Adaptive Educational Technologies Research Articles

Improving the Efficiency and Quality of Education as the Basis for Successful Digitalization of the Economy

The determining influence of the effectiveness and quality of education systems on all spheres of human activity has been studied: economic, social, socio-political, everyday and spiritual. The most important conditions are considered and the main ways are analyzed to significantly increase the efficiency of modern vocational education while simultaneously improving its quality. The necessity of using adaptive educational technologies is substantiated, the features of algorithmization of the adaptive learning process are shown in order to improve its quality, and ways of creating an effective model of the professional field for adaptive educational systems are analyzed. The comparative analysis method was used to select these paths. The possibilities of creating modern adaptive vocational training systems based on the use of the concept of the International Labor Organization “Labor Competency Modules” are illustrated. Examples of results obtained during many years of professional activity are given.

An adaptive system of foreign language training for an adaptive system of teaching a foreign language to students of pedagogical specialties: european experience

The individual characteristics of foreign language acquisition among students of pedagogical specialties and the selection of adaptive technologies considering these characteristics are examined in the article. An analysis of studies by methodological researchers that explores the psycho-physiological features of students' memory, thinking, attention, and the emotional sphere is provided. The article presents data on training students in pedagogical specialties based on the authors' developed learning model, utilizing adaptive educational technologies that consider individual language learning styles. Adaptive technologies such as communicative and audio-visual methods (AVM), personalized learning technologies, control-corrective teaching technologies (CCTT), business games, and adaptation-expansion-variation (AEV) learning technologies by both domestic and foreign authors are discussed. It is proven that students possess significant potential in intelligence and personality for effectively acquiring a foreign language in intensive learning conditions. For teachers, it is vital to select the appropriate adaptive technologies based on each student's group and individual characteristics. At the same time, educational institutions need to implement specific measures to support existing motivation and identify personal student traits that actively influence the learning process. Existing research conducted both in our country and abroad (mainly focusing on adaptive information systems) does not provide unanimous consensus on the effectiveness of the adaptive approach. Whether this is due to shortcomings in the conducted studies or the limitations of adaptive technologies remains to be seen as the adaptive approach is still in development. However, this method has shown effectiveness for students with certain levels of knowledge, skills, language abilities, and motivation when learning any foreign language. Other researchers in teaching foreign languages in pedagogical institutions can consider these results and develop their own variations of educational content within the framework of standard discipline programs. The more such studies are conducted, the faster this field of educational technology will be developed and the more promising its application will become clear. Additionally, the study can be extended toward developing electronic platforms based on existing content.

A model of the professional field as the basis for an adaptive educational process

Objectives. The main purpose of the work is to study the advantages of an activity-based approach, or functional approach in comparison with a subject-based approach, or lecture-based approach for creating a model of a professional field for adaptive educational process. The relevance of the problem being solved is caused by due to the fact, that adaptive educational technologies, thanks to the extensive computerization and informatization of all spheres of human activity, as well as the innovative development of artificial intelligence, have become dominant in teaching systems at all levels, from preschool to higher education institutions. Without a highly effective model of the professional field, it is impossible to successfully implement adaptive learning.Methods. To achieve the goals and to prove the statements formulated, the method of comparative analysis of the most widely used ways for creating models of the professional field for adaptive learning in modern systems, was used. To do this, we studied: the effectiveness of using the traditional approach, which is based on subjectspecific or lecture-seminar signs of structuring educational material; as well as the effectiveness of using an activity-based approach based on the concept of "Modules of labor competencies" for the formation of educational material.Results. The analysis of the quality of educational material (a model of a professional field for an adaptive educational process) obtained using the traditional approach, and educational material (the same model for its intended purpose) obtained on the basis of an activity approach in accordance with the concept of "Modules of labor competencies". The results of the analysis are compared and theoretical statements are summarized, taking into account the examples of developed modular materials, as well as the pilot implementation of previously developed modular programs.Conclusion. The information given in the article can be useful for specialists, researchers and heads of educational institutions of various levels, when planning and creating adaptive learning systems. The conclusions and recommendations fully comply with the requirements of the development of the education system of the Republic of Belarus.

ANALYSIS OF THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE USE OF ADAPTIVE TRAINING PLATFORMS IN SECONDARY VOCATIONAL EDUCATION

The article considers the tasks and features of mathematics training for studentsof secondary vocational education. Special attention is paid to the need to solve the problemof adaptation of students to the conditions of study in college and the organization ofindependent work. In this regard, the authors propose to make wider use of the practiceof adaptive learning as innovative pedagogical tools. The article considers the concept ofthe effectiveness of adaptive personalized learning and suggests the directions by which itcan be evaluated. As an example, the experience of implementing an adaptive educationalcourse “Mathematics”, designed in the Articulate Storyline platform, is analyzed. The moduleis designed to organize and support adaptive learning of students of the Department ofInformation Systems by means of adaptive educational technologies. The results of thetraining are analyzed, and the possibilities of the Articulate Storyline platform in ensuringthe independent work of students are presented. The main part of the article is devotedto evaluating the effectiveness of e-learning using an adaptive educational platform. Withthe help of questionnaires and tools of the Articulate Storyline platform, an assessment ofthe educational result achieved was made, the degree of motivation of students to masterthe discipline of mathematics was analyzed, and the attitude of students to the process ofe-learning using an adaptive educational platform was investigated.

PAKES: A Reinforcement Learning-Based Personalized Adaptability Knowledge Extraction Strategy for Adaptive Learning Systems

Advancements in adaptive educational technologies, specifically the adaptive learning system, have made it possible to automatically optimize the sequencing of the pedagogical instructions according to the needs of individual learners. The crux of such systems lies in the instructional sequencing policy, which recommends personalized learning material based on the learning experiences of the learner to maximize their learning outcomes. However, limited available information such as cognitive, affective states, and competence levels of the learners ongoing knowledge points servers critical challenges to optimizing individual-specific pedagogical instructions in real-time. Moreover, making such decisions policy for every learner with a unique knowledge profile demands a trade-off between learner current knowledge and curiosity to learn next knowledge point. To address these challenges, this paper proposes a personalized adaptability knowledge extraction strategy (PAKES) using cognitive diagnosis and reinforcement learning (RL). We apply the general diagnostic model to track the current knowledge state of the learners. Subsequently, an RL-based Q-learning algorithm is employed to recommend optimal pedagogical instructions for individuals to meet their learning objectives while maintaining equilibrium among the learner-control and teaching trajectories. The results indicate that the learning analytics of the proposed framework can fairly deliver the optimal pedagogical paths for the learners based upon their learning profiles. A 62% learning progress score was achieved with the pedagogical paths recommended by the PAKES, showing a 20% improvement compared to the baseline model.

Learner-Adaptive Educational Technology for Simulation in Healthcare: Foundations and Opportunities.

Despite evidence that learners vary greatly in their learning needs, practical constraints tend to favor ''one-size-fits-all'' educational approaches, in simulation-based education as elsewhere. Adaptive educational technologies - devices and/or software applications that capture and analyze relevant data about learners to select and present individually tailored learning stimuli - are a promising aid in learners' and educators' efforts to provide learning experiences that meet individual needs. In this article, we summarize and build upon the 2017 Society for Simulation in Healthcare Research Summit panel discussion on adaptive learning. First, we consider the role of adaptivity in learning broadly. We then outline the basic functions that adaptive learning technologies must implement and the unique affordances and challenges of technology-based approaches for those functions, sharing an illustrative example from healthcare simulation. Finally, we consider future directions for accelerating research, development, and deployment of effective adaptive educational technology and techniques in healthcare simulation.

The Interplay between Inspectable Student Models and Didactics of Statistics

Statistics is a challenging subject for many university students. In addition to dedicated methods of didactics of statistics, adaptive educational technologies can also offer a promising approach to target this challenge. Inspectable student models provide students with information about their mastery of the domain, thus triggering reflection and supporting the planning of subsequent study steps. In this article, we investigate the question of whether insights from didactics of statistics can be combined with inspectable student models and examine if the two can reinforce each other. Five inspectable student models were implemented within five didactically grounded online statistics modules, which were offered to 160 Social Sciences students as part of their first-year university statistics course. The student models were evaluated using several methods. Learning curve analysis and predictive validity analysis examined the quality of the student models from the technical point of view, while a questionnaire and a task analysis provided a didactical perspective. The results suggest that students appreciated the overall design, but the learning curve analysis revealed several weaknesses in the implemented domain structure. The task analysis revealed four underlying problems that help to explain these weaknesses. Addressing these problems improved both the predictive validity of the adjusted student models and the quality of the instructional modules themselves. These results provide insight into how inspectable student models and didactics of statistics can augment each other in the design of rich instructional modules for statistics.

SOME INNOVATIVE EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGIES TO CREATE ADAPTIVE SCHOOLS

The world around is changing. Our life changed. Society needs vary. A modern education changes too. The school also changes. The school improvement significant role belongs to the idea of building an adaptive school. Adaptive school takes into account the ability of all students. Adaptive School is focused on meeting the needs of a variety of cognitive and interests of students. This school provides conditions for their vital selfdet ermination and selfrealization. The goal of adapti ve school is to create an educational environment that helps to ensure that every student can realize itself as the subject of his own life, activity and communication. Creating Adaptive School is associated with the expansion of the practice of developing adaptive educational technologies. Much preparatory work should be carried out at a school for the introduction of new educational technologies in the educational process. Applying innovative pedagogical technologies, each teacher contributes to the creation of adaptive educational environment at the school.

Social Media for Ubiquitous Learning and Adaptive Tutoring [Guest editors' introduction

The popularity and influence of social media have been continuously expanding worldwide, and a similar trend is visible in educational settings. Social media tools have been reportedly used for a variety of educational purposes and in wide-ranging contexts, bridging formal and informal, as well as individual and collaborative learning. Currently, the trend is toward the integration of social media services with mobile and ubiquitous learning and adaptive educational technologies. To provide an overview of this interplay by reviewing the applicable techniques and relevant works in the area, we supplement this editorial with a tutorial survey. In particular, the following three main topics are examined and studied here: ubiquitous learning via social media services, intelligent tutoring in adaptive e-learning, and multimedia enabled social learning. The authors also introduced the articles featured in this special issue on social media for learning.

Exploring feedback and student characteristics relevant for personalizing feedback strategies

Personalized tutoring feedback is a powerful method that expert human tutors apply when helping students to optimize their learning. Thus, research on tutoring feedback strategies tailoring feedback according to important factors of the learning process has been recognized as a promising issue in the field of computer-based adaptive educational technologies. Our paper seeks to contribute to this area of research by addressing the following aspects: First, to investigate how students' gender, prior knowledge, and motivational characteristics relate to learning outcomes (knowledge gain and changes in motivation). Second, to investigate the impact of these student characteristics on how tutoring feedback strategies varying in content (procedural vs. conceptual) and specificity (concise hints vs. elaborated explanations) of tutoring feedback messages affect students' learning and motivation. Third, to explore the influence of the feedback parameters and student characteristics on students' immediate post-feedback behaviour (skipping vs. trying to accomplish a task, and failing vs. succeeding in providing a correct answer). To address these issues, detailed log-file analyses of an experimental study have been conducted. In this study, 124 sixth and seventh graders have been exposed to various tutoring feedback strategies while working on multi-trial error correction tasks in the domain of fraction arithmetic. The web-based intelligent learning environment ActiveMath was used to present the fraction tasks and trace students' progress and activities. The results reveal that gender is an important factor for feedback efficiency: Male students achieve significantly lower knowledge gains than female students under all tutoring feedback conditions (particularly, under feedback strategies starting with a conceptual hint). Moreover, perceived competence declines from pre- to post-test significantly more for boys than for girls. Yet, the decline in perceived competence is not accompanied by a decline in intrinsic motivation, which, instead, increases significantly from pre- to post-test. With regard to the post-feedback behaviour, the results indicate that students skip further attempts more frequently after conceptual than after procedural feedback messages.