanfaatkan sebagai adsorben dan bahan bangunan. Untuk mengetahui performansinya diperlukan karakterisasi secara kimia dengan menggunakan HCl 3M maupun NaOH 3M dan pengaruhnya terhadap aktivasi fisika melalui proses kalsinasi. Dari hasil karakterisasi dengan menggunakan SEM-EDX, XRD, FTIR, DTA, TGA-DSC, dan BET menunjukkan bahwa lumpur yang diaduk selama 1 jam pada larutan HCl 3M dan dikalsinasi pada suhu 800 oC selama 1 jam (H800) memiliki performansi terbaik

Influence of impact energy on work hardening ability of austenitic manganese steel and its mechanism

To further understand the hardening mechanism of austenitic manganese steel under actual working conditions, the work hardening ability was studied and the microstructures of austenitic manganese steel were observed under different impact energies. The work hardening mechanism was also analyzed. The results show that the best strain hardening effect could be received only when the impact energy reaches or exceeds the critical impact energy. The microstructural observations reveal that dislocations, stacking faults and twins increase with raising impact energy of the tested specimens. The hardening mechanism changes at different hardening degrees. It is mainly dislocation and slip hardening below the critical impact energy, but it changes to the twinning hardening mechanism when the impact energy is above the critical impact energy

Exploiting metallophilicity for the assembly of inorganic nanocrystals and conjugated organic molecules

The accurate engineering of interfaces between inorganic nanocrystals and semiconducting organic molecules is currently viewed as key for further developments in critical fields such as photovoltaics and photocatalysis. In this work, a new and unconventional source of interface interaction based on metal–metal bonds is presented. With this aim, an AuI organometallic gelator was exploited for the formation of hydrogel-like nanocomposites containing inorganic nanoparticles and conjugated organic molecules. Noteworthy, the establishment of metallophilic interactions at the interface between the two moieties greatly enhances interparticle coupling in the composites. Thus, we believe that this new hybrid system might represent a promising alternative in several fields, such as in the fabrication of improved light-harvesting devices.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

Orbiter entry aerothermodynamics

The challenge in the definition of the entry aerothermodynamic environment arising from the challenge of a reliable and reusable Orbiter is reviewed in light of the existing technology. Select problems pertinent to the orbiter development are discussed with reference to comprehensive treatments. These problems include boundary layer transition, leeward-side heating, shock/shock interaction scaling, tile gap heating, and nonequilibrium effects such as surface catalysis. Sample measurements obtained from test flights of the Orbiter are presented with comparison to preflight expectations. Numerical and wind tunnel simulations gave efficient information for defining the entry environment and an adequate level of preflight confidence. The high quality flight data provide an opportunity to refine the operational capability of the orbiter and serve as a benchmark both for the development of aerothermodynamic technology and for use in meeting future entry heating challenges

OULDI-JISC Project Evaluation Report: the impact of new curriculum design tools and approaches on institutional process and design cultures

This report presents research and evaluation undertaken by the OULDI-JISC Project (Open University Learning Design Initiative JISC Project) between 2008 and 2012. In particular, it considers the impact of new curriculum design tools and approaches piloted by the project on institutional processes and design cultures. These tools and approaches include tools for sharing learning design expertise (Cloudworks), visualising designs (CompendiumLD, Module Map, Activity Profile) and for supporting design and reflection in workshops (Facilitation Cards, workshop activities, etc.). The project has adopted a learning design approach so as to help foreground pedagogy and learner experience. Nine pilots have been completed across six UK universities