A model of service-learning implementation: case of Ukrainian Catholic University

Service-learning (SL) is a relatively new approach for the Ukrainian education system. The Ukrainian Catholic University (UCU) became the first in Ukraine to introduce it at the institutional level. The organization of this process requires a transparent methodology and algorithm for implementation. In this study, we consider the institutional performance of SL at UCU from the standpoint of innovation management in the educational process. The paper’s objective is to describe the SL model implementation at the UCU based on the analysis of the carried-out optimizing processes. The classic problem-based approach with interactive research and design-based research were applied to develop the model. Furthermore, the description of the results uses a process-oriented methodology as the most appropriate for the current and future research work. The success of the SL approach implementation is partly due to the technical part by which it is about the design of the work process and the internal culture of the HEI. The groups of stakeholders involved in designing and adopting the SL model and pedagogy are foundational in the applied case of the process-oriented methodology. The final goal was to identify the areas with the most significant opportunities for improvement when implementing SL in the HEI. The model of implementation of SL in the HEI, presented in this study, was created on the business process mapping principles and can be valuable for other educational institutions that want to implement this approach.

A process-oriented evaluation of CAMS reanalysis ozone during tropopause folds over Europe for the period 2003–2018

Tropopause folds are the key process underlying stratosphere-to-troposphere transport (STT) of ozone, thus, affecting tropospheric ozone levels and variability. In the present study we perform a process-oriented evaluation of Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS) reanalysis (CAMSRA) O3 during folding events, over Europe and for the time period from 2003 to 2018. A 3-D labeling algorithm is applied to detect tropopause folds in CAMSRA, while ozonesonde data from WOUDC (World Ozone and Ultraviolet Radiation Data Centre) and aircraft measurements from IAGOS (In-service Aircraft for a Global Observing System) are used for CAMSRA O3 evaluation. The profiles of observed and CAMSRA O3 concentrations indicate that CAMSRA reproduces the observed O3 increases in the troposphere during the examined folding events. Nevertheless, at some of the examined sites, CAMSRA overestimates the observed O3 concentrations, mostly at the upper portion of the observed increases, with a median fractional gross error (FGE) among the examined sites > 0.2 above 400 hPa. The use of a control run without data assimilation, reveals that the aforementioned overestimation of CAMSRA O3 arises from the data assimilation implementation. Overall, although data assimilation assists CAMSRA O3 to follow the observed O3 enhancements in the troposphere during the STT events, it introduces biases in the upper troposphere resulting in no clear quantitative improvement compared to the control run without data assimilation. Less biased assimilated O3 products, with finer vertical resolution in the troposphere, in addition to higher IFS (Integrated Forecasting System) vertical resolution, are expected to provide a better representation of O3 variability during tropopause folds.

A Lightweight BPMN Extension for Business Process-Oriented Requirements Engineering

Process-oriented requirements engineering approaches are often required to deal with the effective adaptation of existing processes in order to easily introduce new or updated requirements. Such approaches are based on the adoption of widely used notations, such as the one introduced by the Business Process Model and Notation (BPMN) standard. However, BPMN models do not convey enough information on the involved entities and how they interact with process activities, thus leading to ambiguities, as well as to incomplete and inconsistent requirements definitions. This paper proposes an approach that allows stakeholders and software analysts to easily merge and integrate behavioral and data properties in a BPMN model, so as to fully exploit the potential of BPMN without incurring into the aforementioned limitation. The proposed approach introduces a lightweight BPMN extension that specifically addresses the annotation of data properties in terms of constraints, i.e., pre- and post-conditions that the different process activities must satisfy. The visual representation of the annotated model conveys all the information required both by stakeholders, to understand and validate requirements, and by software analysts and developers, to easily map these updates to the corresponding software implementation. The presented approach is illustrated by use of two running examples, which have also been used to carry out a preliminary validation activity.

Developing Poetic Writing Skills: A Teaching Technique for Advanced ESL/EFL Learners

This article attempts to showcase a number of techniques to teach poetic writing skills in EFL settings. First and foremost, we have tried to identify and propose corrective attitudes to work out the psychological obstacles that impede the practice of poetry in many EFL classrooms. Then, we have selected some basic characteristics of poetic discourse through lyric songs to increase learners’ awareness of the specificities of poetry. The mastery of the structure and functioning of figurative language has been the essential skill to develop. Furthermore, the technique privileges the process-oriented approach which is based on well-structured, harmonious and interrelated phases to help learners start composing simple verses and poems.

A Process-Oriented View of Procedural Memory Can Help Better Understand Tourette’s Syndrome

Tourette’s syndrome (TS) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by repetitive movements and vocalizations, also known as tics. The phenomenology of tics and the underlying neurobiology of the disorder have suggested that the altered functioning of the procedural memory system might contribute to its etiology. However, contrary to the robust findings of impaired procedural memory in neurodevelopmental disorders of language, results from TS have been somewhat mixed. We review the previous studies in the field and note that they have reported normal, impaired, and even enhanced procedural performance. These mixed findings may be at least partially be explained by the diversity of the samples in both age and tic severity, the vast array of tasks used, the low sample sizes, and the possible confounding effects of other cognitive functions, such as executive functions, working memory or attention. However, we propose that another often overlooked factor could also contribute to the mixed findings, namely the multiprocess nature of the procedural system itself. We propose that a process-oriented view of procedural memory functions could serve as a theoretical framework to help integrate these varied findings. We discuss evidence suggesting heterogeneity in the neural regions and their functional contributions to procedural memory. Our process-oriented framework can help to deepen our understanding of the complex profile of procedural functioning in TS and atypical development in general.