Technology mediated learning (TML) refers to an environment in which the learner interacts with learning materials, peers, and/or instructors that are mediated through advanced information technology (Alavi and Leidner, 2001). Recently, there have been increasing interests in investigating if TML can yield positive learning outcome. In this thesis, an interpretive study of TrainNet, a TML implementation by a well-known multinational corporation, is conducted. The study bases its investigation on the TML framework suggested by Alavi and Leidner (2001). The findings show that different stakeholders of TrainNet hold different views of learning effectiveness. For the manger, learning effectiveness means cost reduction; for the trainer, speedy information dissemination; and for the technicians, the profit, skill and social network. Yet, while TrainNet satisfies both managers and trainers in reducing cost and enhancing speedy information dissemination, it has failed to meet the aspiration of the technicians. These may result from the fact that instructional strategies have been changed from the experiental learning focus to abstract, conceptual learning. The change in turn has the adverse effect of undermining technicians¡¦ motivation to learn. Furthermore, the context governing the strategy of TrainNet adoption plays a key role in this change. A technical/economic perspective of system adoption and an objectivism approach to instructional strategy causes the company to ignore the important learning effectiveness issues that are important to learners. For TML to be effective, business must go beyond the technical and economic focus. The social cultural perspectives must be incorporated into the design of information technology and instructional strategies.

Over the years, much attention has been given to copyright law in literature and as it pertains to textbooks and other original academic works. However, as the focus is narrowed to the copyright law as it relates to distance education within higher education, very little information or precedents can be looked to for guidance. For an institution of higher education involved in distance education, the problem demands that a model be developed specifically for universities to follow as they embrace distance education programs and course development. As the likelihood of lawsuits and grievances clearly exists, the motivation of faculty to create original works is potentially compromised when there is conflict between themselves and the universities who employ them. In addition, a set of guidelines in the form of a model lends a structural basis to university educators and administrators alike on which to formulate the process of developing distance education programs with a greatly reduced chance of legal incident. A case study design was chosen because it adds strength to what is known and deepens understanding of complex issues. According to Lincoln and Guba in their 1985 book, qualitative research involves the studied use and collection of a variety of empirical materials: case study, personal experience, introspective, life story, interview, observational, historical, interactive, and visual texts that describe routine and problematic moments and meanings in individuals

The purpose of this study was to provide an in-depth examination of the language learning experiences of four fifth-grade students learning Spanish through videoconferencing and video-based lessons. This interpretive qualitative study involved intensive data collection over a period of 7 months through participant observation, audio and video recording of classes with subsequent transcription, and interviews of the students and their teachers. The following points of focus guided this research: (a) What instances of interaction and output are observed in the different instructional settings?; (b) Are patterns of change observed in learners' language production during the period under study?; (c) What individual learner factors help to explain differences in the participants' Spanish output?; and (d) What are the participants' preferences and perceptions concerning different aspects of the Spanish program? A careful examination was made of the participants' oral Spanish ou tput. Examples of their oral and written output and oral interactions were given. The participants differed among themselves in the amount of oral output each produced, and individual participants showed differences in productivity in the different instructional settings. No patterns of change were discerned in the language used by two participants. A third showed evidence of growth in some areas of language use. The fourth, Edward, showed the greatest growth. Many individual learner factors were examined. Among them were attitude toward Spanish, use of Spanish in and out of school, and overall academic achievement. All participants except for Edward were in their fourth year in the Spanish program; he was in his second year. All of the participants preferred learning Spanish through videoconferencing or teacher-led classes to learning it through the video-based lessons. In comparisons of videoconferencing and teacher-led classes, all participants expressed a preference for teac her-led classes. Themes that emerged were (a) the importance of the on-site Spanish teacher, (b) contributions of the video lessons, and (c) limitations in interaction and output.

This concurrent mixed methods study sought to determine e-learning readiness by distance education students in Nigeria based on their level of communication technology usage and perceptions of distance education delivery methods, and comparing learning experiences via the Internet and via study centre methods in Nigeria. This exploratory study using quantitative survey instrument measured the current levels of students’ technology usage, while qualitative interview instrument was used to examine students’ perceptions, attitudes and experiences of communication technology by distance education students in Nigeria. The results of this study reported high communication technology usage based on the high level of smart phone ownership and Internet browsing, high level of personal computer usage, high level of internet social networking, and high positive response for online learning, among other positive indicators. Consequently, the research findings seemed to indicate that distance education students surveyed are highly enthusiastic and are ready for e-learning in Nigeria. / 2012 - June

Advances in technology and the continued emergence of the Web as a major source of global information have encouraged tertiary educators to take advantage of this growing array of resources and move beyond traditional face-to-face and distance education correspondence modes toward a rich technology-mediated learning environment. Moreover, ready access to multimedia at the desk-top has provided an opportunity for educators to develop flexible, engaging and interactive learning resources incorporating multimedia and hypermedia. This study investigates pedagogical, individual and institutional factors influencing the adoption and integration of educational technology by academics at a regional Australian university for the purpose of developing interactive multimodal technology-mediated distance education courses. These courses include a range of multimodal learning objects and multiple representations of content in order to cater for different learning styles and modal preferences. The findings of this study revealed that a range of pedagogical, individual and institutional factors influence academics' development of interactive multimodal technology-mediated distance education courses. Implications for distance education providers and individual academics arising from these factors and subsequent recommendations are presented.

Submitted by Renata Lopes (renatasil82@gmail.com) on 2018-03-26T17:26:54Z No. of bitstreams: 1 christianealvesbyrondemello.pdf: 1599624 bytes, checksum: bd8feac2f14ce4aeb418c272c9dcf542 (MD5) / Rejected by Adriana Oliveira (adriana.oliveira@ufjf.edu.br), reason: on 2018-03-26T17:49:58Z (GMT) / Submitted by Renata Lopes (renatasil82@gmail.com) on 2018-03-26T17:51:57Z No. of bitstreams: 1 christianealvesbyrondemello.pdf: 1599624 bytes, checksum: bd8feac2f14ce4aeb418c272c9dcf542 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Adriana Oliveira (adriana.oliveira@ufjf.edu.br) on 2018-04-09T19:15:35Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 christianealvesbyrondemello.pdf: 1599624 bytes, checksum: bd8feac2f14ce4aeb418c272c9dcf542 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2018-04-09T19:15:35Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 christianealvesbyrondemello.pdf: 1599624 bytes, checksum: bd8feac2f14ce4aeb418c272c9dcf542 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2017-12-21 / A presente dissertação é desenvolvida no âmbito do Mestrado Profissional em Gestão e Avaliação da Educação (PPGP) do Centro de Políticas Públicas e Avaliação da Educação da Universidade Federal de Juiz de Fora (CAEd/UFJF). O caso de gestão estudado tem a seguinte questão norteadora: quais ações podem ser adotadas para melhorar o trabalho do Assessor Pedagógico junto aos Professores Ministrantes e Presenciais do Ensino Médio Presencial com Mediação Tecnológica? A hipótese defendida é de que há uma ocupação do tempo do Assessor Pedagógico com atividades que não fazem parte de suas atribuições, o que gera sobrecarga de trabalho em demandas sem cunho pedagógico. Ademais, os problemas relacionados ao fluxo de produção de aulas também configuram um entrave para a atuação do Assessor Pedagógico. Assim, o objetivo geral deste estudo é analisar as dificuldades do trabalho do Assessor Pedagógico junto aos Professores Ministrantes e Presenciais no Ensino Médio Presencial com Mediação Tecnológica (EMPMT) e propor ações para melhorar a parceria entre esses profissionais. Os objetivos específicos são: i) descrever a atuação do Assessor Pedagógico junto ao Professor Ministrante e ao Professor Presencial; ii) analisar as dificuldades na interação entre Assessoria Pedagógica, Coordenação Adjunta Pedagógica, Professores Ministrantes e Professores Presenciais; iii) propor ações que melhorem a parceria de trabalho desses profissionais. Para a análise do caso de gestão, a pesquisa usou metodologia qualitativa, análise de documentos, e a realização de entrevistas e aplicação de questionários para a coleta de dados. As entrevistas foram realizadas com a equipe de Assessoria Pedagógica do Ensino Médio do Centro de Mídias de Educação do Amazonas (CEMEAM) e com o Coordenador Local de Manacapuru. O questionário foi aplicado aos Professores Ministrantes e aos Professores Presenciais do 1º ano do Ensino Médio. Para fundamentação teórica foram utilizadas as reflexões de autores como Masetto (2003), Demo (2006), Maia (2010), Campos (2011), Kenski (2012), Moran (2012), Fava (2014), Costa (2015) e Souza (2016), pois abordam as especificidades da Educação à Distância. Também foram importantes as reflexões de Lück (2004), Libâneo (2010) e Moran (2014) para refletir sobre a atuação do Pedagogo. Os resultados da pesquisa apontam duas problemáticas centrais: i) a dificuldade na formação dos Professores Presenciais para o desempenho de suas atribuições técnicas e pedagógicas; ii) a necessidade de acompanhamento, monitoramento e avaliação dos fluxos de comunicação interna e externa no CEMEAM. A partir dessas constatações, com intuito de minimizar essas dificuldades, foram propostas as seguintes ações de intervenção: Proposta de Curso de Formação do Coordenador Local do EPMT; Implementação do acompanhamento, monitoramento e avaliação dos fluxos de comunicação interna e externa do CEMEAM. / The present dissertation is developed within the Professional Master in Management and Evaluation of Education (PPGP) of the Center for Public Policies and Education Evaluation of the Federal University of Juiz de Fora (CAEd / UFJF). The management case studied has the following guiding question: what actions can be adopetd to improve the work of the Pedagogical Advisor beside the Teaching Ministers and Presential of Preschool with Technological Mediation? The hypothesis defended is that there is an occupation of the time of the Pedagogical Advisor with activities that are not part of his assignments, which generates overload of work in demands without pedagogical nature. In addition, the problems related to the flow of class production also constitute an obstacle for the performance of the Pedagogical Advisor. Thus, the general objective of this study is to analyze the difficulties of the Pedagogical Advisor's work beside the Teaching Ministers and Presential in Preschool with Technological Mediation (EMPMT) and propose actions to improve the partnership among these professionals. The specific objectives are: i) to describe the performance of the Pedagogical Advisor with the ministering and Presencial Teachers; ii) analyze the difficulties in the interaction between Pedagogical Counseling, Pedagogical Assistant Coordination, Teaching Ministers and Presential Teachers; iii) propose actions that improve the working partnership of these professionals. For the analysis of the management case, the research used a qualitative methodology, document analysis, and the accomplishment of interviews and application of questionnaires for the data collection. The interviews were carried out with the Pedagogical Advisory Team of the High School of the Media Center of Education of Amazonas (CEMEAM) and with the Local Coordinator of Manacapuru. The questionnaire was applied to Teaching Ministers and Presential Teachers of the 1st year of Teaching. For the theoretical basis, the reflections of authors such as Masetto (2003), Demo (2006), Maia (2010), Campos (2011), Kenski (2012), Moran (2012), Fava (2014), Costa (2015) e Souza (2016), since they approach the specifics of Distance Education. Also important were the reflections of Lück (2004), Libâneo (2010) e Moran (2014), to reflect on the performance of the Pedagogue. The results of the research point to two central problems: i) the difficulty in the formation of Presential Teachers for the performance of their technical and pedagogical attributions; ii) the need to monitor, monitor and evaluate internal and external communication flows in CEMEAM. Based on these findings, in order to minimize these difficulties, the following intervention actions were proposed: Proposed Training Course of the EPMT Local Coordinator; Implementation of monitoring, monitoring and evaluation of CEMEAM internal and external communication flows.

Veckologgen är ett webbaserat verktyg med vilket en medarbetare skall kunna reflektera över sin egen insats på veckobasis. Dessutom skall projektledare och närmaste chef kunna följa en medarbetares tillstånd och utveckling på distans samt kunna ge återkoppling för att vägleda medarbetaren mot ett givet mål. Studien rör användningen av verktyget inom en IT-konsult verksamhet. Syftet med studien är att förbättra verktygets kvalitet genom att undersöka användarnas inställning och hänvisa till relevant litteratur. Dessutom är uppsatsens syfte att undersöka användarens attityd kring användning av Veckloggen. För att tillgodose samtliga syften har en empirisk studie genomförts efter att först ha studerat olika områden inom positiv- och arbetspsykologi, särskilt med avseende på begreppet flow och återkoppling. Den empiriska studien bestod av två olika datainsamlingsmetoder, en kvantitativ i form av digitala enkäter, och en kvalitativ i form av semistrukturerade intervjuer. Studien har kommit fram till att den upplevda användbarheten kring designen är tillfredställande. Veckloggens primära syfte verkar vara tydligt för en majoritet av deltagarna i studien. Däremot verkar det inte finnas någon djup förståelse för potentialen, värdet och nyttan av att regelbundet använda verktyget. En vettig introduktion av veckologgen till användaren samt en etablering av verktyget inom företagets gemensamma arbetssätt och kultur verkar saknas hos verksamheten. Allt detta betraktas av författaren som nödvändigt för att veckologgen skall kunna användas framgångsrikt inom verksamheten. Framtida studier bör fokusera på tillämpningen av teorierna om flow på det befintliga verktyget och designen av de fält som medarbetena och ledare bör besvara i verktyget.

The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of GeoGebra training on teachers and learners in rural geometry classrooms. The conceptual framework that was used in this study was based on the four-level training evaluation framework of Kirkpatrick (1996), focusing on the first three levels only while the fourth level was not considered. The study was conducted in disadvantaged and under-resourced schools situated in the Mpumalanga Province of South Africa. This undertaking was considered as a way of promoting what was perceived as a simple but effective method of teaching and learning with technology. The technology-enhanced teaching strategy was employed with the anticipation of enhancing the development of geometrical concepts that are seen as too abstract by the majority of learners in resource-constrained areas. Hence, the focus of this study was on the teaching and learning of the properties of triangles and the properties of quadrilaterals in Grade 10 using GeoGebra and traditional methods. Within the non-equivalent, quasi-experimental design, both qualitative and quantitative approaches were used. Four purposively sampled Grade 10 teachers from four schools and their classes comprising of 165 learners participated. The data collection involved pre- and post-tests, questionnaires, lesson observations, and interviews. Learners’ achievement was measured by outcomes obtained from marked and recorded achievements tests. The qualitative data collected from the teachers through questionnaires, lesson observations and interviews were coded and categorised into themes. This analysis revealed that most participants had positive training experiences and preferred using GeoGebra in the teaching and learning of geometry despite a lack of resources in their schools. The findings also showed that there was lack of training workshops that focused on appropriate teachers` knowledge and skills that are connected to technological innovations, particularly in GeoGebra. The quantitative data analysis results showed a significant difference in the mean scores for both groups respectively in favour of learners taught with GeoGebra compared to a chalk and talk method. The teachers’ implementation of and enthusiasm about GeoGebra had a positive influence on learner achievement. Based on the results, it was concluded that as a pedagogical tool, GeoGebra can work effectively in rural schools where geometry is hardly taught. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2020. / Science, Mathematics and Technology Education / PhD / Unrestricted

This thesis offers a sociocritical (Collin, Guichon et Ntébutsé, 2015) and ergonomic (Bertin, 2015; Caws & Hamel, 2016; Rabardel, 1995) analysis of an online language learning activity using Twitter, in order to better understand the complex network of variables influencing the success or failure this digital platform in an educational context. Since the creation of Twitter in 2006, researchers in technology-mediated education have been re-purposing the platform for language learning in order to understand its impact on the learner experience (Hattem & Lomicka, 2016). Most studies investigate the benefits of using Twitter as a way to expose students to real-life social interaction (Reinhardt, 2019); they suggest that this social network motivates students (Albadi, 2016), providing the opportunity for language contextualisation (Antenos-Conforti, 2009), digital literacy development and learner autonomy (Leis, 2014). However, in doing so, many of these studies rely on a deterministic approach, assuming that Twitter has inherent educational potential that can be equally accessed by all students when it is asked of them (Collin et al.). Instead, this thesis deconstructs a network of factors and perceptions acting on a student’s ability and willingness to use Twitter to learn French. In particular, this thesis focuses on the participation and the experience of 10 first-year university French students that were invited to publish tweets and to interact with their peers on Twitter over a period of one semester (12 weeks). Drawing from direct observations, interviews and survey data, the results of my mixed-method case study indicate a possible correlation between learner beliefs, participation, and experience, thus highlighting the importance of designing digital learning activities around the diverse needs and perspectives of learners, rather than the expected outcomes that Twitter can offer. / Graduate

Using a data-driven qualitative approach and drawing from language socialization and communities of practice theories, this dissertation study examines the second language (L2) identity-building strategies of 22 American learners of Russian who engaged in a six-week telecollaborative project with Russian native speakers in two genres of Internet-mediated communication: in one-on-one interactions with an assigned native Russian speaking keypal and in selected virtual communities populated predominantly by native Russian speakers. The investigation of L2 identity enactment in Internet-mediated environments was guided by three research questions pertaining to (1) the nature of the discourse Russian (L2) learners use in interactions with native speakers in two genres of online interactions, (2) the discursive manifestations of L2 learner and speaker identity performances in the learners' online discourse; and (3) the learners' perceptions of their online experiences in two genres of online interactions with native-speaking peers. The methods of critical discourse analysis and interpretative phenomenological analysis were employed to examine the Russian learners' online interactional discourse and offline metatalk regarding their online experiences in the two genres. The analysis of the Russian learners' discourse revealed the complex nature of discursive L2 identity enactment as they moved into and out of the frames of language learners to complete class assignments and negotiate their competent L2 speaker positions in conversations with Russian-speaking peers. The findings indicate that the two genres of online interaction evoked distinct participation patterns and interactional practices. In both genres, L2 identity enactment involved three dimensions: the macro-level of global identity categories, the locally assigned identity positionings (e.g., heritage speaker, multilingual speaker), and interactionally negotiated stances and temporary positions that evoked self- or other-initiated L2 learner/speaker identity performances. The author concludes that L2 identity, when enacted in Internet-mediated environments, represents a continuum of L2 learner-speaker performances that rely on the contextual factors of the online encounter, learners' global identity tokens, and the dynamics of power relations in native-nonnative speaker interaction. Performing an L2 identity online is construed as a critical experience of re-evaluating one's association with the target language and transformation into a new kind of socially oriented multilingual subject.