Multidimensional evaluation of teaching strategies adopted in the COVID-19 pandemic

This paper proposes a multidimensional social open model to evaluate the teaching strategies adopted during the COVID-19 pandemic by assessing the decisions made by teachers by a group of teachers acting as evaluators. Based on the analysis of previous studies on teaching, this study aims to propose a formal model for the evaluation of teaching strategies in four dimensions: sustainability, usability, accessibility, and creativity. The use of information technologies to measure teaching strategies can bring decisive advantages. This work has been inspired by social rating systems of social networks to propose a measurement system in which a potential large number of evaluators with different levels assess the strategies. In addition, the proposal also includes the evaluation of the evaluators' own work, assigning confidence levels that are based on their experience but also on their evaluations. In this way, we have a social measurement system, in the sense that participation is open to a large number of evaluators. A large community of teacher evaluators will increase the objectivity of the measurement. The outcome of the system will be a characterization of the teaching strategies that will allow to decide in the future which ones should be adopted according to the needs of each one.Open Access funding provided thanks to the CRUE-CSIC agreement with Springer Nature

A new boundary-based morphological model

Mathematical morphology addresses the problem of describing shapes in an n-dimensional space using the concepts of set theory. A series of standardized morphological operations are defined, and they are applied to the shapes to transform them using another shape called the structuring element. In an industrial environment, the process of manufacturing a piece is based on the manipulation of a primitive object via contact with a tool that transforms the object progressively to obtain the desired design. The analogy with the morphological operation of erosion is obvious. Nevertheless, few references about the relation between the morphological operations and the process of design and manufacturing can be found. The non-deterministic nature of classic mathematical morphology makes it very difficult to adapt their basic operations to the dynamics of concepts such as the ordered trajectory. A new geometric model is presented, inspired by the classic morphological paradigm, which can define objects and apply morphological operations that transform these objects. The model specializes in classic morphological operations, providing them with the determinism inherent in dynamic processes that require an order of application, as is the case for designing and manufacturing objects in professional computer-aided design and manufacturing (CAD/CAM) environments. The operators are boundary-based so that only the points in the frontier are handled. As a consequence, the process is more efficient and more suitable for use in CAD/CAM systems

A morphological approach to the design of complex objects

The surface-trajectory model gives a solution to some of the problems presented by the general geometric models where the design of an object is separated from its manufacture. In fact, in this model, the internal representation of objects is made up of machining trajectories. As the display systems usually need triangles to represent the objects, a process of triangulation is needed to visualize them. In other words, a secondary surface model is needed to display the objects. The following is a geometric model that, maintaining the philosophy of the surface-trajectory model, encapsulates the calculation of the machining process from the formal framework that provides the set theory and the mathematical morphology. The model addresses the process of designing objects by assimilation of a machining process by giving solutions to the design of complex objects and an arithmetic to support the generation of trajectories of manufacturing. The design process is similar to the craft work of sculptors designing their pieces by hand with their tools. It also gives a direct solution to the problems of the trajectory generation since they are already defined at the design phase. The model is generic and robust as there are no special cases or complex objects in which the model does not provide a correct solution. It also naturally incorporates the realistic display of the machined objects in a quickly and accurately way

Hacia un modelo integral para la generación de Mundos Virtuales

Uno de los problemas más importantes en los sistemas de Realidad Virtual es la diversidad de los dispositivos visuales y de interacción que existen en la actualidad. Junto a esto, la heterogeneidad de los motores gráficos, los motores físicos y los módulos de Inteligencia Artificial, propicia que no exista un modelo que aúne todos estos aspectos de una forma integral y coherente. Con el objetivo de unificar toda esta diversidad, presentamos un modelo formal que afronta de forma integral el problema de la diversidad en los sistemas de RV, así como la definición de los módulos principales que los constituyen. El modelo propuesto se basa en la definición de una gramática, que integra la actividad necesaria en un sistema de RV, su visualización y su interacción con el usuario. La descripción de un mundo se presenta como una secuencia ordenada de primitivas, transformaciones que modifican el comportamiento de las primitivas y actores que definen la actividad del sistema. Los conceptos de primitiva, transformación y actor son mucho más amplios de lo que es habitual en estos sistemas: Las primitivas no son simples primitivas de dibujo sino acciones que se deben ejecutar en un determinado sistema de presentación, gráfico o no; las transformaciones modifican las primitivas, dependiendo de su naturaleza; los actores desarrollan una o varias actividades en el mundo virtual, se visualizan mediante primitivas y transformaciones, y usan eventos que también se definen en sentido amplio. El modelo presentado tiene como virtud la separación de la actividad del sistema de los dispositivos visuales y de interacción concretos que lo componen. Esto supone varias ventajas: los dispositivos pueden ser sustituidos por otros dispositivos o por simulaciones de estos, los elementos del sistema pueden ser reutilizados, y la representación gráfica puede ser diferente dependiendo del dispositivo visual. En definitiva, se ha pretendido diseñar un sistema integral, adaptativo, reutilizable y genérico. Por último se presenta un caso práctico que permite concretar cómo se utiliza el modelo propuesto

Deterministic mathematical morphology for CAD/CAM

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present a new geometric model based on the mathematical morphology paradigm, specialized to provide determinism to the classic morphological operations. The determinism is needed to model dynamic processes that require an order of application, as is the case for designing and manufacturing objects in CAD/CAM environments. Design/methodology/approach – The basic trajectory-based operation is the basis of the proposed morphological specialization. This operation allows the definition of morphological operators that obtain sequentially ordered sets of points from the boundary of the target objects, inexistent determinism in the classical morphological paradigm. From this basic operation, the complete set of morphological operators is redefined, incorporating the concept of boundary and determinism: trajectory-based erosion and dilation, and other morphological filtering operations. Findings – This new morphological framework allows the definition of complex three-dimensional objects, providing arithmetical support to generating machining trajectories, one of the most complex problems currently occurring in CAD/CAM. Originality/value – The model proposes the integration of the processes of design and manufacture, so that it avoids the problems of accuracy and integrity that present other classic geometric models that divide these processes in two phases. Furthermore, the morphological operative is based on points sets, so the geometric data structures and the operations are intrinsically simple and efficient. Another important value that no excessive computational resources are needed, because only the points in the boundary are processed

Dashboard for Evaluating the Quality of Open Learning Courses

Universities are developing a large number of Open Learning projects that must be subject to quality evaluation. However, these projects have some special characteristics that make the usual quality models not respond to all their requirements. A fundamental part in a quality model is a visual representation of the results (a dashboard) that can facilitate decision making. In this paper, we propose a complete model for evaluating the quality of Open Learning courses and the design of a dashboard to represent its results. The quality model is hierarchical, with four levels of abstraction: components, elements, attributes and indicators. An interesting contribution is the definition of the standards in the form of fulfillment levels, that are easier to interpret and allow using a color code to build a heat map that serves as a dashboard. It is a regular nonagon, divided into sectors and concentric rings, in which each color intensity represents the fulfillment level reached by each abstraction level. The resulting diagram is a compact and visually powerful representation, which allows the identification of the strengths and weaknesses of the Open Learning course. A case study of an Ecuadorian university is also presented to complete the description and draw new conclusions.This research was funded by Universidad Central del Ecuador, through the agreement with Universidad de Alicante for the direction of doctoral theses.” “The APC was funded by Cátedra Santander-UA de Transformación Digital and Smart Learning Research Group, Universidad de Alicante”

Computational Characterization of Activities and Learners in a Learning System

For a technology-based learning system to be able to personalize its learning process, it must characterize the learners. This can be achieved by storing information about them in a feature vector. The aim of this research is to propose such a system. In our proposal, the students are characterized based on their activity in the system, so learning activities also need to be characterized. The vectors are data structures formed by numerical or categorical variables such as learning style, cognitive level, knowledge type or the history of the learner’s actions in the system. The learner’s feature vector is updated considering the results and the time of the activities performed by the learner. A use case is also presented to illustrate how variables can be used to achieve different effects on the learning of individuals through the use of instructional strategies. The most valuable contribution of this proposal is the fact that students are characterized based on their activity in the system, instead of on self-reporting. Another important contribution is the practical nature of the vectors that will allow them to be computed by an artificial intelligence algorithm

Gamificar una propuesta docente. Diseñando experiencias positivas de aprendizaje

Comunicación presentada en las XX Jornadas sobre la Enseñanza Universitaria de la Informática (JENUI), Oviedo, 9-11 julio 2014

An Ontology for Formalizing and Automating the Strategic Planning Process

From late 1980s and early twenty-first century, the environment where the organizations develop and act, has become increasingly uncertain and complex. Under these conditions, organizations have detected the need to move towards a more participatory model to address and reduce the complexity, based on information and knowledge as core assets to reduce environmental uncertainty and thereby ensure better decision-making. This new form of governance involves changes in the Strategic Planning process that are aligned with the characteristics of the new organizational model. Ontologies, as theories of content that allow the formalization of processes and knowledge, are a key element in this context. The aim of this paper is to formally define an ontology that could be defined in the future using the Web Ontology Language (OWL) that meets the standards approved by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) and that is used to formalize the process of SP, as well as the knowledge that is created and flows among the several participants in the process

Construction of Intelligent Virtual Worlds Using a Grammatical Framework

The potential of integrating multiagent systems and virtual environments has not been exploited to its whole extent. This paper proposes a model based on grammars, called Minerva, to construct complex virtual environments that integrate the features of agents. A virtual world is described as a set of dynamic and static elements. The static part is represented by a sequence of primitives and transformations and the dynamic elements by a series of agents. Agent activation and communication is achieved using events, created by the so-called event generators. The grammar defines a descriptive language with a simple syntax and a semantics, defined by functions. The semantics functions allow the scene to be displayed in a graphics device, and the description of the activities of the agents, including artificial intelligence algorithms and reactions to physical phenomena. To illustrate the use of Minerva, a practical example is presented: a simple robot simulator that considers the basic features of a typical robot. The result is a functional simple simulator. Minerva is a reusable, integral, and generic system, which can be easily scaled, adapted, and improved. The description of the virtual scene is independent from its representation and the elements that it interacts with