Turen går til Second Life - Tips til dig, der planlægger et besøg til den virtuelle verden

(Artiklen er uden for review)Formålet med denne artikel er at give et overblik over Second Life for at gøre det lettere for især nybegyndere at orientere sig og planlægge mere målrettede og dermed succesfulde besøg in-world. Artiklen vil derfor ikke gå i dybden med de emner, der tages op, men i stedet ganske kort forsyne læseren med en indledende begrebsafklaring, fakta, praktiske oplysninger og links til yderligere information. Sidste del af artiklen indeholder slurls til og beskrivelser af interessant steder i Second Life, som er et besøg værd. Denne del af artiklen var ikke blevet til uden anbefalinger fra en række erfarne og dedikerede Second Life brugere, som velvilligt har delt deres viden og erfaringer med mig og LOMs læsere.Artiklen indeholder bidrag fra:Anders Quitzau og Anja P. Nielsen, IBM Tony Breindal, Det Nationale VidenCenter for e-Læring Marianne Riis, ph.d.-stipendiat fra Aalborg Universitet Inge Knudsen, Horsens Handelsskole Signý Óskarsdóttir, Bifröst Universitet på Island

Læringspotentialet i virtuelle verdener

Om temaet: Læringspotentialet i virtuelle verdene

Læringspotentialet i virtuelle verdener

Om temaet: Læringspotentialet i virtuelle verdene

Anvendelse af webkonference på Syddansk Universitet – Erfaringer fra tre pilotprojekter

Formålet med denne artikel er først og fremmest at videregive en række praktiske erfaringer med anvendelse af webkonferencesystemet Adobe Connect Pro i forbindelse med undervisning på Syddansk Universitet (SDU). Via tre pilotprojekter fra forskellige fagområder præsenteres de første konkrete og indledende erfaringer med anvendelsen af det nævnte webkonferencesystem. Med udgangspunkt i de vigtigste aspekter fra de tre cases diskuteres betingelserne for design af hensigtsmæssige læringsaktiviteter i systemet. Konklusionen herpå er, at et hensigtsmæssigt design for webbaserede kursusforløb bør vægte en tydelig beskrivelse af den nødvendige teknologi samtidig med, at det er vigtigt at få indbygget nogle indledende læringsaktiviteter, der giver de studerende mulighed for at blive trygge ved systemets basale auditive og visuelle funktioner. Endvidere er det også nødvendig at fokusere på at designe for dialogorienterede læringsaktiviteter i systemet frem for primært at benytte systemets fortrinlige teknik til gennemgang af PowerPoint-præsentationer eller anden lærerstyret undervisning. Artiklen diskuterer de vigtigste forudsætninger for succesfuld anvendelse af webkonferencesystemer i forbindelse med undervisning og giver konkrete didaktiske anbefalinger.Artiklen retter sig primært mod undervisere, der ønsker at anvende webbaseret undervisning samt mod enheder, der beskæftiger sig med e-læringssupport, kursusvirksomhed samt efter- og videreuddannelse

A Benchmarking Exercise for Quality Blended Learning. A Challenge for European Universities in the 21st Century

This paper shares the experiences of 5 universities involved in a Benchmarking Exercise oneLearning in 2009 through ESMU. A total of 9 European universities participated in theexercise with the purpose of evaluating their existing eLearning practices and policies andgetting advice on which areas to improve and how.Initially, the paper discusses the benchmarking concept and reasons why institutions shouldengage in benchmarking exercises. Benchmarking is viewed as a method for qualityassurance and enhancement in higher education. Self-assessment is involved at theparticipating institutions, which leads to a high level of awareness and understanding ofexisting practices and policies at different levels of the organisation. Benchmarking is thus anefficient self-improvement tool.In chapter two, the planning of the benchmarking exercise is outlined. A combination of anindividual, collaborative and expert approach to benchmarking was chosen.Chapter three deals with the creation of the benchmarking questionnaire which was acollaborative effort between all nine participating universities, ESMU and EADTU. Takingtheir starting point in the online E-xellence benchmarking tool developed by EADTU,participants reformulated, deleted and added benchmarks within the following six categories:Strategic management, curriculum design, course design, course delivery, staff support andstudent support. An effort was made to translate the E-xellence questions to the blendedlearning context of the participating universities.The internal data collection and formulation of responses are accounted for in chapter 4which also contains reflections on the challenges and benefits of the selected approaches.Chapter five presents the overall conclusions of the benchmarking exercise within each ofthe six benchmark categories.The final chapter discusses and provides examples of how participants can use thebenchmarking results to improve existing practices and policies and outlines potentialexternal collaboration opportunities between participants

Worldwide trends in underweight and obesity from 1990 to 2022: a pooled analysis of 3663 population-representative studies with 222 million children, adolescents, and adults

Background Underweight and obesity are associated with adverse health outcomes throughout the life course. We estimated the individual and combined prevalence of underweight or thinness and obesity, and their changes, from 1990 to 2022 for adults and school-aged children and adolescents in 200 countries and territories. Methods We used data from 3663 population-based studies with 222 million participants that measured height and weight in representative samples of the general population. We used a Bayesian hierarchical model to estimate trends in the prevalence of different BMI categories, separately for adults (age ≥20 years) and school-aged children and adolescents (age 5–19 years), from 1990 to 2022 for 200 countries and territories. For adults, we report the individual and combined prevalence of underweight (BMI <18·5 kg/m2) and obesity (BMI ≥30 kg/m2). For schoolaged children and adolescents, we report thinness (BMI <2 SD below the median of the WHO growth reference) and obesity (BMI >2 SD above the median). Findings From 1990 to 2022, the combined prevalence of underweight and obesity in adults decreased in 11 countries (6%) for women and 17 (9%) for men with a posterior probability of at least 0·80 that the observed changes were true decreases. The combined prevalence increased in 162 countries (81%) for women and 140 countries (70%) for men with a posterior probability of at least 0·80. In 2022, the combined prevalence of underweight and obesity was highest in island nations in the Caribbean and Polynesia and Micronesia, and countries in the Middle East and north Africa. Obesity prevalence was higher than underweight with posterior probability of at least 0·80 in 177 countries (89%) for women and 145 (73%) for men in 2022, whereas the converse was true in 16 countries (8%) for women, and 39 (20%) for men. From 1990 to 2022, the combined prevalence of thinness and obesity decreased among girls in five countries (3%) and among boys in 15 countries (8%) with a posterior probability of at least 0·80, and increased among girls in 140 countries (70%) and boys in 137 countries (69%) with a posterior probability of at least 0·80. The countries with highest combined prevalence of thinness and obesity in school-aged children and adolescents in 2022 were in Polynesia and Micronesia and the Caribbean for both sexes, and Chile and Qatar for boys. Combined prevalence was also high in some countries in south Asia, such as India and Pakistan, where thinness remained prevalent despite having declined. In 2022, obesity in school-aged children and adolescents was more prevalent than thinness with a posterior probability of at least 0·80 among girls in 133 countries (67%) and boys in 125 countries (63%), whereas the converse was true in 35 countries (18%) and 42 countries (21%), respectively. In almost all countries for both adults and school-aged children and adolescents, the increases in double burden were driven by increases in obesity, and decreases in double burden by declining underweight or thinness. Interpretation The combined burden of underweight and obesity has increased in most countries, driven by an increase in obesity, while underweight and thinness remain prevalent in south Asia and parts of Africa. A healthy nutrition transition that enhances access to nutritious foods is needed to address the remaining burden of underweight while curbing and reversing the increase in obesit

Height and body-mass index trajectories of school-aged children and adolescents from 1985 to 2019 in 200 countries and territories: a pooled analysis of 2181 population-based studies with 65 million participants

Summary Background Comparable global data on health and nutrition of school-aged children and adolescents are scarce. We aimed to estimate age trajectories and time trends in mean height and mean body-mass index (BMI), which measures weight gain beyond what is expected from height gain, for school-aged children and adolescents. Methods For this pooled analysis, we used a database of cardiometabolic risk factors collated by the Non-Communicable Disease Risk Factor Collaboration. We applied a Bayesian hierarchical model to estimate trends from 1985 to 2019 in mean height and mean BMI in 1-year age groups for ages 5–19 years. The model allowed for non-linear changes over time in mean height and mean BMI and for non-linear changes with age of children and adolescents, including periods of rapid growth during adolescence. Findings We pooled data from 2181 population-based studies, with measurements of height and weight in 65 million participants in 200 countries and territories. In 2019, we estimated a difference of 20 cm or higher in mean height of 19-year-old adolescents between countries with the tallest populations (the Netherlands, Montenegro, Estonia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina for boys; and the Netherlands, Montenegro, Denmark, and Iceland for girls) and those with the shortest populations (Timor-Leste, Laos, Solomon Islands, and Papua New Guinea for boys; and Guatemala, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Timor-Leste for girls). In the same year, the difference between the highest mean BMI (in Pacific island countries, Kuwait, Bahrain, The Bahamas, Chile, the USA, and New Zealand for both boys and girls and in South Africa for girls) and lowest mean BMI (in India, Bangladesh, Timor-Leste, Ethiopia, and Chad for boys and girls; and in Japan and Romania for girls) was approximately 9–10 kg/m2. In some countries, children aged 5 years started with healthier height or BMI than the global median and, in some cases, as healthy as the best performing countries, but they became progressively less healthy compared with their comparators as they grew older by not growing as tall (eg, boys in Austria and Barbados, and girls in Belgium and Puerto Rico) or gaining too much weight for their height (eg, girls and boys in Kuwait, Bahrain, Fiji, Jamaica, and Mexico; and girls in South Africa and New Zealand). In other countries, growing children overtook the height of their comparators (eg, Latvia, Czech Republic, Morocco, and Iran) or curbed their weight gain (eg, Italy, France, and Croatia) in late childhood and adolescence. When changes in both height and BMI were considered, girls in South Korea, Vietnam, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and some central Asian countries (eg, Armenia and Azerbaijan), and boys in central and western Europe (eg, Portugal, Denmark, Poland, and Montenegro) had the healthiest changes in anthropometric status over the past 3·5 decades because, compared with children and adolescents in other countries, they had a much larger gain in height than they did in BMI. The unhealthiest changes—gaining too little height, too much weight for their height compared with children in other countries, or both—occurred in many countries in sub-Saharan Africa, New Zealand, and the USA for boys and girls; in Malaysia and some Pacific island nations for boys; and in Mexico for girls. Interpretation The height and BMI trajectories over age and time of school-aged children and adolescents are highly variable across countries, which indicates heterogeneous nutritional quality and lifelong health advantages and risks

Rising rural body-mass index is the main driver of the global obesity epidemic in adults

Body-mass index (BMI) has increased steadily in most countries in parallel with a rise in the proportion of the population who live in cities(.)(1,2) This has led to a widely reported view that urbanization is one of the most important drivers of the global rise in obesity(3-6). Here we use 2,009 population-based studies, with measurements of height and weight in more than 112 million adults, to report national, regional and global trends in mean BMI segregated by place of residence (a rural or urban area) from 1985 to 2017. We show that, contrary to the dominant paradigm, more than 55% of the global rise in mean BMI from 1985 to 2017-and more than 80% in some low- and middle-income regions-was due to increases in BMI in rural areas. This large contribution stems from the fact that, with the exception of women in sub-Saharan Africa, BMI is increasing at the same rate or faster in rural areas than in cities in low- and middle-income regions. These trends have in turn resulted in a closing-and in some countries reversal-of the gap in BMI between urban and rural areas in low- and middle-income countries, especially for women. In high-income and industrialized countries, we noted a persistently higher rural BMI, especially for women. There is an urgent need for an integrated approach to rural nutrition that enhances financial and physical access to healthy foods, to avoid replacing the rural undernutrition disadvantage in poor countries with a more general malnutrition disadvantage that entails excessive consumption of low-quality calories.Peer reviewe

Worldwide trends in underweight and obesity from 1990 to 2022 : a pooled analysis of 3663 population-representative studies with 222 million children, adolescents, and adults

A list of authors and their affiliations appears online. A supplementary appendix is herewith attached.Background: Underweight and obesity are associated with adverse health outcomes throughout the life course. We estimated the individual and combined prevalence of underweight or thinness and obesity, and their changes, from 1990 to 2022 for adults and school-aged children and adolescents in 200 countries and territories. Methods: We used data from 3663 population-based studies with 222 million participants that measured height and weight in representative samples of the general population. We used a Bayesian hierarchical model to estimate trends in the prevalence of different BMI categories, separately for adults (age ≥20 years) and school-aged children and adolescents (age 5–19 years), from 1990 to 2022 for 200 countries and territories. For adults, we report the individual and combined prevalence of underweight (BMI 2 SD above the median). Findings: From 1990 to 2022, the combined prevalence of underweight and obesity in adults decreased in 11 countries (6%) for women and 17 (9%) for men with a posterior probability of at least 0·80 that the observed changes were true decreases. The combined prevalence increased in 162 countries (81%) for women and 140 countries (70%) for men with a posterior probability of at least 0·80. In 2022, the combined prevalence of underweight and obesity was highest in island nations in the Caribbean and Polynesia and Micronesia, and countries in the Middle East and north Africa. Obesity prevalence was higher than underweight with posterior probability of at least 0·80 in 177 countries (89%) for women and 145 (73%) for men in 2022, whereas the converse was true in 16 countries (8%) for women, and 39 (20%) for men. From 1990 to 2022, the combined prevalence of thinness and obesity decreased among girls in five countries (3%) and among boys in 15 countries (8%) with a posterior probability of at least 0·80, and increased among girls in 140 countries (70%) and boys in 137 countries (69%) with a posterior probability of at least 0·80. The countries with highest combined prevalence of thinness and obesity in school-aged children and adolescents in 2022 were in Polynesia and Micronesia and the Caribbean for both sexes, and Chile and Qatar for boys. Combined prevalence was also high in some countries in south Asia, such as India and Pakistan, where thinness remained prevalent despite having declined. In 2022, obesity in school-aged children and adolescents was more prevalent than thinness with a posterior probability of at least 0·80 among girls in 133 countries (67%) and boys in 125 countries (63%), whereas the converse was true in 35 countries (18%) and 42 countries (21%), respectively. In almost all countries for both adults and school-aged children and adolescents, the increases in double burden were driven by increases in obesity, and decreases in double burden by declining underweight or thinness. Interpretation: The combined burden of underweight and obesity has increased in most countries, driven by an increase in obesity, while underweight and thinness remain prevalent in south Asia and parts of Africa. A healthy nutrition transition that enhances access to nutritious foods is needed to address the remaining burden of underweight while curbing and reversing the increase in obesity.peer-reviewe