Open University of Catalonia

About: Open University of Catalonia is a education organization based out in Barcelona, Spain. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Context (language use) & Higher education. The organization has 1943 authors who have published 4646 publications receiving 64200 citations. The organization is also known as: Universitat Oberta de Catalunya & UOC.

The Ethics of Metrics: Overcoming the Dysfunctional Effects of Performance Measurements Through Justice

Abstract: The last two decades have seen a great deal of scandals in the business world. Many of them have to do with accounting and management control, but in substantially different ways. This paper focuses on the dysfunctional effects of systems of measurement and incentives, and the possible ways to overcome those dysfunctional effects, achieving a stable state of goal congruence through the introduction of justice in the design and use of management control systems, by contributing to the ethical development within the organization. We first analyze how the discipline of control systems came into being, and show how, in the last decades, both in theory and practice, has gone in a direction of becoming more ‘automatic,’ and then, we provide some case studies of how they are at the origin of many of the scandals. Borrowing from Rosanas and Velilla (J Bus Eth 57:83–96, 2005) and from Cuguero-Escofet and Rosanas (Manag Account Res 24:23–40, 2013), we develop a model of control systems based on justice, where we make the distinction between formal and informal justice. We are then able to show how informal justice is the key element in the dynamics of a control system: to preserve formal justice, or to evolve toward formal justice. In any case, it is a necessary condition to reach a state of maximum goal congruence, stable through time, as a consequence of the ethical development that this type of systems are able to generate.

The Art of Questioning in Online Learning Environments: The Potentialities of Feedback in Writing.

Abstract: Research on feedback has focused more on generating feedback rather than on how students use it and implement it; that is, what type of cognitive, metacognitive or affective activity students engag...

CETA: designing mixed-reality tangible interaction to enhance mathematical learning

Abstract: The benefits of applying technology to education have been often questioned. Learning through digital devices might imply reducing the children's physical interaction with the real world, when cognitive theories hold that such interaction is essential to develop abstract concepts in Mathematics or Physics. However, conflicting reports suggest that tangible interaction does not always improve engagement or learning. A central question is how cognitive theories can be successfully applied to the design of interactive systems in order to achieve enhanced learning experiences. In this paper we discuss the interaction design of a mixed-reality system for mathematics learning for school-aged children. Our design approach combines inspiration from previous frameworks with a user-centered design process with early prototype evaluations. As a result of this process we have created a mixed-reality environment for low-cost tablets and an augmented version of the Cuisenaire rods, a milestone of the manipulatives for mathematics learning.

The economic value of volatility transmission between the stock and bond markets

Abstract: This study has two main objectives. Firstly, volatility transmission between stocks and bonds in European markets is studied using the two most important financial assets in these fields: the DJ Euro Stoxx 50 index futures contract and the Euro Bund futures contract. Secondly, a trading rule for the major European futures contracts is designed. This rule can be applied to different markets and assets to analyze the economic significance of volatility spillovers observed between them. The results indicate that volatility spillovers take place in both directions and that the stock-bond trading rule offers very profitable returns after transaction costs. These results have important implications for portfolio management and asset allocation. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Jrl Fut Mark 28:1066–1094, 2008