bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
An Integration of Kano’s Model and Exit‐Voice Theory: A Case Study
Authors: Lee Yu‐Cheng , Hu Hsiu‐Yuan , Yen Tieh‐Min , Tsai Chih‐Hung
Published: June 2010

The purpose of this study was to examine overall customer satisfaction associated with medical service quality in Taiwan by integrated Kano’s model and customer satisfaction index model. Another purpose was to confirmed nonlinear and asymmetric relationship of Customer Satisfaction and Quality Performance by the research outcome. By analyzing 1,100 patients or their family members, this study used the structural equation model (SEM) with AMOS software for data analysis. The results show that must‐be attributes, one‐dimensional attributes and attractive attributes had a direct effect on overall customer satisfaction, Surprisingly, overall customer satisfaction had positively influenced customer loyalty customer satisfaction had negatively influenced customer complaints. The study also found that customer complaints have direct effect on customer loyalty. Importantly, the study found out the must‐be attributes, the attractive attributes and one‐dimensional attributes increased, the level of overall customer satisfaction also increased. The customer satisfaction positively influences customer loyalty in medical service quality in Taiwan. The findings might reveal new insights for researchers dealing with quality of medical service and for hospital managers who devote resources exclusively to achieving highest possible levels of patient satisfaction.
Private equity hotel investments
Authors: Frehse Jörg
Published: June 2010

The significance of private equity as a form of financing and investing has led to growing interest in the real estate economy over the past few years. Anglo‐American investors in particular are currently engaged in large‐scale real estate transactions and have now become the most important group of investors in the European hotel real estate market. However, for private equity funds, the high risk of investing in complex tourism and specialized real estate such as hotels is always coupled with an expectation of returns well above the market average. Yet actually achieving above market returns is not always accomplished. This paper therefore deals with the question of why some real estate private equity investors succeed in getting returns above the total market average even in the overall bear Western European market environment while others fail to do so. It shows that one formula for success includes deliberately exploiting market imperfections und overcoming inefficient information policies.
Satisfaction profiles and tourism curricula – tourism organisations under study
Authors: Zehrer Anita , Pechlaner Harald , Raich Frieda
Published: June 2010

The most recent global and regional developments bring about a change in vocational needs required from new recruits in the tourism industry and ask for revised training programmes to be introduced by future decision‐makers (Hofstetter 2004). Several studies have been conducted in terms of job requirements in tourism‐related fields, and a number of qualifications have been identified (Weiermair 1999): communicative skills, empathy, motivation, decision‐making abilities, planning abilities and improvisation abilities. The purpose of any education programme in tourism must be to explain the true nature of the tourism phenomenon through seminars, trainings, workshops, and academic curricula. It must be directed to public and private sectors of the tourism industry, as well as external agencies. The paper reports a study carried out in August 2005 on the training programme offered in South Tyrol for employees of tourism organizations. A standardized online questionnaire was sent to employees of tourism organizations to reveal the importance and satisfaction with the training offer as well as the value of IT in teaching and training. The results provide implications for future tourism curricula, particularly for employees of tourism organizations.
How to promote a cross‐border region as a tourism destination – the case study of the bug Euroregion
Authors: Studzieniecki Tomasz , Mazurek Tomasz
Published: June 2010

As much as any cross‐border destination may be an attractive notion, it clearly requires more profound research as both theoretical and practical research seems hardly satisfactory. This paper will attempt to present tourism development of the cross‐border region of Bug, consisting of three national components: Polish, Belarusian and Ukrainian. There are both advantages and disadvantages resulting from the fact that one part of the destination belongs to the European Union (EU) and the other does not. The authors analyse the potential of the Euroregion and present main actors responsible for the destination development. Based on both desk and field research, special attention is given to the model of tourism organisation. The theory of tourism transformation is carefully scrutinised. One can distinguish 4 stages of this process, namely: preparation, creation, verification, gratification (Studzieniecki 2000, p127).
Stakeholders in sustainable tourism development and their roles: applying stakeholder theory to sustainable tourism development
Authors: Byrd Erick T.
Published: June 2010

Sustainability has become an important topic and concept in relation to tourism planning and development. For sustainable tourism development to be successful stakeholders must be involved in the process. The questions that should be considered though are: (1) who should be considered stakeholders in tourism development, and (2) how should planners and developers involve stakeholders in the development of tourism? In order to provide answers to these questions this paper investigated sustainable tourism development and how stakeholder inclusion and involvement are incorporated in the basic concept of sustainable tourism development. This investigation was accomplished by reviewing and drawing conclusions from the literature. The discussion includes thoughts from both management and public participation perspectives. So who should be involved in the sustainable tourism development process? Based on the definitions that are used for sustainability and sustainable tourism four distinct groups are identified; the present visitors, future visitors, present host community, and future host community.
The impact of modern management methods on hotel operational performance
Authors: Golembski Grzegorz
Published: June 2010

Expansion of large international hotel chains into the Polish hospitality market has radically changed hotel management practices in Poland. The article investigates the impact of these changes on hotels’ economic performance. This impact is assessed by monitoring changes in the break‐even point, the percentage share of variable costs in sales, margins of safety, operating leverage, and other indicators reflecting economic effects of applied management methods. The research results indicate that cost reduction resulting from the introduction of new management methods must in the future be replaced by measures aimed at stimulating revenue growth.
The changing travel behaviour of Austria’s ageing population and its impact on tourism
Authors: Möller Claudia , Weiermair Klaus , Wintersberger Eva
Published: June 2010

Purpose

As the population of the western world is aging, the importance of seniors for the tourism economy is growing. Seniors are expected to be an important future market. Thus overall leisure behaviour in general, and travel and tourism behaviour in particular, are analysed for the example of the Austrian market.

Design methodology/approach

A focus group was conducted with participants aged 55+, where their leisure and travel habits as well as preferences were investigated.

Findings

The results showed that leisure and travelling played a major role in the participants’ lives. Additionally, the participants did not change their travel behaviour considerably when entering retirement status. While they changed their preferences to longer stays and to travelling off‐season, their preferences considering holiday destinations, mode of transport or distance of travel did not change significantly. The assumption that travel behaviour and travel preferences are acquired over a longer time span during the life of tourists and will therefore not change considerably when retiring can be confirmed for the participants of the focus group.

Research limitations/implications

It can be concluded that future senior tourists will differ from today’s travelling seniors in their travel behaviour and their preferences. A larger sample and more detailed research concerning the actual motivation and preferences of Austrian holiday travellers, as well as the factors influencing them, are necessary in order to be able to react adequately to future demands of senior tourists.

Originality/value

The paper contributes to a better understanding of the importance of and attitude towards leisure and tourism in the growing senior market. Based on the results of a focus group, it serves as a basis for further research in the field.
Creative tourism in destination development
Authors: Lindroth Kaija , Ritalahti Jarmo , Soisalon‐Soininen Tuovi
Published: June 2010

Purpose ‐ The aim of this article is to identify the stakeholders’ attitudes, values and feelings on destination development in the framework of creative tourism. Design/methodology/approach ‐ The research questions focus on tourist participation, innovative partnership, guest‐host meetings and money spent in the destination. The focus group method with snowball sampling was chosen as the research method. Findings ‐ Central outcomes can be divided into ten different categories: socio‐physical environment of the destination, service structure, consumer behaviour, information and communication technologies, traffic, logistics and accessibility, networking, tourism demand and supply, local resources, marketing and PR. Research limitations/implications ‐ Although focus group research has many advantages, there are limitations. In this case the moderators did not have full control all the time due to the more topical themes that interested the participants; focus group research is often open‐ended. Practical implications ‐ The whole issue of the present case revolves around the question why destinations want to be creative or why they need to be creative in the present competitive situation. Creativity should be an integral part of the tourism offering just as tourism is an integral part of the planning and
development of a destination. Originality/value ‐ It can be concluded that the future issues and research topics seem to focus on five themes. Most of what was said can be ascribed to the need for a forum for decision makers and tourism actors to discuss holistic and long‐term planning of tourism in the destination.
E‐Chalk: a lecture recording system using the chalkboard metaphor
Authors: Friedland Gerald , Knipping Lars , Schulte Joachim , Tapia Ernesto
Published: June 2010

This article describes a system that produces web based learning modules as a by‐product of regular classroom teaching. The lecturer uses a pen sensitive display in place of the traditional chalkboard. In addition to drawings, the electronic chalkboard handles a range of multimedia elements from the Internet. The system records all actions and provides both a live transmission and a replay of the lecture from the web. Remote students follow the lecture looking at the dynamic board content and listening to the recorded voice of the instructor. Several use cases of the system as well as a systematic evaluation in two universities are presented.
The Virtual Video Gallery: a user‐centred media on‐demand system
Authors: Fortino Giancarlo , Russo Wilma
Published: June 2010

The convergence of multimedia, virtual reality and the Internet is promoting low‐cost multimedia virtual environments which are easily accessible to large network communities. These environments, which facilitate usability and enhance user experience, are very suitable for supporting user‐oriented application domains such as e‐learning and entertainment. This paper presents a multimedia virtual environment, namely the Virtual Video Gallery, an advanced, distributed media on‐demand system which is browsable through a virtual world. By taking a virtual walk inside the gallery, the user can interactively select, preview, watch and control multimedia sessions. While the user‐centred design of the system relies on UML‐based modelling techniques, system implementation is obtained by the integration of Java, VRML and Web‐based technologies. In order to evaluate the user‐oriented effectiveness of the Virtual Video Gallery and compare it to currently available Internet‐based MoD systems, the usability testing of the system was established for deriving both summative and formative usability data.
Can creating navigation aids benefit learning with electronic texts?
Authors: Armitage Ursula , Wilson Stephanie , Sharp Helen
Published: June 2010

Electronic texts are an essential component of any e‐learning environment. This paper extends previous research on navigation and learning with electronic texts by examining the effects of a novel approach to navigation: allowing the learner to create their own navigation aids. We present two experimental studies investigating the effects of creating versus using A‐Z indexes and graphical maps on knowledge development and feelings of ownership for learning. Findings revealed that using a graphical map for navigation has advantages for knowledge development and for feelings of ownership, whereas creating a graphical map offers no significant benefits over plain hypertext; there were no benefits to using or creating A‐Z indexes over plain hypertext. It was also found in comparisons of using vs. creating graphical maps that high feelings of ownership were correlated with higher quality knowledge development. These findings have three major implications for designers of e‐learning environments: including graphical map navigation aids should be considered; designers should not assume that allowing learners to create their own navigation aids will improve learning; feelings of ownership for learning should be encouraged in learners.
Learning method objects for knowledge‐driven environments
Authors: Heinz Ignatz , Suter‐Seuling Ursula
Published: June 2010

Interactivity is crucial for the attractiveness of eLearning content. The complexities of these interactions have continually increased with the introduction of virtual reality visualisations and animated learning agents. However, the trend to streamline and standardise the content production for eLearning according to standards like Extensible Markup Language [XML]1 and Shareable Content Reference Model [SCORM]2 as well as the need to maintain these abstractions especially in Knowledge‐Based Environments (FitzGerald and Lester 1997) has rather been decreasing the average level of interactivity in eLearning recently. The development of presentation layers with sufficient dynamic flexibility often failed. Facing this problem, the authors have developed an object‐based implementation approach serving the display of standard cognitive learning interactions as well as advanced dialogue and Virtual Reality‐based learning methods. After implementing the approach in a variety of large‐scale publishing projects we report on the concept and our experience
in these projects.
A model conception for optimal scenario determination in an intelligent learning system
Authors: Kukla E. , Nguyen N.T. , Danilowicz C. , Sobecki J. , Lenar M.
Published: June 2010

In this paper a conception of the model for learning scenario determination is presented. We define the learning scenario as a sequence of the hypermedia pages, representing particular knowledge units, and tests related to them. The scenario determination is a dynamic process that begins when a new student takes up a course. The opening scenario for this student is chosen as the consensus of the final scenarios of the students, who have already finished this course, and who belong to a class of the learners similar to the new one. We have elaborated the consensus‐based procedure for the scenario determination. Since this procedure operates on a set of similar learners, we have developed the conceptions of learner’s profile and students’ classification. The learner’s profile is proposed to include the attributes describing students’ personal data (as name, birthday etc.), their cognitive and learning styles as well as their usage data (represented by the learning scenarios). The students’ classification is based on a set of the basic attributes that seem to influence the learning effects. Their significance is verified during the learning process. We have also elaborated the procedure of reducing undistinguishable values of the attribute and removing useless attributes from the set of basic attributes. A learning procedure proposed, describes generally the situations when the scenario is modified, and the methods used for its modification.
Experimentally assessing a resource‐effective design for ODL environments
Authors: Karoulis Athanasis , Sfetsos Panagiotis , Stamelos Ioannis , Angelis Lefteris , Pombortsis Andreas
Published: June 2010

This study is concerned with the formal assessment of a Distance Learning Environment (DLE) created to deliver a course on UML sequence diagrams to university‐level students, divided into control and treatment groups. An ad‐hoc DLE was constructed to deliver instruction to the treatment group, while the control group was taught in a traditional face‐to‐face way. The main point of concern is whether a DLE can be as effective for the treatment group, as the faceto‐ face lecture is for the control group, in terms of gaining mastery on the domain. So, a controlled experiment was organized and executed, in order to measure the participants’ performance in both groups. The results have shown no statistically significant difference for both groups of students. So, it can be argued that in the context of this experiment and by following a DLE‐design close enough to the traditional face‐to‐face approach, one can obtain equally good results using distance learning as with the traditional system. However, a number of concerns remain and more work is needed to generalize the results of this work on other domains.
Improving access and reuse of educational documents
Authors: Tazi Saïd
Published: June 2010

How can an author verify that his writing says what he means and means what he says? Authoring systems are generally specialized in document content creation and pay little attention to techniques for making communicative intentions more explicit. The new idea defended here is that the authors of technical or educational documents can improve access to, comprehension and reuse of documents, if they can explicitly add the intentions behind their writing process. A model called ‘writing intentions’ based on Speech Act theory, which analyzes and represents the author’s intentions is described here. The intentions are coded as a set of metadata and inserted in the document. SABRE (“Système Auteur Basé sur la REutilisation”, an Authoring System Based on Reuse) is a prototype based on the model of writing intentions. It has been implemented and used by authors of educational documents. Authors can express explicitly and edit their pedagogical and communication intentions. The usefulness of such a system is measured in terms of helping authors and readers find documents more efficiently by querying in terms of authorial intentions. Authors can also benefit from such query system to find existing documents for revisions and recycling.
E‐voting: an example of collaborative e‐teaching and e‐learning
Authors: Carsten Stahl Bernd
Published: June 2010

E‐Teaching as the use of information and communication technology (ICT) in education is of growing importance for educational theory and practice. Many universities and other higher education institutions use ICT to support teaching. However, there are contradicting opinions about the value and outcome of e‐teaching. This paper starts with a review of the literature on e‐teaching and uses this as a basis for distilling success factors for e‐teaching. It then discusses the case study of an e‐voting system used for giving student feedback and marking student presentations. The case study is critically discussed in the light of the success factors developed earlier. The conclusion is that e‐teaching, in order to be successful, should be embedded in the organisational and individual teaching philosophy.
Cognitive errors for radar target echo direction
Authors: Murai Koji , Hayashi Yuji
Published: June 2010

Radar is a useful instrument to get target information in restricted visibility and night navigation. If there are many similar targets in a close area, navigators sometimes make errors in recognizing the radar’s target direction when they find the targets in a seascape using radar information. They sometimes indicate other targets instead of their intended target by mistake. We must prevent the errors, to reduce accidents and improve safe navigation. The purpose of this paper is to investigate why navigators make mistakes when identifying the direction between the radar’s target echo on the display and the actual vessel in the seascape. We tackle this problem in three steps: 1) we propose a navigator’s radar target cognitive model; 2) we evaluate the errors of the radar target cognition and its indication in the seascape and 3) we discuss the errors with the parallax.
Direction selective ergonomics and human factors ‐ a layout for analog VLSI
Authors: Kawaguchi Masashi , Jimbo Takashi , Umeno Masayoshi , Ishii Naohiro
Published: June 2010

We propose herein a motion detection artificial vision model which uses analog electronic circuits. The proposed model is comprised of four layers. The first layer is a differentiation circuit of the large capacitor and resistance (CR) coefficient, and the second layer is a differentiation circuit of the small CR coefficient. Thus, the speed of the movement object is detected. The third layer is a difference circuit for detecting the movement direction, and the fourth layer is a multiple circuit for detecting pure motion output. The model was shown to be capable of detecting a movement object in the image. Moreover, the proposed model can be used to detect two or more objects, which is advantageous for detection in an environment in which several objects are moving in multiple directions simultaneously. From a technological viewpoint, the proposed model facilitates clarification of the mechanism of the biomedical vision system, which should enable design and simulation by an analog electric circuit for detecting the movement and speed of objects.
Reflections on objectivity in western philosophy and learning objects
Authors: Roberts Anthony
Published: June 2010

This paper takes a broad introductory look at the notion of objectivity within the western philosophic tradition of liberal individualism and exposes how this is related to, or sets the stage for, the creation of learning objects as a concept. Objectivity is predicated on ideas such as the removal of context and the ability to transcend social, cultural and discursive position. Learning objects have often been conceptualised as outside of context as well. This paper presents some of the criticisms of this approach in transcending context and suggests that this conceptualisation may prove problematic in the successful execution, creation and distribution of learning objects.
Learning objects, the knowledge age and the end of the world (as we know it)
Authors: Friesen Norm
Published: June 2010

The development of learning objects and technical e‐learning standards is often justified in the literature as a necessary response to the challenges of our present “information age” or “knowledge society.” Such understandings of our current historical and social situation tend to be presented as self‐evident, and are not subject in this same literature to further explanation or question. This paper attempts to make these understandings explicit, and in doing so, throws into question their accuracy and adequacy as ways of understanding our current economic era or historical configuration. As a further result, this paper raises questions regarding the urgency of the development of “object‐oriented”
and standardized approaches to educational content.
Collaborative filtering and inference rules for context‐aware learning object recommendation
Authors: Lemire Daniel , Boley Harold , McGrath Sean , Ball Marcel
Published: June 2010

Learning objects strive for reusability in e‐Learning to reduce cost and allow personalization of content. We show why learning objects require adapted Information Retrieval systems. In the spirit of the Semantic Web, we discuss the semantic description, discovery, and composition of learning objects. As part of our project, we tag learning objects with both objective (e.g., title, date, and author) and subjective (e.g., quality and relevance) metadata. We present the RACOFI (Rule‐Applying Collaborative Filtering) Composer prototype with its novel combination of two libraries and their associated engines: a collaborative filtering system and an inference rule system. We developed RACOFI to generate context‐aware recommendation lists. Context is handled by multidimensional predictions produced from a database‐driven scalable collaborative filtering algorithm. Rules are then applied to the predictions to customize the recommendations according to user profiles. The RACOFI Composer architecture has been developed into the contextaware music portal inDiscover.
Communication, conceptualization and articulation
Authors: Elsayed Adel , Hartley Roger
Published: June 2010

Learning can be viewed as a communication process that puts the learner in contact with concepts created by others. A result of communication is that an act of interpretation starts, which invokes a process of conceptualization. According to Mayes, successful conceptualization will need the support of learning activities. Hence, machine mediated communication is important for creating online e‐Learning opportunities; not only for relaying communication content, but also for supporting the cognitive processes associated with the necessary learning activities required for conceptualization.
In Laurillard’s conversational theory, a communication loop should be established between learners and teachers. The articulation element in this loop is necessary for engaging the learner in a collaborative activity, which is essential for developing further the conceptualization process. This paper discusses the acts of communication, conceptualization and articulation within a machine mediated multimodal communication, and it proposes a framework within which a supporting set of cognitive activities can be developed.
Communication patterns in e‐learning communities
Authors: Dafoulas Georgios A. , Mimirinis Mike
Published: June 2010

This paper discusses the key findings of an investigation of e‐learning computer systems and the establishment of a technology framework for a new generation of e‐learning applications. The paper initially reviews an e‐learning system case study (a core university and a number of associated institutions named Global Campus) which incorporates: (i) the infrastructure of the Global Campus programme reviewed in light of studies on attitudes towards learning, patterns of Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) use, computer‐assisted assessment and learning tasks and patterns of communication, and (ii) an e‐learning environment based on the WebCT technology for delivery and assessment. Results of four earlier studies regarding (i) distance education, (ii) patterns of use of the VLE (iii) communication patterns in e‐learning and (iv) computer‐ assisted assessment are also critically reviewed. Conclusively, a set of guidelines for a technology framework are suggested and the authors’ perspectives for the classification and the evolution of e‐learning applications is provided.
Privacy in e‐learning: anonymity, pseudonyms and authenticated usage
Authors: Weippl Edgar R. , Min Tjoa A
Published: June 2010

Privacy is a requirement that has not received the required attention in most e‐learning platforms. Based on the results of a survey we identified weaknesses of e‐learning platforms and describe improvements we made in Moodle as a proof‐of‐concept.
An integrated evaluation method for e‐learning: a case study
Authors: Rentroia‐Bonito M. A. , Figueiredo F. , Martins A. , Jorge J. A. , Ghaoui C.
Published: June 2010

Technological improvements in broadband and distributed computing are making it possible to distribute live media content cost‐effectively. Because of this, organizations are looking into cost‐effective approaches to implement e‐Learning initiatives. Indeed, computing resources are not enough by themselves to promote better e‐Learning experiences. Hence, our goal is to share preliminary results on testing a holistic evaluation method for e‐Learning environments. To this end, we have built an experience within class dynamics using an open source Learning Virtual Environment integrated with webcast and video archive features. Our proposed evaluation method capyures user feedback by classifying it according to motivation to e‐learn in groups, since we have found this approach simpler than using classic behavioural methods. This helped us to define practical design guidelines to yield faster and more efficient e‐Learning development processes. Our results show that consistent communication both online and offline, translates into efficiency. It also dampens negative perceptions during the transition from traditional to online learning environments. These results will contribute in designing intervention strategies to optimize organizational investments in e‐Learning across user groups and contexts.
Implementing learner‐centred design: The interplay between usability and instructional design practices
Authors: Zaharias Panagiotis , Poulymenakou Angeleiki
Published: June 2010

New requirements for the design of interactive systems call for a human‐centred approach. Learner‐centred design has been considered as the equivalent of human (or user) centred design as it applies to the design and development of elearning systems and applications. E‐Learning is gaining momentum and the respective interest in design methods and practices for such systems is continuously increasing. Nevertheless it is not clear how learner‐centred design can be implemented in practice; questions, such as what are the processes included in learner‐centred design, what kind of activities should take place, how can existing human‐centred design methodologies be combined with instructional design methods and techniques, remain unanswered. This paper stresses the need for an effective integration between usability ‐ the ultimate goal for every human‐centred design effort ‐ and instructional design concepts, techniques and practices. It presents a case study where authors’ activities to design a web‐based training curriculum are described. Problems and challenges of applying human‐centred design and instructional design methods and techniques are discussed along with future research dimensions.
IT education, girls and game modding
Authors: Yucel Ibrahim , Zupko Joseph , Seif El‐Nasr Magy
Published: June 2010

Researchers have argued that video games have great utility for learning. Games promote experiential learning and can be used to facilitate active learning. This paper examines the potential of video games in education. In particular, it examines the benefits of game modding compared to playing and/or creating games. However, video game classes have been primarily attended by male students. This paper looks further into the gender issue regarding the use of video game modding in education. This is demonstrated through a course developed by the authors on game design. The main goal of the course was to introduce middle school and high school female students to IT and assist them in acquiring five basic IT skills. During the course, survey data was collected from participating students. Results from the surveys as well as analysis of student projects and anecdotal evidence suggest that using video game modding is successful in increasing self‐efficacy and motivation as well as teaching female students basic IT skills.
Student teamwork: Developing virtual support for team projects
Authors: Whatley Janice
Published: June 2010

In the 21st century team working increasingly requires online cooperative skills as well as more traditional skills associated with face to face team working. Virtual team working differs from face to face team working in a number of respects, such as interpreting the alternatives to visual cues, adapting to synchronous communication, developing trust and cohesion and cultural interpretations. However, co‐located student teams working within higher education can only simulate team working as it might be experienced in organisations today. For example, students can learn from their mistakes in a non‐threatening environment, colleagues tend to be established friends and assessing teamwork encourages behaviour such as “free‐riding”. Using a prototyping approach, which involves students and tutors, a system has been designed to support learners engaged in team working. This system helps students to achieve to their full potential and appreciate issues surrounding virtual teamwork. The Guardian Agent system enables teams to allocate project tasks and agree ground rules for the team according to individuals’ preferences. Results from four cycles of its use are presented, together with modifications arising from iterations of testing. The results show that students find the system useful in preparing for team working, and have encouraged further development of the system.
Learning in the information society
Authors: Isaías Pedro , McPherson Maggie
Published: June 2010

Despite some spectacular e‐learning failures in recent years, e.g. the British government’s “e University”,educational technologies have continued developing and have made advances in several learning paradigms. These new learning paradigms appear as newways to deal with the old traditional learning concepts and philosophies throughout the widespread of technical gadgets and approaches. In fact, the current generation of high school children and young adults are now really familiar with a whole range of devices such as Bluetooth mobiles, digital cameras, and MP3 music players such as the iPod, which has ensured their acceptance of digital technology in a way that their predecessors did not. Research indicates that despite earlier e‐learning setbacks, with the relevant planning, e‐learning partnerships can be successful. Nevertheless, the question as to how teaching and learning can benefit from these new information technologies and environments and how academic staff can keep pace with the ever‐changing technology needs to be addressed.
Guidelines for evaluating e‐learning environments
Authors: Moussiades Lefteris , Iliopolou Anthi
Published: June 2010

The evolution of Internet Technology has influenced the basis of education by introducing new methodologies in to teaching and giving a new dimension to distance learning. On the other hand, there is an emerging need on the users part to define some standards that will be used for judging the quality and effectiveness of the educational Websites. In this project, a presentation of evaluation methodology of Virtual Learning Environments (VLEs) is presented, along with basic guidelines that must be followed when evaluating a VLE. This report emphasizes the importance of evaluation in the educational practice and presents a review of the current literature in terms of helping the VLE practitioner to find his own way concerning the evaluation process.
Preparing computing students for culturally diverse e‐mediated IT projects
Authors: Conrad Marc , French Tim , Maple Carsten , Zhang Sijing
Published: June 2010

In this paper we present an account of an undergraduate team‐based assignment designed to facilitate, exhibit and record team‐working skills in an e‐mediated environment. By linking the student feedback received to Hofstede’s classic model of cultural dimensions we aim to show the assignment’s suitability in revealing the student’s multi‐cultural context. In addition to anecdotal evidence we also present a quantitative analysis that shows that the desired learning outcomes have been met. In a further discussion we show how the qualitative data collected can be used to quantitatively determine a cultural fingerprint of the groups that is useful to predict the team’s suitability for a given task in a real‐world project.
Tangible math
Authors: Scarlatos Lori L.
Published: June 2010

Educators recognize that group work and physical involvement with learning materials can greatly enhance the understanding and retention of difficult concepts. As a result, math manipulatives ‐ such as pattern blocks and number lines ‐ have increasingly been making their way into classrooms and children’s museums. Yet without the constant guidance of a teacher, students can easily become distracted, confused, or frustrated. Math games with tangible user interfaces can address the needs of the modern learning environment by providing the guidance that a teacher would while allowing students to work together in a physical environment. This paper describes how math games with tangible user interfaces can be rapidly developed using a library of functions that were designed specifically for tracking visual tags in math games. The paper also discusses pedagogical principles and an approach to designing and developing games that utilize tangible technologies. Examples of math games that have been prototyped this way are presented. The paper concludes with a study that suggests that this approach helps children to stay focused, think about math problems in new ways, and complete the problem at hand. It also suggests that tangible math games may help children to develop problem‐solving skills that transfer to similar problems.
Using participatory design in the development of a language learning tool
Authors: Zaphiris Panayiotis , Constantinou Penelope
Published: June 2010

Purpose

This paper aims to demonstrate how participatory design methodologies can be used for the design of interactive learning tools for children.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper presents the methodology employed for the design of a multimedia tool for teaching Greek to young children aged 6 to 12. The preliminary data collection included interviews, questionnaires and observations, whereas the actual design of the tool was carried out using a Participatory Design methodology which advocates a design approach that focuses on the intended user of the service or product, emphasising the active involvement of users throughout the design process.

Findings

The paper provides detailed information from each of the data collection techniques used. It also highlights the successes and difficulties in implementing participatory design in an e‐learning context.

Originality/value

Although participatory design has been used in the design of other systems, it is rarely used as the design framework of learning applications. So the paper expands one's knowledge of implementing participatory design methodologies in learning.
Applying XML‐based technologies to developing online courses: the case of a prototype learning environment
Authors: Jedrzejowicz Joanna , Neumann Jakub
Published: June 2010

Purpose

This paper seeks to describe XML technologies and to show how they can be applied for developing web‐based courses and supporting authors who do not have much experience with the preparation of web‐based courses.

Design/methodology/approach

When developing online courses the academic staff has to address the following problem – how to keep pace with the ever‐changing technology. Using XML technologies helps to develop a learning environment which can be useful for academics when designing web‐based courses, preparing the materials and then reusing them.

Findings

The paper discusses the benefits of using XML for developing computer‐based courses. The task of introducing new versions of existing courses can be reduced to editing appropriate XML files without any need for program change and an author can perform this task easily from a computer connected to the internet. What is more – using XML makes it possible to reuse data in different teaching situations.

Research limitations/implications

The environment has only been used for two years and further research is needed on how user‐friendly the system really is and how it can still be improved.

Practical implications

The paper describes the environment which can be used to develop and reuse online materials, courses, metadata etc.

Originality/value

The paper offers practical help to academics interested in web‐based teaching.
Handling heterogeneity in context aware services
Authors: van Eijk Ronald , Salden Alfons , de Heer Johan , Peddemors Arjan , Määttä Petri , Haataja Ville
Published: June 2010

The increasing number of context aware services, which depend on various multimodal sensing, processing and actuating techniques, technologies and formats ask for a physical framework that is able to handle their heterogeneity. Thereto, we propose a context model bridging the semantic gaps between context aware services. In addition we propose a simple system architecture of Distribution Servers and Transformation Servers that bridge semantic gaps among context aware services. Applying our framework we solve the heterogeneity problem existing for location services. Location is typically a form of context where heterogeneity is a problem.
Creating audio‐augmented environments
Authors: Zimmermann Andreas , Lorenz Andreas
Published: June 2010

The paper deals with the design and creation of an intelligent user interface augmenting the user experience in everyday environments, by providing an immersive audio environment. We highlight the potential of augmenting the visual real environment in a personalized way, thanks to context modeling techniques. The LISTEN project, a system for an immersive audio augmented environment applied in the art exhibition domain, provides an example of modeling and personalization methods affecting the audio interface in terms of content and organization. In addition, the different evolution steps of the system and the outcomes of the accompanying user tests are here reported.
Towards a smart world and ubiquitous intelligence: A walkthrough from smart things to smart hyperspaces and UbicKids
Authors: Ma Jianhua , Yang Laurence T. , Apduhan Bernady O. , Huang Runhe , Barolli Leonard , Takizawa Mokoto
Published: June 2010

A cyber world (CW) is a digitized world created on cyberspaces inside computers interconnected by networks including the Internet. Following ubiquitous computers, sensors, e‐tags, networks, information, services, etc., is a road towards a smart world (SW) created on both cyberspaces and real spaces. It is mainly characterized by ubiquitous intelligence or computational intelligence pervasion in the physical world filled with smart things. In recent years, many novel and imaginative researches have been conducted to try and experiment a variety of smart things including characteristic smart objects and specific smart spaces or environments as well as smart systems. The next research phase to emerge, we believe, is to coordinate these diverse smart objects and integrate these isolated smart spaces together into a higher level of spaces known as smart hyperspace or hyper‐environments, and eventually create the smart world. In this paper, we discuss the potential trends and related challenges toward the smart world and ubiquitous intelligence from smart things to smart spaces and then to smart hyperspaces. Likewise, we show our efforts in developing a smart hyperspace of ubiquitous care for kids, called UbicKids.
Middleware support for mobile applications
Authors: Fjellheim Tore , Milliner Stephen , Dumas Marlon
Published: June 2010

Mobile devices have received much research interest in recent years. Mobility raises new issues such as more dynamic context, limited computing resources, and frequent disconnections. A middleware infrastructure for mobile computing must handle all these issues properly. In this project we propose a middleware, called 3DMA, to support mobile computing. We introduce three requirements, distribution, decoupling and decomposition as central issues for mobile middleware. 3DMA uses a space based middleware, which facilitates the implementation of decoupled behavior and support for disconnected operation and context awareness. This is done by defining a set of “workers” which are able to act on the users behalf either: to reduce load on the mobile device, and/or to support disconnected behavior. In order to demonstrate aspects of the middleware architecture we then consider the development of a commonly used mobile application.
Blind source separation of acoustic signals in realistic environments based on ICA in the time‐frequency domain
Authors: Ding Shuxue , Cichocki Andrzej , Huang Jie , Wei Daming
Published: June 2010

We present an approach for blind separation of acoustic sources produced from multiple speakers mixed in realistic room environments. We first transform recorded signals into the time‐frequency domain to make mixing become instantaneous. We then separate the sources in each frequency bin based on an independent component analysis (ICA) algorithm. For the present paper, we choose the complex version of fixedpoint iteration (CFPI), i.e. the complex version of FastICA, as the algorithm. From the separated signals in the time‐frequency domain, we reconstruct output‐separated signals in the time domain. To solve the so‐called permutation problem due to the indeterminacy of permutation in the standard ICA, we propose a method that applies a special property of the CFPI cost function. Generally, the cost function has several optimal points that correspond to the different permutations of the outputs. These optimal points are isolated by some non‐optimal regions of the cost function. In different but neighboring bins, optimal points with the same permutation are at almost the same position in the space of separation parameters. Based on this property, if an initial separation matrix for a learning process in a frequency bin is chosen equal to the final separation matrix of the learning process in the neighboring frequency bin, the learning process automatically leads us to separated signals with the same permutation as that of the neighbor frequency bin. In each bin, but except the starting one, by chosen the initial separation matrix in such a way, the permutation problem in the time domain reconstruction can be avoided. We present the results of some simulations and experiments on both artificially synthesized speech data and real‐world speech data, which show the effectiveness of our approach.
Peering by exploiting peer heterogeneity
Authors: Hsiao Hung‐Chang , King Chung‐Ta , Gao Shih‐Yen
Published: June 2010

Resource discovery in peer‐to‐peer (P2P) systems have been extensively studied. Unfortunately, most of the systems studied are not designed to take advantage of the heterogeneity in peer nodes. In this paper, we propose a novel P2P overlay called RATTAN, which serves as an underlay of a Gnutella‐like network. RATTAN exploits the heterogeneity of peer nodes by structuring capable nodes as the core of the overlay. Using a tree‐like structure, RATTAN can maximize the search scope with a minimal number of query messages. We evaluate RATTAN with simulation. The experiments show the following interesting results. First, RATTAN is robust by exploiting redundant overlay links. Second, the maximum bandwidth demand for processing the protocol of a single RATTAN overlay is nearly 1M bits/sec. However, around 80% of the nodes merely take 66 bits/sec. One implication is that we can use a small number of relatively capable peers (e.g., stable machines with a 100M bits/sec network interface) to process the 1M bits/sec protocol overhead and serve other peers that only need to spend 66 bits/sec for processing protocol overhead.