Key Components of Musical Discourse Analysis

Musical discourse analysis is an interdisciplinary study which is incomplete without consideration of relevant social, linguistic, psychological, visual, gestural, ritual, technical, historical and musicological aspects. In the framework of Critical Discourse Analysis, musical discourse can be interpreted as social practice: it refers to specific means of representing specific aspects of the social (musical) sphere. The article introduces a general view of contemporary musical discourse, and analyses genres from the point of ‘semiosis’, ‘social agents’, ‘social relations’, ‘social context’, and ‘text’. These components of musical discourse analysis, in their various aspects and combinations, should help thoroughly examine the context of contemporary musical art, and determine linguistic features specific to different genres of musical discourse

Innovating Pedagogy 2015: Open University Innovation Report 4

This series of reports explores new forms of teaching, learning and assessment for an interactive world, to guide teachers and policy makers in productive innovation. This fourth report proposes ten innovations that are already in currency but have not yet had a profound influence on education. To produce it, a group of academics at the Institute of Educational Technology in The Open University collaborated with researchers from the Center for Technology in Learning at SRI International. We proposed a long list of new educational terms, theories, and practices. We then pared these down to ten that have the potential to provoke major shifts in educational practice, particularly in post-school education. Lastly, we drew on published and unpublished writings to compile the ten sketches of new pedagogies that might transform education. These are summarised below in an approximate order of immediacy and timescale to widespread implementation

Reasoning processes involved in ICT-mediated design communication

Conversational interaction is central to architectural design practice. New information and communication technologies (ICT) change the designer’s traditional way of communicating and interacting. In this paper we investigate how communication in the design process might be supported using ICT. With this aim, we study a text-based Skype conversation between a design teacher and a design student. We consider this conversation as part of an architectural design process and analyse it using linkography. From the linkograph analysis, specific features are identified that apply specifically to text-based Skype interactions. We conclude that online text-based Skype interaction can be one of the many possible interactions by means of communication media (sketching, conversation, modelling, and so forth) during the design process, and provides a distinct set of characteristics that might be considered by the designer

Learning from implementation of community selection in Zambia, Solomon Islands, and Bangladesh AAS hubs

The CGIAR Research Program on Aquatic Agricultural Systems (AAS) is a research in development program which aims to foster innovation to respond to community needs, and through networking and social learning to bring about development outcomes and impact at scale. It aims to reach the poorest and most vulnerable communities that are dependent upon aquatic agricultural systems. AAS uses monitoring and evaluation to track progress along identified impact pathways for accountability and learning. This report presents an evaluation of the recommended method for selecting communities during the participatory planning process, referred to as AAS “hub rollout,” in the first year of program implementation

Relevance of Linguistic Landscape to Intercultural Competence Development in the context of Situated Learning

Udostępnienie publikacji Wydawnictwa Uniwersytetu Łódzkiego finansowane w ramach projektu „Doskonałość naukowa kluczem do doskonałości kształcenia”. Projekt realizowany jest ze środków Europejskiego Funduszu Społecznego w ramach Programu Operacyjnego Wiedza Edukacja Rozwój; nr umowy: POWER.03.05.00-00-Z092/17-00

Using mobile technology to create flexible learning contexts

This paper discusses the importance of learning context with a particular focus upon the educational application of mobile technologies. We suggest that one way to understand a learning context is to perceive it as a Learner Centric Ecology of Resources. These resources can be deployed variously but with a concern to promote and support different kinds of mediations, including those of the teacher and learner. Our approach is informed by sociocultural theory and is used to construct a framework for the evaluation of learning experiences that encompass various combinations of technologies, people, spaces and knowledge. The usefulness of the framework is tested through two case studies that evaluate a range of learning contexts in which mobile technologies are used to support learning. We identify the benefits and challenges that arise when introducing technology across multiple locations. An analytical technique mapped from the Ecology of Resources framework is presented and used to identify the ways in which different technologies can require learners to adopt particular roles and means of communication. We illustrate how we involve participants in the analysis of their context and highlight the extent to which apparently similar contexts vary in ways that are significant for learners. The use of the Ecology of Resources framework to evaluate a range of learning contexts has demonstrated that technology can be used to provide continuity across locations: the appropriate contextualization of activities across school and home contexts, for example. It has also provided evidence to support the use of technology to identify ways in which resources can be adapted to meet the needs of a learner

Learning Dimensions: Lessons from Field Studies

In this paper, we describe work to investigate the creation of engaging programming learning experiences. Background research informed the design of four fieldwork studies involving a range of age groups to explore how programming tasks could best be framed to motivate learners. Our empirical findings from these four studies, described here, contributed to the design of a set of programming "Learning Dimensions" (LDs). The LDs provide educators with insights to support key design decisions for the creation of engaging programming learning experiences. This paper describes the background to the identification of these LDs and how they could address the design and delivery of highly engaging programming learning tasks. A web application has been authored to support educators in the application of the LDs to their lesson design