Perspectives de conception de cours en ligne, une nouvelle norme? Perceptions des élèves et des enseignants de l'engagement en ligne dans le Québec rural

Abstract: The recent pandemic has accentuated the need to understand what online teaching techniques work to motivate students. Research indicates a more inclusive online student-centered approach creates new course design demands on teachers but provides greater student motivation. At the center of the issue is a lack of student engagement, frequently caused by learners feeling disconnected from other participants and/or the teacher in most online settings. Aside from technological issues, the problem is often accentuated by continued implementation of instructional design methodology that is based on conventional classroom models as opposed to inclusive approaches. Also tied into this, is a lack of teacher training to support learner-centered course design. Since virtual hybrid online learning using videoconferencing has started to offer an increase in course diversity that would otherwise not be possible for some locations with fewer educational resources and distance limitations, the need to understand learner-centered approaches has intensified. This study focused on professional programs given by Cégep de la Gaspésie et des Îles, a rurally situated Cegep (community college) in Québec, Canada, spanning a vast territory. Both students and instructors were asked to respond to separate, but corresponding surveys adapted from the Community of Inquiry framework and questionnaire developed by Garrison et al. (2000). Understanding the relationship between the participant responses and selected learner-centered approaches, either currently in use or viewed as useful, sheds light on what keeps students actively engaged. Results suggest that learner centered approaches are appreciated by both students and teachers to potentially increase student engagement, but the pedagogical possibilities are not always fully understood, or utilized. This information provides new directions for online course design because of the comparison factor between what teachers believe should get students engaged and what students report as being engaging.La récente pandémie a accentué la nécessité de comprendre quelles techniques d'enseignement en ligne fonctionnent pour motiver les étudiants. La recherche indique qu'une approche en ligne centrée sur l'étudiant plus inclusive crée de nouvelles exigences en matière de conception de cours pour les enseignants, mais fournit une plus grande motivation aux étudiants. Au centre du problème se trouve le manque d'engagement des élèves, souvent causé par le fait que les apprenants se sentent déconnectés des autres participants et/ou de l'enseignant dans la plupart des contextes en ligne. Outre les problèmes technologiques, le problème est souvent accentué par la mise en oeuvre continue d'une méthodologie de conception pédagogique basée sur des modèles de classe conventionnels par opposition à des approches inclusives. Également lié à ce problème, il y a un manque de formation des enseignants pour soutenir la conception de cours centrés sur l'apprenant. Depuis que l'apprentissage en ligne hybride virtuel utilisant la vidéoconférence a commencé à offrir une augmentation de la diversité des cours qui autrement ne serait pas possible pour certains endroits avec moins de ressources éducatives et des limitations de distance, la nécessité de comprendre les approches centrées sur l'apprenant s'est intensifiée. Cette étude a porté sur les programmes professionnels dispensés par le Cégep de la Gaspésie et des Îles, un cégep (collège communautaire) situé en milieu rural au Québec, Canada, couvrant un vaste territoire. Les étudiants et les instructeurs ont été invités à répondre à des enquêtes distinctes mais correspondantes adaptées du cadre et du questionnaire de la communauté d'enquête développés par Garrison et al. (2000). Comprendre la relation entre les réponses des participants et certaines approches centrées sur l'apprenant, actuellement utilisées ou considérées comme utiles, a permis de mieux comprendre ce qui maintient l'engagement actif des étudiants. Les résultats suggèrent que les approches centrées sur l'apprenant sont appréciées à la fois par les étudiants et les enseignants pour augmenter potentiellement l'engagement des étudiants, mais les possibilités pédagogiques ne sont pas toujours pleinement comprises ou utilisées. Ces informations fournissent de nouvelles orientations pour la conception de cours en ligne en raison du facteur de comparaison entre ce que les enseignants estiment devoir engager les étudiants et ce que les étudiants déclarent être engageant

Incorporating inter-individual variability in experimental design improves the quality of results of animal experiments

Inter-individual variability in quantitative traits is believed to potentially inflate the quality of results in animal experimentation. Yet, to our knowledge this effect has not been empirically tested. Here we test whether inter-individual variability in emotional response within mouse inbred strains affects the outcome of a pharmacological experiment. Three mouse inbred strains (BALB/c, C57BL/6 and 129S2) were behaviorally characterized through repeated exposure to a mild aversive stimulus (modified Hole Board, five consecutive trials). A multivariate clustering procedure yielded two multidimensional response types which were displayed by individuals of all three strains. We show that systematic incorporation of these individual response types in the design of a pharmacological experiment produces different results from an experimental pool in which this variation was not accounted for. To our knowledge, this is the first study that empirically confirms that inter-individual variability affects the interpretation of behavioral phenotypes and may obscure experimental results in a pharmacological experiment

Adherence of type 1-fimbriated Escherichia coli to uroepithelial cells: more in diabetic women than in control subjects

OBJECTIVE: Women with diabetes have bacteriuria more often than women without diabetes. Because Escherichia coli adhere better to vaginal cells of nondiabetic patients with recurrent urinary tract infections (UTIs) than to those obtained from healthy control subjects, it was hypothesized that E. coli adhere more to the uroepithelial cells of diabetic women, either because of substances excreted in the urine (e.g., albumin, glucose, and Tamm Horsfall protein) or because of a difference in the uroepithelial cells. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: A T24 bladder cell line and uroepithelial cells of 25 diabetic women and 19 control subjects were incubated with three different E. coli strains. RESULTS: The mean numbers of type 1-fimbriated E. coli that adhered to diabetic and control cells were 12.9 and 6.1 (P = 0.001), respectively, whereas those of P-fimbriated E. coli were 8.8 and 8.1 (P = 0.8), and those of nonfimbriated E. coli were 2.7 and 3.4 (P = 0.4). The addition of various substances did not influence the adherence of E. coli to a T24 bladder cell line. CONCLUSIONS: Type 1-fimbriated E. coli adhere more to diabetic than to control uroepithelial cell

Losing, and finding, spaces to learn in the university

The issue of healthy environments for learning became a focal point in a peer research group at a university, where a change of physical meeting place galvanized a discussion about losing and finding spaces in which to know and learn. This paper presents a ‘postcard’ conversation exploring in presentational forms our experiences of these places as students and scholars. We present this as an example of an arts-based methodology giving rise to themes of neglected ways of knowing and learning, and the yearning for spaces for creativity and collaboration. We offer representations of and reflections on experience in order to further discussion about what it means for universities to be healthy settings for students and staff in the age of academic entrepreneurship

Incorporating inter-individual variability in experimental design improves the quality of results of animal experiments

Inter-individual variability in quantitative traits is believed to potentially inflate the quality of results in animal experimentation. Yet, to our knowledge this effect has not been empirically tested. Here we test whether inter-individual variability in emotional response within mouse inbred strains affects the outcome of a pharmacological experiment. Three mouse inbred strains (BALB/c, C57BL/6 and 129S2) were behaviorally characterized through repeated exposure to a mild aversive stimulus (modified Hole Board, five consecutive trials). A multivariate clustering procedure yielded two multidimensional response types which were displayed by individuals of all three strains. We show that systematic incorporation of these individual response types in the design of a pharmacological experiment produces different results from an experimental pool in which this variation was not accounted for. To our knowledge, this is the first study that empirically confirms that inter-individual variability affects the interpretation of behavioral phenotypes and may obscure experimental results in a pharmacological experiment

Hyperlipidaemia elicits an atypical, T helper 1-like CD4⁺T-cell response:A key role for very low-density lipoprotein

Aims: Hyperlipidemia and T cell driven inflammation are important drivers of atherosclerosis, the main underlying cause of cardiovascular disease. Here, we detailed the effects of hyperlipidemia on T cells. Methods and results: In vitro, exposure of human and murine CD4+ T cells to very low-density lipoprotein (VLDL), but not to low-density lipoprotein (LDL) resulted in upregulation of Th1 associated pathways. VLDL was taken up via a CD36-dependent pathway and resulted in membrane stiffening and a reduction in lipid rafts. To further detail this response in vivo, T cells of mice lacking the LDL receptor (LDLr), which develop a strong increase in VLDL cholesterol and triglyceride levels upon high cholesterol feeding were investigated. CD4+ T cells of hyperlipidemic Ldlr-/-mice exhibited an increased expression of the C-X-C-chemokine receptor 3 (CXCR3) and produced more interferon-?(IFN-?). Gene set enrichment analysis identified IFN-?-mediated signaling as the most upregulated pathway in hyperlipidemic T cells. However, the classical Th1 associated transcription factor profile with strong upregulation of Tbet and Il12rb2 was not observed. Hyperlipidemia did not affect levels of the CD4+ T cell's metabolites involved in glycolysis or other canonical metabolic pathways but enhanced amino acids levels. However, CD4+ T cells of hyperlipidemic mice showed increased cholesterol accumulation and an increased arachidonic acid (AA) to docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) ratio, which was associated with inflammatory T cell activation. Conclusions: Hyperlipidemia, and especially its VLDL component induces an atypical Th1 response in CD4+ T cells. Underlying mechanisms include CD36 mediated uptake of VLDL, and an altered AA/DHA ratio