Enhancing Collaborative Learning and E-Mentoring in a Smart Education System in Higher Education

Abstract

The requirement to develop a smart education system is critical in the era of ubiquitous technology. In the smart education environment, intelligent pedagogies are constructed to take advantage of technological devices and foster learners’ competencies which undoubtedly assist learners in dealing with knowledge and handling issues in a dynamic society more effectively and productively. This research suggests two effective learning strategies: (1) collaborative learning, which helps learners improve their knowledge and skills by exchanging resources and experiences, and (2) e-mentoring, which connects learners to a wide range of professional communities. This research first proposes a model to show how these two learning methods help learners achieve their goals, along with a set of hypotheses that are explained in detail. Then, a smart education system is proposed which comprises the two learning strategies with the necessary features. Lastly, two questionnaires, one for facilitators and the other for learners, are used to evaluate the usefulness and the feasibility of the proposed model in a real-world educational environment. The great majority of respondents agreed with all the statements, demonstrating the efficiency of the research for educators and learners.