Education Commons^™

Entrepreneurial Competencies In Action: Online Fundraising Initiatives By University Students, Thomas M. Cooney, Martina Brophy

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It has been argued that entrepreneurship educators are inclined to let students learn in a safe controlled environment, with no pressure except to pass the module. Students working in groups of three were given 12 weeks (Target 1) to develop a fundraising initiative, work with various stakeholders, and execute their online fundraising initiative to meet a target goal of €2000 (Target 2) per group. Employing approaches such as Effectuation, Lean Start-Up and the Business Model Canvas, a self-directed learning approach ensured students were able to take ownership of their learning journey with the lecturer acting as coach or facilitator. The …

An Ethical Discussion About The Responsibility For Protection Of Minors In The Digital Environment: A State-Of-The-Art Review, Charles Alves De Castro, Aiden Carthy, Isobel Oreilly Dr

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Many ethical questions have been raised regarding the use of social media and the internet, mainly related to the protection of young people in the digital environment. In order to critically address the research question "who is responsible for ethically protecting minors in the digital environment?", this paper will review the main literature available to understand the role of parents, the government, and companies in protecting young people within the digital environment. We employed a holistic process that covers a state-of-the-art review and desk research. The article is divided into four sessions; (1) Government Policies from the European Union (EU) …

Breaking Down Silos Through Authentic Assessment: A Live Case Analysis, Olivia Freeman, Rosie Hand, Aileen Kennedy

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One of the aims of Technological University Dublin (TU Dublin) is to create graduates who problem solve as socially responsible global citizens. We wanted to provide an opportunity for our students to address relevant, marketing and consumption challenges in new and innovative ways, and to develop analytical competences and professional skills and comportment in a real-life context. This paper describes the design, implementation and outcome of an inter-disciplinary and cross-programme 'authentic assessment' method which we have termed a 'live case analysis'. The assessment comprised fieldwork, wider industry engagement, formative assessment components and a summative presentation. The method is discussed against …

Analytics Capability In Marketing Education: A Practice-Informed Model, Justina Setkute, Simone Kurtzke Dr.

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As marketing continues to be transformed by technology and the explosion of big data, academic research has identified a significant need for analytics skills in marketing education. However, it is unclear whether current curriculum approaches to marketing analytics equip students with the skills employers need and prepare them effectively for data-driven marketing roles. This study identifies the knowledge and skills marketing graduates require for analytics practice to bridge the theory-practice gap and increase students’ employability. Our research reveals that a blend of knowledge, soft and technical skills is needed, and that the ability to communicate insights from data to stakeholders …

Employing A Visual Representation Technique To Understand Undergraduates’ Perceptions Of Civic Engagement Across Countries, Sharon Feeney, John Hogan

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Purpose – This paper aims to present an interpretation of freehand drawings produced by a sample of final year degree level learners in response to the question: “What is civic engagement”? The aim in using this approach, with final year degree learners from different countries, but pursuing the same degree, was to compare and contrast their understanding of civic engagement.

Design/methodology/approach – Learners completed their drawings and then discussed their drawings in small groups. All of their drawings were initially examined quantitatively before a sample of six drawings were selected for in-depth qualitative examination.

Findings – Using learner-generated drawings enables …

Entrepreneurial Process Studies Using Insider Action Research: Opportunities & Challenges For Entrepreneurship Scholarship, Kisito Futonge Nzembayie, Anthony Paul Buckley

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This paper examines the opportunities and challenges of adopting Insider Action Research (IAR) in entrepreneurial process studies. It employs a critical reflexive and narrative approach in examining our own lived experience in a real-time digital entrepreneurial journey spanning three years while triangulating it with experiential knowledge in another role as dissertation supervisors. Our live case illustrates that IAR, when it combines reflective practice, cooperative inquiry and design science, represents a suitable but under-exploited methodology for entrepreneurship scholarship. We build on this knowledge to offer a model for incorporating this methodology in entrepreneurship research and education. Consequently, we contribute towards responding …

Analytical Framework And Student Perceptions: Assessing The Quality Of Doctoral Education In Accounting In Ireland, Anne Marie Ward, Louise Gorman, Niamh M. Brennan

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To examine the quality of doctoral education in accounting in higher education institutions (HEIs) in Ireland, we develop an analytical framework from the relevant literature and the principles of quality doctoral education included in the Higher Education Authority’s (HEA) National Framework for Doctoral Education (NFDE). Our analytical framework identifies 16 measurable indicators of quality doctoral education classified into four dimensions: context, inputs, processes and outcomes. Compliance with the quality indicators is verified by coding HEI websites and prospectuses. Deeper insights on the indicators of quality doctoral education are obtained from semi-structured interviews with accounting doctoral students. Our findings shed valuable …

School Of Culinary Arts & Food Technology, Technological University Dublin Newsletter: Winter, 2019, James Murphy

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The School of Culinary Arts and Food Technology, TU Dublin, Winter Newsletter captured the many events, research, awards, significant contributions and special civic and community activities which the students and staff members of the school have successfully completed up to the Winter period of 2019. The successful completion of these activities would not be possible without the active and on-going support of the 'INSPIRED' friends of Culinary Arts (school supporters) and our school's industry association supporters.

School Of Culinary Arts & Food Technology, Technological University Dublin Newsletter: Autumn, 2019, James Murphy

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The School of Culinary Arts and Food Technology, TU Dublin, Autumn Newsletter captured the many events, research, awards, significant contributions and special civic and community activities which the students and staff members of the school have successfully completed up to the Autumn period of 2019. The successful completion of these activities would not be possible without the active and on-going support of the 'INSPIRED' friends of Culinary Arts (school supporters) and our school's industry association supporters.

School Of Culinary Arts & Food Technology, Technological University Dublin Newsletter: Summer, 2019, James Murphy

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The School of Culinary Arts and Food Technology, TU Dublin, Summer Newsletter captured the many events, research, awards, significant contributions and special civic and community activities which the students and staff members of the school have successfully completed up to the Summer period of 2019. The successful completion of these activities would not be possible without the active and on-going support of the 'INSPIRED' friends of Culinary Arts (school supporters) and our school's industry association supporters.

A Path Dependence Approach To Understanding Educational Policy Harmonisation: The Qualifications Framework In The European Higher Education Area, Sharon Feeney, John Hogan

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This paper examines the development of a system of easily readable and comparable qualifications within a single Qualifications Framework in the European Higher Education Area (QF-EHEA) as part of the Bologna process. Employing a path dependence approach, combined with new understandings of critical junctures and incremental policy change, as our conceptual lens, we find that multiple self-reinforcing events between the 1998 Sorbonne Declaration and the 2005 Bergen Communiqué, in the form of Declarations and Communiqués, guided implementation of the Bologna policy process, along with elements of incremental layering. We also see evidence that policy formation and implementation are self-reinforcing in …

An Investigation Into The Development And Progressive Adaptation Of Graduate Attributes In Tourism Programmes, Louise Bellew, Odette Gabaudan

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As higher education institutes are embracing the notion of graduate attributes, it has become highly desirable to embed these attributes within programmes. This study proposes to investigate students’ views of recently identified graduate attributes in the Dublin Institute of Technology (Ireland), and how they perceive their development and application in their tourism programme. The study supports the idea of the importance of placement in the progressive adaptation of learning and in translating the conception of attributes. While students strongly believe that graduate attributes are developed through the placement experience, it is equally important to embed and strengthen the visibility of …

Supporting Sustainability Through Developing A Learning Network Among Traditional Food Producers: Applications Of Action Learning, Paul Coughlan, David Coghlan, Denise O'Leary, Clare Rigg, Doireann Barrett

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Purpose: The chapter describes and reflects upon an EU-funded research initiative, TRADEIT, which has attempted to develop a learning network among European traditional food producers as one way of contributing to the economic sustainability of the ventures, the social sustainability of the food’s regional character, and the environmental sustainability of food production through the use of traditional methods.

Design/methodology/approach: The chapter describes TRADEIT before moving on to an exploration of learning in organizations and networks. It outlines the action learning research methodology developed and implemented to explore the development of a learning network in TRADEIT. A single case history …

Turning To Case Studies As A Mechanism For Learning In Action Learning, Denise O'Leary, Paul Coughlan, Clare Rigg, David Coghlan

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Case studies are a useful means of capturing and sharing experiential knowledge by allowing researchers to explore the social, organisational and political contexts of a specific case. Although accounts of action learning are often reported using a case study approach, it is not common to see individual case studies being used as a learning practice within action learning sets. Drawing on a network action learning (NAL) project, this paper explores how the process of coaching, articulating, authoring, sharing and editing case studies provided a vehicle for learning and research within a NAL set. The intended contribution of this paper to …

Reducing Recidivism Through Entrepreneurship Programmes In Prisons, Thomas Cooney

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Prison systems are facing significant challenges from overcrowding and a ‘revolving door’ routine. Reducing recidivism would help alleviate both these problems and would also assist in breaking the cycle of career criminality. However, one of the primary causes of recidivism is a lack of employment opportunities for people who have spent time in prison, thereby causing them to return to crime. Given the dearth of entrepreneurship research on ex-prisoners, this paper examines a ‘Start Your Own Business’ programme delivered inside a prison. Based on interviews with the participants, the author examines whether such programmes offer a realistic opportunity for reducing …

A Qualitative Exploration Of Oral Communciations Apprehension, Marann Byrne, Barbara Flood, Dan Shanahan

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Prior research has identified communication apprehension, or fear of communicating, as a major factor which inhibits an individual’s willingness to communicate and his/her capability to develop effective communication skills. While many prior studies have measured oral communication apprehension of students, there has been little qualitative exploration of the phenomenon. This study was conducted by interviewing first-year business and accounting students at a higher education institution in Ireland who were identified as encountering varying levels of oral communication apprehension. The experiences of the students in communicating in different contexts are analysed and the impact of factors such as fear of peer …

Can The Use Of Clickers Or Continous Assessment Motivate Critical Thinking?: A Case Study Based On Corporate Finance Students, Lucia Morales

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This study explores the use of clickers as a tool to support, encourage and motivate critical thinking in higher education students. A case study was carried out with a cohort of undergraduate students undertaking the BSc. in Accounting and Finance during the academic year 2009/10, were corporate finance was a major component. Since the students in this sample had previously demonstrated passivity during their corporate finance classes, it was proposed that clickers would help motivate them to participate during face to face sessions. Previous research on the use of clickers shows evidence that this tool has a positive effect on …

Heat Transfer Correlations For Low Approach Evaporative Cooling Systems In Buildings, Ben Costelloe, Donal Finn

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The experimental performance of an open industrial scale cooling tower, utilising small approach temperature differences (1–3 K), for rejection of heat at the low water temperatures (11–20 °C) typical of chilled ceilings and other sensible air–water heat dissipation systems in buildings, is examined. The study was carried out under temperate maritime climatic conditions (3–18 °C wet-bulb temperature range). Initially a theoretical analysis of the process at typical conditions for this climate was conducted, which indicated that a water to air (L/G) mass flow rate ratio of less than 1.0 was required for effective operation. Consequently for these low L/G ratios, …

Technology-Aided Participative Methods In Environmental Assessment: An International Perspective, Ainhoa Gonzalez, Alan Gilmer, Ronan Foley, John Sweeney, John Fry

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Provisions for citizen involvement in the assessment of potential environmental effects of certain plans, programmes and projects are present in current legislation. An international survey revealed that public participation is common practice in European and some other countries worldwide. However, a number of issues are observed to affect public involvement in EIA/SEA processes and expert opinion differs when evaluating the effectiveness of existing participative methods. Results suggest that technology-aided methods can improve traditional participation processes. In particular, GIS has the potential to increase community knowledge and enhance involvement by communicating information more effectively. Variable accessibility to technology and data quality …

Thermal Effectiveness Characteristics Of Low Approach Indirect Evaporative Cooling Systems In Buildings, Ben Costelloe, Donal Finn

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Meteorological enthalpy analysis of temperate and maritime climates above latitude 45°N suggests that the water-side evaporative cooling technique has considerable unrealised potential with contemporary “high temperature” building cooling systems—such as chilled ceilings and displacement ventilation. As low approach conditions are the key to exploiting the cooling potential of the ambient air, thermal performance at such conditions needs to be investigated. To address the research issues, an industrial scale test rig, based on a low approach open cooling tower and plate heat exchanger and designed to maximise evaporative cooling potential, has been constructed. The thermal effectiveness of such systems (as a …

An Examination Of Ethical Issues Pertaining To Educational Research, Greg Gallagher

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The social sciences in general and educational researchers in particular have become more and more conscious of ethical propriety and the need for universally acceptable codes of ethical conduct in recent years. This newfound interest stems in part from criticisms of innovative contemporary research methodologies, and the fear that they may be at odds with certain fundamental ethical principles. This, in turn, has resulted in the integrity and validity of some of these new contemporary styles of research being held up to scrutiny and debated by adherents to the more conventional research methodologies. This paper begins by tracing back to …

Experimental Energy Performance Of Open Cooling Towers Used Under Low And Variable Approach Conditions For Indirect Evaporative Cooling Of Buildings, Ben Costelloe, Donal Finn

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The success of chilled ceilings and displacement ventilation systems as a means of sensible cooling in buildings has prompted a review of evaporative cooling technology as an effective means of generating the required cooling water. When such cooling water is generated at low approach conditions (2–5 K), at the higher temperatures required in these systems (14–18°C), very high levels of availability result. In many north western European locations the levels of availability are such that the prospect of supplanting rather than simply supplementing the refrigeration system, for sensible cooling purposes, arises. The viability of the technique, however, largely depends on …

Indirect Evaporative Cooling Potential In Air-Water Systems In Temperate Climates, Ben Costelloe, Donal Finn

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Recent developments have prompted a review of evaporative cooling technology as an effective means of cooling modern deep plan buildings. Prominent among these developments is the success of high temperature sensible cooling systems, particularly, chilled ceilings, which require a supply of cooling water at 14–18 °C. Crucial to the success of evaporative cooling technology, as a significant means of cooling in modern applications, is the ability to generate cooling water, in an indirect circuit, at a temperature which closely approaches the ambient adiabatic saturation temperature (AST) or wet bulb temperature (WBT). Recent experimental research has demonstrated that it is technically …