Using assignment data to analyse a blended information literacy intervention: a quantitative approach

This research sought to determine whether a blended information literacy learning and teaching intervention could statistically significantly enhance undergraduates’ information discernment compared to standard face-to-face delivery. A mixture of face-to-face and online activities, including online social media learning, was used. Three interventions were designed to develop the information literacies of first-year undergraduates studying Sport and Exercise at Staffordshire University and focused on one aspect of information literacy: the ability to evaluate source material effectively. An analysis was devised where written evaluations of found information for an assessment were converted into numerical scores and then measured statistically. This helped to evaluate the efficacy of the interventions and provided data for further analysis. An insight into how the information literacy pedagogical intervention and the cognitive processes involved in enabling participants to interact critically with information is provided. The intervention which incorporated social media learning proved to be the most successful learning and teaching approach. The data indicated that undergraduate students’ information literacy can be developed. However, additional long-term data is required to establish whether this intervention would have a lasting impact

Reviews

Brian Clegg, Mining The Internet — Information Gathering and Research on the Net, Kogan Page: London, 1999. ISBN: 0–7494–3025–7. Paperback, 147 pages, £9.99

The Regulation of E-learning: New National and International Policy Perspectives

The universe of postsecondary education is expanding. It is an era of rapid demographic and labor market changes, increased competition and shifts in institutional form (e.g., the rise of for profit degree granters, the hybrid form of nonprofit/for profit partnerships, corporate universities), and new forms of delivery driven by emerging technologies. In nearly all of these cases, the pace of innovation and establishment of new institutional forms outstrips the ability of regulators or policy makers to stay ahead of the curve.To better understand the complex interplay of public policy drivers regulating e-learning, the Center for Studies in Higher Education convened a meeting of experts in February 2006 for a preliminary examination of existing and emerging public policies that will shape its regulation both domestically and internationally. Three white papers were used as a point of departure for the discussions, which focused on the following areas: The Changing Regulatory Environment: Who, What, Why, and Where?; Finance, Investment, and the Flow of Capital; Student Access and Equity; Social Costs and Benefits from an International Perspective; and Consumer Protection and Cross-border Education. This report summarizes our conversations and recommendations for future research

Proceedings ICPW'07: 2nd International Conference on the Pragmatic Web, 22-23 Oct. 2007, Tilburg: NL

Proceedings ICPW'07: 2nd International Conference on the Pragmatic Web, 22-23 Oct. 2007, Tilburg: N

Web interfaces to enhance CAL materials: Case studies from law and statistics

One impact of the ‘information age’ is that a variety of new learning resources have become available to both students and tutors. Using these resources effectively and with a sound pedagogical basis presents a whole array of issues for teaching professionals. In this paper the authors describe the development and implementation of a Web interface to existing computer‐based learning materials in an attempt to enhance the student learning experience. Although the innovations occurred in two very different disciplines ‐statistics and law ‐ there are common lessons to be learned about the process of learning and the use of technology

Reviews

Technology‐based Learning Environments: Psychological and Educational Foundations edited by S. Vosniadou, E. De Corte and H. Mandl, volume 137 in NATO ASI Series F (Computer and Systems Sciences), Berlin, Springer‐Verlag, ISBN: 0–387–58253–3, 1994

Early experiences of computer‐aided assessment and administration when teaching computer programming

This paper describes early experiences with the Ceilidh system currently being piloted at over 30 institutions of higher education. Ceilidh is a course‐management system for teaching computer programming whose core is an auto‐assessment facility. This facility automatically marks students programs from a range of perspectives, and may be used in an iterative manner, enabling students to work towards a target level of attainment. Ceilidh also includes extensive course‐administration and progress‐monitoring facilities, as well as support for other forms of assessment including short‐answer marking and the collation of essays for later hand‐marking. The paper discusses the motivation for developing Ceilidh, outlines its major facilities, then summarizes experiences of developing and actually using it at the coal‐face over three years of teaching

Using Action Research to Determine and Resolve Team Issues for Courseware Developers

A department consisting of four teams of courseware developers and instructors had been experiencing a lack of team cohesiveness as evidenced by the exclusion of individuals and unwillingness to support group goals. Using action research, a collaborative team was formed and data collected using surveys, interviews and observations. The results of the data were fed back to the collaborative team for data analysis. A week long team training session was held that provided for interpretation and clarification of courseware editing procedures. Team structure and location were also modified to allow for closer communications with the customer/supplier

Open educational resources : conversations in cyberspace

172 p. : ill. ; 25 cm.Libro ElectrónicoEducation systems today face two major challenges: expanding the reach of education and improving its quality. Traditional solutions will not suffice, especially in the context of today's knowledge-intensive societies. The Open Educational Resources movement offers one solution for extending the reach of education and expanding learning opportunities. The goal of the movement is to equalize access to knowledge worldwide through openly and freely available online high-quality content. Over the course of two years, the international community came together in a series of online discussion forums to discuss the concept of Open Educational Resources and its potential. This publication makes the background papers and reports from those discussions available in print.--Publisher's description.A first forum : presenting the open educational resources (OER) movement. Open educational resources : an introductory note / Sally Johnstone -- Providing OER and related issues : an introductory note / Anne Margulies, ... [et al.] -- Using OER and related issues : in introductory note / Mohammed-Nabil Sabry, ... [et al.] -- Discussion highlights / Paul Albright -- Ongoing discussion. A research agenda for OER : discussion highlights / Kim Tucker and Peter Bateman -- A 'do-it-yourself' resource for OER : discussion highlights / Boris Vukovic -- Free and open source software (FOSS) and OER -- A second forum : discussing the OECD study of OER. Mapping procedures and users / Jan Hylén -- Why individuals and institutions share and use OER / Jan Hylén -- Discussion highlights / Alexa Joyce -- Priorities for action. Open educational resources : the way forward / Susan D'Antoni

Evaluating Tactical Combat Casualty Care Training Treatments Effects On Combat Medic Trainees In Light Of Select Human Descripti

The use of military forces in urban operations has increased considerably over the past years. As illustrated by the current conflict in Iraq, the Army finds itself fighting its toughest battles in urban areas facing unconventional forces. Soldiers face many threats in hostile fire environments, whether conducting large-scale mechanized warfare, low-intensity conflicts, or operations other than war. Through 1970, there has been no demonstrable reduction in battlefield mortality rate as a percentage of all casualties since data was kept since before the Civil War. For that period of time, nearly all the reduction in overall mortality rate occurred through reduced mortality in Hospital Chain. As of 1970, about 90 percent of all combat deaths occur before a casualty reaches a definitive care facility. Tactical Combat Casualty Care (TCCC), also known as TC3, is the pre-hospital care rendered to a casualty in a combat environment. The application of TCCC principles during a tactical combat environment has proven highly effective and is a major reason why combat deaths in latest conflicts (Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom) are lower than in any other conflict in the history of the United States. The Army continues to emphasize reducing battlefield mortality rate. Current tools and methods used for initial skills and sustainment training of combat medics throughout the Army are insufficient. New technologies are needed to provide medics with greater opportunities to develop and test their decision making and technical medical skills in multiple, COE-relevant, training scenarios. In order to address some of these requirements, the U.S. Army Research Development and Engineering Command, Simulation and Training Technology Center (RDECOM-STTC) is developing the 68W - Tactical Combat Casualty Care Simulation (TC3 Sim) for the US Army Medical Department (AMEDD) Center & School at Fort Sam Houston. The Army is considering the use of the TC3 Sim game as a tool to improve the training of individual Soldiers as well as improve the readiness of combat medics. It is the intent of this research to evaluate the effectiveness of instructional games in general and the use of the TC3 game in particular for teaching the concepts of tactical combat casualty care. Experiments were conducted to evaluate the training effectiveness of this tool in supporting the 68W10 Healthcare Specialist Course program of instruction (POI). The goal of this research is to address important questions such as: Is this game an effective tool to train Soldiers the aspects of TC3? Can knowledge gain through the use of the simulation be transferred into task related situations? How can this tool be incorporated in the current POI in order to increase training effectiveness