Domain and user knowledge in a web-based courseware engineering course, knowlegde-based software engineering.

AIMS is a knowledge-based system for learning and teaching support within the context of distance education. It is aimed not only at enhancing learner's conceptual knowledge in a specific subject area but also at providing knowledge verification tools for the teacher. The system can be used to aid learning and teaching in different subject areas and to provide user-oriented support in searching courserelated information, concept teaching and learning, and conceptual and task-oriented domain structuring

Agent-oriented Modeling for Collaborative Learning Environments: A Peer-to-Peer Helpdesk Case Study

In this paper, we present the analysis and modelling of Help&Learn, an agent-based peer-to-peer helpdesk system to support extra-class interactions among students and teachers. Help&Learn expands the student’s possibility of solving problems, getting involved in a cooperative learning experience that transcends the limits of classrooms. To model Help&Learn, we have used Agent-Object-Relationship Modeling Language (AORML), an UML extension for agent-oriented information systems modeling. The aim of this research is two-fold. On one hand, we aim at modeling the variety of roles and the complexity of their interactions and activities within the Help&Learn system. On the other hand, we aim at showing the expressive power and the modeling strengths of AORML

OntoAIMS: ontological approach to courseware authoring

In this paper we discuss how current ontology concepts can be beneficial for more flexible and semantic rich description of the authoring process and for the provision of authoring support of Intelligent Educational Systems (IES) with respect to the three main authoring modules: domain editing, course composition and resource management. We take a semantic perspective on the knowledge representation within such systems and explore the interoperability between the various ontological structures for domain, instructional and resource modeling and the modeling of the entire authoring process. We build upon our research on Authoring Task Ontology and exemplify it within OntoAIMS system. We present authoring scenarios and show their mapping with authoring task ontology. Further we discuss the OntoAIMS framework for management of electronic learning objects (resources) and their usage in the automatic generation of course templates for the authors. Finally, we describe our architecture, based on the ontological specification of the authoring process

Crowdsourced Evaluation of Semantic Patterns for Recommendations

Abstract. In this paper we explore the use of semantics to improve diversity in recommendations. We use semantic patterns extracted from Linked Data sources to surface new connections between items to provide diverse recommendations to the end users. We evaluate this methodology by adopting a bottom-up approach, i.e. we ask users of a crowdsourcing platform to choose a movie recommendation from among five options. We evaluate the results in terms of a diversity measure based on the semantic distance of topics and genres of the result list. The results of the experiment indicate that there are features of semantic patterns that can be used as an indicator of its suitability for the recommendation process.

Interactive user modeling for personalized access to museum collections : the Rijksmuseum case study

In this paper we present an approach for personalized access to museum collections. We use a RDF/OWL specification of the Rijksmuseum Amsterdam collections as a driver for an interactive dialog. The user gives his/her judgment on the artefacts, indicating likes or dislikes. The elicited user model is further used for generating recommendations of artefacts and topics. In this way we support exploration and discovery of information in museum collections. A user study provided insights in characteristics of our target user group, and showed how novice and expert users employ their background knowledge and implicit interest in order to elicit their art preference in the museum collections

SMILE Maker:a web-based tool for problem solving

This paper focuses on the purposes, theoretical model, and functionality of the SMILE (Solution Mapping Intelligent Learning Environment) Maker--a World Wide Web-based problem-solving tool. From an instructional design point of view, an attempt to establish a balance between constructivism/instructivism, content-treatment interaction/aptitude-treatment interaction, and user locus of control/system locus of control is made. The model behind the SMILE Maker consists of four sub-models (user, content, instructional events, and facilitator), each built from four components. A new concept mapping method that has been developed and experimentally validated is described. Four instructional scenarios--ready-made, tailor-made, self-made, and atelier--are discussed