Miguel Á. Conde

Using Learning Analytics to improve teamwork assessment

The individual evidences are monitored in each phase of the teamwork process.Indicators to monitor the individual evidences in the teamwork process are presented.There is strong positive correlation between grades and student-student interactions.The Learning Analytics system reduces the time spent for the individual assessment.The Learning Analytics system facilitates decision making in the teamwork process. Acquiring the teamwork competency is fundamental nowadays, in order to guarantee a correct working performance for individuals. This means that a great deal of importance is being given to this activity in educational circles. Nevertheless, evaluating the development of teamwork individually is not simple, given that on many occasions there is no objective evidence to study. Information and Communication Technologies applied to educational contexts enable access to information that can help in this analysis. However, it is still complex due to the large amount of information that needs to be considered. This study proposes indicators based on the interaction between learning agents (student-student and active-passive). The exploration of these indicators contributes to the assessment of the individual development within the teamwork context. The analysis carried out in this study demonstrates that there is a direct relation between these interactions and final grading corresponding to individual assessment of teamwork activities by teachers. Additionally, a Learning Analytics system is introduced as support for the challenging task that teachers face in evaluating and monitoring individual progress within teamwork. The information provided by the Learning Analytics system and timely information extraction allow preventing problems, carrying out corrective measures and making decisions to improve the learning process of teamwork.

An evolving Learning Management System for new educational environments using 2.0 tools

The tools used in learning processes are in a continuous state of flux. One of the most significant changes is the application of Information and Communications technologies (ICTs) to educational contexts. This provides new possible ways to carry out learning activities, new learning services, the possibility to use new kinds of contents and activities, etc. However, ICTs have not provided as many advantages as they were supposed to, so changes are necessary. In this context, a new set of tools, Web 2.0, offers a new way to understand the Web, in which the user is the centre. Further, users can cooperate in order to define contents. This concept is also applied in technology-mediated learning but there are important problems when one tries to integrate such tools and concepts with existing systems. This paper explores the integration of these tools in traditional learning environments, the various possibilities and their advantages and drawbacks. After that, an interoperability scenario is described and two experiences are presented to show how 2.0 tools can be integrated in learning activities, and its effect in educational process.

Learning services-based technological ecosystems

The gap between technology and learning methods has two important implications: on the one hand, we should not expect the integration of technological advances into teaching to be an easy task; and there is a danger that mature educational technologies and methods might not give an adequate answer to the demands and needs of society, underusing their transforming potential to improve learning processes. This study discusses the need for a new technological environment supporting learning services, and proposes the concept of the technological learning ecosystem as a solution to both problems. Educational ecosystems should be able to break the technological constraints of existing learning platforms and achieve an effective improvement in learning processes. Our proposed educational ecosystems pivot around five specific lines of action: 1) a framework architecture that supports learning service-based ecosystems; 2) learning analytics for educational decision making; 3) adaptive knowledge systems; 4) gamification of learning processes; 5) semantic portfolios to collect evidence of learning.

A Knowledge Management System to Classify Social Educational Resources Within a Subject Using Teamwork Techniques

The traditional way to develop contents for a subject is based on the faculty perception and experience, however students should be taken into account. This work proposes a methodology that promotes the creation, classification and organization both teachers’ and students’ learning resources within the same subject scope in a timeless manner. Teamwork process is monitored by a proactive method that makes possible the generation of resources collaboratively. A knowledge management system allows to Classify, Search, Organize, Relate and Adapt the generated resources and includes a semantic search engine, based on ontologies, which provides a final product for users’ needs. A first iteration of an action-research allows answering questions such as the types of resources created during the teamwork (with academic, social and service orientation), how to stablish a common organization of the created knowledge for all potential users and improve educational resources of an academic subject with these collaborative resources.

The impact of a mobile personal learning environment in different educational contexts

Abstract The emergence and application of information and communication technologies in educational contexts imply changes in the tools used to teach and learn. However, this use does not guarantee the success of such processes. For instance, learning management systems are very popular but also very focused on the institution, which means that they cannot take into account all learning that happens beyond the institution throughout learners’ lives. Personal learning environments (PLEs) and mobile technologies can be a solution to support such lifelong learning, but what happens in them should be taken into account by the institution. This paper presents a service-based framework to make this type of interaction possible, the communication of mobile PLEs with the institutional learning platforms. The framework has been implemented as an Android solution and tested by students and teachers. From these tests, it can be seen that the definition of a mobile PLE is possible and its use increases students’ motivation.

Knowledge Co-Creation Process Based on Informal Learning Competences Tagging and Recognition

The present paper deals with the problem of tagging, acknowledge and recognize of informal learning activities. It describes TRAILER project, a solution based on a methodology and a technology framework that facilitates learners/employees and institutions the co-creation of knowledge from informal learning instances. The TRAILER architecture has been implemented as a proof of concept and it is initially validated through some expert testing, from which is possible appreciate the integration difficulties of the co-creation processes.

Exploring Student Interactions: Learning Analytics Tools for Student Tracking

This paper presents four categories of learning analytics tools: dashboards, ad hoc tools, tools for analysis of specific issues, and learning analytics frameworks, and details the characteristics of a selection of tools within each category: (1) Moodle Dashboard and Moodle default reporting tool; (2) Interactions and Teamwork Assessment Tool; (3) SNAPP, GraphFES and Moodle Engagement Analytics; and (4) VeLA and GISMO. The study investigates how these tools can be applied to the analysis of courses by using real data from a course that made intensive use of forums, wikis, web resources, videos, quizzes and assignments. The discussion that follows points out how the different tools complement each other, and suggests the implementation of basic dashboards in learning platforms and the use of external frameworks for learning analytics.

Interoperability Scenarios to Measure Informal Learning Carried Out in PLEs

Achieving success in the application of Information and Communications Technology to teaching and learning processes can be challenging. One possible reason for this is the failure to take into account the student as end-user when implementing technologies. In particular, student requirements to access different sources of information and collaborate with other students during their learning can be constrained by the nature of institutional technology which presents barriers to integrating formal and informal learning: students do not only learn in the institutional context but from their experiences throughout the course of daily life. Institutional Learning Management Systems are not enough to meet these needs for increased integration of informal learning, technological practice and formal learning. The efforts to develop effective Personal Learning Environments attempt to solve this, providing a space where students can use the tools they want. But this presents a problem with regard to the management and measurement of learning success. This paper poses some interoperability scenarios to allow the assessment of the personalized informal activity, and in this way, obtain measurable information about the advantages of personalization in Learning.

Developing win-win solutions for virtual placements in informatics: the VALS case

The placements and internships are one of the main paths to get professional background and some skills for students, especially in areas like informatics and computer sciences. The European-funded VALS project tries to promote the virtual placements and establish a new initiative in virtual placements called Semester of Code. This initiative binds higher education institutions, students, companies, foundations and Open Source projects in order to create virtual placements and solve needs that they have in relation with those placements. This paper introduces some projects about virtual placements that other institutions and companies perform, also the paper describes the needs, opinions and considerations about the virtual placements for each stakeholder involved in the placements, to finally explain the design decisions and actions behind the Semester of Code, and how they are intended to get better virtual placements and successful results.

Mobile Apps for Older Users – The Development of a Mobile Apps Repository for Older People

The emergence and application of the information and communication technologies have changed the tools that people use in their daily life. However not all the collectives use the technology in the same way. One case to take especially into account is older people. For them technology should be an inclusive factor but it can be also exclusive. The use of mobile devices and mobile apps by older people is an example of this. The devices and the apps are not always adapted for the special abilities or features of older people; moreover they do not always meet their needs. In order to facilitate older people access to mobile apps the present work reviews the usability issues to take into account and poses a repository of apps adapted and classified taking into account usability issues related to older people.