Interoperability in pedagogical e-learning services

The ultimate goal of this research plan is to improve the learning experience of students through the combination of pedagogical eLearning services. Service oriented architectures are already being used in eLearning but in this work the focus is on services of pedagogical value, rather then on generic services adapted from other business systems. This approach to the architecture of eLearning platforms raises challenges addressed by this work, namely: conceptual modeling of the pedagogical eLearning services domain; interoperability and coordination of pedagogical eLearning service; conversion of existing eLearning systems to pedagogical services; adaptation of eLearning services to individual learners. An improved eLearning platform will incorporate learning tools adequate to the domains it covers and will focus on the individual learner that uses it. With this approach we expect to raise the pedagogical value of eLearning platforms.

Tech-based Innovations in pedagogical practices: the case of ISCAP

TICEduca. III Congresso Internacional TIC e Educação. 14 a 16 Novembro, Lisboa

B-learning quality: dimensions, criteria and pedagogical approach

Measuring the quality of a b-learning environment is critical to determine the success of a b-learning course. Several initiatives have been recently conducted on benchmarking and quality in e-learning. Despite these efforts in defining and examining quality issues concerning online courses, a defining instrument to evaluate quality is one of the key challenges for blended learning, since it incorporates both traditional and online instruction methods. For this paper, six frameworks for quality assessment of technological enhanced learning were examined and compared regarding similarities and differences. These frameworks aim at the same global objective: the quality of e-learning environment/products. They present different perspectives but also many common issues. Some of them are more specific and related to the course and other are more global and related to institutional aspects. In this work we collected and arrange all the quality criteria identified in order to get a more complete framework and determine if it fits our b-learning environment. We also included elements related to our own b-learning research and experience, acquired during more than 10 years of experience. As a result we have create a new quality reference with a set of dimensions and criteria that should be taken into account when you are analyzing, designing, developing, implementing and evaluating a b-learning environment. Besides these perspectives on what to do when you are developing a b-learning environment we have also included pedagogical issues in order to give directions on how to do it to reach the success of the learning. The information, concepts and procedures here presented give support to teachers and instructors, which intend to validate the quality of their blended learning courses.

A Game of learning: a b-activity

Th The purpose of this article is to share the implementation of workgroup activities: a game of learning supported by web technology; Effective educational strategies that encourage a dynamic combination of being flexible, individualized and personalized must be the aim of every school; The blended-learning plays an important role; In this article we describe an online collaborative game which uses an inside and outside collaboration in order to promote the motivation and effective learning; Pedagogical strategies, that use technologies appropriately, in higher education, can promote active learning, centered on students and thus valuing their personal experiences and participation;

Learning in higher education: strategies to overcome challenges faced by adult students - lessons drawn from two studies in portugal

Int’l J. of Information and Communication Technology Education, 3(2), 1-14, April-June 2007

Improving the learning experience and learning environment of adults in Higher Education – Project LIHE: the Portuguese case

Project LIHE: the Portuguese Case. ESREA Fourth Access Network Conference – “Equity, Access and Participation: Research, Policy and Practice”. Edinburgh (Scotland), 11 – 13 December, 2003.

How to teach mathematics with MOODLE

The aim of this article is to present a Project in the Oporto’s Institute of Accounting and Administration, which pretends to contribute for a change in the way of teaching and learning Mathematics. One of the main objectives of this project is to innovate the teaching and learning processes, exploring technologies as a pedagogical resource and to induce higher motivation to students, improve the rate of success and make available to students a set of materials adapted to their needs. This concern is justified due to the fact that students have a weak preparation, without consolidated basis. Since the year 2007/2008 the courses were adjusted to the Bologna process, which requires several changes in teacher’s and student’s roles, methodologies and assessment. The number of weekly classes has been reduced, so it was necessary to develop new strategies and methodologies to support the student. With the implementation of the Bologna Process in the Accounting degree, we felt a great need to provide other types of activities to students. To complement our theoretical and practical classes we have developed a project called MatActiva based on the Moodle platform offered by PAOL - Projecto de Apoio On-Line (Online Support Project). Moodle allows us to use the language TEX to create materials that use mathematical symbols. Using this functionality, we created a set of easy to use interactive resources. In MatActiva project, the students have access to a variety of different materials. We have followed a strategy that makes the project compatible with the theoretical and practical subjects/classes, complementing them. To do so, we created some resources, for instance multiple-choice tests, which are the most accessed by the students. These tests can be realized and corrected on-line and for each wrong answer there is a feedback with the resolution. We can find other types of resources: diagnostic tests, theoretical notes. There are not only the pre-requirements for subjects mathematics, but also materials to help students follow up the programs. We also developed several lessons. This activity consists of a number of pages, where each page has contents and leads to other pages, based on the student's progress. The teacher creates the choices and determines the next page that the student will see, based upon their knowledge. There is also an area of doubts, where the students can place all the mathematical doubts they have, and a teacher gives the answers or clues to help them in their work. MatActiva also offers an area where we can find some humour, curiosities, contests and games including mathematical contents to test the math skills, as well as links to pages about mathematical contents that could be useful for the study. Since ISCAP receives ERASMUS students and some of them attend mathematics, we developed some materials in English, so they can also use MatActiva. The main objectives of our project are not only to bring success in the subjects of mathematics, but also to motivate the students, encourage them to overcome theirs difficulties through an auto-study giving them more confidence and improve their relationship with the mathematics as well as the communication between students and teachers and among students.

New challenges in mathematics for the european higher education

In this paper we will talk about a math project submitted to the Lifelong Learning Programme. European higher education needs a reform in order to play its full role in the Europe of Knowledge. Modernisation of higher education is necessary in the areas of curricula (Bologna process), funding and governance so that higher education institutions can face the challenges posed by globalisation and contribute more effectively to the training and retraining of the European workforce. On the other hand Mathematics is an essential component of all educational systems. Mathematical literacy is being scrutinized in assessment efforts such as the OCDE Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA). This showed a low level in Europe. Due to the Bologna Process, which brought several didactical implications for Higher Education (HE) institutions, there is the need of lifelong learning. This evolution is in conflict with the earlier mentioned lack of competencies on basic sciences, such as Mathematics. Forced by this duality, efforts are combined to share expertise in the Math field and the integration of pedagogical methodologies becomes a necessity. Thus, several European countries have proposed an International Project to the Lifelong Learning Programme, Action ERASMUS Modernisation of Higher Education, to make institutions more attractive and more responsive to the needs of the labour market, citizens and society at large. One of the main goals of the project is to attract students to math through high-quality instructional units in an understandable, exciting and attractive way.

Estudo das propriedades psicofisiológicas da pintura como actividade criativa remediativa das manifestações de ansiedade

Ao longo das últimas duas décadas, as intervenções de Arte-Terapia baseada nas actividades criativas de Pintura têm sido implementadas em várias instituições e com variados objectivos e fins terapêuticos, diferindo nas suas abordagens (antroposófica, arte-pedagógica e apenas baseada na arte) e nos seus métodos e materiais aplicados. Constatamos que o recurso a actividades criativas, como a Pintura, provocam efeitos positivos nos indivíduos levando-os a resolver problemas e a reduzir ansiedades, melhorando a sua qualidade de vida. Deste modo é objectivo deste estudo pré-experimental efectuar uma análise das propriedades psicofisiológicas da Pintura como actividade criativa remediativa das manifestações de ansiedade em adultos, sem diagnóstico de perturbação ansiosa. De encontro a esse objectivo, perante uma amostra constituída por 7 indivíduos com níveis de ansiedade elevados, desenvolvemos um processo terapêutico, em que foram realizadas dez sessões de pintura, com a periodicidade de duas vezes por semana tendo cada sessão a duração de 45 min. Antes e depois da intervenção pela pintura, foi administrado o inventário para Avaliação do Traço da Ansiedade (STAY-Y), e durante essas sessões foram registadas as manifestações psicofisiológicas da ansiedade, mais especificamente a actividade electrodérmica da pele (EDA) e a frequência cardíaca. (FC), sendo efectuada a sua análise. Na sequência da análise dos dados obtidos nos dois instrumentos aplicados, verificamos que em relação aos marcadores psicofisiológicos EDA e FC não obtivemos diferenças estatísticas significativas para comprovar que de facto existe uma relação entre estes marcadores e a redução da ansiedade. Em relação ao STAY-Y referente à ansiedade traço, aplicado antes e depois das sessões de pintura, verificamos uma diminuição do score, o que evidência a ocorrência de uma diminuição da ansiedade traço nos indivíduos alvo do nosso estudo. Significa isto que apesar de existir uma variância nos resultados obtidos através das duas abordagens, é provavel que a pintura, enquanto actividade terapêutica, reduza o traço de ansiedade em indivíduos normais, com níveis de ansiedade elevados e sem manifestações de ansiedade diagnosticada.

Organization knowledge management change from a complex adaptive systems perpective with ability for ambidexeterity

We are working on the confluence of knowledge management, organizational memory and emergent knowledge with the lens of complex adaptive systems. In order to be fundamentally sustainable organizations search for an adaptive need for managing ambidexterity of day-to-day work and innovation. An organization is an entity of a systemic nature, composed of groups of people who interact to achieve common objectives, making it necessary to capture, store and share interactions knowledge with the organization, this knowledge can be generated in intra-organizational or inter-organizational level. The organizations have organizational memory of knowledge of supported on the Information technology and systems. Each organization, especially in times of uncertainty and radical changes, to meet the demands of the environment, needs timely and sized knowledge on the basis of tacit and explicit. This sizing is a learning process resulting from the interaction that emerges from the relationship between the tacit and explicit knowledge and which we are framing within an approach of Complex Adaptive Systems. The use of complex adaptive systems for building the emerging interdependent relationship, will produce emergent knowledge that will improve the organization unique developing.

Problem-Based Learning e suas implicações: breve revisão teórica

A ESTSP-IPP implementou em 2008-2009 um novo modelo pedagógico, o PBL, em três licenciaturas. Este modelo tem sido considerado capaz de promover a aquisição de conhecimentos mas também o desenvolvimento de competências transversais valorizadas no mercado de trabalho; orienta-se em torno de problemas significativos da realidade profissional, trabalhados segundo a metodologia dos sete passos, destacando-se a aprendizagem através de pesquisa individual e trabalho de grupo; e visa ainda desenvolver processos cognitivos e metacognitivos como levantar hipóteses, comparar, analisar, interpretar e avaliar. Neste artigo, caracterizamos brevemente o modelo e respectivas implicações, justificando o interesse em investigar as repercussões da sua implementação.

PCMAT, an adaptive learning platform

This paper is about PCMAT, an adaptive learning platform for Mathematics in Basic Education schools. Based on a constructivist approach, PCMAT aims at verifying how techniques from adaptive hypermedia systems can improve e-learning based systems. To achieve this goal, PCMAT includes a Pedagogical Model that contains a set of adaptation rules that influence the student-platform interaction. PCMAT was subject to a preliminary testing with students aged between 12 and 14 years old on the subject of direct proportionality. The results from this preliminary test are quite promising as they seem to demonstrate the validity of our proposal.

Literary translation and quality assessment analysis – its significance in translation training

This paper aims to highlight the role of translation quality assessment in translation training so as to develop students’ translation competence and skills to face translation problems. An analysis to assess literary translation quality is proposed before proceeding to discuss its pedagogical implementation.

Towards e-learning sustainability: designing and reusing student-centered learning scenarios

Learnin management systems have gained an increasing role in the context of Higher Education Institutions as essential tools to support learning...

Transtextualidade na tradução de "Der mann im fahrstuhl / The mann in the elevator"

In an age where Babel has turned into transcultural communication, an interlingual approach – i.e. in English and in French – to the translating process from German to Portuguese appeared pertinent. Aiming at a refinement of the translating competence, this process consists in contrasting different linguistic and literary strategies through an intercultural and multi-etymological perspective. Thus, we settled upon Heiner Müller‘s play Der Auftrag. Erinnerung an eine Revolution (1980), on which the composer Heiner Goebbels has based himself to textually and musically dramatize an excerpt, Der Mann im Farhstuhl / The Man in the Elevator. A transcription of such excerpt in its source language, German, as well as its translation into English (Carl Weber, 1984, Performing Arts Publications, New York) and French (Jean Jourdheuil, Heinz Schwarzinger, Editions Minuit, Paris) can be found in the booklet that accompanies the CD – edited in 1988 by ECD (München: Records GmbH). It should be emphasized that such a creation allows a framing of Müller‘s text into a musical scenography and, therefore, encourages an intersemiotic contrast. This experience enabled us to come up with a unique imagery of Müller‘s piece of writing, by means of its dramatic and musical conversion and, simultaneously, lead us to stretch our textual consciousness to a multitude of intra-, extra- and interlinguistic elements.