Rachelle S. Heller | The George Washington University (original) (raw)

Papers by Rachelle S. Heller

Forward to Professorship in STEM, 2016

In this chapter, we offer distilled advice from our 15 years of experience with the FORWARD to Pr... more In this chapter, we offer distilled advice from our 15 years of experience with the FORWARD to Professorship workshop. Recommendations for team management, workshop design, workshop management, communications, and sustainability are offered. A short list of suggestions for new organizers is provided at the end of the chapter.

Women in Engineering ProActive Network, 2006

Computers & Education, 2019

Computers & Education, 2017

This paper sets out to address the problem of the imbalance between the number of quantitative an... more This paper sets out to address the problem of the imbalance between the number of quantitative and qualitative articles published in highly ranked research journals, by providing guidelines for the design, implementation and reporting of qualitative research. Clarification is provided of key terms (such as quantitative and qualitative) and the interrelationships between them. The relative risks and benefits of using guidelines for qualitative research are considered, and the importance of using any such guidelines flexibly is highlighted. The proposed guidelines are based on a synthesis of existing guidelines and syntheses of guidelines from a range of fields.

ACM SIGCSE Bulletin, 1993

Conference companion on Human factors in computing systems - CHI '94, 1994

An important challenge to user interface designers is meeting the needs of users who differ in ge... more An important challenge to user interface designers is meeting the needs of users who differ in gender, culture, age, and/or abilities. At least two strategies have emerged: to design different interfaces for each group or to just design good interfaces. The panel will discuss approaches to and issues related to accommodating diversity.

2003 Annual Conference Proceedings

Under-represented minorities include ethnic minorities and students with disabilities.

African Journal of Business Management, 2012

With the realization of the benefits associated with the adoption of information and communicatio... more With the realization of the benefits associated with the adoption of information and communication technologies (ICTs), many small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in developing economies are beginning to embrace the use of ICT. This process has, however, been marred with numerous challenges, characterizing the process as slow paced adoption and use of poor quality ICTs that are outdated, ineffective and inefficient. This is partly attributed to the fact that most developing economies are not well positioned to provide conducive environments for their SMEs to thrive, even in their efforts to embrace ICT. Notwithstanding the many challenges, SMEs in developing economies are slowly but steadily starting to embrace the use of ICTs. Therefore, the objective in this article is to review literature on ICT usage within SMEs in developing economies. The authors concluded that by strategically positioning their ICT, SMEs can tap into the enormous potential advantages offered by ICT to gain a competitive advantage. The authors further submit that SMEs can make use of their flexibility and relatively small size to their advantage, because these are perfect conditions for the diffusion and application of ICT.

Journal on Educational Resources in Computing, 2001

Welcome to the inaugural issue of the Journal of Educational Resources in Computing (JERiC). I am... more Welcome to the inaugural issue of the Journal of Educational Resources in Computing (JERiC). I am pleased to be able to serve as guest editor of this the first electronic journal in the area of educational resources for computer science and computing studies. The journal’s editors will provide you with background on the development of this journal, so I would like to tell you a bit about the creation of this issue. Papers for this issue were submitted based on the work done at the June 2000 Dagstuhl conference on multimedia. This small, working conference provided an opportunity for educators and researchers to present, critique, and brainstorm about new methodologies, applications, and techniques, and to include multimedia structures to enhance the education of future computer scientists. At the end of the conference, attendees were invited to submit papers or demonstrations of their work for inclusion in JERIC. The papers were submitted electronically and then sent for review to at least three well-known referees in the fields of computers, education, and multimedia. An international set of reviewers and authors bring a wide perspective on research and classroom practice to the journal, and the papers span a wide range of topics, providing innovative and sharable applications for education in computer science. Metamodels, metadata, and frameworks are a theme for some of the articles. In a paper on an open learning environment, the authors describe a national joint project in Germany for vocational education in technology. The authors outline an approach to satisfy the requirements for metamodeling learning resources and services. Relying on metadata, one author describes the use of an application, Multibook, to create exercises and, by extension, to create course sequences in general. Another article provides a taxonomy for multimedia, and linkages from that taxonomy to both design and evaluation of multimedia activities appropriate to a course on interactive multimedia. The article includes an example of student work using the taxonomy. The tools necessary for sharing resources is another theme for some of the articles in the issue. In a general overview article, a three-tier model for sharing materials is outlined and the implementation described. The architecture is open and available.The tools that permit Java-applets to be shared in real time and enable an educator to manage a dynamic telelearning session are described in yet another article. The final general area is one where specific applications, applets, or tools can be used directly or with slight modifications. One such paper links to simulations and applets for understanding distributed systems. By modifying a specification and observing the results, students can design their own learning processes.

Proceedings of the 2001 EC/NSF workshop on Universal accessibility of ubiquitous computing: providing for the elderly, 2001

In this paper, we describe why designers need to look beyond the twin aims of designing for the '... more In this paper, we describe why designers need to look beyond the twin aims of designing for the 'typical' user and designing "prostheses". Making accessible interfaces for older people is a unique but many faceted challenge. Effective applications and interface design needs to address the dynamic diversity of the human species. We introduce a new design paradigm, Design for Dynamic Diversity, and a methodology to assist its achievement, User Sensitive Inclusive Design.

Computers & Education, 2002

It gives me great pleasure to include these four outstanding papers in a special section to this ... more It gives me great pleasure to include these four outstanding papers in a special section to this issue of Computers & Education. A special issue was conceived a few years ago; unfortunately the guest editor has experienced a few personal setbacks that have delayed the publication. This, by no means, diminishes the quality and value of the publications and I urge you to read them as they clearly and carefully address the concepts integral to the philosophy of Computers & Education. They represent the integration or synthesis of two fields for the betterment of both. The lead article by Jim Carter addresses comprehensive question of a framework for the multimedia systems that would support the physical and technical infrastructure for multimedia support for engineering education. The article by Andrea Dlaska addresses teaching foreign languages to engineering students, using interactive multimedia as a support. The article by Marios C. Angelides and Harry W. Agius, describes a system that uses interactive multimedia to teach about VLSI design, while the final article by Leonid Sheremetov and Adolfo Guzma´n Arenas, is another learning environment for engineers, this one directed at collaborative learning. I hope you will enjoy reading them as much as I have.

Journal of technology management & innovation, 2010

The slow advancement of women in scientific fields remains a persistent problem, especially in ac... more The slow advancement of women in scientific fields remains a persistent problem, especially in academia. Highly trained doctoral women in the sciences drop out of the academic pipeline for a variety of reasons that are poorly documented. This paper reports on a qualitative exploratory study based on structured interviews with 15 women who have taken career breaks after receiving their science, technology, engineering or mathematics (STEM) PhD, but wish to re-enter the academic career track. The study aims to understand the pressures that contribute to taking such breaks, how women remain connected (or not) to their field during breaks and how re-entering the field after a career break could be facilitated. Suggestions based on the interviews include career development workshops and networking opportunities for women in breaks, as well as systemic changes such as reduced fees for society membership and conferences, changes in the way resumés are reviewed by faculty search committees, and in the design and implementation of maternity and child care leave policies.

National Civic Review, 2001

A lot has been said about e-government, or e-gov, and many efforts have been made to sell gover... more A lot has been said about e-government, or e-gov, and many efforts have been made to sell government on its benefits. However, there does not seem to be a good, widely shared definition of what e-gov is, or more important what it can be. A workable definition should ...

With the steady increase in cyber attacks, more companies are looking to the developing cyberinsu... more With the steady increase in cyber attacks, more companies are looking to the developing cyberinsurance market for relief. Although many arguments have been made in its favor, the cyberinsurance market faces various challenges, with the setting of premiums being one of the biggest issues. This paper will draw from the body of existing literature and a set of newly conducted interviews to present an overview of the current cyberinsurance market. This overview will also discuss the barriers that hinder cyberinsurance’s development into a mature market. Lastly, this paper will illustrate the potential for collaboration between the private sector and academia and suggest a research agenda to for the setting of cyberinsurance policy premiums.

ACM SIGCHI Bulletin - a supplement to interactions, 2001

The purpose of the workshop was to discuss and recommend policies and a research agenda that woul... more The purpose of the workshop was to discuss and recommend policies and a research agenda that would promote universal accessibility for a growing elderly population within the context of ubiquitous computing. The development of ubiquitous computing was seen as both a promise and a threat for this group: A promise, because ubiquitous computing has the potential for providing support for disabilities that come with aging; A threat, because the spread of ubiquitous computing could close off access to basic services for elderly people. For the better part of a week, twenty-six people from multiple research disciplines, European, American and South East Asian cultures, and a variety of professional roles, gathered to discuss the issues surrounding universal accessibility for the elderly and to recommend approaches that could be taken with the development, regulation and promotion of ubiquitous technology that would support universal accessibility for this group. ACM SIGCHI, ACM SIGGRAPH and the IFIP Technical Committee on Human-Computer Interaction (TC 13) have agreed to help disseminate the results of this workshop through their publication channels and conferences. Post-workshop proceedings will be available from ACM Press and through the ACM Digital Library in mid-September. Organizational Strategy for the Workshop A diverse set of people was invited to attend. Attendees ranged from government officials to elderly computer users with age-related disabilities. Disciplines ranged from biomechanics and economics to sociology and computer science. Attendees submitted a position paper in advance of the workshop. These contributions and the participant list can be found at http://virtual.inesc.pt/wuauc01/. The workshop opened with a statement of its goals and a short presentation from each attending on their concept paper. After this, the attendees decided to split into four working groups to best address the subject matter in greater depth. The working groups were (1) Theoretical, Fundamental and Social issues of Universal Accessibility; (2) Designing for Dynamic Diversity; (3) Tools and Devices for Ubiquitous Computing and Universal Access; and (4) Architecture and Interaction. These groups met for two days to further explicate the issues associated with their subtopic. They joined forces at intervals during their meetings to discuss how findings from each groups were interrelated and to develop a plan for writing up the results of the workshop. What follows is only a quick summary of the major approaches developed in each working group. The final report can be found on the aforementioned web page.

Proceedings of the 11th International Conference on Computer Supported Education, 2019

While the nation should maintain and expand the educational capabilities in cybersecurity given t... more While the nation should maintain and expand the educational capabilities in cybersecurity given the current high demand for this sector, currently there exists a capacity issue: students cannot readily be added to the education system, especially at the Community Colleges level, because trained faculty to accommodate expanded academic demand are scarce. Cybersecurity experts in the workforce have the potential to fill the need for part-time cybersecurity faculty at the Community College level. The challenge is to prepare these technology-savvy individuals with classroom pedagogical insights and skills which not usually part of a cybersecurity experts skillset. A research question for this development project is "Can we use an online environment to provide pedagogy training for potential adjunct community college faculty." Currently, the Reach To Teach project is exploring this possibility through a research effort engaging current faculty, as well as education experts, and a pilot Reach To Teach online course that is being made available to these cybersecurity experts. The Reach to Teach pilot is a set of six sessions, each of which includes the following: introduction to Community Colleges, ethics, and ideas for classroom pedagogy (e.g. the general structure of a course, crafting goals and objectives, techniques for moving explanations from the concreate to the abstract, using group work using case studies, and using discussions in classes). The team hosted a content review with community college educators and the pilot has been evaluated by 12 members of the target population. Their suggestions for improvement included. In addition to addressing these concerns, the revised pilot includes a modified interactive experience, Viewers are now able leave comments that can be read and replied to by course leaders or other individuals viewing the material.

Journal on Teaching Engineering

This paper describes the activities and results of a George Washington University DoD Cyber Schol... more This paper describes the activities and results of a George Washington University DoD Cyber Scholarship Program (CySP) capacity building project Grant No. H98230-19-1-0320 during the 2020-2021 academic year. In particular, the report provides information about the conference held on “Closing the Gap: Re-entry of Women Veterans into Cybersecurity Careers.” Closing the Gap was a working virtual conference combining presentations and break-out discussions which focused on the research in cyber workforce development and gender issues. By bringing together a variety of stakeholders in this topic, this working conference was able to address how to overcome challenges to increase the recruitment, representation, and retention of women veterans in the cybersecurity workforce and to provide practical suggestions for improvement.

Journal of Technology …, 2010