bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
E-Gov Research 2003-2006
Authors: Grönlund Åke , Andersson Annika
Published: May 2011

This chapter follows up on an earlier study (Grönlund, 2004) by assessing the nature of 117 papers from two e-gov (electronic government) conferences, EGOV 05 and HICSS 06, in terms of rigor and relevance criteria using a straightforward maturity model. The study uses the same method as the 2004 one and makes comparisons between the results. We find that however still focusing overwhelmingly on descriptions and little on theory testing and creation, paper quality appears much better in that references to literature have increased grossly, there are very few dubious claims, philosophical research and theoretical arguments are virtually extinct, and the number of case stories is vastly reduced. However, the number of product descriptions is doubled. We also find that there is no particular focus on specific government and society issues, but rather on traditional information systems ones; IT, method and organization.
Information Technology as a Target, Shield, and Weapon in the Post-9/11 Environment
Authors: Lally Laura
Published: May 2011

This chapter draws upon normal accident theory and the theory of high reliability organizations to examine the potential impacts of information technology being used as a target in terrorist and other malicious attacks. The chapter also argues that information technology can be used as a shield to prevent further attacks and mitigate their impact if they should occur. A target and shield model is developed, which extends normal accident theory to encompass secondary effects, change, and feedback loops to prevent future accidents. The target and shield model is applied to the Y2K problem and the emerging threats and initiatives in the post-9/11 environment. The model is then extended to encompass the use of IT as a weapon against terrorism.
An Extended Trust Building Model
Authors: McKnight D. Harrison , Chervany Norman L.
Published: May 2011

This study examines a model of factors influencing system troubleshooter trust in their supervisors, contrasting experiential and nonexperiential factors. System troubleshooters keep important organizational systems operating. Traditional research suggests that trust forms through interactional experience. Recent research indicates that initial interpersonal trust develops through nonexperiential factors that are dispositional (individual differences-related) or institutional (structural/ situational). This chapter combines initial and experiential factors to see which remain effective over time. We found that both institutional and dispositional factors affected troubleshooter trust in the supervisor even after parties gained experience with each other. Quality of experience with the supervisor affected interpersonal trust, while quantity of experience did not. Surprisingly, institutional trust, an initial trust factor, predicted trusting beliefs as strongly as did quality of experience. The study shows that both experiential and nonexperiential factors are important to troubleshooter trust even after parties know each other well.
Applying UML for Modeling the Physical Design of Data Warehouses
Authors: Luján-Mora Sergio , Trujillo Juan
Published: May 2011

In previous work, we have shown how to use unified modeling language (UML) as the primary representation mechanism to model conceptual design, logical design, modeling of extraction, transformation, loading (ETL) processes, and defining online analytical processing (OLAP) requirements of data warehouses (DW). Continuing our work on using UML throughout the DW development lifecycle, in this chapter, we present our modeling techniques of physical design of DW using component diagrams and deployment diagrams of UML. Our approach allows the DW designer to anticipate important physical design decisions that may reduce the overall development time of a DW such as replicating dimension tables, vertical and horizontal partitioning of a fact table, and the use of particular servers for certain ETL processes. We illustrate our techniques with a case study.
Effective Processing of XML-Extended OLAP Queries Based on a Physical Algebra
Authors: Yin Xuepeng , Pedersen Torben Bach
Published: May 2011

In today’s OLAP systems, physically integrating fast-changing data, for example, stock quotes, into a cube is complex and time-consuming. This data is likely to be available in XML format on the World Wide Web (WWW); thus, instead of physical integration, making XML data logically federated with OLAP systems is desirable. In this chapter, we extend previous work on the logical federation of OLAP and XML data sources by presenting simplified query semantics, a physical query algebra and a robust OLAP-XML query engine as well as the query evaluation techniques. Performance experiments with a prototypical implementation suggest that the performance for OLAP-XML federations is comparable to queries on physically integrated data.
Strategic Alliances and E-Commerce Adoption in Regional SMEs
Authors: MacGregor R. C. , Vrazalic L.
Published: May 2011

This chapter examines the role of strategic alliance membership on the adoption and nonadoption of e-commerce in regional SMEs. The study was conducted in Karlstad, Sweden and Wollongong, Australia. The study specifically examined whether members of a strategic alliance rated e-commerce adoption factors (criteria for adoption, barriers to adoption, benefits derived from adoption, or disadvantages caused by the adoption of e-commerce) differently to nonmembers. The results showed that membership in a strategic alliance was associated with the rating of importance of e-commerce adoption factors, but only for specific sections of the SME population. The results also showed that these associations are not “universal,” but differ from location to location.
Small Firms and Offshore Software Outsourcing
Authors: Carmel Erran , Nicholson Brian
Published: May 2011

It seems surprising that small firms engage in offshore outsourcing given that they lack the resources that large firms possess to overcome the difficulties involved. We examine these factors using transaction cost theory’s three stages: contact costs, contract costs, and control costs. Then, using our field data from small client firms (in the United States and the United Kingdom), intermediaries, and offshore vendors, we analyze the mitigation approaches that reduce transaction costs for small firms. We identify nine such approaches: three for client firms and six for suppliers. For the small client firm, they are liaisons of knowledge flows, gaining experience, and overcoming opportunism; and, for the service providers, they are onshore presence, reducing contact costs, simplifying contracting, providing control channels, expert intermediaries, and standardization of services.
An Evaluation System for IT Outsourcing Customer Satisfaction Using the Analytic Hierarchy Process
Authors: Yoon YongKi , Im Kun Shin
Published: May 2011

Many companies have recently been choosing information technology (IT) out-sourcing in response to complicated information systems and various internal requirements. In order to monitor and maintain a high quality of IT outsourcing vendors’ services, it is necessary to develop a system to evaluate IT outsourcing customer satisfaction. The system can be used as a tool for choosing IT outsourcing providers. Through the literature reviews and experts’ interviews, we propose the evaluation system of IT outsourcing customer satisfaction. Using AHP (analytic hierarchy process) technique, attributes associated with customer satisfaction in IT outsourcing environments are then rated in terms of their importance. The customer satisfaction evaluation system is applied to IT outsourcing service receivers in Korea to demonstrate its practical implications.
End User Computing Ergonomics
Authors: Clark Carol
Published: May 2011

Until recent years, the end user computing ergonomic focus has primarily been on stationary computer use. A new trend for the end user is mobile computing. An increasing number of end users are working outside of the traditional office. Mobile computing devices allow for these workers to perform job functions while in the field, at home, or while traveling. The organizational and end user benefits abound for the use of such enabling technology. However, the mobile computing environment introduces a new area of ergonomic concerns. Are businesses and end users monitoring the use of these devices from an ergonomic perspective? The good news is the outcome can be influenced and/or determined with intentional efforts on the part of both end users and managers. This paper includes an in depth review of the current and emerging issues, especially the mobile end user environment, that is important to the end user, manager, and organization as a whole. It also provides end user ergonomic suggestions and resources and addresses the management challenges rising from ergonomic issues.
My Life With Computers on a Remote Island
Authors: Gaidan Bethalia
Published: May 2011

I have spent most of my life in the Torres Strait in Far North Queensland, Australia. There are 17 inhabited islands spread across the strait with populations from less than 30 to several thousand. It is a remote and isolated area. There were no computers at the school I went to. The first time I used computers was when I enrolled in a teaching course in the city and I learnt to word process my assignments. That was the only application I used.
Can Information Communication Technological Tools Be Used to Suit Aboriginal Learning Pedagogies
Authors: Donovan Michael
Published: May 2011

Indigenous peoples are some of the most disadvantaged groups globally; Australian aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities are no different. Much of their lack of success can be related to the inappropriate educational practices directed at them through non-indigenous pedagogical filters of the Australian educational systems. There is a need for some pedagogical change to suit the needs and learning pedagogies of aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students. By accessing information communication technologies (ICT), aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities can improve their educational outcomes. They can design educational programs with aboriginal pedagogies at the forefront to suit their needs using ICT. Outcamp ICT learning centres, placed where aboriginal communities can gain easy access to them and staffed with educators who can help facilitate the development of learning skills, are one solution to improving educational achievement.
Computer Technology and Native Literacy in the amazon
Authors: Gomez Gale Goodwin
Published: May 2011

Education programs among indigenous peoples throughout South America vary greatly in terms of content, instructional objectives, quality and level of instruction and the nature of the participants as well as the educational setting. This case study describes a relatively new component of an ongoing education program that involves Yanomami communities in the Amazon rain forest of northern Brazil. While the use of information technology (IT) in the classroom has become standard in most of the so-called “developed” world, the use of computers in remote indigenous villages is surprising to many observers. In the case of the Brazilian Yanomami, IT represents simply the latest stage in the process of acquiring Western means, such as written language, to strengthen their languages and culture and to provide access to information and knowledge of the outside world. IT is a potentially very powerful tool in their struggle to preserve their economic, political and cultural autonomy and ultimately to ensure their survival in a rapidly changing, globally interconnected world.
The Indigenous Pre-IT Program
Authors: Grant Stephen , Hendriks Max , Dyson Laurel Evelyn
Published: May 2011

From January 12-24, 2004 the Faculty of Information Technology, at the University of Technology, Sydney (UTS), conducted the first Pre-IT program for indigenous students in Australia. The program was run successfully for a second time in July 2005, with a another planned for 2006. The Pre-IT grew out of the Indigenous Participation in Information Technology (IPIT) Project which began at UTS in 2002. The purpose of the IPIT Project is to increase the participation of indigenous Australians in IT studies and careers (Robertson, Dyson, Norman, & Buckley, 2002).
The Diffusion of New Technologies
Authors: Daly Anne
Published: May 2011

This chapter presents data from the 2001 Census of Population and Housing to highlight the low levels of computer and Internet usage by indigenous Australians. This result is not surprising, given the well-documented connection between education, income, location of residence and use of these technologies. One possible way of addressing the digital divide between capital city dwellers and other Australians is through the development of community online access centres. Using evidence from the literature and from fieldwork in New South Wales, the chapter considers some factors that are likely to make these centres more successful. These include a strong commitment by the community to the development of a centre and a close integration of the centre with community activities. It is important that significant funds be budgeted to training for all involved including centre staff and community members.
Reunification of the Wendat/Wyandotte Nation at a Time of Globalization
Authors: Sioui Linda
Published: May 2011

In the 17th century, an important period of contact with Europeans, the Wendat nation (Iroquoian linguistic family) lived in the Georgian Bay area, close to Lake Simcoe, in Ontario, Canada. Its territory is located at the northern limit of southern Ontario’s agricultural lands. Data vary regarding the total population at the beginning of the seventeenth century (the contact period), but it may be assessed to have been 29,000 souls on average (Trigger, 1976, p. 30). To start with, the Wendat nation comprised four nations distributed among several villages. A fifth nation joined later. The French called this semi-sedentary people “Hurons,” thus referring to the tuft of hair on a wild boar’s head the nation’s warriors’ hairstyle reminded them of.
Future Directions
Authors: Dyson Laurel Evelyn , Hendriks Max , Grant Stephen
Published: May 2011

This book has demonstrated that the use of information technology within indigenous communities and by indigenous peoples is no longer an issue of debate but a proven fact. It is no longer a dream of the future but is the reality of today.
The Treasure Trove
Authors: Edmundson Andrea
Published: May 2011

Referring back to Gert Jan Hofstede’s words in the Foreword, we have a treasure-trove of ideas and concepts to sort through with respect to globalized e-learning cultural challenges. In this book, we have referenced seminal research studies on cultural influences and dimensions, speculated on their potential impact on e-learning, and reviewed examples of empirical research and observations of these cultural challenges. We have explored the potential ramifications of Western-based theories being promulgated in non-Western cultures. We have addressed fresh ideas about the interactions between culture and e-learning, such as paralanguage and cultural learning objects. In addition, we have heard from learners themselves. Lastly, authors have proposed new ways to analyze and/or adapt e-learning for other cultures, based on logical presumptions, on our current experiences, and on existing research.
E-Simulations in the Wild
Authors: Barton Karen , Maharg Paul
Published: May 2011

This paper examines the relevance of research on scientific discovery learning in simulations to professional legal education simulations. There are striking similarities between the research findings from this domain, and our experience of running simulations in law in the Glasgow Graduate School of Law. However, simulation learning depends on factors that arise not only from the design of the simulation, but also from the environment of implementation. We argue that, while the paradigm of simulation research represented by many of the studies on scientific discovery learning is a valuable one for law and other disciplines, the educational effectiveness of e-simulations also depends critically on three factors: design of learning outcomes, type of simulation field, and the organisation of communities of practice around and within a simulation. These factors demonstrate a fundamental need to re-configure design concepts around the potentialities of the emerging new medium in the form of a new ‘trading zone’.
Knowledge Management
Authors: Gottschalk Petter
Published: May 2011

Knowledge is an important organizational resource. Unlike other inert organizational resources, the application of existing knowledge has the potential to generate new knowledge. Not only can knowledge be replenished in use, it can also be combined and recombined to generate new knowledge. Once created, knowledge can be articulated, shared, stored, and re-contextualized to yield options for the future. For all of these reasons, knowledge has the potential to be applied across time and space to yield increasing returns (Garud & Kumaraswamy, 2005).
Knowledge Management in Law Firms
Authors: Gottschalk Petter
Published: May 2011

Law enforcement is of concern to law firms. A law firm can be understood as a social community specializing in the speed and efficiency in the creation and transfer of legal knowledge (Nahapiet & Ghoshal, 1998). Many law firms represent large corporate enterprises, organizations, or entrepreneurs with a need for continuous and specialized legal services that can only be supplied by a team of lawyers. The client is a customer of the firm, rather than a particular lawyer. According to Galanter and Palay (1991, p. 5), relationships with clients tend to be enduring:
Online Communities, Democratic Ideals, and the Digital Divide
Authors: Grodzinsky F. S. , Tavani H. T.
Published: May 2011

We examine some pros and cons of online communities with respect to two main questions: (1) Do online communities promote democracy and democratic ideals? and (2) What are the implications of online communities for information justice and the digital divide? The first part of the chapter will examine online communities in general and will attempt to define what we mean by “community” and more precisely, “online communities.” It will then examine ways of building online communities, that is, what brings people together online. The second part of the chapter will look at the positive and negative contributions of online communities in light of democratic ideals and will address the issue of information justice and the digital divide. In examining these questions, we also consider the effects of the Internet for community life at both the local and global levels.
The Mediating Effect of Material Cultures as Human Hybridization
Authors: Magnani L.
Published: May 2011

We already are hybrid humans, fruit of a kind of co-evolution of both our brains and the common, scientific, social, and moral knowledge we have produced by ourselves, starting from the birth of material culture with our ancestors until the recent effects generated by the whole field of information and communication technologies (ICTs). We all are constitutively natural born cyborgs; that is, biotechnological hybrid minds. Our minds should not be considered to be located only in the head; human beings have solved their problems of survival and reproduction, distributing cognitive and ethical functions to external nonbiological sources, props, and aids, which originate cultures. This chapter also illustrates the interplay between cultures and distributed cognition, taking advantage of the so-called disembodiment of mind, and stresses the problem of the co-evolution between brains and cultures. The second part of the chapter is related to the analysis of the interplay between cultures and cognition and of some consequences concerning the problem of intercultural communication in light of the role of moral mediators, docility, and cyberprivacy. Finally, I discuss some suggestions concerning the problem of what I call the principle of isolation of cultures, with respect to the effects of ICTs.
Business Ethics and Technology in Turkey
Authors: Yamamoto G. T.
Published: May 2011

IT ethics cannot be analyzed without assessing business ethics in general and the cultural environment. This study is based on the Turkish case. Turkey lies at the crossroads of civilizations, making it hard to define a generally accepted set of ethical principles. Western, Islamic, and Turkish cultures are in competition with each of them, and a synthesis has not yet been achieved. Therefore, a common identity and common ethical standards cannot be acquired. In fact, such a synthesis could be categorized as a new civilization. This disagreement causes proliferation of unethical behaviors such as the illegal copying of software. The majority of highly educated technical people in Turkey approves of the illegal copying of software, if it is necessitated by the interests of the country. This shows that we have a long way to go to reach global ethical standards, and country-specific differences cannot be eliminated in the short term.
Organizational Action
Authors: Iandoli Luca , Zollo Giuseppe
Published: May 2011

Do organizations act? How can we describe collective action? How does such an action come about? The aim of this chapter is to provide the reader with a review of the various perspectives and to propose a definition of collective action as an attempt by the organization to maintain stability and regularity, and create an externally recognizable identity.
Collective Memory
Authors: Iandoli Luca , Zollo Giuseppe
Published: May 2011

In the previous chapter we focused on the concept of collective action. In the same spirit, this chapter investigates another fundamental component of learning, i.e., memory, and attempts to reformulate this concept at the collective level. Do organizations remember? In which sense it is possible to talk about collective memory? What is the nature of such a memory? The chapter presents a model of organizational memory which can not be reduced to a metaphor, nor to a mere extension or generalization of individual memory.
Constructing Explanations
Authors: Iandoli Luca , Zollo Giuseppe
Published: May 2011

Organizations are systems designed to guarantee the regularity and continuity of collective actions through the standardization of patterns of action and the establishment of meaning. Artifacts direct theories of action and regulate the way in which the tasks are carried out. Organizations create stable and shared meanings through a process of social construction. But how concrete is such a process? In this chapter we will demonstrate how language, and in particular explanatory discourse, is a fundamental instrument both for the establishment of dominant systems, and for questioning and changing them.
Constructing Grey Knowledge
Authors: Iandoli Luca , Zollo Giuseppe
Published: May 2011

Through explanatory discourse people apply, construct and explain theories of action and attribute meaning to events and to their own actions and those of others. In this chapter we will conduct a detailed analysis of the structure of explanatory discourse and the character of its rationality. Through this analysis we will demonstrate (a) that the rationality of organizational actors is an argumentative rationality aimed at the construction of consensus and shared meanings; (b) that the knowledge contained in the explanations is both structured and opaque, (c) that this particular mix between opacity and structuring makes it possible to both accumulate past knowledge and construct new knowledge.
Mapping Discourses
Authors: Iandoli Luca , Zollo Giuseppe
Published: May 2011

This chapter deals with the issue of discourse representation. A possible way to represent discourse is by mapping its contents (concepts) and its structure (i.e., showing the relationships between concepts). In particular, we give a detailed presentation of the argument analysis technique, a mapping approach developed to elicit and represent argumentative discourse. Later in the chapter we also provide some references to a wider set of techniques that can be used to build cognitive maps, which is a way of represent the belief systems of an individual through which he/she interprets a specific problem or situation.
Perspectives for Organizational Inquiry
Authors: Iandoli Luca , Zollo Giuseppe
Published: May 2011

This chapter is dedicated to identifying future research perspectives for the methodological approach presented in this text. The methodological argument is taken up again from a wider perspective in order to propose a truly innovative computational approach to supporting organizational analysis. For each of the salient steps of the proposed approach, that is, the identification, mapping and modeling of discourses, the available or potential alternative methodologies are mentioned briefly and possible developments are outlined.
Scanners and Readers
Authors: Schreiner Christopher S.
Published: May 2011

While heralding the positive learning outcomes of computer-aided instruction, rigorous assessment must also monitor the changes in literacy that accompany it and qualify the benefits of technical content delivery. A decline in literary reading, recently documented by a National Endowment for the Arts study, is a case in point. This chapter inquires as to whether the cognitive and cultural changes incurred by reading fewer books are significant relative to the overall gains yielded by technological change in the classroom learning environment. It argues that the impressive focus on multimodal literacy in classrooms from elementary levels through college, which seems to favor diversity of content, is prone to exclude the analytic challenges that literary reading and the growth of historical consciousness demand. This chapter presents evidence that suggests the indispensability of literary reading experience alongside technologically enabled or enhanced modes of learning.
Intergenerational Learning
Authors: McCauley Joyce , Rice Marilyn
Published: May 2011

This chapter describes the successful formation of an intergenerational computer-tutoring project between college pre-service teachers and senior adults living in a retirement community. Service-learning methodology used as a framework is described and the results of the first year of implementation is documented. The authors hope that this can be a model for other universities interested in community-based learning projects. First, the authors give the need for computer training for senior adults. They describe the process of matching college students enrolled in technology courses with residents of a local retirement home. They explain the knowledge, skills, and dispositions gained by the college students in the process of tutoring and the project benefits enjoyed by the senior adults. Popular Internet sites for the elderly user are listed and improvements for future implementation are noted.
Adoption of Online Courses in Higher Education
Authors: Enriquez Anita Borja
Published: May 2011

This chapter examines the state of readiness towards adopting online distance education (DE) courses between undergraduate business students and business faculty at the University of Guam (UOG). The study was timely, given the infancy planning stage of online education delivery at UOG. Preferences among business student respondents, based on generation groups, ethnicity and occupation status, were reviewed. The following research questions were posed to guide this study: (1) At what stage of the undergraduate program do undergraduate business students recognize the importance of using the Internet for online education use?; (2) What factors explain the rate of adoption towards Internet use by undergraduate business education students and business faculty at UOG?; and (3) Are there significant differences between undergraduate business education students and UOG business faculty in the perceived state of readiness of adoption of online distance education? Overall, business students expressed willingness to pursue this delivery format.
Educational Design at Southern Cross University Australia
Authors: Morgan Chris , Bird Jenny , O’Reilly Meg
Published: May 2011

This case study provides an overview of educational design practice in a relatively small regional Australian university with a unique profile of highly distributed, mature-aged learners, and a particular mandate regarding its students and the region in which it is located. In its 15-year history at Southern Cross University, educational design practice has been significantly shaped by its context, and has evolved continuously to meet the changing needs of the university and its student profile. This case study charts educational design evolution over the 15 years, the impact of online learning upon roles and practice, the current institutional “footprint” of the educational designers, the convergence of roles with academic staff development, and its current research agendas. Chapter II should be read as the companion to this chapter for a more extensive exploration of the issues and dilemmas of educational design practice.
Designer Communities
Authors: Lambert Sarah , Brown Christine
Published: May 2011

This chapter highlights the importance of developing and sustaining a knowledge base among designers to enable the collective sharing of strategies and tools for communication within project teams. This chapter identifies and discusses the need to capture collective wisdom of designers who work in close proximity within the same university. It examines a case study of a project that illustrates changes in the design context in relation to types of projects (CD-ROM, Web-based, learning management systems) and discusses these trends through the eyes of two designers. It also discusses the trend away from large standalone projects to networked “learning objects.” It examines these trends in relation to a number of strategies that support the learning design community and its work.
Multi-Disciplinary Collaboration to Unravel Expert Knowledge
Authors: McKay Elspeth , Martin Jennifer
Published: May 2011

This chapter introduces project management as a pivotal tool that underpins successful information systems design. It argues that the strength of the human-dimension of human-computer interaction (HCI) is often omitted by system designers. It discusses some of the issues that arise when dealing with a multi-disciplined project team. These include dealing with a non-conventional learning context, the challenge of designing an appropriate learning design and instructional architecture. Furthermore, the authors hope that understanding the underlying principles of effective conflict management throughout the process of systems design will inform others of a better communication methodology for dealing with difficult behaviour when designing an information system. It is also hoped that this discussion will assist in the understanding of the intricate and interactive relationships that arise between the different elements of HCI.
Designing Community Learning in Web-Based Environments
Authors: Fisher Mercedes , Coleman Bonita , Sparks Paul , Plett Cheryl
Published: May 2011

Current learning theory suggests that collaboration is a key to effective learning. Perhaps it is no coincidence that collaborative online tools have appeared as social theories of learning have become more widely accepted. Programs that embody the more traditional and linear teaching methods are slowly yielding to collaborative tools that more appropriately support our new understanding of social learning. As our tools become more powerful and sophisticated, so too will our ability to think and learn with them.
Use of Virtual Exhibits for Promoting Science Learning on the Webs of Science Centers
Authors: Wee-Hin Leo Tan , Subramanian R.
Published: May 2011

Science centers are institutions for the promotion of informal science learning to students and the public (Oppenheimer, 1972; Danilov, 1982; Tan & Subramaniam, 1998; Delacote, 1998). They have come to be regarded as part of a nation’s scientific, technological, and educational infrastructure. Science centers promote their mission objectives in a number of ways: exhibitions on a range of themes, science enrichment programs that complement science lessons taught in schools, mass-based promotional activities such as science festivals and competitions, and so on. However, exhibitions remain the core and distinctive feature of the attractions in science centers.
Flexible Online Learning - Onsite!
Authors: Witfelt Claus
Published: May 2011

Flexible learning is a term usually connected with IT and the dimensions time and space, for instance when using CSCL-systems (e.g., Blackboard, Sitescape, or FirstClass) to combine onsite learning with online learning in further education, typically with few, intensive onsite seminars separated by online periods where the students work, communicate, and learn via the Internet. This chapter takes a different approach to flexible learning and how technologies from distributed, flexible learning can be used in everyday university teaching and learning—onsite learning. Onsite learning is characterized not by virtual and distributed processes, but actual presence of the students. In the current study, we have identified a number of scenarios for these learning contexts and tried a number of systems. In the chapter we will discuss the problems, the pros and cons of the various scenarios, and in short describe some of the technologies we have worked with.
Asynchronous Content Design for Flexible Learning
Authors: Kurubacak Gülsün , Yuzer T. Volkan
Published: May 2011

Gradually, more institutions around the globe are becoming involved in dynamic change over a long period to provide time- and location-independent asynchronous e-learning opportunities. With the potential of network-based technologies, asynchronous e-learning has become a powerful, global, interactive, economic, and dynamic as well as democratic tool of virtual learning (Khan, 1997). Asynchronous e-learning provides an opportunity to build flexible online programs for sharing knowledge with virtual educational contents. To generate cogent asynchronous e-learning opportunities, however, it is important to analyze the principles, ethics, and pitfalls of sharing knowledge online between professionals and community. Therefore, asynchronous content must be designed carefully based on macro- and micro-level frameworks, which provide us with elaborating open, flexible, and distributed virtual learning milieus.
Flexible Assessment
Authors: Morgan Chris , Bird Jenny
Published: May 2011

Flexible learning is now well entrenched in the policy, curriculum, and course delivery frameworks of many higher education sectors in the Western world. However, because of the ambiguous nature of the terms, teachers are often faced with ill-defined expectations from their institution to ‘be flexible’—to make choices about where, when, and how they will offer the various elements of their curriculum. The negotiable meanings of flexibility cluster around the divergent perspectives of a range of stakeholders, including pedagogists, managers, and technologists. Teachers are often unsure of the motives behind the push towards flexible learning: Are they being asked to save money by putting their courses online and reducing their face to face teaching? Are they being asked to better meet the needs of 21st century students and therefore increase enrolments? Is it about improving student learning by refocusing on student-centred learning and lifelong learning? Is it about harnessing the educational potential of new technologies? Tucked within this confusing area of higher education sits flexible assessment—a relatively neglected theme in the flexible learning story.
A Program Satisfaction Survey Instrument for Online Students
Authors: Khan Badrul H. , Smith Henry L.
Published: May 2011

With the advent of the Internet and online learning methodologies and technologies, online learning is becoming more and more accepted. Institutions are investing heavily in the development and deployment of online programs. To fulfill the demand of online education and training, academic institutions, corporations, and government agencies worldwide are increasingly using the Internet and digital technologies to deliver instruction and training. However, institutions must pay attention to the needs of learners. With the increasing use of a variety of approaches in learning in the information age, learners require rich learning environments supported by well designed resources. They expect on-demand, anytime/anywhere high-quality learning environments with good support services.
Human Computer Interaction for Computer-Based Classroom Teaching
Authors: Hürst W.
Published: May 2011

This chapter focuses on HCI aspects to overcome problems arising from technologies and applications that may hinder the normal teaching process in ICT-ready classrooms. It investigates different input devices on their usage and interactivity for classroom teaching and argues that pen-based computing is the mode of choice for lecturing in modern lecture halls. It also discusses the software design of the interface where digital ink, as a “first class” data type is used to communicate visual contents and interact with the ICT.
Tangible User Interfaces as Mediating Tools within Adaptive Educational Environments
Authors: Loi D.
Published: May 2011

This chapter proposes that, as approaches to human computer interaction (HCI), tangible user interfaces (TUIs) can scaffold rich classroom experiences if they are coupled and generated within multi-pedagogical frameworks that adopt concepts such as Multimodality, Multisensoriality, and Multiliteracies. It overviews some necessary conditions for these tools to be effective, arguing that tangible user interfaces and multi-pedagogies are efficient when they are conceptualized as part of adaptive educational environments—teaching and learning ecologies where learners and teachers are seen as co-creators of content and of new ways of interacting with such content.
Building the Virtual into Teacher Education
Authors: Latham G.
Published: May 2011

This chapter describes how two lecturers in teacher education (with the assistance of critical friends) developed a virtual primary school as a digital tool to help preservice teachers at the theory/HCI practice interface. The development and future directions of their online virtual environment will be discussed and will detail how scenario building in online learning communities fosters an alternative way of thinking about teaching and learning. Developing the virtual primary school was not based on a course requiring flexible delivery in distance education. The primary school was created to provide a place of learning not often available to preservice teachers on their professional practice placements. While the concept for a virtual school is not a new one, our goals for its design were different, and application was specifically oriented toward inquiry learning and new learning philosophies involving HCI. We will explore how a narrative-based scenario approach has been assisting our work at the edge of the traditional and the new.
Use and Perceptions of External Content Providers
Authors: Hahn Jennifer
Published: May 2011

This chapter presents the process of videoconferencing with external providers from the teacher’s side of the camera. It overviews the steps necessary to conduct a videoconference including how to contact and select external providers, and as well as how to prepare, conduct, and follow up on a videoconference. It carefully examines how to develop lasting relationships with experts in the field and how to use their resources to create an interactive research based classroom environment. For classroom teachers, videoconferencing is a relatively new educational tool and the extent of its implementation is constantly expanding and virtually endless. Utilizing examples of specific experiences the chapter provides the reader with an overview of videoconferences that exist and can be used by P-12 educators.
An Abridged History of Learning Objects
Authors: Saum Robert R.
Published: May 2011

What follows is a short history of learning objects in both the academic, governmental, and corporate sectors. This is by no means an exhaustive list of events. The origin of the term will be traced from 1992, as Wayne Hodgins coined it, to the present. Key standards will be listed as they occurred, such as the sharable content object reference model (SCORM). In addition, landmark collaborative applications and repositories will be mentioned along with their intended mission. Corporate and academic interpretations of the term are noted and its use within organizations.
Learning Objects
Authors: Boling Charlotte J.
Published: May 2011

This chapter presents a case study of a teacher education faculty member as she researches learning objects and integrates the concepts into her curriculum. The case unfolds as the instructor begins to plan the curriculum for the upcoming semester. The planning process leads to questions where the instructor investigates: why learning objects should be used, how learning objects should be used, where learning objects can be found, how learning objects should be integrated, and how learning objects should be evaluated. The investigation concerning learning objects and the course continue simultaneously. Throughout this journey, the author provides examples from the course as she strives to: (1) create an awareness of learning objects among her students and (2) provide an experience where students are afforded opportunities to determine the value of using learning objects as an instructional tool.
Being a Content Expert is Fun Again with Pachyderm
Authors: Hapgood Tom
Published: May 2011

This chapter discusses the reasoning behind the lack of the expected authoring of digital learning objects. It argues that the creation and dissemination of learning objects by university faculty have not occurred as a result of technical hurdles and frightening acronyms, lack of organizational procedures, unclear legal and ownership issues, and the ineffectiveness of “selling” the idea to faculty as part of the promotion and tenure process. The technology, interfaces and storage devices have been in place for some time, waiting for the learning object authors to publish their work. The Pachyderm 2.0 software is discussed as a tool for faculty to utilize. The author hopes that discussing and enumerating the obstacles to learning object authoring and dissemination, combined with the proposal of using the Pachyderm software along with a model of working with organizational information technology (IT) staff, will assist all involved in circulating successful digital learning objects.
The Mediated Action of Educational Reform
Authors: Russell Donna L.
Published: May 2011

The purpose of this case study was to describe and evaluate how four teachers in four different cities in Missouri, USA, collaborated online to implement an online constructivist-based learning environment that included an innovation cluster pairing and emerging online technology with a problem-based learning unit design framework. The design of this study originated from prior research on teacher reform efforts including the adoption of technology innovations in the classroom, new theories of constructivist-based learning and the principles of professional development for educators implementing reform. Using the methodology of cultural historical activity theory, the researchers collected and analyzed data to identify how effectively each of the teachers implemented the innovation cluster based on their goals for adopting the new innovations while participating in online collaborative professional development. As a result the researchers were able to evaluate the effectiveness of the online professional development model used to aid these innovative educators and develop concepts of best-practice professional development programs.
Learning Sport Management through Interaction with the Real World
Authors: Inglis Alistair , Nicholson Matthew , Hanlon Clare
Published: May 2011

The development of a course in sport administration in which case studies form the basis of the learning activities is described. The case studies are based on a variety of documents and resources provided by eight sport organisations. The documents and resources are supplied to students on CD-ROM. Students interact online but also meet weekly face-to-face. As a result, these real-world examples have increased students’ motivation and improved student learning outcomes.
Creating a Multimedia Instructional Product for Medical School Students
Authors: Weisburgh Mitchell
Published: May 2011

Because most medical school textbooks do not adequately address pain management, the Academy wanted to create TOP MED, an online textbook that would address this need for different specialties and which also could be used as a textbook for an Introduction to Pain Management course. This online textbook would cover eleven topics and consist of the latest findings from the most renowned experts in the different disciplines of pain medicine. This case study is a description of the process of designing and producing the online textbook.
Competency Management Systems and Technologies
Authors: Liyanage Shantha
Published: May 2011

Learning processes are essential in building individual and organisational competencies and transfer of learning and knowledge among individual and organisational learning space. Several types of learning technologies are now available for systematic building of individual and organisational competencies through formal and non-formal learning processes. This chapter examines the need for competency-based management systems that provides organizations to implement such learning processes through web-based e-learning technologies that are most conducive for creating and building systematic knowledge transfers across individuals and groups. It is argued that the transfer of knowledge, learning and learning interactions through such technologies is a seamless process that reinforces continual renewal of knowledge and learning through appropriate management systems. Such systems are created by deliberate interventions for individual and organisational learning and should be context and content specific.
Designing and Implementing Views on Competencies
Authors: van der Klink Marcel , Schlusmans Kathleen , Boon Jo
Published: May 2011

In education as well as in Human Resource Management the concept of competency is becoming more and more important. However competency is a fuzzy concept that lacks coherent terminology and is used in many different meanings. In the first part of this chapter competency is defined as a multi-dimensional construct with five dimensions: specificity, coherency, durability, activity and trainability. Then two approaches are presented to establish the competencies organisations or educational institutes should address :the function-based approach which focuses requirements for good performance in a specific function and the employee based approach which focuses on individual competencies for excellent performers. Finally it is argued that a competency based curriculum should move towards self-directed competency-based learning (SDCBL), using personal learning plans and adopting the flexible learning opportunities of e-learning. However SDCBL can only be successful when learners can be taught to be responsible managers and owners of their own learning process.