Open-source Learning Research Articles

READCON: A Curriculum for Library Readiness, Advocacy, and Community Empowerment During Challenging Conditions

This panel introduces the READCON curriculum: Library Readiness, Advocacy, and Community Empowerment During Challenging Conditions The curriculum equips library workers with soft skills to develop relationships with their communities, partnering more effectively for advocacy. Building on the highly successful Get Ready Stay Ready Community Action Toolkit (GRSR), this curriculum builds foundational skills for library workers to engage in constructive dialogue on potentially divisive aspects of library programming, service, and material challenges. READCON takes Get Ready Stay Ready a step further by providing library workers with the soft skills needed to encourage community members to use the action steps included in the GRSR toolkit. Both resources are highly adaptable, multi-lingual, open-source learning tools developed by experts in academic, public, and school librarianship, education and family law, crisis communications, community advocacy and relations, and youth leadership.

Best Practice of Moodle Implementation for E-Learning: A Perspective of Public University Lecturers

Moodle is a popular open-source learning management system (LMS) used for online learning and course management. It provides educators with tools to create online courses, manage learning content, track student progress, conduct assessments, and facilitate communication and collaboration among students and instructors. Moodle is widely used in educational institutions, corporate training settings, and various other learning environments around the world. The aim of this article was to study the best practices for implementing Moodle in e-learning, as perceived by public university lecturers. This study employed a qualitative approach, utilizing Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) among lecturers from public universities. All data were meticulously transcribed and subsequently analyzed thematically. The results show, experts agreed that three best practices were i) Optimizing the task of e-learning manager, ii) Utilize the restriction option to uphold student integrity and, iii) Implementing regular data backups. Therefore, this study enriches the field by providing practical recommendations for implementing Moodle, drawing from the insights of public university lecturers.

OPTIMIZING LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS: A LITERATURE REVIEW ON MICROSERVICES FOR MOODLE QUALITY IMPROVEMENT

This paper explores the optimization of Moodle, an open-source learning management system, with a focus on the role of its architecture in improving quality and functionality. Architectural innovation was emphasized as critical to improving the quality of Moodle, with its open-source nature enabling community involvement to improve resolution, security, and evaluation. Moodle is an open-source learning management system (LMS) designed to provide an online learning environment. This research uses a literature review method to collect data from previous studies and literature related to Architectural Innovation and its relationship with academic information systems, namely Moodle. The review introduces the concept of microservices as a potential solution to overcome challenges in content, interface, navigation and technical aspects. Microservices offer independent development opportunities, address usability issues and improve responsiveness. The conclusion highlights that implementing microservices in Moodle not only promises to improve quality but also provides a foundation for meeting the evolving and dynamic needs of users.

"CANVAS" IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF COMPETENCIES OF WORKING WITH MULTIMEDIA TOOLS OF FUTURE INFORMATICS TEACHERS USING CLOUD TECHNOLOGIES

The modern process of informatization of education serves as a basis for the introduction of information and communication technologies into the educational process, where the trends of introducing cloud technologies to organize access to software implemented in various food activities are very relevant. The article highlights the problem of using one of the ICT tools, the open-source learning management system hosted by Instructure on the Canvas cloud, the advantages of using it in teaching and the tools it contains.

DEVELOPMENT OF AN OPEN EDUCATION RESOURCES (OER) SYSTEM: A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS AND IMPLEMENTATION APPROACH

Several institutions are collaborating on the development of a new web-based Open Education Resources (OER) system designed exclusively for non-commercial educational purposes. This initiative is underpinned by meticulous research aimed at constructing an OER system that optimizes user experiences across diverse user profiles. A significant emphasis is placed on utilizing open-source tools, frameworks, and technologies. The project includes a comparative analysis of the top five open-source Learning Management Systems (LMS), providing critical insights to inform the development process. The primary objective is to create a web-based system that facilitates the sharing of educational resources for non-commercial users, leveraging information and communication technologies. The project is structured around two key teams: a research team and a development team. This comprehensive approach is intended to establish a robust, user-centric OER system, informed by insights from existing platforms and the latest advancements in open education resource development. KEYWORDS: Open Education Resources (OER), Web-based System (WBS), Learning Management Systems (LMS)

Build Your Own Robot Friend: An Open-Source Learning Module for Accessible and Engaging AI Education

As artificial intelligence (AI) is playing an increasingly important role in our society and global economy, AI education and literacy have become necessary components in college and K-12 education to prepare students for an AI-powered society. However, current AI curricula have not yet been made accessible and engaging enough for students and schools from all socio-economic backgrounds with different educational goals. In this work, we developed an open-source learning module for college and high school students, which allows students to build their own robot companion from the ground up. This open platform can be used to provide hands-on experience and introductory knowledge about various aspects of AI, including robotics, machine learning (ML), software engineering, and mechanical engineering. Because of the social and personal nature of a socially assistive robot companion, this module also puts a special emphasis on human-centered AI, enabling students to develop a better understanding of human-AI interaction and AI ethics through hands-on learning activities. With open-source documentation, assembling manuals and affordable materials, students from different socio-economic backgrounds can personalize their learning experience based on their individual educational goals. To evaluate the student-perceived quality of our module, we conducted a usability testing workshop with 15 college students recruited from a minority-serving institution. Our results indicate that our AI module is effective, easy-to-follow, and engaging, and it increases student interest in studying AI/ML and robotics in the future. We hope that this work will contribute toward accessible and engaging AI education in human-AI interaction for college and high school students.

West African College of Surgeons Basic Ophthalmology Resource: Development and Initial Evaluation

Purpose: To describe the process of development of the West African College of Surgeons (WACS) Basic Ophthalmology Educational Resource and to report the feedback from the first five cohorts to utilise the resource at the commencement of their training in ophthalmology. Methods: After initial meetings topics considered essential foundations for training in ophthalmology were identified. Faculty members subsequently searched the internet to identify suitable online open source learning materials relevant to each topic, which were then collated and cataloged. Where suitable quality learning materials could not be identified, materials were created or re-used from existing WACS courses. Following the creation of the resource, questions were developed for a summative assessment, taken by learners upon completion of the resource. Results: The resource went 'live' on 10th July 2019. As of March 2024, a total of 203 learners in 5 cohorts had completed the course. The feedback responses of 150 (74%) learners from the first 5 cohorts are described in this report. Regarding their overall assessment of the course, 64 (43%) learners rated the resource as very good', 63 (42%) as 'good', and 23 (15%) as 'satisfactory’. Most (>98%) respondents reported that the course met their expectations and that the content was relevant to their learning needs. Conclusion: The WACS Basic Ophthalmology Resource appears to be a valuable opportunity for acquiring foundational knowledge.

CarDreamer: Open-Source Learning Platform for World Model Based Autonomous Driving

CarDreamer: Open-Source Learning Platform for World Model Based Autonomous Driving

Personalized and privacy-preserving federated heterogeneous medical image analysis with PPPML-HMI

Heterogeneous data is endemic due to the use of diverse models and settings of devices by hospitals in the field of medical imaging. However, there are few open-source frameworks for federated heterogeneous medical image analysis with personalization and privacy protection without the demand to modify the existing model structures or to share any private data. Here, we proposed PPPML-HMI, a novel open-source learning paradigm for personalized and privacy-preserving federated heterogeneous medical image analysis. To our best knowledge, personalization and privacy protection were discussed simultaneously for the first time under the federated scenario by integrating the PerFedAvg algorithm and designing the novel cyclic secure aggregation with the homomorphic encryption algorithm. To show the utility of PPPML-HMI, we applied it to a simulated classification task namely the classification of healthy people and patients from the RAD-ChestCT Dataset, and one real-world segmentation task namely the segmentation of lung infections from COVID-19 CT scans. Meanwhile, we applied the improved deep leakage from gradients to simulate adversarial attacks and showed the strong privacy-preserving capability of PPPML-HMI. By applying PPPML-HMI to both tasks with different neural networks, a varied number of users, and sample sizes, we demonstrated the strong generalizability of PPPML-HMI in privacy-preserving federated learning on heterogeneous medical images.

Individual sustainability competence development in engineering education: Community interaction open-source learning.

This empirical research creates and assesses a community interaction open-source learning framework. The framework established an efficient open-source learning environment for engineering courses to develop undergraduates' sustainability competencies. The teaching practice of the framework was designed into three stages: course preparation, theory lecture, and project practice. In the teaching practice, community interaction elements were embedded, including community/student two-way selection, systemic teaching and difficulty discussion, expert/student negotiation on teaching forms, teacher/expert coordination on teaching contents, and expert/student two-way feedback on schedules. The interaction elements between students, teachers, and experts enhanced the effectiveness of open-source learning in engineering courses. The experimental results showed that the students exhibited a positive attitude and high participation in the learning procedure and reported a sense of achievement in the project practice. The open-source learning framework significantly improved systemic thinking, conceptual understanding, interdisciplinary collaboration and professional skills. It enhanced students' key sustainability competencies and laid the foundation for them to become expertise-based innovators and open-source community contributors.

Chamilo LMS Research Trend

Chamilo is an open-source Learning Management System that is rarely known by campus communities in Indonesia, even though this LMS has been published for quite some time. Very little research is related to Chamilo compared to other LMS such as Moodle. This study will examine research trends over the past ten years using the Systematic Literature Review method. The subjects studied were taken from the Dimension and Scopus databases. The tools used are VoS Viewer and Mendeley software. The unit of analysis used is the "co-author," which is studied deductively. In addition, the type of "co-occurrence" is also used to see the keywords that are most often used in research. The research results showed that 69% of all articles were from Indonesia. The type of development research also dominates articles originating from Indonesia. The most dominant keyword besides Chamilo itself is e-learning. Several research keywords that are not included in the occurrence analysis unit have the potential to be studied.

Penyediaan Materi Sederhana Perguruan Tinggi Sebagai Solusi Untuk Masyarakat Yang Tidak Dapat Melanjutkan Pendidikan Ke Jenjang Perguruan Tinggi

This community service is focused on compiling and simplifying higher education materials to help increase competitiveness in this 4.0 industrial era. This research is motivated by the large number of high school graduates who cannot continue their studies at university with financial limitations. The objectives to be achieved in this Community Service (PKM) activity include: A). Create an online learning system or E-learning from the Pupilfirst.com Open Source Learning Management System (LMS) platform. B). Compile and simplify college materials. Because in this study, the process of making or designing the system was not made from scratch, the researchers only described the system design using a Mind Map and Use Case. The Matkul E-learning system was created with the Pupilfirst.com Learning Management System (LMS) platform, which is an Open Source LMS platform that focuses on online learning for students, and the researchers conducted testing using the testing method, namely Browser Compatibility.
 
 Keywords: E-learning, LMS (Learning Management System), Open Source, Browser Compatibility.

INDIVIDUALIZATION IN ENGINEERING DESIGN EDUCATION: IMPLEMENTATION OF AN ADAPTIVE E-LEARNING ENVIRONMENT (ADE-LE)

AbstractWell-educated engineers are key for successful engineering design in product development. Due to varying school education and technical backgrounds, the students have different prerequisites for the acquisition of competences. Subject of this paper is to show the methodical implementation of the prototype AdE-Le suited to the curriculum at Ruhr-University-Bochum and the open source learning platform Moodle. Aim is to evaluate the didactic potential to support engineering students with heterogeneous competence levels. The general needs and existing approaches for E-Learning environments as a means to individualize learning content in engineering design are discussed. Major aim is to reduce the linkage between the students' technical background and their exam success. AdE-Le as an exemplary application is developed based on the didactical concept of Constructive Alignment. Due to a harmonization of learning methods and contents in Engineering Design across the members of the Scientific Society for Product Development the results of this investigation can be transferred to other Universities.

Perencanaan Pengembangan Modul Pembelajaran Matematika Untuk Warga Belajar Paket C Berbasis Open Source (Scilab) di Pusat Kegiatan Belajar Masyarakat (PKBM) Karang Putih

The planning for the development of a mathematics learning module for residents studying package C based on the open-source platform Scilab at the Community Learning Center (PKBM) Karang Putih is one of the solutions to address the lack of facilities, especially open-source learning media. The activity plan started with discussions and information sharing. In this stage, discussions and experiences were shared regarding the Scilab-based mathematics learning module for package C learners. The second activity is the analysis of the module's needs. Based on the discussion's outcomes, decisions will be made about the type of module to be created, the required features, potential challenges, necessary resources for the development process, and so on. The third activity is the design of the learning module. During this phase, the interface and layout of the open-source Scilab-based mathematics learning module are designed. The final activity is the development of the learning module. This stage involves implementing the outcomes of the analysis and design of the mathematics learning module. It also includes testing to ensure that all functions work as intended. By following this planned process, the development of the mathematics learning module for package C learners using Scilab will be expected to provide a valuable open-source learning resource at the Community Learning Center (PKBM) Karang Putih.

Pragmatic Comparative Effectiveness Trials and Learning Health Systems in Pain Medicine: Opportunities and Challenges.

Large randomized clinical trials or aggregates of clinical trials represent the highest levels of clinical evidence because they minimize different sources of confounding and bias. The current review provides an in-depth discussion of the challenges faced and methods we can use to overcome these obstacles to tailor novel designs of pragmatic effectiveness trials to pain medicine. The authors describe their experiences with an open-source learning health system to collect high-quality evidence and conduct pragmatic clinical trials within a busy academic pain center.

On the Technological Acceptance of Moodle by Higher Education Faculty—A Nationwide Study Based on UTAUT2

Moodle is an open-source learning management system that is widely used today, especially in higher education settings. Although its technological acceptance by undergraduate students has been extensively studied in the past, very little is known about its acceptance by university professors. In particular, as far as we know, the literature contains no previous experiences related to South American teachers. This paper aims to bridge this gap by quantifying and analyzing the drivers of Moodle's technological acceptance among Ecuadorian academic staff. Considering the responses of 538 teachers and taking a modified UTAUT2 model as a theoretical basis, we found that Ecuadorian teachers have high levels of acceptance of Moodle, regardless of their age, gender, ethnicity, or discipline. However, this acceptance is significantly higher in teachers with high levels of education and with considerable previous experience with e-learning systems. The main determinants of this acceptance are attitude strength, effort expectancy, performance expectancy, and facilitating conditions. We found no moderating effects in relation to the age, gender, or previous experience of the participants (including second- and third-order interactions derived from these variables). We conclude that, albeit moderately (e.g., adjusted R2=0.588), the model tested confirms the predictive power of the part of UTAUT2 that was inherited from UTAUT.

Open source learning management system

This article examines the use of open source learning management systems (LMS) in distance learning. Open source LMSs provide an effective and cost-effective solution for delivering online learning materials. This paper reviews the current state of open source LMSs in distance learning, the advantages and disadvantages of using them, and the future implications of open source LMS technology. Finally, recommendations are provided for selecting the right open source LMS for distance learning. KEYWORDS: Open source learning management system, distance learning, cost-effective, customizable, technical support, scalability, integration.

EGT-Moodle: an educational game theoretic mechanism in Moodle to establish an efficient online peer-learning environment

ABSTRACT Peer learning is the method of students learning with and from each other. However, it is not completely developed or studied in online and blended higher education. In this paper, an Educational Game Theory method called EGT-Moodle is proposed to establish a peer learning in an online-learning environment. This method is implemented in Moodle (an open-source learning management system) environment. The method is a quasi-experimental study with a post-test design consisting of the experimental and control groups. A total of 152 students of the Discrete Mathematics course in computer engineering constitute the experimental and control groups randomly at 76. The Mann–Whitney two-independent group is applied to compare the post-tests of the subject groups. The result indicates that there is a significant difference (U = 1319, p = .000) between post-tests for the experimental group compared to the control which indicates the positive effect of EGT-Moodle on learning enhancement.

Faculty acceptance of the utilization of learning management systems in teaching

Despite huge investments in Ghanaian universities for e-learning education, there exist lecturers who struggle with the adoption and use of open-source Learning Management Systems (LMSs) in teaching. The purpose of this study was to investigate the dominant drivers of the adoption and usage of LMS by faculty to enhance e-learning education in universities in Ghana. The study tested selected variables in Innovation Diffusion Theory, the Technology Acceptance Model, and some constructs pertaining to Image, Subjective Norms, and Facilitating conditions, based on data from a census of 435 lecturers, which secured 283 completed questionnaires. The fit indices revealed a good fit between the measurement model and the data: (χ2 = 383.23, df = 271, p < .05; SRMR = 0.046; TLI = 0.965; CFI = 0.971; RMSEA = 0.038. The SEM results showed that the hypothesized model appropriately matched the data: (χ2 = 360.39, df = 253, p < .05; SRMR = 0.048; CFI = 0.971; TLI = 0.964; RMSEA = 0.040. The results obtained from the test of hypotheses revealed that Perceived Ease of Use had a positive and significant relationship with Actual Use (β = 0.45, p < .05). Compatibility also had a significantly positive relationship with Perceived Usefulness (β = 0.62, p < .05). The study concludes that the responsibility of university authorities for providing ICT infrastructure, regular training, and other incentives to enable their faculty to appreciate and engage the e-learning environment is at the core of a successful adoption of educational technologies. Among others, the study recommends that university authorities provide continuous training in LMS use for their teaching staff, especially the slow adopters and non-users, to encourage greater adoption and use.

The migration process from commercial to open-source learning management system for sustainable capacity building in primary healthcare service

Data migration could be a complex yet necessary activity during the lifecycle of an information system. All the e-Learning resources and activity material for all the available courses were migrated from a commercial platform to the free and open-source Moodle platform to ensure the availability of necessary features such as ability to monitor progress of learners, assessing the learning and to ensure sustainability. The migration process was methodically planned and executed, preserving the integrity of the data and rectifying omissions, errors, and inconsistencies. Utilising the existing Moodle e-Learning platform of the Ministry of Health as a shared resource is a practical and more long-lasting method of delivering e-Learning materials with the goal of enhancing the competence of healthcare professionals.