User-driven Development of an Inquiry-Based Learning Platform: Formative Evaluations in weSPOT

This paper describes the formative evaluation activities that were designed and implemented during the development of the weSPOT inquiry based learning platform. With the ambition to provide a platform that supports a broad range of inquiry activities in accordance with end-users needs, an agile software development approach was followed as a process of co-design between practitioners, researchers and developers. The paper focuses on the design of end-user centric evaluation activities for fully exploiting the potential of agile development. A detailed overview of several case studies is presented to demonstrate how implementing a continuous evaluation cycle allowed to pinpoint and help resolve arising issues in a process of collaboration between technology development and pedagogy

Capturing high-level requirements of information dashboards' components through meta-modeling

[EN]Information dashboards are increasing their sophistication to match new necessities and adapt to the high quantities of generated data nowadays.These tools support visual analysis, knowledge generation, and thus, are crucial systems to assist decision-making processes.However, the design and development processes are complex, because several perspectives and components can be involved.Tailoringcapabilities are focused on providing individualized dashboards without affecting the time-to-market through the decrease of the development processes' time. Among the methods used to configure these tools, the software product lines paradigm and model-driven development can be found. These paradigms benefit from the study of the target domain and the abstraction of features, obtaining high-level models that can be instantiated into concrete models. This paper presents a dashboard meta-model that aims to be applicable to any dashboard. Through domain engineering, different features of these tools are identified and arranged into abstract structuresand relationships to gain a better understanding of the domain. The goal of the meta-model is to obtain a framework for instantiating any dashboard to adapt them to different contexts and user profiles.One of the contexts in which dashboards are gaining relevance is Learning Analytics, as learning dashboards are powerful tools for assisting teachers and students in their learning activities.To illustrate the instantiation process of the presented meta-model, a small example within this relevant context (Learning Analytics) is also provided

Formal Concept Analysis for Modelling Students in a Technology-enhanced Learning Setting

Abstract. We suggest the Formal Concept Analysis (FCA) as theoretical backbone in technology-enhanced learning settings to support a students´ learning process in two ways: i) by engaging with concept lattices, the structure of the knowledge domain and the interrelations of its concepts become explicit, and ii) by providing visual feedback in form of open learner modelling, the student´s reflection on the own strengths and weaknesses is facilitated. For teachers, the FCA provides intuitive visualizations for a set of pedagogically relevant questions, concerning the performance of students on the individual-as well as on the class-level

weSPOT: Inquiry based learning meets learning analytics

weSPOT, a project supported by the European Commission, addresses several challenges to building personal knowledge, specifically in the area of science. It focuses on inquiry-based learning, in which the learner takes the role of a self-motivated explorer, and provides support for building these skills. The main problem areas weSPOT tackles are the general lack of inquiry skills in students from ages 12 to 25, the dearth of technological support to bolster students’ curiosity, linking everyday world experiences to the classroom, streamlining e-learning with inquiry-based approaches, and measuring the impact of inquiry projects. weSPOT’s main objectives are: (a) defining a reference model for inquiry-based learning skills, (b) creating a diagnostic instrument for measuring inquiry skills, and (c) implementing a working environment that allows the easy linking of inquiry activities with school curricula and legacy systems

Customization options in consumer health information materials on type-2 diabetes mellitus—an analysis of modifiable features in different types of media

IntroductionThe understanding of health-related information is essential for making informed decisions. However, providing health information in an understandable format for everyone is challenging due to differences in consumers’ health status, disease knowledge, skills, and preferences. Tailoring health information to individual needs can improve comprehension and increase health literacy.ObjectiveThe aim of our research was to analyze the extent to which consumers can customize consumer health information materials (CHIMs) for type-2 diabetes mellitus through various media types.MethodsWe conducted a comprehensive search for various CHIMs across various media types, such as websites, apps, videos, and printed or printable forms. A representative sample of CHIMs was obtained for analysis through blocked randomization across the various media types. We conducted a quantitative content analysis to determine the frequency of user-centered customization options. Cross-comparisons were made to identify trends and variations in modifiable features among the media.ResultsIn our representative sample of 114 CHIMs, we identified a total of 24 modifiable features, which we grouped into five main categories: (i) language, (ii) text, (iii) audiovisual, (iv) presentation, and (v) medical content. Videos offered the most customization opportunities (95%), while 47% of websites and 26% of apps did not allow users to tailor health information. None of the printed or printable materials provided the option to customize the information. Overall, 65% of analyzed CHIMs did not allow users to tailor health information according to their needs.ConclusionOur results show that CHIMs for type-2 diabetes mellitus could be significantly improved by providing more customization options for users. Further research is needed to investigate the effectiveness and usability of these options to enhance the development and appropriate provision of modifiable features in health information

Using Behavioral Indicators to Assess Competences in a Sustainable Manufacturing Learning Scenario

Part 3: Human Factors, Learning and InnovationInternational audienceThis paper introduces a learning scenario created for a serious game to develop competences in the domain of sustainable manufacturing, by applying a Lifecycle Assessment (LCA). A set of behavioral indicators is introduced to assess how particular competences do change while the player is engaged in playing the game scenario. It furthermore presents early evaluation results of the game scenario on a sample of master grade students at the University of Bremen

A framework for cognitive bias detection and feedback in a visual analytics environment

This paper presents a framework that supports the detection and mitigation of cognitive biases in visual analytics environments for criminal analysis. Criminal analysts often use visual analytics environments for their analysis of large data sets, for gaining insights on criminal events and patterns of criminal events, and for drawing conclusions and making decisions. However, due to the nature of human cognition, these cognitive processes may lead to systematic errors, so-called cognitive biases. The most prominent and relevant cognitive bias in the intelligence field is the confirmation bias, in which an analyst disproportionally considers and selects information that supports the initial expectation and hypothesis. The framework presented in this paper describes a model, how the possible occurence of the confirmation bias can be detected automatically, while the analyst makes use of the visual environment. Moreover, based on this information, different feedback methods are employed that support and encourage the mitigation of the confirmation bias. This framework is in a work-in-progress state and contains research objectives and directions, the framework design, initial implementations, plans for further development and integration, as well as user-centric evaluation.status: publishe