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Understanding the Impact of Intercultural Project-Based Learning on Students, Staff and Higher Education Institutions
Get PDFThis paper discusses the experiences of a distributed interdisciplinary project-based learning program for students across continents. For the years 2020 until 2023, we received seed-funding for four annual projects to engage students from Germany (Europe), Namibia (Africa), Indonesia (Asia), and Peru (Latin-America) to collaborate over one semester on interdisciplinary projects contributing to the solution of some real-life client’s problems in the partner countries. During this period, more than 150 students embarked on these projects with 116 of them being selected for a scholarship for an international mobility. With the guidance and support by academics from all partner universities, the students success-fully completed each project expressing deep appreciation for the learning opportunities while over¬coming challenges of working across widespread time zones, different cultures, changing requirements, and various technical difficulties.
While the primary aim of this distributed interdisciplinary and intercultural project-based learning program was to provide students with a truly Global Intercultural Project Experience (GIPE), in this paper we investigate on its impact in a broader sense as it was observed that this program also had a significant impact on both academic and administrative staff at all partner universities. Finally, we also reveal the impact of this four-year-program on the participating institutions themselves and conclude that the invaluable returns of such interdisciplinary project-based learning extend far beyond financial metrics. It encompasses enhanced student learning experiences, strengthened cooperation and mutual learning between academics and administrative staff, as well as institutional reputation, and societal impact
Trust dynamics in human interaction with an industrial robot
No full textABSTRACT
Trust is important for collaboration. In hybrid teams of humans and robots, trust enables smooth collaboration and reduces risks. Just as collaboration between humans and robots differs from interpersonal collaboration, so does the nature of trust in human-robot interaction (HRI). Therefore, further investigations on trust formation and dissolution in HRI, factors affecting it, and means for keeping trust on an appropriate level are needed. However, our knowledge of interpersonal trust and trust in autonomous agents cannot be transferred directly to HRI. In this paper, we present a study with 32 participants on trust formation and dissolution as well as forecasting to influence trust in an industry robot. Results show differences in dynamics and factors of trust formation and dissolution. Additionally, we find that the effect of forecasting on trust depends on task success. These findings support the design of trustful human-robot interaction and corresponding robotic team members
Ausgleichszahlung wegen „großer“ Flugverspätung nur bei rechtzeitigem Check-in (EuGH 25.1.2024 - C-474/22)
No full textUnleashing Personalized Education Using Large Language Models in Online Collaborative Settings
Get PDFThe Artificial Intelligence community has long pursued personalized education. Over the past decades, efforts have ranged from automated advisors to Intelligent Tutoring Systems, all aimed at tailoring learning experiences to students' individual needs and interests. Unfortunately, many of these endeavors remained largely theoretical or proposed solutions challenging to implement in real-world scenarios. However, we are now in the era of Large Language Models (LLMs) like ChatGPT, Mistral, or Claude, which exhibit promising capabilities with significant potential to impact personalized education. For instance, ChatGPT 4 can assist students in using the Socratic method in their learning process. Despite the immense possibilities these technologies offer, limited significant results are showcasing the impact of LLMs in educational settings. Therefore, this paper aims to present tools and strategies based on LLMs to address personalized education within online collaborative learning settings. To do so, we propose RAGs (Retrieval-Augmented Generation) agents that could be added to online collaborative learning platforms: a) the Oracle agent, capable of answering questions related to topics and materials uploaded to the platform.; b) the Summary agent, which can summarize and present content based on students' profiles.; c) the Socratic agent, guiding students in learning topics through close interaction.; d) the Forum agent, analyzing students' forum posts to identify challenging topics and suggest ways to overcome difficulties or foster peer collaboration.; e) the Assessment agent, presenting personalized challenges based on students' needs. f) the Proactive agent, analyzing student activity and suggesting learning paths as needed. Importantly, each RAG agent can leverage historical student data to personalize the learning experience effectively. To assess the effectiveness of this personalized approach, we plan to evaluate the use of RAGs in online collaborative learning platforms compared to previous online learning courses conducted in previous years
Systemic Leadership: Construct Clarification and Development of a Multidimensional Measure
No full textPurpose
Although the systemic approach to the leadership concept seems to fit well into our modern complex and dynamic work environment, only little research has been conducted to define and assess systemic leadership. In this study we therefore developed and assessed criterion validity of the
multidimensional systemic leadership inventory (SLI, Sülzenbrück & Externbrink, 2017).
Methodology
We conducted two cross-sectional survey among managers and employees of various organizations (N = 143 and N = 150).
Results
We found a robust five-factor structure of the SLI, comprising systemic thinking, self-knowledge, solution-oriented communication, creating meaning and delegation. Regarding criterion validity, a significant positive correlation of systemic leadership was found with affective commitment, while a significant negative correlation with emotional strain in occupational contexts occurred. These overall positive outcomes for employees were not undermined by negative personality traits of the employee (Machiavellianism), while strong growth need strength further enhanced positive effects on affective commitment.
Limitations
Since all variables were measured as self-reports, common method variance could limit our findings.
Practical Implications
Systemic leadership is a very promising new approach for leaders to ensure committed and less strained employees.
Value
Systemic leadership, especially in terms of a leaders’ understanding of organizational and private systems influencing work behaviour of all members of an organization, is a promising novel leadership model suitable to address challenges of complex and dynamic work environments
A Large-Scale Study of Cookie Banner Interaction Tools and Their Impact on Users' Privacy
No full textCookie notices (or cookie banners) are a popular mechanism for websites to provide (European) Internet users a tool to choose which cookies the site may set. Banner implementations range from merely providing information that a site uses cookies over offering the choice to accepting or denying all cookies to allowing fine-grained control of cookie usage. Users frequently get annoyed by the banner’s pervasiveness as they interrupt “natural” browsing on the Web. As a remedy, different browser extensions have been developed to automate the interaction with cookie banners.
In this work, we perform a large-scale measurement study comparing the effectiveness of extensions for “cookie banner interaction.” We configured the extensions to express different privacy choices (e.g., accepting all cookies, accepting functional cookies, or rejecting all cookies) to understand their capabilities to execute a user’s preferences. The results show statistically significant differences in which cookies are set, how many of them are set, and which types are set—even for extensions that aim to implement the same cookie choice. Extensions for “cookie banner interaction” can effectively reduce the number of set cookies compared to no interaction with the banners. However, all extensions increase the tracking requests significantly except when rejecting all cookies
Bewältigungserfahrung in der arbeitsfreien Zeit als protektive Ressource im Zusammenhang zwischen destruktiver Führung und Burnout?
No full textEinleitung und Fragestellung:
Abusive Supervision wird mit willentlicher Leistungszurückhaltung, verringerter Motivation, erhöhtem Stresserleben, psychosomatischen Beschwerden und Burnout bei Mitarbeitenden assoziiert. Angesichts der hohen Prävalenz destruktiver Führung bleibt bislang die Frage offen, welche
protektiven Ressourcen die genannten Zusammenhänge abpuffern.
Theoretischer Hintergrund:
Abusive Supervision bezieht sich auf das Ausmaß der feindseligen verbalen und nonverbalen Verhaltensweisen einer Führungskraft. Basierend auf dem Anforderungs- Ressourcen- Modell gehen wir davon aus, dass sich personale Ressourcen, die Mitarbeitende in der arbeitsfreien Zeit aufbauen, positiv auf den negativen Effekt zwischen destruktiver Führung und Mitarbeitergesundheit auswirken. Wir fokussieren hier die generalisierte Selbstwirksamkeitserwartung, die sich im Sinne der sozialkognitiven Theorie und zahlreichen empirischen Befunden als gesundheitsrelevante Ressource im
Umgang mit domänenübergreifenden Belastungen herausgestellt hat. Diese sollte durch Bewältigungserfahrung in der arbeitsfreien Zeit gefördert werden. Bewältigungserfahrung in der Freizeit bedeutet die Gelegenheit des Erlebens von Kompetenz und Fachwissen.
Methode:
Die Moderatoranalyse wurde im Rahmen einer Querschnittsbefragung einer anfallenden Stichprobe mit N = 305 Personen getestet. Die Variablen wurden mit der Abusive Supervision Scale (Tepper, 2000), dem REQ (Sonnentag & Fritz, 2007), und der Subskala emotionale Erschöpfung des MBI (Büssing & Perrar, 1992) gemessen.
Ergebnisse:
In dieser Studie zeigen „Mastery Experiences“ einen hypothesenkonformen Puffereffekt, nicht jedoch die anderen Erholungsstrategien, die auch mit getestet wurden. Es zeigt sich also die Tendenz, dass sich Mitarbeitende durch das Erlernen neuer Kompetenzen und den Aufbau von Selbstwirksamkeit vor den gesundheitsschädlichen Auswirkungen destruktiver Führung schützen können. Das
Korrelationsmuster deutet aber vrmtl. auch problematische Aspekte dieser Erholungsstrategie an.
Diskussion:
Limitierend muss erwähnt werden, dass wir die vermutete vermittelnde Variable Selbstwirksamkeit nicht explizit gemessen haben, und dass zukünftige Untersuchungen den Effekt in Form einer mediierten Moderation replizieren müssen
Advancements in Hand-Drawn Chemical Structure Recognition through an Enhanced DECIMER Architecture
No full textAccurate recognition of hand-drawn chemical structures is crucial for digitising hand-written chemical information found in traditional laboratory notebooks or for facilitating stylus-based structure entry on tablets or smartphones. However, the inherent variability in hand-drawn structures poses challenges for existing Optical Chemical Structure Recognition (OCSR) software. To address this, we present an enhanced Deep lEarning for Chemical ImagE Recognition (DECIMER) architecture that leverages a combination of Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) and Transformers to improve the recognition of hand-drawn chemical structures. The model incorporates an EfficientNetV2 CNN encoder that extracts features from hand-drawn images, followed by a Transformer decoder that converts the extracted features into Simplified Molecular Input Line Entry System (SMILES) strings. Our models were trained using synthetic hand-drawn images generated by RanDepict, a tool for depicting chemical structures with different style elements. To evaluate the model's performance, a benchmark was performed using a real-world dataset of hand-drawn chemical structures. The results indicate that our improved DECIMER architecture exhibits a significantly enhanced recognition accuracy compared to other approaches