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Systematic review of the literature on interventions to improve self-regulation of learning in first-year university students
Get PDFPrevious research has shown a significant percentage of dropouts in university studies, particularly in the first years. Furthermore, evidence links higher motivation and curricular improvement in students when they enhance their self-regulated learning (SRL). A systematic review was conducted using the PRISMA method to identify and analyze interventions to improve SRL in first-year undergraduate students. The interventions analyzed addressed student learning, classroom management by teachers, evaluation processes, and administrative management. Additionally, the need for a holistic and continuous approach was identified, covering cognitive, metacognitive, motivational, behavioral, and affective dimensions. The combination of self-perception questionnaires and academic grades was the most used strategy to measure intervention effectiveness. These findings emphasize the importance of adapting interventions to specific contexts and ensuring their continuity to maximize the impact on the development of students’ self-regulated learning. The results reveal a high heterogeneity in the approaches applied, highlighting the most effective techniques as follows: specialized workshops, the use of virtual tools, and group and individual tutoring. Intracurricular interventions, integrated within course content and led by the faculty, demonstrated greater success by embedding SRL strategies into the teaching–learning process. In contrast, extracurricular interventions, conducted by tutors or academic advisors, faced challenges related to student motivation and participation.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
A comparison of office workers’ co-creation experiences: A Health CASCADE multiple case study
Get PDFObjectives
Co-creation can used to develop public health interventions, improve their effectiveness, and increase intervention uptake through engaging stakeholders, but there is little in-depth exploration of the co-creators’ experience of taking part. Understanding the experience of taking part in a co-creation process can enhance future participation experiences, promote engagement and help design better co-creation processes in the future. The objective of this study was to explore the experiences of co-creators (i.e., office workers) involved in the co-creation process to address workplace sedentary behaviour.
Study design
Multiple case study.
Methods
Three small-to-medium sized enterprises participated in separate co-creation processes. Data were generated from observations during the workshops and semi-structured interviews (n = 31) employing elicitation techniques conducted after the co-creation process was completed. Each of the three cases were analysed separately (using thematic analysis), which then informed the cross-case comparison, the focus of this study.
Results
Comparison of co-creators' experiences across the three cases identified psychological, emotional, social and cognitive experiences which occurred before, during and after the co-creation process. The analysis identified both intended (e.g., sedentary behaviour awareness) and unintended (e.g., forming relationships) outcomes from these experiences. These experiences and outcomes were influenced by factors such as workplace environment and structure, design of the co-creation process and how it was facilitated, highlighting the interplay between the co-creation context and the broader work context.
Conclusion
This study contributes to the understanding of co-creation experience in the workplace setting. Recommendations were derived from using an iterative reflection process of the three cases.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Inclusiveness-Efficiency Configurations of Business Interest Associations with Access to Policymakers
Get PDFThis article examines the relationship between business interest associations’ (BIAs’) governance configurations and their access to administrative officials and political heads of the European Union. We focus on how effective BIAs design their plenaries and boards to address the inclusiveness-efficiency tradeoff. By means of a qualitative comparative analysis, we find that most of the configurations related to administrative officials balance efficiency-inclusiveness tensions, one prioritizes inclusion while another focuses on efficiency. As for political heads, EU Commissioners seem to prioritize BIAs that successfully balance these contradictory poles while also paying attention to more inclusive BIAs.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
The impact of board gender quotas on analyst recommendations: A difference-in-differences analysis
Get PDFNorway provides the case study for examining the impact of board gender quotas on firm performance. The debate that ultimately led to the introduction of the quota was heated and polarised, with opponents of the quota arguing that the inability of the firm’s owners to select the best candidates for the board (regardless of gender) would result in poorly managed firms. Although several articles have empirically examined the impact of the Norwegian gender quota on performance, the available evidence is inconclusive. These articlesuse return on assets and/or Tobin’s Q as indicators of performance. The present study contributes to the literature by providing a new and complementary approach to this research topic. To this end, we examine the impact of board gender quotas on analysts’ perceptions of performance, as measured by investment recommendations. The research design adopts a difference-in-differences methodology coupled with fixed effects panel data estimation. The results document that recommendations on Norwegian stocks did not change significantly after the introduction of the quota. This result is robust to a variety of sensitivity analyses and controls.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Muscle Activity of Superimposed Vibration in Suspended Kneeling Rollout
Get PDFTraining using instability devices is common; however, for highly trained athletes, a single device may not provide sufficient challenge. This study examines the effect of superimposed vibration in suspended kneeling rollout. Seventeen physically active participants performed the exercise with non-vibration, vibration at 25 Hz, and vibration at 40 Hz. Muscle activation of the pectoralis clavicularis, pectoralis sternalis, anterior deltoid, serratus anterior, infraspinatus, and latissimus dorsi was recorded during exercise, and the perception of effort was recorded after exercise (OMNI-Res scale). One-way repeated-measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed significant differences for the kneeling rollout (p < 0.05). Friedman’s test showed significant differences in the OMNI-Res (p = 0.003). Pairwise comparison showed significant differences in the anterior deltoid (p = 0.004), latissimus dorsi (p < 0.001), infraspinatus (p = 0.001), and global activity (p < 0.001) between the 25 Hz and non-vibration conditions. It also showed significant differences between the 40 Hz and non-vibration conditions for pectoralis sternalis (p = 0.021), anterior deltoid (p = 0.005), latissimus dorsi (p < 0.001), infraspinatus (p = 0.027), and global activity (p < 0.001). The post hoc Conover pairwise comparison showed significant differences in the OMNI-Res only between the non-vibration and vibration at 40 Hz conditions (p = 0.011). Superimposed vibration increases the muscle activation of the upper limbs when performing the suspended kneeling rollout.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Protein flexibility drives sugar rotation and high substrate promiscuity in a GDP-sugar 4-epimerase
Get PDFUDP-galactose 4-epimerases (Gal4Es) catalyze the inversion of the 4-hydroxyl configuration of a sugar moiety from an NDP-sugar through a three-step process: oxidation, rotation and reduction. Despite extensive biochemical and structural studies, the role of protein dynamics on substrate specificity remains poorly understood. The recently identified subgroup of GDP-sugar 4-epimerases, notable for its exceptional substrate promiscuity, provides an intriguing model to investigate the role of dynamics in the Gal4E catalytic mechanism and the unique promiscuity of the subgroup. In this study, we used a multidisciplinary approach to examine the dynamic-function relationships in the Pyrococcus horikoshii representative (PhGal4E_1). First, we determined several crystal structures (WT: 1.9–2.4 Å and Y145F: 3.1 Å), providing structural insights of the PhGal4E_1 structure bound to GDP-L-fucose in a catalytic conformation. To further explore the enzyme’s promiscuity, in silico docking studies were conducted with three substrates, namely GDP-L-Fuc, GDP-Glc and UDP-Glc. Molecular dynamics simulations identified a dynamic hydrogen bond network surrounding the sugar moiety and phosphate groups, revealing four key residues: P80, H182, R83 and N174. These residues interact with either the substrate’s sugar moiety (H182 and P80 with C2-OH and C3-OH, resp.) or diphosphate backbone (N174 and R83 with β-/α- and α-phosphate, resp.), which facilitates sugar ring positioning. Protein flexibility then initiates disruption of the hydrogen bonds enabling the required rotation of the intermediate. Site directed mutagenesis of these residues was performed to disrupt the interaction network followed by enzyme activity assays on the three substrates, validating their critical role in the epimerization reaction. These results highlight the pivotal role of protein flexibility in PhGal4E_1 promiscuity and establish a framework for dynamic studies across other Gal4E representatives.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Spanish Validation of the Conflict Tactics Scale-Parent to Child: Assessing Non-Violent Discipline, Coercive Discipline, and Physical Aggression
Get PDFIntroduction: There is a gap in the available Spanish-language instruments that
specifically measure the behaviors or tactics used by parents in conflict or hostile
situations with their children. The main objective of this study was to translate,
adapt, and validate the Conflict Tactics Scale: Parent to Child (CTSPC) within the
Spanish context, evaluating its psychometric properties, including exploratory
factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, and internal consistency.
Method: A sample of 700 parents (350 women and 350 men) aged between 18
and 69 years was used.
Results: The Spanish version of the CTSPC consists of 21 items distributed
across 3 dimensions: Non-Violent Discipline (α = 0.71), Coercive Discipline
(α = 0.81), and Physical Aggression (α = 0.93). The findings indicated that 14.14%
of participants reported having used physically aggressive behaviors toward
their children at least once in their lifetime.
Discussion: This instrument emerges as a valuable tool for identifying
inappropriate tactics and behaviors employed by parents toward their children,
contributing to the prevention of child maltreatment and raising parental
awareness about how to educate children without resorting to violence.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Implementación de metodologias activas en laboratorios de electrónica: uso del PicoScope como herramienta didáctica
Get PDFEn este trabajo se describe una primera experiencia sobre el uso de metodologías activas para mejorar el
aprendizaje en los laboratorios de electrónica del Grado de Ingeniería de la Salud, mediante el empleo de tecnologías de instrumentación innovadoras, como es el PicoScope y la combinación de metodologías activas como la clase invertida, el aprendizaje basado en proyectos y el aprendizaje cooperativo. Los
estudiantes no solo lograron una comprensión más profunda de conceptos complejos como el desfasaje de señales, sino que también desarrollaron habilidades prácticas clave fortalecieron su capacidad de trabajar en equipoinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Exploring the Role of Artificial Intelligence in Precision Photonics: A Case Study on Deep Neural Network-Based fs Laser Pulsed Parameter Estimation for MoOx Formation
Get PDFUltrafast pulsed laser technology presents unique challenges and opportunities in material processing and characterization for precision photonics. Herein, an experiment is conducted involving the use of an ultrafast pulsed laser to irradiate a molybdenum film, inducing oxide formation. A total of 54 experiments are performed, varying the laser irradiation time and per-pulse laser fluence, resulting in a database with diverse oxide formations on the material. This dataset is further expanded numerically through interpolation to 187 samples. Subsequently, eight different deep neural network models, each with varying hidden layers and numbers of neurons, are employed to characterize the laser behavior with different parameters. These models are then validated numerically using three different learning rates, and the results are statistically evaluated using three metrics: mean squared error, mean absolute error, and R2 score.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
CIVENHANCE: Extending the frontiers of thought and creativity III through service learning in rural areas
Get PDFThe Thought and Creativity series of subjects aims to provide undergraduate students, regardless of their area of expertise, with an added-value training that equips them with the tools, concepts, and elements needed to foster social responsibility, ethical awareness, and social impact through a humanistic approach closely connected to society. In this regard, at the end of this series of subjects—Thought and Creativity III—students are involved in social action projects with local entities affiliated to La Salle Campus Barcelona, which limits its scope and impact. Thanks to the international partnership from the project CIVENHANCE (E-Service Learning for Boosting Academic Civic Engagement in Rural Areas) and the project itself, these effects can be substantially magnified. Specifically, CIVENHANCE aims to research new ways to digitalize service learning (i.e., e-Service Learning) in order to enhance civic and community engagement of Higher Education Institutions and students with a focus on rural areas. As a result, a set of new opportunities and challenges for institutions and students to collaborate with community partners adopting an e-Service Learning methodology will be created. The purpose of this work is to discuss the experience and potential derived from aligning a European Commission-funded project with the training goals of our institution where the challenges derived from the project will be brought to the classroom to be solved. It is expected that this approach has the potential to transcend the physical boundaries of the campus, enabling students to engage in social challenges with diverse communities and ackle issues on a regional, national, or even global scale.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio