Exploring Language Learning with Mobile Technology: A Qualitative Content Analysis of Vocabulary Learning Apps for ESL Learners in Canada

Learning apps are becoming ubiquitous in and out of the classroom. While the number of ESL learnings apps has been increasing dramatically, not much information is available for teachers and learners to evaluate the quality of these apps. The purpose of this study was to explore the apps that are most commonly recommended for language learning, investigate features of commonly recommended ESL learning apps, and develop an app evaluation tool that might inform selection of ESL learning apps for use in teaching or recommendations to parents and learners. This study used qualitative content analysis to study selected vocabulary learning apps. Findings show that there is a lack of ESL reading and writing apps, and the selected apps do not have all the exemplar app features in curriculum, pedagogy, and design. The author developed an app evaluation checklist based on the existing literature, Ontario ESL curriculum, and on the emergent app features in the findings. The findings of this study have potential to guide administrators, policy makers, educators, teachers, and individual learners when selecting quality, productive, and well-designed apps

Innovative ICT solutions in telemedicine to support clinical practice and research in hospitals

2010/2011The scope of this study was to examine ICT telemedicine innovations and potentialities in web-portals, intranet services and tele-radiology topics respectively, in order to design, develop and, possibly, realize apposite telemedicine systems and solutions for healthcare and in particular for the hospitals. ICT techniques and technologies are nowadays applied in every area of our common living from work places to our homes, our free-time, schools, universities and so on. The healthcare services offered by hospitals are heavily supported by technologies and, behind them, by a wide research both in ICT and biomedical sciences. Thanks to these advances telemedicine is now becoming a fundamental part of services offered by hospitals and healthcare structures. The healthcare management, the doctors and the common people are now experimenting how telemedicine is an added value to all the services offered in terms of the quality of care, the patient follow up, the early diagnose and treatment of pathologies and diseases. In this research is presented an all-inclusive approach to telemedicine problems and challenges in particular studying, developing and proposing ICT methods and technologies in the above mentioned three areas of interest: •innovative healthcare and telemedicine-ready hospital website or portal design and development; •analysis and study of models for the realization of intranet healthcare services to enhance both quality of care and the management of healthcare personnel evaluation; •tele-radiology and some of its actual new perspectives as the study and the evaluation of the “mobile” tele-radiology approach using commercial tablets (and what it could mean).For the first topic the results may be summarized in the development of a more interactive and “social” hospital web-portal offering original solutions and services to all the categories of users (audience, professionals, researchers), allowing them – through the use of advanced tools - to configure and select their own pages and interests. The originality of this approach consists in a good cost/effective result in the respect of the last and worldwide accepted Internet regulations and policies too. A similar approach regarded the intranet services and the design of web interfaces for the clinical practice and the executive evaluation. These kind of innovative systems regard a limited and selected number of more skilled users, typically belonging to a corporation or to specific offices. As above the approach is important: interactive services, innovative tools and affordable instruments are the keywords of the systems designed or proposed to solve specific problems or needs. The last research topic concerned the proposal of a protocol for the assessment of medical images on commercial displays, interesting the stakeholders and the groups involved in medical images treatment, visualization and communication. The potentialities of the mobile tablet devices improve day after day and new devices are marketed every week and the innovation is round the corner. These potentialities must encounter the medical diagnostics world and meet the standards and the regulations the international community established. It will be difficult for a commercial tablet to obtain the medical device CE mark not only for commercial reasons, but the technical limits may be reached and even surpassed adopting objective measures and evaluations. This study demonstrates that commercial tablets may be used in clinical practice for the correct visualization and diagnose of medical images. The measures of some display characteristics may be considered acceptable for mobile interpretation (even report?) of medical images, but if and only if the ambient lighting conditions are under objective control and integrated automated systems in tablets warns physicians about bad or borderline technical and ambient restrictions or bonds.XXIII Ciclo197

Developing employability and job-related skills at mobile learning environments:a case study at an industrial training centre

This study investigates how mobile technologies play a role in the development of employability and job-related skills for trainees at Saudi Aramco’s Industrial Training Centres (SAITCs) in Saudi Arabia. Adopting a case study approach, qualitative and quantitative data was collected from 133 trainees and 29 instructors participating in an iPad training programme at SAITCs. The data was collected through semi-structured online questionnaires, interviews, onsite observations, and program documents. Findings of this study were linked to existing literature on mobile learning (M-Learning); especially in Vocational and Technical Education and Training (VTET) contexts. It is anticipated that the findings of this study will contribute to the community of researchers and educators in the field of educational research generally, the field of M-Learning, and VTET in particular, in a number of ways. Firstly, this study provides new insights on how mobile devices play a role in the development of employability and job-related skills in industrial training workplaces. Secondly, it offers a better understanding of the key aspects, dynamics, and features of M-Learning environments in the field of VTET. Third, it presents new insights on how mobile devices are linked with specific learning and teaching approaches and practices that have the potential to impact the learning and teaching experience. It is suggested that the findings of this study will have some impact on the perceptions and practices of curriculum developers and the pedagogical considerations of trainees and instructors in terms of learning and teaching with mobile devices. Finally, this research will offer some insights to Saudi Aramco policy makers and administrators that will enable them to improve the full implementation of the iPad program across the training centres

Things.info - how to create a WEB platform representing all man-made objects and their relationships

The research question is how to create the appropriate (highly usable, rapidly scalable, modifiable by all internet users) web and mobile platform for Things.info - visualised interactive database of world’s man-made physical objects and their relationships? Thesis covers theoretical background, poses underlying assumptions and critical success factors to accomplish the task in question. Two critical success factors – early adopters and high usability - are studied experimentally. Possible early adopters are identified through qualitative interviews. User experience testing is carried out based on lean UX theory and using interactive prototype. Overall, lean startup and agile software development methods are recommended to develop the platform in question.http://tartu.ester.ee/record=b2656162~S1*es

How Technology Teachers and Coaches Use Digital Tools in Instruction

While technology teachers and coaches have successfully integrated digital tools into their schools’ curricula, many classroom teachers still struggle with that integration. Not enough is known about how technology teachers and coaches plan and implement instruction using digital tools, and this knowledge may be useful for classroom teachers. This basic qualitative study explored some digital tools such as interactive whiteboards (IWBs), desktop computers, iPad devices, and apps used in instruction for pedagogy and content. The Technology Pedagogy and Content Knowledge (TPACK) was the study\u27s conceptual framework. The purpose of the study was to determine how using digital tools in instruction may enhance pedagogy and content for building learning experiences and facilitating learning styles. Nine participants were recruited via social media from Grades 3 through 8 technology teachers and coaches from the northeastern United States. Telephone interviews were used to collect data and the audio was digitally recorded and transcribed. Data were coded for categories, then themes and patterns using inductive analysis. The key results showed that digital tools enhanced learning styles such as visual, auditory, and kinesthetic. Participants disclosed that they relied on the internet for digital resources. Participants combined learners\u27 background experiences and knowledge for lesson planning and digital tools choices of apps and learning platforms. The positive social change implications include the potential for improving classroom teachers\u27 ability to incorporate digital tools into instruction to encourage class participation and learning

Chasing Sustainability on the Net : International research on 69 journalistic pure players and their business models

This report outlines how online-based journalistic startups have created their economical locker in the evolving media ecology. The research introduces the ways that startups have found sustainability in the markets of ten countries. The work is based on 69 case studies from Europe, USA and Japan. The case analysis shows that business models can be divided into two groups. The storytelling-oriented business models are still prevalent in our findings. These are the online journalistic outlets that produce original content – news and stories for audiences. But the other group, service-oriented business models, seems to be growing. This group consists of sites that don’t try to monetize the journalistic content as such but rather focus on carving out new functionality. The project was able to identify several revenue sources: advertising, paying for content, affiliate marketing, donations, selling data or services, organizing events, freelancing and training or selling merchandise. Where it was hard to evidence entirely new revenue sources, it was however possible to find new ways in which revenue sources have been combined or reconfigured. The report also offers practical advice for those who are planning to start their own journalistic site

Food for wine lovers: a restaurant repositiong

A presente tese de mestrado é um projeto-empresa em cooperação com o Clara Chiado, um restaurante, wine bar e loja gourmet destinado à classe média-alta, localizado no coração de Lisboa cujas receitas mensais diminuíram consideravelmente ao longo dos dois primeiros anos de negócio. Depois de identificado o problema, foi analisada toda a envolvente macro-económica externa, o sector, a concorrência e o consumidor de forma a identificar as oportunidades existentes. Foi igualmente feita uma exaustiva análise interna, que permitiu a identificação da principais lacunas do restaurante, e uma revisão de literatura, que permitiu a extração de importantes conclusões. Apesar da atual crise económica, o consumidor-tipo do restaurante manteve o seu poder de compra e o gosto pelas refeições fora de casa pelo que o problema não estava relacionado com os preços praticados mas sim com a falta de diferenciação e os fracos benefícios percebidos pelo cliente. A solução encontrada para aumentar o valor e a notoriedade da marca, reconquistando um maior número de clientes e valor médio de compra foi um reposicionamento do conceito. Assim, foi elaborada toda a componente estratégica associada ao reposicionamento e proposta uma adaptação operacional do Marketing Mix dos Serviços, maioritariamente focada na área do produto, serviço e comunicação externa/interna. O reposicionamento resultou no desenvolvimento de um conceito assente na experiência associado a um produto inovador para um target exigente. A proposta vem reforçar as principais forças encontradas e criar novas vantagens competitivas, sem esquecer a concorrência e as limitações monetárias inerentes a qualquer pequena empresa.The present master thesis is a company project made with the cooperation of Clara Chiado, a middle-up class restaurant, wine bar and gourmet store located in Lisbon, which monthly revenues have been decreasing during the first two years of the business. After identifying the problem, it was analysed the macroeconomics environment, the sector, main competitors and consumers to detect the major trends and opportunities. It was also made an exhaustive internal analysis, where the main gaps creating the problem were identified, and also a literature review that allowed extracting important conclusions Despite the current economic crisis, Clara Chiado target kept its buying power and the pleasure of dinning out, thus, the restaurant problem was not correlated with its price policy but with the lack of differentiation and low benefits perceived by the clients. The solution found to increase the brand awareness and equity and conquer a bigger number of clients and higher average purchases was the concept repositioning. Thus, it was made the whole strategic component associated to the repositioning and proposed a correspondent operational adaptation to the Services Marketing-Mix, mainly focused on the product, service and on the external and internal communication. The repositioning resulted in the development of an experiential concept associated to an innovative product focused on the demands of an exigent target. The proposal reinforces the major strengths found and creates new competitive advantages, without forgetting the competitors’ positioning and the monetary limitations typical of any small enterprise

Design-led future forecasting model for mobile communications

This thesis was submitted for the award of Doctor of Philosophy and was awarded by Brunel University LondonSince the establishment of the wireless sector, design has been playing a wide range of roles. Specialized literature has been extensively reporting the use of this discipline associated with NPD, focusing on hardware and software development in the mobile communications. On the other hand, evidences of its use to support forecasting are scarce and generic. Finally, formal publications addressing future forecasting from a design perspective in the context of mobile communications have never been reported, leading to a knowledge gap that needs to be addressed. This research investigates the strategic roles, applications and contributions of design and designers for future forecasting in the wireless telecom sector. As a comprehensive discipline, it is used to examine and identify a number of factors that might influence/impact in the development of visionary solutions supporting the design team of traditional handset manufacturers to make better decisions in order to ‘shape’ the future in the wireless industry. Considering these ideas, the aim of this research is to create a ‘design-led future forecasting model for mobile communications’ to assist and support traditional manufacturers’ design team. This PhD study relies on a qualitative methodology comprising a number of data collection and analysis tools (e.g. literature review, case studies analysis, in-depth experts’ interviews, workshops and Grounded Theory). To create the intended framework, extensive secondary and primary data; theoretical and practical inputs were brought together, analysed and combined. The proposed model was evaluated through two rounds of experts’ interviews complemented by two workshops with potential users (e.g. design students) to check and explore its practicalities when applied to design for the future. Finally, this study bridges future forecasting and the wireless telecom through the use of design to address the literature gap. The richness of the developed model provides practical assistance to traditional manufacturer’s design team informing about a broad spectrum of aspects that should be considered when designing for the future in the mobile telecom industry, supporting strategic decision making in different stages of the future-led design proces