CAL delivery selection criteria and authoring systems

Abstract  In the past, authoring systems have been used to generate computer-assisted learning materials that have often followed the rather restrictive programmed learning format. A number of innovative ways of using recently developed systems to develop CAL packages that include a wider range of learning activities (access to data bases, simulations, interactive video, etc.) are described. Analogous to the concept of a media selection model, a computer delivery mode selection model is presented as an aid to decision making for designers. This increase in flexibility should broaden the applicability of computerassisted learning (CAL) to a wider range of educational objectives and raise the level of the cognitive emphasis in learning packages, as well as facilitate the implementation of visually appealing materials. The paper also implies a standard of acceptability for authoring systems.     

基于本体的教学资源库及课件开发系统设计

针对教育界虽然拥有丰富的教学资源,而互联网上却缺少可重用的教学课件及微教学单元的现状,设计了互联网教学资源库知识构架及知识表达形式,给出了基于本体的教学资源库及课件开发系统的结构、功能及多媒体课件的管理方法.研究表明,基于本体的教学资源库提供可重用的教学资源库设计及开发部件,对教学资源库的框架描述上升到知识级,有利于对教学资源库的语义查询和共享使用.     

Probing a student teacher's cognitive structure of software

Abstract  'Cognitive mapping' is explored as a way of finding out how a teacher perceives software. Knowledge of the concepts and strategies a teacher identifies and how he or she represents them, can indicate the level of guidance that is required before the software is used in the classroom. Apart from being a possible basis for a teacher's own preparation, it raises some implications for the content of courses in CAL.     

The foundations of a theory-aware authoring tool for CSCL design

One of the most useful ways to enhance collaboration is to create scenarios where learners are able to interact more effectively. Nevertheless, the design of pedagogically sound and well-thought-out collaborative learning scenarios is a complex issue. This is due to the context of group learning where the synergy among learners’ interactions affects learning processes and, hence, the learning outcome. Although many advances have been made to support the designing of collaborative learning scenarios through technology, a more systematic approach is lacking. With the limitations of the current designing methods and tools, it is difficult to develop intelligent authoring systems that can guide users in order to produce more effective collaboration. One of the main difficulties with creating a more consistent (computer-understandable) approach to designing collaboration is the necessity of proposing better ways to formalize the group learning processes. In this paper, we present an innovative approach that uses ontologies and concepts from learning theories to create a framework that represents collaborative learning and its processes. Ontologies provide the necessary formalization to represent collaboration, while learning theories provide the concepts to justify and support the development of effective learning scenarios. Such an approach contributes to establish the foundations for the development of the next generation of intelligent authoring systems referred to as theory-aware systems. To verify the viability and usefulness of our proposed ontological framework in the context of systematic design, the development and use of an intelligent authoring tool for CSCL design is presented. This system is able to reason on ontologies to give suggestions that help users to create theory-compliant collaborative learning scenarios. We carried out several experiments with teachers in a geometry drawing course and the results indicate that the system helps teachers to create and interchange their scenarios more easily and facilitates the selection of important pedagogical strategies that influence positively the designing and effectiveness of group activities.     

A perspective on learning for intelligent educational systems*

Abstract In this paper two observations are the starting points for a proposal as to how learning, rather than computing considerations, can be made the main focus in the development of Intelligent Educational Systems (IESs). These observations are: a) the predominant use of computers in education is for the running of general tool software; and b) the symbolic approach to Artificial Intelligence is being questioned from a situated cognition perspective.
Learning interactions are seen as consisting of a Task Level, and a higher-level Discussion Level comprising planning and evaluation of, and reflection about, Task Level activity. It is proposed that IESs should be developed by adding a module to support Discussion Level interaction with the learner. The Mayday project is described, in which expert human teachers are being studied as they support Discussion Level with a learner working at computer-based lexical activities. It is argued that such studies of human learning is a necessary step towards the development of the proposed IESs.     

Learning styles and cognitive traits – Their relationship and its benefits in web-based educational systems

Different learners have different needs; they differ, for example, in their learning goals, their prior knowledge, their learning styles, and their cognitive abilities. Adaptive web-based educational systems aim to cater individual learners by customizing courses to suit their needs. In this paper, we investigate the benefits of incorporating learning styles and cognitive traits in web-based educational systems. Adaptivity aspects based on cognitive traits and learning styles enrich each other, enabling systems to provide learners with courses which fit their needs more accurately. Furthermore, consideration of learning styles and cognitive traits can contribute to more accurate student modelling. In this paper, the relationship between learning styles, in particular the Felder–Silverman learning style model (FSLSM), and working memory capacity, a cognitive trait, is investigated. For adaptive educational systems that consider either only learning styles or only cognitive traits, the additional information can be used to provide more holistic adaptivity. For systems that already incorporate both learning styles and cognitive traits, the relationship can be used to improve the detection process of both by including the additional information of learning style into the detection process of cognitive traits and vice versa. This leads to a more reliable student model.     

Dynamics of cognitive load theory: A model-based approach

Since its conception nearly two decades ago, cognitive load theory (CLT) has been a fertile ground for both empirical and theoretical investigations. The research accumulated over the years has contributed not only to the theory’s validation, but also generated new insights. These new insights helped to refine CLT, making it more precise, but also more complex. A formal (mathematical) simulation model is proposed as a new analytical tool for investigating CLT’s increasingly intricate postulates and their dynamic implications. This paper describes how the theoretical relationships between certain features of instruction and the cognitive capacities of learners can be expressed formally, and how the resulting model can help gain insights into the learning dynamics that arise from these relationships, providing a new aid for research, teaching and practice in the field of instructional design.     

从教育学习理论看CAI课件写作

行为主义、认知主义、建构主义都曾经指导了CAI课件写作。情境认知与学习理论继承并发展了其他教育学习理论对CAI课件写作的指导,认为:CAI课件中知识的意义不能脱离具体的情境产生。真实性是创设情境的前提,情境创设应符合现实生活场景和事物运动的客观规律,情境性教学应作为CAI课件写作的最重要目标进行设计,要因人、因时、因地而异。此外,情境创设还必须保持情境的知识性、科学性、思想性和趣味性的统一。通过教育学习理论指导CAI课件写作,使CAI课件更符合教育规律,能够更好地服务于教学活动和学习活动。     

Impacts of courseware and student characteristics on learning achievement: results of an empirical study

Abstract Literature reviews revealed that not enough is known about specific software design and use features which contribute to learning effectiveness. Moreover, most research on these topics is carried out only in universities. Therefore, it was decided to conduct an empirical study with students of secondary schools, level two in Switzerland. Five classes and three pieces of courseware material were included in the study to investigate whether and how courseware and student characteristics have an impact upon the learning effectiveness.     

Designing sociotechnical systems with cognitive work analysis: putting theory back into practice

Cognitive work analysis (CWA) is a framework of methods for analysing complex sociotechnical systems. However, the translation from the outputs of CWA to design is not straightforward. Sociotechnical systems theory provides values and principles for the design of sociotechnical systems which may offer a theoretically consistent basis for a design approach for use with CWA. This article explores the extent to which CWA and sociotechnical systems theory offer complementary perspectives and presents an abstraction hierarchy (AH), based on a review of literature, that describes an ‘optimal’ CWA and sociotechnical systems theory design system. The optimal AH is used to assess the extent to which current CWA-based design practices, uncovered through a survey of CWA practitioners, aligns with sociotechnical systems theory. Recommendations for a design approach that would support the integration of CWA and sociotechnical systems theory design values and principles are also derived.     

Forms and functions of feedback in CAI and CAL

Abstract The form and function of reinforcement is discussed with attention to the focus for feedback. The case studies of five junior schools provide data and field notes for a tentative analysis of the determinants of reinforcement including organizational factors and (especially) types of CAI or CAL applications.     

Individual and group-based learning from complex cognitive tasks: Effects on retention and transfer efficiency

The effects of individual versus group learning (in triads) on efficiency of retention and transfer test performance in the domain of biology (heredity) among 70 high-school students were investigated. Applying cognitive load theory, the limitations of the working memory capacity at the individual level were considered an important reason to assign complex learning tasks to groups rather than to individuals. It was hypothesized that groups will have more processing capacity available for relating the information elements to each other and by doing so for constructing higher quality cognitive schemata than individuals if the high cognitive load imposed by complex learning tasks could be shared among group members. In contrast, it was expected that individuals who learn from carrying out the same complex tasks would need all available processing capacity for remembering the interrelated information elements, and, consequently, would not be able to allocate resources to working with them. This interaction hypothesis was confirmed by the data on efficiency of retention and transfer test performance; there was a favorable relationship between mental effort and retention test performance for the individual learners as opposed to a favorable relationship between transfer test performance and mental effort for the students who learned in groups.     

Superiority of collaborative learning with complex tasks: A research note on an alternative affective explanation

Kirschner, Paas, and Kirschner (2009c) used the theoretical framework of cognitive load to explain why the learning of a group of collaborating individuals was more efficient than that of individuals learning alone with high-complexity tasks but not with low-complexity tasks. The authors argued that collaboration circumvented the limitations of an individual’s working memory by creating an expanded cognitive capacity and by allowing for the distribution of cognitive load among group members. Inspired by research on efficacy, this study explored an alternative affective explanation of the results. By measuring the amount of mental effort learners expected to invest in working on a learning task before actually carrying out the task, this study showed that learners who had to collaboratively solve a high-complexity problem expected to invest less mental effort than learners who had to solve the problem alone. When confronted with low-complexity tasks, the expected amount of mental effort did not differ.     

Examining different types of collaborative learning in a complex computer-based environment: A cognitive load approach

This study compared the effects of two collaborative learning strategies (Open-ended and Task-based) with an individualized learning strategy on individual learning in a computer-based environment. The experiment sought ecological validity by conducting it under real teaching and homework conditions. Ninety-four students from grade 9 participated in a webpage design task. Cognitive load theory was used to predict that the collaborative approaches would outperform the individualized approach due to reduced cognitive load. This hypothesis was confirmed by performance scores and cognitive load only in the case of the Open-ended collaborative learning condition. Evidence was also found that the Open-ended collaborative learning condition outperformed the Task-based collaborative one. It was concluded that in collaborative learning a more Open-ended task design together with moderate independent sub-task requirements leads to more effective learning.     

“A chimera of sorts”: Rethinking educational technology grant programs,courseware innovation,and the language of educational change

How do we know when an educational organization, process, or courseware tool is innovative? How do we define the processes that encourage change or the ways in which faculty develop new courseware innovations? The terms innovation, change, and development have been overused in so many contexts that they now seem to have lost their meanings. A review of the literature on innovation and educational change offered no agreed up definitions or models. Prior studies that have considered innovations in educational technology have focused on the innovations themselves or the potential barriers to faculty adoptions of externally developed innovations. In this study of an educational technology services program that provides competitive grants for faculty-developed technology courseware projects at a large state research university, I shifted the focus to consider: what current and future higher education faculty consider to be an innovative courseware project, and how they conceive of processes for developing such innovations. Results suggested that when it is not reduced to a rhetorical device in a marketing campaign or department instructional technology vision plan, innovation that is defined locally by a community of practice can effectively transform teaching, learning, and the organizations that support these activities.     

A theory of online learning as online participation

In this paper, an initial theory of online learning as online participation is suggested. It is argued that online learner participation (1) is a complex process of taking part and maintaining relations with others, (2) is supported by physical and psychological tools, (3) is not synonymous with talking or writing, and (4) is supported by all kinds of engaging activities. Participation and learning are argued to be inseparable and jointly constituting. The implication of the theory is straightforward: If we want to enhance online learning, we need to enhance online learner participation.     

How flipped learning based on the cognitive theory of multimedia learning affects students' academic achievements

The study aims to identify the effect of a flipped classroom approach designed according to the cognitive theory of multimedia learning on the academic achievements of eighth‐grade students (aged 14 years) in Saudi Arabia in computer science. To this end, a quasi‐experimental design was used, with a sample of 67 students; 33 students were assigned to the experimental group, whereas 34 comprised the control group. The experimental group was subjected to the flipped classroom approach, whereas the control group was given direct instruction. To measure student achievements, an instrument that measures cognitive skills based on Revised Bloom's taxonomy levels was designed. Findings revealed a positive effect on the experimental group's achievement levels with respect to Bloom's higher order thinking skills, that is, applying, analysing, and evaluating. No difference was found between the two groups in terms of academic achievements at the remembering and understanding levels of Bloom's taxonomy. Moreover, learners with low prior knowledge showed a higher improvement in academic achievements compared with those with high prior knowledge. This corresponds to the assumption of the cognitive theory of multimedia learning that learners with low prior knowledge would benefit from its principles more than learners with high prior knowledge.     

An empirical development of critical value factors (CVF) of online learning activities: An application of activity theory and cognitive value theory

According to activity theory, activities are at the center of human behavior. Extensive attention has been given in literature to the success and effectiveness of online learning programs. Value theory suggests that human perceived value is a critical construct in investigating what is important to individuals. However, very limited attention has been given in literature to the role of users’ perceived value of learning activities in educational settings. Scholars suggest that additional studies on learning activities are needed in order to progress the current knowledge of the use of information systems in education. Therefore, this study investigated issues related to learners’ perceived value by uncovering the critical value factors (CVFs) of online learning activities. Participants in this study included 209 graduate students attending an online learning program. This study extended the first phase done in a prior research to uncover the CVFs of online learning activities. Results of this research study produced five reliable CVFs: (a) collaborative, social, and passive learning activities; (b) formal communication activities; (c) formal learning activities; (d) logistic activities; and (e) printing activities.     

From Habermas's communicative theory to practice on the internet

Abstract. Communication plays a crucial role in influencing our social life. However, communication has often been distorted by unequal opportunities to initiate and participate in it. Such conditions have been criticized by Habermas who argues for an ideal speech situation, i.e. a situation of democratic communication with equal opportunities for social actors to communicate in an undistorted manner. This ideal situation is partially being realized by the advent of the internet. The paper describes how an internet‐based tool for collaborative authoring was conceptualized, developed and then deployed with Habermas's Critical Social Theory as a guiding principle. The internet‐based electronic forum, known by its acronym GRASS (Group Report Authoring Support System), is a web tool supporting the production of concise group reports that give their readers an up‐to‐date and credible overview of the positions of various stakeholders on a particular issue. Together with people and procedures, it is a comprehensive socio‐technical information system that can play a role in resolving societal conflicts. A prototype of GRASS has been used by an environmental group as a new way in which to create a more equal exchange and comparison of ideas among various stakeholders in the debate on genetically modified food. With the widespread use of the internet, such a forum has the potential to become an emergent form of communication for widely dispersed social actors to conduct constructive debate and discussion. The barriers to such a mode of communication still remain – in the form of entrenched power structures, and limitations to human rationality and responsibility. However, we believe that the support provided by the comprehensive system of technological functionality as well as procedural checks and balances provided by GRASS may considerably reduce the impact of these obstacles. In this way, the ideal speech situation may be approximated more closely in reality.     

Improving student performance in a first-year geography course: Examining the importance of computer-assisted formative assessment

The main objective of this paper is to examine the effectiveness of computer-assisted formative assessment in a large, first-year undergraduate geography course. In particular, the paper evaluates the impact of computer-assisted multiple-choice practice tests on student performance in the course as well as student opinions of this type of formative assessment in two academic years (2008 and 2009). The multiple-choice questions included in the formative assessment vary in their level of difficulty and range from those that focus on knowledge and comprehension to those that focus on application and analysis. While the use of the computer-assisted practice tests is completely voluntary over 50 percent of students used them. Feedback questionnaires from both academic years reveals that students are overwhelmingly positive with over 95 percent indicating that the computer-assisted practice tests assist them in identifying their strengths and weaknesses and help them prepare for in-class midterms and final exams. Statistical analysis of in-class performance on midterms shows that students who use the computer-assisted practice quizzes earn significantly higher grades (i.e., equivalent to three letter grades) than those students who do not. The results of the research demonstrate that computer-assisted formative assessment (in this case practice tests) has a positive impact on student performance.