Design and usability testing of an in-house developed performance feedback tool for medical students

Background Feedback is essential in a self-regulated learning environment such as medical education. When feedback channels are widely spread, the need arises for a system of integrating this information in a single platform. This article reports on the design and initial testing of a feedback tool for medical students at Charité-Universitätsmedizin, Berlin, a large teaching hospital. Following a needs analysis, we designed and programmed a feedback tool in a user-centered approach. The resulting interface was evaluated prior to release with usability testing and again post release using quantitative/qualitative questionnaires. Results The tool we created is a browser application for use on desktop or mobile devices. Students log in to see a dashboard of “cards” featuring summaries of assessment results, a portal for the documentation of acquired practical skills, and an overview of their progress along their course. Users see their cohort’s average for each format. Learning analytics rank students’ strengths by subject. The interface is characterized by colourful and simple graphics. In its initial form, the tool has been rated positively overall by students. During testing, the high task completion rate (78%) and low overall number of non-critical errors indicated good usability, while the quantitative data (system usability scoring) also indicates high ease of use. The source code for the tool is open-source and can be adapted by other medical faculties. Conclusions The results suggest that the implemented tool LevelUp is well-accepted by students. It therefore holds promise for improved, digitalized integrated feedback about students’ learning progress. Our aim is that LevelUp will help medical students to keep track of their study progress and reflect on their skills. Further development will integrate users’ recommendations for additional features as well as optimizing data flow.

Peer advocacy and access to healthcare for people who are homeless in London, UK: a mixed method impact, economic and process evaluation protocol

IntroductionPeople who are homeless experience higher morbidity and mortality than the general population. These outcomes are exacerbated by inequitable access to healthcare. Emerging evidence suggests a role for peer advocates—that is, trained volunteers with lived experience—to support people who are homeless to access healthcare.Methods and analysisWe plan to conduct a mixed methods evaluation to assess the effects (qualitative, cohort and economic studies); processes and contexts (qualitative study); fidelity; and acceptability and reach (process study) of Peer Advocacy on people who are homeless and on peers themselves in London, UK. People with lived experience of homelessness are partners in the design, execution, analysis and dissemination of the evaluation.Ethics and disseminationEthics approval for all study designs has been granted by the National Health Service London—Dulwich Research Ethics Committee (UK) and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine’s Ethics Committee (UK). We plan to disseminate study progress and outputs via a website, conference presentations, community meetings and peer-reviewed journal articles.

Relieful lumii interbelice. „Marginal și experimental. Cooperativa Gusti: două decenii de cercetare în istoria sociologiei”, Editura Eikon, București, 2020. Coordonatori: Ionuț Butoi, Martin Ladislau Salamon

The advent of a new collection of studies dedicated to the „Gusti Cooperative” is an opportunity to recall the ways of referring to our rural world and its research. For a long time the predominance of these referrings have been represented by the ideational sublimination of the so-called visions/mythology, witch is nothing else but resuming romantic themes in today’s world. The investigations of the relief an the detail structure of a complex view, whose diversity and openness are revealed as the study progress, is much more discreet. This is what the team coordonated by Professor Zoltán Rostás does, which marks two decades of existence with this book.

The NASA Mass Change Designated Observable Study: Progress and Future Plans

<p>The 2017-2027 US National Academy of Sciences Decadal Survey for Earth Science and Applications from Space classified mass change as one of five designated observables having the highest priority in terms of Earth observations required to better understand the Earth system over the next decade.  In response to this designation, NASA initiated multi-center studies with an overarching goal of defining observing system architectures for each designated observable.  Here, we discuss the progress made and future plans for the Mass Change Designated Observable study. Progress includes the development of a Science and Applications Traceability Matrix (SATM), the definition of three different architectural classes that are responsive to the designated science objectives, and a framework to quantitatively link the performance of specific architectures to the SATM.  We will describe the Value Framework that has been developed to assess the value of potential architectures in terms of science return, cost, risk, and technical maturity.  Results highlight the recommendation of satellite-satellite-tracking for the MC observing system, and have identified high value variants as a single in-line pair, dual in-line pairs, and pendulum architectures, which are similar to architectures studied by potential international partners.  The current status of the study process, and future plans will be discussed.</p>

Current Approaches to the Development of Learning and Improving Reading Attractiveness for the Readers of Different Levels

The chapter covers the notions of illiteracy, literacy, and their development to the current moment. The authors present the notion of functional literacy specified by the UNESCO experts. A more detailed definition of functional literacy is to be found in the study Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS). It is possible to perceive the reader's literacy based on age or different planes. The chapter contains information about research focused on the age: PIRLS handled by IEA (International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement) and the PISA research organized by The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Both kinds of research focus on the reader's literacy and their authors provide their own definitions that differ based on age. There are various different approaches to increase the attractiveness of reading. The authors introduce at least some of them as an inspiration. One part is dedicated to the development of reader literacy in individuals with dyslexia.