THE EFFECT OF INPUT SPACING ON EFL LEARNERS' VOCABULARY KNOWLEDGE

The lag or the intersession interval (ISI) is the gap between two learning sessions. Lag effects are one of those effects that few studies have examined. Moreover, albeit a huge bulk of research on input spacing (i.e., phenomenon of distributed learning conditions) has been done in laboratory setting, few studies have directly examined this issue within real contexts. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine the impact of not only spaced-short but also spaced-long condition on the vocabulary knowledge of EFL learners. To achieve this goal, 37 intermediate level EFL learners were selected from four intact classes. The whole process took place in nine weeks; two testing sessions for pretest and a 28-day delayed posttest, two learning sessions and a final review session. Learning was done in two sessions. In this process, 20 target items were divided into 10 target words from each two lists. The first 10 words were studied during the first session, and reviewed during the review session. Eight days (intersession interval) ISI was specified for the spaced-long condition. Finally, a 1-day ISI was specified for the spaced-short condition. To do so, the second 10 words during the second session were studied, and then they were reviewed during the review session. The results of paired samples t-test revealed that spaced-long input was more effective than the space-short. Spaced-long condition could help learners for conceptual understanding to develop, reduce forgetting and provide opportunities for learners to learn more efficiently.

Effect of standardized post-coercion review session on symptoms of PTSD: results from a randomized controlled trial

Objective Post-coercion review is increasingly regarded as a mean to reduce the negative consequences of coercive interventions, including the development of posttraumatic symptoms. However, the efficacy of this intervention in preventing posttraumatic symptoms or PTSD has not been sufficiently studied. The objective of this study is to examine the influence of a single, standardized post-coercion review session on the development or exacerbation of PTSD symptoms in patients with psychotic disorders. Methods In a multi-center, two-armed, randomized controlled trial, patients who experienced coercive interventions during current hospitalization were either randomized to standard treatment or an intervention group receiving a guideline-based, standardized reflecting review session. Factorial MANCOVA and subsequent ANCOVAs investigated the effects of the post-coercion reflecting review session on post-traumatic symptoms as measured by the subscales of the Impact of Events Scale-Revised (IES-R). Similarly, the effect of the intervention on the intensity of the peritraumatic reactions measured by the Peritraumatic Distress Inventory (PDI) was analyzed by conducting a factorial ANCOVA. Results N = 82 patients were included in an intention-to-treat analysis. MANCOVA and post hoc ANCOVAs revealed a significant main effect of the intervention for the IES-R subscales intrusion and hyperarousal, when controlling for levels of peritraumatic distress, whereby intervention group participants presented lower respective mean scores. There was no significant difference regarding the intensity of the peritraumatic reaction. Conclusion Standardized post-coercion review contributes to a reduction of the burden of PTSD symptoms in patients with psychotic disorders experiencing coercive interventions in acute settings and shall be recommended as a measure of trauma-informed care. The trial was registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (ID NCT03512925) on 01/30/2018 (retrospectively registered).

Operation Outbreak: A Periop 101 Exam Review Escape Room

Background: Perioperative nursing is expected to see a 20% reduction in the workforce due to retirement within five (5) years. To recruit and retain nurses within this specialty, the Association of Operating Room Nurses (AORN) Periop 101: Core Curriculum™ OR was added to an existing nurse residency program. Periop 101 is an online learning program providing evidence-based guidelines for practice and requires the learner to pass a final exam with a score of 80% or higher. Following a didactic final exam review session, most nurse residents at a midwestern community hospital failed to pass the final exam on their first attempt. Aim: To address this knowledge gap, the clinical educators decided to create a more interactive review session by creating an escape room. Current literature supports the use of escape rooms to increase knowledge and learner engagement. Method: Nurse residents participate in Operation Outbreak during the exam review session. A convenience sample of twenty-two (22) registered nurses were included in the quality improvement project. Group one consisted of 18 participants who received only the didactic review session. Group two had four participants who participated in the didactic review session as well as the Operation Outbreak escape room. Results/Conclusion: Overall, there was improvement in the average final exam scores and average percentage of residents to pass the exam on the first attempt after the addition of the escape room. Statistical analysis was not performed due to sample limitations.

A Comparison of Teacher-directed and Author-directed Peer Review in a Japanese University EFL Class

<em>Peer review is widely-used in EFL writing classes, and it has been found that students hold generally positive attitudes towards both providing and receiving peer feedback. However, while it is common for teachers to utilize peer response worksheets, little research has looked at the impact that the specific style of these sheets can have on how language learners conduct peer review and their attitudes towards it. In this study, participants first used a generic peer response sheet designed by the teacher (teacher-directed peer review), then an individualized peer response sheet that each learner had created, focusing on specific points that they wanted advice on (author-directed peer review). Surveys were conducted after each peer review session, and the data revealed that the two peer review styles prompted peer reviewers to give different types of feedback, with a greater focus on surface level issues during author-directed peer review. Furthermore, although all students agreed that both styles had been useful, 60% stated a preference for the author-directed style.</em>

Promoting Students' Autonomous Learning Using Portfolio Assessment in EFL Writing Class

This study attempts to present the implementation of portfolio assessment to promote students’ autonomous learning in one of reputable universities in Indonesia. The participants were 30 students enrolled Essay Writing Class. A collection of students’ work during the course in the form of ‘Essay Writing Module’ was used to provide authentic evidence of the implementation of portfolio assessment and observation checklists of students’ work was used to present the completeness of portfolio assessment of each student. To know students’ autonomous learning, semi-structured interview was carried out. The results prove that portfolio assessment can promote students autonomous learning since it provides some benefits for students such as motivate them to do self-evaluation and reflection, encourage them to be actively involved in peer review session, and also enhance their awareness of their weaknesses. HIGHLIGHTS: Portfolio assessment promotes students’ autonomous learning by providing some benefits for students such as provide a guide for self-evaluation, reflection, and peer review. Each element in portfolio encourages students’ engagement during the writing activities both inside and outside the classroom. An insightful idea of specific criteria motivates students to set goals in improving their writing competence and performance.

A design review session protocol for the implementation of immersive virtual reality in usability-focused analysis

Research and applications related to Virtual Reality (VR) in the Architecture, Engineering, Construction and Facility Management (AEC/FM) industry are steadily increasing, being considered as one of the current trends in digital innovation. A convergence is currently on-going between Building Information Modelling (BIM), VR implementation and the soft landings principles, which highlight the need for a smooth transition from design to operation through the early involvement of clients and end-users. In particular, immersive virtual environments could allow stakeholders to experience the full-scale representation of a virtual facility prototype in an intuitive and engaging manner through immersion and sense of presence, promoting feedback collection during usability-focused design review meetings. On the other hand, despite the renewed interest in immersive VR, both technological and procedural challenges to its effective implementation still exist. The latter are within the scope of this study, which aims to address them in a systematic way as a comprehensive guideline for clients and design teams. This study describes the development of a VR-aided usability-focused design review session protocol for implementing immersive VR when clients and end-users are involved in design review meetings. It is the result of an inductive approach associated with qualitative research methods for data collection and data analysis. A case study has been selected as a main research method for facing the first step into the research problem. A further iteration of data collection and analysis was adopted to guarantee the validity of the research, including talks with experts and literature comparison. Finally, the session protocol has been developed in the form of a process map representing all the necessary phases and activities to consider for the effective adoption of immersive VR to evaluate design intents with clients and end-users. As a comprehensive summary, the session protocol fills a gap in the research on the adoption of virtual reality in the AEC industry, which was lacking a prescriptive and structured process to drive the effective use of this technology in collaborative meetings and decision-making processes.

Escape the Evil Professor! Escape Room Review Activity

In this article, the author describes an exam review activity in which students answered questions and solved puzzles in order to escape the review session. In a general psychology (100-level) course and research methods in psychology (300-level) course, students solved a series of puzzles and review questions. This format is similar to popular escape room attractions. Finally, the first group to sing a song that would appease the evil professor was allowed to leave the review session. Perceptions of the escape room were positive and concepts questioned in the review game were retained better than concepts that were not included.