Browsing by Subject "Simulations"

Now showing 1 - 3 of 3
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    The e-OSCE and Social Work Education: Creating Authentic, High-Impact Practice Learning Opportunities for Students
    (2023-01) Wolfe-Taylor, Samantha N.; Khaja, Khadija; Wilkerson, David; Brown, James; Price, Jeremy
    Advances in technology, non-traditional students, and a new generation of elearners all challenge institutions of higher learning to support innovations that create relevant distance education opportunities for their students. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic dramatic shifts to education occurred, requiring schools of social work to consider new ways to prepare students for the field and new evaluation methods of students’ practice skills. Smoyer and colleagues explored this further in their study on BSW students’ experiences in distance education during the pandemic and found when students were unexpectedly thrust into online learning platforms most were able to learn online; however, substantive interactivity and synchronous engagement were factors that were necessary to maintain student overall satisfaction in the distance learning environment. In addition, they point out the need for interactive technology in online social work classrooms to simulate the human interaction that is essential to student learning and practice. The online objective, structured clinical examination (e-OSCE) is one form of online simulation-based learning that offers highly interactive and engaging HIP learning opportunities for social work students. The OSCE is a standardized, valid, and reliable assessment method that social work education programs use to ensure successful practice skills development. This study used a qualitative, exploratory embedded single-case method to investigate online MSW students’ experiences participating in an e-OSCE, their perspectives on the use of an e-OSCE in online social work education, and future practice considerations students identify upon completing the e-OSCE.
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    Framework for In-Silico Neuromodulatory Peripheral Nerve Electrode Experiments to Inform Design and Visualize Mechanisms
    (2023-08) Lazorchak, Nathaniel; Yoshida, Ken; Alfrey, Karen; Berbari, Edward
    The nervous system exists as our interface to the world, both integrating and interpreting sensory information and coordinating voluntary and involuntary movements. Given its importance, it has become a target for neuromodulatory therapies. The research to develop these therapies cannot be done purely on living tissues - animals, manpower, and equipment make that cost prohibitive and, given the cost of life required, it would be unethical to not search for alternatives. Computation modeling, the use of mathematics and modern computational power to simulate phenomena, has sought to provide such an alternative since the work of Hodgkin and Huxley in 1952. These models, though they cannot yet replace in-vivo and in-vitro experiments, can ease the burden on living tissues and provide details difficult or impossible to ascertain from them. This thesis iterates on previous frameworks for performing in-silico experiments for the purposes of mechanistic exploration and threshold prediction. To do so, an existing volume conductor model and validated nerve-fiber model were joined and a series of programs were developed around them to perform a set of in-silico experiments. The experiments are designed to predict changes in thresholds of behaviors elicited by bioelectric neuromodulation to parametric changes in experimental setup and to explore the mechanisms behind bioelectric neuromodulation, particularly surrounding the recently discovered Low Frequency Alternating Current (LFAC) waveform. This framework improved upon its predecessors through efficiency-oriented design and modularity, allowing for rapid simulation on consumer-grade computers. Results show a high degree of convergence with in-vivo experimental results, such as mechanistic alignment with LFAC and being within an order of magnitude of in-vivo pulse-stimulation threshold results for equivalent in-vivo and in-silico experimental designs.
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    What Individual and Organizational Competencies Facilitate Effective Collaboration? Findings from a Collaborative Governance Simulation
    (NASPAA, 2017) Merritt, Cullen C.; Kelley, Deirdre; School of Public and Environmental Affairs
    This study seeks to elicit insights on the individual and organizational competencies associated with effective collaboration. Specifically, the authors gathered grounded insights on collaborative competencies from undergraduate students enrolled in an introductory public affairs course at a research-intensive, Midwestern university -- following student participation in an interactive and replicable simulation designed according to Ansell and Gash’s (2008) “collaborative governance” framework. Results indicate that respondents associated being open-minded, strategic, respectful, an effective communicator, and patient with individual competencies; whereas compromise, teamwork, and trustworthiness were identified as organizational characteristics. Findings also highlight the educational value of simulations and related experiential- and active-learning techniques in elevating the knowledge, skills, abilities, and confidence of students in relation to practices integral to public service delivery, such as collaboration.