Online conversations via video have nowadays partially replaced face to face contact, and there are some challenges that occur in video conversations, e.g., time delay and the placement of the camera which leads to eliminating the possibility for direct eye contact, and time delay. There are experiences that these conditions disturb the social connection with the other, which does not mainly affect problem solving effectiveness, but something relational seems to alter. This study investigated if eye-movement can used to measure social connectedness during video conversation. In order to study this, two custom made units (“NUNAs”) with robotized cameras were built, which e.g. allow for unprocessed eye contact. A feasibility pilot was conducted, which data this report is based on. The experimental conditions were 1, available eye contact, 2, skewed visuality and 3, time delayed signal. The participants (n = 12) took part pairwise, they were familiar with online conversation and did not self report autism spectrum disorder. They were instructed to talk naturally and unprobed through video using the NUNA’s for 30-50 minutes, and the three conditions were changing every 4 minutes. Eye movement behavior within the three conditions was compared, such as the duration of the visit in the eyes area. None of the results showed a significant difference. Factors that might lead to these results, such as limited sample size, are discussed. Eye movement in relational processes may be needed to be studied on a dyadic level, and not on individual. / Onlinekonversationer via video har numera delvis ersatt kommunikation ansikte mot ansikte. Det finns dock vissa utmaningar som uppstår vid videosamtal, exempelvis placeringen av kameran som leder till ett omöjliggörande av ögonkontakt, och tidsfördröjning. Det finns erfarenheter av att dessa förhållanden stör känslan av samhörighet till den andre, vilket inte påverkar problemlösningens effektivitet nämnvärt, istället är det de relationella aspekterna som förändras. Denna studie undersökte om ögonrörelser kan användas för att mäta social anknytning under videokonversation. För att studera detta byggdes två specialtillverkade enheter (”NUNA”) med robotiserade kameror, som t.ex. tillåter obearbetad ögonkontakt. En pilotstudie genomfördes och data ifrån studien har legat till grund för denna rapport. Experimentförhållandena var 1, tillgänglig ögonkontakt, 2, skev visualitet och 3, fördröjd signal. Deltagarna (n = 12) deltog parvis, de var bekanta med onlinekonversationer och rapporterade själva att de inte var inom autism spekrat. De instruerades att prata naturligt genom video med hjälp av NUNA i 30-50 minuter, och de tre förhållandena ändrades var 4:e minut. Ögonrörelsebeteenden inom de tre tillstånden jämfördes, såsom längden på besöket i ögonområdet. Inget av resultaten visade någon signifikant skillnad. Faktorer som kan leda till dessa resultat, såsom begränsad urvalsstorlek samt att ögonrörelser i relationella processer kan behöva studeras på dyadisk nivå, och inte på individnivå, diskuteras.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-28T18:22:11Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Erisana Celia Sanches Victoriano.pdf: 3011444 bytes, checksum: 0077e3316d46d2f7b287c64a52b1f91d (MD5) Previous issue date: 2010-10-26 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / The new ICTs have been used in face-to-face and distance courses to support and enrich teaching-learning processes. However, their use demands planning and adequacy so that it corresponds to educational goals. For this reason, many studies have been developed. They usually focus on the use of the tools, or on the roles teachers and students play during the interactions (Gervai, 2007; Costa, 2005; Leal, 2005). However, these investigations do not seem to consider language as central in teaching-learning processes; they do not discuss the importance of pedagogic practice and the knowledge structure that are involved in the interactions. In order to contribute to the filling of these gaps, this research was suggested. Therefore, the general objective of this study is to contribute to the improvement on the use of ICTs, more specifically to the use of synchronous communication tools in educational contexts, by considering language as central in teaching-learning processes. In order to reach this goal, seven synchronous sessions (chats) were collected from a distance course that was offered for teachers of English. In addition, the data were analysed under two theoretical frameworks: the systemic-functional theory and the Bernstenian social theory. The analysis developed during this research favoured detailed comprehension about some kinds of interactions that can take place in online synchronous communication in educational contexts, as it highlighted differences in the pedagogic and discursive practices, and in the knowledge structure during the sessions. The analysis developed with the support of the systemic-functional approach for the description of conversations, exchange structure (Martin, 1992), allowed a detailed study of some discursive practices that can take place during this kind of communication. This analysis, combined with the concepts of regulative and instructional discourse suggested in the Bernsteinian theory (Bernstein, 1990), allowed reflections about pedagogic practices that had been involved in the online synchronous sessions. Finally, the concept of entity (Martin and Rose, 2003) and the concepts of horizontal and vertical discourse (Bernstein, 1990) contributed to the comprehension about the nature of knowledge which had been involved in the interactions. This research indicates that the combination of the systemic-functional theory and the Bernsteinian theory can be powerful for the comprehension of language, pedagogic practices and different nature of knowledge that were brought to the interactions; and, it presents results which can contribute to an adequate use of chats in educational contexts , and to the quality of distance education / As tecnologias de informação e comunicação (TICs) vêm sendo usadas em cursos presenciais e a distância com o objetivo apoiar e enriquecer o ensino-aprendizagem. Porém, seu uso exige planejamento e adequação para que corresponda aos objetivos educacionais. Por esse motivo, muitos estudos vêm sendo conduzidos. Esses estudos geralmente focam o uso das próprias ferramentas, ou o papel de professores e alunos durante as interações (Gervai, 2007; Costa, 2005; Leal, 2005). No entanto, essas investigações não consideram a centralidade da linguagem no ensino-aprendizagem, e não discutem a importância da prática pedagógica e das naturezas do conhecimento envolvidas nas interações. Para contribuir com o preenchimento dessas lacunas, esta pesquisa foi proposta. Dessa forma, o objetivo geral deste trabalho é contribuir para o aprimoramento do uso das TICs, mais especificamente com o uso de ferramentas de comunicação síncrona, em contexto educacional considerando a centralidade lingüística em contextos de ensino-aprendizagem. Para tal, sete sessões síncronas online (bate-papos) foram coletadas de um curso a distância, oferecido para professores de inglês. Além disso, os dados foram analisados sob duas perspectivas teóricas: a teoria sistêmico-funcional e a teoria social Bernsteiniana. Ao apontar diferenças nas práticas discursivas e pedagógicas, e na estrutura do conhecimento durante as sessões, a análise conduzida durante essa pesquisa ajudou a compreender mais detalhadamente o tipo de interação que pode acontecer em comunicações síncronas online em contexto educacional. A análise conduzida com ajuda do conceito sistêmico-funcional de estrutura da troca (Martin, 1992) possibilitou um estudo detalhado de algumas práticas discursivas que podem acontecer neste tipo de comunicação online. Essa análise, combinada com os conceitos de discurso regulador e instrucional propostos na teoria bernsteiniana (Bernstein, 1990) permitiu reflexões sobre as práticas pedagógicas que estiveram envolvidas nas sessões síncronas online. Por fim, o conceito de entidade (Martin e Rose, 2003) e os conceitos de discurso horizontal e discurso vertical (Bernstein, 1990), colaboraram para o entendimento sobre a natureza dos conhecimentos envolvidos nas interações. Esta pesquisa indica que a combinação da teoria sistêmico-funcional com a teoria Bernsteiniana mostra-se ferramenta poderosa para a compreensão da linguagem, da prática pedagógica e das diferentes naturezas de conhecimentos trazidos para contextos educacionais; e, apresenta resultados que podem contribuir com usos adequados de ferramentas síncronas digitais em contexto educacional e, assim, com a melhoria da qualidade da educação a distância.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-28T18:22:12Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Erisana Celia Sanches Victoriano.pdf: 3011444 bytes, checksum: 0077e3316d46d2f7b287c64a52b1f91d (MD5) Previous issue date: 2010-10-26 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / The new ICTs have been used in face-to-face and distance courses to support and enrich teaching-learning processes. However, their use demands planning and adequacy so that it corresponds to educational goals. For this reason, many studies have been developed. They usually focus on the use of the tools, or on the roles teachers and students play during the interactions (Gervai, 2007; Costa, 2005; Leal, 2005). However, these investigations do not seem to consider language as central in teaching-learning processes; they do not discuss the importance of pedagogic practice and the knowledge structure that are involved in the interactions. In order to contribute to the filling of these gaps, this research was suggested. Therefore, the general objective of this study is to contribute to the improvement on the use of ICTs, more specifically to the use of synchronous communication tools in educational contexts, by considering language as central in teaching-learning processes. In order to reach this goal, seven synchronous sessions (chats) were collected from a distance course that was offered for teachers of English. In addition, the data were analysed under two theoretical frameworks: the systemic-functional theory and the Bernstenian social theory. The analysis developed during this research favoured detailed comprehension about some kinds of interactions that can take place in online synchronous communication in educational contexts, as it highlighted differences in the pedagogic and discursive practices, and in the knowledge structure during the sessions. The analysis developed with the support of the systemic-functional approach for the description of conversations, exchange structure (Martin, 1992), allowed a detailed study of some discursive practices that can take place during this kind of communication. This analysis, combined with the concepts of regulative and instructional discourse suggested in the Bernsteinian theory (Bernstein, 1990), allowed reflections about pedagogic practices that had been involved in the online synchronous sessions. Finally, the concept of entity (Martin and Rose, 2003) and the concepts of horizontal and vertical discourse (Bernstein, 1990) contributed to the comprehension about the nature of knowledge which had been involved in the interactions. This research indicates that the combination of the systemic-functional theory and the Bernsteinian theory can be powerful for the comprehension of language, pedagogic practices and different nature of knowledge that were brought to the interactions; and, it presents results which can contribute to an adequate use of chats in educational contexts , and to the quality of distance education / As tecnologias de informação e comunicação (TICs) vêm sendo usadas em cursos presenciais e a distância com o objetivo apoiar e enriquecer o ensino-aprendizagem. Porém, seu uso exige planejamento e adequação para que corresponda aos objetivos educacionais. Por esse motivo, muitos estudos vêm sendo conduzidos. Esses estudos geralmente focam o uso das próprias ferramentas, ou o papel de professores e alunos durante as interações (Gervai, 2007; Costa, 2005; Leal, 2005). No entanto, essas investigações não consideram a centralidade da linguagem no ensino-aprendizagem, e não discutem a importância da prática pedagógica e das naturezas do conhecimento envolvidas nas interações. Para contribuir com o preenchimento dessas lacunas, esta pesquisa foi proposta. Dessa forma, o objetivo geral deste trabalho é contribuir para o aprimoramento do uso das TICs, mais especificamente com o uso de ferramentas de comunicação síncrona, em contexto educacional considerando a centralidade lingüística em contextos de ensino-aprendizagem. Para tal, sete sessões síncronas online (bate-papos) foram coletadas de um curso a distância, oferecido para professores de inglês. Além disso, os dados foram analisados sob duas perspectivas teóricas: a teoria sistêmico-funcional e a teoria social Bernsteiniana. Ao apontar diferenças nas práticas discursivas e pedagógicas, e na estrutura do conhecimento durante as sessões, a análise conduzida durante essa pesquisa ajudou a compreender mais detalhadamente o tipo de interação que pode acontecer em comunicações síncronas online em contexto educacional. A análise conduzida com ajuda do conceito sistêmico-funcional de estrutura da troca (Martin, 1992) possibilitou um estudo detalhado de algumas práticas discursivas que podem acontecer neste tipo de comunicação online. Essa análise, combinada com os conceitos de discurso regulador e instrucional propostos na teoria bernsteiniana (Bernstein, 1990) permitiu reflexões sobre as práticas pedagógicas que estiveram envolvidas nas sessões síncronas online. Por fim, o conceito de entidade (Martin e Rose, 2003) e os conceitos de discurso horizontal e discurso vertical (Bernstein, 1990), colaboraram para o entendimento sobre a natureza dos conhecimentos envolvidos nas interações. Esta pesquisa indica que a combinação da teoria sistêmico-funcional com a teoria Bernsteiniana mostra-se ferramenta poderosa para a compreensão da linguagem, da prática pedagógica e das diferentes naturezas de conhecimentos trazidos para contextos educacionais; e, apresenta resultados que podem contribuir com usos adequados de ferramentas síncronas digitais em contexto educacional e, assim, com a melhoria da qualidade da educação a distância

Family conversation between homes is difficult to initiate at mutually agreeable times as neither participant has exact knowledge of the other's activities or intentions. Whether calling to plan an important family gathering or simply to connect with family members, the question is: Is now a good time to call? People expect friends and family to learn their activity patterns and to minimize interruptions when calling. Can technology provide awareness cues to the caller, even prior to the initiation of the call? This research focuses on sampling the everyday activities of home life to determine environmental factors, which may serve as an indicator for availability. These external factors may be effective for identifying household routines of availability and useful in determining when to initiate conversation across homes. Several workplace studies have shown a person's interruptibility can be reliably assessed and modeled from specific environmental cues; this work looks for similar predictive power in the home. Copresence, location, and activity in the home were investigated as correlates to availability and for their effectiveness within the social protocol of family conversation. These studies indicate there are activities that can be sensed, either in real-time or over some time span, that correlate to self-reported availability. However, the type and amount of information shared is dependent upon individual preferences, social accessibility, and patterns of activities. This research shows friends and family can improve their predictions of when to call if provided additional context, and suggests that abstract representations of either routines or explicit availability status is sufficient and may be preferred by providers. Availability prediction is feasible in the home and useful to those outside the home, but the level of detail to provide in particular situations needs further study. This work has implications for the development of groupware systems, the automatic sensing of activity to deal with interruption, and activity recognition in the home.

Affective learning forms part of all kinds of educational experiences, regardless of whether the primary focus of learning is on the psychomotor or the cognitive domain. When students are exposed to these different types of educational experiences, their feelings or emotions will be stirred (Bastable 2003: 333). The aim of this study was to investigate the affective experiences of students who were enrolled for an online module, as part of their study programme. The study specifically aimed to investigate the meanings that students attached to their affective experiences during the module. The rationale of this study was based on the fact that students have affective experiences that influence their decision to persevere with a course. The purpose of this study was thus to explore and interpret the participants’ affective experiences in an online learning environment and to discover important categories of meaning (Marshall&Rossman 1999:33). The basis for the study was the fifth module of a two-year tutored master’s degree in computer-assisted education. This module, with its focus on e-learning, was presented entirely online for a period of six weeks. A game was played in cyberspace; and as the learning experiences of participants were based on surfing the Web, the game was called CyberSurfiver. In the e-learning environment, participants had to interact and communicate mainly by means of e-mail, Internet groups, and the online learning platform WebCT. Participants could also communicate synchronously by means of the Internet-based synchronous tool called Yahoo! Messenger. A qualitative approach was used for this research. A case study was chosen as a design for this study because it reflects particularistic, descriptive and heuristic characteristics. On the one hand, the case study could be related to the online culture but, on the other hand, the study aimed at interpreting meaning attached to experiences within the online culture. This study can be seen as falling within the constructivist-hermeneutic-interpretivist-qualitative paradigm. In this study, two focus group interviews were used as the principal method of data collection. The main purpose of the focus group interviews was to collect data about the affective experiences of participants. The first category identified during the data analysis and coding process of this study was called Curative Factors. The second category was called Process of Affective Development. It was concluded that the participants’ affective development could be compared to the levels of Krathwohl’s Taxonomy. The participants’ affective development were further assessed by means of a learning cycle model developed by Kort and Reilly (2002a:60-61). A third category namely <c>Inhibiting Factors was identified. The findings of this study emphasise the importance of the recognition of the holistic nature of the online students and their experiences, which imply that affective development cannot be separated from cognitive and psychomotor development. / Thesis (PhD (Curriculum Studies))--University of Pretoria, 2006. / Curriculum Studies / unrestricted

Power electronics applications in high power are normally large, expensive, spatially distributed systems. These systems are typically complex and have multiple functions. Due to these properties, the control algorithm and its implementation are challenging, and a different approach is needed to avoid customized solutions to every application while still having reliable sensor measurements and converter communication and control. This thesis proposes a synchronous digital control architecture that allows for the communication and control of devices via a fiber optic communication ring using digital technology. The proposed control architecture is a multidisciplinary approach consisting of concepts from several areas of electrical engineering. A review of the state of the art is presented in Chapter 2 in the areas of power electronics, fieldbus control networks, and digital design. A universal controller is proposed as a solution to the hardware independent control of these converters. Chapter 3 discusses how the controller was specified, designed, implemented, and tested. The power level specific hardware is implemented in modules referred to as hardware managers. A design for a hardware manager was previously implemented and tested. Based on these results and experiences, an improved hardware manager is specified in Chapter 4. A fault tolerant communication protocol is specified in Chapter 5. This protocol is an improvement on a previous version of the protocol, adding benefits of improved synchronization, multimaster support, fault tolerant structure with support for hot-swapping, live insertion and removals, a variable ring structure, and a new network based clock concept for greater flexibility and control. Chapter 6 provides a system demonstration, verifying the components work in configurations involving combinations of controllers and hardware managers to form applications. Chapter 7 is the conclusion. VHDL code is included for the controller, the hardware manager, and the protocol. Schematics and manufacturing specifications are included for the controller. / Master of Science