Balancing e-lectures with podcasts: a case study of an undergraduate engineering module

The work described in this paper is based on an engineering module that has run for six years (each academic year since 2004). The module is run online although the learners are campus-based students. This has provided an unusual opportunity to compare the same students’ experiences of on-campus and online courses. The course comprises a rich online environment including e-lectures, podcasts, video clips, website links, animations, background reading, formative quizzes, summative assignments and discussion boards. The e-lectures comprise a PowerPoint-like screen with a spoken audio track and other facilities, including a rolling transcript, video controls (for stopping, pausing and rewinding) and a search facility. Each e‑lecture is short (a maximum of ten minutes) and links to some of the learning materials (e.g. video clips and formative quizzes). The podcasts are mp3 audio files, each lasting approximately ten minutes, and are produced weekly and published through the virtual learning environment. This paper presents a pedagogical model that has been designed to develop a structure for combining these virtual learning elements and considers some of the opportunities provided by such innovative approaches for the enhancement of engineering teaching at undergraduate level. It presents research findings on student learning outcomes and provides suggestions for adopting the design for learning model presented in the paper

A renaissance of audio: Podcasting approaches for learning on campus and beyond

In this paper, we urge practitioners to consider the potential of podcasting for teaching, learning and assessment. Our perspective is drawn from research on IMPALA (Informal Mobile Podcasting And Learning Adaptation), which showed that there is a range of successful podcasting approaches for students on campus. After briefly surveying the background literature, we provide examples of three approaches, from three different universities: 1) helping students to prepare presentations and assessed work, 2) offering feedback from staff on students' assessed work, and 3) assisting undergraduates to make the transition from school or college to university. Finally, we would like readers to consider how podcasting approaches like these can be converted for distance education. On the evidence available to date from IMPALA and other studies, we feel confident in predicting that podcasting will be integrated more and more into distance education, to the immense benefit of the long distance learner

Interactive media in distance learning for UK farmers: the countryside disc

How might UK farmers benefit from using interactive computer-based media? These farmers need to learn how to change their practices in a rapidly changing economic and social environment. They have difficulty in obtaining suitable training through conventional audio-visual media and face-to-face sessions. How would they benefit from learning at a distance, using computer-based media in their own homes and offices? This thesis presents a naturalistic study of how a number of UK farmers benefited from using the Countryside Disc, one of the few examples available of an interactive training program aimed at farmers. The Disc, which is a computer-controlled laser vision videodisc, required the farmers to act in a complex simulated world (of a farm and its social and ecological environment) in which they received frequent and immediate feedback concerning the consequences of their actions. After a pilot study to develop the methodology, the main study involved observation and recording of 10 farmers' interactions with the Disc. The farmers engaged in hundreds of instructional interactions with the Disc. Each farmer's approach to learning changed as he or she worked through the program, and was clearly related to the learning outcomes for that person. The Disc demanded a deep approach: two farmers who attempted to use a surface approach were unable to continue. The farmers drew heavily on their experience in the real farming world and the frequent feedback prompted them to be reflective on both that experience and the training offered by the Disc. They also encountered a range of navigational problems, most of which could be reduced or eliminated through redesign of the Disc. The most important finding was that farmers, through using the Countryside Disc, received training, in their homes and offices, in (a) gaining deep understanding of the interplay of factors involved in present-day farming, and (b) making profitable farm management decisions - while observing relevant regulations and being responsive to the opinions of interest groups. The thesis concludes with a discussion of the findings in the light of theories advanced by Marton and Säljö on deep and surface learning, by Laurillard on conversational framework and by Schön on reflective practitioners. It includes suggestions for further research

From "participant" to "friend": the role of Facebook engagement in ethnographic research

Engaging with participants on Facebook during ethnographic fieldwork has become increasingly prevalent in research, especially when exploring complex and sensitive consumption issues (Chenail, 2011; Piacenti et al., 2014). Such engagement not only provides a complementary medium of communication but also provides a context and a source of data from which emic and etic interpretations can be made (Baker, 2013; Dogruer et al., 2011). Despite, extant literature focuses predominantly on "how-to" aspects of integrating Facebook in ethnographic research (Baker, 2013), thus, creating a need to amiliorate epistemological and methodological issues of integrating Facebook in ethnographic research. For example, further research can help ethnographic researchers to understand the ways in which Facebook, as a methodological tool in ethnographic research, can encourage close rapport with participants leading to rich and thick interpretations of complex phenomena. The purpose of this paper, therefore, is to theorise epistemological and methodological implications of integrating Facebook in conventional ethnographic research. Accordingly, we present three research questions. Firstly, how to engage with participants on their Facebook profiles to build a productive rapport with them during ethnographic fieldwork? Building on friendship theories (Owton and Allen-Collinson, 2014; Tillmann-Healy, 2003), we suggest that Facebook engagement encourages rapport building by enabling researchers to gradually develop dialogical researcher-participant relationships by paying close attention to aspects such as practice, pace, context, and the 'ethics of friendships' (Tillmann-Healy, 2003). Secondly, what challenges inherent to conventional ethnographic research does increased rapport enable researchers to overcome? We propose that Facebook helps overcome three challenges inherent to conventional ethnography: 1) negotiating access and immersion, 2) developing multiple perspectives, and 3) providing rich and thick interpretations. Thirdly, how Facebook engagement enables the navigation of these challenges? Our findings contribute to consumer and cross disciplinary ethnographic literature (Baker, 2013; Piacenti et al., 2014) and provide evidence that utilising Facebook allows researchers to overcome such challenges by expanding the researcher's field, improving participants' trust and confidence of the researcher, bringing both insider and outsider perspectives, and diluting the power hierarchy often found in participant-researcher relationships. However, we also propose that our contributions have implications beyond conventional ethnography and are relevant to wider netnographic(Kozinets, 2010; 2015) and social mediaoriented ethnographic research (Postill and Pink, 2012). Our proposed framework could be useful for netnographic researchers seeking to build a close rapport with participants as it sheds light on epistemological and methodological issues about one of the popular social networking sites that provides, as Kozinets (2015, p. 35) classifies, a "hyving social experience". In addition, we also contribute to an emerging body of cross-disciplinary literature on "friendship as method" (Owton and Allen-Collinson, 2014; Ellis, 2007; Glesne, 1989; Tillmann-Healy, 2003) by theorising the role of Facebook engagement in inspiring and sustaining 'friendships' with participants during ethnographic research. We have structured the paper as follows: Firstly, we engage with cross-disciplinary literature on ethnography, netnography, theories of friendship, and Facebook. Secondly, we introduce the research methodology, and the overarching ethnographic research process. Thirdly, we draw from our ethnographic fieldwork to illustrate how integrating Facebook facilitates friendships with participants and allows us to investigate deeper and richer details of their everyday lived experiences during important transitions, in our case, the transition from single to marital status. Finally, we discuss some of the important ethical/moral implications of "friendship as method" and the complexities of integrating Facebook in ethnographic research and elaborate on the ways in which we addressed such complexities

Setting up home: The role of domestic materiality in extended family identity formation

This paper examines the role of domestic materiality in the construction of extended family identity. It investigates how extended family members experience tensions during new family formation and the ways in which materiality contributes to the resolution of these tensions and the construction of a new family identity. Our findings suggest that the intersubjectivities centred on domestic material objects cause tensions in relationships. However, it is through a process of negotiation stimulated by these intersubjectivities that a new extended family identity emerges. We identify four materiality capacities in this process of negotiation: catalysing, associating, disassociating, and bridging. We posit that these negotiations are an essential part of the process of identity formation given that they motivate a new understanding of competing family discourses, changes to individual and collective status, and a restructuring of family, especially family structure, character, and intergenerational orientation

A renaissance of audio: podcasting approaches for learning on campus and beyond

In this paper, we urge practitioners to consider the potential of podcasting for teaching, learning and assessment. Our perspective is drawn from research on IMPALA (Informal Mobile Podcasting And Learning Adaptation), which showed that there is a range of successful podcasting approaches for students on campus. After briefly surveying the background literature, we provide examples of three approaches, from three different universities: 1) helping students to prepare presentations and assessed work, 2) offering feedback from staff on students’ assessed work, and 3) assisting undergraduates to make the transition from school or college to university. Finally, we would like readers to consider how podcasting approaches like these can be converted for distance education. On the evidence available to date from IMPALA and other studies, we feel confident in predicting that podcasting will be integrated more and more into distance education, to the immense benefit of the long distance learner

Pedagogical requirements for mobile learning : a review on MOBIlearn Task Model

Pedagogically sound design for mobile learning application development is a key factor for providing a pleasant and rich learning experience in a mobile environment. In the context of higher education, this need is very critical as institutions and students begin to recognize the importance of bridging the gap between formal classroom and out-of-classroom informal learning to achieve pedagogical goals. However, there are very few existing research studies on how mobile learning design could be informed specifically to support pedagogical requirements for educational mobile learning application. This paper therefore presents a review on the MOBIlearn task model framework and its contributing factors in an attempt to capture appropriate requirements by generalizing the current state of understanding and discover common grounds and similarities from previous research publications. A number of key mobile learning articles, mostly from conferences and journals containing explanation on any of the factors, have been consulted to get a deeper understanding and insights. At the end of this paper, we discuss our findings as a set of pedagogical requirements identified from the literature by categorizing them based on thetask model factors in order to clearly answer our research questions and design a techno-pedagogical tool based on what we have learned in the review

Ovalbumin: A potential functional protein

Although ovalbumin makes up 54% of the total egg white proteins, individual protein usage is rare. The primary applications of ovalbumin in the food industry relate to other proteins, such as whole egg whites. Ovalbumin has remarkable functional properties, such as those of gelation, foaming, and emulsification, which are crucial in the processing of food, however, its application as a standalone functional protein is severely constrained due to separation issues. In recent years, new methodologies for the large-scale separation of ovalbumin have emerged. Meantime, ovalbumin was identified as a good source to produce bioactive peptides with a variety of functional properties, including antibacterial, antioxidant, and angiotensin-converting-enzyme inhibitory actions, according to research. Newly discovered bioactive peptides from ovalbumin can be used in the food sector in addition to their well-known functional properties to create health-promoting products. Benefits extend beyond the food business to numerous other sectors, such as the pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries. Consequently, a gap between the existing and prospective future uses is found. The main goals of this study were to determine some possible factors for the long-term neglect of the major protein and to determine the growing potential for applications of ovalbumin and peptides.This article is published as Maggonage MHU, Manjula P, Ahn DU, Abeyrathne EDNS. Ovalbumin: A potential functional protein. Food Sci. Preserv., 31(3), 346-359 (2024). doi:10.11002/fsp.2024.31.3.346. Copyright © 2024 The Korean Society of Food Preservation. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0) which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited

Delivering unprecedented access to learning through podcasting as OER, but who's listening? A profile of the external iTunes U user

Little is known about the learners who download iTunes U resources but do not belong to the Higher Education institutions that provide them. This paper presents the first full profile of the external iTunes U learner and their practices and opinions of the materials they download. The data was gathered through a large survey (over 2000 responses) carried out over two years using the iTunes U site from The Open University. It shows that external iTunes U learners are very different from the internal users and practices described in the literature so far: there are more men than women, mostly middle-aged, and they use the resources mostly for personal reasons. Despite the fact that respondents used the iTunes U site from a distance university, the paper argues that the respondents are comparable to external learners who use resources from other iTunes U sites. This profile of the iTunes U user provides a clearer picture of the target listener and can help inform and improve the materials design and delivery strategies for iTunes U as an independent learning tool and Open Educational Resources (OER) in general. The article also proposes areas for further research and argues for more studies into external learners' use of podcasting resources