A Bayesian approach to modeling the conditional density of the inverse controller

The inverse controller is traditionally assumed to be a deterministic function. This paper presents a pedagogical methodology for estimating the stochastic model of the inverse controller. The proposed method is based on Bayes' theorem. Using Bayes' rule to obtain the stochastic model of the inverse controller allows the use of knowledge of uncertainty from both the inverse and the forward model in estimating the optimal control signal. The paper presents the methodology for general nonlinear systems. For illustration purposes, the proposed methodology is applied to linear Gaussian systems. © 2004 IEEE.

Bringing engineering education to life:an empirical approach

This paper focuses upon the argument that the role played by the engineering profession within today's society has changed markedly over the past several years from providing the foundations for contemporary life to leading societal change and becoming one of the key driver's of future social development. Coining the term 'Engineering-Sociology' this paper contributes to engineering education and engineering education research by proposing a new paradigm upon which future engineering education programmes and engineering education research might build. Developed out of an approach to learning and teaching practice, Engineering-Sociology encapsulates both traditional and applied approaches to engineering education and engineering education research. It suggests that in order to meet future challenges there is a need to bring together what are generally perceived to be two diametrically opposed paradigms, namely engineering and sociology. Building on contemporary theoretical and pedagogical arguments in engineering education research, the paper concludes that by encouraging engineering educators to 'think differently', Engineering-Sociology can provide an approach to learning and teaching that both enhances the student experience and meets the changing needs of society.

A Q-Methodology approach to investigating the relationship between level of reflection and typologies among prospective teachers in the physics learning assistant program at Florida International University

The purpose of this mixed methods study was to understand physics Learning Assistants' (LAs) views on reflective teaching, expertise in teaching, and LA program teaching experience and to determine if views predicted level of reflection evident in writing. Interviews were conducted in Phase One, Q methodology was used in Phase Two, and level of reflection in participants' writing was assessed using a rubric based on Hatton and Smith's (1995) "Criteria for the Recognition of Evidence for Different Types of Reflective Writing" in Phase Three. Interview analysis revealed varying perspectives on content knowledge, pedagogical knowledge, and experience in relation to expertise in teaching. Participants revealed that they engaged in reflection on their teaching, believed reflection helps teachers improve, and found peer reflection beneficial. Participants believed teaching experience in the LA program provided preparation for teaching, but that more preparation was needed to teach. Three typologies emerged in Phase Two. Type One LAs found participation in the LA program rewarding and believed expertise in teaching does not require expertise in content or pedagogy, but it develops over time from reflection. Type Two LAs valued reflection, but not writing reflections, felt the LA program teaching experience helped them decide on non-teaching careers and helped them confront gaps in their physics knowledge. Type Three LAs valued reflection, believed expertise in content and pedagogy are necessary for expert teaching, and felt LA program teaching experience increased their likelihood of becoming teachers, but did not prepare them for teaching. Writing assignments submitted in Phase Three were categorized as 19% descriptive writing, 60% descriptive reflections, and 21% dialogic reflections. No assignments were categorized as critical reflection. Using ordinal logistic regression, typologies that emerged in Phase Two were not found to be predictors for the level of reflection evident in the writing assignments. In conclusion, viewpoints of physics LAs were revealed, typologies among them were discovered, and their writing gave evidence of their ability to reflect on teaching. These findings may benefit faculty and staff in the LA program by helping them better understand the views of physics LAs and how to assess their various forms of reflection.

Engineering the future! Innovation in learning & teaching:an empirical approach

Learning and teaching approaches to engineering are generally perceived to be difficult and academically challenging. Such challenges are reflected in high levels of student attrition and failure. In addressing this issue, a unique approach to engineering education has been developed by one of the paper authors. This approach, which is suitable for undergraduate and postgraduate levels, brings together pedagogic and engineering epistemologies in an empirically grounded framework. It is underpinned by three distinctive concepts: Relationships, Variety & Alignment. Based upon research, the R + V + A approach to engineering education provides a learning and teaching strategy which in enhancing the student experience increases retention and positively impacts student success. In discussing the emergent findings of a study into the pedagogical value of the approach the paper makes a significant contribution to academic theory and practice in this area.

AR-based Technoself Enhanced Learning Approach to Improving Student Engagement

The emerging technologies have expanded a new dimension of self – ‘technoself’ driven by socio-technical innovations and taken an important step forward in pervasive learning. Technology Enhanced Learning (TEL) research has increasingly focused on emergent technologies such as Augmented Reality (AR) for augmented learning, mobile learning, and game-based learning in order to improve self-motivation and self-engagement of the learners in enriched multimodal learning environments. These researches take advantage of technological innovations in hardware and software across different platforms and devices including tablets, phoneblets and even game consoles and their increasing popularity for pervasive learning with the significant development of personalization processes which place the student at the center of the learning process. In particular, augmented reality (AR) research has matured to a level to facilitate augmented learning, which is defined as an on-demand learning technique where the learning environment adapts to the needs and inputs from learners. In this paper we firstly study the role of Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) which is one of the most influential theories applied in TEL on how learners come to accept and use a new technology. Then we present the design methodology of the technoself approach for pervasive learning and introduce technoself enhanced learning as a novel pedagogical model to improve student engagement by shaping personal learning focus and setting. Furthermore we describe the design and development of an AR-based interactive digital interpretation system for augmented learning and discuss key features. By incorporating mobiles, game simulation, voice recognition, and multimodal interaction through Augmented Reality, the learning contents can be geared toward learner's needs and learners can stimulate discovery and gain greater understanding. The system demonstrates that Augmented Reality can provide rich contextual learning environment and contents tailored for individuals. Augment learning via AR can bridge this gap between the theoretical learning and practical learning, and focus on how the real and virtual can be combined together to fulfill different learning objectives, requirements, and even environments. Finally, we validate and evaluate the AR-based technoself enhanced learning approach to enhancing the student motivation and engagement in the learning process through experimental learning practices. It shows that Augmented Reality is well aligned with constructive learning strategies, as learners can control their own learning and manipulate objects that are not real in augmented environment to derive and acquire understanding and knowledge in a broad diversity of learning practices including constructive activities and analytical activities.

Geography, History and Natural Sciences: an interdisciplinary teaching approach with GIS

Geographic Information System (GIS) is a technology that deals with location to support better representations and decision making. It has a long tradition in several planning areas, such as urbanism, environment, riskiness, transportation, archeology or tourism. In academics context higher education has followed that evolution. Despite of their potentialities in education, GIS technologies at the elementary and secondary have been underused. Empowering graduates to learn with GIS and to manipulate spatial data can effectively facilitate the teaching of critical thinking. Likewise it has been recognized that GIS tools can be incorporated as an interdisciplinary pedagogical tool. Nevertheless more practical examples on how GIS tools can enhance teaching and learning process, namely to promote interdisciplinary approaches. The proposed paper presents some results obtained from the project “Each thing in its place: the science in time and space”. This project results from the effort of three professors of Geography, History and Natural Sciences in the context of Didactics of World Knowledge curricular unit to enhance interdisciplinarity through Geographic Information Technologies (GIT). Implemented during the last three years this action-research project developed the research practice using GIS to create an interdisciplinary attitude in the future primary education teachers. More than teaching GIS the authors were focused on teaching with GIS to create an integrated vision where spatial data representation linked the space, the time and natural sciences. Accumulated experience reveals that those technologies can motivate students to learn and facilitating teacher’s interdisciplinary work.

The interaction factor as a challenge for foreign language learning in the technology based education: a pedagogical reflection

The author carries out a pedagogical reflection on how the technology driven distance learning repeatedly neglects the scientific achievements of Second Language Acquisition and Language Pedagogy. Seeing communicative competence as a major goal of a language classroom, she presents the main challenges that the communicative approach poses to distance learning. To this end, a general distance learning theory by Moore is adapted to the needs of language education, through a distinction between three aspects of learner interaction – with the teacher, with other learners and with content. In this three-dimensional paradigm the learner is seen as the main actor of the process, the teacher as a facilitator, the text as a main source of communicative data and the learner autonomy as the fundament of the process.

Comparison of multiple intelligences in children from schools with different pedagogical models

The purpose of this research was to apply a test that measures different multiple intelligences in children from two different elementary schools to determine whether there are differences between the Academicist Pedagogical Model (traditional approach) established by the Costa Rican Ministry of Public Education and the Cognitive Pedagogical Model (MPC) (constructivist approach). A total of 29 boys and 20 girls with ages 8 to 12 from two different public schools in Heredia (Laboratorio School and San Isidro School) participated in this study. The instrument used was a Multiple Intelligences Test for school age children (Vega, 2006), which consists of 15 items subdivided in seven categories: linguistic, logical-mathematical, visual, kinaesthetic, musical, interpersonal, and intrapersonal. Descriptive and inferential statistics (Two-Way ANOVA) were used for the analysis of data.  Significant differences were found in linguistic intelligence (F:9.47; p < 0.01) between the MPC school (3.24±1.24 points) and the academicist school (2.31±1.10 points).  Differences were also found between sex (F:5.26; p< 0.05), for girls (3.25±1.02 points) and boys (2.52±1.30 points). In addition, the musical intelligence showed significant statistical differences between sexes (F: 7.97; p < 0.05).  In conclusion, the learning pedagogical models in Costa Rican public schools must be updated based on the new learning trends.

A Pedagogical Strategy for Integrated Education of Spanish in the 4th to 6th Grades of the General Basic Education

Language teaching has become a priority in the Costa Rican educational system, considering it as a tool for communication and development of thought. Without language, there is no access to other curriculum disciplinary knowledge. A successful experience conducted some years ago, with students from 4th to 6th grade, was the basis for the design and implementation of a professional development activity addressed to promoting an integration strategy previously adjusted according to the Ministry’s requirements and the existing national regulations. This study is developed in the framework of a qualitative paradigm including research-action and systematization. A purposive sample was selected based on a suitability factor, through which individuals are informed about the strategy, and then the strategy is applied to a group of students from urban-marginal areas. The techniques used include literature review, analysis of curriculum and Ministry’s regulations, application of an in-depth interview, discussions from the course’s participant in a portfolio, and discussions from students to whom the strategy was applied. We analyzed the considerations of teachers and students, as well as the theoretical and regulatory information by triangulation. The study’s conclusion is the necessity of a communicative approach in language teaching and our recommendation is to implement the strategy developed in the Costa Rican classrooms as provided in this paper.