Quantitative Analysis of Distance Learning Courseware

Web-based courseware are widely developed for distance learning programs in continue education, employee training center, and e-learning portals. Usually, a Web-based courseware contains course contents and on-line tests. However, most Web document development tools are not incorporated with a strategic evaluation mechanism, to allow a quantitative analysis of distance learning courseware. We propose an evaluation mechanism and a multimedia tool, based on our Courseware Diagram, to allow a quantitative justification of courseware. Courseware produced by our development system allows an instructor to choose different instruction sequences based on the outcomes of an exam. Alternatively, the courseware may allow self-guided study in a Web-based distance learning program. This paper explains the courseware diagram, the evaluation algorithm, and the design of our courseware development system.     

远程教育中课件制作的XML实现

给出了一种远程教育课件制作的总体结构，并结合文档实例分块介绍相应XML具体实现的关键做法，对课件的网上制作与课件资源共享具有实用价值。     

CAL in human anatomy

Abstract An evaluation of a first-year course in human anatomy was designed to measure the impact of introducing a generic, computer assisted learning (CAL) program for medical education. Results of the study suggested that use of the different media resources facilitated complementary aspects of learning. A positive influence on the process of learning resulted from working in groups with the CAL program before going into a dissection laboratory for the first time. Both staff and students were able to use their time more efficiently, and an improvement in the overall quality of learning was noted. This was partly attributed to high motivation and interest levels that resulted from the use of the CAL program, and partly to the holistic approach supported by the combination of resources.     

Courseware abstraction: reducing development costs while producing qualitative improvements in CAL

Abstract Courseware abstraction is an approach to CAL whereby the lesson author creates a general parameterized CAL lesson that is then applied to many concrete examples. This approach has the following advantages over alternative approaches to lesson development: it is cost efficient; it facilitates lesson verification; it encourages the provision of as many examples as are desirable; it simplifies the selection of appropriate examples for presentation to each student; it provides a convenient framework for student evaluation, and it supports the development of factually exhaustive lessons. In short, it provides qualitative improvements, while at the same time reducing lesson development costs. Although widely used, courseware abstraction has not previously been identified as an important CAL technique and its relative merits have never received attention. In particular, there has been a failure to recognize that generative CAL derives most of its power from the use of courseware abstraction.     

Computer aided learning and the nurse

The medium of Computer assisted learning (CAL) using a low-cost personal computer has been used to develop courseware addressing a specific teaching and learning need on the subject of intravenous drug administration. By moving away from the menu-driven format emphasis has been placed on assessing questioning rather than responses to questions. Results from formative evaluation including a pilot study have proved encouraging and provided valuable information on the modifications required.     

《机械设计》课程基于翻转课堂教学模式的可行性分析

翻转课堂教学模式在提升教学质量、学生能力方面是一种有效的教学手段。在翻转之前要进行可行性分析,才能保证翻转课堂有效开展。本文以《机械设计》课程为翻转对象,主要从课程特点、教学资源、教学活动、教学评价、教学平台等角度进行可行性分析。提出进行翻转课堂教学之前,教师要做好充分教学准备,合理分析课程特点是否适合翻转、检查教学资源是否齐全、教学活动是否多样性,评价体系是否全面、客观,教学平台是否能满足翻转的要求,学生学习特征是否符合翻转模式,只有对翻转课堂准备条件进行科学分析,才能激发学生持续、有效的学习,才能达到翻转课堂的教学效果。     

CAL evaluation: A cautionary word

Teachers, school administrators and funding agencies are often reluctant to support the acquisition of a CAL facility unless some sort of statistical evidence can be brought forth that will prove the desirability of CAL. There appears to be a widespread belief that statistically tabulated data is the ultimate form of evaluation and an infallible indicator of success or failure. Although statistical evidence should not be overlooked, it is necessary to place it in a more realistic perspective.Through the consideration of a representative discipline, second language learning, the following paper discusses a variety of statistical evaluation types in order to indicate their advantages and their limitations. The paper suggests that other forms of evaluation previously descredited because they do not conform to the norms of scientific measurement are nonetheless valid and reliable—evaluation based on informed opinion, personal judgement and observations formed as a result of direct experience. Although statistical evaluations may be useful to the prospective implementor as a rough indicator of the potential of the computer medium, they cannot guarantee the success, nor forecast the failure of a particular CAL application. Each CAL application is unique unto itself and involves a host of local variables, hardware, courseware, place in curriculum, nature of users, attitude of faculty and so on. Any decision concerning the desirability of CAL should therefore not rely on blind faith in a set of figures but on personal judgement aided by an awareness of local conditions, a good knowledge of the medium and one's own pedagogical expertise.     

Integration of Subjective and Objective Usability Evaluation Based on IEC/IEC 15939: A Case Study for Traffic Supervision Systems

Usability evaluation for interactive systems is one of the greatest interests for the Human–Computer Interaction community. To support this evaluation, several subjective and objective methods have been proposed and applied in academy and industry. In this context, usability evaluators usually work with a lot of and different kinds of data (e.g., ordinal values from questionnaires and performance rates) generated from different methods and tools and related to different usability criteria. In this article, we propose to integrate these data in a single way to better support the quality evaluators’ decision-making for traffic supervision systems domain. We apply the measurement information model defined by IEC/IEC 15939 with the use of indicators in an interactive system evaluation environment. Four indicators are presented from their specifications to their application in the evaluation of a system from a company. These indicators integrate evaluation results from usability questionnaires, an automated ergonomic guidelines inspector, and an electronic informer.     

The evaluation of the Hyper Apuntes interactive learning environment

This paper describes the Hyper Apuntes evaluation experience. Hyper Apuntes is an interactive learning environment which teaches students the basic concepts of computer programming. The courseware basically consists of lecture notes and exercises; it provides students with the possibility of editing, compiling, running programs, and evaluating their learning performance. Hyper Apuntes was firstly adopted in a computer programming course at the Computer Science Department of the University Carlos III of Madrid. A sample of 40 students used the interactive learning environment for a term. The system evaluation was conducted over this trial period. The evaluation objective was to assess the Hyper Apuntes usability and utility, and to collect ideas and suggestions for improving the system. The results drawn from this experience indicated that students found it intuitive and easy to use. In addition, they affirmed that their knowledge and comprehension of the computer programming topics were considerably improved by using the tutorial. Although the final examination results were not as positive as expected, Hyper Apuntes emerged to be a useful learning tool. The Hyper Apuntes evaluation experience could provide useful guidelines for assessing other interactive learning environments.     

Evaluation of CAL in higher education Geography

Abstract In recent years the promotion and incorporation of computer-assisted learning courseware has been a feature of many Geography departments in higher education in the UK. There is little disagreement that this development needs to be thoroughly evaluated to ensure quality and effectiveness. However there has been a lack of rigorous evaluation in practice. A detailed illuminative evaluation of 120 Geography students using focus group interviews and an attitude survey reveals that CAL packages remain unpopular with most learners. This can be attributed to the content and presentation of packages but it is also suggested that contexts of use and perhaps staff disinterest are explanatory factors. Some gender-based and age-based attitude differences are noted. This type of evaluation is of greater use to curriculum developers than objective-led approaches.     

A decade of CAL at a Dutch University

This paper outlines the history of the CAI Group at the University of Nijmegen, The Netherlands. The first part describes the group's formation and structure, responsibilities, and selection of a CAL system. Following this is an overview of past and current projects with commentary on: modes of CAL, role of CAL, subject matter areas, motivational factors, role of externally developed courseware. The third part isolates four major areas related to CAL service, namely: the hardware switch from mainframe to micros, student attitudes towards CAL, service and authoring policies, and courseware design characteristics. Each area is discussed with some “constants” and “variables” provided. The final section looks to the future of CAL at this university, given the problems currently facing Dutch higher education.     

基于XML的个性化课件开发环境研究

个性化课件是远程教育的重要组成部分,该文提出了个性化课件开发环境的框架结构及其相应的功能,将新一代的Web语言XML引入B／S三层数据交换结构,并应用到个性化课件开发环境中,具有减少网络带宽需求,统一数据交换标准和充分体现课件个性化等优点。     

The choice of a CAL system

The choice of a computer assisted learning (CAL) system may be considered from several points of view. e.g. the facilities for authors and instructors, the opinion of students and the cost issue. The analysis is even more complex if a system (or a combination of systems) is chosen for wide-scale introduction in an institution of higher education.Based on recent experience at the University of Leyden (The Netherlands), this article provides a procedure for system selection. First the criteria for the choice of system are outlined. Next a method of comparing CAL systems in an exacting setting is discussed. This is a phase in the procedure of system selection which is seldom carried out in practice because of the requirements of time and money. The findings of the assessment by authors and students and the results of the cost comparison are summarized. Finally, the actual decision as to the choice of system is discussed.The conclusions relating to the actual choice of system are based on CAL systems on the market in 1980 and can formally only apply to the University of Leyden. However, the authors believe that the procedure of system selection may be of interest for many other educational institutions.     

Courseware validation: a case study

Abstract This paper discusses methods used and problems faced in the validation study of LOGICLANDIA , a courseware package for the learning and teaching of predicate logic in Italian upper secondary schools. The courseware underwent a medium scale evaluation process that involved about three hundred students. LOGICLANDIA's validation consisted of three main phases: subjective evaluation, in-house evaluation and field test. The study produced a number of indications of revision of the courseware material, as well as information about effectiveness of the educational approach and satisfaction of students. But rather than going into the details of the results of LOGICLANDIA's evaluation, the paper focuses on problems encountered and adopted solutions that can be generalised to similar cases.     

Dyadic interactions at the microcomputer interface: a case study in computer assisted learning

Abstract A case study in which dyads of subjects (both a pupil-pupil and a teacher-pupil dyad) use a microcomputer computer assisted learning (CAL) program is discussed. We argue that an approach involving the videotaping of pupils' interactions around the computer, microanalysing the resulting dialogue, and relating the results from the dialogue analysis to learning outcomes is a potentially very powerful method for evaluating the educational efficacy of CAL software. The present case study describes a technique for collecting appropriate data, indicates the richness of such dialogue data and illustrates some of the hidden problems in CAL program use which other evaluation methods are unlikely to expose.     

CAL: Improved learning and improved teaching

This paper describes how feedback that has been obtained from CAL programs has been used to improve the quality of teaching and learning. The programs are aimed at promoting qualitative understanding of the analysis of structures and are used with first year undergraduate engineering students.Various methods have been used to obtain this feedback including program generated listing of error patterns, questionnaires, and use of tape recorded solutions made by students during a CAL session. As a result of this feedback, the programs are being revised to improve their effectiveness and to make them more conducive to learning. In addition, supporting lectures and tutorials have been modified to emphasise learning problems highlighted by the feedback. In this manner the total teaching strategy is directed to critical issues of understanding as revealed by the students in their use of the CAL programs and a more effective learning environment produced.     

A model for describing CAL authoring systems applied to TAIGA

This paper is divided into two distinct sections: the first sets a groundwork for describing and evaluating CAL authoring systems; the second applies this evaluation framework to a new authoring system that is growing in popularity in the Netherlands, namely TAIGA (Twente Advanced Interactive Graphic Authoring System). The TAIGA system was designed to be transferable and currently runs on the IBM PC and compatibles. Its source language is MS-PASCAL. The CAL Group at the University of Nijmegen is currently acting as a test site for the system and this paper will reflect some of the groups first experiences with this courseware development tool.     

A Software Maintainability Evaluation Methodology

This paper describes a conceptual framework of software maintainability and an implemented procedure for evaluating a program's documentation and source code for maintainability characteristics. The evaluation procedure includes use of closed-form questionnaires completed by a group of evaluators. Statistical analysis techniques for validating the evaluation procedure are described. Some preliminary results from the use of this methodology by the Air Force Test and Evaluation Center are presented. Areas of future research are discussed.     

化工原理网络多媒体CAI课件的开发

作者选择所见即所得的网页编辑器Dreamweaver开发制作了化工原理网络多媒体CAI课件系统，并采用了CSS、JavaScript等多媒体技术增加教学互动效果，可以激发学生学习化工原理的兴趣，并提高教师的教学质量和效率。该课件放置在Web服务器中即可进行网络远程教学，不受时间、地点、操作系统、浏览器等的限制。     

Conclusions from CALtastrophes

What are the barriers to the widespread introduction of computer aided teaching? Information is collected from a large scale observational study of over 150 lessons which involved CAL, together with reports from 30 teachers who look part in an in-service training course which introduced them to CAL. Examples of problems encountered are classified under five headings: acquiring a reliable computer, setting it up so the whole class can see it, choosing software, learning to drive it and integrating it into the lesson and the curriculum. Conclusions are drawn about how to overcome these problems, in the form of advice to teachers, advisors and LEAs, and lessons for software designers. CAL is not likely to become widespread unless we act on the lessons we have drawn from these observations, and indeed, unless those of us who are responsible for educational innovation set up a dialogue between teachers and software designers.