Projects

Table of contents

• Projects
  • L²P — Lehr- und Lernportal der RWTH Aachen (CiL, Rz - Microsoft)
  • SAiL-M - Semi-automatic Analysis of individual Learning processes in mathematics
  • Jacareto - Recording interaction in learning programms
  • Protoreto - Usability research and prototyping toll
  • go4IT! — Förderung des MINT-Nachwuchs (Sponsors, RWTH University Exceellence in Research Program)
  • SLI - Student Lab Informatics (Schülerlabor Informatik)
  • Learning process oriented eAssessment and intelligent feedback
  • ali — Aachener Leitprogramme der Informatik (regioIT)

L²P — Lehr- und Lernportal der RWTH Aachen (CiL, Rz - Microsoft)

We develop the eLearning and teaching portal of RWTH Aachen university based on professional components. Specific characteristics are: very low threshold and complexity for novel users, seamless integration into RWTH processes of teaching and adminisration, no redundancy, intetgration with campus management software and identity management. The Center for Innovative Learning Technologies (CiL), being responsible for the sustainable introduction of e-learning elements into the university’s study programs, designs the technological, instructional and administrative framework for blended learning at RWTH Aachen University. Main focus of 2008 activities were the further design, development, deployment and advancement of the central learning management system L²P in cooperation with the Computer and Communication Center. Besides several weekly upgrades new functionalities as for example an online supported exercise course, the possibility to request a copyright check for literature entries, and the visualization of LaTeX-formulas were successfully tested and introduced. Due to its operating expense the previously used assessment modules of CLIX were replaced by the e-testing features of Moodle. Furthermore, supportive measures such as an expanded, target-oriented e-learning training program and first level support for all questions concerning L²P were helpful for newcomers to the field of technology-supported teaching. The L²P portal usage continues to be very successful with an increasing number of regular courses using the system (more than 1700 per term). Within the two and a half years since its launch L²P has been established as a stable and well-adopted eLearning platform. These numbers put RWTH Aachen University into the top universities in Germany concerning its adoption of a blended learning approach.

SAiL-M - Semi-automatic Analysis of individual Learning processes in mathematics

In university courses with hundreds of participants, it is impossible for the tutors to take extensive care of each student. On the other hand, completely automated learning environments often do not offer the feedback that weaker students require in order to catch up. Therefore, the goal of the project is to develop concepts and tools that allow for a semi-automated analysis of individual learning processes in mathematics and other disciplines. In the last year, we have developed interactive tools that support the user in mathematical exercises, such as proving geometric theorems or transforming terms in set algebra. In cooperation with our partners in Schwäbisch Gmünd, we have integrated interactive visualizations based on the Cinderella Dynamic Geometry System. A Jacareto module makes it possible to evaluate the student’s learning process. The geometry tool, dubbed TwoCol, has been introduced at PH Ludwigsburg during the summer term 2009. The project is funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research within its program for empirical research in education.

Jacareto - Recording interaction in learning programms

Jacareto is a capture & replay tool for programs written in Java. You can capture actions on applications and replay them later on (like macros). Jacareto can be used for GUI tests, the creation of animated demonstrations and analyses of user behavior. Jacareto is a framework that implements capturing user-program interaction on graphical user interfaces written in Java. It has been successfully used

• to realize executable specifications of interactive systems using GUI -prototypes;
• to integrate self-explanatory tutorials in help systems of software;
• to implement instructional scenarios focusing on the learning process;
• to realize usability studies of interactive systems.

In contrast to other capture&replay tools, Jacareto replays recorded interactions between a user and a software system on instances of the observed software itself. Consequently, the replay puts the software system into the state that the user reached before. The protocol of the interactions is represented symbolically. Thus it can be automatically analyzed and structured, and to some extent also interpreted and statistically evaluated.

Protoreto - Usability research and prototyping toll

Protoreto is a prototyping tool that can be combined with Jacareto. Using its WYSIWYG editor, a user can create functional GUI prototypes even without programming skills. More complex systems can be realized by adding a few lines of script code. Jacareto can be used to capture the user’s interaction with a Protoreto prototype, for example during a user study. In the last years, Protoreto has been used at RWTH Aachen University as well as in private enterprises.

go4IT! — Förderung des MINT-Nachwuchs (Sponsors, RWTH University Exceellence in Research Program)

Since January 2009 our team offers regional schools free robot workshops for girls to awaken interest in STEM-subject and especially in Computer Science. Content of the workshop is the internationally proven didactic approach on robots. The workshops are offered for girls of the 6th until 8th grade to increase the interest of the pupils in school at a high stage and making the decision for a technical study easier. The innovations in “go4IT!” are an offer of continuative workshops in 8th and 9th form that aim at a sustainable change in the attitudes of participants towards STEM and are integrated into the computer science teacher training at the RWTH Aachen. The “go4IT!” project provides students in teacher training the opportunity to get practical experience in teaching successful gender and diversity lessons. Due to a successful sponsor acquisition at least 40 workshops are arranged and will be held in 2009. Thus, up to 400 girls will attend the workshops this year. Results: 97% of the participants had fun at the workshop; 87% of the participants have implemented their own ideas; after the course, over 55% can imagine to be a computer expert; 71% refused to study computer science, after the course, it was 15% less.

SLI - Student Lab Informatics (Schülerlabor Informatik)

Das Schülerlabor Informatik (SLI) soll unterschiedliche Zugänge zu zahlreichen Facetten und Anwendungen der Informatik auch für nicht-technikaffine Kinder und Jugendliche von der Grundschule bis zum Abitur bieten. Es sollen halbtägige, ganztägige, aber auch über mehrere Tage in Forschungs- und "Tüftlel"projekte eingebundene, experimentelle und handlungs-orientierte Angebote (z.B. im Rahmen einer ein- oder zweiwöchigen Schüleruniversität, Ferienangeboten, Team-Vorbereitung zu Wettbewerben wie Bundeswettbewerb Informatik, Schülerolympiade, zdi-Roboterwettbewerbe etc.) entstehen. Die meisten Angebote sind für die Grund- und Mittelstufe konzipiert und können von Schülerinnen und Schülern (SuS) aller Schularten und ohne spezielle Vorkenntnisse genutzt werden.

Learning process oriented eAssessment and intelligent feedback

Presenting information does not suffice to ensure successful learning. Rather, the learner must deal with the material actively. For this purpose, exercises are offered among other things. To increase the number and frequency of the exercises offered to the learner, computers have been used for automatically correcting objective tests for a long time. These are such that the correct solution must be known in advance, and that the answers given by the learner are evaluable by a simple test procedure (e.g. single/multiple choice). These simple procedures allow using such objective tests in a variety of fields. To really benefit from such tests, the learner should receive evaluated feedback concerning both his solution and his approach to reach the solution. However, the type and scope of feedback to objective and automatically evaluable tests often do not exceed a justification of either correctness or faultiness, and they mostly report only success or failure (correct/false). Determining the reason of failure is seldom possible and depends on the design of the test. Special skills, such as programming, drawing a diagram or writing an essay, cannot be evaluated by such tests. Therefore, there were soon first approaches of eAssessment systems, with a focus on specific domains, which tried to at least semi-automatically correct exercises specific to these domains. In these systems, specialized correction procedures where implemented to identify typical errors and thus to give better feedback. In addition to correcting a learner’s solution and giving feedback, it is also reasonable to support him in the process of reaching the solution. To achieve this, the learner may solve exercises in teams, with the additional help of tools supporting collaborative work. Moreover, one can use tools that allow to monitor the learner’s progress while solving an exercise, and that allow to give hints when the learner gets stuck or is heading in the wrong direction. In this project, we aim for a workflow-based framework that will allow to createcreating arbitrary, domain independent exercises together with their respective correction procedures. The framework should also allow manual correction phases at specific points in the correction procedure, which are referred to as “tutor-in-the-loop” steps. Furthermore, we develop specific tools that give feedback and hints to a learner solving an exercise.

ali — Aachener Leitprogramme der Informatik (regioIT)

We develop complete lessons and eLearning content for computer science classes in school (Gymnasium) based on innovative instructional design methods (Leitprogramme). Each lesson can be downloaded and printed or utilized as self-directed learning unit running on itac.teach&learn platform for schools in Aachen hosted by regio iT aachen.

---