Use of Anthropomorphic Brand Mascots for Student Motivation and Engagement: A Promotional Case Study With Pablo the Penguin at the University of Portsmouth Library

ABSTRACT

A case study demonstrating how an online narrative featuring the adventures of a cuddly toy penguin, Pablo Penguin (@uoppenguin on Twitter) has been introduced at the University of Portsmouth Library to build trust and engagement between university students and library services and facilities. Evidence for the benefits of anthropomorphic brand mascots and best practice for their design and use to enhance the library brand, emotionally engage, build trust, lower barriers to service engagement, and mentor students from the perspective of a perpetual student are drawn from the marketing and psychological literature then illustrated in the case study.     

Time-dependent fluctuations of retention performance in an aversively motivated task

The main aim of this series of experiments was to clearly establish the spontaneous development of retention performance following partial aversively motivated training. Experiment 1 indicated that following 15 training trials of a brightness discrimination in a Y-maze, performance spontaneously and transitorily deteriorated 1 h following inital training (Kamin effect) before it improved 8 to 14 days following training (long-term spontaneous improvement). Both of these fluctuations preceded the more durable deterioration that corresponds to long-term forgetting. Experiment 2 replicated the basic findings of the first experiment, always with a brightness discrimination, but using an avoidance paradigm. These results demonstrated the multiphasic nature of the retention curve and emphasized the reliability of retention performance fluctuations.     

The Impact of Changing Roles on Relationships between Professionals in Inclusive Programs for Young Children

As inclusion of young children with disabilities into preschool programs has become more prevalent, there have been concomitant changes in the roles assumed by the professionals and paraprofessionals in these programs. In this paper we examine the ways in which inclusive models influence the roles assumed by the program staff and the factors that affect the ability of staff members to assume these roles. Data, which included interviews, participant observation and document analysis, were collected as part of a multi-site national study of inclusive education programs and practices. From these data, themes emerged regarding the changing roles and relationships of staff members in inclusive early childhood programs. These themes are discussed as both facilitators of and barriers to successful inclusive programs.     

The credibility of online news: an evaluation of the information by university students / La credibilidad de las noticias en Internet: una evaluación de la información por estudiantes universitarios

Abstract

The spread of online disinformation is one of the 10 global risks of the future according to the World Economic Forum, and 51% of experts believe that this situation will not improve in the coming years. By 2022, half of the news will be fake news. In terms of users, young people and adults have problems understanding where the information they find online comes from and what sources to trust or not. In order to ascertain the degree of credibility that young users in Andalucía give to information, this study presents the results of the evaluation of online news by university students pursuing degrees in communication and education (N = 188), using the CRAAP test. The data reveal differences in gender and degree programme in the credibility assigned to the news. The conclusion is that university students have difficulty differentiating the veracity of the sources, in line with previous studies, with fake news earning higher ratings than real news.     

Task-related variation in communication of mothers and their sons with learning disability

The purpose of the present study was to examine whether mother-child communication patterns vary as a function of the type of the task. Groups of learning disabled (LD=30) and normally achieving boys (NLD=30) were videotaped interacting with their mothers in two different tasks. The children were matched for age (8 to 11 year-olds) and for parent’s SES. The results indicated that the teaching task differentiated the groups more than did the story task. Academic character of the teaching task increased mothers’ task involvement in both groups. Mothers of the LD group showed, however, significantly more dominance and expressed less emotionality while teaching their child. Mothers’ interaction partly followed from their children’s behaviour on this task. The children with LD did not cooperate with their mothers and were not emotionally involved in the teaching task as highly as were the normally achieving children. Corresponding features of interaction were not found for the LD group in the story task. Consistency of children’s communication across the tasks was significant in the LD group. The normally achieving boys were more responsive to changes in task conditions showing different behavior as a function of task.     

Preservice Teachers' Beliefs About Family Involvement: Implications for Teacher Education

Teacher educators have long recognized the importance of adequately preparing preservice teachers for their work with families. Preservice teachers express many concerns that they believe may impact the development of comfortable and collaborative relationships with members of children's families. In a previous study, the authors found that preservice teachers expressed concerns about the quality of the teacher–family relationship, meeting children's basic needs in school, and the role of parents in education. These concerns, along with some recommendations for incorporating family involvement across the teacher education curriculum, are the focus of this article.     

The GlobalEd Project: Gender differences in a problem-based learning environment of international negotiations

The GlobalEd Project employs a technology richenvironment for high school students who wishto participate in a simulation of internationalrelations and negotiation. A simulationconsists of negotiations on a variety ofinternational policy issues conducted bystudents from 10–15 schools through anInternet-based interface. This study reportsthe findings of 234 high school participants'changes in academic and technologyself-efficacy skills, as well as knowledge,attitudes and behaviors related to academicpreparation and performance, the use ofeducational technology, and associated outcomesfrom participating in a simulation ofinternational relations. The results arediscussed in terms of the current literature onself-efficacy and gender differences incognitive process.     

Changing organizations by changing individuals: A model of leadership training

Through a grant from the Department of Health and Human Services, National-Louis University delivered a leadership training program to Head Start personnel in the Chicago Metropolitan Area. The model, which was grounded in adult learning theory, encouraged a facilitative role for the teaching faculty, active decision-making on the part of the participants, collegial support, and linkages between theory and practice. A social systems approach was used to promote the idea of leaders as change agents.The effectiveness of the training model was assessed through the use of both quantitative and qualitative methods. Results indicated that the training had a positive effect on participants' level of perceived competence, the quality of teaching practices in their classrooms, and the organizational climate of their centers. Additionally, case study data documented feelings of increased self-confidence and self-efficacy on the part of participants. Outcomes suggest that this training model improved the expertise of Head Start directors and teachers and promoted substantive change and improvement in their centers.Some of these data were presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, San Francisco, April 1992.     

Do human and cultural capital lenses contribute to our understanding of academic success in Russia

Using newly available data from the Trajectories in Education and Careers Study, the first longitudinal study on a representative sample of high school students in Russia, we examined the importance of investments in human and cultural capital on students’ mathematics and reading standardized examinations, as well as on the likelihood of matriculation into a selective institution of higher education. Studying mathematics and the Russian language on one’s own for more than a year was positively and significantly associated with standardized scores and with an increased likelihood of matriculating into a selective university. A higher number of books at home was also associated with an increased likelihood of matriculating into a selective university. The findings are discussed within the particular institutional context of the Russian educational system.     

Towards another kind of borderlessness: online students with disabilities

Online learning is crucial to success for higher education institutions. Whilst the existing literature predominantly focused on its economic advantages, we focused on its inclusivity. At an online learning unit of a UK university, the number of students with disabilities (SWD) is three times higher than the national average. Having a degree makes significant financial and psychological differences in the lives of SWD. Though recent literature focused on inclusivity of online learning, an appraisal of first-hand experience of SWD studying online is a missing perspective. Accordingly, we aimed to explore their experience, using thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews involving ten SWD. Three themes emerged: (1) having control over studies as an advantage of online learning, (2) personal touch helps SWD’s online learning, and (3) challenges SWD experience with the social element of online learning. Our findings will help to develop the inclusivity of online learning to a new level.