Covadonga Rodrigo

• Doctor of Engineering
• Chair at National University of Distance Education

Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) have been the de facto standard for Web accessibility evaluation for more than two decades and therefore have been introduced into legislation and university curriculum in Computer Science. At The National Distance Education University (UNED) in Spain, we have been teaching the guidelines for the last 15...

In this paper, we present the results of a research experience of implementing andragogy in a learning environment designed to better meet the needs of adult learners studying part-time at a distance university. The learning environment was composed of a learning experience on a formal distance university online course that has been enriched with a...

In this paper, we focus on 23 undergraduate students’ application of a universal design for learning (UDL) evaluation framework for assessing a massive open online course (MOOC) in the context of a usability and accessibility university course. Using a mixed-methods approach, we first report the extent to which untrained raters agree when evaluatin...

This paper showcases relevant initiatives to address inclusive and sustainable development through the objectives of UNESCO’s Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG4) towards ensuring inclusive and equitable quality education and to promote lifelong learning opportunities for all. These research projects have been possible thanks to initiatives such a...

This paper shows several actions that address the use and development of open educational resources (OERs) and the utilisation of open source machine virtualization tools for Moodle course instantiation in a Computer Science-based Teacher Training course. The training is dedicated to show the basic characteristics and tools present in e-learning en...

Software engineering is a complicated subject for computer engineering students since the explained knowledge and necessary competencies are more related to engineering as a general knowledge area than to computer science. This article describes a software engineering learning application that aims to provide a solution to this problem. Two ideas a...

Los entornos de aprendizaje en línea están mejorando sus funcionalidades y la calidad de los recursos, facilitando que estudiantes con discapacidad puedan crear y adaptar sus propias ecologías de aprendizaje. Normalmente, el número de estudiantes con discapacidad matriculados es tan residual y sus discapacidades tan particulares, que resulta difíci...

There are some similarities in developing distance education online courses and Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) using the basis of eLearning instructional design. However, the task of converting an online course into a MOOC is not as simple as direct migration of eLearning materials and assessment resources into a MOOC platform. In online learn...

Accessibility is a quality requirement for digital educational materials (or contents) in interactive learning environments. It ensures that students with disabilities do not face barriers when using such content. However, guaranteeing the accessibility of these materials is no easy task, at least for a significant part of the producers, evaluators...

People with disabilities still face the problem of limitations while accessing to and enjoying artistic heritage. The work developed within the MUSACCES project aims to improve the relation of people with disabilities with the artistic heritage in the Prado museum trying to achieve a multisensorial user experience discovering formative narratives a...

YourMOOC4all is a pilot research project to collect feedback requests regarding accessible design for Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs). In this online application, a specific website offers the possibility for any learner to freely judge if a particular MOOC complies Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles. User feedback is of great value...

Musacces project description, some comments on the state of the art and main objectives.

Do Distance education universities have a place in a society where technology is making the concept of “distance” almost meaningless? Which are the current challenges they have to face and their role in the present deep changing ecology of higher education? In this paper, academics from the Spanish National Distance Education (UNED), argue that sta...

The Excellence methodology for quality assurance of e-learning in higher education has developed into a flexible and effective approach to quality assurance. It has proved suitable to meet the needs of a diverse range of institutions and national quality assurance regimes, and is applicable to both distance and blended modes. The Excellence resourc...

In this paper, it is presented how to enrich available linked data to facilitate the work of experts in the Musacces project (http://www.musacces.es/). First step has been implemented in the current version of a prototype MPOC1, that allows the access and visualization of information related with the Spanish Prado Museum (the target of the project)...

MOOCs provide learning environments that make it easier for learners to study from anywhere, at their own pace and with open access to content. This has revolutionised the field of eLearning, but accessibility continues to be a problem, even more so if we include the complexity of the STEM disciplines which have their own specific characteristics....

The great challenge of Museology of the XXI Century is the attention and integration of the most disadvantaged social sectors with museums. The work developed within the MUSACCES project aims to improve the relation of people with disabilities with the artistic heritage in the Prado museum trying to achieve a multisensorial user experience discover...

One of the great challenges of 21st Century Museology is the attention to and integration of the least favoured and disconnected social sectors with our museums. The museum institutions are living spaces whose managers try to bring about a more dynamic and open participation. The interest in educating and socialising culture has endowed the museums...

In the present report, the 3rd and 29th universities in the list of the HE institutions by enrollment, according to the Wikipedia, that is ANADOLU University, Turkey, and UNED, Spain, (both of them members of EADTU), introduce some main innovative solutions mediated by technologies, whose aim is to improve student support and the services to large...

The flexibility of the MOOC service allows students to learn at their own time, place and pace, enhancing continuous communication and interaction among all participants in knowledge and community building. This model especially benefits people with disabilities, which can improve therefore their level of employability and social inclusion, reachin...

There are some similarities in developing a traditional Higher Education (HE) eLearning course and MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses), due to the use of the basis of eLearning instructional design. But in MOOCs, students should be continually influenced by information, social interactions and experiences forcing the faculty to come up with new app...

Aunque hay algunas similitudes cuando se desarrolla un curso online de enseñanza superior y un curso MOOC (Massive Open Online Courses), ya que los principios de enseñanza son muy parecidos, en los MOOC los estudiantes deben ser continuamente " animados " con nuevas informaciones, interacciones sociales o experiencias de aprendizaje diferentes, lo...

El acceso a las plataformas MOOC presenta barreras: hay una falta de accesibilidad en los recursos educativos, las herramientas de comunicación e incluso la personalización de las interfaces de usuario. A esto se añaden dificultades como la necesidad de desarrollar habilidades digitales específicas o incluso sociales para los estudiantes con divers...

Las plataformas de videos generados por los usuarios posibilitan la creación de recursos educativos en abierto (REA) que tienen un papel fundamental como medios didácticos complementarios en la formación a distancia. En la UNED, se ha puesto en marcha un ambicioso proyecto de innovación que incorpora una plataforma audiovisual (AVIP) que permite ac...

Access to MOOC platforms has barriers: there is a lack of accessibility to educational resources, communications tools and even the personalisation of user interfaces. Added to this are difficulties such as the need to develop specific digital or even social skills for those students with functional diversity. Therefore, a vision of the different s...

At present there are no applications which include accessibility revisions for Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs), neither in the context of MOOCs provider institutions nor from the point of view of any Open Educational Resource (OER) initiative. In this paper an approximation to this problem is presented, in the form of a specific web portal whic...

The primary purpose of this manual is to provide a set of benchmarks, quality criteria and notes for guidance against which e-learning programmes and their support systems may be judged. The manual should therefore be seen primarily as a reference tool for the assessment or review of e-learning programmes and the systems which support them. Howeve...

Social Accessibility is an approach to shorten the time for making web content more accessible by allowing ICT volunteers to improve its quality through collaborative work. In this context new forms of volunteerism have emerged through the creative and innovative use of ICTs. The first action in social ICT volunteering at UNED, the largest public d...

Los MOOCs son un ejemplo de la gran evolución que están viviendo en la actualidad los entornos flexibles de aprendizaje, entornos que facilitan que los estudiantes aprendan desde cualquier lugar, a su propio ritmo y con un acceso abierto a los contenidos. Este escenario está revolucionando el campo de eLearning y provoca la aparición de nuevos tipo...

MOOCs are examples of the evolution of eLearning environments, it is a fact that the flexibility of the learning services allows students to learn at their own time, place and pace, enhances continuous communication and interaction between all participants in knowledge and community building, benefits people with disabilities and therefore can impr...

MOOCs are examples of the evolution of eLearning environments towards more a revolutionary computer and mobile-based scenario along with social technologies that will lead to the emergence of new kinds of learning applications that enhance communication and collaboration processes. The flexibility of the learning service students to learn at their...

http://www.um.es/ead/red/45/gamo.pdf Esta investigación analiza los requisitos detectados entre estudiantes y profesores de enseñanzas científico-técnicas, sobre el diseño y funcionalidad de una futura plataforma web que implemente un Laboratorio Virtual Remoto (VRL). El VRL actualmente está en fase de diseño, y pretende servir como complemento a l...

The concept of Digital Inclusion comes from the idea that technology and the ubiquity of the Internet can bring challenges and new opportunities for communities and individuals alike and can reach all layers of the population. However, it is necessary to bring the technology to the people and train them properly in such a way that they begin to con...

eLearning environments are rapidly evolving towards more a revolutionary computer and mobile-based scenario along with social technologies that will lead to the emergence of new kinds of learning applications that enhance communication and collaboration processes. The flexibility of the learning service provided by MOOCs allows students to learn at...

El presente artículo desarrolla una metodología en el análisis de la accesibilidad de los cursos MOOC y para ello se ha centrado en el análisis del nivel de accesibilidad de tres de las plataformas MOOC en español: UNED COMA, COLMENIA y Miriada X, para lo cual se han usado cuatro pautas distintas de evaluación: herramientas automáticas, simuladores...

This article develops a methodology for the assessment of MOOC courses, focusing on the degree of accessibility of three Spanish MOOC platforms: UNED COMA, COLMENIA and Miriada X. Four different criteria have been used in this context: automatic tools, disability simulators, testing tools and educational content.

El presente artículo presenta una metodología para en el análisis de la accesibilidad de las plataformas MOOC y los cursos que contienen, la misma se compone de cuatro pautas distintas de evaluación: herramientas automáticas, simuladores de discapacidad, herramientas de testeo y finalmente a través del contenido educativo, dichas pautas se realizan...

La aplicación Conferencia Online es el software de gestión que se utiliza en las aulas virtuales asociadas al sistema de videoconferencia AVIP de la UNED. Su frecuencia de uso es diario en la actividad tutorial inter-centros de la universidad. Tras realizar un primer análisis sobre los defectos de accesibilidad de la herramienta se presentan en est...

Se presenta el experimento realizado para enriquecer con informa-ción LOD el contenido de un conjunto de videos educativos. Se describen bre-vemente las funcionalidades desarrolladas, así como se justifica la integración de los recursos disponibles que facilitan el enriquecimiento del contenido. Fi-nalmente se presentan los resultados del experimen...

This paper describes the projects and the experiences in pedagogical innovation through intensive use of ICTs developed at the UNED’s study centres along the period 2006 - 2013 with the aid of to the European Regional Development Fundings (ERDF). The article analyzes the development of a set of coordinated projects with intensive deployment of ICTs...

A quantitative evaluation of digital resources is proposed by employing social labeling and associated characteristic function that improves the retrieval of resources in digital repositories. The social metadata is described; the characteristic function defined, and finally the results obtained by applying the proposed formula on the reviews from...

This article has come about as a result of joint work between the Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia (UNED, Spain) and the Universidade Aberta (Portugal), pioneering universities in the development of MOOC platforms with pedagogical approximations different from the xMOOC and cMOOC models. The work has been centred on the analysis of the...

UNED (Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia, Spain) has been a pioneer in Europe developing more than 20 MOOCs in 2012 with a pedagogical approach based upon the xMOOC model and run in the UNED COMA platform, openmooc. This paper presents a preliminary analysis for applying the OpenupEd quality label for quality assurance to these courses.

This article discusses a prototype quality model developed for courses in the first edition of the UNED MOOC initiative (where over 170,000 students undertook 20 MOOCs between October 2012 and May 2013). It is argued that since it is not easy to differentiate between a MOOC and other types of online courses, it is therefore difficult to specify a...

Se presenta el experimento realizado para enriquecer con informa-ción LOD el contenido de un conjunto de videos educativos. Se describen bre-vemente las funcionalidades desarrolladas, así como se justifica la integración de los recursos disponibles que facilitan el enriquecimiento del contenido. Fi-nalmente se presentan los resultados del experimen...

This paper outlines the experience developed in the UNED (Spanish National University of Distance Education) to extend the use of Open Educational Resources for business and management education. UNED joined the European research project OpenScout -which offers value-added tools and services for learners, educators and technology providers- and par...

Resumen. El presente artículo describe las posibilidades de trabajo colaborativo desde el punto de vista de la accesibilidad que ofrece el portal OpenScout para la adaptación multicultural de contenido educativo en abierto REAs. Para ello se han analizado en detalle el grado de accesibilidad que ofrecen las herramientas de compartición y reutilizac...

Resumen. Las personas con discapacidad tienen y han tenido muchas desventajas a la hora de integrarse plenamente en la sociedad, no sólo en cuanto a las limitaciones para el acceso a los servicios generales de la misma, sino a uno muy importante como es la educación. El desarrollo de la educación mediante las TIC permite dar muchas esperanzas a per...

This paper presents the research carried out on the analysis of the adaptations that should be included in mobile devices so that they can be applied to ubiquitous language learning. These adaptations have been determined within the SO-CALL-ME project, following the ‘Design For All’ and ‘User-Centered Design’ principles. This work focuses on the us...

This paper discusses the autonomy provided to audiovisual content generators users of the UNED (National University of Distance Education) to manage contents created in AVIP classrooms. It enables unified management of the video publication in the "Campus Channel" in INTECCA portal (Innovation and Technology Development of the Associates Centers),...

This paper outlines the experience developed in the UNED (Spanish National University of Distance Education) to extend th use of Open Educational Resources for business and management education. UNED joined the European research Project OpenScout - which offers value-added tolos and services for learners, educators and techology providers - and par...

La UNED cuenta con 260.000 estudiantes, 1500 profesores, más de 7000 tutores y más de 1500 personas de administración y servicios debe gestionar los procesos necesarios para el desarrollo de las distintas actividades del día a día de la Universidad. Empezando por la matriculación de los estudiantes repartidos en los más de 50 centros nacionales y 1...

Resumen. Este artículo describe la evaluación de la accesibilidad Web del portal basado en la producción mediante redes sociales de contenido abierto en las áreas de Economía y Administración de Empresas, OpenScout. El contenido del sitio Web persigue la generación y adaptación autorregulada por los propios usuarios (profesores y estudiantes princi...

Uno de los principales objetivos de la metodología de enseñanza a distancia es precisamente posibilitar el acceso a estudios a personas que por sus circunstancias personales no habrían podido conseguirlos, como son las personas que tienen dificultades especiales para acceder a la enseñanza presencial. En el caso concreto del uso de medios educativo...

This paper discusses the progress in the management interface and access to AVIP (Audiovisual technology over IP) of UNED (National University of Distance Education). The new Website ensures more accessible and easier access to services. This Site is focused on the Virtual Classroom Videoconferencing, Virtual Classroom Webconferencing and Digital r...

This paper reports pilot work regarding the deployment of advanced video educational software with synchronous and asynchronous web conferencing tools that allow collaborative interactions between lectures and learners. High level ratios of users appeared so rapidly that a new distributed system of servers acting as service nodes has been designed...

UNED utilizes interactive whiteboards from multiple manufacturers in its classes. Each whiteboard has to be synchronized with every participant regardless its manufacturer. Thus, UN ED has developed the application "Pizarra Online" to guarantee the interoperability among interactive whiteboards and any other touch device. interoperabilidad , virtua...

In this article the generation and exploitation of open educational resources in “virtual attendance” are discussed. Virtual attendance is defined as the combination of synchronous and asynchronous ICT tools used to provide distance education students with the same educational experience that conventional students receive in fact-to-face classes. I...

Online (virtual) courses, consisting of essentially textual materials, discussion forums, limited (auto)evaluation, etc., have represented the state of the art in eLearning for some time. Recent technological innovation in the UNED (the only national public distance university in Spain) has enabled to go beyond the concept of "virtual courses" (imp...

This paper reports preliminary pedagogical experiences regarding the deployment of advanced video educational platforms with a full synchronous and asynchronous videoconferencing tool developed. Reinforced by these new tools, active learning is promoted inside Computer Science studies and tutoring is being re-adapted to the new educational model of...

In the last years, authoring based on e-learning standards has been consolidated as a core factor of industry and development of interoperable and effective virtual learning environments. However, there is a need for further research on abstraction to provide a more instructional view in the context of authoring tools in a variety of ways, in order...

Distance second language learning is essentially practical and skill-based requiring personal, social and occupational language-mediated activities with other speakers using the target language. Computer technology has long been used to try to overcome the challenges of distance learning although with limited success. To improve this situation, the...

This paper reports pilot work regarding the deployment of advanced video educational software with synchronous and asynchronous web conferencing tools that allow collaborative interactions between lectures and learners. High level ratios of users appeared so rapidly that a new distributed system of servers acting as service nodes has been designed...

El objetivo del artículo es revisar esquemas de metadatos y estándares disponibles, para proponer el diseño de perfiles de aplicación cuya semántica asociada optimice las búsquedas sobre repositorios de objetos multimedia y en concreto objetos multimedia relacionados con la educación. Se presenta un estado del arte detallado, comentando los estánda...

La UNED decidió hace 30 años establecer centros de estudios (Centros Asociados) a lo largo de todo el territorio. Para llevar a cabo la acción tutorial en el marco de las nuevas líneas de trabajo marcadas por el proceso de Bolonia, la UNED utiliza la metodología �blended learning�, la cual ofrece una tutoría presencial en los Centros Asociados junt...

La UNED, (Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia) utiliza la metodología �blended learning�, la cual ofrece una tutoría presencial en los Centros Asociados junto con el uso de una plataforma educativa en Internet. La innovación en la tipología del servicio de tutorías es esencial para mejorar la calidad del servicio prestado, impulsado ademá...

El Espacio Europeo de Educación Superior ha propuesto un cambio sustancial en la forma de impartir la docencia universitaria en España. La UNED, institución pionera en la educación a distancia en este país, está redefiniendo al igual que el resto de universidades muchos de sus procesos académicos para asegurar los nuevos requerimientos del proceso...

We present a CBIR system (Content-based Image Retrieval). The system establishes a set of visual features which will be automatically generated. The sort of features is diverse and they are related to various concepts. After visual features calculation, a calibration process is performed whereby the system estimates the best weight for each feature...

In this work, addressing waveforms for grayscale generation in tristable AFLC cells are proposed. The behaviour of an active matrix device have been simulated. Electric limitations arising from TFTs (compatible voltages, storing capacities) have been taken into account. These limitations have been made compatible with the LC characteristics, i.e.,...

The electrooptical behavior of antiferroelectric tristable cells with active matrices has been evaluated by preparing MIM displays filled with Chisso CS-4001 AFLC material. MIMs were fabricated by a standard 3-mask process. The displays are 2″, 96 × 128 pixel multiplexed test cells. The cell gap is 1.5 μm in all cases; silica spacers were used. A n...

In the last few years, the unique features of antiferroelectric liquid crystals (AFLCs) have been explored to develop high-end displays. A number of passive-and active-matrix prototypes have been presented. However, although their use in a number of application areas has been suggested, no commercial products have been announced yet. This work revi...

The statistical origin of grayscales showed by surface-stabilized antiferroelectric liquid crystal cells has been tested. Long-term stable microdomains have been detected, thus supporting the statistical mechanism. However, the relaxation time required for these microdomains to stabilize at room temperature is fairly large for current materials und...

Antiferroelectric liquid crystals have recently demonstrated the possibility of producing analog, multiplex-compatible, video-rate gray scales by addressing with fairly simple waveforms. These waveforms, however, usually rely on DC compensation by alternative use of the two opposite electrically-induced FLC phases as clear state, and the AFLC relax...

— The electro-optic behavior of antiferroelectric liquid-crystal displays (LCDs) has been investigated. By choosing proper addressing waveforms, multiplex-compatible analog gray-scale driving schemes have been found. The schemes have been tested at different temperatures for assessing their use in real displays. A temperature range where both the a...

Liquid crystal microdroplets trapped into silica gel glasses by sol-gel processes may be used for display applications. Gel-glass dispersed liquid crystals (GDLC) are switched between opaque and transparent states by applying external ac-voltage signals; no polarizers are required. Contrast ratio is enhanced in the projection mode as scattering fro...

Distance university educative systems have evolved differently according to each country. UNED decided thirty years ago to establish study centres throughout the territory which has been in the meantime the base of its success. The blended learning methodology offers face to face tutoring at study centres, eLearning platform tools and off-line peda...

In this paper we expose the development of a CBIR system (Content-based Image Re-trieval) that is able to retrieve images from a corpus based upon the image content. In order to obtain such functionality, the system establishes a set of characteristics which will be au-tomatically generated. This allows the system to univocally identify each image...