published_or_final_version / Education / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

published_or_final_version / abstract / toc / Education / Master / Master of Education

Significant associations between self-reported “whole units” of work and self-reported mental task requirements as well as personal outcomes are well known. Also of interest is, however, whether a significant association also exists between the underlying objective assignment of tasks, i.e. the division of labour, and self-reported mental requirements. Such an association would represent a concrete starting point for job design or redesign. We analyzed this question for retail sale jobs as an example of the numerous human service jobs, which usually consist of customer- and object-centred tasks. The study (N = 558 employees) evaluated the potential association between documented assignments of customer-centred and goods-centred activities and employees’ perceived mental requirements, skill utilisation, and learning on the job, as well as mental difficulties. A significant association of moderate effect size between the objective division of labour and self-reported mental job requirements was shown. Theoretical and practical consequences of this association are also discussed.

Alberta Health Services (AHS) has introduced e-learning for health professionals to expand their existing training, offer flexible web-based learning opportunities, and reduce training time and cost. This study is designed to evaluate the usability and usefulness of an e-learning module for a patient clinical information system scheduling application. A cost-effective framework for usability evaluation has been developed and conceptualized as part of this research. Low-Cost Rapid Usability Engineering (LCRUE), Cognitive Task Analysis (CTA), and Heuristic Evaluation (HE) criteria for web-based learning were adapted and combined with the Software Usability Measurement Inventory (SUMI) questionnaire. To evaluate the introduction of the e-learning application, usability was assessed in two groups of users: frontline users and informatics consultant users. The effectiveness of the LCRUE, CTA, and HE when combined with the SUMI was also investigated. Results showed that the frontline users are satisfied with the usability of the e-learning platform. Overall, the informatics consultant users are satisfied with the application, although they rated the application as poor in terms of efficiency and control. The results showed that many areas where usability was problematic are related to general interface usability (GIU), and instructional design and content, some of which might account for the poorly rated aspects of usability. The findings should be of interest to developers, designers, researchers, and usability practitioners involved in development of e-learning systems. / Graduate / 0769 / 0984 / 0541 / tdafalla@uvic.ca; tdafalla@gmail.com

Thesis (M.A.)--Miami University, Dept. of Psychology, 2005. / Title from first page of PDF document. Document formatted into pages; contains [1], iv, 41 p. : ill. Includes bibliographical references (p. 41).

Ce travail adopte le cadre de l’ingénierie cognitive en vue de la conception et de l’évaluation d’outils cognitifs dans le domaine de l’administration d’entreprises artisanales. Ce cadre relève d’une approche dite écologique des systèmes de travail. L’objectif général de ce travail est double. D’une part, il s’agit de montrer la pertinence de cette approche écologique eu égard au domaine étudié et d’autre part, de proposer une interface utilisateur pour un système d’aide à la gestion administrative sur support numérique mobile. Plus précisément, nous proposons une modélisation du domaine de travail en considérant certaines de ses caractéristiques les plus complexes à modéliser : la récursivité et la dimension éthique. Ensuite, nous testons une méthode récente pour valider et vérifier cette modélisation (Task Machine Turing Analysis, TMTA). Nous proposons également une nouvelle méthode de validation et vérification d’un domaine de travail, dite méthode des « points de vue ». À partir d’un modèle du domaine de travail de la gestion administrative dans les entreprises artisanales, nous expérimentons plusieurs maquettes d’interfaces pour un système d’aide. Cette expérimentation nous permet de mesurer le degré d’application des principes dirigeant la conception d’interface écologique. Enfin, nous proposons et testons une maquette finale de systèmes à destination des artisans. / This work adopts the cognitive engineering framework for the design and evaluation of cognitive tools interfaces in the administrative handicraft field. This framework relies on an ecological approach of work systems. The objectives of this work were twofold. First, it consisted in showing the heuristic value of the ecological approach. Second, we aimed at proposing a user interface for a mobile digital cognitive tool assisting administrative tasks. More precisely, we proposed to consolidate the work domain analysis framework by considering some of the more complex characteristics to model, that is to say recursion and the ethical dimension. Afterwards, we tested a recent method named “Turing Machine Task Analysis” to validate and verify the work domain model. We also proposed a new verification and validation method for work domain model, named “viewpoints method”. Based on a modeling of the administrative handicraft domain, we tested several user interface mockups for a cognitive tool. This experiment permitted us to measure the degree of application of the Ecological Interface Design principles. Finally, we proposed and tested a final mockup for craftsmen.

L'objectif général de ce projet était d'analyser l'activité lors de compétitions de niveau international en rugby à XV et d'explorer l'évolution du niveau d'activité au cours du match pour quantifier la fatigue. Dans une première étude il a été démontré que le niveau d'activité ne variait pas de façon significative au cours du match si l'on quantifiait l'activité des joueurs par l'analyse de la vitesse et du rapport entre la durée d'activité et la durée de la récupération. Par contre, on observe une diminution significative de l'accélération moyenne sur la deuxième mi-temps, cette diminution étant plus particulièrement marquée pour le groupe constitué des troisièmes lignes et des talonneurs. Dans une deuxième étude, nous avons proposé d'étudier la fatigue lors de 12 répétitions d'exercice statique simulant la poussée en mêlée. Les résultats démontrent une diminution significative de la force produite de 11,7 % ce qui est relativement faible si l'on considère le protocole qui consistait à répéter 12 fois 5 s de poussée maximale entrecoupées de périodes de récupération de 15 s. Le faible coût métabolique de la contraction isométrique en comparaison de la contraction concentrique pourrait expliquer la diminution relativement faible de la force produite. L'ensemble de ces résultats suggère que l'enchaînement des séquences de jeu statiques et dynamiques et des périodes de récupération lors d'une compétition internationale permet de maintenir le niveau global d'activité / The overall objective of this project was to analyze the activity at international level competitions in rugby union and to explore the evolution of the level of activity during the match to quantify fatigue. In the first study it was demonstrated that the level of activity did not vary significantly during the match if velocity and the ratio between duration of activity and of recovery periods were analyzed. A significant decrease in the average acceleration in the second half was evidenced; this decrease was particularly marked for the group constituted by back rows and hookers. In a second study, we proposed to study fatigue during static exercise simulating the scrum. The results show a significant decrease in the force produced by 11.7 %, which is relatively low considering that the protocol consisted in 12 time 5 s of maximum effort interspersed with recovery periods of 15 s. The low metabolic cost of isometric contraction compared to concentric contraction could explain the relatively small decrease of the force produced. Taken together, these results suggest that the players’ combinations of action, static or dynamic, and recovery times were optimal for preventing large decrease in physical performance

This study presents the process of a model development for intellectual property management system created through the use of contextual tasks analysis methodology (CTA), which aims to obtain requirements for software development by using the user view. This process is demonstrated by the flowcharts described in relation to the end activities in a case study in the NIT/UFSM, specifically in the referral of requests for protection of invention (patent). It was applied a suggestible approach for requirements gathering in order to generate support for a more appropriate development of an Intellectual Property Management System (IPMS), which will contribute in the processes management of the analyzed case. Likewise, this study helped by providing data that explain the importance of the use of management tools as a way of improving the performance of the intellectual property production of organizations, demonstrating the performance of the archivist and his/her entrepreneurial and proactive profile in a multidisciplinary environment. Thus, positive results were presented through the development and dissemination of patent flowcharts and with activities structuring, which improve the efficiency of data recovery and, consequently, improve the increase of innovation capacity of the organization. / Esta pesquisa apresenta o processo de desenvolvimento de um modelo para sistema de gestão de propriedade intelectual criado através do uso de metodologia de análise contextual de tarefas (ACT), a qual visa obter requisitos para desenvolvimento de software através do uso da visão do usuário. Esse processo é demonstrado através de fluxogramas descritos referentes às atividades-fim em um estudo de caso no NIT/UFSM, especificamente no encaminhamento de pedidos de proteção de propriedade intelectual. Foi empregada a abordagem sugestionada para o levantamento de requisitos com o objetivo de gerar subsídios para o desenvolvimento mais adequado de um sistema de gestão de propriedade intelectual (SGPI), o qual servirá de contribuição para a gestão de processos do caso analisado. Da mesma forma, essa pesquisa colaborou fornecendo dados que explicitam a importância do uso de ferramentas gerenciais como forma de melhoria no desempenho da proteção da produção intelectual das organizações, demonstrando o desempenho do arquivista e seu perfil empreendedor e proativo em um ambiente multidisciplinar. Assim, apresentaram-se resultados positivos através do desenvolvimento e difusão de fluxogramas de patente e com a estruturação das atividades, melhorando a eficiência da recuperação de dados e consequentemente no aumento da capacidade de inovar da organização.

This interpretive case study was undertaken to investigate the nature of classroom tasks that teachers give to their learners and to gain insights into how they choose these tasks. It was carried out at two secondary schools in the Okahao circuit of the Omusati region in Namibia. The schools range from Grade 8 to Grade 12. This study focused mainly on teachers who teach Mathematics at senior secondary phase (Grade 11 and 12). The research participants were of four mathematics teachers – two from each school. The study was designed around two phases. Phase one consisted of video-recording of lessons, and phase two consisted of interviewing the teachers. The main purpose of the study was to ascertain the types and nature of tasks that teachers give to their learners and to gain insights into how they chose these tasks. The research adopted a combination of both qualitative and quantitative approaches. The study revealed that the participating teachers provided a near equal amount of lower level cognitive tasks and higher level cognitive tasks. It further revealed several factors that influence teachers when selecting the types of tasks they give to their learners. These factors include curriculum requirements, types of learners and their experiences, and learners’ contexts.

South Africa has witnessed radical policy reforms since the advent of the new democratic dispensation in 1994. As provincial, district and local practitioners developed responses to those new national education policies, implementation issues were revealed in all their complexity. Policy implementation became one of the most difficult challenges South Africa had to contend with. It necessitated the development of the capacity of the state and its people to implement policy. The complexities of the people development environment in South Africa create a range of challenges for development. The lack of multi-level empirical data on training effects continues to exacerbate this state of affairs. This context requires that comprehensive assessment mechanisms be put in place for training programmes aimed at the realisation of policy goals. The broad purpose of this inquiry, therefore, is to determine the impact of an education management development training intervention as it passes through different levels of the education system in South Africa - national, provincial, district and local. The following key questions guided this investigation. Firstly, how do stakeholder understandings of “education management development” transfer from one level to another in a cascade model of training? And secondly, what is the operational impact of an education management development-training programme at the different levels (i.e., province, district and school) of the education system? Questionnaires, free attitude interviews and observations were used as key data collection instruments. Data was analysed using a combination of quantitative and qualitative strategies for making sense of the training information. Data was interpreted against the backdrop of the literature on the “transfer of training”, and these findings are represented in the last three chapters of this thesis. This research generated four major findings, with a variety of subsidiary findings, which deepen our insights into policy implementation as it relates to education management development in South Africa. Some of the major findings of this study are that: a) The organisers did not in the first place conduct the baseline study on training needs and secondly, they did not take into consideration the organisational requirements of the anticipated training. This anomaly could ultimately compromise the outcomes of this intervention. b) The policy deployment processes of the North West Department of Education (of ensuring that the governmental policies for quality, cost and service delivery are understood from the highest to the lowest level of the organisation) are fraught with problems that undermined basic understandings of the Education Management Development training programme which was conducted between 1998 – 2000. c) Successful policy implementation depends crucially on resource allocation and, in the case of the Education Management Development Training Programme, the nature and magnitude of allocated resources e.g., transport provision could not guarantee positive training results; and d) The overly rationalistic view adopted by the trainers of the Education Management development-training programme did not take into account the complex contexts within which change unfolds. Resultantly, the changing of the roles of facilitators could not be planned-for in advance. The significance of this study is that it identifies the barriers to learning in training events, and sheds new light on the transfer of training problem that continues to undermine organisational change and human resource development. Some of the unique findings of the study can be found in the fact that the Expert Trainers could only recall a few intentions of the EMD modular training. The District Facilitators displayed limited knowledge of the disciplinary procedures in their areas of operation and there was limited conceptualisation of the EMD by the principals of schools. / Thesis (PhD (Education Policy Studies))--University of Pretoria, 2005. / Education Management and Policy Studies / unrestricted