“Growing together”: A Latvian retrospective of learning opportunities created in the cooperation among Nordic and Baltic adult educators

This article tells the extraordinary story of the cooperation among adult educators in five Nordic and three Baltic countries (NB8) which began in 1991 – the year when Latvia regained its independence. According to individuals who experienced the evolution of this cooperation from the beginning and were actively involved in the process of developing contemporary theories, policies and practices of adult education in Latvia, this cooperation resulted in the creation of a range of unique opportunities for learning and development. Latvian adult educators were engaged in many activities; they learned themselves, taught others, did research on adult education and developed a new system of adult education. What had started out as a “donorship” grew into a “partnership”. With hardly any published information about this cooperation to rely on, the authors of this article build their case using (1) their own memories of participation; (2) the information gained through interviews with key experts; and (3) a number of largely unpublished documents indicated in these interviews. Tracing the evolution of this cooperation, their study seeks to understand how learning opportunities were created and how they were used by adult educators in Latvia. Adopting an ecological (in terms of learning environment, relationships, agency, motivation and identity) sociocultural perspective on learning and learning opportunities, the authors analyse the quality of the learning opportunities created in the context of Nordic-Baltic cooperation, aiming to identify what makes international cooperation successful.     

The teaching practicum as a locus of multi-leveled,school-based transformation

The teaching practicum is often considered as a compulsory activity for enculturating new members into the teacher community by providing opportunities to experience teaching in action. However, the practicum is rarely conceptualized in terms of its transformative potential. In this study, we report the results of a two-year ethnography study of a teaching practicum in Brazil based on the {coteaching | cogenerative dialoguing} model. Our study shows that the practicum does not have to be a mere induction experience, but that it also may be the transformative locus for (a) the practicum participants (new teachers, school teachers, teacher educator, and students) and (b) school and university/school relationships, and (c) of the practicum activity itself. The results show the potential of the practicum to transform individual and collective agency. Implications are discussed for reorganizing the teaching practicum.     

Scientific Processes in PISA Tests Observed for Science Teachers

A research study, mainly based on the notion of ‘scientific literacy’ from the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2003 assessment framework, was carried out obtaining data from the administration of an open written questionnaire with items covering three central scientific processes—describing, explaining and predicting scientific phenomena; understanding scientific investigation; and interpreting scientific evidence and conclusions—to 30 experienced in‐service secondary school science teachers. The purpose was to analyse their views regarding the competences on the mentioned scientific processes assessed by Science PISA tests: which of the competences assessed were the most frequently identified by teachers, which of the competences they considered presenting difficulties for their students, and, finally, which activities they used in their classes to promote similar competences. Our results indicated that teachers had different perceptions of one or other scientific processes considered relevant for scientific literacy in the PISA framework. Their awareness of the expected students’ difficulties did not necessarily match the competences intended to be assessed by either PISA or what they thought to be assessed. Moreover, their views differed depending not only on the type of scientific process but also on the underlying subject. Concern about the students’ need of reading fluently with understanding and of paying special attention during the test time was also observed.     

Reduction of the non-uniform illumination using nonlocal variational models for document image analysis

In this paper, we investigate two new reflectance and illumination decomposition models based on a nonlocal partial differential equation (PDE) applied to text images. Taking into consideration the higher regularity level of the illumination compared to the reflectance, we propose a nonlocal PDE which deals with repetitive structures and textures that characterize the text image much better compared to the classical local PDEs. The aim of this approach is to use the repetitive features of the reflectance to efficiently extract it from the non-uniform illumination. This idea is motivated by extending the range of application of the nonlocal operators to such a problem. Numerical experiments on both grayscale and color text images show the performance and strength of the proposed nonlocal PDE.     

Using cloud computing services in e-learning process: Benefits and challenges

During the recent years, Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) play a significant role in the field of education and e-learning has become a very popular trend of the education technology. However, with the huge growth of the number of users, data and educational resources generated, e-learning systems have become more and more expansive in terms of hardware and software resources, and many educational institutions cannot afford such ICT investments. Due to its tremendous advantages, cloud computing technology rises swiftly as a natural platform to provide support to e-learning systems. This paper focuses on the research on the application of cloud computing in e-learning. The aim of this paper is to give an overview of the current state and the impact of the use of cloud computing for e-learning. Thus, at first the paper introduces concepts of e-learning and cloud computing infrastructure with their key characteristics. The paper analyzes also challenges facing e-learning systems deployment. In follow the paper considers cloud-based e-learning solutions by focusing on the raisons of the convenience of cloud computing for e-learning. Therefore cloud computing benefits are introduced as a solution for these challenges. Finally, the paper presents some solutions of cloud computing in e-learning and describes the most common architecture adopted. Issues in implementing cloud-based e-learning systems and some potential ways to overcome them are also discussed.     

Trends of progression of student level of reasoning and generalization in numerical and figural reasoning approaches in pattern generalization

This study explored progression of students’ level of reasoning and generalization in numerical and figural reasoning approaches across grades and in different pattern generalization types. An instrument that included four figural patterns was administered to a sample of 1232 students from grades 4 to 11 from five private schools. The findings suggest that there was progressive development in the level of reasoning and generalization in each reasoning approach across clusters of grades. The level of reasoning and generalization in figural approach was higher than that for numerical approach in each grade. In addition, the level of reasoning and generalization for each approach and in each grade was not limited to one level but to several levels. The type of generalization influenced the progression of students’ level of reasoning and generalization in each approach.     

Knowledge heterogeneity and social network analysis – Towards conceptual and measurement clarifications

This literature review highlights some Social Network Analysis (SNA) concepts applicable to the study of organizational knowledge and, more particularly, to knowledge heterogeneity. Knowledge being all at the same time decentralized and distributed, knowing up to what point knowledge can be heterogeneous or homogeneous across organizational units becomes as important as the question of knowing how to structure the organization. SNA applied to knowledge management thus seems a stimulant for future research in the fields of management.     

Louis IX in Medieval Arabic Sources: The Saint,the King,and the Sicilian Connection

This article examines the portrayal of Louis IX in medieval Arabic historiography to show the importance of cross-cultural Mediterranean interaction. It argues that the image of Louis was influenced by information originating from the Sicilian Hohenstaufen court and reports that Frederick II sent to Egypt. Arab historians connected to the courts of Frederick and Manfred disseminated a “Sicilian narrative” that shaped Louis's portrayal in Arabic historiography. This argument on the importance of cross-cultural transfer in understanding Arabic historiography is buttressed by reports about the King, the Pope, and the Emperor that are traced back to the entourage of prominent Muslims closely linked to Sicily. Moreover, it is argued that Arab authors were aware of Louis's proto-sanctity and pious reputation. This led to the infusion of medieval Arabic historiography with Western ideas about sacrosanctity. Finally, this research assesses how the portrayal of King Louis during his captivity was used in internal Muslim rivalries.