Search

Copyright of IUL Research is the property of IUL - Universita Telematica degli Studi and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of IUL Research is the property of IUL - Universita Telematica degli Studi and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Form@re is the property of Firenze University Press and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The paper addresses the issue of evaluation and follow-up of interventions of Centers for Authors of Violence (CUAV). Through empirical data, collected in the Piedmont region, through focus groups and interviews with CUAV's workers, the ways in which those working with perpetrators of violence define a "successful intervention" were explored. What emerges is that evaluation is still at an extremely embryonic stage and not guided by shared and codified tools. This leads to defining success as change of the user/patient assessed by the practitioner/psychologist, often without taking into consideration also a collective assessment and a change in gender attitudes and stereotypes. An important finding that emerged from the research is the centrality of the anti-violence network in assessing the effectiveness of the programs; an aspect, however, that still has to be built but increasingly central given the entry of judges and lawyers into the network, following the approval of the so-called Codice Rosso. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper analyses the process of textbook selection and materials adaptation in the context of ESP (English for Specific Purposes) courses and in the context of English for Nursing course. Textbooks and materials are essential components of ESP course design, which frequently contribute to the success or failure of the course in completing the course objectives. However, the process of selecting a specific textbook for the course, which will address the course objectives, is not straightforward or simple. In the ESP literature, the views about the need of using textbooks in ESP courses are polarised. The study will examine the benefits of using textbooks in ESP context, which include available sources for the students and facilitate the class preparation for the teachers, as well as the drawbacks which include the impossibility of finding a textbook which corresponds entirely to learners’ needs. The research includes the evaluation of the selected textbook in the context of English for Nursing. The evaluation is based on the literature review on the topic of textbook evaluation in ESP and language teaching and learning context in general. The evaluation described is based on the set of criteria provided by Miekley (2005), which includes the following criteria: content, vocabulary and grammar, exercises and activities, attractiveness of the text, the quality of the teacher’s manual and the context. Two textbooks are examined and compared, in order to select the appropriate one. Apart from the textbook analysis, the paper aims to provide suggestions and recommendations regarding materials adaptation and development of materials which can be used in English for Nursing and Medical English Courses.

This paper approaches fictional telecinematic discourse from a perspective of inter-character negative evaluation in a specific context. The paper adapts a categorisation for interpersonal negative judgements and uses it to analyse instances of negative evaluation where participation in career practices are negotiated between the marital couple of Lucy and Ricky Ricardo in the classic sitcom I Love Lucy. A recurring theme in the show, Lucy’s desire to star in show business and Ricky’s attempts to thwart her ambitions have been discussed as both a representation of domestic containment typical to Post-War gender roles as well as an example of early feminist representation in televised sitcoms. The analysis reveals three intertwined facets of containment: Moral judgements condemning the oppressive behaviour of restricting Lucy’s access to career opportunities, moral judgements condemning the subversion of authority, and moral judgements of fairness condemning the distribution of social resources.

In this paper I argue that there is a need to reconnect with the question of purpose in education, particularly in the light of a recent tendency to focus discussions about education almost exclusively on the measurement and comparison of educational outcomes. I first discuss why the question of purpose should always have a place in our educational discussion. I then explore some reasons why this question seems to have disappeared from the educational agenda. The central part of the paper is a proposal for addressing the question of purpose in education—the question as to what constitutes good education—in a systematic manner. I argue that the question of purpose is a composite question and that in deliberating about the purpose of education we should make a distinction between three functions of education to which I refer as qualification, socialisation and subjectification. In the final section of the paper I provide examples of how this proposal can help in asking more precise questions about the purpose and direction of educational processes and practices.

The concept of sustainable development is closely related to that of sustainability assessment, as it implies a process of evaluation of progress made over time. In this context, indicators present themselves as a key and fundamental element for measuring and evaluating the specific issues that compose the different phenomena to be monitored. Indeed, they constitute the tool that can provide qualitative or quantitative data and information needed to identify the performance, progress, and weaknesses of plans, projects, and policies. In this context, the paper investigates the potential differences that the indicator can take in the differing purposes of measurement and evaluation in the context of urban sustainable development. A literature review is therefore conducted to gather and systematize knowledge so that it can be useful for reflections on sustainable urban assessment. The paper reports the results of the analysis concerning the context of measurement and evaluation, highlighting the differences or similarities from a conceptual and operational point of view. Il concetto di sviluppo sostenibile è strettamente legato a quello di valutazione della sostenibilità, in quanto implica un processo di analisi dei progressi compiuti nel tempo. In questo contesto, gli indicatori si presentano come un elemento chiave e fondamentale per misurare e valutare gli aspetti specifici che compongono i diversi fenomeni da monitorare. Essi costituiscono infatti lo strumento in grado di fornire dati e informazioni qualitative o quantitative necessarie per identificare le prestazioni, i progressi e le debolezze di piani, progetti e politiche. In questo contesto, il documento indaga le potenziali differenze che l’indicatore può assumere nelle diverse finalità di misurazione e valutazione nel contesto dello sviluppo urbano sostenibile. Viene quindi condotta una revisione della letteratura per raccogliere e sistematizzare le conoscenze in modo che possano essere utili per le riflessioni sulla valutazione urbana sostenibile. Il documento riporta i risultati dell’analisi relativa al contesto di misurazione e valutazione, evidenziando le differenze o le similitudini da un punto di vista concettuale e operativo.

Copyright of Form@re is the property of Firenze University Press and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The recognition of the key role of architectural heritage for sustainable territorial development has pushed the scientific community to give more importance to the involvement of local communities in conservation choices and practices. However, despite the recognition of the benefits deriving from the active participation of local communities in the field of conservation, in practice, this involvement is still marginal and linked to experiences without institutional support. This phenomenon is due to different causes, such as the lack of a participatory culture in conservation. It finds its roots in a conventional approach to architectural heritage conservation merely based on an “expert knowledge”. Consequently, there is an urgent need for approaches and tools to manage the complexity of decisions about conservation, which require close collaboration between local communities, research, and institutions. In this context, the paper aims to investigate the role of the action-research approach in fostering the participation of local communities in conservation processes, especially in marginal areas, where the demographic shrinking dynamics make even more necessary both the institutions’ intervention and the communities’ engagement. Based on these premises, starting from an analysis of recent experiences, the contribution dwells on the need to support the implementation of action-research approaches for the conservation of architectural heritage in marginal areas, paying particular attention to the role of evaluation. More in detail, in the first part of the paper, a reflection on the importance of community involvement for heritage conservation is proposed based on the main documents on the topic. In the second part, the main features of the action-research approach and its strengths and weaknesses have been analyzed through a literature review of action-research experiences applied to architectural heritage at a global level. The analyses have highlighted how most of these experiences are born from spontaneous initiatives, without institutional and methodological support, in which the role of evaluation is still marginal. Therefore, in the final part, the paper proposes a first methodological framework based on integrating action research with the main evaluation tools developed in the scientific literature to support the different phases of the decision-making process. This framework, suitably declined according to the specificities of the case study treated, can represent a valid support for implementing and transposing the research-action approach for heritage conservation in an institutional context. Il riconoscimento del ruolo chiave del patrimonio architettonico per uno sviluppo territoriale sostenibile ha spinto la comunità scientifica ad attribuire maggiore importanza al coinvolgimento delle comunità locali nelle scelte e pratiche di conservazione. Tuttavia, nonostante il riconoscimento dei benefici derivanti dalla partecipazione attiva delle comunità locali in ambito conservativo, nella pratica tale coinvolgimento risulta ancora marginale e legato ad esperienze prive di supporto istituzionale. Tale fenomeno è ascrivibile a molteplici cause, tra cui la mancanza di una cultura della partecipazione, che affonda le sue radici nell’approccio convenzionale alla conservazione del patrimonio architettonico basato sulla sola “conoscenza esperta”, e la conseguente carenza di approcci e strumenti capaci di gestire la complessità delle scelte legate alla conservazione in cui, invece, si richiede una stretta collaborazione tra comunità locali, mondo della ricerca e istituzioni. Il presente contributo mira ad indagare il ruolo dell’approccio della ricerca azione nel favorire la partecipazione delle comunità locali ai processi di conservazione soprattutto nelle aree marginali, dove le dinamiche di contra- zione demografica in atto rendono ancora più necessario sia l’intervento delle istituzioni, che la partecipazione delle comunità. Sulla scorta di tali premesse, partendo da un’analisi delle esperienze in corso, il contributo si sofferma sulla necessità di supportare l’implementazione di approcci alla ricerca-azione per la conservazione del patrimonio architettonico in aree marginali, ponendo parti- colare attenzione al ruolo della valutazione per il raggiungimento di tale obiettivo. Nello specifico, nella prima parte del contributo si propone una riflessione sull’importanza del coinvolgimento delle comunità per la conservazione del patrimonio sulla base delle principali carte e trattati sul tema. Nella seconda parte sono state, poi, analizzate le principali caratteristiche dell’approccio alla ricerca-azione ed i suoi punti di forze e di debolezza rispetto alle finalità preposte attraverso una literature review delle esperienze di ricerca azione applicate al patrimonio architettonico a livello globale. Le analisi condotte hanno portato ad evidenziare come la maggior parte delle esperienze analizzate nasca da iniziative spontanee, prive di un supporto istituzionale e metodologico, in cui il ruolo della valutazione è ancora marginale. Pertanto, nella parte finale della riflessione si propone una prima proposta di framework metodologico basato sul- l’integrazione della ricerca azione con i principali strumenti di valutazione sviluppati in letteratura al fine di supportare le differenti fasi del processo decisionale. Tale framework, opportunamente declinato secondo le specificità del caso studio trattato, può rappresentare un valido supporto per l’implementazione e la trasposizione in ambito istituzionale dell’approccio alla ricerca-azione per la conservazione del patrimonio.

Copyright of Form@re is the property of Firenze University Press and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper focuses on the role of education as a tool for social mobility and access to citizenship. In particular, the condition of the University between funding reduction and bureaucratic hypertrophy is examined. Finally, the centrality of knowledge is emphasized as a good in itself, beyond its utilitarian interpretation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Ricerche di Pedagogia e Didattica is the property of Universita di Bologna, Dipartimento di Scienze dell'Educazione and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Form@re is the property of Firenze University Press and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This article aims to contribute to the debate about the Farm Accountancy Data Network (FADN), on how to make it more usable, useful and reliable, both for research users and practitioners when studying policy assessment. Ten years ago, the Italian National Rural Network published a highly relevant report about FADN data use for Rural Development policy evaluation, providing a wide range of examples of its application. The report had the merit of providing a comprehensive and systematic overview of FADN uses for evaluation for the first time and not only for impact assessment. From this experience, this paper examines how the different Managing Authorities in Italy have used FADN data for the evaluation of the current 2014-20 Rural Development Programmes: how actually the database has been used in the Annual Implementation Reports, with a focus on indicators for competitiveness assessment. The paper highlights some recommendations, considering the next programming period and the application of the so-called New Delivery Model.

This article aims at presenting an overview of the most interesting issues (from the librarians' point of view) happened during the last exercise of the Evaluation of the quality of research (VQR 2011-2014), to which all Italian universities took part. The analysis starts from the direct experience of the author as part of the consultation and assistance service at the University of Florence, both during the evaluation of the quality of research exercise and in the National scientific qualification (ASN). The paper would be helpful to those librarians who, although not involved by their own institutions, are interested in the themes of academic research evaluation and in their consequences for librarians themselves. In particular, issues like double publication data, international IDs and bibliometric results, and copyright are described. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Form@re is the property of Firenze University Press and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Form@re is the property of Firenze University Press and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

In this paper, we present a survey that took place in January 2023, with 68 participants, of which 62 were women and 6 were men, who in 2022 attended educational and practical workshops on the topic of developing positive parenting. The name of the workshop was “Families in the Centrifuge of Modern Times,” and it was organized by the University of Adult Education Celje. The aim was to find out which parents attended the workshops, where they learned about them, what are the reasons for their participation and what is their opinion on the usefulness of and satisfaction with the workshops. The results of the survey showed that the participants are mostly women in the age group of 41–50 years; they are mostly university-educated, married, and mostly found out about the workshops online or through social networks. All participants thought that the workshops were useful and that they gained new knowledge. They believed that the professional content was presented understandably and that the workshops improved their lives in general.

Education and training systems receive requests for change from many sides to better train the use of higher-level cognitive processes in the younger generations. In particular, critical thinking and creative thinking seem to be those most in demand and, at the same time, those on which there is frequently an unfulfilled expectation. Is tertiary education ready to meet this challenge and if so, what evaluation devices should it have? How could these devices also be placed within the framework of the Dublin Descriptors and Learning Outcomes, foreseen in the study courses? Starting from an analysis of the literature on the different definitions of critical thinking, the contribution focuses on the connections between critical thinking and creative thinking. The study also questions how this thought can be assessed in the academic field and provides, by way of example, the translation of separate rubrics, recently developed. Finally, the paper examines the Italian framework TECO-D Pedagogy, identifying the terms that already imply a reference to forms of critical or creative thinking and warning against the construction of cross-sectional rubrics, on aspects that at least for certain professionals. Valutare il pensiero critico e creativo in ambito universitario Ai sistemi di istruzione e formazione arrivano da più parti istanze di cambiamento affinché nelle giovani generazioni venga rafforzato l’utilizzo dei processi cognitivi di ordine superiore. In particolare, il pensiero critico e il pensiero creativo sembrano essere quelli maggiormente richiesti e, contestualmente, quelli su cui si rileva frequentemente un’aspettativa disattesa. L’istruzione terziaria è pronta per raccogliere tale sfida e se sì di quali dispositivi valutativi dovrebbe disporre? Come si potrebbero inoltre collocare tali dispositivi all’interno della cornice dei Descrittori di Dublino e dei Learning Outcomes, previsti nei corsi di studio? A partire da un’analisi della letteratura sulle diverse definizioni di pensiero critico, il contributo si concentra sulle connessioni tra pensiero critico e pensiero creativo. Lo studio si interroga inoltre su come tali processi possano essere valutati in ambito accademico e fornisce, a titolo esemplificativo, la traduzione di rubriche distinte, messe a punto recentemente. Infine, il paper esamina il framework italiano TECO-D Pedagogia, individuandone i termini che già sottintendono un richiamo a forme di pensiero critico o creativo, evidenziando i possibili limiti della costruzione di rubriche trasversali.

In Italy, in the last decade, there have been both new social requests and an ever-increasing sensitivity towards the multiplicity of values attributed to forests. This has led to a profound revision of the structure of forest planning. This paper illustrates the planning system, characterised by a hierarchical approach, focusing on the upper level, that is Forest Landscape Management Plan (FLMP). At this level of planning, attention to the different needs and targets expressed by the population is considered of strategic importance and thus requires a participative attitude. In the first part of the paper the authors show the approach currently used in forest landscape planning, through a case study carried out in a rural area of the Appennine mountains, focusing in particular on the method established for the process of participation. In the second part, the quality of participation in the case study is analysed, after describing the methodology followed in order to identify a set of criteria for success, deemed particularly relevant

The paper deals with the theme of university evaluation in the light of institutional changes that European academies are presently facing. Some key factors of those changes as well as critical elements concerning them that are to be found in literature are discussed. In the paper, a distinction is made between macro, meso and micro levels at which changes are taking place. As to the macro level, the role of the European research and higher education policies is taken into account with a particular emphasis on the Open Method of Coordination. At the meso level, the main directives of National policies carried out in the different European member States are presented and discussed particularly by referring to accountability and autonomy. Whereas what is here defined micro level is dealt with by briefly discussing the links between the diffusion of new public management, university governance and evaluation. Following such premises, some proposals are made as to the ambits and modes of university evaluation that do not appear sufficiently developed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The role of evaluation in urban and architectural design processes is a current field of investigation, in the national context. Scholars in evaluation increasingly focus on the need for opening the “black box” of architectural design process, directing the evaluation discipline in making explicit and communicable its mechanisms. Currently, the role of evaluation in making explicit and communicable the reasons for the choices to be made is often deepened, on the one hand, in terms of exploring the architectural design process as an intellectual, ideational and creative practice, starting from a “generative idea”; on the other hand, in terms of its contribution with respect to the quality of the product – as buildings – in relation with the quality of the project in its drafting practices. This paper reflects on architectural design as a decision-making activity that needs to be unpacked in order to be supported by evaluation through specific tools and methodologies. In doing so, the attention is shifted from the material products of architecture – such as buildings – to the processes of proposal, negotiation and finalization of projects. Consequently, the main aim is a theoretical investigation on the role of some architectural design practices in relation to the ongoing decision-making process, by exploring the connections between these practices and their results and effects in the process. Il ruolo della valutazione nei processi di progettazione urbana e architettonica è un campo di indagine attuale, nel contesto nazionale. Gli studiosi di valutazione si concentrano sempre più sulla necessità di aprire la “scatola nera” del processo di progettazione architettonica, indirizzando la disciplina valutativa a rendere espliciti e comunicabili i suoi meccanismi. Attualmente, il ruolo della valutazione nel rendere esplicite e comunicabili le ragioni delle scelte da compiere viene spesso approfondito, da un lato, in termini di esplorazione del processo di progettazione architettonica come pratica intellettuale, ideativa e creativa, a partire da una “idea generativa”; dall’altro, in termini di contributo rispetto alla qualità del prodotto – gli edifici – in relazione alla qualità del progetto nelle sue pratiche di redazione. Questo articolo riflette sulla progettazione architettonica come attività decisionale che deve essere spacchettata per es- sere supportata dalla valutazione attraverso strumenti e metodologie specifiche. Nel fare ciò, l’attenzione si sposta dai prodotti materiali dell’architettura – come gli edifici - ai processi di proposta, negoziazione e finalizza- zione dei progetti. Di conseguenza, l’obiettivo principale è un’indagine teorica sul ruolo di alcune pratiche di progettazione architettonica in relazione al processo decisionale in corso, esplorando le connessioni tra queste pratiche e i loro risultati ed effetti nel processo.

The idea of recovery of a railroad section of the Calabro-Lucane railways is based on trying to reuse neglected and now useless and unproductive structure, with the intent to promote a railroad which is the identity of the local communities and which assumes a special beauty in its contrast between the engineering solutions of steel bridges and tunnels in stone and brick, in unspoilt natural surroundings and farmland and very rich in local resources. The main objective is the re-appropriation by the community of its cultural heritage (tangible and intangible) and of its identity in order to promote, to encourage and to support sustainable processes of endogenous growth and improve the quality of life in rural areas. The paper, using a multidisciplinary approach, hypothesizes the possibility of the railway enhancement. Choosing among alternatives by proceeding lexicographically through a sequence of criteria is a common description of practical decision-making: this paper uses these sequences as a theoretical tool.

This paper does not deal with the problem of social control in the Greek society. An analysis of the existing or alternative practices and means that regulate and secure the cohesion and continuity of societies or social formations lies outside the limits of this work. This paper is concerned with the problems produced by the evaluation systems, with a special emphasis for the examinations in higher education, as events that may contribute to social control through the psychological stress they generate on those who go through some kind of evaluation. The authors argue that an educational procedure may favour social control in a society which, having traditionally overvalued educational credentials, is unable to overcome stress and anxiety. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reports some of the main achievements of the EU-funded PRINCIPLE project in collecting high-quality language resources (LRs) in the legal domain for four under-resourced European languages, namely Croatian, Irish, Norwegian and Icelandic. After illustrating the significance of this work for developing translation technologies in the context of the European Union and the European Economic Area, the paper outlines the main steps of data collection, curation and sharing of the LRs gathered with the support of public and private data contributors. This is followed by the description of the development pipeline and key features of the state-of-the-art bespoke neural machine translation (MT) engines for the legal domain that were built using this data. The MT systems were evaluated with a combination of automatic and human methods to validate the quality of the LRs collected in the project; the high-quality LRs were subsequently shared with the wider community via the ELRC-SHARE repository. The main challenges that were encountered in this work are discussed, emphasising the importance and the key benefits of sharing high-quality digital LRs.

In the last decades, the growing concern about land consumption, together with the awareness of cultural heritage's role for sustainable development, has led to paying greater attention to cultural properties reuse. However, the complexity embedded in reuse choices calls for proper tools that, relying on a deep knowledge of the asset understudy, can support the design and evaluation of suitable alternatives. Furthermore, as the official documents in the conservation field suggest, this complexity requires considering the social dimension of heritage reuse as a crucial factor in the decision domain. Based on these premises, the paper aims at investigating the reuse issue by focusing on its social dimension through a comprehensive approach, integrating a theoretical and methodological perspective. It moves from theoretical reflections, grounding on the conservation debate, about architectural heritage reuse social dimension. These reflections serve as a lens to analyze the different methodologies set in the evaluation field to assess alternatives for reuse projects by giving prominence to their social impact. Then, the previous reflections are better focused through a case study, identified in choosing the most suitable reuse alternative for the "Ritiro del Carmine" Monastery in the Campania Region. Finally, the implications of such an integrated approach are discussed by highlighting its strategic role in heritage conservation decisions and its room for improvement.

In modern conditions of general globalization and mobility within different work systems, but also due to the noticeable need for narrow specializations of knowledge, languages for specific purposes are becoming an increasingly relevant category. In this paper we focused on possible ways of testing the language for specific purposes. After a brief presentation of theoretical views on the languages for specific purposes, and pointing to different views of testing in this area, we tried to describe the impact that the complex topic of interaction between language knowledge and professional knowledge can have on testing, as well as the way the dual notion of authenticity is reflected through LSP testing. Our goal was to provide an overview of different views on LSP testing, to point out its specifics, and, above all, the complex issues and possible ways to solve them by combining several different perspectives. It was also pointed out that interdisciplinary research and cooperation of experts from various fields could make a great contribution to development in this area.

The paper describes the review procedure for a reading comprehension test designed for high school students. The objective is to analyze the functioning of a measuring instrument, used in the context of an investigation on reading in the high schools of three Italian regions – Basilicata, Calabria and Campania – in order to improve and perfect this instrument in view of the subsequent research phases. The reflections that follow are intended to provide a guide for the interpretation of the response frequencies, the indices of discrimination and difficulty, useful for establishing which questions need further revision. By analyzing internal consistency, construct validity, understood as item discriminativity, difficulty, biserial point values and distribution of answers on the four options provided by the multiple answer, we intend to demonstrate how, by administering the same test several times, we they can obtain new indications that allow them to file and refine the problematic questions, reflecting on the critical issues that have emerged (Agrusti, 2008).

In the last years, the concept of «Virtual Mobility» has receiving a growing attention from educational policy makers and institutions, because it has the potential to make more accessible and effective students and teachers mobility in Higher Education. Virtual Mobility could be defined as institutional ICT-supported activities that trigger or facilitate international collaborative experiences in the context of teaching and/or learning. Despite the interest, there is still a few empirical researches regarding actual effectiveness of Virtual Mobility implementation and which technological solutions could be adopted. The present paper describes a research project aimed 1 at designing an Open and Accessible Virtual Mobility Massive Open Online Course, by involving students and teachers from six European countries and higher education institutions. 716 participants completed and assessed the Open Virtual Mobility MOOC. Participants expressed a positive evaluation of different MOOCs features: (1) Badges; (2) Technical features; (3) Gamification. Four out of eight MOOCs obtained the highest evaluation: (1) Collaborative learning; (2) Autonomy-drive learning; (3) Open-mindedness; (4) Intercultural Skills. Future research trajectories would be addressed.

This paper reports on the implementation of a didactic sequence which addresses the oral genre selection interview, as a support in the construction of a didactic model, focusing particularly on the evaluation process implemented. The interview was constructed as an oral genre, hence as a communicative social practice and the aim was to develop students’ oral skills through activities grounded in Conversation Analysis (CA). The proposal was motivated on account of the research problem that investigates whether it is possible to develop, potentialize and optimize oral skills through the teaching and approach to text/discursive genres in high school, purposely designed for students who are concluding their technical/vocational education. From the research problem, the educational product developed encompasses a common situation to workers, whose preparation lacked a model directed at the applicant (interviewee). The integration of the oral element involved in a text production requires, firstly, a social practice that is built in a collective context, the text is produced by means of interactions. Results bespeak a more conscious learning process involving language adequacy for manifold social practices, especially for formal situations of linguistic-discursive interactions, as is the case of a selective process.

The initial training for support teachers is an essential factor in promoting the quality of inclusive processes in schools of different types and levels. The Specialization Course for Support Teacher, established by the D.M. 30.09.2011, is a training course whose effectiveness must be systematically monitored and evaluated in order to progressively increase its quality. In this sense, the paper presents the evaluation system developed and tested in the fourth edition (2018-19) course, highlighting its usefulness for the purpose of redesigning and improving it. Monitorare e valutare la formazione degli insegnanti di sostegno in una prospettiva di miglioramento La formazione iniziale degli insegnanti specializzati per le attività di sostegno didattico agli alunni con disabilità rappresenta un fattore essenziale per promuovere la qualità dei processi inclusivi nelle scuole di differente ordine e grado. I Corsi di Specializzazione per il Sostegno istituiti dal D.M. 30.09.2011 costituiscono dunque un percorso formativo di cui è necessario monitorare e valutare sistematicamente l’efficacia per incrementarne progressivamente la qualità. In questo senso il contributo presenta l’impianto valutativo elaborato e sperimentato nella quarta edizione del corso del 2018-19, evidenziandone l’utilità al fine della riprogettazione e del miglioramento del percorso.

The paper explores the theme of design and evaluation of paths to adulthood for young people leaving the care and protection system. An innovative and relevant theme for educational research, that brings into play different skills, professionals, services and institutions. Starting from the theoretical and political-strategic framework, the methodological plan of the national experimentation promoted by the Ministry of Labor and Social Policies and carried out in collaboration with the Istituto degli Innocenti is presented, which is expressed in a plurality of and evaluation design levels. The challenge is to make a constructive dialogue between scientific research, policies and professional practice in order to develop and to improve intervention models on decisions evidence-based decisions. Progettazione e valutazione di interventi sperimentali per l’accompagnamento all’autonomia dei care leavers Il contributo affronta il tema della progettazione e valutazione di percorsi di accompagnamento all’autonomia per ragazze e ragazzi che, al compimento della maggiore età, lasciano il sistema di protezione e tutela. Un tema innovativo e rilevante per la ricerca educativa che chiama in gioco diverse competenze, professionalità, servizi e istituzioni. Partendo dal quadro teorico e politico-strategico di riferimento, viene presentato l’impianto metodologico della sperimentazione nazionale promossa dal Ministero del lavoro e delle politiche sociali e realizzata in collaborazione con l’Istituto degli Innocenti, che si declina in una pluralità di livelli progettuali e valutativi. La sfida è quella di far dialogare in modo costruttivo la ricerca scientifica, le politiche e la pratica professionale per sviluppare e migliorare i modelli di intervento sulla base di decisioni fondate su basi di conoscenze valide.

Territorial capital (TC) is often defined as a set of tangible and intangible values, of an economic, social and environmental nature, capable of determining the development potential of a territory. In this paper, two fundamental categories of TC factors are identified. The first (generative factors) includes human capital and social capital which together significantly influence individual and collective action. The material and immaterial effects induced by this category of TC take the form of structures, infrastructures, productive and governmental structures, artistic expressions, and the cultural heritage and constitute the second category of TC factors (here defined as sedimented factors). Measuring and assessing these two categories, here applied to the case of provinces in Italy, could allow the formulation of key policy suggestions for economic growth and territorial development. The preliminary results provide useful information about the methodological framework adopted and pose new questions for future research developments.

This paper presents a reflection on the topic of the university professor’s performance. A model (SFERA) is described, it allows to evaluate the professor’s performance; moreover, descriptive data and correlations show the relationship among the model’s dimensions (synchrony, strengths, energy, rhythm and activation) and the perceived teaching self-efficacy and the representations of evaluation. It emerged the importance of training program and the usefulness of helping professors reflect on their performance and on the possible improvements to be taken to support student learning and successful teaching. Results also suggest starting training experiences that permit the university professor to reflect on his/her performance in the classroom and during the exams, helping him/her to identify the appropriate strategies to improve and to face the challenges of one’s role, through transformative learning. La prestazione del docente universitario e i suoi legami con l’autoefficacia didattica e la valutazione Il contributo presenta una riflessione sul tema della prestazione lavorativa del docente universitario. Viene illustrato un modello (SFERA) che permette di valutare la prestazione del docente universitario; inoltre sono presentati alcuni dati descrittivi e correlazioni che mostrano i legami delle dimensioni del modello (Sincronia, punti di Forza, Energia, Ritmo e Attivazione) con le percezioni di autoefficacia didattica e le rappresentazioni della valutazione. Emerge l’importanza di percorsi di formazione sul tema e l’utilità di aiutare i docenti a riflettere sulla propria prestazione e sui possibili miglioramenti da adottare per sostenere l’apprendimento degli studenti e la riuscita didattica. I risultati suggeriscono inoltre di avviare esperienze formative che consentano al docente di riflettere sulla propria prestazione in aula e durante gli esami, aiutandolo a individuare le strategie adeguate per migliorarsi e per far fronte alle sfide del proprio ruolo, attraverso un apprendimento trasformativo.

This paper focuses on the role of education as a tool for social mobility and access to citizenship. In particular, the condition of the University between funding reduction and bureaucratic hypertrophy is examined. Finally, the centrality of knowledge is emphasized as a good in itself, beyond its utilitarian interpretation.

This paper investigates the question of evaluation in relation to the individual’s formation process and, as an inherent necessity in the educational process, the examination revolves round the problem of building knowledge and competences in all human beings. Commencing with the historical context, the aim of the investigation is to evidence the problematical issues that the practice of evaluating involves and eventually to outline an interpretative paradigm respectful of the learning processes of individuals who, during their lives, are involved in a continual reshaping of their cognitive potential both on a horizontal plane (in relation to contexts and formal, non formal and informal formative agencies) and on a vertical plane (as a permanent process linked to the different «ages» of their development and maturity). Hence, the reflection presents the main tendencies of evaluating interpretation in school contexts: in doing so, it makes the difficulties encountered by the traditional evaluating practice come to light, whilst outlining those possible paths of re-reading that aim to restore balance in the issue of the complex formation process and making evaluation a strategic moment that activates formation dynamics from the point of view of both cognitive process and personal development.

Heritage tourism has always been considered an important part of Bulgarian tourism portfolio and a significant regional development driver. It is officially set as a priority in a number of strategic documents at a national, regional and local level. Substantial financial resources for heritage socialization have been allocated after the accession of the country to the EU in 2007. A special scheme for tourism attractions development was implemented within the Operational Program “Regional Development” (OPRD) 2007-2013, with approved funding for a total of 120 heritage sites throughout the country. Yet, the EU funded projects have raised a fierce public debate regarding the delicate balance between heritage commodification and conservation as well as the disputable costs and benefits in terms of heritage protection, tourism development and its regional impacts. Based on the understanding that attractions are the core element of a competitive tourism product, the paper presents a brief review of the OPRD 2007-2013 supported projects and analyzes the experience gained in the process of projects’ selection and implementation.

The present paper analyzes some examples of how the evaluation tools have been adapted to the environment of MOOC and lead to some interesting examples with respect to the redefinition of the learning experience and the learning outcomes. The starting point is twofold: 1) the analysis of the evaluation models implemented in MOOCs, grounded on peer review and data analysis supported by specific software and 2) a review of the effectiveness of the different methodologies with respect to the implementation of the evaluation models in the specific context of a MOOC. The results demonstrate two main approaches. On the one hand, “peer evaluation”-based approaches, supported by technological tools, have emerged with the aim to encourage participation and limit in part the negative effects of the automatic procedures applied to the learning context. On the other hand, approaches focused on data analysis, especially those exploiting methodologies of sentiment analysis, do not seem to be a reliable indicator of success of the students in MOOC, although they offer more information about the learning experience in itself. Il rapporto tra metodologie di valutazione e learning outcome nei corsi massivi online (MOOC) Il presente contributo analizza alcuni esempi di adattamento/adattabilità degli strumenti di valutazione nell’ambito dell’ambiente MOOC. I MOOC hanno infatti offerto la base per alcune interessanti sperimentazioni di ridefinizione dell’esperienza di apprendimento e dei risultati di apprendimento negli ultimi anni. Il punto di partenza è l’analisi dei principali modelli di valutazione implementati nei MOOC, in particolare quelli basati sulla peer review e sulla data analysis supportata da software specifici. Si apre da qui la discussione relativa all’efficacia delle metodologie di valutazione in relazione alla implementazione del modello valutativo nel contesto specifico dei MOOC. Emergono nel complesso approcci basati sulla peer evaluation gestiti con strumenti tecnologici in grado di favorire la partecipazione e contenere, in qualche misura, gli effetti negativi delle procedure automatizzate di valutazione. Gli approcci basati invece sulla data analysis, in particolare quelli in grado di sfruttare metodologie di sentiment analysis, non sembrano fornire un indicatore affidabile del successo degli studenti, sebbene forniscano informazioni interessanti rispetto alla learning experience nel suo complesso.

This paper aims to rethink the culture of evaluation in the light of the anthropological transformation that is affecting knowledge in the age of internet. We argue that evaluation is a reaction producing closure and disciplinary surveillance against the emerging changes in networked knowledge. The more knowledge institutions think their borders are threatened by the challenges of new forms of knowledge production and distribution, the stronger they react as to protect their artificial borders. In short, we intend to explore the relationship between the process of governamentality based on the evaluation practices, on the one side, and the new digital technologies of communication and knowledge, on the other. Disabling of the capabilities, reduction of the info-diversity and crisis of the culture of cooperation are just some of the most evident consequences of the culture of evaluation.

This article aims at presenting an overview of the most interesting issues (from the librarians' point of view) happened during the last exercise of the Evaluation of the quality of research (VQR 2011-2014), to which all Italian universities took part. The analysis starts from the direct experience of the author as part of the consultation and assistance service at the University of Florence, both during the evaluation of the quality of research exercise and in the National scientific qualification (ASN). The paper would be helpful to those librarians who, although not involved by their own institutions, are interested in the themes of academic research evaluation and in their consequences for librarians themselves. In particular, issues like double publication data, international IDs and bibliometric results, and copyright are described.

This paper explores the topic of early school leaving and stresses its importance in the inclusive education. A synthetic review of literature is explained, paying specific attention to evaluation results of interventions realized. The study particularly focuses on the analysis of some exemplifying cases of evaluation about outcomes of programs against early school leaving. Evaluation methods and the main results and evidence are highlighted through a cross-reading. Finally, some emerging research perspectives are proposed. Programmi e azioni di contrasto della dispersione scolastica: casi e metodi di valutazione Il presente contributo affronta il tema della dispersione scolastica, evidenziandone la rilevanza nella prospettiva di una scuola inclusiva. Viene proposta una sintetica rassegna della letteratura, con particolare attenzione alla valutazione dei risultati degli interventi attuati. Lo studio si focalizza, nello specifico, sull’analisi di alcuni casi esemplificativi di valutazione degli esiti di programmi di contrasto alla dispersione scolastica. Si evidenziano, attraverso una lettura trasversale, le metodologie di valutazione adottate ed i principali esiti ed evidenze emerse. Verranno, infine, proposte, alcune prospettive di ricerca emergenti.

This paper focuses on the main tools used in Italy to evaluate the quality of school inclusion, stressing the importance of evaluation for enhances schools’ inclusive processes. The analysis performed compares the different tools, tracing a historical examination, and finally proposing an analysis board of them. Strumenti per valutare l’inclusione: una rassegna italiana Nel presente contributo si presenteranno alcuni dei principali strumenti utilizzati in Italia per valutare la qualità dell’inclusione scolastica al fine di sottolineare l’importanza che assume per la realizzazione della scuola inclusiva. L’analisi compiuta pone a confronto i diversi strumenti, tracciandone una disamina storica, e infine propone una scheda di analisi comparativa degli stessi.

According to the modern human capital theory, the learning process is assuming a central role for a country development. Therefore, it is very important to encourage an active and conscious learning. This paper shows the case of the National Olympic of Statistics, that is an initiative to improve statistic reasoning in the Second Grade Middle School. In particular, it has been analyzed, through Item Response Theory models, only one of the competition questionnaires. The aim of this work is to provide a critical review of the questionnaire and to highlight the importance of using statistical methods in evaluation processes.

It is universally agreed that professional development is important but much money has been spent on training and development activities without a commensurate impact on pupils’ learning and wellbeing. With financial constraints hitting education systems across the world, the time is right to try to understand professional development better for as Lawless and Pellegrino (2007) state although the number of opportunities for teachers has increased, our understanding about what constitutes quality professional development, what teachers learn from it, or its impact on student outcomes has not substantially changed. Ascertaining the difference professional development makes is a complex process. Exposure to and participation in development activities may or may not bring about change to individuals’ beliefs, values, attitudes and behaviours. These changes to individuals may or may not lead to changes in the classroom and school practice. And these changes may or may not lead to improvement in pupil outcomes. Difficulties in researching this field, some have argued, stem from simplistic conceptualisations of teacher professional learning that fail to consider how learning is embedded in work contexts. This paper seeks to unpack some methodological issues related to evaluating the difference that professional development makes.

Methodological, instrumental and global factors seem to be decisive for the growing inability of the Spatial Planning. Furthermore, the Spatial Planning focusing on different scales and sectors is less and less able to regulate, coordinate and orient spatial development. A certain number of factors can explain that: the speculative demand of urban space, the low-cost places, the competences among municipalities or the interaction of different scalar plans. Factors, all of them, related to higher distance between plan and territory. Accordingly, it could be asserted that there is an unexpected territory as a context where the multi-sectorial, multi-scalar, multi-temporal or multi-instrumental dimensions are difficult to achieve. Through a critical revision of the factors and dimensions previously mentioned, this paper presents a conceptual renewal of the Spatial Planning based on three elements: a proactive use of the spatial information, the evaluation of planning and the use of scenarios.

This paper attempts to put some order among the different notions of pain that are to be found in the Nietzschean philosophical corpus. It tries to show that there is a mutation of the Nietzschean concept of pain, from the notion of pain as evaluation to that of pain as localization of a commotion. Therefore pain is not in itself the source of a reaction, but is actually a consequence of a commotion that a reaction has already addressed by the time of the appearance of pain. A deeper notion of pain is therefore sketched here, one that depicts it as an illusory reaction, destined at separating the global commotion of the organism from its alleged localized cause, thus separating the action from the agent and postponing the facing of the global effect of the commotion. It is for this reason that pain becomes a kind of “matrix” for the understanding of our interior life for Nietzsche, as well as a philosophical indicator of his theoretical adversaries. Finally, the end of this article attempts to show that certain positive indications for a different status of pain might serve as guiding lines for the uncovering of a Nietzschean theory of action.

It is considered that a weakness of the Romanian tourism offer is the quality of guest services. In this paper we established as an objective to examine in detail the importance given by the consumers to the components of guest service quality and their perceived performance, based on the three pillars of service quality: the material base (equipments), staff training and staff behavior. The emphasis is on the investigation regarding staff training and behaviour, taking into account the multiple attributes SERVQUAL scale. On the basis of this work lies a survey done in March-April 2010 on the population of Oradea, on a sample of 1060 people. Results confirm the importance granted to staff in ensuring quality of tourism services and their perceived relatively weak performance.

Este artigo pretende, a partir da perspectiva da gramática sistêmico-funcional (Halliday, 1985, 1994, 2004), discutir, em um primeiro momento, a questão terminológica em relação ao Sistema de Avaliatividade (Martin and White, 2005; Martin and Rose, 2003) para que, em seguida, encaminhemos a discussão sobre como as instâncias avaliativas são realizadas no texto em português brasileiro. Nosso foco será principalmente nos recursos para Gradação, e a avaliação negativa utilizada pelo produtor textual para posicionar-se perante o que expressa e, para tanto, recorremos também à noção bakhtiniana de dialogismo.This paper aims to discuss, from Halliday's systemic functional grammar perspective (1985, 1994, 2004), the problems related to the translation of the term appraisal into Portuguese, as a way of discussing the lexico-grammatical realizations of evaluative stances in texts in Brazilian Portuguese. We will focus on Graduation (Martin and White, 2005; Martin and Rose, 2003), a resource used by text producers to take stances towards what they express and we will also refer to the Bakhtinian notion of dialogism.

The use of games and simulations in the classroom has prompted research concerning their pervasiveness and pedagogical benefits, but little research has focused on how teachers can develop their own games and simulations. This paper presents an outline of how to develop games and simulation for classroom use. This framework can lead to further research and its findings can help assess whether games and simulations contribute to decision-making skills and to what extent they contribute to numerous cognitive benefits in learners.