Peter de Lange

Transferring a Question-Based Dialog Framework to a Distributed Architecture

Inquiry skills are an essential tool for assessing and integrating knowledge. In facilitated face-to-face settings, inquiry skills were improved successfully by using a “question-based dialog” and its resulting visual representation. However, groups that work without a facilitator, or in which members collaborate asynchronously or in different geographical regions, such as Communities of Practice (CoP), cannot schedule face-to-face inquiry meetings. This paper summarizes the unmet requirements of CoPs for a collaborative inquiry tool found by previous research on the Noracle model and proposes a distributed Web architecture as a solution. It mitigates the need for a common infrastructure, central coordination or facilitation, addresses the evolutionary nature of communities of practice and reduces the cognitive load for the individual by filtering and organizing the representational artifacts with respect to the social network of the community. The implementation we envision in this paper aims at applying the concept to a much broader audience, ultimately replacing the need for local meetings.

DevOpsUse for Rapid Training of Agile Practices Within Undergraduate and Startup Communities

Establishing a common practice between (startup) companies and universities in applied computer science labs has been tackled by pedagogical approaches based on the communities of practice theory. However, modern agile and distributed software engineering methods and recent developments like DevOps demand focused training of undergraduate students to enable them joining practices in companies. In this paper, we present the Community Application Editor (CAE) embedded in a DevOpsUse methodology supporting this form of basic training for bachelor students of computer science. We have evaluated the methodology and the tool usage in a first-stage undergraduate lab course. The results indicate that the students had a much smoother transition when later joining the second-stage lab with real companies.

Collaborative Non-linear Storytelling Around 3D Objects

In informal learning settings, storytelling is a mean towards acquiring and sharing knowledge. On the Web, user generated content and digital representations of real-world artifacts contribute to the story’s expressiveness. 3D objects are a good example of such representations, as they capture and distribute rich and complex information. We present an approach for the collaborative creation of non-linear stories in near real-time, centered around 3D objects. We use a metamodel, which acts as a basis for collaborative story creation. Stories are directly linked to 3D objects being attached to camera views and perspectives on a certain object. We instantiate story viewers from the collaboratively authored stories and use text and multimedia to annotate and browse the 3D objects. Our conducted evaluation proves the feasibility of the approach and promises good results in applying collaborative storytelling for 3D object browsing in order to scaffold informal learning.

An Integrated Learning Analytics Approach for Virtual Vocational Training Centers

Virtual training centers are hosted solutions for the implementation of training courses in the form of e.g. Webinars. Many existing centers neglect the informal and social dimension of vocational training as well as the legitimate business interests of training providers and companies sending their employees. In this paper, we present the virtual training center platform V3C that blends formal, certified virtual training courses with self-regulated and social learning in synchronous and asynchronous learning phases. We have developed an integrated learning analytics approach to collect, store, analyze and visualize data for different purposes like certification, interventions and gradual improvement of the platform. The results given here demonstrate the ability of the platform to deliver data for key performance indicators like learning outcomes and drop-out rates as well as the interplay between synchronous and asynchronous learning phases on a very large scale. Since the platform implementation is open source, results can be easily transferred and exploited in many contexts.

A Microservice Infrastructure for Distributed Communities of Practice

Non-formal learning in Communities of Practice (CoPs) makes up a significant portion of today’s knowledge gain. However, only little technological support is tailored specifically towards CoPs and their particular strengths and challenges. Even worse, CoPs often do not possess the resources to host or even develop a software ecosystem to support their activities. In this paper, we describe a distributed, microservice-based Web infrastructure for non-formal learning in CoPs. It mitigates the need for central infrastructures, coordination or facilitation and takes into account the constant change of these communities. As a real use case, we implement an inquiry-based learning application on-top of our infrastructure. Our evaluation results indicate the usefulness of this learning application, which shows promise for future work in the domain of community-hosted, microservice-based Web infrastructures for learning outside of formal settings.

Engineering Web Applications Using Real-Time Collaborative Modeling

In agile practices, near real-time collaboration on the Web facilitates stakeholder activities, their communication and joint impact analysis. In providing an abstraction layer on the software development process, modeling enables participatory design and improves requirements negotiation by close involvement of end users. However, model-driven engineering is mostly used in classical software development to achieve standardization and mature processes. Little research in Model-Driven Web Engineering focuses on leveraging near real-time collaboration and collaborative modeling in order to support agile Web engineering processes. This paper proposes a new approach for Web-based collaborative near real-time modeling and generation of Web applications by tying together frontend components and microservices as key elements. This leads to well-defined service interfaces that facilitate inter-service and backend-frontend communication. Our evaluation results indicate increased productivity by better support for collaborative activities in Model-Driven Web Engineering.

VIRTUS Virtual VET Centre (V3C): A Learning Platform for Virtual Vocational Education and Training

Given the flexible nature of virtual organizations and the barriers raised by multinational environments, increasing the participation rate of adult learners in vocational training is a difficult task. The latest developments in distant, open and collaborative learning techniques bare the potential to advance knowledge in the field and increase participation rates. In the scope of the European Project VIRTUS, we have developed the Virtual Vocational Educational Training Center, an innovative platform for ECVET standard certified courses that addresses the challenges in vocational training. In this demo, we aim to present the course platform to the TEL community and to gather feedback.