Relating Training to Job Satisfaction: A Survey of Online Faculty Members

As the online education market continues to mature, institutions of higher education will respond to student demand by employing quality faculty members. Faculty members need unique training to successfully teach online. While the effect of training on job satisfaction has been investigated in the realm of business, it has not been tested extensively in the realm of online higher education. A convenience sample of 497 Iowa Community College Online Consortium (ICCOC) faculty members was invited to participate, and 148 responded. A quantitative study utilizing regression analysis investigated the relationship between the training methodology of online course module completion and job satisfaction and the amount of training received and job satisfaction reported for faculty members who teach online, while controlling for the factors of gender and age. A survey methodology was used, whereby faculty members self-reported the training individual faculty members received, as well as the amount of training received. Overall job satisfaction was operationalized to assess current overall faculty job satisfaction through the use of the Index of Job Satisfaction (IJS) created and tested by Brayfield and Rothe (1951). Specifically, this study surveyed faculty members who teach for the ICCOC. The study was unable to find a statistically significant relationship for either training as a yes/no variable and overall job satisfaction (p=.463\u3e.05) or a relationship between training as a continuous variable and overall job satisfaction (p=.330\u3e.05), controlling for age and gender. There was also not enough evidence for a relationship between gender and job satisfaction (RQ1 p=.557\u3e.05 and RQ2 p= .542\u3e.05) for either research question. There is evidence in this study to support the literature review, of a linear relationship between age and overall job satisfaction (RQ1 p=.023\u3c.05 iii and RQ2 p=.028\u3c.05). The results of this study will be useful for school administrators as they seek cost conscious ways to improve faculty job satisfaction in a changing online environment

The conceptualisation of e-learning at the South African public sector.

Master of Commerce in Leadership Studies. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Westville 2015.The South African public sector is faced with many challenges and one of the major challenges is service delivery. This could be linked to not having government officials who have the necessary skills to carry out their duties. The skills shortage could also be a result of the public service having too many people to train in a short period of time. Training face-to-face has its challenges as employees have to be away from their day-to-day duties to attend training and this not only has an impact on productivity but also maximises costs. To deal with and to minimise these challenges the South African government has chosen to introduce eLearning in the South African public sector. This is aimed at ensuring that larger numbers of government officials are trained at minimum costs and ensuring that training reaches people with different responsibilities such as top management and people with families who cannot afford to be away from home or office for training for long periods of time. This study examined the advantages and disadvantages of the introduction of eLearning in the public sector; the importance of strategic planning for eLearning; the challenges faced by the public sector when it comes to training; how other organisations internationally have conceptualised eLearning, and; what the public sector is hoping to achieve by introducing eLearning. Even though eLearning has its disadvantages it is still seen by many scholars as an ideal way to train government employees and to build capacity. The gaps in the conceptualisation of eLearning in the South African public sector were identified and possible solutions including a paradigm shift from a reductionist way of thinking to a systems thinking way of thinking and doing things was recommended

An investigation into the treatment of uncertainty and risk in roadmapping: a framework and a practical process

This thesis investigates roadmapping in the context of its application to strategic early-stage innovation planning. It is concerned with providing an understanding of how uncertainty and risk are manifested in roadmapping in this application, and with developing and testing a roadmapping process that supports appropriate treatment of uncertainty and risk. Roadmapping is an approach to early-stage innovation planning, which is strategic in nature. It is seeing increasing application in practice and receiving growing attention in management literature. There has, however, been a noticeable lack of attention to uncertainty and risk in roadmapping theory and practice (and generally in strategic planning and at innovation’s early-stages). This is despite the awareness that uncertainty and risk are fundamental to strategy and innovation (i.e. application domains of roadmapping), and that roadmapping is meant to deliver, as part of its benefits, the identification, resolution and communication of uncertainties and risks. There is very limited theoretical or practical direction on what this entails. It is this gap that the research reported in thesis addresses. The research is divided into two phases. The first phase explains the manifestations and mechanisms of uncertainty and risk in roadmapping. It also introduces ‘risk-aware roadmapping’, a concept of roadmapping that includes a conscious and explicit effort to address uncertainty and risk, and points out what the process would entail in terms of necessary steps and procedures. The research here is designed using mixed methods (a combination of experience surveys, archival analysis, and case studies). The second phase provides a practical risk-aware roadmapping process. This practical process is developed based on the results of the first phase, and is designed according to procedural action research. This thesis contributes to the fields of roadmapping, early-stage innovation and organisational sensemaking. It is found that factors related to the content, process and nature of roadmapping interact to influence the perception and treatment of uncertainty and risk. Characteristics of organisational sensemaking as theorised by Weick (1995) are explored in the light of the findings and challenged. Aspects of early-stage innovation including the generation and selection of innovation ideas are explored in the context of uncertainty and risk and important paradoxes and constraints at innovation’s early-stages.This work was supported by Cambridge Commonwealth Trust, Nakazawa CATI Mexico, and Research and Development Management Associatio

Personality representation: predicting behaviour for personalised learning support

The need for personalised support systems comes from the growing number of students that are being supported within institutions with shrinking resources. Over the last decade the use of computers and the Internet within education has become more predominant. This opens up a range of possibilities in regard to spreading that resource further and more effectively. Previous attempts to create automated systems such as intelligent tutoring systems and learning companions have been criticised for being pedagogically ineffective and relying on large knowledge sources which restrict their domain of application. More recent work on adaptive hypermedia has resolved some of these issues but has been criticised for the lack of support scope, focusing on learning paths and alternative content presentation. The student model used within these systems is also of limited scope and often based on learning history or learning styles.This research examines the potential of using a personality theory as the basis for a personalisation mechanism within an educational support system. The automated support system is designed to utilise a personality based profile to predict student behaviour. This prediction is then used to select the most appropriate feedback from a selection of reflective hints for students performing lab based programming activities. The rationale for the use of personality is simply that this is the concept psychologists use for identifying individual differences and similarities which are expressed in everyday behaviour. Therefore the research has investigated how these characteristics can be modelled in order to provide a fundamental understanding of the student user and thus be able to provide tailored support. As personality is used to describe individuals across many situations and behaviours, the use of such at the core of a personalisation mechanism may overcome the issues of scope experienced by previous methods.This research poses the following question: can a representation of personality be used to predict behaviour within a software system, in such a way, as to be able to personalise support?Putting forward the central claim that it is feasible to capture and represent personality within a software system for the purpose of personalising services.The research uses a mixed methods approach including a number and combination of quantitative and qualitative methods for both investigation and determining the feasibility of this approach.The main contribution of the thesis has been the development of a set of profiling models from psychological theories, which account for both individual differences and group similarities, as a means of personalising services. These are then applied to the development of a prototype system which utilises a personality based profile. The evidence from the evaluation of the developed prototype system has demonstrated an ability to predict student behaviour with limited success and personalise support.The limitations of the evaluation study and implementation difficulties suggest that the approach taken in this research is not feasible. Further research and exploration is required –particularly in the application to a subject area outside that of programming

Proceedings of the BEST EN Think Tank XVI: Corporate Responsibility in Tourism: standards practices and policies

BEST EN is an international consortium of educators committed to the development and dissemination of knowledge in the field of sustainable tourism. The organization's annual Think Tank brings together academics and industry representatives from around the world to discuss a particular theme related to sustainable tourism in order to move research and education in this specific field forward. We are pleased to present the proceedings of the BEST Education Network (BESTEN) Think Tank XVI entitled Corporate Responsibility in Tourism – Standards Practices and Policies. The event was held in Berlin-Eberswalde, July 12-15, 2016, in conjunction with the ZENAT Centre for Sustainable Tourism, Eberswalde University for Sustainable Development, Eberswalde, considered one of Germany's greenest universities. The concept of corporate responsibility in tourism is a challenging one; it is subject to much critical debate, especially with regard to finding an appropriate balance between the different dimensions of standards, practices and policies. The proceedings present work by academics and practitioners worldwide, conducted on various aspects of corporate responsibility in tourism. They include abstracts and papers accepted by the scientific committee following a double blind peer review process

The Development of eServices in an Enlarged EU: eGovernment and eHealth in Lithuania

In 2005, IPTS launched a project which aimed to assess the developments in eGoverment, eHealth and eLearning in the 10 New Member States at national, and at cross-country level. At that time, the 10 New Member States were Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, and Slovakia. A report for each country was produced, describing its government and health systems and the role played by eGovernment and eHealth within these systems. Each report then analyzes, on the basis of desk research and expert interviews, the major achievements, shortcomings, drivers and barriers in the development of eGovernment and eHealth in one of the countries in question. This analysis provides the basis for the identification and discussion of national policy options to address the major challenges and to suggest R&D issues relevant to the needs of each country ¿ in this case, Lithuania. In addition to national monographs, the project has delivered a synthesis report, which offers an integrated view of the developments of each application domain in the New Member States. Furthermore, a prospective report looking across and beyond the development of the eGoverment, eHealth and eLearning areas has been developed to summarize policy challenges and options for the development of eServices and the Information Society towards the goals of Lisbon and i2010.JRC.J.4-Information Societ

Transforming teaching through the transformative integration of emerging technologies in the ePlay MakerSpace: a critical, socio-cultural design-based study

Despite South African schools and teachers gaining greater access to the tools, innovations, concepts and advancements of emerging technologies (ETs), the potential of ETs to transform teaching and improve learning remains largely unexploited. The majority of the country’s schools are classified as disadvantaged, being resource constrained and functioning in contexts of multiple deprivation and poverty. Learning is severely compromised in many disadvantaged schools, as evidenced by learners’ persistent underachievement in standardised national and international assessments. Consequently, improving the quality of teaching especially at primary school level, is identified as a national priority. Three extensive curriculum reforms, intensified teacher professional development, and the provision of ETs, have however not achieved widespread and sustained change to teaching practices. This suggests that existing teacher professional development (TPD) initiatives do not effectively prepare teachers from the country’s disadvantaged schools to exploit the transformative potential of ETs, to change their practice and manage change within their complex and dynamic education contexts. Instead, ETs that originate in advanced economies are frequently assumed universally applicable and application-neutral. Informed by this perspective, TPD is designed to prepare teachers to use or teach with ETs, either emphasizing technical skills or competencies to use tools, or in rare cases focussing on the concepts, innovations and advancements of ETs. TPD models that systematically and explicitly prepare South Africa’s teachers from disadvantaged schools to exploit the transformative potential of ETs and change their practice is not available. This study employs a socially embedded, progressive transformation perspective to ET. Accordingly, while it is assumed ETs have the capacity to improve learning, the form and processes of improvement and change to teaching practices are understood as locally developed by teachers. Informed by this perspective, transformative ET integration is conceptualised as contextually embedded, locally developed innovation and knowledge production to effect change to teaching and improve learning driven by contextually specific requirements and priorities. The transformative integration of ETs emphasizes the need to develop teachers dispositions to innovate and create, to experiment and take risks. However, within the field of education in South Africa, teachers’ dispositions reflect capacities to reproducing the structures of the field intent on increasing the flow of cultural capital, rather than dispositions of creativity and innovation. This study employs a critical, socio-cultural design-based theoretical frame and asks how the transformation of teachers’ dispositions may translate into their transformative integration of emerging technologies. The ePlay MakerSpace model is conceptualised as providing both inculcation processes and enabling conditions to transform teachers’ dispositions. Using a design-based research approach, two iterations of the ePlay MakerSpace model are designed, enacted and formatively evaluated to refine the design principles for the ePlay MakerSpace inculcation processes and enabling conditions. Data is collected through teachers’ created artifacts, their reflections and online posts, the formative evaluations of each iteration, and school-visits and interviews with teachers 3 – 4 weeks after each ePlay MakerSpace iteration. The evidence presented indicates that the majority of teachers transformatively integrated ET in their classrooms and/or schools, to address local priorities and solve contextual challenges. Through a retrospective analysis of the data, the process to transform teachers’ dispositions was refined, as well as the design framework and design methodology for the ePlay MakerSpace. The study contributes to the development of theory relating to teacher change, and the processes and conditions that support teacher’ change

The effect of interactivity in e-learning systems

This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University.The purpose of this research was to investigate whether interactivity yields a learning effect when used appropriately in e-Learning Systems, and whether this effect enhances learning. The importance of interactivity for success in learning has always been paramount; however, little scientific evidence can be found to support this importance (Sims, 2003; Leiner & Quiring, 2008). Thus, this research aims to provide evidence of the impact of interactivity on e-Learning Systems considering three main agents: the learner, the teacher and the system (educational triangle). A key element often found to be related to learning and the three previously-mentioned agents is the concept of feedback. The use of interactivity as part of a feedback mechanism for enhancing learning is well documented in this research. Three empirical studies were designed to investigate interactivity within the educational triangle. These three studies, developed to support the research hypotheses, were conducted based on the framework of positivism and action research paradigms. The first study, entitled “Interactive Pedagogical Feedback”, aimed to gather evidence for how highly interactive pedagogically-designed formative feedback enhances students’ memory and understanding. The two student groups to which the interactive conditions were added showed a significant difference in the post test scores. A one-way ANOVA with a Turkey HSD post hoc test for all pair wise comparisons reveals a significant difference between the transfer and no condition scenario. The second study, entitled “Interactive Audio Feedback”, examined whether the speed enhancements of oral feedback improve the conditions for the production of lecture’s feedback and the quality of the feedback delivered to the students. The use of the interactive condition reduces by 40 to 65% the time it usually takes to prepare feedback for final assignments, and an unpaired Student’s t-test shows significant differences in the use of the two conditions. The final study, “Interactive Texting Feedback”, took a pedagogical approach to provide formative feedback to a student audience using mobile text messages. It aimed to determine whether Interactive Texting Feedback enhances the leaning experience within the e-Learning environment. Inferential analysis demonstrated good correlations in the use and benefits obtained by the introduction of the interactive mechanism. The results indicated that interactivity is critical in promoting and enhancing effective learning. Learning theories led by the generative theory of learning (Wittrock, 1974) and the principles of multimedia learning (Mayer, 2001) provide scientific explanation for this findings

Estudo dos fluxos comunicacionais num sistema colaborativo de objetos de aprendizagem

Doutoramento em Informação e Comunicação em Plataformas DigitaisA convergência tecnológica e de conteúdos está a mudar a lógica de desenvolvimento das tipologias de soluções de formação e a conduzir a modelos mais flexíveis e interativos, com vista a dar resposta aos novos contextos de formação, muito baseados em modelos de negócio que privilegiam a aprendizagem ao longo da vida, numa perspetiva de partilha do saber e do conceito de inteligência coletiva orientada ao contexto de utilização. Associado a uma necessidade acelerada de disseminação e partilha do conhecimento, e num contexto de formação profissional, surge a necessidade de formação rápida também designada por formação just in time ou rapid learning. Este tipo de formação é suportado por uma metodologia de ensino a distância (e-learning) em regime de autoformação, centrado em Learning Management Systems e/ou em sistemas de objetos de aprendizagem. Destas novas necessidades emergentes do processo de aprendizagem, a dimensão transdisciplinar da comunicação tem sido um dos aspetos sublinhados em diversos estudos como determinante para repensar as interações e configurações dos espaços digitais pedagógicos. Neste contexto, o principal objetivo deste estudo é a conceção e validação de um modelo que identifique e caracterize os fluxos comunicacionais mais relevantes em sistemas de objetos de aprendizagem colaborativos. A relevância desses fluxos foi estudada com base numa proposta de um modelo que permita a identificação e caracterização dos fluxos, assim como a perceção da sua eficácia formativa manifestada por utilizadores desse tipo de sistemas. Com vista a operacionalizar o objetivo geral definido para este trabalho, foi realizada uma investigação teórica que enquadra a temática em análise, quer do ponto de vista conceptual, quer do ponto de vista mais prático. A componente empírica teve como base o desenvolvimento de um protótipo funcional de um sistema de objetos de aprendizagem (COLOR – Collaborative Learning Objects Repository), que foi testado em cenário interorganizacional com utilizadores de sistemas de gestão de aprendizagem (LMS). No que diz respeito ao desenho metodológico, a investigação decorreu em duas grandes fases: a primeira fase centrou-se na conceção e desenho de um modelo que permitiu sistematizar os fluxos mais relevantes no sistema e a segunda, de carácter mais prático, onde se fez a conceção, desenvolvimento e validação do protótipo deste sistema em contexto interorganizacional. A execução deste plano metodológico foi suportada, na primeira fase, numa estratégia do tipo investigação-ação de natureza antecipatória (Antecipatory Action Research) e, na segunda fase, numa abordagem do tipo design research. Como resultado da investigação efetuada, propõe-se que a análise das relações que se estabelecem entre os agentes em sistemas de aprendizagem baseados em objetos de aprendizagem se centre na interação, focada em diferentes dimensões do fluxo comunicacional que a suporta, nomeadamente, padrão, contexto, domínio, nível, categoria, direção e iniciativa. Esta proposta baseia-se no princípio que os novos contextos digitais de aprendizagem devem ser capazes de disponibilizar mecanismos funcionais de comunicação ajustados ao ambiente pretendido e adaptados aos agentes do processo. Toda esta dinâmica situa-se num cenário orientado à aprendizagem autorregulada, à colaboração e à pesquisa de informação, fatores que permitem o desenvolvimento de espaços que fomentam a personalização da formação em função das necessidades e perfis dos utilizadores, explorando novas dinâmicas para os canais de comunicação já conhecidos nestes contextos. O trabalho desenvolvido nesta investigação vem sublinhar a importância da comunicação e interação em cenários de mediação tecnológica de suporte à aquisição e transferência de conhecimento em contexto organizacional, e respetivo impacto para os agentes de comunicação que nele participam e que por ele são afetados.Technological and content’s convergence is altering the paradigm of learning solutions development and leading to new models, more flexible and interactive, looking to answer new training contexts, mainly based in business models that privilege lifelong learning, knowledge sharing and the concept of collective intelligence oriented to user context. Along with the need for fast dissemination and sharing of knowledge, in the context of professional training, comes the need for fast training also known as just in time training or rapid learning. This type of training is based on a remote teaching methodology (e-learning) in a self-learning regimen, focused on Learning Management Systems and/or learning objects’ systems. From all these new emerging needs in the learning process, the multidisciplinary dimension of communication has been identified in several studies as one of the most important aspects to rethink the interactions and configurations of digital learning spaces. In this context, the main objective of this study is to conceive and validate a model that can identify and characterize the most relevant communication fluxes in collaborative learning objects’ systems. Those fluxes’ relevance has been studied on the basis of a model proposal which allows identifying and characterizing fluxes, besides perceiving its training effectiveness, as manifested by the system’s users. To achieve this work’s main goal, a theoretical investigation on the theme was performed, both from the conceptual and the practical point of view. The empirical component was based on the development of a functional prototype of a learning objects’ system (COLOR – Collaborative Learning Objects Repository), which was tested in an inter-organizational scenery with real users of learning management systems (LMS). Regarding the methodological design, the investigation took place in two main phases: the first focused on the notion and design of a model which allowed systematizing the most relevant fluxes in the system; and the second, more practical, consisted on the conceptualization, development and validation of this system’s prototype, in an inter-organizational context. The execution of this methodological plan was supported, on the first stage, by an investigation-action type strategy of anticipatory nature (Anticipatory Action Research) and, on the second stage, on a design research type approach. In result of the investigation, it is proposed that the analysis of relationships established between agents in learning systems based in learning objects focuses on the interaction, namely in different dimensions of the communication flux which supports it, such as pattern, context, dominium, level, category, direction and initiative. This proposal is based on the principle under which new digital learning contexts should be able to offer functional communication mechanisms adjusted to the desired environment and adapted to the process agents. This entire dynamics is on a set oriented towards self-regulated learning, collaboration ad information research, factors that allow the development of spaces which promote learning customization according to the users’ needs and profiles, exploring new dynamics for the communication channels already known in these contexts. The work developed under this investigation stresses the importance of communication and interaction in technological mediation sceneries that support the acquisition and transfer of knowledge in organizations, as well as its impact on communication agents that participate and are affected by it