Improve teaching with modalities and collaborative groups in an LMS: an analysis of monitoring using visualisation techniques.

Monitoring students in Learning Management Systems (LMS) throughout the teaching-learning process has been shown to be a very effective technique for detecting students at risk. Likewise, the teaching style in the LMS conditions, the type of student behaviours on the platform and the learning outcomes. The main objective of this study was to test the effectiveness of three teaching modalities (all using Online Project-based Learning -OPBL- and Flipped Classroom experiences and differing in the use of virtual laboratories and Intelligent Personal Assistant -IPA-) on Moodle behaviour and student performance taking into account the covariate "collaborative group". Both quantitative and qualitative research methods were used. With regard to the quantitative analysis, differences were found in student behaviour in Moodle and in learning outcomes, with respect to teaching modalities that included virtual laboratories. Similarly, the qualitative study also analysed the behaviour patterns found in each collaborative group in the three teaching modalities studied. The results indicate that the collaborative group homogenises the learning outcomes, but not the behaviour pattern of each member. Future research will address the analysis of collaborative behaviour in LMSs according to different variables (motivation and metacognitive strategies in students, number of members, interactions between students and teacher in the LMS, etc.).

Eye-tracking Technology and Data-mining Techniques used for a Behavioral Analysis of Adults engaged in Learning Processes.

Behavioral analysis of adults engaged in learning tasks is a major challenge in the field of adult education. Nowadays, in a world of continuous technological changes and scientific advances, there is a need for life-long learning and education within both formal and non-formal educational environments. In response to this challenge, the use of eye-tracking technology and data-mining techniques, respectively, for supervised (mainly prediction) and unsupervised (specifically cluster analysis) learning, provide methods for the detection of forms of learning among users and/or the classification of their learning styles. In this study, a protocol is proposed for the study of learning styles among adults with and without previous knowledge at different ages (18 to 69-year-old) and at different points throughout the learning process (start and end). Statistical analysis-of-variance techniques mean that differences may be detected between the participants by type of learner and previous knowledge of the task. Likewise, the use of unsupervised learning clustering techniques throws light on similar forms of learning among the participants across different groups. All these data will facilitate personalized proposals from the teacher for the presentation of each task at different points in the chain of information processing. It will likewise be easier for the teacher to adapt teaching materials to the learning needs of each student or group of students with similar characteristics.

Effectiveness of Self-Regulation and Serious Games for Learning STEM Knowledge in Primary Education / Efectividad de la Autorregulación y los Serious Games Para el Aprendizaje de Conocimientos STEM en Educación Primaria

BACKGROUND: The learning of scientific and technological subjects is fundamental in the society of the 21st century. However, a gender gap is detected in the choice of degrees in these subjects. Recent studies indicate the need to take action from the primary education stage to increase student motivation towards these disciplines. METHODS: We worked with a sample of 147 students in the final years of Primary Education. SRL and serious games were applied in initial tasks to computer programming. The objectives were to study the influence of gender, environment and academic level variables on the results in the resolution of initial programming tasks and on student satisfaction with their completion. RESULTS: The mean level of results in these tasks was high (8 out of 10). However, significant differences were found for gender, academic level, and the covariate age. With respect to satisfaction, no significant differences were found except in the continuity of work. CONCLUSIONS: The use of SRL and serious play tasks promotes good levels of performance and satisfaction in all students, although differences in favour of the male gender are detected

ANTECEDENTES: el aprendizaje de materias científico-tecnológicas es fundamental en la sociedad del s. XXI. Si bien, se detecta una brecha de género en la elección de titulaciones en estas materias. Estudios recientes indican la necesidad de realizar acciones desde la etapa de Educación Primaria para aumentar la motivación de los estudiantes hacia estas disciplinas. MÉTODO: se trabajó con una muestra de 147 estudiantes de los últimos cursos de Educación Primaria. Se aplicó SRL y serious games en tareas de inicio a la programación informática. Los objetivos fueron estudiar la influencia de las variables género, entorno y nivel académico sobre los resultados en la resolución de tareas de inicio a la programación y en la satisfacción de los estudiantes con su realización. RESULTADOS: el nivel medio de resultados en estas tareas fue alto (8 sobre 10). Sin embargo, se hallaron diferencias significativas respecto de las variables género, nivel académico y efectos de la covariable edad. Relativo de la satisfacción no se hallaron diferencias significativas salvo en la continuidad de trabajo. CONCLUSIONES: la utilización de SRL y de tareas de juego serios potencia buenos niveles de rendimiento y de satisfacción en todos los estudiantes, aunque se detectan diferencias a favor del género masculino

Effectiveness of Self-Regulation and Serious Games for Learning STEM Knowledge in Primary Education.

BACKGROUND: The learning of scientific and technological subjects is fundamental in the society of the 21st century. However, a gender gap is detected in the choice of degrees in these subjects. Recent studies indicate the need to take action from the primary education stage to increase student motivation towards these disciplines. METHODS: We worked with a sample of 147 students in the final years of Primary Education. SRL and serious games were applied in initial tasks to computer programming. The objectives were to study the influence of gender, environment and academic level variables on the results in the resolution of initial programming tasks and on student satisfaction with their completion. RESULTS: The mean level of results in these tasks was high (8 out of 10). However, significant differences were found for gender, academic level, and the covariate age. With respect to satisfaction, no significant differences were found except in the continuity of work. CONCLUSIONS: The use of SRL and serious play tasks promotes good levels of performance and satisfaction in all students, although differences in favour of the male gender are detected.