Interfirm co-operation and learning within SME networks - two cases from the Styrian Automotive cluster

Recent publications in the cluster-related literature have shown that interfirm links imply the potential to foster higher forms of learning within clusters. Especially networks deserve in this context a particular focus of attention. The purpose of this paper is to show essential conditions that should be present at cluster level in order to enable such forms of learning between the firms. This will be done in order to give a first advice for public and semi-public cluster institutions to facilitate interfirm collaborations and cluster related activities. Two case-studies of SME-networks selected from Styrian clusters will give the opportunity to get deeper insights into the conditions that enable clusters to bring forth double loop learning activities. In a first step particular criteria for the presence of double-loop learning will be established. In a second step the conditions for this specific type of learning will be dealt with. Among the categories of conditions that will be examined in detail are the relations and interactions in the network, the types of joint projects carried out between the firms and the specific organizational culture that prevails at the individual firm level. Key words: SME-networks, learning, organizational culture.

Assessing Professionalism: A theoretical framework for defining clinical rotation assessment criteria

Although widely accepted as an important graduate competence, professionalism is a challenging outcome to define and assess. Clinical rotations provide an excellent opportunity to develop student professionalism through the use of experiential learning and effective feedback, but without appropriate theoretical frameworks, clinical teachers may find it difficult to identify appropriate learning outcomes. The adage “I know it when I see it” is unhelpful in providing feedback and guidance for student improvement, and criteria that are more specifically defined would help students direct their own development. This study sought first to identify how clinical faculty in one institution currently assess professionalism, using retrospective analysis of material obtained in undergraduate teaching and faculty development sessions. Subsequently, a faculty workshop was held in which a round-table type discussion sought to develop these ideas and identify how professionalism assessment could be improved. The output of this session was a theoretical framework for teaching and assessing professionalism, providing example assessment criteria and ideas for clinical teaching. This includes categories such as client and colleague interaction, respect and trust, recognition of limitations, and understanding of different professional identities. Each category includes detailed descriptions of the knowledge, skills, and behaviors expected of students in these areas. The criteria were determined by engaging faculty in the development of the framework, and therefore they should represent a focused development of criteria already used to assess professionalism, and not a novel and unfamiliar set of assessment guidelines. The faculty-led nature of this framework is expected to facilitate implementation in clinical teaching

A Theoretical Analysis of Cooperative Behavior in Multi-Agent Q-learning

A number of experimental studies have investigated whether cooperative behavior may emerge in multi-agent Q-learning. In some studies cooperative behavior did emerge, in others it did not. This report provides a theoretical analysis of this issue. The analysis focuses on multi-agent Q-learning in iterated prisoner’s dilemmas. It is shown that under certain assumptions cooperative behavior may emerge when multi-agent Q-learning is applied in an iterated prisoner’s dilemma. An important consequence of the analysis is that multi-agent Q-learning may result in non-Nash behavior. It is found experimentally that the theoretical results derived in this report are quite robust to violations of the underlying assumptions.Cooperation;Multi-Agent Q-Learning;Multi-Agent Reinforcement Learning;Nash Equilibrium;Prisoner’s Dilemma

Promoting creativity in teaching drama

Conference: Future Academy Multidisciplinary Conference ICEEPSY & CPSYC & ICPSIRS & BE-CI Location: Istanbul, TURKEY Date: OCT 13-17, 2015The use of drama in education can be seen as an alternative to traditional teacher-led, scripted schooling and an answer to the challenges of our current postmodern knowledge culture, which aims at deeper conceptual understanding by preparing students to be more creative and create multimodal knowledge. At the same time the research project “Challenge of the empty space”, at Helsinki University's Teacher Education Department, has established that the potential complexity and diversity of creative processes in drama education is a challenge for teachers and as well for Finnish teacher education. In this article we bring together three doctoral studies of teaching drama (Kaasinen, Karjalainen-Väkevä and Lehtonen). They present three different approaches for how a teacher could support students’ creativity in a drama class. We suggest, that it might be beneficial for teachers teaching drama to have training in improvisation, to pay attention to the holistic presence and to focus on students’ perspectives, agency and ownership in teaching.Peer reviewe

Pedagogical technologies of preparing future preschool teachers’ for the artistically productive competence of preschool children

У статті висвітлено процес підготовки майбутніх вихователів, що ґрунтується на використанні технології мистецької рефлексії і образотворення. Технологія мистецької рефлексії і образотворення характеризуються: єдністю трьох середовищ; синтезом підходів до освіти; системністю, послідовністю й наступністю; ґрунтуванням на суб’єктному досвіді; елективністю; позитивними стимулами; створенням корпоративної атмосфери навчання, взаємної довіри та поваги, співробітництва і взаємопідтримки; створенням ситуації успіху. Визначено методичний інструментарій технології мистецької рефлексії і образотворення: когнітивнопізнавальні методи навчання, методи коопераційного навчання, методи інтерактивного навчання метод імітацій, ілюстраційний метод. Описано алгоритм апробації технології мистецької рефлексії і образотворення під час викладання методик мистецького спрямування. Продемонстровано ефективність апробованої технології, що підтверджено даними підсумкової педагогічної діагностики.The article highlights the process of future preschool teachers’ training is based on the use of technology of artistic reflection and image creation. The principles of technology of artistic reflection and image creation are characterized: the unity of three medium; synthesis of approaches to education; systematicity, consistency and continuity; substantiation of subjective experience; electivity; positive incentives; creation of a corporate atmosphere of learning, mutual trust and respect, cooperation and mutual support; creation of a success situation. The methodological toolkit of the technology of artistic reflection and imaging has been determined: cognitive and cognitive teaching methods, cooperative learning methods, interactive learning methods, imitation method, illustrative method. The algorithm of technology approbation of art reflection and image creation during teaching methods of art direction is described. The effectiveness of the tested technology is demonstrated, which is confirmed with the data of the final pedagogical diagnostics

Production Forest Utilization Strategy as Ecotourism for Community Empowerment in East Java

Production Forest Utilization Strategy as Ecotourism for Community Empowerment in East Java is one way in which the Ministry of Forestry through Perhutani to help communities around the forest production, in order to be helped welfare. Through the utilization of production forests for community development in East Java is one of the regional development priority which aims to develop the socio-economic potential and improve the lives of people in the region.In connection with that in mind, the results of this research report is an effort to assess the Production Forest Utilization Strategy as Ecotourism in managing the natural resources available in the region to support the success of community development in East Java. From these results it can be concluded that the government expected can provide socialization, supervision, monitoring and evaluation of routine and active against forestry programs that have been or are being implemented in production forest areas in East Java. In addition, socio-economic sensitivity of society around production forest in empowering families who can not afford to be more instrumental in providing knowledge on how entrepreneurship-based utilization of forest utilization as ecotourism for community development in East Java. Keywords: Strategy, Production Forest, Ecotourism, Empowermen

A Theoretical Analysis of Cooperative Behavior in Multi-Agent Q-learning

A number of experimental studies have investigated whether cooperative behavior may emerge in multi-agent Q-learning. In some studies cooperative behavior did emerge, in others it did not. This report provides a theoretical analysis of this issue. The analysis focuses on multi-agent Q-learning in iterated prisoner’s dilemmas. It is shown that under certain assumptions cooperative behavior may emerge when multi-agent Q-learning is applied in an iterated prisoner’s dilemma. An important consequence of the analysis is that multi-agent Q-learning may result in non-Nash behavior. It is found experimentally that the theoretical results derived in this report are quite robust to violations of the underlying assumptions

On Adaptive Emergence of Trust Behavior in the Game of Stag Hunt

We study the emergence of trust behavior at both the individual and the population levels. At the individual level, in contrast to prior research that views trust as fixed traits, we model the emergence of trust or cooperation as a result of trial and error learning by a computer algorithm borrowed from the field of artificial intelligence (Watkins 1989). We show that trust can indeed arise as a result of trial and error learning. Emergence of trust at the population level is modeled by a grid-world consisting of cells of individual agents, a technique known as spatialization in evolutionary game theory. We show that, under a wide range of assumptions, trusting individuals tend to take over the population and trust becomes a systematic property. At both individual and population levels, therefore, we argue that trust behaviors will often emerge as a result of learning