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1 – 10 of over 52000This paper demonstrates complexity surrounding cross-language research involving an interpreter and illustrates how the author attempted to ensure methodological rigor through…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper demonstrates complexity surrounding cross-language research involving an interpreter and illustrates how the author attempted to ensure methodological rigor through modifying and applying Squires' criteria to the design and conduct of her education research.
Design/methodology/approach
This research employed Squires' recommendations for cross-language research as methodological guidelines for designing and conducting cross-language research. The research involved focus group discussions with teachers working in an ethnic minority boarding school in Laos and an interpreter who helped translating/transcribing interviews in Lao to English and data analysis.
Findings
From applying Squires' criteria, this paper introduces a reflexive set of recommendations for researchers conducting a wide range of qualitative cross-language research.
Originality/value
Most meta-criteria for cross-language research are developed to evaluate the quality of cross-language research. However, the soundness of a set of meta-criteria as one tool to evaluate all cross-language research might be questionable due to qualitative studies' diverse epistemological grounds. This paper argues that meta-criteria can serve as a critical and reflexive guide for cross-language researchers when used from the research design and on. The paper also suggests a new set of recommendations which may facilitate more reflexive approaches to cross-language research.
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Forbes Gibb and Ioannis Matthaiakis
The purpose of this paper is to propose and test a framework for assessing the level of localisation on web sites.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to propose and test a framework for assessing the level of localisation on web sites.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper identifies the key forms of localisation that may be evident on a web site. A two‐by‐two matrix is presented which incorporates language in one dimension and non‐language criteria in the other. Web sites are then evaluated against these criteria and mapped onto the matrix to assess the relative level of localisation between web sites. The criteria and matrix have been tested against web sites operating in the Greek exporting sector.
Findings
The framework was found to be easy to use in practice. While a large set of potential localisation criteria were identified, only a subgroup of these criteria are likely to be relevant for any target group of web sites and the framework should therefore be scoped to match the characteristics of the survey group. The issue of localisation was not found to have been addressed to any great extent amongst the sample of Greek exporting companies.
Research limitations/implications
The sample used was small as the prime purpose was to test the usability of the framework, and further evaluations will be needed to confirm these initial findings.
Practical implications
Given the relative poor performance of the Greek exporting sector, localisation is an aspect that should be given higher priority. The framework represents a cost‐effective method for self‐assessment and benchmarking against competitors.
Originality/value
The framework is novel and should be usable by both web designers and users.
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The purpose of this study is to compare the evaluation of search result lists and documents, in particular evaluation criteria, elements, association between criteria and…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to compare the evaluation of search result lists and documents, in particular evaluation criteria, elements, association between criteria and elements, pre/post and evaluation activities, and the time spent on evaluation.
Design/methodology/approach
The study analyzed the data collected from 31 general users through prequestionnaires, think aloud protocols and logs, and post questionnaires. Types of evaluation criteria, elements, associations between criteria and elements, evaluation activities and their associated pre/post activities, and time were analyzed based on open coding.
Findings
The study identifies the similarities and differences of list and document evaluation by analyzing 21 evaluation criteria applied, 13 evaluation elements examined, pre/post and evaluation activities performed and time spent. In addition, the authors also explored the time spent in evaluating lists and documents for different types of tasks.
Research limitations/implications
This study helps researchers understand the nature of list and document evaluation. Additionally, this study connects elements that participants examined to criteria they applied, and further reveals problems associated with the lack of integration between list and document evaluation. The findings of this study suggest more elements, especially at list level, be available to support users applying their evaluation criteria. Integration of list and document evaluation and integration of pre, evaluation and post evaluation activities for the interface design is the absolute solution for effective evaluation.
Originality/value
This study fills a gap in current research in relation to the comparison of list and document evaluation.
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Carl A. Young, Nicolette Filson and Rachael Debnam-O’Dea
Purpose – To examine the potential social media has for increasing pre-service English language arts (ELA) teachers’ language interest, awareness, and content knowledge by…
Abstract
Structured Abstract
Purpose – To examine the potential social media has for increasing pre-service English language arts (ELA) teachers’ language interest, awareness, and content knowledge by engaging them in an ongoing collaborative effort to seek out, make observation about, and highlight contemporary examples of language, literacy, and culture in action in global media using Twitter as a platform.
Design – The research design was qualitative and included a thematic analysis of Twitter posts from the pre-service teacher participants during the semester, informal feedback about the experience during the semester, and written reflections at the end of the semester. Students worked independently on the assignment throughout the semester, outside of a few brief, and informal check-ins during class by the instructor. At the end of the semester, students completed an open-ended survey to reflect on their experiences with and takeaways from participating in this Twitter-based language exploration activity. The theoretical frameworks that were foundational to the study included the technological, pedagogical, and content knowledge (TPACK) framework (Koehler & Mishra, 2008) and Andrews’ (2006) criteria for language exploration and awareness.
Findings – The findings of this qualitative study indicate that engaging pre-service teachers in an ongoing collaborative effort to promote language, literacy, and culture via social media has great potential in terms of students increasing not only their knowledge of language and language awareness, but also their TPACK overall. Specific examples of how participants responded to the experience are provided.
Practical Implications – This study contributes to the literature on the potential impact of social media on content area learning and teacher preparation by providing concrete, research-based suggestions for how both English teacher educators and middle and secondary ELA teachers can engage in collaborative efforts to learn more about, expand definitions of, and promote aspects related to ELA content, like language awareness, variety, and dialect. It includes recommendations for both teacher educators and middle and secondary ELA teachers to expand their notions for defining and teaching aspects of language that go beyond a narrow focus on grammar and to consider ways that social media and digital literacies can enhance these efforts.
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Shakked Dabran-Zivan, Ayelet Baram-Tsabari, Roni Shapira, Miri Yitshaki, Daria Dvorzhitskaia and Nir Grinberg
Accurate information is the basis for well-informed decision-making, which is particularly challenging in the dynamic reality of a pandemic. Search engines are a major gateway for…
Abstract
Purpose
Accurate information is the basis for well-informed decision-making, which is particularly challenging in the dynamic reality of a pandemic. Search engines are a major gateway for obtaining information, yet little is known about the quality and scientific accuracy of information answering conspiracy-related queries about COVID-19, especially outside of English-speaking countries and languages.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors conducted an algorithmic audit of Google Search, emulating search queries about COVID-19 conspiracy theories in 10 different locations and four languages (English, Arabic, Russian, and Hebrew) and used content analysis by native language speakers to examine the quality of the available information.
Findings
Searching the same conspiracies in different languages led to fundamentally different results. English had the largest share of 52% high-quality scientific information. The average quality score of the English-language results was significantly higher than in Russian and Arabic. Non-English languages had a considerably higher percentage of conspiracy-supporting content. In Russian, nearly 40% of the results supported conspiracies compared to 18% in English.
Originality/value
This study’s findings highlight structural differences that significantly limit access to high-quality, balanced, and accurate information about the pandemic, despite its existence on the Internet in another language. Addressing these gaps has the potential to improve individual decision-making collective outcomes for non-English societies.
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Alenka Kavčič Čolić and Andreja Hari
The current predominant delivery format resulting from digitization is PDF, which is not appropriate for the blind, partially sighted and people who read on mobile devices. To…
Abstract
Purpose
The current predominant delivery format resulting from digitization is PDF, which is not appropriate for the blind, partially sighted and people who read on mobile devices. To meet the needs of both communities, as well as broader ones, alternative file formats are required. With the findings of the eBooks-On-Demand-Network Opening Publications for European Netizens project research, this study aims to improve access to digitized content for these communities.
Design/methodology/approach
In 2022, the authors conducted research on the digitization experiences of 13 EODOPEN partners at their organizations. The authors distributed the same sample of scans in English with different characteristics, and in accordance with Web content accessibility guidelines, the authors created 24 criteria to analyze their digitization workflows, output formats and optical character recognition (OCR) quality.
Findings
In this contribution, the authors present the results of a trial implementation among EODOPEN partners regarding their digitization workflows, used delivery file formats and the resulting quality of OCR results, depending on the type of digitization output file format. It was shown that partners using the OCR tool ABBYY FineReader Professional and producing scanning outputs in tagged PDF and PDF/UA formats achieved better results according to set criteria.
Research limitations/implications
The trial implementations were limited to 13 project partners’ organizations only.
Originality/value
This research paper can be a valuable contribution to the field of massive digitization practices, particularly in terms of improving the accessibility of the output delivery file formats.
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Marta Kuzma and Albina Moscicka
This paper aims to present the authors’ attempts to evaluate the access to archival maps available in digital libraries. Its aim was to pinpoint the factors determining the…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to present the authors’ attempts to evaluate the access to archival maps available in digital libraries. Its aim was to pinpoint the factors determining the effectiveness of access to old maps and to evaluate which Polish libraries provide resources in such a way as to give the users the best chance of finding the materials necessary for their research.
Design/methodology/approach
The presented research focussed on archival documents from academic libraries accessible from the Polish Digital Libraries Federation and available from Europeana Collections. The evaluation criteria were established along with features that determine the level of difficulty of access to data describing archival documents. The research took into account the way of recording the data about archival documents in metadata. The authors have also analysed the quantity of available resources and the consistency of metadata record.
Findings
The results of the research have demonstrated that one-third of the analysed libraries deserve a positive evaluation. The digital library of the Warsaw University and the Jagiellonian Digital Library received the best scores in terms of the description of archival documents. Considering the number of resources, the Jagiellonian Digital Library and the Digital Library of the University of Wrocław are positively distinguished.
Originality/value
The method of evaluating the access to archival maps has been developed. The criteria and features necessary for this evaluation and the way of their interpretation have also been defined. The future goals leading to the improvement of the access to the archival maps have been also presented.
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Yaghoub Norouzi and Hoda Homavandi
The purpose of this paper is to investigate image search and retrieval problems in selected search engines in relation to Persian writing style challenges.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate image search and retrieval problems in selected search engines in relation to Persian writing style challenges.
Design/methodology/approach
This study is an applied one, and to answer the questions the authors used an evaluative research method. The aim of the research is to explore the morphological and semantic problems of Persian language in connection with image search and retrieval among the three major and widespread search engines: Google, Yahoo and Bing. In order to collect the data, a checklist designed by the researcher was used and then the data were analyzed by descriptive and inferential statistics.
Findings
The results indicate that Google, Yahoo and Bing search engines do not pay enough attention to morphological and semantic features of Persian language in image search and retrieval. This research reveals that six groups of Persian language features include derived words, derived/compound words, Persian and Arabic Plural words, use of dotted T and the use of spoken language and polysemy, which are the major problems in this area. In addition, the results suggest that Google is the best search engine of all in terms of compatibility with Persian language features.
Originality/value
This study investigated some new aspects of the above-mentioned subject through combining morphological and semantic aspects of Persian language with image search and retrieval. Therefore, this study is an interdisciplinary research, the results of which would help both to offer some solutions and to carry out similar research on this subject area. This study will also fill a gap in research studies conducted so far in this area in Farsi language, especially in image search and retrieval. Moreover, findings of this study can help to bridge the gap between the user’s questions and search engines (systems) retrievals. In addition, the methodology of this paper provides a framework for further research on image search and retrieval in databases and search engines.
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Mervyn Martin and Maryam Shademan Pajouh
The purpose of the paper is to highlight the lack of fairness in the international trading system, including the HR policies in the WTO which have wider implications on the…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of the paper is to highlight the lack of fairness in the international trading system, including the HR policies in the WTO which have wider implications on the participation of developing countries in the multilateral trading system.
Design/methodology/approach
The main research methodology undertaken for this paper is based on the quantitative approach, predominantly from sources such as books, articles and WTO reports.
Findings
There is a correlation between the HR policies employed by the WTO and the usage by developing countries of the WTO DSU.
Practical implications
The implications of the research/paper indicate that discrimination against developing countries in the international system goes beyond their inherent weakness as poorer members of the international order. Such discrimination is deep rooted within the institutional governance of the system.
Social implications
The need to re‐evaluate policies practices by international institutions in the light of the developments of the twenty‐first century.
Originality/value
There has been no work undertaken in relation to the use of language as a criterion for job selection and its implications on the participatory value of developing countries in the WTO DSU.
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Murat Tahir Çaldağ and Ebru Gökalp
The aim of this study is to provide administrators in government institutions a roadmap to achieve benefits of open government data (OGD) by reviewing and classifying studies with…
Abstract
Purpose
The aim of this study is to provide administrators in government institutions a roadmap to achieve benefits of open government data (OGD) by reviewing and classifying studies with assessment or maturity models (MMs) in the OGD domain with a Multivocal Literature Review (MLR).
Design/methodology/approach
To achieve this goal, the authors conducted an MLR that includes data from not only the formal literature but also the grey literature (e.g. white papers and online documents).
Findings
Out of 3,569 sources, 81 studies were selected by following the elimination scheme and assessing sources by relevance and methodology. As a result of the quality assessment of the identified MMs based on predefined criteria, unambiguity, comparability, repeatability, completeness, clearness and objectivity, it was observed that there are a limited number of MMs in this domain and none of them fully satisfies the requirements.
Originality/value
This study is likely the first MLR on OGD domain. This MLR serves as a first step for future research on OGD assessment and MMs by presenting the need to establish a holistic approach covering all OGD dimensions, creation of an objective assessment method, prescriptive properties, and empirical evaluation demonstrating the applicability and usefulness at different scope levels.
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