As the demand for distance learning increases, traditional campus-based universities continue to struggle in supporting working distance students. This has resulted in the increased phenomena of students using social media within their ecosystems of learning support. The use of formal and informal tools such as social media gives rise to boundaries which students need to cross for effective support. How social media facilitates the crossing of boundaries within ecosystems of learning support remains an unfamiliar area of research. This study employed a predominately qualitative research methods, with a small element being a quantitative method to view and investigate postgraduate distance students' ecosystem of learning support holistically. The findings of this study revealed that participants used a combination of formal and informal tools to support their learning, including social media. In particular WhatsApp, which enables the crossing of transitional, formal and informal learning contexts, hierarchical and, time and space boundaries. Recognizing social media as an important part of students' learning support ecosystem, allowed an expanded view on learning support. As such, the study highlighted a range of different learning mechanisms which occur when students cross these boundaries, with coordination being the dominant learning mechanism. In conclusion, social media (such as WhatsApp) does indeed enhance the crossing of various boundaries to support learning. However, some students do not necessarily perceive their interaction on social media as learning, which speaks to the need of legitimising social media as learning tools by institutions. This study then recommends the need for institutions to recognize and nurture the use of social media as one element of a distance learning support ecosystem for cost-effective student support strategies guided by institutional guidelines and policies.

In this study, I dedicate my attention to a comparative study regarding digital textbooks in comparison to printed textbooks. My purpose is to find out how teachers and students in years 7-9 compulsory school, view the use of digital textbooks compared to printed textbooks in teachingand learning. The theoretical starting point of the study is Illeris (2015) three dimensions of learning; the content dimension, the driving force dimension and the interaction dimension. This means that learning always takes place on both an individual and a social level. I have chosen to conduct a qualitative study that will be the empirical basis in my research work. In spring 2021, I interviewed a small number of students, two students in grade 8, a boy and a girl, two students in grade 9, a boy and a girl, and two teachers, a man and a woman who teach Social Sciences in grades 8 and 9. Both students and teachers described that the advantage of the digital textbook was its availability and that it can be read in different formats and that it is updated continuously. Both teachers and students felt that it was easier to get deeper into a printed text than a digital text. The study showed that scrolling in the digital text disturbed the students’ reading, they got an inferior overview of the digital text compared to when they read a printed text. The study also shows that students need support in reading digital textbooks as they differ from printed texts. Educators need to provide students with strategies to increase deep reading in digital textbooks. Not only in the Swedish language but in all school subjects.

京都大学 / 0048 / 新制・課程博士 / 博士(工学) / 甲第21770号 / 工博第4587号 / 新制||工||1715(附属図書館) / 京都大学大学院工学研究科電気工学専攻 / (主査)教授 中村 裕一, 教授 小山田 耕二, 教授 喜多 一 / 学位規則第4条第1項該当 / Doctor of Philosophy (Engineering) / Kyoto University / DFAM

Subject and learning support librarianship first began in African university libraries in the 1960s, but became more prevalent in the 1980s. Subject librarians, who were known by different titles in various universities, were responsible for one or more subjects, departments, schools or faculties, in terms of providing a subject-based information service, and performing subject-based collection development, user education, and liaison functions. They were organised according to specific models or structures which determined whether or not they performed only subject duties in the library. They formed a core part of the university library, and with each major technological advance, they had to reassess their roles, titles, functions, duties, educational qualifications and skills, so as to adapt to the new information environment. Unfortunately, the inception, development, re-assessment and adaptation of subject librarianship on the African continent did not follow a standard path, and no standards guidelines were compiled that could be utilised by new subject services. The purpose of this study was to investigate the roles, responsibilities and skills of subject librarians in the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) region. The target population consisted of subject librarians in this region and a census method was used to determine participants. The quantitative research approach employing a survey design was used by the study. Data was collected using questionnaires, and results were clarified by interviews with a selection of library managers. Data was analysed using SPSS, MS-Excel and content analysis. The research found that the main models of subject librarianship in place were the dual and hybrid models. It determined the main titles that subject librarians were known by, and that their role, involved providing teaching, learning and research support to faculty members, staff, students and researchers. It also determined the main functions and related duties performed, and the main educational qualifications and skills held by, or required by subject librarians. Since the study found that no guidelines, specifically targeted at subject librarians in the region, were available, as one of its outcomes it provided guidelines, in the form of an appendix, for new subject services to adapt or adopt if they desired. / Information Science / D. Litt. et Phil. (Information Science)

No description available.

Subject and learning support librarianship first began in African university libraries in the 1960s, but became more prevalent in the 1980s. Subject librarians, who were known by different titles in various universities, were responsible for one or more subjects, departments, schools or faculties, in terms of providing a subject-based information service, and performing subject-based collection development, user education, and liaison functions. They were organised according to specific models or structures which determined whether or not they performed only subject duties in the library. They formed a core part of the university library, and with each major technological advance, they had to reassess their roles, titles, functions, duties, educational qualifications and skills, so as to adapt to the new information environment. Unfortunately, the inception, development, re-assessment and adaptation of subject librarianship on the African continent did not follow a standard path, and no standards guidelines were compiled that could be utilised by new subject services. The purpose of this study was to investigate the roles, responsibilities and skills of subject librarians in the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) region. The target population consisted of subject librarians in this region and a census method was used to determine participants. The quantitative research approach employing a survey design was used by the study. Data was collected using questionnaires, and results were clarified by interviews with a selection of library managers. Data was analysed using SPSS, MS-Excel and content analysis. The research found that the main models of subject librarianship in place were the dual and hybrid models. It determined the main titles that subject librarians were known by, and that their role, involved providing teaching, learning and research support to faculty members, staff, students and researchers. It also determined the main functions and related duties performed, and the main educational qualifications and skills held by, or required by subject librarians. Since the study found that no guidelines, specifically targeted at subject librarians in the region, were available, as one of its outcomes it provided guidelines, in the form of an appendix, for new subject services to adapt or adopt if they desired. / Information Science / D. Litt. et Phil. (Information Science)

No description available.

A non-invasive, on-line method for detection of mechanical (rotor, bearings eccentricity) and stator winding faults in a 3-phase induction motors from observation of motor line current supply input. The main aim is to avoid the consequence of unexpected failure of critical equipment which results in extended process shutdown, costly machinery repair, and health and safety problems. This thesis looks into the possibility of utilizing machine learning techniques in the field of condition monitoring of electromechanical systems. Induction motors are chosen as an example for such application. Electrical motors play a vital role in our everyday life. Induction motors are kept in operation through monitoring its condition in a continuous manner in order to minimise their off times. The author proposes a model free sensor-less monitoring system, where the only monitored signal is the input to the induction motor. The thesis considers different methods available in literature for condition monitoring of induction motors and adopts a simple solution that is based on monitoring of the motor current. The method proposed use the feature extraction and Support Vector Machines (SVM) to set the limits for healthy and faulty data based on the statistical methods. After an extensive overview of the related literature and studies, the motor which is the virtual sensor in the drive system is analysed by considering its construction and principle of operation. The mathematical model of the motor is used for analysing the system. This is followed by laboratory testing of healthy motors and comparing their output signals with those of the same motors after being intentionally failed, concluding with the development of a full monitoring system. Finally, a monitoring system is proposed that can detect the presence of a fault in the monitored machine and diagnose the fault type and severity

This research explored the factors that influence whether Learning Support Assistants (LSAs), who support the learning of pupils with very complex learning needs, are equipped with the necessary skills to help these students learn. A significant feature in the delivery of educational support to pupils with low incidence needs is that it is LSAs who provide the majority of educational instruction and, furthermore, these paraeducators work with only limited supervision from class teachers. It therefore follows that if high quality educational assistance is to be available to pupils, then those undertaking the majority of this support need to have appropriate pedagogical knowledge. I explored this complex subject by undertaking a workplace ethnography at a single special school over the course of an academic year. In my ethnography, I used a number of data collection methods, including semi-structured interviews with teachers, LSAs and therapists, as well as participant and non-participant observations. The limited literature on the topic of LSA learning concludes that they are not being provided with the learning opportunities they need for the demanding work they do. However, because of the scarcity of information in the literature pertaining to the development of this important group of the educational workforce, I needed to look to the literature on organisational learning more broadly to inform my work and relate it to my own area of interest. The lack of priority given to non-formal learning was a key theme across these texts, with opportunities for participative learning emerging as an important feature. However, this aspect alone could not explain the reasons why these paraeducators did not have access to learning provision appropriate to their needs and so I looked to other theories of workplace learning. The conceptual and analytical approach of the Working as Learning Framework (WALF) (Felstead, et al., 2009), with its incorporation of the concepts of systems of production, discretion, and learning environments and territories, offered me the opportunity to scrutinise the situation regarding the learning and development of LSAs from a wide perspective. Through my adoption of the WALF I have identified the influences that shaped the workplace learning environment of the LSAs at the special school. In doing so, I have added to the limited research on this important and yet inadequately understood group. Although my study focused on one special school this research can inform how the abilities of paraeducators in different educational settings can be developed, because of my adoption of the theoretical standpoint of the WALF. Furthermore, by applying the WALF, my thesis has utilised workplace learning theory to make an important intellectual contribution to the discussion about how high quality educational provision can be delivered. My thesis is also apposite, because the number of children with more complex learning difficulties is increasing and these individuals require specialist paraeducators to be appropriately equipped to meet their needs, whether they are being educated in special or mainstream schools.

The capacity for online learning environments to provide quality learning experiences for students has been the focus of much speculation and debate in the higher education sector from the late 1990s to the present day. In this area, 'quality' has become synonymous with engaging students in a learning community. This study reports on a qualitative research project designed to explore the significance of community for students when they study in online learning environments. This project used three case studies to explore tertiary students' thoughts and expectations about community in the online environment. The research was constructed iteratively. Data from the initial case suggested the need to explore the relationship between the constructed online learning environment and the development of learning communities or what I have termed Social Learning Support Networks (SLSN). To explore this issue further, the project was expanded and subsequent cases were chosen that included fundamentally different types of online learning environments. The project had two significant results. Firstly, students not only confirmed popular educational theories on the value of learning communities, but also described how this form of social connection might practically benefit their learning. Secondly, the project found that certain forms of synchronous online environments provided enhanced opportunities for students to form social connections that supported their learning. This project provides new evidence of the benefit of community for students studying online and argues that future online learning environments should be shaped by five key principles designed to foster a sense of social connection between students.