Women in Power: Examining the Pathway to the Top

As more women begin to enter the upper management ranks of the business world, researchers have recognized several patterns in terms of common factors which influence career paths and choices. Based on this, I conducted a study with the purpose of identifying those influences and traits which women in the field most attributed to their individual success. This information could thereafter be used as a guide for young women such as myself who are about to begin their own career paths within this field. Through the use of survey and individual interview, my findings indicated that individual background, family support, education, and activities were shown to be the most influential aspects of professional development, while key personality traits necessary to success as noted by the participants included a mixture of both individual (self-motivation, perseverance, etc.) and interpersonal (communication, compassion, etc.) abilities. Advice offered by respondents again emphasized the need for individual motivation combined with the strong interpersonal skills which facilitate professional relationships

Bayesian keys: biological identification on mobile devices

A Bayesian key is a computer-aided method for biological identification. A traditional biological key is a series of branching questions which must be answered in order to arrive at a correct identification. But these keys can be cumbersome, error-prone, and do not match users' approach to the task. Multi-access keys based on Bayesian statistics promise quicker and more robust identification that matches the users' task. We are developing these for the web and for mobile devices

The OpenupEd quality label: benchmarks for MOOCs

In this paper we report on the development of the OpenupEd Quality Label, a self-assessment and review quality assurance process for the new European OpenupEd portal (www.openuped.eu) for MOOCs (massive open online courses). This process is focused on benchmark statements that seek to capture good practice, both at the level of the institution and at the level of individual courses. The benchmark statements for MOOCs are derived from benchmarks produced by the E xcellence e learning quality projects (E-xcellencelabel.eadtu.eu/). A process of self-assessment and review is intended to encourage quality enhancement, captured in an action plan. We suggest that a quality label for MOOCs will benefit all MOOC stakeholders

Quality Frameworks for MOOCs

The hype surrounding MOOCs has been tempered by scepticism about the quality of MOOCs. The possible flaws of MOOCs include the quality of the pedagogies employed, low completion rates and a failure to deliver on the promise of inclusive and equitable quality education for all. On the other hand, MOOCs that have given a boost to open and online education have become a symbol of a larger modernisation agenda for universities, and are perceived as tools for universities to improve the quality of blended and online education—both in degree education and Continuous Professional Development. MOOC provision is also much more open to external scrutiny as part of a stronger globalising higher education market. This has important consequences for quality frameworks and quality processes that go beyond the individual MOOC. In this context, different quality approaches are discussed including possible measures at different levels and the tension between product and process models. Two case studies are described: one at the institutional level (The Open University) and one at a MOOC platform level (FutureLearn) and how they intertwine is discussed. The importance of a national or international quality framework which carries with it a certification or label is illustrated with the OpenupEd Quality label. Both the label itself and its practical use are described in detail. The examples will illustrate that MOOCs require quality assurance processes tailored to e-learning and open education, embedded in institutional frameworks. The increasing unbundling of educational services may require additional quality processes

How much can firms know?

There are two key stylised facts about the extinction patterns of firms. First, the probability of extinction is highest at the start of the firm"s existence, but soon becomes more or less invariant to the age of the firm. Second, the relationship between the size and frequency of firm extinctions is closely approximated by a power law. An agent based model of firm evolution and extinction has been developed which has properties which conform closely to the stylised facts. We examine the effects of allowing firms different amounts of knowledge about the effects of strategy in the context of this agent-based evolutionary model. There are very considerable returns in the model to acquiring knowledge. As both the amount of knowledge available to firms increases and as the number of firms capable of acquiring such knowledge rises, the lifespan of agents approaches the full information paradigm in which agents live for ever. However, even with relatively low levels of knowledge and numbers of agents capable of acquiring it, the model ceases to have properties which are compatible with the two key stylised facts on firm extinctions. The clear implication is that firms have very limited capacities to acquire knowledge about the true impact of their strategies.agent based evolutionary model; heterogenous agents; learning

Social networking and open educational resources: updating quality assurance for e-learning excellence

Quality assurance approaches in higher education are well-established, but it is important to develop methods which are applicable to the domain of e-learning. The E-xcellence methodology (EADTU, 2009a) was therefore designed to assess the quality of e-learning in distance learning and blended learning contexts. The methodology is based around a set of benchmarks, supported by a practitioner handbook and a web-based ‘QuickScan’ self-evaluation tool. Experience shows that the E-xcellence methodology is particularly valuable for the process of improvement through collaborative internal review. E-learning has evolved since the E-xcellence methodology was first developed. In particular, there is increasing awareness and use of open education resources (OERs) and social networking. However, these aspects were not explicit in the original E-xcellence resources. The E-xcellence Next project was therefore established to update the resources, incorporating these developments. To begin this process, a consultation was carried out among E-xcellence Next project members, followed by a participatory workshop on the themes of social networking and OERs. The E-xcellence resources were also used in a series of self-evaluation seminars held at European higher education institutions. Experience and feedback from these activities has been used to update the manual, the benchmarks and the QuickScan tool. The result is a set of quality assurance resources which encompass social networking, OERs and other recent developments in e-learning

Practical activities in robotics: hands-on or simulator?

The Open University (OU) module Robotics and the meaning of life: a practical guide to things that think (T184) was an introductory course on robotics which ran from 2003-2011 and continues to run in an updated form. This is taught online but contains a strong practical element. Practical activities in the initial plans for the course were designed around the Lego Mindstorms RCX robotics kit. Students would build and program an autonomous wheeled robot able to carry out a range of tasks of increasing complexity. A new programming environment, OU RobotLab, was developed at the Open University to support the needs of adult learners with no previous experience of programming and to make extended use of the capabilities of the Mindstorms kits. However, it was not practical for the Open University to provide Lego kits for student use at scale in this module. Instead, RobotLab was extended to include a simulation of the robot. Students were thus offered the choice of carrying out practical activities either as simulation or using real hardware, provided they had access to a suitable kit. Students were surveyed at the start and end of each presentation of the course to look at the attitudes and experiences of students to these different approaches to practical work. This gives us an opportunity to ask: can student learn practical skills at the computer or is it necessary to have hands-on practical experience

Robotics and the meaning of life: a practical guide to things that think

The new Open University course T184 Robotics and the meaning of life: a practical guide to things that think is an introductory course on robotics. It is an undergraduate course taught at a distance over 10 weeks. The course is centred around a web site containing most of the course material, supported by two books: Ruth Aylett Robots: Bringing intelligent machines to life? which is a general survey of the field and Isaac Asimov I, Robot which is used to motivate questions about the relationship between man and machine. On-line conferences provide study support. There is also a strong practical element to the course. This was originally designed around the use of the Lego Mindstorms robotics kit. Besides mechanical components, the kit includes the Lego RCX brick – a programmable microcontroller with memory and interfaces to input and output devices such as touch and light sensors, motors and an IR channel to communicate with a PC. Students can build and program an autonomous wheeled robot to carry out a range of tasks of increasing difficulty. A new programming environment was developed at the Open University specifically to support the needs of adult learners with no prior experience of programming. This provided an opportunity to extend the capabilities of the Mindstorms kit. For example, the robot can now ‘talk’ by sending IR messages back to the PC where they are turned into spoken phrases. This richer environment is highly motivating. The new software can also take on a processing role to escape the limitations of memory and processing power onboard the robot. For example, students develop a two-agent system in which the mobile robot collects data, transmits it back to the PC where it is analysed using a neural network (built and trained by the student) and results are transmitted back to the running robot. Developing new software also provided an opportunity to produce a simulation of the robot and we can now offer students the choice of carrying out the practical activities with the Lego hardware or as a simulation. We will look at the attitudes and experiences of students who have chosen these different learning approaches

Benchmarks for MOOCs: the OpenupEd quality label

This paper reports on the OpenupEd Quality Label, a quality assurance process for MOOCs (massive open online courses) developed for the European OpenupEd portal (http://www.openuped.eu). The OpenupEd Quality Label is offered as a way of ensuring that MOOCs offer a good quality educational experience. It adopts a quality enhancement approach, based on initial self-assessment against benchmark indicators, followed by a review leading to an improvement action plan. It is designed to complement both an institutional course approval process, and ongoing evaluation and monitoring of courses in presentation. The overall approach and the benchmarks are derived from the E-xcellence e-learning quality projects (E-xcellencelabel.eadtu.eu). The benchmarks are divided into two groups: course-level and institutional. There are 11 benchmarks that apply at course-level and which should be checked for each MOOC. There are 21 institutional benchmarks grouped into six areas: Strategic Management, Curriculum Design, Course Design, Course Delivery, Staff Support and Student Support. The institutional benchmarks are only reviewed periodically. The benchmarks are supported by the E-xcellence manual which provides background material and more detailed indicators of good practice, with a supplement for MOOC-specific aspects. A ‘quick scan’ checklist is provided to capture the extent to which each benchmark is achieved. Other templates are provided to gather evidence and prepare an action plan. OpenupEd has further distinctive features intended to enhance the quality of MOOCs. The initial providers are members of EADTU (European Association of Distance Teaching Universities) and will bring extensive experience of open and distance learning to bear on MOOCs. Their commitment to ‘open education’ acts to remove unnecessary barriers to learning, and OpenupEd MOOCs should demonstrate specific values: openness to learners, digital openness, a learner-centred approach, support for independent learning, media-supported interactions, recognition options, a focus on quality, and embracing a spectrum of diversity. The OpenupEd label should benefit all stakeholders in MOOCs. Students can be reassured about the experience they are committing to. Employers can recognise the content and skills demonstrated by a MOOC certificate. MOOC authors can achieve recognition for their input. Institutions can protect their brand reputation. Funders can be reassured that products are worthwhile. Quality agencies, who work on behalf of all the above parties, may find their task eased