Exploring gender and gender pairing in the knowledge elaboration processes of students using computer-supported collaborative learning

The aim of the study is to investigate the influence of gender and gender pairing on students’ learning performances and knowledge elaboration processes in Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL). A sample of ninety-six secondary school students, participated in a two-week experiment. Students were randomly paired and asked to solve several moderately structured problems concerning Newtonian mechanics. Students’ pretest and posttest performances were analyzed to see whether students’ gender and the gender pairing (mixed or single-gender) were significant factors in their problem solving learning in CSCL. Students’ online interactions were also analyzed to unravel the dynamic process of individual knowledge elaboration. The multilevel analyses revealed that a divergent pattern of knowledge elaboration was a significant predictor for students’ learning achievement, and in mixed-gender dyads students’ knowledge elaboration processes were more inclined to diverge from each other. Moreover, females in single-gender dyads significantly outperformed females in mixed-gender dyads. But this was not the case for male students.     

Learning through online peer discourse: Structural equation modeling points to the role of discourse activities in individual understanding

Although learning through discourse activities seems well-documented, it is unclear which mechanisms and behavioral variables are involved. What exactly contributes to learning when two or more learners interact in online learning environments? To analyze interrelations between central discourse activities and individual learning outcomes at the level of constructs, we applied structural equation modeling to data collected from 160 dyads engaging in written online learning discourses within a series of homogeneous experiments. We analyzed three theory-based indicators of conceptual elaboration activities during online discourse: the number of questions asked to receive information and expand knowledge, the number of explanations formulated to express individual knowledge, and the amount of on-task discourse. Individual conceptual understanding was represented by objective learning parameters that varied in each particular experimental task. These measured general understanding of the topic addressed and particular understanding of conceptual terms, complemented by the gain in individual self-assessed knowledge. Results of structural equation modeling revealed a strong effect of dyadic conceptual elaboration on individual understanding at the construct level, demonstrating that dyadic elaboration fosters the development of an elaborated individual understanding of specialist concepts and general content knowledge. Moreover, conceptual elaboration was best measured by the number of explanations during discourse. Implications regarding which features of collaborative learning settings promote mutual conceptual elaboration are discussed.     

Strategies for collaborative writing and phases of knowledge construction in CSCL environments

Within the framework of research that describes the processes of collaborative knowledge construction in computer-supported collaborative learning (CSCL) environments, the present work has three objectives: (i) the identification of the strategies of six small groups of university students for the elaboration of written products in a CSCL environment; (ii) seek relations between the identified writing strategies and the processes and phases of collaborative knowledge construction in the groups; and (iii) relate these strategies and phases with the learning results obtained by the groups. We carried out a multiple-case study, with the analysis of four different didactic sequences, in two different virtual learning and teaching settings. In each setting, three student groups were studied, where each had to collaboratively develop between four and eight written products. For all the studied groups, the analysis enabled the identification of five types of strategies in the preparation of the elaboration of written products, and four types of phases of collaborative knowledge construction, which are interrelated and also connected with the grades that the groups obtained in each case.     

Strategies for collaborative writing and phases of knowledge construction in CSCL environments

Within the framework of research that describes the processes of collaborative knowledge construction in computer-supported collaborative learning (CSCL) environments, the present work has three objectives: (i) the identification of the strategies of six small groups of university students for the elaboration of written products in a CSCL environment; (ii) seek relations between the identified writing strategies and the processes and phases of collaborative knowledge construction in the groups; and (iii) relate these strategies and phases with the learning results obtained by the groups. We carried out a multiple-case study, with the analysis of four different didactic sequences, in two different virtual learning and teaching settings. In each setting, three student groups were studied, where each had to collaboratively develop between four and eight written products. For all the studied groups, the analysis enabled the identification of five types of strategies in the preparation of the elaboration of written products, and four types of phases of collaborative knowledge construction, which are interrelated and also connected with the grades that the groups obtained in each case.     

逻辑AI中的容变能力的研究

In this paper a survey of elaboration tolerance in logical AI is provided. John McCarthy views elaboration tolerance as the key property of any formalism that can represent information in the common sense informatic situa-tion. The goal of studying elaboration tolerance is finding a formalism for describing problems logically that is as elab-oration tolerant as natural language and the associated background knowledge. In the beginning, we introduce the missionaries and cannibals problem and its elaboration problems provided by John McCarthy as the test examples of studying elaboration tolerance. Then we introduce the study of elaboration tolerance from three aspects. First of all,the study of elaboration tolerance of the existing systems is introduced such as Causal Calculator and ABSFOL. Sec-ond the study of special elaboration is presented such as elaboration of actions. Last but not least a formal definition of elaboration toleration and evaluation tools is nrmvided.     

Knowledge management for occupational safety,health, and ergonomics

The critical challenge for occupational safety, health, and ergonomics (OSHE) in contemporary industry is management of the existing individual (personal) knowledge, structural knowledge (i.e., knowledge codified into manuals, reports, databases, and data warehouses), and organizational knowledge (activity of learning within the organization) in the vast domain of practical applications. Therefore, the principles and tools of knowledge management (KM) should be used to facilitate the management of OSHE. The authors discuss the requirements for effective knowledge management, review the existing models of KM and their structures, and introduce a model for KM in OSHE. The proposed model of KM for OSHE is based on a strategy that establishes knowledge as the central resource to achieve the goals of OSHE management. The model includes the systems of organizational knowledge, organizational learning (knowledge creation, distribution, elaboration, and consolidation), development of knowledge workers, KM processes (review, conceptualization, reflection, and acting), and relevant information‐technologies. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Hum Factors Man 16: 309–319, 2006.     

Factors Supporting Knowledge Integration in Global Innovation Projects: An Exploratory Study

This exploratory study identifies the factors which contribute to effective knowledge integration in global innovation projects through an in‐depth analysis of two case studies. Knowledge integration is analysed in two components: knowledge (individual expertise), and integration (working together). Our analysis highlights three distinct ways that individuals think about individual expertise: individual knowledge and competence; feeling valued; and unfamiliar areas. We also identify four ways in which individuals think about working together: good social relations; cultural distance; negotiation skills; and better results through working with others. Using examples from the case studies, we discuss how these factors enable knowledge integration in globally distributed innovation projects. We also propose a model indicating how these factors impact on knowledge integration and innovation performance. This study contributes towards management guidance, which is currently lacking in the area of knowledge integration.     

Achieving distributed control through model checking

We apply model checking of knowledge properties to the design of distributed controllers that enforce global constraints on concurrent systems. The problem of synthesizing a distributed controller is undecidable in the general case. We thus look at a variant of the synthesis problem that allows adding temporary synchronizations between processes. We calculate when processes can decide autonomously, based on their knowledge, whether to take or block an action so that the global constraint is not violated. The local knowledge of processes may not suffice to control the processes so as to achieve the global constraint without introducing new deadlocks. When individual processes cannot take a decision alone based on their knowledge, one may coordinate several processes to achieve joint knowledge in order to take joint decisions. A fixed coordination among sets of processes may severely degrade concurrency. Therefore, we propose the use of temporary coordinations. Since realizing such coordinations on a distributed platform induces communication overhead, we strive to minimize their number. We show how this framework is applied to the case of synthesizing a distributed controller for enforcing a priority order. Finally, we show that the general undecidability of distributed synthesis without adding synchronization holds even for the particular problem of enforcing a priority order.     

Are two heads always better than one? Differential effects of collaboration on students�� computer-supported learning in mathematics

While some studies found positive effects of collaboration on student learning in mathematics, others found none or even negative effects. This study evaluates whether the varying impact of collaboration can be explained by differences in the type of knowledge that is promoted by the instruction. If the instructional material requires students to reason with mathematical concepts, collaboration may increase students’ learning outcome as it promotes mutual elaboration. If, however, the instructional material is focused on practicing procedures, collaboration may result in task distribution and thus reduce practice opportunities necessary for procedural skill fluency. To evaluate differential influences of collaboration, we compared four conditions: individual vs. collaborative learning with conceptual instructional material, and individual vs. collaborative learning with procedural instructional material. The instruction was computer-supported and provided adaptive feedback. We analyzed the effect of the conditions on several levels: Logfiles of students’ problem-solving actions and video-recordings enabled a detailed analysis of performance and learning processes during instruction. In addition, a post-test assessed individual knowledge acquisition. We found that collaboration improved performance during the learning phase in both the conceptual and the procedural condition; however, conceptual and procedural material had a differential effect on the quality of student collaboration: Conceptual material promoted mutual elaboration; procedural material promoted task distribution and ineffective learning behaviors. Consequently, collaboration positively influenced conceptual knowledge acquisition, while no positive effect on procedural knowledge acquisition was found. We discuss limitations of our study, address methodological implications, and suggest practical implications for the school context.     

Knowledge management in production alliances

This paper develops a managerial model of production network organizations (PNOs), inter-firm alliances for product development and delivery, in which inter-firm network structure and knowledge management practices play a major role in venture performance. The paper addresses the issue of alignment between the adopted network structure, the scope of the joint production task, and consequent inter-firm information flow requirements, hypothesizing that venture performance is a joint function of network structure and task integration scope. In situations with a difficult alignment between the chosen network structure, joint task scope, and information flow requirements, knowledge management investments across the PNO are proposed as a moderating factor leading to improved venture performance. The paper demonstrates the proposed model with three case studies, providing preliminary verification of the key proposition that knowledge management interventions can mediate the impact of loose integrating structures for joint production ventures that are undertaking complex joint tasks.     

‘You talking to me?’ The influence of peer communication on adolescents’ persuasion knowledge and attitude towards social advertisements

This article examines how peer communication among adolescents (14–16 years) affects the evaluation of social advertising (i.e. targeted ad that adopts the social proof heuristic by using an individual’s social ties as endorsers for a brand) on social networking sites (SNSs). More precisely, the focus lies on how engaging in online peer chatting on these social platforms alters persuasion knowledge and attitude towards the ad. In order to test this, two between-subjects experiments were conducted in which adolescents chatted with peers on a mock SNS that contained a social ad. In Experiment 1, results reveal that a social ad generates a more positive attitude among adolescents when they have engaged in online peer communication, and at the same time, triggers less persuasion knowledge. In Experiment 2, the depth of the relationship between the chatters (tie strength) plays a significant moderating role as peer communication with strong ties yields greater effects, compared to communication with weak ties. These findings reveal important social influence dynamics that may alter the elaboration of persuasive communication, leading to valuable theoretical and practical implications.     

Case-Based Reasoning in Conceptual Design

The framework for supporting conceptual design using case-based reasoning is studied. Adesign knowledge representation scheme is presented. It is capable of representing both generalized and specific design knowledge. A two-phase case retrieval strategy, called index elaboration, is described which supports both requirement-function transformation and function-feature transformation at conceptual design stage. We propose a prototype system and discuss in detail the realization of supporting conceptual design by CBR.     

Application of Fuzzy Logic for the Solution of Inverse Kinematics and Hierarchical Controls of Robotic Manipulators

In this paper, hierarchical control techniques is used for controlling a robotic manipulator. The proposed method is based on the establishment of a non-linear mapping between Cartesian and joint coordinates using fuzzy logic in order to direct each individual joint. The hierarchical control will be implemented with fuzzy logic to improve the robustness and reduce the run time computational requirements. Hierarchical control consists of solving the inverse kinematic equations using fuzzy logic to direct each individual joint. A commercial Microbot with three degrees of freedom is utilized to evaluate this methodology. A decentralized fuzzy controller is used for each joint, with a Fuzzy Associative Memories (FAM) performing the inverse kinematic mapping in a supervisory mode. The FAM determines the inverse kinematic mapping which maps the desired Cartesian coordinates to the individual joint angles. The individual fuzzy controller for each joint generates the required control signal to a DC motor to move the associated link to the new position. The proposed hierarchical fuzzy controller is compared to a conventional controller. The simulation experiments indeed demonstate the effectiveness of the proposed method.     

Quantifying requirements elaboration to improve early software cost estimation

This paper describes an empirical study undertaken to investigate the quantitative aspects of the phenomenon of requirements elaboration which deals with transformation of high-level goals into low-level requirements. Prior knowledge of the magnitude of requirements elaboration is instrumental in developing early estimates of a project’s cost and schedule. This study examines the data on two different types of goals and requirements - capability and level of service (LOS) - of 20 real-client, graduate-student, team projects done at USC. Metrics for data collection and analyses are described along with the utility of results they produce. Besides revealing a marked difference between the elaboration of capability goals and the elaboration of LOS goals, these results provide some initial relationships between the nature of projects and their ratios of elaboration of capability goals into capability or functional requirements.     

Enhancing online collaborative argumentation through question elaboration and goal instructions

Abstract   Computer-supported collaborative argumentation can improve understanding and problem-solving skills. This study uses WebCT to explore the improvement of argumentation in asynchronous, web-based discussions through goal instructions, which are statements at the end of a discussion prompt indicating what students should achieve. In a previous study ( Nussbaum 2005 ), the goal instruction 'generate as many reasons as possible' resulted in more balanced argumentation in an online environment. This study attempts to replicate this finding. It also examines the role of prior attitudes, knowledge and interest, and also the effect of elaborating on possible lines of reasoning in the question prompt. The goal instruction to generate as many reasons as possible (goal/no goal) was crossed with question elaboration (elaborated/unelaborated question) in a 2 × 2 randomized design using 131 undergraduates. Half of the participants were randomly assigned to complete the attitude survey before discussion. Results indicated that, when prior knowledge was controlled, the reason goal instruction positively affected argument development and opposing view exploration, but only for high-issue knowledge students. The sheer volume of notes created by the online environment may have caused cognitive overload for low-issue knowledge students. Question elaboration promoted balanced argumentation for all students, but especially those with low knowledge.     

New method for simultaneous anatomical and functional studies of articular joints and its application to the human knee

In this paper a new methodology is described for the acquisition and computer elaboration of joint anatomy and motion data and the study of their correlation. The method uses a particular commercial electrogoniometer never used before for biomechanic investigations and software developed by the author for numerical interpolations and interactive display of the anatomical structures during joint motion. The original data acquisition protocol and computer elaboration software are described in detail, the theoretical and experimental accuracy of the method is reported and the original features and potential benefits of this approach in the field of joint biomechanics are discussed. Finally an experimental application for geometrical and functional analysis of the knee is presented as a practical example.     

Heuristics for automated knowledge source integration and service composition

The NP-hard component set identification problem is a combinatorial problem arising in the context of knowledge discovery, information integration, and knowledge source/service composition. Considering a granular knowledge domain consisting of a large number of individual bits and pieces of domain knowledge (properties) and a large number of knowledge sources and services that provide mappings between sets of properties, the objective of the component set identification problem is to select a minimum cost combination of knowledge sources that can provide a joint mapping from a given set of initially available properties (initial knowledge) to a set of initially unknown properties (target knowledge). We provide a general framework for heuristics and consider construction heuristics that are followed by local improvement heuristics. Computational results are reported on randomly generated problem instances.