Manuel Gentile

The Open Learning Object model to promote Open Educational Resources

In this paper we present the results of research work, that forms part of the activities of the EU-funded project SLOOP: Sharing Learning Objects in an Open Perspective, aimed at encouraging the definition, development and management of Open Educational Resources based on the Learning Object paradigm (Wiley, 2000). We present a model of Open Learning Object (OpenLO) for a greater awareness in the use of LOs by teachers, giving them a more active role in the evolution of educational resources; the OpenLO model extends the concept of reusability, providing pedagogical sustainability. Moreover, we compare FreeLOms, a Learning Object Management System that implements the proposed OpenLO model, to traditional tools for handling LOs. Editors: Patrick McAndrew (Open University, UK). Reviewers: Anonymous Review (Anonymous) and Patrick McAndrew (Open University, UK).

Social knowledge building in a mobile learning environment

According to the social constructivism paradigm, knowledge is not transferred from teachers to students, but is the result of collaborative activities; when these activities take place in a mobile environment, it is extremely important to consider how the temporal and spatial factors can influence the collaborative process. In this work we define a model for mobile Knowledge Building Process (mKBP); starting from this model, we propose to analyse the evolution of a mobile collaborative learning experience through its interactions with the social, the information and the geographic spaces. Finally, we present the methodologies and the tools used to investigate the data gathered during a specific mobile learning experience carried out at the Institute for Educational Technologies of the Italian National Research Council, in the framework of the Mobile and Ubiquitous Learning (MoULe) project.

A Model of a Social Chatbot

Traditional chatbots lack the capability to correctly manage conversations according to the social context. However a dialogue is a joint activity that must consider both individual and social processes. In this work we propose a model of a social chatbot able to choose the most suitable dialogue plans according to what in sociological literature is called a “social practice”. The proposed model is discussed considering a case study of a work in progress aimed at the development of a serious game for communicative skills learning.

Social Practices for Social Driven Conversations in Serious Games

This paper describes the model of social practice as a theoretical framework to manage conversation with the specific goal of training physicians in communicative skills. To this aim, the domain reasoner that manages the conversation in the Communicate! [1] serious game is taken as a basis. Because the choice of a specific Social Practice to follow in a situation is non-trivial we use a probabilistic model for the selection of social practices as a step toward the implementation of an agent architecture compliant with the social practice model.

Test-enhanced learning: analysis of an experience with undergraduate nursing students

BackgroundThis study is based on the evidence that tests can be used as an educational tool to enhance learning, not just as an evaluation tool. There is a growing body of research that shows that participating in repeated testing improves learning, a phenomenon defined as Test-Enhanced Learning. The aim of the present study was to analyse the effect of the use of a test enhanced learning program integrated into a general psychology course for undergraduate nursing students and its interaction with the students’ test anxiety.Methods161 undergraduate nursing students attending a General Psychology course followed an educational program based on Test-Enhanced Learning methodology. Students were divided into two groups, an experimental group (TEL group) and a control group (Re-study group). TEL students took a multiple-choice test on the lecture topics. The Re-study group just read study material. Testing and re-study occurred at intervals of about a week after each lesson. TEL students received feedback immediately after each test. About two weeks after the end of the lessons, all the students took a final cumulative test on all the topics. Statistical analysis was used to analyse students’ performances. After the administration of the cumulative unit test, all the students took a graded examination.ResultsStudents in the TEL group performed better than the controls, both in the final cumulative test and in a graded examination. TEL participants experienced better final cumulative test results than students not tested (MTEL = 23.11, MRe-study = 20.47, t(109.86) = −2.57, p < 0.05, r = 0.24). Test-Enhanced Learning program participation has a positive impact on exam performance (βG_Step1 = 0.46, p < 0.001). Finally, the analysis performed shows a slight moderating effect of test anxiety on Test-Enhanced Learning (βGxTA_Step3 = 0.15, p < 0.05).Discussion and ConclusionsTest-Enhanced Learning can be an effective tool for promoting and enhancing learning. In fact, taking tests after studying produced better long-term retention and then better final test performance than re-reading without testing.Both students in the TEL group and the Re-study group with a high test anxiety level perform less well than colleagues with lower test anxiety. Nevertheless, students with higher test anxiety may obtain more benefits from participating in a Test-Enhanced Learning process than people with lower test anxiety.Further studies on larger and more representative samples are necessary in order to investigate the effect of test anxiety on Test-Enhanced Learning.

Social Agents for Learning in Virtual Environments

Several serious games have been proposed to practice communication strategies in formal contexts. Intelligent virtual agents (IVA) can be used to show the player the effects of a conversational move. In this paper we discuss the key role of using social context for the virtual agents in these serious games. Social practices are exploited to bundle social interactions into standard packages and as a basis to model the deliberation processes of IVAs. We describe a social practice oriented IVA architecture used in the implementation of a serious game for the practicing of communication in medical interviews.

Development of a nomogram to estimate the quality of life in asthmatic children using the Childhood Asthma Control Test

Pediatric Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire (PAQLQ) provides detailed information on QoL in asthmatic children, whereas Childhood Asthma Control Test (C‐ACT) Questionnaire is the most validated instrument for asthma control. No study assessed the relationship between C‐ACT and QoL in children by means of those instruments. The aim of this study was to determine whether a QoL estimation is possible using the C‐ACT questionnaire in asthmatic children.

An Agent Based Methodology to Design Serious Game in Social Field

Training and simulation games are a type of serious game that allow learners to deal with realistic scenarios, to test their behavior under controlled conditions and to increase their understanding of the simulated system/process. In these games, the educational goal changes the issues related to the simulation design. In particular, achieving right balance between realism and teaching effectiveness is an essential design criterion. The difficulties in designing this type of serious games are particularly evident in the social field. In fact, this area is characterized by a complexity that is hard to design in formal terms. Starting from recent evolutions in the field of social simulation, this paper proposes the agent paradigm as a methodological tool to guide the design of serious games in the social field. The PNPV game, designed within the framework of the European project “I can … I cannot … I go!” Rev. 2 (PNPV project), which aims to introduce and foster an entrepreneurial mindset among young people, is described as a case study of a serious game developed by means of the agent based approach.

Design and evaluation of a mobile learning experience

Analysis of scientific and technological development in the field of mobile learning, with particular reference to design issues and evaluation experiences. Analyzes the characteristics of innovative teaching methods together with proposals for concrete operational tools that allow to design educational interventions for mobile learning.

A Personal Intelligent Coach for Smart Embodied Learning Environments

Within a Smart Learning Environment (SLE) learners are involved in a new learning process tailored to create a continuum of education by extending the current educational formal settings to real-life informal learning context. The goal of this paper is to describe the Cognitive Architecture (CA) of a Personal Intelligent Coach able to manage learning tasks and interactions within a complex Smart Learning Environment (SLE). PICo has two possible embodiments: humanoid robot, and an avatar on mobile device. We argue that the proposed intelligent coach can adapt to the contents, to the students needs and can evolve its strategies according the learning process.