Nian-Shing Chen

A self-stabilizing algorithm for constructing spanning trees

Abstract A self-stabilizing algorithm is proposed for constructing spanning trees for connected graphs. Because of the self-stabilizing property, the algorithm can handle error recovery automatically.

A self-stabilizing algorithm for constructing breadth-first trees

Abstract A self-stabilizing algorithm for constructing breadth-first trees is proposed. Its self-stabilizing property is proven. A convincing and straightforward way to prove a system self-stabilizing is: First prove that the system can always make a computation step as long as the system is not stabilized, and give a bounded function whose value decreases for each computation step. But in some cases, it may be hard or even unlikely to find such a bounded function. However, by transforming the original set of rules into another set of rules so that both sets of rules have the equivalent effect, it may become easier to find such a bounded function from the transformed rules. The provided proof adopts this concept.

A model for synchronous learning using the Internet

Improvements in technology and the increasing bandwidth of Internet access have led to an increasing popularity for synchronous solutions for instruction. Not only do they provide savings in terms of time and cost, in many situations they can also outperform both asynchronous online instruction and traditional face‐to‐face education. However, until now, the lack of a pedagogical framework for synchronous instruction has limited the effective use of this medium. This paper describes an online synchronous learning model that aims to provide guidelines for teachers and students to conduct synchronous instruction. The model provides a broad range of scenarios to suit individual requirements and covers both synchronous lecturing and ‘office‐hours’ modes.

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.

The use of online synchronous discussion for web-based professional development for teachers

This article described the experiences of an inservice professional development program for teachers with a focus on online synchronous discussions. Transcripts of six online synchronous discussions containing 3600 messages from an online teacher professional development course were analyzed. In addition, the researchers interviewed 10 participating teachers in order to understand their perceptions toward online synchronous discussions. According to the online discourse data, the online synchronous discussions served not only as a learning tool, but also an avenue for teachers to request and provide information, socialize and support each other. The analyses also revealed that the teachers posted more social messages in the beginning and the end of discussion, and most messages did not involve any cognitive and metacognitive skills. Moreover, the interview results showed that the information exchange during online synchronous discussion was not effective for some participating teachers. Based on the interview data, synchronous discussions appeared to hold little advantage when compared to face-to-face discussions for several participating teachers that we interviewed. The problem may be resulted from lack of self-regulated skills by the participants or from the role played by the moderator.

Mining e-Learning domain concept map from academic articles

Recent researches have demonstrated the importance of concept map and its versatile applications especially in e-Learning. For example, while designing adaptive learning materials, designers need to refer to the concept map of a subject domain. Moreover, concept maps can show the whole picture and core knowledge about a subject domain. Research from literature also suggests that graphical representation of domain knowledge can reduce the problems of information overload and learning disorientation for learners. However, construction of concept maps typically relied upon domain experts in the past; it is a time consuming and high cost task. Concept maps creation for emerging new domains such as e-Learning is even more challenging due to its ongoing development nature. The aim of this paper is to construct e-Learning domain concept maps from academic articles. We adopt some relevant journal articles and conference papers in e-Learning domain as data sources, and apply text-mining techniques to automatically construct concept maps for e-Learning domain. The constructed concept maps can provide a useful reference for researchers, who are new to the e-Leaning field, to study related issues, for teachers to design adaptive learning materials, and for learners to understand the whole picture of e-Learning domain knowledge.

Analysing users’ satisfaction with e‐learning using a negative critical incidents approach

One critical success factor for e‐learning is learners’ satisfaction with it. This is affected by both positive and negative experiences in a learning process. This paper examines the impact of such critical incidents on learners’ satisfaction in e‐learning. In particular, frequent occurrence of negative critical incidents has significant potential of negatively affecting satisfaction. The focus of this paper is on assessing satisfaction with e‐learning from a ‘negative critical incidents’ perspective. The paper describes a satisfaction assessment model, called SAFE. The results of an empirical study at the National Sun Yat‐sen Cyber‐University are used to evaluate and validate the SAFE model. Based on the results, the critical incidents that affect e‐learning satisfaction are classified into four categories: administration, functionality, instruction and interaction. Of these, interaction and instruction are found to be the most important factors.

Embodied play to learn: Exploring Kinect‐facilitated memory performance

Introduction Body movements, including gestures, provide different learning channels for students, which may help them to more easily understand learning materials (Hostetter & Alibali, 2008; Tellier, 2008; Wilson, 2002). From this perspective, the purpose of using gestures is to help learners improve their comprehension and build connections between the materials and gestures. In addition to supporting comprehension, gestures can be used to develop more elaborate memories related to learning materials (Riseborough, 1981; So, Sim & Low, 2011; Tellier, 2008). For example, people applying actions during learning events (eg, exercising while saying, “Let’s do exercise.”) have been found to perform better on recall tasks. Previous research has highlighted the effectiveness of using gestures and cognitive tasks together (Goldin-Meadow, McNeil & Singleton, 1996; Ratner, Foley & McCaskill, 2001; Stevanoni & Salmon, 2005).

Self-stabilizing depth-first token circulation on networks

SummaryThis paper proposes a self-stabilizing protocol which circulates a token on a connected network in nondeterministic depth-first-search order, rooted at a special node. Starting with any initial state in which the network may have no token at all or more than one token, the protocol eventually makes the system stabilize in states having exactly one circulating token. With a slight modification to the protocol —by removing nondeterminism in the search — a depth-first-search tree on the network can be constructed. The proposed protocol runs on systems that allow parallel operations.

A blended synchronous learning model for educational international collaboration

Educators and students living in the digital age are faced with complex problems that are forcing them to seek collaborative solutions. These problems can be addressed through the successful application of digital technologies and pedagogies that enhance the educational, social and economic prospects of students. The main aim of this study was to propose a blended synchronous learning model and to show how this model can be adopted for better supporting educational international collaboration. The paper describes how the authors have applied advanced synchronous learning technologies and pedagogies to maximise interconnectivity and social interactions to engage in a range of educational collaborations in the last seven years.