Alla Anohina

Evolution of the Concept Map Based Adaptive Knowledge Assessment System

Evolution of the Concept Map Based Adaptive Knowledge Assessment System: Implementation and Evaluation Results The paper represents the concept map based adaptive knowledge assessment system. Advantages of concept maps are analyzed emphasizing that the approach offers a reasonable balance between requirements to assess higher levels of knowledge according to Blooms taxonomy and complexity of a system. Concept maps allow revealing of students knowledge structure, promote system thinking and support process oriented learning where a study course is divided into stages in each of which knowledge assessment is carried out. The developed knowledge assessment system consists from a teachers, learners and administrators modules and is implemented as a multiagent system. Four prototypes of the system developed within four projects are described. The first prototype supports only fill-in-the-map tasks where a learner must put given concepts in correct places. The second prototype provides changing the degree of task difficulty, thus, performing adaptation to a learners knowledge level. The set of tasks are also extended by construct-the-map tasks. Improvements implemented in the third prototype allow using of directed arcs and standard relationships in concept maps. The three-tier architecture used in the fourth prototype is chosen to rise the security level of the system. Besides that learners support is considerably expanded giving help and tutoring to a learner. Results of evaluation of the developed systems prototypes in different study courses are presented. The paper concludes with the comparison of all four prototypes using all main characteristics of the developed knowledge assessment system.

Advances in Intelligent Tutoring Systems: Problem-solving Modes and Model of Hints

The paper focuses on the issues of providing an adaptive support for learners in intelligent tutoring systems when learners solve practical problems. The results of the analysis of support policies of learners in the existing intelligent tutoring systems are given and the revealed problems are emphasized. The concept and the architectural parts of an intelligent tutoring system are defined. The approach which provides greater adaptive abilities of systems of such kind offering two modes of problem-solving and using a two-layer model of hints is described. It is being implemented in the intelligent tutoring system for the Minimax algorithm at present. In accordance with the proposed approach the learner solves problems in the mode which is the most appropriate for him/her and receives the most suitable hint.

Deciding on the architecture of the concept map based knowledge assessment system

The paper is dedicated to the problem of the selection of an optimal client-server architecture for the implementation of the Web-based learning system. Constituent parts, advantages and disadvantages of nowadays prevalent client-server architectures, namely two-tier, three-tier and N-tier architectures, are described. Experience of the authors in the development of the concept map based knowledge assessment system using two- and three-tier client-server architectures is discussed as well.

The Concept Map-Based Knowledge Assessment System with Reduction of Task Difficulty

The chapter presents the concept map-based knowledge assessment system which provides the learner a possibility to change the degree of task difficulty by asking the system to insert additional concepts in the offered structure of the concept map. The scoring systems both for learners who solve the original task and who use reduction of the degree of task difficulty are described in details. The difficulty reduction mechanism is explained. Evaluation results of the developed system in four learning courses are discussed.

Knowledge assessment systems

Knowledge assessment systems: an overview The paper gives on overview of computer-assisted assessment systems. The general definition of computer-assisted assessment is provided and the application of objective and subjective testing systems is described. Moreover, advantages and drawbacks related both to computer-assisted assessment in general and to objective and subjective testing systems in particular are identified. The overall architecture of a computer-assisted assessment system in terms of components, their functions and interaction is presented. The necessity to provide intelligent and adaptive support in computer-assisted assessment systems is stated and kinds of the mentioned support in existent systems are described. Special attention is devoted to the student model that is used with the aim to adapt the system to the needs of a specific user. The basic kinds of information stored in the student model and their sources are defined, as well as the available classifications of the student model on the basis of different criteria are summarized. The paper also provides information on intelligent and adaptive support in the concept map based knowledge assessment system that has been developed at Riga Technical University, as well as identifies further development directions of the mentioned system.

Early Orientation Toward Future Profession: A Case Study of Introduction into Information Systems Development for the First-Year Students

The chapter describes an experience of the Institute of Applied Computer Systems of Riga Technical University in the implementation of a business game related to the information system development project within the course “Introduction to study area” for the first-year bachelor-level students. The conception of the business game and its implementation scenario, as well as results of processing of students’ questionnaires evaluating organization of the game, and changes in students’ knowledge about the information system development are discussed.