Shared Online Research Articles

Book Review: Creating and Sharing Online Library Instruction

Online instruction over the last decade has proliferated in many academic areas, and library instruction is no exception. The ability to teach important topics such as critical thinking and research skills to a large number of students at once has created demand for more online library instruction. In the past, bibliographic instruction differed from library to library, even as online instruction became commonplace at many institutions. But recently, many libraries have begun collaborating, sharing their online instruction content and assessment as a time-saving (and budget-saving) alternative to conducting their instruction on their own.

Group online adaptive learning

Sharing information among multiple learning agents can accelerate learning. It could be particularly useful if learners operate in continuously changing environments, because a learner could benefit from previous experience of another learner to adapt to their new environment. Such group-adaptive learning has numerous applications, from predicting financial time-series, through content recommendation systems, to visual understanding for adaptive autonomous agents. Here we address the problem in the context of online adaptive learning. We formally define the learning settings of Group Online Adaptive Learning and derive an algorithm named Shared Online Adaptive Learning (SOAL) to address it. SOAL avoids explicitly modeling changes or their dynamics, and instead shares information continuously. The key idea is that learners share a common small pool of experts, which they can use in a weighted adaptive way. We define group adaptive regret and prove that SOAL maintains known bounds on the adaptive regret obtained for single adaptive learners. Furthermore, it quickly adapts when learning tasks are related to each other. We demonstrate the benefits of the approach for two domains: vision and text. First, in the visual domain, we study a visual navigation task where a robot learns to navigate based on outdoor video scenes. We show how navigation can improve when knowledge from other robots in related scenes is available. Second, in the text domain, we create a new dataset for the task of assigning submitted papers to relevant editors. This is, inherently, an adaptive learning task due to the dynamic nature of research fields evolving in time. We show how learning to assign editors improves when knowledge from other editors is available. Together, these results demonstrate the benefits for sharing information across learners in concurrently changing environments.

Creating Virtual Learning Environment: Shared Online Learning in University Education

Creating Virtual Learning Environment: Shared Online Learning in University Education

Navigating cancer using online communities: a grounded theory of survivor and family experiences

PurposePeople affected by cancer often have unmet emotional and social support needs. Online cancer communities are a convenient channel for connecting cancer survivors, allowing them to support one another. However, it is unclear whether online community use makes a meaningful contribution to cancer survivorship, as little previous research has examined the experience of using contemporary cancer communities. We aimed to explore the experiences of visitors to online cancer communities.MethodsTwenty-three in-depth interviews were conducted with online cancer community visitors, including cancer survivors (n = 18), family members (n = 2), and individuals who were both a survivor and family member (n = 3). Interviews were analysed using a grounded theory approach.ResultsA theory developed explaining how individuals ‘navigated’ the experience of cancer using online cancer communities. Online advice and information led participants on a ‘journey to become informed’. Online friendships normalised survivorship and cast participants on a ‘journey to recreate identity’. Participants navigated a ‘journey through different worlds’ as they discovered relevant and hidden communities.ConclusionsThis theory highlights virtual paths people affected by cancer can take to self-manage their experience of the disease. Online community experiences can be improved by promoting online evaluation skills and signposting visitors to bereavement support.Implications for cancer survivorsCancer survivors can benefit through both lurking and posting in online communities. However, individuals risk becoming distressed when they befriend individuals who may soon die. Additionally, people affected by rarer cancers can struggle to find shared experiences online and may need to look elsewhere for support.

Scholarly Communication and the Dilemma of Collective Action: Why Academic Journals Cost Too Much

Why has the rise of the Internet—which drastically reduces the cost of distributing information—coincided with drastic increases in the prices that academic libraries pay for access to scholarly journals? This study argues that libraries are trapped in a collective action dilemma as defined by economist Mancur Olson in The Logic of Collective Action: Public Goods and the Theory of Groups. To truly reduce their costs, librarians would have to build a shared online collection of scholarly resources jointly managed by the academic community as a whole, but individual academic institutions lack the private incentives necessary to invest in a shared collection. Thus, the management of online scholarly journals has been largely outsourced to publishers who have developed monopoly powers that allow them to increase subscription prices faster than the rate of inflation. Many librarians consider the open access movement the best response to increased subscription costs, but the current strategies employed to achieve open access also are undermined by collective action dilemmas. In conclusion, some alternative strategies are proposed.

How the Sharing Economy Is Challenging the EU VAT System

Sharing online platforms (Airbnb, Uber, BlaBlaCar, etc.) disrupt the way business has traditionally been done and pose new challenges both to established industries as well as to regulators. In this article, the author explains the main characteristics of the sharing economy business models and outlines the general legal and tax challenges that they raise, before focusing in more detail on specific VAT issues of sharing platforms with a view to providing some guidance on how they can best be addressed.

Scholarly Communication and the Dilemma of Collective Action: Why Academic Journals Cost Too Much

Why has the rise of the Internet—which drastically reduces the cost of distributing information—coincided with drastic increases in the prices that academic libraries pay for access to scholarly journals? This study argues that libraries are trapped in a collective action dilemma as defined by economist Mancur Olson in The Logic of Collective Action: Public Goods and the Theory of Groups. To truly reduce their costs, librarians would have to build a shared online collection of scholarly resources jointly managed by the academic community as a whole, but individual academic institutions lack the private incentives necessary to invest in a shared collection. Thus, the management of online scholarly journals has been largely outsourced to publishers who have developed monopoly powers that allow them to increase subscription prices faster than the rate of inflation. Many librarians consider the open access movement the best response to increased subscription costs, but the current strategies employed to achieve open access also are undermined by collective action dilemmas. In conclusion, some alternative strategies are proposed.

He Asked Me What!?—Using Shared Online Accounts as Training Tools for Distance Learning Librarians

ABSTRACTThis study explores the idea of creating a knowledge base from shared online accounts to use in training librarians who perform distance reference services. Through a survey, follow-up interviews and a case study, the investigators explored current and potential use of shared online accounts as training tools. This study revealed that the participants viewed the concept positively, but many encountered barriers to effectively employing a local knowledge base as a training tool.

A Comparison of the Online Learning Activities and Learning Style Preferences of Young Adult Video Game Players and Nonplayers

<p>A study is presented that compared the online learning activities and learning style preferences of video game players and nonplayers. A total of 1,258 students across seven postsecondary institutions near Seoul, South Korea, rated their experiences with video game play alongside their online learning activities and preferences toward learning styles that share characteristics with many of today’s games. Utilizing a causal-comparative approach, descriptive and inferential statistical analyses were used to quantitatively examine the groups. At first glance, the findings revealed that the players were more involved in online learning activities than the nonplayers. Namely, the players (a) took more online courses and/or training per year; (b) shared ideas, documents, information, and/or knowledge online; (c) read and/or contributed to blogs; (d) used the Internet to complete school assignments; and (e) used email, instant message, chat (or other means) to communicate with instructors and peers. However, further examination revealed that the nonplayers held a stronger preference than the players for most of the learning styles examined. That is, the nonplayers preferred online courses and/or training that (a) presented graphics before text; (b) provided opportunities to multitask; (c) offered the ability to selectively access different parts of courseware, rather than linearly stepping through; and (d) were play- rather than work-centric. Although exceptions were found, on the whole, these findings suggest that arguments about today’s youth and their different learning preferences, as a result of exposure to and experience with technology, to include video games, may be premature and much more in-depth empirically supported research is needed before definitive conclusions can be safely drawn.</p>

MÔ HÌNH CHIA SẺ TÀI NGUYÊN HỌC LIỆU TRỰC TUYẾN

MÔ HÌNH CHIA SẺ TÀI NGUYÊN HỌC LIỆU TRỰC TUYẾN

A Comparative Study Between the Capabilities of MySQl Vs. MongoDB as a Back-End for an Online Platform

In this article we present a comparative study between the usage capabilities of MongoDB, a non-relational database, and MySQL’s usage capabilities, a relational database, as a back-end for an online platform. We will also present the advantages of using a non-relational database, namely MongoDB, compared to a relational database, namely MySQL, integrated in an online platform, which allows users to publish different articles, books, magazines and so on, and also gives them the possibility to share online their items with other people. Nowadays, most applications have thousands of users that perform operations simultaneously thus, it takes more than one operation to be executed at a time, to really see the differences between the two databases. This paper aims to highlight the differences between MySQL and MongoDB, integrated in an online platform, when various operations were executed in parallel by many users.

The First Shared Online Curriculum Resources for Veterinary Undergraduate Learning and Teaching in Animal Welfare and Ethics in Australia and New Zealand.

Simple SummaryThere is a need for teaching Animal Welfare and Ethics in veterinary schools and we are developing online resources to meet this need. In this paper we describe how we prioritized the development of these resources by polling experts in the field.The need for undergraduate teaching of Animal Welfare and Ethics (AWE) in Australian and New Zealand veterinary courses reflects increasing community concerns and expectations about AWE; global pressures regarding food security and sustainability; the demands of veterinary accreditation; and fears that, unless students encounter AWE as part of their formal education, as veterinarians they will be relatively unaware of the discipline of animal welfare science. To address this need we are developing online resources to ensure Australian and New Zealand veterinary graduates have the knowledge, and the research, communication and critical reasoning skills, to fulfill the AWE role demanded of them by contemporary society. To prioritize development of these resources we assembled leaders in the field of AWE education from the eight veterinary schools in Australia and New Zealand and used modified deliberative polling. This paper describes the role of the poll in developing the first shared online curriculum resource for veterinary undergraduate learning and teaching in AWE in Australia and New Zealand. The learning and teaching strategies that ranked highest in the exercise were: scenario-based learning; a quality of animal life assessment tool; the so-called ‘Human Continuum’ discussion platform; and a negotiated curriculum.

Creating, curating, and sharing online faculty development resources: the medical education in cases series experience.

It is difficult to engage clinicians in continuing medical education that does not focus on clinical expertise. Evolving online technologies (e.g., massive open online courses [MOOCs]) are disrupting and transforming medical education, but few online nonclinical professional development resources exist. In August 2013, the Academic Life in Emergency Medicine Web site launched the Medical Education in Cases (MEdIC) series to engage clinicians in an online professional development exercise. Each month, a complex, realistic scenario featuring a nonclinical medical education dilemma is published with accompanying discussion questions. A weeklong discussion is moderated on Twitter and the Web site. This discussion is curated to create a community commentary, which is published alongside presolicited expert responses. Case resources are available for download. The first six MEdIC cases (published August 2013-January 2014) emphasized different CanMEDS and/or Accreditation Council on Graduate Medical Education competencies. Median reader engagement metrics (interquartile range 25%-75%) in the first week following publication were 861 (634-1,114) pageviews, 767 (518-953) unique visitors from 326 (218-405) cities in 45 (32-50) countries, 30 (24-39) comments, 52 (40-56) tweets, 17 (13-30) Facebook Likes, and 5 (5-7) Google Plus +1s. The MEdIC series is proof of concept that online activities can engage clinicians in nonclinical professional development. The early experience suggests the connectivist nature of MEdIC allows for crowdsourcing solutions to ill-defined problems via the wisdom of readers. This methodology may also be effective for other nonclinical and medical education topics.

Using shared online blogs to structure and support informal coach learning. Part 2: the participants' view and implications for coach education

In part one of this paper, Stoszkowski and Collins showed that shared online blogs were a useful tool to structure and support the informal learning of a cohort of final year undergraduate sports coaching students. The aim of the present study was to offer insight into student coaches' perceptions of their use and experiences of structured group blogging for reflection and learning. Twenty-three student coaches (5 females, 18 males), purposely sampled from the original study, took part in four semi-structured focus group interviews. Interview data were inductively analysed. Student coaches were generally very positive about their learning experiences and the pedagogical approach employed. This was especially apparent in terms of perceived increases in levels of reflection, knowledge acquisition and improvements in coaching practice; changes corroborated by the data presented in part one. A range of reasons emerged for these outcomes, alongside several potential limiters of engagement in shared group blogging as a learning endeavour. Whilst these findings support recent, and growing proposals to systematically incorporate Web 2.0 technologies such as blogs into coach education pedagogy, several key considerations for the process of using such tools are outlined. Finally, the implications for coach educators are discussed.

Communicating Social Support in Computer-mediated Contexts: A Meta-analytic Review of Content Analyses Examining Support Messages Shared Online among Individuals Coping with Illness

Research on social support during the past two decades has been marked by a growth in scholarship examining supportive communication in computer-mediated contexts among individuals coping with illness. In an effort to summarize and advance this body of research, a meta-analytic review of content analyses was conducted. Across the 41 content analyses examining social support messages shared in health-related contexts online, informational and emotional support messages were most prevalent. Additionally, the prevalence of particular types of support messages varied based on several stressor dimensions relevant to illness. Nurturant forms of support were more common among content analyses examining health conditions likely to threaten personal relationships as well as among content analyses focusing on health conditions with a greater potential for loss in the form of death. Action-facilitating types of support were more common among content analyses examining more chronic conditions. The findings from this project offer insights about the nuanced ways in which computer-mediated communication is used as a resource for coping with illness.

Using shared online blogs to structure and support informal coach learning—part 1: a tool to promote reflection and communities of practice

Coaches' apparent preferences for informal and self-directed modes of learning have been highlighted in the literature. Consequently, there is a need for innovative coach education approaches that complement these clearly preferred, informal routes and better provide coaches with the professional skills they need to deal with the complex nature of their work. Online blogs are one such tool said to have the potential to strengthen and promote critical thinking and reflection on professional practice; however, research evidence and theoretical frameworks for their use is inconclusive and currently lacking. Therefore, the purpose of part 1 of this two-part investigation was to explore the use of shared online blogs as a tool to promote reflection and community of practice (CoP) in a cohort of 24 undergraduate sports coaching students (5 females, 19 males). Four group blogs, purposely designed to support informal workplace learning, were subjected to content analysis in order to determine the emergent reflective quality of blog entries and the extent to which functioning online CoPs emerged. Findings revealed that shared blogs were a useful tool to promote higher order reflective thinking, and fully functioning online CoPs emerged in all four groups.

Stability and change: the role of keepsakes and family homes in the lives of parentally bereaved young adults in the Netherlands

This paper examines the loss of a parent in young adulthood, showing how this emergent and distinctive life stage shapes Dutch young people’s experience of bereavement. Youth material cultures have commonly been analysed in terms of the construction and expression of youth identities, for example, through style, music and leisure. In this research, we highlight three themes in young people’s relationship to material culture as part of their everyday lived experience of parental loss: first, the parental home as a space of departure, memory and return, and the potential for conflict, destabilisation and misunderstanding when the remaining parent transforms the home or embarks on a new relationship; second, the different strategies young adults use to commemorate their parent in their own temporary or shared accommodation and online space; and third, the role of small, portable but effective keepsakes and adornment, such as jewellery or tattoos, that meet their need for the emotional experience of closeness with the memory of their parent. A focus on the material trajectories of grief grants insights into how young adults cope with loss in their everyday life, generating understanding of the ways young people may support themselves and be supported by others in the context of parental bereavement.

Snapshots of innovation

Snapshots of innovation

Visiting authenticity on Los Angeles Gang Tours: Tourists backstage

Many studies have stated that tourists are searching for authenticity – or what they perceive as such – within foreign cultural contexts. Accepting forms of culture that reflect day-to-day life as tourist attractions, many tourists have developed an interest in the real life of their hosts. Yet, the definition of authenticity in tourism has become multifaceted. Divided between experiences and objects, authenticity has been perceived through either objective, constructive or postmodern approaches. This paper examines the various elements on which a new tourist attraction, namely Los Angeles Gang Tours, bases its commercialization upon authenticity as communicated through online communication channels. For this purpose, content analysis was applied to the textual and visual online data available. Finally, the discussion is developed as to what form of authenticity this tour represents, as well as the perception of authenticity that tourists share online after experiencing the tour.

“Meng? It Just Means Cute”: A Chinese Online Vernacular Term in Context

“Meng? It Just Means Cute”: A Chinese Online Vernacular Term in Context