A conjoint experiment of how design features affect evaluations of participatory platforms

Online participatory platforms are introduced to boost citizen involvement in political decision-making. However, the design features of these platforms vary considerably, and these are likely to affect how prospective users evaluate the usefulness of these platforms. Previous studies explored how prevalent different design features are and how they affect the success of platforms in terms of impact, but the attitudes of prospective users remain unclear. Since these evaluations affect the prospects for launching successful participatory platforms, it is imperative to assess what citizens want from such digital possibilities for participation. This study uses a conjoint experiment (n = 1048) conducted in Finland that explore the impact of seven design features: Discussion possibilities; Interaction with politicians and experts; Information availability, Aim of participation; Identity verification; Anonymous participation and Accessibility. Furthermore, it is examined whether the effects differ across use of ICTs measured by generation, time online and prior use of participatory platforms. The results suggest that most design features have clear effects on evaluations, and that deliberative features have the strongest effects. Furthermore, the effects are relatively stable across prior use although the less experienced put a stronger emphasis on verification.     

Journalism as institution and work in Europe,circa 1860

This article presents a comparative historical analysis of the relationship between journalism as institution (i.e., a particular set of organizations in society) and journalism as work (i.e., an activity practiced by individuals) in four European countries: Britain, Sweden, Germany, and Estonia. The analysis compares the institutional context of journalistic work in these four countries around 1860, focusing in particular on the organization of journalistic labor at the national newspaper of record. The historical comparison reveals how exceptional the British case is. The study finds that British journalism circa 1860 exhibited a high division of labor, high labor specialization, and was increasingly focused on news gathering and production. Swedish and German journalism exhibited an emerging division of labor and labor specialization, and was focused on political debate (rather than news gathering and production). Estonian journalism exhibited hardly any division of labor or labor specialization, and was focused on raising national awareness.     

Knowledge,Action and Pro-environmental Behaviour

This article begins by clarifying and discussing the concept of 'pro-environmental behaviour', which (implicitly) constitutes the central concept--or aim--of environmental education in the article. This is followed by a discussion of the concept of knowledge per se and its position in working with environmental problems. These two concepts require further refinement if research efforts are to make a contribution to the development of environmental education. A few examples and conceptual models will be proposed to clarify the discussion. Finally, comments and suggestions are offered for an elaboration of the model proposed by Kollmuss and Agyeman. This present article primarily draws on research and insights into environmental education in schools. Furthermore, the article primarily explores work with environmental problems in Danish schools and focuses on the general pedagogical dimensions of work done in schools in order to relate these directly to issues discussed by Kollmuss and Agyeman.     

ICT and E-learning, the Road to Hell or Paradise？

The paper mainly discusses the negative sides of technology in education that have arisen from the the rapid development of technology.     

Techniken für Web-basierte Datenbankanwendungen: Anforderungen, Ans?tze, Architekturen

Zusammenfassung.   Die rasche Verbreitung und einfache Nutzungsm?glichkeit des World Wide Web (WWW) hat heute schon zu einer Vielzahl Web-basierter Datenbankanwendungen geführt. Man geht jedoch davon aus, da? das eigentliche Wachstum des WWW und seiner Anwendungen durch die Fortschritte in der Kommunikations- und Informationstechnik erst noch bevorsteht [10]. In diesem Beitrag stellen wir die bei der Realisierung Web-basierter DB-Anwendungen eingesetzten Techniken vor. Hierzu untersuchen wir zun?chst typische DB-Anwendungen, die über das WWW abgewickelt werden, um sie anhand ihrer Kriterien charakterisieren zu k?nnen. Daran anschlie?end diskutieren und analysieren wir nach einem überblick die unterschiedlichen Realisierungstechniken im Detail. Eingegangen am 22. Juli 1998 / Angenommen am 22. Oktober 1998     

Can Pre-Academic Activities in Norway’s Early Childhood Education and Care Program Boost Later Academic Achievements in Preschoolers at Risk?

ABSTRACT

Low academic achievements are predicted by early disadvantages. Because achievement gaps typically escalate with age, early efforts to prevent future academic disadvantages are called for. The current study examines whether exposure to structured pre-academic activities in Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) play a compensatory role for the early academic achievements in school (teacher ratings and screening tests of reading and math) of children who were at developmental (low receptive language), behavioral (high externalizing behavior and low effortful control) and socio-economic (low maternal education) risk in preschool. Using a sample of 934 children from the longitudinal Behavioral Outlook Developmental Study to examine between-school comparisons and within-school fixed effects models, findings suggest that preschoolers with externalizing behaviors may moderately benefit from structured pre-academic activities prior to school entry. However, it is concluded that this pre-academic boost is weak and may be limited to a short transition period from ECEC to school.