An investigation of computer generated knowledge retention activities in computer-based training with adult learners

The goal of this investigation was to evaluate the impact of training and the effectiveness of different types of knowledge retention activities delivered by computer-based training programs. This study focused on a computer-based learning system called the Profound Learning Delivery System (PLS). PLS is an application designed to improve the content knowledge retention of adult learners who are completing computer-based training. This study used a pretest-posttest experimental design to compare adult learners’ knowledge of Microsoft Outlook ( Outlook, 1997) before and after a computer-based training session. Participants were trained using two different computer-based instructional programs; a commercially available software program matched for comparison purposes and PLS. This comparison involved three different formats for post-instruction retention activities that were; no review activities, user generated review activities, and program generated retention activities. Results indicate, there was a significant difference between the groups 60 days after training. This result demonstrated that PLS has potential worth exploring

Measuring preparedness to teach with ICT

In this paper we discuss the development and implementation of a questionnaire that measures preparedness to teach secondary school science with information and communication technologies (leT). The questionnaire was designed for the purpose of evaluating the effectiveness of instruction in a science education unit in a Graduate Diploma teacher education course. Rasch analysis of the pre- and post-unit responses indicated domains of expertise for which students perceived they had improved their knowledge during the unit, and domains for which they perceived they were less knowledgeable after the unit than before it. We discuss students\u27 responses in relation to the unit, and report the technical decisions that we \u27made as part of the analysis. The questionnaire could be adapted easily to suit preservice teacher education in disciplines other than science

Coarse Woody Debris Dynamics Following Biomass Harvesting: Tracking Carbon and Nitrogen Patterns During Early Stand Development in Upland Black Spruce Ecosystems

Coarse woody debris (CWD) in the boreal ecosystem has been hypothesized to play an important nutritional role following stand-replacing disturbances such as fire or harvest. Sites with shallow soil over bedrock, or those with coarse-textured soils, can be especially susceptible to overstory removal because low carbon and nutrient pools may limit stand productivity in subsequent rotations. On these site types, CWD can provide essential nutrition to the developing second growth stand, prior to internal cycling processes stabilizing at crown closure (15 years to 20 years after stand initiation) through slow and steady decomposition. The current study sites were established in 1994 and in 2008 (14 years following harvesting) and were approaching crown closure. The experimental harvest areas were designed to document carbon loss and nutrient fluxes after the application of four levels of biomass removal from mature black spruce forested stands in northwestern Ontario, Canada. Two soil types (fresh, loamy: dry, sandy), with stand replicates (blocks), were selected to test whether residual CWD represents a source or sink for nutrients, and if the decay pattern varied depending on soil type. Measurement/sampling of CWD was done immediately after the harvest treatments were applied, and again in year 4 and year 14. The biomass removal treatment with the greatest carbon loss and fastest CWD decay rate had the highest initial mass of CWD, indicating possible synergistic decay dynamics. Nitrogen concentration in the CWD continued to increase from the initial measurements to year 14 (from 900 ppm to 2400 ppm), but was largely a function of increasing carbon loss. When converted to N content in CWD (kg ha-1), however, nitrogen exhibited an initial upward trend (i.e., immobilization) through years 1to 4 (from 50 kg ha-1 up to 80 kg ha-1) and a subsequent release in years 5 to 14 (from 80 kg ha-1down to 27 kg ha-1). This trend was more apparent on the dry, sandy sites where N content peaked at almost 100 kg ha-1 at year 4, but then reduced to 26 kg ha-1 by year 14. We compared the average loss of N from CWD in years 4 to 14 (5.3 kg ha-1 yr-1) to the total soil inorganic N pool (based on a fresh K2SO4 extraction), and found that the N loss from CWD represented a substantive portion (80%) of the available N pool, particularly on the dry, sandy sites. After an initial peak in year 4, black spruce foliar N decreased significantly (p<.0001) through to year 10 but began to rebound by year 15. This increase, presumably, was in part the result of the documented release of N from CWD. These results suggest that CWD, although a small contributor to the total N pool, makes a substantial contribution to the relatively small available N pool, especially on dry, sandy soils. The trend of initial N immobilization and subsequent release shows CWD may also serve to buffer the initial leaching of nutrients from the site following harvesting and provide an available source of N to the regenerating stand prior to crown closure. Keywords: coarse woody debris, black spruce, carbon and nitrogen dynamics. Received 23 September 2010, Revised 11 December 2012, Accepted 13 December 2012

Designing Futures by Empowering Novice Designers

ABSTRACT “There is a sweet spot between the known and the unknown where originality happens; the key is to be able to linger there without panicking.” Ed Catmull, co-founder of Pixar All design involves shaping the future - from an industrial design prototype that combines new and old materials to a strategic designer grappling with the complexities of inter-connected systems, each one is optimistically moving towards an intended future. To design such futures, we need more than research, analysis, synthesis, and strategy. We need a commitment to and a deep appreciation of design methods. Ultimately the most nuanced and insightful foresight work is realized through design, design that moves people towards preferred futures. Whose future? How to frame such complex problems? How to consider and weigh potential future pathways? These vexing issues paralyze inexperienced designers, often appearing as a collection of magical acts that are a rarefied mix of process, experience, and intuition. How then does an inexperienced designer move from novice to expert? Our research has been informed by a comprehensive literature review of design and design history, a survey of design practitioners and industry interviews with both inexperienced and experienced design professionals. This report embraces a three-act structure and focuses on: the changing nature of design and designers and how education providers have responded to these challenges; a synthesis of survey and interview responses that helps define the future designer; and practical recommendations to assist novice designers in their continued learning towards the development of their design practice. Our key findings include the realization that design methods are either assumed or overlooked in most graduate design programs that focus on futures-related endeavors. Further, through synthesis, we distilled six insights, which include: Good design starts with advocacy; Design is an anticipatory state of being; On the road to mastery, Learn from travelers; Design depth over scratching the surface; Going beyond the algorithm to develop curiosity and Design literacy matters. These insights are intended to act as inspirational criteria for crafting design learning, and we offer a prototype that combines physical and digital tools to assist the novice designer. We hope this prototype encourages the development and adoption of design habits - habits that are more than just efficiencies or techniques, but rather the forging of an identity, towards becoming a designer of futures

Teachers\u27 perceptions of online modules to promote professional learning of ICT

Online professional learning has the potential to be a cost effective, flexible approach that can reach large numbers of teachers. However, there are many factors that need to be evaluated in developing successful online approaches that impact on teaching pedagogy and student learning. This paper outlines one phase of a research study conducted on behalf of an Australian state-based Department of Education to evaluate the transfer of professional learning from online modules about the integration of ICT to the practices of K-12 classroom teachers

Measuring preparedness to teach with ICT

In this paper we discuss the development and implementation of a questionnaire that measures preparedness to teach secondary school science with information and communication technologies (leT). The questionnaire was designed for the purpose of evaluating the effectiveness of instruction in a science education unit in a Graduate Diploma teacher education course. Rasch analysis of the pre- and post-unit responses indicated domains of expertise for which students perceived they had improved their knowledge during the unit, and domains for which they perceived they were less knowledgeable after the unit than before it. We discuss students\u27 responses in relation to the unit, and report the technical decisions that we \u27made as part of the analysis. The questionnaire could be adapted easily to suit preservice teacher education in disciplines other than science

Reviews

Introduction to the Law of Employment, Industrial Relations: a Social Psychological Approach, New Zealand and the World: Essays in Honour of Wolfgang Rosenberg, Studies in Conflict: Cases in New Zealand Industrial Relations, Labour Market Economics, The Changing Contours of British Industrial Relations, Workers' Co-operatives: Jobs and Dreams, The Right to Strike, Work and People - an Economic Evaluation of Job Enrichmen

Selection for Forage and Avoidance of Risk by Woodland Caribou (Rangifer Tarandus Caribou) at Coarse andLocal Scales

The relationship between selection at coarse and fine spatiotemporal spatial scales is still poorly understood. Some authors claim that, to accommodate different needs at different scales, individuals should have contrasting selection patterns at different scales of selection, while others claim that coarse scale selection patterns should reflect fine scale selection decisions. Here we examine site selection by 110 woodland caribou equipped with GPS radio‐collars with respect to forage availability and predation risk across a broad gradient in availability of both variables in boreal forests of Northern Ontario. We tested whether caribou selection for forage and avoidance of risk was consistent between coarse (seasonal home range) and fine scales of selection. We found that local selection patterns predicted coarse scale selection patterns, indicating a close relationship between the drivers of selection at both spatial scales