Gender Differences In Social Presence In Gender-Segregated And Blended Learning Environments In Saudi Arabia

The present study aimed to achieve one of the goals of the Saudi Arabia Vision 2030, which is the improvement of the quality of teaching approaches and learning outcomes. Additionally, the vision strives for equality among students in all educational institutions, including equality among men and women, who are mostly segregated in all aspects of life (e.g., education). One of the major issues in the online portion of blended learning environments is the lack of social presence. Therefore, the present study used a quantitative, cross-sectional survey design to investigate the influence of gender on the perception of social presence levels in gender- segregated and blended learning environments in Saudi Arabia. The findings of this study revealed that the independent variable (gender) had an insignificant impact on dependent variable (social presence levels) in single-gender segregated and blended learning environments. Moreover, gender was not related to any of social presence four constructs (social context, privacy, interactivity, and online communication). The discussion of this study revealed that COVID-19 pandemic and technology evolution in the last decade could be two major factors that impacted the results of this study. The implications of this study are also included in the discussion section

Understanding Students' and Teachers' Approaches to Tablet Use in Turkish Secondary Schools: A Model Based Approach

Rapidly developing and widely used mobile technologies have been changing the way we live and learn. Such devices were banned from schools not long ago, and now, they are becoming part of everyday practice in schools. Governments around the world have been increasingly investing in learning technologies with the belief that teachers and students will eventually benefit from them (Diemer, Fernandez & Streepay, 2012; Pedró, 2010). However, these investments do not always result as desired. Turkey, where this research took place, is one of the countries that has invested in ICT through a program called the “Movement of Enhancing Opportunities and Improving Technology”, known as the FATIH Project. With the Fatih project the government had aimed to revolutionise the education by ‘upgrading’ the classrooms with the latest technology smartboards and providing students and teachers with a personal tablet. It is one of the most expensive and extensive government supported ICT projects ever taken place (Tamim, Borokhovski, Pickup & Bernard, 2015), and it is important to understand the perceptions of the end users. In order to collect information on students’ and teachers’ attitudes towards tablets a qualitative study with teacher interviews, student focus group sessions and observations was conducted. Moreover, lately ‘technology acceptance models’ have taken their places in education research with the claim that they could help to foresee the acceptance behaviour before developing or introducing a new technology by providing measurable variables; therefore, avoiding unexpected user rejection (Jan & Contreras, 2011). In this regard, this research aims to test the applicability of an existing model the ‘Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology 2’ (UTAUT2), which has been commonly used by educational researchers, and is suggested to be more suitable to educational account. In that sense, this part of the research has a quantitative nature. Data were collected through questionnaires from secondary school students (n=266) and analysed in accordance with the qualitative data collected with this research and the previous literature. It is believed that theoretical findings of this research will help researchers to understand if a model approach is suitable for education, if so, will help to develop a model that corresponds to the requirements of educational research. Additionally, the findings of this study will help the Turkish government in understanding the expectations and perceptions of the students and teachers regarding the tablet use in education

Leveraging HCI in teaching mobile, ‘anytime and everywhere’ IT.

Within our IT program, we have been working on constructive ways to teach HCI for the past five years; so, when the mobile revolution caught fire, we already had been working on better ways to incorporate HCI-related learning outcomes in our curricula. In the course of this activity, we have identified leverage points to meaningfully teach the important HCI concepts and skills listed below. These points provide a means for those interested in effective IT administration, accreditation and teaching to manage the increasing importance, complexity, and methodological diffusion of HCI in the mobile environment. This paper compiles and assesses the top seven of these leverage points. HCI topics required in the curriculum include: • Human Factors, • HCI Aspects of Application Domains, • Human-Centered Evaluation, • Developing Effective Interfaces, • Accessibility, • Emerging Technologies, • Human-Centered Computing

Leveraging HCI in teaching mobile, ‘anytime and everywhere’ IT.

Within our IT program, we have been working on constructive ways to teach HCI for the past five years; so, when the mobile revolution caught fire, we already had been working on better ways to incorporate HCI-related learning outcomes in our curricula. In the course of this activity, we have identified leverage points to meaningfully teach the important HCI concepts and skills listed below. These points provide a means for those interested in effective IT administration, accreditation and teaching to manage the increasing importance, complexity, and methodological diffusion of HCI in the mobile environment. This paper compiles and assesses the top seven of these leverage points. HCI topics required in the curriculum include: • Human Factors, • HCI Aspects of Application Domains, • Human-Centered Evaluation, • Developing Effective Interfaces, • Accessibility, • Emerging Technologies, • Human-Centered Computing

A qualitative study of workflow and information systems within Emergency Departments in the UK

Background: Health Information Technology (HIT) has the potential to improve the quality and efficiency of healthcare delivery and reduce costs. However, the integration of HIT into healthcare workflows has experienced a range of issues during its implementation. It can adversely impact healthcare workflows, therefore reducing efficiency and safety in healthcare delivery. As healthcare settings are characterised by its own workflow, an in-depth understanding of the workflows of where the HIT to be implemented is crucial in order to avoid complexities that can arise. As there is a lack of research investigating an overall ED workflow, both clinical and non-clinical processes and practices, this research aims to gain an in-depth understanding of emergency care workflow which includes the work processes and practices of its clinicians and non-clinicians and its information artefacts. Methodology: This research employed a fieldwork case study approach analysing the work processes and practices of clinicians and non-clinicians in the delivery of emergency care. The approach was used in order to capture the situated nature of the ED workflow. The study was conducted in two emergency care settings located in the UK. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews, non-participant observations and documents. A multiple triangulation technique: data triangulation and within-methods triangulation were employed in order to gain an in-depth understanding of the topic. The data were analysed using thematic analysis. Findings: The emergency care workflow consisted of multidisciplinary ED team members’ work processes. These work processes were comprised of collaborative clinical and non-clinical tasks and activities in delivering care treatment governed and defined by time-related activities, organisational rules, exceptions and variability. The workflow was supported by both computerised systems and non-computerised information artefacts, such as non-electronic whiteboards and paper-based records and forms, which needed to be used in conjunction with each other. Additionally, the hybrid implementation had also been utilised to support collaborative work of the clinicians and non-clinicians, hence giving the implication that HIT systems should not be designed as purely technical system focusing on single users, but also as a collaborative work system. Conclusion: An ED workflow consists of interrelated care processes, clinical and non-clinical processes. These processes are executed semi-autonomously by clinicians and non-clinicians and governed by time-related organisational constraints, variable and exception-filled, relying on hybrid information architecture. The architecture presented workflow with a number of integration issues. However, its implementation does not only support the functionalities for the delivery of emergency care processes but also the collaborative practices of the clinicians and non-clinicians

A qualitative study of workflow and information systems within Emergency Departments in the UK

Background: Health Information Technology (HIT) has the potential to improve the quality and efficiency of healthcare delivery and reduce costs. However, the integration of HIT into healthcare workflows has experienced a range of issues during its implementation. It can adversely impact healthcare workflows, therefore reducing efficiency and safety in healthcare delivery. As healthcare settings are characterised by its own workflow, an in-depth understanding of the workflows of where the HIT to be implemented is crucial in order to avoid complexities that can arise. As there is a lack of research investigating an overall ED workflow, both clinical and non-clinical processes and practices, this research aims to gain an in-depth understanding of emergency care workflow which includes the work processes and practices of its clinicians and non-clinicians and its information artefacts. Methodology: This research employed a fieldwork case study approach analysing the work processes and practices of clinicians and non-clinicians in the delivery of emergency care. The approach was used in order to capture the situated nature of the ED workflow. The study was conducted in two emergency care settings located in the UK. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews, non-participant observations and documents. A multiple triangulation technique: data triangulation and within-methods triangulation were employed in order to gain an in-depth understanding of the topic. The data were analysed using thematic analysis. Findings: The emergency care workflow consisted of multidisciplinary ED team members’ work processes. These work processes were comprised of collaborative clinical and non-clinical tasks and activities in delivering care treatment governed and defined by time-related activities, organisational rules, exceptions and variability. The workflow was supported by both computerised systems and non-computerised information artefacts, such as non-electronic whiteboards and paper-based records and forms, which needed to be used in conjunction with each other. Additionally, the hybrid implementation had also been utilised to support collaborative work of the clinicians and non-clinicians, hence giving the implication that HIT systems should not be designed as purely technical system focusing on single users, but also as a collaborative work system. Conclusion: An ED workflow consists of interrelated care processes, clinical and non-clinical processes. These processes are executed semi-autonomously by clinicians and non-clinicians and governed by time-related organisational constraints, variable and exception-filled, relying on hybrid information architecture. The architecture presented workflow with a number of integration issues. However, its implementation does not only support the functionalities for the delivery of emergency care processes but also the collaborative practices of the clinicians and non-clinicians