Mathematics as personal and social activity

European Journal of Psychology of Education -     

Science Letters：Visual odometry for road vehicles —— feasibility analysis

Estimating the global position of a road vehicle without using GPS is a challenge that many scientists look forward to solving in the near future. Normally, inertial and odometry sensors are used to complement GPS measures in an attempt to provide a means for maintaining vehicle odometry during GPS outage. Nonetheless, recent experiments have demonstrated that computer vision can also be used as a valuable source to provide what can be denoted as visual odometry. For this purpose, vehicle motion can be estimated using a non-linear, photogrametric approach based on RAndom SAmple Consensus (RANSAC). The results prove that the detection and selection of relevant feature points is a crucial factor in the global performance of the visual odometry algorithm. The key issues for further improvement are discussed in this letter.     

Effects of an intervention programme with teachers on the development of positive behaviours in Spanish physical education classes

Background: The physical education (PE) context has been emphasised as an ideal environment for developing positive behaviours among students. Under the Positive Youth Development paradigm, various initiatives have been conducted with the aim of promoting personal and social responsibility among adolescents. Self-Determination Theory has been widely used to analyse students’ motivational processes during PE classes.

Purpose: This study aimed to measure the effects of a multidisciplinary intervention with teachers on the development of positive behaviours in PE classes.

Participants: Twenty PE teachers participated in the study (M_age?=?35 years; SD?=?2.32) along with 777 of their students (M_age?=?12.81 years; SD?=?.93). The teachers (male?=?16; female?=?4) were between the ages of 29 and 48 years (M?=?35.2 years; SD?=?2.32). The students who participated in this study (male?=?377; female?=?400) were divided into 52 classes and were between the ages of 12 and 16 years (M?=?12.81; SD?=?.93).

Research design: A quasi-experimental design was used that consisted of a control group and three groups in which an intervention was developed. In the control group, the teachers did not receive any type of intervention; in the second group, the teachers received a training programme to develop strategies for supporting basic psychological needs and promoting positive behaviours; in the third group, the teachers received a didactic unit to promote positive behaviours; and in the last group the teachers received a combination of the two previous interventions.

Data analysis: A repeated-measures ANCOVA (analysis of covariance) was used for every dependent variable included in the study to analyse the effect of Group?×?Time interaction, including Gender and Grade Level as covariates. The fixed effects caused by Intercept, Group, Time, and the Group?×?Time interaction were calculated using compound symmetry as the type of covariance and restricted maximum likelihood as the estimation method.

Findings: By examining the differences between pre-test and post-test, it was determined that in comparison with the students in the control group, the students from the three experimental groups had generally improved scores on the variables related to positive behaviours, such as perceptions of the teacher's support, as well as the development of the targeted behaviours.

Conclusions: These results provide information about the efficacy of an intervention programme with teachers that consists of strategies for developing positive behaviour and support for basic psychological needs to promote the development of positive student behaviour.     

A new application model of building ventilation with light shafts: a proposal based on case study assessment

There is a lack of studies concerning both the quality of air entering buildings from light shafts and its impact on energy consumption. A combined isothermal analysis of several factors such as urban environment and wind, along with the dimensional conditions of the building, facilitated the assessment of the light shaft to promote air change. The aim of this study was on the impact of architectural design on the quality of the incoming air from light shafts. The capacity of light shafts to provide air change with urban air was evaluated using the concept of air change efficiency. This is determined by the environment, the dimensions, and the proportions of the building containing a light shaft. These were simulated using computation fluid dynamics (CFD) techniques which were experimentally validated. This concept requires the definition of an ideal control domain for comparative evaluation in different cases. For the case studies evaluated, it was verified through numerical analysis that the longer the light shaft in the wind direction was, the better the air change efficiency. It was confirmed that light shafts up to 12 m high and with height/length (H/L) rates lower than 3 were those achieving the best efficiency. The study provided several evaluation tools of a design of this type of outdoor space according to the criteria of air change content. An equation is presented defining the value of the air change efficiency for the outline of architectural design strategies intended for buildings with air shafts.     

Using a fine-grained multiple-choice response format in educational drill-and-practice video games

When using educational video games, particularly drill-and-practice video games, there are several ways of providing an answer to a quiz. The majority of paper-based options can be classified as being either multiple-choice or constructed-response. Therefore, in the process of creating an educational drill-and-practice video game, one fundamental question to be answered is which is the most appropriate response format? This paper answers this question, proposing a hybrid format that we call fine-grained multiple-choice, where the player constructs their response one element at a time, with each element chosen from a pre-defined set. A comparative study was conducted with second grade students. When comparing the impact of an educational drill-and-practice video game that uses multiple-choice with one that uses fine-grained multiple-choice, we observe that the fine-grained multiple-choice game achieved better results. However, the multiple-choice game was substantially more successful at capturing the students' interest and motivation. Considering the widespread use of the multiple-choice format in game-based learning activities, as well as in interactive activities, this research suggests rethinking what the most suitable answer format might be for each area of the curriculum and for the different types of games.     

Spiral and Project-Based Learning with Peer Assessment in a Computer Science Project Management Course

Different learning methods such as project-based learning, spiral learning and peer assessment have been implemented in science disciplines with different outcomes. This paper presents a proposal for a project management course in the context of a computer science degree. Our proposal combines three well-known methods: project-based learning, spiral learning and peer assessment. Namely, the course is articulated during a semester through the structured (progressive and incremental) development of a sequence of four projects, whose duration, scope and difficulty of management increase as the student gains theoretical and instrumental knowledge related to planning, monitoring and controlling projects. Moreover, the proposal is complemented using peer assessment. The proposal has already been implemented and validated for the last 3 years in two different universities. In the first year, project-based learning and spiral learning methods were combined. Such a combination was also employed in the other 2 years; but additionally, students had the opportunity to assess projects developed by university partners and by students of the other university. A total of 154 students have participated in the study. We obtain a gain in the quality of the subsequently projects derived from the spiral project-based learning. Moreover, this gain is significantly bigger when peer assessment is introduced. In addition, high-performance students take advantage of peer assessment from the first moment, whereas the improvement in poor-performance students is delayed.     

Apples and oranges: Educational enrollment and attainment across countries in Latin America and the Caribbean

This paper uses household survey data to rank LAC countries’ performance in two areas: (i) getting children into school on time and keeping them there, and (ii) turning their contact with the educational system into years of schooling. It presents multiple rankings because most countries’ performance is not uniform across these dimensions. For instance, the Dominican Republic performs almost as well as the richest countries when it comes to keeping children in school, but as badly as the poorest few in terms of turning attendance into years of schooling. Further, the rankings, which are based on conventional and new measures of educational systems’ performance, are occasionally quite different from those obtained using more widely available administrative data.     

Developing scientists in Hispanic substance use and health disparities research through the creation of a national mentoring network

Hispanics are disproportionately affected by substance use and related health harms yet remain underrepresented across scientific disciplines focused on researching and addressing these issues. An interdisciplinary network of scientists committed to fostering the development of social and biomedical researchers focused on Hispanic substance use and health disparities developed innovative mentoring and career development activities. We conducted a formative evaluation study using anonymous membership and conference feedback data to describe specific mentoring and career development activities developed within the national network. Successful mentoring initiatives and career development activities were infused with cultural and community values supportive of professional integration and persistence. Mentoring initially occurred within an annual national conference and was then sustained throughout the year through formal training programs and informal mentoring networks. Although rigorous evaluation is needed to determine the success of these strategies in fostering long-term career development among scientists conducting Hispanic health and substance use research, this innovative model may hold promise for other groups committed to promoting career development and professional integration and persistence for minority (and non-minority) scientists committed to addressing health disparities.     

Construction of educational knowledge with the Mapuche community through dialogical-kishu kimkelay ta che research

ABSTRACT

This paper reports the development of a Mapuche education programme in the context of indigenous demands and claims in relation to education, specifically the Bafkehce Mapuche community who live in the Araucanía Region of Chile. The central objective defined was to systematise, jointly with the indigenous community, the components defined as educational knowledge in order to generate a Mapuche education. The study was approached using the dialogical-kishu kimkelay ta che methodology, developed jointly with a Maci (responsible for ceremonies), two Kimches (sages), a Gütancefe (bone-setter), Mapuche teachers, and undergraduate teaching students and academics. The results show epistemic and gnoseological categories which differ from the westernised Chilean categories of education, thus allowing a Mapuche education programme to be generated in order to establish a dialogue between educational knowledge in the indigenous context and in the Chilean western context.