A Concept Map-Based Remedial Learning System With Applications to the IEEE Floating-Point Standard and MIPS Encoding

Abstract

Contributions: A concept-map-based remedial learning system is presented to enhance students' grasp of the learning concepts of the IEEE floating-point standard and microprocessor without interlocked pipeline stages (MIPSs) encoding according to their understanding of these learning concepts. Background: Concept maps have been used to represent the knowledge structures of learning topics. This study presents another usage of concept maps, illustrating the prerequisite relationships between and among the learning concepts in a concept map. Simulation-based systems for learning the IEEE floating-point standard and MIPS encoding have been implemented. A simple remedial learning system that helps students to learn the IEEE floating-point standard and MIPS encoding would therefore be valuable, but had yet to be designed. Intended Outcomes: Students' understandings of the IEEE floating-point standard and MIPS encoding are expected to enhance via studying the remedial materials generated by this system. Application Design: A one-group-pretest-posttest design was utilized. The students first took a pretest to get their grasp of the learning concepts, and then studied the remedial learning materials according to their understanding of the learning concepts in the pretest. Findings: 1) The score progress of the IEEE floating-point learners was significant after they undertook remedial learning; 2) the score progress of the low-achieving students was significantly greater than that of the high-achieving students, in their learning of the IEEE float-pointing standard; 3) the score progress of the MIPS encoding learners was significant after they undertook remedial learning; and 4) the score progress of the low-achieving students was significantly greater than that of the high-achieving students in their learning of MIPS encoding, with weak evidence.