23,637 research outputs found
Understanding Engagement within the Context of a Safety Critical Game
One of the most frequent arguments for deploying serious games is that they provide an engaging format for student learning. However, engagement is often equated with enjoyment, which may not be the most relevant conceptualization in safety-critical settings, such as law enforcement and healthcare. In these contexts, the term ‘serious’ does not only relate to the non-entertainment purpose of the game but also the environment simulated by the game. In addition, a lack of engagement in a safety critical training setting can have serious ethical implications, leading to significant real-world impacts. However, evaluations of safety-critical games (SCGs) rarely provide an in-depth consideration of player experience. Thus, in relation to simulation game-based training, we are left without a clear understanding of what sort of experience players are having, what factors influence their engagement and how their engagement relates to learning. In order to address these issues, this paper reports on the mixed-method evaluation of a SCG that was developed to support police training. The findings indicate that engagement is supported by the experience situational relevance, due to the player’s experience of real-world authenticity, targeted feedback mechanisms and learning challenges
Use and perceptions of second life by distance learners: comparison with other communication media
Research has demonstrated that the use of communication media in distance education can reduce the feeling of distance and isolation from peers and tutor, and provide opportunities for collaborative learning activities (Bates, 2005). The use of virtual worlds (VW) in education has increased in recent years, with Second Life (SL) being the most commonly used VW in higher education (Wang & Burton, 2012). There is a paucity of information available on students’ use and perceptions of SL in relation to other online communication media available to the distance learner. Consequently, in the study described here, this area was explored with a group of students registered in a part-time distance education Master’s program at a large UK University open to international students. A self-completion survey was designed to assess students’ use and perceptions of using SL compared with other communication media. The majority of students rated SL lower than other forms of communications media such as email, WebCT discussion boards, Skype, and Wimba for facilitating communication, promoting the formation of social networks, fostering a sense of community, and benefiting their learning. It is possible that the results of this study were influenced by the lower frequency of use of SL in this program compared to other work reported on this subject. Further work is required to evaluate the effect of frequency of use of SL and availability of alternative communication media on students’ use and perceptions of this virtual world
Online backchannel synthesis evaluation with the switching Wizard of Oz
In this paper, we evaluate a backchannel synthesis algorithm in an online conversation between a human speaker and a virtual listener. We adopt the Switching Wizard of Oz (SWOZ) approach to assess behavior synthesis algorithms online. A human speaker watches a virtual listener that is either controlled by a human listener or by an algorithm. The source switches at random intervals. Speakers indicate when they feel they are no longer talking to a human listener. Analysis of these responses reveals patterns of inappropriate behavior in terms of quantity and timing of backchannels
Studying web 2.0 interactivity: a research framework and two case studies
With more than one third of the world’s population being online, the Internet has increasingly become part of modern living, giving rise to popular literature that often takes a teleological and celebratory perspective, heralding the Internet and Web 2.0 specifically, as an enabler of participation, democracy, and interactivity. However, one should not take these technological affordances of Web 2.0 for granted. This article applies an interaction framework to the analysis of two Web 2.0 websites viewed as spaces where interaction goes beyond the mere consultation and selection of content, i.e., as spaces supporting the (co)creation of content and value. The authors’ approach to interactivity seeks to describe websites in objective, structural terms as spaces of user, document, and website affordances. The framework also makes it possible to talk about the websites in subjective, functional terms, considering them as spaces of perceived inter-action, intra-action and outer-action affordances. Analysis finds that both websites provide numerous user, document, and website affordances that can serve as inter-action or social affordances
Appraisal and the Future of Archives in the Digital Era
Discussion of the implications of new technologies, changing public policies, and transformation of culture for how archivists practice and think about appraisal
Recommended from our members
Introducing Competition in the French Electricity Supply Industry: The Destabilisation of a Public Hierarchy in an Open Institutional Environment
The French electricity supply industry is characterized by a vertically integrated monopoly and public ownership and when the government introduced market rules, it was with the aim of preserving the integration of the public incumbent as a national champion. This had two paradoxical effects in favour of competition development and the building of safeguards for entrants
Initial validation of a virtual-reality learning environment for prostate biopsies: realism matters!
: Introduction-objectives: A virtual-reality learning environment dedicated
to prostate biopsies was designed to overcome the limitations of current
classical teaching methods. The aim of this study was to validate reliability,
face, content and construct of the simulator. Materials and methods: The
simulator is composed of a) a laptop computer, b) a haptic device with a stylus
that mimics the ultrasound probe, c) a clinical case database including three
dimensional (3D) ultrasound volumes and patient data and d) a learning
environment with a set of progressive exercises including a randomized 12-core
biopsy procedure. Both visual (3D biopsy mapping) and numerical (score)
feedback are given to the user. The simulator evaluation was conducted in an
academic urology department on 7 experts and 14 novices who each performed a
virtual biopsy procedure and completed a face and content validity
questionnaire. Results: The overall realism of the biopsy procedure was rated
at a median of 9/10 by non-experts (7.1-9.8). Experts rated the usefulness of
the simulator for the initial training of urologists at 8.2/10 (7.9-8.3), but
reported the range of motion and force feedback as significantly less realistic
than novices (p=0.01 and 0.03 respectively). Pearson's r correlation
coefficient between correctly placed biopsies on the right and left side of the
prostate for each user was 0.79 (p<0.001). The 7 experts had a median score of
64% (59-73), and the 14 novices a median score of 52% (43-67), without reaching
statistical significance (p=0,19). Conclusion: The newly designed virtual
reality learning environment proved its versatility and its reliability, face
and content were validated. Demonstrating the construct validity will require
improvements to the realism and scoring system used
- …