Socio-digital interests, networks and excessive ICT engagement in Finnish adolescents

The rise of modern socio-digital technologies has fundamentally changed the ways in which people communicate, cultivate interests and simply live their everyday lives in the new media ecology. This study sheds some light on Southern Finnish adolescents (N=17) socio-digital interests, networks and excessive ICT engagement based on mixed, self-report methods of theme interview, self-report questionnaire and social network questionnaire. During the interviews, the participants were also requested to reflect on their interest related egocentric networks or key-events in their interests development by means of drawing. The results indicated, that there were clear differences in the primary interests’ development and the networks related to it, and also in the experiences of the excessiveness of ICT use between the three profiles of socio-digital participation or interests: the basic, non-digital interest group, the creative digital media interest group and the digital gaming oriented interest group derived from a previously conducted self-report questionnaire. Also the youth in general appeared to experience their ICT use as excessive to some degree, but present criticism towards the concept of “ICT addiction” as well.Modernien sosiodigitaalisen teknologioiden nousu on perusteellisesti muuttanut ihmisten kommunikaation, harrastamisen ja yksinkertaisesti jokapäiväisen elämisen tapoja nykyisessä uusmediaekologiassa. Tämä tutkimus valaisee hieman eteläsuomalaisten nuorten (N=71) sosiodigitaalisia kiinnostuksia, verkostoja ja liiallista TVT-sitoutuneisuutta perustuen teemahaastattelu-, kysely- ja verkostokyselyaineistoihin. Haastattelujen aikana osallistujia pyydettiin myös pohtimaan kiinnostuksiinsa liittyviä egosentrisiä sosiaalisia verkostoja tai sen kehitykseen liittyviä avaintapahtumia piirustuksen avulla. Tulokset viittaavat siihen, että primäärikiinnostuksen kehityksessä, siihen liittyvissä verkostoissa ja liiallisessa ICT-sitoutuneisuudessa on selviä eroja kolmen, aiemman kyselytutkimuksen perusteella muodostetun sosiodigitaalisen kiinnostuksen tai osallistumisen ryhmän välillä: ei-digitaalisen kiinnostuksen ryhmän, luovan, digitaalisen median kiinnostuksen ryhmän ja digitaaliseen pelaamiseen suuntautuneen ryhmän. Nuoret myös arvioivat yleisesti ICT:n käyttönsä jossain määrin liialliseksi, mutta esittivät myös kritiikkiä ”ICT-addiktion” käsitettä kohtaan.Siirretty Doriast

Lasten ohjelmoinnillisen ajattelun käsitteellinen muutos Hello Ruby -kesäkoulun 2016 aikana

The purpose of this study is to increase scientific understanding of children's conceptual change in computational thinking during a summer school intervention. With a mixed method approach of self-report questionnaire and interview, the investigation highlights modern children's knowledge, beliefs and understanding of as well as attitudes, emotions and motivations towards computers, programming and artificial intelligence. Think-aloud –tasks are also used to investigate children's computational thought processes. The SRQ data with an intervention group (n = 28) and a comparison group (n = 21) was analysed with repeated measures and independent samples t-tests, MANOVA and ANCOVA, with the pretest condition as covariate. The data revealed a change in the intervention group's conceptions about embedded cyber-physical systems and the application of computers in different industrial and artistic fields. A slight shift towards a strong AI –mindset was discovered in the intervention group through the SRQ. The interviews for the intervention group (n = 6) and two comparison groups (n = 4, material comparison n = 4) reinforced this conclusion and showed a strong enhancement of computational thinking attitudes and perspectives in the intervention group in contrast to the comparison groups. The computational skills were found to be tightly knit to level of mathematical understanding, and didn't change notably during the summer school intervention.Tutkimuksen tarkoituksena on parantaa tieteellistä ymmärrystä kesäkouluintervention aikana lasten ohjelmoinnillisessa ajattelussa tapahtuvasta käsitteellisestä muutoksesta. Kyselytutkimuksesta ja haastatteluista koostuvalla mixed methods –lähestymistavalla tutkimus valaisee nykylasten tietokoneisiin, ohjelmointiin ja tekoälyyn liittyviä asenteita, tunteita ja motivaatioita sekä uskomuksia ja ymmärrystä. Lisäksi ääneenajattelutehtävien avulla tutkittiin lasten ohjelmoinnillisia ajatteluprosesseja. Kyselydatan (interventio n = 28, vertailu n = 21) varianssinalyysit ja t-testaus paljastivat muutoksen lasten käsityksissä sulautetuista järjestelmistä ja tietokoneiden sovelluksista eri taideteollisilla aloilla. Vahvoissa tekoälynäkemyksissä havaittiin myös lievä nousu interventioryhmän kohdalla. Haastattelut (interventioryhmä n = 6, vertailuryhmä n = 4, materiaalivertailuryhmä n = 4) vahvistivat tätä johtopäätöstä ja osoittivat myös vahvaa parannusta ohjelmoinnillisissa asenteissa ja näkymissä interventioryhmän kohdalla vertailuryhmiin nähden. Ohjelmoinnillisten taitojen havaittiin olevan tiukasti sidoksissa matemaattisen ymmärryksen tasoon, eikä niissä havaittu huomattavaa muutosta kesäkouluintervention aikana

Playing out diplomacy : Gamified realization of future skills and discipline-specific theory

Future horizons, shaped by unpredictable ecosystems and exponential automation, require discipline-specific as well as transdisciplinary skills to navigate. In the context of political science education, negotiation simulations, for example in the form of board games, can aid in developing both. As a plausibility probe for wider investigations, we set out to research whether an International Relations course concept utilizing the classical board game Diplomacy with pedagogically altered rules and gaming conditions enhances students’ (n = 23) understanding of discipline-specific knowledge and future skills. We utilized a conceptual pre-post measure as well as free-form learning diaries to investigate development in participants’ conceptual understanding and future skills along the course. The results tentatively suggest quantifiable and qualitatively observable changes in the discipline-specific conceptual, as well as more broad-based competence level. The gamified learning environment provided students with an activating and engaging learning environment that better acquainted them not only with discipline-specific theory, but more importantly, also with skills regarded important for their future.Peer reviewe

Entrepreneurship as a Neglected Pitfall in Future Finnish Teachers’ Readiness to Teach 21st Century Competencies and Financial Literacy : Expectancies, Values, and Capability

The aim of this study was to examine entrepreneurship in the context of future Finnish teachers' readiness to teach 21st century (broad-based) competencies. Teachers' self-efficacy in teaching entrepreneurial skills and financial matters is vital for their pupils to actively participate and flourish in future society. The study utilized survey data of future teachers' expectancy-values in teaching seven broad-based competencies of the current national curriculum and their financial literacy. Future teachers expressed high interest in all competencies but reported the least self-efficacy and highest cost in teaching ICT as well as working life and entrepreneurship competencies. Teaching self-efficacy (TSE) in entrepreneurial competencies was predicted by subjective evaluations of financial capability and TSE in consumer skills. Teaching STEM subjects as well as male gender were related to better objective financial knowledge. We discuss the implications of observed financial capability, lack in self-efficacy, and high experienced cost of teaching these competencies. Support for future teachers' readiness to teach working life skills, entrepreneurship, and financial literacy through phenomenon-based school subject collaboration, formal teacher training, and digital applications are emphasized.Peer reviewe

Entrepreneurship as a Neglected Pitfall in Future Finnish Teachers’ Readiness to Teach 21st Century Competencies and Financial Literacy: Expectancies, Values, and Capability

The aim of this study was to examine entrepreneurship in the context of future Finnish teachers’ readiness to teach 21st century (broad-based) competencies. Teachers’ self-efficacy in teaching entrepreneurial skills and financial matters is vital for their pupils to actively participate and flourish in future society. The study utilized survey data of future teachers’ expectancy-values in teaching seven broad-based competencies of the current national curriculum and their financial literacy. Future teachers expressed high interest in all competencies but reported the least self-efficacy and highest cost in teaching ICT as well as working life and entrepreneurship competencies. Teaching self-efficacy (TSE) in entrepreneurial competencies was predicted by subjective evaluations of financial capability and TSE in consumer skills. Teaching STEM subjects as well as male gender were related to better objective financial knowledge. We discuss the implications of observed financial capability, lack in self-efficacy, and high experienced cost of teaching these competencies. Support for future teachers’ readiness to teach working life skills, entrepreneurship, and financial literacy through phenomenon-based school subject collaboration, formal teacher training, and digital applications are emphasized

Comeback of epitaxial graphene for electronics: large-area growth of bilayer-free graphene on SiC

We present a new fabrication method for epitaxial graphene on SiC which enables the growth of ultra-smooth defect- and bilayer-free graphene sheets with an unprecedented reproducibility, a necessary prerequisite for wafer-scale fabrication of high quality graphene-based electronic devices. The inherent but unfavorable formation of high SiC surface terrace steps during high temperature sublimation growth is suppressed by rapid formation of the graphene buffer layer which stabilizes the SiC surface. The enhanced nucleation is enforced by decomposition of polymer adsorbates which act as a carbon source. With most of the steps well below 0.75 nm pure monolayer graphene without bilayer inclusions is formed with lateral dimensions only limited by the size of the substrate. This makes the polymer assisted sublimation growth technique the most promising method for commercial wafer scale epitaxial graphene fabrication. The extraordinary electronic quality is evidenced by quantum resistance metrology at 4.2 K with until now unreached precision and high electron mobilities on mm scale devices.Comment: 20 pages, 6 Figure