Reflective Outcomes in Asynchronous Computer Mediated Communication: A Case Study using a Comparative Method

ABSTRACT In an era of constant educational reforms, many acknowledge teachers’ professional development as the keystone to educational improvement. The issue of whether teachers’ development is adequate has been crucial in all times, especially now that professional education faces a number of challenges due to the rapid technological development and the need for lifelong learning incited by globalization of world economies. Nevertheless, although common acceptance exists that reflective practice is a key ingredient for professional development, the art of cultivating reflection in the context of CPD requires further attention. A review of the literature shows a long history on research that embraces a wide range of strategies that argue to promote teacher reflection. However, there is unclear evidence about whether reflective thinking – as a meaningful professional objective – may be promoted through collaborative computer mediated discourse. What’s more, although there is a plethora of assessment tools that claim to assess reflexivity, very few authors exemplify the theoretical framework underpinning the notion of reflection employed in their studies. The purpose of this study has been to examine whether, and if yes how, reflective thinking is promoted through collaborative asynchronous computer mediated communication by comparison with traditional face to face discourse. A case study using a comparative method was employed to analyze the electronic discourse by comparison with the face to face dialogue of twenty post 16 education practitioners in the UK. Research design considerations and implications related to what constitutes evidence of reflection and how it may be represented for the purposes of reporting on research outputs are also critically examined. The results lend support to the view that, although reflective outcomes can be accomplished in an asynchronous computer mediated communication, the recurring theme of storytelling observed in the face to face discourse appears to cultivate and influence the depth of reflexivity achieved

What is Hidden Within the Cloud?

Over the past few years cloud computing has become one of the most significant technological trends. The aim of this paper is to discuss the main characteristics of cloud computing, identify the challenges concerning the security and control of information within the cloud and finally to examine how secure information can be in it. Section one gives an overview of the technology by presenting its key aspects and architecture. The security issues about its adoption are explored briefly in section two followed by possible ways to prevent these threats on section three. Finally, in section four the research focuses on the future of cloud computing and closes with an evaluation of how secure the cloud is on section five

Scrum Game: An Agile Software Management Game

For the past few years, in their attempt to avoid the heavyweight bureaucracy of traditional project management methods such as the Waterfall model, companies have started incorporating agile methods (e.g. Extreme Programming, Scrum, Crystal) for their project development. These methods are characterised by their incremental and iterative delivery, their ability to incorporate change at any stage of the project lifecycle, as well as their small and co-located teams. Even though these methods are included in the syllabus of many software engineering modules at university level, many students currently feel more confident with traditional, rather than agile methods. Many employers find that recent graduates are not equipped with the desired skills of a software engineer because, even though they are knowledgeable in the different software engineering practices, they lack practical experience of these methods. The combination of these two factors show that the university’s approach to teaching software management methods is only theoretical and it does not give students the opportunity to apply them to their projects so they can get a better understanding of their use. The project developed the prototype of a computer game that simulates the use of the Scrum method within different projects, named Scrum Game. The game is supplementary material for a lecture course, and its purpose is to guide students through the Scrum lifecycle. Students can thereby get a small glimpse of the different phases of Scrum, the way that the different Scrum roles interact with each other, and the way that Scrum is used to implement real projects. In addition, the Scrum Game has an administrator mode enabling lecturers to view a log of the progress of all their students in the game. They can use this mode to create new projects or to alter existing ones by adding new tasks or problems, thereby adjusting the level of difficulty to the level of their students, or so that it fits their teaching. The web-based system was developed using PHP, MySQL, HTML, CSS, JavaScript, AJAX (jQuery) and Google Charts API. The system was thoroughly tested against the initial requirements and other system tests. The Scrum Game was evaluated by 22 peer colleagues reading for an MSc in Software Engineering at the University of Southampton, to identify whether the system achieved its goal of introducing students to the Scrum methodology and reaching a deeper understanding of its practical use during project implementation. The results of a questionnaire showed that little prior knowledge was assumed during the game, and that 86% of the participants felt that the game helped them learn more about Scrum. When asked, “Do you think that if this game was part of your Project Management module, would you get a better understanding about Scrum?” an impressive 95% (21 out of 22 participants) agreed that the game would be helpful, and rated the system 8 out of 10 on average

Innovation and Productivity a Story of Convergence and Divergence Process in EU Countries

Technology is apparently one of the main determining sources of productivity and economic growth and there is a huge literature on productivity, growth and innovation. This paper is aiming to review the main topics related to productivity, growth and innovation activities. In particular, the paper is also aiming to apply some econometric models, in order to estimate the effects of innovation activities to productivity growth in EU member states and to conclude to some safe results and policy implications.