Basics of Paper Writing and Publishing in TEL (JTEL 2013)

Lehrstuhl Informatik 5
(Information Systems)
Prof. Dr. M. Jarke
1
Learning
Layers
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
Basics of Paper Writing and
Publishing in TEL
Michael Derntl, Milos Kravcik, Ralf Klamma
RWTH Aachen University
Advanced Community Information Systems (ACIS)
{derntl,kravcik,klamma}@dbis.rwth-aachen.de
9th Joint European Summer School on
Technology Enhanced Learning (JTEL 2013)
May 27-31, 2013
Limassol, Cyprus

Prof. Dr. M. Jarke
2
Learning
Layers
Managing Expectations
 What we will tackle today
– Paper structure
– Organizing a piece of text
– Commence mini conference for the week
 What we will tackle on Friday
– Discuss the mini conference reviews
– Elaborate a publication strategy in TEL
– Identify landmarks in your thesis field
– Mistakes to avoid

Prof. Dr. M. Jarke
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Learning
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Scientific Texts –
Intentions vs Expectations
 Intentions (authors)
– Communicate with peers
– Protect intellectual property
– Gain reputation
– Get promoted
– Progress science
– Remember
– Understand
– Gain perspective
[BCWi95] [Stoc00] [Ocon05] [PEBK02]
 Expectations (readers)
– Standard form (sections,
paragraphs, sentences)
– Audience “coverage”
– Quality (relevance,
significance, soundness)
– Discussion (limitations,
embedding in existing
findings, implications, …)
– Correct language
All it takes is structure and practice!

Prof. Dr. M. Jarke
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Learning
Layers
Paper Structure
Hourglass Model [Swal93]
Introduction
Body
Conclusion
general
specific
specific
general
Section Theme

Prof. Dr. M. Jarke
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Learning
Layers
Paper Structure
“King Model” [Dern11]
Title
Abstract
Introduction
Body
Conclusion
References

Prof. Dr. M. Jarke
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Learning
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Paper Structure:
Title
 Very important part – why?
 Rules of thumb:
– Fewest possible words that
adequately describe the paper
content
– Avoid waste words
– Nouns over verbs
Title
Abstract
Introduction
Body
Conclusion
References

Prof. Dr. M. Jarke
7
Learning
Layers
Paper Structure:
Title
 Types of title
– Descriptive: Investigating the role of
academic conferences on shaping the
research agenda
– Declarative: Academic conferences
shape the short-term research agenda
– Interrogative: Do academic conferences
shape the research agenda?
– Compound, e.g. separated by ? or :
 Impact of title type:
– Interrogative: more downloads, fewer
cites
– Compound with colon: longer; fewer
downloads and cites
– Long titles: fewer downloads
Title
Abstract
Introduction
Body
Conclusion
References
[JaNi11]

Prof. Dr. M. Jarke
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Learning
Layers
Paper Structure:
Title
 Title checklist
– includes main topic
– unambiguous
– specific
– attractive
– short
– accurate
– adequate
– no abbreviations
– consider audience
Title
Abstract
Introduction
Body
Conclusion
References

Prof. Dr. M. Jarke
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Learning
Layers
Paper Structure:
Title
Title checklist
 includes main topic
 unambiguous
 specific
 attractive
 short
 accurate
 adequate
 no abbreviations
 consider audience
Examples titles:
1. Report of the results of an IMS Learning Design
expert workshop
2. Educational Technology and Culture: The Influence
of Ethnic and Professional Culture on Learners'
Technology Acceptance
3. A New Framework for Dynamic Adaptations and
Actions
4. CAMera for PLE
5. Go To Statement Considered Harmful
6. Users in the Driver's Seat: A New Approach to
Classifying Teaching Methods in a University
Repository
7. Considering formal assessment in learning analytics
within a PLE
8. HT06, tagging paper, taxonomy, Flickr, academic
article, to read

Prof. Dr. M. Jarke
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Learning
Layers
Paper Structure:
Abstract
 Task:
– Read the four abstracts on the
handout*
– Identify strong and weak points
– Identify criteria for good
abstracts
– Rank the four abstracts on the
ranking sheet
Title
Abstract
Introduction
Body
Conclusion
References
The abstracts are also available at
http://is.gd/jtel2013paperabstracts*

Prof. Dr. M. Jarke
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Learning
Layers
Paper Structure:
Abstract
Types
– Informative: what content is in the paper
– Indicative / descriptive: how is the content presented
Checklist, ~1 sentence each
– Motivation
– Problem definition
– Solution
– Results
– Implications
No go
– Exact title phrase
– Copy & paste from text
– Figures or tables
– Sources (depends)
Title
Abstract
Introduction
Body
Conclusion
References

Prof. Dr. M. Jarke
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Learning
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Paper Structure:
Abstract
Low detail
No references
General example
Overview
High detail
All references
Specific examples
Reproducibility
Abstract Full text
A good abstract [ElseXX]:
 Is specific and precise
 Can stand alone
 Uses little technical jargon
 Uses no or few abbreviations

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4th Place: Abstract C
Motivation Problem Solution Results Implications
Y. Jiang, Z. Wu, Z. Zhan, L. Xu (2010) Proc. ICWL 2010 Workshops, pp. 195-206. © Springer Verlag
This paper proposes a strategy to personalized the Internet
searching, which would help to filter, extract and integrate
the massive information from the web based on the specific
user requirements in the hopes that it can relieve them from
the tedious process of manually selecting and retrieving the
relevant information as well as the confusion caused by the
inconsistencies of the information. The strategy proposed in
this paper has been applied to the searching of the laptop
product information and the result shows a much less
human effort involved and a much more accurate price
range.
part of the solution indicative informative

Prof. Dr. M. Jarke
14
Learning
Layers Motivation Problem Solution Results Implications
Over the past years, a wide range of Technology-enhanced Learning (TeL)
systems have been developed, which have significantly influenced the field of
foreign languages teaching and learning. This is widely known as Technology-
enhanced Language Learning (TELL). On the other hand, the widespread
ownership of mobile devices and the potential benefits that they can provide to
the learning process has attracted the attention of both researchers and
practitioners in the field of TELL. This has led to the development of a new
approach for TELL, which is commonly referred to as Mobile Assisted Language
Learning (MALL). Nevertheless, although during the last years a number of MALL
systems have been developed, most of them do not concern with open access to
language learning resources and practices. As a result, neither re-use of
language learning resources not sharing of best technology-facilitated language
teaching practices among the communities of educational practitioners and
educational organizations is directly facilitated. In this paper, we propose the
Mobile2Learn Framework, which aims at providing tools and services that
facilitate open access to mobile-assisted language digital learning resources and
courses, and we present a case study from its implementation.
informative informative indicative
3rd Place: Abstract D
D.G. Sampson, P. Zervas (2012) Proc. IEEE ICALT 2012, pp. 441-445. © IEEE

Prof. Dr. M. Jarke
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Learning
Layers
2nd Place: Abstract A
Q. Bonnard, H. Verma, F. Kaplan, P. Dillenbourg (2012) Proc. EC-TEL 2012, pp. 37-50 [best full paper]. © Springer Verlag
Paper interfaces offer tremendous possibilities for geometry education
in primary schools. Existing computer interfaces designed to learn
geometry do not consider the integration of conventional school tools,
which form the part of the curriculum. Moreover, most of computer
tools are designed specifically for individual learning, some propose
group activities, but most disregard classroom-level learning, thus
impeding their adoption. We present an augmented reality based
tabletop system with interface elements made of paper that addresses
these issues. It integrates conventional geometry tools seamlessly into
the activity and it enables group and classroom-level learning. In order
to evaluate our system, we conducted an exploratory user study based
on three learning activities: classifying quadrilaterals, discovering the
protractor and describing angles. We observed how paper interfaces
can be easily adopted into the traditional classroom practices.
informative informative informative

Prof. Dr. M. Jarke
16
Learning
Layers Motivation Problem Solution Results Implications
A. Ogan, S. Finkelstein, E. Walker, R. Carlson, J.Cassell (2012). Proc. ITS 2012, pp. 11-21. © Springer Verlag
For 20 years, researchers have envisioned artificially intelligent learning
companions that evolve with their students as they grow and learn. However,
while communication theory suggests that positivity decreases over time in
relationships, most tutoring systems designed to build rapport with a student
remain adamantly polite, and may therefore inadvertently distance the learner
from the agent over time. We present an analysis of high school friends
interacting in a peer tutoring environment as a step towards designing agents that
sustain long-term pedagogical relationships with learners. We find that tutees and
tutors use different language behaviors: tutees express more playfulness and
face-threat, while tutors attend more to the task. This face-threat by the tutee is
associated with increased learning gains for their tutor. Additionally, a small
sample of partners who were strangers learned less than friends, and in these
dyads increased face-threat was negatively correlated with learning. Our findings
support the idea that learning companions should gradually move towards playful
face-threat as they build relationships with their students.
informative informative indicative
1st place: Abstract B
informative informative

Prof. Dr. M. Jarke
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Learning
Layers
Paper Structure:
Introduction
 “Pick up” the reader (and
reviewer!)
– Some generally known statements
– Motivating example
– Tighten thematic focus
– Mention key literature
– General background info to
support understanding
– (Indicate the structure)
 Three phases [Swal93]
– (Where?) Establish territory
– (What?) Establish a niche
– (How?) Occupy niche
Title
Abstract
Introduction
Body
Conclusion
References

Prof. Dr. M. Jarke
18
Learning
Layers
Paper Structure:
Introduction – Example
Example 1: Computers & Education 59 (2): 182-195
Establish territory / common-sense statement:
Peer review is an instructional method aiming to help
students elaborate on domain-specific knowledge, while
simultaneously developing methodological review skills.
Establish niche / tighten thematic focus:
We use the term „assigned-pair protocol“ here to refer to
the class of peer review methods that involve static author-
reviewer dyads.
Occupy niche / arrive at core paper topic:
Our focus was to (a) … and (b) …
Outline paper structure

Prof. Dr. M. Jarke
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Learning
Layers
Paper Structure:
Introduction – Example
Example 2: Transactions
on Learning Technologies
5 (1): 38-51
Establish territory / common-sense statement:
The concept of Adaptive Hypermedia Systems (AHS)
has existed for years now [19], and it has amply
proved its utility particularly in education …Establish niche / tighten thematic focus:
In fact, authors have to define a domain model …
Indeed, authors have to specify an adaptation model…Indicate existing solutions, point to shortcomings:
Multiple solutions have been proposed …
These works fail to answer the third challenge …
Occupy niche, indicate leap forward
This paper addresses these three challenges …
We perceive an adaptation strategy as a combination of
elementary parts …
Outline paper structure
This paper is organized as follows…

Prof. Dr. M. Jarke
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Learning
Layers
Paper Structure:
Body
 Reports actual research
done to answer research
question/problem
 Typically several
(sub)sections
 Structure, organization, and
content depend heavily on
the type of paper
Title
Abstract
Introduction
Body
Conclusion
References

Prof. Dr. M. Jarke
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Learning
Layers
Paper Structure:
Body
 Empirical paper
– Methodology, data, material, participants,
results, (discussion)
– Goal: reproducibility
 Case study paper
– Report application of existing methods, tools,
theories
– Goal: abstraction from case
 Survey paper
– Reviewing and synthesize existing work
– Typically little original contributions
– Goal: Completeness, soundness, …
 Theory paper
– Principles, concepts or models in the field
– Goals: Originality, soundness, Relevance
 Others: methodology papers, review papers,
…
Title
Abstract
Introduction
Body
Conclusion
References
[CHI98]

Prof. Dr. M. Jarke
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Learning
Layers
Paper Structure:
Conclusion
 Discussion / Conclusion
– Counterpart to introduction
– Generalize results
– Sometimes separate (particularly
empirical papers)
– Recap of background and aims
– Summary and discussion /
implications of key findings
– Compare results to published work
– Discussion of limitations,
shortcomings, significance
– Identification of follow-up research
Title
Abstract
Introduction
Body
Conclusion
References

Prof. Dr. M. Jarke
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Learning
Layers
Paper Structure:
References
 Key rules for reference list
– List all cited references
– Do not list non-cited references
– Cite all used references
– Do not cite references you have
not read
– Make sure the most relevant
references are in the list
– Adhere to publisher’s style
guide
Title
Abstract
Introduction
Body
Conclusion
References

Prof. Dr. M. Jarke
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Learning
Layers
Paper Structure:
Additional bits
 Authors + affiliations
– Who is on the author list?
– In what order?
 Acknowledgments
– Funding source(s), Study participants, Helpers, …
 Keywords
– Free-text and/or from taxonomy
 Classification
– ACM classification
 Appendix
– Detailed tables, source codes, proofs, …
– Author bios
– …

Prof. Dr. M. Jarke
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Learning
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Task
 Choose one of your recent submissions (where you
wrote the abstract!)
– If not available take your summer school submission, your
current state of the thesis, or any other piece of research
you’re involved in
 Rework your submission into a one-paragraph abstract of
max. 300 words
 Carefully choose a title
 Submit by tomorrow (Tuesday) night at
http://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=jtelpw2012
 Review your assigned abstracts by Thursday noon
 Check out the received reviews until the Friday session
Task description also available at http://is.gd/jtel2013conf

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See you on Friday!
T H A N K S

Prof. Dr. M. Jarke
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Mini Conference – Results
 Best overall score:
1. Ivan Srba: Encouragement of Collaborative Learning
Based on Dynamic Groups [3.6]
2. Markus Manhart: An Integrated Risk Management
Framework: Measuring the Success of Organizational
Knowledge Protection [3.4]
3. Nikola Milikic: Semantic Web and Linked Learning to
Support Workplace Learning [3.0]

Prof. Dr. M. Jarke
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Mini Conference – Best Abstract
I. Srba (2013). JTEL Paper Writing Workshop 2013 © I. Srba
In the current time of globalization, collaboration among people in virtual environments is
becoming important precondition of success. Especially, university learning provides ideal
opportunity for development of social and communication skills which are necessary for
effective collaboration. However, students can encounter various difficulties to collaborate
together while solving assigned tasks. These difficulties are obvious mainly in groups in
which the members’ characteristics do not complement each other. Therefore, we
propose a method for creating different types of study groups with aim to support effective
collaboration during learning. We concentrate on the small groups which solve short-term
well-defined problems. The method based on the Group Technology approach is able to
apply many types of students’ characteristics as inputs, e.g. interests, knowledge, but
also their collaborative characteristics. Students in the created groups are able to
communicate and collaborate with the help of several collaborative tools in a collaborative
platform called PopCorm which allows us to automatically observe dynamic aspects of
the created groups. The results of these observations provide a feedback to the method
for creating groups. In the long term experiment groups created by our method achieved
significantly better results in the comparison with the reference method (k-means
clustering). The achieved results confirm that the group formation has significant influence
on following collaboration and it is possible to support students’ collaboration by
combining their complementary characteristics.
informative informative informative informative informative

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Mini Conference – Top Scores
 Other top scores:
– Title: Markus Manhart, Ivan Srba, Maka Eradze [4.00]
– Structure: Ivan Srba [4.75]
– Readability: Nikola Milikic [5.00]

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Publication Strategy for TEL –
Publication Outlets
 Depends on the primary scientific discipline of your thesis
 Journals
– High reputation; completed studies; significant original contribution;
lengthy process; no interaction with key people; detailed reviews
– Typical types: long, short, survey
 Conferences
– Reputation depends on discipline; original contributions; often
smaller delta or WIP acceptable; interaction with key people; review
quality depends on conference
– Typical types: long, short, poster, demo
 Workshops
– Focused topic; work in progress, ideas, positions etc. acceptable;
interaction with key people; Reputation not the key point; review
quality depends
– Typical types: short, long, positions

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Situation
 TEL is interdisciplinary
 Many different publication venues
 Venues have different subject focus
 Different venue types (journals, conferences,
workshops, exhibits, etc.)
 Different paper types (long, short, demo, poster, …)
 Different stages / significance of available results

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Exercise
 Questions
– Which factors do/should determine your decision where to
publish a piece of (your) TEL research?
– During your PhD process, what is your publication
strategy?
 Task:
– Explore the above questions in a small group [10 mins]
– Pitch your results

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Learning
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Exercise
 Results
– There are rankings and lists (S)SCI
– There are rulez
– Factors: topic of J/C; new field: C; publisher, review;
acceptance rate; open/closed access
– Message – medium – audience; external factors ($$)
– Submission date / location
– Special issue

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Learning
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Venue (Pre-)Selection
 Pre-selection
– Go to scientific indexes and look for similar work  where
was it published?
– Identify the key people in your field  where do they
publish?
– Subscribe to CFP mailing lists and portals  what’s up?
 Selection depends on
– Formal criteria in your institution?
– Significance / originality of the contribution?
– Affordable risk of rejection?
– Need to engage with community?

Prof. Dr. M. Jarke
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Learning
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Publication venue decision
 Check distribution / subscription of the venue
 Check indexing of the venue
 Check citations to the venue
 Check list of relevant topics of the venue
 Consider closed access vs open access vs delayed open
access
 Formal requirements: length, deadline, funding, etc.
 Tools:
– AERCS Venue Comparison for DBLP: http://is.gd/aercscomp
– Publish or Perish: http://www.harzing.com/pop.htm

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Some Prominent Venues
See http://www.slideshare.net/mikederntl/the-european-technology-enhanced-learning-lanscape
Artificial
Intelligence
Web /
Hypermedia
HCI

Prof. Dr. M. Jarke
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Some Prominent Venues
Conferences
 EC-TEL
 ICALT
 ICWL
 ITS, AIED
 ICCE
 CSCL
 LAK, EDM
 CATE
 T4E
 WMTE
 DIGITEL
 …
Journals
 Educ. Tech. & Soc. (ETS)
 IEEE Trans. Learn. Tech. (TLT)
 Comput. & Educ. (C&E)
 Int. J. TEL (IJTEL)
 Res. Pract. TEL (RPTEL)
 Int. J. Emerg. Tech. Learn. (IJET)
 Int. J. Dist. Educ. Tech. (IJDET)
 Int. J. Know. Learn. (IJKL)
 Brit./Austr. J. Educ. Tech. (B/AJET)
 Int. J. Artifi. Intel. in Edu. (AIEDU)
 J. Comp. Ass. Learn. (JCAL)
 Int. J. CSCL (IJCSCL)
…

Prof. Dr. M. Jarke
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Learning
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The Landmarks in Your Thesis Field
 Hypothesis: If you can’t name the three most important
– Authors and their specific areas of interest,
– Journals, Conferences,
– Challenges,
– Papers that lay or have laid the path,
– Adjacent fields / communities
in your thesis field, then your PhD is doomed.
 Task
– Group around similar PhD subjects (max 5 per group)
– Discuss and shortlist the above items [20 mins]
– Pitch your results

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Some Mistakes to Absolutely Avoid
Brainstorm!

Prof. Dr. M. Jarke
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Learning
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Some Mistakes to Absolutely Avoid
 Resubmit a rejected paper without
– adapting to the new venue’s template
– considering comments in rejection letter
 Forget or don’t care to cite related work, particularly
– if the related work is by a potential reviewer
– if it is considered a seminal piece in the field
 Simple typos and grammar errors

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References
[BCWi95] Booth, W.C., Colomb, G.G., Williams, J.M.: The Craft of Research. Univ. of
Chicago Press, Chicago (1995)
[CHI98] CHI'98 Conference Webpage: Types of papers.
http://www.acm.org/sigchi/chi98/call/papers.html#types (1998)
[Dern11] Derntl, M.: Basics of research paper writing and publishing. Unpublished
manuscript, http://is.gd/paperwriting (2011)
[ElseXX] How to write a world-class methodology paper.
http://www.paperpub.com.cn/admin/upload/file/200893103922625.pdf
[JaNi11] Jamali, H., Nikzad, M: Article title type and its relation with the number of
downloads and citation. Scientometrics (2011) 88:653–661
[Ocon05] O'Connor, M.: Writing Successfully in Science. Chapman & Hall, London (1995)
[PEBK02] Peat, J., Elliott, E., Baur, L., Keena, V.: Scientfic Writing - Easy when you know
how. BMJ Books, London (2002)
[Stoc00] Stock, W.G.: Was ist eine Publikation? Zum Problem der Einheitenbildung in der
Wissenschaftsforschung. In Fuchs-Kittowski, K., Laitko, H., Parthey, H., Umst•atter, W.,
eds.: Wissenschaftsforschung Jahrbuch 1998. Verlag f•ur Wissenschaftsforschung, Berlin
(2000) 239-282
[Swal93] Swales, J.M.: Genre analysis: English in academic and research settings.
Cambridge Univ. Press, Cambridge (1993)

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