Connecting electronic portfolios and learner models

Using electronic portfolios (e-portfolios) to assist learning is an important component of future educational models. A portfolio is a purposeful collection of student work that exhibits the student's efforts, progress and achievements in one or more areas. An e-portfolio contains a variety of information about a person's learning outcomes, such as artifacts, assertions from others, self-reflective information and presentation for different purposes. E-portfolios become sources of evidence for claims about prior conceptual knowledge or skills. This thesis investigates using the information contained in e-portfolios to initialize the learner model for an intelligent tutoring system. We examine the information model from the e-portfolio standardized specification and present a method that may assist users in initializing learner models using e-portfolios as evidence for claims about prior conceptual knowledge or skills. We developed the EP-LM system for testing how accurately a learner model can be built and how beneficial this approach can be for reflective and personalized learning. Experimental results are presented aiming at testing whether accurate learner models can be created through this approach and whether learners can gain benefits in reflective and personalized learning. Monitoring this process can also help ITS developers and experts identify how an initial learner model can automatically arise from an e-portfolio. Additionally, a well-structured learner model, generated by an intelligent tutoring system also can be attached to an e-portfolio for further use by the owner and others

Personalised e-Learning

This thesis proposes to add value to the traditional e-learning systems by personalising the content being presented. The personalisation process was brought together through the amalgamation of crowdsourcing techniques, explicit with learners’ interests, and learner profiling technologies. A prototype called iPLE, intelligent personal learning environment, was developed and tested within an empirical study where participants experienced and compared the proposed iPLE with a static e-learning environment and a standard face-to-face delivery. A number of data collection instruments have been integrated within the empirical study to accumulate participants’ feedback. The results were fully documented and analysed using a combination of quantitative and qualitative data analysis tools that generated essential assessment information. An indicative improvement was reported following the data analysis and evaluation of results that led to the conclusion that even though there is plenty of room for further development and research, the combination of the proposed techniques does help and assist in rendering e-learning more effective

Personal Learning Environments for Inquiry-Based Learning

Personal Learning Environments have recently emerged as a novel approach to learning, putting learners in the spotlight and providing them with the tools for building their own learning environments according to their specific learning needs and aspirations. This approach enables learners to take complete control over their learning, thus becoming self-regulated and independent. This paper introduces a new European initiative for supporting and enhancing inquiry-based learning through Personal Learning Environments consisting of personal and social inquiry tools. This approach aims at supporting students in developing their self-regulated learning skills by conducting their scientific inquiries in collaboration with their peers

7th International Conference on Higher Education Advances (HEAd'21)

Information and communication technologies together with new teaching paradigms are reshaping the learning environment.The International Conference on Higher Education Advances (HEAd) aims to become a forum for researchers and practitioners to exchange ideas, experiences,opinions and research results relating to the preparation of students and the organization of educational systems.Doménech I De Soria, J.; Merello Giménez, P.; Poza Plaza, EDL. (2021). 7th International Conference on Higher Education Advances (HEAd'21). Editorial Universitat Politècnica de València. https://doi.org/10.4995/HEAD21.2021.13621EDITORIA

Teachers\u27 Perceptions and Experiences in Implementing Mobile Devices Into Their Teaching

This phenomenological study addressed the lack of understanding of how teachers implement personal devices in the classroom and whether the instruction is constructivist in nature. Although mobile technology is convenient, it is not yet understood if Bring Your Own Device/Technology (BYOD/BYOT) programs encourage a teacher pedagogy shift. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the perceptions and lived experiences of 10 teachers in Grades 6 to 12 who had been part of a BYOD/BYOT program for more than 2 years. Data from interviews and lesson demonstrations were analyzed via a constructivist framework first identifying themes and then categories. Teachers perceived that using mobile technology provided the replacement of old tools, instructional planning changes, and the shifting of learning to the students from the traditional design of the teacher as the lecturer to the teacher as the facilitator. Teachers experienced more student engagement and collaboration although they needed to monitor students more carefully to avoid students\u27 being off task and to ensure safety usage of the mobile devices in the classroom. There are implications for social change both on the local and organizational level. Teachers can better understand how their pedagogy aligns with constructivist teaching and learning, and therefore can see where they still need to grow. On the organizational level, school districts may better understand that using technology at first will be used to replace previous pedagogy practices directly and that it will take support and time for technology implementation to impact changes in teachers\u27 philosophy of teaching

Challenges for engineering students working with authentic complex problems

Engineers are important participants in solving societal, environmental and technical problems. However, due to an increasing complexity in relation to these problems new interdisciplinary competences are needed in engineering. Instead of students working with monodisciplinary problems, a situation where students work with authentic complex problems in interdisciplinary teams together with a company may scaffold development of new competences. The question is: What are the challenges for students structuring the work on authentic interdisciplinary problems? This study explores a three-day event where 7 students from Aalborg University (AAU) from four different faculties and one student from University College North Denmark (UCN), (6th-10th semester), worked in two groups at a large Danish company, solving authentic complex problems. The event was structured as a Hackathon where the students for three days worked with problem identification, problem analysis and finalizing with a pitch competition presenting their findings. During the event the students had workshops to support the work and they had the opportunity to use employees from the company as facilitators. It was an extracurricular activity during the summer holiday season. The methodology used for data collection was qualitative both in terms of observations and participants’ reflection reports. The students were observed during the whole event. Findings from this part of a larger study indicated, that students experience inability to transfer and transform project competences from their previous disciplinary experiences to an interdisciplinary setting