Integrating constructive feedback in personalised e-learning

When using e-learning material some students progress readily, others have difficulties. In a traditional classroom the teacher would identify those with difficulties and direct them to additional resources. This support is not easily available within e-learning. A new approach to providing constructive feedback is developed that will enable an e-learning system to identify areas of weakness and provide guidance on further study. The approach is based on the tagging of learning material with appropriate keywords that indicate the contents. Thus if a student performs poorly on an assessment on topic X, there is a need to suggest further study of X and participation in activities related to X such as forums. As well as supporting the learner this type of constructive feedback can also inform other stakeholders. For example a tutor can monitor the progress of a cohort; an instructional designer can monitor the quality of learning objects in facilitating the appropriate knowledge across many learners

Understanding and supporting block play: video observation research on preschoolers’ block play to identify features associated with the development of abstract thinking

This article reports on a study conducted to investigate the development of abstract thinking in preschool children (ages from 3 years to 4 years old) in a nursery school in England. Adopting a social influence approach, the researcher engaged in 'close listening' to document children's ideas expressed in various representations through video observation. The aim was to identify behaviours connected with features of the functional dependency relationship – a cognitive function that connects symbolic representations with abstract thinking. The article presents three episodes to demonstrate three dominating features, which are i) child/child sharing of thinking and adult and child sharing of thinking; ii) pause for reflection; and iii) satisfaction as a result of self-directed play. These features were identified as signs of learning, and were highlighted as phenomena that can help practitioners to understand the value of quality play and so provide adequate time and space for young children and plan for a meaningful learning environment. The study has also revealed the importance of block play in promoting abstract thinking. Keywords: abstract thinking; functional dependency relationship; social influence approach; block play; preschool; video observation; qualitative researc

Predicating from an early age: edusemiotics and the potential of children’s preconceptions

This paper aims to explain how semiotics and constructivism can collaborate in an educational epistemology by developing a joint approach to prescientific conceptions. Empirical data and findings of constructivist research are interpreted in the light of Peirce’s semiotics. Peirce’s semiotics is an anti-psychologistic logic (CP 2.252; CP 4.551; W 8:15; Pietarinen in Signs of logic, Springer, Dordrecht, 2006; Stjernfelt in Diagrammatology. An investigation on the borderlines of phenomenology, ontology and semiotics, Springer, Dordrecht, 2007) and relational logic. Constructivism was traditionally developed within psychology and sociology and, therefore, some incompatibilities can be expected between these two schools. While acknowledging the differences, we explain that constructivism and semiotics share the assumption of realism that knowledge can only be developed upon knowledge and, therefore, an epistemological collaboration is possible. The semiotic analysis performed confirms the constructivist results and provides a further insight into the teacher-student relation. Like the constructivist approach, Peirce’s doctrine of agapism infers that the personal dimension of teaching must not be ignored. Thus, we argue for the importance of genuine sympathy in teaching attitudes. More broadly, the article also contributes to the development of postmodern humanities. At the end of the modern age, the humanities are passing through a critical period of transformation. There is a growing interest in semiotics and semiotic philosophy in many areas of the humanities. Such a case, on which we draw, is the development of a theoretical semiotic approach to education, namely edusemiotics (Stables and Semetsky, Pedagogy and edusemiotics: theoretical challenge/practical opportunities, Sense Publishers, Rotterdam, 2015)

Business Not as Usual: Developing Socially Conscious Entrepreneurs and Intrapreneurs

Our objective was to design an introductory business course to shape the mind-sets and skill sets of the next generation of socially conscious practitioners—to help students develop a sense of self-efficacy built on the confidence that they can make a positive impact on the world using entrepreneurial thinking and action. Essentially, the focus was to develop an introductory business course that would encourage and enable students to understand that business can be a force for good (sustainability and social impact) and to practice collaborative innovation (human-centered design thinking). The overarching design principle was business not as usual, which embraced four themes: (a) sustainability and social entrepreneurship, (b) collaborative innovation, (c) entrepreneurial thinking and action, and (d) self-authorship. We provide an overview of the course modules and their respective learning outcomes along with details of course content and activities to ensure transferability. A concluding discussion shares the impact on students and the challenges of success. We highlight how course design can be a catalyst to enable students to be the change they want to see in the world.Ye

Echoes and Influences of Realistic Mathematics Education in Portugal

This chapter traces the connections between Realistic Mathematics Education (RME) and Portuguese developments in mathematics education in terms of research studies and curriculum development. The basis for this work is a literature review of papers and other documents, with special attention to the period 2005-2015, and research studies organised by mathematical topic. Although there is no research group in Portugal that is perfectly aligned with RME principles and curriculum materials, noticeable influences may be seen in the frequent references made in some research groups to key RME ideas, notably the importance of students working from tasks in meaningful contexts, the role of representations and models to support students’ thinking, and the levels of students’ mathematical activity. This is most noticeable in conceptual frameworks for developmental research studies in the area of number and in the use of realistic contexts in task design, and it is also apparent in the official 2007 Portuguese curriculum document.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio