Collaborative online projects in a global community

What is evident in recent literature reviews of the use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) in Education is the lack of accessible documentation on the development of, and participation in, collaborative online projects by educationalists. (Blackmore et. al. 2002, Downes et. al. 2001). The major source of information comes in the form of anecdotal evidence from teachers, project facilitators and organisations (Gragert 2000, Carr 2001, Tate 1998, Robertson 1999). Other literature reviews and research that focus on the use of ICT in education have significant gaps in this area and yet it is increasingly promoted in educational policy and supported and promoted by education systems.

This paper identifies and explores the extent and impact of educational technology in the context of collaborative online projects in a global educational community. A general identification of a wide range of local and international collaborative online projects and the groups/communities in which they operate, is followed by a closer look at a selection of case study projects. The case study projects have been selected for their potential to provide new perspectives on the role of technology in education and its potential impact on teaching and learning in a global context.

This paper provides definitions and examples of collaborative online projects, their history and their diversity. It explores the level of participation afforded by the projects and presents a detailed section that focuses on a sample of projects. The collaborative online projects in the case study section are The Environmental Mystery Competition, The First People's Project, Lewin - an Anthology of Children's' Writing and The Teddy Bear Project. The case study projects will be looked at from the perspective of the project facilitators and project participants. In many of the projects items such as books and calendars are products of the projects. Examples of these items will be shown in the presentation.

Drawing and the subjectivity of the 'other'

Scenes of the Aboriginal family sitting around a table in the film The Fringe Dwellers present the boy quietly drawing, while other members of the family are engaged in discussion. The boy is less visible, more passive and contemplative, and his subjectivity is suggested rather than explored in the film. He repeats the same activity and the same inward concentration. My hypothesis is that the boy's subjectivity and agency are projected elsewhere, towards an imaginary field beyond the film's structure and beyond the social reality of the film's outside. What is the aboriginal boy drawing? In one scene, is a glimpse of his 'projection', he draws a house. The boy is mesmerised and pre-occupied by his drawing. We have seen the mystery of this preoccupation in images of heroic modernist architects (Le Corbusier, Frank Lloyd Wright, Oscar Niemeyer come to mind) presenting a connection between the hand of the architect and his sketch as an essential gift in the making of a 'master architect'. Through this visual association, the 'Aboriginal boy drawing' is associated with the field of 'a universal human subject' and the essay investigates how his practice might participate in new subjective positions across disciplines. Through his inscriptions, the Aboriginal boy expresses more than a wish: he articulates and inhabits another dwelling, an imaginary dwelling of a subjectivity and 'identity' beyond the black and white divide. The boy, however, is not a 'master', making his drawing a subversive and risky practice.

What women want in a relationship (with retail salespeople)

The purpose of our study was to examine what women shoppers seek in establishing relationships with sales associates and stores. Based on 70+ personal interviews in 4 countries, we found that women seek a variety of relationship types. It is incumbent upon the retailer and sales associates to assess each customer and determine the level and type of interaction each customer is seeking. "One size does not fit all" when it comes to forging relationships with customers.

Impact of the Pick and Tick food information program on the salt content of food in New Zealand

The Pick the Tick programme of the National Heart Foundation of New Zealand aims to provide a framework for cooperation with the food industry to improve nutrition labelling and to develop a healthy food supply. Food manufacturers, whose products meet defined nutritional criteria, are able to display the Pick the Tick logo on food labels. The tick is used by 59% of shoppers in assisting them make healthy food choices. Food companies are encouraged to reformulate product composition if they fail to meet criteria and develop new products to specifically meet the Pick the Tick criteria. The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of the programme on food formulation. The main outcome measure was the amount of salt not added to food products. Changes to sodium levels were multiplied by the volume of sales and then converted to salt in tonnes to provide a tangible measure of the impact of the programme. In a 1-year period, July 1998 to June 1999, Pick the Tick influenced food companies to exclude ~33 tonnes of salt through the reformulation and formulation of 23 breads, breakfast cereals and margarine. Breakfast cereals showed the largest reduction in sodium content by an average of 378 mg sodium per 100 g product (61%). Bread was reduced by an average of 123 mg per 100 g product (26%) and margarine by 53 mg per 100 g (11%). Pick the Tick appeals to the food industry as a tool for marketing food products and has provided an incentive to improve the nutritional value of foods. The tick on approved products not only acts as a ‘nutrition signpost’ for consumers but can also significantly influence the formulation of products without sacrificing taste or quality.

Some clues about story in crime fiction

I want to begin my talk at this colloquium by saying from the start that I am outclassed here. I have published one crime novel, and while I have used some aspects of the crime genre in my current novel - notably a kind of mystery and a movement towards resolution - I would not classify myself as an expert. What I do know about is the teaching of writing, the value of plot and the ever-important idea of story. Story and aspects of plot are vital ingredients in crime fiction and so I come to the task of writing this paper searching for more clues about how to write story in crime fiction.

Modern feminist dialogue wears ladylike veneer (Book review)

Book review of "The mystery of Rosa Morland, Melbourne: Clouds of Magellan" by Diane Fahey. ISBN: 9780980298338

Consumer knowledge and attitudes to salt intake and labelled salt information

The objective of this study was to investigate consumers’ knowledge of health risks of high salt intake and frequency of use and understanding of labelled salt information. We conducted a cross-sectional survey in shopping centres within Metropolitan Melbourne. A sample of 493 subjects was recruited. The questionnaire assessed salt related shopping behaviours, attitudes to salt intake and health and their ability to interpret labelled sodium information. Four hundred and seventy four valid surveys were collected (65% female, 64% being the main shopper). Most participants knew of the relationship between salt intake and high blood pressure (88%). Sixty five percent of participants were unable to correctly identify the relationship between salt and sodium. Sixty nine percent reported reading the salt content of food products when shopping. Salt label usage was significantly related to shoppers concern about the amount of salt in their diet and the belief that their health could improve by lowering salt intake. Approximately half of the sample was unable to accurately use labelled sodium information to pick low salt options. Raising consumer awareness of the health risks associated with high salt consumption may increase salt label usage and purchases of low salt foods. However, for food labels to be effective in helping consumers select low salt foods a more ‘user friendly’ labelling format is needed.

Do food regulatory systems protect public health?

The purpose of this commentary is to consider the extent to which food regulatory systems protect public health, and how a better job could be done. There are fundamental questions about the role of food regulations in responding to changes in food systems and to food-related public health issues. What is meant by the objective ‘to protect public health and safety’ in the context of food regulation? Are current systems well balanced between promoting trade and protecting health? What is the role of nutrition in food regulation? Should food regulation be used to promote as well as to protect public health? Should laws and regulations be used to intervene in the formulation and marketing of foods, or should ‘the market’ merely provide more choices and information for shoppers and consumers to select healthy diets?

Contact with nature and children's mental, emotional, and social health

This research investigated the benefits of children's contact with nature as perceived by adult educators. It was found that contact with nature is perceived to: increase self-confidence and self-esteem; provide opportunities to experience mystery, privacy, and sensory engagement; connect children with school; and accommodate different learning styles and abilities.

Vessels of earth

Earth, water, wind and fire are the intrinsic elements which form the nucleus of life. These essential ingredients are fundamental to humankind as they are in making of pottery. In search for a complete scientific, philosophical or religious understanding, the melding and the transformation of the elements challenges thought and can conjure up abstract imagery. The focus of this paper is to provide an insight into the concept and the mystery surrounding the earthern substance, the vessel and the allegorical relationship that is shared with humankind. The connection between earth, the vessel and humankind involves a journey to rediscover our universal origins. I will expound the unifying conceptual links through my ceramics and an accompanying disseration.

Risk-based trust management for e-commerce

Electronic commerce (e-commerce) offers enormous opportunities for online trading while at the same time presenting potential risks. Although various mechanisms have been developed to elevate trust in e-commerce, research shows that shoppers continue to be skeptical about buying online and lack of trust is often cited as the main reason for it. Thus, enhancing success in e-commerce requires eliminating or reducing the risks. In this chapter, we present a multi-attribute trust management model that incorporates trust, transaction costs and product warranties. The new trust management system enables potential buyers to determine the risk level of a product before committing to proceed with the transaction. This is useful to online buyers as it allows them to be aware of the risk level and subsequently take the appropriate actions to minimize potential risks before engaging in risky businesses. Results of various simulation experiments show that the proposed multi-attribute trust management system can be highly effective in identifying risky transaction in electronic market places.

Social ideological influences on reported food consumption and BMI

Background : The purpose of this study was to investigate relationships between ideological beliefs, perceptions of the importance of health behaviours, health attitudes, food consumption, and Body Mass Index (BMI). A behavioural model was hypothesized based on the Theory of Reasoned Action (Fishbein & Ajzen, 1975).

Methods : A survey was conducted among shoppers aged between 40 and 70 years at Eastland Shopping Centre, Melbourne, Australia. The hypothesized model was tested with this empirical data (n = 410) for younger (n = 151) and older (n = 259) age groups using structural equation modelling.

Results : The findings generally support the study hypotheses. For both groups, egalitarianism had a direct and positive influence on perceptions of the importance of health behaviours. Materialism and masculinity impacted negatively on health attitudes, which positively influenced importance of health behaviours. Perceptions of importance of health behaviours impacted positively on the consumption of healthy foods such as vegetables and fruits, but negatively on consumption of unhealthy foods including sweets and fats. However, BMI was significantly influenced by the consumption of unhealthy foods (e.g., sugar and fats) only for the younger age group. Hence, the associations between beliefs, attitudes, consumption behaviours, and BMI outcomes differed between younger and older age populations.

Conclusion : Social ideological beliefs appear to influence health attitudes and thereafter, the consumption of healthy and unhealthy foods and BMI via different pathways.

Social ideological influences on food consumption, physical activity and BMI

We investigated relationships between ideological beliefs (i.e., diaphanous body image and environmental concerns), food attitudes, evening meal patterns, physical activity, and Body Mass Index (BMI). A behavioural model was hypothesized based on the Theory of Reasoned Action. A survey was conducted among shoppers aged 40–70 years at Eastland Shopping Centre, Melbourne, Australia. The hypothesized model was tested among female baby boomers (n = 547) for younger (n = 245) and older (n = 302) age groups using structural equation modeling. Findings showed that diaphanous body image had a direct and positive influence on negative food attitudes, which is likely to lead to higher BMI for both age groups. Body image beliefs were positively related to physical activity only for women aged 56–70 years. In contrast, among women aged 40–55 years, strong pro-environmental concerns suggested less consumption of both healthy (e.g., fruit and vegetables) and unhealthy (e.g., sugar and fats) foods. Moreover, strong pro-animal concerns resulted in higher BMI for the younger women. As expected, increased physical activity negatively influenced BMI. Importantly, the associations between ideological beliefs, attitudes, evening meal patterns, and BMI differed between younger and older female baby boomers.

Parents dealing with anorexia : actions and meanings

This paper examines parents’ actions in response to anorexia nervosa, and how these are shaped by the ways they construct or understand the eating disorder. The findings indicate that parents try to influence their daughters by searching for help, providing practical support, avoiding confrontation, complying with special requirements, persuading, explaining, and pressuring, using ploys and force, providing emotional support, and mediating interactions. Parents’ actions are influenced by how they construct anorexia, such as whether they see it as an eating issue, an illness, a psychological problem, a choice, or a mystery. Understanding parents’ actions and constructions can help clinicians develop collaborative partnerships with parents.

Tempered CINEMATIC

A cinematic piece that features bowed piano strings, timpani, bass drum, cymbals and double bass. A moody, evocative piece that evokes cinematic-orchestral pieces for dramatic scenes.