bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Compliance of MOOCs and OERs with the new privacy and security EU regulations
Authors: Zdravkova Katerina
Published: July 2019

Since their appearance in the early 2000s, Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) and Open Educational Resources (OERs) arose among the most important educational priorities. Many top universities worldwide have been involved in the research and direct implementation of this innovative pedagogical approach. Simultaneously with the development and massive deployment of the new learning and teaching method, European regulations responsible for data privacy and protection, and information security have significantly evolved. This paper assesses the compliance of the ten most popular MOOCs and OERs with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the Directive on security of network and information systems (NIS Directive). In order to systematically examine their online platforms, a few privacy indicators were outlined and thoroughly observed. Alongside this, the involvement of the open education providers in the NIS Directive was examined. Research findings are presented and elaborated in a way that it makes easy to generate recommendations on how to anticipate the future of open education as a reasonable reaction to global change in the era of rapid technological growth, and at the same time to obey the crucial ethical principles defined by this development.
Enhancing learning environments through partnerships in an attempt to facilitate school effectiveness
Authors: Adonis Tracey-Ann , Hartley Shaheed
Published: July 2019

South Africa (SA) is a developing country struggling to address educational transformation inherited from a previous apartheid regime and created by the current democratic government. Education is an area which is struggling within a SA context. Many schools in disadvantaged communities are faced with inadequate infrastructure and lack of resources yet the expectation is for schools to show evidence of effectiveness irrespective of these challenges. This context prompted an investigation into the development of the school learning environment utilising a participatory action research design at a disadvantaged primary school in the Western Cape, SA.  The major findings included that the school learning environment was influenced by the unique challenges and pressures in the school context; that collaborative efforts between stakeholders contribute to school effectiveness irrespective of context through acknowledging the school as an organisational system which requires the principal, educators, parents and community to effectively collaborate through open channels of communication in order to facilitate optimal teaching and learning environments which contribute to school effectiveness. The community component in the school learning environment needed to be acknowledged as the validation of the experiences of educators, learners, parents, principal and community is important in the South African context.
Measuring which support systems really work to improve students learning in your class – A case study on quantitative methods courses in the social sciences
Authors: Prandner Dimitri , Tabakovic Ahmed
Published: July 2019

While the so-called “datafication of society” increased the societal relevance of quantitative data analysis, social science students – who should use such data to understand and explain society – are often skeptical towards quantitative methods and overwhelmed by it. Thus, universities around the world should find means to help their students improve their corresponding analytical skills. The paper uses a case study from the University of Salzburg – Austria – to illustrate which aspects actually improve student-learning outcomes in the field of quantitative methods. The researched aspects focus on the program and institutional levels and address two specific issues: The evaluation and feedback on student performance and the introduction of additional support structures. While homework and feedback still show the best results additional – technology based – approaches like video-tutorials have a significant impact on student performance.
Seasonal Capacity Scaling and Learning Centres
Authors: Simonsen Henrik Køhler , Grauslund Dennis
Published: July 2019

Danish politicians’ interest in using higher education institutions (HEIs) as policy instruments in regional development initiatives has increased significantly in recent years. Recent initiatives include the establishment of regional learning centres and study stations. This article has two overall research objectives. The first objective is to discuss the use of regional learning centres and study stations and to discuss an overall conceptual framework for the establishment and running of physical and virtual learning centres or study stations. The second objective is to discuss the use of seasonal capacity scaling in the educational sector. The discussion is based on a concrete case from a regional area of Denmark supplemented with interviews of both students, teachers and programme managers. Our framework shows that seasonal capacity scaling of educational offerings based on a combined physical and virtual framework may be beneficial when establishing and running learning centres or study stations.
Improving Evidence-Based Practice education in healthcare courses: A Participatory Action Research multiple-case study
Authors: Murphy Kylie , Parnell Tracey , Pope Rodney , Hughes Clarissa , Bramble Marguerite , Biles Jess , OConnor Simone , Curtin Michael , Speedie Lisa , Plowman Evan
Published: July 2019

This paper synthesises the results of three participatory action research (PAR) studies undertaken to improve the integration of evidence-based practice (EBP) education in three undergraduate health courses at one Australian university: Bachelor of Nursing, Bachelor of Occupational Therapy, and Bachelor of Physiotherapy. The PAR process with interested academics uncovered a range of EBP education strengths and weaknesses in the three courses. Common themes were evident, which are likely to be applicable in other similar courses. Identified weaknesses included a lack of explicit teaching about the meaning, principles, steps, and importance of EBP, partly stemming from a lack of shared understanding. A relative lack of emphasis on certain EBP steps was also noted, particularly the first step of ‘asking’ questions. A lack of communication with workplace learning (WPL) supervisors about how to facilitate EBP was also noted, raising concerns about variable EBP-education quality across WPL settings.  Opportunities for improvement were identified by academics in each course, across multiple subjects and year levels. In our experience, PAR has been a highly constructive approach to EBP curriculum improvement. We encourage consideration of a PAR approach for addressing similarly complex curriculum challenges.
Deep Teaching: Materials for Teaching Machine and Deep Learning
Authors: Herta Christian , Voigt Benjamin , Baumann Patrick , Strohmenger Klaus , Jansen Christoph , Fischer Oliver , Zhang Gefei , Hufnagel Peter
Published: July 2019

Machine learning (ML) is considered to be hard because it is relatively complicated in comparison to other topics of computer science. The reason is that machine learning is based heavily on mathematics and abstract concepts. This results in an entry barrier for students: Most students want to avoid such difficult topics in elective courses or self-study. In the project Deep.Teaching we address these issues: We motivate by selected applications and support courses as well as self-study by giving practical exercises for different topics in machine learning. The teaching material, provided as jupyter notebooks, consists of theoretical and programming sections. For didactical reasons, we designed programming exercises such that the students have to deeply understand the concepts and principles before they can start to implement a solution. We provide all necessary boilerplate code such that the students can primarily focus on the educational objectives of the exercises. We used different ways to give feedback for self-study: obscured solutions for mathematical results, software tests with assert statements, and graphical illustrations of sample solutions. All of the material is published under a permissive license. Developing jupyter notebooks collaboratively for educational purposes poses some problems. We address these issues and provide solutions/best practices.
Teaching with emerging technologies in a STEM university math class
Authors: Brunetto Domenico , Andrà Chiara , Bernardi Giulia
Published: July 2019

The aim of the research presented in this work is to investigate how innovative teaching formats, based on student-centred activities, may help first year university students to deal with the difficulties in the transition from the mathematics they are used to in high school, to the one they meet at university, which requires a significant shift to conceptual understanding, especially in Calculus courses. As part of this overarching goal, this presentation investigates the case of Taylor series, a topic that is taught in all calculus courses at university. This work shows the efficacy of a blended learning approach, highlighting the main difficulties concerning the deep understanding of functions by students. We discuss possible limitations, and we provide suggestions for best practices in university math classes.
Internationalising education – Cross-country co-teaching among European higher education institutions
Authors: Wohlgemuth Veit , Saulich Christina , Lehmann Tine
Published: July 2019

Many lecturers preach teamwork, but they do not practice it by sharing responsibility for classes. Particularly in a transnational context, inputs from lecturers and learners from various countries might be beneficial for students’ learning. This paper asks the question: How can higher education institutions (HEI) set up cross-country and cross-HEI co-teaching to facilitate the transfer of host and home country knowledge? The authors provide insights into a transnational co-teaching project that partly relies on virtual distance learning across countries. This real-life project supports small and medium sized enterprises in their international endeavours with the support of lecturers and student teams from the respective host countries as well as their home countries. The authors discuss advantages and disadvantages of cross-country and cross–HEI co-teaching in comparison to traditional teaching methods. Furthermore, the authors elaborate on the impact of virtual distance learning in comparison to in-class teaching at a single physical location. Due to the international nature of the project, it mainly relies on distance learning that can be very effective when implemented correctly. The paper provides lessons learned from the project that might be beneficial for lecturers with and without international components in their teaching.
The Benefits of an action reflective assessment using role-plays in teaching mediation.
Authors: Collins Pauline Therese
Published: July 2019

Introducing action reflection learning into a law course to instil life-long learner skills and enable students to adapt to a new style of lawyering is essential if 21st Century lawyer needs are to be met. The paper describes the assessment, and the use of active reflective learning in a mediation course taught in an Australian law school. The benefits of such learning are described with specific attention to law teaching. Student reflections indicate the notable difference this teaching method had for their learning and development of a conflict resolution advocacy style.
Flipped Classroom Evaluation using the Teaching Analysis Poll
Authors: Vogelsang Kristin , Ollermann Frank
Published: July 2019

The increasing digitalization also affects universities. Therefore, electronic teaching is experiencing an upwind. Flipped Classroom is a special form of digital teaching is. Here, the basics are taught via online content and are interactively deepened in presence phases in class. For this quite modern variant of blended learning, there are numerous case descriptions in research with different evaluations available. However, a systematic examination of the evaluation of this form of teaching has not yet been carried out. The aim of this paper is, therefore, to diminish this research gap and to present the model of the Teaching Analysis Poll (TAP) as a systematic and easy to handle evaluation method in the Flipped Classroom. After a short review of recent research in the corresponding areas, we give a systematic overview of evaluations of Flipped Classroom. We introduce from the example of a Flipped Classroom Course the application of TAP as an adequate evaluation format.
EstuPlan: Methodology for the development of creativity in the resolution of scientific and social problems.
Authors: Astudillo Calderón Sergio , De Díez De La Torre Laura , García Companys Marina , Ortega Pérez Nora , Rodríguez Martínez Víctor , Alzahrani Sabah , Alonso Valenzuela Raquel , Ávalos García Adolfo , Cifuentes Blanca , Esteban Carrasco Alberto , Gómez Garay Aránzazu , Martín Calvarro Luisa , Martín Gómez María Soledad , Pérez-Urría Carril Elena , Pintos López Beatriz , Solís González María Teresa , Torres Muñoz Margarita , Aguado Megías Gema , Aguilar Rico Darío , Alonso Mezquita Cristina , Anaya Chillarón Elena , Arnal Sierra Raquel , Bejarano Muñoz Lara , Briones Rizo Marina , Cantaragiu Silvia Gabriela , Casado Sarrión Celia , Cuevas Medina Beatriz , De la Hoz Rivera María , García Lorenzana Clara , García Vela Elva Xochil , Gómez Prieto Ángela , González Carlos , Herrera Castillo Lisbeth Carolina , Konarieva Iulia , Lambea Hernansanz Manuel , Liébana Alfonso Alba , Losada Oliva Paula , Manrique García Laura , Marín García María , Martínez San Juan Ana , Montañés Fuentemilla María , Montecino Fernández Laura , Murillo Ambrona Paula , Poyatos Peláez Sara , Pujana Zabala Maialen , Ruiz Matute Celia , Sánchez Barrientos Laura , Sánchez León Rocío , Sánchez-Archidona Benito Lucía , Villar García Verónica , Zamorano Domínguez Elena , Santos De la Sen Antonio
Published: July 2019

Creative thinking is necessary to generate novel ideas and solve problems. "EstuPlan" is a methodology in which knowledge and creativity converge for the resolution of scientific problems with social projection. It is a training programme that integrates teachers, laboratory technicians and PhD students, master and undergraduate students which form working groups for  the development of projects. Projects have a broad and essential scope and projection in terms of environmental problems, sustainable use of natural resources, food, health, biotechnology or biomedicine. The results show the success of this significant learning methodology using tools to develop creativity in responding to scientific and social demand for problem-solving to transfer academic knowledge to different professional environments. Bioplastics, Second Life of Coffee, LimBio, Algae oils, Ecomers, Caring for the life of your crop and Hate to Deforestate are currently being developed.
Students with Learning Disabilities at University
Authors: Zecchi Sandra
Published: July 2019

Specific Learning Disorders involve a plurality of functions that impact the decoding of the alphabetic code. They have an evolutionary character, that is, vary according to the age of the subject. The present work, connected to positive practical experiences, investigates the characteristics of DSAs in adulthood and the impact with university teaching. It presents the outcomes in progress of an interdisciplinary project (including pedagogical, medical and engineering area). Learning Disabilities (LD) disorder are relatively new for the education at the university level, and have therefore pushed teachers and researcher to define research projects, both scientific and pedagogic, aimed to suit the needs of LD students. In such perspective, due to the high variability of LD manifestations and degrees and also to the peculiar students’ features, a multidisciplinary approach and strategies are required to identify personalized educational paths for LD students while respecting, the specificity and the objectives of the different university courses.
Interaction of higher and post-university education as a factor of the formation and development of the professionalism of young specialists
Authors: Popova Natalya Victorovna , Narkhov Dmitry Yur'evich , Narkhova Elena Nikolaevna , Dobrynin Igor Mikhailovich
Published: July 2019

The aim of this study is to analyze interaction of university and postgraduate education as a factor in formation and development of qualification of the young specialists. Students of higher educational institutions and young employees aged 18 - 30 years at the industrial enterprises of the Urals serve as the object for empirical analysis. In order to achieve this goal, a set of complementary methods was used: theoretical and empirical (study and generalization of practical experience; questionnaires; qualitative and quantitative analysis of the results), as well as statistical data analysis. The article presents the results of modern students’ monitoring analysis displaying the issues of primary professional development, as well as the survey of young employees at the modern industrial enterprises, reflecting the problems of their professional advancement and prospects for professional and career growth. The conclusion is made about the need for interaction between higher and postgraduate education not only to ensure formation and development of professionalism of the young employees, but also the economic sustainability of enterprises.
Self-efficacy in first-year university students: a descriptive study
Authors: Alvarez-Huerta Paula , Larrea Iñaki , Muela Alexander , Vitoria José Ramón
Published: July 2019

The study and analysis of the self-efficacy beliefs of students has become an important line of educational research. The purpose of this study, conducted at the University of Mondragon (Spain), is to explore the different perceptions concerning the creative and entrepreneurial self-efficacy of students on their entrance to university. Results revealed clear patterns with regards to discipline and gender. Students commencing their degrees in social sciences show lower creative and entrepreneurial self-efficacy perceptions than their peers in other disciplines. Women show lower scores than men across different disciplines with the exception of women commencing engineering studies. Self-efficacy has been related to student motivation and learning and has been found influential in the choice of the professional career. The high significance of this construct in education makes the results of this study have clear implications for the development of learning environments that address the differences found between gender and disciplines. Directions for future research are also indicated.
Old Dogs Can Learn to Like New Tricks: One Instructor’s Change in Attitude to Online Instruction from 2009-2017
Authors: OBrien Thomas V. , Foster Holly A.
Published: July 2019

This qualititative case study examined a veteran instructor’s change in attitude about university online instruction. After a short review of the literature and explanation of the project, researchers conducted a content analysis of an instructor’s annual self-reports about his online teaching of a graduate course in the social sciences. The self –reports were written between 2009 and 2017. The researchers also examined students’ end-of-semester evaluation scores about the course and instructor. Results suggest that the instructor began online teaching with a mixed attitude. After four years of teaching the online course (delivered once each spring) the instructor reported more about content issues and less about online delivery. In the final the period (2016-17) the reseachers found that the instructor was invested fully in online delivery. Although the study is not generalizable, its results suggest that instructors who stay with an online system over an extended period of time may gain more confidence in the efficacy of online delivery. The findings complement previous findings in the literature about faculty attiudes toward technology use in instruction.
Place Matters! Fostering place-based geoscience teaching at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa
Authors: Bottjer-Wilson Daniela , Bruno Barbara C
Published: July 2019

Drawing on the importance of place has been shown to be a powerful tool in education.  This paper explores place-based teaching (PBT) in geoscience courses at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa’s School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology, where faculty and student demographics sharply differ.  Despite these differences, survey results from geoscience faculty (n=59) and students (n=83) revealed a strong consensus: 78% of students and 83% of faculty reported that PBT is an important and effective practice to reach all students.  Most faculty (91%) indicated that they currently incorporate at least some PBT practices in their geoscience classes and would like to incorporate additional ones in the future.  However, many faculty expressed concern about lack of knowledge or resources, particularly regarding PBT strategies that require a high level of cultural competency.  We therefore propose a three-layered PBT framework, where faculty can start with more accessible PBT strategies (the base layer) and progress upwards as their cultural competency deepens.  Through providing geoscience resources and professional development opportunities, we can empower faculty to include more diverse and culturally meaningful practices as their experience and knowledge deepens.
Teaching and Learning in Statistics: Harnessing the power of modern statistical software to improve students statistical reasoning and thinking
Authors: Alston-Knox Clair Louise , Strickland Christopher Mark , Gazos Theo , Mengersen Kerrie Lee
Published: July 2019

The reproducibility crisis in science has launched global discussion about the need to restructure the way statistics is taught across a wide range of disciplines. While this need has been recognized and discussed in the academic community for many years, the impetus for educational reform of statistics was boosted by Ioannidis (2005), which resulted in a great deal of attention on issues regarding the inappropriate use of statistical reasoning. The availability of data across business and research has increased dramatically in recent years. This access to data has resulted in almost every member of society needing a skill set that allows them to think critically about the inferences that can validly be drawn to improve decisions based on data. One way of improving statistical literacy and thinking is through the identification and use of appropriate statistical software that will allow students, and other practitioners with basic training, access to modern statistical modeling techniques on a platform that allows them to focus on outcomes. A key component of using AutoStat for teaching statistical thinking is in alleviating the need for coding, which allows the instructors to focus on key concepts, questions and outcomes.
The Factors Affecting University Retention/ Attrition By Big Data Analytics
Authors: Cho Richard K , Kim Dongmin
Published: July 2019

Using the enrolment data at the Faculty of Business (FOB) in one Canadian University, we perform the big data analysis to examine the cause of attrition: a) the existence of potential risk group and b) the potential courses, which can be the predictors of student attrition in the first few years in the university. The logistic regression was used to find the potential predictors for students’ retention, and the cluster analysis also suggests the existence of inherently high-risk groups in students. By providing support for the high-risk group to successfully complete courses, the retention rate could be improved.
Developing start-ups with academic support in Romania
Authors: Andronic Anca-Olga , Andronic Razvan-Lucian , Cruceru Gica
Published: July 2019

The objective of the paper is to present how experts from Spiru Haret University have been involved in the development and implementation of a project aimed at the start-up development in the Central region of Romania, This project runs within one of the first European funded programs where universities are eligible. The project ran through the first stage of entrepreneurship training by September 2018, where 371 members of the target group (of the 403 selected) completed an entrepreneurial training course, supported by academic staff. Subsequently, a business plan competition was organized in two sessions (in November and December 2018), following which 38 business plans were selected, the ones selected attended training in the same industry they intend to develop their business. By July 2020, the 38 selected entrepreneurs will benefit from counseling and mentoring services, along with the monitoring of the business plan.
Taking students outside the classrooms. Location-based mobile games in education
Authors: Ceconello Mauro Attilio , Spallazzo Davide , Scianname' Martina
Published: July 2019

The contribution aims at corroborating location-based mobile games as models for the integration of digital technologies in the educational field. They demonstrated to be valid alternatives to formal education in the applied research project: Play Design!, which addressed to high school students, interested in design-related matters, and intends to valorise the Italian design culture, transforming Milan into the stage of a double-sided story. Design is here highlighted both as a cultural heritage and a discipline, inducing the development of two different games sharing a common didactic aim: D.Hunt and D.Learn. The first one is a mobile treasure hunt illustrating the excellences of the creative production of the country, and the renowned protagonists and places of Italy- and Milan-based design: a cultural background to be preserved and valorised. The second one, instead, is a role-play, cooperative and competitive game which depicts the city as a hub for schools and universities, where design is considered a subject for didactic courses, a combination of theories and practices to be transmitted and implemented. Then, the two mobile, location-based serious games exploit this copious and multifaceted material for evident learning purposes, joining the examples of informal education to increasingly follow in future technology developments.
Networks that Cross the Boundaries of the Classroom: A Quasi-Experimental Study of University Students
Authors: Benítez-Andrades José Alberto , García Isaías , Benavides Carmen , Pérez-Paniagua Javier , Marqués-Sánchez Pilar , Reguera Mercedes
Published: July 2019

Currently there is a trend towards facilitating multidisciplinary research and collaborations between different faculties and/or multi-university collaboration. In order to achieve standardization, we believe that this culture should begin with the teaching-learning processes. This research has investigated collaborative work between nursing students and computer engineering students. To analyze the group response, an analysis of the contacts was carried out through Social Network Analisys, pre- and post-intervention. The student networks analyzed were friendship, collaboration and negative networks. The results show that the intervention had a positive impact on networks among students, creating greater cohesiveness due to the resources they shared. The research adds useful evidence for proposing innovative and multidisciplinary strategies in terms of  networks.
Students’ Self-directed Learning in the Context of Industrial Challenges: Latvia University of Life Sciences and Technologies Case
Authors: Briede Baiba
Published: July 2019

Students’ self-directed learning (SDL) is analysed as a means to promote the development of professionals who are active life-long learners, ready to complex problem solving, leadership and flexible adaptation to social and economic situations. That is why the aim of the study was to analyse the components of SDL essential for nowadays socio-economic situation and to find out SDL results from the students of Latvia University of Life Sciences and Technologies (LLU). The method of questionnaire was used to investigate the students’ self-assessment on their SDL focusing on purposefulness, motivation for knowledge, implementation of effective learning strategies, responsibility, control assessment of learning progress, importance to express one’ s view and time management. The results of the study were obtained from 305 first-year students of LLU. Medium results dominate in relation to implementation of effective learning strategies, importance to express one’s view and time management. It means that preferably an electronic aid on learning strategies and more flexible learning environments for the first year students is necessary. The study results also indicate that more teaching methods promoting views expression are of high importance and should be included in further education courses for teachers. Keywords: Self-directed learning; university students; professionalism.
Shared learning process among students of the Health Sciences and Electronic Engineering Department and students of professional training in the area of Technology and Health. A proposal for educational innovation.
Authors: Sánchez-Lorente Montserrat , Sanchis-Sánchez Enrique , Alarcón-Gómez Juan Ramón , García-Molina Pablo , Balaguer-López Evelin , Zurita-Round Nicole Victoria , Ferrer-González Sergio , Paniagua-Sánchez Sandra , Bouaouda-Ruiz Fátima , Blasco-Igual José María
Published: July 2019

El objetivo de esta propuesta de innovación educativa es facilitar el aprendizaje de conceptos complejos y su relación con la realidad, a través de la capacitación entre pares, en la que se compartirán dos escenarios: la universidad y la capacitación profesional. Proponemos una experiencia en la que los estudiantes universitarios en el área de Tecnología Electrónica y Salud, específicamente de los grados de Ingeniería Electrónica Industrial, Fisioterapia y Enfermería, previamente capacitados en los conceptos de radiación y sus tipos, la radiación infrarroja, su uso en la salud en ambos. El tratamiento y diagnóstico, la termorregulación y la termografía con la herramienta de pensamiento visual, pueden compartir de manera transversal un escenario de enseñanza con estudiantes de capacitación profesional en áreas tecnológicas y de salud en particular con los Técnicos Superiores en Electromedicina Clínica. La ejecución del proyecto se llevará a cabo durante el mes de febrero de 2019. Esta propuesta de formación adquirida entre iguales producirá una mayor eficiencia en los resultados, generando una mejor adhesión en los escenarios de enseñanza y posteriormente en el entorno laboral.
Effects of Plagiarism in Introductory Programming Courses on the Learning Outcomes
Authors: Pawelczak Dieter
Published: July 2019

We compare two introductory programming courses and the accompanying programming assignments with respect to the learning outcomes and the relation to plagiarism. While in the first course the solutions from the students of their programming assignments are checked directly with a plagiarism detection system to prevent students from plagiarizing, plagiarism is not tracked in the second course. Running a post check against plagiarism after the course reveals a significant higher plagiarism rate with several exact copies. As the number of students handing in copies from fellow students increases, the failure rate in the final examination also rises. Analyzing the data does not only reveal a correlation between plagiarizing and inferior examination results, but also shows, that students confronted with a plagiarism detection system have better skills in fundamental coding concepts. We suppose this might be a result of the fact, that the implementation of a plagiarism detection system does not deter so many students from plagiarizing, but students are strongly motivated to run more modifications on their plagiarisms in order not to be caught.
From scribe to YouTuber: A proposal to teach the History of the English Language in the digital era
Authors: Rodríguez-Abruñeiras Paula , Romero-Barranco Jesús
Published: July 2019

The present paper deals with a proposal for enhancing students’ engagement in the course ‘History of the English Language’ of the Degree in English Studies (Universitat de València). For the purpose, the traditional lectures will be combined with a research project carried out by groups of students (research teams) in which two digital tools will be used: electronic linguistic corpora and YouTube. Electronic linguistic corpora, on the one hand, will allow students to discover the diachronic development of certain linguistic features by looking at real data and making conclusions based on frequencies by themselves. YouTube, on the other, is a most appropriate online environment where students will share a video lecture so that their classmates can benefit from the research work they did, fostering peer-to-peer learning. The expected results are to make students more autonomous in their learning process, as they will be working on their project from the very beginning of the course; and to engage them more effectively since they will be working in a format that resembles what they do at their leisure time.
Competencies and higher education: evidences and returns. The TECO project
Authors: Ciolfi Alberto , Di Benedetto Annalisa
Published: July 2019

The aim of this work is to present the state of progress and the main features of the TECO (TEst of COmpetence) project, promoted by the (Italian) National Agency for the Evaluation of Universities and Research Institutes with the aim to assess students’ learning outcomes in the higher education contest. The results of the 2017-2018 TECO survey (which involved voluntarily over 12,500 nursing, physiotherapy and medical radiology students), showed that attending a university programme makes a difference in development of some competencies, especially for the disciplinary sphere. The analysis will focus on the connections between the characteristics of the students at the beginning of their study career and the achieved level of tested competences. The return of the test results to the students and study programmes’ coordinators will be presented and discussed, considering their possible uses in a self-assessment perspective. TECO results and the new indicators that will be originated from this project could prove to be reliable tools for university programmes self-assessment, encouraging the use of evidence-based strategies for higher education improvement.
How to motivate students to learn Metabolic Biochemistry in a Biomedical Sciences curricula
Authors: Fardilha Margarida , Carvalho Henriques Magda
Published: July 2019

Teaching methodologies used in biochemistry classes at the University level are traditionally dependent on theorical classes. The assessment is usually based on written tests performed at the end of the semester. However, most students who learn metabolism by this traditional method consider the study of metabolic biochemistry a terrifying and unforgettable experience. Understanding biochemical metabolic pathways was the proposed goal of the Medical Biochemistry curricular unit. To this end, the multi-method active learning approach was used in order to increase students’ motivation towards the learning process and to allow the development of skills associated with group conflict resolution, critical thinking and communication skills. Overall, students and learning facilitators were highly motivated by the diversity of learning activities, particularly due to the emphasis on correlating theoretical knowledge with human health and disease. As a quality control exercise, the students were asked to answer a questionnaire on their evaluation of the teaching/learning experience. Thus, the initial analysis of the student’s perception questionnaires permits to conclude that the approach undertaken yields results that surpass the traditional teaching methods. Investing in preparing attractive and motivating classes increases students and teacher’s general satisfaction and the learning/teaching process becomes more efficient.
Competence Assessment and Competence Reflection in Software Engineering Education
Authors: Henschel Lisa
Published: July 2019

In the course of digitalization, software is becoming increasingly important and is characterized by growing complexity. Without software, the use of digital technologies would be impossible. The increasing complexity brings major challenges for teaching and learning of software engineering with it. The dynamic of change in software engineering leads to permanent learning requirements, which have to be fulfilled holistically. The fact that the development of software requires a high degree of interdisciplinary thinking and a systematic cooperation of different roles, results in the demand for the development of interdisciplinary competences and makes the continuous holistic competence development indispensable, since technical skills are absolutely necessary, but not sufficient.A central issue in the course of the holistic competence development is to be able to recognize existing competences in order to use them for the personal biography and competence development. In this context, the process of reflection plays a decisive role as it can make implicit areas of competences aware. This contribution outlines a qualitative research approach which focuses on the question of how the reflection process of students in software engineering can be stimulated and supported by the use of a learning process-oriented competence assessment system.
Alternanza scuola-lavoro (work-based learning) as a resource for higher education
Authors: Lisimberti Cristina , Montalbetti Katia
Published: July 2019

In Italy, Law no. 107/2015 made obligatory for all second grade secondary school students to spend a certain number of hours on alternanza scuola-lavoro activities (work-based learning). For Italian schools this opened up new horizons as well as new challenges on multiple levels: organisational, didactic and educational. Anyway Legal provisions and scientific evidence are in fact not sufficient to guarantee quality because school and work contexts are systems guided by different motivations, models and mechanisms. “Tailoring” and “co-designing” are the main characteristics of alternanza programmes offered by Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore; to investigate the quality of these experiences a survey has been launched. Whilst the study confirms the satisfaction of the participating schools, from the perspective of ongoing improvement, a number of areas for development emerged in relation to evaluation issue in particular. Beyond the experience itself, universities should consider alternanza a major topic for consideration, since it enhances their fundamental activities: research, education and the third mission; accommodating students on alternanza programmes is therefore a means of responding to local needs but also an opportunity to consolidate university development strategies.
International undergraduate business students' perceptions of employability
Authors: Kiss Eszter , Barker Michelle , Singh Parlo
Published: July 2019

Graduate employability is a highly contested topic by education providers, employers and governments.  The responsibility of universities to enhance students’ employability through work-integrated learning (WIL) opportunities is also debated. This study explored international students’ understanding of employability skills and their self-perceptions of their employability at an Australian university. It also investiaged students’ perception of the universities’ role in enhancing employability. A qualitative approach informed by Social Cognitive Career Theory (Lent, Brown & Hackett, 1994), used multiple focus groups comprising 18 international undergraduate students from Brazil, China, Colombia, India, Papua New Guinea, South Korea in their final semester at an urban Australian university. The key findings are: (1) Participants were unable to differentiate between employability skills, personality traits and job-specific skills; (2) The importance of social skills and networking were recognised by Chinese respondents, in particular; (3) The perceived level of work-readiness was higher among respondents who had previous work experience; (4) The inclusion of more practical WIL components in the degree program calls for curriculum review; (5) Creating opportunities for students to apply their knowledge and skills in professional contexts is highly desirable. The findings highlight curriculum considerations needed in the development of high-quality WIL experiences that will enable students to apply the knowledge and skills learnt in the classroom, thus enhancing their self-efficacy about their employability.
Critical thinking in PBL: Development of a bespoke tool for critical thinking
Authors: Ali Nazim , Crawford Russell , Horn Margaux
Published: July 2019

As an active learning strategy, problem based learning (PBL) puts the emphasis on students being responsible for their learning (Hmelo-Silver and Barrows 2006). Although it is student-centred, PBL facilitators can help students achieve deep learning through strategies which allow them to check their understanding and engage in critical thinking skills (Wood, 2003; Azer et al,. 2013). However enabling students to engage in critical thinking skills and assessing their learning requires the use of innovative strategies (Azer et al., 2013). This paper describes the development of a learning tool to allow students undertake their own-self assessment. It was developed on the principles of ill-structured problems which encourage the utilization of critical thinking skills (Kek and Huijser, 2011). Thus the aim of the research was to assess whether the tool would allow the students to engage in critical thinking skills such as deep understanding and application of knowledge. Results show students found the tool to be effective for their learning where they were able to apply their knowledge and test understanding. This suggested that the developed tool proved to be useful in engaging students in critical thinking skills and as a means to check student understanding.
‘Teach the teacher’: Design and evaluation of a professional teaching development program
Authors: Mendoza Antonette , Wright Sue , Shallcross David
Published: July 2019

A significant aspect of engineering education is the tutorial experience. This article describes the development and evaluation of a Tutor Development Program delivered within a School of Engineering in one of Australia’s leading universities. The paper presents a novel framework for an extended tutor professional development program that fosters interactive ways of engaging students. Evaluation of the program involved feedback from participating tutors, their students and the program facilitator. Our results show that tutors found the program extremely useful and, in turn, their students responded positively to the strategies tutors implemented. Observations by the program facilitator support these findings. We argue that an extended professional development program that facilitates active engagement is a crucial component in engineering education.
Internationalization @ home in Engineering Education: Enhancing Social Capital in English-taught Master´s Programmes
Authors: Strenger Natascha , Ulbrich Nilgün
Published: July 2019

German higher education institutions attract students from all over the word for degree mobility, especially after the Bologna reform has led to an increase in internationally-oriented, English-taught study programmes. With such programmes, universities serve the politically intended purpose of attracting highly qualified talent in the form of international graduates that might potentially stay for the German job market. But for the transition from studies to the work market to be successful, it is essential for international students to acquire social capital in the form of contacts to people from the host country. This paper firstly presents results of a study on the situation of students who come to study in international engineering programmes at the Ruhr-Universität Bochum in Germany, focusing on the unsatisfactory contact situation of international and German students revealed in the study. Secondly, measures of the project ELLI2 – Excellent Teaching and Learning in Engineering Sciences – are introduced that aim at improving this situation, fascilitating contact between German and international engineering students. The set-up of a tandem-programme is presented, as well as participation structure and evaluation results of the first two runs of this programm in 2017/18. In addition, an international student council network will be introduced.
Teaching Music Historical Literacy Using Video Clips
Authors: November Nancy
Published: July 2019

Four professionally-created, student-presented, three- to five-minute videos were integrated into two undergraduate music history courses at the University of Auckland, to support the development of key historical literacy skills. These include crucial skills and understandings that music students need to master in their first two years: identifying different kinds of music scores; understanding the difference between primary and secondary sources for music historical topics; finding one’s way around critical, “complete works” editions of music; and finding and assessing music-related literature on the Internet. The intervention led to marked improvements in student learning in each of the four areas.
Learning Gain using a game improve pharmacology knowledge in two transnational HE institutes.
Authors: Crawford Russell
Published: July 2019

Gamification in higher education has been shown to provide a diverse range of learning opportunities for higher education practitioners as well as students.  Building on our research exploring the benefits of using a card-based, role-playing team game called “BrainceptTM” to aid pharmacology learning for medical students, we now test the reproducibility of our novel finding that this game leads to appreciable and sustained  learning gains in medical students from two different higher education institutes. Here we present student feedback, thematic analysis and quantitative pre-and post-test data collected from students who played BrainceptTM.  Our data shows that this style of gamified learning has a reproducible positive effect on student pharmacological knowledge as well as measurable learning gains post-game play in both cohorts of students leading us to conclude that gamification of pharmacology learning may be a pedagogically valuable transnational educational intervention.
Indicators needed to design a student dashboard from lecturers’ perspectives: a qualitative study
Authors: Arriaran Olalde Iñigo , Ipiña Larrañaga Nagore
Published: July 2019

The number of students’ enrolled in Higher Education online courses is increasing, and as a result, more data about their learning process is generated. The data produced can be displayed on a dashboard and help students in their learning process. However, lecturers’ perspective should be taken into account to define the indicators of the dashboard as the design of the courses could impact on the elements included on it.  And that is precisely the aim of this paper: to define the indicators needed to design a student dashboard in online courses taking into account lecturers' perspectives. This study was carried out with 10 lecturers from the Faculty of Humanities and Education from Mondragon Unibertsitatea. Online qualitative questionnaires were used to gather participants’ perceptions. Results show that most of the lecturers participating in the research study identified four indicators to design a student dashboard: number of times students access the course forum, amount of contributions in the forum, number of times students consult the information booklet, and number of times each student has accessed the course in a week time. Conclusions drawn from this study highlight the importance of training lecturers and students on the pedagogical use of data visualization.