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Objectives: The article is devoted to the discussion and analysis of educational problems appeared in a Covid-19 pandemic and post-pandemic period in Russia. It discusses positive and negative aspects of a modern digital educational approach to foreign languages training within e-learning dominant due to a pandemic and its consequences. The authors stress that pandemic and post-pandemic period influenced all the spheres of a mankind existence and the most powerful impact was made in the field of a digital communication and e-learning methodology supported by a rapid development of IT. The authors consider that the diversity of technical educational tools brought a certain mess into the educational process as it was recommended to use the most suitable platform answering the demands of a curriculum within a particular educational organization. The authors of the article took an attempt to analyze the existing didactic platforms, particularly Quizlet platform, by introducing them into a teaching process, and describe pros and cons of this mobile application within a personal experience. Methodology: The methodology of our research includes several theoretical and empirical investigation methods such as the method of analysis, comparison, experiment and observation. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.
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Despite the projection of an increase in the number of jobs in the computer science (CS) field by 13% from 2020 to 2030 in the United States (as reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics), the representation of women, especially women of color, in the field remains low. Lack of representation for women in computer science negatively impacts the growth of this demographic as it becomes harder for prospective individuals to envision themselves in the field when they do not see others like them already succeeding in CS. Studies have found that the retention of women in the field is stronger when the representation of women is evident in their environment, however, it is hard to come by considering the low population of women computer scientists. While new prospects may find fewer women in their CS departments in their college experience, or at their workplaces, there is a plethora of social media personalities and communities for them to engage in and find like-minded individuals.This full research paper investigates the experiences of women, or lack thereof, in CS communities centered around social media and how it contributes to their sense of belonging in the CS field at large. It is evident that there is limited scope in the existing literature that studies the impact social media participation has on CS women. This literature review distinguishes the narrow scope of literature focused on women's experiences with open-source software communities in CS from women's experiences with more generic widespread platforms such as Twitter, or Instagram. It argues for the expansion of knowledge for the effects of CS women's participation on such platforms and provides insight into approaches, such as photovoice, that may be utilized to study this space. The outcomes of this review reveal the potential of utilizing online platforms in retaining women in the CS workforce effectively. Considering the current status of many organizations that have switched from in-person to remote engagement due to COVID, this review contributes to the analysis of the effective use of technology and its impact at a critical time. © 2022 IEEE.
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The challenges associated with achieving hypersonic flight, developing advanced propulsion systems, and designing reusable launch platforms are strongly interdisciplinary. Exposing undergraduate students to interdisciplinary research is recognized as a means to equip society's future engineers and scientists with the broad skillset necessary to contribute to these areas. The jointly funded NSF-DoD REU site Advanced Technologies for Hypersonic Propulsive, Energetic and Reusable Platforms (HYPER) unites multidisciplinary interests to study advanced structures and systems with application to hypersonics, space, propulsion, and energy. Over the course of two 10-week summer sessions (2019 and 2021), participants have gained hands-on training in contemporary challenges such as: (1) utilizing advanced manufacturing techniques for high-value components, (2) integrating in situ monitoring of stress-strain evolution, (3) developing novel methods for improved internal cooling and heat transfer effectiveness, (4) mitigating flutter through advanced rotor dynamic control, etc. Eleven research projects have been crafted to engage students in PhD-level topics. Many of these challenges rely on approaches that cut across disciplines and research techniques (e.g., experiments and computer simulation). The present reporting serves as a synopsis of challenges, advances, and lessons learned conducting the research thus far. The site HYPER has six core objectives that relate to: (1) preparing students for graduate school and/or research-oriented careers, (2) fostering technical skills in student participants, (3) improving participants' communication skills, (4) marketing to and recruiting a diverse group of participants, and more. Assessment of the program outcomes according to these objectives are reported here with data gathered after two years. Program outcomes were conducted with an external evaluator affiliated within the University of Central Florida's Program Evaluation and Educational Research Group (PEER). Results demonstrate a very effective site with strongly positive outcomes for all participants. Insights are provided so this research effort may be confirmed by other independent sites. It should be noted that the 2020 session was postponed out of an abundance of caution based on the uncertain and evolving conditions facilitated by the COVID-19 pandemic. © American Society for Engineering Education, 2022.
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The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of understanding the effectiveness of online learning tools, especially for the socio-cultural aspects of education. In online classes, we observed that students had low participation in online discussions with peers or instructors. Recognizing the importance of having a platform that supports digital collaboration, academic content delivery, and social interactions between students in a class, we utilized a platform popular with students, Discord, in two large undergraduate Computer Science classes at a mid-sized university. We evaluated their experiences and perceptions using a survey at the beginning and end of the quarter. Eighty-seven percent of participants who used the class Discord stated that using a digital collaboration platform like Discord to supplement classroom online interaction enhanced their sense of belonging in the class. Drawbacks were non-class relevant chatter, questions being lost in the shuffle, and academic honesty. We hope this work will assist educators to bridge the gap between the in-person and online classrooms by leveraging digital communication platforms which facilitate a space for student socialization. © 2022 IEEE.
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The past decade has seen the development of student-focused programmes in the aerospace industry, including the European Space Agency’s suite of gravity-related student experiment programmes. These opportunities enable student teams to propose and conduct research experiments on altered gravity platforms including a drop tower, a hypergravity centrifuge, an aircraft performing parabolic flights, and on-board the International Space Station (ISS). In a sector with significant barriers to entry, these programmes offer students a practical end-to-end research experience and an introduction to working in the space industry. This paper will explore the benefits and challenges unique to each of ESA’s ‘Spin Your Thesis!’, ‘Fly Your Thesis!’, and ‘Drop Your Thesis!’ educational programmes from the perspective of the 2021 student cohort. The programmes will be compared and contrasted, highlighting the changes in approach and methodologies depending on the platform. This interdisciplinary cohort is split into eight international teams, each consisting of students from a wide range of cultural and/or educational backgrounds. The role of this diversity in successful collaboration is examined, discussing whether teams from diverse disciplines can collect higher quality data on a wider range of topics. Diversity is also evident in the selection of experiments being performed on the three altered gravity platforms. Research topics range from attitude control, acoustic levitation, and debris removal technology demonstrations, to biological process simulations, and smart granular gases. An overview of the individual projects and their anticipated outcomes will demonstrate how this research relates to ongoing research in the space sector. Finally, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the undertaking of these programmes is assessed, with this cohort taking part in these programmes in a virtual format, often without direct contact with other teammates. The results of this paper will not only benefit future students hoping to take part in these altered gravity programmes but will also emphasise the benefits of these opportunities, both for the participating students and the space industry. Copyright © 2021 by the International Astronautical Federation (IAF). All rights reserved.
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When private space flight becomes possible, a variety of space businesses and services will emerge that are different from those of the past. The personnel and fields involved will diversify, requiring education and training tailored to various customer needs. However, there is no facility in the world that combines the functions of integrated space business development, space education and training, and one specializing in commercial space flight. Therefore, ASTRAX is planning to develop a center for space business development by the private sector and for education and training of personnel involved in these activities. In addition, it is necessary to virtually connect space-related training facilities around the world so that training can be conducted in conjunction with them. ASTRAX has also been aiming to build a physical facility, but due to the influence of COVID-19, we are considering to focus education and training virtually as much as possible. This paper introduces the overall concept and plan of the private space business development, education and training center planned by ASTRAX. Copyright © 2021 by ASTRAX, Inc. All rights reserved.
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As the world is wholly dependent on information technology, especially in the era of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is expected that hybrid format will become the new norm. This experience indicates that novel ways of combining face-to-face with online activities, including teaching, conferencing, concert, art exhibition, and collaborations, should be explored. Consequently, a new immersive virtual space known as Ohyay was launched in the summer of 2020. Ohyay is a powerful design platform that lets anyone create immersive virtual spaces unlike other video conferencing platforms (e.g., Zoom, Microsoft teams) with a well-defined and prescribed workflow. Even though the platform has been utilized for series of events and activities, empirical studies to ascertain its adoption rate are lacking. Therefore, this study employed the UTAUT2 model infused with self-efficacy and readiness construct to investigate the factors that influence users' intention of Ohyay adoption. One hundred and forty-two participants across countries completed an online questionnaire. It was found that Performance Expectancy, Facilitating Conditions, Effort Expectancy, Self-Efficacy, Readiness, and Hedonic Motivation predicts the behavioral intention of Ohyay directly, while Self-Efficacy and Hedonic Motivation indirectly predicts behavioral intention through Effort Expectancy and Readiness. The findings of this study contribute to the research applying the UTAUT2 approach with the self-efficacy and readiness construct for the exploration of behavioral intention to utilize an emerging technology such as Ohyay in educational and non-educational activities. As a result of the findings, managerial implications were highlighted, followed by study limitations and proposals for future studies. © 2021 IEEE.
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Due to the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, not only the digitalization of economies has accelerated, but also conditions of economic uncertainty have arisen, which has affected the volume of foreign direct investment. This paper examines the world foreign direct investment (FDI) market and the state of the Russian FDI market. The changes in the Russian FDI market, which occurred as a result of the developed world crisis, are revealed, including those related to the accelerated digitalization of the economy. Based on the specifics of process phenomena in the economy, the value of FDI increases several times, since they allow the long-term investment of foreign capital in the national production of goods and services. In 2019, many investors were guided by conservative forecasts and planned to take this direction of doing business as a basis at the beginning of the period, and low interest rates in developed countries made it possible to draw the attention of global investors to assets in emerging markets. But the changes associated with the coronavirus pandemic have made adjustments throughout the financial world space. The direction of FDI in Russia is no exception. Many countries have managed to change the direction of the vector from the negative to positive and started expanding electronic platforms, online space, transferring standard financial products and services from offline to online. © 2021 ACM.