Intensive modes of study and the need to focus on the process of learning in Higher Education

In the context of a constantly evolving international higher education sector, this commentary emphasises the need for consilience between basic research on learning processes and observations from intensive modes of study. Following a discussion of conflicting evidence on optimal learning time frames, we advocate for seeking alignment between classroom practices with underlying learning mechanisms. We argue for a unified understanding of effective learning beyond notions of the credit point hour or volume of learning, focusing on processes rather than mere inputs and outputs. A collaborative approach between researchers, educators, and policymakers aiming for consilience has the potential to provide practical insights and strategies to enhance student learning and success. Understanding the mechanisms beneath the impact of intensive modes of study, as outlined in this special issue, has the potential to advance the conversation about quality higher education for the 21st century

Learning with Generative Artificial Intelligence Within a Network of Co-Regulation

The emergence of generative artificial intelligence (AI) has created legitimate concerns surrounding academic integrity and the ease with which such technologies might lead to cheating in assessment, in particular. However, fixating solely on potential misconduct is overshadowing a more profound, transformative interaction between learners and machines. This commentary article delves into the relationship between students and AI, aiming to highlight the need for revised pedagogical strategies in the AI age. We argue that the much-discussed approaches that prioritise AI literacy or augmented critical thinking might be inadequate. Instead, we contend that a more holistic approach emphasising self-regulated learning (SRL) and co-regulation of learning is needed. SRL promotes autonomy, adaptability, and a deeper understanding, qualities indispensable for navigating the intricacies of AI-enhanced learning environments. Furthermore, we introduce the notion of a network of co-regulation, which underscores the intertwined learning processes between humans and machines. By positioning the self at the core of this network, we emphasise the indispensable role of individual agency in steering productive human-AI educational interactions. Our contention is that by fostering SRL and understanding co-regulated dynamics, educators can better equip learners for an interconnected AI-driven world

A step-by-step guide on how NOT to get published in a high-impact educational technology journal

Many elements come together to make for a good, publishable manuscript in a high-impact educational technology journal. There are also some fatal errors and omissions that will doom a paper to be immediately declined. In this editorial, we focus on the latter. Checking the aims and scope of a journal is a simple step to ensure that the publication of an article is not delayed and time is not wasted. Unfortunately, it seems this step is neglected by many aspiring authors. Beyond a misalignment with the aims and scope of the journal, we will discuss some of the other main reasons why manuscripts have recently been declined by AJET. We hope that this editorial will assist authors to ensure that they do not make the same mistakes

The Search for Pedagogical Dynamism - Design Patterns and the Unselfconscious Process

An apparent paradigm shift has created increased impetus to offer higher education across multiple delivery platforms. Utilising technology can support design and delivery for enhanced learning, albeit with additional pressures on academic workloads, affecting the ability to deliver quality formal education that meets the needs of individuals and society. The issue is exacerbated when technology, not pedagogy, drives decision-making, and further intensified by the formalisation of education. Using Mishra and Koehler's TPACK framework, we argue that pedagogical dynamism is both necessary to maintain equilibrium of content-knowledge-pedagogy and a natural outcome. Further we suggest it is possible using Alexandrian design patterns and a return to the "unselfconscious process." We critique existing design pattern work in education, and contribute a meta theoretical exploration of alexander's principles and patterns to designing good-fitting forms impacting education. A scenario of designing for "online," "on-campus" and "multi-mode" delivery of education is woven throughout to highlight implications for teaching practice

Blurring disciplinary boundaries in the design studio: Bringing architecture, business, and arts students together to prototype new solutions for palliative care

As complex global problems increasingly require the knowledge and skills of a broad array of disciplines, existing pedagogical approaches need to shift to support graduates to develop the skills necessary for innovation. This article reports on an experimental design studio that asked students from the disciplines of architecture, business and arts to work collaboratively to propose innovative solutions to complex real-world problems. While bringing other disciplines into the design studio is not new, in previously reported examples students were provided well defined parameters for assessment tasks, alongside clear expectations for how disciplines should work together. The studio reported here provided students with the agency to define their own artefacts in response to the problems facing palliative care, and to decide how they would work together in the process of that production. Within this context, students were forced to examine their own disciplinary limitations and to find strategies for working beyond those, and in doing so, move beyond the recognized limitations of inter- and multi-disciplinary approaches to problem solving. To understand the value of this learning experience, extensive data were gathered from students in addition to educator observations. This article provides advice for design educators wanting to augment the studio learning environment through transdisciplinary collaboration, as well as those beyond the design disciplines who may be interested in utilizing this learning approach

Editorial: brain, mind and educational technology

There has been substantial hype around the growing body of research investigating how learning occurs in the brain. Over the last century, in particular, we have learned more about how the brain functions than has been discovered throughout history (Albright, Jessell, Kandel & Posner, 2000). New imaging techniques, such as electroencephalography (EEG) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), have been pivotal in driving this research agenda. The emergence of the field of cognitive neuroscience has further helped to align foundational work on uncovering how the brain works with what is known about learning from the psychological sciences. In combination with education, new fields such as ‘educational neuroscience’ have emerged with the aim of translating the findings from the laboratory to the classroom (e.g. Ansari, Coch & De Smedt, 2011)

Exploring metacognition as support for learning transfer

The ability to transfer learning to new situations lies at the heart of lifelong learning and the employability of university graduates. Because students are often unaware of the importance of learning transfer and staff do not always explicitly articulate this expectation, this article explores the idea that metacognition (intentional awareness and the use of that awareness) might enhance the development of learning transfer. Our exploratory study includes results from a survey of 74 staff and 118 students from five institutions in Australia, Belgium, UK, and USA. Our data indicate that many staff and a majority of students do not have a clear understanding of what learning transfer entails, and that there are many mismatches between staff and student perceptions, attitudes, and behaviors regarding learning transfer. This helps explain why learning transfer does not occur as often as it could. We found significant positive correlations between thinking about transfer and thinking about learning processes and the likelihood to use awareness of metacognition to guide practice. Our findings suggest a positive relationship between metacognition and learning transfer. Implications for the scholarship of teaching and learning are discussed

Forecasting the Impacts of Silver and Bighead Carp on the Lake Erie Food Web

Nonindigenous bigheaded carps (Bighead Carp Hypophthalmichthys nobilis and Silver Carp H. molitrix; hereafter, “Asian carps” [AC]) threaten to invade and disrupt food webs and fisheries in the Laurentian Great Lakes through their high consumption of plankton. To quantify the potential effects of AC on the food web in Lake Erie, we developed an Ecopath with Ecosim (EwE) food web model and simulated four AC diet composition scenarios (high, low, and no detritus and low detritus with Walleye Sander vitreus and Yellow Perch Perca flavescens larvae) and two nutrient load scenarios (the 1999 baseline load and 2× the baseline [HP]). We quantified the uncertainty of the potential AC effects by coupling the EwE model with estimates of parameter uncertainty in AC production, consumption, and predator diets obtained using structured expert judgment. Our model projected mean ± SD AC equilibrium biomass ranging from 52 ± 34 to 104 ± 75 kg/ha under the different scenarios. Relative to baseline simulations without AC, AC invasion under all detrital diet scenarios decreased the biomass of most fish and zooplankton groups. The effects of AC in the HP scenario were similar to those in the detrital diet scenarios except that the biomasses of most Walleye and Yellow Perch groups were greater under HP because these fishes were buffered from competition with AC by increased productivity at lower trophic levels. Asian carp predation on Walleye and Yellow Perch larvae caused biomass declines among all Walleye and Yellow Perch groups. Large food web impacts of AC occurred in only 2% of the simulations, where AC biomass exceeded 200 kg/ha, resulting in biomass declines of zooplankton and planktivorous fish near the levels observed in the Illinois River. Our findings suggest that AC would affect Lake Erie's food web by competing with other planktivorous fishes and by providing additional prey for piscivores. Our methods provide a novel approach for including uncertainty into forecasts of invasive species' impacts on aquatic food webs. Received December 6, 2014; accepted July 15, 201

On the Irrelevance of Neuromyths to Teacher Effectiveness: Comparing Neuro-Literacy Levels Amongst Award-Winning and Non-award Winning Teachers

A number of studies have recently demonstrated a high level of belief in ‘neuromyths’ (fallacious arguments about the brain) amongst trainee and non-award winning educators. The authors of these studies infer this to mean that acceptance of these neuromyths has a negative impact on teaching effectiveness. In this study, we explored this assumption by assessing the prevalence of neuromyth acceptance amongst a group of internationally recognized, award-winning teachers and comparing this to previously published data with trainee and non-award winning teacher populations. Results revealed the acceptance of neuromyths to be nearly identical between these two groups, with the only difference occurring on 2 (out of 15) items. These findings suggest that one cannot make simple, unqualified arguments concerning the relationship between belief in neuromyths and teacher effectiveness. In fact, the idea that neuromyths negatively impact upon teaching might, itself, be a neuromyth