Transitioning to a Personalized Learning Environment Leveraging One-to-One Devices

Today’s educational blueprint is evolving from the traditional teacher-directed model into a student-driven curriculum approach. Specifically, education is experiencing a paradigm shift from the long-established one-size-fits-all model to a customized learning process known as personalized learning. Personalized learning aims at engaging students in more relevant and rigorous learning and turns them into co-designers as the curriculum becomes tailored to their individual learning needs, skills, and interests. Additionally, when coupled with educational technology, personalized learning will provide the teacher with the tools to individualize, differentiate, and accommodate multiple student learning styles and preferences. Indeed, as personalized learning increases in popularity the need to effectively implement the new instructional model also increases. Moreover, it is imperative to understand how the roles of teachers and administrators change as schools’ transition from a traditional learning paradigm to a personalized learning approach influenced by one-to-one devices, and how these changes affect implementation. Therefore, the aim of this research was to explore the perceptions of administrators and teachers as they transition from a traditional learning paradigm to a personalized learning model influenced by one-to-one devices

Research Exemplars from an Interdisciplinary Healthcare Genetics Program

The first chapter of this dissertation provides an overview of the interdisciplinary Healthcare Genetics model, the framework for the studies described in Chapters Two, Three and Four. The model is comprised of five core constructs: Research, Environment, Clinical Practice, Ethical/Legal/Social Implications (ELSI) and Education. Each construct is defined. Chapter One also presents a brief overview of subsequent chapters. Chapter Two details a biophysical approach to the phenotypic classification of mutations in the 7-dehydroxycholesterol reductase (DHCR7) gene, involved in Smith-Lemli-Opitz syndrome. This study utilized computer modeling to determine the biophysical effects of each mutation on structure and function of the DHCR7 protein. The third chapter is a narrative review of the role of the cytokine interleukin 17 (IL-17) in the gynecological condition endometriosis. This review discusses the incidence, etiology and pathogenesis of endometriosis and outlines general guidelines for diagnosis and treatment are outlined. Finally, potential IL-17-targeted therapies are explored. Chapter Four presents original bench research that evaluated the effects of the phyto-cannabinoid beta-caryophyllene (BCP) on a cell culture model of endometriosis. The effects of BCP on markers of inflammation such as cell proliferation and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) production were assessed. The final chapter, Chapter Five, summarizes the findings from Chapters Two, Three and Four. The significance and limitations of these studies are discussed. Finally, Chapter Five provides recommendations for future research

A New Dataset and Method for Creativity Assessment Using the Alternate Uses Task

Creativity ratings by humans for the alternate uses task (AUT) tend to be subjective and inefficient. To automate the scoring process of the AUT, previous literature suggested using semantic distance from non-contextual models. In this paper, we extend this line of research by including contextual semantic models and more importantly, exploring the feasibility of predicting creativity ratings with supervised discriminative machine learning models. Based on a newly collected dataset, our results show that supervised models can successfully classify between creative and non-creative responses even with unbalanced data, and can generalise well to out-of-domain unseen prompts

Occupational Therapy Students\u27 Perceptions of Participation in a Novel Educational Intervention to Learn Hand Anatomy

Learning anatomy via cadaver dissection is considered a best practice in anatomical education. However, occupational therapy programs commonly use alternative or adjunct teaching methods when teaching anatomy. The purpose of this study was to investigate students’ perceptions of learning hand anatomy through participation in the Dell Hand Instructional Module (DHIM), a novel educational intervention incorporating an animated video series and a translucent, three-dimensional model of the hand. Participants attended one anatomical instructional session and one assessment session, completed a questionnaire about their experiences, and participated in a focus group. Participants agreed or strongly agreed that the DHIM made learning about hand anatomy more interesting and enjoyable, was an effective learning tool, and helped them to understand spatial relationships between the hand structures. Thematic analysis of focus group responses resulted in five themes: instructor impact, learning environment, learning preferences, interaction with the model, and perceptions of the educational intervention. Findings suggest this novel intervention supported hand anatomy instruction and was helpful to student engagement in the learning process. Future research should assess learning outcomes associated with the DHIM, as well as investigate the use of trained graduate students as DHIM facilitators

Potential for tsunami detection and early-warning using space-based passive microwave radiometry

Thesis (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Aeronautics and Astronautics, 2008.This electronic version was submitted by the student author. The certified thesis is available in the Institute Archives and Special Collections.Includes bibliographical references (p. 141-150).The threat of a tsunami in coastal communities is considerable, especially in the Pacific and Indian Oceans. Current warning systems consist of two networks: (1) a network of seismometers, and (2) a network of sea level gauges and bottom pressure recorders. Bottom pressure recorders communicate with ocean surface buoys, which send the data to processing centers through satellite communication uplinks. The ability to quickly and accurately detect a tsunami in the deep ocean is proposed using a new space-based passive microwave radiometer system. Passive microwave radiometry can detect oceanic parameters such as sea-surface temperature and sea surface roughness to contribute to earlier tsunami detection, when the tsunami is farther from shore, which will increase the reaction time for at-risk coastal communities. This thesis will outline a physics based approach to manipulating brightness temperature data from the ocean's surface through the variation as a result of the satellite platform, the sensor, its location, the antenna, and other considerations. The thesis will give a description of how each component of the overall system will change the surface data because the observations are space-based. The thesis will also outline how the current detection system can be compared to the new space-based system. In the future, the comparison method can be used to make an argument to support the system with the best capability to serve as an efficient and accurate tsunami early-warning system.by Rebecca G. Myers.S.M