New web technologies have enabled online education to take on a massive scale, prompting many universities to create massively open online courses (MOOCs) that take advantage of these technologies in a seemingly effortless manner. Designing a MOOC, however, is anything but trivial. It involves developing content, learning activities, and assessments to accommodate both the massiveness and openness of the course. To design an effective MOOC, instructors need to integrate both pedagogical and information systems theory. In this paper, we present a case study of a MOOC grant and a series of decisions made in its development. These decisions, when paired with the theoretical framework, suggest five principles – meaningful, engaging, measurable, accessible, and scalable – may be applicable to future MOOC development projects.

Technology skills are assumed to be a necessity for college and career success, but technology is constantly evolving. Thus, development of students’ technology skills is an on-going and persistent issue. Standards from the Partnership for 21st Century Skills and the International Society for Technology in Education encourage educators to teach skills that help students adapt to changing working environments. These skills resemble the National Association for Gifted Children’s program and teacher preparation standards. Descriptive research about what is already occurring in classrooms has been done, but the information is frequently limited to a list of activities. A qualitative multi-case phenomenological study of six Alabama teachers of the gifted examined how they use and shape technology experiences with students, and promote student learning of 21st century skills. The teachers were chosen for the case study due to their reputation as teachers skilled in using technology with students. Lesson plans, interviews, and observations were used to discover themes between the teachers. Findings from the research indicate that educational technology use with students is shaped by factors such as teacher attitudes and expertise, available equipment and support, pedagogical decisions related to working with technology, and the particular student group participating in the technology use.

An online Moodle Workshop was evaluated for peer assessment effectiveness. A quasi-experiment was designed using a Seminar in Professionalism course taught in face-to-face mode to undergraduate students across two campuses. The first goal was to determine if Moodle Workshop awarded a fair peer grader grade. The second objective was to estimate if students were consistent and reliable in performing their peer assessments. Statistical techniques were used to answer the research hypotheses. Although Workshop Moodle did not have a built-in measure for peer assessment validity, t-tests and reliability estimates were calculated to demonstrate that the grades were consistent with what faculty expected. Implications were asserted to improve teaching and recommendations were provided to enhance Moodle.

Increasingly, numerous universities have identified benefits of flipped learning environments and have been encouraging instructors to adapt such methodologies in their respective classrooms, at a time when departments are facing significant budget constraints. This article proposes an instructional design framework utilized to strategically enhance traditional flipped methodologies in a first-year engineering course, by using low-cost technology aids and proven pedagogical techniques to enhance student learning. Implemented in a first-year engineering course, this modified flipped model demonstrated an improved student awareness of essential engineering concepts and improved academic performance through collaborative and active learning activities, including flipped learning methodologies, without the need for expensive, formal active learning spaces. These findings have been validated through two studies and have shown similar results confirming that student learning is improved by the implementation of multi-pedagogical strategies in-formed by the use of an instructional design in a traditional classroom setting.

Prior work demonstrates the importance of introducing young children to programming and engineering content before gender stereotypes are fully developed and ingrained in later years. However, very little research on gender and early childhood technology interventions exist. This pilot study looks at N=45 children in kindergarten through second grade who completed an eight-week robotics and programming curriculum using the KIWI robotics kit. KIWI is a developmentally appropriate robotics construction set specifically designed for use with children ages 4 to 7 years old. Qualitative pre-interviews were administered to determine whether participating children had any gender-biased attitudes toward robotics and other engineering tools prior to using KIWI in their classrooms. Post-tests were administered upon completion of the curriculum to determine if any gender differences in achievement were present. Results showed that young children were beginning to form opinions about which technologies and tools would be better suited for boys and girls. While there were no significant differences between boys and girls on the robotics and simple programming tasks, boys performed significantly better than girls on the advanced programming tasks such as, using repeat loops with sensor parameters. Implications for the design of new technological tools and curriculum that are appealing to boys and girls are discussed.

Since the advent of the iPhone and rise of mobile technologies, educational apps represent one of the fastest growing markets, and both the mobile technology and educational app markets are predicted to continue experiencing growth into the foreseeable future. The irony, however, is that even with a booming market for educational apps, very little research regarding the quality of them has been conducted. Though some instruments have been developed to evaluate apps geared towards student learning, no such instrument has been created for teacher resource apps, which are designed to assist teachers in completing common tasks (e.g., taking attendance, communicating with parents, monitoring student learning and behavior, etc.). Moreover, when teachers visit the App Store or Google Play to learn about apps, the only ratings provided to them are generic, five-point evaluations, which do not provide qualifiers that explain why an app earned three, two, or five points. To address that gap, previously conducted research related to designing instructional technologies coupled with best practices for supporting teachers were first identified. That information was then used to construct a comprehensive rubric for assessing teacher re-source apps. In this article, a discussion that explains the need for such a rubric is offered before describing the process used to create it. The article then presents the rubric and discusses its different components and potential limitations and concludes with suggestions for future research based on the rubric.

Immigrant students face a multitude of problems, among which are poor social adaptation and school integration. On the other hand, although digital narrations are widely used in education, they are rarely used for aiding students or for the resolution of complex problems. This study exploits the potential of digital narrations towards this end, by examining how the development and presentation of an autobiographical digital narration can assist immigrant students in overcoming their adaptation difficulties. For that matter, a female student presenting substantial problems was selected as the study’s subject. Data was collected from all the participating parties (subject, teacher, classmates) using a variety of tools, before, during, and after the intervention. It was found that through the digital narration she was able to externalize her thoughts and feelings and this, in turn, helped her in achieving a smoother integration in the school environment. In addition, the attitudes and perceptions of the other students for their foreign classmate were positively influenced. The intervention was short in duration and it did not require special settings. Hence, it can be easily applied and educators can consider using similar interventions. On the other hand, further research is recommended to establish the generalizability of the study’s findings.

The paper describes the development of four learning modules that focus on technical details of how a person’s privacy might be compromised in real-world scenarios. The paper shows how students benefited from the addition of hands-on learning experiences of privacy and data protection to the existing information technology courses. These learning modules raised students’ awareness of potential breaches of privacy as a user as well as a developer. The demonstration of a privacy breach in action helped students to design, configure, and implement technical solutions to prevent privacy violations. The assessment results demonstrate the strength of the technical approach.

Aim/Purpose: To examine the early perceptions (acceptability) and usability of EASEL (Education through Application-Supported Experiential Learning), a mobile platform that delivers reflection prompts and content before, during, and after an experiential learning activity. Background: Experiential learning is an active learning approach in which students learn by doing and by reflecting on the experience. This approach to teaching is often used in disciplines such as humanities, business, and medicine. Reflection before, during, and after an experience allows the student to analyze what they learn and why it is important, which is vital in helping them to understand the relevance of the experience. A just-in-time tool (EASEL) was needed to facilitate this. Methodology: To inform the development of a mobile application that facilitates real-time guided reflection and to determine the relevant feature set, we conducted a needs analysis with both students and faculty members. Data collected during this stage of the evaluation helped guide the creation of a prototype. The user experience of the prototype and interface interactions were evaluated during the usability phase of the evaluation study. Contribution: Both the needs analysis and usability assessment provided justification for continued development of EASEL as well as insight that guides current development. Findings: The interaction design of EASEL is understandable and usable. Both students and teachers value an application that facilitates real-time guided reflection. Recommendations for Practitioners: The use of a system such as EASEL can leverage time and location-based services to support students in field experiences. This technology aligns with evidence that guided reflection provides opportunities for metacognition. Recommendation for Researchers: Iterative prototyping, testing, and refinement can lead to a deliberate and effective app development process. Impact on Society: The EASEL platform leverages inherent functionality of mobile devices, such as GPS and persistent network connectivity, to adapt reflection tasks based on lo-cation or time. Students using EASEL will engage in guided reflection, which leads to metacognition and can help instructors scaffold learning Future Research: We will continue to advance the application through iterative testing and development. When ready, the application will be vetted in larger studies across varied disciplines and contexts.

Aim/Purpose: Improving public schools is a focus of federal legislation in the United States with much of the burden placed on principals. However, preparing principals for this task has proven elusive despite many changes in programming by institutions of higher learning. Emerging technologies that rely on augmented and virtual realities are posited to be powerful pedagogical tools for closing this gap. Background: This study investigated the effects of immersive simulation technologies on principals’ self-efficacy after treatment and the perceived significance of the design of the immersive simulation experience as an effective tool for adult learners. Methodology: The investigator employed a multiple-methods study that relied on a purposive sample of graduate students enrolled in educational leadership programs at two small universities in the southeastern United States. Participants completed a two-hour module of immersive simulation designed to facilitate transfer of knowledge to skills thereby increasing their self-efficacy. Contribution: This paper contributes to a small body of literature that examines the use of immersive simulation to prepare aspiring principals. Findings: The findings indicate moderate effect sizes in changes in self-efficacy, positive attitudes toward immersive simulation as a pedagogical tool, and significance in the design of immersive simulation modules. This suggests that immersive simulation, when properly designed, aids principals in taking action to improve schools. Recommendations for Practitioners: Educational leadership programs might consider the use of immersive simulations to enhance principals’ ability to meet the complex demands of leading in the 21st century. Impact on Society: Principals may be more adept at improving schools if preparation programs provided consistent opportunities to engage in immersive simulations. Future Research: Future research should be conducted with larger sample sizes and longitudinally to determine the effectiveness of this treatment.

Aim/Purpose: Electronic examinations have some inherent problems. Students have expressed negative opinions about electronic examinations (e-examinations) due to a fear of, or unfamiliarity with, the technology of assessment, and a lack of knowledge about the methods of e-examinations. Background: Electronic examinations are now a viable alternative method of assessing student learning. They provide freedom of choice, in terms of the location of the examination, and can provide immediate feedback; students and institutions can be assured of the integrity of knowledge testing. This in turn motivates students to strive for deeper learning and better results, in a higher quality and more rigorous educational process. Methodology : This paper compares an e-examination system at FUT Minna Nigeria with one in Australia, at the University of Tasmania, using case study analysis. The functions supported, or inhibited, by each of the two e-examination systems, with different approaches to question types, cohort size, technology used, and security features, are compared. Contribution: The researchers’ aim is to assist stakeholders (including lecturers, invigilators, candidates, computer instructors, and server operators) to identify ways of improving the process. The relative convenience for students, administrators, and lecturer/assessors and the reliability and security of the two systems are considered. Challenges in conducting e-examinations in both countries are revealed by juxtaposing the systems. The authors propose ways of developing more effective e-examination systems. Findings: The comparison of the two institutions in Nigeria and Australia shows e-examinations have been implemented for the purpose of selecting students for university courses, and for their assessment once enrolled. In Nigeria, there is widespread systemic adoption for university entrance merit selection. In Australia this has been limited to one subject in one state, rather than being adopted nationally. Within undergraduate courses, the Nigerian scenario is quite extensive; in Australia this adoption has been slower, but has penetrated a wide variety of disciplines. Recommendations for Practitioners: Assessment integrity and equipment reliability were common issues across the two case studies, although the delivery of e-examinations is different in each country. As with any procedural process, a particular solution is only as good as its weakest attribute. Technical differences highlight the link between e-examination system approaches and pedagogical implications. It is clear that social, cultural, and environmental factors affect the success of e-examinations. For example, an interrupted electrical power supply and limited technical know-how are two of the challenges affecting the conduct of e-examinations in Nigeria. In Tasmania, the challenge with the “bring your own device” (BYOD) is to make the system operate on an increasing variety of user equipment, including tablets. Recommendation for Researchers: The comparisons between the two universities indicate there will be a productive convergence of the approaches in future. One key proposal, which arose from the analysis of the existing e-examination systems in Nigeria and Australia, is to design a form of “live” operating system that is deployable over the Internet. This method would use public key cryptography for lecturers to encrypt their questions online. Impact on Society : If institutions are to transition to e-examinations, one way of facilitating this move is by using computers to imitate other assessment techniques. However, higher order thinking is usually demonstrated through open-ended or creative tasks. In this respect the Australian system shows promise by providing the same full operating system and software application suite to all candidates, thereby supporting assessment of such creative higher order thinking. The two cases illustrate the potential tension between “online” or networked reticulation of questions and answers, as opposed to “offline” methods. Future Research: A future design proposition is a web-based strategy for a virtual machine, which is launched into candidates’ computers at the start of each e-examination. The new system is a form of BYOD externally booted e-examination (as in Australia) that is deployable over the Internet with encryption and decryption features using public key cryptography (Nigeria). This will allow lecturers to encrypt their questions and post them online while the questions are decrypted by the administrator or students are given the key. The system will support both objective and open-ended questions (possibly essays and creative design tasks). The authors believe this can re-define e-examinations as the “gold standard” of assessment.

Aim/Purpose: The present study investigated and compared students’ attention in terms of time-on-task and number of distractors between using a touchscreen and a pen tablet in mathematical problem-solving activities with virtual manipulatives. Background: Although there is an increasing use of these input devices in educational practice, little research has focused on assessing student attention while using touchscreens or pen tablets in a mathematics classroom. Methodology: A qualitative exploration was conducted in a public elementary school in New Taipei, Taiwan. Six fifth-grade students participated in the activities. Video recordings of the activities and the students’ actions were analyzed. Findings: The results showed that students in the activity using touchscreens maintained greater attention and, thus, had more time-on-task and fewer distractors than those in the activity using pen tablets. Recommendations for Practitioners: School teachers could employ touchscreens in mathematics classrooms to support activities that focus on students’ manipulations in relation to the attention paid to the learning content. Recommendation for Researchers: The findings enhance our understanding of the input devices used in educational practice and provide a basis for further research. Impact on Society: The findings may also shed light on the human-technology interaction process involved in using pen and touch technology conditions. Future Research: Activities similar to those reported here should be conducted using more participants. In addition, it is important to understand how students with different levels of mathematics achievement use the devices in the activities.

Aim/Purpose : To examine the use of a flipped classroom in the English Language subject in secondary classrooms in Hong Kong. Background: The research questions addressed were: (1) What are teachers’ perceptions towards the flipped classroom pedagogy? (2) How can teachers transfer their flipped classroom experiences to teaching other classes/subjects? (3) What are students’ perceptions towards the flipped classroom pedagogy? (4) How can students transfer their flipped classroom experiences to studying other subjects? (5) Will students have significant gain in the knowledge of the lesson topic trialled in this study? Methodology: A total of 57 students from two Secondary 2 classes in a Band 3 secondary school together with two teachers teaching these two classes were involved in this study. Both quantitative and quantitative data analyses were conducted. Contribution: Regarding whether the flipped classroom pedagogy can help students gain significantly in their knowledge of a lesson topic, only one class of students gained statistically significantly in the subject knowledge but not for another class. Findings: Students in general were positive about the flipped classroom. On the other hand, although the teachers considered that the flipped classroom pedagogy was creative, they thought it may only be useful for teaching English grammar. Recommendations for Practitioners: Teachers thought that flipping a classroom may only be useful for more motivated students, and the extra workload of finding or making suitable pre-lesson online videos is the main concern for teachers. Recommendations for Researchers: Both quantitative and qualitative analyses should be conducted to investigate the effectiveness of a flipped classroom on students’ language learning. Impact on Society : Teachers and students can transfer their flipped classroom experiences in English Language to teaching and studying other subjects. Future Research: More classes should be involved and a longer period of time should be spent on trial teaching in which a flipped classroom can be implemented in different lesson topics, not only teaching grammar. Teachers also need to determine if students can use the target language item in a task.

Aim/Purpose: To identify positive and negative aspects for learning of interactive tablet technology learning activities that promote student engagement and learning. Background: Engaging students in mathematics classes is an on-going challenge for teachers. In 2008 we were offered the opportunity to run interactive activities with a class set of tablet PCs that had just been released on to the market. Since then, we have run these interactive activities continuously with mathematics classes for computing students, albeit with two changes in hardware. Methodology: In the interactive activities, students submit full worked solutions to various problem types (classified as table, text, open or multi-choice) which can then be displayed to the class anonymously, discussed and annotated by the teacher. We surveyed student and staff perceptions and monitored academic performance. Contribution: We have over 10 years of results, observations, and experience from 2008, when tablet technologies were new and expensive, to the current time, when modern tablets with styli are now affordable. Findings: There was a significant increase in higher grades although pass rates did not increase significantly. Over the ten year period of the study, perceptions of students and staff about how this technology impacted on student learning were consistently positive. The majority of students found all problem types useful for learning even those they rated “too hard” or “too easy”. Benefits included increased feedback, peer learning and engagement. Recommendations for Practitioners: We recommend using tablet learning activities to engage students and teachers and to contribute to learning. Impact on Society: This study shows how using tablet technologies for interactive classroom activities can enable and enhance known pedagogies of feedback, peer instruction, and student engagement for mathematics classes. Future Research: We recommend extending this study to include larger classes, and other technical subjects that use symbols and diagrams. In addition, we suggest considering control groups.

Aim/Purpose: The aims of this study were to investigate the feasibility of automatic assessment of programming tasks and to compare manual assessment with automatic assessment in terms of the effect of the different assessment methods on the marks of the students. Background: Manual assessment of programs written by students can be tedious. The assistance of automatic assessment methods might possibly assist in reducing the assessment burden, but there may be drawbacks diminishing the benefits of applying automatic assessment. The paper reports on the experience of a lecturer trying to introduce automated grading. Students’ solutions to a practical Java programming test were assessed both manually and automatically and the lecturer tied the experience to the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT). Methodology: The participants were 226 first-year students registered for a Java programming course. Of the tests the participants submitted, 214 were assessed both manually and automatically. Various statistical methods were used to compare the manual assessment of student’s solutions with the automatic assessment of the same solutions. A detailed investigation of reasons for differences was also carried out. A further data collection method was the lecturer’s reflection on the feasibility of automatic assessment of programming tasks based on the UTAUT. Contribution: This study enhances the knowledge regarding benefits and drawbacks of automatic assessment of students’ programming tasks. The research contributes to the UTAUT by applying it in a context where it has hardly been used. Furthermore, the study is a confirmation of previous work stating that automatic assessment may be less reliable for students with lower marks, but more trustworthy for the high achieving students. Findings: An automatic assessment tool verifying functional correctness might be feasible for assessment of programs written during practical lab sessions but could be less useful for practical tests and exams where functional, conceptual and structural correctness should be evaluated. In addition, the researchers found that automatic assessment seemed to be more suitable for assessing high achieving students. Recommendations for Practitioners: This paper makes it clear that lecturers should know what assessment goals they want to achieve. The appropriate method of assessment should be chosen wisely. In addition, practitioners should be aware of the drawbacks of automatic assessment before choosing it. Recommendation for Researchers: This work serves as an example of how researchers can apply the UTAUT theory when conducting qualitative research in different contexts. Impact on Society: The study would be of interest to lecturers considering automated assessment. The two assessments used in the study are typical of the way grading takes place in practice and may help lecturers understand what could happen if they switch from manual to automatic assessment. Future Research: Investigate the feasibility of automatic assessment of students’ programming tasks in a practical lab environment while accounting for structural, functional and conceptual assessment goals.

Aim/Purpose: The goal of this paper is to examine whether having female robotics teachers positively impacts girls’ performance on programming and robotics tasks Background: Women continue to be underrepresented in the technical STEM fields such as engineering and computer science. New programs and initiatives are needed to engage girls in STEM beginning in early childhood. The goal of this work is to explore the impact of teacher gender on young children’s mastery of programming concepts after completing an introductory robotics program. Methodology: A sample of N=105 children from six classrooms (2 Kindergarten, 2 first grade, and 2 second grade classes) from a public school in Somerville, Massachusetts, participated in this research. Children were taught the same robotics curriculum by either an all-male or all-female teaching team. Upon completion of the curriculum, they completed programming knowledge assessments called Solve-Its. Comparisons between the performance of boys and girls in each of the teaching groups were made. Findings: This paper provides preliminary evidence that having a female instructor may positively impact girls’ performance on certain programming tasks and reduce the number of gender differences between boys and girls in their mastery of programming concepts. Recommendations for Practitioners: Practitioners should expose children to STEM role-models from a variety of backgrounds, genders, ethnicities, and experiences. Future Research: Researchers should conduct future studies with larger samples of teachers in order to replicate the findings here. Additionally, future research should focus on collecting data from teachers in the form of interviews and surveys in order to find out more about gender-based differences in teaching style and mentorship and the impact of this on girls' interest and performance in STEM.

Aim/Purpose: This study was aimed at enhancing students’ learning of software engineering methods. A collaboration between the Computer Science, Business Management, and Product Design programs was formed to work on actual projects with real clients. This interdisciplinary form of collaboration simulates the realities of a diverse Software Engineering team. Background: A collaborative approach implemented through projects has been the established pedagogy for introducing the Software Engineering course to undergraduate Computer Science students. The collaboration, however, is limited to collaboration among Computer Science students and their clients. This case study explored an enhancement to the collaborative approach to project development by integrating other related disciplines into the project development framework; hence, the Interdisciplinary Approach. Methodology: This study adopted the case method approach. An interdisciplinary service innovation activity was proposed to invite other disciplines in the learning process of the computer science students. The agile methodology Scrum was used as the software development approach during project development. Survey data were collected from the students to establish (a) their perception of the interdisciplinary approach to project development; (b) the factors that influenced success or failure of their team to deliver the project; and (c) the perceived skills or knowledge that they acquired from the interdisciplinary approach. Analysis of data followed a mixed method approach. Contribution: The study improved the current pedagogy for Software Engineering education by integrating other related disciplines into the software project development framework. Findings: Data collected showed that the students generally accepted the interdisciplinary approach to project development. Factors such as project relevance, teamwork, time and schedule, and administration support, among others, affect team performance towards project completion. In the case of the Computer Science students, results show that students have learned skills during the experience that, as literature reveal, can only be acquired or mastered in their future profession as software engineers. Recommendations for Practitioners: The active collaboration of the industry with the University and the involvement of the other related courses in teaching software engineering methods are critical to the development of the students, not only in learning the methodology but also as a working professional. Recommendation for Researchers: It is interesting to know and eventually understand the interactions between interdisciplinary team members in the conduct of Software Engineering practices while working on their projects. More specifically, what creative tensions arise and how do the interdisciplinary teams handle the discourse? Impact on Society: This study bridges the gap between how Software Engineering is taught in the university and how Software Engineering teams work in real life. Future Research: Future research is targeted at refining and elaborating the elements of the interdisciplinary framework presented in this paper towards an integrated course module for Software Engineering education.

Aim/Purpose: The aim of this article is to develop a tool to detect plagiarism in real time amongst students being evaluated for learning in a computer-based assessment setting. Background: Cheating or copying all or part of source code of a program is a serious concern to academic institutions. Many academic institutions apply a combination of policy driven and plagiarism detection approaches. These mechanisms are either proactive or reactive and focus on identifying, catching, and punishing those found to have cheated or plagiarized. To be more effective against plagiarism, mechanisms that detect cheating or colluding in real-time are desirable. Methodology: In the development of a tool for real-time plagiarism prevention, literature review and prototyping was used. The prototype was implemented in Delphi programming language using Indy components. Contribution: A real-time plagiarism detection tool suitable for use in a computer-based assessment setting is developed. This tool can be used to complement other existing mechanisms. Findings: The developed tool was tested in an environment with 55 personal computers and found to be effective in detecting unauthorized access to internet, intranet, and USB ports on the personal computers. Recommendations for Practitioners: The developed tool is suitable for use in any environment where computer-based evaluation may be conducted. Recommendation for Researchers: This work provides a set of criteria for developing a real-time plagiarism prevention tool for use in a computer-based assessment. Impact on Society: The developed tool prevents academic dishonesty during an assessment process, consequently, inculcating confidence in the assessment processes and respectability of the education system in the society. Future Research: As future work, we propose a comparison between our tool and other such tools for its performance and its features. In addition, we want to extend our work to include testing for scalability of the tool to larger settings.

Aim/Purpose: This paper presents a data mining approach for analyzing responses to advanced declarative programming questions. The goal of this research is to find a model that can explain the results obtained by students when they perform exams with Constructed Response questions and with equivalent Multiple-Choice Questions. Background: The assessment of acquired knowledge is a fundamental role in the teaching-learning process. It helps to identify the factors that can contribute to the teacher in the developing of pedagogical methods and evaluation tools and it also contributes to the self-regulation process of learning. However, better format of questions to assess declarative programming knowledge is still a subject of ongoing debate. While some research advocates the use of constructed responses, others emphasize the potential of multiple-choice questions. Methodology: A sensitivity analysis was applied to extract useful knowledge from the relevance of the characteristics (i.e., the input variables) used for the data mining process to compute the score. Contribution: Such knowledge helps the teachers to decide which format they must consider with respect to the objectives and expected students results. Findings: The results shown a set of factors that influence the discrepancy between answers in both formats. Recommendations for Practitioners: Teachers can make an informed decision about whether to choose multiple-choice questions or constructed-response taking into account the results of this study. Recommendation for Researchers: In this study a block of exams with CR questions is verified to complement the area of learning, returning greater performance in the evaluation of students and improving the teaching-learning process. Impact on Society: The results of this research confirm the findings of several other researchers that the use of ICT and the application of MCQ is an added value in the evaluation process. In most cases the student is more likely to succeed with MCQ, however if the teacher prefers to evaluate with CR other research approaches are needed. Future Research: Future research must include other question formats.

Aim/Purpose: This paper aims to explore whether having state Computer Science standards in place will increase young children’s exposure to coding and powerful ideas from computer science in the early years. Background: Computer science education in the K-2 educational segment is receiving a growing amount of attention as national and state educational frameworks are emerging. By focusing on the app ScratchJr, the most popular free introductory block-based programming language for early childhood, this paper explores if there is a relationship between the presence of state frameworks and ScratchJr’s frequency of use. Methodology: This paper analyzes quantitative non-identifying data from Google Analytics on users of the ScratchJr programming app. Google Analytics is a free tool that allows access to user activity as it happens in real time on the app, as well as audience demographics and behavior. An analysis of trends by state, time of year, type of in-app activities completed, and more are analyzed with a specific focus on comparing states with K-12 Computer Science in place versus those without. Contribution: Results demonstrate the importance of having state standards in place to increase young children’s exposure to coding and powerful ideas from computer science in the early years. Moreover, we see preliminary evidence that states with Computer Science standards in place support skills like perseverance and debugging through ScratchJr. Findings: Findings show that in the case of ScratchJr, app usage decreases during the summer months and on weekends, which may indicate that coding with ScratchJr is more often happening in school than at home. Results also show that states with Computer Science standards have more ScratchJr users on average and have more total sessions with the app on average. Results also show preliminary evidence that states with Computer Science standards in place have longer average session duration as well as a higher average number of users returning to edit an existing project. Recommendations for Practitioners: Successful early childhood computer science education programs must teach powerful ideas from the discipline of computer science in a developmentally appropriate way, provide means for self-expression, prompt debugging and problem solving, and offer a low-floor/high-ceiling interface for both novices and experts. Practitioners should be aware in drops in computer science learning during the summer months when school is not in session. Recommendation for Researchers: Researchers should consider the impact of state and national frameworks on computer science learning and skills mastered during the early childhood years. Researchers should look for ways to continue engaging students in computer science education during times when school is not in session. Impact on Society: Results demonstrate the importance of having state CS standards in place to increase young children’s exposure to coding and powerful ideas from computer science in the early years. Moreover, we see preliminary evidence that states with Computer Science standards in place support skills like perseverance and debugging through ScratchJr. Future Research: Future research should continue collecting Google Analytics from the ScratchJr app and track changes in usage. Future research should also collect analytics from a wide range of programming applications for young children to see if the trends identified here are consistent across different apps.

Aim/Purpose: The main aim of this study was modeling a collaborative process for knowledge visualization, via the creation of infographics. Background: As an effective method for visualizing complex information, creating infographics requires learners to generate and cultivate a deep knowledge of content and enables them to concisely visualize and share this knowledge. This study investigates creating infographics as a knowledge visualization process for collaborative learning situations by integrating the infographic design model into the team-based and technology-mediated Bridge21 learning model. Methodology: This study was carried out using an educational design perspective by conducting three main cycles comprised of three micro cycles: analysis and exploration; design and construction; evaluation and reflection. The process and the scaffolding were developed and enhanced from cycle to cycle based on both qualitative and quantitative methods by using the infographic design rubric and researcher observations acquired during implementation. Respectively, twenty-three, twenty-four, and twenty-four secondary school students participated in the infographic creation process cycles. Contribution: This research proposes an extensive step-by-step process model for creating infographics as a method of visualization for learning. It is particularly relevant for working with complex information, in that it enables collaborative knowledge construction and sharing of condensed knowledge. Findings: Creating infographics can be an effective method for collaborative learning situations by enabling knowledge construction, visualization and sharing. The Bridge21 activity model constituted the spine of the infographic creation process. The content generation, draft generation, and visual and digital design generation components of the infographic design model matched with the investigate, plan and create phases of the Bridge21 activity model respectively. Improvements on infographic design results from cycle to cycle suggest that the revisions on the process model succeeded in their aims. The rise in each category was found to be significant, but the advance in visual design generation was particularly large. Recommendations for Practitioners: The effectiveness of the creation process and the quality of the results can be boosted by using relevant activities based on learner prior knowledge and skills. While infographic creation can lead to a focus on visual elements, the importance of wording must be emphasized. Being a multidimensional process, groups need guidance to ensure effective collaboration. Recommendation for Researchers: The proposed collaborative infographic creation process could be structured and evaluated for online learning environments, which will improve interaction and achievement by enhancing collaborative knowledge creation. Impact on Society: In order to be knowledge constructors, innovative designers, creative communicators and global collaborators, learners need to be surrounded by adequate learning environments. The infographic creation process offers them a multidimensional learning situation. They must understand the problem, find an effective way to collect information, investigate their data, develop creative and innovative perspectives for visual design and be comfortable for using digital creation tools. Future Research: The infographic creation process could be investigated in terms of required learner prior knowledge and skills, and could be enhanced by developing pre-practices and scaffolding.

Aim/Purpose: The study examined types of errors made by novice programmers in different Java concepts with students of different ability levels in programming as well as the perceived causes of such errors. Background: To improve code writing and debugging skills, efforts have been made to taxonomize programming errors and their causes. However, most of the studies employed omnibus approaches, i.e. without consideration of different programing concepts and ability levels of the trainee programmers. Such concepts and ability specific errors identification and classifications are needed to advance appropriate intervention strategy. Methodology: A sequential exploratory mixed method design was adopted. The sample was an intact class of 124 Computer Science and Engineering undergraduate students grouped into three achievement levels based on first semester performance in a Java programming course. The submitted codes in the course of second semester exercises were analyzed for possible errors, categorized and grouped across achievement level. The resulting data were analyzed using descriptive statistics as well as Pearson product correlation coefficient. Qualitative analyses through interviews and focused group discussion (FGD) were also employed to identify reasons for the committed errors. Contribution:The study provides a useful concept-based and achievement level specific error log for the teaching of Java programming for beginners. Findings: The results identified 598 errors with Missing symbols (33%) and Invalid symbols (12%) constituting the highest and least committed errors respec-tively. Method and Classes concept houses the highest number of errors (36%) followed by Other Object Concepts (34%), Decision Making (29%), and Looping (10%). Similar error types were found across ability levels. A significant relationship was found between missing symbols and each of Invalid symbols and Inappropriate Naming. Errors made in Methods and Classes were also found to significantly predict that of Other Object concepts. Recommendations for Practitioners: To promote better classroom practice in the teaching of Java programming, findings for the study suggests instructions to students should be based on achievement level. In addition to this, learning Java programming should be done with an unintelligent editor. Recommendations for Researchers: Research could examine logic or semantic errors among novice programmers as the errors analyzed in this study focus mainly on syntactic ones. Impact on Society: The digital age is code-driven, thus error analysis in programming instruction will enhance programming ability, which will ultimately transform novice programmers into experts, particularly in developing countries where most of the software in use is imported. Future Research: Researchers could look beyond novice or beginner programmers as codes written by intermediate or even advanced programmers are still not often completely error free.

Aim/Purpose: In this study, the researchers investigated whether the out-of-class learning approach could help the students to attain any valuable learning outcomes for cybersecurity learning and could enhance the perceived value of cybersecurity education among the students. Background: Cybersecurity learning poses challenges for its students to learn a complicated subject matter and the students may be intimidated by the challenging courses in cybersecurity programs. Therefore, it is essential for the faculty members to devise some mechanisms to promote cybersecurity learning to increase its student retention. The mechanism suggested by this study was the out-of-class learning approach. Methodology: The researchers in this study employed a content analysis and adopted a semiotic method to analyze qualitative data. The researchers also conducted crosstabulation analyses using chi-square tests to detect the significant differences in the emerging learning outcomes from the two different out-of-class learning activities investigated in this study. Contribution: This study addressed the difficulty of cybersecurity education and proposed a viable mechanism to promote the student learning in such a complicated subject matter. Findings: For cybersecurity education, the out-of-class learning approach is a viable pedagogical mechanism that could lead the students to several learning outcomes, including connecting them to the real-life scenarios related to the cybersecurity profession, guiding them to their career choices and development, stimulating their intellectual growth, creating their justification of learning, and raising their cybersecurity awareness. Recommendations for Practitioners: The instructors of any cybersecurity programs should incorporate some out-of-class learning activities into the courses in their programs, especially the introductory-level courses. Additionally, it is important to coordinate the out-of-class learning activities with the in-class lessons to enable the students to justify what they have learned in their classrooms and motivate them to learn more. Recommendation for Researchers: Researchers could look beyond in-class learning and laboratory learning to investigate the impacts of out-of-class learning activities on cybersecurity education to help the students to attain better learning outcomes. Impact on Society: By promoting cybersecurity education, universities and colleges could attain a higher retention rate of the students in their cybersecurity programs. The higher retention rate of the students in cybersecurity programs would help to ease the critical shortage of cybersecurity talent. Future Research: Future research could explore the impacts of other out-of-class learning activities on cybersecurity learning; for example: job shadowing, attending cybersecurity conferences, internship, developing cybersecurity systems or tools for actual customers, working on cybersecurity research with faculty members. Additionally, future studies could investigate the effects of the out-of-class learning approach on promoting other academic programs that are characterized by intensely complex and technical nature, similar to cybersecurity programs.

Aim/Purpose: This paper reports on a case study project which had three goals; to develop a suite of original interactive digital skills e-tutorials to be embedded in undergraduate and postgraduate courses; to evaluate the students’ experience and engagement with the e-tutorials over one semester; and to explore their general attitudes towards online and blended learning. Background: Online and blended learning modes continue to grow in popularity in higher education, with the aim of streamlining and enhancing student learning, supporting collaboration and creativity, and equipping students with the skills they will require to work and live in an increasingly digitized world. This practice-based case study highlights factors which positively and negatively affect user engagement with digital learning objects and explores students’ perceptions of the role of online learning within their academic programs. Methodology: A suite of nine interactive e-tutorials, addressing essential digital literacy skills for university students, was developed through instructor and student peer collaboration using Articulate software, informed by best practice. The e-tutorials were embedded in the institutional Learning Management System for three undergraduate and postgraduate courses, in which digital literacy formed the core learning content, to complement classroom-based learning. Students in these courses were surveyed via SurveyMonkey about their specific experience of using the e-tutorials, as well as their general perceptions of digital literacy and online learning. Eighty-six students in total completed the questionnaire, which consisted of twenty-three closed- and open-ended questions. Contribution: Through highlighting both the positive and the challenging aspects of the students’ reported experience of online learning, this case study contributes useful insights to the body of literature on user engagement with digital learning objects in higher education, as well as students’ perceptions and experience of blended learning. Findings: The e-tutorials were perceived as valuable in reinforcing classroom learning, allowing respondents to revise concepts and materials covered in face-to-face classes, at their own pace and in their own time. Survey responses showed that the accessibility, ease-of-use, design and duration of the e-tutorials were deemed effective in terms of user engagement; however, several technological challenges were identified, such as browser incompatibility, uneven sound quality and general Internet connection issues, which disrupted their learning. Overall, students expressed enjoyment of the learning facilitated by the e-tutorials; however, rather than favoring online learning alone, they expressed a preference for a blended learning environment, with a combination of complementary learning approaches; survey respondents did not generally wish to forego face-to-face classes entirely. Recommendations for Practitioners: Instructors should seek to strategically embed interactive digital learning objects in their courses at defined points of need in a logical structure, e.g., to reinforce classroom-based learning, or to support specific skill development. Potential disruption to learning should be minimized by following best practice guidelines to ensure ease of access, a seamless user experience, and timely feedback, as well as providing adequate support for rapid resolution of technical glitches. Recommendation for Researchers: E-tutorials offer a useful means of exploring ways in which students acquire learning in the digital environment. A wider, collaborative exploration is needed to provide comparative studies which move beyond case studies. Impact on Society: Online learning mechanisms, such as e-tutorials, offer students different means of acquiring essential literacy skills and different ways to interact with content. E-tutorials constitute reusable learning objects, which can be accessed as just-in-time delivery modes, when students perceive they need to review particular skills or reinforce learning material. Future Research: This research is now expanding into different types of reusable learning objects. E-tutorials may be developed in multiple ways, and comparative research around e-tutorial models will deepen our understanding of how students interact with content in formal learning contexts. As the digital educational landscape continues to expand alongside traditional face-to-face and analogue learning modes, a key research focus will be student and instructor perceptions and experience of blended learning in different contexts.

Aim/Purpose: Although many computer science measures have been proposed, visualizing individual students’ capabilities is difficult, as those measures often rely on specific tools and methods or are not graded. To solve these problems, we propose a rubric for measuring and visualizing the effects of learning computer programming for elementary school students enrolled in computer science education (CSE), which is independent of the programming language being used. Background: In this research, we proposed a rubric based on existing CSE standards and criteria having a programming education-learning goal. We then applied this rubric to actual lessons to visualize the educational effects. Methodology: The proposed new rubric for teaching computer programming, based on existing standards and criteria, was applied to fourth- and sixth-grade students in Japan. We assessed which skills were cultivated through quizzes before and after the teaching. Contribution: This paper contributes on how to make and utilize a rubric for programming education in computer science. We evaluated and visualized the proposed rubric’s learning effects on children and found that our proposed rubrics are independent of any particular method or tool. Findings: The results of this survey are twofold: (1) we proposed a rubric of programming education in computer science, independent of the programming tools used and (2) we succeeded in visualizing students’ learning stages by applying the proposed rubric to programming education conducted in a Japanese elementary school. Recommendations for Practitioners: Evaluating educational effects in CSE is important. In particular, graded assessments of learner abilities can reveal individual characteristics. This research is useful for assessing CSE because it focuses specifically on programming education. Recommendation for Researchers: The rubric’s suggestions and quality improvements in CSE help learners assess their learning progress and will clarify the cultivated computer science skills. Impact on Society: This research evaluates CSE based on a rubric in the programming education field. Future Research: Future work is needed to improve the proposed rubric’s quality and relevance. Also, this rubric should be applied to many classes to increase the number of evaluations and analyses.

Aim/Purpose: The purpose of this study is to develop an efficient methodology that can assist the evaluators in assessing a variable number of individuals that are working in groups and guarantee that the assessment is dependent on the group members’ performance and contribution to the work developed. Background: Collaborative work has been gaining more popularity in academic settings. However, group assessment needs to be performed according to each individual’s performance. The problem rests on the need to distinguish each member of the group in order to provide fair and unbiased assessments. Methodology: Design Science Research methodology supported the design of a framework able to provide the evaluator with the means to distinguish individuals in a workgroup and deliver fair results. Hevner’s DSR guidelines were fulfilled in order to describe WebAVALIA. To evaluate the framework, a quantitative study was performed and the first results are presented. Contribution: This paper provides a methodological solution regarding a fair evaluation of collaborative work through a tool that allows its users to perform their own assessment and peer assessment. These are made accordingly to the user’s perspectives on the performance of each group member throughout the work development. Findings: The first analysis of the results indicates that the developed method provides fairness in the assessment of group members, delivering a distinction amongst individuals. Therefore, each group member obtains a mark that corresponds to their specific contribution to the workgroup. Recommendations for Practitioners: For those who intend to apply this workgroup assessment method, it is relevant to raise student awareness about the methodology that is going to be used. That is, all the functionalities and steps in WebAVALIA have to be thoroughly explained before beginning of the project. Then, the evaluators have to decide about the students’ intermediate voting, namely if the evaluator chooses or not to publish student results throughout the project’s development. If there is the decision to display these intermediate results, the evaluator must try to encourage collaboration among workgroup members, instead of competition. Recommendation for Researchers: This study explores the design and development of an e-assessment tool – WebAVALIA. In order to assess its feasibility, its use in other institutions or contexts is recommended. The gathering of user opinions is suggested as well. It would then be interesting to compare the findings of this study with the results from other experimentations Impact on Society: Sometimes, people develop a rejection of collaborative work because they feel exploited due to the biased evaluation results. However, the group members assessment distinction, according to each one’s performance, may give each individual a sense of fairness and reward, leading to an openness/willingness towards collaborative work. Future Research: As future work, there are plans to implement the method in other group assessment contexts – such as sports and business environments, other higher education institutions, technical training students – in other cultures and countries. From this myriad of contexts, satisfaction results would be compared. Other future plans are to further explore the mathematical formulations and the respective WebAVALIA supporting algorithms.

Aim/Purpose: This study reports the outcome of how a first pilot semester introductory programming course was designed to provide tangible evidence in support of the concept of Student Ownership of Learning (SOL) and how the outcomes of this programming course facilitate effective student learning. Background: Many instructors want to create or redesign their courses to strengthen the relationship between teaching and learning; however, the researchers of this study believe that the concept of Student Ownership of Learning (SOL) connects to student engagement and achievement in the classroom setting. The researchers redesigned the introductory programming course to include valuable teaching methods to increase Student Ownership of Learning and constructive approaches such as making students design an authentic mobile app project as individuals, partners, or within teams. The high quality of students’ projects positioned them as consultants to the university IT department. Methodology: This paper employs a case study design to construct a qualitative research method as it relates to the phenomenon of the study’s goals and lived experiences of students in the redesigned introductory programming course. The redesigned course was marketed to students as a new course with detailed description and elements that were different from the traditional computer science introductory programming course requirement. The redesigned introductory programming course was offered in two sections: one section with 14 registered students and the other section with 15 registered students. One faculty member instructed both sections of the course. A total of 29 students signed up for the newly redesigned introductory programming course, more than in previous semesters, but two students dropped out within the first two weeks of the redesigned course making a total of 27 students. The redesigned coursework was divided into two parts of the semester. The first part of the semester detailed description and elements of the coursework including a redesigned approach with preparation for class, a quiz, and doing homework in class, which gives students control of decisions whenever possible; and working with each other, either with a partner or in a team. The second part of the semester focuses on students designing a non-trivial working mobile app and presenting their developing mobile app at a significant public competition at the end of the semester. Students developed significantly complex mobile apps and incorporated more complex functionality in their apps. Both Management Information System (MIS) major students and Computer Science major students were in the same course despite the fact that MIS students had never taken a programming course before; however, the Computer Science students had taken at least one course of programming. Contribution: This study provides a practical guide for faculty members in Information Technology programs and other faculty members in non-Computer Science programs to create or redesign an introductory course that increases student engagement and achievement in the classroom based on the concept of Student Ownership of Learning (SOL). This study also deepens the discussion in curriculum and instruction on the value to explore issues that departments or programs should consider when establishing coursework or academic programs. Findings: This study found two goals evidently in support to increase Student Ownership of Learning (SOL). The first goal (Increase their ownership of learning SOL) showed that students found value in the course contents and took control of their learning; therefore, the faculty no longer had to point out how important different programming concepts were. The students recognized their own learning gap and were excited when shown a programming concept that addressed the gap. For example, student comments were met with “boy, we can really use this in our app” instead of comments about how complex they were. The coursework produced a desired outcome for students as they would get the knowledge needed to make the best app that they could. The second goal (Develop a positive attitude toward the course) showed positive results as students developed a more positive attitude towards the course. Student actions in the classroom strongly reflected a positive attitude. Attendance was almost 100% during the semester even though no points for attendance were given. Further evidence of Student Ownership of Learning and self-identity was students’ extensive use of the terminology and concept of the course when talking to others, especially during the public competition. Students were also incorporating their learning into their identities. For example, teams became known by their app such as the Game team, the Recipe team, and the Parking team. One team even made team t-shirts. Another exciting reflection of the Student Ownership of Learning which occurred was the learning students did by themselves. Recommendations for Practitioners: Practitioners can share best practices with faculty in different departments, programs, universities, and educational consultants to cultivate the best solution for Student Ownership of Learning based on student engagement and achievement in the classroom setting. Recommendation for Researchers: Researchers can explore different perspectives with scholars and practitioners in various disciplinary fields of study to create or redesign courses and programs to reflect Student Ownership of Learning (SOL). Impact on Society: Student Ownership of Learning is relevant for faculty and universities to incorporate in the creation or redesigning of coursework in academic programs. Readers can gain an understanding that student engagement and achievement are two important drivers of Student Ownership of Learning (SOL) in the classroom setting. Future Research: Practitioners and researchers could follow-up in the future with a study to provide more understanding and updated research information from different research samples and hypotheses on Student Ownership of Learning (SOL).

Aim/Purpose: Students tend to learn best when an array of learning styles is used by instructors. The purpose of this paper is to add, to introduce, and to apply the concepts of kinesthetic learning and learning structures to university and STEM education. Background: The study applies the concept of kinesthetic learning and a learning structure called Think-Pair-Share to an experiential exercise about Moore’s Law in an introductory MIS classroom. The paper details the exercise and each of its components. Methodology: Students in two classes were asked to complete a short survey about their conceptual understanding of the course material before and after the experiential exercise. Contribution: The paper details the benefits of kinesthetic learning and learning structures and discusses how to apply these concepts through an experiential exercise used in an introductory MIS course. Findings: Results indicate that the kinesthetic learning activity had a positive impact on student learning outcomes. Recommendations for Practitioners: University educators can use this example to structure several other learning activities that apply kinesthetic learning principles. Recommendation for Researchers: Researchers can use this paper to study more about how to incorporate kinesthetic learning into education, and about teaching technology concepts to undergraduate students through kinesthetic learning. Impact on Society: The results of this study may be extremely beneficial for the university and STEM community and overall academic business community. Future Research: Researchers should consider longitudinal studies and other ways to incorporate kinesthetic learning activities into education.

Aim/Purpose: The aim of this study is to understand student’s opinions and perceptions about e-assessment when the assessment process was changed from the traditional computer assisted method to a multiple-choice Moodle based method. Background: In order to implement continuous assessment to a large number of students, several shifts are necessary, which implies as many different tests as the number of shifts required. Consequently, it is difficult to ensure homogeneity through the different tests and a huge amount of grading time is needed. These problems related to the traditional assessment based on computer assisted tests, lead to a re-design of the assessment resulting in the use of multiple-choice Moodle tests. Methodology: A longitudinal, concurrent, mixed method study was implemented over a five-year period. A survey was developed and carried out by 815 undergraduate students who experienced the electronic multiple-choice questions (eMCQ) assessment in the courses of the IS department. Qualitative analyses included open-ended survey responses and interviews with repeating students in the first year. Contribution: This study provides a reflection tool on how to incorporate frequent moments of assessment in courses with a high number of students without overloading teachers with a huge workload. The research analysed the efficiency of assessing non-theoretical topics using eMCQ, while ensuring the homogeneity of assessment tests, which needs to be complemented with other assessment methods in order to assure that students develop and acquire the expected skills and competencies. Findings: The students involved in the study appreciate the online multiple-choice quiz assessment method and perceive it as fair but have a contradictory opinion regarding the preference of the assessment method, throughout the years. These changes in perception may be related to the improvement of the question bank and categorisation of questions according to difficulty level, which lead to the nullification of the ‘luck factor’. Other major findings are that although the online multiple-choice quizzes are used with success in the assessment of theoretical topics, the same is not in evidence regarding practical topics. Therefore, this assessment needs to be complemented with other methods in order to achieve the expected learning outcomes. Recommendations for Practitioners: In order to be able to evaluate the same expected learning outcomes in practical topics, particularly in technology and information systems subjects, the evaluator should complement the online multiple-choice quiz assessment with other approaches, such as a PBL method, homework assignments, and/or other tasks performed during the semester. Recommendation for Researchers: This study explores e-assessment with online multiple-choice quizzes in higher education. It provides a survey that can be applied in other institutions that are also using online multiple-choice quizzes to assess non-theorical topics. In order to better understand the students’ opinions on the development of skills and competencies with online multiple-choice quizzes and on the other hand with classical computer assisted assessment, it would be necessary to add questions concerning these aspects. It would then be interesting to compare the findings of this study with the results from other institutions. Impact on Society: The increasing number of students in higher education has led to a raised use of e-assessment activities, since it can provide a fast and efficient manner to assess a high number of students. Therefore, this research provides meaningful insight of the stakeholders’ perceptions of online multiple-choice quizzes about practical topics. Future Research: An interesting study, in the future, would be to obtain the opinions of a particular set of students on two tests, one of the tests using online multiple-choice quizzes and the other through a classical computer assisted assessment method. A natural extension of the present study is a comparative analysis regarding the grades obtained by students who performed one or another type of assessment (online multiple-choice quizzes vs. classical computer assisted assessment).

Aim/Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to develop and evaluate a debiasing-based approach to assessing the learning materials in problem-based learning (PBL) environments. Background: Research in cognitive debiasing suggests nine debiasing strategies improve decision-making. Given the large number of decisions made in semester-long, problem-based learning projects, multiple tools and techniques help students make decisions. However, instructors may struggle to identify the specific tools or techniques that could be modified to best improve students’ decision-making in the project. Furthermore, a structured approach for identifying these modifications is lacking. Such an approach would match the debiasing strategies with the tools and techniques. Methodology: This debiasing framework for the PBL environment is developed through a study of debiasing literature and applied within an e-commerce course using the Model for Improvement, continuous improvement process, as an illustrative case to show its potential. In addition, a survey of the students, archival information, and participant observation provided feedback on the debiasing framework and its ability to assess the tools and techniques within the PBL environment. Contribution: This paper demonstrates how debiasing theory can be used within a continuous improvement process for PBL courses. By focusing on a cognitive debiasing-based approach, this debiasing framework helps instructors 1) identify what tools and techniques to change in an PBL environment, and 2) assess which tools and techniques failed to debias the students adequately, providing potential changes for future cycles. Findings: Using the debiasing framework in an e-commerce course with significant PBL elements provides evidence that this framework can be used within IS courses and more broadly. In this particular case, the change identified in a prior cycle proved effective and additional issues were identified for improvement. Recommendations for Practitioners: With the growing usage of semester-long PBL projects in business schools, instructors need to ensure that their design of the projects incorporates techniques that improve student learning and decision making. This approach provides a means for assessing the quality of that design. Recommendation for Researchers: This study uses debiasing theory to improve course techniques. Researchers interested in assessment, course improvement, and program improvement should incorporate debiasing theory within PBL environments or other types of decision-making scenarios. Impact on Society: Increased awareness of cognitive biases can help instructors, students, and professionals make better decisions and recommendations. By developing a framework for evaluating cognitive debiasing strategies, we help instructors improve projects that prepare students for complex and multifaceted real-world projects. Future Research: The approach could be applied to multiple contexts, within other courses, and more widely within information systems to extend this research. The framework might also be refined to make it more concise, integrated with assessment, or usable in more contexts.

Aim/Purpose: During the education of future engineers and experts in the field of computer science and information communication technology, the achievement of learning outcomes related to different levels of cognitive ability and knowledge dimensions can be a challenge. Background: Teachers need to design an appropriate set of activities for students and combine theory-based knowledge acquisition with practical training in technical skills. Including various activities for formative assessment during the course can positively affect students’ motivation for learning and ensure appropriate and timely feedback that will guide students in further learning. Methodology: The aim of the research presented in this paper is to propose an approach for course delivery in the field of software engineering and to determine whether the use of the approach increases student’s academic achievement. Using the proposed approach, the course Process Modeling for undergraduate students was redesigned and experimental study was conducted. Course results of the students (N=82) who took the new version of the course (experimental group) were compared to the results of the students from the control group (N=66). Contribution: An approach for a blended learning course in the field of software engineering was developed. This approach is based on the formative assessment activities that promote collaboration and the use of digital tools. Newly designed activities are used to encourage a greater level of acquired theoretical content and enhance the acquisition of subject-specific skills needed for practical tasks. Findings: The results showed that students who participated in the formative assessment activities achieved significantly better results. They had significantly higher scores in the main components of assessment compared to the students from the control group. In addition, students from the experimental group expressed positive views about the effectiveness of the used approach. Recommendations for Practitioners: The proposed approach has potential to increase students’ motivation and academic achievements so practitioners should consider to apply it in their own context. Recommendation for Researchers: Researchers are encouraged to conduct additional studies to explore the effectiveness of the approach with different courses and participants as well as to provide further insights regarding its applicability and acceptance by students. Impact on Society: The paper provides an approach and an example of good practice that may be beneficial for the university teachers in the field of computer science, information-communication technology, and engineering. Future Research: In the future, face-to-face activities will be adapted for performance in an online environment. Future work will also include a research on the possibilities of personalization of activities in accordance with the students’ characteristics.

Aim/Purpose: This paper investigates the influence of university student multitasking on their learning success, defined as students’ learning satisfaction and performance. Background: Most research on student multitasking finds student multitasking problematic. However, this research is generally from 2010. Yet, today’s students are known to be digital natives and they have a different, more positive, relationship with mobile technologies. Based on the old findings, most instructors ban mobile technology use during instruction, and design their online courses without regard for the mobile technology use that happens regardless of their ban. This study investigates whether today’s instructors and learning management system interface designers should take into account multitasking with mobile technologies. Methodology: A quasi-experimental design was used in this study. Data were collected from 117 students across two sections of an introductory Management Information Systems class taught by the first author. We took multiple approaches and steps to control for confounding factors and to increase the internal validity of the study. We used a control group as a comparison group, we used a pre-test, we controlled for selection bias, and we tested for demographic differences between groups. Contribution: With this paper, we explicated the relationship between multitasking and learning success. We defined learning success as learning performance and learning satisfaction. Contrary to the literature, we found that multitasking involving IT texting does not decrease students’ learning performance. An explanation of this change is the change in the student population, and the digital nativeness between 2010s and 2020 and beyond. Findings: Our study showed that multitasking involving IT texting does not decrease students’ performance in class compared to not multitasking. Secondly, our study showed that, overall, multitasking reduced the students’ learning satisfaction despite the literature suggesting otherwise. We found that attitude towards multitasking moderated the relationship between multitasking and learning satisfaction as follows. Individuals who had a positive attitude towards multitasking had high learning satisfaction with multitasking. However, individuals who had positive attitude toward multitasking did not necessarily have higher learning performance. Recommendations for Practitioners: We would recommend both instructors and the designers of learning management systems to take mobile multitasking into consideration while designing courses and course interfaces, rather than banning multitasking, and assuming that the students do not do it. Furthermore, we recommend including multitasking into relevant courses such as Management Information Systems courses to make students aware of their own multitasking behavior and their results. Recommendation for Researchers: We recommend that future studies investigate multitasking with different instruction methods, especially studies that make students aware of their multitasking behavior and its outcomes will be useful for next generations. Impact on Society: This paper investigates the role of mobile multitasking on learning performance. Since mobile technologies are ubiquitous and their use in multitasking is common, their use in multitasking affects societal performance. Future Research: Studies that replicate our research with larger and more diverse samples are needed. Future research could explore research-based experiential teaching methods, similar to this study.

Aim/Purpose: Business analytics is a cross-functional field that is important to implement for a college and has emerged as a critically important core component of the business curriculum. It is a difficult task due to scheduling concerns and limits to faculty and student resources. This paper describes the process of creating a central video repository to serve as a platform for just in time teaching and the impact on student learning outcomes. Background: Industry demand for employees with analytical knowledge, skills, and abilities requires additional analytical content throughout the college of business curriculum. This demand needs other content to be added to ensure that students have the prerequisite skills to complete assignments. Two pedagogical approaches to address this issue are Just-in-Time Teaching (JiTT) and scaffolding, grounded in the Vygoskian concept of “Zone of Proximal Development. Methodology: This paper presents a case study that applies scaffolding and JiTT teaching to create a video repository to add business analytics instruction to a curriculum. The California Critical Thinking Skills Test (CCTST) and Major Field Test (MFT) scores were analyzed to assess learning outcomes. Student and faculty comments were considered to inform the results of the review. Contribution: This paper demonstrates a practical application of scaffolding and JiTT theory by outlining the process of using a video library to provide valuable instructional resources that support meaningful learning, promote student academic achievement, and improve program flexibility. Findings: A centrally created library is a simple and inexpensive way to provide business analytics course content, augmenting standard content delivery. Assessment of learning scores showed an improvement, and a summary of lessons learned is provided to guide implications. Recommendations for Practitioners: Pedagogical implications of this research include the observation that producing a central library of instructor created videos and assignments can help address knowledge and skills gaps, augment the learning of business analytics content, and provide a valuable educational resource throughout the college of business curriculum. Recommendation for Researchers: This paper examines the use of scaffolding and JiTT theories. Additional examination of these theories may improve the understanding and limits of these concepts as higher education evolves due to the combination of market forces changing the execution of course delivery. Impact on Society: Universities are tasked with providing new and increasing skills to students while controlling the costs. A centrally created library of instructional videos provides a means of delivering meaningful content while controlling costs. Future Research: Future research may examine student success, including the immediate impact of videos and longitudinally using video repositories throughout the curriculum. Studies examining the approach across multiple institutions may help to evaluate the success of video repositories. Faculty acceptance of centrally created video libraries and assignments should be considered for the value of faculty recruiting and use in the classroom. The economic impact on both the university and students should be evaluated.

Aim/Purpose: This paper focuses on designing and implementing the rubric for objective JAVA programming assessments. An unsupervised learning approach was used to group learners based on their performance in the results obtained from the rubric, reflecting their learning ability. Background: Students' learning outcomes have been evaluated subjectively using a rubric for years. Subjective assessments are simple to construct yet inconsistent and biased to evaluate. Objective assessments are stable, reliable, and easy to conduct. However, they usually lack rubrics. Methodology: In this study, a Top-Down assessment approach is followed, i.e., a rubric focused on the learning outcome of the subject is designed, and the proficiency of learners is judged by their performance in conducting the task given. A JAVA rubric is proposed based on the learning outcomes like syntactical, logical, conceptual, and advanced JAVA skills. A JAVA objective quiz (with multiple correct options) is prepared based on the rubric criteria, comprising five questions per criterion. The examination was conducted for 209 students (100 from the MCA course and 109 from B.Tech. course). The suggested rubric was used to compute the results. K-means clustering was applied to the results to classify the students according to their learning preferences and abilities. Contribution: This work contributes to the field of rubric designing by creating an objective programming assessment and analyzing the learners’ performance using machine learning techniques. It also facilitates a reliable feedback approach offering various possibilities in student learning analytics. Findings: The designed rubric, partial scoring, and cluster analysis of the results help us to provide individual feedback and also, group the students based on their learning skills. Like on average, learners are good at remembering the syntax and concepts, mediocre in logical and critical thinking, and need more practice in code optimization and designing applications. Recommendations for Practitioners: The practical implications of this work include rubric designing for objective assessments and building an informative feedback process. Faculty can use this approach as an alternative assessment measure. They are the strong pillars of e-assessments and virtual learning platforms. Recommendation for Researchers: This research presents a novel approach to rubric-based objective assessments. Thus, it provides a fresh perspective to the researchers promising enough opportunities in the current era of digital education. Impact on Society: In order to accomplish the shared objective of reflective learning, the grading rubric and its accompanying analysis can be utilized by both instructors and students. As an instructional assessment tool, the rubric helps instructors to align their pedagogies with the students’ learning levels and assists students in updating their learning paths based on the informative topic-wise scores generated with the help of the rubric. Future Research: The designed rubric in this study can be extended to other programming languages and subjects. Further, an adaptable weighted rubric can be created to execute a flexible and reflective learning process. In addition, outcome-based learning can be achieved by measuring and analyzing student improvements after rubric evaluation.

Aim/Purpose: To encourage students’ engagement in peer assessments and provide students with better-quality feedback, this paper describes a technique for author-reviewer matching in peer assessment systems – a Balanced Allocation algorithm. Background: Peer assessment concerns evaluating the work of colleagues and providing feedback on their work. This process is widely applied as a learning method to involve students in the progress of their learning. However, as students have different ability levels, the efficacy of the peer feedback differs from case to case. Thus, peer assessment may not provide satisfactory results for students. In order to mitigate this issue, this paper explains and evaluates an algorithm that matches the author to a set of reviewers. The technique matches authors and reviewers based on how difficult the authors perceived the assignment to be, and the algorithm then matches the selected author to a group of reviewers who may meet the author’s needs in regard to the selected assignment. Methodology: This study used the Multiple Criteria Decision-Making methodology (MCDM) to determine a set of reviewers from among the many available options. The weighted sum method was used because the data that have been collected in user profiles are expressed in the same unit. This study produced an experimental result, examining the algorithm with a real collected dataset and mock-up dataset. In total, there were 240 students in the real dataset, and it contained self-assessment scores, peer scores, and instructor scores for the same assignment. The mock-up dataset created 1000 records for self-assessment scores. The algorithm was evaluated using focus group discussions with 29 programming students and interviews with seven programming instructors. Contribution: This paper contributes to the field in the following two ways. First, an algorithm using a MCDM methodology was proposed to match authors and reviewers in order to facilitate the peer assessment process. In addition, the algorithm used self-assessment as an initial data source to match users, rather than randomly creating reviewer – author pairs. Findings: The findings show the accurate results of the algorithm in matching three reviewers for each author. Furthermore, the algorithm was evaluated based on students’ and instructors’ perspectives. The results are very promising, as they depict a high level of satisfaction for the Balanced Allocation algorithm. Recommendations for Practitioners: We recommend instructors to consider using the Balanced Allocation algorithm to match students in peer assessments, and consequently to benefit from personalizing peer assessment based on students' needs. Recommendation for Researchers: Several MCDM methods could be expanded upon, such as the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) if different attributes are collected, or the artificial neural network (ANN) if fuzzy data is available in the user profile. Each method is suitable for special cases depending on the data available for decision-making. Impact on Society: Suitable pairing in peer assessment would increase the credibility of the peer assessment process and encourage students’ engagement in peer assessments. Future Research: The Balanced Allocation algorithm could be applied using a single group, and a peer assessment with random matching with another group may also be conducted, followed by performing a t-test to determine the impact of matching on students’ performances in the peer assessment activity.

Aim/Purpose: The purpose of this research is to determine whether ESL teaching videos as a form of asynchronous online knowledge sharing can act as an aid to ESL learners internalizing knowledge in language acquisition. In this context, internalizing knowledge carries the meaning of being able to remember language, and purposefully and accurately use it context, including appropriacy of language, and aspects of correct pronunciation, intonation, stress patterns and connected speech, these being the elements of teaching and practice that are very often lacking in asynchronous, online, instructional video. Background: Knowledge Management is the field of study, and the practice, of discovering, capturing, sharing, and applying knowledge, typically with a view to translating individuals’ knowledge into organizational knowledge. In the field of education, it is the sharing of instructors’ knowledge for students to be able to learn and usefully apply that knowledge. In recent pandemic times, however, the mode of instruction has, of necessity, transitioned from face-to-face learning to an online environment, transforming the face of education as we know it. While this mode of instruction and knowledge sharing has many advantages for the online learner, in both synchronous and asynchronous learning environments, it presents certain challenges for language learners due to the absence of interaction and corrective feedback that needs to take place for learners of English as a Second Language (ESL) to master language acquisition. Unlike other subjects where the learner has recourse to online resources to reinforce learning through referencing external information, such as facts, figures, or theories, to be successful in learning a second language, the ESL learner needs to be able to learn to process thought and speech in that language; essentially, they need to learn to think in another language, which takes time and practice. Methodology: The research employs a systematic literature review (SLR) to determine the scope and extent to which the subject is covered by existing research in this field, and the findings thereof. Contribution: Whilst inconclusive in relation to internalizing language through online, asynchronous instructional video, through its exploratory nature, the research contributes towards the body of knowledge in online learning through the drawing together of various studies in the field of learning through asynchronous video through improving video and instructional quality. Findings: The findings of the systematic literature review revealed that there is negligible research in this area, and while information exists on blended and flipped modes of online learning, and ways to improve the quality and delivery of instructional video generally, no prior research on the exclusive use of asynchronous videos as an aid to internalizing English as a second language were found. Recommendations for Practitioners: From this research, it is apparent that there is considerably more that practitioners can do to improve the quality of instructional videos that can help students engage with the learning, from which students stand a much better chance of internalizing the learning. Recommendation for Researchers: For researchers, the absence of existing research is an exciting opportunity to further explore this field. Impact on Society: Online learning is now globally endemic, but it poses specific challenges in the field of second language learning, so the development of instructional videos that can facilitate this represents a clear benefit to all ESL learners in society as a whole. Future Research: Clearly the absence of existing research into whether online asynchronous instructional videos can act as an aid to internalizing the acquisition of English as a second language would indicate that this very specific field is one that merits future research. Indeed, it is one that the author intends to exploit through primary data collection from the production of a series of asynchronous, online, instructional videos.

Aim/Purpose: This paper proposes a new approach to developing a deep learning-based prototyping wearable model which can assist blind and visually disabled people to recognize their environments and navigate through them. As a result, visually impaired people will be able to manage day-to-day activities and navigate through the world around them more easily. Background: In recent decades, the development of navigational devices has posed challenges for researchers to design smart guidance systems for visually impaired and blind individuals in navigating through known or unknown environments. Efforts need to be made to analyze the existing research from a historical perspective. Early studies of electronic travel aids should be integrated with the use of assistive technology-based artificial vision models for visually impaired persons. Methodology: This paper is an advancement of our previous research work, where we performed a sensor-based navigation system. In this research, the navigation of the visually disabled person is carried out with a vision-based 3D-designed wearable model and a vision-based smart stick. The wearable model used a neural network-based You Only Look Once (YOLO) algorithm to detect the course of the navigational path which is augmented by a GPS-based smart Stick. Over 100 images of each of the three classes, namely straight path, left path and right path, are being trained using supervised learning. The model accurately predicts a straight path with 79% mean average precision (mAP), the right path with 83% mAP, and the left path with 85% mAP. The average accuracy of the wearable model is 82.33% and that of the smart stick is 96.14% which combined gives an overall accuracy of 89.24%. Contribution: This research contributes to the design of a low-cost navigational standalone system that will be handy to use and help people to navigate safely in real-time scenarios. The challenging self-built dataset of various paths is generated and transfer learning is performed on the YOLO-v5 model after augmentation and manual annotation. To analyze and evaluate the model, various metrics, such as model losses, recall value, precision, and maP, are used. Findings: These were the main findings of the study: • To detect objects, the deep learning model uses a higher version of YOLO, i.e., a YOLOv5 detector, that may help those with visual im-pairments to improve their quality of navigational mobilities in known or unknown environments. • The developed standalone model has an option to be integrated into any other assistive applications like Electronic Travel Aids (ETAs) • It is the single neural network technology that allows the model to achieve high levels of detection accuracy of around 0.823 mAP with a custom dataset as compared to 0.895 with the COCO dataset. Due to its lightning-speed of 45 FPS object detection technology, it has become popular. Recommendations for Practitioners: Practitioners can help the model’s efficiency by increasing the sample size and classes used in training the model. Recommendation for Researchers: To detect objects in an image or live cam, there are various algorithms, e.g., R-CNN, Retina Net, Single Shot Detector (SSD), YOLO. Researchers can choose to use the YOLO version owing to its superior performance. Moreover, one of the YOLO versions, YOLOv5, outperforms its other versions such as YOLOv3 and YOLOv4 in terms of speed and accuracy. Impact on Society: We discuss new low-cost technologies that enable visually impaired people to navigate effectively in indoor environments. Future Research: The future of deep learning could incorporate recurrent neural networks on a larger set of data with special AI-based processors to avoid latency.

Aim/Purpose: This research aims to describe layering of career-like experiences over existing curriculum to improve perceived educational value. Background: Feedback from students and regional businesses showed a clear need to increase student’s exposure to career-like software development projects. The initial goal was to develop an instructor-optional project that could be used in a single mid-level programming course; however, the pilot quickly morphed into a multi-year study examining the feasibility of agile projects in a variety of settings. Methodology: Over the course of four years, an agile project was honed through repeated Design Based Research (DBR) cycles of design, implementation, testing, communication, and reflective analysis. As is common with DBR, this study did not follow single methodology design; instead, analysis of data coupled with review of literature led to exploration and testing of a variety of methodologies. The review phase of each cycle included examination of best practices and methodologies as determined by analysis of oral and written comments, weekly journals, instructor feedback, and surveys. As a result of participant feedback, the original project was expanded to a second project, which was tested in another Software Engineering (SE) course. The project included review and testing of many academic and professional methodologies, such as Student Ownership of Learning, Flipped Classroom, active learning, waterfall, agile, Scrum, and Kanban. The study was homogenous and quasi-experimental as the population consisted solely of software engineering majors taking required courses; as based on validity of homogenous studies, class sizes were small, ranging from 8 to 20 students. Close interactions between respondents and the instructor provided interview-like settings and immersive data capture in a natural environment. Further, the iterative development practices of DBR cycles, along with the inclusion of participants as active and valued stakeholders, was seen to align well with software development practitioner practices broadly known as agile. Contribution: This study is among the first to examine layering a career-like software development project on top of a course through alteration of traditional delivery, agile development, and without supplanting existing material. Findings: In response to industry recommendations for additional career-like experiences, a standalone agile capstone-like project was designed that could be layered over an existing course. Pilot data reflected positive perceptions of the project, although students did not have enough time to develop a working prototype in addition to completing existing course materials. Participant feedback led to simultaneous development of a second, similar project. DBR examination of both projects resulted in a simplified design and the ability to develop a working prototype, if and only if the instructor was willing to make adjustments to delivery. After four years, a solution was developed that is both stable and flexible. The solution met the original charge in that it required course delivery, not course material, to be adjusted. It is critical to note that when a working prototype is desired, a portion of the lecture should be flipped allowing more time for guided instruction through project-focused active learning and study group requirements. The results support agile for standalone software development projects, as long as passive delivery methods are correspondingly reduced. Recommendations for Practitioners: Based on the findings, implementation of a career-like software development project can be well received as long as active learning components are also developed. Multiple cycles of DBR are recommended if future researchers wish to customize instructional delivery and develop complex software development projects. Programming instructors are recommended to explore hybrid delivery to support development of agile career-like experiences. Small class sizes allowed the researchers to maintain an interview-like setting throughout the study and future studies with larger classes are recommended to include additional subject matter experts such as graduate students as interaction with a subject matter expert was highly valued by students. Recommendation for Researchers: Researchers are recommended to further examine career-like software development experiences that combine active learning with agile methods; more studies following agile and active learning are needed to address the challenges faced when complex software development is taught in academic settings. Further testing of standalone agile project development has now occurred in medium sized in person classes, online classes, independent studies, and creative works research settings; however, further research is needed. Future research should also examine the implementation of agile projects in larger class sizes. Increasing class size should be coupled with additional subject matter experts such as graduate students. Impact on Society: This study addresses professional recommendations for development of agile career-like experiences at the undergraduate level. This study provides empirical evidence of programming projects that can be layered over existing curriculum, with no additional cost to the students. Initial feedback from local businesses and graduates, regarding agile projects with active learning, has been positive. The area business that refused to hire our underprepared SE graduates has now hired several. Future Research: Future research should explore layering agile projects over a broader range of software development courses. Feedback from hiring professionals and former students has been positive. It is also recommended that DBR be used to develop career-like experiences for online programming courses.

Aim/Purpose: The complexity of today’s organizational databases highlights the importance of hard technical skills as well as soft skills including teamwork, communication, and problem-solving. Therefore, when teaching students about databases it follows that using a team approach would be useful. Background: Team-based learning (TBL) has been developed and tested as an instructional strategy that leverages learning in small groups in order to achieve increased overall effectiveness. This research studies the impact of utilizing team-based learning strategies in an undergraduate Database Management course in order to determine if the methodology is effective for student learning related to database technology concepts in addition to student preparation for working in database teams. Methodology: In this study, a team-based learning strategy is implemented in an undergraduate Database Management course over the course of two semesters. Students were assessed both individually and in teams in order to see if students were able to effectively learn and apply course concepts on their own and in collaboration with their team. Quantitative and qualitative data was collected and analyzed in order to determine if the team approach improved learning effectiveness and allowed for soft skills development. The results from this study are compared to previous semesters when team-based learning was not adopted. Additionally, student perceptions and feedback are captured. Contribution: This research contributes to the literature on database education and team-based learning and presents a team-based learning process for faculty looking to adopt this methodology in their database courses. This research contributes by showing how the collaborative assessment aspect of team-based learning can provide a solution for the conceptual and collaborative needs of database education. Findings: Findings related to student learning and perceptions are presented illustrating that team-based learning can lead to improvements in performance and provides a solution for the conceptual and collaborative needs of database education. Specifically, the findings do show that team scores were significantly higher than individual scores when completing class assessments. Student perceptions of both their team members and the team-based learning process were overall positive with a notable difference related to the perception of team preparedness based on gender. Recommendations for Practitioners: Educational implications highlight the challenges of team-based learning for assessment (e.g., gender differences in perceptions of team preparedness), as well as the benefits (e.g., development of soft skills including teamwork and communication). Recommendation for Researchers: This study provides research implications supporting the study of team assessment techniques for learning and engagement in the context of database education. Impact on Society: Faculty looking to develop student skills in relation to database concepts and application as well as in relation to teamwork and communication may find value in this approach, ultimately benefiting students, employers, and society. Future Research: Future research may examine the methodology from this study in different contexts as well as explore different strategies for group assignments, room layout, and the impact of an online environment.

Aim/Purpose: The study aims to supplement existing knowledge of information systems by presenting empirical data on the factors influencing the intentions of doctoral students to learn through online platforms. Background: E-learning platforms have become popular among students and professionals over the past decade. However, the intentions of the doctoral students are not yet known. They are an important source of knowledge production in academics by way of teaching and research. Methodology: The researchers collected data from universities in the Delhi National Capital Region (NCR) using a survey method from doctoral students using a convenience sampling method. The model studied was the Technology Readiness and Acceptance Model (TRAM), an integration of the Technology Readiness Index (TRI) and Technology Acceptance Model (TAM). Contribution: TRAM provides empirical evidence that it positively predicts behavioral intentions to learn from online platforms. Hence, the study validated the model among doctoral students from the perspective of a developing nation. Findings: The model variables predicted 49% of the variance in doctoral students’ intent. The TRAM model identified motivating constructs such as optimism and innovativeness as influencing TAM predictors. Finally, doctoral students have positive opinions about the usefulness and ease of use of online learning platforms. Recommendations for Practitioners: Academic leaders motivate scholars to use online platforms, and application developers to incorporate features that facilitate ease of use. Recommendation for Researchers: Researchers can explore the applicability of TRAM in other developing countries and examine the role of cultural and social factors in the intent to adopt online learning. Future Research: The influence of demographic variables on intentions can lead to additional insights.

Aim/Purpose: The study focused on learner sentiments and experiences after using the Moodle assessment module and trained a machine learning classifier for future sentiment predictions. Background: Learner assessment is one of the standard methods instructors use to measure students’ performance and ascertain successful teaching objectives. In pedagogical design, assessment planning is vital in lesson content planning to the extent that curriculum designers and instructors primarily think like assessors. Assessment aids students in redefining their understanding of a subject and serves as the basis for more profound research in that particular subject. Positive results from an evaluation also motivate learners and provide employment directions to the students. Assessment results guide not just the students but also the instructor. Methodology: A modified methodology was used for carrying out the study. The revised methodology is divided into two major parts: the text-processing phase and the classification model phase. The text-processing phase consists of stages including cleaning, tokenization, and stop words removal, while the classification model phase consists of dataset training using a sentiment analyser, a polarity classification model and a prediction validation model. The text-processing phase of the referenced methodology did not utilise tokenization and stop words. In addition, the classification model did not include a sentiment analyser. Contribution: The reviewed literature reveals two major omissions: sentiment responses on using the Moodle for online assessment, particularly in developing countries with unstable internet connectivity, have not been investigated, and variations of the k-fold cross-validation technique in detecting overfitting and developing a reliable classifier have been largely neglected. In this study we built a Sentiment Analyser for Learner Emotion Management using the Moodle for assessment with data collected from a Ghanaian tertiary institution and developed a classification model for future sentiment predictions by evaluating the 10-fold and the 5-fold techniques on prediction accuracy. Findings: After training and testing, the RF algorithm emerged as the best classifier using the 5-fold cross-validation technique with an accuracy of 64.9%. Recommendations for Practitioners: Instead of a closed-ended questionnaire for learner feedback assessment, the open-ended mechanism should be utilised since learners can freely express their emotions devoid of restrictions. Recommendation for Researchers: Feature selection for sentiment analysis does not always improve the overall accuracy for the classification model. The traditional machine learning algorithms should always be compared to either the ensemble or the deep learning algorithms Impact on Society: Understanding learners’ emotions without restriction is important in the educational process. The pedagogical implementation of lessons and assessment should focus on machine learning integration Future Research: To compare ensemble and deep learning algorithms

Aim/Purpose: This study aims to explore the value of utilizing non-immersive virtual reality (VR) to create virtual learning environments (VLEs) to support and prepare optometry students in their transition into preclinical and clinical teaching spaces. Background: Digital education is widely integrated into university curricula with the use of online simulators, immersive VR, and other digital technologies to support student learning. This study focuses on non-immersive VR as an accessible and low-friction means of accessing VLEs to reduce students’ learning burden. Methodology: Current optometry students were invited to explore 360° 3D panoramic virtual learning environments of preclinical and clinical teaching spaces. Students were recruited to participate in an online Qualtrics survey and individual semi-structured interviews. Quantitative data was analyzed, and thematic analysis was conducted on qualitative data from students’ responses to identify key takeaways on the accessibility and impact of VLEs on students’ learning. Contribution: Non-immersive VR has utility in alleviating student stress and helping transition students into practicum. The VLEs have the means to supplement the curriculum to provide support to students entering the preclinical and clinical teaching spaces. Findings: Students engaged voluntarily with the novel VLEs and utilized the resources to help familiarize themselves with the preclinical and clinical teaching spaces. The open-access resource supported students in their preparation for practical learning and helped to reduce self-reported stress and build confidence prior to entering practical classes. Many of the students enjoyed the experience of navigating through the spaces, which helped to appease their curiosity and reduce the learning curve associated with entering new spaces. The VLEs did not replace attending practical spaces but rather were supportive learning resources that aided students due to limited face-to-face contact hours. For students with existing familiarity with the spaces, through their in-person attendance in pre-clinical and clinical teaching sessions prior to accessing the VLEs, the digital resources were not as beneficial compared to students who were still transitioning into practicum. Recommendations for Practitioners: Introductory digital resources like non-immersive VR are accessible platforms that help to orient and familiarize students with new environments. VLEs can potentially help to relieve student stress and reduce the learning load associated with entering practicum or new learning spaces. Recommendation for Researchers: More work needs to be done on how student preparation can translate to feeling less stressed and more confident in relation to transitioning from traditional learning environments to practical learning spaces. Impact on Society: A broader application of non-immersive VR can be implemented as an introductory learning preparation tool across different disciplines to alleviate student stress and maximize the limited time in practicum to allow focus on learning outcomes and practical skills. Future Research: Future studies should consider different cohorts to study, with a focus on objective measures of engagement with VLEs. The effect of VLEs on students’ cognitive load should be assessed and assessment of self-perceived stress can be evaluated with instruments such as Cohen’s Perceived Stress Scale.

Aim/Purpose: The study seeks to utilize Augmented Reality (AR) in creating virtual laboratories for engineering education, focusing on enhancing teaching methodologies to facilitate student understanding of intricate and theoretical engineering principles while also assessing engineering students’ acceptance of such laboratories. Background: AR, a part of next-generation technology, has enhanced the perception of reality by overlaying virtual elements in the physical environment. The utilization of AR is prevalent across different disciplines, yet its efficacy in facilitating Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education is limited. Engineering studies, a part of STEM learning, involves complex and abstract concepts like machine simulation, structural analysis, and design optimization; these things would be easy to grasp with the help of AR. This restriction can be attributed to their innovative characteristics and disparities. Therefore, providing a comprehensive analysis of the factors influencing the acceptance of these technologies by students - the primary target demographic – and examining the impact of these factors is essential to maximize the advantages of AR while refining the implementation processes. Methodology: The primary objective of this research is to develop and evaluate a tool that enriches the educational experience within engineering laboratories. Utilizing Unity game engine libraries, digital content is meticulously crafted for this tool and subsequently integrated with geo-location functionalities. The tool’s user-friendly interface allows both faculty and non-faculty members of the academic institution to establish effortlessly the virtual laboratory. Subsequently, an assessment of the tool is conducted through the application of the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT2) model, involving the administration of surveys to university students to gauge their level of adaptability. Contribution: The utilization of interactive augmented learning in laboratory settings enables educational establishments to realize notable savings in time and resources, thereby achieving sustainable educational outcomes. The study is of great importance due to its utilization of student behavioral intentions as the underlying framework for developing an AR tool and illustrating the impact of learner experience on various objectives and the acceptance of AR in Engineering studies. Furthermore, the research results enable educational institutions to implement AR-based virtual laboratories to improve student experiences strategically, align with learner objectives, and ultimately boost the adaptability of AR technologies. Findings: Drawing on practice-based research, the authors showcase work samples and a digital project of AR-based Virtual labs to illustrate the evaluation of the adaptability of AR technology. Adaptability is calculated by conducting a survey of 300 undergraduate university students from different engineering departments and applying an adaptability method to determine the behavioral intentions of students. Recommendations for Practitioners: Engineering institutions could leverage research findings in the implementation of AR to enhance the effectiveness of AR technology in practical education settings. Recommendation for Researchers: The authors implement a pragmatic research framework aimed at integrating AR technology into virtual AR-based labs for engineering education. This study delves into a unique perspective within the realm of engineering studies, considering students’ perspectives and discerning their behavioral intentions by drawing upon previous research on technology utilization. The research employs various objectives and learner experiences to assess their influence on students’ acceptance of AR technology. Impact on Society: The use of AR in engineering institutions, especially in laboratory practicals, has a significant impact on society, supported by the UTAUT2 model. UTAUT2 model assesses factors like performance, effort expectancy, social influence, and conditions, showing that AR in education is feasible and adaptable. This adaptability helps students and educators incorporate AR tools effectively for better educational results. AR-based labs allow students to interact with complex engineering concepts in immersive settings, enhancing understanding and knowledge retention. This interactive augmented learning for laboratories saves educational institutions significant time and resources, attaining sustainable learning. Future Research: Further research can employ a more comprehensive acceptance model to examine learners’ adaptability to AR technology and try comparing different adaptability models to determine which is more effective for engineering students.

Aim/Purpose: This paper is part of a multi-case study that aims to test whether generative AI makes an effective coding assistant. Particularly, this work evaluates the ability of two AI chatbots (ChatGPT and Bing Chat) to generate concise computer code, considers ethical issues related to generative AI, and offers suggestions for how to improve the technology. Background: Since the release of ChatGPT in 2022, generative artificial intelligence has steadily gained wide use in software development. However, there is conflicting information on the extent to which AI helps developers be more productive in the long term. Also, whether using generated code violates copyright restrictions is a matter of debate. Methodology: ChatGPT and Bing Chat were asked the same question, their responses were recorded, and the percentage of each chatbot’s code that was extraneous was calculated. Also examined were qualitative factors, such as how often the generated code required modifications before it would run. Contribution: This paper adds to the limited body of research on how effective generative AI is at aiding software developers and how to practically address its shortcomings. Findings: Results of AI testing observed that 0.7% of lines and 1.4% of characters in ChatGPT’s responses were extraneous, while 0.7% of lines and 1.1% of characters in Bing Chat’s responses were extraneous. This was well below the 2% threshold, meaning both chatbots can generate concise code. However, code from both chatbots frequently had to be modified before it would work; ChatGPT’s code needed major modifications 30% of the time and minor ones 50% of the time, while Bing Chat’s code needed major modifications 10% of the time and minor ones 70% of the time. Recommendations for Practitioners: Companies building generative AI solutions are encouraged to use this study’s findings to improve their models, specifically by decreasing error rates, adding more training data for programming languages with less public documentation, and implementing a mechanism that checks code for syntactical errors. Developers can use the findings to increase their productivity, learning how to reap generative AI’s full potential while being aware of its limitations. Recommendation for Researchers: Researchers are encouraged to continue where this paper left off, exploring more programming languages and prompting styles than the scope of this study allowed. Impact on Society: As artificial intelligence touches more areas of society than ever, it is crucial to make AI models as accurate and dependable as possible. If practitioners and researchers use the findings of this paper to improve coders’ experience with generative AI, it will make millions of developers more productive, saving their companies money and time. Future Research: The results of this study can be strengthened (or refuted) by a future study with a large, diverse dataset that more fully represents the programming languages and prompting styles developers tend to use. Moreover, further research can examine the reasons generative AI fails to deliver working code, which will yield valuable insights into improving these models.

Aim/Purpose: Despite playing a critical role in shaping the future, 70% of undergraduate engineers report low levels of motivation. Student disengagement and a lack of ownership of their learning are significant challenges in higher education, specifically engineering students in the computer science department. This study investigates the various causes of these problems among first-year undergraduate engineers. Background: Student disengagement has become a significant problem, especially in higher education, leading to reduced academic performance, lower graduation rates, and less satisfaction with learning. The study intends to develop approaches that encourage a more interesting and learner-motivated educational environment. Methodology: This research uses a mixed methods approach by combining quantitative data from a survey-based questionnaire with qualitative insights from focus groups to explore intrinsic and extrinsic motivators, instructional practices, and student perceptions of relevance and application of course content. The aim of this method is to make an all-inclusive exploration into undergraduate engineering students’ perspectives on factors contributing to this disengagement and the need for more ownership. Contribution: Inculcating passion for engineering among learners seems demanding, with numerous educational programs struggling with issues such as a lack of interest by students and no personal investment in learning. Understanding the causes is of paramount importance. The study gives suggestions to help teachers or institutions create a more engaged and ownership-based learning environment for engineering students. Findings: The findings revealed a tangled web influencing monotonous teaching styles, limited opportunities and applications, and a perceived gap between theoretical knowledge and real-world engineering problems. It emphasized the need to implement more active learning strategies that could increase autonomy and a stronger sense of purpose in their learning journey. It also highlights the potential use of technology in promoting student engagement and ownership. Further research is needed to explore optimal implementation strategies for online simulations, interactive learning platforms, and gamification elements in the engineering curriculum. Recommendations for Practitioners: It highlights the complex interplay of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation factors and the need to re-look at instructional practice and emphasize faculty training to develop a more student-centered approach. It also stresses the need to look into the relevance and application of the course content. Recommendation for Researchers: More work needs to be done with a larger, more diverse sample population across multiple institutions and varied sociocultural and economic backgrounds. Impact on Society: Enhancing learners’ educational experience can result in creating a passionate and competent team of engineers who can face future obstacles fearlessly and reduce the production of half-baked graduates unprepared for the profession’s challenges. Future Research: Conduct long-term studies to assess the impact of active learning and technology use on student outcomes and career readiness. Investigate scaling up successful strategies across diverse engineering programs. See if promising practices work well everywhere.

Aim/Purpose: This mixed-methods study aims to examine factors influencing academicians’ intentions to continue using AI-based chatbots by integrating the Task-Technology Fit (TTF) model and social network characteristics. Background: AI-powered chatbots are gaining popularity across industries, including academia. However, empirical research on academicians’ adoption behavior is limited. This study proposes an integrated model incorporating TTF factors and social network characteristics like density, homophily, and connectedness to understand academics’ continuance intentions. Methodology: A qualitative study involving 31 interviews of academics from India examined attitudes and the potential role of social network characteristics like density, homophily, and connectedness in adoption. Results showed positive sentiment towards chatbots and themes on how peer groups accelerate diffusion. In the second phase, a survey of 448 faculty members from prominent Indian universities was conducted to test the proposed research model. Contribution: The study proposes and validates an integrated model of TTF and social network factors that influence academics’ continued usage intentions toward AI chatbots. It highlights the nuanced role of peer networks in shaping adoption. Findings: Task and technology characteristics positively affected academics’ intentions to continue AI chatbot usage. Among network factors, density showed the strongest effect on TTF and perceived usefulness, while homophily and connectedness had partial effects. The study provides insights into designing appropriate AI tools for the academic context. Recommendations for Practitioners: AI chatbot designers should focus on aligning features to academics’ task needs and preferences. Compatibility with academic work culture is critical. Given peer network influences, training and demonstrations to user groups can enhance adoption. Platforms should have capabilities for collaborative use. Targeted messaging customized to disciplines can resonate better with academic subgroups. Multidisciplinary influencers should be engaged. Concerns like plagiarism risks, privacy, and job impacts should be transparently addressed. Recommendation for Researchers: More studies are needed across academic subfields to understand nuanced requirements and barriers. Further studies are recommended to investigate differences across disciplines and demographics, relative effects of specific network factors like size, proximity, and frequency of interaction, the role of academic leadership and institutional policies in enabling chatbot adoption, and how AI training biases impact usefulness perceptions and ethical issues. Impact on Society: Increased productivity in academia through the appropriate and ethical use of AI can enhance quality, access, and equity in education. AI can assist in mundane tasks, freeing academics’ time for higher-order objectives like critical thinking development. Responsible AI design and policies considering socio-cultural aspects will benefit sustainable growth. With careful implementation, it can make positive impacts on student engagement, learning support, and research efficiency. Future Research: Conduct longitudinal studies to examine the long-term impacts of AI chatbot usage in academia. Track usage behaviors over time as familiarity develops. Investigate differences across academic disciplines and roles. Requirements may vary for humanities versus STEM faculty or undergraduate versus graduate students. Assess user trust in AI and how it evolves with repeated usage, and examine trust-building strategies. Develop frameworks to assess pedagogical effectiveness and ethical risks of conversational agents in academic contexts.

The present study attempts to find out the determinants of FinTech adoption for financial inclusion by a microfinance institution in India. The factors such as efficiency, consistency, convenience, reliability are taken as predictors of organisational attitude. Similarly, organisational attitude, ease of use, and perceived benefits are considered as antecedents of organisational adoption intention of FinTech in microfinance institutions of India. The purposive sampling technique was used to get a filled survey instrument by target samples. The results indicate that convenience and consistency in the use of FinTech applications build a favourable attitude to adopt it. Furthermore, perceived benefits are the most important antecedents of the adoption intention of FinTech in the microfinance institution in India. Additionally, the reliability of the application has a positive but insignificant impact on organisational attitude to adopt FinTech. The implications of the present study are discussed.

Smart home devices are vulnerable to various attacks, including distributed-denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks. Current detection techniques face challenges due to nonlinear thought, unusual system traffic, and the fluctuating data flow caused by human activities and device interactions. Identifying the baseline for 'normal' traffic and suspicious activities like DDoS attacks from encrypted data is also challenging due to the encrypted protective layer. This work introduces a concept called synoptic crow search with recurrent transformer network-based DDoS attack detection, which uses the synoptic weighted crow search algorithm to capture varying traffic patterns and prioritise critical information handling. An adaptive recurrent transformer neural network is introduced to effectively regulate DDoS attacks within encrypted data, counting the historical context of the data flow. The proposed model shows effective performance in terms of low false alarm rate, higher detection rate, and accuracy.

Badminton, as a fast and highly technical sport, requires high accuracy in identifying athletes' swing movements. Accurately identifying different swing movements is of great significance for technical analysis, coach guidance, and game evaluation. To improve the recognition accuracy of badminton players' swing movements, this text is based on an improved dense trajectory algorithm to improve the accuracy of recognising badminton players' swing movements. The features are efficiently extracted and encoded. The results on the KTH, UCF Sports, and Hollywood2 datasets demonstrated that the improved algorithm achieved recognition accuracy of 94.2%, 88.2%, and 58.3%, respectively. Compared to traditional methods, the innovation of research lies in optimised feature extraction methods, efficient algorithm design, and accurate action recognition. These results provide new ideas for the research and application of badminton swing motion recognition.

In the competitive landscape of globalised markets, businesses must prioritise cost reduction for sustained competitiveness. This study delves into the dynamic facility layout problem (DFLP) within a cable production company in Kerala, emphasising adaptability to changing production demands. Addressing material handling costs and rearrangement expenses, the research evaluates the efficacy of the current static layout and explores the benefits of transitioning to a dynamic layout. The case study reveals potential cost savings through the strategic restructuring of machine arrangements. The innovative machine learning-based genetic algorithm (ML-GA) integrates machine learning algorithms, genetic algorithms, and a local search method, offering a cutting-edge solution to dynamic facility layout challenges. By considering demand variability and relocation costs, the study provides insights for informed decision-making, emphasising the significance of material flow patterns. This research contributes to enhancing efficiency and profitability, providing practical implications for businesses navigating the complexities of modern manufacturing.