bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Experimental study on spalling risk of concrete with 115~120MPa subject to ISO834 Fire
Authors: Du Yong , Zhu Yu , Liew Richard
Published: July 2018

High strength concrete encased columns are being developed for erecting high-rise buildings as their higher load bearing capacity and smaller cross section size than normal concrete encased column. At ambient temperature, high strength concrete is always mixed with steel fibers to improve its ductility to match the material properties of high strength steel while constructing concrete encased columns. However, for high strength concrete at elevated temperature, spalling usually can be observed due to different thermal properties of various materials mixed such as siliceous aggregate, cement, silica fume, grit and moisture. Most of previous studies present that pore vapor compression induces high strength concrete spalling and propylene fiber can prevent it from spalling. The aim of the present experimental study is to discover the minimum propylene fiber ratio to prevent spalling of 115~120MPa concrete with aggregate and steel fiber. The experimental study carried out on 17 specimens with different water-binder ratio, steel fiber ratio and monofilament propylene fiber ratio exposed to ISO834 fire. The test results that 0.15% by volume of propylene fibers can prevent 115/120MPa high strength concrete with aggregate from spalling. It is worth noting that propylene fiber mixture ratio of 0.15% is lower than that of EN 1992-1-2 proposed up to 0.22%. Lower propylene fiber mixture ratio has been soak to improve the workability of 115~120MPa high strength concrete with steel fibers.
Toughness of old mild steels
Authors: Stroetmann Richard Maria , Sieber Lars
Published: July 2018

For the rehabilitation of steel structures from the 19th and the early 20th century the brittle fracture behaviour is essential for the structural safety. The methods of the assessment used in EN 1993-1-10 were predominantly developed for welded structures made of current steel grades with more or less high toughness. The check by limitation of the plate thickness is not suitable for old mild steel structures with riveted and bolted connections. Notch effects and residual stresses are quite different to those ones of welded structures. The material properties of old mild steels are characterised by larger scatters, particularly due to the inhomogeneous distribution of tramp elements and higher contents of non-metallic inclusions. In this paper, experimental and analytical studies of the brittle fracture behaviour of mild steels as well as aging effects of structural elements with holes for riveted and bolted connections are presented.
Cylinders with a steel-concrete-steel wall to resist external pressure
Authors: Goode Charles Douglas , Nash Tom
Published: July 2018

In the 1980’s Manchester University carried out over 110 tests on cylinders with a composite wall (steel-concrete-steel) subjected to external pressure as already reported in the literature.  This paper describes further tests on 9 cylinders with a composite wall and a dome end subjected to external pressure and reports the results and compares them with theory.  The cylinders were 500 mm diameter and 1250 mm long and four of them had penetrations through the cylinder wall.  These tests were carried out under contract for Tecnomare SpA of Italy and have not been previously reported because of confidentiality reasons.  The agreement between test behaviour, failure load and the theory developed at Manchester University is good. The philosophy for the design of such vessels for seabed structures is discussed and a ‘depth margin’ method proposed as it is a more realistic way of applying safety.  Examples of designs for different depths are given and compared with the predicted failure pressure.
Fatigue and crack propagation investigations on composite dowels using an inclined single push-out test
Authors: Wolters Kevin , Feldmann Markus
Published: July 2018

The current fatigue design of composite dowels is based on the structure stress concept for the steel part and upper load limitations to avoid concrete fatigue and a degradation of the composite joint. Therefore the aim of the existing concept is to avoid any fatigue of the composite structure. A fatigue concept considering residual load bearing capacity of torn steel connectors and the transfer of forces to less stressed composite dowels in the beam has great economic potential and leads to a better safety assessment. Therefore, further investigations of fatigue behaviour and crack propagation of composite dowels are necessary. In a first step a single composite dowel is investigated in small-part tests. By the use of finite element models a new inclined single push-out test stand has been developed in order to reproduce the force and stress distributions within a composite beam as precisely as possible with the small-part tests. This ensures the comparability of the crack initiation location and crack propagation. In the test series the influences of different stress ranges and cycle numbers on crack propagation of the steel dowel are investigated. Furthermore the residual load-bearing capacity is determined and compared to static load-bearing behaviour of uncracked steel parts of composite dowels. This paper concentrates on the numerical evaluation of crack propagation and residual capacity.
A new method to assess the stiffness and rotation capacity of composite joints
Authors: Duarte da Costa Job , Obiala Renata , Odenbreit Christoph
Published: July 2018

Composite beam-to-column joints in buildings are mostly modelled as pinned joints in order to facilitate the design of the structure. In reality, due to the required reinforcement in the concrete slab, a certain joint rigidity and bending resistance is always available. The real joint behaviour corresponds therefore more to that of a semi-continuous joint. This is not only beneficial for the serviceability limit state but can also be advantageous at ultimate limit state. However, due to the lack of analytical design rules in EN 1994 to verify the rotation capacity of semi-continuous joints, these are commonly modelled as pinned joints, which impedes an efficient design of composite structures. In this context, a research program on the behaviour of composite joints, focusing on the ultimate rotation capacity, was initiated at the University of Luxembourg [1]. The aim was to identify the influence of two major joint components – the reinforced concrete slab and the steelwork connection – on the moment-rotation curves of composite joints under hogging bending moment. An experimental campaign comprising 8 tests on beam-to-column joints was conducted to determine the response of composite joints with variable reinforcement ratio and diameter of reinforcing bars. In addition to the experimental part, an FE model was developed with the software ABAQUS aiming to simulate the behaviour of internal beam-to-column composite joints. In this paper, the 3D finite element model and results of analyses are presented. The FE model has been defined by 3D solid elements with realistic contact definitions and non-linear material laws. The results of the numerical simulations presented a good agreement with the experimental data. Based on the experimental and numerical investigations, the influence of reinforcement and steelwork connection on the structural properties of composite joints is derived. A new analytical method to determine the stiffness and rotation capacity of composite joints is proposed. The accuracy of this new method is confirmed by existing experimental and numerical results.
Experimental investigation on the bamboo-concrete filled circular steel tubular stub columns
Authors: He Ziqi , Gan Dan , Zhang Tao , Zhou Xuhong
Published: July 2018

Concrete-filled steel tubes have been widely used all over the world due to their superior structural behaviour. To promote the use of ecofriendly materials and to reduce the use of concrete, this paper presents an innovative type of composite column, which can be referred as bamboo-concrete filled steel tubes. In this kind of column, concrete filled in the space between the external steel tube and the inner raw moso bamboo. Bamboo-concrete filled steel tubes inherit the merits of concrete-filled steel tubes such as high load-bearing capacity and ductility performance. Besides, global buckling behaviour of a bamboo column due to its relatively large slenderness can be significantly improved, and the bamboo column with nodes could provide confinement to the infilled concrete. This paper investigated the composite effect of bamboo-concrete filled steel tubular stub columns subjected to axial compression. In addition, concrete-filled double-skin steel tubular stub columns and hollow concrete-filled steel tubular stub columns were also tested for comparison. The main experimental parameter considered was the diameter-to-thickness ratio (D/t) of steel tube. Test results indicated that the composite columns with moso bamboo pipe as inner core elements showed better ductility than the hollow concrete-filled steel tubular stub columns. The bearing capacity and ductility visibly increased with decreasing of the D/t ratio.
Analysis of slab-column connections in CFT sections without continuity of the tube
Authors: Albareda-Valls Albert , Milan Caio Cesar , Maristany Carreras Jordi , Garcia Carrera David
Published: July 2018

When dealing with concrete-filled tube columns and RC slabs, it is usual to interrupt steel tubes in slab-column connections if the column is mainly compressed. Contractors do prefer to solve these connections with independent tubes, although innerreinforcements may be continuous through the slab. In these cases, both tubes from the upper and lower levels do have base plate connections, with a set of anchor bolts. This procedure saves a lot of time of global works, by making everything easier at the same time, as tubular profiles do not intersect the formwork.However, this reasonable design for slab-column joints suggest at least some questions about the strength of the concrete at the area of connection, where the tube has been interrupted. On the one hand, the load is transferred through concrete in the slab thickness, since there is no continuity of the tube; on the other hand, concrete at that point becomes triaxially confined due to the restriction to lateral deformation.This study analyses the validity of this connection method and the differences observed depending on the relative location of the column (corner, façade –lateral- or central pillars). Needless to say that the relative location of the column leads to differentconfinement patterns in concrete.
Experimental investigations on built-up cold-formed steel beams connected by resistance spot welding
Authors: Ungureanu Viorel , Both Ioan , Burca Mircea , Grosan Marius , Neagu Calin , Dubina Dan
Published: July 2018

The WELLFORMED research project, ongoing at the CEMSIG Research Center of the Politehnica University of Timisoara, proposes to study a new technological solution for built-up beams made of corrugated steel sheets for the web and thin-walled cold-formed steel profiles for the flanges, connected by resistance spot welding. Within the research project, the experimental work includes tensile-shear tests on the lap joint spot-welded specimens, were different combinations of steel sheets with various thicknesses were tested and, tests on full scale beams in bending. The study intends to demonstrate the feasibility of the proposed solutions, to assess their performance and to enlarge the knowledge by using numerical simulations for the optimization of the current solution and to define the limits of the solution’s applicability.
Finite element analysis of concrete filled lean duplex stainless steel columns
Authors: Lam Dennis , Yang Jie , Dai Xianghe
Published: July 2018

In recent years, a new low nickel content stainless steel (EN 1.4162) commonly referred as ‘lean duplex stainless steel’ has been developed, which has over two times the tensile strength of the more familiar austenitic stainless steel but at approximately half the cost. This paper presents the finite element analysis of concrete filled lean duplex stainless steel columns subjected to concentric axial compression. To predict the performance of this form of concrete filled composite columns, a finite element model was developed and finite element analyses were conducted. The finite element model was validated through comparisons of the results obtained from the experimental study. A parametric study was conducted to examine the effect of various parameters such as section size, wall thickness, infill concrete strength, etc. on the overall behaviour and compressive resistance of this form of composite columns. Through both experimental and numerical studies, the merits of using lean duplex stainless steel hollow sections in concrete filled composite columns are highlighted. In addition, a new formula based on the Eurocode 4 is proposed to predict the cross-section capacity of the concrete filled lean duplex stainless steel composite columns subjected to axial compression.
Driving factors and obstacles in adopting structural steel in Hong Kong: Case studies
Authors: Yang Yang , Chan Albert P.C.
Published: July 2018

The construction applications of structural steel mainly include super high-rise buildings and long-span structures. The advantages offered by structural steel to the construction sector and building environment have long been recognised, as evidenced by the increasing market share of structural steelwork in many marketplaces, but not in Hong Kong. The annual import quantity of fabricated steel structures in Hong Kong is 0.2 - 0.3 million tons, which indicates a low demand for structural steelwork in the local construction industry. This study aims to identify the major barriers and potential driving factors to the use of structural steel in Hong Kong. Interviews were conducted with a private developer, three main contractors, and two steel specialist contractors. These industry professionals offered four construction applications that addressed the major problems and driving factors for using steel-framed structures. The four cases included a Chinese opera centre, a swimming pool, a 24-story hotel, and a commercial building. These case studies reveal that steel-framed structures are adopted only for projects that have technical requirements. Otherwise, reinforced concrete structures are used because steel-framed structures are cost-efficient for super high-rise and long-span structures but not for normal types of buildings. The fast construction of structural steelwork can result in an early return on investment, which may outweigh the high construction cost. This advantage will be particularly significant for retail building projects with high land prices in Hong Kong. This study offers strategies for facilitating the fast construction of structural steelwork. If these strategies are implemented to resolve problems, then the application of steel-framed structures to many tall buildings in Hong Kong can be feasible.
Failure Mechanism of Foam Concrete with C-Channel Embedment
Authors: Fu Feng , Liu Dianzhong , Wang Fayu
Published: July 2018

Forty-eight tests have been carried out to find of the failure mode of a new type of the foam concrete using C-Channels as embedements. Four groups of foam concrete specimens with various embedment depths of the steel in the concrete. The modes of failure of this new type of structure are summarized, which include the independent failure of the C-Channels with and without a concrete block inside the channel as well as the combined failure of the two channels, and the failure of the extrusion block. It is concluded that the failure involves independent slippage between two C-Channels, and the steel and the foam concrete blocks inside the C-Channels.
Applications, behaviour and construction of high performance steels in steel-concrete composite structures
Authors: Uy Brian
Published: July 2018

This paper addresses the applications, behaviour and construction of high performance steels in steel-concrete composite structures.   For the purposes of this paper, high performance steels will include high strength, stainless and weathering steels. Akin to many innovations in the construction industry, high performance steels have generally been adopted for the use in iconic projects well before design procedures have been developed in standards.  This paper will provide a summary of many of the applications particularly as they pertain to iconic projects in Australasia and internationally.   Recent research in these areas will also be summarised and important design parameters as they deviate from traditional mild structural steel will be highlighted.   Australasian advances in the standardisation of both bridges and buildings incorporating high performance steels will also be summarised, with particular reference to the Australasian Design Codes in Bridge Structures, ASNZS 5100 Part 6; and Building Structures ASNZS 2327 which have both been published in 2017.   The paper will conclude with suggestions for further research and will identify areas of significant gaps in Australasian and international standards which will also guide future research in this area.
Estimating traffic disruption patterns with volunteer geographic information
Authors: Bright Jonathan , Camargo Chico , Hale Scott , McNeill Graham , Raman Sridhar
Published: July 2018

Accurate understanding and forecasting of traffic conditions is a key contemporary problem for local policymakers. Road networks are increasingly congested, yet data on usage patterns is often scarce or expensive to obtain, meaning that informed policy decision-making is difficult. This paper explores the extent to which traffic disruption can be estimated from static features of the volunteer geographic information site OpenStreetMap [OSM]. Kernel Density Estimates of OSM features are used as predictors for a linear regression of counts of traffic incidents at 6,500 separate points within the Oxfordshire road traffic network. For highly granular points of just 10m2, it is shown that more than half of variation in traffic outcomes can be explained with these static features alone. Furthermore, use of OSM’s granular point of interest data improves considerably on more aggregate categories which are typically used in studies of transportation and land use. Although the estimations are by no means perfect, they offer a good baseline model considering the data is free to obtain and easy to process.
Fishing for Errors in an Ocean Rather than a Pond
Authors: Wilson John , Te'eni Dov
Published: July 2018

In the internet age, a proliferation of services appear on the web. Errors in using the internet service or app are dynamically introduced as new devices/interfaces/software are produced and are found to be incompatible with an app that is perfectly good for other devices. The number of users who can detect various errors changes dynamically: for instance, there may be new adopters of the software over time. It may also happen that an old user might upgrade and thus run into new incompatibility errors. Allowing new users and errors to enter dynamically poses considerable modeling and estimation difficulties. In the era of Big Data, methods for dynamically updating as new observations arise are important. Traditional models for detecting errors have generally assumed a finite number of errors. We provide a general model that allows for a procedure for finding maximum likelihood estimators of key parameters where the number of errors and the number of users can change.
Google matrix analysis of worldwide football mercato
Authors: Lages José , Loye Justin , Coquidé Célestin , Rollin Guillaume
Published: July 2018

The worldwide football transfer market is analyzed as a directed complex network: the football clubs are the network nodes and the directed edges are weighted by the total amount of money transferred from a club to another. The Google matrix description allows to treat every club independently of their richness and allows to measure for a given club the efficiency of player sales and player acquisitions. The PageRank algorithm, developed initially for the World Wide Web, naturally characterizes the ability of a club to import players. The CheiRank algorithm, also developed to analyze large scale directed complex networks, characterizes the ability of a club to export players. The analysis in the two-dimensional PageRank-CheiRank plan permits to determine the transfer balance of the clubs in a more subtle manner than the traditional import-export scheme. We investigate the 2017-2018 mercato concerning 2296 clubs, 6698 player transfers, and 147 player nationalities. The transfer balance is determined globally for different types of player trades (defender, midfielder, forward, …) and for different national football leagues. Although, on average, the network transfer flows from and to clubs are balanced, the discrimination by player type draws a specific portrait of each football club.
Attitudes towards English in Cuban Higher Education. Recent Developments and Challenges
Authors: Van Splunder Frank , Dávila Pérez Geisa
Published: July 2018

English is used as a lingua franca in an increasing number of domains. In higher education, English has become prominent as the language of course materials, scientific publications, research, as well as teaching, a trend which is particularly noticeable in Europe. In Latin America, however, the surge of English is relatively recent, and within Latin America, Cuba is an interesting case. Whereas learning English was not encouraged in the 1980s, in today’s Cuba English has gained importance, and learning and teaching English has become a priority. The current research explores how Cuban students and lecturers of two different fields (English and Engineering) perceive the growing importance of English in today’s higher education in Cuba. Data were collected by means of a questionnaire conducted at Universidad de Oriente, Santiago de Cuba. The results reveal a positive attitude towards English, which most participants perceive as very important for their career prospects. On the other hand, it was found that most respondents overrate their ability to communicate in English. Moreover, they are not acquainted with the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR), even though the Cuban Ministry of Higher Education has accepted the CEFR as its official standard.
"Tug of war" Maths&Sport Project
Authors: Magnaghi-Delfino Paola , Norando Tullia
Published: July 2018

Tug of war is a sport which originated from rituals practiced by ancient populations and now is an organized sport. In this paper we present the project that we proposed to a group of high school students, in order that they analysed the physics of tug of war and produced a model.
Educational innovation in basic and advanced cardiopulmonary resuscitation in pediatrics and neonatology in a realistic context
Authors: Sánchez-Lorente María Montserrat , García-Molina Pablo , Blasco José María , Balaguer-López Evelyn , Tortajada Lohaces Alejandro , Sanchis-Sánchez Enrique , Georgieva Sylvia
Published: July 2018

Introducción: El profesor universitario debe transmitir las habilidades técnicas y cognitivas sobre reanimación cardiopulmonar (RCP) en Pediatría con el método más efectivo. Metodología: 17 clases prácticas de Resucitación Cardiopulmonar de 2 horas para 225 alumnos. Se impartió el 2º curso de Enfermería Pediátrica de la Universidad de Valencia. Cada clase consistió en 3 casos clínicos en los que participaron 15 estudiantes y 3 monitores. El conocimiento de los estudiantes se evaluó con prueba-repetición de 11 preguntas y la satisfacción después de la simulación (cuestionario de 20 preguntas). Resultados: la media de satisfacción de los alumnos fue de 8,62 sobre 10 puntos. La evaluación de los monitores fue la mejor (9,56, SD 0,93) y la peor fue el tiempo dedicado al laboratorio (7,4 puntos, SD 2,22). Los estudiantes mejoraron su conocimiento en 7 preguntas de las 11 preguntas formuladas como avergae. Siendo el conocimiento sobre los tiempos de insuflación donde mejoró. En los 4 restantes, los estudiantes respondieron peor, siendo el conocimiento sobre el material de RCP el que empeoró (24 respuestas erróneas). Conclusiones: la satisfacción de los estudiantes y el conocimiento adquirido sobre la RCP con los laboratorios fue notable. Es necesario reducir la proporción de estudiantes por laboratorio para mejorar la satisfacción.
An experimental tailor-made ESP course: experience of teaching English to students of Economics
Authors: Shirokikh Anna Yurievna
Published: July 2018

The purpose of the study was to find out how enhanced learner autonomy techniques can influence students' professional communication skills, subject-specific knowledge, levels of motivation in studying the language and general satisfaction from the studies. The problem under investigation is if students should be allowed to choose materials for language input and if the teacher will be able to work out an appropriate didactic approach in developing students' grammar accuracy, vocabulary range, speaking, listening and writing skills. the expermental course was designed for students of economics. Students' responsibility, the use of online resources and students' freedom in selection of teaching materials are viewed as key elements of the approach. the methodology of the course is worked out on the basis of close teacher-student interactin in and out of class. The results indicate that despite the fact that the course was time-consuming for both teachers and students, there are some positive results in respect of increased proffessional vocabulary range, levels of motivation and cognition.
Educational Models against ageism in higher education
Authors: Requena Carmen , Álvarez-Merino Paula , Plaza-Carmona María
Published: July 2018

There have allways been old persons, but their number has unprecedentedly grown and it is expected to overtake any other age group in contemporary developed societies. Instead of taking this process as a success of mankind, ageism grows on a par with ageing. It is well documented how standard educational models fail to correct implicit ageistic stereotypes, thus new emerging theoretical models such as generational intelligence and identity in old age put forward experiential methodologies designed to educate both explicit and implicit ageistic stereotypes. Both theoretical models incorporate the subjective first-person perspective on ageing, which complements the standard university curriculum for ageing-related professsionals in health, social or educational sectors. The practical implementation of these educational models involve experiential methodologies such as life stories. A crucial educational element in the practical success of this methodology lies in understanding intergenerational education not only as a gathering of generations, but as the intentional production and evaluation of educational ends. The paper exemplifies these methodologies and contrasts their success in dealing with the complexities involved in educating against explicit and implicit agesitic stereotypes in intergenerational relations. Therefore, the key to intergenerationality lies less in its "generational" element as in its "inter" element.
Increasing Peer Review Quality in Online Learning Systems
Authors: Luckner Naemi , Purgathofer Peter , Fitzpatrick Geraldine
Published: July 2018

Lecturers face an on-going struggle to keep up-to-date with their students' learning progress in large university courses. This hurts especially when it comes to identifying and supporting the diverse needs of each individual student. One way to approach this challenge is to introduce peer reviewing as a means to provide students with individual feedback throughout the semester. However, the quality of feedback written by peers can vary immensely and some students intentionally avoid putting work into writing reviews. We addressed these issues by calculating a Review Karma (RK), a value indicating how helpful students are in giving feedback to their colleagues and in helping them improve. While this approach shows much promise, especially in identifying different groups of students and enhancing their learning experience, we also identified trends that negatively impact the way students approach reviewing and provide their honest opinions of their colleagues work. The main contributions of this paper are the design of and lessons learned from the introduction of the RK and its initial evaluation via a survey.
The Personality of a University Teacher from the Perspective of Academic Culture
Authors: Sirotova Mariana , Frydkova Eva
Published: July 2018

This submission deals with the personality of a university teacher as a member of an academic environment and a bearer of academic culture. The work also includes the results of a quantitative survey executed via questionnaire presenting the FF UCM (Philosophical Faculty of St. Cyril and Methodius University in Trnava) students´ views of university teachers and their perception of the teachers in the educational process of the university. The analysis of the opinions confirms that students not only perceive the personal qualities of a teacher, but also evaluate his/her educational activity.
Subtitling as a Teaching Tool for English for Specific Purposes’ Students
Authors: Buil Beltrán Paula
Published: July 2018

New technologies have invaded our daily lives, and as a consequence the use of computers and internet inside the classroom is progressively more frequent. At the same time, subtitling as a teaching/learning tool has become more popular. For that purpose, scholars such as Delabastita (1989), Sokoli (2006) or Talaván (2013) have been researching how the adaptation of these subtitling methods will have some influence in the learning/teaching process. Thus, the aim of this paper is to present an interlingual subtitling task in a class for English for Specific Purposes students (from a university degree of architecture), in order to improve their receptive skills (commonly known as listening and reading). Along these lines, this paper will explore the use of Task Based Learning in ESP classes and it will propose a teaching unit for further implementation in a university class of English for the degree of architecture, discussing the advantages and repercussions it may have for the acquisition and improvement of the aforementioned passive skills. Keywords: Subtitling; English for Specific Purposes; Task Based Learning; Passive Skills; Architecture.
The qualification of e-learning for higher education through the development of affective usability, self-evaluation test and virtual laboratory
Authors: Biasi Valeria , Ciraci Anna Maria
Published: July 2018

This contribution presents some aspects of the Department Interdisciplinary Research Project (PRID) of Roma Tre University. The main aim of the project is to define an innovative e-learning integrated didactic model that can promote the acquisition and development of skills for Lifelong Learning (European Parliament & European Council, 2008). To this end, the implementation of the following essential variables and components of the Integrated Model is a priority: 1) the learners’ motivational involvement; 2) the quality of the experience of immersion within a virtual environment; 3) evaluation and self-evaluation practices. Considering the original model successfully experimented in the Degree Course in Education Sciences at “Roma Tre” University (Domenici, 2016) and particularly focused on evaluation and self-evaluation processes, we propose an implementation of so-called affective usability of the e-learning platform by creating relaxing, stimulating and aesthetic online environments, promoting a greater immersive capacity. To this must be added the students’ use of advanced ICT programs enabling them to experience scientific demonstrations and experiments in order to acquire a scientific mentality through the use of Context Simulation Tests and Virtual Didactic Laboratories (VDLs). The effectiveness of implementing the FAD e-learning system in acquiring the scientific thinking modality will be empirically assess.
Crowdsourced Recommender System
Authors: Mallia Milanes Mario , Montebello Matthew
Published: July 2018

The use of artificially intelligent techniques to overcome specific shortcomings within e-learning systems is a well-researched area that keeps on evolving in an attempt to optimise such resourceful practices. The lack of personalization and the sentiment of isolation coupled with a feeling of being treated like all others, tends to discourage and push learners away from courses that are very well prepared academically and excellently projected intellectually. The use of recommender systems to deliver relevant information in a timely manner that is specifically differentiated to a unique learner is once more being investigated to alievate the e-learning issue of being impersonal.  The application of such a technique also assists the learner by reducing information overload and providing learning material that can be shared, criticized and reviewed at one’s own pace. In this paper we propose the use of a fully automated recommender system based on recent AI developments together with Web 2.0 applications and socially networked technologies. We argue that such technologies have provided the extra capabilities that were required to deliver a realistic and practical interfacing medium to assist online learners and take recommender systems to the next level.
Circuit simulators for circuit analysis in graduate engineering courses
Authors: Reig Càndid , Cubells-Beltrán María-Dolores
Published: July 2018

Circuit simulators are extensively used as an aid in many courses at the graduate level in many different engineering and applied sciences programs. SPICE (Simulation Program with Integrated Circuits Emphasis) based software programs have been used for long due to their traditional market position. If we focus on circuits analysis and linear systems subjects, the features that are required from a given simulator can be found in student/limited versions of commercial EDA (Electronic Design Automation) suites or in freeware/open source codes. In this contribution, we analyse and compare the most revelant characteristics of a representative set of the software packages that are commonly adopted in these courses, focusing on the Spanish University system. For this purpose, the analysis (transient, DC and AC) of a typical second order passive low-pass filter is approached making use of each one. Then, we give some comments and recommendations, based on our own expertise, always taking into account the particular circumstances within a given academic scenario.
Social class and university graduates’ overqualification: testing two mediated relationships
Authors: GONZALEZ-ROMA VICENTE , HERNANDEZ ANA , GAMBOA JUAN PABLO , TOMAS INES
Published: July 2018

University graduates’ overqualification (i.e., having more education, qualification and/or skills than one’s job requires) has important negative consequences. However, much less is known about its antecedents. This represents an important gap in the literature. In order to fill this gap, the goal of this study is to test a mediational model on the antecedents of university graduates’ overqualification (OQ). We posit that social class is negatively related to OQ through two mediational links: a) via social capital, and b) via social capital and tolerance towards OQ. The results obtained in a sample of 144 university graduates provided support for the second mediational link, so that social class was positively related to social capital, which in turn was negatively related to tolerance towards OQ, which in turn was positively related to graduates’ OQ. The results obtained uncover some of the antecedents of OQ and suggest that increasing social capital may be a way to decrease graduates’ OQ.
Emendo – A Toolchain for Creating Gamified Learning Arrangements for Online Learning Settings
Authors: Bartel Alexander , Hagel Georg , Wolff Christian
Published: July 2018

This contribution describes the Emendo toolchain which enables the effective creation and implementation of gamified learning arrangements for online learning settings based on the domain-specific modeling approach. The components of Emendo are a domain-specific modeling language, a generator which transforms models based on the language into source code as well as the embedding of the latter in a learning management system. Scenarios for the usage of Emendo for teaching and learning are presented with respect to the functionalities of the toolchain. In addition, a qualitative evaluation concerning Emendo’s goals, concept and insights on the results is given. The evaluation shows that Emendo reaches high acceptance for teaching purposes and can serve as a promising means for the digitisation of teaching and learning.
Who is even studying journalism to become a journalist?
Authors: Moosbrugger Robert , Prandner Dimitri
Published: July 2018

The paper addresses the question why people are entering training programs which disseminate knowledge necessary for becoming part of the journalistic profession and how these motives go along with the intention to become a member of the profession. Therefore it draws on data collected among students in journalism related programs in Austria in 2015 (n=352) and tests the linkage between socioeconomic background of the students, their motives for entering a program and how these affect the intention to work in the field of journalism. Factor analysis allowed the identification of four main motives: political and social agency; employment driven; social benefits; and calling/talent. Results show that a) motives for entering a program differ according to the socioeconomic background of the respondents. And b) the intention to work in the field is higher if motives tied to the ideas of agency and calling are reported and lower if employment driven motives are predominant. This leads to the conclusion that the motivation of students to join the journalistic profession is deeply related to believes and normative aspirations of individuals.
LBMGs as educational means. The case of The Fellowship of the Umbrella.
Authors: Spallazzo Davide , Sciannamé Martina , Mariani Ilaria
Published: July 2018

The paper discusses how Location Based Mobile Games can successfully support informal educational activities. Referring to Location Based Mobile Games as meaning-making tool, the paper starts from a brief introduction, framing the field of action, and then, explains the peculiarities that make such games powerful means for informal learning: the different levels of learning conveyed by the activity of designing and playing LBMGs; their communicative nature; the implication of being situated and of including physical/spatial activities in the process of interiorizing the experience and realising its sense in a personal way; the meaningful relationship among the game magic circle, the fictional world, and the situated space; the open and free state of mind of the learners-players coming from wearing a mask and hence play a role during the game; and the effectiveness of stealth approaches to foster engagement and, therefore, deeper understanding. The value and opportunities coming from such features in terms of both design and learning are presented and discussed through a case study: The Fellowship of the Umbrella, a LBMG developed during the academic course of name-removed-for-blind-review.
Designing Lectures as a Team and Teaching in Pairs
Authors: Zehetmeier Daniela , Böttcher Axel , Brüggemann-Klein Anne
Published: July 2018

A technique that is frequently used in modern software development is the so-called pair programming. The proven idea behind this technique is that innovative work in a highly complex environment can benefit from the synergy between two persons working together with well-defined roles. The transfer of this technique as a metaphor for teaching has repeatedly been reported as a successful teaching strategy called pair teaching. In this paper, we describe our experiences with designing and teaching a complete lecture on software development as a pair. Our contribution is the definition of patterns for role-assignments to both persons. These include patterns for the design of the lecture as well as patterns for the teaching in class itself. Our experience shows that there also exists a couple of anti-patterns namely role distributions that should be avoided. First evaluation results are promising in the sense that the reception of structure and content as well as students' satisfaction increased significantly with the introduction of pair design and pair teaching.
University classroom interactive situation microanalysis: cognitive attunement and pedagogical interpretation
Authors: Calduch Isaac , Hervas Gabriel , Jarauta Borrasca Beatriz , Medina José Luís
Published: July 2018

This conference paper aims to elucidate the attuning processes between teacher knowledge and the learning moment of the students, in interactive situations within the university classroom, under a situated perspective and in real-time; specifically, in relation to the process of didactical interpretation. An episode performed by an expert teacher is analyzed; it took place in the Clinical Nursing subject of the nursing degree and was about the use of the physiological serum in certain situations. The analysis focuses on the interaction between the teacher and the students, adopting a research methodology close to the ethnography of communication -in its microethnographic aspect-, adopting the sequence S-T-S' (student-teacher-student) as the unit of analysis. The results show how the teacher has the ability to evaluate the appropriateness of the students’ interventions in situ, thanks to which she is able to adjust her response (dynamic coupling), generating a pedagogic resonance. Concurrently, it can also be seen how, beyond tuning in with a particular student, she manages to tune in with the rest of the class (collective attunement).
Explanatory factors of student performance in online tests for the continuous assessment: Is attendance really important?
Authors: Zorio-Grima Ana , Merello Paloma
Published: July 2018

In the European Higher Education Area, the educational model focuses on the student and the role of Information and Communication Technologies is crucial for the learning and teaching process. This study identifies the characteristics of the students according to their performance in the online tests carried out in a subject of Financial Accounting in the groups taught in English of the Degrees of Business Administration and Economics in a University from XXX. The objectives of this study are to explore the determining factors for student performance in online tests. Several analyses are carried out for all the marks and for a separated sample considering only the tests where the mark is at least good- i.e. the best or the second best grade in the national grading system. Among other intersting findings, our study evidences that attendance is a determining factor for the performance in each test if we take the whole group of students, but it is not significant for the students achieving better grades. This evidence has important implications as regards making attendance compulsory to benefit from the continuous assessment system.
Start It Up - Support for young entrepreneurship
Authors: Torniainen Anna-Maija
Published: July 2018

The aim of the paper is to disclose how entrepreneurship education can be developed and examined in a Higher Education Insitution (HEI) via a EU funded local project. The paper examines HEI students´ motivation factors and needs concerning Entrepreneurship education (EE). Start It Up – Support for young entrepreneurship project´s objective is to support students and young people in entrepreneurship, new business creation and innovation, and also employment in and out the innovation ecosystems. Differentiating entrepreneurial methods, best practices, entrepreneurship coaching, and entrepreneurship spirit are tested and organized throughout the project. The project strives to deliver tools and motivation towards entrepreneurship.  This article introduces the activities that have been done to support EE and a case study which examines how the entrepreneurship education can be improved to develop EE in the Finnish HEI.  The main testing platforms for EE are presented and the results of the case study show that to promote entrepreneurship and to enhance students´ awareness and motivation towards entrepreneurship in the Finnish HEI, the offering of EE teaching, events and competitions for students should be increased and promoted more effectively.
Internationalisation of a teaching experience: ToSCA UPC education for innovation workshop at UFPS, Colombia
Authors: Adroer Puig Marta , Díaz Fuentes Carmen Xiomara , Zamora i Mestre Joan Lluís
Published: July 2018

ToSCA is an optional and intensive technical product innovation workshop that aims to include education for innovation of constructive solutions in the grade architecture programme, by applying a didactic structure based on problem solving skills, combined with cooperative learning structures and involving an industry of the sector every edition a client. The workshop has been held annually at the Vallès School of Architecture, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, since 2007 and the results of each edition can be found at: http://www.etsav.upc.edu/assignatures/tosca. After eleven editions of ToSCA_ETSAV and one edition in TUM Munich, with a very good outcomes and by the invitation of the School of Architecture of the Francisco de Paula Santander University in Cúcuta, Colombia, we assumed, between both institutions, the challenge of internationalizing the ToSCA experience, to carry out within the Deepening Course "the ceramics in the architectural project", a first educational workshop for the innovation of technical product, suggesting the adaptability of the ToSCA methodology, in a different socio-cultural environment.
Deconstruction of prior knowledge and visual narratives in Computing pedagogy
Authors: Jamil Md Golam , Isiaq Sakirulai Olufemi
Published: July 2018

Evaluating students’ prior knowledge, particularly in higher education, has been a difficult task due to lack of any known reliable technique. This paper describes a research that involved a technology-enhanced approach for collecting prior knowledge data and presented those through visual narratives. The use of visual narratives is new in the research within engineering discipline, particularly in Computing. The study took place at a British university where forty five Computing students participated in the data collection process. The students were asked questions about their concepts around certain topics, academic interests, and assessment preferences. Data were collected using an online audience reply and analysis tool, Mentimeter, which also generated real time visuals, such as word clouds and graphs, based on the student responses. Several narratives were composed upon the findings depicted through the visuals. The key contribution of the research is a unique prior knowledge data analysis procedure which is convenient and effective in deciding pedagogic principles.
Non-Natural Born lecturers: How to survive teaching in Dutch higher education
Authors: Oude Alink Charlotte , Martinetti Alberto , Karahanoğlu Armağan , Hahnen-Florijn Marije
Published: July 2018

Teaching in Higher Education Institutions (HEI) requests training and skills as researching. Unfortunately, on an international level the teaching training programme is not always crystal and clear, or even worse, not requested. Often researchers are asked to provide lectures without receiving proper formation. This approach creates sensible depletion in the educational quality. Offering an overview on how the Dutch HEIs are tackling the problem, the aim of this study is twofold: (i) presenting the University Teaching Qualification (UTQ) from a career development perspective and (ii) giving a qualitative evaluation of the entire process from the point of view of UTQ supervisors and lecturers. Finally concluding the relevance of such a professionalization programme.