Constructing a consensus problem space from extensive qualitative data for an ill-structured real-life problem and expressing the result to a broader audience is challenging. To effectively communicate a complex problem space, visualization of that problem space must elucidate inter-causal relationships among the problem variables. In this…

The large rates of students' failure is a very frequent problem in undergraduate courses, being even more evident in exact sciences. Pointing out the reasons of such problem is a paramount research topic, though not an easy task. An alternative is to use Educational Data Mining techniques (EDM), which enables one to convert data from educational…

This article aims to convince readers of the value of intersecting the scholarship of interdisciplinarity with the field of argumentation studies. The interdisciplinarity literature has not much engaged with the vehicle that carries interdisciplinary learning, languages, and locutions: the argument. On the argumentation studies side, despite the…

This article reviews the relationship between the conservative newspaper "The Australian" and the development of a national history curriculum in Australia. The lead author surveyed the major Australian press in the five-year period between 2007 and 2012 and found clear patterns of difference between "The Australian" and other…

This paper describes a novel method to create a quantitative model of an educational content domain of related practice item-types using learning curves. By using a pairwise test to search for the relationships between learning curves for these item-types, we show how the test results in a set of pairwise transfer relationships that can be…

This article explores the deployment of triangulation in the service of uncovering subjugated knowledge and promoting social change for women and other oppressed groups. Feminist approaches to mixed methods praxis create a tight link between the research problem and the research design. An analysis of selected case studies of feminist praxis…

Excessive college course withdrawals are costly to the student and the institution in terms of time to degree completion, available classroom space, and other resources. Although generally well quantified, detailed analysis of the reasons given by students for course withdrawal is less common. To address this, a text mining analysis was performed…

Through the importance of the number three in our culture and the strange preference for a ternary pattern of our nature one can perceive how and why number theory degraded to numerology. The strong preference of our minds for simple patterns can be read as the key to understanding not only the development of numerology, but also why scientists…

A rule-plus-exception model (RULEX) of classification learning is proposed. According to RULEX, people learn to classify objects by forming simple logical rules and remembering occasional exceptions to these rules. Because the learning process is stochastic, people will vary in the rules formed and exceptions stored. (SLD)

Several models of information integration are developed and analyzed in the context of a prototypical pattern-recognition task. Evaluation, integration, and decision-making processes are specified for each. Simulations and predictions are carried out to provide a measure of identifiability or extent to which they can be distinguished from one…

Firstly, the many characteristics of expertise are examined: they include aspects of pattern recognition, knowledge, skill, flexibility, metacognitive monitoring, available cognitive space and teaching abilities. Secondly, three educational models from different domains(Nursing, Surgical Education, Education) are analysed, compared and contrasted,…

Two quasiexperimental designs--nonequivalent dependent variable and reversed treatment designs--illustrate pattern matching logic as a basis for evaluation, examining college health services. Three pattern matches are significant: (1) program pattern match indicates implementation; (2) measurement match assesses test validity; and (3) effect…