Kamakshi Rajagopal | Open University The Netherlands (original) (raw)

Papers by Kamakshi Rajagopal

Presenting the LTfLL toolset which uses language technologies like LSA and NLP to support teacher... more Presenting the LTfLL toolset which uses language technologies like LSA and NLP to support teachers and learners in their tasks.

This paper elaborates on the design of a computer-based service to support conceptual development... more This paper elaborates on the design of a computer-based service to support conceptual development. Our ambition is provide learners a way to compare their conceptual development against different reference models, so they recognize the limits of their expertise. These models are (semi) automatically generated from learning materials and learner text inputs using Latent Semantic Analysis, a technique that can identify the concepts and their relations between the concepts contained in input text materials. The paper explains the envisioned service presenting a scenario that illustrates how it can be used in formal and informal learning context. After, the paper elaborates the theoretical background behind the design of the service and, finally, it draws conclusions and outlines future work.

KNAW Narcis. Back to search results. Publication Networking to Learn & Learning to Network: S... more KNAW Narcis. Back to search results. Publication Networking to Learn & Learning to Network: Skills, Values and Technology (2012) Open access. Pagina-navigatie: Main. ...

This article looks into professional networks and their evolution into their current state as ble... more This article looks into professional networks and their evolution into their current state as blended networks. The eTwinning network, a network of European schools, is described as an example of such a professional network for teachers, where studies from the TellNet project show that many teachers in the online network are isolated. As the eTwinning network wants to evolve into supporting more continuous professional development activities, the current disengagement of members needs to be resolved. Several potential underlying causes for the disengagement are described, as well as an approach to technical support that aims to engage the members in gaining the most from their participation in the network.

Networking is a key skill in professional careers, supporting the individual's growth and learnin... more Networking is a key skill in professional careers, supporting the individual's growth and learning. However, little is known about how professionals intentionally manage the connections in their personal networks and which factors influence their decisions in connecting with others for the purpose of learning. In this article, we present a model of personal professional networking for creating a personal learning network, based on an investigation through a literature study, semi-structured interviews and a survey.

Professionals in social work practice depend on a high level of skills, intellectual ability and ... more Professionals in social work practice depend on a high level of skills, intellectual ability and a wide knowledge base to find innovative solutions for the complex problems they encounter. They learn by experience and through social interaction using dialogue and discussion with relevant others to create new knowledge. To support their learning, they search for the most suitable and most relevant dialogue partner available in their extensive personal professional network. This is a difficult, high-skilled task, for which little technological support is available. This paper presents a literature review on the learning needs of these professionals and considers the use of technology as a means of supporting this type of learning. It argues for the need for more insight into the strategies used by professionals in building, maintaining and activating connections in their personal professional network for learning purposes.

Business Strategy and The Environment, 2011

Reflection on one's own behaviour and practice is an important aspect of lifelong learning. Howev... more Reflection on one's own behaviour and practice is an important aspect of lifelong learning. However, such practice and the underlying assumed principles are often hidden from the learner's vision, and are therefore difficult to evaluate. Social interactions with others stimulate the learner to re-asses and reflect on the nature of the learner's own behaviour and practice, such as in professional networking contexts and intercultural encounters. This paper describes the prerequisites of learning from these interactions and the possibilities of technological support. It presents one approach to providing support for developing the required skills, with the example of the CEFcult tool, which supports intercultural communicative competence building.

In recent years, the concept of a Personal Learning Network (PLN) as a structure to support perso... more In recent years, the concept of a Personal Learning Network (PLN) as a structure to support personal learning has become more and more widespread. A Personal Learning Network refers to the network of people a self-directed learner connects with for the specific purpose of supporting their learning. An effective use of PLNs as learning resources depends on various networking skills of the learners. These skills include content-related skills such as such as being able to engage in conversations and being able to communicate ideas, thoughts and opinions to the listener, but also (ii) skills regarding the process of networking itself to continuously build, maintain and activate PLNs, in particular to be able to identify the experience and expertise of the connections in their PLNs. Relationships for learning in a PLN are often supported through various technical instruments and platforms. Although many technologies are being developed to support learners' construction and maintenance of their Personal Learning Network, the design is often based on certain assumptions on what learners consider important for their own social learning. However, there has been little investigation on what a learner considers important in a PLN. This article presents the results of a study on the concepts that determine whether a learner considers a contact to be valuable to their learning, the perceived relevance or importance of these concepts to the learner, and the extent to which these concepts are perceived to be supported by current popular networking platforms. The methodology used consists of a two-stage process: a scaffold activity on name generation and abstraction of concepts by participants in a workshop on networking skills, followed by a survey rating the importance of the elicited concepts and their association with 5 chosen PLN-supporting platforms. The conclusions of the study are (i) 18 concepts are generally accepted as driving a learner's PLN, (ii) that social learning via PLNs still remains very hidden, but reflective activities encourage more control over this type of learning, and (iii) that different social networking platforms fulfil different aspects of the supporting personal learning networks, with the exception of Twitter as a learning platform, that emerges from the study as the most widely applicable tool.

Knowledge, Technology & Policy, 2011

As employees increasingly work in international, multi-cultural settings, success in intercultura... more As employees increasingly work in international, multi-cultural settings, success in intercultural professional communication requires not only language skills, but also the ability to understand and deal with cultural differences. The European project CEFcult (www.cefcult.eu) develops an online platform which aims to support the joint achievement of these competences by offering authentic scenarios, validated assessment frameworks and a community of people (both novices and experts) with similar interests. The European Commission strongly emphasizes the importance of implementing projects' outcomes in different contexts and settings after the projects' life. This is not so easy, as it requires involvement and dedication of different types of organizations, from business as well as from the academic side.

Harvard Business Review, 2012

In de master class gaan we in op het netwerkleren. We zullen spreken over de positionering van de... more In de master class gaan we in op het netwerkleren. We zullen spreken over de positionering van deze vorm van leren in het gehele landschap van vormen van leren en opleiden, over de doelgroepen voor wie netwerkleren bij uitstek geschikt is, maar ook over de manieren waarop netwerklerenden ondersteund kunnen worden. Dit laatste slaat aan bij een eerdere master class over de rol van online gemeenschappen of communities. Naast wetenschappelijke inzichten over netwerkleren, zullen we ook naar de praktijk kijken: hoe ...

Intensive Care Medicine, 2012

Whereas the Web 1.0 was mainly driven by static content and web pages linked by hyperlinks, the s... more Whereas the Web 1.0 was mainly driven by static content and web pages linked by hyperlinks, the social web, or Web 2.0, has opened up new ways of connecting to not just resources, but also to people. The connections that are made through the use of Social Media, contribute to a complex, but also promising network of people and resources. In an educational context, this is called a learning network, and both learning networks by themselves and the Social media by which they are constructed require that we rethink the ways we learn, our view on learners, tutors and learning, and the way we support learners and tutors. Numerous opportunities have emerged with the introduction of social media for learning, but also numerous problems have emerged, ranging from awareness issues to (meta-)cognitive limitations and difficulties and affective and motivational problems.

This paper presents an ongoing research towards the use of Language Technologies to provide lifel... more This paper presents an ongoing research towards the use of Language Technologies to provide lifelong learners with formative feedback. To this end, the paper briefly elaborates the theoretical background of conceptual development and existing Language Technology applications that can be used to identify and approximate learner's conceptual development. It also presents preliminary results of proof of concept tests conducted to demonstrate the use of tools for diagnosing conceptual development and the generation of an expert-model. Finally, the paper provides initial findings towards the design of a conceptual development service.

The CEFcult project addresses the observed need in European enterprise for increased foreign lang... more The CEFcult project addresses the observed need in European enterprise for increased foreign language proficiency for intercultural professional communication. In an increasingly globalised world, language skills need to be supplemented with intercultural competence in order to guarantee successful communication. This deilverable describes the theoretical framework that builds the backdrop to the project.

The European Commission, as well as several national agencies have actively promoted Virtual Mobi... more The European Commission, as well as several national agencies have actively promoted Virtual Mobility for some time, by providing financial support to educational projects in this field, for example through the Socrates programme. These projects have over the years generated important outcomes including guidelines, procedures, pedagogical models, manuals and handbooks. However, these outcomes do not enjoy the take-up they deserve mainly due to a lack of promotion.

Abstract: This deliverable describes the approach taken up by the CEFcult consortium to the asses... more Abstract: This deliverable describes the approach taken up by the CEFcult consortium to the assessment of intercultural competence. We give an overview of current relevant research on intercultural competence, and describe in more detail the context of learning and assessing intercultural competence. We posit CEFCult's aim to support intercultural communicative competence through a social assessment platform for a lifelong learner

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY European Higher Education is changing. New technologies are offering new opport... more EXECUTIVE SUMMARY European Higher Education is changing. New technologies are offering new opportunities for learning, teaching and research, and these opportunities are being grasped by staff and students in the oldest as well as the newest universities. The political and spatial context in which universities operate is changing too.

This article looks into professional networks and their evolution into their current state as ble... more This article looks into professional networks and their evolution into their current state as blended networks. The eTwinning network, a network of European schools, is described as an example of such a professional network for teachers, where studies from the TellNet project show that many teachers in the online network are isolated. As the eTwinning network wants to evolve into supporting more continuous professional development activities, the current disengagement of members needs to be resolved.

This paper elaborates on the design of a computer-based service to support conceptual development... more This paper elaborates on the design of a computer-based service to support conceptual development. Our ambition is provide learners a way to compare their conceptual development against different reference models, so they recognize the limits of their expertise. These models are (semi) automatically generated from learning materials and learner text inputs using Latent Semantic Analysis, a technique that can identify the concepts and their relations between the concepts contained in input text materials.

This paper argues for a changed vision and approach to the design of technologies supporting awar... more This paper argues for a changed vision and approach to the design of technologies supporting awareness and reflection for learning in social networks. It discusses the relationship between awareness, reflection and learning, and looks into what supporting these functions with technology for the purpose of learning actually entails.

Presenting the LTfLL toolset which uses language technologies like LSA and NLP to support teacher... more Presenting the LTfLL toolset which uses language technologies like LSA and NLP to support teachers and learners in their tasks.

This paper elaborates on the design of a computer-based service to support conceptual development... more This paper elaborates on the design of a computer-based service to support conceptual development. Our ambition is provide learners a way to compare their conceptual development against different reference models, so they recognize the limits of their expertise. These models are (semi) automatically generated from learning materials and learner text inputs using Latent Semantic Analysis, a technique that can identify the concepts and their relations between the concepts contained in input text materials. The paper explains the envisioned service presenting a scenario that illustrates how it can be used in formal and informal learning context. After, the paper elaborates the theoretical background behind the design of the service and, finally, it draws conclusions and outlines future work.

KNAW Narcis. Back to search results. Publication Networking to Learn & Learning to Network: S... more KNAW Narcis. Back to search results. Publication Networking to Learn & Learning to Network: Skills, Values and Technology (2012) Open access. Pagina-navigatie: Main. ...

This article looks into professional networks and their evolution into their current state as ble... more This article looks into professional networks and their evolution into their current state as blended networks. The eTwinning network, a network of European schools, is described as an example of such a professional network for teachers, where studies from the TellNet project show that many teachers in the online network are isolated. As the eTwinning network wants to evolve into supporting more continuous professional development activities, the current disengagement of members needs to be resolved. Several potential underlying causes for the disengagement are described, as well as an approach to technical support that aims to engage the members in gaining the most from their participation in the network.

Networking is a key skill in professional careers, supporting the individual's growth and learnin... more Networking is a key skill in professional careers, supporting the individual's growth and learning. However, little is known about how professionals intentionally manage the connections in their personal networks and which factors influence their decisions in connecting with others for the purpose of learning. In this article, we present a model of personal professional networking for creating a personal learning network, based on an investigation through a literature study, semi-structured interviews and a survey.

Professionals in social work practice depend on a high level of skills, intellectual ability and ... more Professionals in social work practice depend on a high level of skills, intellectual ability and a wide knowledge base to find innovative solutions for the complex problems they encounter. They learn by experience and through social interaction using dialogue and discussion with relevant others to create new knowledge. To support their learning, they search for the most suitable and most relevant dialogue partner available in their extensive personal professional network. This is a difficult, high-skilled task, for which little technological support is available. This paper presents a literature review on the learning needs of these professionals and considers the use of technology as a means of supporting this type of learning. It argues for the need for more insight into the strategies used by professionals in building, maintaining and activating connections in their personal professional network for learning purposes.

Business Strategy and The Environment, 2011

Reflection on one's own behaviour and practice is an important aspect of lifelong learning. Howev... more Reflection on one's own behaviour and practice is an important aspect of lifelong learning. However, such practice and the underlying assumed principles are often hidden from the learner's vision, and are therefore difficult to evaluate. Social interactions with others stimulate the learner to re-asses and reflect on the nature of the learner's own behaviour and practice, such as in professional networking contexts and intercultural encounters. This paper describes the prerequisites of learning from these interactions and the possibilities of technological support. It presents one approach to providing support for developing the required skills, with the example of the CEFcult tool, which supports intercultural communicative competence building.

In recent years, the concept of a Personal Learning Network (PLN) as a structure to support perso... more In recent years, the concept of a Personal Learning Network (PLN) as a structure to support personal learning has become more and more widespread. A Personal Learning Network refers to the network of people a self-directed learner connects with for the specific purpose of supporting their learning. An effective use of PLNs as learning resources depends on various networking skills of the learners. These skills include content-related skills such as such as being able to engage in conversations and being able to communicate ideas, thoughts and opinions to the listener, but also (ii) skills regarding the process of networking itself to continuously build, maintain and activate PLNs, in particular to be able to identify the experience and expertise of the connections in their PLNs. Relationships for learning in a PLN are often supported through various technical instruments and platforms. Although many technologies are being developed to support learners' construction and maintenance of their Personal Learning Network, the design is often based on certain assumptions on what learners consider important for their own social learning. However, there has been little investigation on what a learner considers important in a PLN. This article presents the results of a study on the concepts that determine whether a learner considers a contact to be valuable to their learning, the perceived relevance or importance of these concepts to the learner, and the extent to which these concepts are perceived to be supported by current popular networking platforms. The methodology used consists of a two-stage process: a scaffold activity on name generation and abstraction of concepts by participants in a workshop on networking skills, followed by a survey rating the importance of the elicited concepts and their association with 5 chosen PLN-supporting platforms. The conclusions of the study are (i) 18 concepts are generally accepted as driving a learner's PLN, (ii) that social learning via PLNs still remains very hidden, but reflective activities encourage more control over this type of learning, and (iii) that different social networking platforms fulfil different aspects of the supporting personal learning networks, with the exception of Twitter as a learning platform, that emerges from the study as the most widely applicable tool.

Knowledge, Technology & Policy, 2011

As employees increasingly work in international, multi-cultural settings, success in intercultura... more As employees increasingly work in international, multi-cultural settings, success in intercultural professional communication requires not only language skills, but also the ability to understand and deal with cultural differences. The European project CEFcult (www.cefcult.eu) develops an online platform which aims to support the joint achievement of these competences by offering authentic scenarios, validated assessment frameworks and a community of people (both novices and experts) with similar interests. The European Commission strongly emphasizes the importance of implementing projects' outcomes in different contexts and settings after the projects' life. This is not so easy, as it requires involvement and dedication of different types of organizations, from business as well as from the academic side.

Harvard Business Review, 2012

In de master class gaan we in op het netwerkleren. We zullen spreken over de positionering van de... more In de master class gaan we in op het netwerkleren. We zullen spreken over de positionering van deze vorm van leren in het gehele landschap van vormen van leren en opleiden, over de doelgroepen voor wie netwerkleren bij uitstek geschikt is, maar ook over de manieren waarop netwerklerenden ondersteund kunnen worden. Dit laatste slaat aan bij een eerdere master class over de rol van online gemeenschappen of communities. Naast wetenschappelijke inzichten over netwerkleren, zullen we ook naar de praktijk kijken: hoe ...

Intensive Care Medicine, 2012

Whereas the Web 1.0 was mainly driven by static content and web pages linked by hyperlinks, the s... more Whereas the Web 1.0 was mainly driven by static content and web pages linked by hyperlinks, the social web, or Web 2.0, has opened up new ways of connecting to not just resources, but also to people. The connections that are made through the use of Social Media, contribute to a complex, but also promising network of people and resources. In an educational context, this is called a learning network, and both learning networks by themselves and the Social media by which they are constructed require that we rethink the ways we learn, our view on learners, tutors and learning, and the way we support learners and tutors. Numerous opportunities have emerged with the introduction of social media for learning, but also numerous problems have emerged, ranging from awareness issues to (meta-)cognitive limitations and difficulties and affective and motivational problems.

This paper presents an ongoing research towards the use of Language Technologies to provide lifel... more This paper presents an ongoing research towards the use of Language Technologies to provide lifelong learners with formative feedback. To this end, the paper briefly elaborates the theoretical background of conceptual development and existing Language Technology applications that can be used to identify and approximate learner's conceptual development. It also presents preliminary results of proof of concept tests conducted to demonstrate the use of tools for diagnosing conceptual development and the generation of an expert-model. Finally, the paper provides initial findings towards the design of a conceptual development service.

The CEFcult project addresses the observed need in European enterprise for increased foreign lang... more The CEFcult project addresses the observed need in European enterprise for increased foreign language proficiency for intercultural professional communication. In an increasingly globalised world, language skills need to be supplemented with intercultural competence in order to guarantee successful communication. This deilverable describes the theoretical framework that builds the backdrop to the project.

The European Commission, as well as several national agencies have actively promoted Virtual Mobi... more The European Commission, as well as several national agencies have actively promoted Virtual Mobility for some time, by providing financial support to educational projects in this field, for example through the Socrates programme. These projects have over the years generated important outcomes including guidelines, procedures, pedagogical models, manuals and handbooks. However, these outcomes do not enjoy the take-up they deserve mainly due to a lack of promotion.

Abstract: This deliverable describes the approach taken up by the CEFcult consortium to the asses... more Abstract: This deliverable describes the approach taken up by the CEFcult consortium to the assessment of intercultural competence. We give an overview of current relevant research on intercultural competence, and describe in more detail the context of learning and assessing intercultural competence. We posit CEFCult's aim to support intercultural communicative competence through a social assessment platform for a lifelong learner

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY European Higher Education is changing. New technologies are offering new opport... more EXECUTIVE SUMMARY European Higher Education is changing. New technologies are offering new opportunities for learning, teaching and research, and these opportunities are being grasped by staff and students in the oldest as well as the newest universities. The political and spatial context in which universities operate is changing too.

This article looks into professional networks and their evolution into their current state as ble... more This article looks into professional networks and their evolution into their current state as blended networks. The eTwinning network, a network of European schools, is described as an example of such a professional network for teachers, where studies from the TellNet project show that many teachers in the online network are isolated. As the eTwinning network wants to evolve into supporting more continuous professional development activities, the current disengagement of members needs to be resolved.

This paper elaborates on the design of a computer-based service to support conceptual development... more This paper elaborates on the design of a computer-based service to support conceptual development. Our ambition is provide learners a way to compare their conceptual development against different reference models, so they recognize the limits of their expertise. These models are (semi) automatically generated from learning materials and learner text inputs using Latent Semantic Analysis, a technique that can identify the concepts and their relations between the concepts contained in input text materials.

This paper argues for a changed vision and approach to the design of technologies supporting awar... more This paper argues for a changed vision and approach to the design of technologies supporting awareness and reflection for learning in social networks. It discusses the relationship between awareness, reflection and learning, and looks into what supporting these functions with technology for the purpose of learning actually entails.