Knowledge spirals, situational leadership and informal learning applied on b-learning methodology

The methodology “b-learning” is a new teaching scenario and it requires the creation, adaptation and application of new learning tools searching the assimilation of new collaborative competences. In this context, it is well known the knowledge spirals, the situational leadership and the informal learning. The knowledge spirals is a basic concept of the knowledge procedure and they are based on that the knowledge increases when a cycle of 4 phases is repeated successively.1) The knowledge is created (for instance, to have an idea); 2) The knowledge is decoded into a format to be easily transmitted; 3) The knowledge is modified to be easily comprehensive and it is used; 4) New knowledge is created. This new knowledge improves the previous one (step 1). Each cycle shows a step of a spiral staircase: by going up the staircase, more knowledge is created. On the other hand, the situational leadership is based on that each person has a maturity degree to develop a specific task and this maturity increases with the experience. Therefore, the teacher (leader) has to adapt the teaching style to the student (subordinate) requirements and in this way, the professional and personal development of the student will increase quickly by improving the results and satisfaction. This educational strategy, finally combined with the informal learning, and in particular the zone of proximal development, and using a learning content management system own in our University, gets a successful and well-evaluated learning activity in Master subjects focused on the collaborative activity of preparation and oral exhibition of short and specific topics affine to these subjects. Therefore, the teacher has a relevant and consultant role of the selected topic and his function is to guide and supervise the work, incorporating many times the previous works done in other courses, as a research tutor or more experienced student. Then, in this work, we show the academic results, grade of interactivity developed in these collaborative tasks, statistics and the satisfaction grade shown by our post-graduate students.

Web-based OERs in Computer Networks

Learning and teaching processes are continually changing. Therefore, design of learning technologies has gained interest in educators and educational institutions from secondary school to higher education. This paper describes the successfully use in education of social learning technologies and virtual laboratories designed by the authors, as well as videos developed by the students. These tools, combined with other open educational resources based on a blended-learning methodology, have been employed to teach the subject of Computer Networks. We have verified not only that the application of OERs into the learning process leads to a significantly improvement of the assessments, but also that the combination of several OERs enhances their effectiveness. These results are supported by, firstly, a study of both students’ opinion and students’ behaviour over five academic years, and, secondly, a correlation analysis between the use of OERs and the grades obtained by students.

Uso de Facebook como completo docente

Las redes sociales son comunidades de personas que comparten algún tipo de interés. Las redes sociales online permiten a los individuos construir un perfil público o semi-público en un sistema delimitado, articular una lista de usuarios con los que se tiene conexión y ver y cruzar su lista de conexiones con otras hechas por distintos individuos del sistema. El uso de las redes sociales online ha crecido vertiginosamente en los últimos años, y los jóvenes son los principales protagonistas de esta tendencia. Inmersos y educados y criados en medio de la tecnología, la nueva generación de estudiantes son nativos digitales. Los profesores, en cambio, somos inmigrantes digitales, pero tenemos la responsabilidad de convertir una tecnología que puede ser una distracción en una herramienta de enseñanza. El objetivo del presente trabajo es mostrar nuestra experiencia docente, en las asignaturas de grado de Dirección de Recursos Humanos, en la Universidad de Alicante, con la red social Facebook, obteniendo conclusiones y recomendaciones para mejorar el uso de redes sociales en la enseñanza universitaria.

Aprendizaje de imágenes histológicas utilizando un microscopio virtual: metodología y opinión de los alumnos

El concepto de tejido es un constructo teorético muy útil para aprender a conocer las estructuras microscópicas del organismo y para diagnosticar, de forma objetiva, la mayoría de las lesiones, a través de imágenes histológicas (IH). Tradicionalmente, aprender a interpretar IH se basa en su observación repetitiva y monótona. Esto y la consideración de la Histología como una disciplina meramente descriptiva, ha determinado su escasa relevancia y su alto nivel de olvido para los alumnos, como ha sido puesto de relieve en varias publicaciones. Los recursos digitales han facilitado, de forma sustancial, el aprendizaje de la Histología, aunque todavía sigue basándose en la observación iterativa y monótona de IH. Para facilitar y mejorar dicho aprendizaje hemos creando y publicado una clasificación y sistematización de las IH. En este trabajo presentamos la combinación de la sistematización de las IH con el uso de un microscopio virtual accesible a todos los alumnos en cualquier lugar y momento (tablets, smartphones, ordenadores de mesa, portátiles, etc.). La evaluación de esta metodología, mediante una encuesta, pone de manifiesto su alto grado de aceptación por los alumnos y sus enormes posibilidades para un aprendizaje, a la vez, autónomo y colaborativo.

Uso de Redes Sociales en asignaturas de Grado de Dirección de Recursos Humanos

El uso de las redes sociales online ha crecido vertiginosamente en los últimos años, y los jóvenes son los principales protagonistas de esta tendencia. Inmersos y educados y criados en medio de la tecnología, la nueva generación de estudiantes son nativos digitales. Los profesores, en cambio, somos inmigrantes digitales, pero tenemos la responsabilidad de convertir una tecnología que puede ser una distracción en una herramienta de enseñanza. Facebook es un ejemplo de tecnología Web 2.0 que tiene un enorme potencial en el campo de la educación, aunque no fue creada para construir o manejar experiencias de aprendizaje. Opera en una plataforma abierta, a diferencia de otros sistemas organizados alrededor de cursos estructurados formalmente. De hecho, aunque Facebook no es un entorno de aprendizaje, puede servir como un soporte muy valioso para las nuevas orientaciones sociales que aparecen ahora en los procesos educativos. El objetivo del presente trabajo es mostrar nuestra experiencia docente, en las asignaturas de grado de Dirección de Recursos Humanos, en la Universidad de Alicante, con la red social Facebook, obteniendo conclusiones y recomendaciones para mejorar el uso de redes sociales en la enseñanza universitaria.

Construction of Structures I in Moodle: a new teaching methodology in the Degree of Building Engineer

The subject of Construction of Structures I studies, from a constructive point of view and taking into account current legislation, reinforced concrete structures used in buildings, through the acquisition of knowledge and construction criteria required in the profession of a Technical Architect. The contents acquired in this course are essential for further professional development of technicians and are closely related to many of the subjects taught in the same or other courses of the Degree in Technical Architecture at the University of Alicante. The aim of this paper is to present, analyze and discuss the development of a new methodology proposed in the mentioned subject, as it supposed an important change in the traditional way of teaching Construction and Structures I. In order to incorporate new teaching tools in 2013-2014, the course has been implemented by using a Moodle software tool to promote blended learning with online exercises. Our Moodle community allows collaborative work within an open-source platform where teachers and students share a new and personalized learning environment. Students are easily used to the interface and the platform, value the constant connection with teachers or other fellows and completely agree with the possibility of making questions or share documents 24 hours a day. The proposed methodology consists of lectures and practical classes. In the lectures, the basics of each topic are discussed; class attendance, daily study and conducting scheduled exercises are indispensable. Practical classes allow to consolidate the knowledge gained in theory classes by solving professional exercises and actual construction problems related to structures, that shall be compulsorily delivered online. So, after the correction of the teacher and the subsequent feedback of students, practical exercises ensure lifelong learning of the student, who can download any kind of material at any time (constructive details, practical exercises and even corrected exams). Regarding the general evaluation system, goals achievement is assessed on an ongoing basis (65% of the final mark) along the course through written and graphic evidences in person and online, as well as a individual development of a workbook. In all cases, the acquisition of skills, the ability to synthesize, the capacity of logical and critical thinking are assessed. The other 35 % of the mark is evaluated by a complementary graphic exam. Participation in the computing platform is essential and the student is required to do and present, at least 90% of the practices proposed. Those who do not comply with the practices in each specific date could not be assessed continuously and may only choose the final exam. In conclusion, the subject of Construction of Structures I is essential in the development of the regulated profession of Technical Architect as they are considered, among other professional profiles, as specialists in construction of building structures. The use of a new communication platform and online teaching allows the acquisition of knowledge and constructive approaches in a continuous way, with a more direct and personal monitoring by the teacher that has been highly appreciated by almost 100% of the students. Ultimately, it is important to say that the use of Moodle in this subject is a very interesting tool, which was really well welcome by students in one of the densest and important subjects of the Degree of Technical Architecture.

DUENDE: Docencia Universitaria en Dirección de Empresas

El uso generalizado de Facebook como red social en la que compartir opiniones, información y recabar amistad o apoyo está introduciéndose también en el ámbito docente, ya que se puede ayudar a los estudiantes en el transcurso de las asignaturas, compartir información entre compañeros, notificar eventos de interés para la materia de estudio, etc. En esta memoria se expone nuestro trabajo con la red Facebook en asignaturas de grado, que ya comenzó el curso pasado. Se trata de contrastar si las conclusiones obtenidas en el pasado curso se reafirman o no para extraer recomendaciones que orienten el uso de Facebook como herramienta de enseñanza/aprendizaje.