BPN 1551 It's EUROPRIX 2010 (2)

Abstracts of the lectures presented at the EUROPRIX Academic Network Conference 2010

Theme: Teaching & learning with digital natives

Mrs Rene Alimisi, Student, Centre for Research and Technology Thessaly and University of Thessaly, Greece
Topic: Best practice in teaching & learning

Abstract Title: Virtual Experiments towards Explorative and Collaborative Environmental Primary education
Global awareness on the need to change everyday behaviour towards more environmentally friendly practices has been gaining momentum over the last years in the face of emerging phenomena such as global temperature rising, desertification, extreme weather, sea water level rising, and the potential resulting disruption to everyday life for large populations. While the global community is more sensitive than a few years ago on the effects of common business and residential practices to the environment, many still consider the issue as one of the future as opposed to today and perceive the change of daily activities towards more environmentally compatible solutions as a sacrifice of comfort and routine. In other words, acceptance of environmentally friendly initiatives, such as renewable energy solutions, is still low and may face resistance by local communities pointing to the urgent need for environmental education, especially targeting the next generation, as a complementary strategy to policies towards pollution control.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT The work presented in this paper has been funded with support from the European Commission. This publication reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein. Short biography and past speaking experience:

CV: Rene Alimisi is a Computer Engineer with a focus on educational technology. She works in the field of Information and Communication Technologies in Education, where her main research interests are in the development of applications and learning frameworks that facilitate the idea of ‘constructionism’ and encourage ‘authentic learning’ in under-representative groups of people. She has focused on the exploitation of these ideas for teaching programming to novices. Rene Alimisi is also interested in the educational use of digital video production for the creation of narratives.
Rene Alimisi is a perspective PhD student. She holds a Master with distinction in Information Communication Technology in Education (2009) from the University of London, Institute of Education and a Diploma (5 years studies) in Computer Engineering and Telecommunications (2008) from the University of Thessaly, Volos. She has attended numerous seminars and has taken actively part in international workshops in the University of London, London Knowledge lab and University of Thessaly concerning ICT in Education.

Mrs Zsófia Ruttkay, Head of the Creative Technology Lab, Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design, Hungary

Topic: Best practice in teaching & learning

Abstract Title: Educating Applied Artists in the Age of the Digital Renaissance:
After 25 years in academic research and education as a computer scientist, in the past 4 years I have been involved in starting new types of education, first at a technical university (University of Twente) in the Netherlands, and recently at the Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design (MOME) in Budapest. In both cases, the multidisciplinary curriculum includes art, science and technology courses. I will outline, based on examples, the need for and potentials of putting digital technology – new media, but also, physical sensor and communication technology – in the hands of applied artists. In my view, our digital age makes it feasible and necessary to take the attitude of the Renaissance man.
Based on my teaching practices, I will talk about the merits, special methodologies and problems of multidisciplinary education at an art university. I will show examples from student projects, including: Hacking Budapest, Interactive Wall, etudes on physical computing. I will also talk about the participation of MOME in TERENCE, an EU FP7 Information Technology Research Project aimed at providing multimodal aids for text comprehension. I will raise some dilemmas, concerning the evaluation, recognition and funding of multidisciplinary research. I will close my talk with raising issues of the nature of the culture and intellectual attitude of the internet generation.

CV: I graduated as a mathematician at Eötvös Lorán University, Budapest. I obtained PhD in Computer Science, with a thesis on Computer Facial Animation. I have been doing academic research in computer science, particularly, artificial intelligence, human-media interaction, virtual agents and computer graphics for more than 25 years. I had given over 50 talks at international conferences, run workshops and conferences. I was also involved in cross-disciplinary activities, inclu Abstracts of the lectures presented at the EUROPRIX Academic Network Conference 2010


Vladimir Burcik, Adjunct Professor, PhD, University of SS. Cyril and Methodius in
Trnava, Faculty of Massmedia Communication, SK
Slavomir Magal, Head of Dept., University of SS. Cyril and Methodius in Trnava,
Faculty of Massmedia Communication, SK
Dana Petrova, Dean, University of SS. Cyril and Methodius in Trnava, Faculty of
Massmedia Communication, SK

Abstract Title: Praxis of building and using virtual learning environment

Key words: elearning, ecourse, virtual class, Wiziq, Sclipo, Wimba classroom,
Elluminate, Blackboard, managing of elearning projects

Our faculty continuously works on implementing new methods of teaching to our learning programs. In the framework of the project "Design and application of the e-learning courses" we have developed e-learning logistic and content for the doctoral students. In the preliminary phase we tested the possibilities of the virtual class as a tool for efficient online transmission of the content. We have tested Elluminate, Wiziq, Wimba classroom and Sclipo. We tried to find answers to the questions regarding technology parameters, quality of internet connection but also experience of teachers and students while using it. Our experience shows that progress is very fast and technology is much more reliable as before. The continuous problems are on the user side. Content and context are still crucial. This is the main reason why e-learning is considered a long distance race.


Mrs Anu Halme, Sales Director of HammerKit Oy, Finland

Abstract Title: Agile Learning in Helsinki: A Company Perspective

Keywords: Web Service Design, Agile learning, real-time Web Design, collaborative working and learning surrounding

Abstract:
During the Spring and Autumn of 2010, three university courses involving around 150 students of the Metropolia University for Applied Sciences in Helsinki undertook software testing, web service development and application design together with a Helsinki based company, HammerKit using a new cloud-based web design service. The sessions allowed teams of students to work together in real-time to design new online services and explore in a more practical way the challenges of creating compelling services and applications.
The new online service helped the academic staff to coordinate a real-life example, but the unexpected result was the speed with which the students developed their ideas and the degree to which they became engaged in the process. These projects demonstrated potentially interesting concept of agile learning, with the students able to iterate their ideas in real-time and work together in distributed groups using the platform. In the future, it is likely that rather than producing static content, such as presentations, the students will be encouraged to create dynamic services using tools such as HammerKit
CV: After graduating from the Humboldt University of Berlin in 1997, Anu worked in advertising and PR, and later as Account Manager for Finnish and American mobile game companies, like Mforma and Digital Chocolate. Anu is the Sales Director of HammerKit since February 2009. Speaks all the time with her clients and 3 children but not so often in academic circles.


Mr. Jak Boumans EADiM, VOF Electronic Media Reporting, The Netherlands

Abstract Title: Pre-Internet in the polder
History of the new media is still a rare subject. In the past year I have intensively studied the Dutch Pre-Internet period from 1967 till 1997. Having flown in from the US start with ASCII databases and hosts like Dialog and SDC, the development of the European online Volkswagen of videotext and the frozen online of CD-media, I have made an inventory of these three media in the Dutch new media industry. It was very interesting to discover that the Dutch videotext services had never more than 350.000 occasional users, while internet gathered within three years of existence between 1993 and the beginning of 1996 no less than 325.000 subscribers and at the end of 1996 totalled 1 million users. What did Internet have that videotext and ASCII as well as CD-media lacked?

CV: Jak Boumans is principal consultant at the private company VOF Electronic Media Reporting in Almere (The Netherlans). He is also the secretary general of the European Academy of Digital Media (EADiM). Presently Mr Boumans is writing a book (in the Dutch language) on Pre-internet in the polder.


Walther Nagel, Agent of department, Social Learning Dept (CIS), University of Technology Graz, Austria

Abstract Title: E-Books at TU Graz - Development, experience, and outlook of ebooks
and e-readers within university practice and research
Since Amazon launched its e-reader Kindle in 2007 a new era for e-books has begun. Though the market for e-readers is not that booming in Europe as it is comparatively in the United States e-readers are predicted to have a big future also for educational purposes. At Graz University of Technology (TU Graz) this trend to e-readers has been picked up and combined with the development of an e-book authoring tool and corresponding e-book environment that has started in 2001. This paper not only describes the e-book system and strategy implemented into TU Graz teaching and learning services but also covers current achievements in the creation of e-reader readable e-book formats on base of nearly arbitrary learning content offered by teachers. The different possibilities and ways of realisation of these goals display the feasibility at this point of development. Furthermore the problems of converting raw material of content into e-reader suitable formats such as EPUB and Mobipocket are discussed as well as future targets in this context. The presentation at the conference will include a demonstration of such e-books embedded within the TU Graz Learning Management System called TU Graz TeachCenter and on different e-reader devices to state the actual limits of development.

CV: Martin Ebner is currently head of the team Social Learning at Graz University of Technology. He is responsible for all e-learning activities of this university. His research focuses strongly on the use of Web 2.0 technologies for teaching and learning purposes. Martin has taught a number of lectures and seminars around the topic of e-learning and the use of computers in educational settings.
He studied from 1995 - 2000 civil engineering and got his master at the Institute of Structural Concrete. Afterwards Martin worked as scientific assistant at the Institute of Structural Concrete and wrote his Ph.D. thesis about "E-learning in structural engineering". Since 2005 he holds a Ph.D. in Technical Sciences from Graz University of Technology. From 2005 to 2006 he worked at the Institute for Building Informatics as Assistant Professor. Since September 2006 Martin is head of the team Social Learning at the Computing and Information Service Department and senior researcher at the Institute of InformationSystems and Computer Media. Find more details at  http://www.martinebner.at/ as well as the last presentations/publications.

See also Cai's blog: http://tamk-artmedia.blogspot.com/

BPN 1551