Student perceptions of audio feedback in a design-based module for distance education

Published ArticleWithin higher education, student perceptions are beneficial in evaluating the nature and quality of educational interventions. One such intervention involves the use of academic audio feedback on the submitted assignments of distance learning students. This type of feedback may well enhance the educational experience of the students, irrelevant of how it is produced. The purpose of this article is to highlight the perceptions of students regarding audio feedback, which was provided in a design-based module offered at an open distance learning institute in South Africa. For this research, a case study was used were quantitative and qualitative data were collected from 30 students enrolled for a module termed, Design Project III, during 2017. A few key advantages that were highlighted include a good learning experience, better time utilisation, informative and better communication. A key disadvantage relates to a lack of on-campus WiFi connectivity or availability. However, it is recommended that this intervention (providing audio feedback to students) be adopted by more academics at open distance learning institutions as they strive to improve student engagement with the study leader and with the course content

Arduino — Enabling engineering students to obtain academic success in a design-based module

Published Conference ProceedingsA key graduate attribute for engineering students is the design and development of solutions for real-life problems. Enabling students to grasp engineering design principles often proves challenging, especially within the African context. The purpose of this paper is to highlight how the introduction of the Arduino microprocessor into a design-based module for undergraduate students has yielded outstanding results in this regard. Up until the end of 2014, students could choose their own microprocessor platform for designing electronic circuits required for specific applications. However, this led to several challenges, including the unavailability of components and the high costs of the microprocessors. Introducing the Arduino microprocessor as the preferred option in 2015 overcame many of these challenges, while at the same time leading to an improvement in the academic achievement of the registered students. A case study was used in this research along with descriptive statistics of the collected data. This data highlights that more than 90% of the students successfully completed this design-based module, while 70% felt that it really helped them to better understand the theoretical knowledge. This microprocessor has been recommended for future use in additional modules as it yielded positive results in 2015

Student Voices regarding Practical Instruction in a Solar Energy Course indicates Student Satisfaction

Published Conference ProceedingsWithin higher education, student voices or perceptions are useful in measuring effective instruction and are important to evaluate the nature and quality of educational interventions. Student voices are often considered in determining whether student academic satisfaction exists with regard to the quality of engineering education being offered. The question thus arises “What does student voices say regarding practical instruction offered in a Solar Energy course at the Central University of Technology in South Africa”. Research has shown that voices of undergraduate engineering students indicated that they really enjoy practical work scheduled in a laboratory, thereby indicating a measure of student satisfaction. However, this was reported on only for students in an electronic communications course, with fewer results published for undergraduate engineering students in other disciplines at a university of technology. The purpose of this paper is to consider student voices regarding practical instruction offered in a Solar Energy course at a university of technology. An exploratory case study is employed along with descriptive statistics for the quantitative data relating to the student voices. An electronic response system was used in a classroom environment to listen to student voices relating to the practical work done in the laboratory. These student voices did confirm that many of the students felt that the practical work was beneficial, relevant and practical in helping them apply new knowledge in solving engineering problems, resulting in a measure of student satisfaction. This has the potential to result in the retention of the best and brightest students from among these participants for future postgraduate studies which will most likely involve more intensive laboratory work

Studying the effect of full uniform shading on a PV module using a LabVIEW simulation model

Conference ProceedingsSimulations designed in LabVIEW may be used in many engineering applications, including the design of stand-alone PV systems. The influence of full uniform shading, which included thin clouds and contrails, on the day to day performance of PV systems is often underestimated, and is not always accounted for in the design. The purpose of this paper is to describe the design and development of a LabVIEW simulation model that includes the influence of full uniform shading on the overall performance of a PV system. This model is used by electrical engineering students at the Central University of Technology in order to verify their designs and improve their understanding of the operation of stand-alone PV systems. The model also assists engineering students in investigating the influence of full uniform shading on the performance and sustainability of a stand-alone PV system with specific component specifications. The design of the model was based on empirical research that quantified the influence of full uniform shading on the performance of a PV system. With the use of this model, a engineering student can change the percentage of full uniform shading in conjunction with other variables, thereby visually observing the influence on the performance of a stand-alone PV system over a 24-hour period

Detecting the presence of pigeons on PV modules in a pico-solar system

Conference ProceedingsShading caused by the presence of pigeons can negatively affect the output power of a PV module in a pico-solar system. This is due to the fact that the body of the pigeon may interrupt the direct beam radiation received by a cell, or number of cells, resulting in output power loss and internal power dissipation within the PV module, as the shaded cells become reverse biased. Detecting the presence of pigeons and then deploying some type of intervention to scare the pigeons away may assist in reducing the shading time, thereby enabling the availability of maximum output power and reduced hot spots. The purpose of this paper is to present the design and results of a LabVIEW software system that was used to detect the presence of pigeons on PV modules in a pico-solar system. The developed system monitors the output voltage and current of multiple identical PV systems, and if a significant drop in current is detected in one system, while the others remain constant, then the system registers an event and logs the amount of time in 10- second intervals. For each sample of this event, the system records an image of the PV modules using a high definition webcam. Correlating the images to the actual events reveals an 86.4% accuracy, thereby indicating that the developed system is indeed detecting the presence of pigeons on the PV modules. It is further recommended to now integrate into this system some type of intervention which may be used to scare the pigeons away

Design and development of practical instruction for freshmen engineering students in a renewable energy course

Conference ProceedingsTechnical competence and problem solving skills are key graduate attributes that engineering students must develop, especially within a practical laboratory. A new specialized course in renewable energy was introduced at the beginning of 2014 at the Central University of Technology, with the main purpose of addressing this goal. The purpose of this research is to describe the design and development of relevant practical instruction which was introduced into one of the solar energy modules, termed Solar Energy Systems II. This module forms part of the curriculum of the new renewable energy course. The backward curriculum design method was applied in developing the practical instruction. Five learning outcomes were specified while three assessment strategies were selected, including oral presentations, written laboratory reports (headings include the experimental question, hypothesis, materials, procedure, observations, data, conclusion and reflections) and a final written class test. Two main pedagogical methods were used involving authentic learning and computer-based learning, while lectures, group work, videos and a learning management system were also used. A questionnaire was finally used to obtain student feedback on the practical instruction. Students indicated that the practical work was enjoyable (92%), relevant to the theory (83%), and a valuable learning experience (97%). This practical instruction has given freshmen engineering students the opportunity to demonstrate their acquisition of important graduate attributes that may help them to contribute to the socio-economic development of South Africa

The adenoma-carcinoma sequence in the colorectum--early appearance of a hierarchy of small intestinal mucin antigen (SIMA) epitopes and correlation with malignant potential.

The colorectal adenoma-carcinoma sequence was examined in relation to the ectopic expression of the oncofoetal Small Intestinal Mucin Antigen (SIMA), to the development of morphologic changes in the adenoma and perineoplastic mucosa and to indices of malignant potential. Four anti-SIMA MAbs, which define a novel hierarchy of SIMA epitopes in the normal small intestine and adjacent to colorectal cancers, were used in a retrospective immunohistochemical study of Familial Adenomatous Polyposis (FAP, n = 183) and non-familial (n = 44) adenomas. Inappropriate expression of SIMA epitopes was first detected in mucosa adjacent to minute microadenomas larger than three glands, and with increase in size, in increasing amounts within adenomas themselves, but not with microadenomas smaller than three glands or regions of flat mucosa free of adenomas. SIMA epitope expressed in mucosa adjacent to adenomas preceded changes in perineoplastic morphology, which progressed with adenoma growth to resemble transitional mucosa (TM) adjacent to cancers. Thus, the onset of both SIMA expression and morphological changes in TM were consistent with reactive rather than pre-existing field change phenomena. The previously reported hierarchy of four SIMA epitopes (5C5, 3D4, 4D3, 6C5) was also consistently observed in the adenoma-carcinoma sequence, and applied to (i) the order of epitope detection, (ii) the number of positive adenomas and (iii) extent of staining; (iv) the height in the crypt and (v) distance from the adenoma to which epitopes were expressed in perineoplastic mucosa. These observations are consistent with a progression of changes in mucin composition with adenoma development. The percentage of positive adenomas and reactivity scores for each anti-SIMA MAb correlated with increasing adenoma size, degree of dysplasia and growth pattern. SIMA expression appears to predate the earliest reported oncogene and tumour suppressor gene changes, was persistent and increased throughout adenoma development. SIMA epitopes are thus markers of very early neoplastic change, whose expression correlates with malignant potential and may contribute to the accumulation of changes necessary for tumourigenesis

Tailored Information and Automated Reminding to Improve Medication Adherence in Spanish- and English-Speaking Elders Treated for Memory Impairment.

Medication adherence is recognized as an issue of critical importance within health care, as many patients do not take their medications as prescribed. This study evaluated two interventions targeted at improving adherence in elderly patients being treated for memory impairments. Twenty-seven participants were randomly assigned to control (n = 11), automated reminding (n = 8), or tailored information conditions (n = 8). Medication adherence was evaluated with an electronic pill bottle. Generalized estimating equation (GEE) models assessed the effects of the interventions on electronically monitored medication adherence after controlling for covariates. Results showed that individuals in both intervention groups had higher levels of medication adherence than those in the control group. The presence of a caregiver was associated with substantially higher levels of adherence. Verbal memory, but not general cognitive status, predicted better adherence. Mood, health literacy, and executive functions were not associated with adherence. Results thus suggest that both automated reminding and tailored information interventions may improve medication adherence in elders, even among those with memory impairments

Relations between cognitive status and medication adherence in patients treated for memory disorders.

Medication adherence has been increasingly recognized as an important factor in elderly persons\u27 health. Various studies have shown that medication non-adherence is associated with poor health status in this population. As part of a study of the effects of two interventions to promote medication adherence in patients treated for memory problems, information on medication adherence and cognitive status was collected at 3-month intervals. Twenty-seven participants (16 men, 11 women, age 71-92 years) were assigned to control or treatment conditions and adherence was evaluated with an electronic monitoring device. Cognitive status was evaluated at 3-month intervals beginning in April of 2003 and continuing through September of 2006. We have previously reported on the effectiveness of these interventions to promote adherence. In this paper, we examine the relations of cognitive status and adherence over time using a partial least squares path model in order to evaluate the extent to which adherence to cholinesterase medications was related to cognitive status. Adherence predicted cognitive status at later time points while cognition did not, in general, predict adherence. Results thus suggest that interventions to ensure high levels of medication adherence may be important for maintaining cognitive function in affected elderly people