Open Password – Friday July 2nd, 2021
#942
EconBiz Academic Career Kit – Young Researchers – Economics – Open Educational Resources – Nicole Krüger – Tamara Pianos – Didactic Concept – Negotiating Meaning – Intrinsic Motivation – Interactive Materials – Gamification – Comic Relief – Blended Learning – HSP – UNESCO – Copyright – Licenses – CC- BY – News aktuell – Facts Office – Owned Media – Home Office – New Leadership – Earned Media – Paid Media – Shared Media – Integrated Communication – Marketing – PR – New Work – Self-organization – Work-Life Balance – Knowledge Transfer – Work Equipment – Flexibility – Personal responsibility – cultural change – socializing – virtual teams, internal communication – budget – Corona and career – gender equality
- Cover story
EconBiz Academic Career Kit Learning materials for young researchers in economics as Open Educational Resources (OER) – didactic concept – provision of interactive learning content – CC licenses in practice
- German citizens on fake news –
III. The big communication study
news current: New Work. Arrived well in the home office,
but no permanent solution – career also possible in the home office
Learning materials for young researchers
in economics as Open Educational Resources (OER)
Didactic concept – provision of interactive learning content – CC licenses in practice
By Nicole Krüger and Tamara Pianos, ZBW
Second part
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4 The didactic concept of the Academic Career Kit
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In order to create the Academic Career Kit as a pure e-learning tool, it was first necessary to consider which didactic features were important for this type of knowledge transfer. There is now widespread agreement in didactics that negotiating meaning in intentional learning is essential for learning success (Hinz, Radhoff & Wieckert, 2016, page 38), i.e. discussing and reflecting on the learning material. Furthermore, intrinsic motivation is central to learning success (Riedl, 2004, p. 35f.). Although this can be influenced by external factors, it cannot be completely replaced by them. Finally, “competence” is characterized, among other things, by the fact that what has been learned is not only conscious, but can also be applied independently.
E-learning is often criticized for lacking the social aspect, the negotiation of meaning. However, one advantage of e-learning that has always been seen is the independence of time and place – and this is not just a factor that affects the convenience of use and access to learning materials. Rather, the most important advantage is that learners can acquire the learning material when their intrinsic motivation is particularly high, for example when they have a problem to solve. This advantage should not be underestimated when it comes to learning skills, as this point in time usually comes with its own use case. Learners learn in the context of a practical application in the context that is relevant to them (6). You directly apply what you have learned in practice, which allows your skills to develop.
However, for the didactic concept of e-learning materials, the lack of social interaction in the learning process means that the materials must be offered in a modular manner and kept very short. In e-learning, the intrinsic motivation for learning cannot be influenced by the social aspect; the only decisive factor is the relevance of the material for the learners at a given time. At best, offering interactive or gamified materials can increase the length of time spent and active engagement with the learning material and increase learning success (Eckardt et al., 2017, pages 139 ff.).
Against this background, the EconBiz Academic Career Kit is offered modularly in three separate toolkits, each with four subsections. It addresses the topics in a concise manner, but refers to further materials on the Internet. What was essential for pure e-learning in the already overloaded everyday work of young researchers was the aspect of interaction with the material and the integration of some elements of “Comic Relief”. There are drag-and-drop tasks and quizzes, for example on identifying predatory journals or on the properties of research data that are published according to the FAIR principles.
Figure 4: Drag and drop interaction to identify people without ORCID
The kit also includes a “shoulder to cry on” and an exit option for “researchers with genius status.”
Figure 5: Comic Relief “I’m a Genius”
There is also a reward at the end of modules.
Figure 6: Reward for completing a module: “Feel like a boss”.
The primary aim is to create awareness of topics such as publication strategy, research data management, open access and copyright, predatory journals and scientific communication, which can be further discussed and deepened in a professional environment. The material is also suitable for integration into blended learning scenarios and for reuse in classroom training. In order to comply with this use, the Academic Career Kit was implemented as an OER in a technical environment that allows further use and editing by third parties.
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5 The provision of interactive learning content as OER
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For the Academic Career Kit, it was obvious from the outset to provide the content as OER in the narrower sense. According to UNESCO’s definition, this does not just mean the freely accessible publication of materials on the Internet, but publication under a license that allows distribution by third parties – and this in a form that enables the material to be edited (7). This type of open provision is particularly useful in connection with materials to improve information literacy for young researchers, as training offerings in this field are only being developed, not all educational institutions have the capacity to develop subject-specific knowledge in this field, and
Young researchers can pass on tips on questions about scientific work online (8).
However, the challenge for us was that these were interactive learning materials that were to be delivered as OER. This form of OER has so far been less common. In the authors’ experience, OER is mainly available as images, texts, audio files and videos – and less as interactive tutorials or gamified learning offers. The provision of interactive, changeable materials was not only a question of licensing the materials, but also a question of the technical platform.
In order to provide the Academic Career Kit, software had to be found that was available open source and enabled independent, structured copying of interactive learning content by third parties. It should be possible to use the materials without any programming knowledge if possible. The open source software H5P (9) proved to be the best solution (10). The motto of H5P is: “Create, share and reuse interactive HTML5 content.” H5P is available as a free plugin for WordPress, Drupal and Moodle – platforms that are already widely used in libraries and universities. With H5P you can create various content elements, such as interactive slides (with quizzes, videos, drag-and-drop, audio elements and much more), interactive videos, quizzes and games. It is also important that materials created with H5P are mobile optimized.
Fig. 7: Working with H5P in WordPress – uploading H5P files via selecting “Upload” or creating your own interactive content elements
For the pure reuse of H5P content, there is an “Embed” button under the tutorials, which is used to generate a code snippet. Just like with YouTube videos, this can be integrated into your own website or learning management system.
If you want to edit existing H5P tutorials and make them available in a modified form, you can download them using the “Reuse” button under the tutorials and then insert them into your own H5P plugin. Republication of the changed materials is then only possible in WordPress, Drupal and Moodle (11). From there it can be embedded into any other website via embed code.
Figure 8: Downloading (Reuse) or Embedding (Embed) H5P content
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6 CC licenses in practice
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Anyone who wants to create OER in accordance with UNESCO must place it under a license that regulates its subsequent use. Otherwise, if the materials have a character worthy of protection, they automatically fall under copyright law and may not be distributed or made available in modified form by third parties. Overviews of CC licenses and their application seem to be manageable. The graphic “Which CC license is right for me?” (12) or the “CC License Chooser” (13) are very valuable tools here. However, in the practical implementation of the Academic Career Kit, the issue of licenses proved to be incredibly complex and the advice of the ZBW legal department was sought more than once. Questions arose about finding free materials, mixing works under different licenses, logos, images of people and screenshots, as well as issuing a license for one’s own OER.
Considerations about licensing your own OER should be at the very beginning of planning learning materials, as this license affects both which external materials may be reused and which platforms your own OER may be posted on.
6.1 Choice of CC license for the Academic Career Kit. CC-BY-NC licensing was initially planned for the Academic Career Kit. Edits of the material should be permitted (also in accordance with the definition of OER by UNESCO), so that the restriction “no derivatives”, i.e. publication under CC-BY-ND, was out of the question. However, we initially wanted to rule out commercial use. However, when publishing under CC-BY-NC (“non commercial”), we received a message from the community that this license prohibits distribution in portals with advertising, as this represents commercial use. This also includes YouTube, for example. So we opened the license and placed the Academic Career Kit under the CC-BY license.
Caution is advised when issuing licenses, as it is possible to open the license further at a later date, but it is not possible to subsequently restrict the rights of use.
6.2 Search for CC-licensed materials for your own OER. Searches in Wikimedia Commons, CC Search, Pixabay, Flickr, YouTube and Google are suitable for finding free images, audio files, slides or videos for reuse for your own OER (see Table 1). CC-licensed materials can also be found in SlideShare – but these cannot be specifically filtered out.
Read the final episode: The mix of different materials in an OER – distribution of OER on the internet – conclusion
Trend report 2021:
Communication, marketing and PR
New Work. Arrived well in the home office,
but not a permanent solution
Career also possible in the home office
(news current) Owned media are and will remain the most important channels for professional communication in the future. Working from home primarily improves self-organization, work-life balance and concentration. However, working completely or predominantly from the home office is the preferred idea of the future for very few people. Spontaneous conversations and knowledge transfer are particularly lacking. There is also a need for action when it comes to new leadership: not even half of those surveyed said that managers are well or very well prepared for the upheavals in the virtual working world. After all, 60 percent of PR professionals believe that working from home does not stand in the way of their personal career.
These are the central results of the news aktuell trend report 2021. Together with factskontor, the dpa subsidiary news aktuell asked PR professionals from Germany and Switzerland to what extent communication channels are changing in the context of the “Corona” catalyst and what challenges the industry is facing as a result The world of work is changing. 539 specialists and managers took part in the online survey.
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Changing media landscape and media consumption .
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In-house content and channels are most important in the current communication strategy of German and Swiss communication professionals. Owned media has the largest share in the PESO mix at 44 percent. Earned media comes in second at 30 percent. These two channels will remain the most important in the next two years, but with some reductions: those surveyed predict a loss of three percent for owned and a loss of four percent for earned. According to those surveyed, the current share of paid content (paid media) of 16 percent will increase to 17 percent. Shared media is making the biggest jump: from 11 percent today to 16 percent in two years.
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Integrated communication .
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More than half of companies already combine marketing and PR in one department (55 percent), with an increasing trend in the next two years (58 percent). In around one in four cases there is still a delimitation of areas of activity, but with close cooperation, for example on specific projects or campaigns (28 percent). Here too, a slight increase to 30 percent is forecast in two years. Only 13 percent of those surveyed stated that both departments still work largely independently of each other. A consistent and strict separation of work is a relic of the past: only one percent still organizes PR and marketing completely separately.
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New Work. Arrived well in the home office, but not a permanent solution.
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A large majority of those surveyed rate working from home as predominantly (21 percent) or even clearly positive (49 percent). Eight percent have a negative attitude towards working from home. Most people would like to partially return to the office after Corona. 39 percent strive for a balanced mix between office and home office. Almost one in four people want to work more days in the office than at home (23 percent), and one in seven want to work the other way around (14 percent). One in five people would like to be able to freely choose where they work in the future (19 percent). But 100 percent office (3 percent) or home office (2 percent) is the future for almost no one.
Self-organization, work-life balance and concentration improve when working from home. Team spirit, knowledge transfer and work equipment deteriorate. 60 percent of those surveyed stated that they can work more independently at home. For 58 percent of those surveyed, the balance between work and private life improves through more flexibility in the home office. Half attest to better concentration (52 percent) and higher productivity (49 percent) at home. Creativity and motivation, on the other hand, are balanced. 30 percent of those surveyed are more creative when working from home, while 30 percent are more creative in the office. There is also no clear trend when it comes to motivation: a quarter of those surveyed are more motivated when working from home (27 percent), a quarter lack the necessary drive at home (25 percent).
According to 58 percent of those surveyed, relationships with colleagues suffer the most as a result of working from home. A major disadvantage of mobile working is the slow transfer of knowledge. Over half attest to a deterioration in this aspect (54 percent). Last but not least, the working conditions in the home office are deteriorating for the majority of those surveyed: 51 percent have worse work equipment at home than in the office.
Corporate and management culture: More flexibility and personal responsibility, otherwise hardly any cultural change. The Corona crisis has so far only had a selective impact on the corporate and management culture. The only thing that has increased significantly is work independent of time and location due to the pandemic. 35 percent of those surveyed say that they have been able to be much more flexible in the past twelve months, and 19 percent say that their ability to work independently has increased significantly. The pandemic is also due to companies’ increased concern for employee health: for 17 percent of those surveyed, the topic of corporate health has become significantly more important in the past year.
Otherwise, not much has changed in the corporate and management culture since the beginning of the Corona crisis. The majority of those surveyed therefore attested to no change in criteria such as trust in employees, sustainability, social responsibility, mutual appreciation, diversity or an empathetic leadership style.
There is a need to catch up when it comes to new leadership. When asked about school grades, less than half of those surveyed gave the managers a good or very good grade in New Leadership (43 percent). 28 percent attest to satisfactory performance from their superiors. One in four people see the managers in their own company as poorly prepared for the upheavals in the world of work: 11 percent each gave the grades 4 (sufficient) and 5 (poor), 4 percent gave the grade 6 (unsatisfactory).
Spontaneous tea kitchen conversations are missed the most . When working in virtual or hybrid teams, most respondents miss out on socializing with colleagues. 59 percent of those surveyed miss personal conversations or “chatting” in between. In places 2-5 of the biggest deficits in decentralized collaboration are “halting flow of information”, “fun is lost”, “coordination that is too complex” and “technical hurdles”.
In order to compensate for the deficits in virtual teams, managers primarily ensure that technology works: 40 percent of those surveyed say that their management staff improve the digital equipment and promote digital know-how in the team. In second place are offers for informal exchange: “Socializing slots” – such as virtual coffee breaks, “good morning rituals” or after-work formats – are offered by managers to 35 percent of those surveyed.
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Internal communication
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High relevance of internal communication rather wishful thinking, budget mostly unchanged. Internal communication has become significantly more important over the past twelve months. Two thirds of the press offices state that this discipline has become more or much more important in their company since the Corona crisis and predict that it will further increase in importance in the medium and long term. According to the corporate communicators surveyed, internal communication is correspondingly high among management. The majority believe that employee communication is important (52 percent) or even very important to management (21 percent).
However, in only 40 percent of the companies surveyed, management values the work of internal communications. In every third company, management provides resources and drives the digitalization of internal channels (36 percent). Only one in four respondents takes part in internal communications in management’s strategic decision-making processes (28 percent). Almost every fifth press office has a strategy concept with clear objectives for internal communication (18 percent).
For the majority of press offices surveyed, the budget for internal communications will not change in the next twelve months (53 percent). 24 percent believe that spending will increase slightly, five percent even predict a strong increase. Nine percent predict a negative development, and the same number do not know.
Promoting together is the primary goal of internal communication . For 57 percent of the press offices and PR agencies surveyed, internal communication must support (virtual and decentralized) collaboration throughout the company even more in the next twelve months and promote a greater sense of community. Goals such as strengthening employee loyalty (54 percent), promoting knowledge transfer (53 percent) and enabling dialogue, feedback and participation (49 percent) are also becoming more important.
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Corona and career
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Cautiously optimistic: a career is also possible in the home office. 60 percent of communications professionals believe that mobile working has no impact on their personal career. Almost one in five people are of the opinion that working from home has a negative impact on their own advancement in the company (18 percent). If it’s not about your own career, the verdict is a little more pessimistic: Although more than half of those surveyed still think that mobile working in general does not have a negative impact on their career (55 percent), one in four sees it as working from home. Office but disadvantages for career advancement (24 percent).
PR professionals disagree about the extent to which the pandemic will affect professional equality between women and men. 38 percent, and therefore most of those surveyed, believe that Germany and Switzerland will not take a step backwards in gender equality as a result of Corona. At the same time, a third expect the pandemic to widen the gender gap again (32 percent). One in five respondents does not know (23 percent).
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