Learning design approaches for personalised and non-personalised e-learling systems

Recognizing the powerful role that technology plays in the lives of people, researchers are increasingly focusing on the most effective uses of technology to support learning and teaching. Technology enhanced learning (TEL) has the potential to support and transform students’ learning and allows them to choose when, where and how to learn. This paper describes two different approaches for the design of personalised and non-personalised online learning environments, which have been developed to investigate whether personalised e-learning is more efficient than non-personalised e-learning, and discuss some of the student’s experiences and assessment test results based on experiments conducted so far

Computer aided education on special transformer as interactive approach in power engineering education

Due to the popularity of the internet, e-learning has become a new method of learning in recent years. Through the internet, users can freely absorb new knowledge without the restriction of time and place. With this method, there is no need for books because the references materials can be downloaded. The usage of books as reference might be boring and may not attract certain students to study in a long period. Hence, e-learning might be option method to overcome the problem. E-learning provides interactive graphic, animation and interaction between users and the program itself. This paper proposed the usage of e-learning in power engineering education environment. The Computer Aided Education on Special Transformer (CAEOST) software has been developed to provide information about the equipments used in power engineering such as autotransformer, current transformer and voltage transformer. This software has covered the basic operation, applications, tutorial and also virtual lab of the special transformers in interactive and attractive approaches.The usage of interactive animations graphic, buttons and the user friendly approaches attracted users to use the e-learning and able to understand the content easily

Critical success factors for eLearning in Saudi Arabian universities

© 2017, Emerald Publishing Limited. Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to offer insights into the development of eLearning systems and the perceptions of key players in the management of eLearning systems in three large universities in Saudi Arabia. It establishes the relative importance of different factors and compares these findings with studies conducted elsewhere in the world. Design/methodology/approach: Desk research was conducted to gather a profile of the eLearning initiatives in the participating universities. Structured interviews were conducted with senior managers with responsibility for implementing and promoting eLearning in their universities. The interview protocol prompted discussion of the importance of the following sets of factors in the success and acceptance of eLearning: student characteristics, instructor characteristics, learning environment, instructional design, and support. Interviews were transcribed and analysed using thematic analysis. Findings: Supported by the Saudi Government, the three universities in this study have been developing their eLearning services. The two most important groups of critical success factors in this process were regarded as those related to student and instructor characteristics. Further analysis within each group of factors suggested that participants regarded instructor knowledge with learning technologies and student knowledge of computer systems, and technical infrastructure as important facilitators of success. Amongst instructional design factors, clarity of learning objectives and content quality were regarded as important. Insights are offered as to the reasons for these selections. Originality/value: This study furthers earlier research on eLearning managers’ views and contributes to understanding of eLearning and its management in the Middle East

Measuring Complex Problem Solving in Jordanian Higher Education: Feasibility, Construct Validity and Logfile-Based Behavioural Pattern Analyses

This study investigated the feasibility and the applicability of using the third generation computer-based assessment of complex problem solving (CPS) based on the MicroDYN approach at the Jordanian higher education level. The tests were administered online via the eDia assessment platform for all data collections processes. We also investigated the role of strategic exploration and different problem-solving and test-taking behaviours in CPS success, using logfile data to visualize and quantify students’ problem-solving behaviour on ten CPS problems with varying difficulty levels and characteristics. Additionally, in the present study, we go beyond the borders of most studies that focus on students’ problem-solving behaviour pattern analyses in European cultures and education systems and examine Arabic students’ CPS behaviour. Results show that students in the Arabic school system interpret CPS problems the same way. That is, we confirmed the two-dimensional model of CPS, indicating the processes of knowledge acquisition and knowledge application as separate dimensions during the problem-solving process. Analyzing log data, we have identified large differences in students’ test-taking behavior in terms of the effectiveness of their exploration strategy, time-on-task, and number of trials at an international level (Jordan and Hungary). We identified four latent classes in both samples based on the students’ exploration strategy behavior. The tested process indicators proved to be non-invariant over the different latent profiles; that is, there are big differences in the role of the number of manipulations executed, time-on-task, and type of strategy used in actual problem-solving achievement between students that fall within different thinking profiles. Based on the results from the studies, we can conclude that online computer-based assessment is valid and reliable in the Jordanian higher education context. This study contributes to understanding how students from different educational contexts behave while solving complex problems

Personality representation: predicting behaviour for personalised learning support

The need for personalised support systems comes from the growing number of students that are being supported within institutions with shrinking resources. Over the last decade the use of computers and the Internet within education has become more predominant. This opens up a range of possibilities in regard to spreading that resource further and more effectively. Previous attempts to create automated systems such as intelligent tutoring systems and learning companions have been criticised for being pedagogically ineffective and relying on large knowledge sources which restrict their domain of application. More recent work on adaptive hypermedia has resolved some of these issues but has been criticised for the lack of support scope, focusing on learning paths and alternative content presentation. The student model used within these systems is also of limited scope and often based on learning history or learning styles.This research examines the potential of using a personality theory as the basis for a personalisation mechanism within an educational support system. The automated support system is designed to utilise a personality based profile to predict student behaviour. This prediction is then used to select the most appropriate feedback from a selection of reflective hints for students performing lab based programming activities. The rationale for the use of personality is simply that this is the concept psychologists use for identifying individual differences and similarities which are expressed in everyday behaviour. Therefore the research has investigated how these characteristics can be modelled in order to provide a fundamental understanding of the student user and thus be able to provide tailored support. As personality is used to describe individuals across many situations and behaviours, the use of such at the core of a personalisation mechanism may overcome the issues of scope experienced by previous methods.This research poses the following question: can a representation of personality be used to predict behaviour within a software system, in such a way, as to be able to personalise support?Putting forward the central claim that it is feasible to capture and represent personality within a software system for the purpose of personalising services.The research uses a mixed methods approach including a number and combination of quantitative and qualitative methods for both investigation and determining the feasibility of this approach.The main contribution of the thesis has been the development of a set of profiling models from psychological theories, which account for both individual differences and group similarities, as a means of personalising services. These are then applied to the development of a prototype system which utilises a personality based profile. The evidence from the evaluation of the developed prototype system has demonstrated an ability to predict student behaviour with limited success and personalise support.The limitations of the evaluation study and implementation difficulties suggest that the approach taken in this research is not feasible. Further research and exploration is required –particularly in the application to a subject area outside that of programming

The potential impact of utilising social media platforms in Saudi higher education : academic practitioners perception

The use of social media has penetrated the field of education during the past decade, but it is still not widely accepted or used to support teaching and learning despite their potential usefulness. However, since the start of the Coronavirus pandemic, SM have gained momentum as face-to-face teaching and learning came to a halt due to the severity of this infectious virus and due to the ways Covid spreads between people. In Saudi higher education, the usefulness of SM in education has also a situation of mixed perceptions and experiences that needs scrutiny. This study was, therefore, conducted to investigate the perceptions of lecturers, academic leaders, and students on the use of social media technologies at Taibah University in Madinah, Saudi Arabia. The methodology of Qualitative Content Analysis was applied in the study through an inductive approach to analyse qualitative data collected on their perceptions of the potential impact of utilising social media at the selected institution. Data were collected from conducting individual interviews with 21 lecturers, seven academic leaders, and four focus-group sessions with 25 students of both genders, and thematically analysed by categorisation and coding. This led to identifying five overarching areas of insight: general social media use, benefits of social media in education, motivation, and encouragement to use social media for lecturers and students, and challenges in applying social media in education. Several key findings confirmed previous findings by other researchers, although some contradictory findings were also obtained; points of tension were found related to the factors of age, gender, time and control, and numerous new findings emerged from the data which provided insight into the investigated phenomenon for the specific case. Based on the outcomes of the study, several recommendations are made to support the promotion of social media platforms and technologies in Saudi higher education

THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE SOCIAL NETWORK IN HIGHER EDUCATION IN SAUDI ARABIA: ACTION RESEARCH TO DEVELOP AN E-LEARNING CONCEPTUAL MODEL BASED ON BLOG TOOLS

During the last two decades, there has been great interest in integrating computers and technology in higher education. Currently web tool services for learning have attracted researchers in the field of education technology to integrate eLearning within the learning environment. In particular, the Internet has become an increasingly important and novel feature of the modern learning environment. Amongst the innovations, a certain tool has become extremely popular worldwide. It is known as web 2.0. It is a read/write web. Blogs (web logs) are one its fastest growing features. The researcher investigated the exciting prospect of developing an eLearning environment by utilizing and applying effective blogs. To date there has been little use of blogs as online tools in higher education, especially in Saudi Arabia. This study concerned the disclosure of more understanding of the use of web 2.0 applications in higher education in Saudi universities. The first purpose of this study was to develop an eLearning model for web 2.0. Its second purpose was to examine learners’ perceptions and attitudes toward web 2.0 applications, i.e. blog tools by exploring the relationship between learners’ attitudes toward blog tool instructions and factors identified as potentially influencing these attitudes. This research adopted an approach based on an interpretive philosophical paradigm accompanied by a qualitative methodology coupled with action research methods. Learning theories were considered as a theoretical framework. The learning theories considered was Behaviorism, Cognitive and Constructivism with Bloom’s Taxonomy and Boud’s Model. Data was collected qualitatively and analyzed thematically. Triangulation was conducted upon the outcomes of the questionnaires, interviews, observations and blog content analysis. This research made four main contributions. First, it identified the factors that influenced learner acceptance for the use of blog tools in higher education. Second, it investigated the relationship between learners’ attitudes and their acceptance of the utilization of blog tools within their learning environment. Third, it responded to calls from the literature review to investigate blog utilization by conducting an in-depth investigation that utilized qualitative methodology with action research. Lastly, it provided further insight and a better understanding of blog usage with respect to structured/ unstructured learning environments.Minister of Higher Education, Saudi Arabi