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Archive for the ‘Research’ Category

Applying a framework to evaluate assignment marking software: a case study on Lightwork

Abstract This article presents the findings of a qualitative evaluation on the effect of a specialised software tool on the efficiency and quality of assignment marking. The software, Lightwork, combines with the Moodle learning management system and provides support through marking rubrics and marker allocations. To enable the evaluation a framework has been developed that […]

Mobile Media: Towards a Definition and Taxonomy of Contents and Applications

Abstract The paper is grounded in the idea that a theory of mobile media, like that of any other scientific discourse, must be built on solid conceptual and taxonomical bases. Within this context the paper brings together previous fragmented approaches to studying mobile media, analyses them, and develops a set of definitions and classifications of […]

The Accessibility Quotient: A New Measure of Open Access

Abstract INTRODUCTION The Accessibility Quotient (AQ), a new measure for assisting authors and librarians in assessing and characterizing the degree of accessibility for a group of papers, is proposed and described. The AQ offers a concise measure that assesses the accessibility of peer-reviewed research produced by an individual or group, by incorporating data on open […]

Problem-based Learning in an Online Course of Health Education

Abstract The objectives of this project were to: i) describe the experience of implementing Problem-Based Learning in an online course over three consecutive academic years, ii) analyse the learning environment generated, iii) discuss impacts on students’ active participation, based on the analysis of their interactions. The participants were 30 students, working in five groups, and […]

Emotive Vocabulary in MOOCs: Context & Participant Retention

Abstract Massive Online Open Courses (MOOCs) have been growing in popularity with educational researchers, instructors, and learners in online environments. Online discussions are as important in MOOCs as in other online courses. Online discussions that occur in MOOCs are influenced by additional factors resulting from their volatile and voluntary participation structure. This article aims to […]

Deriving Empirically-Based Design Guidelines for Advanced Learning Technologies that Foster Disciplinary Comprehension

Abstract Planning, conducting, and reporting leading-edge research requires professionals who are capable of highly skilled reading. This study reports the development of an empirically informed computer-based learning environment designed to foster the acquisition of reading comprehension strategies that mediate expertise in the social sciences. Empirical data were gathered in a mixed-methods explanatory sequential design that […]

Developing a virtual physics world

In this article, the successful implementation of a development cycle for a physics teaching package based on game-like virtual reality software is reported. The cycle involved several iterations of evaluating students’ use of the package followed by instructional and software development. The evaluation used a variety of techniques, including ethnographic observation, surveys, student focus groups […]

Social Networking Postings: Views from School Principals

Abstract Numerous recent media accounts indicate that teachers are being fired, put on probation, or otherwise censured because of information found on their social networking sites (SNS). While the literature in business, psychology, and pharmacy shows initial investigations of the impact of SNS information on hiring decisions, this area has not been investigated in the […]

Cyber Security and Education

The rapidity with which children and young people are gaining access to online, convergent, mobile and networked media is unprecedented in the history of technological innovation. There are two main foci for e–security research that associated with protecting information both strategic and economic and that protecting people particularly the young. While these are overlapping concerns […]

Social Media and Marketing of Higher Education: A Review of the Literature

Abstract The emergence of social media has revolutionized the practice of communication in two fundamental ways. First, social media have made it possible for one person to send an instant message to millions of others worldwide. Second and perhaps more important, social media make it possible to establish a two-way communication channel between the sender […]