Design-based research

This article describes the phases of a design-based research (DBR) process using the example of an economic education project. The project was carried out in the "urban economics" subject area for economic education in upper secondary schools (15-18 years). The research questions, research design, and central research results are described in detail. Finally, the experiences from the project are incorporated to reflect the DBR's specific performance characteristics.

Design is a profession that lives in both sociocultural and technical settings. We cannot separate design from people, and as such, there is a need to consider design as a people-centered activity.1 Design research is not any different; it involves understanding such settings.2 However, despite many articulations of how designers might understand people, things, places, contexts, cultures, and so on, we continue to let design research be tinted (or tainted?) by traditional methods of understanding from the empirical sciences. While there have been numerous user-centered design approaches and efforts, as well as a number of methods for investigation3,4,5,6,7,8,9 the design discipline keeps borrowing methods informed by the sciences that might not be enough to add context and insight to the design process (e.g., observations and interviews).10,11 In addition, working with people requires understanding specific subpopulations and cross generations. How do we define the inherent practice of “design as research”? We lack the language and vocabulary to speak specifically about methods of making for understanding.
Designers-as-researchers implement interventions, which are inherently methods.12 But at the same time, interventions produce something consumable that lives, that is designed, and that produces a constant construction of knowledge—over time, across contexts, and in both personal and social ways. Design interventions can be research. Central to this “making of understanding” is the role of prototyping. By externalizing prototyping processes,
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designers create interventions that synthesize a point of view and put it out into the world to let people react, respond, interpret it, love it, hate it, and provide commentary. Reflecting on these interventions produces new knowledge. Is this a design method or a research method? Is this design, meaning, design as research?
With this activity group, we put forward the thesis that design methods and design interventions for the sake of gaining human insights are not two separate things. We cannot separate research methods from design per se and therefore question the relationship of research to design: Research for design? Research by design? Research within design? Research as design? Furthermore, the goal was to open a discussion on the tensions between the concepts of research and design and present design as its own science for empirical research. Design occupies a unique position outside the categories of natural, technical, and social sciences. The hard sciences give us knowledge, but that knowledge-making activity is conducted separate from the inherent value of design as a generative and transformative activity. Design can contribute to the empirical sciences from its own position. However, design is—or can be— a science of its own, but we have not yet created an identity nor language for design as a science. The purpose of this activity group was to encourage design educators to develop a natural language to engage with one another, to discuss their research, to engage in research with other disciplines, and to help students understand how their tacit knowledge as designers already contributes to ways of knowing as researchers.

This research aims to model the process of data visualization (DV) and design to facilitate computational thinking (CT) of secondary-level students. As an interdisciplinary method for visualizing complex data, creating data visualizations requires learners to analyze data from knowledge of pure and applied science. This study investigates creating DV to facilitate CT as an interdisciplinary method which combines mathematics and information technology. The study was carried out using synthesised design-based research (DBR) method by conducting two cycles comprised of five phases: problem analysis within real-life context, design solution, develop solution, evaluate in practice and reflection. CT dimensions (decomposition, pattern recognition, abstraction, and algorithm design) were tested by using the Computational Thinking through Data Visualization Rubric and reflection form acquired during implementation. The sample consisted of secondary school students in the data visualization creation process with 27 in the first cycle and 31 in the second cycle. This research proposes a model to facilitate development of CT by DV with the analysis of complex data, creating an effective method by enabling analytics and visualizing data. The proposed DV development process facilitating CT has the potential to inform research on interdisciplinary learning environments.

Study of Ontario College of Art and Design and Orfield Laboratories on the perception of accessibility in North America's Largest public housing agency.  This includes comparisons of able bodied and disabled (physically or perceptually) and their ranking of perceived accessibility

In recent years, the quality of management education in general, and particularly of MBA and Executive MBA programs, has been called into question. There are serious doubts about universities’ ability to give students the competencies they need to deal with complex problems in modern society. One part of the discussion focuses on ethical issues and the process through which students develop values and attitudes. In line with the economic crisis, there has been increasing interest in the development of learners’ attitudes to responsibility. We report the results of a study that starts with an ambitious and yet ill-structured learning goal in a demanding educational practice area: How can pedagogical interventions in management education be designed to promote learners‘ attitudes to responsible leadership? As a starting point, there are neither consensual definitions of responsible leadership nor substantial theories available to design promising interventions. De-sign-
based research (DBR) provides a structured process to deal with research problems, starting with innovative but imprecisely defined objectives and unknown ways to reach them. We introduce the DBR design and describe the research process and results from a project conducted at St.Gallen University’s Executive MBA program. In close collaboration with practitioners, interventions evolved through multiple cycles of development, testing and refinement with the pursuit of theory-building and practical innovation.

In this case study the processes and outcomes of an educational design research project focusing on the creation of a professional development programme for early childhood teachers to foster inquiry-based science education are discussed. Within this project a research model based on the methodology of educational design research was developed and refined. This model is used to discuss the different phases of the research process, the involvement of stakeholders during the whole research project, the role of the project team, and the ‘unpredictability’ of the project’s outcomes. With the assistance of experts in methodology, the project team developed insights into combining diverse forms of formative evaluation and data processing. This chapter also shows how the project team gained expertise in the active and intensive cooperation with a diverse group of stakeholders. One of the key and crucial aspects contributing to the success of the research has been the open and appreciative relationship between stakeholders and members of the project team.

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Limitations with current approaches to the investigation of the transfer
of learning in design experiments constrain the type of information
that is available to researchers as they make design decisions. This article
addresses these limitations by presenting a reconceptualization
of transfer, called actor-oriented transfer, which emerged from design
experiment work. The merits of this alternative model are considered
in terms of the information it provides to design experimenters.

This article considers issues in educational reform, particularly accountability-oriented policies, and student motivation. We argue that prominent theories of motivation derived from cognitive traits/states are antithetical to the assumptions underlying conventional assessment formats and accountability-oriented reforms. We advance an alternative perspective that emerges from sociocultural assumptions. In this perspective, the values and beliefs that motivate engagement in learning reside alongside the practices that characterize knowledge communities and, together, constitute a model of practice. We therefore explore the complex issue of reconciliation between the activities of individuals and social contexts and how “dialectical” reconciliation addresses tensions between classroom assessment and external testing, and between formative and summative functions of assessment. Data and conclusions from a program of research in science education illustrate and warrant these considerations.

Children learn in formal (school) and informal (out-of-school) contexts. Do these children integrate what they learn in these different contexts? While some research shows that they do most of the literature points to a serious lack of contact between these contexts when dealing with related content. During the last two decades, many education researchers have called to bridge this gap.

The aim of this paper is to develop a model to guide dialogue and cooperation between staff members within formal and informal educational contexts, in order to foster this integration. We present: (1) a rationale for bridging between formal and informal learning contexts, including the need for a comprehensive and
practical model to guide this effort; (2) a design-based research methodology for developing the model; and (3) the resulting 4
4-bridging model.

We argue that this model can help educators, engaged in formal and informal learning, to develop practical and productive partnerships with each other.

A critical role for Learning Design is to improve education but we need to first ask ourselves: what is the role of education? Dewey (1938/2007) argues that it is to provide experiences that promote growth. Not just in the course of the experience itself, but in setting up the conditions for further growth through future experiences. It is within this broad definition of educational that our teachers find themselves confronted with the challenging task of preparing young people for a complex and demanding world.
If we want education to be responsive to the ever-shifting environment we live in, and address the challenge of providing learners with experiences that foster continuous growth, there is a clear imperative for reconceptualising education as learning design - “the act of devising new practices, plans of activity, resources and tools aimed at achieving particular educational aims in a given situation” (Mor and Craft 2012).

This paper reports on a study aiming at examining the affordances and constraints of BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) for varied pedagogical practices from teachers' perspectives in higher education. Seventeen teachers from eight departments and centers participated in the one-year study. The affordances and constraints of BYOD were examined under the " framework of affordances and constraints in BYOD-supported learning environment ". Data collection included class observations, class videos, field notes, resources on the BYOD website and teaching plans. Content analysis was adopted in the data analysis. The research findings show that (1) seven types of BYOD conceptualized affordances were identified for varied pedagogical purposes; and (2) three types of constraints of BYOD were singled out in pedagogical practices. Discussions regarding the affordances and constraints are made and implications are explored.

and watch. During the top) service has seen an exponential a growing activity and on this field. In past few Paper, human emotions to provide dynamic content recommen deep list of movies overcome problem in existing method. Keywords When television first came player emerge in the market. with the introduction of the Netflix, Amazon Prime and many other OTT(Over the top) media around provides the has changed the way users interact with video content. films and human emotions. Emotions neurophysiologic pleasure or displeasure. The recent advancement in machine learning, Computer vision and recommendation has achieved studies on computer vision, there is a possibility of improving the quality of Recommendation System whose primary goal is to predict predictions we decide whether to learning have become very popular target their content to a specific audience. they can d The motivation in this work to use emotion technique in recommendation system to generate additional input movie recommendation system a system,

Abstrakt

V práci som sa zamerala na riešenie otázok využitia prírodnými vláknami tužených vizuálnych kompozitov. Zamerala som sa na ich dizajn a vývoj tak, aby budúci priemyselne vyrábaný produkt/materiál spĺňal zároveň: 1/ vizuálne formálno-estetické požiadavky kladené na jeho expozíciu v interiéry; 2/ všetky normatívne požiadavky (ako napr. mechanickú odolnosť, svetlostálosť, oderuvzdornosť, nehorľavosť, atď.); 3/ požiadavky trvalej udržateľnosti z ekologického, ekonomického a sociálneho hľadiska (t.j. produkovateľnosť v lokálnych podmienkach, na báze existujúcich produkčných a logistických reťazcov).
V prvých krokoch som vyvíjala prírodnými vláknami tužené vizuálne kompozity s uplatnením v  automotive interiéroch. Technické vláknité kompozity sa v tejto oblasti používajú i v súčasnosti, sú však prekryté ďalším materiálom/vrstvou tvoriacou dekor, čo o.i. zvyšuje finančnú a materiálovú záťaž ich výroby a aj neskoršej likvidácie; ich aplikácia v tomto sektore tvorí predpoklad úspešného splnenia vyžadovaných normatív i konštrukčne a procesne zhodných vizuálnych vláknitých kompozitov. V práci demonštrujem postupy, aplikáciou ktorých textilný dizajnér dosiahne požadovaný výsledný efekt: prienik naplnenia formálno-estetických požiadaviek na materiál priznávajúci svoj prírodný pôvod, a zároveň splnenie technických normatív pre účel a oblasť jeho použitia. V ďalších krokoch ilustrujem nekonvenčné prístupy a riešenia textilného dizajnéra, keď pre návrh/tvorbu cielene využívam prirodzené vlastnosti materiálu, bežne považované za jeho nevýhodu, či limitáciu (napr. zmeny farebnosti po expozícii svetlu či teplotným zmenám). Sústredila som sa i na využitie moderných funkčných pigmentov, ktoré okrem zaujímavých svetleno-farebných efektov poskytujú v tejto aplikácii pridanú hodnotu ako retardéry horenia. Testovala som možnosti ďalšej vizuálnej modifikácie navrhnutých prírodnými vláknami tužených vizuálnych kompozitov rôznymi spôsobmi potlače. Vo svojom spracovaní som nielen zdokumentovala reálnu možnosť akademického výskumu v tejto perspektívnej oblasti textilného dizajnu, ale zároveň som dokázala a zdokladovala možnosti špecifických prínosov textilného dizajnéra v podmienkach, ktoré kladie súčasná doba.
Vyššie uvedené skutočnosti ma viedli k analýze úloh textilného dizajnéra v súčasnosti. Tieto jednak reflektujú historický vývin meniacich sa požiadaviek kladených na textilného dizajnéra, v súčasnosti však podliehajú dynamickým zmenám v dôsledku procesov transformácie charakteru a podmienok priemyselnej výroby v geopolitickom kontexte. Teoretický historický rozbor meniacich sa požiadaviek na náplň práce textilného dizajnéra viedli k lepšiemu pochopeniu a definovaniu jeho úloh v súčasnosti, a tak aj mojej úlohy a kompetencií pri realizácii návrhov prírodnými vláknami tužených vizuálnych kompozitov.
Okrem analýzy meniaceho sa postavenia textilného dizajnéra vyplývajúcej z historických súvislostí jeho úloh, rozoberám aj nové impulzy nútiace k zmene tradičného ponímania tejto funkcie. Zároveň načrtávam, že nastupujúce zmeny v požiadavkách na textilné materiály a produkty – a teda aj na ich návrh/dizajn, vyžadujú od dizajnéra orientáciu v čoraz širšom spektre odborných, materiálových a procesných vedomostí a zručností. Tieto vytvárajú komplexný základ znalostí doteraz v tejto miere a rozsahu nepožadovaných. V konečnom dôsledku však umožňujú realizáciu nevyhnutných dobou kladených požiadaviek - o.i. trvalej udržateľnosti. Podčiarkujem, že tento nový trend, resp. dobou generované nové požiadavky, je nevyhnutné integrovať najmä do programov vysokoškolského vzdelávania, nakoľko úspešnosť absolventov bude závisieť od ich pripravenosti (t.j. schopnosti) riešiť aktuálne a budúce požiadavky praxe. Zároveň zdôrazňujem, že požiadavky doby, a teda aj výuky, jednoznačne vyžadujú multidisciplinárny a translačný prístup. Riešenie úloh VaV ako i výrobnej praxe vyžaduje schopnosť efektívnej inter- a trans- disciplinárnej komunikácie a spolupráce dizajnéra s ostatnými odborníkmi, ktorej predpokladom je integrácia klasických vedomostí oblasti textilného dizajnu a základných znalostí príslušných normatív už do vzdelávacieho procesu. Mnohé uvedené aspekty možno efektívne implementovať využitím domácich a zahraničných grantových schém pre financovanie medzinárodných štipendijných pobytov doktorandov.


Abstract

My presented work addresses the issues of natural fiber reinforced visual composites application and usage. I focused on their design and development, in accordance with the demands to be met for their future industrial manufacturing: 1 / visual formal and aesthetic requirements of their interior application; 2 / all standard material requirements (e.g. mechanical resistance, light stability, abrasion resistance, flame resistance, etc.); 3 / sustainability requirements in ecological, economic and social terms (i.e. local production based on existing production capacities and logistics chains).
In the first steps, I developed natural fiber reinforced visual composites for automotive interiors. Currently, technical fiber composites are used in this field, but they are hidden under another material – a decorative and protection layer. This results in increased financial and material burdens of their production and subsequent liquidation. Application of natural fiber reinforced visual composites in this sector presumes the fulfillment of the normatives, as they are consistent regarding their construction and processing. Herein I present some approaches of textile designer to achieve the desired final effect: the conjunction of fulfilling formal and aesthetic demands set on the material while keeping its natural character, and concurrently meeting the technical requirements (norms) set for the purpose and area of ​​use.
In the second steps I propose unconventional approaches and solutions a textile designer can offer when creating designs aimed to capture and utilize the advantage of intrinsic properties of the material, which are commonly regarded as its disadvantage or limitation (e.g. pattern or color change after exposure to UV-light or due to changes of ambient temperature). Moreover, I investigated the potential implications of selected functional pigments. Their application renders, in addition to attractive luminous color effects, a required added value as flame-retardants. Further I tested the possibility of further visual modifications of proposed natural fiber visual composites by various printing methods.
In my thesis I documented the contemporary role and the position of academic research in the promising field of textile design. I also documented the outcomes resulting from the possibilities versus requirements, regarding the specific contributions of textile designer in the current circumstances.
These lines of evidence led me to analyze the contemporary role of the textile designer. His/her role on one hand reflects the historical development of the changing demands, on the other it encounters the dynamic changes in the requirements of transformational processes within the geopolitical context of industrial textile production. The analyses of historically changing demands on the textile designers role enable a better understanding and definition of his/her tasks in present, as well as of my own role and responsibilities in implementing the design proposals for natural fiber visual composites.
 
I discuss the new momentum for inducing a change of this traditional perception. I also focus on the outlining of the emerging changes regarding the requirements on designers orientation regarding material and process knowledge. Such a comprehensive knowledge and skill base has not been so far required. However, it is essential for the implementation of all necessary requirements and measures – e.g. of overall sustainability. It is important to integrate these new trends particularly into the programs of higher education.  The success of graduates will depend on their skill to address current and future requirements of the practice. I also emphasize that teaching/education itself will require a multidisciplinary and translational approach. Solving open issues of research, developing practice requiring the designer’s ability for effective inter- and trans-disciplinary communication and collaboration with other professionals. The integration of textile design traditional knowledge, as well as of basic knowledge of the relevant normatives should be integrated into the programs of higher education. Many of the mentioned can be efficiently implemented using domestic and foreign grant funding schemes of the doctoral fellowships.

The appropriate implementation of innovation is a crucial factor in improving educational practice. In the implementation process, there is, however, often a lack of interaction between designers and practitioners that would enable the latter to become competent enough to implement theoretical knowledge into practice and to have an ongoing support from designers. Design-based research is based on close cooperation between researchers, practitioners and designers which consequently allows greater integration of research and practice in education. In the present paper, the beginnings, development, basic characteristics, advantages, disadvantages and the research process of design-based research are reviewed and an example of design-based research is presented.

This study investigated the factors that contribute to the non-science students’ lack of interest in school science through the use of a 27-item questionnaire.  This assisted in comparing the male and female non-science students’ lack of interest in school science.  There were 259 male and female students from three senior high schools in three District Assemblies of the Ashanti Region of Ghana who participated in the study.  Quantitative data were collected from the 259 students through a cross-sectional survey.  The research questions were answered with mean, standard deviation, percentage, boxplot, and independent-samples t-test.  The results of the study have shown that the factors that contribute to students’ lack of interest in school science include as higher demands of students’ time in learning science, less practical nature of science teaching and learning, failure of science students with larger aggregate from high school to gain admission into tertiary institutions, too broad nature of science content, lack of sponsorship for science students, school science as difficult subject compared to others, and teaching of science is a transmission of knowledge from science teachers or textbooks to students.  The results of the study have further shown that there was statistical significant difference between the mean scores of male and female non-science students’ lack of interest in school science.  Science teachers are therefore encouraged to adopt strategies that could encourage students to develop and show interest in science related subjects and courses.

Educational design research-Part B: Illustrative cases

Citation: Abdallah, M. (2013). Employing a three-phase design-based research methodology for expanding student teachers' language-related literacy practices in an Egyptian pre-service English education programme. In T. Plomp, & N. Nieveen (Eds.), Educational design research-Part B: Illustrative cases (pp. 927-946). Enschede, the Netherlands: SLO. SLO • Netherlands institute for curriculum development Credits 2013 SLO (Netherlands institute for curriculum development), Enschede All rights reserved. This publication may be reproduced in whole or in part by photocopying or any other means, provided the source is mentioned. Contents 43. Employing a three-phase design-based research methodology for expanding student teachers' language-related literacy practices in an Egyptian pre-service English education programme Abstract
The chapter reports on a case of a research study that investigates the possibility of expanding Egyptian pre-service EFL student teachers’ language-related literacy practices by integrating some web-based new literacies into their education programme.

After an overview of the rationale, objectives, and research problem, a detailed argument is provided to rationalise the choice of DBR for the purposes of the study based on some epistemological considerations, and to explain why it has been preferred to other prominent research methodologies (e.g., experimental design, interpretivist research, and action research). Moreover, a special focus is given to pragmatism as a basis of DBR. This is followed by a review of the specific design-based research (DBR) methodology employed (i.e. a three-stage research framework): (1) the preliminary phase, which acts as a theoretical and empirical foundation; (2) the prototyping phase of two iterations; (3) the assessment/reflective phase presenting a final design framework for expanding EFL student teachers’ language-related literacy practices.
My main focus here is on the three-phase research design and the procedures followed in the prototyping phase to highlight DBR as a process, and thus provide readers with a practical, contextual example of how DBR can be employed in reality by doctoral students.

Design Education Institutes across the world are today facing the critical challenge to keep pace with the fast-­-changing economies. The profile of the design graduates has undergone a sea change. And on the other end, the profile of the incoming students has changed considerably. In India also, the design has undergone major changes and rapid transformation over the last two decades. A gap is being felt between the industry and societal expectations and the skills and capabilities of the design graduates. To address this critical concern, the National Institute of Design, India's premier design institute, initiated a comprehensive exercise to review curriculum and pedagogical approaches of all its educational programs. The complex system of education at NID required the development of a customized, multi-­-pronged and systematic process to obtain a holistic perspective on the status of design and design education in India. The framework for the exercise was developed around some of the institute's already established best practices and involved all its stakeholders. Each element of the design pedagogy practiced at the institute was taken up and reviewed thoroughly. This comprehensive exercise culminated in the development of a Vision Document, Curriculum Framework, revised Flowcharts and Course Abstracts. It helped revise and improve each course in terms of its effective delivery, outcomes and connect with the overall objectives of the program. The exercise helped revise and realign the programs with contemporary demands and future expectations.

La investigación en sistemas de información recibe contribuciones de la teoría de comprtamiento y de la ciencia basada en el diseño. Esta última pone énfasis en el diseño y construcción de artefactos útiles para la comunidad. Sin embargo, en Latino américa se conoce poco sobre este enfoque investigativo basado en el pragmatismo. Esta presentación resume qué es Design Science Research, cómo puede ser aplicada y entrega un ejemplo de un caso de investgación. útil para investigadores, editores y revisores de artículos científicos de sistemas de información.

What expertise might the design practitioner bring to the interdisciplinary field of the learning sciences? Learning scientists are scholars from educational psychology, cognitive science and anthropology (amongst other disciplines) invested in advancing basic research into how we learn and translating that research into the design of learning innovations. Design-based research, a methodological approach adopted by applied learning scientists, was developed to complement the laboratory studies and randomized clinical trials of traditional educational research. Theoretically the applied, iterative characterization of design-based research closely aligns with design thinking, and yet, in practice there are notable distinctions between the research orientation of a design practitioner and a psychologist working with design-based approach. Drawing on optimizing a designers' expertise in solution seeking and synthesis the research proposition specifically examines the value of taking a systematically expansive approach to phase 1 of a longer term study. The paper is grounded by a case study that explores, through a series of scrappy mini-experiments, the potential of learning interventions into implicit theories of intelligence. In conclusion, the paper presents a framework as an orienteering tool for navigating potential of the research landscape that will inform the more convergent phase 2 iteration of a study.

This paper will focused on effective recognizing and controlling system for Bank locker room which is fully self determining. In cases of robberies, it’s commonly happen that the banned entrance in the locker room area which can be detected by our security system. If the robbery take place the banks are not be capable to recognize the robber due to absence of the proof by using the current human operated security system. Development of various sensors has enabled systems to have preventive and corrective measures in this regard significantly. In order to deliver a concrete security solution for critically important and confidential documents and goods, we proposed an Automated Safety Vault with Double Layered Defense Mechanism. The solution comprised of an Electronic Lock driven by password verification and a Biometric authentication for users using a Finger print scanning and sensing tool. Both of these two layers ensured the authenticity of the user by preventing any unauthorized access to the Vault. The system was then implemented in a prototype scope for testing and validation of the proposals. The implemented system and testing data showed that the Automated Safety Vault with all its security features had successful operation. The specification of the whole system as well as the results is observed and verified.

Design is a discipline, a field, and a profession. Inherently interdisciplinary, often focused on a future that does not yet exist, the work of design involves solving problems for multiple stakeholders in a complex changing world. Designers also seek to create and to invent. Educating people for the design field today involves the legacy of the past and the challenges of the future. Comparable to medical education at the start of the 1900s or business education in the late 1950s, design education is a practical art and an emerging science that requires the full resources of the modern university at a time when the university itself faces extraordinary demands. This lecture examines questions, proposes possible answers, and considers problems that will not be easy to solve.

Learning through small-group collaboration that exposes students to open-ended and complex knowledge problems is becoming part of a pedagogical strategy to prepare higher education students for the knowledge-driven professional life. This dissertation examines learning, conceptualized as a process of knowledge co-construction, in the context of a university bachelor program in educational sciences, respectively, a teacher-education program in a university of applied sciences. Students were required to address complex problems by engaging in collaborative construction of knowledge objects, such as research reports, instructional materials, analyses of assessment methods, etc.
While collaborative activities that stimulate knowledge construction are considered beneficial for learning, they remain complex and challenging for students. The aim of this research was to gain a deeper understanding of how students engage in interaction and how constructing knowledge objects in collaborative projects groups contributes to their learning. The studies included in this dissertation employed a sociocultural approach and qualitative research methodology to examine in depth how students collaborate in semester-long group projects. The analysis focused on groupsʼ interaction and on how the knowledge objects were developed through joint efforts.
The findings showed that knowledge objects developed by the groups are more elaborated and complex when students engage in productive interaction of epistemic nature as opposed to when they work individually or use division of labor. For the former, they first must create shared understanding of the existing knowledge, discuss information and ideas, then generate knowledge, which can be elaborated through discussions, iterative construction of and mutual feedback on object versions. The findings also showed that the knowledge objects can represent more than just a product the group had to deliver for a grade. They mediated the discussions, grounded the analysis and elaboration of ideas and concepts; and guided the collaboration as groups addressed difficulties throughout the process that spans sites and time. Finally, the findings indicated that in order to address complex problems students must be highly aware of the importance of a joint collaborative strategy, and engage actively with the knowledge objects both individually and as a group. These findings support the idea that stimulating and supporting collaboration that entails epistemic interaction and joint work on knowledge objects is a diligent strategy to entice students into engaging with knowledge.
 

In the era of the 21st century, the best higher education institutions have more than one role. Not only do they educate and train students but they also create new ideas and knowledge for the short-term contemporary issues as well as long-term complex problems. In the strategic goals, five aspects are critical in higher education: the democratization of knowledge and access, the contestability of the market and funding, the research technologies, the global mobility and the integration with the industry. Universities should have strategic plans including strategic goals. In this study, the strategic models and plans of the public (5) and private (5) universities are analysed from the five different aspects. In order to deeply understand the dynamics at these universities, the phenomenological interpretive analysis is preferred. University leaders
and managerial departments should consider market needs and do strategic plan accordingly. Hence, they should develop the strategic thinking capacity of both their academic staff and researchers for short and long terms need of the industry. Results have shown that most universities have wrong perception regarding the strategic model and plan. Neither private nor public universities possess enough knowledge on the subject.
Keywords: Higher education, university and industry partnership, strategic model and planning, higher education management, financing of higher education.

This paper reports on a study that diagnosed the difficulties of chemistry students in using IUPAC nomenclature to name organic compounds. This was done by determining the knowledge level of students in IUPAC nomenclature of organic compounds. Students at the senior high school (SHS) level were involved in the study. A cross-sectional survey that employs mixed method approached provided the study with both quantitative and qualitative data. In all, 245 SHS4 chemistry students selected from four out of 18 schools who offered elective science for 2010/2011 academic year in the Kumasi Metropolis were involved in the study. An achievement test and interview were the main instruments for the data collection. The results from the study showed that students had difficulties in naming structural formulae of branched-and substituted-chains of alkanes and alkenes, geometrical isomers, dienes, unbranched alkynes, primary and tertiary alkanols, diols, alkanoic acids, and alkyl alkanoates. Chemistry students' difficulties in IUPAC naming of organic compounds included their inability to identify the correct number of carbon atoms in the parent chain, and to identify a substituent or functional group.

There is increased interest in the use of gamification as an innovative practice in the field of training and education. Based on the use of game mechanics, gamification aims at engaging students in their learning. However, there is not much research on the use of gamification in school settings, especially when it comes to foreign language learning; hence, we know little about to what extent this aim is actually fulfilled. This study intends to contribute to filling this research gap. Silva’s four dimensions of play – built from Henriot’s theory of play – are used as an analytical framework to study a teaching situation where a gamified application, developed for this research project, was introduced in a French-as-a-foreign-language class in a Norwegian upper secondary school. This article focuses on the students’ engagement in their learning activities and their control over the tasks. The interaction analysis of video data reveals that students are indeed showing expressions of playfulness and autonomy. The analysis also shows that the students are engaged in the activity and are voluntarily completing additional language tasks. These findings are promising for the use of gamified resources in foreign language learning classes.

Keywords: Gamification; game-based learning; playfulness; learner autonomy; foreign language learning

ABSTRACT

My presented work addresses the issues of natural fiber reinforced visual composites application and usage. I focused on their design and development, in accordance with the demands to be met for their future industrial manufacturing: 1 / visual formal and aesthetic requirements of their interior application; 2 / all standard material requirements (e.g. mechanical resistance, light stability, abrasion resistance, flame resistance, etc.); 3 / sustainability requirements in ecological, economic and social terms (i.e. local production based on existing production capacities and logistics chains).
In the first steps, I developed natural fiber reinforced visual composites for automotive interiors. Currently, technical fiber composites are used in this field, but they are hidden under another material – a decorative and protection layer. This results in increased financial and material burdens of their production and subsequent liquidation. Application of natural fiber reinforced visual composites in this sector presumes the fulfillment of the normatives, as they are consistent regarding their construction and processing. Herein I present some approaches of textile designer to achieve the desired final effect: the conjunction of fulfilling formal and aesthetic demands set on the material while keeping its natural character, and concurrently meeting the technical requirements (norms) set for the purpose and area of use.
In the second steps I propose unconventional approaches and solutions a textile designer can offer when creating designs aimed to capture and utilize the advantage of intrinsic properties of the material, which are commonly regarded as its disadvantage or limitation (e.g. pattern or color change after exposure to UV-light or due to changes of ambient temperature). Moreover, I investigated the potential implications of selected functional pigments. Their application renders, in addition to attractive luminous color effects, a required added value as flame-retardants. Further I tested the possibility of further visual modifications of proposed natural fiber visual composites by various printing methods.
In my thesis I documented the contemporary role and the position of academic research in the promising field of textile design. I also documented the outcomes resulting from the possibilities versus requirements, regarding the specific contributions of textile designer in the current circumstances.
These lines of evidence led me to analyze the contemporary role of the textile designer. His/her role on one hand reflects the historical development of the changing demands, on the other it encounters the dynamic changes in the requirements of transformational processes within the geopolitical context of industrial textile production. The analyses of historically changing demands on the textile designers role enable a better understanding and definition of his/her tasks in present, as well as of my own role and responsibilities in implementing the design proposals for natural fiber visual composites.

I discuss the new momentum for inducing a change of this traditional perception. I also focus on the outlining of the emerging changes regarding the requirements on designers orientation regarding material and process knowledge. Such a comprehensive knowledge and skill base has not been so far required. However, it is essential for the implementation of all necessary requirements and measures – e.g. of overall sustainability. It is important to integrate these new trends particularly into the programs of higher education.  The success of graduates will depend on their skill to address current and future requirements of the practice. I also emphasize that teaching/education itself will require a multidisciplinary and translational approach. Solving open issues of research, developing practice requiring the designer’s ability for effective inter- and trans-disciplinary communication and collaboration with other professionals. The integration of textile design traditional knowledge, as well as of basic knowledge of the relevant normatives should be integrated into the programs of higher education. Many of the mentioned can be efficiently implemented using domestic and foreign grant funding schemes of the doctoral fellowships.



ABSTRAKT

V práci som sa zamerala na riešenie otázok využitia prírodnými vláknami tužených vizuálnych kompozitov. Zamerala som sa na ich dizajn a vývoj tak, aby budúci priemyselne vyrábaný produkt/materiál spĺňal zároveň: 1/ vizuálne formálno-estetické požiadavky kladené na jeho expozíciu v interiéry; 2/ všetky normatívne požiadavky (ako napr. mechanickú odolnosť, svetlostálosť, oderuvzdornosť, nehorľavosť, atď.); 3/ požiadavky trvalej udržateľnosti z ekologického, ekonomického a sociálneho hľadiska (t.j. produkovateľnosť v lokálnych podmienkach, na báze existujúcich produkčných a logistických reťazcov).
V prvých krokoch som vyvíjala prírodnými vláknami tužené vizuálne kompozity s uplatnením v  automotive interiéroch. Technické vláknité kompozity sa v tejto oblasti používajú i v súčasnosti, sú však prekryté ďalším materiálom/vrstvou tvoriacou dekor, čo o.i. zvyšuje finančnú a materiálovú záťaž ich výroby a aj neskoršej likvidácie; ich aplikácia v tomto sektore tvorí predpoklad úspešného splnenia vyžadovaných normatív i konštrukčne a procesne zhodných vizuálnych vláknitých kompozitov. V práci demonštrujem postupy, aplikáciou ktorých textilný dizajnér dosiahne požadovaný výsledný efekt: prienik naplnenia formálno-estetických požiadaviek na materiál priznávajúci svoj prírodný pôvod, a zároveň splnenie technických normatív pre účel a oblasť jeho použitia. V ďalších krokoch ilustrujem nekonvenčné prístupy a riešenia textilného dizajnéra, keď pre návrh/tvorbu cielene využívam prirodzené vlastnosti materiálu, bežne považované za jeho nevýhodu, či limitáciu (napr. zmeny farebnosti po expozícii svetlu či teplotným zmenám). Sústredila som sa i na využitie moderných funkčných pigmentov, ktoré okrem zaujímavých svetleno-farebných efektov poskytujú v tejto aplikácii pridanú hodnotu ako retardéry horenia. Testovala som možnosti ďalšej vizuálnej modifikácie navrhnutých prírodnými vláknami tužených vizuálnych kompozitov rôznymi spôsobmi potlače. Vo svojom spracovaní som nielen zdokumentovala reálnu možnosť akademického výskumu v tejto perspektívnej oblasti textilného dizajnu, ale zároveň som dokázala a zdokladovala možnosti špecifických prínosov textilného dizajnéra v podmienkach, ktoré kladie súčasná doba.
Vyššie uvedené skutočnosti ma viedli k analýze úloh textilného dizajnéra v súčasnosti. Tieto jednak reflektujú historický vývin meniacich sa požiadaviek kladených na textilného dizajnéra, v súčasnosti však podliehajú dynamickým zmenám v dôsledku procesov transformácie charakteru a podmienok priemyselnej výroby v geopolitickom kontexte. Teoretický historický rozbor meniacich sa požiadaviek na náplň práce textilného dizajnéra viedli k lepšiemu pochopeniu a definovaniu jeho úloh v súčasnosti, a tak aj mojej úlohy a kompetencií pri realizácii návrhov prírodnými vláknami tužených vizuálnych kompozitov.
Okrem analýzy meniaceho sa postavenia textilného dizajnéra vyplývajúcej z historických súvislostí jeho úloh, rozoberám aj nové impulzy nútiace k zmene tradičného ponímania tejto funkcie. Zároveň načrtávam, že nastupujúce zmeny v požiadavkách na textilné materiály a produkty – a teda aj na ich návrh/dizajn, vyžadujú od dizajnéra orientáciu v čoraz širšom spektre odborných, materiálových a procesných vedomostí a zručností. Tieto vytvárajú komplexný základ znalostí doteraz v tejto miere a rozsahu nepožadovaných. V konečnom dôsledku však umožňujú realizáciu nevyhnutných dobou kladených požiadaviek - o.i. trvalej udržateľnosti. Podčiarkujem, že tento nový trend, resp. dobou generované nové požiadavky, je nevyhnutné integrovať najmä do programov vysokoškolského vzdelávania, nakoľko úspešnosť absolventov bude závisieť od ich pripravenosti (t.j. schopnosti) riešiť aktuálne a budúce požiadavky praxe. Zároveň zdôrazňujem, že požiadavky doby, a teda aj výuky, jednoznačne vyžadujú multidisciplinárny a translačný prístup. Riešenie úloh VaV ako i výrobnej praxe vyžaduje schopnosť efektívnej inter- a trans- disciplinárnej komunikácie a spolupráce dizajnéra s ostatnými odborníkmi, ktorej predpokladom je integrácia klasických vedomostí oblasti textilného dizajnu a základných znalostí príslušných normatív už do vzdelávacieho procesu. Mnohé uvedené aspekty možno efektívne implementovať využitím domácich a zahraničných grantových schém pre financovanie medzinárodných štipendijných pobytov doktorandov.

Research Questions of the Study:
• What are the individual needs of blind/visually impaired students in learning languages?
• How can English language course books and materials be adapted so that blind/visually impaired learners can study on their own?
• How can assessment materials be adapted to provide reliable and effective evaluation of the skills of blind/visually impaired language learners?
• What are the principles of designing an effective language learning environment for blind/visually impaired students?

During the past two decades, information visualisation (InfoVis) re- search has created new techniques and methods to support data- intensive analyses in science, industry and government. These have enabled a wide range of analyses tasks to be executed, with tasks varying in terms of the type and volume of data involved. However, the majority of this research has focused on static datasets, and the analysis and visualisation tasks tend to be carried out by trained expert users. In more recent years, social changes and technological advances have meant that data have become more and more dynamic, and are consumed by a wider audience. Examples of such dynamic data streams include e-mails, status updates, RSS 1 feeds, versioning systems, social networks and others. These new types of data are used by populations that are not specifically trained in information visualization. Some of these people might consist of casual users, while others might consist of people deeply involved with the data, but in both cases, they would not have received formal training in information visualization. For simplicity, throughout this dissertation, I refer to the people (casual users, novices, data experts) who have not been trained in information visualisation as non-experts.
These social and technological changes have given rise to multiple challenges because most existing visualisation models and techniques are intended for experts, and assume static datasets. Few studies have been conducted that explore these challenges. In this dissertation, with my collaborators, I address the question: Can we empower non- experts in their use of visualisation by enabling them to contribute to data stream analysis as well as to create their own visualizations?
The first step to answering this question is to determine whether people who are not trained in information visualisation and the data sciences can conduct useful dynamic analysis tasks using a visualisation system that is adapted to support their tasks. In the first part of this dissertation I focus on several scenarios and systems where different sized crowds of non-InfoVis experts users (20 to 300 and 2 000 to 700 000 people) use dynamic information visualisation to analyse dynamic data.
Another important issue is the lack of generic design principles for the visual encoding of dynamic visualization. In this dissertation I design, define and explore a design space to represent dynamic data for non-experts. This design space is structured by visual tokens representing data items that provide the constructive material for the assembly over time of different visualizations, from classic represen- tations to new ones. To date, research on visual encoding has been focused on static datasets for specific tasks, leaving generic dynamic approaches unexplored and unexploited.
In this thesis, I propose construction as a design paradigm for non- experts to author simple and dynamic visualizations. This paradigm is inspired by well-established developmental psychological theory as well as past and existing practices of visualisation authoring with tangible elements. I describe the simple conceptual components and processes underlying this paradigm, making it easier for the human computer interaction community to study and support this process for a wide range of visualizations. Finally, I use this paradigm and tangible tokens to study if and how non-experts are able to create, discuss and update their own visualizations. This study allows us to refine our previous model and provide a first exploration into how non-experts perform a visual mapping without software. In summary, this thesis contributes to the understanding of dynamic visualisation for non-expert users.

In 1960, the renowned architect Philip Johnson championed Frederick Kiesler, calling him “the greatest non-building architect of our time.” Kiesler’s ideas were difficult to construct, but as Johnson believed, “enormous” and “profound.” Kiesler (1890–1965) went against the grain of the accepted modern style, rejecting rectilinear glass and steel in favor of more organic forms and flexible structures that could respond to the ever-changing needs of the body in motion.

In Elastic Architecture, Stephen Phillips offers the first in-depth exploration of Kiesler’s innovative and multidisciplinary research and design practice. Phillips argues that Kiesler established a new career trajectory for architects not as master builders, but as research practitioners whose innovative means and methods could advance alternative and speculative architecture. Indeed, Kiesler’s own career was the ultimate uncompromising model of a research-based practice.

Exploring Kiesler’s formative relationships with the European avant-garde, Phillips shows how Kiesler found inspiration in the plastic arts, experimental theater, early animation, and automatons to develop and refine his spatial concept of the Endless. Moving from Europe to New York in the 1920s, Kiesler applied these radical Dadaist, constructivist, and surrealist practices to his urban display projects, which included shop windows for Saks Fifth Avenue. After launching his innovative Design Correlation Laboratory at Columbia and Yale, Kiesler went on to invent new houses, theaters, and galleries that were meant to move, shift, and adapt to evolutionary changes occurring within the natural and built environment.

As Phillips demonstrates vividly, although many of Kiesler’s designs remained unbuilt, his ideas proved influential to later generations of architects and speculative artists internationally, including Archigram, Greg Lynn, UNStudio, and Olafur Eliasson.

https://www.amazon.com/Elastic-Architecture-Frederick-Kiesler-Research/dp/0262035731