Reflexive professionalism : reclaiming the voice of authority in shaping the discourses of education policy

The nature and value of ‘professionalism’ has long been contested by both producers and consumers of policy. Most recently, governments have rewritten and redefined professionalism as compliance with externally imposed ‘standards’. This has been achieved by silencing the voices of those who inhabit the professional field of education. This paper uses Foucauldian archaeology to excavate the enunciative field of professionalism by digging through the academic and institutional (political) archive, and in doing so identifies two key policy documents for further analysis. The excavation shows that while the voices of (academic) authority speak of competing discourses emerging, with professional standards promulgated as the mechanism to enhance professionalism, an alternative regime of truth identifies the privileged use of (managerial) voices from outside the field of education to create a discourse of compliance. There has long been a mismatch between the voices of authority on discourses around professionalism from the academic archive and those that count in contemporary and emerging Australian educational policy. In this paper, we counter this mismatch and argue that reflexive educators’ regimes of truth are worthy of attention and should be heard and amplified.

Basic cognitive experiences and definitions in the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English

This study applies theories of cognitive linguistics to the compilation of English learners’ dictionaries. Specifically, it employs the concepts of basic level categories and image schemas, two basic cognitive experiences, to examine the ‘definition proper’ of English dictionaries for foreign learners. In the study, the definition proper refers to the constituent part of a reference work that provides an explanation of the meanings of a word, phrase or term. This rationalization mainly consists of defining vocabulary, sense division and arrangement, as well as the means of defining (i.e. paraphrase, true definition, functional definition, and pictorial illustration). The aim of the study is to suggest ways of aligning the consultation and learning of definitions with dictionary users’ cognitive experiences. For this purpose, an analysis of the definition proper of the fourth edition of the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English (LDOCE4) from the perspective of basic cognitive experiences has been undertaken. The study found that, generally, the lexicographic practices of LDOCE4 are consistent with theories of cognitive linguistics. However, there exist shortcomings that result from disregarding basic cognitive experiences.

Video-based road commentary training improves hazard perception of young drivers in a dual task

This study used a video-based hazard perception dual task to compare the hazard perception skills of young drivers with middle aged, more experienced drivers and to determine if these skills can be improved with video-based road commentary training. The primary task required the participants to detect and verbally identify immediate hazard on video-based traffic scenarios while concurrently performing a secondary tracking task, simulating the steering of real driving. The results showed that the young drivers perceived fewer immediate hazards (mean = 75.2%, n = 24, 19 females) than the more experienced drivers (mean = 87.5%, n = 8, all females), and had longer hazard perception times, but performed better in the secondary tracking task. After the road commentary training, the mean percentage of hazards detected and identified by the young drivers improved to the level of the experienced drivers and was significantly higher than that of an age and driving experience matched control group. The results will be discussed in the context of psychological theories of hazard perception and in relation to road commentary as an evidence-based training intervention that seems to improve many aspects of unsafe driving behaviour in young drivers.

Embedding graphic organisers in the teaching and learning of family and consumer sciences (home economics) in Kuwait

Educational reforms currently being enacted in Kuwaiti Family and Consumer Sciences (FCS) in response to contemporary demands for increased student-centred teaching and learning are challenging for FCS teachers due to their limited experience with student-centred learning tools such as Graphic Organisers (GOs). To adopt these reforms, Kuwaiti teachers require a better understanding of and competency in promoting cognitive learning processes that will maximise student-centred learning approaches. This study followed the experiences of four Grade 6 FCS Kuwaiti teachers as they undertook a Professional Development (PD) program specifically designed to advance their understanding of the use of GOs and then as they implemented what they had learned in their Grade 6 FCS classroom. The PD program developed for this study was informed by Nasseh.s competency PD model as well as Piaget and Ausubel.s cognitive theories. This model enabled an assessment and evaluation of the development of the teachers. competencies as an outcome of the PD program in terms of the adoption of GOs, in particular, and their capacity to use GOs to engage students in personalised, in-depth, learning through critical thinking and understanding. The research revealed that the PD program was influential in reforming the teachers. learning, understanding of and competency in, cognitive and visual theories of learning, so that they facilitated student-centred teaching and learning processes that enabled students to adopt and adapt GOs in constructivist learning. The implementation of five GOs - Flow Chart, Concept Maps, K-W-L Chart, Fishbone Diagram and Venn Diagram - as learning tools in classrooms was investigated to find if changes in pedagogical approach for supporting conceptual learning through cognitive information processing would reduce the cognitive work load of students and produce better learning approaches. The study as evidenced by the participant teachers. responses and classroom observations, showed a marked increase in student interest, participation, critical thought, problem solving skills, as a result of using GOs, compared to using traditional teaching and learning methods. A theoretical model was developed from the study based on the premise that teachers. knowledge of the subject, pedagogy and student learning precede the implementation of student-centred learning reform, that it plays an important role in the implementation of student-centred learning and that it brings about a change in teaching practice. The model affirmed that observed change in teaching-practice included aspects of teachers. beliefs, as well as confidence and effect on workplace and on student learning, including engagement, understanding, critical thinking and problem solving. The model assumed that change in teaching practice is inseparable from teachers. lifelong PD needs related to knowledge, understanding, skills and competency. These findings produced a set of preliminary guidelines for establishing student-centred constructivist strategies in Kuwaiti education while retaining Kuwait.s cultural uniqueness.

Socially aware computing constructs

Every day we are confronted with social interactions with other people. Our social life is characterised by norms that manifest as attitudinal and behavioural uniformities among people. With greater awareness about our social context, we can interact more efficiently. Any theory or model of human interaction that fails to include social concepts could be suggested to lack a critical element. This paper identifies the construct of social concepts that need to be supported by future context-aw are systems from an interdisciplinary perspective. It discusses the limitations of existing context-aware systems to support social psychology theories related to the identification and membership of social groups. We argue that social norms are among the core modelling concepts that future context-aware systems need to capture with the view to support and enhance social interactions. A detailed summary of social psychology theory relevant to social computing is given, followed by a formal definition of the process with each such norm advertised and acquired. The social concepts identified in this paper could be used to simulate agent interactions imbued with social norms or use ICT to facilitate, assist, enhance or understand social interactions. They also could be used in virtual communities modelling where the social awareness of a community as well as the process of joining and exiting a community are important.

Analysing the Sri Lankan conflict using Michael Mann's four-dimensional model of social power

This thesis provides an overview of the Sri Lankan civil war with a view to identifying some of the factors that contributed to the dispute between the Sri Lankan government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. It adopts a multi-causal explanation of the conflict by reference to the theories of social power developed by Michael Mann. The conflict has been variously described as an ethnic or political conflict, or has been characterised as a determined by a number of interacting factors (including colonialism, ethnicity, religion, economy, politics and globalisation). Mann’s four-dimensional model of social power is deployed to analyse the causal relationships, together with their inter-connections, which clarify the origins of the dispute. It argues that Mann’s theoretical framework helps to highlight some of the interconnected elements that contributed to the conflict.

“Nobody’s holding a gun to your head…” examining current discourses surrounding victims of online fraud

The current discourse surrounding victims of online fraud is heavily premised on an individual notion of greed. The strength of this discourse permeates the thinking of those who have not experienced this type of crime, as well as victims themselves. The current discourse also manifests itself in theories of victim precipitation, which again assigns the locus of blame to individuals for their actions in an offence. While these typologies and categorisations of victims have been critiqued as “victim blaming” in other fields, this has not occurred with regard to online fraud victims, where victim focused ideas of responsibility for the offence continue to dominate. This paper illustrates the nature and extent of the greed discourse and argues that it forms part of a wider construction of online fraud that sees responsibility for victimisation lie with the victims themselves and their actions. It argues that the current discourse does not take into account the level of deception and the targeting of vulnerability that is employed by the offender in perpetrating this type of crime. It concludes by advocating the need to further examine and challenge this discourse, especially with regard to its potential impact for victim’s access to support services and the wider criminal justice system.

On the security of TLS renegotiation

The Transport Layer Security (TLS) protocol is the most widely used security protocol on the Internet. It supports negotiation of a wide variety of cryptographic primitives through different cipher suites, various modes of client authentication, and additional features such as renegotiation. Despite its widespread use, only recently has the full TLS protocol been proven secure, and only the core cryptographic protocol with no additional features. These additional features have been the cause of several practical attacks on TLS. In 2009, Ray and Dispensa demonstrated how TLS renegotiation allows an attacker to splice together its own session with that of a victim, resulting in a man-in-the-middle attack on TLS-reliant applications such as HTTP. TLS was subsequently patched with two defence mechanisms for protection against this attack. We present the first formal treatment of renegotiation in secure channel establishment protocols. We add optional renegotiation to the authenticated and confidential channel establishment model of Jager et al., an adaptation of the Bellare--Rogaway authenticated key exchange model. We describe the attack of Ray and Dispensa on TLS within our model. We show generically that the proposed fixes for TLS offer good protection against renegotiation attacks, and give a simple new countermeasure that provides renegotiation security for TLS even in the face of stronger adversaries.

Work motivation as a determinant of organisational and professional commitment in temporary organisations : theoretical lenses and propositions

The purpose of this paper is to present a theoretical framework to investigate the relationship between work motivation, organisational commitment and professional commitment in temporary organisations. Through a review of theory, we contend that work motivation has two major patterns — internal motivation (which includes intrinsic, need-based and self-deterministic theories), and external motivation (which includes cognitive or process-based theories of motivation) through which it has been investigated. We also hold the nature of employee commitment to be of three types — affective, continuance and normative. This commitment may be towards either the organisation or the profession. A literature review revealed that the characteristics of the temporary organisation — specifically tenure and task — regulate the relationship between work motivation, organisational commitment and professional commitment. Testable propositions are presented.

A framework of Dynamic Difficulty Adjustment in competitive multiplayer video games

The balance between player competence and the challenge presented by a task has been acknowledged as a major factor in providing optimal experience in video games. While Dynamic Difficulty Adjustment (DDA) presents methods for adjusting difficulty in real-time during singleplayer games, little research has explored its application in competitive multiplayer games where challenge is dictated by the competence of human opponents. By conducting a formal review of 180 existing competitive multiplayer games, it was found that a large number of modern games are utilizing DDA techniques to balance challenge between human opponents. From this data, we propose a preliminary framework for classifying Multiplayer Dynamic Difficulty Adjustment (mDDA) instances.

The Relation between work motivation and project management success in case of temporary organizations : theoretical lenses

The purpose of this paper is to present theoretical lenses that explain the relation between work motivation and project management success in case of temporary organizations such as projects. This paper is a part of the larger research study that first empirically identifies the constructs of work motivation in case of temporary organizations, and then empirically determines the relation between work motivation, and project management success. In the current paper, we have briefly reviewed the theories of work motivation from the work design school. These theories are predominantly drawn from the industrial/ organizational psychology literature. Then, we have considered the recent research on Nine Schools of Project Management as a point of departure to review theory on project management success. These theoretical perspectives are drawn from project management literature. We then illustrate the points of overlap for the theories drawn from these two disciplines. This review helps us to position our research study within the industrial/ organizational psychology, and project management literature as a cross-discipline study.

Professionalizing Business Process Management : towards a Body of Knowledge for BPM

Business Process Management (BPM) is rapidly evolving as an established discipline. There are a number of efforts underway to formalize the various aspects of BPM practice; creating a formal Body of Knowledge (BoK) is one such effort. Bodies of knowledge are artifacts that have a proven track record for accelerating the professionalization of various disciplines. In order for this to succeed in BPM, it is vital to involve the broader business process community and derive a BoK that has essential characteristics that addresses the discipline’s needs. We argue for the necessity of a comprehensive BoK for the BPM domain, and present a core list of essential features to consider when developing a BoK based on preliminary empirical evidence. The paper identifies and critiques existing Bodies of Knowledge related to BPM, and firmly calls for an effort to develop a more accurate and sustainable BoK for BPM. An approach for this effort is presented with preliminary outcomes.

A little learning is a dangerous thing? The ethics of teaching accidental tourists in higher education

This paper raises questions about the ethical issues that arise for academics and universities when under-graduate students enrol in classes outside of their discipline - classes that are not designed to be multi-disciplinary or introductory. We term these students ‘accidental tourists'. Differences between disciplines in terms of pedagogy, norms, language and understanding may pose challenges for accidental tourists in achieving desired learning outcomes. This paper begins a discussion about whether lecturers and universities have any ethical obligations towards supporting the learning of these students. Recognising that engaging with only one ethical theory leads to a fragmented moral vision, this paper employs a variety of ethical theories to examine any possible moral obligations that may fall upon lecturers and/or universities. In regards to lecturers, the paper critically engages with the ethical theories of utilitarianism, Kantianism and virtue ethics (Aristotle) to determine the extent of any academic duty to accidental tourists. In relation to universities, this paper employs the emerging ethical theory of organisational ethics as a lens through which to critically examine any possible obligations. Organisational ethics stems from the recognition that moral demands also exist for organisations so organisations must be reconceptualised as ethical actors and their policies and practices subject to ethical scrutiny. The analysis in this paper illustrates the challenges faced by lecturers some of whom, we theorise, may experience a form of moral distress facing a conflict between personal beliefs and organisational requirements. It also critically examines the role and responsibilities of universities towards students and towards their staff and the inherent moral tensions between a market model and demands for ‘good' learning experiences. This paper highlights the tensions for academics, between academics and universities and within university policy and indicates the need for greater reflection about this issue, especially given the many constraints facing lecturers and universities.

General theory of stigmergy : modelling stigma semantics

Stigmergy is a biological term used when discussing a sub-set of insect swarm-behaviour describing the apparent organisation seen during their activities. Stigmergy describes a communication mechanism based on environment-mediated signals which trigger responses among the insects. This phenomenon is demonstrated in the behavior of ants and their food gathering process when following pheromone trails, where the pheromones are a form of environment-mediated communication. What is interesting with this phenomenon is that highly organized societies are achieved without an apparent management structure. Stigmergy is also observed in human environments, both natural and engineered. It is implicit in the Web where sites provide a virtual environment supporting coordinative contributions. Researchers in varying disciplines appreciate the power of this phenomenon and have studied how to exploit it. As stigmergy becomes more widely researched we see its definition mutate as papers citing original work become referenced themselves. Each paper interprets these works in ways very specific to the research being conducted. Our own research aims to better understand what improves the collaborative function of a Web site when exploiting the phenomenon. However when researching stigmergy to develop our understanding we discover a lack of a standardized and abstract model for the phenomenon. Papers frequently cited the same generic descriptions before becoming intimately focused on formal specifications of an algorithm, or esoteric discussions regarding sub-facets of the topic. None provide a holistic and macro-level view to model and standardize the nomenclature. This paper provides a content analysis of influential literature documenting the numerous theoretical and experimental papers that have focused on stigmergy. We establish that stigmergy is a phenomenon that transcends the insect world and is more than just a metaphor when applied to the human world. We present from our own research our general theory and abstract model of semantics of stigma in stigmergy. We hope our model will clarify the nuances of the phenomenon into a useful road-map, and standardise vocabulary that we witness becoming confused and divergent. Furthermore, this paper documents the analysis on which we base our next paper: Special Theory of Stigmergy: A Design Pattern for Web 2.0 Collaboration.

Continuity, Rupture, or just more of the 'Volatile and Contradictory': Glimpses of New South Wales' Penal Practice behind and through the Discursive

Throughout much of the western world more and more people are being sent to prison, one of a number of changes inspired by a 'new punitiveness' in penal and political affairs. This book seeks to understand these developments, bringing together leading authorities in the field to provide a wide-ranging analysis of new penal trends, compare the development of differing patterns of punishment across different types of societies, and to provide a range of theoretical analyses and commentaries to help understand their significance. As well as increases in imprisonment this book is also concerned to address a number of other aspects of 'the new punitiveness': firstly, the return of a number of forms of punishment previously thought extinct or inappropriate, such as the return of shaming punishments and chain gangs (in parts of the USA); and secondly, the increasing public involvement in penal affairs and penal development, for example in relation to length of sentences and the California Three Strikes Law, and a growing accreditation of the rights of victims. The book will be essential reading for students seeking to understand trends and theories of punishment on law, criminology, penology and other courses.