Learning In Academic Setting Research Articles

Learning Factors Causing Silence in English Language (L2) Classrooms at the Graduate Level

The English language has been enjoying the status of an official, language of formal documentation and medium of teaching and learning in academic settings. The main object of the study was to find the factors to cause students' silence in English language (L2) classrooms at one of the Government Universities (CS 2nd year). Applying the qualitative real ethnographic research design; with effective classroom observations (using the observation sheet adopted from Jim King) and semi-structured interviews. The study analyzed that there are some notable learning factors, (such as anxiety, fear, lack of confidence, lack of L2 knowledge and L1 interference) that impact the student's participation in the L2 classroom resulting in silence. Such issues directly affect students' speaking proficiency, and confidence to talk and participate in activities in L2 classroom. The study will be helpful for teachers, curriculum designers and policymakers to overcome the factors causing silence.

Thermography for Emotion Recognition Using Deep Learning in Academic Settings: A Review

Understanding students’ emotional states during the learning process is one of the important aspects to improve learning quality. Measurements of emotion in an academic setting can be performed manually or automatically using a computer. However, developing an emotion recognition method using an imaging modality that is contactless, harmless, and illumination-independent is challenging. Thermography, as a non-invasive emotion recognition method, can recognize emotion variance during learning by observing the temperature distributions in a facial region. Deep learning models, such as convolutional neural networks (CNNs), can be used to interpret thermograms. CNNs can automatically classify emotion thermograms into several emotional states, such as happiness, anger, sadness, and fear. Despite their promising ability, CNNs have not been widely used in emotion recognition. In this study, we aimed to summarize the previous works and progress in emotion recognition in academic settings based on thermography and CNN. We first discussed the previous works on emotion recognition to provide an overview of the availability of modalities with their advantages and disadvantages. We also discussed emotion thermography potential for the academic context to find if there is any information in the available emotion thermal datasets related to the subjects’ educational backgrounds. Emotion classification using the proposed CNN model was described step by step, including the feature learning illustration. Lastly, we proposed future research directions for developing a representative dataset in the academic settings, fed the segmented image, assigned a good kernel, and built a CNN model to improve the recognition performance.

Design principles for internet skills education: results from a design-based research study in higher education.

The current generation of students lives in a globally connected world where Internet technologies are ubiquitous. As a result, they learn how to use various digital tools from a very young age, although, for the most part, the skills they develop are not adequate to use internet technologies in academic settings effectively. Additionally, while digital skills are essential in Higher Education (HE), developing programs for the effective use of internet technologies is still an issue in question. Research lacks empirical investigations regarding the design of such programs. To address this gap, the authors applied a design-based research (DBR) methodology to empirically explore an instructional intervention that aimed to enhance undergraduate students’ digital skills for the effective use of the Internet during their studies. Specifically, the authors drew from multiple sources and utilized a triangulation approach to interpreting the findings emphasizing the aspects of digital skills development and assessment and learning design. The results clearly show that the project-based learning intervention and the proposed design principles can positively impact digital skills development and support learning in academic settings. The authors conclude with implications for further research in the field focusing on digital skills frameworks, assessment instruments, instructional approaches, and learning content.Supplementary InformationThe online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s43545-022-00428-2.

Prospect of Distance Learning in Nepali Academic Sector

In Nepali context, distance learning has brief history starting since 1958. During COVID-19 pandemic period, distance learning modality was widely adopted. The paper analyzed the underlying opportunities and challenges of adopting distance learning in academic setting through literature review, reflection of author’s own experience and quantitative survey. Study identified opportunities as revenue generation; continuation of academic career from any part of country; increase learning outcome among jobholders. Study identified challenges as unequal access and quality of internet facilities; affordability of laptops/computers; limited interaction; and frequent disturbances. Seeing the better prospects, study strongly supported the need of shift in academic shift from traditional setting to non-traditional setting in Nepali context to meet the global needs of competitive and quality education.

SIKAP DOSEN TERHADAP PEMBELAJARAN INTERPROFESIONAL EDUCATION (IPE) STUDI PADA DOSEN DI STIKES JENDERAL ACHMAD YANI YOGYAKARTA

Background: Application of IPE in academics prioritizes collaborative competencies to make students able to understand how to work interprofessionally, so as to foster readiness. Lecturer attitudes are considered as an important component in implementing successful IPE in academic environment.
 Objective: The purpose of this study was to examine and analyse lecturers attitudes towards interprofessional education.
 Method: This was descriptive comparative study with cross sectional design. Sampel were 31 lecturers from departments of nursing, midwifery, and medical record taken by purposive sampling. Modified questioner of Attitudes Toward Interprofessional Health Care Teams (ATHCT), Readiness for Interprofessional Learning Scale (RIPLS), and Attitudes Towards Interprofessional Learning in Academic Setting (ATILAS) were applied to examine lecturers attitudes.
 Result: The results indicate lecturer's positive attitude toward IPE, with an average score of statement item M = 3.96 on the attitude aspect to the interprofessional health care teams; M = 4.11 on attitude aspect to interprofessional education; as well as on attitudes towards interprofessional learning in academic setting with M = 3,93. Discipline, gender, and teaching experience have no significant relationship with overall attitudinal responses towards IPE.
 Conclusions: These findings can be used as a consideration of the intitution in applying Interprofessional Education at the academic settings.
 Keywords: Attitudes, Interprofessional Education, Lecturers

SIKAP DOSEN TERHADAP PEMBELAJARAN INTERPROFESIONAL EDUCATION (IPE) STUDI PADA DOSEN DI STIKES JENDERAL ACHMAD YANI YOGYAKARTA

Background: Application of IPE in academics prioritizes collaborative competencies to make students able to understand how to work interprofessionally, so as to foster readiness. Lecturer attitudes are considered as an important component in implementing successful IPE in academic environment.
 Objective: The purpose of this study was to examine and analyse lecturers attitudes towards interprofessional education.
 Method: This was descriptive comparative study with cross sectional design. Sampel were 31 lecturers from departments of nursing, midwifery, and medical record taken by purposive sampling. Modified questioner of Attitudes Toward Interprofessional Health Care Teams (ATHCT), Readiness for Interprofessional Learning Scale (RIPLS), and Attitudes Towards Interprofessional Learning in Academic Setting (ATILAS) were applied to examine lecturers attitudes.
 Result: The results indicate lecturer's positive attitude toward IPE, with an average score of statement item M = 3.96 on the attitude aspect to the interprofessional health care teams; M = 4.11 on attitude aspect to interprofessional education; as well as on attitudes towards interprofessional learning in academic setting with M = 3,93. Discipline, gender, and teaching experience have no significant relationship with overall attitudinal responses towards IPE.
 Conclusions: These findings can be used as a consideration of the intitution in applying Interprofessional Education at the academic settings.
 
 Keywords: Attitudes, Interprofessional Education, Lecturers

Self-Directed Learning in Physician Assistant Education: Learning Portfolios in Physician Assistant Programs.

Self-directed learning (SDL) portfolios are underused in the educational process and should be considered by physician assistant (PA) programs. Clinicians such as PAs are responsible for self-identifying their learning needs, competencies, and ongoing educational requirements. This article introduces an outline for SDL in the PA profession, for direct use by learners and indirect use by educators. Without a plan, many professionals may lack the insight, motivation, and knowledge needed to improve their skill set and establish goals for individual lifelong learning. This study conducted a review of the literature. Then, by incorporating SDL portfolios into PA educational methodologies, it constructed a concept map for individuals to monitor, self-direct, and actively participate in their own learning in academic settings and throughout their career.

Applications of social constructivist learning theories in knowledge translation for healthcare professionals: a scoping review.

BackgroundUse of theory is essential for advancing the science of knowledge translation (KT) and for increasing the likelihood that KT interventions will be successful in reducing existing research-practice gaps in health care. As a sociological theory of knowledge, social constructivist theory may be useful for informing the design and evaluation of KT interventions. As such, this scoping review explored the extent to which social constructivist theory has been applied in the KT literature for healthcare professionals.MethodsSearches were conducted in six databases: Ovid MEDLINE (1948 – May 16, 2011), Ovid EMBASE, CINAHL, ERIC, PsycInfo, and AMED. Inclusion criteria were: publications from all health professions, research methodologies, as well as conceptual and theoretical papers related to KT. To be included in the review, key words such as constructivism, social constructivism, or social constructivist theories had to be included within the title or abstract. Papers that discussed the use of social constructivist theories in the context of undergraduate learning in academic settings were excluded from the review. An analytical framework of quantitative (numerical) and thematic analysis was used to examine and combine study findings.ResultsOf the 514 articles screened, 35 papers published between 1992 and 2011 were deemed eligible and included in the review. This review indicated that use of social constructivist theory in the KT literature was limited and haphazard. The lack of justification for the use of theory continues to represent a shortcoming of the papers reviewed. Potential applications and relevance of social constructivist theory in KT in general and in the specific studies were not made explicit in most papers. For the acquisition, expression and application of knowledge in practice, there was emphasis on how the social constructivist theory supports clinicians in expressing this knowledge in their professional interactions.ConclusionsThis scoping review was the first to examine use of social constructivism in KT studies. While the links between social constructivism and KT have not been fully explored, the Knowledge to Action framework has strong constructivist underpinnings that can be used in moving forward within the broader KT enterprise.

Training Attentional Control in Infancy

SummarySeveral recent studies have reported that cognitive training in adults does not lead to generalized performance improvements [1, 2], whereas many studies with younger participants (children 4 years and older) have reported distal transfer [3, 4]. This is consistent with convergent evidence [5–8] for greater neural and behavioral plasticity earlier in development. We used gaze-contingent paradigms to train 11-month-old infants on a battery of attentional control tasks. Relative to an active control group, and following only a relatively short training period, posttraining assessments revealed improvements in cognitive control and sustained attention, reduced saccadic reaction times, and reduced latencies to disengage visual attention. Trend changes were also observed in spontaneous looking behavior during free play, but no change was found in working memory. The amount of training correlated with the degree of improvement on some measures. These findings are to our knowledge the first demonstration of distal transfer following attentional control training in infancy. Given the longitudinal relationships identified between early attentional control and learning in academic settings [9, 10], and the causal role that impaired control of attention may play in disrupting learning in several disorders [11–14], the current results open a number of avenues for future work.

A project management perspective on student's declarative commitments to goals established within asynchronous communication

AbstractTeamwork and technology, even as people are seeing their increased use in organizations, are becoming important components of problem‐based learning in academic settings. Yet, fostering computer‐assisted teamwork is complex and time consuming. Knowing how and when to intervene would prove useful. This study draws from the field of project management to explore how students commit to project goals using collective asynchronous text‐based communication technology. Declarative commitments – goal‐orientated public, voluntary, explicit and non‐retractable messages comprised of a term, an objective and a focus – made by 34 teams during a four‐phase 13‐week project were analysed qualitatively and quantitatively. Qualitative results show that declarative commitments voluntarily and formally package information about project constraints into a relatively potent message about tasks, coordination and project completion. Team members' suggestions as to what should be carried out in the project and requests for help often preceded others' declarative commitments. As with persuasive communication (i.e. aimed at changing beliefs, attitudes and behaviours), declarative commitments were followed by demands for clarification, new declarative commitments, confirmations of upheld commitments and clear approvals of what was committed to. Looking at project progression from a broader perspective, quantitative analyses show that declarative commitments did partially mediate the relationship between frequencies of task issues and of task solutions. This was particularly pronounced in the mid‐point of the project, but it was not the case during the initial or final phases of the project. Taken together, these results suggest that teachers can facilitate computer‐assisted learning and project goal attainment by monitoring asynchronous electronic discussions, and by eliciting and structuring declarative commitments.

An investigation of the construct validity of the personality trait of self-directed learning

Based on samples of 398 middle school students, 568 high school students, and 1159 college students, self-directed learning was found to be related to cumulative grade-point-average at all levels as well as to Big Five personality traits (Openness, Conscientiousness, Emotional Stability, and Extraversion), narrow personality traits (Optimism, Career-Decidedness, Work Drive, and Self-Actualization), vocational interests (Realistic, Investigative, Artistic, and Conventional, as well as Science, Medicine, and Mathematics), cognitive aptitudes, and life as well as college satisfaction. Based on an additional sample of 4125 college students, a confirmatory factor analysis was used to verify a single factor structure for our 10-item measure of self-directed learning. Results were discussed in terms of personality characteristics of self-directed learners, the trans-situational validity of self-directed learning in academic settings, multiple forms of evidence of the construct validity of self-directed learning, and implications for future research and practice.

Assessment of knowledge and competencies related to implant dentistry in undergraduate and postgraduate university education

Learning in academic settings is strongly related to the way the students are tested or examined. Assessment therefore must be integrated in the curriculum design, coordinated and should reflect the learning outcomes of the education. Assessment within the field of implant dentistry must fulfil four major objectives: complete and direct the learning process with feedback (formative), ensure that students are adequately prepared (summative), assess attitudes and skills such as critical thinking, reflection and self-assessment ability, and supply continuous feedback to teachers on curricular content and impact. Different assessment methods should be used to assess different levels of competencies throughout the curriculum. Various forms of written or oral assessment methodologies are applicable at earlier stages in the curriculum. At intermediate levels, interactive assessment methods, such as patient simulations (paper based or virtual) and more could encourage the necessary synthesis of several disciplines and aspects of the theoretical knowledge. At higher levels of competence, documentation of clinical proficiency by means of reflective portfolios and diaries is an appropriate assessment method with both formative and summative potential. The highest level of competence requires performance assessment using structured, objective, clinical criteria. The group strongly encourages the use of reflective forms of assessment methods which engage the students in a process of self-appraisal, identification of individual learning needs and self-directed learning. The ultimate goal of this would be to allow the student to develop a lifelong learning attitude.