Using a simulated student to repair difficulties in collaborative learning

We describe the use of a simulated student in a synchronous but distributed collaborative learning environment in the domain of programming. The role of the simulated student is to detect and repair difficulties in collaborative learning amongst the human students, for example when a human student is too passive or when the students start chatting about off-topic conversations. The simulated student intervenes by posting messages in the shared "chat" window, just like the human students and was believed to be another human student by them. The paper describes the rules by which the simulated student operates and briefly outlines an evaluation of the system with university first year programming students. The system proved to be successful both in detecting a range of difficulties and in intervening effectively

Modelling human teaching tactics and strategies for tutoring systems

One of the promises of ITSs and ILEs is that they will teach and assist learning in an intelligent manner. Historically this has tended to mean concentrating on the interface, on the representation of the domain and on the representation of the student’s knowledge. So systems have attempted to provide students with reifications both of what is to be learned and of the learning process, as well as optimally sequencing and adjusting activities, problems and feedback to best help them learn that domain. We now have embodied (and disembodied) teaching agents and computer-based peers, and the field demonstrates a much greater interest in metacognition and in collaborative activities and tools to support that collaboration. Nevertheless the issue of the teaching competence of ITSs and ILEs is still important, as well as the more specific question as to whether systems can and should mimic human teachers. Indeed increasing interest in embodied agents has thrown the spotlight back on how such agents should behave with respect to learners. In the mid 1980s Ohlsson and others offered critiques of ITSs and ILEs in terms of the limited range and adaptability of their teaching actions as compared to the wealth of tactics and strategies employed by human expert teachers. So are we in any better position in modelling teaching than we were in the 80s? Are these criticisms still as valid today as they were then? This paper reviews progress in understanding certain aspects of human expert teaching and in developing tutoring systems that implement those human teaching strategies and tactics. It concentrates particularly on how systems have dealt with student answers and how they have dealt with motivational issues, referring particularly to work carried out at Sussex: for example, on responding effectively to the student’s motivational state, on contingent and Vygotskian inspired teaching strategies and on the plausibility problem. This latter is concerned with whether tactics that are effectively applied by human teachers can be as effective when embodied in machine teachers

Rother Valley College: report from the Inspectorate (FEFC inspection report; 46/95 and 06/98)

The Further Education Funding Council has a legal duty to make sure further education in England is properly assessed. The FEFC’s inspectorate inspects and reports on each college of further education according to a four-year cycle. This record comprises the reports for periods 1994-95 and 1997-98

Collaboration and computer-assisted acquisition of a second language

In the last few years, the community working on Computer Assisted Learning has started considering a different type of learning as an alternative to traditional ones: collaborative learning (or cooperative learning). We are addressing the question of defining how collaboration could be beneficial to a computer environment for language learning. In order to answer that question , we refer to various research fields, such as Applied linguistics, Psychology of Education, Artificial Intelligence and Education. From thereon we propose an application of collaborative learning to one particular domain of the second language: interrogative sentences in French

The Norfolk College of Arts and Technology: report from the Inspectorate (FEFC inspection report; 27/97)

The Further Education Funding Council has a legal duty to make sure further education in England is properly assessed. The FEFC’s inspectorate inspects and reports on each college of further education according to a four-year cycle. This record contains such report for the period 1996-97

[[alternative]]Virtual Reality-Based Microworld Learning Environment on WWW

計畫編號：NSC88-2520-S032-003研究期間：199808~199907研究經費：334,000[[sponsorship]]行政院國家科學委員

Bexley College: report from the Inspectorate (FEFC inspection report; 63/00 and 14/96)

Comprises two Further Education Funding Council (FEFC) inspection reports for the periods 1995-96 and 1999-200

Introductory programming: a systematic literature review

As computing becomes a mainstream discipline embedded in the school curriculum and acts as an enabler for an increasing range of academic disciplines in higher education, the literature on introductory programming is growing. Although there have been several reviews that focus on specific aspects of introductory programming, there has been no broad overview of the literature exploring recent trends across the breadth of introductory programming. This paper is the report of an ITiCSE working group that conducted a systematic review in order to gain an overview of the introductory programming literature. Partitioning the literature into papers addressing the student, teaching, the curriculum, and assessment, we explore trends, highlight advances in knowledge over the past 15 years, and indicate possible directions for future research

Walsall College of Arts and Technology: report from the Inspectorate (FEFC inspection report; 96/97 and 22/01)

Comprises two Further Education Funding Council (FEFC) inspection reports for the periods 1996-97 and 2000-0

Manchester College of Arts and Technology: report from the Inspectorate (FEFC inspection report; 91/95 and 47/99)

The Further Education Funding Council has a legal duty to make sure further education in England is properly assessed. The FEFC’s inspectorate inspects and reports on each college of further education according to a four-year cycle. This record comprises the reports for periods 1994-95 and 1998-99