Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Informal learning processes'

Thesis advisor: Michael Barnett
Scientific proficiency is important, not only for a solid, interdisciplinary educational foundation, but also for entry into and mobility within today's increasingly technological and globalized workplace, as well as for informed, democratic participation in society (National Academies Press, 2007b). Within the United States, low-income, ethnic minority students are disproportionately underperforming and underrepresented in science, as well as mathematics, engineering and other technology fields (Business-Higher Education Forum, 2011; National Assessment of Educational Progress, 2009). This is due, in part, to a lack of educational structures and strategies that can support low-income, ethnic minority students to become competent in science in equitable and empowering ways. In order to investigate such structures and strategies that may be beneficial for these students, a longitudinal, qualitative study was conducted. The 15 month study was an investigation of science identity negotiation informed by the theoretical perspectives of Brown's (2004) discursive science identities and Tan and Barton's (2008) identities-in-practice amongst ten high school students in an informal science program and employed an amalgam of research designs, including ethnography (Geertz, 1973), case study (Stake, 2000) and grounded theory (Glaser & Strauss, 1967). Findings indicated that the students made use of two strategies, discursive identity development and language use in science, in order to negotiate student science identities in satisfying ways within the limits of the TESJ practice. Additionally, 3 factors were identified as being supportive of successful student science identity negotiation in the informal practice, as well. These were (i) peer dynamics, (ii) significant social interactions, and (iii) student ownership in science. The students were also uncovered to be particularly open-minded to the field of STEM. Finally, with respect to STEM career development, specific behaviors were indicative of students' serious consideration of STEM careers and two major patterns in STEM career interests were uncovered. The findings are discussed in relation to existing research in science education, as are implications for future research and practice
Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2012
Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education
Discipline: Teacher Education, Special Education, Curriculum and Instruction

In the current fast paced and competitive environment organizations are existing in, it is crucial so be innovative and creative. This empirical research addresses how organizations can stimulate creativity and innovation by understanding underlying factors and mechanisms. The research sample consisted of seven open interviews from seven different firms which could be described as creative. In analysis of the empirical material a model called meaning concentration have been used. Results have been analysed with support of sociocultural theory. The findings suggest that time, a structured process, gaining new perspectives and experiences by constant input and an open communication are keys to support innovation. The study also indicates that creative organizations uses informal learning systematically as a strategy in projects and developing the co-workers craftsmanship. Informal learning is used to gain knowledge about customers, social arenas and the surrounding world. New perspectives are considered to be crucial in creating innovation. The underlying factors of creative processes found in the empirical material are being discussed and how it connects to a social context and group dynamics.
I en föränderlig och konkurrensutsatt värld är det essentiellt att organisationer utvecklas. Den här studien syftade till att utforska hur organisationer kan stimulera kreativa processer och innovation, genom att förstå dess underliggande faktorer. Det insamlade materialet bestod av sju öppna intervjuer från sju olika kreativa organisationer. Empirin analyserades med hjälp av meningskoncentrering och ur ett sociokulturellt perspektiv. Resultatet visade att kreativa organisationer använder sig av informellt lärande som en medveten strategi i syfte att tillägna sig nya kunskaper. De nya kunskaperna om kunder, sociala arenor och omvärlden anses av organisationerna avgörande för att lyckas skapa kreativa produkter. Organisationerna skapade avsiktligt situationer och möten där delandet av nya perspektiv och associationer ledde till ny kunskap genom diskussioner och intryck. Organisationer är enligt resultatet beroende av att inhämta nya perspektiv och kunskaper för att lyckas med innovationsprocesser. De underliggande faktorerna i de kreativa processerna diskuteras med koppling till den sociala kontext organisationerna verkar inom.

Today’s society is subject to an increased importance of aesthetics and an increasing individualism. New trends are adopted early by young people, which make it interesting to focus on how identity is formed and meanings are constructed in a youth culture context and in relation to ongoing societal processes of change. The purpose of this dissertation is to interpret and analyse the construction of meaning within the skateboard and snowboard communities in the social and cultural contexts. In particular, this dissertation is about the relationship between three levels, cultural, practice and individual. The title “Traces” alludes to four analytical themes taking different tracks in the book; consumption, gender, place and identity that are reflected in different chapters. However, the individual leaves traces in culture as culture does in the individual. Furthermore, skaters and snowboarders leave actual tracks in their local geography. Theoretically the study has a culture analysis approach with a semiotic base where five theories are intertwined. Johan Fornäs contributes with his interpretation on culture as system of signs and signifying practices, Stuart Hall adds the concept of representations, Kirsten Drotner provides her argumentation regarding aesthetic practices whilst Ulf Hannerz enriches the dissertation with his discussion on transnational culture-flows and the social diffusion of culture. Roger Säljö proposes a socio-cultural perspective of learning where learning is about participation in knowledge and skills. The method used is ethnographical. The multifaceted empirical material, from field studies and interviews, Swedish skateboard and snowboard magazines between 1978 to 2002, skateboard and snowboard videos, press articles, and websites, has been triangulated. In addition, there are three personal albums of skateboarder, snowboarder and surfer Ants Neo. The study shows that there are stereotyped notions about what boarding means and what it means to be a boarder. These notions both create and are created by the boarders themselves but are also used by advertisers for products not related to board sports at all. These notions, based as they are on ideas of resistance and radicalism, serve to emphasise that boarding is masculine. Resistance takes concrete form in its attitude to organized sports and to multinational brands and in the unusual use of places in the urban environment. To be a boarder is, apart form the boarding skills required, to be also part and parcel of these attitudes. The study explains how meaning and identity are created through informal learning processes in youth culture contexts. In these group-forming processes, both the individual and the community are formulated in social, cultural and aesthetic terms.

The purpose of this thesis is to describe and analyse the visual expressions of Street Art that occurs in the public space, and by doing so, to study this specifi c practice, and also elucidate the relation between public space as a democratic idea, a place for freedom of speech and as a planned, aesthetically shaped place. The intention is to throw light upon a central part of many young peoples lives in a didactic aspect. In this thesis I discuss Street Art as an informal image making in public space that young people use as tools to make meaning, but also as a form of resistance. The methodologies used in the study are ethnography and visual ethnography, where observational studies of Street Art as practice, interviews and interpretation of photographs (my own, and my informants) are performed and analysed. Theoretically, the study has a didactic and semiotic approach but I also rely on Cultural Studies as a research fi eld in order to be able to pick up different kinds of theories. From three platforms; public space and public place and places for Street Art, aesthetic learning processes within this specifi c practice, and fi nally the expanded fi eld of Art and the similarities and differences between formal Art and Street Art I have outlined four themes; ephemerality, the criteria for Street Art practice, how the work is being done, as a collective and individual practice, the struggle of space in public space, and fi nally high and low in Art and culture. By describing and analysing this informal image making light is thrown upon the aesthetic learning process that occurs, the didactic aspect of this practice and the communication that the images articulate. As a result, the study shows that Street Art, in spite of its illegal mark, points out that it is an aesthetic production and a creative practice that consists of resistance, meaning making, achieving knowledge through practice, and above all a way to use the city, to become a part of the city. The thesis contributes with the suggestion that this informal aesthetic learning process is a way to form identity, make meaning, take part of public space, and through symbolic resistance demand ones rights of expression.

This thesis aims at studying representatives from three groups in the Egyptian society with an ethnographic method and with regards to their experiences, reflections and stories of the Egyptian revolution. The material of the thesis is based on ethnographic fieldwork and on interviews. The purpose of the study is to explore different themes in the informants’ stories related to society, freedom, social justice, human values, peace and civility. The purpose is also to examine the informants' stories with emphasis on various informal learning processes that occurred in the Egyptian social change. The study finds that according to the informants a society should be characterized, among other things, by human values, social justice, non-violence and peaceful methods and approaches. Various informal learning processes involving both individual citizens and active members of civil society and NGO groups were found to be practiced to be able to accomplish these changes in the Egyptian society to create a better future. The degrees of involvement of the various learning processes not only reflect differences between informants regarding the social and cultural background. Although informants' involvement in the ongoing development of society and how different informal learning processes have affected the informants.

L'entrepreneur, grand absent du paysage économique pendant une grande partie du vingtième siècle, est de retour. Le profil de l'entrepreneur contemporain est étroitement lié aux caractéristiques de l'individu hypermoderne : un sujet mobile, qui exige sa liberté, qui construit ses propres réseaux, qui a ses propres aspirations. La motivation dans l'acte entrepreneurial n'est pas uniquement le profit, elle peut varier entre la recherche d'épanouissement, et la création de son propre emploi. Les dispositifs d'accompagnement à la création d'entreprise se sont multipliés et l'enseignement de l'entrepreneuriat est devenu une priorité. L'objectif de cette recherche est l'étude du processus d'apprentissage de l'entrepreneuriat dans une approche biographique, mettant l'accent sur les apprentissages informels. Le groupe des entrepreneurs n'étant pas une catégorie sociale homogène, l'échantillon a été construit à partir d'un seul domaine d'activité, la cosmétique biologique. La recherche repose sur l'étude de récits de vie de six entrepreneurs spécialisés dans ce secteur. Cette étude met en évidence trois types de phénomènes qui apportent un éclairage sur le processus d'apprentissage de l'entrepreneuriat : des phénomènes spécifiques au monde de la cosmétique biologique, des phénomènes communs à tous les entrepreneurs mais qui prennent une forme différente en fonction de l'histoire personnelle de celui-ci, et des phénomènes spécifiques à chaque entrepreneur, qui montrent l'influence biographique sur la manière d'entreprendre. Cette thèse ouvre, en conclusion, des perspectives sur l'utilisation des histoires de vie comme méthode de soutien à la création d'entreprise
The entrepreneur, who has been missing from the economic landscape for the majority of the twentieth century, is back. The profile of the contemporary entrepreneur is closely linked to the characteristics of the hypermodern individual : a mobile person demanding their freedom, and constructing their own network, with their own ambitions. The motivation behind the creation of a business is not only making profit; it can vary from the pursuit of personal fulfilment to the necessary creation of one’s own job. Mechanisms to support setting up new businesses have proliferated, and teaching entrepreneurship nowadays has become a priority.The goal of this research is to study the entrepreneurial learning process within a biographical approach, stressing informal learning. As the entrepreneurs do not form a homogenous social category, the sample was created from one activity domain : organic cosmetics. This research is based on the study of life-stories of six entrepreneurs specialising in this domain. This study shows three types of phenomena, shedding light on the entrepreneurial learning process: phenomena that are specific to the biological cosmetics domain, phenomena shared by all entrepreneurs but taking different shapes according to their personal story, and phenomena specific to each entrepreneur showing the biographical influence on the learning method. This thesis opens new perspectives on the possible uses of accounts of life as a method to assist in setting up new businesses

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This research is a basic interpretative and qualitative study underpinned by an interacionist and interpretative epistemological approach that aims to understand how technical - administrative employees learning experiences occur in the workplace of Araçatub a School of Dentistry/UNESP. The research question is: how do technical - administrative employees experience learning throughout their professional tasks in the workplace? . There are three big aims: (a) identify, describe and understand the informal processes used for individuals to learn their professional tasks; (b) describe and analyze the role of the social interactions that occur in the workplace, as well as the influe nce of the organizational context in informal learning; (c) analyze how the workplace context of the studied Faculty supports or raises difficulties to informal learning. The theoretical frame joins the literature about Informal Learning in the workplace with Social Learning Theory by Elkjaer, in order to understand how learning occurs in social environments. It was conducted 16 semi - structured interviews with technical - administrative employees from Academic and Administrative Technical Divisions of Araçat uba School of Dentistry/UNESP. The collected data was analyzed through qualitative data analyses strategy proposed by Flores (1994). I t was concluded that employees learn their tasks informally, by their experience and daily practice in the workplace, during the work process, making questions and exchang ing ideas with their bos ses and colleagues from the own Faculty or from other UNESP faculty , with whom they build a contributive network for informal learning. Facing new and challenging tasks in other jobs is a trigger to informal learning, such as knowing the way as the organization works and studying its internal and external set of laws . The technical - administrative employee proactive behavior encourage s these actions. The employees interactions with the social worlds and subworlds identified in the interviews evoked emotions like gratefu lness, commitment, pleasure and love in the job and by the job, which sometimes support and raise difficulties at times to informal learning. The context factors that influence informal learning in the studied organization are organizational climate, culture and layout, as well as job development expectation and the relationship between newcomers and experienced employees.
Esta pesquisa é um estudo qualitativo interpretativo básico apoiado numa postura epistemológica interpretacionista e interacionista que visa a compreender como ocorrem as experiências de aprendizagem vivenciadas pelos funcionários técnico-administrativos da Faculdade de Odontologia de Araçatuba/UNESP em seus locais de trabalho. A pergunta de pesquisa é: "como os funcionários técnico-administrativos de uma faculdade pública vivenciam a experiência da aprendizagem no exercício de suas tarefas profissionais desenvolvidas no local de trabalho? ", e se desdobra em três grandes objetivos: (a) identificar, descrever e compreender os processos informais que esses indivíduos utilizam para aprender suas tarefas profissionais; (b) descrever e analisar o papel das interações sociais que ocorrem no ambiente de trabalho, bem como a influência do contexto na aprendizagem informal; (c) analisar em que medida o ambiente de trabalho da faculdade objeto de estudo favorece e/ou dificulta a aprendizagem informal. O referencial teórico articula a literatura sobre Aprendizagem Informal nos locais de trabalho com a Teoria da Aprendizagem Social de Elkjaer, para compreender como a aprendizagem ocorre em ambientes sociais. Conduziram-se 16 entrevistas semi-estruturadas com servidores técnico-administrativos das Divisões Técnicas Acadêmica e Administrativa da Faculdade de Odontologia de Araçatuba/FOA-UNESP. As informações coletadas foram analisadas pela estratégia de análise de dados qualitativos proposta por Flores (1994). Concluiu-se que os servidores aprendem suas tarefas informalmente, por meio da experiência da prática cotidiana no local de trabalho, no processo de trabalho, perguntando e trocando ideias com o superior e com os colegas da própria ou de outra unidade da UNESP, com quem constroem uma rede de relacionamentos contributiva para ações de aprendizagens informais. Enfrentar tarefas novas e desafiadoras em outros cargos ou funções é um gatilho para a aprendizagem desses funcionários, bem como conhecer o funcionam ento da estrutura organizacional e estudar a legislação interna e externa pertinentes à sua função e à organização. Essas ações são incentivadas pelo comportamento proativo do funcionário, o qual carrega consigo e o aplica no local de trabalho. As interaçõ es com os mundos e submundos sociais identificados também despertam emoções como gratidão, comprometimento, prazer e amor no trabalho e pelo trabalho, as quais ora apoiam ora suprimem a aprendizagem. Os fatores de contexto ambiental que influenciam a AI são o clima, a cultura e a estrutura física organizacionais, bem como as expectativas de crescimento no trabalho e a relação entre novatos e experientes.

This thesis investigates how external sources inform and impact Somaliland’s national teacher education policy making processes. In this research, external factor is mainly constituted by INGOs that are helping Somaliland’s education and teacher education re-construction which are considered to be part of wider global-national interactions. The conceptual frameworks of policy making processes, policy transfer, lesson drawing and policy learning are used to develop the theoretical perspectives that inform the research question. Constructivist’s qualitative research approach which utilises critical discourse analysis as the principle methodology has been used to gain an understanding of the discursive construction of meaning about Somaliland’s education reforms and analyse the discourses of teacher education and teacher professionalism that are evident in three contemporary education reform policy documents and interview data. This thesis considered policy making processes as a contested, dynamic and multidimensional phenomena and has acknowledged the centrality of power and resources in policy making processes. The analysis of the research data constructed Somaliland’s education reforms as a discourse of human capital. This had implications for the strategies for managing change, quality and improvement perception, and reconceptualisations of teacher education and teacher professionalism. The thesis concludes with concerns about the contextual visibility to implement the new discourses of education and teacher education and calls for increased policy learning, capacity building, resource increase and modernisation of institutions as well as change of the culture of work.

Denna studie görs inom det arbetslivspedagogiska fältet och behandlar arbetsrotation på ICA-butiker. Syftet är att undersöka hur arbetsrotation sker hos medarbetare inom olika ICA-butiker och vilken betydelse det får för lärandet. Lärandet som undersöks är hur individer kan tillgodogöra sig yrkeskunskap utifrån de läroprocesser och lärandesituationer som uppstår i samband med arbetsrotation. De teoretiska verktyg som används grundar sig i Ellströms feed-forward och feed-back faser, de tre regleringsnivåerna av lärande samt en teori om subjektiva och objektiva handlingsutrymmen. Studien använder sig även av Börnfelts teori om en formell och informell organisation. Den metod som använts är kvalitativ och grundar sig i öppna intervjuer med åtta anställda från ICA-butiker med olika butiksformat, med det syftar vi till ICAs butiksformat; Nära, Supermarket, Kvantum och Maxi. Intervjuerna har transkriberats och analyserats ner till fyra olika teman; Arbetets innehåll, Avvikande situationer, Formellt Medarbetarskap och Informella Relationer. Resultatet visar att om anställda roterar mellan avdelningar eller ställs inför utmaning öppnar det upp individers handlingsutrymme, vilket leder till feed-forward faser som i sig genererar lärosituationer där anställda kan lära sig på en begreppslig- och intellektuell nivå. I flertal butiker bestämmer den formella organisationen det objektiva handlingsutrymmet men studien visar att den informella organisationen kan skapa sitt eget objektiva handlingsutrymme. Detta ställer visserligen krav på att det förekommer ett subjektivt handlingsutrymme i form av kunskap eller erfarenhet. I de butiker där ett tydligt objektivt handlingsutrymme ges tenderar anställda att hjälpa varandra inom och över avdelningar i högre utsträckning. I studien konstateras också att arbetsrotation gynnas av kollegiala relationer. Resultatet av studien kan användas för att vidare studera arbetsrotationens inverkan på lärande. Studien kan med fördel användas av yrkesverksamma inom ICA-butiker i syfte att få ökad förståelse för vilka konsekvenser som kan förbindas med införandet av arbetsrotation.
This paper examines job-rotation in ICA-stores within the pedagogy of working life. The purpose of this study is to determine how job-rotation works in ICA-stores and its relevance to learning from a employee perspective. The area of learning that we are investigating is how individuals assimilate knowledge from their professions through learning processes and situations during a job-rotation. The theoretical tools used in this study are based on Ellströms views on the feed-forward and feed-back phases, on Ellströms three levels of learning to conceptualise the act of learning, and finally on the theory of the subjective and objective spaces of action in regards to the learning situation. The paper mentions Börnfelts theories of formal and informal organisation as well. We used a qualitative method based on open interviews with eight employees from different ICA-stores, varied in both location and size. All interviews have been transcribed and analysed into four themes: The Content of the Work, Daily Obstacles/everyday situation, Formal Teamwork, and Informal Relations. The results of these interviews show that if employees rotate between departments, so called “revolving work tasks,” or face challenges within their own work tasks, the individuals acting space is opened up. This results in feed-forward and feed-back phases, which in turn generate the learning situations where the employees can learn on a conceptual and intellectual level. In several stores, the formal organisation creates an objective space of action for the employees, but the study shows that an informal organisation can also create their own objective space of action. If this is going to happen, employees must acquire a subjective space of action in the form of knowledge or experience. In a store with a clear objective space of action, employees tend to help each other more within and over departments. The study also states that a good relation between coworkers facilitates job-rotation. The results of the study can be used as a basis for further study of the way job-rotation affects learning. The study lends itself well to be used by people now working at ICA-stores, in order to get a better understanding of the consequences that can be connected to the introduction of job-rotation.

Les tableaux de bord ont un grand potentiel pour informer le travail, les décisions et les pratiques en éducation. Nous étudions la conception et l'utilisation des tableaux de bord pour informer les pratiques des enseignants lorsqu'ils aident les apprenants à utiliser les plates-formes d'apprentissage en ligne. Nous examinons spécifiquement ce que les enseignants "font" réellement avec ces technologies dans leur travail quotidien et à long terme. Nous soutenons que cette recherche a des ramifications sociales, pédagogiques et techniques. Pour comprendre les facteurs sociaux, nous avons besoin d'une enquête critique sur les pratiques pédagogiques et les défis techniques sous-tendus par les tableaux de bord des enseignants. D'autre part, pour concevoir de telles technologies, nous avons besoin de comprendre et considérer profondément les interactions sociales des utilisateurs.Nous avons étudié les tableaux de bord dans le contexte d'apprentissage de langues par vidéoconférence. Les enseignants sont confrontés à un défi majeur : le manque de conscience émotionnelle envers les apprenants en ligne en raison des interactions distantes et médiées par la technologie. Nous avons mené une étude de cas examinant une approche multimodale à la sensibilisation émotionnelle. Nous avons démontré cette approche en utilisant des flux audio et vidéo pour inférer des émotions, des émotions auto-rapportées par les apprenants, et les traces d'interaction contextuelle des enseignants/apprenants sur la plateforme. Nous avons analysé les données émotionnelles, audio et vidéo. Nous avons proposé une approche permettant de combiner les modèles d'émotions discrètes et dimensionnelles. La résultats soulignent la pertinence d'informations multimodales et contextuelles.Ensuite, sur la base de notre première étude, nous avons adopté un processus de conception itératif. Nous avons interviewé cinq enseignants et collaboré avec un responsable pédagogique, un chercheur en langues et deux enseignants. Nous avons mené deux évaluations formelles aboutissant à la conception d'Emodash. Nous avons mené une étude de terrain de deux mois avec cinq paires d'enseignants-apprenants, afin d'examiner comment Emodash sensibilise les enseignants aux émotions des apprenants en ligne et comment cela impact leurs bilans pédagogiques écrits aux apprenants. Les enseignants ont écrit des bilans significativement plus affectifs et formatifs, et moins sommatifs, ce qui suggère une grande prise de conscience des émotions des apprenants. De plus, les enseignants ont approprié Emodash comme un moyen d'évaluation et de réflexion sur leurs pratiques.Après, nous avons étudié les tableaux de bord dans le contexte d'apprentissage mixte : en ligne et en classe. Les enseignants sont confrontés à un défi majeur : le manque d'informations précises pour intervenir auprès des apprenants. Nous avons conçu Progdash sur la base d'entretiens avec sept enseignants et l'avons affiné grâce à un prototypage collaboratif. Nous avons intégré Progdash dans une plateforme d'apprentissage du français en ligne. Nous avons mené une étude de terrain de trois mois avec 29 enseignants pour examiner si Progdash fournit des indicateurs utiles aux enseignants, et comment il impact leurs pratiques. Les enseignants ont trouvé que Progdash facilitait : le suivi, les évaluations, la planification, le partage d'informations, le feedback et leçons. Enfin, nous avons mené une enquête réflexive en nous appuyant sur les résultats d'Emodash et de Progdash. Nous avons articulé les facteurs sociaux - suivi, sensibilisation et réflexion, les pratiques pédagogiques - planification, feedback et accompagnement, et les défis techniques qui interagissent avec la conception et l'utilisation des tableaux de bord des enseignants. Ces dimensions servent de cadre conceptuel pour les technologies de l'information et de macro-implications pour des tableaux de bord adaptés aux besoins et situations des enseignants et des apprenants
Dashboards have great potential in informing teachers' and learners' work, decisions, and practices. In this dissertation, we study the design and use of dashboards to inform teachers' practices when assisting learners in using online learning platforms. We specifically examine what teachers actually "do" with dashboards in their everyday work and in the long run. We argue that this research draws social, pedagogical, and technical ramifications. To understand the social factors, we need a critical inquiry into the pedagogical practices and the technical challenges underpinned by teachers' dashboards. On the other hand, to properly design such technologies, we need a profound understanding and consideration of the social interactions of users.First, we studied dashboards in the context of video-conferencing language learning. Teachers face one main challenge: lack of emotional awareness in online learning due to distant and technology-mediated interactions. We conducted a case study examining a multimodal approach of learners' emotions awareness. We demonstrated this approach by using audio and video streams when inferring emotions along with learners' self-reported emotions and teachers' and learners' contextual interaction traces on the platform. We analyzed emotional cues from the two modalities, audio, and video. We proposed an approach for combining discrete and dimensional emotion. The results highlighted the pertinence of rendering multimodal and contextual emotional awareness information for teachers in such settings.Second, building on our first study, we adopted an iterative design process in which we interviewed five teachers and collaborated with a pedagogical manager, a language researcher, and two teachers. We conducted two formal formative evaluations leading to the design of Emodash. We conducted a two-month field study with five teacher-learner pairs, to examine how Emodash supports teachers' awareness of learners' emotions online and how it impacts their feedback reports written to learners. The results showed that Emodash led teachers to write significantly more affective and formative feedback, and less summative feedback, suggesting a stronger awareness of learners' emotions. Also, the dashboard led teachers to reflect on the way they conduct lessons, using learners' emotions as a proxy to evaluate their conduct of teaching.Third, we studied dashboards in the context of remote and blended learning. Teachers face one main challenge: lack of actionable insights to engage in informed interventions. We designed Progdash based on interviews with seven teachers and refined it through collaborative prototyping. We integrated Progdash into an online French vocabulary, grammar, spelling learning platform. We conducted a three-month field study with 29 teachers to evaluate whether Progdash provides useful indicators to teachers about learners' progression, and how it informs teachers' practices to engage in informed interventions. The results showed that teachers found Progdash actionable to inform: monitoring, assessments, planning, information sharing, feedback, and lesson provision. Based on our findings, we discussed implications aimed at improving dashboards to bridge online and in-class learning as well as to foster teachers' and learners' dialog and reflection.Finally, we took a reflexive inquiry building upon the results of the studies of Emodash and Progdash. We articulated the social factors —monitoring, awareness, and reflection, the pedagogical practices —planning, feedback, and coaching, as well as the technical challenges interacting with the design and use of teachers' dashboards. We discussed practical assumptions for each dimension to inform the design and use of teachers' dashboards. Together, these dimensions serve as a wider conceptual umbrella for the design of information-driven technologies and macro-implications for dashboards fitting teachers' and learners' everyday situations

Die vorliegende Arbeit verfolgt das Ziel, ein Modell interkultureller Qualifizierung im Rahmen des Hochschulstudiums in Deutschland zu generieren. Im theoretischen Teil wird der Qualifizie-rungsbegriff in Bezug zum Qualifizierungsziel interkulturelle Kompetenz und zum Anwen-dungskontext Hochschulstudium in Deutschland erörtert sowie das Thema innerhalb der Erzie-hungswissenschaften verortet. Auf die Themen interkulturelle Kompetenz und interkulturelles Lernen wird gesondert eingegangen. Darauf aufbauend werden im empirischen Tiel die zwei durchgeführten Studien beschrieben und abschließend die Ergebnisse interpretiert. Aus einer qualitativ-explorativen Interviewbefragung von 18 ehemaligen Teilnehmenden am Zusatzstudi-um Internationale Handlungskompetenz der Regensburger Hochschulen und einer quantitativ-explanativen Fragebogenstudie mit 129 damals aktuellen Teilnehmenden am Ende des Zusatz-studiums konnten relevante Eingangsbedingungen, Lernprozesse und Wirkungen sowie Kon-trollvariablen interkultureller Qualifizierungsmaßnahmen identifiziert werden. Die identifizierten Variablen werden zu den fünf Nutzungsprofilen interkultureller Qualifizierung 1) Sensibilisie-rung, 2) kognitive Anwendung, 3) Aktivierung, 4) aktionale Anwendung und 5) Potenzierung zusammengefasst. In einem Transfermodell werden die Nutzungsprofile schießlich in Bezug auf Wissenstransfer und Handlungstransfer verortet und in einem Input-Prozess-Output-Modell auf-steigend angeordnet. Das Ergebnis der Arbeit besteht somit in einem theoretisch fundierten und empirisch geprüften lern- und handlungstheoretischen Modell interkultureller Qualifizierung, das exemplarisch Bedingungen, Prozessverläufe und Wirkungen interkultureller Qualifizie-rungsmaßnahmen an deutschen Hochschulen beschreibt und dadurch Anwendungswissen für Konzeption, Implementation und Evaluation weiterer bestehender und geplanter interkultureller Qualifizierungsmaßnahmen bietet.
This study aims at generating an input-process-output model of intercultural qualification in the context of academic education in Germany. The theoretical framework consists of defining in-tercultural qualification and localizing the topic within educational sciences. The topics intercul-tural competence and intercultural learning are discussed separately. There were two empirical studies: 1) 18 former participants of the Extracurricular Study Program for Intercultural Compe-tence at the Regensburg universities have been interviewed about the program’s learning pro-cesses and learning outcomes. Resulting data were analysed using qualitative methods, yielding a set of hypotheses on relations between preconditions, processes and outcomes of intercultural qualification. 2) At the end of the program, 129 participants completed a questionnaire con-structed on the results of the interview study producing quantitative data. Relevant input, pro-cess and output variables could be identified and were integrated into five user profiles: 1) sensi-tisation, 2) cognitive application, 3) activation, 4) behavioral application, and 5) potentialisation. These profiles were finally arranged in relation to knowledge transfer and behavioral transfer, thus yielding a transfer model of intercultural qualification, and were put in ascending order in an input-process-output model. This theoretically founded and empirically tested model de-scribes exemplarily preconditions, learning processes, learning outcomes, and control variables of intercultural qualification in the context of academic education in Germany. It can be used as a theoretical framework for further research or conceptualisation, implementation, and evalua-tion of intercultural qualification programs.

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The Named Entity Recognition (NER) process is the task of identifying relevant termsintextsandassigningthemalabel.Suchwordscanreferencenamesofpeople, organizations, and places. The variety of techniques that can be used in the named entityrecognitionprocessislarge.Thetechniquescanbeclassifiedintothreedistinct approaches: rule-based, machine learning and hybrid. Concerning to the machine learningapproaches,severalfactorsmayinfluenceitsaccuracy,includingtheselected classifier, the set of features extracted from the terms, the characteristics of the textual bases, and the number of entity labels. In this work, we compared classifiers that use machine learning applied to the NER task. The comparative study includes classifiers based on CRF (Conditional Random Fields), MEMM (MaximumEntropy Markov Model) and HMM (Hidden Markov Model), which are compared in two corpora in Portuguese derived from WikiNer, and HAREM, and two corporas in English derived from CoNLL-03 and WikiNer. The comparison of the classifiers shows that the CRF is superior to the other classifiers, both with Portuguese and English texts. This study also includes the comparison of the individual and joint contribution of features, including contextual features, besides the comparison ofthe NER per named entity labels, between classifiers andcorpora.
O processo de Reconhecimento de Entidades Nomeadas (REN) ? a tarefa de iden- tificar termos relevantes em textos e atribu?-los um r?tulo. Tais palavras podem referenciar nomes de pessoas, organiza??es e locais. A variedade de t?cnicas que podem ser usadas no processo de reconhecimento de entidades nomeadas ? grande. As t?cnicas podem ser classificadas em tr?s abordagens distintas: baseadas em regras, baseadas em aprendizagem de m?quina e h?bridas. No que diz respeito as abordagens de aprendizagem de m?quina, diversos fatores podem influenciar sua exatida?, incluindo o classificador selecionado, o conjunto de features extra?das dos termos, as caracter?sticas das bases textuais e o n?mero de r?tulos de entidades. Neste trabalho, comparamos classificadores que utilizam aprendizagem de m?quina aplicadas a tarefa do REN. O estudo comparativo inclui classificadores baseados no CRF (Condicional Random Fields), MEMM (Maximum Entropy Markov Model) e HMM (Hidden Markov Model), os quais s?o comparados em dois corporas em portugu?s derivados do WikiNer, e HAREM, e dois corporas em ingl?s derivados doCoNLL-03 e WikiNer. A compara??o dos classificadores demonstra que o CRF ? superior aos demais classificadores, tanto com textos em portugu?s, quanto ingl?s. Este estudo tamb?m inclui a compara??o da contribui??o, individual e em conjunto de features, incluindo features de contexto, al?m da compara??o do REN por r?otulos de entidades nomeadas, entre os classificadores e os corpora.

Research and Development engineering is at the corner stone of humanity’s evolution. It is perceived to be a systematic creative process which ultimately improves the living standard of a society through the creation of new applications and products. The commercial paradigm that governs project selection, resource allocation and market penetration prevails when the focus shifts from pure research to applied research. Furthermore, the road to success through commercialisation is difficult for most inventors, especially in a vast and isolated country such as Australia which is located a long way from wealthy and developed economies. While market leading products are considered unique, the actual process to achieve these products is essentially the same; progressing from an idea, through development to an outcome (if successful). Unfortunately, statistics indicate that only 3% of ‘ideas’ are significantly successful, 4% are moderately successful, and the remainder ‘evaporate’ in that form (Michael Quinn, Chairman, Innovation Capital Associates Pty Ltd). This study demonstrates and analyses two techniques developed by the author which reduce uncertainty in the engineering design and development phase of new product development and therefore increase the probability of a successful outcome. This study expands the existing knowledge of the engineering design and development stage in the new product development process and is couched in the identification of practical methods, which have been successfully used to develop new products by Australian Small Medium Enterprise (SME) Excel Technology Group Pty Ltd (ETG). Process theory is the term most commonly used to describe scientific study that identifies occurrences that result from a specified input state to an output state, thus detailing the process used to achieve an outcome. The thesis identifies relevant material and analyses recognised and established engineering processes utilised in developing new products. The literature identified that case studies are a particularly useful method for supporting problem-solving processes in settings where there are no clear answers or where problems are unstructured, as in New Product Development (NPD). This study describes, defines, and demonstrates the process of new product development within the context of historical product development and a ‘live’ case study associated with an Australian Government START grant awarded to Excel Technology Group in 2004 to assist in the development of an image-based vehicle detection product. This study proposes two techniques which reduce uncertainty and thereby improve the probability of a successful outcome. The first technique provides a predicted project development path or forward engineering plan which transforms the initial ‘fuzzy idea’ into a potential and achievable outcome. This process qualifies the ‘fuzzy idea’ as a potential, rationale or tangible outcome which is within the capability of the organisation. Additionally, this process proposes that a tangible or rationale idea can be deconstructed in reverse engineering process in order to create a forward engineering development plan. A detailed structured forward engineering plan reduces the uncertainty associated with new product development unknowns and therefore contributes to a successful outcome. This is described as the RETRO technique. The study recognises however that this claim requires qualification and proposes a second technique. The second technique proposes that a two dimensional spatial representation which has productivity and consumed resources as its axes, provides an effective means to qualify progress and expediently identify variation from the predicted plan. This spatial representation technique allows a quick response which in itself has a prediction attribute associated with directing the project back onto its predicted path. This process involves a coterminous comparison between the predicted development path and the evolving actual project development path. A consequence of this process is verification of progress or the application of informed, timely and quantified corrective action. This process also identifies the degree of success achieved in the engineering design and development phase of new product development where success is defined as achieving a predicted outcome. This spatial representation technique is referred to as NPD Mapping. The study demonstrates that these are useful techniques which aid SMEs in achieving successful new product outcomes because the technique are easily administered, measure and represent relevant development process related elements and functions, and enable expedient quantified responsive action when the evolving path varies from the predicted path. These techniques go beyond time line representations as represented in GANTT charts and PERT analysis, and represent the base variables of consumed resource and productivity/technical achievement in a manner that facilitates higher level interpretation of time, effort, degree of difficulty, and product complexity in order to facilitate informed decision making. This study presents, describes, analyses and demonstrates an SME focused engineering development technique, developed by the author, that produces a successful new product outcome which begins with a ‘fuzzy idea’ in the mind of the inventor and concludes with a successful new product outcome that is delivered on time and within budget. Further research on a wider range of SME organisations undertaking new product development is recommended.

The desire to enhance and make ourselves better is not a new one and it has continued to intrigue throughout the ages. Individuals have continued to seek ways to improve and enhance their well-being for example through nutrition, physical exercise, education and so on. Crucial to this improvement of their well-being is improving their ability to remember. Hence, people interested in improving their well-being, are often interested in memory as well. The rationale being that memory is crucial to our well-being. The desire to improve one’s memory then is almost certainly as old as the desire to improve one’s well-being. Traditionally, people have used different means in an attempt to enhance their memories: for example in learning through storytelling, studying, and apprenticeship. In remembering through practices like mnemonics, repetition, singing, and drumming. In retaining, storing and consolidating memories through nutrition and stimulants like coffee to help keep awake; and by external aids like notepads and computers. In forgetting through rituals and rites. Recent scientific advances in biotechnology, nanotechnology, molecular biology, neuroscience, and information technologies, present a wide variety of technologies to enhance many different aspects of human functioning. Thus, some commentators have identified human enhancement as central and one of the most fascinating subject in bioethics in the last two decades. Within, this period, most of the commentators have addressed the Ethical, Social, Legal and Policy (ESLP) issues in human enhancements as a whole as opposed to specific enhancements. However, this is problematic and recently various commentators have found this to be deficient and called for a contextualized case-by-case analysis to human enhancements for example genetic enhancement, moral enhancement, and in my case memory enhancement (ME). The rationale being that the reasons for accepting/rejecting a particular enhancement vary depending on the enhancement itself. Given this enormous variation, moral and legal generalizations about all enhancement processes and technologies are unwise and they should instead be evaluated individually. Taking this as a point of departure, this research will focus specifically on making a case for ME and in doing so assessing the ESLP implications arising from ME. My analysis will draw on the already existing literature for and against enhancement, especially in part two of this thesis; but it will be novel in providing a much more in-depth analysis of ME. From this perspective, I will contribute to the ME debate through two reviews that address the question how we enhance the memory, and through four original papers discussed in part three of this thesis, where I examine and evaluate critically specific ESLP issues that arise with the use of ME. In the conclusion, I will amalgamate all my contribution to the ME debate and suggest the future direction for the ME debate.