A metrology-based approach for measuring the social dimension of cognitive trust in collaborative networks

This version of the article has been accepted for publication, after peer review and is subject to Springer Nature’s AM terms of use, but is not the Version of Record and does not reflect post-acceptance improvements, or any corrections. The Version of Record is available online at: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10111-018-0483-1[Abstract]: This paper addresses the measurement of the social dimension of cognitive trust in collaborative networks. Trust indicators are typically measured and combined in literature in order to calculate partners’ trustworthiness. When expressing the result of a measurement, some quantitative indication of the quality of the result—the uncertainty of measurement—should be given. However, currently this is not taken into account for the measurement of the social dimension of cognitive trust in collaborative networks. In view of this, an innovative metrology-based approach for the measurement of social cognitive trust indicators in collaborative networks is presented. Thus, a measurement result is always accompanied by its uncertainty of measurement, as well as by information traditionally used to properly interpret the results: the sample size, and the standard deviation of the sample

Using reflective practice to study school leadership

The purposes of this investigation were to critically examine my principal leadership and to use reflective practice to improve my leadership practice and create positive change in the practices of teachers in the school. While scrutinizing critical incidents of practice, I utilized four reflective practice cycles to develop new action theories and new paradigms of leadership behavior. Reflective practice Cycle I focused on me as an individual. Revisiting who I was conceptually opened reflection about my identity, prompting me to think differently about my leadership. My partnering with another principal consisted of reflective practice Cycle II. Our emphasis was on a problem framing analysis of managing behaviorally challenged students. This collaboration led to the establishment of a mentor program for behaviorally challenged students and a school wide positive behavior support program. Reflective practice Cycle III evolved into weekly grade-level meetings for teachers where they utilized the reflective practice framework to solve problems. This theoretical framework allowed us to examine our practice from a critical perspective for improvement in student learning. Reflective practice Cycle IV highlighted how the process of reflective practice spiraled outward to the school level for the development of a school-based learning community

NON-VERBAL COMMUNICATION WITH PHYSIOLOGICAL SENSORS. THE AESTHETIC DOMAIN OF WEARABLES AND NEURAL NETWORKS

Historically, communication implies the transfer of information between bodies, yet this phenomenon is constantly adapting to new technological and cultural standards. In a digital context, it’s commonplace to envision systems that revolve around verbal modalities. However, behavioural analysis grounded in psychology research calls attention to the emotional information disclosed by non-verbal social cues, in particular, actions that are involuntary. This notion has circulated heavily into various interdisciplinary computing research fields, from which multiple studies have arisen, correlating non-verbal activity to socio-affective inferences. These are often derived from some form of motion capture and other wearable sensors, measuring the ‘invisible’ bioelectrical changes that occur from inside the body. This thesis proposes a motivation and methodology for using physiological sensory data as an expressive resource for technology-mediated interactions. Initialised from a thorough discussion on state-of-the-art technologies and established design principles regarding this topic, then applied to a novel approach alongside a selection of practice works to compliment this. We advocate for aesthetic experience, experimenting with abstract representations. Atypically from prevailing Affective Computing systems, the intention is not to infer or classify emotion but rather to create new opportunities for rich gestural exchange, unconfined to the verbal domain. Given the preliminary proposition of non-representation, we justify a correspondence with modern Machine Learning and multimedia interaction strategies, applying an iterative, human-centred approach to improve personalisation without the compromising emotional potential of bodily gesture. Where related studies in the past have successfully provoked strong design concepts through innovative fabrications, these are typically limited to simple linear, one-to-one mappings and often neglect multi-user environments; we foresee a vast potential. In our use cases, we adopt neural network architectures to generate highly granular biofeedback from low-dimensional input data. We present the following proof-of-concepts: Breathing Correspondence, a wearable biofeedback system inspired by Somaesthetic design principles; Latent Steps, a real-time auto-encoder to represent bodily experiences from sensor data, designed for dance performance; and Anti-Social Distancing Ensemble, an installation for public space interventions, analysing physical distance to generate a collective soundscape. Key findings are extracted from the individual reports to formulate an extensive technical and theoretical framework around this topic. The projects first aim to embrace some alternative perspectives already established within Affective Computing research. From here, these concepts evolve deeper, bridging theories from contemporary creative and technical practices with the advancement of biomedical technologies.Historicamente, os processos de comunicação implicam a transferência de informação entre organismos, mas este fenómeno está constantemente a adaptar-se a novos padrões tecnológicos e culturais. Num contexto digital, é comum encontrar sistemas que giram em torno de modalidades verbais. Contudo, a análise comportamental fundamentada na investigação psicológica chama a atenção para a informação emocional revelada por sinais sociais não verbais, em particular, acções que são involuntárias. Esta noção circulou fortemente em vários campos interdisciplinares de investigação na área das ciências da computação, dos quais surgiram múltiplos estudos, correlacionando a actividade nãoverbal com inferências sócio-afectivas. Estes são frequentemente derivados de alguma forma de captura de movimento e sensores “wearable”, medindo as alterações bioeléctricas “invisíveis” que ocorrem no interior do corpo. Nesta tese, propomos uma motivação e metodologia para a utilização de dados sensoriais fisiológicos como um recurso expressivo para interacções mediadas pela tecnologia. Iniciada a partir de uma discussão aprofundada sobre tecnologias de ponta e princípios de concepção estabelecidos relativamente a este tópico, depois aplicada a uma nova abordagem, juntamente com uma selecção de trabalhos práticos, para complementar esta. Defendemos a experiência estética, experimentando com representações abstractas. Contrariamente aos sistemas de Computação Afectiva predominantes, a intenção não é inferir ou classificar a emoção, mas sim criar novas oportunidades para uma rica troca gestual, não confinada ao domínio verbal. Dada a proposta preliminar de não representação, justificamos uma correspondência com estratégias modernas de Machine Learning e interacção multimédia, aplicando uma abordagem iterativa e centrada no ser humano para melhorar a personalização sem o potencial emocional comprometedor do gesto corporal. Nos casos em que estudos anteriores demonstraram com sucesso conceitos de design fortes através de fabricações inovadoras, estes limitam-se tipicamente a simples mapeamentos lineares, um-para-um, e muitas vezes negligenciam ambientes multi-utilizadores; com este trabalho, prevemos um potencial alargado. Nos nossos casos de utilização, adoptamos arquitecturas de redes neurais para gerar biofeedback altamente granular a partir de dados de entrada de baixa dimensão. Apresentamos as seguintes provas de conceitos: Breathing Correspondence, um sistema de biofeedback wearable inspirado nos princípios de design somaestético; Latent Steps, um modelo autoencoder em tempo real para representar experiências corporais a partir de dados de sensores, concebido para desempenho de dança; e Anti-Social Distancing Ensemble, uma instalação para intervenções no espaço público, analisando a distância física para gerar uma paisagem sonora colectiva. Os principais resultados são extraídos dos relatórios individuais, para formular um quadro técnico e teórico alargado para expandir sobre este tópico. Os projectos têm como primeiro objectivo abraçar algumas perspectivas alternativas às que já estão estabelecidas no âmbito da investigação da Computação Afectiva. A partir daqui, estes conceitos evoluem mais profundamente, fazendo a ponte entre as teorias das práticas criativas e técnicas contemporâneas com o avanço das tecnologias biomédicas

Asian American perspectives on college student experience: An interpretive narrative

This is a socio-cultural study examining contemporary Asian American college student experiences at a private liberal arts residential college in the rural Northeast United States. This project utilizes a grounded theory approach designed to collect both qualitative and quantitative data. The findings include a narrative interpretation that considers emotional experiences and social behaviors as sub-consciously held internalized identity beliefs. This project details psychological and social dimensions of shared Asian American experiences with insights into individual interpretive perspective frameworks shaped by community cultures. This study describes a distinctive Asian American identity that conjoins ethnicity with racial self-identity. Variables in ethnic identity, linguistic capability, immigration background, and racial identity are specifically investigated for impact on Asian American identity formation. Intra-group differences between Asian Americans are described through socio-cultural linguistic schisms, academic disconnects, and ethno-racial conflicts present during family and college existences. Implications in Asian American identity formation and multicultural approaches affecting curriculum and student life issues are suggested by these findings

Teacher Preparation for Linguistically Rich Classrooms : A Qualitative Study of Take-up in Relation to Linguistically Responsive Teaching

This qualitative study followed four urban early childhood teachers through their participation in a teacher education program designed to enhance their linguistically responsive teaching and into the first four months of the new school year in an effort to identify what the teachers indeed “took up” from the opportunities presented to them regarding linguistically responsive teaching. The sociocultural concept of funds of knowledge was used to frame this study and to ensure that each teacher’s work was analyzed with the understanding that individuals bring to each learning moment unique knowledge and knowhow that impacts learning and practice. All was undertaken with the intent of providing research-based answers to the following question: While following general education early childhood teachers through a formal learning program and into their classrooms, what “take-up” from the range of opportunities designed to help this small group of teachers become more linguistically responsive in their classrooms seems to be demonstrated? By focusing on individual teacher “take-up” this research study gave proper recognition to teachers trying to teach English language learners (ELLs) more effectively. Moreover, this study aimed to add insight into what a small group of general education early childhood teachers can reasonably “take-up” after participating in teacher education opportunities that are research-based and specifically designed to help general education teachers become more effective teachers of ELLs. Findings were presented as four themes to better understand the nuances as well as the ebbs and flows of teacher take-up of linguistically responsive teaching. The four themes that emerged were as follows: (1) take-up of linguistically responsive teaching manifested as a commitment to giving prominence to home languages; (2) take-up of linguistically responsive teaching involved personal introspection; (3) take-up of linguistically responsive teaching manifested as an understanding and incorporation of home language as a learning resource; (4) and the take-up of linguistically responsive teaching evolved over time into community sense-making

Effects of an Interactive, Literacy-Rich Environment on the Social, Language, Cognitive, and Literacy Development of Young Children with and without Special Needs

The purpose of this study is twofold: to identify play and literacy practices that are useful in an inclusive early childhood classroom and to demonstrate how these practices contribute to the development of children with and without disabilities. Play and literacy teaching practices are documented in this study of four preschool children. Two of the children have typical development patterns and two have mild to moderate special needs

A wealth of hallowed memories : The development of mission, saga, and distinctiveness at the Virginia Military Institute

This study seeks to discover the elements in Virginia Military Institute\u27s past that have proven most influential in guiding and preserving its present-day distinctive culture. Historical in nature, the study also incorporates theories from sociology and political science in analyzing the importance of events, people, and places surrounding Virginia Military between 1816 and 1890. Integral to the overarching theory behind this dissertation is the assumption that VMI\u27s history is closely linked with the history of Virginia and of the American South. In order to tie historical theory to the theory of the elite college, the hypothesis relies heavily on four texts: Burton Clark\u27s The Distinctive College, C. Vann Woodward\u27s The Burden of Southern History, W. J. Cash\u27s Mind of the South, and Bertram Wyatt-Brown\u27s Southern Honor.;Specifically, the study hypothesizes that Virginia Military was heavily reliant upon Virginia state government from the time of its founding in 1839 through the Civil War. However, the war provided the circumstances by which the Institute could claim its own place in history. The Battle of New Market, in which cadets from the Institute fought and died in support of the Confederate cause, gave VMI a substantive past separate from, yet tethered to, Virginia history and the history of the South. After the war, the Institute cultivated its own ideology and traditions, creating what Burton Clark terms an institutional saga. Self-realization of this saga, coupled with its external recognition by alumni, forged the distinctiveness exhibited by Virginia Military today. In turn, this distinctiveness, preserved by a conservative even reactionary ideology, created an institutional atmosphere reluctant to embrace change

Synesthetic Sensor Fusion via a Cross-Wired Artificial Neural Network.

The purpose of this interdisciplinary study was to examine the behavior of two artificial neural networks cross-wired based on the synesthesia cross-wiring hypothesis. Motivation for the study was derived from the study of psychology, robotics, and artificial neural networks, with perceivable application in the domain of mobile autonomous robotics where sensor fusion is a current research topic. This model of synesthetic sensor fusion does not exhibit synesthetic responses. However, it was observed that cross-wiring two independent networks does not change the functionality of the individual networks, but allows the inputs to one network to partially determine the outputs of the other network in some cases. Specifically, there are measurable influences of network A on network B, and yet network B retains its ability to respond independently

African American Superintendents’ Experiences with a Midwest State’s Hiring Practices

This study examined the lived experiences of African American male superintendents with a Midwestern state’s superintendent hiring practices. While looking through the lens of Critical Race Theory (CRT), it reveals how understanding their stories can help in several ways. First, this study can help school boards and search agents realize perceptions and possible unconscious biases and stereotypes that may influence their decisions to recommend, interview, and/or hire qualified African American male superintendent candidates. Additionally, this study seeks to help superintendent preparation programs and superintendent mentors provide beneficial information to aspiring African American male superintendent candidates. A tertiary goal of this study is to benefit the state’s educational leadership organizations, groups, and individuals by providing insight from these highly capable and current practitioners. Finally, this study will inform African American male superintendent candidates on what to expect, and how to prepare, when entering the superintendent-hiring arena.Ed.D.College of Education, Health and Human ServicesUniversity of Michigan-Dearbornhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/136073/1/Hodge Final Dissertation 12.7.16.pdfDescription of Hodge Final Dissertation 12.7.16.pdf : Dissertatio

The Effects of Traditional and Instructional Models of Sustained Silent Reading on the Reading Achievement and Motivation of Third and Fourth Grade Students

Despite a lack of empirical support for the effectiveness of sustained silent reading (SSR) in the literature, the practice of providing time for students to read materials of their own choosing during the school day is still offered in many classrooms today (Block & Mangieri, 2002; Nagy, Campenni, Shaw & Shaw, 2000; Pressley, Rankin & Yokoi, 1996). While many of the previous studies investigated a traditional version of SSR, where the teacher served as a model by reading silently during the period, this research also explores the effectiveness of an instructional version of SSR, known as Instructional Sustained Silent Reading, with five classrooms of third and fourth grade students. The essential elements of ISSR include teacher and student booksharing and weekly student-teacher conferences that focus on student interests and needs. A concurrent nested mixed methods research design was used to measure effects on reading achievement and reading motivation, as well as to explore the experiences of students and teachers as they were involved in both the traditional SSR and ISSR models of independent reading. The results indicate that students from both groups valued the opportunity to read for their own purposes during the school day and appreciated the choice and variety of books offered. Students involved in the ISSR model, particularly those who were low achieving or demonstrated low motivation for reading, benefited from the individualized support of the teacher during the weekly conferences and booksharing opportunities. For some of these students, a change was evidenced in their goal orientations, with a newfound perception of reading as a personally engaging activity (a mastery goal orientation) rather than as a teacher-controlled activity (performance orientation)