Integrating Culture in the Design of ICTs

Nationally and internationally, designers are challenged with meeting the needs of diverse populations, and they are faced with the dilemma of how to integrate culture in the design of information and communication technologies (ICTs). This paper reviews the literature in the fields of human–computer interaction and instructional design to argue that the present methods of integrating culture in design serve a limited scope of what culture can be in the design process. Two conclusions were drawn from this research. First, it is apparent that integrating culture in the design of ICTs serves a broader scope, from the generic or culture‐neutral, to the specialised or culture‐specific. Second, this review indicates that design has not caught up with technology and that to create for diverse audiences the process must be deliberate.     

Social media communication strategies of government agencies: Twitter use in Korea and the USA

This study examines Twitter use by the central government in Korea and the federal government in the USA by employing the webometric technique to extract their Twitter activity (basic Twitter statistics such as the numbers of followers, followings, and Tweets) and the social network analysis technique to map the relationship between their Twitter accounts and the direction of outlinks in their Tweets. The results of the initial analysis indicate some differences in Twitter strategies between the two governments. For example, Korean ministries were well connected through a dense network, engaged in collective cooperation, and retweeted common content to reinforce their collective agendas regardless of their main administrative functions, whereas US government departments were less collective and more individualistic and retweeted those messages that specifically fit the purpose of each department. In addition, the results for outlinks indicate that US government departments preferred private sources of information, whereas Korean ministries, government sources.     

Promoting Social and Emotional Learning in Preschool Students: A Study of Strong Start Pre-K

The inclusion of social and emotional learning (SEL) curricula in preschools may help prevent emotional and behavioral problems. This study evaluated the effects of a SEL curriculum, Strong Start Pre-K, on the social and emotional competence of 52 preschool students using a quasi-experimental, non-equivalent control group design. Teachers rated students’ emotional regulation, internalizing behaviors, and the quality of the student–teacher relationship. Results indicated a significant decrease of internalizing behaviors and more improvement in the student–teacher relationship in the treatment conditions. Results also supported the use of the optional booster lessons contained in the curriculum. Treatment integrity and social validity ratings of Strong Start Pre-K were high. Limitations and implications of this study are addressed.     

Crossroads of public art,nature and environmental education

This paper explores how environmental education through ecological art can help students develop creativity, critical thinking, and an arts-informed notion of being a citizen of the world. In illustrating the importance of uncovering the relationship between environmental education and ecological art, the paper examines how this may be used to promote intellectual development, inspiration, and a greater consciousness about social and environmental issues. Through a discussion of examples of classroom projects and processes that integrate art into the curriculum, the paper examines how teachers can use the work of ecological artists to help students learn to ask questions and examine contextual information about ecological art, which are argued to be essential for engagement and motivation. The paper also discusses how infusing ecological art into environmental education can help individuals develop a greater sense of connection with nature both within and beyond the classroom setting.     

An economic valuation study of public libraries in Korea

The economic value of public libraries for local residents in Korea was measured. An economic-value measurement model that enables the estimation of diverse types of public library services was designed, using a conditional-value measurement method. Benefits were taken as the value of the main services provided by public libraries, such as accessibility to informational materials, facilities, and programs. Costs included the total amount of expenses at libraries such as personnel expenses, materials purchasing expenses, and other operational costs. Data were collected from 1220 users from 22 public libraries in the province of Seoul/Gyeonggi-do and the other seven Korean provinces. The return on investment (ROI) was calculated to be 3.66.     

Approaching 18% efficiency of ternary organic photovoltaics with wide bandgap polymer donor and well compatible Y6 : Y6-1O as acceptor

A series of ternary organic photovoltaics (OPVs) are fabricated with one wide bandgap polymer D18-Cl as donor, and well compatible Y6 and Y6-1O as acceptor. The open-circuit-voltage (V_OC) of ternary OPVs is monotonously increased along with the incorporation of Y6-1O, indicating that the alloy state should be formed between Y6 and Y6-1O due to their excellent compatibility. The energy loss can be minimized by incorporating Y6-1O, leading to the V_OC improvement of ternary OPVs. By finely adjusting the Y6-1O content, a power conversion efficiency of 17.91% is achieved in the optimal ternary OPVs with 30 wt% Y6-1O in acceptors, resulting from synchronously improved short-circuit-current density (J_SC) of 25.87 mA cm⁻², fill factor (FF) of 76.92% and V_OC of 0.900 V in comparison with those of D18-Cl : Y6 binary OPVs. The J_SC and FF improvement of ternary OPVs should be ascribed to comprehensively optimal photon harvesting, exciton dissociation and charge transport in ternary active layers. The more efficient charge separation and transport process in ternary active layers can be confirmed by the magneto-photocurrent and impedance spectroscopy experimental results, respectively. This work provides new insight into constructing highly efficient ternary OPVs with well compatible Y6 and its derivative as acceptor.