11 research outputs found

    Motivational and metacognitive feedback in an ITS: linking past states and experiences to current problems

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    Feedback is an important element in learning as it can provide learners with both information about progress as well as external motivational stimuli, providing them with an opportunity for reflection. Motivation and metacognition are strongly intertwined, with learners high in self-efficacy more likely to use a variety of self-regulatory learning strategies, as well as to persist longer on challenging tasks. Learning from past experience involves metacognitive processes as an act of reflecting upon one’s own experience and, coupled with existing knowledge, aids the acquisition and construction of further knowledge. The aim of the research was to improve the learner’s focus on the process and experience of problem solving while using an Intelligent Tutoring System (ITS), by addressing the primary question: what are the effects of including motivational and metacognitive feedback based on the learner’s past states and experiences? An existing ITS, SQL-Tutor, was used in a study with participants from first year undergraduate degrees studying a database module. The study used two versions of SQL-Tutor: the Control group used a base version providing domain feedback and the Study group used an extended version that also provided motivational and metacognitive feedback. Three sources of data collection were used: module summative assessments, ITS log files and a post-study questionnaire. The analysis included both pre-post comparisons and how the participants interacted with the system, for example their persistence in problem-solving and the degree to which they referred to past learning. Comparisons between groups showed some differing trends both in learning and behaviour in favour of the Study group, though these trends were not significantly different. The study findings showed promise for the use of motivational and metacognitive feedback based on the learners’ past states and experiences that could be used as a basis for future research work and refinement

    A model for information access and flow for electronic Governance in selected local governments in Uganda

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    Advances in information technology (IT) and the global shift from governance to e-governance in the public sector have motivated Uganda to put in place a robust information communication technology (ICT) infrastructure to enhance citizen access to e-information and information flow for e-governance in its local governments. However, this has not been realized due to a lack of functional information systems. This study investigated critical issues in information access and flow in Isingiro district and Mbarara municipality – two of Uganda’s upper local governments – with the aim of modeling an information system to support e-governance in these governments. Rooted in a pragmatist epistemology with an orientation towards mixed methods research (MMR), the study adopted a methodological triangulation technique. A convergent design was adopted that involved the concurrent collection and analysis of quantitative and qualitative data. A random sampling scheme was used to select 360 participants from 8 study sites for a questionnaire survey, while a purposive sampling scheme was used to select 64 people to participate in 8 focus group discussions (FGDs) and 25 in key informant interviews. The findings of the study indicate that citizen access to e-governance information in the local governments is low. Information flow to the citizens is constrained by lack of affordable media outlets, so the local governments are forced to keep frequency of government to citizen (G2C) communication to a bare minimum. Worse still, government communication lacks formal programming: neither is it based on an information needs assessment of the citizens nor does it have a feedback mechanism. There are also myriad factors breeding inequality and social disadvantage within the communities that constrain citizen access to ICT tools and e-skills. The findings show also that the current e-governance models are ICT-intensive and highly reliant on the Internet, so they require higher e-skills levels and higher diffusion of ICT tools than those currently available in developing countries. The models are also largely civil society oriented. However, a SWOT analysis shows that the local governments have the capacity to implement a home-grown, hybrid e-governance system of information access and flow. The study recommends inter alia that the local governments establish their own broadcasting services, base their public communications on citizen e-information needs, and design multi-media communication strategies combining traditional and convergent media. More importantly, the study recommends the implementation of an interactive, hybrid and multimedia e-governance information system, whose model it articulates.Information ScienceD. Litt. et Phil. (Information Science

    The use of ALICE, a visual environment for teaching and learning object-oriented programming

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    University students learning object-oriented programming (OOP) encounter many complexities. This study undertook empirical research aimed at analysing learners’ interactions with the Alice visual programming environment, which seeks to engage and motivate learners to grasp concepts of OOP, whilst creating animated movies and video games. A mixed-methods approach was employed, using questionnaire surveys and interviews to investigate learners’ experiences with Alice and their understanding of OOP. Findings indicated that learners lacked problem-solving abilities; were unable to grasp programming concepts on an abstract level and spent insufficient time practicing programming exercises. Alice proved to be an effective tool in helping to address these challenges and in improving learners’ grasp of OOP. Learners found Alice to have good usability. Furthermore, test and exam results revealed a statistically significant difference between performances of learners who had been taught Alice in comparison to similar learners who were not exposed to the Alice intervention.ComputingInformation SystemsM. Sc. (Information systems

    Measuring online moral reasoning: the development and psychometric properties of the cyberethics scale

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    Thesis (Ed.D.)--Boston UniversityThis dissertation developed a valid and reliable instrument that measures online moral reasoning. This instrument is referred to as the Cyberethics Scale (CES). The dissertation examines theoretical basis of CES and describes the process of developing the CES. Cognitive-developmental theories of moral judgment generally explain diverse ways that individuals advance their moral judgment. The study adapted concepts of several theories-particularly those ofKolhberg (1984) and Gibbs, Basinger, and Fuller (1992)-and applied them to identify states of moral reasoning specifically in an online environment. Evidence to confirm the validity and reliability ofthe CES during this process derived from a pilot study, understandability study, expert review panel, and statistical analysis. The psychometric properties were assessed with data from 243 participants recruited through Amazon Mechanical Turk (Mturk) website. The CES is a short answer survey that can be group-administrable as a paper-pencil format and online format and requires an average of 10 minutes to complete 10-item survey. The scoring is self-trained. An estimated time to complete scoring a protocol is 20 minutes, which is equivalent to the SRM-SF scoring time. The psychometric properties of the CES are acceptable (r = .604, n = 243). This reliability measure is comparable to the Chronbach Alpha of the Sociomoral Reflection Measure-Short Form when assessed with adult sample (r = .5762, n=48)

    Semantic discovery and reuse of business process patterns

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    Patterns currently play an important role in modern information systems (IS) development and their use has mainly been restricted to the design and implementation phases of the development lifecycle. Given the increasing significance of business modelling in IS development, patterns have the potential of providing a viable solution for promoting reusability of recurrent generalized models in the very early stages of development. As a statement of research-in-progress this paper focuses on business process patterns and proposes an initial methodological framework for the discovery and reuse of business process patterns within the IS development lifecycle. The framework borrows ideas from the domain engineering literature and proposes the use of semantics to drive both the discovery of patterns as well as their reuse

    Air Force Institute of Technology Research Report 2009

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    This report summarizes the research activities of the Air Force Institute of Technology’s Graduate School of Engineering and Management. It describes research interests and faculty expertise; lists student theses/dissertations; identifies research sponsors and contributions; and outlines the procedures for contacting the school. Included in the report are: faculty publications, conference presentations, consultations, and funded research projects. Research was conducted in the areas of Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering, Electrical Engineering and Electro-Optics, Computer Engineering and Computer Science, Systems and Engineering Management, Operational Sciences, Mathematics, Statistics and Engineering Physics

    Multimodal Accessibility of Documents

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    The Learning Styles and Approaches of Students Studying the Fundamental Algorithmic Concepts course at the University of the Witwatersrand

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    Student Number : 8109673 - MSc research report - School of Science Education - Faculty of ScienceMany students fail the Fundamental Algorithmic Concepts course, in first year Computer Science at the University of the Witwatersrand. To obtain an understanding of why this occurs, the learning styles and learning approaches of the students studying the course and the relationship of these concepts with student grades were researched. A predominately qualitative paradigm was used, supplemented with quantitative data. Two research designs were selected: a survey to get a broad overview of the sample and an ethnographic design to provide an in-depth description of a small group. Existing instruments were used for the survey, namely Felder and Soloman’s Index of Learning Styles and a learning approach diagnostic test that was constructed in South Africa. An interview with open-ended questions was used for the ethnographic research. Contrary to expectations, the results of the study indicated that the adoption of a deep learning approach did not imply success. The findings suggest that a strategic learning approach may be required to achieve good grades. In contrast to other studies, over 65% of the sample population were black students. It was found that black students tend to adopt a deeper learning approach than the rest of the students. From a learning style perspective there was some new evidence to indicate that the more intuitive or global a student was, the deeper the approach the student adopted to learning. A large percentage (over 80%) of the population were visual learners and an unusually high percentage (over 60%) were reflective learners. The lecturer should match the workload and assessment methods with the desired learning approach of the students. The lecturer should also encourage the students to adopt a strategic learning approach where appropriate. In addition, the lecturer should pay particular attention to incorporating teaching styles that accommodate students with visual and active learning style preferences

    Empirical assessment of patterns and guidelines for web design.

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    The phenomenal and explosive growth of the internet makes the need for proven, dependable approaches to interaction and interface design more important. Efficient and effective design methods are needed, complete with appropriate techniques and tools that support designers in developing and delivering usable systems. Knowledge and experience significantly contribute to producing better design products. Traditionally, design knowledge and experience is conveyed in the form of guidelines. In recent years, there has been a growing interest in design patterns as an effective way of capturing and communicating design knowledge.This thesis contributes to the ongoing debate concerning the benefits of patterns, as they are contrasted to another form of design guidance in the field of web design. The thesis investigates the effect of patterns and guidelines in the development of skills of students acting as novice designers. The aim is to empirically test how patterns and guidelines affect novice designers in creating and evaluating a web site. Its motivation is to advance the understanding of how novices employ and value patterns and guidelines after being introduced to usability issues with the help of these tools. Moreover, this study also highlighted participants' attitudes and preferences towards patterns and guidelines.Three experiments were conducted for the purposes of this research. Each experiment contributed significantly to the understanding of how the next experiment should be carried out, and the findings and lessons learned at each stage have extensively influenced the next stage. Both quantitative and qualitative methods were used to collect and analyze data. Detailed descriptions of the experimental procedures are provided and give insights into the use of patterns and guidelines by novices. The results indicate that patterns and guidelines can successfully communicate usability principles and knowledge to novice designers and can affect the design and evaluation skills of participants.The difference in the overall scores in the design task between the two groups, using subjective and objective metrics, is statistically significant with the patterns group performing better. Results from the design task and the interviews suggest that compound patterns are inferior to simple patterns and do not create a clear picture of all the usability issues involved to novice designers. There is no significant difference between the performances of the two groups in the evaluation task. However, if a comparison is made using difficult to identify errors the patterns group perform significantly better than the guidelines group.The overwhelming preference for a particular format in presenting guidance is patterns even by the participants trained with guidelines. Links to other patterns within the pattern collection and pattern names are not appreciated by participants, although guideline titles are considered to provide useful information and guidance. Patterns are considered by participants as better tools to introduce design principles to novices while guidelines are perceived as tools for more experienced designers. At the same time patterns are suggested as a useful pedagogic tool for teaching.Overall the study represents an important fist step towards comparing patterns with another similar tool for providing guidance to designers. Development of original experimental designs was required since no similar studies have been conducted. The work of this thesis can serve as a starting point for more thorough assessment of design patterns and their potential benefits in designing more usable interfaces and in education as a tool for knowledge transfer and training

    Educational Technology and Education Conferences, January to June 2016

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