Student Understandings of Information Systems Design, Learning and Teaching: A Phenomenography Approach

Phenomenographic studies have shown clear links between the approach students take to learning and the achievement of deep versus surface learning outcomes in higher education. The context in which learning takes place is a key factor in these studies. The purpose of this research is to discover the conceptions of learning, teaching and information systems design held by a diverse group of 60 second-year university students and to determine whether there are differences between field-dependent and field-independent students. Our context-dependent findings on student conceptions of teaching and learning are descriptive in nature. These findings were integrated into an outcome space of student conceptions of information systems design, which is interpreted with respect to existing theory on differences between field-dependent and field-independent students and the cognitive demands of learning information systems design. The results have implications for teaching practice and further research on the effects of qualitative variations in student conceptions on the achievement of deep versus surface levels of learning about information systems design

31st Annual Meeting and Associated Programs of the Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer (SITC 2016) : part two

Background The immunological escape of tumors represents one of the main ob- stacles to the treatment of malignancies. The blockade of PD-1 or CTLA-4 receptors represented a milestone in the history of immunotherapy. However, immune checkpoint inhibitors seem to be effective in specific cohorts of patients. It has been proposed that their efficacy relies on the presence of an immunological response. Thus, we hypothesized that disruption of the PD-L1/PD-1 axis would synergize with our oncolytic vaccine platform PeptiCRAd. Methods We used murine B16OVA in vivo tumor models and flow cytometry analysis to investigate the immunological background. Results First, we found that high-burden B16OVA tumors were refractory to combination immunotherapy. However, with a more aggressive schedule, tumors with a lower burden were more susceptible to the combination of PeptiCRAd and PD-L1 blockade. The therapy signifi- cantly increased the median survival of mice (Fig. 7). Interestingly, the reduced growth of contralaterally injected B16F10 cells sug- gested the presence of a long lasting immunological memory also against non-targeted antigens. Concerning the functional state of tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs), we found that all the immune therapies would enhance the percentage of activated (PD-1pos TIM- 3neg) T lymphocytes and reduce the amount of exhausted (PD-1pos TIM-3pos) cells compared to placebo. As expected, we found that PeptiCRAd monotherapy could increase the number of antigen spe- cific CD8+ T cells compared to other treatments. However, only the combination with PD-L1 blockade could significantly increase the ra- tio between activated and exhausted pentamer positive cells (p= 0.0058), suggesting that by disrupting the PD-1/PD-L1 axis we could decrease the amount of dysfunctional antigen specific T cells. We ob- served that the anatomical location deeply influenced the state of CD4+ and CD8+ T lymphocytes. In fact, TIM-3 expression was in- creased by 2 fold on TILs compared to splenic and lymphoid T cells. In the CD8+ compartment, the expression of PD-1 on the surface seemed to be restricted to the tumor micro-environment, while CD4 + T cells had a high expression of PD-1 also in lymphoid organs. Interestingly, we found that the levels of PD-1 were significantly higher on CD8+ T cells than on CD4+ T cells into the tumor micro- environment (p < 0.0001). Conclusions In conclusion, we demonstrated that the efficacy of immune check- point inhibitors might be strongly enhanced by their combination with cancer vaccines. PeptiCRAd was able to increase the number of antigen-specific T cells and PD-L1 blockade prevented their exhaus- tion, resulting in long-lasting immunological memory and increased median survival

WebCT and Online Assessment: The best thing since student online assessment program?

This electronic journal article from Education, Technology and Society, discusses the advantages of online assessment using a Web CT system. Cheating and increasing class sizes in courses have forced instructors to reconsider their approach to assessment. This article examines Massey University Information Systems departments explorations into WebCT and how it compares to facilities (potentially) offered by developing an in-house assessment package. They examine the differences between the two examples of learning and teaching technology mainly from a teacher's perspective but include some illuminating examples of feedback from our students. They also provide some suggestions of factors that govern the successful use of online assessment courses. Educational levels: Graduate or professional

Beyond content: engaging students in foundation information technology courses

Major restructuring of ICT degrees at Massey University, Auckland required the Information Technology (IT) Discipline Group to develop a first year foundation course for the newly formed IT major. Introductory IT courses are traditionally seen as difficult courses to deliver: they must be broad ranging both in content and target audience yet need to effectively deliver technical content. A further challenge in delivering such courses is meeting individual needs in large classes and effectively preparing students for second year study. This is against a background of a cohort increasingly wired into social networking, virtual environments and mobile multimedia. We use an action research approach to explore the development of an interactive foundation course that encourages student participation in tutorials, covers an appropriate practical component, and meets the demands of the tertiary sector for more exciting and innovative course delivery. The course was first delivered over summer school 2007 and feedback from students and staff collected. We examine the effect of the different delivery methods (online quizzes, flash animation, practical labs and discussions) on attendance and assignment quality. We further discuss the adjustments we have made for internal delivery and preparation for future delivery of the course in extramural mode. This reflective approach enables us to continue developing the course to engage students and to provide the foundation for second and third year IT courses. We have also attracted considerable interest from staff and students from other Colleges who find the approach compatible with their needs for a basic understanding of current information technology