bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Qui es-tu ? J’ai été dit. De la destruction de la filiation dans l’Etat civil d’Algérie ou éléments d’un onomacide sémantique
Authors: Benramdane Farid
Published: March 2013

Nous voudrions montrer dans cet article que l’Etat civil d’Algérie et non algérien (il n’existe pas encore), n’assure pas la continuité de la transmission identitaire, en dépit d’une filiation plusieurs fois millénaire. Il est même la représentation mentale de la non-filiation, de la non-généalogie, caractérisée par l’intrusion violente de deux paradigmes de refondation de la personnalité algérienne par l’administration et l’armée coloniales françaises : le Senatus Consulte et la loi sur Etat Civil (1882). Comment est construit historiquement le système onomastique patronymique algérien ? Quelles stratégies porteuses ont déterminé, dans le passé, les représentations suivies et qu’en est-il aujourd’hui ?Jamais dans l’histoire du colonialisme et de ses rapports à la donne linguistique, une opération de dislocation identitaire,de déstructuration/ restructuration onomastique, n’a travaillé à un double niveau de la conscience : sémantique et formelle, tel qu’il est cristallisé dans l’Etat civil d’Algérie.
إشكالية الهوية الإسلامية : نقد قانوني
Authors: عدة جلول محمد
Published: March 2013

إن المحور الأساسي الذي يدور حوله هذا البحث هو التناقضات الناتجة عن الهوية الإسلامية المسببة للعنف، وتتجلى في مظهر ين أساسيين :1- اختلاف الأنظمة السياسية الإسلامية حول التفسير الإيديولوجي للإسلام.2- عدم دقة مفهومي "العالم الإسلامي" و" الأمة الإسلامية" وإذا كان الاختلاف بين السنة و الشيعة يشكل المظهر التقليدي القديم في الاختلاف حول التفسير الإيديولوجي للإسلام الذي امتد واستمر في العصر الحاضر، فان هناك مظاهر جديدة لهذا الاختلاف فرضتها طبيعة الحياة المعاصرة، و فرضتها مختلف التطورات التي مست الحياة السياسية و الاقتصادية، والاجتماعية، و الفكرية، في البلدان الإسلامية، كما فرضتها التطورات التي مست المجتمع الدولي.وتحاول هذه الدراسة من جهة أخرى البحث حول مفهومي "الأمة الإسلامية" و "العالم الإسلامي"، ونلمس هذا الغموض بوضوح في الخطاب السياسي دون تحديد دقيق، ولاسيما عندما يكون الخطاب ذا مضمون إيديولوجي.هذا الأمر يجعل الباحث يتساءل عن المضمون الدقيق لهوية العلاقات الدولية الإسلامية.هل هي هوية إقليمية أو عالمية ؟ من هم الفاعلون في هذه العلاقات ما هي الفكرة القائدة في الوقت الحاضر لهده العلاقات؟
Huit séquences d’un Corpus maghrébin
Authors: Yelles Mourad
Published: March 2013

Le corps est non seulement un extraordinaire appareil physiologique, mais aussi un fabuleux corpus où se lit/s’écrit le récit des aventures historiques et fantasmatiques du Sujet aux prises avec le monde. S’agissant du Maghreb, le corps adopte une posture problématique et révèle une sorte de crise sémiologique rémanente dont il faut situer l’origine vers les 15ème-16ème siècles. Cette période de décadence marque le début d’un processus de dépossession et de perte qui place la question du rapport à l’Autre (Occident) dans un contexte de violence endémique. Avec le début de la période coloniale, le processus ne fera que s’accentuer. Le Maghrébin, et singulièrement l’Algérien, se transforme alors en objet exotique qu’il s’agit d’assimiler à toute force (à défaut de le faire disparaître). Le "syndrome nord-africain" n’est qu’une réaction physique à la violence coloniale qui mine le corps du Maghrébin. Avec l’indépendance de l’ex-colonisé, lui interdisant l’accès à une lecture de son corps / corpus en termes de métissage identitaire.
Transactions sociales et sémiotique du sujet. Le cas du mariage « falso » dans l’Ouest algérien
Authors: Miliani Hadj
Published: March 2013

Pratiques marginales, voire en voie de disparition, les cérémonies de mariage ou de fausse circoncission s’inscrivent dans le prolongement des échanges de dons et de contre-dons.Aide déguisée (‘maaouna’) ou récupération de créances manifestent l’aspect le plus visible de ces événements. Notre réflexion tente de montrer comment, chez certaines catégories de femmes, ces pratiques participent de la formulation d’une identité du sujet social dans et hors les normes circulantes de l’image conforme de la femme.
Femmes en texte.Petite histoire de la littérature algérienne d’expression française 1857-1950
Authors: Kassoul Aïcha
Published: March 2013

Nous appuyant sur un travail effectué dans le cadre d’une équipe universitaire et publié en 1991 (Diwan d’inquiétude et d’espoir, ENAG), nous avons tenté de constituer une histoire de la littérature féminine d’expression française, essentiellement à partir des textes narratifs (récits de vie, nouvelle et roman), publiés entre 1947 et 1987 et représentant la réalité algérienne, même si leurs auteurs ne vivaient pas ou plus en Algérie.Nous avons pu dégager quatre « générations » de femmes et déterminer des thématiques qui varient au fil du temps. Le thème essentiel demeure la question de la femme dont le traitement s’historicise nettement au moment de la guerre d’indépendance : l’exigence de libération du pays va de pair avec celui des femmes. Le discours « féministe » ne développe qu’à de très rares exceptions, la thèse de l’assimilation.La tonalité de cette histoire est plutôt sombre : la quête de soi et d’une place dans la société, débauche inéluctablement sur un échec.
Le merveilleux dans le roman algérien de langue arabe
Authors: Daoud Mohamed
Published: March 2013

L’étude essaie de définir le merveilleux, en tant qu’aspect littéraire introduit dans le romanesque en passant par Freud, Todorov, Caillois, Caxtex, Steinmetz, qui donnent une définition très poussée du fantastique, qui est différent du merveilleux.Mais c’est à Todorov que l’étude consacre la plus grande partie de l’analyse du merveilleux ; elle essaie de compléter cette réflexion par d’autres apports théoriques. Et dans la perspective de l’étrangeté, du surnaturel qu’aborde l’étude, le texte“Le pêcheur et le palais” du romancier algérien Tahar Ouettar s’appuie sur la réflexion de Greimas.Le romancier introduit le mythe ”politico-héroïque” dans son texte afin de poser un problème de rapport au pouvoir. Tahar Ouettar met en perspective cette problématique à travers Ali le pêcheur, personnage principal du roman. Un “héros sans peur”, qui symbolise le Bien luttant contre le Mal, et pour ce faire, il doit traverser sept cités afin d’offrir au roi le poisson. Cet acte qualifié d’associal par le pouvoir, sera fatal à Ali le pêcheur, mais établira un ordre nouveau.
Entre toponymie et langage, balades dans l’Alger plurilingue.Les enseignes des rues de notre ville
Authors: Taleb Ibrahimi Khaoula
Published: March 2013

L’auteur de l’article a choisi Alger, sa ville natale, pour faire l’analyse de la diversité des signes linguistiques utilisés par les commerçants dans les enseignes de leurs magasins. Le métissage linguistique ou plurilinguisme est un indicateur de l’inexorable intégration du pays dans l’économie mondiale.Après avoir énuméré les actions menées par le pouvoir politique qui a conduit une compagne d’arabisation durant les années 1970, l’auteur revient à la période actuelle pour conclure qu’une tension existe entre les politiques décidées in vitro et les solutions imaginées in vivo par les citations algérois. Ce qui dénote de la réalité des enjeux culturels, sociaux et économiques qui structurent le champ symbolique algérien.
Pratiques langagières effectives et pratiques postulées en Kabylie A la lumière des événements du « printemps noir » 2001
Authors: Dourari Abderrezak
Published: March 2013

Le concept “pratiques langagières” est galvaudé dans la société algérienne saturée d’idéologie au point où elle ne réalise plus l’importance de la description scientifique froide. La question linguistique, dans une société plurilingue non reconnue comme telle par l’Etat, est fatalement happée par l’idéologie, pour masquer des intérêts idéels et matériels, des positions de pouvoir.Au refus borné de reconnaître tamazight, certains défenseurs de la question amazighe réagissent en lui opposant le rejet de la langue arabe scolaire. Ils confondent ainsi politique linguistique rétrograde (l’arabisation) d’un pouvoir d’Etat à l’ornière serrée et agissant sous l’effet de la haine de soi, et la langue arabe elle-même qui a été le véhicule d’une civilisation brillante et de la pensée rationnelle qu’elle a transmise à l’Occident en passant d’Averroès à Saint Thomas d’Acquin. Nier la réalité demeure donc la chose la mieux partagée par ces acteurs.Les textes de graffitis que nous présentons expriment quant à eux la réalité des pratiques langagières plurielles des locuteurs tamightophones : le français côtoie l’arabe algérien, qui côtoie le kabyle et l’arabe scolaire. Les graphies arabe et latine sont convoquées spontanément pour dessiner ces graffitis - forme de l’expression de contenus discursifs d’une grande portée politique et sociale – qui ont égayé les murs de certaines villes de Tizi-Ouzou et Bejaia.C’était sous le cri de ralliement « ‘ayaw âh ! » ( =Venez donc ! ou Allons y !) et le mot d’ordre contre la « hogra », expressions spécifiquement algériennes, que les attaques étaient menées contre les gendarmeries tenues pour responsables de la mort de 118 jeunes manifestants.C’est par conséquent dans un contexte sérieux que ces expressions ont été recueillies.Nous avons noté, en égard à ce contexte, que l’usage non critique des concepts nés dans des conditions historiques et sociales particulières pourrait mener à des déformations graves de la réalité.Faut-il alors appeler à une épistémologie des théories sociolinguistiques ? A la constitution d’une sociolinguistique algérienne qui ne se confondrait pas avec celle catalane dont l’histoire de la société qui lui a donné naissance se distingue de celle de la société algérienne ?
Actantialiser ou déconstruire
Authors: Kassoul Aïcha , Maougal Mohamed Lakhdar
Published: March 2013

La sociolinguistique, est une discipline, qui à peine a été captée par les institutions et la didactique. Par son caractère éminemment subversif, elle est devenue comme l’anthropologie, une science sous haute surveillance. Ceci dit son apport à la compréhension des structures de l’imaginaire créatif des idéologues et concepteurs d’imaginaires algériens, les écrivains en particulier, est très important.En critiquant les outils et les méthodes d’investigation employés par les critiques littéraires qui s’intéressent à la littérature de décolonisation dont le traitement est sous l’influence d’un bavardage pseudo- scientifique sur l’identitarisme, les auteurs illustrent leurs propos en donnant l’exemple de deux textes écrits sur « la colline oubliée » roman de Mouloud Mammeri en 1953. Les deux textes de Mohamed Cherif Sahli et Mostefa Lacheraf qui insistement sur le reniement et l’anachronisme du discours romanesque. La critique littéraire universitaire algérien qui a suivi les traces de l’argument du reniement comme de l’anachronisme, a été appauvrissante, d’où le recours à l’interculturalisme qui ne propose rien de nouveau.
Le sobriquet algérien : une pratique langagière et sociale
Authors: Yermeche Ouerdia
Published: March 2013

Cet article se présente comme un essai de compréhension du sobriquet ou surnom personnel, véritable phénomène socio-culturel et linguistique universel, particulièrement dynamique et fécond dans tous les systèmes de nomination du monde et particulièrement en Algérie.Sur la base d’un corpus composé de sobriquets créés en milieu algérien et par des locuteurs algériens, il essaie de mettre en exergue les modes de construction et d’attribution de ce code linguistique, les motivations de sa création et sa fonction de communication au sein d’un groupe. Il montre que le sobriquet, véritable indicateur des comportements langagiers des locuteurs algériens, reflète la mentalité de ce groupe et témoigne de l’histoire, de l’humour et de la créativité spontanée de ce dernier.
"أحنا أولاد دزاير انتاع الصح"ملاحظات حول لغة شباب باب الوادي
Authors: طالب الإبراهيمي خولة
Published: March 2013

يركز هذا المقال بوجه خاص على الممارسات الفعلية للمتكلمين في حي عتيق من أحياء الجزائر العاصمة، حيث تتعايش اللغات و اللهجات، تتصادم وتتداخل و تتعارض و تتزاوج في انصهار سمته التعددية. و تعكس تلك الصور المختلفة للمزج و التناقل و التسجيل اللغوي غنى مظاهر التلاقي و الاحتكاك التي تكون لغة الشباب العاصمي الذي يمثل العينة المختارة في هذه الدراسة.انصبت اهتمام الباحثة على تسجيل جرى بين مجموعة من شباب باب الواد، حاولت من خلاله التساؤل عمّا يتحدثون، و كيف يتكلمون، و استخلصت عددا من الحقائق اللغوية ؛ تعكس من جهة العلاقة بين الطبقات الاجتماعية والمتن المعجمي و النظام النحوي الذي يمثلها. كما أشارت إلى ظهور بصمات تأثير المدرسة أو اللغة المكتوبة، و وسائل الإعلام الرسمية و القنوات الإعلامية الأخرى، بالإضافة إلى تأثير اللغة الفرنسية باعتبارها ظاهرة من ظواهر الاحتكاك المعروفة بين الشعوب المتجاورة أو تلك المرتبطة بروابط تاريخية معينة.
Représentations et normes sociolinguistiques partagées au sein de la communauté des professeurs de français du secondaire dans la wilaya de Batna
Authors: Gaouaou Manaa
Published: March 2013

L’histoire a déposé ses strates au niveau de ce groupe social où chaque membre est porteur de marques indélébiles.Le chaoui en tant que langue originelle, langue du peuple, langue minorée depuis toujours.L’arabe dialectal en tant que forme basse du code écrit, langue de la majorité des algériens ne jouit d’aucun statut.L’arabe classique, en tant que langue du Coran, de la culture, d’une certaine élite, c’est la langue d’état.Le français en tant que langue de l’ancien conquérant, langue d’état durant la colonisation, langue étrangère à statut particulier.A travers ses choix de langue, à travers les marques transcodiques c’est bien son identité - langagière, sociale - que l’individu exprime et reconstruit lors de chaque événement de communication.
Les stratégies discursives des étudiants et l’utilisation du français
Authors: Mekkaoui Fatima Zohra
Published: March 2013

Pour l’auteur de cet article, il s’agit de porter un regard sur la place qu’occupe la langue française dans un contexte multilingue complexe d’où une régression de cette langue. Les raisons pour expliquer cet état de fait se résument à un certain nombre de points dont : - Une non-maîtrise de la langue non assumée. Cette observation est le résultat d’une année de travail qui a suivi une proximité avec les étudiants de différentes filières à l’Université de Constantine (français, anglais, sciences économiques et informatiques), auxquels un questionnaire a été soumis.Après avoir constitué un corpus langagier, l’auteur essaie de l’interpréter en s’appuyant sur une analyse sociologique très pertinente.Ainsi la langue française, quoiqu’en dise, en bien ancrée dans les mœurs langagières algériennes, seulement les étudiants auxquels s’est adressé le questionnaire n’ont pas appris une langue avec ses différents modes de fonctionnement, mais ont appris une nomenclature, un lexique qui leur permet de combler les « vides » laissés par la langue arabe dans des domaines différents (intimité, mode, sport, cuisine,…).
أهمية اللغة ووظائفها في عمليات التواصلقراءة في كتاب "مدخل إلى التحليل اللساني : اللفظ- الدلالة -السياق" العربي قلايلية
Authors: شرشار عبد القادر
Published: March 2013

يبحث الكاتب "قلايلية العربي" من خلال مؤلفه الموسوم : "مدخل إلى التحليل اللساني : اللفظ – الدلالة – السياق-" عن منهج للتحليل اللساني يمكنه من مقاربة الخطاب باعتباره وحدة لسانية قابلة للوصف و التحليل، و من ثَمَّ التركيز على أهمية اللغة و وظائفها في عمليات التواصل في ضوء ما أفرزته مناهج اللسانيات من أدوات إجرائية و مصطلحات عملية عبر المستوى التحليلي بأبعاده الثلاثة : الدلالي البلاغي، التركيبي النحوي والصرفي الصوتي، و هو في كل ذلك، و من أجله يطمح إلى البحث عن التكامل و الانسجام بين منهج القدماء في دراستهم للغة، و مناهج المحدثين و وسائلهم التنظيرية و التطبيقية المعاصرة.ينطلق المؤلِّف من منطلق لغوي، مستفيدا مما حققته الدراسات اللغوية عند القدماء و المحدثين، مبررا القفزات الكبرى المحققة في العقود الأخيرة من القرن العشرين، منتهيا إلى إسناد وظيفتين أساسيتين للغة، هما : الوظيفة التعبيرية والوظيفة التواصلية.
Towards a Theoretical “Cybernetic” Framework
Authors: Nikolaos Pellas
Published: March 2013

In the last decade, there is a common conviction and connectedness for modern e-learning practices to use online virtual environments (or worlds) for arousing students’ interesting in various experiential activities. In this perspective, this chapter creates and proposes a “Cybernetic Planning Framework” (CPF), which combines the diversity of educational theories and practices, yielding in a common basis for their inclusion. The present chapter focuses on Second Life’s qualitative characteristics that can be utilized to construct a “teaching-organizational” framework, which is essential for planning effective and meaningful distance learning courses. This gain averred a “cybernetic model,” in which users enhanced pedagogical authorities and principles of Contemporary Learning Theories that previous studies carried out in Second Life. This premise recapitulates the value-added of this chapter, which can successfully be adapted to any 3D “open” and “sustainable” education system, emphasizing on integration and innovation of teaching methods.
Software Security Engineering – Part I
Authors: Traore Issa , Woungang Isaac
Published: March 2013

It has been reported in the literature that about twenty new software vulnerabilities are reported weekly. This situation has increased the security awareness in the software community. Nowadays, software services are expected not only to satisfy functional requirements but also to resist malicious attacks. As demand for more trustworthy systems is increasing, the software industry is adjusting itself to security standards and practices by increasing security assessment and testing effort. Even though there is a consensus that better software engineering is to improve software quality in the early stage of software development, so far, various approaches that have been proposed to analyze and quantitatively measure the software security target, primarily show the finished software products in their operational life. There are few achievements on how to reduce or effectively mitigate the security risks faced by software products during the development process. In this chapter, the authors introduce a novel model-driven perspective on secure software engineering, which integrates seamlessly software security analysis with traditional software development activities. A systematic security engineering process that starts in the early stages of the software development process and spans the entire software lifecycle is presented. Fundamental software security concepts and analysis techniques are also introduced, and several illustrative examples are presented, with focus on security requirements and risk analysis.
Knowledge Management
Authors: Siddiqi Arshad
Published: March 2013

Knowledge is the essence of life, and Knowledge Management (KM) is the methodological formulation of strategies and practices deployed by the businesses and organization identify, define, develop, and utilize the tacit and explicit information within the organization for better use of developing and marketing new products and ideas. Knowledge is a knowing and understanding of facts, figures in form, or data or information about something or some entity. Knowledge can be acquired by various sources which could include facts and figures from books, news media, discussions, or books. It is a familiarity with what is happening around one and how does it affect. It can be acquired from any media; books, magazines, television, radio, or Internet. It can be in the form of raw data, or structured information, facts and figures, or description, depiction, or sketched.
A Software Engineering Approach for Access Control to Multi-Level-Security Documents
Authors: Ahmad Muneer , Zaman Noor , Jung Low Tang , Márquez Fausto Pedro García
Published: March 2013

Access control to multi level security documents is very important and challenging issue. Millions of organizations around the globe intend to apply security levels over their confidential documents to protect from unauthorized use. Some numbered access control approaches have been proposed and an optimal solution is the need of the time. This chapter presents an overview of a robust software engineering approach for access control to multi-level security documents. The access control system incorporates stages including data refinement, text comprehension, and understanding of multi-stage protection and application levels. It will scan the document, tag the sections of certain text, understand the meaning of various levels, group-up the text using bottom-up approach, and then classify the levels as per protection norms (set as organization wise) defined. This approach will be very helpful for multi-level protection of precious information. Only authorized users would be able to access the information relevant to them as defined by the authorities.
Trends in Information Security
Authors: Chakraborty Partha , Raghuraman Krishnamurthy
Published: March 2013

Information systems have transitioned from being designed for sophisticated users to systems for general populace. Have information security thoughts evolved likewise? The traditional understanding of security gravitated towards physical/network/platform/security and audit logging mechanisms. This chapter looks into evolution of information security, with the current impetus towards boundary-less enterprises, federated identities, the contemporary standards, and the need for federal governments to be involved in information security, ethics, and privacy concerns. With such a gamut of influencing forces, information security needs to be inbuilt with SDLC as a natural process rather than as an afterthought. This chapter covers information security trends in relation to cloud, mobile devices, and Bring Your Own Device. Convergence of information security with risk management and business process continuity is discussed. The authors indicate a few emerging research topics in the field of information security and outline the trends for future.
Intelligent Video Authentication
Authors: Upadhyay Saurabh , Tiwari Shrikant , Singh Sanjay Kumar
Published: March 2013

With the innovations and development in sophisticated video editing technology, it is becoming increasingly significant to assure the trustworthiness of video information. Today digital videos are also increasingly transmitted over non-secure channels, such as the Internet. Therefore, in surveillance, medical, and various other fields, video content must be protected against attempts to manipulate them. Video authentication has gained much attention in recent years. However, many existing authentication techniques have their own advantages and obvious drawbacks; we propose a novel authentication technique that uses an intelligent approach for video authentication. This book chapter presents an intelligent video authentication algorithm using support vector machine, which is a non-linear classifier, and its applications. It covers both kinds of tampering attacks, spatial and temporal. It uses a database of more than 4000 tampered and non-tampered video frames and gives excellent results with 95% classification accuracy. The authors discuss a vast diversity of tampering attacks, which can be possible for video sequences. Their algorithm gives very good results for almost all kinds of tampering attacks.
Review of Sparsity Known and Blind Sparsity Greedy Algorithms for Compressed Sensing
Authors: Zeng Chun-Yan , Ma Li-Hong , Du Ming-Hui , Tian Jing
Published: March 2013

Sparsity level is crucial to Compressive Sensing (CS) reconstruction, but in practice it is often unknown. Recently, several blind sparsity greedy algorithms have emerged to recover signals by exploiting the underlying signal characteristics. Sparsity Adaptive Matching Pursuit (SAMP) estimates the sparsity level and the true support set stage by stage, while Backtracking-Based Adaptive OMP (BAOMP) selects atoms by thresholds related to the maximal residual projection. This chapter reviews typical sparsity known greedy algorithms including OMP, StOMP, and CoSaMP, as well as those emerging blind sparsity greedy algorithms. Furthermore, the algorithms are analysed in structured diagrammatic representation and compared by exact reconstruction probabilities for Gaussian and binary signals distributed sparsely.
Thresholding Selection Based on Fuzzy Entropy and Bee Colony Algorithm for Image Segmentation
Authors: Xiao Yonghao , Yu Weiyu , Tian Jing
Published: March 2013

Image thresholding segmentation based on Bee Colony Algorithm (BCA) and fuzzy entropy is presented in this chapter. The fuzzy entropy function is simplified with single parameter. The BCA is applied to search the minimum value of the fuzzy entropy function. According to the minimum function value, the optimal image threshold is obtained. Experimental results are provided to demonstrate the superior performance of the proposed approach.
Equity in Distance Education
Authors: Willems J.
Published: March 2013

Within the context of distance education, an understanding of the impact of social justice issues is crucial for informing research, practice, funding, and policy. Equity and the related concerns of access, social inclusion, and ethics impact all levels of distance education, from the macro (research and development, including the globalisation of distance education), through the meso (community and open learning, including choices in educational technology), and down to the micro (teaching and learning, including choices in curriculum design). As a consequence, a modification to the macro-meso-micro framework of distance education is called for: one that situates equity at a meta level. This meta level encompasses all aspects in the field of distance education, and acts as a guide for policy-makers, academics, and administrators on planning, decision-making, and practice within the discipline.
Transnational Distance Education
Authors: Latchem Colin , Ryan Yoni
Published: March 2013

There have now been two decades of rhetoric on the need for culturally and contextually appropriate perspectives in international education. However, the extent to which courses, provision, and pedagogy have truly reflected differences in cultural characteristics and learning preferences is still open to question. Little attention has been paid to these matters in quality assurance frameworks. This chapter discusses these issues and draws upon Hofstede’s cultural dimensions framework and studies Asian pedagogy and uses of educational technology. It proposes a benchmark and performance indicators for assuring cultural, contextual, educational, and technological appropriateness in the provision of transnational distance education in Asia by Australian universities.
Distance Education Quality Assurance in Ghana
Authors: Utuka Godwin
Published: March 2013

In response to the challenges of enhancing the quality of distance education in Ghana, the National Accreditation Board (NAB), the government agency that is responsible for regulating and monitoring standards of the higher education sector, has introduced certain mechanisms or processes to ensure conformity with minimum standards and also to promote the quality of distance education in Ghana. Drawing on an empirical study, this chapter discusses the NAB’s role in representing Ghana’s government’s efforts to extend quality assurance oversight to transnational educational activities in the country. The purpose of this chapter is to examine how the NAB works and comment on the effectiveness and challenges of ensuring the quality of distance education in Ghana.
Distance Learning
Authors: Strongman Luke , Kobeleva Polly
Published: March 2013

Global challenges faced by Institutes of Technology or Polytechnics (ITP) are complex. With a particular focus on distance learning, this chapter discusses the key variables of global challenge (or threats and drivers) to ITPs and shows how these variables may be mitigated for organisational advantage. In addition, the focus of the argument is directed to an equity imbalance currently experienced in the distance learning ITP sector in New Zealand. Namely, that distance learning providers must compete under the same funding criteria as contact or face-to-face providers despite differences in learning delivery mode.
Community of Practice or Networked Learning
Authors: Fasso Wendy
Published: March 2013

This chapter examines the case of an online teacher professional development community that was designed to facilitate both networked learning and whole-group activities in cyclical form to support the eventual formation of a Community of Practice over time beyond the facilitated episode. Participants completed activities with a group (collective) focus in a series of wikis, and activities supporting networked learning in discussion forums. The design of the tasks was intentional, with clear identification of the learning purpose and scaffolding to support desired outcomes. The participation and learning outcomes were evaluated using a range of qualitative and quantitative data collection methods. The framework of Dron and Anderson (2007) identifies the potential for both learning networks and a community of practice within a group of online learners. Using this framework, activities were intentionally designed in which the best elements of both were enabled.
Shifting Mindsets Within
Authors: Wolodko Brenda , Stewart Cherry , Green Nicole , Edwards Helen , Brooks Margaret , Littledyke Roz
Published: March 2013

In an educational environment focused on providing flexible learning options to diverse student groups—rural and remote, cross-cultural, mature-aged, and second-chance learners—there need to be effective capacity building strategies for the professionals who provide these educational services. People do not resist change; they resist being changed. This chapter describes the capacity building of early childhood educators redesigning curriculum for distance learning. They engaged in self-study using metaphor as a research strategy to investigate their own adaptive practices. The creation of a professional learning community was made possible by supporting personal mastery and reflecting on the shared vision. The process of focusing meta-cognition on one’s own values and beliefs brought about a change in attitudes and perspectives relating to what could be achieved in an online learning environment. This chapter describes the research strategies and outcomes of an academic self-study professional development project. In addition, the authors suggest broader application of metaphor analysis as an elucidating strategy for capacity building.
Applying STREAMS to the Management of Organizational Change in Distance Education
Authors: Willems Eugene , Willems Julie
Published: March 2013

Strategic Resource for Educational and Management Success (STREAMS) was developed during a series of developmental projects over a fifteen-year period. It has grown out of the dual influences of commercial and education strategic planning practices. It was intended to make the complex task of strategic planning simpler so that non-professionals could use it as a guide to manage the process, involve stakeholders, follow its logically progressing path, and rely on it as a template for the completed and published product. In this chapter, STREAMS is suggested as an important tool for managing organizational change in distance education providers.
Epilogue
Authors: Tynan B. , Willems J.
Published: March 2013

This chapter undertakes to provide directions for future research that has been highlighted by the authors and, consequently, the editors of this book. The suggestions made for future research indicate a need for further research that can build on issues and concerns investigated throughout the various chapters. New areas are also raised for investigation that link either indirectly or directly to the research themes.
IDSSE-M
Authors: Mora Manuel , Wang Fen , Gelman Ovsei , Kljajic Miroljub
Published: March 2013

Decision-making Support Systems (DMSSs) have been traditionally designed and built by using mainly the Waterfall method, Prototyping-Evolutive, or Adaptive approach in the last three decades. In this paper, the authors argue that while such approaches have guided to DMSS developers, they have been also demanded for adding ad-hoc, non-standardized activities and extra techniques based on their own expertise due to the scarcity of open-access available information of them. Additionally, from a Software Systems Engineering (SSE) viewpoint, such approaches cannot be considered as well-defined methodologies. This article contributes to the research stream of SSE-based DMSS development methodologies by reporting an initial empirical evaluation of IDSSE-M, a free-access methodology for designing and building Intelligent Decision Support Systems. IDSSE-M extends and adapts Turban and Aronson’s DSS Building Paradigm (open access), and Saxena’s Decision Support Engineering Methodology (proprietary). IDSSE-M offers DMSS developers at least a moderate level of usefulness, compatibility, and results demonstrability, which leads to a positive, good and beneficial attitude of using the methodology.
Ontology Engineering The “Whats,” “Whys,” and “Hows” of Data Exchange
Authors: Easton J. M. , Davies J. R. , Roberts C.
Published: March 2013

In a challenging financial climate, there is a growing impetus for businesses to use existing process data to support more intelligent decision making. For large-scale complex systems such as railways, electricity grids, and gas distribution networks, this often means combining information from numerous different condition monitoring systems; however, given the vast amounts of data produced every day and the frequently incompatible data models used to represent it, is it possible to be sure that the information generated is being used correctly? This paper provides an introduction to the field of Ontology, an emerging technology that allows the exact “meaning” of an item of data to be described in a way that can be interpreted by computers. Through this retention of meaning, it becomes possible for computers to perform simple reasoning operations, inferring new information about a system from the existing facts, and enabling exciting new Semantic Web technologies.
Using Social Network Analysis to Support Collective Decision-Making Process
Authors: Shum Simon Buckingham , Cannavacciuolo Lorella , De Liddo Anna , Iandoli Luca , Quinto Ivana
Published: March 2013

Current traditional technologies, while enabling effective knowledge sharing and accumulation, seem to be less supportive of knowledge organization, use and consensus formation, as well as of collaborative decision making process. To address these limitations and thus to better foster collective decision-making around complex and controversial problems, a new family of tools is emerging able to support more structured knowledge representations known as collaborative argument mapping tools. This paper argues that online collaborative argumentation has the rather unique feature of combining knowledge organization with social mapping and that such a combination can provide interesting insights on the social processes activated within a collaborative decision making initiative. In particular, the authors investigate how Social Network Analysis can be used for the analysis of the collective argumentation process to study the structural properties of the concepts and social networks emerging from users’ interaction. Using Cohere, an online platform designed to support collaborative argumentation, some empirical findings obtained from two use cases are presented.
Social Media in DMSS System Development and Management
Authors: O’Leary Daniel E.
Published: March 2013

This paper surveys and extends the use of social media technologies as part of decision making support system (DMSS) development and management. In particular, this paper investigates how social media technologies, such as wikis, blogs, micro-blogs and tagging, have been and can be used to facilitate development and management of DMSS, through communication and collaboration. However, the author suggests going beyond simply communication and collaboration. The particular focus is on using an analysis of digital media content to address a range of issues, including using social media content to facilitate capturing project history, doing an analysis of that content to facilitate documentation development, and monitoring content from social media to provide insights into project development. Domain-based characteristics of the text are investigated to discover meaning in social media content.
Decision Support for Crisis Incidents
Authors: Power Daniel J. , Roth Roberta M. , Karsten Rex
Published: March 2013

Crisis incidents occur in both business and public domains. This article focuses on non-routine incidents and explores uses of technologies for supporting crisis management tasks. A Crisis Incident Spiral of Decision Support helps identify useful decision support and information technologies. Additionally, a Crisis Incident Process/Decision Support Matrix categorizes processes of crisis planning, response and management with decision support technologies. Ideally, the matrix helps organize and stimulate thinking about novel DSS applications. Not all crises are of equal magnitude and different computerized decision support is needed in different types of crisis incidents.
Extended TOPSIS with Correlation Coefficient of Triangular Intuitionistic Fuzzy Sets for Multiple Attribute Group Decision Making
Authors: Robinson John P. , Amirtharaj Henry E.C.
Published: March 2013

This paper extends the technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution (TOPSIS) for solving multi-attribute group decision making (MAGDM) problems under triangular intuitionistic fuzzy sets by using its correlation coefficient. In situations where the information or the data is of the form of triangular intuitionistic fuzzy numbers (TIFNs), some arithmetic aggregation operators have to be defined, namely the triangular intuitionistic fuzzy ordered weighted averaging (TIFOWA) operator and the triangular intuitionistic fuzzy hybrid aggregation (TIFHA) operator. An extended TOPSIS model is developed to solve the MAGDM problems using a new type of correlation coefficient defined for TIFNs based on the triangular intuitionistic fuzzy weighted arithmetic averaging (TIFWAA) operator and the TIFHA operator. With an illustration this proposed model of MAGDM with the correlation coefficient of TIFNs is compared with the other existing methods.
One-Dimensional Cutting Stock Optimization with Usable Leftover
Authors: Gradisar Miro , Erjavec Jure , Tomat Luka
Published: March 2013

This paper describes a method for solving one-dimensional cutting stock problem with usable leftover (CSPUL) in cases where the ratio between the average stock and average order length is less than 3. The proposed method can solve general CSPUL where standard stock lengths, non-standard stock lengths, or a combination of both are cut in the exact required number of pieces. The solutions of sample problems are compared with other methods.
Fingerprint Liveness Detection Based on Fake Finger Characteristics
Authors: Marcialis Gian Luca , Coli Pietro , Roli Fabio
Published: March 2013

The vitality detection of fingerprints is currently acknowledged as a serious issue for personal identity verification systems. This problem, raised some years ago, is related to the fact that the 3d shape pattern of a fingerprint can be reproduced using artificial materials. An image quite similar to that of true, alive, fingerprint, is derived if such “fake fingers” are submitted to an electronic scanner. Since introducing hardware dedicated to liveness detection in scanners is expensive, software-based solutions, based on image processing algorithms, have been proposed as alternative. So far, proposed approaches are based on features exploiting characteristics of a live finger (e.g., finger perspiration). Such features can be named live-based, or vitality-based features. In this paper, the authors propose and motivate the use of a novel kind of features exploiting characteristics noticed in the reproduction of fake fingers, that they named fake-based features. Then the authors propose a possibile implementation of this kind of features based on the power spectrum of the fingerprint image. The proposal is compared and integrated with several live-based features at the state-of-the-art, and shows very good liveness detection performances. Experiments are carried out on a data set much larger than commonly adopted ones, containing images from three different optical sensors.
A Framework for the Forensic Analysis of User Interaction with Social Media
Authors: Haggerty John , Casson Mark C. , Haggerty Sheryllynne , Taylor Mark J.
Published: March 2013

The increasing use of social media, applications or platforms that allow users to interact online, ensures that this environment will provide a useful source of evidence for the forensics examiner. Current tools for the examination of digital evidence find this data problematic as they are not designed for the collection and analysis of online data. Therefore, this paper presents a framework for the forensic analysis of user interaction with social media. In particular, it presents an inter-disciplinary approach for the quantitative analysis of user engagement to identify relational and temporal dimensions of evidence relevant to an investigation. This framework enables the analysis of large data sets from which a (much smaller) group of individuals of interest can be identified. In this way, it may be used to support the identification of individuals who might be ‘instigators’ of a criminal event orchestrated via social media, or a means of potentially identifying those who might be involved in the ‘peaks’ of activity. In order to demonstrate the applicability of the framework, this paper applies it to a case study of actors posting to a social media Web site.
Calm Before the Storm
Authors: Grispos George , Storer Tim , Glisson William Bradley
Published: March 2013

Cloud computing is a rapidly evolving information technology (IT) phenomenon. Rather than procure, deploy, and manage a physical IT infrastructure to host their software applications, organizations are increasingly deploying their infrastructure into remote, virtualized environments, often hosted and managed by third parties. This development has significant implications for digital forensic investigators, equipment vendors, law enforcement, as well as corporate compliance and audit departments, amongst other organizations. Much of digital forensic practice assumes careful control and management of IT assets (particularly data storage) during the conduct of an investigation. This paper summarises the key aspects of cloud computing and analyses how established digital forensic procedures will be invalidated in this new environment, as well as discussing and identifying several new research challenges addressing this changing context.
Marketing Educational Programs through Technology and the Right Philosophies
Authors: Wang Victor X.
Published: March 2013

This article uses a real case to illustrate that marketing educational programs through technology is affected by one’s philosophies positively or negatively, depending on the philosophies adopted. Seven philosophies are discussed in relationship to marketing educational programs via technology. Connections between the seven philosophies and different types of universities/colleges are drawn. Future research directions also revolve around marketing educational programs, Web 2.0 technologies and one’s philosophies. It is recommended that universities/colleges seriously consider hiring those administrators who have adopted the right philosophies as the wrong philosophies will work against the mission of certain academic departments, hence the whole university or college.
E-Service Delivery in Higher Education
Authors: Elbeck Matt , Vander Schee Brian A.
Published: March 2013

This study explores graduate students’ expectations regarding website design in higher education. Focus group discussions and the Kano method are used to improve the college website experience of Master of Business Administration students. Student survey results (n = 110) suggest 23 features describing an ideal college website. Results guide college website design according to three need-based groups; basic, performance, and excitement to improve website value to students and ultimately student loyalty.
Service Recovery Encounters in the Classroom
Authors: Chandra Sneha , Gruber Thorsten , Lowrie Anthony
Published: March 2013

This paper explores the nature of service recovery encounters, particularly the qualities and behaviours that male and female students expect from professors in personal service recovery encounters. For this purpose, 40 semi-standardized laddering interviews were conducted (with 20 male and 20 female respondents) in order to gain a deeper understanding of student expectations and the values that drive these expectations. The analysis and findings enrich the existing limited stock of knowledge on desired attributes of professors in service recovery encounters in higher education by developing a deeper understanding of the attributes of professors that dissatisfied female and male students’ desire, as well as the underlying values for these expectations. Results show that the professor’s active listening skills, expertise, friendliness, concern for students, and being empathetic were important to both male and female students. However, gender differences are important in a service-recovery encounter in a classroom, which suggests differential treatment. While men place more importance on a quick problem solution, women seem to prefer a more communal approach.
Co-Constructing a Learning Community
Authors: Robertson Chris
Published: March 2013

This paper explores the development of professional understanding across a large group of professionals and academics from eight different countries engaged in an international project. The focus of the project was to develop a suite of appropriate electronic tools to support the wide range of professionals (doctors, teachers, care and family workers, psychologists and medical and occupational therapists) who may be involved in working with and providing support for vulnerable children and families, which would be relevant across European countries. This case study explores how effective communication developed between the members of the research group to enable greater common understanding of both cultural and country specific provision, needs, and the underpinning philosophy and principles behind current provision in different countries represented. It explores the role of a ‘learning community’ and a ‘community of practice’ (Lave & Wenger, 1998) in this process as a tool for developing understanding. It provides insights into related issues, and possible future lessons to be learnt.
Assessing Learning via Web 2.0 Technologies
Authors: Wang Victor X. , Kania-Gosche Beth
Published: March 2013

Online learning takes place among learners of all ages in both formal and informal contexts. Due to the fact that traditional age students learn differently from non-traditional age students, especially in the virtual environment, educators are encouraged to employ either pedagogical or andragogical assessment methods accordingly. Using pedagogical assessment methods may work for traditional age learners. Likewise, applying andragogical methods may work for non-traditional age learners. Available assessment methods such as objectively-scored tests, subjectively-rated tests and criterion referenced tests will be discussed as well as a new form of assessment--learner self-evaluation. To use the proper tests or methods to assess online learning, educators are encouraged to possess both pedagogical and andragogical knowledge and/or skills. Instructors should use a variety of instructional and assessment methods. The authors of this article provide specific examples of online assessments from both andragogy and pedagogy.