Virtual world teaching,experiential learning,and assessment: An interdisciplinary communication course in Second Life

While many reports espouse the potential impact that 3-D virtual worlds are expected to have on teaching and learning in higher education in a few years, there are few empirical studies that inform instructional design and learning assessment in virtual worlds. This study explores the nature and process of learning in Second Life in a graduate interdisciplinary communication course in fall 2007. Literature suggests that 3-D virtual worlds can be well suited for experiential learning environments. In this study, the actual instructional effectiveness of Second Life as an experiential learning environment for interdisciplinary communication is empirically examined using mixed research methods of journal content analysis, surveys, focus group, and virtual world snapshots and video.     

Computational Semantics in Discourse: Underspecification, Resolution, and Inference

In this paper I introduce a formalism for natural language understandingbased on a computational implementation of Discourse RepresentationTheory. The formalism covers a wide variety of semantic phenomena(including scope and lexical ambiguities, anaphora and presupposition),is computationally attractive, and has a genuine inference component. Itcombines a well-established linguistic formalism (DRT) with advancedtechniques to deal with ambiguity (underspecification), and isinnovative in the use of first-order theorem proving techniques.The architecture of the formalism for natural language understandingthat I advocate consists of three levels of processing:underspecification, resolution, andinference. Each of these levels has a distinct function andtherefore employs a different kind of semantic representation. Themappings between these different representations define the interfacesbetween the levels.I show how underspecified semantic representations can be built in acompositional way (for a fragment of English Grammar) using standardtechniques borrowed from the -calculus, how inferences can becarried out on discourse representations using a translation tofirst-order logic, and how existing research prototypes (discourseprocessing and spoken-dialogue systems) implement the formalism.     

用逻辑和篇章知识来约束模板匹配——逻辑结构和篇章结构知识在信息抽取中的运用

本文以文献[2 ]的语料为主要对象,讨论语句的逻辑结构和篇章结构怎样约束信息模板的类型,并约束对当前句中缺失的或以代词等形式表达的信息项目的求解。首先说明什么是基于论元结构的逻辑结构和篇章结构知识,然后分析否定算子、时体成分怎样改变事件的类型及其跟有关事件模板的匹配关系。接着,讨论动词的论元结构的内嵌和名词化等句法操作,怎样造成有关论元及相应的信息项目的分布位置发生变化。最后,讨论怎样利用篇章结构知识来求解本句中缺失的或以代词、指示词形式表达的信息项目。     

The Wireless Nursing Call System: Politics of Discourse, Technology and Dependability in a Pilot Project

This paper discusses a research project in which social scientists were involved both as analysts and supporters during a pilot with a new wireless nursing call system. The case thus exemplifies an attempt to participate in developing dependable health care systems and offers insight into the challenges of developing and supporting such systems. The analysis proposes that while dependability is not simply a technical issue, neither is it something, which can be improved merely by adding a social dimension. Instead, it argues that dependability is a relative concept, which may mean different things conditional on how it is specified in practice and who gets to do this. This relativity makes it important to relate the question of how to support dependable health care systems to an analysis of both the politics of technology within specific projects and to the politics of discourse, through which the researcher becomes involved in such projects.     

Fostering collaborative learning in Second Life: Metaphors and affordances

In this paper we examine the transferability of the Jigsaw and Fishbowl collaborative learning techniques to the Second Life platform. Our aim is to assess the applicability of Second Life for collaborative learning by developing virtual tools and metaphors and exploiting the representational richness of this novel medium. In order to enhance the existing metaphors and affordances of SL, our research team implemented educational spaces, avatar clothing, and tools for non-verbal communication and visualisation. By implementing a blended learning evaluation approach we attempted to answer three research questions focusing on student collaboration, avatar representation and learning space awareness. We can conclude that SL can supplement and/or augment face to face interactions, improving upon previous approaches in distance collaboration and communication. Furthermore, although our team augmented SL’s ability to support collaborative learning, avatar representation does not seem to scale well. Finally, the majority of the implemented affordances and metaphors seem to have enhanced collaboration and learning space awareness.     

Usability Research in the Writing Lab: Sustaining Discourse and Pedagogy

Redesigning Purdue's Online Writing Lab (OWL) presented the opportunity for collaboration among Writing Center and Professional Writing Program members. While the article briefly describes the OWL redesign process, the argument focuses on collaboration and presents a model for sustainable intraprogram collaboration. Following Hawhee, usability research is defined as “invention-in-the-middle,” which offers a model for understanding research process as part of the infrastructure of new media instruction as described by DeVoss, Cushman, and Grabill. This article offers four stakeholder perspectives on the process of participatory technology design: of writing center administrators, graduate students, technical writing practitioners, and writing program graduate faculty members. The model asserted by this article presents a dynamic understanding of expertise and of fluidity in the roles of participants. Collaborative usability research, seen as invention-in-the-middle, contributes both to long-term sustainability of technological artifacts as well as the discursive interactions among stakeholders whose work supports these artifacts.     

The influence of computer self-efficacy,metacognitive self-regulation and self-esteem on student engagement in online learning programs: Evidence from the virtual world of Second Life

While the widespread acceptance of social virtual words is being increased in the last years, little are known about how students’ personal factors can affect their engagement in online learning courses. The current study proposed and empirically examined a conceptual model that aimed to fill this gap. The main purpose is to present an extensive empirical data of 305 novice or expert students (153 graduates and 152 postgraduates) who enrolled in online courses at university level which were held in Second Life. On this occasion it was tried to be investigated, measured and finally verified the effects of computer self-efficacy, metacognitive self-regulation and self-esteem that can predict the students’ engagement as an overall multidimensional construct of factors (cognitive, emotional and behavioral). The results from the three-step hierarchical regression analysis revealed that computer self-efficacy, metacognitive self-regulation, and self-esteem in online courses were not only positively correlated with student’s cognitive and emotional engagement factors, but were also negatively correlated with behavioral factors. Educational implications from these results can provide a more expedient and meritorious instructional quality format aimed at reinforcing users’ engagement in Second Life for sequencing and pacing future-driven online courses.     

因果关系及其在社会媒体上的应用研究综述

诸如物理学、行为学、社会学和生物学中许多研究的中心问题是对因果的阐述,即变量或事件之间直接作用关系的阐述。由于人们的日常行为和语言越来越多地映射到互联网上,或者根本就是互联网引起了大量新的行为和语言,致使社会媒体上存在大量的因果问题。与相关关系分析相比,社会媒体上的因果关系分析更加必要和迫切,首先,任何相关性的背后都隐藏着因果关系;其次,相关性分析得到的结论有时是不可靠的甚至是错误的;再次,基于相关性的方法无法用于管理、控制和干预变量或事件。论述了因果关系分析的必要性、重要性和社会媒体上存在的因果问题;综述了目前的因果分析与推断的基本理论、存在的问题和研究现状;通过比较现有因果关系分析的研究思路,预测未来的研究方向和因果分析理论及方法在社会媒体上的应用。     

Online and hybrid university-level courses with the utilization of Second Life: Investigating the factors that predict student choice in Second Life supported online and hybrid university-level courses

The radical restructure of hybrid and online learning course delivery methods at university-level held in Second Life has been widely and positively acknowledged from a large academic literature body. However, it is still absent the clarification of students’ socio-cognitive factors that predict their choice to attend at least in one of these course delivery methods. The main purpose of this study is to examine the relation between several personal factors and students’ choice to participate in these contemporary methods. A targeted sample of 325 voluntary students (170 who participated in hybrid sessions and 155 who participated in online sessions) completed a survey to assess socio-cognitive factors (self-efficacy, metacognitive self-regulation and task value), achievement-related emotions (pride, anger, relief and shame) in academic settings (before and after finishing various learning activities) and satisfaction levels of each method with also final grades from their examination processes to be included. Logistic regression confirmed higher levels of students’ self-efficacy and satisfaction in learning outcomes for those who took part in (fully) online rather than those who enrolled in hybrid courses. The study results revealed that students would prefer to take further courses in the online course delivery method. Conclusive remarks may provide meaningful information to the educational community in order to understand better how the socio-cognitive constructs of motivation are related to the students’ participation in future-driven educational activities held in Second Life by using the online or hybrid course delivery methods.     

Calling Out Fake News on Social Media: A Comparison of Literature in Librarianship and Journalism

This study compared 475 scholarly journal articles in librarianship and journalism on social media published between 2006 and early 2017. Though articles from these two information professions are mostly positive on social media, various journalism articles pointed out the information credibility issue on social media while no librarianship article did that. With fake news being a major issue in the information business since the 2016?US election, librarians should do more in calling out fake news on social media in their publications as well as in information literacy classrooms.     

Activating constructive employee behavioural responses in a crisis: Examining the effects of pre‐crisis reputation and crisis communication strategies on employee voice behaviours

This study explores how organizational management can promote employee voice behaviours, as positive behavioural reactions with constructive ideas, in responding to organizational crisis. Using an experimental study (N = 640) among full‐time employees in the United States, the study found that pre‐crisis internal reputation and crisis communication strategies—accommodative response and stealing thunder—positively and directly affected constructive employee voice behaviours in a crisis situation. Furthermore, the study revealed how post‐crisis internal reputation mediates the influences of pre‐crisis internal reputation and stealing thunder on positive/constructive and negative/destructive employee voice behaviours. The findings of this study contribute to the theoretical development of crisis communication in the internal context of an organization, especially with respect to employee voice behaviours. The study also highlights an important practical implication for crisis managers who can activate and promote positive employee behaviour voices, thereby influencing leadership's strategic decision‐making in an organizational crisis.     

Networked Press Freedom and Social Media: Tracing Historical and Contemporary Forces in Press‐Public Relations

This paper analyzes how mainstream, online news organizations understand press autonomy in their relationships to audiences. I situate the press in terms of neo‐institutional sociology, seeing its autonomy as a distributed, field‐level phenomenon involving “boundary work” among distributed actors. I then trace press‐audience relations through two historical examples (letters to the editor and ombudsmen), showing how the press has historically both separated itself from and relied upon audiences. Examining eight news organizations' social media policies, I analyze the “inside‐out” and “outside‐in” forces through which the press distinguishes itself from audiences, concluding with a discussion of how such guidelines structure the types of control that news organizations have, or might have, as they use social network sites in their news work.     

“Damned if you do,damned if you don’t”: Media frames of responsibility and accountability in handling a wildfire

Previous research on media framing of wildfire has chiefly been concerned with the nature of wildfire in the context of climate change and with framing effects on policy and public opinion. Empirical studies on media content, hence what is mediated to crisis managers and the public concerning authorities’ and the public's response, seem to be largely missing. This is remarkable, given that the media represent main sources of information that may influence crisis management and shape public opinion. Thus, the aim of this study was to identify key media frames relating to portrayals of public and authority responses during and after a wildfire crisis. The study is based on media articles from two time periods: immediately after the fire and 1 year later. We used a thematic method of analysis (TA), thus an inductive, “bottom‐up” approach. A core frame, Responsibility/accountability is identified, underpinned by two sub‐themes. One sub‐theme relates to the causes of the fire and its escalation, revealing a number of different interrelated blame frames. The second sub‐theme refers to management of the crisis, reflecting both authorities’ and citizens’ responses. The deficiencies of the former are implicitly suggested to have forced citizens to act to compensate for their inadequacy. The main theoretical contribution is the identification of an interrelationship between frames in relation to different groups of individuals responding to a crisis, pointing to a more complex view of framing effects. In addition, results show how media tend to assess crisis management based on idealistic criteria, inevitably making the evaluation negative. This contributes to an understanding of how media blame frames, thus “blame games,” may unfold. Practical implications of these results are discussed.