Textbook Distance Learning E Learning and Blended Learning in Mathematics Education Jason Silverman Ebook All Chapter PDF

Distance Learning E Learning and
Blended Learning in Mathematics

Education Jason Silverman
Visit to download the full and correct content document:
https://textbookfull.com/product/distance-learning-e-learning-and-blended-learning-in-
mathematics-education-jason-silverman/
More products digital (pdf, epub, mobi) instant
download maybe you interests ...
Blended Learning Designs in STEM Higher Education

Putting Learning First Christopher N. Allan
https://textbookfull.com/product/blended-learning-designs-in-
stem-higher-education-putting-learning-first-christopher-n-allan/
Teaching and Learning at a Distance Foundations of

Distance Education 6th Edition Michael Simonson
https://textbookfull.com/product/teaching-and-learning-at-a-
distance-foundations-of-distance-education-6th-edition-michael-
simonson/
e Learning e Education and Online Training Shuai Liu
https://textbookfull.com/product/e-learning-e-education-and-
online-training-shuai-liu/
Smart Education and e Learning 2019 Vladimir L. Uskov
https://textbookfull.com/product/smart-education-and-e-
learning-2019-vladimir-l-uskov/
Blended Learning Education in a Smart Learning
Environment 13th International Conference ICBL 2020
Bangkok Thailand August 24 27 2020 Proceedings Simon K.
S. Cheung
https://textbookfull.com/product/blended-learning-education-in-a-
smart-learning-environment-13th-international-conference-
icbl-2020-bangkok-thailand-august-24-27-2020-proceedings-simon-k-
s-cheung/
Smart Education and e Learning 2016 1st Edition

Vladimir L. Uskov
https://textbookfull.com/product/smart-education-and-e-
learning-2016-1st-edition-vladimir-l-uskov/
Assessing the Role of Mobile Technologies and Distance

Learning in Higher Education 1st Edition Patricia
Ordóñez De Pablos
https://textbookfull.com/product/assessing-the-role-of-mobile-
technologies-and-distance-learning-in-higher-education-1st-
edition-patricia-ordonez-de-pablos/
Mathematics Affect and Learning Middle School Students

Beliefs and Attitudes About Mathematics Education Peter
Grootenboer
https://textbookfull.com/product/mathematics-affect-and-learning-
middle-school-students-beliefs-and-attitudes-about-mathematics-
education-peter-grootenboer/
Deep Learning for Natural Language Processing Develop

Deep Learning Models for Natural Language in Python
Jason Brownlee
https://textbookfull.com/product/deep-learning-for-natural-
language-processing-develop-deep-learning-models-for-natural-
language-in-python-jason-brownlee/
ICME-13 Monographs
Jason Silverman
Veronica Hoyos Editors
Distance Learning,
E-Learning and
Blended Learning
in Mathematics
Education
International Trends in Research
and Development
ICME-13 Monographs
Series editor
Gabriele Kaiser, Faculty of Education, Didactics of Mathematics, Universität
Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany
Each volume in the series presents state-of-the art research on a particular topic in
mathematics education and reflects the international debate as broadly as possible,
while also incorporating insights into lesser-known areas of the discussion. Each
volume is based on the discussions and presentations during the ICME-13 Congress
and includes the best papers from one of the ICME-13 Topical Study Groups or
Discussion Groups.
More information about this series at http://www.springer.com/series/15585

Jason Silverman Veronica Hoyos
•
Editors
Distance Learning,
E-Learning and Blended
Learning in Mathematics
Education
International Trends in Research
and Development
123
Editors
Jason Silverman Veronica Hoyos
School of Education National Pedagogical University
Drexel University Mexico City, Distrito Federal
Philadelphia, PA Mexico
USA
ISSN 2520-8322 ISSN 2520-8330 (electronic)

ICME-13 Monographs
ISBN 978-3-319-90789-5 ISBN 978-3-319-90790-1 (eBook)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-90790-1
Library of Congress Control Number: 2018939465
© Springer International Publishing AG, part of Springer Nature 2018

This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved by the Publisher, whether the whole or part
of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations,
recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission
or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar
methodology now known or hereafter developed.
The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this
publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from
the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use.
The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this
book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the
authors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or
for any errors or omissions that may have been made. The publisher remains neutral with regard to
jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Printed on acid-free paper
This Springer imprint is published by the registered company Springer International Publishing AG
part of Springer Nature
The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland
Contents
1 Research on Technologically Mediated Mathematics Learning

at a Distance: An Overview and Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Jason Silverman and Veronica Hoyos
Part I E-Learning and Blended Learning of Mathematics

2 The Blended Learning Concept e:t:p:M@Math: Practical
Insights and Research Findings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Fabian Mundt and Mutfried Hartmann
3 Challenges and Opportunities in Distance and Hybrid
Environments for Technology-Mediated Mathematics Teaching
and Learning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Veronica Hoyos, Maria E. Navarro, Victor J. Raggi
and Guadalupe Rodriguez
Part II Online Environments and Tutoring Systems for Leveling

College Students’ Mathematics Learning
4 Computer Assisted Math Instruction: A Case Study for
MyMathLab Learning System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
Adam Chekour
5 Lessons Learned from a Calculus E-Learning System for
First-Year University Students with Diverse Mathematics
Backgrounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Lixing Liang, Karfu Yeung, Rachel Ka Wai Lui,
William Man Yin Cheung and Kwok Fai Lam
v
vi Contents
6 A Customized Learning Environment and Individual Learning

in Mathematical Preparation Courses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
Karin Landenfeld, Martin Göbbels, Antonia Hintze and Jonas Priebe
Part III Innovations on E-Math Learning and Teaching

7 Scripting Collaboration for Competence-Based Mathematics
Learning: A Case Study on Argumentation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
Giovannina Albano and Umberto Dello Iacono
8 Effective Use of Math E-Learning with Questions
Specification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
Yasuyuki Nakamura, Kentaro Yoshitomi, Mitsuru Kawazoe,
Tetsuo Fukui, Shizuka Shirai, Takahiro Nakahara, Katsuya Kato
and Tetsuya Taniguchi
9 Designing Interactive Technology to Scaffold Generative
Pedagogical Practice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
Anthony Matranga, Jason Silverman, Valerie Klein
and Wesley Shumar
10 Supporting Teachers in Developing Their RiTPACK
Through Using Video Cases in an Online Course . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165
Cosette Crisan
Part IV MOOC and Rich Media Platform for Mathematics Teacher

Education
11 Design and Impact of MOOCs for Mathematics Teachers . . . . . . . 185
Tamar Avineri, Hollylynne S. Lee, Dung Tran, Jennifer N. Lovett
and Theresa Gibson
12 Describing Curricular Materials for Mathematics Teacher
Education in an Online, Rich Media Platform . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201
Daniel Chazan, Patricio Herbst, Dana Grosser-Clarkson,
Elizabeth Fleming, Janet Walkoe and Emina Alibegović
Chapter 1
Research on Technologically Mediated
Mathematics Learning at a Distance:
An Overview and Introduction
Jason Silverman and Veronica Hoyos
Abstract In this chapter, we provide an overview and introduction to this

monograph, which reports on the work of an international group of scholars that
joined together at the 13th International Congress on Mathematics Education to
share and build on current and emerging research in distance learning, e-learning
and blended learning in mathematics. We share work that emerged from Topic
Study Group 44: Distance learning, e-learning, blended learning, including
research and development in the use of digital teaching and learning platforms,
usage of this technology to scaffold mathematics instruction and tutoring, novel
interfaces for communicating and analyzing student thinking, and specialized
mathematics teacher education platforms.
Keywords Research on electronic and distance learning Teaching and learn-

ing platforms Scaffolding mathematics instruction
This book emerged from the Topic Study Group 44 at the 13th International
Congress on Mathematics Education, ICME13, held in Hamburg, Germany on
2016, from July 24th to 31th, where an international group of scholars joined
together to share and build on current and emerging research in distance learning,
e-learning and blended learning. Specifically, in TSG44 we sought to push on the
boundaries of what was known on distance education, e-learning and blended
learning and teaching of mathematics through an examination and discussion of
recent research and development through these modalities and the common factors
that cut across them.
J. Silverman (&)
Drexel University, Philadelphia, USA
e-mail: silverman@drexel.edu
V. Hoyos
National Pedagogical University, Mexico City, Mexico
e-mail: vhoyosa@upn.mx
© Springer International Publishing AG, part of Springer Nature 2018 1

J. Silverman and V. Hoyos (eds.), Distance Learning, E-Learning and Blended
Learning in Mathematics Education, ICME-13 Monographs,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-90790-1_1
2 J. Silverman and V. Hoyos
The papers published in this monograph are revisions and extensions of the
original papers presented during the TSG 44 sessions and reflect additional work
carried out by all participant authors after the conference ended. The monograph is
organized in four parts: The first part presents two chapters that focus on the
incorporation of new technologies into mathematics classrooms through the con-
struction or use of digital teaching and learning platforms (see chapters by Mundt &
Hartman, and Hoyos et al., in this book). The second part presents a wide range of
perspectives on the study and implementation of different tutoring systems and/or
computer assisted math instruction (see Chaps. 4–6 in this book, correspondingly
authored by Chekour; Liang et al.; and Landenfeld et al.). The third part presents
four new innovations in mathematics learning and/or mathematics teacher educa-
tion that involve the development of novel interfaces’ for communicating mathe-
matical ideas and analysing student thinking and student work (see Chaps. 7–10,
authored by Albano & Dello-Iacono; Nakamura et al.; Matranga, Silverman, Klein
& Shumar; and Crisan). Finally, the fourth part presents latest work on the con-
struction and implementation of new MOOCs and rich media platforms accom-
plished to carry out specialized mathematics teacher education (see chapters
authored by Avineri et al.; and Chazan et al., in this book).
1.1 Overview of Parts and Chapters
1.1.1 Part I: E-Learning and Blended Learning

of Mathematics
Chapter 2 introduces the reader in the construction of the e:t:p:M® platform,

developed by Mundt and Hartman from 2012 to 2016, at the University of
Education Karlsruhe (Germany). The authors worked to improve the quality of
higher education instruction through a platform that integrates digital and
internet-based technologies into regular (brick-and-mortar) classes. Specifically, the
authors looked at the articulation of online material and other technology to enable
a variety of options to be implemented in a blended-course format through the e:t:p:
M® approach. Additionally, teachers can modify the content and also student
activities can be tracked and reported for a continuous evaluation and improvement.
The potential benefits of this platform are clear as students can find materials for
specific content as well as document occasions of interactions with the materials,
colleagues, a mentor and/or the teacher; and teachers can create his/her materials
specific to their individual needs. In addition to sharing the e:t:p:M® development
and model, Mundt and Hartman’s chapter provides additional data and analysis
regarding the usage of the platform, for example measuring student accesses to the
platform as well as understanding relationships between interactions with the
content and the archived online lessons.
1 Research on Technologically Mediated Mathematics Learning … 3
Chapter 3, by Hoyos et al., from the National Pedagogical University in Mexico

City, addresses opportunities and challenges posed by the teaching and learning of
mathematics through digital platforms. Specifically, the chapter focuses on the
design and implementation of several different mathematics learning environments
that provided new teaching and learning opportunities for students in hybrid
environments. In this work, the authors establish a relationship between student
mathematical attainments and digital tools functionalities, by means of the elabo-
ration of teaching cycles that have influenced the design of the activity and stu-
dents’ learning improvement.
In the chapter by Hoyos et al., the authors documented usage of digital platform
tools for the administration, storage and deployment of resources and for facilitating
interactions within the resources stored in the platform. One important considera-
tion in this chapter is the teaching challenges of attending to the promotion of
reflection processes during the resolution of math problems in an online environ-
ment. This paper documents the challenges when teaching and learning of math-
ematics were completely online and mediated by technology.
1.1.2 Part II: Online Environments and Tutoring Systems

for Leveling College Students’ Mathematics
In Chap. 4, A. Chekour, from the University of Cincinnati-Blue Ash College in

USA, describes an effort to utilize technology to support more effective develop-
mental mathematics learning and teaching. The chapter compares the academic
performance of students enrolled in developmental mathematics sections that utilize
computer-assisted instruction with those using traditional instruction. Results show
the potential of the computer-assisted instruction, both in aggregate and for both
males and females separately. The chapter also discusses the challenges and
opportunities for incorporating computer assisted instruction into university math-
ematics classes.
Chapter 5 by Liang et al., from the University of Hong Kong in Hong Kong,
presents an evaluation of the different user behaviours on an e-learning platform for
students with different levels of calculus knowledge. Having collected data from a
sample of 225 students who have used the platform, which includes both video
lessons and assessments, the authors focus on student interaction with a supple-
mental (i.e. not required) e-learning system. Results highlight relationships between
activity in the system and student performance on standard examinations. For
example, they document that while students with the necessity and urgency to catch
up (i.e. with less prior knowledge on calculus) tend to be more active on the
e-learning platform in general, many of them tend to ignore the importance the
quizzes, which are designed to provide practice and support the development of
fluency with the contents at hand.
In Chap. 6, Landenfeld and her colleagues from the Hamburg University of

Applied Sciences in Germany discuss the online learning environment via MINT,
which was designed to provide differentiated mathematics support to undergraduate
science and engineering students. Assessment results allow for the system to rec-
ommend differentiated “paths,” that can include selections of video tutorials,
learning activities and exercises and the “Personal Online Desk” provide a view for
the student and others to view progress. In addition to sharing details of the system,
this chapter also shares results of analysis of student engagement with the
environment.
1.1.3 Part III: Innovations on E-Math Learning

and Teaching
Chapter 7, by Albano & Dello-Iacono, from the University of Salerno in Italy,

presents an innovative approach to competence-based mathematics learning,
through the use of a digital platform named DIST-M (Digital Interactive
Storytelling in Mathematics). DIST-M allows learners to define a model where the
roles of participants and the sequence of activities promote cognitive,
socio-cognitive and metacognitive processes. In this platform, students are engaged
in activities within a storytelling experience. The authors used both experiential and
discursive approaches to mathematics learning, integrating individual and social
tasks, defined by external scripts. The development DIST-M was based on the
assumption that such environment can be arranged in a way that a good exploitation
of platform tools and a well-structured collaboration among peers can act as an
expert support to students in achieving their learning goal. The environment also
supports the exploration of specific mathematics content—representation and
management of graphics and descriptive statistics, in the case of this paper—in
spatial activities that the authors have designed around thematic contexts, such as
the discovery of a new planet.
In Chap. 8, Nakamura et al., working in three different universities from Japan
(the Nagoya University, the Mukogawa Women’s University and the Nihon
University) and including the participation of the Sangensha LLC., and the
Cybernet Systems Co., Ltd., address two challenges that instructors encounter when
implementing the e-learning systems that are prominent in Japan: entry of mathe-
matical symbols and equations and the development of content for specific courses
and content. The authors share details of two input interfaces that integrate with
commonly used e-learning systems and allow students to input mathematical
symbols and equations using both computer and mobile devices, importantly, to
address the unique challenges of mathematics e-learning using mobile devices
(tablets and mobile phones). These input interfaces are one component of the
MeLQS e-learning, question specification allows for questions to be cross-platform,
and users from many different e-learning systems collaborate and share questions
and tasks, thereby making the use of e-learning systems more generative.
Matranga et al. (Chap. 9), from the California State University San Marcos and
the Drexel University in USA, describe an online environment designed to support
the emergence of a set of professional practices within a group of mathematics
teachers. In the chapter, the authors share the design and features of the environ-
ment, highlighting the design process through which it was thought to meet specific
use cases identified by teachers. The chapter addresses the challenge of scaling
teacher professional development through using technology to emulate a boundary
encounter between a group of teachers and an existing community of educators with
productive pedagogical practices. Their findings show the promise of this approach,
specifically noting the emergence of productive pedagogical practices normative in
the target community.
Finally in this part, Crisan (Chap. 10), from the UCL Institute of Education,
University College London in UK, discusses her work supporting teachers as they
explore how digital technology supports students’ understanding and learning of
mathematics. Video cases that depict actual student engagement with specific
mathematics tasks, including audio and video of students synchronized with
recordings of their actual work, were specifically developed for this project and
participants engagement with these cases—and the student thinking that are
depicted in the cases—was analysed. Crisan reports that persistent engagement with
these video cases and the other supports provided in the online context show
promise for scaffolding teachers as they analyze student work and develop peda-
gogical solutions based on this analysis. Using a modified version of the
Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) framework, Research-
informed TPACK (RiTPACK), Crisan presents additional evidence of teacher
development resulting from their engagement with the video cases and online
course.
1.1.4 Part IV: MOOC and Rich Media Platform

for Mathematics Teacher Education
Chapter 11 by Avineri et al., from three universities in USA (the North Carolina
School of Science and Mathematics, the North Carolina State University, and the
Middle Tennessee State University) and including the Victoria University in
Melbourne (Australia), specify design principles for the implementation of MOOCs
for professional development of mathematics teachers, based on recent research on
this topic. The chapter documents the design efficiency and discusses specific
impacts that participants report on changes into their teaching practices.
Specifically, some participants addressed changes to their approach to teaching
(e.g., increased focus on concepts as opposed to algorithms), others described how
their participation supported their refined attention to and understanding of their
students’ thinking and their own personal improvement in knowledge of mathe-

matics. According to Avineri and colleagues, the research-based design principles
that guided the creation of the MOOC-ED courses have afforded educators’ choice
in professional learning, complemented with relevant, job-embedded activities,
access to the perspectives of experts, teachers, and students, and a network of
educators learning together around a common content area.
Chapter 12, by Chazan et al., from three institutions in USA (the University of
Maryland, the University of Michigan, and the Rowland Hall School at Salt Lake
City in Utah), describes how the LessonSketch platform has been used to implement
a larger project between math teacher educators. In particular, these authors use
Grossman’s pedagogies of practice to explore how teacher educators are repre-
senting practice, decomposing it, and providing opportunities for their students to
approximate practice through the curricular artefacts that they are creating. Chazan
et al., describe a practice-based approach to helping teachers explore the content of
mathematics teacher education, and report the novel ways in which a certain online
environment (LessonSketch in this case) supports new opportunities for teacher
candidates to practice the work of teaching. These authors note that professional
development experiences created with these platforms not only have pedagogical
characteristics and support learning about teaching, but also have curricular char-
acteristics that help shape what it is that teacher candidates should learn.
1.1.5 Purpose of This Monograph
This book addresses issues of collaboration, equity, access and curriculum in the
context of learning and teaching mathematics. For example, Mundt and Hartman
focus on the population of students entering Universities (Chap. 2) and propose an
online platform such as e:t:p:M® to address the challenges brought forth through
significant increases in undergraduate populations and associated challenges in
instruction and supervision. This is a consistent role posited by authors in this text
utilizing existing course management systems and tools, such as Moodle and
Blackboard Learn, as well as other custom designed platforms. While the vast
majority of online platforms offer similar features, such as organization of the
content, and integration of external software including e-mail, and discussions, the
authors noted that e:t:p:M® approach innovates because it could establish or
monitor a relationship between the usage of different mobile technology resources
with the blended courses it promoted. These results and others presented throughout
this volume confirm the existence of new teaching and learning opportunities when
working with students in hybrid environments.
With regards to wholly online mathematics learning and teaching, authors in this
volume reported the existence of challenges related with the promotion of reflection
processes when teachers or students solve mathematics complex tasks while par-
ticipating in a course at a distance (see Hoyos et al., and Matranga et al., chapters).
Using different contexts and approaches, the authors suggest that effective digital
collaboration requires attention to individual’s (teacher or student) activity and

specific supports to accomplish an epistemological change required in order to
engage productively and solve such mentioned tasks. These supports can be
included in the computational device, learning environment or otherwise be pro-
vided by tutorial intervention.
A second broad theme in this volume is the construction and evaluation of
mathematics tutoring systems for supporting college students’ persistence and
success. Such tutoring systems are essential, both given the growth in undergrad-
uate students and continued issues regarding entering freshman’s preparation for
college level mathematics. While there are various commercial tutoring environ-
ments available, the authors in this volume (Chekour; Liang, et al.; and Landenfeld
et al.) notice the benefit of custom designed environments to address specific local
constraints and share information about their systems as well as suggestions to
improve students’ use of an e-learning platform.
The third part of this volume addresses a third theme: innovation in e-learning.
In this part, the authors discuss new approaches to mathematics learning and
mathematics teacher collaboration through the use of Web platforms and commu-
nication tools. Albano & Dello-Iacono introduce a general methodology to support
an e-learning-based approach to competence-based mathematics learning. These
authors designed and implemented certain computer-supported collaboration scripts
aimed to foster students’ shift from investigating, reasoning and communicating
what they have found. Nakamura et al.’s chapter described and displayed a series of
interfaces designed to minimize the challenges of mathematical symbols and syntax
in e-learning environments. In Matranga et al. chapter, the authors documented that
a specifically designed online collaborative environment had the potential to scaf-
fold teachers’ legitimate participation in reform-type conversations and activities
that were not common for these individuals without the online supports. Finally,
Crisan’s chapter provides another example on the use of varied multimedia for
teacher development resulting from their engagement with video cases and specific
online course.
The fourth part of the book addresses a final theme: the use of online rich media
platform for teacher education, including the development and implementation of
both visualizations of teaching and specially constructed MOOCs for mathematics
teacher education. Two of these applications are discussed in Chaps. 11 and 12, and
share theoretical and empirical evidence regarding both the effectiveness of the
specific design and medium as well as emerging advancements in this area. As an
example, Chazan et al. (Chap. 11) use the mathematics education literature on
curriculum to suggest that the curriculum creation process that is underway in
teacher education, when it happens online, is influenced by the digital nature of
technological artifacts.
This book is a scholarly collaboration on the part of professors, developers and
researchers in the broad fields of technologically-enhanced mathematics education
and serves as an effort to disseminate significant contributions and share interna-
tional perspectives on this important and timely area. The book provides an over-
view of the current state-of-the-art research and shares and discusses emerging
work, including trends, ideas, methodologies, and results and represents a special
call to continue research and development and to grow a canon of research foun-
dations for distance learning, e-learning and blended learning in mathematics
education.
Part I
E-Learning and Blended
Learning of Mathematics
Chapter 2
The Blended Learning Concept
e:t:p:M@Math: Practical Insights
and Research Findings
Fabian Mundt and Mutfried Hartmann
Abstract The chapter outlines the key ideas of the blended learning concept
e:t:p:M® and its further development in the field of Higher Mathematical Education.
e:t:p:M@Math aims to integrate digital technologies and face-to-face interactions to
simultaneously allow personalized and high-quality learning. Both practical
teaching experiences as well as research findings will be discussed. One focus is on
the description of the self-developed and designed e-Learning environment, its
possibilities and further development. Another focus is on the reflection of the
practical implementation into everyday teaching, especially the integration with
face-to-face seminars. In addition, first research insights will be presented and
explained.
Keywords Blended learning E-learning Distance learning Learning analytics
2.1 Introduction: Challenging Trends in Higher

Education
In the winter term 2014/2015, the Federal Bureau for Statistics of Germany counted
2.7 million university students—a milestone in the history of the Federal Republic
of Germany (SB, 2015). Given that only ten years ago there were far less than 2
million students (Bildungsbericht, 2014), the magnitude of this increase becomes
even more significant. Many universities have adopted “bulk-instruction” with
heterogeneous student groups and an unfavorable student-to-instructor ratio
(Himpsl, 2014). In particular, high-demand introductory courses suffer under these
problematic circumstances. Therefore, the quality of education is lacking and the
need for reforms is apparent (Asdonk, Kuhnen, & Bornkessel, 2013).
F. Mundt (&) M. Hartmann

University of Education Karlsruhe, Bismarckstraße 10, 76133 Karlsruhe, Germany
e-mail: fabian.mundt@ph-karlsruhe.de
M. Hartmann
e-mail: mutfried.hartmann@ph-kalrsruhe.de
© Springer International Publishing AG, part of Springer Nature 2018 11

J. Silverman and V. Hoyos (eds.), Distance Learning, E-Learning and Blended
Learning in Mathematics Education, ICME-13 Monographs,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-90790-1_2
12 F. Mundt and M. Hartmann
Since this situation is unlikely to change in the foreseeable future—neither

nationally nor internationally (Dräger, Friedrich, & Müller-Eiselt, 2014; Maslen,
2012)—innovative teaching and learning concepts are necessary. In contrast to
widely-discussed MOOCs, one very promising approach involves integrating reg-
ular class sessions with the opportunities of digital (Internet-) technologies (see
Carr, 2012). One specific model that specifically aims at the integration of both
class sessions and digital content is e:t:p:M®.
2.2 The Blended Learning Concept e:t:p:M®
e:t:p:M®1 was developed as an introductory course in education in the winter term

2012 at the University of Education in Karlsruhe by Timo Hoyer and Fabian
Mundt. Detailed information about the project and its theoretical framework can be
found in Hoyer and Mundt (2014, 2016). The acronym, which indicates the indi-
vidual parts of the project, are described in depth below.
2.2.1 “e” for E-Learning
The core of the e-learning content consists of 11 studio recorded online lessons that
have been post-produced according to a creative framework. The lessons are all
between 20 and 30 min long and are comprised of a speaker as well as info boards,
images, animations and quotations. Additionally, the lessons are structured through
so called “Fähnchen“ (thematic headlines). The students can access the content via
an especially for the e:t:p:M® project developed responsive web-app (Fig. 2.1).2
Personal annotations can be added to every “Fähnchen” and then downloaded as
a PDF-file (Fig. 2.2). Furthermore, the web-app grants access to additional mate-
rials (texts, exercises etc.) and does not only contain general information about the
class but also an extensive FAQ-area and the possibility to get in touch with the
lecturers directly. The web-app also provides the user with a differentiated module
for analysis that enables the teacher to track the students’ interactions.3
1
Project website: http://etpm.ph-karlsruhe.de/demo/ [13.12.2016].
2
The web-app was developed with the open-source frameworks Laravel, Vue.js, Semantic UI and
Video.js.
3
As a tool for analyzing the interaction, an adjusted version of the open analytics platform “Piwik”
is used. All collected data is anonymized. The tracking function can be deactivated from inside the
web-app, which is highlighted for the users.
2 The Blended Learning Concept e:t:p:M@Math: Practical Insights … 13
Fig. 2.1 The responsive web-app (original version)
Fig. 2.2 The annotation function of the web-app
2.2.2 “t” for Text and Theory Based
Alongside every online lesson, the students are provided with a text that deepens
the content (primary as well as secondary literature). In addition to suggested
approaches to the text, the file contains questions that will be dealt with during the
attended seminar. All texts are formatted uniformly and have been edited for the use
in a seminar.
2.2.3 “p” for Practice-Oriented (and Attendance-Oriented)
The e-learning content of e:t:p:M® aims at a high personalization of the learning

content as well as its integration into the seminars. The latter are comprised of
information sessions (lecturers), FAQ-sessions (lecturers) and weekly mentoring
sessions (student mentors) (Fig. 2.3).
Fig. 2.3 The e:t:p:M® concept
2.2.4 “M” for Mentoring
Especially in the beginning of studies at university, the support and care for
beginners is of high importance. In addition to subject-specific competences, the
students need to acquire a sense to navigate the foreign academic world. In e:t:p:M®
the class is separated into smaller groups who will be mentored by a tandem of
older students during the semester. The mentors are trained in a specifically
designed workshop and receive a certificate after completion.
The program received an award for extraordinary teaching methods in 2013 and
was evaluated positively several times.4
2.3 Using e:t:p:M® in an Introductory Course

in Mathematics
Based on the previously explained challenges for teaching at university and the very
positive feedback towards the project e:t:p:M®, the concept is being adapted for
other subjects outside the realm of pedagogy. At the moment, the authors work on
applying the program to an “Introduction in Mathematics” course, which started in
the winter term 2015 (Mundt & Hartmann, 2015). The current evolution of the
concept is presented below. Since the contents are more historical and theory
oriented, the application of e:t:p:M@Math requires adjustments. The online lessons
and web-app, in particular, are being revised extensively to meet the requirements
of mathematical learning.
The adaptation is informed and guided by “design-based research methodology”
(Wang & Hannafin, 2005). Specifically, it is situated in a real educational context
(mathematics introduction) and is focusing on the design and testing of significant
interventions (e:t:p:M@Math concept) (see Anderson & Shattuck, 2012). As part of
the design process, we refer to contemporary findings in the field of Higher
4
http://etpm-dev.ph-karlsruhe.de/etpm-evaluation/ [13.10.2015].
Education eDidactics (Ertl, 2010; Kerres, 2013) with a special focus on mathe-
matical learning in digitally supported environments (Aldon, Hitt, & Bazzini, 2017;
Juan, 2011) and “User Experience Design” (Meyer & Wachter-Boettcher, 2016;
Walter, 2011). In this text, we are concerned with the extensions of the web-app.5
For this reason, we also include a review of existing blended-learning specific tools.
2.3.1 Existing Tools and e:t:p:M@Math Web-App
A review of the current literature and software shows that there are many blended
learning concepts in the field of Higher Education, but only few explicit tools.
Besides well-established Learning Management Systems like Moodle, OpenOLAT
or ILIAS there are some more recent MOOC related platforms like edX. A more
detailed overview of these and similar resources can be found in Spring et al. (2016)
and Ma’arop and Embi (2016). All these solutions offer functionality for blended
learning scenarios. Often, these tools require special plugins or add-ons (Kumari,
2016). They also often lack both a good user experience design and context-specific
needs (e.g. for mathematics teaching), which goes hand in hand with the over-
whelming functionality of the software (Persike & Friedrich, 2016). Hence, it is no
surprise that there are also a variety of special and often well-designed tools in
addition to the all-embracing systems. These range for example from applications
which enable the creation of interactive videos (H5P6), deliver the opportunity to
brainstorm online (MindMeister7) or create entire learning lessons easily (TES
Teach8).
In contrast to this situation, the e:t:p:M@Math web-app is a blended
learning-specific software. This means it integrates modern technologies and ideas,
e.g. creating rich interactive video content, with the pedagogical aspects of the
e:t:p:M® concept and context specific needs in mind. One example might be per-
sonalized annotations optimized for seminar use (see Fig. 2.2) or instant exercise
feedback for teachers as outlined below. The web-app can be seen as a continuously
developing framework in the sense of the design-based research, where interven-
tions are repeatedly added, evaluated and improved. The web-app itself can also be
seen as a research tool.
5
The web-app is developed in the sense of “Agile Software Development” (Dingsøyr, Dybå, &
Moe, 2010), which fits perfectly with the design-based research methodology.
6
https://www.h5p.org [10.7.2017].
7
https://www.mindmeister.com [10.7.2017].
8
https://www.tes.com/lessons [10.7.2017].
2.3.2 Research Questions
The review of the current literature and software showed that there is a lack of a
well-designed blended learning specific software that integrates modern technolo-
gies in a tight didactical way and is also open for further research-based develop-
ment. Out of this, our focus is on the following overarching question: How can
modern technology enabled options be implemented in the mathematical adapta-
tion of e:t:p:M®? The following sub-foci organize our discussion of our broad
research focus:
(a) How can interactive content be integrated in the web-app?
(b) How can discussions—a key element of teaching and learning mathematics—
be integrated in the web-app?
(c) How can exercises and tests be implemented?
(d) How can the teachers modify and generate content?
(e) How can student activities be tracked and reported for continuous evaluation
and improvement?
2.3.3 Series of Interactive Content (Sub-focus a)
An online lesson is not only comprised of just a single video, but contains a series
of shorter videos and interactive learning applications. This series of interactive
content enables a more differentiated structure of the more abstract, mathematical
learning contents. The interactions make it possible for the user to comprehend
complex correlations on their own. Current versions of the video environment are
shown in Figs. 2.4 and 2.5.
At present, we are considering about at least three different content types:
• Interactive videos
• Exploration exercises
• Test exercises
As you can see in Fig. 2.4 the video environment integrates these new ideas in
the existing application. In addition, the concept of “Fähnchen” can be used in both
the shorter videos and in exercises. In case of the exercises, the concept has to be
adjusted, particularly through structuring each interactive exercise around several
tasks. Each of these tasks can be visually and functionally highlighted by one
“Fähnchen”. Thereby individual notes can be taken while solving the tasks.
To implement interactive exploration and test exercises the open-source software
CindyJS9 is used. CindyJS is a JavaScript implementation of the well-known
interactive geometry software Cinderella (Richter-Gebert & Kortenkamp, 2012).
9
http://cindyjs.org [13.12.2016].
Content series
Timeline with “Fähnchen” to a particular content-part of the above series
Fig. 2.4 Implementation of content series
The software is mainly used to connect with existing content. However, a modern
JavaScript-framework also makes is possible to optimize the learning environment
for modern devices, which is very important in the mobile world. Furthermore, it is
possible to develop an intuitive content editor, which allows for quick and easy
editing of the exercises (Sect. 2.3.4).
2.3.4 Discussions (Sub-focus b)
Especially in mathematics, controversial discussions facilitate learning and create a

lot of questions. Hence, the annotations and the series of interactive content are
supplemented by discussions. In the discussion forums, which are based on tradi-
tional online discussions, students can post questions and answers tailored to the
corresponding “Fähnchen”. Additionally, the students can ‘like’ the posts, and
lecturers can highlight relevant questions or interesting postings. To keep matters
clear, irrelevant postings will be faded out after a while.
Since 2016, we have been testing several forms of in-app discussions. Following
the iterative implementation and evaluative paradigm of the design-based research
approach we present here both, a first draft (Fig. 2.5) and the current version
Fig. 2.5 First draft of “discussions”-extension
(Fig. 2.6). As you can see in Fig. 2.6 we are using the popular disqus™ service at
the moment. By using an existing service, we gain valuable insights for our own
implementation. In addition to technical challenges, it seems important to develop a
discussion format which integrates very well with the existing parts of the blended
learning concept, particularly the interlink to the face-to-face seminars.
Fig. 2.6 Implementation of discussions (native web-app screenshot, see Fig. 2.8 for translated
interface)
2.3.5 Playground (Sub-focus c)
Every online-lesson contains a summarizing event called “playground”. The

playground consists of practice final exercises and interactions that can be scored in
terms of understandability. Through that, a feedback loop is created that enables a
focused learning process. Furthermore, a dynamic script can be generated. If
desired, the personal annotations and discussions from the forum can be included at
the respective place in the script, before it can be downloaded as a PDF (Fig. 2.7).
2.3.6 Content Editor (Sub-focus d)
In addition to functions that deal with teaching content, the easy creation and
revising of online materials is an important point. Especially in the context of
mathematical settings, where abstract ideas and their representation are focused,
content production can become very intensive.
For this reason, we are working to extend the web app with an “editor mode”,
which makes it possible to create rich learning content quickly and easily. On the
one hand, this includes the possibility to add “Fähnchen” and interactive areas
(links, graphs, pictures etc.) to video content. An elaborate postproduction is
Fig. 2.7 First draft of the “playground”-extension
thereby reduced to the essential and the video content can be changed more easily.
A great advantage is also that the teachers can do this by themselves. On the other
hand, the interactive applications (exploration and test exercises) will be editable as
well.
In this way, the web-app offers teachers the opportunity to create a compre-
hensive and modern learning environment, which reflects both the requirements of
the mathematical subject and those of the learners.
Figure 2.8 shows the current development of the content editor.10 We are trying
to integrate the editor features seamlessly within the user interface. Teal-colored
buttons highlight interaction possibilities, and the main features are bundled in the
secondary menu bar. Following the agile development paradigm, we are imple-
menting extensions continuously. At the moment we have implemented the fol-
lowing “main features”:
• news message system
• FAQ system
• seminar management
• rudimentary online lesson management
• discussion system
• user management
• user role system
• integration in the university ecosystem through LDAP support
• integration of the open analytics platform Piwik (see footnote 3)
In other words, teachers are able to create and manage their own seminars. This
includes the possibility to arrange existing online lessons or add new ones, manage
seminar participants, upload documents, write news messages and manage dis-
cussions through a disqus™ service integration. Further, they can receive statisti-
cally prepared live analytics and configure the system setup.
Unfortunately, it is at the moment not possible to create new high-level online
lessons without technical knowledge. The next step will be to develop the previ-
ously explained online lesson editor based on the already mentioned CindyJS and
H5P frameworks.
2.3.7 Continuous Evaluation Strategy (Sub-focus e)
The series of interactive content, the discussions, the playground and the content
editor mark the current state of the further development of the e-learning content of
e:t:p:M@Math. At the moment, the program—in particular, the discussions and
their integration with face-to-face seminars—is being implemented and evaluated.
In addition to continuous web-based interaction analysis, we have planned an
extensive survey in 2017, when more parts of the introduction course are imple-
mented according to the blended-learning concept. Because we can relate both tools
of our analytical framework—which is called “Blended Evaluation” (Mundt &
Hoyer, 2017)—we expect to identify detailed learning profiles. In fact, we hope to
obtain a solid empirical basis for further design-based decisions. In the following
sections, we share some initial results, which focus the web-app interactions.
10
The web-app project, called “Synthesise”, is published under the MIT Open Source license. The
code is available on GitHub: https://github.com/inventionate/Synthesise. Participation is welcome.
Fig. 2.8 First implementations of the content editor (web-app screenshot, translated)
2.4 First Insights of the Use in Winter Semester 2015/2016
The first three sessions of an “Introduction in Mathematics” course (October 2015

to November 2015) were organized in the e:t:p:M® format. Altogether, there were
168 students who attended the course. In this section, we will present some sta-
tistical analysis of the web-app interactions using Learning Analytics, which is
described as “an educational application of web analytics aimed at learner profiling,
a process of gathering and analyzing details of individual student interactions in
online learning activities” (NMC, 2016). We are focusing on the web-interactions
for two reasons. First, the introduction course is at this time only partly adapted.
A comparative analysis, which allows conclusions on the student performance is
therefore very difficult. As already said, this is methodically prepared as well as
planned for future semesters (see Mundt & Hoyer, 2017). Second, the evaluation of
web-interactions (Learning Analytics) provides important information for our agile
development and design-based research process.
2.4.1 Evaluation Strategy and Questions
We begin by interpreting some core web-analytics data provided by our Piwik (see
footnote 3) installation. Based on these singular insights we apply a more elaborate
multivariate approach—the so called Multiple Correspondence Analysis (see
Sect. 2.4.3 for additional details and references)—to visualize entangled relation-
ships. In the sense of our design-based research methodology, we seek to identify
indicators of particularly effective interventions and developments. In this context,

two main questions are addressed:
a. How do students use the web-content?
b. Can web-interactions be condensed into interaction-profiles?
2.4.2 Usage of Web-Content (a)
Figure 2.9 shows the visitors of the web-app form October to November. After a
period of initial curiosity, the tool has been used continuously. In particular, one
day before the weekly seminars (mentoring), the online lessons were intensively
watched.
More important than the number of visitors over time are their content inter-
actions (clicks, movements, typed characters). For example, how long and how
often videos were played seems to make a difference. In our case, the average
playing time was more than 30 min per online lesson and they were often played
multiple times (3–4 times). These data may indicate that there was much ‘done’
with the videos—and hopefully much learned.
Additional data also supports the conjecture regarding active student engage-
ment. Overall, the online lessons were played more than 45,000 times, almost as
often as they were paused. Nearly 35,000 times the students skipped parts of the
video by using some “Fähnchen”. At least 14,500 annotations were made by most
of the students.
Apart from traffic and interaction data there is some other interesting informa-
tion. Looking at the above-mentioned challenge of digitization, it is appropriate to
analyze the devices which have been used by the students. In the case of
“Introduction in Mathematics”, 80% used ‘traditional’ desktop or laptop computers
to access the web-app. 20% used ‘modern’ smart devices—10% used smartphones
and 10% tablets.
Overall, it can be stated that the students have used the web content extensively.
Even if no information about the performance of the students could be integrated,
the amount of web-interactions, the time spent and the continuity of usage leads to
meaningful insights for further research.
However, research methods which focus on the relationship between those
particular aspects of content usage are even more useful. They enable the recon-
struction of interaction-profiles, which allows well-informed didactical interven-
tions as they are intended by the referenced design-based research methodology.
Another random document with
no related content on Scribd:
accepted money and turned every cent of it into the party treasury
for honest propaganda work. But once admit this conduct to be
justifiable and the day of such leaders will soon be over. Inevitably
they must be succeeded by less scrupulous politicians who will sell
public property and betray public interests right and left, and, after
deducting large sums to feather their own nests, still be in a position
to contribute to the support of the party more largely than any
conscientious leader. Under these conditions the political influence of
wealthy corporations or wealthy men will be limited solely by the
amount of money they are willing to spend. No matter with what
reservations and good intentions such practices are entered upon,
they will mean in the end nothing more and nothing less than that
government is on hire or on sale to the highest bidders. There is no
easier road by which democracy may pass over into plutocracy; and
it is indeed fortunate that the American people in its recent attitude
toward the question of campaign contributions has begun to show an
adequate realisation of the danger confronting it.
To sum up the argument presented in the foregoing pages, it

should be noted that while it is comparatively easy to formulate a
definition of corruption, to point out the difference between the legal
and ethical conceptions of the matter, to distinguish between bribery
and auto-corruption and, in general, to mark out the logical
boundaries of the field, the application of these definitions and
distinctions is made immensely difficult by the variety of political
institutions, the divergence of political practices and the conflict
between general opinion and class opinions. A number of
conclusions would nevertheless seem to deserve at least tentative
expression.
(1) The prevalence of charges of corruption and of actual
corruption in American politics is not of itself proof of our inferiority in
political morality to the other great nations of the world.
(2) Considering opportunities and temptations, our current political
morality is at least not yet proven to be inferior to our business and
social morality in general.
(3) Unsupported charges of corruption are too frequently indulged
in by practical politicians, reformers, and conservatives, the results
being a popular moral callousness and a loss of social confidence
which render all constructive work more difficult.
(4) Acts involving corrupt motives range in current social
estimation all the way from heinous felonies to minor foibles. The
view that there are only a few “corruptionists,” all of whom richly
deserve criminal sentences and might receive them without unduly
crowding our penitentiaries, is a grotesque misconception. Instead of
this we must recognise frankly that self-interest and social interests
are inextricably bound up as motive forces of our social machinery,
often working in harmony and reinforcing each other, but sometimes
colliding and presenting new questions for moral determination and
social protective action.
(5) From among such cases of collision between social and self-
interest we must endeavour to single out those most obviously
harmful to society and the state, and, not content with branding them
as morally bad, we must formulate legal prohibitions supported by
penalties severe enough to check the evil. Particularly important in
this field of work is a thorough solution of the whole problem of
campaign contributions.
(6) Certain cases in which political action is determined by corrupt
considerations may be more effectively combated with moral than
with legal sanctions. These are cases which threaten no very serious
consequences, cases in which the corrupt considerations are not
directly material in character, cases in which personal advantage is
not so much sought as the advantage of some social group, and all
other cases of so subtle or undecided a character that definite legal
action, at least under existing conditions, is impossible. In the
presence of many such difficulties we can only plead for a clearer
recognition by the individual of duty to the state and to society as a
whole. On the other hand, society and the state as now constituted
fall short of a full and humane ideal of justice and hence are partly
responsible for existing corruption.
Finally it should be said that all effective work against corruption
must be two-fold. On the one hand we must endeavour to raise
moral and legal standards to a higher level. On the other hand we
must unrelentingly prosecute actual offences to the full extent of
existing law. Work of the first sort must be either impersonal or
based upon well authenticated facts. Work of the second sort must
above all things be subjected to a wise restraint; sweeping charges
resting merely upon suspicion must be scrupulously avoided; direct
and well-founded charges must be put into legal form and fought to
the last resort. Reformers should learn to bring down all direct and
personal accusations to the level of existing law, until they have
succeeded in bringing the level of the law up to their ideal standard.
FOOTNOTES:
[15] Other illustrations of auto-corruption may be found in
speculation by inside officials on the basis of crop reports not yet
made public, and in real-estate deals based on a knowledge of
projected public improvements.
[16] Misperformance and neglect of duty do not clearly include
cases of usurpation with corrupt motives; hence the addition of
this clause to the definition. Some usurpations may of course be
defended as involving high and unselfish motives, and hence free
from corruption.
[17] Mr. Seeley has shown, of course, that no actual despotism,
so-called, really conforms to this conception, but for purposes of
argument, at least, the assumption may be permitted to stand.
[18] Political Science Quarterly, vol. xix (1904), p. 673.
[19] Cf. C. Howard, “The Spirit of Graft,” Outlook, vol. lxxxi
(1905), p. 365.
[20] Outlook, 65:115 (May 12, 1905).
[21] Political Science Quarterly, vol. xviii (1902), p. 188.
[22] Atlantic, vol. xcv (1905), p. 781.
[23] J. E. C. Bodley, France, bk. iii, ch. vi, p. 306.
CORRUPTION: A PERSISTENT PROBLEM OF
POLITICAL AND SOCIAL LIFE
III
CORRUPTION: A PERSISTENT PROBLEM OF POLITICAL
AND SOCIAL LIFE
In its broadest significance, corruption has been defined as “the

intentional misperformance or neglect of a recognised duty, or the
unwarranted exercise of power, with the motive of gaining some
advantage more or less directly personal.” Evil of this sort may occur
not only in the state, but also in the church, the family, in business
associations, and every other kind of social body. One may infer
from the nature of corruption itself that if developed to an extreme
degree it will cause the dissolution of any organisation affected by it.
Every social body requires as a prime condition of its existence a
certain subordination of individual interest to the general interest.
Corruption essentially means the preference of the former to the
latter. If self-interest continuously grows more potent while group
interest pari passu declines, evidently the social organisation so
affected will weaken and finally die. “The king by judgment
establisheth the land: but he that receiveth gifts overthroweth it.”
Universally triumphant corruption, therefore, would destroy the body
from which it had drawn the sustenance for its own parasitic life.
Anarchy would be far preferable to the extreme logical
consequences of corruption. For anarchy seeks to destroy only the
compulsory political forms of human society, leaving men free to
associate voluntarily in all other ways, whereas ultimate corruption
would loosen every social bond and reduce humanity to the state of
nature as Hobbes conceived it:—bellum omnium contra omnes.
Corruption, then, is a social disease that may terminate fatally.
Social death does not always occur because of it, but from the social
point of view it is always a pathological condition. Few of the great
tragedies of history involving the fall of nations or of mighty
institutions can be explained fully without reference to the
antecedent corroding influence of corruption. It had a part in the
decline of Greece and Rome, in the Protestant Reformation, the
overthrow of the Stuart dynasty in England, the partition of Poland,
and the French Revolution. Other causes contributed to these events
and were perhaps more largely instrumental in bringing them about,
—ignorance, inefficiency, tyranny, immorality, extravagance, and
obstinacy,—but in each instance corruption was also present on a
large scale. Even in cases of historical catastrophes where the
crushing force was applied from the outside it is usually possible to
discern how the victor’s path was smoothed by the disintegrating
effect of corruption upon the social structure of the vanquished.[24]
For this reason Europe fell more easily before Napoleon from 1796
to 1812, imperial France before Germany in 1870-’71, and Russia
before Japan in 1904-’05.
While the disastrous consequences of widespread corruption as
shown by such instances are not to be lightly underestimated, it is
evident, on the other hand, that corrupt conditions may exist even on
a considerable scale without bringing about the extreme penalty of
disintegration or conquest. Recoveries little short of the miraculous
are sometimes noted in this field of social pathology. It
would be difficult to conceive a lower stage of degradation than that
reached by the English ministry and parliament during and
immediately following the time of Walpole, yet to-day England enjoys
the reputation of possessing one of the most honest and efficient
governments in the world. American municipal reformers sometimes
despair of any efficacious remedy for the corruption which prevails in
our cities. They should take heart upon observing the degraded
conditions which prevailed in Prussian municipalities prior to Stein’s
Städteordnung of 1808, and in England prior to the Municipal Reform
Act of 1835. In both instances formerly corrupt conditions have been
succeeded by honest and efficient municipal systems which are
observed with envy and commented upon with admiration the world
over.
The conclusion which the foregoing illustrations seem to warrant is
that while corruption is a pathological condition which in an extreme
degree may lead to social death, it is also susceptible to treatment
which may bring about recovery with renewed and even enhanced
vigour. Between these two extremes every degree of partial strength
or weakness may exist in a social body as a result of the presence or
after effects of corruption. The Roman Church suffered a
tremendous loss of influence in Western and Northern Europe as a
result of the Reformation. It has never recovered this territory, but it
survived as an institution which, modified by internal reforms, has
acquired a greater influence and a greater number of communicants
than the mediæval church ever dreamed of. Spain, partly through
corruption, lost her colonial empire, but the mother country remains
intact. True Lord Salisbury called it a “decadent nation,” but at least it
is not in ruins. Germany was victor over corrupt imperial France in
the last great European war. The progress of the Vaterland since
that event seems phenomenal, but already uneasy voices, troubled
at contemporary conditions, particularly in the army and the
emperor’s immediate entourage, are raising the question: “What
does the future hold for us,—Jena or Sedan?” Conquered in
1870-’71, the French, in Gambetta’s deathless words, nevertheless
remained “a great nation which does not wish to die.” The history of
the Third Republic has been besmirched at times by scandals of the
most offensively corrupt character. Yet in spite of this and other
national weaknesses the outside world is probably altogether too
much inclined to underestimate the latent strength of modern
France.
Contemplation of the general evils which may result from
corruption suggests the possibility of eliminating it from social life.
While such a condition of affairs may be looked upon as an ideal, it
will nevertheless remain an ultimate ideal which can be
approximated rather than realised, and that only by the most patient,
determined, and continued effort. Every social organisation, as we
have seen, presupposes the subordination in some measure of
personal to broader interests. But no matter how far social
integration is carried, and social duty correspondingly emphasised,
there will always remain a field for individual effort. Absolute
communism in which the state shall be everything and the individual
nothing is unthinkable. Even where the individual as such is but little
regarded, he will remain a member of small social groups, as e.g.,
the family or business corporation, the interests of which are almost
if not quite as close to him as the interests of his naked ego. The
lines bounding the two great fields of individual interest and social
interest are variously drawn in different countries and at different
times. No doubt they will be redrawn in the future, probably greatly to
the extension of social functions if one may judge from the present
drift. Always, however, the two great fields will remain, and the best
results in each will depend partly upon the activities of the other. In
the main these activities do not conflict, indeed they strongly
reinforce one another. When the individual pursues his daily work
diligently and intelligently, although primarily with a selfish end in
view, he is nevertheless adding to national wealth and welfare. So
also with most of the activities of the family, the church, the club, and
the business corporation. In each of these cases, however, it is
inevitable that conflicts will sometimes occur between individual and
narrow group interests on the one hand, and broader social interests
on the other. These conflicts may gradually take on less selfish and
less dangerous forms, but will hardly disappear so long as the
character of the individual and the constitution of society remain
fundamentally unchanged. The problem of corruption, therefore, is a
persistent one. There will always remain the possibility of moral
struggle for improvement; there will never be absolute perfection in
these extensive and involved relationships.
A very striking implication of the persistent character of the
problem may be found in the fact that much of the current
terminology of political science implies the presence of corruption as
a common factor in the life of the state. To modern students Greek
classifications of forms of government appear rather naive,
considered simply as classifications, but many of the separate terms
employed in them nevertheless remain in general use. Plato, for
example, describes the decline of the pure Republic ruled by
philosophers who are actuated by the highest motives, first into
Timarchy, next into Oligarchy, then into Democracy in the sense of
mob rule, and finally into Tyranny. We must infer that in the real
world, as the Philosopher saw it, the number of perfect Republics,
granting that such beatific political entities or any acceptable
approximation to them could exist, would be far less than the number
of degenerate states. The common characteristic of all the latter from
Timarchy to Tyranny is the predominance of some form of personal
or narrow group interest over the highest interests of the state. In
other words the great majority of state forms as classified by Plato
are to be distinguished by the degree and kind of corruption they
exhibit. Aristotle’s distinction between pure forms of constitutions,—
Royalty, Aristocracy, and Polity,—and the corresponding perverted
forms,—Tyranny, Oligarchy, and Democracy,—is based
fundamentally upon the existence of purity or corruption in the
sovereign, whether it be composed of the one, few, or many. Dealing
as he was largely with actual constitutions, Aristotle makes it clear
that in the world as he knew it, the corrupt forms of government,
particularly oligarchy and democracy, were much more common than
the pure forms, that, in fact, some degree of corruption was frequent,
and purity, on the other hand, exceptional in political life. Other
classifications of states regardless of their moral condition are, of
course, possible. Mr. Seeley has given us one that, for modern
purposes, is certainly much more useful than the Aristotelian. The
continued use of the latter in common speech and, to a somewhat
less extent in historical and scientific discussion, is evidence,
however, of a high degree of availability in describing actual political
conditions or what are believed to be such. And since this
terminology implies the existence of corruption as an ordinary
accompaniment of political life, its wide acceptance and continued
use strengthens the conviction that corruption in some form is a
persistent problem of politics.
While the general problem bids fair to remain with us always, the
particular forms and extent of corruption will be subject to change in
the future as in the past. History justifies the hope that these
changes will be for the better.[25] Many of the grosser forms of
corruption current in earlier periods are impossible now. Charles II.
was not the only king of his century who accepted corrupt subsidies
from foreign monarchs. At the present time it is impossible to doubt
that the essential loyalty of the executive heads of the principal
civilised countries of the world would be demonstrated unmistakably
in case they should be approached by corrupt solicitation from the
outside. The modern spirit of nationality and patriotism would wreak
tremendous vengeance upon any royal offender against it. The
loyalty of contemporary monarchs, however, is probably due in very
slight degree, if at all, to the fear of punishment. In addition to the
responsibility enforced upon constitutional kings, a keener sense on
their part of participation in the national spirit and higher standards
both of personal rectitude and of international dealings make
corruption of this sort well nigh unthinkable in the modern world. To a
large measure also these virtues have been extended over the
whole administrative service of civilised states and absorbed as a
part of current moral practice. Hence even in the case of inferior
officials who have been seduced by foreign bribes, as e.g., the sale
of military plans and secrets, a heavy penalty of popular obloquy is
added to the severe penalty of the law.
The mention of Charles II. suggests another form of corruption, the
earlier wide extension of which is familiar to every reader of history.
In times past royal mistresses appeared openly at court, secured
titles of nobility and grants of land for themselves, their children, and
their favourites, dictated appointments in the civil and military
service, and overruled decisions of internal and foreign policy. It may
be admitted that the sexual morality of some contemporary
monarchs is not above reproach. Yet the evil, so far as it exists to-
day, is largely personal, and is chiefly objectionable because of its
unfavourable influence upon the family life of the people at large. No
modern king ruling over a civilised country, it is safe to say, could
openly flaunt his mistresses and allow it to be seen that his passion
for them affected his policies as head of the state.
As another illustration of the disappearance of certain forms of
corruption once extremely common the famous case of Lord Bacon
may be cited. His offence as Lord Chancellor consisted not in the
taking of presents from suitors, for to do so after judgment was the
open practice of the time. Inadvertently, however, Bacon accepted a
present before a case was decided, and this was made the basis of
the charge of corruption which brought about his downfall. The
morality of the time had reached a stage at which it perceived clearly
the corrupting effect upon the judicial mind of presents in advance of
a decision, and held them to be bribes. It had not reached the
modern point of view that the expectation of a present after giving
decision is also corrupting, particularly since the present of one of
the litigants is very likely to be larger than that of the other. One can
safely maintain that the open receipt of presents by judicial officers
of higher rank is extremely rare in English speaking countries and in
Western Europe at the present time. Judges of our own lower courts
are sometimes accused of truckling to the party influences to which
they owe their election, but so far as it exists this is a much more
subtle and surreptitious form of corruption than present giving, or as
it would frankly be called nowadays, bribe-giving by litigants.[26] Any
approach, or even appearance of approach, to offences of the latter
sort would call forth sharp expressions of condemnation. In his “Four
Aspects of Civic Duty,” President Taft presents a very striking and
acute argument on the necessity of the exercise of extreme
circumspection by judicial officials which will serve to illustrate the
progress in morals from Lord Bacon’s time to the present:
“A most important principle in the success of a judicial system and
procedure is that the administration of justice should seem to the
public and the litigants to be impartial and righteous, as well as that it
should actually be so. Continued lack of public confidence in the
courts will sap their foundations. A careful and conscientious judge
will, therefore, strive to avoid every appearance from which the always
suspicious litigants may suspect an undue leaning toward the other
side. He will give patient hearing to counsel for each party, and,
however clear the case may be to him when stated, he will not betray
his conclusion until he has heard in full from the party whose position
cannot be supported. More than this, it not infrequently happens,
however clear his mind in the outset, that argument, if he has not a
pride of first opinion that is unjudicial, may lead him to change his
view.
“This same principle is one that should lead judges not to accept
courtesies like railroad passes from persons or companies frequently
litigants in their courts. It is not that such courtesies would really
influence them to decide a case in favour of such litigants when justice
required a different result; but the possible evil is that if the defeated
litigant learns of the extension of such courtesy to the judge or the
court by his opponent he cannot be convinced that his cause was
heard by an indifferent tribunal, and it weakens the authority and the
general standing of the court.
“I knew of one judge who indignantly declared that of course he
accepted passes, because he would not admit, by declining them, that
such a little consideration or favour would influence his decision. But
in the view I have given above a different ground for declining them
can be found than the suggestion that such a courtesy would really
influence his judgment in a case in which the railroad company giving
the courtesy was a party.”[27]
The intimate relation between present giving and bribery, suggests

another illustration somewhat similar to the preceding. Readers of
the famous diary of Samuel Pepys are familiar with the fact that in
his official capacity as Clerk of the Acts and Surveyor General of the
Victualling Office he often accepted presents. In one instance we
find him quoting with grave approval the sage observation of his
patron, Lord Sandwich, to the effect that “it was not the salary of any
place that did make a man rich, but the opportunity of getting money
while he is in the place.”[28] Venal as it may appear to the modern
reader Pepys undoubtedly lived up to this precept, and owed to its
consistent practice the very considerable property which he
afterwards amassed. Yet one would be over hasty to conclude that
the author of the “Diary” was an arch corruptionist. On the contrary
he was so distinctly superior, both in efficiency and honesty, to most
of his colleagues, that he won much well-merited recognition and
succeeded in retaining office practically throughout the whole
Restoration period in spite of the many upheavals and intrigues of
that troublous time. While Pepys frankly admits that he accepted
presents he insists that he never forgot the “King’s interest.” The
manifest danger of allowing an official to measure in this way the
quality of service due a sovereign, does not seem to occur to the
diarist. On the other hand, he refers frequently, and usually in terms
of condemnation, to many contemporaries in the administrative
service who, at least in his opinion, were much less scrupulous than
they should have been in determining the “King’s interest.” Thus he
records the utterances of a certain Cooling, the Lord Chamberlain’s
secretary and a veritable drunken roaring Falstaff of corruption, who
boasted that “his horse was a bribe, and his boots a bribe; and told
us he was made up of bribes, as an Oxford scholar is set out with
other men’s goods when he goes out of town, and that he makes
every sort of tradesman to bribe him; and invited me home to his
house, to taste of his bribe wine.”[29] Sometimes, indeed, Pepys
became involved in transactions where the “King’s interest,” as he
measured it, received less than its due share of attention. We find
him fearing investigation in such cases, and withdrawing from them
with the resolution not to allow himself to become similarly involved
again. Yet on the whole there is every evidence of a conscious
feeling on his part of rectitude superior to the administrative morals
of the time. That it was largely justified in spite of the receipt of gifts
may be seen from Dr. Wheatley’s comment to the effect that “public
men in those days, without private property, must have starved if
they had not taken fees, for the King had no idea of wasting his
money by paying salaries. At the time of Pepys’s death there was a
balance of £28,007, 2 s. 1¼ d. due to him from the Crown, and the
original vouchers still remain an heirloom in the family.”[30]
Appointments to public office have been a fruitful field for
corruption in many forms. In his “Civil Service in Great Britain,” Mr.
Dorman B. Eaton sums up the whole history of the disposal of
patronage in England in the following statement:—“From the
despotic system, under the Norman kings, through various spoils
systems under arbitrary kings—through a sort of partisan system
under Cromwell—through fearful corruption under James and
Charles—through a sort of aristocratic spoils system under William
and Anne—through a partisan spoils system under George I. and II.,
and a part of the reign of George III.—through the partisan system in
its best estate in later years—we have traced the unsteady but
generally ascending progress of British administration; and, in 1870,
we shall find it to have reached a level at which office is treated as a
trust and personal merit is the recognised criterion of selection for
office.”[31] It would be a most absurd anachronism to regard all the
earlier practices referred to by Mr. Eaton with the horror of a modern
civil service reformer. Richard the Lion-Hearted could hardly have
comprehended the advantage of competitive literary examinations
open to all classes of his subjects as a means of selecting his
subordinates. When under the Plantagenets and Tudors “charters
and monopolies, in a fit of good nature, were tossed by a king to
some borough, great officer, or favourite that had pleased him; and,
in a fit of anger or drunkenness—as arbitrarily revoked,”[32] it must
be remembered that neither the law nor the morals of the time
severely condemned such actions. No wonder, therefore, that “the
old system was bold, consistent, and outspoken—not pretending to
make selections for office out of regard for personal merit or
economy, or the general welfare. It plainly asserted that those in
power had a right and duty to keep themselves in power and
preserve their monopoly in any way which their judgement should
approve, and that the people were bound to submit.”[33] Further “the
right to appoint to office and to sell the appointment openly for
money became also, and long remained, hereditary; sometimes in
great families and sometimes in the holder for the time being of the
offices themselves.”[34] No doubt the exercise of such rights of
purchase was once regarded generally as no more objectionable
than the sale of a private physician’s practice or the sale of the good
will of a business at the present time. But while the various earlier
methods of disposing of the patronage as sketched by Mr. Eaton
must be judged with reference to contemporary political morality, it is
true that each of them in turn fell into disrepute, was abolished—
often only after several trials—and finally superseded by a less faulty
system. Even as far back as Magna Charta the existence of a faint
conception of the modern civil service principle is made plain by the
Forty-fifth Article, according to which the King engaged not to “make
any justices, constables, sheriffs, or bailiffs, but of such as know the
law of the realm.” All the great subsequent uprisings of English
history were directed in part against certain other abuses of the
corrupt patronage system. The Tyler and Cade Rebellions in the
fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, the great Civil War, the expulsion
of James II., the overthrow of Walpole, the failure of George III.’s
attempt at personal government,—each marked a higher standard of
public sentiment on the question. Between 1820 and 1870, the great
modern civil service reform orders were passed, resulting in the final
establishment of open competition for over 80,000 positions under
the English government. Opportunities for corrupt practices in
connection with appointment to office are, of course, not entirely
excluded even by so thoroughgoing a system as that which now
exists in England, but they are few and unimportant indeed
compared to the possibilities of selfish abuses under former régimes.
It is by no means necessary to review the whole sweep of a
nation’s history in order to observe the discarding of old, and the
evolution of newer and usually less dangerous forms of corruption.
Such a career as that of Tweed would be impossible in any
American city to-day. The crude methods he employed,—raising
bills, throwing contracts to members of the Ring, keeping false
books, delaying financial reports,—would certainly and promptly
send any one who attempted them at the present time to the
penitentiary. Indeed no small part of existing municipal legislation
can be traced back to the specific misdeeds of Tweed and others of
his ilk. On the other hand it must be admitted that the ablest
corruptionists sometimes show skill little short of genius in devising
new schemes to avoid the pitfalls of existing law and in keeping
always just beyond the grasp of new enactments. Mr. Steffens tells a
story of Chris Magee, former boss of Pittsburgh, to the effect that he
visited and made a most careful study of the machines of
Philadelphia and New York and particularly of their defects, finally
returning to his own city with the conviction that a “ring could be
made as safe as a bank.”[35] In this field, as in the ethics of business
management and elsewhere, there will probably always be a running
duel between anti-social action and legislation designed to check it.
Novel methods of corruption will constantly require novel methods of
correction. In the nature of the case the law will usually be slightly
behind the artifices of the most skilful corruptionists: abuses must
exist and be felt as such before the government can successfully
define and punish them. On the other hand this constant
development of the law should make corrupt practices increasingly
difficult for the less gifted rascals who must always constitute the
great majority of would-be offenders. As things are now the ignorant
heeler, and even the crooked tool who has received an ordinary
education, realise that they cannot play the game alone. Their only
hope of escaping the penitentiary is in the service of the machine
whose leaders understand the legal requirements of the situation,
and possess the skill or influence necessary to circumvent them.
While the consequences of corruption must in general be
weakening and disintegrating, their full import may be concealed or
postponed owing to the limitation of the evil condition to certain
branches or spheres of government which for the time being are not
called upon to function to their full capacity. A chain is no stronger
than its weakest link, but it may serve very well so long as no great
tensile strain is applied to it. The military arm of a government
otherwise honest and efficient might conceivably become well nigh
paralysed by corruption without any particular evil consequences so
long as hostilities were avoided. All the more terrible, on the other
hand, would be the awakening in case of the advent of war. The
reverse case is suggested by Tennyson:
“Let your reforms for a moment go!

Look to your butts and take good aims!
Better a rotten borough or so
Than a rotten fleet and a city in flames!”
Here the point is that a corrupt local government need occasion little
or no disadvantage during a state of war provided the army can be
relied upon thoroughly. Further the poet warns against agitation for
the reform of internal abuses lest it might weaken the country in the
presence of a foreign foe. Doubtless both points are well taken so far
as an immediate emergency is concerned. If war is not imminent,
however, that government would certainly be making the best
preparation against future trouble which sought to establish the
highest standard of honesty in both its civil and military services.
Thus the Freiherr vom Stein immeasurably strengthened Prussia for
the final conflict with Napoleon by reforming the rotten boroughs of
his country and appealing on the basis of this reform to the
patriotism of the liberal classes of his fellow citizens. Moreover there
would seem to be little real danger of urging internal reforms so
violently during periods of warfare as to cripple military strength. Of
course if a government has been reduced to the last extremity of
unpopularity by past mismanagement, revolutionists might take
advantage of a declaration of war to tear it to pieces, hailing foreign
troops as allies rather than opponents. In the more advanced
countries of the modern world, however, the spirit of nationality and
patriotism is so highly developed that internal reforms are instantly
relegated to the background at the least threat of foreign
embroilment. To such peoples the poet’s adjuration to
“Let your reforms for a moment go”
is hardly needed.
Definite instances of corruption affecting certain spheres or
departments of government particularly may readily be suggested.
There is much that is significant in the corruption of the judicial
officials of China. Ultimately they became so rapacious that
merchants feared to come before them, preferring to leave
commercial differences to be settled by the arbitration of officers of
guilds of which the business men themselves were members. Thus
corruption of one social organ may lead to its atrophy and the
corresponding strengthening of another social organ which takes
over the functions of the former. Assuming that the function is as well
performed in the second case, the internal life of the whole structure
in which the transition takes place may be very little affected except
while the change is going on. If, however, the state is continually
weakened by such transfers while at the same time the functions
remaining to it become rotten with corruption it may finally reach the
condition of abject defencelessness which China has shown in its
relations with other nations.
Another very curious case of corruption limited to certain spheres
of government is furnished by Japan. In his authoritative work on that
country,[36] Captain Brinkley expresses the opinion that the higher
and lower official classes are free from corruption while the middle
grade is more or less given over to it. The passage containing this
statement is so germane to the present discussion that it may be
quoted in full:
“There is an old and still undecided controversy among foreign
observers as to bribery in Japan. Many Japanese romancists
introduce the douceur in every drama of life, and historical annals
show that from the seventeenth century downward Japanese rulers
legislated against bribery with a degree of strenuous persistence
which seems to imply conviction of its prevalence. Not only were
recipients of bribes severely punished, but informers also received
twice the amount in question. Japanese social relations, too, are
maintained largely by the giving and taking of presents. Visits to make
or renew an acquaintance are always accompanied by gifts; the four
seasons of the year are similarly marked; even deaths call for a
contribution to funeral expenses; nearly all services are ‘recognised,’
and guests carry back from their entertainer’s house a box of
confectionery or other edibles in order that the households may not be
entirely excluded from the feast. The uses of such a system evidently
verge constantly on abuses, and prepare the observer to find that if
the normal intercourse of life sanctions these material aids, abnormal
occasions are likely to demand them in much greater profusion. All
evidence thus far obtained goes to prove that Japanese officials of the
highest and lowest classes are incorruptible, but that the middle ranks
are unsound. A Japanese police constable will never take a bribe nor
a Japanese railway employé a pour boire, and from Ministers of State
to chiefs of departmental bureaux there is virtual freedom from
corruption. But for the rest nothing can be claimed, and to the case of
tradespeople, inferior agents, foremen of works, contractors, and so
on, the Japanese proverb may probably be applied that ‘even hell’s
penalties are a matter of money.’”
A third illustration of the uneven distribution of corruption
throughout a political structure may be found in our own case. In the
United States, as is well known, the general opinion of the honesty
and efficiency of the federal government is extremely high; state
government enjoys considerably less repute; and municipal
government is pretty commonly and indiscriminately condemned.
Even in the case of the latter, however, it is worth while to observe
that in some cities otherwise considered almost hopelessly bad,
certain departments, notably public schools and fire protection, are
recognised as being managed on a much higher plane than other
branches of the municipal service. In such cases public recognition
of the importance of the departments concerned has led to an
insistence on efficiency and honesty that has proven effective. The
conclusion would seem to be well founded, therefore, that a proper
recognition by our city population of the vital importance of other
branches of the service, such as sanitation, refuse disposal, water
supply, building and housing inspection, letting of contracts, and so
on, would go far toward bringing about much needed improvements.
It would also appear that corruption may be omnipresent and yet
not extremely harmful because of the moderation of its demands. A
practical politician once remarked that “the people will never kick on
a ten per cent rake off.” It is quite possible that the effort to wipe out
so modest a tribute by a reform agitation opposed to the principle of
the thing might cost more in effort or even in campaign expenses
than would be represented by the saving to the municipal treasury or
public. Obviously, however, the advisability of an effort for the
establishment of honest government is not to be calculated in
financial values only. The moral effect of a corrupt exaction of ten per
cent which no one thinks it worth while to attack may be worse than
the moral effect of a fifty per cent exaction which is vigorously
condemned. A purely Machiavellian machine leader may also
discern a degree of danger lurking in a government ten per cent
corrupt due to the very fact that the electorate accepts it with
quiescence. Under such conditions it is difficult to convince the more
greedy minor politicians that while they can get ten per cent without
a murmur they could not take twenty or even fifteen per cent without
serious trouble. The great expenses of political management which
the leaders are called upon to meet must also incline them at times
to exactions beyond the verge of prudence.
From the point of view of an organisation politician, therefore, the
determination of the limits within which corruption seems safe is a
serious and ever present problem. Certain features of the situation
may be noted as exerting an influence in favour of a moderate policy.
One of these is the contractual nature of many corrupt practices that
are alleged to be common. For example, franchises sought by
dishonest means usually possess a value which is pretty exactly
known to the intending purchasers. The amount which they are
actually willing to pay may be determined only after close bargaining
and the allowance of a large discount owing to the danger
inseparable from this method of acquisition. Immunity to carry on
businesses under the ban of the law is subject to the same rule.
The “Gambling Commission” which was said to exist in New York
in 1900-’01, and to have been “composed of a Commissioner who is
at the head of one of the city departments, two State Senators, and
the dictator of the pool-room syndicate of this city,”[37] owed its
partial exposure to a violation of this rule. The “Commission” was
alleged to have established a regular tariff for the various forms of
gambling as follows:—Pool Rooms, $300 per month; Crap Games,
and Gambling Houses (small), $150 per month; Gambling Houses
(large), $1000 per month; Envelope Games, $50 per month. These
rates would seem sufficiently high to provoke complaint from those
who had to pay them. Nevertheless the exposure, which came from
the gamblers themselves, was not so much due to the size of the
exactions as to the great increase in the number of the gambling
houses which the “Commission” licensed in order to secure larger
revenues. In the end, as one member of the sporting fraternity
phrased it, “there were not enough suckers to go ’round.” The whole
incident illustrates the principle, if the word can be used in such an
unhallowed connection, that in order to enjoy any permanent
success, corruption must by all means avoid extreme rapacity; it
must endeavour to keep alive that which it feeds on. Castro, for
example, was a highwayman rather than a grafter. He lacked the
moderation, the fine sense of proportion, necessary to qualify one for
success in the latter rôle. To paraphrase a familiar principle of
taxation, a part of income may be taken but corrupt encroachments
on capital sums are dangerous.
Prudential considerations restraining corruption are apt to be much
more keenly felt by a thoroughly organised machine than in cases
where corruption is practised by disorganised groups and individuals
each seeking its or his own advantage regardless of any common
interest. The “cohesive power of public plunder,” as President
Cleveland ponderously phrased it, may thus come to operate as a
moderating force. Notoriously corrupt city governments have not
infrequently distinguished themselves by maintaining extremely low
tax rates, or at least rates which appear to be low. Largely on this
basis a quasi-philosophic defence of corrupt municipal rule was
made several years ago by Daniel G. Thompson.[38] Arguing that

Textbook Distance Learning E Learning and Blended Learning in Mathematics Education Jason Silverman Ebook All Chapter PDF

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Textbook Distance Learning E Learning and Blended Learning in Mathematics Education Jason Silverman Ebook All Chapter PDF

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Distance Learning E Learning and

Blended Learning in Mathematics

Blended Learning Designs in STEM Higher Education

Teaching and Learning at a Distance Foundations of

e Learning e Education and Online Training Shuai Liu

Smart Education and e Learning 2019 Vladimir L. Uskov

Smart Education and e Learning 2016 1st Edition

Assessing the Role of Mobile Technologies and Distance

Mathematics Affect and Learning Middle School Students

Deep Learning for Natural Language Processing Develop

More information about this series at http://www.springer.com/series/15585

ISSN 2520-8322 ISSN 2520-8330 (electronic)

© Springer International Publishing AG, part of Springer Nature 2018

Printed on acid-free paper

1 Research on Technologically Mediated Mathematics Learning

Part I E-Learning and Blended Learning of Mathematics

Part II Online Environments and Tutoring Systems for Leveling

6 A Customized Learning Environment and Individual Learning

Part III Innovations on E-Math Learning and Teaching

Part IV MOOC and Rich Media Platform for Mathematics Teacher

Jason Silverman and Veronica Hoyos

Abstract In this chapter, we provide an overview and introduction to this

Keywords Research on electronic and distance learning Teaching and learn-

© Springer International Publishing AG, part of Springer Nature 2018 1

1.1 Overview of Parts and Chapters

1.1.1 Part I: E-Learning and Blended Learning

Chapter 2 introduces the reader in the construction of the e:t:p:M® platform,

Chapter 3, by Hoyos et al., from the National Pedagogical University in Mexico

1.1.2 Part II: Online Environments and Tutoring Systems

In Chap. 4, A. Chekour, from the University of Cincinnati-Blue Ash College in

In Chap. 6, Landenfeld and her colleagues from the Hamburg University of

1.1.3 Part III: Innovations on E-Math Learning

Chapter 7, by Albano & Dello-Iacono, from the University of Salerno in Italy,

1.1.4 Part IV: MOOC and Rich Media Platform

students’ thinking and their own personal improvement in knowledge of mathe-

1.1.5 Purpose of This Monograph

collaboration requires attention to individual’s (teacher or student) activity and

Fabian Mundt and Mutfried Hartmann

Keywords Blended learning E-learning Distance learning Learning analytics

2.1 Introduction: Challenging Trends in Higher

F. Mundt (&) M. Hartmann

© Springer International Publishing AG, part of Springer Nature 2018 11

Since this situation is unlikely to change in the foreseeable future—neither

2.2 The Blended Learning Concept e:t:p:M®

e:t:p:M®1 was developed as an introductory course in education in the winter term

2.2.1 “e” for E-Learning

Fig. 2.1 The responsive web-app (original version)

Fig. 2.2 The annotation function of the web-app

2.2.2 “t” for Text and Theory Based

2.2.3 “p” for Practice-Oriented (and Attendance-Oriented)

The e-learning content of e:t:p:M® aims at a high personalization of the learning

Fig. 2.3 The e:t:p:M® concept

2.2.4 “M” for Mentoring

2.3 Using e:t:p:M® in an Introductory Course

2.3.1 Existing Tools and e:t:p:M@Math Web-App

2.3.2 Research Questions

2.3.3 Series of Interactive Content (Sub-focus a)

Timeline with “Fähnchen” to a particular content-part of the above series

Fig. 2.4 Implementation of content series

2.3.4 Discussions (Sub-focus b)

Especially in mathematics, controversial discussions facilitate learning and create a

Fig. 2.5 First draft of “discussions”-extension

2.3.5 Playground (Sub-focus c)