The ECC Methodology for Architecture Design Theory and Practices Research

This study proposes the ECC methodology to improve design practices systematically. The article describes the research strategy called the evaluation-creation cycle (ECC) the foundation of the ECC methodology. Recent studies showed that a failure of desired outcomes is often a result of a failure of to understand existing practices. This suggests that improving design requires more than a theory of what exists, it also requires using this understanding to change the design process to one that leads from the existing to the desired through the evaluation-creation cycle approach. This requires understanding the relations of knowledge creation through the analytic and the synthetic practices within the design process, as well as the relations between the design process and the outer design context. The study draws insight from the Renaissance theory in order to obtain understanding the development of descriptive ‘knowledge of design’ focused on increasing design understanding, and based on this prescriptive ‘knowledge for design’ providing design support are created. This has informed the development of the evaluation-creation cycle (ECC) strategy and the ECC methodology based on it. The aims of the ECC methodology are the evaluation of existing practices and the principles that support them, and based on this the development of understanding with which to change the current situations into preferred ones. In this article the evaluation-creation cycle (ECC) approach is described and the ECC methodology based on it introduced, and the way in which design principles can be developed, improved and used to predict desired outcomes is discussed.

Spanish Preservice Primary School Teachers’ Understanding of the Tides Phenomenon

In this study, we analyzed the descriptive knowledge and mental models of the phenomenon of tides manifested by 111 preservice primary teachers. The instrument employed is an open-ended questionnaire, analyzed by means of an approach that explores the descriptions, explanations, and predictions in respect of this phenomenon by our subjects. First, we made a descriptive study of the kinds of ideas applied across different dimensions of analysis, and, subsequently, a cluster analysis was performed to check how those ideas were articulated and modeled. By means of this analysis, we were able to identify the mental models underlying the responses of preservice primary teachers. Furthermore, the results showed that the models they did have were not used when it came to making predictions in local situations. Instead, they employed heuristic rules based on everyday assumptions, not always consistent with tidal cycles of approximately 12 h. However, faced with situations that required thinking on a global scale, they did use their models, normally based on alternative conceptions. Lastly, from the results obtained, we consider some of the possible difficulties that preservice primary teachers may have in learning about the phenomenon of tides, and the implications for future teaching–learning designs aimed at overcoming those difficulties.

TrainAR: A Scalable Interaction Concept and Didactic Framework for Procedural Trainings Using Handheld Augmented Reality

The potential of Augmented Reality (AR) for educational and training purposes is well known. While large-scale deployments of head-mounted AR headsets remain challenging due to technical limitations and cost factors, advances in mobile devices and tracking solutions introduce handheld AR devices as a powerful, broadly available alternative, yet with some restrictions. One of the current limitations of AR training applications on handheld AR devices is that most offer rather static experiences, only providing descriptive knowledge with little interactivity. Holistic concepts for the coverage of procedural knowledge are largely missing. The contribution of this paper is twofold. We propose a scalabe interaction concept for handheld AR devices with an accompanied didactic framework for procedural training tasks called TrainAR. Then, we implement TrainAR for a training scenario in academics for the context of midwifery and explain the educational theories behind our framework and how to apply it for procedural training tasks. We evaluate and subsequently improve the concept based on three formative usability studies (n = 24), where explicitness, redundant feedback mechanisms and onboarding were identified as major success factors. Finally, we conclude by discussing derived implications for improvements and ongoing and future work.

Knowledge and Attitude of Midwives and Obstetricians Towards Therapeutic Abortion Law and its Ethical Pitfalls

Background: Despite the implementation of a safe motherhood program in many countries, unsafe abortion continues to be a matter of reproductive health. Thus, urgent efforts to make abortion legal and safe have been recommended in developing countries. The present study was done to determine the knowledge of midwives and obstetricians about the therapeutic abortion law as well as their attitude about the ethical pitfalls. Methods: In this descriptive knowledge and attitude study, a researcher-made questionnaire was used to gather data, after estimating the appropriate Cronbach’s Alpha coefficient. A total of 162 midwives and obstetricians working in public and private medical centers affiliated to Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences in 2018 were included in the study by convenience sampling method. Results: According to the results, 9.3% of participants had a low level, 72.8% had a moderate level, and only 17.9% had a good level of knowledge. The total mean score of knowledge was 7.17±1.7. The mean score of knowledge in the group of obstetricians (7.60±1.74) was significantly higher than midwives (6.94±1.54), (t=2.29, p=0.024). There was a significant correlation between participants’ age and their knowledge (r=0.912, p=0.001). Also, 47.53% of the participants believed that the therapeutic abortion law has some pitfalls. The most frequent attitude was about the restriction of the therapeutic law up to 19 weeks for fetal indications. Conclusion: The level of participants’ knowledge was low to moderate. The findings indicated the need for training the professional standards related to prenatal genetic screening and therapeutic abortion.

Customer process-centric artefacts: a literature review

PurposeCompanies that strive to provide customers with value in their processes benefit from artefacts that allow them to better understand customer processes (CPs) and to influence CPs in ways that are valuable for customers. Such CP-centric artefacts (CPCAs) carry various labels across research fields, which inhibit their application or utilization for developing further artefacts. This study provides a structured overview of existing CPCAs and investigates which research foundations promote their development.Design/methodology/approachTwenty-five CP-related keyword combinations are applied in several iterations using multiple (meta) search engines to identify papers on CPCAs across different research streams. Introduced research frameworks organize the identified artefacts and indicate research gaps and reasons why some approaches are more successful in developing CPCAs than others.FindingsExisting CPCAs cover different aspects of CPs and utilize contextual factors of CPs to varying degrees to analyse or influence CPs. Research gaps are identified that indicate opportunities to develop further CPCAs. Taking instantiated methods in combination with CP-related descriptive knowledge as a foundation yields the highest potential for generating beneficial CPCAs.Originality/valueThis paper contributes to CP management literature by offering a foundation for the generation of CPCAs suitable for analysing and influencing CPs of end-consumers. This supports the establishment of a CP management aiming at optimizing both, interlinked business processes and CPs.

Methodology and political science: the discipline needs three fundamentally different methodological traditions

Science is driven by methodology. In this article, I will show that political science, like all other social sciences, can draw on three fundamentally different methodological traditions. The first is a descriptive tradition to generate descriptive knowledge to describe political phenomena and interpret political symbols (text, image, audio and video). The second is an explanatory-prognostic tradition to generate explanatory and prognostic knowledge to explain and predict political events. The third is a genuine practical (not applied!) tradition to generate and scientifically legitimate practical knowledge for political standardization and regulation. Furthermore, I will show that political science would greatly increase its relevance to practical politics and to society if all methodological traditions within the discipline were used complementarily and applied in their updated forms. The descriptive tradition makes it possible to describe political reality as well as sociologists, for example, do. The explanatory-prognostic tradition is necessary to be heard alongside the economic sciences. The practical tradition allows catching up with jurisprudence.

Uncovering the Role of Different Instructional Designs When Learning Tactical Scenes of Play through Dynamic Visualizations: A Systematic Review

Dynamic visualizations such as videos or animations have been developed to exchange information that transforms over time across a broad range of professional/academic contexts. However, such visual tools may impose substantial demands on the learner’s cognitive resources that are very limited in current knowledge. Cognitive load theory has been used to improve learning from dynamic visualizations by providing different instructional designs to manage learner cognitive load. This paper reviews a series of experimental studies assessing the effects of certain instructional designs on learning of tactical scenes of play through dynamic visualizations. An electronic database search was performed on the Web of Science and PubMed/Medline databases from inception to July 2020 using a combination of relevant keywords. Manual searches were also made. The search was limited to English language. A total of 515 records were screened by two researchers using the Population/Intervention/Comparison/Outcome(s) (PICO) criteria. The quality and validity of the included studies were assessed using “QualSyst”. Learning indicators in students and/or players (male and female) at any age category and competitive level were considered. Eleven studies met the inclusion criteria for this review, which focused on the effects of four instructional designs (i.e., using static visualizations, employing sequential presentation, applying segmentation, and decreasing presentation speed) on learning various game systems through dynamic visualizations. These studies indicate that (i) the effectiveness of all instructional designs depend upon the level of learners’ expertise when learning soccer/Australian football scenes through animations/videos, (ii) the effectiveness of using static visualizations instead of animations/videos showing soccer/basketball scenes depend upon the type of the depicted knowledge (i.e., motor knowledge or descriptive knowledge) for novice learners, (iii) the effectiveness of employing static visualizations and decreasing presentation speed when learning soccer/basketball scenes from animations/videos depend upon the level of content complexity, for novice learners. The current review demonstrated important practical implications for both coaches and physical education teachers using either animations and/or videos to communicate game systems. Indeed, findings suggested that adapting instructional designs to the level of learners’ expertise, type of depicted knowledge, and level of content complexity is a crucial part of effective tactical learning from dynamic visualizations.

AN OBSERVATIONAL STUDY OF ENTHESOPATHY IN DRIED HUMAN SCAPULAE

Objectives: An abnormal ossification process in soft tissues at the attachment site to a bone is called enthesopathy due to biomechanical movements of bone. The present study aimed to observe the calcification of the transverse scapular ligament (TSL) with complete or partial ossification, the presence of the triangular bony growth at the lateral border of scapula and to observe vascular foramen/foramina piercing at the bases of the spine of scapulae. Methods: An observational study was conducted on dried human scapulae 140 in number (70 right and 70 left) of unknown sex and age, procured from the Department of Anatomy, People’s College of Medical Science and Research Center, Bhopal, and Government Doon Medical College, Dehradun, India. These scapulae were studied to observe enthesopathic changes in them. Measurements were taken with Vernier calipers. Results: In the present study, we observed the presence of completely ossified TSL with formation of complete suprascapular foramina in 8.57% scapulae. The incidence of triangular bony growth at the lateral border of scapula was found in 40% scapulae of the right side and 32.85% of the left. The incidence of vascular foramina piercing at the bases of the spine of scapulae was 17.14% on the right side and 21.42% on the left side scapulae. Conclusion: The study provides the descriptive knowledge of enthesopathy in scapulae. The study is of great significance for neurosurgeons and orthosurgeons to carry out various reconstructive surgeries.

From Literary Illusions to Media Simulacra: Toward a Semiotic Imagology in the Era of Global Communication

In the pre-globalization era, when communication between nations was difficult and infrequent, and direct (experiential) or indirect (textual-descriptive) knowledge was scant, images of ‘foreign countries’ were frequently constructions based on inadequate information. As a result, fictional descriptions and images were the primary source for people to gain some knowledge of other nations. However, beginning with the great voyages of discovery of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, we began to step into an age of globalization, which generated the diversification of ‘source texts’ in this regard. Today, the emergence of new media has accelerated and proliferated such diversity. These new media texts now play a dominant role in forming the image of other countries, to some degree replacing traditional fictional texts. The basic presuppositions of comparative literature imagology have changed accordingly. Starting from the core concept of ‘images’, this paper discusses why it is necessary to integrate imagology, with ‘semiotic images’ as core concept, and ‘communications research’.

Constructing Meaning in Learning Containing the Living Environment

This research aims to describe the teacher's explanation in constructing the meaning of learning containing the living environment in Indonesia. This research uses descriptive explanatory method. The research was conducted by observing and analyzing classroom learning discourse in elementary schools labeled Adiwiyata or school whose learning is related to the living environment education. The results of the study show that the teacher's explanation contains an explanation of the object, concepts, and procedures; the explanatory strategy used by the teacher is a knowledge-transforming with a reference to the social and cultural context of the society that consists of (1) religiosity (2) dependence between humans and the environment, (3) human values to preserve nature, (4) social and cultural ethics as basic human characteristics. Verbal or linguistic strategies show the teacher's awareness in using language with metaphors and expressions to motivate. Through a verbal strategy it is known that the teacher's explanation is done efferently and aesthetically. The teacher's explanation constructs the meaning of descriptive and procedural knowledge. Descriptive knowledge is knowledge that makes the learner knows or understands. Procedural knowledge makes the learner is able to. The role of teacher explanation is supported by the government's active role in environmental sustainability programs.