CISDI Journal Vol 3, No. 1 March 2012

Computing, Information Systems & Development Informatics Journal Vol. 3. No.1. March 2012

An International Journal Publication of the Creative Research & Technology Evaluation Network in Conjunction with the African Institute of Development Informatics & Policy.

© All Rights Reserved

ISBN - 978-2257-44-7

Published in the USA by:

Trans-Atlantic Management Consultants

2580 Fairham Drive, Baton Rouge, LA, USA 70816

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Computing, Information Systems & Development Informatics Journal Vol 3. No. 1, March, 2012

CONTENTS i. Table of Contents ii. Editorial Board iii. Preface 1-6 On the Use of ICTs to Support Social Intervention among Asylum Seekers – Reported Cases from a

Women’s Resource Centre in Ireland

Adedeji, O.M Tralee Institute of Technology, Ireland

7-14 eCollaboration for Tertiary Education Using Mobile Systems Sadiq, F.I Ambrose Alli University, Ekpoma, Nigeria

15-18 Factors Affecting the Use and Adoption of Open-Source Software Development Process Among Nigerian

Undergraduate Students Odulaja, G.O., Ogude, U.C, Adebimpe, L.A. & Akinyosade, E.O. Tai Solarin University of Education, Ijebu-Ode, Nigeria

19-23 Service Enterprises, Social Engineering and Workforce Productivity – The Case of Zain Nigeria PLC. Longe, O.B., Wada, F. & Ukpe, K. Southern University, Baton Rouge, USA

24-29 Global Strategies for Stable Climate: An Assessment Approach Iyalomhe, F. Cä Foscari University: Venice, Italy

30-35 Inclusion Criteria and Instructional Design - Theories and Application to Electronic Learning Platform

Development Itegboje, A.O. Yaba College of Technology, Lagos, Nigeria

36-49 Towards an Enhanced Protocol for Improving Transactional Support in Interoperable SOA-Based Systems Laud Charles Ochei University of Port Harcourt, Port Harcourt, Nigeria

50-60 An ICT-Based E-Collaborative Application for Law Enforcement Agencies in Nigeria Olaniyan, O. Bells University of Technology, Ota, Nigeria

61 Call for Papers

62 CISDI Journal Publication Template

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Editorial Board Editor-in-Chief

Prof. Stella S. Chiemeke University of Benin Benin City, Nigeria

Co-Editor In-Chief

Dr. Richard Boateng University of Ghana Legon, Ghana Editorial Advisory Board Prof. C.K. Ayo Covenant University Ota, Nigeria Prof. Adenike Osofisan University of Ibadan Ibadan, Nigeria Prof. Lynette Kvasnny Penn. State University Pennsylvania, USA Prof. Bamidele Oluwade Salem University Lokoja, Nigeria. Dr. Istance Howell DeMontfort University Leceister, United Kingdom Prof. Victor Mbarika The ICT University United State of America

Prof. Maritza .I. Espina Universidad Del Este Carolina, Peurto Rico, USA Prof. Damien Ejigiri Nelson Mandela Sch. of Pub. Policy Southern University, USA Dr. Abel Usoro University of the West of Scotland Paisley, Scotland Dr. Onifade O.F.W. Nancy 2 Université France

Associate Editors

Dr. Friday Wada Nelson Mandela Sch. of Public Policy Southern University Baton Rouge, LA, USA Prof. MAntonio .L. Llorens Gomez

Universidad Del Este Carolina, Peurto Rico, USA. Dr. Yetunde Folajimi University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria Azeez Nureni Ayofe University of Western Cape Bellville, Cape Town, South Africa Dr. John Effah University of Ghana Business School University of Ghana, Legon Accra Colin Thakur Durban University of Technology South Africa Makoji Robert Stephen Salford Business School Greater Manchester, United Kingdom Dr Akeem Ayofe Akinwale Department of Social Sciences, Landmark University, Omu Aran, Nigeria

Managing/Production Editor Dr. Longe Olumide PhD Southern University and A & M College, Baton Rouge, USA Nigeria Contact – Department of Computer Science University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria CREATIVE Research Networks Nigeria


Preface to the CISDI Journal Vol 3, No. 1, 2012 This volume of the Computing, Information Systems and Development Informatics Journal (CISDI) provides a distinctive international perspective on theories, issues, frameworks and practice at the nexus of computing, information systems Developments Informatics and policy. A new wave of multidisciplinary research efforts is required to provide pragmatic solution to most of the problems the world faces today. With Computing and Information Technology (IT) providing the needed momentum to drive growth and development in different spheres of human endeavours, there is a need to create platforms through which breakthrough research and research findings that cuts across different discipline can be reported. Such dissemination to a global audience will in turn support future discoveries, sharpen the understanding of theoretical underpinnings and improve practices. This is exactly what the CISDI Journal aims to achieve with timely publications of research, cases and findings from practices in the domain of Computing, Information Technology, Information System/Science and Development Informatics. Articles in this volume cover a broad spectrum of issues that reflects on cases, practices, theories and design. Case studies on using ICTs to support social intervention among asylum seekers was reported from Ireland. eCollaboration for Tertiary Education Using Mobile Systems, eCollaboration for law enforcement agencies as well as factors affecting the use and adoption of Open-Source Software were presented. Other papers covers topics such as social and enterprise informatics, inclusion criteria and instructional technology design, climate change and protocols for improving transactional support in interoperable service oriented application systems. We encourage you to read through this volume and consider submitting articles that reports cutting edge research in computing and short communications/reviews in development informatics research that appropriate design, localization, development, implementation and usage of information and communication technologies (ICTs) to achieve development goals. The CISDI Journal accept articles that promote policy research by employing established (and proposed) legal and social frameworks to support the achievement of development goals through ICTs - particularly the millennium development goals. We will also consider for acceptance, academically robust papers, empirical research, case studies, action research and theoretical discussions which advances learning within the Journal scope and target domains. Extended versions and papers with approved copyright release previously presented at conferences, workshops and seminars will also be accepted for publication. We welcome feedbacks and rejoinders Enjoy your reading Thank you

Longe Olumide Babatope PhD Managing Editor Computing, Information Systems and Development Informatics Journal Fulbright SIR Fellow International Centre for Information Technology & Development Southern University System Southern University Baton Rouge Louisiana, USA E-mail: [email protected]

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Computing, Information Systems & Development Informatics Journal

Volume 3. No. 1. March, 2012

On the Use of ICTs to Support Social Intervention among Asylum Seekers – Reported Cases from a Women’s Resource Centre in Ireland

Adedeji, O.M.

Department of Humanities Tralee Institute of Technology Tralee, Ireland [email protected]

Reference Format: Adedeji, O.M. (2012). On the Use of ICTs to Support Social Intervention among Asylum Seekers –

Reported Cases from a Women’s Resource Centre, Ireland. Computing, Information Systems & Development Informatics Journal. Vol 3, No.1. pp 1-4

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ABSTRACT This paper reports on cases encountered during an internship on social intervention while working with the asylum seekers/ refugees in Ireland. Comprehensive information is provided on the way in which intervention services were rendered, accomplished and reflect on the methods used. The efficacies of the method used which was based on personal experience, knowledge and systems theories are discussed extensively. Reflections that can be used to make adjustments when faced with similar situation in future are provided based on the experiences accumulated during the placement. Finally, the value of social care work within the framework of social care process is critically explored by linking theory to practice. The paper concludes by providing insights on how ICTs can be used to reinforce social inclusion and provide suggestion for ICT-based social intervention practices. Keywords: Asylum Seekers, Intervention. ICTs, Social Care.

1. INTRODUCTION

“Abraham Maslow and others scholars identified people’s

needs as falling into five broad categories: social,

emotional, intellectual, physical and spiritual (Ward and

Rose, 2002). While some service users may be able to meet

some of these needs by themselves, they may also require

some form of help or ‘intervention’ with some aspect of

their lives” (Share & Lalor. 2009 p.228). The practice placement took place in a Women’s Resource Centre. The agency provides free support services to women at risk, by empowering them in various skills. They also link-up with other agencies to provide adequate support to their services users. Among other people expending the service are the asylums seekers/refugees especially women. The agency has a policy of not turning anyone away thus giving men also the opportunity to use the service at times. This practice placement provided ample opportunities to work first hand with minorities, that is, immigrants and the asylum seekers. Asylum seekers are the people who left their country to Ireland seeking to be recognised as refugees according to the terms of the 1957 UN Convention (Considine & Dukelow 2009). One of the main thrusts of the agency services is to make provision to meet the needs of people in general by providing necessary resources such things include internet access, use of telephone, photocopy machine, stationeries also feeding less privileged to mention few. Having put the above in place, the agency welcome people from different culture and background to come in and use the resources. As they come in to use the resources they also share their personal problems with member of staffs for necessary support.

2. ASSYLUM SEEKING IN IRELAND

According to Coinsidine & Dukelow (2009), the system for seeking asylum in Ireland is extremely negative to human life. In the same vein, O’Connor (2003a, p.40 cited in Coinsidine & Dukelow 2009) posited that asylum seeking in Ireland leaves the asylum seekers bored, isolated, socially excluded and impoverished.

The researcher also mention that many asylum seekers are underprivileged of public services, they are not aware of their entitlements, demoralised, deskilled and institutionalised in a way that is injurious and violates their fundamental human rights. My experience as an immigrant supports these positions, lending credence to the fact that being an immigrant is gloomy and boring. Having assess these needs based on the foregoing, it is obvious that people in this category needs the support of social care professionals to find protection and enablement for them to reach their full potential. 3. SOCIAL CARE PROFESSIONALS AND ASYLUM SEEKERS ROLE IN CONTEXT

To fulfil the value of social care profession it is important to build relationship with service users. Lishman (2007) said relationship with service user is necessary but not enough to change their situation. It is only important to pave way for effective support and help, since the purpose of my intervention is mainly to support, protect and provide necessary help that will encourage inclusion and integration for the immigrant, this concept was applied in during my internship. I therefore went further to discuss with my supervisor for permission to provide language training in English language by organizing English language lessons since the agency offer training on different courses per time to address integration and other issues of life. To be effective in my job delivery as a social care worker, it is essential for me to seek the approval and co-operation of the service users to make the job easy and to actualise the set goal of my intervention. Having highlighted the service users’ needs in the above areas, on my own part, displaying genuineness, empathy and absolute positive respect which I felt is the best to gain positive relationship with them (Miller 2006). Research has suggested that empathy, warmth and genuineness are particularly important to people when working with them. Moreover, for ethical and social care practice reason the service user’s consent and involvement was sought and they were glad to have me as their support worker (British Association of Social Workers, 1986).

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In other words, looking at the predicament of this group under discourse, experience during the placement showed that they also need support in the area of advocacy, inclusion, emotional support and integration. To address these needs in a holistic manner, I advocated for those who request for access to public services and aspire to acquire knowledge by attending training courses. I also supported them to be socially included and integrate well in the society by taking up English classes for those from non-English speaking country. They were also encouraged during the intervention to join different groups in the community to promote social inclusion and enhance integration. 3.1 The Case of An Asylum Seeker with a need for a driver’s licence A specific case of intervention and advocacy during the internship was the issue of an asylum seeker who needs to get driver’s license having passed the theory test and was denied by the licensing authority. This service user thought he was denied because he was an asylum seekers therefore he felt bad and was emotionally depressed. He came to the agency worried even though he is a man, it is the norms of the agency not to turn people down, the agency attend to people in as much the person needs help. I took the matter up, make some calls to the authority on his behalf and was giving appointment to come over to the licensing office. I accompanied the service user to licensing office because he could not communicate very well in English language due to his background. My intervention gave him some form of confidence and hope. Afterwards, I referred him to another agency that deals with men to attend English classes for him to feel more comfortable. 3.2 Other Cases My intervention continues in the agency as I worked with other women in similar situation, interestingly no two situations are ever the same. There are few of them who are willing to take up training courses to occupy their time instead of being stagnated as the asylum seeking system prevents them from taking up employment or participating in full time education. For example there was one of them who desire to attend Kerry Education Services for a course and she was not sure of her eligibility. I supported her by advocating for her to know her chances of enrolling for the course without paying fees. I also encouraged her to participate in voluntary work so as to enhance her chances of getting sponsored in future. Moreover, there was another service user who is very new in the community and she belongs to the minority group (refugee), lonely and has no friends and she was desperate about her situation. Likewise she needed to get crèche for her daughter. I assisted her in getting a place for her daughter in one of the crèche in town. I spoke to her about series of courses available in the agency even though she prefers to take up training course that will fetch her certificate. Attempts to get her into other training institutions in town proved abortive she was

therefore encouraged to make a choice from the training options available in the agency. This she did and made a choice. While training with the agency I continued to make efforts to get her into other institutions of learning. Fortunately, attending the agency courses reduced her complaint of idleness. Overall, I advocated for as many of the asylum seekers/immigrant coming to the agency for one help or the other. I worked with other service users in diverse ways by making them feel welcomed and contributing to their sense of belonging and integration. I established an English language class for those who could not communicate very well in English – this was schedule once a week throughout my placement in the agency. 4. MATCHING THEORY TO PRACTICE DURING THE INTERVENTION

My intervention with the asylum seekers/ immigrants began with adequate assessment using systematic practice to explore my intervention. Systematic Practice is a framework that focused three major question in an intervention which are; achievement after the intervention, how to go about the intervention and what proof to show the intervention actually worked (Thompson 2009). Intervention may not be effective if the needs of the service users are not identified, moreover it is the norms of the social care profession to identify clients need and ensure those needs are met (Share & Lalor 2009).

“Appropriate assessment lies at the heart of

effective service delivery for a whole range of

health and social care provision. Its purpose is to

identify and evaluate individuals’ presenting

needs and how they constrain or support his/her

capacity to live a full and independent life.

Councils should ensure that individuals are

active partners in the assessment of their needs.

Appropriate service provision can then be

planned both in the immediate and in the longer

term to promote or preserve independence”

(Marjorie 2010 p.28).

After completing the initial assessment with the service users, system theory was used to draw necessary plans. Coulshed and Orme (1998) opined that assessment is an integral skill required when using system practice in an intervention. In order to produce good outcomes for the service user, it is vital to work together and the service users must be involved in the process (Watson & West 2006). Going by (Dominelli 2002) change is easier when both professional and users decides to follow the same direction in making changes. Healy (2005) proofs that system theory point out the metamorphoses in using knowledge and skills to work with service user which also underlines the purpose of working together. Their involvement in the plans was important so we could agree together that we are making the best decision based on opportunity cost and to help them fulfil their level of

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commitment. Our working together is also to prioritise the issue and needs of the service users (Healy 2005). I was particular about empowering the immigrant because I know they have hidden potentials that giving the right opportunities will position them to benefit greatly from the society. I was able to assist them in identifying these potentials in the context of the situation they found themselves. This support will definitely assist them to reach their full potential (Dominelli 2002). I measured up to my key role as social care worker by working with the immigrant using systematic practice, going by the second question of systematic practice, I have done justice to it by carrying the service user’s along my in plan (Thompson 2009). 5. REFLECTIONS ON CLIENTS The first service user I worked with was an asylum seeker that was denied driver’s license in the licensing authority having passed his theory test. Due to his status in the country and language barrier he misunderstood the reason why he was denied. I empathised with him understanding the stress involve in passing the theory test and being denied to hold the evidence. Understanding his predicament and working with him gives me the idea of his paramount needs. The situation made him vulnerable because his mind is not settled and he looked worried having attended the licensing office on several occasions without yielding positive result also he was frustrated based on the communication problem. I decided to intervene because he was worried and if he was left alone without attention the problem could lead to ill-health. Attending to his need made me fulfil my role according to O’Connor & Murphy (2006 p.25) says “social work seeks to promote social change, problem solving, in human relationship, and the empowerment and liberation of people to enhance well-being”. I encouraged him to go for the English class in other agency so as to build his self- esteem and for him to be independent to take future challenges. My intervention was also to help him to gain greater control over his lives and to help him to be resilient (Thompson 2003). Furthermore, I worked with three other women with similar needs but in different situation. Theory informs that human problem are different and their problem are unique to them which also requires different ways of solving them. Observing these three women I noticed that one of them is seriously looking forward to her future in Ireland and have a desire to contribute positively to the betterment of the society therefore she need support in the area of learning English so as to fulfil her dreams. I decided to enrol her in my English class because communication is an important aspect of inclusion and integration in the society. It is also a means to empower and enable the service users to achieve set objectives of inclusion and integration. Achieving their aim will not only benefit them but will also aid social capital which will be a booster to financial security (Thompson 2005). Investing in clients is therefore referred to as increasing human capital

which also a way to create economic wealth and human well- being (O’Connor & Murphy, 2006).

6. WORK EVALUATION

However, an intervention is perfect when the piece of work is evaluated. Evaluation is an integral aspect of social care work; it is a stage where all helping work is processed (Thompson, 2002c cited in Thompson 2003). It also involves recognising strengths and weaknesses of a specific intervention activity and the lessons that can be learned from them; moreover it is an opportunity for me to look closely into the work I did and be aware of myself and the impact of the work on the service users. Evaluation could take place at the end of the intervention or in between, much can be learnt in the process (Thompson 2003). In my own case, my intervention was evaluated in the process. While supporting and working closely with the asylum seeker/refugee I was able to recognise a series of concerns that have impacted on them as well as their responses which was mainly through assessments. The assessment assisted me in identifying my own strength and inadequacies as well as that of the service users. Applying systematic practice actively permitted me to work on the strength which will be good to create positive change in their future in Ireland as an immigrant (Thompson 2009). My target throughout the intervention was to help the asylum seekers function to their full potential and I worked with them to achieve the aim of the intervention which was consented to at the start. When I began my intervention with the lady who has been declared as refugee and was new to Tralee community, she expressed her desire to go for any training course available and her daughter to start crèche, at the same time express her state of loneliness as she is parenting alone which leave her in a sad mood. Having realised my role, I supported her in a way to overcome her loneliness by getting her into a course in the centre where she met with new people, she was able to make friends which is important to overcome loneliness and isolation. My interaction with her after the first class proved to me that she benefited from the class and it has helped her to deal with her idleness and loneliness. Systematic practice allowed me to comprehend and respond to her need in her situation. Consequently, the English class I organised was part of my strength in the intervention because I started it with passion and the class create an avenue for me to exhibit my communication skills. Seden (1999) describe four important skills of communication as active listening, giving attention, summarising information and reflecting feelings and reviewing back to their clients. Most of the asylum seekers especially the ones in my English classes were open to discussing other difficulties they were going through in their privately life which I felt it was the outcome of my being open and honest with them. According to systems theory the primary motive of working within a social care setting is to enhance and

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strengthen the service user’s capabilities to familiarise and resolve problem (Healy, 2005). Long after she discussed with me she confirmed her ability to be resilient in the midst of her adversities. The methodology used is appropriate for future practise. The class atmosphere was conducive enough for learning especially when we have one to one class. Subsequently, I also realized aspects of administering intervention where I need to make improvements as I worked with the asylum seekers/refugee. Empathy versus feelings became an issue for me, according to Thompson, 2009 empathy is to understand other people’s perspective and putting oneself in their shoes in order to be well equipped in dealing with their situation. However, my feelings over-ruled my empathy skills in the case of the service user that was denied driver’s licence in the licensing authority. Thompson also said people’s workers should be aware of their feelings before attending to service users because feelings can influence both the intervention and its outcomes (Thompson, 2009). My supervision session with my supervisor was used to discuss my feelings and action. She encouraged me to maintain professional relationship regardless of my feelings towards his predicaments. My supervision is an avenue to express my feeling and the session always provide me with containment (Frogett, 2006). In the overall my supervision session every week was used to account for my work in the agency. Being assertive is another aspect of my intervention that needed to be improved. I observed during my intervention that there are times I found myself in the ocean of confusion. For example there is a particular client who came to the centre to use the agency’s’ public phone, as part of the agency policy phone calls are strictly for passing important messages and lifesaving information. This particular client is a regular caller to the agency; in one of her visits she was making unrelated calls to friends. My role was eroded because I found it very difficult to exercise assertiveness skills, telling her the policy of the agency with regards to the use of telephone just for her not to feel bad. She realised my weakness in that area and she took advantage to continue using the phone contrary to the agency’s policy. Following Thompson’s knowledge of being assertive will be a good approach to such situation.

“Being assertive involves not being frightened of hurting

someone’s feelings if this is necessary for the greater good.

This can be done tactfully, gently and constructively-it does

not have to involve an aggressive response” (Thompson, 2009 p.40). 7. ICTS IN INTERVENTION WORK

The use of ICTs for intervention purposes will have to be reinforced as a means of reducing social exclusion and improving the general ability of asylum seekers to integrate. ICTs can be employed as a tool for economic benefits to drive skills improvement among the asylum

seekers and enhance the potential for employment among asylum seekers who are even at the risk of exclusion. There is “work at home opportunities on the internet. ICTs can be used to offer this opportunity to asylum seekers thereby giving them the opportunity to take advantage of the more inclusive labour market made available through the internet. To social workers, ICTs can assist in strategic planning and service targeting, thus providing a better understanding of the nature, incidence, and causes of social exclusion and facilitates improved planning to address it. Through collection and sharing of information, social workers can develop a much better understanding of the patterns of social exclusion and the needs of excluded people. This allows the development and monitoring of evidence based social exclusion strategies and neighbourhood renewal strategies which can much more effectively and efficiently target services where they are needed. Social workers can use ICTs to introduce asylum seekers to new ways to access services and the way services are delivered. This include, finding information on employment, health, and social support. They can therefore participate in an interactive manner on e-government platforms, and applying for a benefit or service by telephone or online, or making a payment of a parking fine using a secure Internet link. ICTs can also assist asylum seekers to interact electronically with service providers through e-mails or mobile phones.

8. CONCLUDING REMARKS AND FUTURE DIRECTIONS.

I find it highly rewarding and enjoyable working at the Resource Centre and the result of my intervention is very fulfilling and rewarding even though I was faced with various challenges. My practice placement offered me the opportunity to have first-hand experiences with different categories of people who need intervention and other forms of supports to integrate properly into the society and to solve one problem or the other. It provided a platform to match theory with practice. In the cause of my experience in the agency, certain recommendations/ suggestions were provided that will be of help to me in future as a professional. Good communication skill is one of the important skills I would like to carry on to my future practice because I realised its importance in dealing with both service users and colleagues. Reflecting on my practice and being aware of self especially in the area of my feelings will make the difference in my future practice having realised them during my intervention (Thompson 2009). In general my practice placement was therefore totally beneficial and will serve as a basis for professional practice as a social care worker. Moreover, the conclusion will not be perfect if I failed to make the following recommendation for the betterment of the agency and the country Ireland. For the agency, I gathered that they are working very hard as a

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team towards achieving common goals which is a strength they need to build upon in delivering their service. However, the kind of relationship among the staff contradict confidentiality in social care setting, I would recommend they tighten up a bit in this regard. Likewise systems put in place within the office should be adhered to strictly by everybody in order to aid equality among staffs (Share & Lalor 2009). Observation informs me that some rules within the agency are not followed by some of the staff also the agency staffs need to work on their boundaries with service users. This implies that the agency’s policy and procedure need to be revisited in this regard. It will be of great advantage if the country can look into their asylum seeking system and make some amendments that will benefit both the country and the people coming to seek asylum. In my own view, my experience working with the asylum seekers prove that if things were different people will not be stuck into the asylum system bored and idled. I will recommend that the government provide new ladder of opportunity from the school to the work place. This new opportunity will allow many to put in their own effort to benefit from the opportunity which will reduce the margin between the minorities. I would also recommend that the government strive to upgrade human capital by promoting access to a range of skills instead of making the asylum seekers idle and not adding to the economy of the state (Coinsidine and Dukelow 2009). It is going to be heart-warming seeing all the recommendation working for me, the agency and the country Ireland in future. Finally, ICTs will play a great role in social inclusion by creating online forums for interaction between asylum seekers. For social workers, ICTS play a major role for building client databases, developing PowerPoint to develop presentations for training purposes. Asylum seekers can be engaged by training them on how to opened up e-mail addresses, subscribe to social media and use platforms such as Skype to keep in touch with family and friends. They could also be taught on how to search the Internet for news about their Country, and to search for job opportunities without the need of work permit in Ireland. REFERENCES

[1] Considine, M. and Dukelow, F. Irish Social Policy: A

Critically Introduction. Gill and Macmillan, Dublin. [2] Coulshed, V. and Orme, J. (1998) Social Work

practice. Palgrave Macmillan, Basingstoke. [3] Dominelli, L. (2002) Anti-oppressive Social Work

Theory and Practice. Palgrave Macmillan, Basingstoke. [4] Frogett, L. (2006) Psychosocial Theory and Practice

for Social Work: A Conceptual introduction to an

Object Relations Approach. University of Central Lancashire, Preston.

[5] Healy, K. (2005) Social Work Theories in Context:

Creating Frameworks for Practice. palgrave Macmillan, Basingstoke.

[6] Inclusion Through Innovation - Tackling Social Exclusion Through New Technologies. A Social Exclusion Unit Final Report. http://www.umic.pt/images/stories/publicacoes/ [8] Lishman, J. (2007) Handbook for Practice Learning in

Social Care: Knowledge and Theory, 2nd edn. Jessica Kingley Publishers, London.

[9] Marjorie, L. (2010) Practical Guide to Care Planning

in Health and Social Care. Open University Press, Maiden Head.

[10] Miller, L. (2006) Counselling Skills for Social Work. Sage, London. [9] O’Connor, T. and Murphy, M. (2006) Social Care in

Ireland. CIT Press. [12] Seden, J. (1999) Counselling Skills in Social Work

Practice. Open University Press, Buckingham. [13] Share, P. and Lalor, K. (2009) Applied Social Care:

An Introduction for Student in Ireland, 2nd edn. Gill and Macmillan, Dublin. [14] Thompson, N. (2003) Promoting Equality, 2nd edn. Palgrave Macmillan. [15] Thompson, N. (2005) Understanding Social Work

Preparing for Practice. Palgrave Macmillan, Basingstoke. [16] Thompson, N. (2009) People Skills, 3rd edn. Palgrave Macmillan. [17] Watson, D. and West, W. (2006) Social Work

Processes and Practice: Approaches, Knowledge and

Skills. Palgrave Macmillan, Basingstoke Author’s Bio

Olayemi Adedeji holds a Higher National Diploma in Estate Management from Osun- State College of Technology Esa-oke, Nigeria and presently pursuing a Bachelor's Degree in Applied Social Studies in Social Care at the Institute of Technology Tralee, Ireland. My

research findings focused on Asylum Seekers and their transitions.

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Volume 3. No 1. March, 2012

eCollaboration for Tertiary Education Using Mobile Systems

Sadiq, F. I. Department of Computer Science Ambrose Alli University, Ekpoma, Nigeria e-mail:fatai_aau@yahoo,com

Reference Format: Sadiq, F.I (2012). eCollaboration for Tertiary Education Using Mobile Systems. Computing, Information

Systems & Development Informatics Journal. Vol 3, No.1. pp 7-14

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ABSTRACT Electronic collaboration has revolutionized academic activities by enabling academic collaborations through devices such as computers and other mobile devices. With this development, learning and academic collaboration can now take place across continents and different time zones. In electronic collaboration, knowledge sharing is done remotely, in real-time and not location-bound. Although several institutions in the developed countries have been using some form of eCollaboration for academic activities and for improving collaborations among students, much has not been done in this domain in the developing world. Using Java as software technology of choice, we take electronic learning a step further by making it possible for students to learn and collaborate through mobile phones thus leveraging on the existing mobile diffusion among students in Nigeria. The intention is to contribute to research and development in mobile learning relevant to the growth and quality of education by encouraging group participation among students and fostering joint academic contributions among the academia. KEYWORDS: Electronic collaboration, Mobile collaboration software, mobile phone and electronic learning.

1. INTRODUCTION

Definitions of collaborative learning vary. Collaborative learning is defined by the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization as learning that takes place ‘when learners work in groups on the same task simultaneously, thinking together over demands and tackling complexities.’ Collaborative learning is viewed as an ‘act of shared creation and/or discovery and within the context of electronic communication as taking place without members being physically in the same location’ (Recabarren, 2009). Simply put, collaboration is a process by which people work together on an intellectual, academic, or practical endeavour. Historically, collaboration took place in person, by letter, or on the telephone. Since the inception of the Internet and the World Wide Web, collaboration is viewed as an electronic phenomenon that connects individuals electronically via the Internet using tools such as email, online communities, discussion groups, wikis, blogs, podcasting, or through access to sites on the World Wide Web. Electronic collaboration allows collaborators to communicate anytime, from anywhere to any place. People from different parts of the world, different universities, and/or in different courses can exchange information, collaborate on shared documents and ideas, study together, or reflect on their own practices (Watson, 2005). This Internet-based work allows collaborators to communicate anytime, from anywhere to any place. People from different parts of a building, state, country, or continent can exchange information, collaborate on shared documents and ideas, study together, or reflect on their own practices. The advancement in information technology has revolutionized the way collaboration has been. The entrance of mobile phones to the technology market has given communication a face lift. One of the contributions of mobile phone which is mobile internet has enhanced internet connectivity and makes collaboration easier. With mobile phones, students can easily share ideas and knowledge without using personal computers. The revolution in different mobile technologies such as GPRS (General Packet Radio System), Edge, 3G and even the 3.5 G has added to the speed of accessing information via mobile phones. This paper focused on how mobile phones can be used as tool for collaboration. This is to enable those that cannot afford personal computers to still have access to electronic collaborative systems for academic activities.

2. PROBLEM STATEMENT Learning in higher requires extra effort outside the classroom, where students can share problem that borders on academic interest. Before now the only medium where something like that is done may be through the internet, which is possible or accessible when one have computer and a modem or service provided through a cybercafé, outside this students come together to discussed issues of academic concerns. These options have one or more problems. Like cost of buying modem, proximity to cybercafé, congestion and threats in cybercafé, lack of awareness on the path of students etc The study intends to presents a concept on design and simulation of Electronic Collaboration using Mobile Phone for Tertiary Institution, to enable students from different institution contribute to topics of common academic interest, without necessarily living their location. In order to improve quality of learning. The outcome of this study will be relevant to the growth and quality of education by encouraging group participation in academics among students. The said technology can foster joint academic contributions among the academia. 3. COLLABORATION AND RELATIVE CONCEPTS Collaboration is a recursive process where two or more people or organization work together in an intersection of common goals — for example, an intellectual endeavour (Watson,2005) that is creative in nature—by sharing knowledge, learning and building consensus. Most collaboration requires leadership, although the form of leadership can be social within a decentralized and egalitarian group (Spence, 2006). In particular, teams that work collaboratively can obtain greater resources, recognition and reward when facing competition for finite resources. Lave et al, (1991) in their findings claimed that collaboration is also present in opposing goals exhibiting the notion of adversarial collaboration, though this is not a common case for using the term. Structured methods of collaboration encourage introspection of behavior and communication. These methods specifically aim to increase the success of teams as they engage in collaborative problem solving. Forms, rubrics, charts and graphs are useful in these situations to objectively document personal traits with the goal of improving performance in current and future projects (Recabarren, 2009). Electronic

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collaboration (e-collaboration) is operationally defined here as collaboration using electronic technologies among different individuals to accomplish a common task (Kock et al, 2002). This is a broad definition that encompasses not only computer-mediated collaborative work, but also collaborative work supported by other types of technologies that do not fit most people’s definition of a “computer,” such as the telephone, which is not, strictly speaking, a computer – even though some of today’s telephone devices probably have more processing power than some of the first computers back in the 1940s. Another example is the teleconferencing suite, whose main components are cameras, televisions and telecommunications devices. A key characteristic of Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL) research is its diversity in methodology: Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL) researchers apply laboratory experimental methods, quasi-experimental approaches, discourse analyses, or case studies. Qualitative data shows high regard for use of Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL ) tools as aides to learning in the classroom (Jakes, 2008). If Collaborative learning is the idea of bringing together learners to work and learn in a collaborative manner, (Gokhale, 1995) then Computer Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL) tools accomplish this task either synchronously or asynchronously. {See Asynchronous Learning} Online collaborative tools provide a central environment for these types of interactions (Hsiao, 1996). According to Jakes, (2008) some specific benefits of the utilization of web-based applications for collaborative learning are listed below;

1) Saves time. Students can work either together or independently, either way contributing to the success of their group overall.

2) Develops oral and written communication and social interaction skills.

3) Allows for interactions with students outside their class, school, city, state and even country.

4) Prepares young students for upper grades and the technology tools they will be encountering there.

5) Allows for students who are unable to attend school to keep up with their peers.

6) Share ideas. 7) Increases student motivation. 8) Encourages different perspectives views. 9) Establishes a sense of learning community. 10) Creates a more positive attitude about learning. 11) Promotes innovation in teaching and classroom

techniques. 12) Enhances self management skills.

4. RESEARCH FRAMEWORK In recent time, Nigeria society has experience tremendous improvement in Information Technology. The boost in Information Technology in Nigeria can be attributed to the entrance of mobile network into Nigeria in 2002 (Ernest, 2003). Today, mobile phones are virtually everywhere, the penetration of mobile phones is more than computer system. Nearly all students in Nigeria have mobile phones

compared to students’ population with computer systems. With increase in the number of mobile phones users in Nigeria, there is need to tailor the applications to suite the million mobile phones. Fixed internet, which is internet on computers, does not integrate the concept of mobility, while mobile internet does. In today cyberspace, mobile phones with computer capabilities are now available and affordable; this has made internet to reach all and sundry. The main purpose for this study is to take the advantage of mobile phones to offer mobile collaboration to students to enhance academic activities. 4.1 The Existing System Ambrose Alli University, Ekpoma is an institution with a state-of-the-art web collaboration service for the use of the students without academic integration. For students’ academic activities, the institution makes use of lecturing, library system, laboratories, workshops etc; while the students are left to carry out collaboration themselves. The existing mode of collaboration is the traditional method, where students gathered mainly in the evening to discuss academic works. At time the students formed themselves into different groups for tutorials which will be taken by the group leaders. 4.2 Problems Of The Existing Collaboration The existing method for collaboration is designed to enhance the academic performance of the students in order to develop knowledge needed to pass examinations and to face job challenges in the industries. The system is nonetheless without its own problem and limitations, highlighted below are some of the problems of the existing manual method for collaboration;

1. Limitation in collaboration scopes: The collaboration is only limited to the same set of students. There is no cross institution collaboration; knowledge and ideas are not shared with students from other institutions. This limited the collaboration scope of the students.

2. Time bound: There is time bound in manual collaboration. Students only meet in specified time and they share knowledge within this time frame. Other questions have to wait till next collaboration session.

3. Limited resources: Manual collaboration is limited in resources available to students. In most cases they make use of handout, few available books that in most cases are limited in content.

4.3 The Proposed System Concept The proposed collaboration system is not to replace the existing manual collaboration system but to extend the system from traditional method to mobile internet. This is to bring the collaboration system to students’ mobile phones and make it collaboration “on the move”.

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c c

F ig ure 2 : Mo bile e-col labor ation services

In ternet

A

B

Appli cation servers store

data for mob ile Internet

Data dist ributed to m obi le clien ts

push or pu ll Data created at

dev ice A for dev ices B and C

Dat a s ent t o application

server on the int ernet

C

Ce llula r or W ifi

covera ge

T opic Submis sion

View Co llaborative T opics

Joi n G roup

Fig 1: Architecture for Mobile collaboration Services The proposed system will utilize the mobile internet broadband for client server transactions, due to advancement in mobile internet; most GSM operators in Nigeria now have mobile internet broadband access for their subscribers. The implication of this is that mobile broadband is within the reach of all GSM subscribers. With the proposed concept students will be able to perform most of their collaborative activities through their mobile phones. After the deployment of the system, students can now do the following through their mobile phones: 1. Submit topics from collaboration: This service

will enable students to submit their questions or research topic for other students to respond.

2. View collaborative topics: apart from submitting topics/questions for collaboration, students can also view and participate in collaborative session using the software that will be available on mobile phone.

3. Join Collaborative group: Students can join any group they wish to join based on the course of study that will be available on the software via the internet.

4.4 Software Design Methodology The design of the proposed mobile collaboration will be based on prototyping software development methodology using Object Oriented Programming (OOP) approach. The programming tools will be Java Micro Edition (JME) and Java Server Page (JSP) with MYSQL for database. The development will conform to client/server architecture while the client will run on mobile phones and the server on the Mobile collaboration web server. 4.5 Proposed System Architecture The proposed mobile collaboration system will be based on client/server architecture. In this architecture, the client is the mobile phone while the server is the web server. The communication method is described below: The client (mobile phone) initiated the communication by sending request to the web server. The web server in turn processes the request and sends appropriate response back to the client. The client used WAP (Wireless Access Protocol) to send request to the mobile operator Gateway, while the Mobile operator Gateway uses HyperText Transfer Protocol (HTTP) to forward the request to the web server

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(internet). On the other hands, the web server sends response back to the Mobile Operator Gateway using the HTTP and the gateway forwards the response to the client using WAP. The billing for data usage for mobile collaboration system is done on the mobile operator gateway. The architecture is represented with the diagram in Figure 1. 5. DEVELOPMENT TOOLS

The development tools used for the proposed system are listed below:

1. Java Micro Edition(JME) Version 2 2. JSP(Java Server Page) and MYSQL

Java Micro Edition Version 2 J2ME (Java 2 Platform, Micro Edition) is a technology that allows programmers to use the java programming language and related tools

To develop programs for mobile wireless information devices such as cellular phones and personal digital assistants (PDAs). J2ME consists of programming specifications and a special virtual machine the K Virtual Machine that allows a J2ME-encoded program to run on the mobile device. The Java Micro Edition was chosen for the following reason:

1. Platform independent: Java Micro application runs regardless the mobile phone platform. Pocket PCs, Smybian phones, Google Android, etc all support java Micro applications.

2. Small footprint: Like every other java application, Mobile Java application leaves small footprint on mobile phone memory. Memory and processor usage of Java Micro Application are the least with high level of efficiency when compared with other tools.

3. Security: Java has high level of security implementation in the Java Virtual Machine. This makes every java application hacking proof.

Java Micro Edition is without its weaknesses. During the course of this project work the following weaknesses were discovered:

1. Any mobile phone without java support will not be able to run JME applications.

2. Limited graphic support: Java Micro Edition supports limited graphics for developing graphic centric application

5.1 System Simulation The Netbean 6.8 IDE with the help of Java Micro Edition version 2 is used for the simulation. Starting the application depends on the choice of the user and the system depends on the model of the mobile phone. On most Nokia Phones follow the steps below:

1. Open the application menu 2. Locate mobile collaboration in the menu 3. Select the application, the log in interface

appears, enter the login parameters such as the users’ name (i.e. matric number) and the password. The login parameters will be validated, if successful, the mobile collaboration menu appears, else error message appears.

Fig 3.5 shows the screen short of the e-collaboration interface input and output.

Fig. 2: Mobile collaboration Login interface After a successful login, the interface that shows all

the available mobile collaboration appears. The interface is show below:

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Fig. 3: Application Main menu

Joining Group The developed mobile collaboration application permit student to join a group before you can collaborate. The most important function here is that you must join a group. To join a group, select join a group and press select button. The interface below appears.

Figure 4: Group joining interface Select any group and press the join group button, then the interface below appears.

Fig 5: Group joining data form After filling all the necessary data into the form, select join now button. The data will be validated; if any error is found, error message will be displayed else the data goes to database. Submitting Topic for collaboration To submit topic for collaboration, select submit a topic from the application main menu. Use the interface to submit the topic which must be related to your group, else there may not be any contribution.

Fig 6: Topic submission form

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Contributing To Collaborative Topic To contribute to current collaborative topic, select contribute to topic from the application main menu. The interface below allows you to contribute to topic.

Fig 7: Contribution interface The same interface enables you to view the entire available topic in your group. End User Training The end user can to successfully use the application without the appropriate training. There are several training methods that can be used; the method that will enhance adequate dissemination of the training information will be utilized. Orientation, user manual and help feature will go a long way in ensuring that the users receive adequate training on how to use the software. 6. CONCLUSION In the era, where there is advancement in mobile phones’ technology with mobile phones that have the power of computers, there is need to embrace the concept of mobile technology towards academic use. In third world countries, like Nigeria, mobile technology can go a long way in increasing access to academic information and therefore increase participation in academic activities through the use of Mobile e-collaboration. For instance, 21% of students in academic institutions have owned computer systems, while 80% owned mobile phones; this is an indication that mobile application will have wide coverage in Nigeria. Internet access is very expensive; cyber cafes in most cases are congested and not conducive for academic activities. These have affected students negatively in the area of not being able to take part in electronic academic activities. Implications to Practice

• The various organs in academics will benefit from the mobile e-collaboration software concept, since it will be available to the users at all time.

• It will improve student performance since will expand their academic exposure.

Implications for Policy • The technology would permits institutions within

and outside the Nigeria to contribute to issues across the globe through collaborative medium which the proposed software will provide.

• It will foster joint academic relationship to the nation at large.

7. FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS

1. Effort should be made towards actualizing full development and the implementation.

2. Mobile computing application development should be embraced for future use.

REFERENCES [1]. Bates, A. and Poole, G. Effective Teaching with

Technology in Higher Education San Francisco: Jossey-Bass/John Wiley, 2003

[2].Gokhale, A. (1995). Collaborative learning enhances critical thinking.Journal of Technology Education, 7 (1) , Retrieved October 15, 2008, fromhttp://scholar.lib.vt.edu/ejournals/JTE/jte-v7n1/gokhale.jte-v7n1.html

[3].Graziadei, W.D., 1993. Virtual Instructional Classroom Environment in Science (VICES) in Research, Education, Service & Teaching (REST) CNI.org

[4]. Hsiao, J (1996). CSCL Theories. Retrieved October 15, 2008, from CSCL Theories Web site: http://www.edb.utexas.edu/csclstudent/dhsiao/theories.html

[4]. Jakes, David (2008). JakesOnline!. Retrieved October 16, 2008, from JakesOnline! Web site: http://www.jakesonline.org/

[5]. Johnson-Eilola, Johndan. Datacloud: Toward a New Theory of Online Work. Cresskill, NJ: Hampton Press, Inc., 2005. Print.

[6]. Lave, J., & Wenger, E. (1991). Situated learning: Legitimate peripheral participation. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

[7]. OECD (2005) E-Learning in Tertiary Education: Where Do We Stand? Paris: OECD

[8]. Spence, Muneera U.(2006) "Graphic Design: Collaborative Processes Understanding Self and Others." (lecture) Art 325: Collaborative Processes. Fairbanks Hall, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon. 13 April 2006

[9].Recabarren, M.(2009). Collaborative Robotic Instruction: A Graph Teaching Experience. Computers & Education, 53(2), 330-342.

[10].Watson, Peter (2005). Ideas : A History of Thought and Invention from Fire to Freud. HarperCollins. ISBN 0-06-621064-X. Introduction.

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Author’s Brief

Mr. Fatal [clown SAD1Q is a Lecturer at Ambrose Alli University. Ekpoma. Nigeria. He obtained his B.Tech. Maths./Computer Science in 1998 from the Federal University of Tech. Minna, Nigeria and a Master of

Technology in Computer Science in 2005 at Federal University of Technology, Akure, MBA and PGD in Education at Ambrose Alli University, Ekpoma in 2004, 2010 respectively. He has recently obtained Master of Philosophy (MPhil) in Computer Science in 2012 at University of Benin, Benin City, Edo State. Nigeria, with a view to proceed for Ph.D. in the same field. He is a member of Nigeria Computer Society (NCS), Computer Professional and Registration Council of Nigeria (CPN). IEEE Computer Society. His research interest is in mobile comput:ng. and mobile application Systems End Notes. This work first appeared in the Proceedings of the International Conference on ICT for Africa, 2011.

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Factors Affecting the Use and Adoption of Open-Source Software Development Process among Nigerian Undergraduate Students

Odulaja, G.O. Tai Solarin University of Education Ijagun, Ijebu Ode, Nigeria [email protected]

Ogude, U.C. Dept. Of Computer Science University of Ibadan, Nigeria [email protected]

Adebimpe, L.A Dept of Computer Science Emmanuel Alayande College of Education Oyo, Nigeria [email protected]

Akinyosade, E.O Tai Solarin College of Education Omu, Ijebu Ode, Nigeria [email protected]

Reference Format: Odulaja, G.O. Ogude, U.C, Adebimpe, L.A. & Akinyosade, E.O. (2012), Factors Affecting the Use and

Adoption of Open-Source Software Development Process Among Nigerian Undergraduate Students.

Computing, Information Systems & Development Informatics Journal. Vol 3, No.1. pp 15-18

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ABSTRACT Using a questionnaire titled “Factors Affecting the Use and Adoption of Open-Source Software Development Process Among Nigerian Undergraduates” to solicit responses in selected Institutions of Higher learning in Nigeria, we investigated the factors that motivate or prevent students from adopting and using the open-source paradigm for software development. Findings from the analysis of data obtained from the research showed that students are keen about using the open source software platforms as a means of developing software system. However, there are concerns among students of the implication of collaborative efforts on open source platforms on project completion time, equitable access to internet facilities and metrics for assessing individual contributions to the success of the final product from such development process. We conclude by making recommendations on how open-source platforms can be used among students . Keywords: Open-source, Undergraduates, Nigeria, proprietary, Software and Paradigm

1. INTRODUCTION Apart from the issue of making robust software products generally available with the additional edge of combined productivity, collaboration remains one the most welcomed advantage of the Free Open-Source Software (FOSS) initiative among programmers. However, associated with this merit are intrinsic concerns regarding the determination for a successful completion of software projects within record time and the challenges of working with faceless individuals on such intense project. Another pressing issues among open-source collaborators include knowing who is doing what in an open-source initiative. Since it has proven remarkably successful in circumstances that are extremely challenging for traditional development methods and environments, open source software development has received the attention of many researchers within the software engineering community (Feller & Fitzgerald, 2001). With almost no face to face communication, and very little use of industry-style project management and coordination, open source developers have built a variety of widely-used, reliable, well-known software systems, e.g. the Apache web server and the Mozilla browser (Mockus et al, 1995). 2. THE NATURE OF OPEN-SOURCE SOFTWARE Open source software development has been described as "extreme distributed software development" (Mockus et al, 1995). The community around an open source software project is usually located around the globe and interacts primarily through asynchronous textual modes of communication, such as email and discussion boards, that are logged in publicly browseable archives. Although open source software projects can vary considerably in their particulars, they do possess a few typical features. According to Anupriya et al (2003) every successful open source software project has a community of people involved with the project at various levels. The largest group within the community is usually the user community, which is primarily interested in using the Software Some users report bugs, but that is more commonly the domain of a smaller group of 'contributors'.

Contributors are not only users of the software, but are also interested in the general development of the project. They are likely to download the most recent (possibly unstable) versions of the software, actively report bugs, and submit code, either to fix bugs, provide further enhancements to the software or to contribute patches. At the centre of the community lies a small select group, sometimes even a single person, of 'core' developers, who not only contribute code, but also guide the project by reviewing contributed code and selecting a subset to be committed to an 'official' release of the software.

3. FOSS – THE NIGERIAN EXPERIENCE Borrowing from the experience of countries such as India and some parts of the Tiger nations who are making giant strides in foreign exchange earnings from exporting programmers, Nigerian universities are making efforts to embrace the open-source initiative. Although, no large scale FOSS project can be pointed at as at the time of writing, feelers from the universities under investigation showed that the enthusiasm for collaborative FOSS projects is on the increase in computer science and information technology departments. Training in LINUX and UNIX has become part of the curriculum and a lot of training centres are being established for LINUX and UNIX certification. Talking about the open-source adoption across Africa, John (2003) opined that countries in Africa are gradually adopting strategies that promote the use of Linux (an open source software) as an alternative to Windows, and South Africa is leading the charge, with the government's recent approval of an open source software adoption plan. Meanwhile Nigeria, which had been lagging behind other countries on the continent in terms of open-source adoption, also has made some moves to adopt Linux in the public education sector. Cost saving seems to be the main factor that has fueled these developments.

17


Besides saving the South African government several billion rand, which amounts to several hundred million dollars, adopting open source software would boost the local software industry, said Mojalefa Moseki, the chief information officer of South Africa's State Information Technology Agency (SITA), when the proposal was put together earlier this year. SITA is a South African government agency that provides information systems and other related services to participating departments. Various private organization and government officials across the continent, in countries including Kenya, Uganda, Namibia, and Senegal, are pushing state agencies to consider adopting Linux and open source software. In June Nigeria also got into the act, with three organizations -- SchoolNet Nigeria, the Federal Ministry of Education and the Education Tax fund -- pushing the use of Linux, according to Emmanuel Otokhine, who reports on IT for Punch, one of Nigeria's large circulating newspapers. (Adaora, 2006). The three organizations have provided 35 Nigerian high schools with Internet access and other educational technologies built on Linux. Aside from that, they are helping to incorporate the study of Linux in the curriculum of those 35 high schools, Otokhine told the IDG News Service. Like South Africa the government is pursuing Linux because it finds it a cheaper alternative to Windows. The Open Source Networking Group has also been established as a subset of the ngNOG (the nNigerian ICT Forum) for cooperation and the exchange of technical information between operators of Internet-connected networks in Nigeria. Its focus is to accelerate capacity building in networking with a focus on Free and Open Source software and technologies whilst ensuring adequate participation of Nigerian Academic Network Operators. Lately, the ngNOG called for Collaborators on VSAT monitoring using Free and Open Source Software. The ICT forum is interested in monitoring VSAT links of member institutes using free and open source software which will be non invasive and have no impact on the VSAT bandwidth. The information to be extracted from the data includes; the bandwidth utilization of the VSAT link, the various software applications in use and other relevant network traffic characterization such as the source and destination address, data volume, the protocol used etc. 4. CURRENT CHALLENGES IN THE OPEN

SOURCE DOMAIN In a Federal survey on FOSS projects carried out in the US (www.networkworld.com) while findings showed that open source projects were coming into their own, many challenges are afoot. For example, those agencies who have implemented an open source project, the greatest challenges are:

• 34% security issues

• 30% concerns that proprietary applications won’t work/port to open source

• 27% lack of trust of open source vendors

• 25% lack of consistent established standards For those agencies who have not implemented open source, the greatest challenges are:

• 42% Organization reluctance to change from status quo

• 40% Security

• 28% Lack of consistent standards

• 26% Lack of tech support

• 25% Lack of open source knowledge on site

• 20% Lack of senior management support For those agencies who have implemented open source, the top benefits have been:

• 30% Ability to access advanced and multi-leveled security capabilities

• 17% Data center consolidation

• 17% Ability to customize applications

• 12% Ability to enable cross –system, cross-agency applications and process sharing

• 9% Cost savings from application and operating system software

5. THE CHALLENGES IN PERSPECTIVE

According to Anupriyal et al (2007), each open source project defines its own community, which is a ‘community of interest’ or a ‘community of practice’, in that it brings together people who are interested in the same domain and issues and share similar practices. Today’s undergraduate, constitute tomorrows manpower. Therefore, if we are to reap the benefits of the FOSS initiatives in Nigeria in the future, we must as a matter of urgency begin to sow the seeds today. The internet has dissolved virtually all limitations within academic communities, enhancing collaboration and creating the right atmosphere for FOSS projects to breed. The major challenge therefore is to find deal with other psycho-academic tendencies that can serve as delimiters to the evolution of the FOSS paradigm among Nigerian undergraduates include creating a development environments that will support collaboration among developers, dealing with the fears of failure, supporting new and potential contributors, and in bringing users and developers together.

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6. RESEARCH DESIGN

6.1 Research Questions

Based on the foregoing, this paper wishes to provide answers to the following research questions that have emanated:

(1) What are the levels of acceptance of the FOSS initiative among Nigerian undergraduates?

(2) What are the perceptions of these undergraduates about the adoption of this method of software developments?

6.2 Research Hypotheses The following null hypotheses were formulated for the purpose of this research Hypothesis I:- There is no perceived significant difference related to project success in their expectation of project completion time. Hypothesis II:- There is no perceived significant difference related to project success among students resulting from being credibly supervised on Open-Source projects. Hypothesis III:- There is no perceived significant difference related to project success based on access to internet facilities Hypothesis IV:- There is no perceived significant difference related to project success based on the measurement of member contribution to the open-source software development process. The survey method employed in this project is the use of questionnaire which solicits information from respondents. 6.3 Population The population consists of 250 students stratified into 3 groups viz: diploma students, degree undergraduate and other certificate undergraduate students from five institutions in South Western Nigeria. 223 Questionnaires were returned out of which 200 were selected that satisfy the stratification for research purposes.

6.4 Sampling Technique The sampling technique used in this research work is the stratified sampling method in combination with simple random sampling. The simple random sampling technique is a method employed in selecting a sample of considerate size from a given population of data used in the survey, we find the estimate from the population in simple random sampling, sample size got from the given population is one in which every response has the same probability of being chosen. 6.5 Research Instruments The research instrument titled “Perceptions of the Proprietary and Open-Source Software Development Process Among Nigerian Undergraduates” on a three point Lickert Scale, was self-constructed and administered to evaluate the respondent’s perceptions. The research instrument was partly administered by the researchers and partly distributed to respondents through the Internet. DATA PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS Table 1: General Awareness of FOSS

RESPONSES

High Awareness

Aware Not Aware

Diploma Students 40 34 30

Degree Undergraduate Students

89 61

65

Others 36 20 25

Total 165 115 120 Average 82 58 60

Table 2: General Acceptability of FOSS

RESPONSE

Highly Acceptable

Acceptable Not Acceptable

Diploma Students

20 42 30

Degree Undergraduate Students

99 73 65

Others 48 35 25

Total 168 150 110 Average 53.10. 50 36.67

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Table 3: Decision Based on Chi Square Analysis

6. FINDINGS From Table 1 the computed average revealed a generally high awareness of the FOSS initiative among Nigerian undergraduates. Table II also showed a generally high acceptance of the FOSS initiative. Chi square analysis of research data at 0.05 level of significance revealed that there is no perceived significant difference among students in being credibly supervised on Open-Source projects. However, there is perceived significant difference in their perception of project completion time, access to internet facilities and measuring member contribution to the open-source software development process.

7. CONCLUDING REMARKS Given the current enthusiasm and impetus for the FOSS initiative in Nigeria, one can predict that the benefits of this approach to software development will payoff in our nation in the very nearest future. Although there seem to be diverse set of challenges, better integration and presentation of information from the various tools in open source projects may address some of the limitations of open source software development. Furthermore, increased visibility of the social network within a project community and improved possibilities for social interaction between members of the community would ease a new developer's initiation into the culture and the community of a project.

S /N O

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C omp uted

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Si g .

H ypo the si s 1

H ypo th esis II: - Th ere is no p erc ei v ed

sign if icant dif fe ren ce re lated to projec t success i n t hei r exp ectati on o f projec t compl eti on t ime .

6 .63 5

9 .21

χ2cal < χ 2

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A cc ept the

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H ypo th esis I:- Th ere is no p erc ei v ed sign if icant dif fe ren ce re lated to projec t success among stud en t s resu ltin g from

bein g c red ibly sup ervi se d on Op en -So urce p roj ects.

5 5.9

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χ2

cal > χ 2( 3, 0.05 )

Rej ec t Nu ll hy po thesis

H ypo the si s 3

H ypo th esis III: -

Th ere i s n o p erc ei ved sign if icant dif fe ren ce re lated to projec t

success b as ed on access to inte rne t fa ci lit ies

1 52. 6

9 .21

χ2cal > χ

2(3 , 0 .05 )

Rej ec t the N ull hy po thesis

H ypo the si s 4

H ypo th esis IV: - Th ere is no p erc ei v ed

sign if icant dif fe ren ce re lated to projec t success b ased on t he m ea su remen t o f m emb er con tr ibu tion

to t he ope n-sou rce soft ware devel opmen t pr ocess.

3 8.1 1 9 .21 χ2cal > χ

2(3 , 0 .05 ) Rej ec t the

N ull

H yp ot hesi s

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REFERENCES 1. Adaora, A. (2006): From behind the monitor

Communication challenges in open source projects. Available online at ttp://conf.au.linuxchix.org/schedule/communication-adaoraonyia/

2. Anupriya, A., James, D. and Herbsleb, K. (2007) Addressing Challenges to Open Source Collaboration With the Semantic Web. Technical Paper Series, Carnegie Mellon University Carnegie Mellon University Carnegie Mellon Universit.

3. Feller, J. and Fitzgerald, B. (2002): Understanding Open Source Software Development, Harlow, Essex, UK: Pearson Education.

4. John, Y. (2003) , IDG News Service South Africa, Nigeria, Nigeria move on Linux adoption. Available online at http://www.infoworld.com/article/03/07/08/HNafrolinux

5. Mockus, A., Fielding, R. T., and Herbsleb, J. D. (2002): Two Case Studies of Open Source Software Development: Apache and Mozilla”, ACM Transactions on Software Engineering and Methodology, 11(3) 2002, pp. 309-346.

Author’s Briefs

Adebimple L.A. Holds the BSc and MSc gedrees in computer Science from the University of Ilorin and University of Ibadan, Nigeria respectively. He teaches at the Department of Computer Science, Emmanuel Alayanda College of

Education, Oyo, Nigeria . E-Mail [email protected] Phone +2348098446780

Ogude Cyril holds the MSc degree in Computer Science from the University of Ibadan. His research papers has appeared in peer refereed Journals and Conference proceedings. Email [email protected]. Phone +2348038207103

Odulaja Godwin Oluseyi teaches Computing Science at the Department of computer science Tai Solarin University of Education, Ijebu Ode Nigeria. He can be at reached at [email protected]. Phone +2348052064987 Mr. Akinyosade heads the Physics Dept at the Tai Solarin College of Education, Omu Ijebu, Nigeria.

Nigeria

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Service Enterprises, Social Engineering and Workforce Productivity – The Case of Zain Nigeria PLC. Longe, O.B Fulbright SIR Fellow & Research Scholar Southern University System Baton Rouge, LA, USA 70813 [email protected]

Wada, F. Research Scholar Nelson Mandela School of Public Policy Southern University Baton Rouge, LA USA 70813 [email protected]

Ukpe, Kufre Dept. Of Computer Science University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria [email protected]

Reference Format: Longe, O.B., Wada, F. & Ukpe, K. (2012), Service Enterprises, Social Engineering and Workforce

Productivity – The Case of Zain Nigeria PLC. Computing, Information Systems & Development Informatics

Journal. Vol 1, No.1. pp 19-23

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ABSTRACT Apart from contending with the problems of intrusion into enterprise information platforms, organizations are also faced with the consequences of unguided access and usage of social engineering website in the workplace. We examined the circles of network abuse outlined in Network Service Organization’s computer use policies using Zain Nigeria Plc as a case study. We designed a questionnaire titled “The Impact of Social engineering websites on organizational productivity” as the research instrument. Using descriptive and inferential statistics, analysis of user responses showed that although some actions are prohibited, employees circumvent the security measures put in place in connivance with some Information Technology department staff. Most employees are also not aware of the far reaching consequences of these seemingly harmless acts on the organization. Recommendations were made based on our findings.

. Keywords: Enterprises, Social Engineering, Website, Face book, Productivity, Zain 1. INTRODUCTION Social engineering is a collection of techniques used to manipulate people into performing actions or divulging confidential information. While similar to a confidence trick or simple fraud, the term typically applies to trickery for information for gathering or computer system access. In most of the cases the attacker never comes face to face with the victims and the later seldom realize that they have been manipulated. These techniques of information gathering are often carried out through the use of websites (Rusch, 1999). Social engineering websites sometimes referred to as “friend-of a friend” sites are built upon the concept of traditional social networks where one is connected to new or already known people. The purpose of some networking sites may be purely social, allowing users to establish friendships or romantic relationships, while others may focus on establishing business connections. Although the features of social networking sites differ, they all allow us to provide information about oneself and offer some type of communication mechanism (forums, chat rooms, e-mail, and instant messenger) that enables you to connect with other users. On some sites, users can now browse for people through shared connections. Many of these sites have communities or subgroups that may be based on a particular interest. However, these sites generate potential benefits for business organizations, but the area of concern is the security implications posed by the sites. Social engineering websites rely on connections and communication so that they encourage one to provide a certain amount of personal information. When deciding how much information to reveal, people may not exercise the same amount of caution as they would when meeting someone in person because the internet provides a sense of anonymity and the absence of physical interaction provides a false sense of security (Longe & Longe, 2005). While the majority of people using these sites do not pose a threat, malicious people may be drawn to them because of accessibility and amount of personal information that is available.

As a result, the information could be used to conduct social engineering attack. Social engineering involves luring unsuspected users to take a cyber-bait much the same way a conventional fishing involves luring a fish using the bait. Phishing is a form of social engineering that deceives consumers into disclosing their personal and financial data, such as passwords, ATM pin numbers, credit card numbers and bank account numbers. It is an attempt to elicit a specific response to a social situation the perpetrator has engineered (Tony, 2009). Among other forms of cybercrime, phishing scams are on the increase in Nigeria. The remaining part of the paper is organized as follows. In the next section we examined some related issues. This is followed by a section highlighting social engineering scenarios in the Nigerian context. We then formulate research questions and elucidate our research methodology. We conclude with recommendations based on the research findings.

2. RELATED ISSUES

Internet social activities have presented marketers with challenges as well as opportunities to reach specific target markets. Facebook emerged on the social network scene over half a decade ago; originally viewed as a networking site limited to college students. In 2006, Facebook was serving as many as 7.5 million registered users and was seventh among the more accessed websites in the U.S. (Collen, 2009; Gaudin, 2002). Recruiters for businesses and colleges are finding for the social and professional networks are to perform background checks on potential employees. In the past many companies used Google and Yahoo to perform these background checks but recently Facebook, MySpace, Xanga and Friendster are being utilized in this regard (Budden and Budden, 2009). These organizations are looking for “red flags” which might indicate that the potential student or employee might not fit into organizational cultures as expected.

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Organizations often gain access to these websites by asking a college student working for the organization to perform the background check. Thus, while some college students think only other students have access to their postings, they are finding that such postings are often times ending up on the desks of potential employers. Granger (2006) pointed out that merely trying to prevent infiltration on a technical level and ignoring the physical-social level leaves organizations wide open to attack. Hollows (2005) explain that while many security systems and technologies have been deployed to prevent intruders from accessing high value systems, an organization simply cannot patch against social engineering.

2.1 The Nigerian Scenario One area of concern that seems to elude popular debate about social engineering and cyber crime in Nigeria is the potential danger that social engineering poses to business and other organizations in the country. Highly motivated attackers can have much more success by manipulating people (insiders within an organization) rather than trying to hack the various levels of sophisticated security technologies put in place by organizations to secure their operational network. Jason (2009) opined that primal motivators such as fear, greed and sexuality can be used to manipulate employees into releasing information unwittingly thus providing unauthorized access to organizational information systems. Social engineering therefore constitutes a powerful force that can change the way organizations and the security community perceives insider threats. A casual interrogation of employees in some Nigerian business and financial organizations showed that while on break or when the pressure of work is less, they engage in online chat on social engineering websites using the organization internet facilities (Longe et al, 2010). Generally, these actions do not fall within the circles of network abuse as outlined in major organizational computer use policies. In some organizations, even though these actions are prohibited, employees circumvent the security measures put in place in connivance with some IT department staff. Most employees are not aware of the far reaching consequences of these seemingly harmless acts on the organization. Social engineering is the human side of breaking into a corporate network. Cyber criminals cannot be lucky in convincing a firewall to give them access to a bank record, nor can they compel anti-spyware to allow them glean through an organizational database but they

could find it easier to persuade a person whose confidence they have gained to allow them admittance. Access to such secured area of a network or even to disclosure of confidential information can make organizations vulnerable. Nowadays, these criminals explore social engineering websites such as yahoo personals, twitter, zoosk, Facebook and many dating websites as springboards for their attack. By luring employees into a facade of relationships, they use phishing, plant spywares, use anonymous proxy servers and other hacking tools to hack into secured organizational information. For our study, we delimited Zain telecommunications at both Ibadan and Lagos offices as our case studies. We concern ourselves with the use of social engineering websites by the employees of Zain telecommunications as well as its resulting impact on organizational productivity. 2.2. Research Questions With this increased dependence on online and internet based business transactions and the migration of former paper-based procedures to electronic platforms, research is warranted into the current trends in the use of social engineering websites by employees in organizations, the level of awareness of these risks involved when using these websites as well as measures (if any) put in place by Nigerian organizations to deal with these problems. The research questions that emanate from the foregoing are as follows:

• What is the level of social engineering websites usage employees in the case study?

• Are employees aware of the threat posed by social engineering websites to their organization?

• What are the mechanisms and policies that are put in place by Zain telecommunication to check the threat of social engineering website?

• What is the level of compliance to the anti- threat mechanism and policies at Zain telecommunication ?

• What are the impacts of social engineering websites’ use by Zain employees on organizational productivity?

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3. METHODOLOGY We employed the use of questionnaires as a quantitative research instrument to solicit responses on the level of awareness of risks as well as the level of usage of social engineering websites in the targeted organization. Qualitative interview was carried out among security departments in Zain telecommunications to ascertain the level of preparedness and readiness to deal with social engineering related risks. Descriptive statistical methods of simple frequency counts and percentages were used to analyse the demography and research questions while inferential statistics of T-test was used to analyse the hypothesis. Hypothesis To address the research questions, we formulate and analysed the presented hypothesis: Hypothesis 1 H0: There is no significant difference in the perceived productivity of employees of Zain Telecommunication as a result of using Social Engineering Websites. Table 1: T - test on sex of Zain’s employees and the use of social engineering websites.

Variables Mean Std. Deviation

t. df Sig. (2-tailed)

Remark

Sex and the use of social engineering websites

1315

33859

6.152

250

.000

*Sig

Table 1 is a t-test on the sex of Zain’s employees and their use of social engineering websites. The table reveals that the result is less than .05 alpha level of significance (t-cal .000 < 0.05 alpha level). Therefore, the null hypothesis is rejected. This is an indication that male and female use of social engineering websites significantly affects employee productivity. Subtly, there is indication that female employees also use social engineering websites than their male counterparts. Hypothesis 2 H0: Zain’s organizational policies on the use of social engineering websites will not Significantly affect employee’s use of social engineering websites at their workplace. Table 2: T – test policy on website use and employees’ compliance

Variables

mean

Std deviation

T

df

Sig (2-tailed)

Remark

Policy on the use of social engineering websites and compliance by employees

- 2072

.56295

-5.830

250

.000

* Sig

Table 2 is a T- test on the use of social engineering websites and the compliance of employees’ policy. The table reveals that the t-test is lower than the alpha level of significance .05( t-test cal .000 < .05 alpha level). The hypothesis is rejected. This is an indication that there is a significant difference between the variable tested. Therefore, Zains organizational policy on the usage of social engineering websites will not significantly affect employees’ use of the websites at the workplace. The hypothesis is therefore rejected.

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4. CONCLUDING REMARKS Social engineering attacks are one of the hardest threats to defend against because they involve the human element which in itself is quite unpredictable. Nevertheless, there are some measures which can certainly bring the risk associated with social engineering to acceptable levels. While attacks on human judgement are immune to even the best of security defense systems, companies can mitigate the risk of social engineering with an active security culture throughout the organization that keeps on evolving as the threat landscape changes. Findings from this research indicate deviance to organizational policy on social engineering websites usage. This means that the policy does not discourage employee use of the website. The usefulness of the internet resources like social engineering website is not without its shortcoming especially in the corporate world. It has tendencies of affecting workers productivity. This study has established that fact, showing that the use of such websites is detrimental to organizational goals attainment and general wellbeing. Based on the findings of this study we recommend well

documented and accessible security policy, associated standards and guidelines as foundations for acceptable use of web facilities within organizations.

REFERENCES

1. Budden, C & Budden, M. (2009). The social

network generation and implications for human resource managers. Business and Economics Research 7.1: 10-12

2. Colleen, R (2009):Safeguarding against social engineering. Infosec Writers Library Retrieved May 15, 2010 from http://itmanagement.earthweb.com/secu/article.php/1040881

3. Gaudin, S.(2002). Social engineering: The

Human Side of Hacking. Retrieved May 2010 from http://itmanagement.earthweb.com/secu/article.php/1040881

4. Granger, S, (2006). Social engineering reloaded. Security Focus. Retrieved April 2010 from http://securityfocus.com/print/infocus/1860

5. Jason, H. (2009): Change your company’s culture to Combat Social Engineering Attacks .Retrieved May 2010 http://search.techrepublic.com.com/search/Jason%20Hiner%20MCSE.html

6. Longe, O.B & Longe, F.A. (2005). The Nigerian Web Content: Combating the Pornographic Malaise Using Web Filters. Journal of Information Technology Impact. Vol. 5, No. 2 Loyola University, United States of America. www.jiti.net

7. Longe O.B., Mbarika V.W., Jones .C. , Anadi .A., Wada .F. , Longe F.A. , Onifade .O.F.W. & Dada . G. (2010). Can Any Good Thing Come from Nazareth’ - An Investigation into the Origins of 419 Spam Mails. Proceedings of the 3nd International Conference of the Int. Centre for IT & Dev. Cameroon, March, 2010.

8. Rusch, J. (1999). The “Social Engineering” of

Internet Fraud. INET ’99 Proceedings. Retrieved April 6, 2010 from http://www.isoc.org/inet99/proceedings/3g/3g_2.htm

9. Hoffman, T.(2007). The Recruit/Retain Shuffle. Computerworld, 41(31), 28-32

10. Tony, B. (2009): Gone Phishing http://netsecurity.about.com/od/secureyouremail/a/aa061404.htm

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Author’s Brief

Dr. Longe Olumide is on Faculty at the Department of Computer Science, University of Ibadan, Nigeria. His research has focused on using social theories and computer security theories to explain causastion and apprehension of cyber crimes. Currently a Fulbright Fellow at ICITD, Southern University’s College of Business in Baton Rouge, LA. He can be reached by phone on +18572078409 and through E-mail [email protected]. Dr. Friday Wada has a Ph.D in Public policy majoring in Public Finance from Southern University, Baton Rouge, USA. He also holds a Master’s degree in Business administration (MBA) from Southern University, Baton Rouge and a Bachelor’s Degree and Diploma in Accounting from the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria. Dr. Friday’s research interest is in the area of cyber crime, and his work has been published in journal articles and scholarly presentations made at conferences. He is a recipient of the IGERT/NSF Fellowship award. He can be reached at [email protected]. Phone: +12255880012 Ukpe Kufre holds Bachelor’s degree from the University of Calabar, Nigeria, a Master’s Degree in Computer Systems from the University of Ibadan, Nigeria and currently pursues a PhD degree at the ICT University, USA. His research findings which has focused on Social and Enterprise informatics has been reported in Journals and presented at conference across the world. He can be reached at [email protected]. Phone +2348093880292

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Global Strategies for Stable Climate: An Assessment Approach

Felix Iyalomhe PhD Candidate of Science and Management of Climate Change. Faculty of Economic. Cä Foscari University: Venice, Italy [email protected]

Reference Format: Iyalomhe, F (2012). Global Strategies for Stable Climate: An Assessment Approach. Computing, Information Systems & Development Informatics Journal. Vol 3, No.1. pp 24-29

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ABSTRACT Climate change described by climatologists and environmental economists as a trans-boundary problem is a great challenge confronting human existence. To this end, achieving a stable climate requires some kind of international environmental agreement that takes into account each country’s emission (i.e., cooperation). Given such an agreement, is it necessary to supplement with some kind of policy coordination? The present paper tried to investigate why cooperation could be supported with coordination, even though it is possible to achieve the best outcome (i.e., emission target) when countries have an international environmental agreement with emission charges focus on each country’s emissions (i.e. cooperation alone). In this context, the paper also outlines possible elements that could facilitate cooperation among countries in order to establish an effective coalition, considering previous global treaty (e.g. Montreal Protocol; Kyoto Protocol). Keywords: Cooperation, coordination, stable climate, public goods and environmental agreement. . 1. INTRODUCTION Climate change is recognized as the most urgent and critical problem confronting the global community. Temperature increases and rainfall will likely hamper agriculture and stress global ecosystems. Sea level rise and severe storm-surge may likely erode and inundate coastal regions, indeed; the major threat is the obvious evidence of abrupt shift in the climate or variability in climate if we keep increasing greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. This has been confirmed by the recent reports from scientific communities and stakeholders, in particular, the fourth assessment report (AR428|P a g e ) of the intergovernmental panel on climate change IPCC, (2007) stated that global warming is unequivocal, and human actions are changing the climate with major impacts on ecosystems, development and human well being. The world has been warmed by an average temperature of 0.7°C since pre-industrial era and following business as usual scenario, global temperature will increase further 1.8ºC to 4°C by the end of 21st century Murphy et al., (2009). Accordingly, change in temperature in this direction might result to dangerous climate change that would have severe impacts on human development in the future. This calls for stabilization of greenhouse gases (GHG) in order to prevent what United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) called “dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system” UNFCCC, (1992). This will make global ecosystems adapt easily to present climate, agricultural food production not hamper and sustainable economic development guaranteed. Recent scientific studies to assess potential impacts of climate change and policies to address it used modeling tools that can simulate complex entities (e.g., atmosphere; land; ocean etc); projected results that are embedded in uncertainty because of the dynamic and non-linear interactions existing between these entities. In other words, models’ results can only support the process of solution generation and not provide exact solution. In the light of this there is rising concern for action; the challenge of designing an effective policy to mitigate climate change- increasing the global average temperature that is relative to total greenhouse gases in the atmosphere contributed by countries in the world. Accordingly, a global concerted effort is require to limit or reduce the effect of this change in temperature on the global climate Laurent and Viguier, (2004), as a public goods that is enjoy in common by all countries, and each country’s consumption does not affect another country’s consumption Samuelson, (1954).

Perhaps, this indicates why is very expedient and necessary to have effective strategies that can serve as platform for solving the climate change problem so that there would be stability in the climate system, which can guarantee environmental sustainability needed for global economic development and the overall human well-being. In this context, the paper adopts an assessment approach to consider strategies such as cooperation and coordination among host of others that can be employ at the global level of climate change negotiations, with possible involvement of many countries from different continents of the world, taking into account the complexity of their regional differences (e.g. economies, technology, political institutions etc). Emission control policy as one of the proposed strategy to tackle climate change at the global level Tol, (2003), demand cooperation among parties or countries under the agreement, couple with coordination of the implementation process or indigenous policies linked to the global strategy in order to achieve optimal outcome or effective mitigation system. 2. STABLE CLIMATE A GLOBAL PUBLIC GOODS Laurent and Viguier, (2004) described public goods as those goods available to all at the same time, irrespective of location. They also considered the global climate as pure public goods because it possess the properties of non-rivality and non-excludability, this implies that changing a market price would not be effective as free-riding cannot be prevented and consumption by one person does not affect others’ consumption while Kaul et al., (1999) claimed that the global climate is indeed a general global public goods because it is available to countries, people and also generations, including future generations. We can clearly state that climate change mitigation is a global public goods since benefits of this action are not limited to those involve in the process, Laurent and Viguier, (2004) coined it as ‘climate stability’ pure global public goods because benefits from (GHG) emission reduction are non- rival, non-excludable and are present to all countries and people. However, the efficiency of a particular country mitigation effort ultimately depends on others choice of action, for instance even if European Union increases their emission reduction commitment from 20% to 30%, without corresponding efforts from China; US; emerging economies and the developing countries there will be no meaning results.

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This would rather encourage leakage effect; that is emission producing firms relocate their plants to countries that are not committed to emission reduction (i.e., free-riders) and also due to differentiated demand in energy between abating countries and free-riders’ countries. A typical example is leakage effect associated with the Kyoto protocol implementation that may likely be increase from 5% to 30% by 2010 Babiker et al., (2002); Viguier, (2001). Indeed, public goods are pure when they are not only non-rival and non-excludable but non- contingent. In other words, climate change mitigation is contingent global public goods because the usefulness of a particular country’s mitigation efforts depends on others’ efforts and the size of the agreement Laurent and Viguier, (2004). This is why the paper considers international cooperation and coordination of policies among countries as strategies that can ensure effective mitigation action, since most of these gases are long-lived in the atmosphere and that emission contribution from every country irrespective of the amount spread worldwide to ignite the global problem. Accordingly, controlling or solving this problem may be costly and few countries alone cannot do much unless there is a global cooperation efforts coordinated by a standard regulation process that take into account each countries’ indigenous policies. 3. ASSESSMENT OF STRATEGIES FOR STABLE CLIMATE: COOPERATION Despite the fact that climate change impacts on the earth are unambiguous and mostly debated at national and international level due to the transboundary nature (i.e. permeate the borders of countries over the earth) combine with the increasing scientific consensus, the path towards international agreement is still very much slow because reaching an ambitious agreement among heterogeneous parties or countries that want to maximize their benefits at the same time minimizes costs would be very difficult, if not possible Favero and De Cian, (2010). Moreover, climate change is considered a global negative externality that can lead to irreversible damage (Stern, 2006) and as such requires urgent and collective actions (Favero and De Cian, 2010), which means cooperation and coordination of climate policies are needed to achieve results. In theory, it has been observed that global markets provide an optimal welfare or utility maximization (i.e. allocation of resources based on scarcity signal by prices but in practices prices cannot actually signal scarcity correctly, particularly environmental goods and services such as climate change or stable climate Buchner, (2010). This basically refers to what economist called market failure; a problem due to lack of property right on global goods or common like stable climate. Consequently, there is tendency for countries to free-ride (i.e. refusal to act because the benefits of others action will not be stricted to them alone). Nevertheless, to achieve an effective mitigation system there must be an international agreement base on voluntary basis; where countries will negotiates how to cooperate on global problems like climate change. The economic rationale for cooperation teaches us that efficiency can be reached only if all the parties involved in resource allocation are part of the externality, in other words sharing cost and also benefits Samuelson, (1954).

In the cooperative game theory proposed by John Von Neumann and Oskar Morgenstern, (1944), they introduced a game theory model called the strategic situation theory; where they tried to model the possible interaction of multiplayer using two basic approaches, the cooperative and non-cooperative game. Accordingly, Marchi et al., (2007) claimed non-cooperative game theory involve players that may be countries coming to an agreement on voluntary basis, only if it is self-enforcing (i.e. provide incentive for players to participate in the agreement) while the cooperative game theory considered countries as a group of possible players. The basic idea is that, each player makes decisions to maximize their utilities and these decisions affect each other’s utilities instead, cooperative game tried to determine possible outcomes of the agreement, possible achievement of each player, the kind of agreement that could occur and how the outcome will be distributed whether robust or stable. Therefore, the cooperative game theory result to either a full cooperation among players or free-riding incentive, which could lead to tragedy of common that is often seen in environmental goods like stable climate. In the real application, there are agreements on how to manage global public goods; how are these formed? Barrett, (1997) claimed that “international negotiation success depend partly on the acumen of the negotiators and the nature of the problem addressed”. Perhaps, the absence of an intermediate cooperation limit the cooperative approach of achieving agreement (e.g. the prisoner’s dilemma game does not foresee the repeated interactions among countries, possibility of learning from past actions and commitment that could enhance initial cooperation), which describes the non- cooperation game theory. Non-cooperative game theory model analyzes the interactions or negotiations between countries and incentives that can allow the formation of intermediate cooperation, this basically evolve in two steps: formation of coalitions (i.e. countries decide whether to participate in the agreement or not, after which they determine the optimal policy to adopt (i.e. what will be CAP or emission reduction target for players). Since the atmosphere is managed as global common good, no institution with regulating power to impose property right, hence it is imperative to design a negotiating mechanism that can lead to self-enforcing agreement Carraro, (1997). Moreso, the non-cooperative game theory provides the opportunity for countries to achieve this kind of agreement and the two possible outcomes are partial and full cooperation. While partial cooperation is rational and could be a possible outcome, taking into account the existence of intermediate cooperation between these countries Carraro and Siniscalco, (1993). This is quite different from the cooperative game theory in the sense that, in non-cooperative game theory there are three basic steps: i) the entire negotiation process is study and countries’ incentive are characterized. ii) There is formation of intermediate cooperation and this will lead to determination of the optimal policy- emission reduction target. Indeed, taken the theory of cartel formation into consideration, partial cooperation could be the outcome of non-cooperative game D’ Aspremont et al., (1983), where profitability and stability (internal and external) constitute the core of the agreement but the differences in (technology, human capacity, economic institutions etc)

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across countries and the incentives to free-ride makes it not possible to achieve full cooperation Carraro and Siniscalso, (1993). Contrarily, self-enforcing international environmental agreement can still exist may be with limited number of countries that would take into account other possible incentives mechanism (e.g. transfers and linkage issues etc) during the negotiation process Barret, (1994). While it is also possible to have grand coalition outcome, i.e. when all the countries agreed to participate but this cannot lead to equilibrium coalition because when the number of countries participating is high, there would be a very small different between cooperative and non-cooperative coalition and the complexity of sovereignty principle will be higher. As remarked in the previous paragraphs, achieving an ambitious self-enforcing international environmental agreement among countries, taking into account both the economic rationale and the game theory model, we see the possible achievement of partial cooperation from the non-cooperative coalition seem almost impossible because of the incentives for countries to free-ride and also the presence of asymmetries across countries Carraro and Siniscalco, (1993). Perhaps, the differences in technology and economies of these countries and human capacity etc; will make it not profitable for countries in Africa, Asia, South America etc (developing countries) to afford the costs of mitigation technology and policies, at the same time develop their economies. In view of this, there may not be alternative option to free-ride, knowing that profits from emission reduction achieved by other countries are non-excludable and ultimately lead to a cooperation that is not stable Carraro, (1997). Conversely, the issue of linkage may help to reduce if not avoid this unstable cooperation, if international trade is link to climate change policy negotiation and possible sanctions apply to check non-compliance. As a matter of fact this was used in the Montreal Protocol to enhance compliance. 4. THE NECESSITY OF COORDINATING CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION POLICY? In consideration of general policies rationale, there is a high degree of interdependence among countries because of bilateral and multilateral interactions that make each country’s welfare somehow dependent on its own action and action of any other country via trade, human capacity building, technology transfer, financial aids etc. This may affect the effectiveness of both unilateral and multilateral policies of countries and ultimately the total welfare of these countries. In this context, there is need for policy coordination at both national and transnational level. Consideration of transboundary environmental problems like climate change, where our main objective is to achieve emission target, it may be necessary to support our policies with some sort of standard regulations (as coordination). But in the opinion of Hoel, (1997) and (1991) this is not too correct because if there is an international environmental agreement with special attention on emission level of each country, perhaps, with the application of emission trading scheme we can still achieve emission target. Though it is also possible for countries to act selfishly and this can result to higher emission Hoel, (1991).

In the present paper, the author tried to answer this fundamental question: should we coordinate mitigation policy or leave environmental policy to each country to decide? Hoel, (1997) emission target with transnational environmental problems demand some sort of international agreement, if not there may be tendency for each country to maximize its own welfare while considering the environmental policies of others as given, whereby our non-cooperative game theory will ultimately produce higher emission. In other words each country only takes into account harm on its environment and not others’ environment. Although it has been proved that it is possible to achieve emission target with international agreement (i.e. cooperation) Barret, (1994b); Hoel, (1997) only when all markets are competitive, otherwise if we have imperfect competition in markets and unemployment this will call for coordination of mitigation policy. For transboundary problems (e.g. climate change) Hoel, (1991) has shown that though some environmental groups like NGOs have advocated in time past for unilateral actions to reduce harmful emissions because it may serves as a good example to change other countries’ behavior, improve the chances of having an international agreement but the outcome will ultimately lead to higher emissions if countries acts selfishly. This was further strengthen by the same author but in a different paper; even if there is an international agreement that adopt the emission trading scheme, without coordination, we will only arrive at a second-best emission target Hoel, (1997). This is because none of the countries involved can influence the international price of emission permit that is also not exogenous. This may encourage indirect subsidization of affected sectors and will discriminate between sectors and cause inefficiencies in the agreement, by possible increase in production and emission in these sectors Ploeg and De zeeuw, (1992). In theory, when the market is allowed to operate with its devices there will be high production and a corresponding high emission, but when individual countries apply emission charges unilaterally, this will reduce production and also emission and if this is coordinated, we may experience further higher charges for emission but lower production and emission Ploeg and De zeeuw, (1992). For instance, even if there is carbon tax on fuel consumption without a coordinating scheme (e.g. standard regulation like application of efficient technology in vehicles) we may not achieve the lowest level of emission target. In the opinion of the author, coordination of mitigation policy will not only help to reduce the lapses due to asymmetry of countries involve in the cooperative agreement but will facilitate the achievement of effective mitigation system that will lead to desire emission target. 4.1 Are there applicable lessons we can learn from other global treaty? Within the context of environmental problems that are transboundary, several global international agreements have been adopted. In particular, the “Montreal protocol” To protect the earth ozone layer by reducing the global production of ozone depleting chemicals (CFCs, HCFCs, etc). The most interesting aspect of this protocol (agreement) is the worldwide acclaimed success achieved since the inception in 1987 to early part of the 21st century. One would ask, what are the reasons for this success? That can be consider in similar international cooperation;

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Barrett, (2001) and Oberthur, (2001) have tried to analyze the close linkage between the Montreal protocol and the global climate change treaty (e.g. Kyoto Protocol). In their analysis; among the prominent element is the financial mechanism adopted in the Montreal protocol, which was enclose in the umbrella of “Common but Differentiated Responsibility” In the contemporary climate change negotiations, this implies: developed countries had to provide some kind of incentives for the developing countries because at the beginning the latter was just like an onlooker and not willing to participate in the Montreal treaty. This was also called Side payment used to increase participation in a cooperative agreement involving great asymmetries of countries effectively committed to being non-signatories for example developing countries in the Montreal Protocol Barrett, (2001). Another important element was the incorporation of scientific knowledge of the problem into the agreement and taken as incentive to develop new and alternative technologies. The precautionary principles cannot be left out, because waiting until all the relevant questions are answer may be too late and this can result to irreversible damage that even the best mitigation policy cannot reduce or prevent. Flexibility of the protocol or agreement would create room for easier accommodation of current scientific solutions and their political and economic implications to the goal of the agreement. Also trade sanctions may not be too effective because of possible legal implication and the nature of the public good provided Barrett, (2001), but considering the Side payment given as incentives for cooperation, there will be justification if credible sanctions are impose on non-compliance. In other words, every signatory have incentives or oblige to participate in the agreement. 5. CONCLUSION Climate change is a global problem that requires the agreement of countries on earth to solve and the provision of stable climate as global public goods depends on how these countries can cooperate and coordinate policies irrespective of the great asymmetries among them. Moreover, it is possible to achieve emission target in a non-cooperative coalition if all markets are perfectly competitive. If the case is otherwise, coordination is necessary in order not to achieve the second-best emission target. Taking this into account, we may need to consider previous successful global treaty (e.g. Montreal Protocol) for approaches that can promote effective cooperation and coordination of policies towards agreement that would be stable and achieve the desire emission target.

REFERENCES [1] Babiker, M.H., Jacoby, H.D., Reilly, J.M.,

Reiner, D.M., 2002. The evolution of a climate regime: Kyoto to Marrakech. Report 82. MIT Joint Program on the science and policy of global change, Cambridge, MA.

[2] Barret, S., 1994a: Self-enforcing international environmental agreement, Oxford Economic paper 46, 878-894

[3] Barret, S., 1994b. Strategic environmental policy and international trade. Journal of public Economic. 54, 325-338

[4] Barrett, S., 2001. International Cooperation for sale. European Economic review 45(2001) 1835-1850

[5] Carraro, C., and Siniscalco,D., 1993. “ Strategies for the international protection of the environment”. Journal of public economic, 52, 309-328.

[6] Carlo Carraro, 1997. The structure of international environmental agreements. Working paper of the Dept of Economic , University of Venice.

[7] D’ Aspremont, et al., 1983: On the stability of Collusive Price Leadership : Canadian journal of economics 25, 17-25.

[8] Favero and De Cian, 2010. Fairness, credibility and effectiveness in the Copenhagen Accord: An economic assessment. Working paper. Sustainable series: FEEM and University of Venice

[9] Hoel, M., 1997. Coordination of environmental policy for transboundary environmental problems? Journal of public economics 66 (1997) 199-224.

[10] Hoel,M., (1991). “Global Environmental Problems: The effects of unilateral Actions Taken by one Country”. Journal of environmental economic and management 20 (1). 55-70.

[11] IPCC, 2007. Climate change 2007: Mitigation of climate change. Contribution of Working Group 111 to the fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental panel on climate change. Geneva: IPCC.

[12] John Nash, 1950. “ The bargaining problem”, Econometrica 18 (1950) 155-162.

[14] Kaul et al., 1999. Defining global public goods. International Cooperation in the 21st Century. Oxford University Press, Oxford.

[15] Kennedy, P.W., 1994. Equilibrium pollution taxes in open economics with imperfect competition. Journal of Environmental Economic and management 27, 49-63.

[16] Laurent, L. and Viguier, 2004. A proposal to increase developing country participation in international climate policy. Environmental Science and Policy 7 (2004) 195-204

[17] Marchi et al., 2007. A cooperative game theory solution in an upstream-downstream relationship. International journal of applied mathematics, game theory and algebra 17, issue 5/7.

[18] Murphy et al., 2009. Encouraging developing country participation in a future climate change regime. Working paper, IISD, Manitoba.

[19] Neumann, Von, J., Morgenstern, O., 1994. Theory of game and economic behaviour. Princeton University press, NJ.

[20] Oberthur, S., 2001. Linkages between the Montreal and Kyoto Protocols Enhancing Synergies between protecting the ozone layer to the Global Climate. International Environmental Agreement: Politics, Law and Economic: 357-377.

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[21] Ploeg, F.V.D., De zeeuw, A.J., (1992). International Aspects of pollution. International economic review 2, 92-110.

[23] Richard S.J. Tol, “The Marginal Costs of Carbon Dioxide Emissions” (presentation from an International Seminar on the Social Cost of Carbon sponsored by the U.K. Department for Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs, July 7, 2003, draft dated August 24, 2003), available at www.defra.gov.uk/environment/climate change/carbon seminar/tol.pdf

[24] Samuelson, P. (1954), ‘The Pure Theory of Public Expenditure’, Review of Economics and Statistics, 36:4, 387-9.

[25] Stern N. 2006. The Stern Review on the Economics of Climate Change. HM Treasury, UK.Cambridge University Press.

[26] United Nations, 1992: United Nations Framework convention on Climate Change. Bonn, Germany: United Nations, 33pp.

Author’s Brief

Felix Iyalomhe is on the PhD programme in the Science and Management of Climate Change at the Doctoral School in Global Change Science and Policy, Department of Economics, Ca' Foscari University Venice, Italy. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in

Computer Science from the University of Nigeria, Nssuka and a Master’s Degree in Energy Technology from the University of Gavle, Sweden. He is affiliated by his doctoral research to the Euro-Mediterranean Centre on Climate Change, an interdisciplinary research consortium in Italy (www.cmcc.it) and the Climate Change Risk Assessment and Management unit- University of Venice, Italy, and also a Visiting PhD Student at the National Environmental Research Institute (NERI) Dept. of Policy Analysis University of Aarhus, Denmark. His research interest is on the analysis of regional climate change impacts and risks on human environments and associated systems with specific focus on coastal systems. In this perspective, he also studies how climate science can be more useful to climate change adaptation policies through in depth analysis of the science- policy interface. He can be reached at [email protected] and by phone Tel: +393887980085 End Notes. This work first appeared in the Proceedings of the International Conference on ICT for Africa, 2011.

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Inclusion Criteria and Instructional Technology Design - Theories and Application to Electronic Learning Platform Development

Itegboje, A. O. Doctoral Programme in Science & Science Education Southern University Baton Rouge, LA USA, 70813 [email protected]

Reference Format: Itegboje, A. (2012). Inclusion Criteria and Instructional Design - Theories and Application to Electronic Learning Platform Development . Computing, Information Systems & Development Informatics Journal.

Vol 3, No.1. pp 30-35

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ABSTRACT This study is a literature review of instructional designs in e-learning. According to literature search there are four dominant areas in e-learning research, these are appropriate technologies, technology acceptance, perception of quality and instructional designs. Studies abound on causes of dropout in e-learning programs, but little attention has been given to instructional design as one of the probable causes of dropout rate. The main goal of this review is to research the theories that guide e-learning instructional designs. The study also clarifies the different terminologies used for e-learning and traces e-learning its development stages. Out of the thirty four literatures that were reviewed only ten met the inclusion criteria of instructional designs and a university setting. This review is limited to those ten research studies. The discussions are along the theories and methodologies used, findings and unanswered questions. Keywords: E-learning, Tele-Education, Information Communication Technology(ICT), Instructional design. 1. INTRODUCTION Electronic learning,(E-learning) is integrating information technology into learning and teaching process, using materials delivered on the internet (Glen, 2005). This type of learning offers flexibility to the learner in terms of time and space, as learners can learn at their own pace, anywhere, anytime. Continuing education and training can take place with the use of online resources such as video, audio materials and text delivered real time in an asychronous mode. Online education can either be full blown where there is no physical contact between the teacher and learner and learner and learner. It can also be blended in which case it is used to supplement traditional face-to-face classroom (Blake, 2009; Ho, 2009). The term E-learning, Web-based , Online education, Distance Education is interchangeably but the concept represents subtle differences. Online education is through any electronic device where content is readily accessible on a computer with content on the internet or CD or even the Hard disk of the computer, it involves self study and little intervention from a teacher. Distance learning (DL). Distance learning traditionally has provided access to instructional programs for students who are separated by time and/or physical location from an instructor (CDLP 1997). Other terminologies used to refer to electronic learning are Tele-education (Mbarika, 2004) e-learning, E-learning, e-learning, E-learning. The concepts for all the variations of terminologies involve integrating ICT into teaching and learning process using materials that are delivered over the internet. This review will stick to the use of the word e-learning. The surge in learners demanding higher education and on the job training coupled with innovation in technology and education delivery market conditions has been responsible for the adoption of e-learning by many Universities and training institutions (Concannon et all, 2005).

Evidence abound that existing e-learning systems are not particularly innovative, demonstrate limited quality, have limited integration, tend to limit future possibilities and have high likelihood of failure (Alenxander, 2001; Paulsen, 2002). In traditional learning i.e. the face to face education delivery teachers place a lot of emphasis on instructional design and delivery of instruction. It is only as learning brings about a behavioral change in the learner that learning can be said to have occurred. E-learning is not different in posture; teachers need to understand the course area and how to deliver it effectively. Majority of web courses are designed using the theory of constructivist educational principles since it allows students to attain higher order of learning (Banget, 2004) but many researchers object to e-learning being founded on a particular learning theory since there are a cluster of related concepts on which e-learning is based (Robin et al, 2006). One critical component of e-learning therefore is the instructional design (Coomey et al, 2001). In view of online education popularity with university education, this literature review is limited to university instructional design.

2. RESEARCH QUESTIONS For this study that investigates existing research on instructional designs in e-learning the following questions are asked.

i. What type of research have been conducted on e-learning instructional design?

ii. What research questions were asked? iii. What theoretical frameworks were used? iv. What design methodologies were used for

the research? v. What conclusions were drawn?

vi. What questions remain unanswered?

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Table 1. Summary of Review

Topic/ Authors

The Research Theoretical Frameworks

Design Methodologies

Findings Gaps Identified

E-Learning Developments And Experiences Alexander (2001)

The study proposed a framework for design, development and Implementation of e-learning systems.

Trigwell’s model, this is student-centered model which places emphasis on teacher’s understanding of learning concept first before strategies. (Student-Centered)

Case studies of 104 e-learning projects.

Faculty who viewed learning as understanding planned and developed instruction that achieved better learning outcomes than faculty that viewed learning as increasing knowledge

Factors militating against learning should be clearly identified and addressed.

The Design of an E-Learning System Beyond The Hype Ismail(2002)

The research is on tasks and activities necessary for building different types of e-learning systems.

The e-learning system of which the Learning content development system is an integral part is based on the Learning Technologies Systems Architecture

Survey of different e-learning systems

No clear and measurable defined objective as well as strategies for a program being offered.

The Learning content management systems (LCMS) a component of the e-learning system need evaluation module to be integrated into it.

Use Of Innovative Technologies On An E-Learning Course Weller et al (2004)

Using technology (blogging, audio conferencing, instant messaging and Rotisserie) in developing course content

The three key questions asked in the study were related to the use of the technology showing Technology Acceptance model was used. (Technology Centered)

Experiment & Interview

The standard asynchronous text-based bulletin board cannot cover all the dialogue in a learning environment. The environment should be viewed as a multi-channelled, with specific tools providing a form of communication matched to the learning outcome of a course.

Is it possible to use other technology apart from blogging for designing all subject areas?

A Maturity Model: Does It Provide A Path For Online Instructional design? Neuhauser (2004)

Using maturity model for assessing instructional design. Effective teaching was used as foundation for technology use and online best practices/

Maturity Model. This model is assessing maturity of processes against set benchmarks. (Process-Centred)

Questionnaire to determine the validity of the model

Online courses must be structured along with graduated technology; the lower technology should be used at the onset while higher technology is used as the course advance. This will ensure success

As responses to the questionnaire may not be objective. The methodology could have been experimental design.

Personalized E-learning System Using Item Response Theory Chen et al (2005)

It is usual for learners who use web-based system to encounter information overload, to overcome this the study uses item response to design the course for a web-based course.

Item Response Theory. This theory considers course material difficulty and learner ability in order to provide individual learning paths (Student-Centered)

Experimental design

Results confirm the proposed personalized e-learning system can recommend appropriate course materials to learners based on individual ability.

Research on other courses ( Is the IRT subject specific?)

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An Evaluation of Open Source E-Learning Platforms Stressing Adaptation Issues Graf and List(2005)

Evaluation of open source e-learning platforms, its adaptation and functionality.

Qualitative weight and sum (QWS) approach. This approach assigns criteria to areas of a software and give weights to those criteria (The QWS approach was selected because it gives differentiated results, which highlight the strengths and limitations of each platform. (Technology-Centered)

Questionnaire and experimental design

Moodle was found to be the best of the platforms, with strengths in communication tools, tracking of data, creation and administration of learning objects as well as comprehensive didactic concepts.

The platform is not targeted at the individual leaner rather it was to a class i.e. a group

A Theoretical Framework for Effective Online Instructional design Chin & Williams (2006)

Development of a framework consisting a number of overlapping "sub environments" which provide the scaffolding essential for construction of a total learning environment.

Social Constructivist Theory of learning. The knowledge was presented such that learner construct the knowledge in a social interaction and collaborative environment.(Student- Centered)

A graduate study course as Case Study

The program of study that has used the framework proved to be popular.

The research should be conducted for e-learning of undergraduate studies in a traditional university setting. This is to take care of age differential.

Addressing The Context of E-Learning. Benson & Samarawickrema (2009)

Including the context of learning and teaching as an aspect of e-learning design using a conceptual approach.

Transactional Distance Theory .(Since distance between teacher and learner and learners) and the Social Constructivist theory of learning to take care of collaborative effect. (Student-Centered)

Two universities as case studies

The concept of transactional distance is not measurerable, thevariable on which it is measured are intutively relevant to teaching, so findings are dependent on characteristics and context of the learner

Study the context of transactional distance from the teaching institution’s policy as this has a dominant contextual influence on learning.

LIA: An Intelligent Advisor For E-Learning. Capuano et al, (2009)

Discussions on improved models and related methodologies of an intelligent tutoring engine- Learning Intelligent Advisor(LIA).

The theory used was based on teaching/learning theory using the relationship between the following constructs learning objectives, pre-existing knowledge, learning preferences and course sequencing (Student-Centered)

Experimental Design

Students who used the IWT+LIA progressed better in their learning experience compared to those who used only IWT. 65% of respondents were satisfied with LIA navigation and interaction capabilities.

It should be carried out on a larger scale with wider representatives. The experiment was carried out on a small scale with only 28 learners, 7 personnel from companies involved in the project, 1 teacher and one expert involved in the domain model creation.

Collaborative Web-Based E-Learning Environment. Wei et al, (2009).

Design of a curriculum-specific e-learning environment by integrating interactive and collaborative methods into the design

Social Constructivist Theory of learning where the more knowledgeable assist the less knowledgeable to construct knowledge. (Student-Centered)

Experimental and Interview design. The design prompts questions from students based on the curriculum.

Students were satisfied with the method and the design was successful in practice.

A comparative anaylsis of this method with traditional method of learning.

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3. DISCUSSIONS Our discussion is delineated along the sections identified in the Table above. Ppersonalized instructions with learners cooperating amongst themselves were found to dominate most research. The other design consideration was institutional strategy in the use of technology as a critical success factors. The theoretical framework guiding the research rotated between student centered, technology acceptance and process centered concepts. The most dominant being student centered concept, which proved best in terms of learners’ learning outcome. However most work use the student centered in conjunction with technology and process. Case Studies topped the list of designs followed by experimental and questionnaire. In case study and experimental designs there were better clarity in the findings, than in questionnaire whose findings were not conclusive, except for cases where it was blended with experimental design. Questions that continue to beg for answers in instructional designs are the impact of the following on quality of design;

• Cost of accessing education,

• emerging technology ,

• quality of processes,

• theoretical framework

This call for more research in these areas, as instructional design is the key to any successful e-learning. In the words of Chin &Williams (2006) “A key, overarching goal for any committed educator is to ensure that the learner has a meaningful and memorable learning experience while achieving the desired learning outcomes”. 4. CONCLUSION A grand, unifying theory of e-learning thus remains elusive and e-learning practitioners continue to operate largely on the basis of trial and error (Chin &Williams, 2006). This literature review has tried to identify the concept guiding online instructional designs. All questions set out in the reviewed have been answered with unanswered questions listed above. One concept discovered to permeate the various studies is the learner centered designed, with more emphasis shifting to individualized personalized instruction. It is hoped that this review will be helpful to researchers and practitioners of e-learning

REFERENCES

1. Alexander, S. (2001). E-learning development and experiences Education and Training 43,240-248

2. Banget, A. (2004). The seven principles of good practice: A framework for evaluating online teaching” The internet and Higher Education, 7(3), 217-232

3. Benson, R., & Samarawickrema, G. (2009). Addressing the context of e-learning:using transactional distance theory to inform design. Distance Education, 30(1), 5-21. doi:10.1080/01587910902845972.

4. Blake, H. (2009). Staff perceptions of e-learning for teaching delivery in healthcare. Learning in

Health & Social Care, 8(3), 223-234. doi:10.1111/j.1473-6861.2009.00213.x

5. Capuano, N., Gaeta, M., Marengo, A., Miranda, S., Orciuoli, F., & Ritrovato, P. (2009). LIA: an intelligent advisor for e-learning. Interactive

Learning Environments, 17(3), 221-239. doi:10.1080/10494820902924912.

6. Chen, CM., Lee, HM., Chen, YH.(2005). Personalized E-learning System Using Item Response Theory. Computer &Education-

Elsevier 44(3), 237-255 7. Chin, S., Williams, J. (2006).A Theoretical

Framework for Effective Online Course Design. MERLOT Journal of Online Learning and

Teaching, 2 (1), 12-21 8. Commey, M., and Stephason, J. (2001). Online

learning;It is all about dialogue, support and control according to research in teaching and learning online: Pedagogies for New Technologies(ed. J.Stephenson)London Kogan Page.

9. Concannon, F., Flynn A., & Campbell. (2005). What campus-based students think about the quality and benefits of e-learning. British Journal

of Educational Technology. 36(2), 501–512. 10. Glen, S. (2005). E-learning in nurse education:

lessons learnt? (Editorial) Nurse Education Today 25,415–417.

11. Graf, S., List, B. (2005). An Evaluation of Open Source E-Learning Platforms Stressing Adaptation Issues. Proceedings of the Fifth IEEE International Conference on Advanced Learning Technologies (ICALT’05) 0-7695-2338-2/05

12. Ismail, J. (2002). The design of an e-learning system : Beyond the hype. Pergamon- Internet

and Higher Education 4, 329–336 13. Neuhauser, C. (2004). A Maturity Model: Does

It Provide A Path For Online Course Design? Interactive Online Learning 3(1), www.ncolr.org ISSN: 1541-4914

14. Ho, L. (2009). The Antecedents Of E-Learning Outcome: An Examination Of System Quality, Technology Readiness, And Learning Behaviour. Adolescense 44(175), 581-599. Retrieved from Academic Search Complete database.

15. Levy, Y. (2004). Comparing dropouts and persistence in e-learning courses Computers & Education 48 (2007) 185–204Mbarika, V. (2004). Approaching Sub-Saharan Africa’s Educational Dilemma with Tele-Education IEEE Technology and Society Magazine, Winter 2003/2004

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16. Paulsen, M.(2002). Online Education Systems in Scandinvian and Australian Universities: A comparative Study. International Review of Research in Open and Distance learning http://davidtjones.wordpress.com.publications/an-information-systems.design-theory-for-elearning

17. Robin, M., Rennie, F. (2006). Elearning: The Key concepts ,Routledge key guides London, New York Taylor and Francis Rutledge 2006.

18. The California Distance Learning Project (CDLP,1997) For Adult Educators in http://www.cdlponline.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=whatis&pg=2 retrieved 10/28/10

19. Graf, S., List, B. (2005). An Evaluation of Open Source E-Learning Platforms Stressing Adaptation Issues. Learning Technologies, ieeexplore.ieee.org

20. Wei, H., Tianzhou, C., & Qingsong, S. (2009). Collaborative Web-Based E-learning Environment for Information Security Curriculum. Proceedings of World Academy of

Science: Engineering & Technology,53489-492. Retrieved from Academic Search Complete database.

21. Weller, M., Pegler, C., Mason, R. (2005). Use of innovative technologies on an e-learning course. Elsevier - Internet and Higher Education 8, 61–71

Author’s Brief

Ajibike Olubunmi Itegboje holds the B.Sc Math/Educ., M.Sc. Computer Science, MEd. (Math) of University of Lagos, Nigeria and PGD Computer Science of University of Benin, Nigeria. She is currently a PhD student at Southern University

and A& M, United States. A Fellow of the Nigeria Computer Society and a Member of the Computer Professional Registration Council of Nigeria, and a seasoned lecturer and administrator having headed the Computer Science and the Management Information Systems departments at Yaba College of Technology, the foremost polytechnic in Nigeria, for over 13 years. Her research interest is in the area of e-learning as it affects sub Saharan Africa.

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Towards an Enhanced Protocol for Improving Transactional Support in Interoperable Service Oriented Application-Based (SOA-Based) Systems

Laud Charles Ochei Department of Computer Science University of Port Harcourt Port Harcourt, Nigeria [email protected]

Reference Format: Laud Charles Ochei (2012). Towards an Enhanced Protocol for Improving Transactional Support in Interoperable Service Oriented Application-Based (SOA-Based) Systems. Computing, Information Systems & Development Informatics Journal. Vol 3, No.1. pp 36-49

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ABSTRACT When using a shared database for distributed transactions, it is often difficult to connect business processes and software components running on disparate platforms into a single transaction. For instance, one platform may add or update data, and then another platform later access the changed or added data. This severely limits transactional capabilities across platforms. This situation becomes more acute when concurrent transactions with interleaving operations spans across different applications and resources. Addressing this problem in an open, dynamic and distributed environment of web services poses special challenges, and still remains an open issue. Following the broad adoption and use of the standard Web Services Transaction Protocols, requirements have grown for the addition of extended protocols to handle problems that exist within the context of interoperable service-oriented applications. Most extensions to the current standard WS-Transaction Protocols still lack proper mechanisms for error-handling, concurrency control, transaction recovery, consolidation of multiple transaction calls into a single call, and secure reporting and tracing for suspicious activities. In this research, we will first extend the current standard WS-Transaction Framework, and then propose an enhanced protocol (that can be deployed within the extended framework) to improve transactional and security support for asynchronous applications in a distributed environment. A hybrid methodology which incorporates service-oriented engineering and rapid application development will be used to develop a procurement system (which represents an interoperable service-oriented application) that integrates our proposed protocol. We will empirically evaluate and compare the performance of the enhanced protocol with other conventional distributed protocols (such as 2PL) in terms of QoS parameters (throughput, response time, and resource utilization), availability of the application, database consistency, and effect of locking on latency, among other factors. Keywords: Database, interoperability, security, concurrent transaction, web services, protocol, service-oriented

1. INTRODUCTION

Many organizations already operate large enterprise web applications based on Java, .NET or PHP platforms that are deployed in a distributed environment. Most of these web applications are developed from services, which are, reusable software components. A service is a natural development of a software component where the component model is, in essence, the set of standards associated with web services (Sommerville, 2007). An example of this type of application is the traditional common e-commerce application, where for example, a purchase order has to be submitted across multiple systems. Managing transactions in a distributed environment can be very challenging especially when you have concurrent transactions with interleaving operations that spans across different applications and resources. It is often very difficult to connect concurrent business processes running on disparate platforms into a single transaction. For example, one platform could insert or update data, and then another platform later access the changed or added data. This severely limits the transactional capabilities for cross-platform business process management (Gabhart, 2004). Addressing this problem in an open and dynamic environment of web services especially when concurrent transaction calls spans across different applications and resources in a distributed environment poses special challenges, and still remains an open issue. Transactional and security support is vitally important, first, to ensure data integrity when managing transactions in a distributed in a distributed environment (Marina et al, 2006). Quality of service is also important in improving transactional and security support for business operations.

Monitoring the QoS across large-scale, distributed, heterogeneous applications is very challenging, because software and hardware components of the system are prone to errors. Nevertheless, establishing this infrastructure is critical to reduce and possibly prevent system downtime. Assuming that there is a problem is an online procurement system that is made up of services (components) from Java EE, .NET, PHP and legacy system commonly deployed in various businesses or composed of a set of federated services distributed over the internet. Hours of service interruptions often translate into millions of dollars in lost revenue. Without a proper system management infrastructure in place, the troubleshooting process can consume days or weeks before the problem is identified and fixed, degrading overall service levels. The ultimate goal of system management is to ensure that the quality of service and operating requirements of all business applications are satisfied. A procurement system (composed of services) might be considered secure when a customer makes a purchase order using a service implemented on Java EE. This system may not necessarily be secure when order service is exchanging sensitive business information with another service (say the inventory system) implemented on a different platform say .NET. This is because the interoperable application is exposed to security vulnerabilities if one of the services (either the sender or recipient) is exploited or is being attacked by hackers. There are historic incidents of vulnerabilities on the .NET platform and the Java platform. These incidents can become a critical problem that causes financial loss or disruption to the business service. The computer security institute gives the following estimates concerning financial loss and business disruptions.

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Table 1: Incidences/Year/Cost

Cause of Loss and Disruption

Year Estimated Amount

Virus, unauthorized access, and theft of proprietary information

2005 $130 million

Denial of service attacks 2003 $65 million Denial of service attacks 2005 $7.3 million Average loss per incident for proprietary information theft

2003 $355552 million

Source: Computer Security Institute, 2005. For a procurement system, improving transactional and security support translates to ensuring reliable delivery of service request and return of the processing result, fast system performance, and highly available interoperable system. Improving transactional and security support also entails having an acceptable response time for user experience. This includes the flow of order request including the response time for order validation. It also entails having an efficient error handling mechanism; putting in place a common logging system for logging and alerting error messages and database failures. Considering the peculiarities of most procurements systems which are basically interoperable SOA-based systems, and the need to improve transactional and security support for these applications, most developers and companies are focusing on how to extend the current standard WS-Transaction Framework, and then to develop an enhanced protocol (that can be deployed within the extended framework). This research aims at developing an enhanced protocol that can be integrated within an interoperable SOA-based system such as a procurement system to improve transactional and security support. A hybrid methodology which incorporates service-oriented engineering and rapid application development will be used to develop a procurement system (which represents an interoperable service-oriented application) that integrates our proposed protocol. We will empirically evaluate and compare the performance of the enhanced protocol with other conventional distributed protocols (such as 2PL) in terms of QoS parameters (throughput, response time, and resource utilization), availability of the application, database consistency, and effect of locking on latency, among other factors. In this research, we will first extend the current standard WS-Transaction Framework, and then develop an enhanced protocol (that can be deployed within the extended framework). The enhanced protocol will incorporate a mechanism for error-handling, concurrency control, consolidating multiple transaction calls into a single call, and secure tracing and reporting of business transactions for suspicious activities. These mechanisms will directly address issues such as QoS (throughput, response time, and resource utilization), availability of the application, database consistency, and effect of locking on latency, among others.

Thereafter, a hybrid methodology which incorporates service-oriented engineering and rapid application development will be used to develop a procurement system (which represents an interoperable service-oriented application) that integrates our enhance protocol. When the system is implemented, it will help to significantly improve transactional and security support for procurements systems and other interoperable SOA-based systems. In this research, the words request, message, process, transaction, operation are used interchangeable except explicitly stated. 2. BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Many organizations operate large enterprise web applications (such as web-service based applications), which involve distributed transactions that spans across different applications and resources. Apart from this, these applications involve related transactions (or task) that are loosely-coupled and carried out over long periods of time. Managing a transaction distributed across multiple systems significantly complicates an implementation to adhere strictly to the basic ACID tenets. For example, at the system level, isolation is usually implemented with locks. Distributed transactions that span across different applications and resources unavoidable involve a situation where one transaction locks the data record of another transaction. Even if, the transaction does not fail, resources might be locked longer than necessary and this will be unacceptable to most organizations. For performance reasons, so-called isolation levels allow this property to be relaxed for particular applications (Marina et al, 2006; Wenbing et al, 2006). Traditional protocols such as strict two-phase locking protocol (2PL) and the two-phase locking protocol (2PC) are examples of protocols that are based on locking mechanisms (Bernstein et al, 1987; Ozsu and Valduriez, 1999). Thus, traditional ACID (Atomicity, Consistency, Isolation and Durability) properties of a transaction management system have to be relaxed for web services-based transactions. In particular, atomicity and isolation properties are usually relaxed in existing transaction protocols in the web service environment; i.e. some activities in a transaction can commit their results before the whole transaction commits and the results of some activities can be seen before the whole transaction completes. However, several problems arise because of the relaxation of the ACID properties such that a readdressing of the transaction management problem for web services environment is required (Alrafai, 2006). First, transactional dependencies can emerge among independent transactions, which need to be addresses when compensation is needed in order to avoid inconsistency problems. To handle such dependencies, support for concurrency control mechanism is needed. In addition, when several concurrent transactions call web services running in different platforms , transactional support is required to ensure that the outcome of all transactions are consistent.

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Assuming there is service failure due to the fact that a transactions or sub-transactions have failed. This situation points to the fact that there is need for a recovery mechanism to recover those transactions that have failed in the web services environment. The current specifications does not support these mechanisms at all, therefore there is a need to extend the specifications of the standard web service transaction protocol to provide an enhanced protocol for supporting the concurrency control mechanisms and other mechanisms(Alrafai et al, 2006). There is a clear justification for an enhanced protocol to manage concurrent transactions in a web service environment:

• Some extended protocols address only one part of the problem, such as the recovery problem (Cabrera et al[1, 2, 3], 05).

• Some protocols involve several transaction

coordinators that communicate with each other to handle certain mechanisms such as transactional dependencies and other concurrency control problems [Choi, 2005; Haller et al, 2005).

• There are protocols that even handle some of these mechanisms but in different ways. For example, dependency graphs are use by some protocols to handle concurrency while others use transaction-wait for graph.

• There are some mechanisms that are very useful for proper management of concurrent transactions in web service environment but are usually overlooked by many extended protocols and in some cases these mechanisms may be implemented differently.

Again, when you consider that fact that in a distributed environment, transaction spans across different applications (Java EE, .NET and PHP) and resources (database and file systems), such an enhanced protocol is particularly needed to improve transactional and security support for asynchronous applications in a distributed environment. Most of the extended protocols such as the one proposed by Alrafai (2006) focused on introducing a mechanism for concurrency control. Wenbing (2005) proposed a protocol which was basically a reservation based extended transaction protocol aimed at addressing the limitations of compensation-based extended protocols. There are several other extended transaction protocols that target distributed transactions and web services transactions. There are other very useful mechanisms that are not usually considered by many other extended protocols. An example of such a mechanism is the one that attempts to consolidate multiple transactions calls into a single call. Another example is the one that allows for secure reporting and tracing of transactions for suspicious activities. Table 1 provides a summary of some of these protocols by highlighting their main focus and shortcomings.

Our proposed protocol will incorporate: (1) error-handling mechanism that ensures the request either returns back, times out, is resubmitted, or an error is propagated up the invocation chain or there is a custom notification or callback; (2) concurrency control mechanism to enable detecting and managing conflicts that arise out of concurrent transactions that spans across multiple applications and resources; (3) mechanism to consolidate multiple transactions calls into a single call to reduce the number of operations within an atomic transaction; and (4) security control mechanism to address the challenge of handling a common security process logic, and secure reporting and tracing transactions for suspicious activities. We will empirically evaluate and compare the performance of the proposed protocol with other conventional distributed protocols (such as 2PL) in terms of throughput, response time and resource utilization, among other factors.

3. DEFINITION OF RELATED TERMS In this section, we will attempt to explain some of the key terms and concepts that are used in this research study. Transaction: A transaction is a sequence of information that is treated as an individual unit and follows the "ACID" (atomicity, consistency, isolation and durability) test. A transaction must succeed or fail as a unit, following the atomic rule of "all or nothing." A transaction must be consistent, leaving both sides in a valid state. A transaction is isolated, unaware of or not seen by other concurrently executing transactions. And a transaction must be durable: once it succeeds it must persist (JNBridge, 2011). A transaction is also defined as a unit of work that results in either success or failure and fulfils Atomic, Consistent, Isolated, and durable (ACID) principle (Marina et al, 2006). Distributed transaction: A distributed transaction is the one that spans across different applications (Java EE, .NET and PHP) and resource (database and file systems). Managing a transaction distributed across multiple systems significantly complicates an implementation to adhere to the basic ACID tenets. Transactional support is very important in distributed transactions because of the need to preserve data integrity (Marina et al, 2006). Interoperability: Laudati P. et al (2003) defines interoperability as the ability to communicate or transfer

data between functional units running on different

platforms, implemented in different technologies, using

industry standard or widely accepted data description and

communication protocols. Interoperability as a process comes to play when we want to ensure that applications built on one platform connects to those created on the other. This research is not about interoperability; rather it is about providing support for interoperable SOA- applications in a distributed environment.

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Services Oriented Architecture (SOA) Services oriented architectures (SOA) are a way of developing distributed systems where the components of these systems are stand-alone services (or web services) (Sommerville, 2007). Services as Reusable Software Components: Services are a natural development of software components where the component model is, in essence, the set of standards associated with web services (Adams, 2006; Sommervile, 2007). A service can therefore be defined as a loosely coupled,

reusable software component that encapsulates discrete

functionality, which may be distributed and

programmatically accessed. A web service is a service that

is accessed using standard Internet and XML-based

protocols.

Services can be developed for reuse in a service-oriented application. It has much in common with component based development. The development of software using services is based on the idea that you compose and services to create new, composite services. These may be integrated with a web user interface to create a web application or may be used as components in some other service composition. The services involved in the composition may be specifically developed for the application may be business services developed within a company or may be services from some external provider (Sommervile, 2007). The implication of web services is that, in a real sense, the Web itself hosts your applications, with components scattered across multiple servers, your own and potentially many others, all working in concert(Adams, 2006). This is the approach that we will use to develop the procurement system that is used distributed transaction scenario. Concurrency: Concurrency is a property of systems in which several computations are executing simultaneously, and potentially interacting with each other. Because computations in a concurrent system can interact with each other while they are executing, the number of possible execution paths in the system can be extremely large, and the resulting outcome can be indeterminate. Concurrent use of shared resources can be a source of indeterminacy leading to issues such as deadlock, and starvation. A number of mathematical models have been developed for general concurrent computation including Petri nets, process calculi, the Parallel Random Access Machine model and the Actor model. The design of concurrent systems often entails finding reliable techniques for coordinating their execution, data exchange, memory allocation, and execution scheduling to minimize response time and maximize throughput (Wikipedia, “concurrency”, 2011).

Concurrent Transactions: Sometimes it is useful for an application to have multiple independent connections called concurrent transactions. Using concurrent transactions, an application can connect to several databases at the same time, and can establish several distinct connections to the same database.

For example, suppose you are creating an application that allows a user to run SQL statements against one database, and keeps a log of the activities performed in a second database. Because the log must be kept up to date, it is necessary to issue a COMMIT statement after each update of the log, but you do not want the user's SQL statements affected by commits for the log. This is a perfect situation for concurrent transactions. In your application, create two contexts: one connects to the user's database and is used for all the user's SQL; the other connects to the log database and is used for updating the log. With this design, when you commit a change to the log database, you do not affect the user's current unit of work.

Another benefit of concurrent transactions is that if the work on the cursors in one connection is rolled back, it has no affect on the cursors in other connections. After the rollback in the one connection, both the work done and the cursor positions are still maintained in the other connections. Lock: A lock is a system object associated with a shared resource such as a data item of an elementary type, a row in a database, or a page of memory. In a database, a lock on a database object (a data-access lock) may need to be acquired by a transaction before accessing the object. Correct use of locks prevents undesired, incorrect or inconsistent operations on shared resources by other concurrent transactions (Wikipedia, “Two-phase locking”, 2011). Markov Model: In probability theory, a Markov model is a stochastic model that assumes the Markov property. The simplest Markov model is the Markov chain. A Markov chain is a mathematical system that undergoes transitions from one state to another (from a finite or countable number of possible states) in a chainlike manner. It is a random process characterized as memoryless: the next state depends only on the current state and not on the sequence of events that preceded it. This specific kind of "memorylessness" is called the Markov property. Markov chains have many applications as statistical models of real-world processes. The PageRank of a webpage as used by Google is defined by a Markov chain. Markov models have also been used to analyze web navigation behavior of users (Wikipedia, “Markov Chain”, 2011). 4. RELATED WORK Transactional and security support is important when talking about management of concurrent transactions in a distributed environment. Most research agrees that the

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traditional ACID transactions are unsuitable for application in distributed environment (especially web service transactions)(Alrafai et al, 2006; Wenbing et al, 2005, Marina et al, 2006; Reddy, 2003; Little and Freund, 2003). Hence, there are a lot of protocols that have been proposed to address the limitations of traditional ACID transactions. Some of these protocols are still anchored on traditional ACID properties of a transaction management system, although with some relaxed properties while others are extensions to the standard web service transaction framework (or protocols). Alrafai(2006) address the problem by proposing an extension to the standard framework for web service transactions to enable detecting and handling transactional dependencies between concurrent business transactions. Thereafter, he then presented an optimistic protocol for concurrency control that can be deployed in a fully distributed fashion within the proposed framework. The main advantage of his approach to concurrency control is that is does not require any direct communication or information exchange between independent transactions. This approach has its cost because it requires two times the number of exchanged messages to reach globally correct execution; and so this is simply a trade-off relation between the cost of the number exchanged messages and the security privacy properties that can be ensured using it. Many protocols that support concurrency control work rely heavily on algorithms to detect and handle transactional dependencies between concurrent business transactions.

These algorithms are used to build transaction-wait-for-graph (TWFG) (directed graph whose nodes represent transactions, and arcs represents the wait-for relationships). Performance studies indicate that a major component of cost of running the detection algorithms is wasteful (occurs in the absence of deadlock)(Krishna, 2003; Shyu et al, 1990; Sinha and Natarajan, 1985). Other examples of research work addressing the concurrency control problem in web services transaction is the work done by Haller et al; Choi et al, 2006. In all of these works, there is a general consensus that concurrency control should be handled by transaction coordinators who in turn maintain and update local partial views of the global serialization graph by direct communication. Several approaches have been used by different researchers to evaluate the performance of protocol/architectures of applications that run in a distributions environment. It is generally accepted that QoS related parameters are a key to evaluating the performance of these applications (Alrafai, 2006; Reddy, 2003; Marina et al, 2006; Wenbing, 2008). We have discussed some of these approaches in the section on experimental evaluation, and will not be repeated here. 5. MOTIVATION OF THE STUDY Modern large-scale enterprise applications encompass concurrent transactions with interleaving operations that cut across multiple platforms and resources and there is need to improve transactional and security support for these applications. 5.1 Motivating Scenario The following example demonstrates the problem of managing transactions in a web service environment, and that motivated the need to improve transactional and security support. Figure 1 shows an overview of the features of the procurement system.

Fig. 1. Deployment Diagram for the Procurement System

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Fig. 2. An expended view of the Purchase-Order subsystem

Our distributed transaction scenario (or use case) is very simple and straightforward. It has the following features: (i) The procurement system is an interoperable SOA-based application. There are three sub-systems within the procurement system – Customers system, Purchase-Order system and Manufacturing system. (ii) The procurement system is modeled after a loosely coupled SOA architecture, where the Purchase-Order sub-system exists within its own organizational context and is implemented as tightly-coupled subsystem. This organization manages the purchase order system and is responsible for the operation of all its components. (iii) Although the focus of the research is not on interoperability, this scenario also draws attention to the challenges of interoperability management in a distributed environment. (iv) There are concurrent transactions that spans across different applications and resources, and for a transaction to be completed there may be different operations that are involved and each of these operations may be handled by the different subsystems. (v) The purchase order system is trying to portray a short-lived transaction that is deployed within the boundaries of the same corporation. Again it is expected that the level of trust among the participants is fairly high. These are in fact, features of the WS-AtomicTransactions. (vii) The purchase order subsystem is composed of three services(developed independently and specifically for the application): order services- implemented using .NET platform, the inventory service- implemented using

implemented using the PHP platform, and the supply services- implemented using the Java EE platform. The purchase order subsystem (i.e. all the web services) is connected to a shared database -SQL Server database. The services could run on single or different computer systems with the same operating systems and application servers.

5.2 Description of the Distributed Transaction Scenario Suppose there are two dependent processes (order service, inventory service) and one independent process (supply service) which have to collaborate in order to place an order for a product P1 in a procurement system. The product count for P1 must be above 500 units; otherwise a new product request is generated. The initial product count for P1 is 600 units. A customer initiates a transaction T1 to order for 500 units of P1. The order service sends a call to the inventory service to confirm if P1 is available. Once P1 is confirmed to be available, the inventory service updates its stock inventory and the purchase order is created. From time to time, the supply service checks the database to generate a new product request when the product count for P1 is below 500. This sort of process severally limits transactional capabilities across platform because a different service (platform) is adding and updating inventory while another independent platform (service) is generating a new product request. Assuming that this order is later cancelled while T1 has not yet been committed (may be due to service failure or delay), and meanwhile the product count for P1 had already been decremented. It is possible for other concurrent transaction (T2, T3,…,Tn) to make an order based on the assumption that 600 units of P1 is still in stock. These transactions are not allowed in a procurement system, as it would result in potentially overselling P1.

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Again, assuming the purchase order is not cancelled but there was an error (may be due to inventory service failure) or a delay that prevented an update on the product count of P1, request for product count information from other concurrent transactions will be denied (or locked) for a long time until service is restored and the supply service will not also be able to generate new product request. Unaware that inventory service may be down or that P1 may be out of stock, several independent transactions (T1, T2, T3,…,Tn) may attempt to place order for P1. Many of those transactions would definitely fail and this would result in a situation where the database is left in an inconsistent state. When service is restored eventually, it will be very difficult to recover those transactions that have failed because no logging information was maintained. It will also be difficult to report and trace for suspicious activities due to the absence of a central logging mechanism in the system. This scenario shows that order service depends on the inventory service, which verifies that the selected product is in stock. The inventory service also depends on the supply services, which verifies that the product count is low and hence a new product request is generated. Current web service transaction standards do not address most of these problems - dependencies and recovery issues. There are no efficient models to express these problems and there are no efficient protocols to handle such problems. 6. STATEMENT OF PROBLEM When using a shared database in a distributed environment, it is often difficult to connect concurrent business processes and software components running on disparate platforms into a single transaction; which severely limits transactional capabilities across platforms. Therefore one of the most serious challenges is how to improve transactional and security support for applications in a distributed environment. Technically, the standard framework for web services transaction still lacks mechanisms that can improve transactional support for interoperable applications, and so there is need to extend the standard framework for web service transactions to make provisions these mechanisms. The motivating scenario described in the previous section points the following specific problems:

1. Transactional and security capabilities of the system could be severely hampered due to concurrent multiple transaction calls. The number of failed transactions and locks contention involved in the system could build up if there are error-handling mechanisms to resolve transaction conflicts on time.

2. Resources could be locked or blocked for a long time when concurrent transactions are trying to access the resource.

3. The database might be left in an inconsistent

state if the probability of failed transaction is high and there is no mechanism in the system to handle errors.

4. There is difficulty in recovering failed

transactions in case of service failure, and also in reporting and tracing for suspicious activities due to the absence of a central logging mechanism in the system

7. RESEARCH QUESTIONS The research questions that emanates from the foregoing are listed below:

1. What are the shortcomings of the standard WS-transaction protocol and other extended protocols; how do we extend it to improve transactional support; and what are the mechanisms for incorporation into the proposed extended protocol?

2. To what extent can the incorporation of a

mechanism for error-handling, concurrency control, consolidating multiple transaction calls, and secure tracing improve transactional support for interoperable SOA-based systems?

3. How can we integrate our proposed protocol into

a sample program to improve transactional support for interoperable SOA-based system?

4. Is there any significant difference between our

proposed protocol (when integrated with an interoperable SOA application and a conventional application) and the conventional distributed 2PL?

7.1 RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS

Hypothesis 1: Is there any significant difference between our proposed protocol and the conventional distributed 2PL in terms of improving transactional and security support for interoperable SOA-based applications?

Hypothesis 2: Is there any significant difference between integrating our proposed protocol with an interoperable SOA-application and a normal SOA-based application?

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8. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY The aim of this research is to develop an enhanced protocol to that will significantly improve transactional and security support for asynchronous applications that need to interoperate in a web service environment. The specific objectives of the research are:

1. To improve the Quality of Service (QoS) and performance of the system in terms of response time, throughput and resource utilization.

2. To reduce the length of locking and blocking

time involved before being able to access a resource.

3. To minimize the probability (and the number) of

locks contentions, transaction conflicts, failed transactions, and multiple transaction calls in the system.

4. To reduce the probability that the databases (that

stores data, logging and error information) might be left in an inconsistent state.

The specific objectives are:

1. To analyze and evaluate the current standard framework for web services transactions and other extended protocols with a view to identifying its problems.

2. To extend the standard framework for web

service transaction protocol and then propose an enhanced protocol for use within the extended framework.

3. To develop and implement an enhanced protocol

by integrating it with a sample program which represents an interoperable SOA-based application.

4. To evaluate and compare the performance of the

enhanced protocol with other conventional distributed protocols (such as 2PL) in terms of QoS parameters (throughput, response time, and resource utilization), availability of the application, database consistency, and effect of locking on latency, among other factors.

9. PURPOSE AND SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY This research will provide a protocol that will help developers to either manage transactions in a web service environment or, better still design a system that does not suffer from problems associated with concurrent transactions in web service environment. This research study will benefit practicing web developers and companies in the following ways:

Practicing Web Developers: The research work will extremely be useful to practicing web developers because it will outline how to improve transactional and security support for transactions in web service environment.

Companies: Architects and IT managers in companies can get a brief overview of how this protocol is relevant to their operating environments and also how it can facilitate their architectural planning. When the protocol is integrated into an interoperable SOA-based application, it will help in:

• Recovering transactions in case of service failure.

• Improving the Quality of Service (QoS) and performance of the system in terms of response time, throughput and resource utilization.

• Ensuring that the database is left in a consistent state after a distributed transaction.

10. SCOPE AND LIMITATION OF THE STUDY

This research assumes that concurrent transaction spans across different applications (.NET, Java EE, PHP) and resources (databases and file systems) and there is need for transactional support. For instance, you have an existing data repository that you need to access from more than one application running on multiple platforms. This research assumes that the transaction is short-lived (not a long living transaction) and is deployed in an intranet system (where the boundaries are within the same corporation). Therefore, it is expected that the level of trust among transaction participants is high. This research study uses a sample web application – a procurement system that is composed of web services. This application is deployed in a distributed environment. The procurement system is only a sample use case implementation to demonstrate a distributed transaction scenario and does not illustrate recommended practice for implementing security in a production application. This application will be implemented first on a stand-alone computer and thereafter in an Intranet system. Three platforms will involved in developing three different services that takes part in the procurement system - .NET implement the ordering service, Java EE implements the supply service, and PHP platform implements the inventory service. Each of the service in the distributed transaction scenario may also be regarded as software components that reside on different machines. Within the proposed protocol, the web service should be seen as a means of support and not as an interoperability solution. 11. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY The methodology to take in the research summaries into the following steps:

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(a) The current standard protocol and other extended protocols will be analyzed and evaluated with a view to identifying its problems. These problems will be categorized into groups which will then translate into the mechanisms that will be incorporated into our proposed protocol. (b) Extend the standard framework for web service transaction by first presenting the standard framework for web service transaction, and then highlight where and how our proposed protocol will be integrated into the framework. Thereafter we will develop a protocol for use within the extended framework. We will present an algorithm that supports the protocol; give a formal definition of the protocol and a proof of the definition/algorithm for correctness. (c) Develop a sample program (purchase order system) that integrates our proposed protocol. The sample program will be an interoperable SOA-based application. The following development tools will be used to develop the sample program

(i) Visual Studio 2010 IDE – for the .NET service (ii) NetBeans 6.8 IDE – the Java service (iii) XAMPP – for the PHP service (iv) The database will be SQL Server 2010.

(d) Run experiments with the sample program that integrates our protocol in order to capture parameters. These parameters will be used to empirically evaluate and compare the performance of the proposed protocol with other conventional distributed protocols (such as 2PL) in terms of Quality of Service (QoS) parameters, availability of the SOA-based application, and consistency of the database and the effect of locking on latency, among other factors. In particular, we will use a discrete-time Markov model to estimate the probability that all of some large number of the transactions in the system complete successfully and also the probability that the database might have been left in an inconsistent state. 12. IDENTIFYING THE MECHANISMS FOR INCORPORATION INTO OUR PROPOSED

PROTOCOL

Before making extensions to the standard web service transaction framework, it is vitally important to identify specific problems in the distributed transaction scenario. Thereafter, you then figure out a mechanism that will be incorporated into the proposed protocol to solve the problems. The problems that were pointed to by our motivating scenario can be grouped into four categories namely: error-handling, concurrency control, consolidating multiple transactions calls, secure reporting and tracing. These four categories translate into the mechanisms that will be incorporated into the proposed protocol. Let us now explain how each of these mechanisms fits into our motivating scenario. We will also explain the strategies for solving this problem.

(1) Mechanism for error-handling In the Procurement System, the purchase order is being saved into the database. Once the purchase order transaction commits, all changes made to the data are permanent, and critical information will not be lost. If an error occurs prior to modifications committed to the database, changes should roll back, thus leaving the system in the original state. Being able to roll back or at least notify the errors to recover the system to its original state is an important part of the process. This is where an effective error-handling mechanism comes into play. An error-handling mechanism should be developed to ensure that the request either returns back, times out, is resubmitted, or an error is propagated up the invocation chain. There could also be a custom notification or callback mechanism. Transaction systems do not usually give guarantee of consistency. In our distributed transaction system, if the product count does not decrement correctly, the supply processing system may not request products on time. In order to maintain consistency across the system by building this business requirement can be built into the error handling mechanism either at the application logic or by enforcing corresponding constraints at the database level. (2) Mechanism for concurrency control In the Procurement system example, when decrementing the products counter, a write lock should be set to avoid potentially overselling a product. An application should deny request for the product count information while this product count is being modified. Only after all changes are committed or rolled back should the data be available to the rest of the requests. This is where an effective concurrency control mechanism comes into play to reduce the number of locks in the system and to also reduce the locking time involved before being able to access the resource. We will also try to include other strategies recommended by Kanjilal(2010) to handle concurrency. These include:

• Reducing the length of time of the transaction (i.e. not having transactions that run for a long time).

• Performing certain operations at the end of a transaction instead during a transaction

• Avoiding user input that needs to commit during transactions

• Ensuring that all transactions are either committed or rollback after a specified time

• Ensuring that the resources are access in the same order

• Proper utilization of isolation levels to help minimize locking

(3) Mechanism for consolidating multiple transactions

calls into a single call In the Procurement System, there are situations where there could be periods where a very large number of users and/or transactions are either trying to use or are using the system.

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In other words, high data driven application usually have large number of concurrent users and operations. Because transactions in a concurrent system can interact with each other while they are executing, the number of possible execution paths in the system can be extremely large, and the resulting outcome can be indeterminate. Concurrent use of the shared resources (in this case, the database) can be a source of indeterminacy leading to issues such as deadlock and starvation. The solution will be to develop a mechanism to consolidate multiple transactions calls into a single call or try to reduce the number of transactions and sub-transactions within the system. (4) Mechanism for secure reporting and tracing In the Procurement system, the transactions spans across multiple platforms and resources and the system may suffer from security problems. Sometimes the security policy that is designed to address this problem may also be implemented at different levels. The challenge then is how to bring the security processing logic into a single component, and then implement it in a distributed environment. Again, in our procurement system scenario, there is no way to know how many transactions have succeeded or failed, why they have failed, how it failed, when it failed, and at which terminal or machine. This is simply because no transaction logging information is maintained. The administrator needs this information to trace and report transactions for suspicious activities. It might also be very difficult to recover failed transactions in case of service failure if there is no central logging system. 12. CONCLUDING REMARKS In this research, we will provide a protocol that significantly improves transactional and security for asynchronous applications in a distributed environment especially when concurrent transaction calls spans across multiple resources. When the protocol is integrated into an interoperable SOA-based application, it will help in recovering transactions in case of service failure, improving the Quality of Service (QoS) and performance of the system in terms of response time, throughput and resource utilization, and ensuring that the database is left in a consistent state after a distributed transaction.

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Author’s Bio

Laud Charles Ochei holds a Bachelor's degree and Master’s degree from University of Uyo and University of Benin in Nigeria respectively. He is presenty on a doctoral programme at the Department of computer Science, University of Benin, Benin City, Nigeria. his PhD at the University of Benin where he researches into enhancing supports for inter-operable service-oriented applications. Currently a lecturer at the University of Port Harcourt, he is also engaged in a number of community service and youth development.

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An ICT-Based E-Collaborative Application for Law Enforcement Agencies in Nigeria

Olaniyan, O. & Mapayi, T. Department of Computer Science Bells University of Technology Ota, Nigeria [email protected]

Ibikunle, F.A (PhD)

Electrical and Information Engineering Department School of Engineering College of Science & Technology Covenant University Ota, Nigeria

Reference Format: Olaniyan, O. (2012). An ICT-Based E-Collaborative Application for Law Enforcement Agencies in Nigeria Computing, Information Systems & Development Informatics Journal. Vol 3, No.1. pp 50-58

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ABSTRACT ICTs are effectively showing new dimensions to old institutional setups. There is a reinforced thrust for an informed and participatory citizenry for efficient e-governance. It goes without saying that impact of ICT on institutional changes is fast spreading across the boundaries of social and political arrangements of societies. This is because ICT is the biggest enabler of change and process reforms with minimum resistance. Decades of attempts for government and process reforms fade in the face of what ICT has achieved in few years. In this paper, the idea to make enterprise applications interoperable via central relational databases to support road safety and crime control system is proposed. The following sections discusses how the notion of online decentralised database can be adopted to structure specific solutions to interoperability problems. Section 5 gives the architecture, design and technique for the web-based database implementation; how the database can be processed and accurate statistics about law enforcement generated and analysed to support planning, decision making and control of operations by the authorities involved in enforcement of law is shown. The concludes with a summary of the salient points.

Keywords: ICT, Government, Collaboration, Law Enforcement Agencies and Interoperability 1. INTRODUCTION

The government of any country is the biggest producer of data and information. In fact government’s business mainly consisted of data processing and using information within its own departments as well as disseminating it in public for the benefit of the citizens. Thus the job of any government is highly data intensive. Putting in a larger context, the information systems within the government need to be effective and efficient. Information system whether manual or computerized deals with information and its management and due to the advent of information and communication technology, almost all the organizations world over are using the technology for faster processing and dissemination of information. An information system is considered as organized combination of people, hardware, software, communications networks and data resources, that collect, transform and disseminate information in an organization (O’Brien, 2002). Dissemination of information in timely manner, in right format, in right place and with right possessor is needed to make a good information system. Information is the concept unique with reference to its receiver which means that the same data may convey different meaning to different people unless right format, time, place and authority are not properly agreed upon in advance between the sender and the receiver. Government is a system with hierarchy of subsystems working in tandem for sharing information amongst to achieve multiple goals. Hence, there is the need for good information systems within government to disseminate right information amongst the departments, to its constituents, to inform citizens with the policy matters in right mode and to provide government services online. This use of computerized information systems amongst the government departments and reaching out to public for government services delivery is called e-government or sometimes e-governance (the use of information system to improve overall governance scenario) (Fagianni et al, 1999; Amar, 2010; Kamar & Ongo’ndo, 2007).

2. RATIONALE The Nigerian government, especially the economic and law enforcement agencies, is in dire need of a database management system that would contain the biodata of every citizen. What is obtainable in such agencies in Nigeria is that branches of an agency do not even have access to the information of another branch talk less of that of another agency entirely. The lack of such centralized database management system has left cracks in the operations of the agencies. It is a moot question and needs to be investigated whether the execution of these applications is going on ad hoc basis or the deployment addresses the specific needs of government agencies paying proper attention to the overall need of interaction among the diverse ICT systems within different government departments in order to share and exchange the data. Policy makers in Nigeria are faced with problem of overlapped and uncoordinated data sources. Some inherent complexities are involved in the government data repositories, for the governments hold large amounts of heterogeneous data from a wide variety of sources with many different schemas (Collins et al, 1998; NRC, 2002). Hence, careful designing is very important in e-government databases. Consistent and meticulous designed database which caters for the future need of e-governance plans can become a great source of good governance in addition to efficiency and revenue increase to government exchequer (Read & Tilly, 2000; Berndt et al, 2003; Berndt et al, 2004). 2.1 Nigeria & E-Governance Some components of e-government have already commenced in Nigeria e.g. the Nigerian Customs Assycuda Programme, the computerization of Resident Permit by the Nigerian Immigration Service, computerization of Land and Certificate of Occupancy in the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA). The payroll of some organizations are also being computerized (ePayment), online checking of West Africa Examination Council (WAEC), National Examination Council (NECO)

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and Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) result as well as National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) postings are part of real time and cost effective services which are part of e-government (Mohammed, et al, 2010). In spite of the aforementioned, ICT is still in its infancy in Nigeria due to inadequate equipments, infrastructure, information, illiteracy and power outages etc. It is therefore, essential to incorporate ICT into all areas of government such as agriculture. Chouldrie et al (2010) examined the influences gender and cultures have on e-government awareness. They attributed the slow diffusion of e-government in Africa to gender inequality and cultural issues. People from different Nigerian tribes- Ibo, Yoruba, Hausa were used for research and it was proven that diffusion is affected by culture and gender in Nigeria. Adeyemo (2010) assessed Nigeria’s e-government ranking and found out that it is a far-cry from that of Cape Verde which is another African country that ranks first in West African sub-region. He concluded that Nigeria still need to improve further on its ICT services and communication systems, and that since ICT infrastructure need electricity to operate, the country’s epileptic power supply should be improved. Basically, the barriers to effective integration of ICT in law enforcement operations in a developing economy like Nigeria’s are:

1. Lack of integrated information systems for operations

2. Poor quality data and information services for mission-critical processes i.e. inconsistent data storage.

3. Poor ability to exchange information with other related state and national agencies i.e. data sharing. Problem-solving clearly depends on the availability of robust data (Read & Tilly, 2000).

4. A reluctance to share information 5. Low information technology literacy in the

country 6. Need to access multiple databases to

retrieve related information 7. The uneven distribution of Internet

facilities, high cost of connection and in some cases low penetration of high speed connectivity to the Internet.

8. Limited ability to analyse information because of its disparate locations

9. Poor timeliness and quality of data capture: This produces a mandatory flaw of a slow response.

10. Insecurity of information and information system

11. Inefficient Resource Allocation 12. The government is being faced with

management challenges in the implementation of E-Government (Kamar & Ongo’ndo, 2007).

3. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY The present study adopts retrospective method of research. Officials at the agencies were interviewed to understand and to get details about data storage. Some related past works and literatures were thoroughly studied and questionnaires were distributed to collect data on information storage and relevant details before developing the system model. Since database design and implementation are the cornerstones of any data intensive application, the databases of e-government applications implemented within last three years by the two agencies were collected. Though the law enforcement agencies collect vast amounts of data, only a very small part of this information can be absorbed from spreadsheet packages and record management systems used. This is especially true of some Law Enforcement Agencies who will at some time be involved in an interoperability emergency response with other Law Enforcement Agencies from Federal, State, and Local Governments. 4. SYSTEM ARCHITECTURE, DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION 4.1 System Architecture The system architecture here is the structure and organization by which modern system components and subsystems interact to form systems. All databases in the proposed system were created to be application specific i.e. the databases are being used for e-government. These databases are maintained and managed using proprietary MS-SQL Server. The MS-SQL Server is based upon Relational Database Management (RDBMS) principles. Both agencies- the FRSC and the Police Force were chosen on the basis of their usability in e-governance scenario. Consistency, data sharing and reliability are major factors while designing databases because of large amounts of heterogeneous data come from a wide variety of sources (NRC, 2002). At the most basic level robustness and proliferation of e-government services depends on the core designing principles of databases and for this reason adherence to the identified parameters viz. Primary, Foreign key, Data Redundancy, Documentation, Stored procedures, Constraints, Transactions Handling, E-R Design and Master-data management are important and are necessary for building fairly good reliable and consistent database for long term sustainability of solution (Dotolov and Strickler, 2003). . The front-end was developed using VB.NET and Hypertext Pre-processor. The former takes care of the windows based aspect while the latter enables the mobile feature. Government officials can type in search keywords and then click a button to modify or retrieve results. Securing the system is also a very important factor.

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For this reason, an authentication technique (username and password) was to prevent unauthorized access to the database system. Since it involves a democratic government like Nigeria, the policies can change frequently in order to meet the citizens’ requirements of information. It is imperative in this work to conform to the basic parameters of designing of databases so that scalable, consistent and quality database evolves over the time.

Figure 1. Architecture of the Proposed System

The operations of both agencies are similar in that they are both charged with maintaining law and order in the society. The FRSC deals with license, vehicle registration, accidents and road offences. The Police deal with crimes such as theft of property and accidents. The operations of both agencies intersect at accidents and also meting out punishments in form of penalties to road offenders and criminals.

The architecture of the system follows the indirect interoperability technique which manages and manipulates heterogeneous databases through the use of an intermediate data model and data manipulation language. The research work used the canonical interoperability model which uses an interface to bind heterogeneous databases as depicted in Figure 2 below. Access control implemented was user authentication which ensures that data cannot be manipulated or viewed by just anyone who does not have the permission to do so. It restricts the use of the system and ensures that only authorized individuals can carry out specific transactions on the system. Access control levels guarantee data integrity and security.

Fig 2. Canonical Interoperability Model

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4 2 System Design A formal model of the proposed system is built using Unified Modelling Language (UML). UML is a family of graphical notations that help in describing and designing software systems, particularly software systems built using the object-oriented (OO) style. UML provides a number of diagram types as a mechanism for entering model elements into the model and showing overlapping sets of models, elements and their relationships.

Fig. 3. The Use Case Diagram

The diagrams required for this proposed system are: The Use Case Diagram in Figure 3 describes what a system does from the stand point of an external observer. The emphasis is on what the system does rather than how. The Class diagram in Figure 4 describes the structure of the system by showing the system's classes, their attributes, and the relationships among the classes. It has three parts: the class name, attributes of the class and the relationship or function.

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Fig 4. Class Diagram

4.3 System Implementation This subsection describes the functionality of the various interfaces in order to achieve the aim of the system. The Windows Based Interfaces

The Personal Data Page as shown in Figure 5 enables the administrator record the details about a particular national identification number. If the number already exists in the database, it auto generates the other fields. The Create button records fresh details. The update button updates already stored data and the delete button removes records from the database e.g. in case of death.

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Figure 5. The Windows Based Person Form

The Driver’s License Registration windows based form shown in Figure 6 collects data pertaining to driver’s license. After all fields have been filled, clicking the create button saves them in the database. If records about a particular identification number exist, auto fill automatically generates the other fields.

Fig 6. The Windows Based Driver’s License Registration Page

4.3 Web Based Interfaces The Login and Home Page: This enables the users to enter their usernames and passwords which determine the level of permission they have. When the Login button is clicked, it opens the home page.This page serves as the home page for both agencies since there’s only one interface. It gives information on what the system is designed for and instructions to carry out these functions. The Offence form: This page shown in Figure 7 can be navigated to by clicking the Offence tab on the home page. It is used to store the offences committed by road users. Once the national identification number of the individual is entered and the Book Offence button is clicked, it navigates to the Offence Booking page which automatically shows the details about the offender. The only detail that needs to be entered on this page is the code of the offence. All other information is auto-generated from the national identification number.

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Fig 7. The Web Based Offence Booking Page

The Accident page: Clicking the Accident tab leads to this page shown in Figure 8, it is a form used to collect relevant data concerning accidents such as number killed, injured, casualties and so on. Clicking the Submit button stores this information in the database. Navigating to the View Accident list hyperlink reveals a report of all accidents and the necessary details as shown in Fig 9.

Fig 8. The Web Based Accident Form

The Criminal History page is a form that collects crime details about a particular person. All the fields are needed to store the crime an individual has committed in the database. If the national identification number already exists in the database i.e. the individual has previously committed a crime, the personal details section is automatically filled. The Submit button stores all details as shown in Figure 9.

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Fig 9. The Web Based Accident List The hyperlink Criminal Record links a page that shows both road and crimes committed by that particular identification number as shown in Figure 10.

Fig 10. The Web Based Criminal History Page

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The Stolen Vehicle page as shown in Figure 11 is a form that stores details about stolen vehicles. The FRSC can view this page but cannot alter it. The Submit button delivers the data entered to the database. The View Stolen Vehicles hyperlink leads to a page that displays all previously stolen vehicles.

Fig. 11: The Web Based Stolen Vehicle Page

5. DATA COLLECTION Data for this paper is on secure site for Law Enforcement Agencies in Nigeria. It is not freely accessible to any users unless the official permission is granted by the Administrator. Therefore, the data is highly confidential for this paper. The Administrator for the agencies consider in this paper could be contacted for further enquires. 6. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Some of the systems that have attempted to enable cross-jurisdictional communication are: Phoenix Police Department Reports (PPDR) - a web-based, federated intelligence system in which databases shared common schema [10]. Bioterrorism Surveillance Systems- used data warehouses to integrate historical and real-time surveillance data and incrementally incorporated data from diverse disease sources [11, 12]. The National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) (Federal Bureau of Investigation, 1992), a crime incident classification standard, proposed to enhance data sharing among law enforcement agencies [13]. In the Violent Crime Linkage Analysis System (ViCLAS) [14], data collection and encoding standards were used to capture more than 100 behavioural characteristics of offenders in serial violent crimes to address the problem of entity-level matching.

The proposed system in this paper ensures that: Data such as the high accident and offences figures is stored effectively and efficiently Little or no effort required to use the system (learnable and easy to navigate). Usage of the system is not restricted to a desk; it can be used anywhere due to the mobile feature. A well designed interface, user-friendly interface, and optimized speed with little or no paperwork is available. A security layer which ensures consistency and reliability and gives the assurance that the system cannot be tampered with by just anybody is realized.

7. CONCLUSION

This work proposed a system to facilitate collaborative processes between two Nigerian law enforcement agencies: the Police and the Federal Road Safety Commission. Both agencies can operate the system through one interface following the canonical interoperability model. The eCollaboration system contains two virtual databases- one for the Police and the other for the FRSC. They stores the details regarding their different operations. The interface is used to tie the heterogeneous databases. The application designed is a Web-based database to be used by officials of the Nigerian Law enforcement Agencies-FRSC and the Police. The transparent and expressive nature of the system would no doubt ensure that perpetrators of lawless acts be discovered with ease by these government agencies thereby ensuring an orderly society with efficient and good governance.

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It is also important that the government being the service provider should motivate the employees to deliver services through ICT. To achieve this, the Civil service employees must be trained on technology and start realizing the advantages of ICT. The aim is to make them thorough with e-Governance applications and responsive to the technology driven administration. It is worthy to state here that the introduction of ICT in the system will not take away existing jobs but will make them easier, and if less manpower is required for operations, the staff can be re-deployed elsewhere with no threat to their career growth path.

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13. Collins P.I., Johnson G.F. et al (1998):

Advances in Violent Crime Analysis and Law Enforcement – The Canadian Violent Crime Linkage Analysis System.

Author’s Briefs Engr. Olaniyan Olatayo Moses (M.SC), a Lecturer at Bells University of Technology, Ota, Nigeria. He teaches computing in the Dept of Computer Science and Information Technology. Engr Olaniyan obtained the B.Tech

Computer Engineering degree from the Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomoso and a MSc in Computer Science from the University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria. Presently on PhD degree focusing on Telemedicine Research his other research interest includes Computer Networks and Human Computer Interaction. He can be reached on [email protected]. Phone +2348038457998.

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Dr, Ibikunle Frank Ayoleke (JP), received the B.Tech. degree in Electrical/Electronics Engineering from University of Science and Technology, Port-Harcourt, Rivers-state, Nigeria in 1986. In 1993, he won himself a Federal Government Scholarship award to study

abroad and obtained a Doctorate degree in Telecommunications and Information Engineering (by research work) in 1997 from the University of Posts and Telecommunications, Beijing, China. He has 26 years practical working experience with the largest telecommunications carrier company in Nigeria (called NITEL) and the mobile arm of the NITEL Ltd. (called M-TEL) before joining the academics. He is presently at Covenant University, Electrical and Information Department of the School of Engineering, College of Science and technology, Ota, Ogun-state. His present areas of research are in Next Generation Converged-IP Network, Artificial Neural Networks for Signal Processing and Broadband Wireless/Wired Access Technologies (OFDM, MIMO, WiMAX, WiFi, 3G/4G, FTTx). He has over 30 technical publications in both national and international journals and conference proceedings. He is a member of the following professional societies: Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN), Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE), MIEEE and Nigerian Institute of Management (NIM).Dr Ayoleke Ibikunle is happily and fruitfully married.

Mr Tope Mapayi is a Lecturer at the Department of Computer Science at the College of Information and communication Technology, Bells University of Technology, Ota, Ogun State, Nigeria. He had his BSc in Computer Science at the university of Ado-Ekiti, his Msc at the University of Ibadan, and currently a Phd research student at the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomosho, Oyo State, Nigeria. He is a member of Computer Professionals of Nigeria. His areas of Specialization includes; Biometric, Computer Security, E-governance, Soft Computing and Image Processing. He can be reached by e-mail through [email protected]. Phone No. +23480339126100

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The Computing, Information Systems and Development Informatics Journal (CISDI) provides a distinctive international perspective on theories, issues, frameworks and practice at the nexus of computing, information systems Developments Informatics and policy. A new wave of multidisciplinary research efforts is required to provide pragmatic solution to most of the problems the world faces today. With Computing and Information Technology (IT) providing the needed momentum to drive growth and development in different spheres of human endeavors, there is a need to create platforms through which breakthrough research and research findings that cuts across different discipline can be reported. Such dissemination to a global audience will in turn support future discoveries, sharpen the understanding of theoretical underpinnings and improve practices. The CISDI Journal publishes cutting edge research in computing, short communications/reviews and development informatics activities that appropriate design, localization, development, implementation and usage of information and communication technologies (ICTs) to achieve development goals. We also promote policy research that seeks to employ established (and proposed) legal and social frameworks to support the achievement of development goals through ICTs - particularly the millennium development goals. The CISDI Journal is published four times in a year. Special issues are also published periodically from papers presented in conferences or other academic meetings. Technical reports are welcomed and published when available. Authors should submit manuscripts for consideration as e-mail attachment to the Managing Editor at [email protected] [email protected]. Submissions should not be longer than 5,000 words including abstract, keywords and references. The CISDI Journal will publish research articles, short

communications, empirical research, case studies, conference proceedings and reviews (including book reviews) in

the following focus areas (and other allied themes):

General Computing * Hardware Technology * Software Engineering * Web Technologies * Information Technology * Information Systems * Information Science * Data & Information Management * Information Security * Business Computing * Business Information Systems * Computer Networks * Artificial Intelligence * Theory of Computation & Automata * Software Metrics and Measurements * Knowledge-based Systems * Database Management * Data Mining & Data Warehousing * Knowledge Management e-Government portals * Computer Forensic & Data Privacy

* E-Systems (Webocracy, e-Democracy, e-Learning, e-Commerce, e-Government & e-Health, e-Agriculture) * citizen centric information systems * Web-enabled knowledge management * ICT enabled systems in the public and private service * Internet Governance * Information Systems Policy * TeleHealth & Telemedicine & Telemarketing * Design Structures & Annotations * Computer Graphics & Games * Multimedia & Mixed Media Systems * E-Library and Virtual Library Systems * Wireless Networks & Applications * Economic Intelligence Systems * Development Informatics * Mobile Applications & Technologies * Information Technology Policies * Web Usage Ethics & Policies * Enterprise Informatics and Policies * Social Informatics, Social Media and Policies

Only electronic submissions are accepted. We welcome submissions on a rolling basis. Authors of accepted papers will be required to pay pagination fees.

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CISDI JOURNAL AUTHOR’S PUBLICATION TEMPLATE

Computing, Information Systens & Development Informatics

Paper Title (font Size 24) Space (14 points font size)

Author’s names (12 Points Font Size Bold )

Affiliations (10 Points Font Size ) E-mal Address and Phone Numbers (10 Points Font Size Italicize )

(Single column format for the above section please)

1. INTRODUCTION

All manuscripts must be A4 size paper, one inch top and buttom margin and 0.75 left and right margins. It should be written in English. These guidelines include complete descriptions of the fonts, spacing, and related information for producing your manuscripts for publication. Follow the style in this template for preparing your articles/papers/manuscripts for submission.

2. TYPE STYLE AND FONTS

Times New Roman 10 points is the acceptable font for typesetting the entire body of the manuscript. If this is available on your word processor, please use the font closest in appearance to Times. Pictures and graphics, preferably in Jpeg format or Bitmap format can be embedded as well as mathematical and scientific symbols. Equations should be numbered and acronyms/abbreviations should be explained /defined or written fully on first use.

3. CITATIONS IN THE BODY OF THE WORK

Referencing style in the body of the work should use

square [7 ] braces. Works cited should be listed in the bibliography/referencing section at the end of the paper

chronologically. Footnotes are not encouraged.

3.2 Main and Sub-Headings Main Headings should be in UPPERCASE and proceeded by a point number. For Sub-Headings, use toggle case – or capitalize the first letter of each sentence/sub heading. Sub headings should be bold and italicized. Provide a space between each section and sub-sections.

3.3 Columns

Submission MUST follow the two column format depicted in this document. Equal width of 3.38cm and column spacing of 2.5cm. Lines are not allowed between columns. Where necessary or unavoidable, the two column format can be merged to a column to accommodate pictures, tables or graphics.

3.4 Paragraphing

The block structure is adopted for this journal.

4. TABLES AND FIGURES

Table headings/titles should be written above the tables. Figure headings should be written below the tables. These titles should proceed sequentially within the body of the text. Fig. 1 for the first figure, the next Fig 2 etc. Figures should not be numbered based on subsections of the manuscripts. Tables should also be labeled in the same sequence. Centralize Figures. Align Tables to the LEFT.

Table 1: How To Set Tables

Table Head

Table Column Head

Table column subhead Subhead Subhead

copy More table copya

Source – (Adefolake, 2012)

Fig.1. Example of a figure Caption

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4.1 Units

The SI Unit is the acceptable Unit for specifying scientific measurements in this journal.

4.2 Equations Authors are encouraged to use the equation editor facilities provided in MS Word to prepare equations for the manuscript. In very extreme situations, you may use either the Times New Roman or the Symbol font (please no other font) to prepare equations for publications. To create multileveled equations, it may be necessary to treat the equation as a graphic and insert it into the text after your paper is styled. Equations should be numbered equations consecutively. Equation numbers, within parentheses, are to position flush right, as in (1), using a right tab stop. To make your equations more compact, you may use the solidus ( / ), the exp function, or appropriate exponents. Italicize Roman symbols for quantities and variables, but not Greek symbols. Use a long dash rather than a hyphen for a minus sign. Punctuate equations with commas or periods when they are part of a sentence. For example:

Align equations to the left.

Acknowledgement A section on acknowledgement for sponsored research, collaborations, funds, grants/ other research material sources as well as individuals or organization that contributed to the success of the research.

REFERENCES

List and number all bibliographical references in 10 point Times, single-spaced, at the end of your paper. When referenced in the text, enclose the citation as (Charles, 2009); for two authors (Laud & Laud, 2011); for more than three authors (Segun et al, 2010). Where appropriate, include the name(s) of editors of referenced books.

Unless there are more than 3 authors or more give all authors’ names; do not use “et al.”. Papers that have not been published, even if they have been submitted for publication, should not be cited [4]. Papers that have been accepted for publication should be cited as “in press”. Capitalize only the first word in a paper title, except for proper nouns and element symbols.

For papers published in translation journals, please give the English citation first, followed by the original foreign-language citation..

Use APA style for referencing available online at http://www.apastyle.org/manual/index.aspx

[1] Eason, B. G. Noble, and Sneddon, K (2011) “On

certain integrals of Lipschitz-Hankel type involving products of Bessel functions,” Phil. Trans. Roy. Soc. London, vol. A247, pp. 529–551, April 1955. (references)

[2] Clerk , K and Maxwell, U (2010) A Treatise on Electricity and Magnetism, 3rd ed., vol. 2. Oxford: Clarendon, 1892, pp.68–73.

[3] Olumared, J., Kay, L., nd Bean, O. (2004) “Fine particles, thin films and exchange anisotropy,” in Magnetism, vol. III, G. T. Rado and H. Suhl, Eds. New York: Academic, 1963, pp. 271–350.

[4] Jauna, E. (2003). “Title of paper if known,” unpublished.

[5] Electronic Publication: Digital Object Identifiers (DOIs):

Article in a journal:

Template Adapted from - http://www.computer.org/portal/web/cscps/frmatting

Kindly visit the journal website at www.cisdi.webstarts.com or contact the Managing Editor for additional information

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ISBN - 978-2257-44-7

An International Journal Publication of the

Creative Research & Technology Evaluation Network in Conjunction with the African Institute of Development Informatics & Policy

© All Rights Reserved

Published in the USA by:

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CISDI Journal Vol 3, No. 1 March 2012

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