Modelling the success of learning management systems: application of latent class segmentation using FIMIX-PLS

There is not a unique attitude towards the implementation of digital technology in educational sceneries. This paper aims to validate an adaptation of the DeLone and McLean information systems success model in the context of a learning management system. Furthermore, this study means to prove (1) the necessity of segmenting students in order to fit the model more accurately and (2) the impact of other new Internet tools on students’ perceptions with regard to learning management systems. Partial least squares has been used to analyse the measurement and the structural model. Subsequently, the Finite Mixture Partial Least Squarestechnique has been employed to examine unobserved heterogeneity and to find users’ segments. The results of this research indicate that to segment between two groups of students is especially useful in order to improve the understanding of the success of a learning management system. This segmentation is made according to the importance which the students attribute to the new Internet tools to support their learning.     

Visualizing knowledge in new educational environments: a course on learning objects

This article describes the learning objectives, the course activities, experiences and outcomes of a graduate level course on learning object design. The course was developed and taught at The Ohio State University by the author during the Spring Quarter of 2003. Students from the visual design and education disciplines partnered to work on a client‐initiated, authentic, grant‐funded project. The students, working in teams and serving as expert consultants to each other, were tasked with designing prototypes for learning objects to be used by freshman high school students, particularly those with disabilities. The course provided an opportunity to observe how developers actually built learning objects and to apply that knowledge to better understanding the issues facing faculty when challenged with the same tasks.     

Learning styles in engineering education: the quest to improve didactic practices

This article discusses a dilemma that engineering educators encounter when attempting to develop pedagogical methods: that of finding efficient and scientifically valid didactic practices. The multitude of methods offered by educational consultants is perplexing. Moreover, the popularity of commercially offered solutions such as learning styles testing makes them appear attractive. The study presents one case of application of learning styles, the consequent problems and evaluation of results. It concludes that the use of learning styles is not supported by current pedagogical theories. Practices to foster interdisciplinary understanding between learning sciences and engineering are proposed in order to improve engineering education, most notably collaborative projects between university departments.     

Integrating creativity training into Problem and Project-Based Learning curriculum in engineering education

In order to foster creative engineers, a creativity training programme was carried out in medialogy education in a Problem and Project-Based Learning (PBL) environment at Aalborg University, Denmark. This paper focuses on the question of how engineering students perceive the strategy of integrating creativity training into a PBL curriculum. A total of 20 medialogy students in the training programme were interviewed. The data shows that the training programme was thought useful and students get benefits such as gaining project work skills, creative concepts and confidence of being creative. However, limitations of the programme show that only five days of training did not fit the requirements of learning skills in PBL. So the supervisors are suggested to offer more creativity techniques and process engagement to move projects forward.     

Exploring criticality in management education through action learning

The field of management education has been the focus of much debate in recent times. Issues relating to the real world and a lack of relevancy in business schools have caused much of this debate. In particular, questions have been raised regarding why business schools should endeavour to bridge this relevancy gap? However, it is important to define what is meant by relevance. How we define relevance has implications for all stakeholders of management education. As a result, this raises questions about the content and process of management education. For example, how applicable are the alternative approaches to management education such as action learning. How does such an approach translate into the professional practice of educators? What are the benefits and challenges of engaging in such an approach? In particular, what impact does it have for both management educators and their students? When we question what and how we teach it has the potential to open up new questions to be explored and insights to be revealed. This paper reveals a side of management education that is ever present in the philosophy and practice of action-learning practitioners. By exploring the impact of their practice it can inform our understanding and shape future practice. Management education like all education should be open to such exploration. Such an exploration is both timely and relevant for today's educators, students, managers and ultimately society.     

Pupils’ attitudes towards foreign-language learning and the development of literacy skills in bilingual education

The study investigated the effects of bilingual teaching on the development of children's literacy skills and attitudes towards language learning. In the bilingual classes 20% of the instruction was given in English. Pupils’ literacy skills in the bilingual classes were significantly better than in the monolingual classes. When observing pupils who started first grade with either a poor or an excellent level of school readiness, there was no significant difference between bilingual and monolingual groups. In addition, the pupils in bilingual classes showed significantly more positive attitudes towards foreign-language learning than the pupils in monolingual classes.     

创新产学合作教育中的教学运行管理

产学合作教育的教学运行管理是学校综合利用并合理配置两个教学主体教育资源,服务于教学各环节,以提高教学质量为目标的一种教育组织管理行为。受种种原因影响,产学合作教育的教学运行管理面-临着众多问题与困难,因此,创新产学合作教育的教学运行管理是产学合作教育的教学运行管理的紧迫任务和必然选择。     

Policies on and practices of cultural inclusivity in learning management systems: perspectives of Indigenous holistic pedagogies

Online learning has become a conventional term and practice in Australian higher education, yet cultural inclusivity for Indigenous (Indigenous for the purposes of this paper refers to Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples) students is insufficiently reflected in learning management system (LMS) policies and design. This study aims to explore culturally inclusive learning entrenched in Australian university policies on and practices of LMS by applying Indigenous holistic pedagogical values in LMS design. Based on a literature review, we articulate four dimensions: communication, collaboration, community and interculturality for culturally inclusive learning in an online learning environment. By using the dimensions, we critically review policies (n?=?10) and LMS sites (n?=?50). In this review, we argue that there are contrasts of individually heterogeneous and collectively homogeneous approaches, self-focused and community-driven pedagogy, and task-oriented and relational learning. Significantly, the review results indicate that Indigenous holistic pedagogies have a metaphysical strength to be the ontological foundation for cultural inclusivity.     

Exploring a pluralist understanding of learning for sustainability and its implications for outdoor education practice

This article explores a pluralist understanding of learning for sustainability in educational theory and relates it to outdoor education practice. In brief, this kind of learning can be described as a deep engagement with an individual’s multiple identities and the personal location in diverse geo-physical and socio-cultural surroundings. I identify the intersection of learning for sustainability and pluralism in three themes: learning as transformation, learning as participation and learning about identities and spaces. The reflections on what kind of learning outdoor education could seek to promote potentially help the field to clarify its role as a sustainable education approach. A programme designed to be responsive to both sustainability and pluralism would enable learners to explore the multifacetedness of a location and provide space for them to share and exchange individual experiences, perceptions and worldviews.     

Course evaluation: reconfigurations for learning with learning management systems

The introduction of online delivery platforms such as learning management systems (LMS) in tertiary education has changed the methods and modes of curriculum delivery and communication. While course evaluation methods have also changed from paper-based in-class-administered methods to largely online-administered methods, the data collection instruments have remained unchanged. This paper reports on a small exploratory study of two tertiary-level courses. The study investigated why design of the instruments and methods to administer surveys in the courses are ineffective measures against the intrinsic characteristics of online learning. It reviewed the students' response rates of the conventional evaluations for the courses over an eight-year period. It then compared a newly developed online evaluation and the conventional methods over a two-year period. The results showed the response rates with the new evaluation method increased by more than 80% from the average of the conventional evaluations (below 30%), and the students' written feedback was more detailed and comprehensive than in the conventional evaluations. The study demonstrated the possibility that the LMS-based learning evaluation can be effective and efficient in terms of the quality of students' participation and engagement in their learning, and for an integrated pedagogical approach in an online learning environment.     

The impact of using mobile-supported learning management systems in teaching web design on the academic success of students and their opinions on the course

This research aimed to examine the impact of using mobile-supported learning management systems (LMS) in teaching web design on the academic success of students and their opinion on the course; and it was conducted on 70 volunteer students (35 experimental, 35 control) enrolled at Giresun University, Technical Sciences Vocational School, Computer Technologies Department, Program of Computer Programming in Spring 2015–2016. After the eight weeks long implementation of Mobile Moodle, which is a mobile-supported LMS, as a supplement to traditional learning methods; t-test was used in order to determine whether the methodology mentioned had a significant impact on the academic success of web design teaching. As a result of the t-test implemented; it was seen that there was a significant level of difference in favor of the experimental group; between the academic success of students in the experimental group where mobile-supported LMS is used and the academic success of the students in the control group where traditional learning methodologies are used. Also, it has been determined that using Mobile LMS has increased the students’ interest.     

Transcending systems thinking in education reform: implications for policy-makers and school leaders

Education policy-makers in the UK have repeatedly stated their central aim as transforming British education into a ‘world-class system’. Over the last 20 years, several large-scale education reforms have brought radical changes to the school curriculum, teacher professionalism and educational leadership. Explicit in these reforms, is the deployment of measurable standards of pupil attainment as a lever for achieving school improvement. However, despite this proliferation of policies, the claims to educational improvement made by policy-makers have been contested. Concerns about the unpredicted and damaging long-term effects of these policies can be linked to the limitations of systems thinking which underpins much of this education reform. A significant flaw of systems thinking is the level of simplification at which policy-makers operate on abstract categories such as standards, as if they were reality. Based on case study research conducted in two primary schools, this paper suggests that the systemic approach adopted by policy-makers may be contributing to an erosion of educational quality and placing potentially damaging expectations on children.     

基于培养目标的工业工程实验室建设与管理

本文简述了工业工程的定义、学科特点,并以河南科技大学工业工程专业实验室建设为例,重点阐述了基于培养目标的工业工程专业实验室规划基本思想、建设过程、建设成果和实验室管理方法,为国内其他高校工业工程专业实验室建设提供参考。     

Personal Learning Environments, social media, and self-regulated learning: A natural formula for connecting formal and informal learning

A Personal Learning Environment or PLE is a potentially promising pedagogical approach for both integrating formal and informal learning using social media and supporting student self-regulated learning in higher education contexts. The purpose of this paper is to (a) review research that support this claim, (b) conceptualize the connection between PLE, social media, and self-regulated learning, and (c) provide a three-level pedagogical framework for using social media to create PLEs that support student self-regulated learning. Implications for future research in this area are provided.     

Metamorphosis in distance learning: Setting new trends in special needs education by addressing existing curriculum challenges

Abstract

This paper describes the participatory development of a new curriculum for an Advanced Certificate in Education (ACE) (Inclusive and Special Needs Education) programme in the Faculty of Education, University of Pretoria. Several challenges in the existing programme necessitated curriculum re-design and development. These challenges included responding to policies regarding inclusive and special needs education; responding to revised higher education frameworks; revisiting the structure and content of modules in order to improve articulation; addressing an anticipated increase in student enrolment and a changing student profile; and incorporating current trends in distance education service delivery. Partners in this collaborative curriculum initiative included the Unit for Distance Education, the Department of Educational Psychology, the Department for Education Innovation and the South African Institute of Distance Education (SAIDE). Insights derived from this paper could possibly inform similar curriculum development initiatives, as well as extend knowledge on open and distance learning service delivery, in particular for in-service teacher training.     

A case study on project led education in engineering: students' and teachers' perceptions

This paper explores the extent to which students and teachers are able to acknowledge the strengths and weaknesses of a shift in the approach to teaching and learning from a traditional, teacher-centred perspective towards project- and learner-centred education. It reports on a case study aimed at exploring students' and teachers' perceptions of a project-led education course carried out at an engineering course at a Portuguese university. Data were collected through questionnaires, letters and interviews. Findings suggest, in spite of some negative experiences and final results for some of the students, a clear recognition of the benefits of a project-based approach to both the teaching staff as well as the students. Both are able to identify interdisciplinarity, high student motivation and the acquisition of soft skills as key features of project-led education.     

Peer learning using asynchronous discussion systems in distance education

One important area to consider in a contemporary, open distance-learning course which incorporates technology, is the human-technology interface encapsulated in the human-computer interface (HCI). It is normally expected that development of a course will be founded in sound educational theory and that enactment of this theory, together with HCI theory, will have implications for student cognition, attitudes, interaction, access to knowledge and individualisation. HCI theory also informs the teaching strategies employed. It is argued that so important are these considerations, a new framework for evaluation of open distance-education courses involving technology must be devised. It is hoped that, by highlighting this aspect of contemporary education, evaluation will lead to improved interfaces and resultant improved learning by the students.     

Students with learning disabilities within the context of inclusive education: issues of identification and school management

This paper reports findings of a case study carried out in two elementary mainstream schools in Turkey. The main aim of the study was to investigate the role of identification and school management within the process of educating students with learning disabilities in mainstream schools. Interviews with stakeholders, observations and documentary analysis yielded the following broad themes: (a) referral and identification was often carried out with little consideration of preventive and holistic approaches; (b) identification based on narrow assessment guided the educational content, influenced school climate and teacher practices and (c) school management bodies assumed little responsibility to plan, coordinate and evaluate the education provided to students with learning disabilities. Outcomes of this study can guide good practice and policy regarding identification and school management in Turkey as well as other countries going through similar processes in terms of educating students with learning disabilities in mainstream schools.     

Integrated learning systems: where does the management take place?

For the last four years of the UK national investigation into the effectiveness of integrated learning systems (ILSs) we have been monitoring the educational contexts within which ILSs are used. Management issues related to ILS use are a significant factor in that educational context. In this paper some of the key management issues related to the effective use of ILSs are outlined. These will include: styles and levels of management of the learning by the ILS; management of the ILS as a learning tool (models of ILS usage); partnership or subservience (‘who’ manages ‘who’ and does it matter?). For some schools, however, the introduction of an ILS has had more profound impacts than this, in that we have recorded changes in teachers' pedagogy. Where such profound changes have been reported then those factors and processes now clearly modelled in school effectiveness and improvement debates have been shown to be operating