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Blended learning is an emerging trend across many educational settings, adopting the purposeful integration of traditional face-to-face and online teaching to establishing an engaging learning experience for the students. Blended learning provides an ideal platform for the implementation of reusable learning objects (RLOs) as a pedagogical tool to support classroom instruction.

This study had conducted a quasi-experiment followed by semi-structured interviews to determine if a blended learning approach using RLOs can enhance students’ learning in an undergraduate engineering computer-aided design (CAD) module. This study involved learners studying engineering in two different academic years.

Students from the first year were taught using traditional face-to-face teaching approach. The cohort of students from the subsequent year adopted a blended learning approach: face to face and access to a series of RLOs. The analysis revealed statistical evidence that the use of blended learning had a significant impact on the students' end of term exam grades in the CAD module in comparison to the students who undertook traditional face-to-face teaching approach. The qualitative findings highlighted the positive impact of RLOs on students’ learning behaviour, engagement and knowledge retention.

This study provided empirical evidence of the benefits of using RLOs as a blended learning tool in engineering domain. From a theoretical perspective, the findings highlighted the importance of good instructional design and sound theoretical underpinning of the pedagogical strategy. From a practical point of view, this study informed academics on how to improve learner's academic achievement using RLOs.

There is strong and growing evidence of the importance of leadership and management factors influence on employee engagement and discretionary effort. However, the problem is that there has been limited recent effort to review where research gaps exit and provide a direction to guide future research. The purpose of this paper is to provide an integrated perspective on the influence of leadership and management factors on employee engagement and discretionary effort.

The review of the literature includes empirical research and case studies related to employee engagement and discretionary effort from various databases such as Business Premier, Cambridge University Press, JSTOR, Springer, Emerald, Wiley, ProQuest and ISI Web of Science. Supporting material was also accessed from reference books regarding similar concepts and theories.

The review provides a current view of the key topics, identifies three key research gaps, suggests a refined, up-to-date definition of both employee engagement and discretionary effort, and proposes a conceptual framework to inform future research. In doing so, it offers new directions for progressing studies on these critical workplace practices and behaviours particularly the inclusion of national culture as a moderating variable when investigating or implementing employee engagement and discretionary effort strategies.

Findings are based on existing literature and require empirical testing. Practical and theoretical implications are discussed.

Undertaking a review of the literature is an important part of any research and this review aims to organise, describe and appraise the current literature with a view to gaining a critical perspective for the benefit of researchers.

In the DOS world, Windows 3.0 is an operating environment that utilizes a Graphical User Interface, or “GUI.” A GUI is an alternative to typing as a means of interacting with the computer and its operating system that is intended to be superior, in some ways, to the operating system itself. It is not a replacement for the operating system (e.g., DOS 3.31 or DOS 5.0). The principal features and strengths of Windows 3.0 are examined, as is a suite of programs—Word for Windows, Excel for Windows, and PowerPoint for Windows—which are collectively packaged as Microsoft Office for Windows. While not “perfect,” there is a significant advantage to the uniformity of the Windows environment.

Purpose — The purpose of this chapter is to study the pattern of rogue trading, paying special attention to the aspects of the dishonest behavior of perpetrators.Design/methodology/approach — The chapter discusses selected cases of rogue trading that received the largest coverage by the mass media.Findings — No unique pattern of rogue trading schemes can be identified; however, certain similarities can be brought up based on the discussed cases. There are many aspects of dishonesty involved in fraudulent trading besides illicitness of unauthorized trading as such.Research limitations/implications — The chapter is based largely on a literature review and available data on the instances of rogue trading; probably, there is a vast amount of rogue trading cases undisclosed in order to draw a bigger picture.Originality/value — We apply the framework of white-collar crime process by McKay, Stevens, and Fratzl (2010) in order to clarify whether rogue trading schemes match the development of a typical white-collar crime. Conclusions are built on the analysis of several cases.

The aim of this paper is to explore consumer knowledge, attitudes and practices relating to food additives and to investigate manufacturers' attitudes and practices pertaining to food additives and their control.

Questionnaire administered face-to-face interviews were conducted with 180 consumers from the population working at the University of Mauritius while an interview guide was used for in-depth interviews with 12 manufacturers.

The results showed that 65 per cent of all respondents never checked food labels for additives. Overall, the respondents had poor knowledge on food additives. A significant relationship was established between level of education and knowledge rating based on percentage correct answers to food additive questions (p<0.05). The mean percentage correct answers for consumers with different educational levels increased in the following order: primary education; secondary education; tertiary education (p<0.05). The responses relating to attitudinal statements reflected indecision and certain misconceptions. In-depth interviews with local food manufacturers revealed positive attitudes and practices towards food additives. Several problems relating to additive control were mentioned, such as outdated regulations and weak enforcement.

Given the sample sizes, the consumer research should not be extrapolated to the Mauritian population while the exploratory manufacturer study should not be generalised to the whole food industry.

These findings provide a factual basis for further investigations, review of current food legislation and development of education strategies for consumers, all aiming towards enhancing the effectiveness of the national food control system in Mauritius.

In the present chapter, we present the case study of the only woman film director who has ever won an Academy Award for Best Director, Kathryn Bigelow. We analyzed 43 written interviews of Kathryn Bigelow that have appeared in the popular press in the period 1988–2013 and outlined eight main themes emerging regarding her exercise of leadership in the cinematic context. We utilize three theoretical frameworks: (a) paradoxical leadership theory (Lewis, Andriopoulos, & Smith, 2014; Smith & Lewis, 2012); (b) ambidextrous leadership theory (Rosing, Frese, & Bausch, 2011), and (c) role congruity theory (Eagley & Karau, 2002) and show how Bigelow, as a woman artist/leader working in a complex organizational system that emphasizes radical innovation, exercised paradoxical and ambidextrous leadership and challenged existing conventions about genre, gender, and leadership. The case study implications for teaching and practice are discussed.

There is a certain type of British trader who, with pharisaic unction, lifts up his voice and deplores the unhappy condition of “the heathen in his blindness,” including all persons of other nationalities and any of his own who may happen to differ in opinion from himself. On these collectively it is his habit to bestow his contemptuous regard when from his elevated position he condescends to thank Providence that as far as the methods and conduct of business are concerned he is “not as other men.” Of course, most people recognise that the attitude assumed by this type of person is one for which it is difficult altogether to blame him. Born as he was in an atmosphere reeking with traditions of insular supremacy, and nurtured from his youth up on notions of commercial arrogance, it is no miracle that he arrives at maturity with singularly inflated ideas of the greatness of his powers and person. If there is one thing more than another in which he feels particular pride it is the possession of a superabundant stock of what he is pleased to call “business acumen,” and to hear him, it might be imagined that no one could approach him in enterprise and general commercial ability.

Based on a review of multiple literatures, a comprehensive content domain of essential intercultural competencies for effective global leaders is presented. This domain is then used to guide the development of the Global Competencies Inventory (GCI), a 160-item self-report measure that assesses the degree to which individuals possess the intercultural competencies that are associated with global leader effectiveness. Using sample sizes ranging from several hundred to nearly 9,000 subjects, evidence from several studies is presented showing the GCI to have convergent validity, predictive validity, and freedom from demographic and ethnic subgroup biases. Implications for theory and future research are also discussed.

A multimedia computer system is one that can create, import, integrate, store, retrieve, edit, and delete two or more types of media materials in digital form, such as audio, image, full‐motion video, and text information. This paper surveys four possible types of multimedia computer systems: hypermedia, multimedia database, multimedia message, and virtual reality systems. The primary focus is on advanced multimedia systems development projects and theoretical efforts that suggest long‐term trends in this increasingly important area.

The purpose of this research is to show how a nation‐wide survey of teachers investigated the teaching of food hygiene in primary schools. The survey determined which information sources were known and used by those responsible for teaching food hygiene.

Postal questionnaires were distributed to 3,806 primary schools throughout the UK (response rate 23 per cent). The questionnaire was developed based on the results of in‐depth interviews with school teachers and included topics such as where teachers gained up‐to‐date food hygiene messages, methods used to teach food hygiene, and how key food hygiene messages are reinforced. Teachers cited most preferred resources for teaching food hygiene, influences on the choice of these resources, and limitations on use.

Overall, the results indicated that food hygiene is taught in a number of subject areas, with handwashing and personal hygiene being the principal topics. Teachers use a combination of methods to teach food hygiene and to reinforce food safety messages. The principal limitations of teaching this topic were identified as a lack of suitable space and curriculum time. Teachers across the UK also identified new resources that would support the teaching of food hygiene.

The study identified how primary school teachers deliver food hygiene messages through the curriculum, daily routines and whole school initiatives. Ways in which primary school teachers could be supported when delivering food hygiene education have been suggested.