bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Sistema integrado para toma de decisiones en el diseño de estructuras de hormigón
Authors: Armengou J. , Aguado A. , Ormazábal G.
Published: September 2012

El presente artículo hace una breve reflexión sobre las alternativas in situ y prefabricadas para estructuras de hormigón, justificando la necesidad de profundizar en métodos multicriterio como ayuda a la toma de decisiones. Manifiesta la trascendencia de la calidad en las decisiones más allá de este ámbito concreto, así como su influencia en la mayor eficiencia de las obras. Presenta luego un sistema de ayuda a la toma de decisiones basado en matemática difusa, que considera el valor de cada alternativa contemplando el riesgo inherente. Para ilustrarlo desarrolla un ejemplo aplicado a pasos inferiores que pueden resolverse mediante prefabricación o in situ. Efectuándolo por completo, llega a dos conclusiones principales: la bondad de la herramienta presentada y cómo la solución prefabricada, en este caso, aporta mayor valor. Concluye también que todo buen gestor debe plantearse su toma de decisión desde los inicios de cualquier proyecto, empleando herramientas como la presentada.
Aparcamiento subterráneo construido con cimentaciones profundas y elementos tipo bóveda prefabricados
Authors: Fernández-Ordóñez D. , Del Campo J. M. , Guerra J. C. , Ramírez J. A.
Published: September 2012

En muchos casos las únicas localizaciones para construir aparcamientos son las calles o carreteras. Estas calles también suelen tener alrededor importantes edificios históricos muy cercanos a la propia estructura.
En este caso particular la novedad reside en que el forjado superior está resuelto con una estructura especial: una bóveda que interacciona con la pantalla de pilotes no solo en el sentido vertical sino también en el horizontal formando un verdadero mecanismo de arco. La construcción de la bóveda se ha resuelto con grandes elementos prefabricados de una pieza de más de 16m de longitud y de 2,40m de ancho. Se han fabricado en una factoría, transportados y montados en obra con grandes grúas.
Metodología de trazado de corredores ferroviarios de mínimo impacto ambiental. Caso particular: Alta velocidad Huelva (España) - Faro (Portugal)
Authors: González E. , Moreno E. , Cabello F. , Lvarez E.
Published: September 2012

El trabajo contempla el desarrollo de una metodología de Evaluación Multicriterio para establecer el corredor ferroviario de mínimo impacto ambiental entre Huelva (España) y Faro (Portugal). Este estudio forma parte del proyecto Interreg “Evaluación ambiental estratégica (EAE) de las posibles conexiones ferroviarias (Convencional / Alta Velocidad) Huelva – Algarbe (EAE-FER)” (www.web-rise.eu). La metodología prevé en primer lugar la selección de los factores ambientales que van a intervenir en el modelo y la recogida y homogeneización de la información ambiental existente entre los dos países, así como su posterior implementación en un Sistema de Información Geográfica. A continuación se calculan las superficies de fricción (resistencia al desplazamiento) de los factores seleccionados, y mediante combinación lineal ponderada e introduciendo como restricciones los limitantes se obtiene la superficie final de fricción, a partir de la cual, y junto con los puntos origen y destino es posible obtener el corredor y camino mínimos.
Mallas tensegríticas de doble capa y manipulaciones de Rot-Umbela
Authors: Gómez-Jáuregui V.
Published: September 2012

Las mallas tensegríticas de doble capa (MTDC) son estructuras de Tensegridad que contiene dos mallas traccionadas paralelas, unidas por otra capa intermedia compuesta por elementos comprimidos y traccionados verticales y/o diagonales.
Este trabajo presenta inicialmente un breve repaso sobre las propuestas de MTDC que se han realizado hasta el momento, exponiendo luego una nueva metodología, eminentemente geométrica, para la generación de este tipo de estructuras tensegríticas.
Tras aplicar la propuesta de Otero para generar mallas de doble capa (MDC) convencionales, se procede a realizar Manipulaciones de Rot-Umbela en las capas inferior y/o superior para convertir dicha estructura en una MTDC. Las Manipulaciones de Rot-Umbela consisten en la apertura de cada vértice en un cierto polígono, al cual se le aplica una rotación o giro particular. Se consigue así un potente sistema para “tensegritizar” MDC convencionales y abrir una línea de investigación muy interesante en el campo de la Tensegridad.
Capacidad resistente de pilas metálicas tubulares circulares rellenas de hormigón (CFT) en puentes integrales
Authors: Chacón R. , Mirambell E. , Real E.
Published: September 2012

Se presenta el análisis estructural de pilas metálicas tubulares rellenas de hormigón (CFT) sometidas a flexo-compresión. El objetivo principal es valorar los mecanismos resistentes de las pilas cuando se someten a un desplazamiento en cabeza. Estos desplazamientos, conjuntamente con el esfuerzo axil de compresión, que en este trabajo se aproxima con un porcentaje de la resistencia plástica a compresión de los CFT, representan las acciones a las cuales se ven sometidos los elementos de este estudio. Se utiliza una herramienta numérica sobre una base hipotética de prototipos de pilas. Los resultados numéricos obtenidos así como los resultados experimentales encontrados en la literatura han permitido extraer conclusiones relativas a la capacidad seccional de los CFT. Se proponen expresiones de diseño relativas a la capacidad resistente de los CFT considerando el efecto del confinamiento y se comparan con los resultados que se derivan de la formulación de EN1994.
Mixing Metaphors
Authors: Wang Kevin Y.
Published: September 2012

This chapter explores the theoretical and conceptual assumptions underlying the notion of virtual community. Drawing from relevant literature, the author first examines the fundamental properties of the Internet as both technological and cultural artifact and argues that the Internet can embody different technological, functional, and symbolic meanings that will have direct implications for how communities are formed and experienced. Building on that framework, the second part of the chapter focuses on the sociological and psychological bases of community and explores how such conceptions change with the emergence of the Internet. The author concludes that studies of virtual communities must be contextualized according to historical and existing patterns of social life and offers a discussion on new challenges and questions facing mass communications research in this increasingly interdisciplinary area.
Asynchronous Text-Based Community
Authors: Mascio Antonella
Published: September 2012

The chapter starts with a short introduction to the complex phenomenon of Virtual Communities as part of media convergence process. The aim of the chapter is the analysis of Text-Based Communities through methodologies of ethnography and socio-semiotics, with specific focus, and analysis, of some virtual groups related to TV-Drama and linked to Fashion genre. The last part of the chapter is about the analysis of these virtual groups.
A Web-Based E-Commerce Learning Community in Brazil
Authors: Joia Luiz Antonio
Published: September 2012

This chapter demonstrates usage of a Web-based participative learning environment, which has enabled graduate students in e-commerce classes on the Executive Master in Business Administration Programme taught by the Brazilian School of Public and Business Administration at Getulio Vargas Foundation, based in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, to share and disseminate their knowledge among themselves. An illustrative single case study is applied in order to achieve this purpose. The structure of this virtual environment on the web is analysed. Findings about the participation level of the students in this group, the impact of regional influences – since classes are given throughout Brazil – and the role of the moderator in the leverage of this environment are also presented in this research, which attempts to establish how Internet technology can be effective in the development of virtual learning communities.
Toward an Understanding of Online Community Participation through Narrative Network Analysis
Authors: Weeks Michael R.
Published: September 2012

This chapter proposes the narrative network analysis methodology for application in the examination of online communities. The narrative network analysis provides a basis for systematic examination of online communities that has been missing from the literature. The chapter describes three online communities and their characteristics to demonstrate the possibilities of the methodology. From these descriptions a proposed model of the communities is presented, and then an abbreviated narrative network analysis is developed. The network analysis demonstrates how an ethnographically informed model may be tested in a systematic manner with the narrative network analysis techniques. The chapter then concludes with a number of questions for future research in this area that have been proposed by other authors. These unanswered questions are likely candidates for future research using this promising methodology.
Toward an Infrastructural Approach to Understanding Participation in Virtual Communities
Authors: Li Ben
Published: September 2012

This chapter outlines an infrastructural approach to understanding virtual communities (VCs) and applies it to a novel set of VCs. The infrastructural approach explicitly links logics embodied in technical, social, and information systems to opportunities and motives for participation. This chapter first outlines how the infrastructure approach is synthesised from current approaches to understanding VCs. Second, it uses the infrastructural approach to analyse three related meatspace communities’ progress toward collaborating through specific data-sharing VCs. Third, it highlights merits and shortcomings of the infrastructural approach to understanding participation in virtual communities. Finally, it offers potential avenues of further VC research using the infrastructural approach.
Community Embodied
Authors: Rybas Sergey
Published: September 2012

Problematizing the historical, philosophical, and social foundations of online communities, this project lays out a theoretical framework of subjective performance in virtual spaces and uses it to examine interactions in one long-distance college class. The findings of this cyberethnographic study suggests that even though the collective perceptions of community remain relatively stable, yet idealized and evasive, the actual individual manifestations of online community are limited to the subjective performances of the members and are inseparable from their complex identities and literacies. Therefore, considering the subjective performances of online community is vital for understanding its goals, practices, principles, and limitations and critical for the assessment of its success.
Virtual Communities as Subaltern Public Spheres
Authors: Zhang Weiyu
Published: September 2012

The purpose of this work is to develop a theoretical framework to examine virtual community participation using the concept of subaltern public spheres. The theory of subaltern public spheres directs attention to the internal dynamics and external interaction of virtual communities. Internal dynamics first refers to the inclusiveness of participation by looking at the access to virtual communities and the profiles of their participants. The nature of participation, as another aspect of internal dynamics, is estimated through examining the styles of the discourses and the types of participatory acts. The external interaction becomes another major focus of this theoretical framework and urges researchers to study how virtual communities interact with government apparatuses, commercial entities, the dominant public sphere, and other subaltern public spheres through discursive engagement and other means. The theoretical framework is applied to analyze a case of Chinese online public spheres to illustrate the framework’s utility.
The Importance of Focal Awareness to Learning in Virtual Communities
Authors: Gibbings Peter D. , Brodie Lyn M.
Published: September 2012

Higher education today calls for transformative rather than transmissive education, and educators need to be particularly concerned with facilitating learners to fully focus on important elements, to make connections and properly process newly learned information. Educational approaches are beginning to place a greater emphasis on participation in community activities such as collaborative learning and team-work as opposed to individual inquiry. With the rise of the global community facilitated by the Internet and advances in communication technology, connected learners are forming virtual learning communities, which facilitate the individual and social aspect of learning through communication and team-based instruction models such as problem-based learning. To achieve this requires an education structure underpinned by pedagogical values that encourage student ownership of their learning and allows exploration of multiple perspectives by social interaction. One such educational structure may involve the use of virtual learning communities. The success of such a virtual learning community depends on developing key behaviours in students, which support them to focus on awareness of their own learning needs, attitudes and processes. This chapter argues therefore that students’ focal awareness is critical to learning in virtual communities.
A Systemic Approach to Online Sharing Motivations
Authors: Skågeby Jörgen
Published: September 2012

The purpose of this conceptual chapter is to present and argue for a cross-disciplinary and systemic approach to the examination of motivations for sharing digital media objects via social mediating technologies. The theoretical foundation of this approach is built on two social theories from rhetorical analysis (Burke’s pentad) and gift research (gift systems), respectively. A synthesis of these two theories provides an approach capable of producing more coherent and contextually grounded insights regarding online sharing motivations. The reason these two theories were identified as useful is that they acknowledge and incorporate social and contextual factors. This is important to overcome the assumption that motivations to share are detached from the specifics of actors, situations, and sociotechnical means. As such, this cross-disciplinary combination challenges the limited, but common approach of trying to identify generic motivations for contributing to virtual communities. Instead, this chapter argues for a consideration of situated and contextual motivations for contributing by highlighting the conceptual questions what, to whom, how, where, and finally, why. In conclusion, the chapter fills a gap in the literature on online motivations mainly because current models focus on motivations as self-containing. Instead, this chapter suggests to consider sociotechnical means, types of relationships, values of media objects, identity, or culture in cohort.
Continuous Knowledge Sharing in Online Social Network Communities
Authors: Tian Stella W.
Published: September 2012

Drawing upon Jasperson, Carter, and Zmud’s feature-centric view of technology (Jasperson, Carter, & Zmud, 2005) and Nahapiet and Ghoshal’s three dimensions of social capital factors (Nahapiet & Ghoshal, 1998), this chapter develops a conceptual model to elaborate the dynamic interactions between Social Network Services (SNS) features, social capital factors, and motivational antecedents on continuous participation in knowledge sharing activities among Online Social Network (OSN) community members. A number of SNS features, social capital factors, and motivational antecedents are set forth in this chapter. And the mechanism that links these factors is reviewed. It is proposed that, with embedded social mechanism, SNS features can strengthen motivations to continued participation through social capital facilitators.
The Continued Use of a Virtual Community
Authors: Jin Xiao-Ling , Lee Matthew K.O. , Cheung Christy M. K. , Zhou Zhongyun (Phil)
Published: September 2012

With the advent of the Internet, so too came several new means by which people share and acquire information. One such method is the use of virtual communities. Virtual communities are steadily becoming a valuable resource for today’s organizations. However, a large number of virtual communities fail because their members withdraw from using them. Motivated by this concern, this study investigates the factors which motivate individuals to continue using a virtual community for information adoption. The proposed model integrates the IS continuance model with the information adoption model and is validated through an online survey of 240 users of a Bulletin Board System established by a local university in China. The results reveal that continuance intention within a virtual community is primarily determined by user satisfaction with prior usage, as well as by perceived information usefulness. The results also suggest that a long-term sustainable virtual community should be provided with high-quality and credible information. The findings of this study contribute to both theory building in virtual community continuance and practice in virtual community management.
Mining Student Participatory Behavior in Virtual Learning Communities
Authors: Bodea Constanta-Nicoleta , Bodea Vasile , Rosca Ion Gh. , Mogos Radu , Dascalu Maria-Iuliana
Published: September 2012

The aim of this chapter is to explore the application of data mining for analyzing participatory behavior of the students enrolled in an online two-year Master degree programme in Project Management. The main data sources were the operational database with the students’ records and the log files and statistics provided by the e-learning platform. 129 enrolled students and more than 195 distinct characteristics/ variables per student were used. Due to the large number of variables, an exploratory data analysis through data mining is decided, and a model-based discovery approach was designed and executed in Weka environment. The association rules, clustering, and classification were applied in order to describe the participatory behavior of the students, as well as to identify the factors explaining the students’ behavior, and the relationship between academic performance and behavior in the virtual learning environment. The results are very encouraging and suggest several future developments.
Social Net/work(ing) on Facebook
Authors: Spicer Robert N.
Published: September 2012

Reactions to new media vary from utopian pronouncements about their democratizing potential to fear about social deviance. The news media spend a great deal of time discussing new media, especially as they relate to young people. Again, sometimes these media are reported on as democratizing forces as when Time magazine declared “You” to be the person of the year (Grossman, 2006). Other times they are described as a source of social anxiety, for example, when NBC News (2011) reported on flash mobs as “swarms of mostly young people organized through social media, texting, tweeting, using Internet sites, and increasingly turning violent in cities across the country” (para. 4). However, social media are rarely discussed in terms of their capacities to tap into users’ activities as forms of labor. This chapter contributes to the discussion of user generated content as labor (Cohen, 2008; Peterson, 2008; van Dijck, 2009) by examining the process of building and maintaining an audience in the form of a friends list while simultaneously being an audience member in others’ friends lists. This labor is examined in this chapter through looking at the motivations individuals cite for using Facebook and how those users describe their feelings about their friends list qua audience or how users describe themselves as members of an audience.
Aligning Course Content, Assessment, and Delivery
Authors: Streveler Ruth A. , Smith Karl A. , Pilotte Mary
Published: September 2012

The emphasis on Outcome-Based Education (OBE) and student-centered learning is an enormous advance in engineering education. The authors argue in this chapter that an essential element of OBE is aligning content, assessment, and delivery. The objective of this chapter is to provide a model for aligning course content with assessment and delivery that practitioners can use to inform the design or re-design of engineering courses. The purpose of this chapter is to help the reader build a foundation of knowledge, skills, and habits of mind or modes of thinking that facilitate the integration of content (or curriculum), assessment, and delivery (or instruction or pedagogy) for course, or program design. Rather than treat each of these areas separately, the authors strive to help the reader consider all three together in systematic way (Pellegrino, 2006). The approach is essentially an engineering design approach. That is, the chapter starts with requirements or specifications, emphasizes metrics, and then prepares prototypes that meet the requirements. It embraces the argument that “faculty members of the twenty-first-century college or university will find it necessary to set aside their roles as teachers and instead become designers of learning experiences, processes, and environments” (Duderstadt, 2008).
A Case Study of Curriculum Development in Engineering
Authors: Fraser Duncan
Published: September 2012

This chapter draws on two decades of curriculum development to advance a series of insights into curriculum development, covering the scope of curriculum development, the processes involved in curriculum development, the people needed for effective curriculum development, the basis on which curriculum development should be built, and warnings to be heeded when undertaking curriculum development. To set the scene for these insights, the chapter starts with an outline of the curriculum development undertaken in the Department of Chemical Engineering at UCT over the past twenty years. This is followed by a discussion of the main motivations for curriculum development in our context, these being student overload, changing student demographics, new insights into student learning, the requirements of accreditation, and the changing chemical engineering workplace and profession. After that, the insights gained are discussed in detail, and then conclusions are drawn.
A Guide to the Art of Crafting Engineering Problems for Problem-Based Learning (PBL)
Authors: Jamaludin Mohammad Zamry , Mohd-Yusof Khairiyah , Harun Nor Farida , Helmi Syed Ahmad
Published: September 2012

An effective problem is the heart of problem-based learning (PBL). Problems play an important role in achieving learning outcomes, assessing learning process, providing a learning context, stimulating thinking skills, and catering for teaching and learning activities. Although a number of criteria that characterize effective PBL problems have been identified in the literature, crafting problems according to the criteria is a challenging task for these problem crafters in most disciplines, especially engineering. The aim of this chapter is to propose a PBL problem crafting framework and describe techniques to craft engineering problems. The problem crafting framework consists of five interrelated principles representing the characteristics of effective problems which have been identified and extracted from literature articles. These principles are aligned with the objectives of how to use problems as the basis for learning. As a guide, a sample problem is included to demonstrate the technique, and how the problem has been mapped to the five principles of effective engineering problems. Feedbacks from students are included to put forth their perspectives on the effectiveness of these engineering problems.
Curriculum Initiatives to Help Engineering Students Learn and Develop
Authors: Fraser Duncan
Published: September 2012

This chapter discusses two sets of initiatives: the first set aims to improve student learning in engineering through the use of computer simulations and Problem-Based Learning, and the second set aims to help students grow through building community and developing their sense of identity as engineers. The chapter shows how these initiatives have been underpinned by viewing learning as participation and not simply acquisition of knowledge, by embracing knowing, acting, and being as three pillars of curriculum design, and by recognising the important role that variation plays in learning. It also discusses other frameworks that have been drawn on, namely pedagogies of engagement, Problem-Based Learning, learning through computer simulations, and learning outside the classroom. The chapter concludes after describing each of these sets of initiatives in some detail.
A Problem-Based Laboratory (PBLab) Model for an Electrical Engineering Program
Authors: Azli Naziha Ahmad , Bahri Nur Ayuni Shamsul , Abu Samah Narina , Ramli Norhafizah
Published: September 2012

A problem-based laboratory (PBLab) has replaced the conventional instructional based laboratory in Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) since 2007. The 4th Year Electrical Engineering Laboratory is part of the curriculum of the Bachelor of Engineering (Electrical) program known as the SEE program. The initiative to replace the conventional 4th year laboratory was derived from various issues including feedbacks obtained from former students, industry, and the Engineering Accreditation Council (EAC) that evaluated the program in 2005. This chapter presents an implementation model of a problem-based laboratory (PBLab) that was established as one of the core courses in the SEE program and has been running for the past four years. The preparations made as well as the tools developed to support the implementation of the PBLab will be the main points of elaboration in the chapter. This is followed by description of the of the PBLab model in terms of laboratory conduct, facilitation, activities, and evaluation criteria. Analysis on the performance of students who had undergone the PBLab, particularly, the acquisition of generic skills is included. Finally, examples of feedbacks from the students are highlighted as these are the indicators to measure the level of acceptance towards the overall implementation of the PBLab.
Realizing Desired Learning Outcomes in Undergraduate Mathematics
Authors: Rahman Roselainy Abdul , Yusof Yudariah Mohammad , Baharun Sabariah
Published: September 2012

STEM education at UTM uses the OBE model in its effort to ensure its students are qualified and able to compete in a climate of global development and technological advancement. In line with this, the authors embarked in transforming their teaching and learning approaches to meet these demands. In this chapter, they share some of their experiences in coping with the challenges of changing teaching practices to accommodate OBE. In redesigning the Engineering Mathematics course, the authors started by looking at meaningful mathematical learning and identifying skills that could be integrated with teaching. They used this information in helping to determine the desired learning outcomes. Then, they examined the relationship between the content, assessment, and teaching and learning approaches. For successful mathematical learning, they believed that students should participate actively in the knowledge construction, develop flexible thinking skills, be able to communicate their knowledge, and become independent learners. The authors discussed the strategies they designed and employed in engaging students with the subject matter as well as to initiate and support students’ thinking and communication in the language of mathematics. Indications of students struggle, progress, and growth that were taking place and the difficulties encountered in the research implementation are highlighted.
Use of Computer Algebra Systems in Teaching and Learning of Ordinary Differential Equations among Engineering Technology Students
Authors: Maat Siti Mistima , Zakaria Effandi
Published: September 2012

This chapter describes the computer algebraic system, Maple, used to enhance engineering technology students’ understanding in learning ordinary differential equations (ODE). Ten undergraduate students studying industrial automation and robotics technology were selected to be the participants. They were required to enroll in engineering mathematics as the prerequisite for control system and robotics subject. Engineering mathematics is commonly taught using the traditional approach but the lecturer as a researcher introduced Maple as an alternative teaching approach to engage students in the learning of differential equations. The students were interviewed after using Maple for solving mathematics problems. It was found that these students managed to visualize the solutions of the given mathematics problems. The learning of differential equations has become meaningful in such a way that they could see the relationship between mathematics and its application in the real world.
Literature Review Skills for Undergraduate Engineering Students in Large Classes
Authors: Yong Elizabeth
Published: September 2012

Writing a literature review for a design project, which may be undergraduate engineering students’ first encounter with published research on the impact of engineering solutions in a broad context, requires effective skills of interpretation and communication. Engineering Communication curriculum at The University of Adelaide is designed to enhance students’ skills in writing literature reviews. This chapter outlines the development of students’ skills in interpreting the literature and structuring a literature review; it explains the scaffolded learning approach of an Engineering Communication course, and describes means by which skill development may be facilitated in large classes. Students’ skill development can be traced from a descriptive, ‘cut-and-paste’ approach, to a relatively critical use of evidence from peer-reviewed sources, integrated into a well-structured discussion. A scaffolded approach to learning supports students’ improvement of their skills through staged-design of materials, and detailed feedback on draft attempts, according to highly specific assessment criteria. The process can be facilitated in large classes by the creation of online learning resources, including model texts and model seminar presentations.
Using Multiple Methods in Assessing Oral Communication Skills in the Final Year Project Design Course of an Undergraduate Engineering Program
Authors: Othman Rohani , Awang Zubaidah
Published: September 2012

Engineering education researcher Rogers (2006) proposed that an assessment of engineering programs should use a multi-method approach to maximize validity and reduce the biasness of any one approach. Based on this reason, this study used two methods in the direct assessment of oral communication skills performance outcome of an undergraduate electrical engineering students’ Final Year Project (FYP) design experience. In the first method, the Oral Communication Assessment Rubrics adapted from Norback et al. (2008) was tested for its reliability, consistency in the scores and ease of use. This was to ensure that the results were descriptive of the expected students’ performance (Miller & Olds, 1999). Once faculty rater reliability was achieved and verified, the rubrics were refined and redrafted to obtain inter-rater scores for the assessment of the oral communication skills during the FYPII seminar presentation. Descriptive statistics were used to draw inferences from the inter-rater scores. In the second method, the researcher used the final grades of these students which were obtained from the faculty end-of-course assessment of their FYPII seminar presentation through the use of the faculty Seminar Evaluation Form (SEF). The scores obtained from SEF were reported in the Course Assessment Summary Report (CASR) in the form of the achieved Key Performance Indicator (KPI) of the students in each department in the Electrical Engineering Faculty (FKE).
Enhancing Fuzzy Inference System-Based Criterion-Referenced Assessment with a Similarity Reasoning Technique
Authors: Jee Tze Ling , Tay Kai Meng , Ng Chee Khoon
Published: September 2012

A search in the literature reveals that the use of fuzzy inference system (FIS) in criterion-referenced assessment (CRA) is not new. However, literature describing how an FIS-based CRA can be implemented in practice is scarce. Besides, for an FIS-based CRA, a large set of fuzzy rules is required and it is a rigorous work in obtaining a full set of rules. The aim of this chapter is to propose an FIS-based CRA procedure that incorporated with a rule selection and a similarity reasoning technique, i.e., analogical reasoning (AR) technique, as a solution for this problem. AR considers an antecedent with an unknown consequent as an observation, and it deduces a conclusion (as a prediction of the consequent) for the observation based on the incomplete fuzzy rule base. A case study conducted in Universiti Malaysia Sarawak is further reported.
An Evaluation of Students’ Practical Intelligence and Ability to Diagnose Equipment Faults
Authors: Razali Zol Bahri , Trevelyan James
Published: September 2012

Empirical studies suggest that practical intelligence acquired in engineering laboratories is valuable in engineering practice and could also be a useful learning outcome that is a result from a laboratory experience. To prove this, the author started a project to understand further about the practical learning outcomes from traditional laboratory classes. When tools used by psychologists were applied to measure practical intelligence in an electronics laboratory class, not only could a significant gain in hands-on practical intelligence be measured, but students’ ability to diagnose equipment faults could also be predicted. For the first time, therefore, the author can demonstrate that there are real advantages inherent in hands-on laboratory classes, and supported by Outcome Based Education (OBE) method, it is possible to measure this advantage. It is possible that measurements of practical intelligence may reveal new and more powerful ways for students to acquire practical knowledge. The results firstly demonstrate the ability to devise effective ways to assess the outcomes of practical intelligence acquired by engineering students from their laboratory experiences. The results from the study show that the score on practical intelligence outcomes is proportional with the outcomes of the ability in diagnosing equipment faults. Therefore, the novel results suggest that practical intelligence scores predict the ability to diagnose experiment faults for similar laboratory equipment.
Relationship between Accuracy in Ability Perception, Academic Performance, and Metacognitive Skills among Engineering Undergraduates
Authors: Kosnin Azlina Mohd , Daud Mohd Fadzil
Published: September 2012

A quantitative study using cross-sectional descriptive research design was conducted to investigate engineering undergraduates’ accuracy in perception of cognitive ability and its relationship with academic achievement and metacognitive skills. A total of 465 second year UTM students from an engineering degree programme were involved in the study. Results of their cognitive ability tests were compared to responses from self-report assessments of matched domains of ability. The discrepancy between tested and self-reported responses was then compared to academic achievement and metacognitive skills. Results indicate that high achievers are more accurate in their perception of their ability compared to students with lower level of achievement. Similar patterns were observed for metacognitive skills where undergraduates with the most accurate perception of ability show the highest level of metacognitive skills. Results also show significant positive correlation between metacognitive skills and academic achievement. Accuracy of one’s perception of ability may have something to do with the ability to think about thinking (metacognition). Findings from this study would not only provide evidence regarding the role of metacognition in influencing perception of ability and the possible outcome on academic achievement, but more importantly, such information can have an impact on the process of teaching and learning as well as academic advising. Steps in helping students to increase their metacognitive skills and gain more accurate estimation of their ability are suggested.
Social Interactive Systems Design for Serious Games
Authors: Di Loreto Ines
Published: September 2012

Based on the importance of social aspects for the learning process and for Digital Natives, this chapter describes a framework to create sociality inside learning environments and in particular in serious games. The described framework is based on four elements: identity, space, time, and actions. These elements (and the behaviors that emerge from them) can be used as markers in order to evaluate whether or not the system is able to facilitate social interactions. The chapter describes in particular (1) the framework for the creation of sociability in interactive systems, (2) two methods for its application in the design phase and in the development phase, (3) two experiments carried out in order to validate the above mentioned framework using a serious game called School Society, and (4) some observations on the framework and the relationship between social and learning aspects.
Enhancement of Adaptation and Monitoring in Game-Based Learning Environments
Authors: Carron Thibault , Marty Jean-Charles
Published: September 2012

This new way of learning changes habits, offers new opportunities to use collaborative tools, allowing the students to co-construct knowledge efficiently. In this chapter, the authors describe an example of game-based environment that they have developed. They then give examples of uses of collaborative tools in this environment and give details on how to enhance them. The authors focus on two aspects: the monitoring of the collaborative activity, where the teacher applies his/her own strategies in order to monitor the collaborative activity; and the adaptation of the game according to the learners’ profiles.
Role-Playing Game as a Pedagogical Proposition for Story Co-Construction
Authors: Starosky Priscila , Pereira Maria das Graças Dias
Published: September 2012

This chapter shows and discusses the development and implementation of a pegagogic proposition of story co-construction via Role-Playing Games (RPG), in the context of literacy with a bilingual approach for deaf individuals. The researcher, besides the experience of practicing RPG and developing a game adapted to the particularities of deaf adolescents, also analyses narrative co-construction during the multiparticipation dynamics of the game. The research was done in the Ambulatório de Surdez do Curso de Fonoaudiologia da Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro (Ambulatory for Deafness of the Phonoaudiology Course of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro). In the RPG implementation phase, the participants were four deaf adolescents and a deaf teacher (as players), an RPG and education researcher (as master), the researcher (as assistant), and a LIBRAS interpreter. The results show that the game provided for interaction among the participants with relevant multiliteracy practices.
Integrating the Principles of DGBL, CSCL, and Playability in the Design of Social Videogames
Authors: González-González Carina Soledad , Izquierdo Francisco Blanco , Delgado Pedro Toledo
Published: September 2012

Research and experience have proved that videogames can be applied effectively in a wide variety of learning contexts. With the objective to extend the use of educational videogames with hospitalized children, the authors are working on the design of social educational videogames. Their proposal follows the foundations of Digital Game-Based Learning (DGBL), the Computer Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL), and playability. In order to test the effects of the designed prototype with real users in educational contexts, the authors carried out a pilot study about their educational 3D videogame prototype. The objective of this pilot experiment was measuring the playability and extending this evaluation to the social interactions and emotional aspects. The authors present in this chapter the principles of design of their videogame and some preliminary results about the developed study.
Scratch
Authors: Cabañes Eurídice , Carrubba Luca
Published: September 2012

Videogames, as a new and playful interactive language, have great potential in the education field. On the one hand, we can find educational videogames to cover almost the whole spectrum of topics offered by colleges and academies (although they are used mainly at home and not in the academic environment). On the other hand, playing videogames is in itself a recreational way to generate technical competencies and teach the use of a whole new “digital language.” Depending on different countries and cultures, there is a tendency to implement this technology in educational centres in varying degrees. In order to exemplify this implementation, the authors look at “Scratch,” a creative videogame program for children with a big community behind it. In the conclusion, they focus on the introduction of videogame language in the educational context, not as educational videogames but as a tool to learn digital literacy and contemporary society.
GAMESTAR(T)
Authors: Méndez María Rubio , Martínez Eurídice Cabañes
Published: September 2012

There is a distinct tendency to integrate technology into the classroom, but in practice the introduction of the ICT in education is not producing the expected effects. We are confronted with the second digital divide, which consists in the dissociation of the students from the technologies introduced in the educational sphere that do not match their actual technological environment. GAMESTAR(T) has been developed in this context as an ARSGAMES project, which, taking into account the potentialities of video games for education and socialization, proposes a series of weekly meetings that include assembly meetings for decision-making about the club’s rules, activities, and materials, thematic courses related to specific domains of knowledge, and the club’s sessions, in which children play, assisted by monitors, in an atmosphere of critical and collective reflection. In the following, the authors examine how the club developed, which methodology was used, what problems were encountered, and the solutions applied.
The Influence of Organisational Size, Internal IT Capabilities, and Competitive and Vendor Pressures on ERP Adoption in SMEs
Authors: Cartman Cliff , Salazar Angel
Published: September 2012

This empirical study investigates the influence of organisational size, internal IT capabilities and external factors, such as competitive and vendor pressure, on ERP adoption within SMEs. Existing research on ERP adoption has indentified some of the potential factors affecting SMEs, such as organisation size as one of the most significant ones. Yet none of this previous research has looked at organisational size, internal IT capabilities and external pressures in a unified framework and in context to SMEs. More specifically, this study focuses on the direct and moderating relationships which may affect an SME’s decision to adopt an ERP system. An analysis of a sample of 229 SMEs shows clear direct and moderating relationships amongst the above factors. Concrete recommendations are provided to accelerate the rate and success level of ERP adoption within SMEs.
An Investigation of Enterprise Resource Planning Implementation in a Small Firm
Authors: Abdel-Kader Magdy , Nguyen Thu Phuong
Published: September 2012

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems have been recognized as complex and costly, which limited their implementation in large organizations. However, an increasing number of small organizations have recently gained interest in this system. This paper investigates the implementation process of ERP in a small firm. The investigation focused on two perspectives of ERP implementation: successes achieved and problems encountered. Despite many problems encountered in the firm, the ERP system still exists. This gives evidence that small organizations are more flexible and motivated to adapt to change and implement an ERP system. Most problems were encountered at early stages of implementation, which can be minimized if deliberate decision making of ERP implementation and proper selection processes were in place. Further, ERP is a good solution for small organizations if they are able to build a relevant in-house system.
A Success Model for Enterprise Resource Planning Adoption to Improve Financial Performance in Vietnam’s Equitized State Owned Enterprises
Authors: Pham Long , Teich Jeffrey E.
Published: September 2012

Equitized state-owned enterprises (ESOEs) in Vietnam have begun to implement enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems, ubiquitous in developed countries, to improve their operational and financial performance. However, such ESOEs lack a model for ERP adoption to guide them in successfully implementing ERP systems. This study is based on an extensive review of literature on ERP benefits and the equitization process in Vietnam and relevant theories on innovation adoption, and the authors propose a success model for ERP adoption in Vietnam’s ESOEs. Model hypotheses that present relationships among factors influencing ERP adoption are given and future studies are discussed.
Collaborative Planning of ERP Implementation
Authors: Sohrabi Babak , Vanani Iman Raeesi
Published: September 2012

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) is the process of optimizing the performance of enterprise business processes through the utilization of integrated IT-based solutions. Such systems are mostly based on best practices gained through years of software analysis, design and deployment in the competitive markets. Planning for enterprise-wide system implementation requires all of the stakeholders to integrate views on considering strategic approaches toward a unified vision on how to develop and improve the collaborative ERP implementation planning process. This paper develops a framework which critically evaluates the final implementation plan based on considerations taken in design science methodology. Using the guidelines provided in this methodology, managers gain the capability of evaluating the overall artifact of planning in the total value system, and also gain the ability to measure the progress of ERP implementation plan based on the provided indicators.
A McKinsey 7S Model-Based Framework for ERP Readiness Assessment
Authors: Hanafizadeh Payam , Ravasan Ahad Zare
Published: September 2012

Implementing Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems is a complex, lengthy and expensive process which usually faces serious challenges and failures. Thus, it is necessary to perform a readiness assessment at the initial stage of an ERP implementation project to identify weakness areas which may encounter the project with failure. This paper proposes a new framework for assessing readiness of an organization to implement the ERP project on the basis of McKinsey 7S model using confirmatory factor analysis. Through this method, the construct of ERP readiness is proposed based on 7 dimensions namely “structure”, “strategy”, “systems”, “skills”, “style/culture”, “staff”, and “shared values/ superordinate goals”. Using the framework, the current situation of the organization can be determined and necessary changes can be made prior to system implementation. The proposed framework is then applied to 2 real Iranian banking cases and the advantages of the framework over available frameworks are illustrated.