Variability Handling in Educational Context

Today there are many different forms of educational activities present, e.g., traditional lecturing, e-learning, blended learning and living labs. Also, the audience becomes more and more international and heterogeneous in terms of background knowledge of students, their educational purposes, capabilities and expectations. This introduces a high level of variability in educational settings and requires new methods and tools for managing this variability. Customized application of feature models, known in software product line management, is one possible solution applicable for variability handling in educational context. This paper proposes the development of a feature model as the method for variability handling

ATTITUDE OF STUDENTS TOWARDS BLENDED LEARNING

Abstract Blended learning is a learning system that combines both online and face to face learning. It has come with its advantages as well as its disadvantages thus resulting in either positive or negative attitudes of users. The study sets out to understand the attitude of postgraduate students towards blended learning and the factors that influences their attitude. The study adopted a survey method, it makes use of questionnaire for data gathering. Data was gathered from a population of 130 post graduate students in department of Information Management, Lead City University sampling a number of 97 using Krejce and Morgan table. 95 of the questionnaire which was I Google form was filled and analyzed using simple statistical table while the hypothesis was tested using multiple regression analysis via SPSS statistical software package. The study revealed positive attitude of postgraduates towards blended learning with 94.7% accepting that BL is beneficial and that it should be encouraged. Moreover, nearly nine in ten 89.5% concurred that BL is intriguing and engaging. 94.8% of the respondents agreed that the major challenge is network or internet connectivity issues. 84.2% of the respondents agreed that some topics are better treated in physical classes while 89.5% of the respondents making majority agreed that blended learning reduces the touch of human. The Null hypothesis that there is no joint significant influence of subjective norm, behavioural control and external factors on the attitude of post graduate students towards blended learning was rejected with at a significant level of (Adj.R2 =0.517, F(3,91) =34.595, p =0.000). The researcher recommends that Higher institution of learning should embrace Blended Learning as the two (face to face and online learning) can create a balanced learning experience. Keywords: Blended Learning, Attitudes, Postgraduates, Online learning, E-learning, Learning Management System. Number of words: 28

Designing MOOC:a shared view on didactical principles

The innovative impact of the paper can be highlighted by the following statements: 1. Applying the Group Concept Mapping, a non-traditional and power research methodology for objectively identifying the shared vision of a group of experts on MOOC didactical principles. 2. Defining MOOC didactical principles and their operationalisations in more concrete guidelines. 3. Formulating suggestions for combining xMOOC and cMOOC.Supported by European Commission, DG EAC, under the Erasmus+ Programm

Attitudes of Teachers Towards Blended Learning and Their Training Needs

This study aimed to showcase the attitudes of upper basic stage teachers towards blended learning and their training needs in Jordan. The study employed a descriptive correlational methodology and formulated two instruments, confirming their validity and reliability. Data was collected from a sample of (119) educators, comprising both male and female teachers, chosen through random selection. The study’s results showed that the attitudes of teachers towards blended learning were medium, with a total arithmetic mean of (3.60), and the degree of training needs to employ blended learning in teaching was high, with a total arithmetic mean of (3.86). The study concluded that there is a positive correlation between teachers attitudes toward blended learning and their training needs. The study reached several recommendations, taking advantage of the positive attitudes of primary school teachers towards blended learning in teaching and profiting from its educational features

Is Metaverse in education a blessing or a curse: a combined content and bibliometric analysis

The Metaverse has been the centre of attraction for educationists for quite some time. This field got renewed interest with the announcement of social media giant Facebook as it rebranding and positioning it as Meta. While several studies conducted literature reviews to summarize the findings related to the Metaverse in general, no study to the best of our knowledge focused on systematically summarizing the finding related to the Metaverse in education. To cover this gap, this study conducts a systematic literature review of the Metaverse in education. It then applies both content and bibliometric analysis to reveal the research trends, focus, and limitations of this research topic. The obtained findings reveal the research gap in lifelogging applications in educational Metaverse. The findings also show that the design of Metaverse in education has evolved over generations, where generation Z is more targeted with artificial intelligence technologies compared to generation X or Y. In terms of learning scenarios, there have been very few studies focusing on mobile learning, hybrid learning, and micro learning. Additionally, no study focused on using the Metaverse in education for students with disabilities. The findings of this study provide a roadmap of future research directions to be taken into consideration and investigated to enhance the adoption of the Metaverse in education worldwide, as well as to enhance the learning and teaching experiences in the Metaverse

SYNERGY OF LANGUAGE LEARNING AND VIRTUAL LEARNING PLATFORMS IN STUDIES

The paper presents comprehensive study of applicability of various language learning platforms to the development of foreign language that are indicated in the Common European Framework of Reference for Language (CEFR). To carry out the research, a number of language learning platforms that are used as an alternative to Learning Management Systems (such as Moodle) was selected and on their basis a questionnaire was designed. The quantitative research involved faculty students and lecturers of Vilnius College of Technologies and design. The results of the research permitted us to draw a list of recommendations on which language learning platforms are best to be used in EFL classrooms to facilitate the development of foreign language competences

The Adoption and Use of Moodle in Online Learning: A Systematic Review

The rapid evolution of ICT has enabled several institutions to adopt Moodle as their preferred e-learning platform. Moodle is increasingly being used for interactive, personalised, and collaborative learning and improving online assessments. Despite Moodles increasing popularity, there are limited reviews on the empirical evidence of its efficacy among students. The study aimed to provide an overview of the scientific literature on the studies that investigated the behavioural intention and actual usage of Moodle. This review shows that Moodle is mainly used in universities and effectively improves student performance, attitude, and satisfaction. Most studies that applied a theoretical ground applied the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM). Meanwhile, performance expectancy, effort expectancy, facilitating condition, perceived usefulness of professors, perceived ease of use, and subjective norms are essential drivers for online learning systems acceptance or actual usage. These findings serve as evidence and reference for educational institutions in developing online learning policies and strategies. Further studies need to incorporate behavioural and motivational theories when designing Moodle courses

Context based learning: a survey of contextual indicators for personalized and adaptive learning recommendations. A pedagogical and technical perspective

Learning personalization has proven its effectiveness in enhancing learner performance. Therefore, modern digital learning platforms have been increasingly depending on recommendation systems to offer learners personalized suggestions of learning materials. Learners can utilize those recommendations to acquire certain skills for the labor market or for their formal education. Personalization can be based on several factors, such as personal preference, social connections or learning context. In an educational environment, the learning context plays an important role in generating sound recommendations, which not only fulfill the preferences of the learner, but also correspond to the pedagogical goals of the learning process. This is because a learning context describes the actual situation of the learner at the moment of requesting a learning recommendation. It provides information about the learner current state of knowledge, goal orientation, motivation, needs, available time, and other factors that reflect their status and may influence how learning recommendations are perceived and utilized. Context aware recommender systems have the potential to reflect the logic that a learning expert may follow in recommending materials to students with respect to their status and needs. In this paper, we review the state-of-the-art approaches for defining a user learning-context. We provide an overview of the definitions available, as well as the different factors that are considered when defining a context. Moreover, we further investigate the links between those factors and their pedagogical foundations in learning theories. We aim to provide a comprehensive understanding of contextualized learning from both pedagogical and technical points of view. By combining those two viewpoints, we aim to bridge a gap between both domains, in terms of contextualizing learning recommendations

Developing sustainable business models for institutions’ provision of open educational resources: Learning from OpenLearn users’ motivations and experiences

Universities across the globe have, for some time, been exploring the possibilities for achieving public benefit and generating business and visibility through releasing and sharing open educational resources (OER). Many have written about the need to develop sustainable and profitable business models around the production and release of OER. Downes (2006), for example, has questioned the financial sustainability of OER production at scale. Many of the proposed business models focus on OER’s value in generating revenue and detractors of OER have questioned whether they are in competition with formal education. This paper reports on a study intended to broaden the conversation about OER business models to consider the motivations and experiences of OER users as the basis for making a better informed decision about whether OER and formal learning are competitive or complementary with each other. The study focused on OpenLearn - the Open University’s (OU) web-based platform for OER, which hosts hundreds of online courses and videos and is accessed by over 3,000,000 users a year. A large scale survey and follow-up interviews with OpenLearn users worldwide revealed that university provided OER can offer learners a bridge to formal education, allowing them to try out a subject before registering on a formal course and to build confidence in their abilities as learners. In addition, it was found that using OER during formal paid-for study can improve learners’ performance and self-reliance, leading to increased retention and satisfaction with the learning experience