Personal Learning Environments Research Articles

Technology Education with Integrated Values: From the Perspective of Risalah Nur in Building a Prosperous Society 5.0

This study focuses on the integration of universal values through personalized education for technology learning in a 5.0 society that is appropriate to the application of technology in daily life. This goal has always been the traditional goal of education and training for human resource development. This includes support for the STEM community in STEM-technology programs and promoting value education at all levels in academic subjects, studies, research and development of the application of real values and ethics locally and internationally. The objective of the study was to analyze, design, build, evaluate and shape the Dining on the Cloud model: an Easy-to-digest e-Module with Podcasts, Audio & Video AR Books. The UDin model or in Malay Rengkas model is used in the study of development media. This UDin model or Rengkas model is an integrated agile version model for instructional design, development, assessment and personalized learning environment model in education. In line with the development of Malaysia towards a 5.0 society from the 4.0 industrial revolution, this study applies the latest technology in the development of learning media and further identifies the influence of access, environment, media, reflection and engagement on personalized learning. Finally, the impact of PdPn on values in self-development to build a civil society will be studied. The reliability and validity of the study instruments also have the potential to be implemented with modern statistical methods using the Rasch Model.

Infusing Expert Knowledge Into a Deep Neural Network Using Attention Mechanism for Personalized Learning Environments.

Machine learning models are biased toward data seen during the training steps. The models will tend to give good results in classes where there are many examples and poor results in those with few examples. This problem generally occurs when the classes to predict are imbalanced and this is frequent in educational data where for example, there are skills that are very difficult or very easy to master. There will be less data on students that correctly answered questions related to difficult skills and who incorrectly answered those related to skills easy to master. In this paper, we tackled this problem by proposing a hybrid architecture combining Deep Neural Network architectures— especially Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) and Convolutional Neural Networks (CNN)—with expert knowledge for user modeling. The proposed solution uses attention mechanism to infuse expert knowledge into the Deep Neural Network. It has been tested in two contexts: knowledge tracing in an intelligent tutoring system (ITS) called Logic-Muse and prediction of socio-moral reasoning in a serious game called MorALERT. The proposed solution is compared to state-of-the-art machine learning solutions and experiments show that the resulting model can accurately predict the current student's knowledge state (in Logic-Muse) and thus enable an accurate personalization of the learning process. Other experiments show that the model can also be used to predict the level of socio-moral reasoning skills (in MorALERT). Our findings suggest the need for hybrid neural networks that integrate prior expert knowledge (especially when it is necessary to compensate for the strong dependency—of deep learning methods—on data size or the possible unbalanced datasets). Many domains can benefit from such an approach to building models that allow generalization even when there are small training data.

Influence of Personal, Motivational and Learning Environment Factors on Students’ Attitudes toward Mathematic

This study uses the self-determination theory to explore how personal characteristics, motivation and learning environment influence students’ attitudes toward the learning of mathematics. The study adopted a sequential mixed methods design, with 360 students from 24 schools, constituting the sample for the study. The results revealed that in general, students have positive attitudes toward the learning of mathematics, and this could be attributed to the utilitarian motive of mathematics and its importance in daily life. Pearson Moment Correlation and independent T-test analysis were used to ascertain if there is any relationship between students' attitudes toward mathematics and their academic performance and the relationship between performance and school location. Also, the results from the interviews revealed a direct relationship between personal characteristics, motivation, learning environment and students' attitudes toward mathematics, as motivated students, and experience positive learning environments performed better. Based on the findings, we recommend that teachers and educational authorities ought to be innovative in using creative approaches that will motivate students in developing a more positive attitude toward the learning of mathematics as this is very crucial in our quest for improving students' performance in mathematics.

Impact of Quiz-Based Interactive Videos into Personal Learning Environment on Regulating E-Portfolio Design and Learning Engagement: An Experimental Study

Since the COVID-19 pandemic, attention has shifted in an unprecedented way to online teaching. This has required innovative methods within online milieux to empower students learning following their own preferences and rhythm. Employing artificial intelligence (AI) represents a fruitful avenue for designing interactive videos in personal learning environments (PLE), consequently changing the face of e-learning. In this experimental design, a series of ADDIE (analysis, design, development, implementation and evaluation) framework-based and quiz-based interactive videos are developed on E-Portfolio instructional content. This study required students to interact with the videos remotely and answer short quizzes to check understanding. Students were required to provide the correct answers to proceed. If incorrect answers were provided, the content was repeated. The level of engagement and design skills were pre- and post-tested on an experimental group and a control group, each consisting of 32 students with a total of 64 at Mansoura University in 2019-2020. The results of the study indicate a statistically significant difference for deploying interactive videos on e-portfolio design skills and learning engagement. The study contributes to knowledge of how interactive quiz-based videos as a source of self-feedback for their level of attention, performance and comprehension. The limitation of the study is that it is a small scale and subsequent case studies could be useful. Further studies are recommended to verify the cognitive processes and performance self-assessment nexus.

Evaluation of the “Positive Parent”, a Spanish web-based program to promote positive parenting in a Personal Learning Environment

Introduction. The increasing use of online parenting resources offers the opportunity to improve the parenting role through Personal Learning Environments (PLEs). However, there is no evidence concerning the effectiveness of the learning process that takes place in a PLE space. Method. We evaluated the “Positive Parent” program through the self-assignment of: (a) 143 Spanish-speaking parents to the program modules, following a fixed learning itinerary based on the experiential methodology (Program Group), and (b) 139 parents to complementary multimedia material, following a self-guided, flexible learning itinerary (Visitor Group). For the first goal, both groups were automatically monitored for their pre-posttest completion of the Positive Parenting Scale, resulting in significant improvements in Family involvement, Affection and recognition for the child, Family communication and stress management, and Shared activities in the Program Group only. For the second goal, the Program Group was automatically monitored for Connection time, Connection duration, and Program duration, as well as level of engagement in Forum participation, Diary use, and Making a commitment. Results. Latent Profile Analysis (LPA) was used to identify patterns of pre-post changes in positive parenting, showing moderate to high improvements in three out of four profiles, that is, for 87.4% of the parents. There was a significant relation between the participants’ decisions in the PLE space and profile membership, with higher engagement in forums, diary use, and making a commitment linked with greater improvements in positive parenting. Discussion and Conclusion. Given the use of spontaneous enrolment and self-assignment of participants to the program and visitor conditions, we cannot rule out the possibility that individual differences in unknown factors (i.e., motivation) may have affected the results for program effectiveness. However, we provide evidence that the significant improvements in all dimensions of positive parenting were limited to the Program Group, as indicated by the significant group x time interactions, despite the Visitor Group’s exposure to equivalent multimedia materials. For the first time, this evaluation reveals some of the relevant implementation conditions related to the effectiveness of PLEs in non-academic settings. The Positive Parent program provides Spanish-speaking parents with an innovative and successful learning experience to enhance positive parenting that may ultimately promote positive child development and family wellbeing.

SeisTutor: A Custom-Tailored Intelligent Tutoring System and Sustainable Education

Education is the cornerstone of improving people’s lives and achieving global sustainability. Intelligent systems assist sustainable education with various benefits, including recommending a personalized learning environment to learners. The classroom learning environment facilitates human tutors to interact with every learner and obtain the opportunity to understand the learner’s psychology and then provide learning material (access learner previous knowledge and well-align the learning material as per learner requirement) to them accordingly. Implementing this cognitive intelligence in Intelligent Tutoring System is quite tricky. This research focused on mimicking human tutor cognitive intelligence in the computer-aided system of offering an exclusive curriculum or quality education for sustainable learners. The prime focus of this research article was to evaluate the proposed SeisTutor using Kirkpatrick four-phase evaluation model. The experimental results depict the enhanced learning gained through intelligence incorporated SeisTutor against the intelligence absence, as demonstrated.

Design and Implementation of IoT Data-Driven Intelligent Law Classroom Teaching System

In this paper, we conduct in-depth research and analysis by building an IoT data-driven intelligent law classroom teaching system and implementing it in the actual teaching process. Firstly, the application requirements and main functions of the classroom interactive system are analysed and studied in depth; the overall design of the classroom interactive system based on wireless communication is carried out; and the classroom interactive system consisting of teacher's receiver, wireless receiver, student's handheld terminal, teacher's receiver upper computer software, student's handheld terminal upper computer software, and data management website is developed. Platform and communication part: middleware comprises multiple modules such as real-time memory event database, task management system, and event management system. The system uses USB communication, serial time-sharing communication, Zigbee wireless communication, WebSocket, and other technologies to realize data communication between several modules, and some key technologies are studied and improved in detail. Finally, the system is deployed to the actual experimental application scenario, and the software and hardware construction of the IoT innovation lab is completed. The lab equipment is officially put into use, the information platform is also in the trial run stage, and the system is tested in time during the operation stage to provide the basis for the improvement of the system functions. Use data to conduct an in-depth analysis of learning situations and learning process analysis, optimize the reasonable construction of a personalized learning environment, serve personalized learning, and achieve the most optimal learning effect. The secondary development of the Turing robot provides a personalized auxiliary Q&A system for teaching, allowing artificial intelligence-assisted teaching to be integrated into the curriculum. With the help of teaching law courses, the empirical study demonstrates that the personalized learning environment has significant advantages in improving teaching effectiveness.

Трудно ли е порастването в историята

The postmodern didactic paradigm relies on contextuality, on the interrelationships in the course of pedagogical interaction, on the diversity of learning styles and teaching methods, on the changing learning environment. An important part of the postmodern didactic paradigm is information and communication technologies, which not only facilitate students in searching and processing information, but also allow working together outside the classroom, building a personal learning environment and self-organization of learning. The article outlines the role of students' digital literacy in achieving learning goals, in the realization of problem-based learning, personality-oriented and interdisciplinary approach in History and Civilization classes. Didactic solutions are presented in which students enrich their knowledge of socio-political processes in Bulgaria and in the Balkans in the mid-20s of the 20th century by performing practical tasks and solving a learning problem according to individual progress and participation of each student in teamwork.

Personal learning environment toward lifelong learning: an ontology-driven conceptual model

ABSTRACT Presently, learning is more flexible, personal and has richer learning resources. In the digital era, students use digital tools in almost all aspects of learning, such as seeking information, note-taking, discussion and communication, which is in line with personal learning environments. Therefore, this study proposes a conceptual model of the personal learning environment. The design science research framework is applied as a research guide to guarantee that the proposed model is relevant to our research statement, and the model design is rigorously grounded in relevant theory and methodology. The researcher conducted a systematic literature review and content analysis of relevant articles to identify the components of the personal learning environment and then proposed an initial ontology-driven conceptual model. Activity theory is used as a qualitative framework for preliminary evaluations of the resulting artefacts. The proposed conceptual model comprises four dimensions, including personal, technological, organisational and social, as well as teaching and learning. The implications of the proposed model are to equip teachers, developers, researchers and policymakers in understanding the design and promoting personal learning environments.

Digital didactics: systemic foundations and the image of the future

The article is devoted to the system justification of the e-learning process. The language of cybernetics is used to describe a purposeful process. Using the language of cybernetics allows you to identify all the components of the educational process management system. In the classical case, this is a teacher who has a management goal and achieves this goal. With the advent of computer technology, the process control system becomes more complicated – information and communication technologies are included in it. Based on the cybernetic model of learning as a purposeful process, the evolution of the interaction process in education from classical education in the form of "man-man", then to the form of "man-computer-man" and then to the form of "man-learning environment" is considered. At the same time, the evolution of the didactic content of the educational process is considered. The main conclusions of this study are: the conclusion that there is a fundamental contradiction between the finite possibilities of computer influence as part of the educational process management system and the infinite set of behavioral reactions of the learner. It is shown how this contradiction is resolved at the system level by, on the one hand, simplifying the e-course itself, but at the same time increasing the diversity of the number of courses. It is shown that at this level the development of e-learning and the content of digital didactics can be characterized as "student–teacher - learning algorithm". Further, a forecast is made that an increase in the variety of e-courses will lead to the creation of a personal learning environment, the purpose of which will be marketing: to satisfy the client's training needs as much as possible. It is concluded that digital didactics will be built on the principles of gamification.

A Collaborative Framework for Customized E-Learning Services by Analytic Hierarchy Processing

Thanks to the drastic proliferation of the Internet, e-learning has been recognized as an effective medium for various kinds of aggressive learners. However, due to the deficiencies of tutoring and guiding functionalities in current learning platforms, casual learners may deviate from the original course direction with frustration, when confronting inflexible course materials and fixed learning models. In the post-COVID-19 era, we believe that the most important functionality for a personal learning environment (PLE) to offer is a course recommendation process which adaptively provides a versatile course combination scheme for different learners from different perspectives. In this paper, we propose a flexible framework for users to customize their e-learning environment based on a two-stage Analytical Hierarchical Processing (AHP) structure for building adaptive course portfolios, which adaptively provides a versatile course scheme for different learners. The main objective of our framework is to transform a learner from a role of passively accepting the course content organized by instructors, into another role of proactively selecting the courses and contributing their knowledge to continuously improve the learning platform. We believe the approach proposed is a versatile way for supporting various challenges for the next generation of personal e-learning environment.

A Systematic Review and Trend Analysis of Personal Learning Environments Research

The concept of personal learning environments (PLEs) is relatively new and is continuously developing. Over the past decade, there has been a significant upsurge in the number of PLEs-related research. Nevertheless, there is a lack of recent systematic reviews and trend analysis covering many PLEs studies; to the best of our knowledge. Therefore, the current systematic review is significant and indispensable in reviewing journal articles that discussed PLEs between 2000 and 2020. We searched Web of Science, Scopus, Sciences Direct, JSTOR, Springer, Google Scholar, and IEEE Xplore for studies published in English without limit in location or time to retrieve accurate results. Trend graphics for the extracted themes were also analyzed using descriptive statistics in Excel. According to the defined inclusion criteria, one hundred forty-eight articles were selected for the analysis. This study reveals that literature on PLEs has progressed from 2000 to 2020; the majority of PLEs-related articles were published between 2011 and 2020, with the year 2013 having the highest number of published articles (17 articles), followed by 16 papers published in both years 2014 and 2017. We found that the published PLEs research originated from 46 countries; 26 (17.6%) were from Spain. The majority of the authors had education, computer science, information technology and engineering backgrounds. This review also showed that numerous platforms had been used in PLEs research, with Web 2.0 the most commonly used platform. We noted that the most common objectives of the included articles were PLEs custom system development, analysis of the PLEs, description of experiments, investigations, development of factor models, framework development, and examination. The most common theoretical perspectives in the published articles were self-regulated learning, self-directed learning, and constructivism. The current systematic review and trend analysis can become a guidance platform for researchers, educators, policymakers or even journal publishers for future research in PLEs research.

Personal Learning Environments in Online and Face-to-Face Contexts in Mexican Higher Education

Abstract With the introduction of digital technologies in education and the diversification of learning modalities, research has sought to identify the characteristics of each modality in order to develop successful learning. The Personal Learning Environment (PLE) is a developing concept that takes advantage of digital technologies and their implications in different modalities. This research aims to identify how the educational modality contributes to the development of PLEs in higher education. We compared two case studies in online and face-to-face contexts in Mexican higher education through a case survey methodology using a questionnaire and a descriptive statistical analysis of five categories: self-perception, management of information, management of the learning process, communication and learning experience. Results show that online students focus on the use of information management skills and on self-regulation of the learning process, whereas face-to-face students are oriented towards the use of communication skills. In conclusion, we identify two PLE profiles whose main differences arise from the students’ learning approaches, one based on social interaction and the other guided by learning aims, two aspects that may contribute to the development of learning strategies for transition between modalities. Finally, we contribute to the support of face-to-face learning in virtual environments and emergency remote teaching.

Evaluation of academic procrastination behavior in management of personal learning environments within intelligent tutoring systems

In the study, it is aimed to investigate the academic procrastination behaviors of teacher candidates in the management of personal learning environments within intelligent tutoring systems. In the study, which was structured in the phenomenological pattern, included in the qualitative research method, the participants were formed from 52 teacher candidates studying at Hatay Mustafa Kemal University Faculty of Education with the 'criteria sampling' method. In line with the findings; teacher candidates are in the opinion that intelligent tutoring systems will have a significant role in the education systems of the future and that the characteristics of learners have altered in digital transformation. When the reasons of academic procrastination behaviors are examined, there are reasons such as low motivation, the design of the course, the digital competencies of the learner and the teacher, while as the solution strategies are examined, the motivation of the learners and teachers, increasing the level of interaction between the learners with intelligent tutoring systems, communication, time management, providing digital competencies. Furthermore, strategies such as providing technical competencies have been suggested by teacher candidates.

Teachers' Perspective on Personal Learning Environments via Learning Management Systems Platform

In recent years, the landscapes of teaching and learning has changed because of the utilization of information and communications technologies. In this context, the most illustrative innovations are Learning Management Systems (LMS) and Personal Learning Environments (PLEs). Despite of the LMS and PLEs popularity in ed-ucational contexts as well as the expand set of tools and services that they offer to learners and teachers; they are still in fancy stages. In order to present the challenges Personal Learning Environments were presented; however, it is obvious that PLEs will not replace LMS. Therefore, both types of environments should coexist and interact. In this manner, the current study took teachers’ perspective on integrating the third generation LMS into PLEs. In addition, this study conducted to find out the teachers’ perspective on how the LMS could enhance PLEs in terms of planning before applying the PLE's; designing a framework in the PLE’s; imple-menting the PLEs; interacting in PLEs; managing the learning process through the PLEs and utilizing technolo-gy in PLEs. The participants of the study were 575 teachers who were selected randomly from Saudi Arabia schools. The findings of this study found that teachers must apply a positive teaching approach, holding that knowledge is composed upon student-to-student interaction as well as student-to-teacher interaction. Further-more, this study revealed that teachers must enterprise, deliver, and support K-12 online learning.

Weak and strong ties and its connection to experts' problem-solving styles in scaffolding students' PBL activities on social media

Background: Studies have acknowledged that social media enables students to connect with and learn from experts from different ties available in the students’ personal learning environment (PLE). Incorporating experts into formal learning activities such as scaffolding problem-solving tasks through social media, allows students to understand how experts solve real-world problems. However, studies that evaluate experts’ problem-solving styles on social media in relation to the tie strength of the experts with the students are scarce in the extant literature. This study aimed to explore the problem-solving styles that the experts portrayed based on their ties with the students in problem-based learning (PBL) on Facebook. Methods: This study employed a simultaneous within-subject experimental design which was conducted in three closed Facebook groups with 12 final year management students, six business experts, and one instructor as the participants. The experts were invited by the students from the weak and strong ties in their PLE. Hinging on the Strength of Weak Ties Theory (Granovetter, 1973) and problem-solving styles (Selby et al., 2004), this study employed thematic analysis using the ATLAS.ti qualitative data analysis software to map the experts’ comments on Facebook. Results: The experts from strong and weak ties who had a prior relationship with the students showed people preference style by being more sensitive to the students' learning needs and demonstrating firmer scaffolding compared to the weak ties' experts who had no prior relationship with the students. Regardless of the types of ties, all experts applied all manner of processing information and orientation to change but the degree of its applications are correlated with the working experience of the experts. Conclusion: The use of weak or strong ties benefited the students as it expedited their problem-solving tasks since the experts have unique expertise to offer depending on the problem-solving styles that they exhibited.

THE FEASIBILITY OF A PERSONAL LEARNING ENVIRONMENT (PLE) TO SUPPORT ACADEMIC WRITING: ESL PRE-SERVICE TEACHERS’ PERSPECTIVES

A recent trend has highlighted the need for a personal learning environment (PLE) in education as a system that helps learners take control of and manage their own learning. The current system which focuses on standardized learning support in the form of Learning Management System (LMS) is seen as restrictive and does not allow to accommodate the different needs of learners. Therefore, more language educators have started developing their own PLEs by focusing on two crucial elements: supporting learners’ needs and allowing more learner control. This paper presents an attempt to explore ESL pre-service teachers’ experience via PLE designed to support their writing needs. The researchers hoped that such a positive experience would influence the teachers’ pedagogical strategies and approaches in their teaching once they go into practice. In this qualitative case study, thirty-six third year ESL pre-service teachers at a tertiary education institution embarked on a fourteen-week course via the PLE. Qualitative data were gleaned from focus group discussion transcripts and written reflections. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the qualitative data. Overall, students have positive perceptions towards the PLE by detailing its benefits and usefulness. They also narrated some challenges and proposed suggestions to ensure prolonged engagement. The findings give support to the use of PLE, especially the instructor-made innovation for teaching and learning which allows more learner control and access.

The Influence of the Personal Learning Environment Concept in the Educational Research Field

Almost 15 years after the start of the debate over Personal Learning Environments (PLE), the concept would still appear to be influential and even intrinsic to discussion over the future of educational technology and education in general. This paper aims to establish a clear thematic link between the concept of PLEs and educational academic literature over the last decade, exploring the influence of the PLE concept in the education research papers. To do this, it uses a systematized review of academic literature that relates the PLE concept to three themes identified as most relevant in that field during the last decade: emerging pedagogical practices, professional teacher development, and self-regulated learning. The analysis is focused on whether (and how) the PLE concept has intersected each of the themes, the level of importance of that intersection in each one of them and the way in which the concept is ‘materialized’. The purpose is to understand how (and if) a concept that has its origin in Educational Technology has been adapted to other areas of educational research.

The e-portfolio in higher education: The case of a line of teaching innovation and complex change management

This work proposes a line of innovation to implement possible uses for the e-portfolio in higher education. We present an initial framework for analysis with attention to three main arguments: the validity of the interest of the e-portfolio for higher education in light of the current challenges posed by the knowledge society; the relevance of complex change management within organisations such as universities; and the identification of critical elements in the relevant literature concerning experiences similar to the case analysed here. The milestones for the line of innovation include six projects and three teacher training courses. Once data had been gathered in the respective assessment phases for each milestone by means of document analysis techniques (e-portfolios, teaching materials, usage statistics), questionnaires, discussion groups, in-depth interviews, and self-assessments (responsible academics, teachers, and students), a global analysis of the whole line was conducted from a complex approach to the problems of teaching change and innovation. A technological, political and cultural reading of innovation reveals emerging problems to reconsider: the attainment of deep learning; the standardisation of academic tutoring; the formation of learning and practice communities; the reconceptualisation of the e-portfolio as a personal learning environment; and the transformation of the university institution as a learning organisation. The premature condition of higher education to deal with the change in the teaching paradigm and the urgency to revisit its innovation policies to overcome it stand out among the critical conclusions of this study.
 Received: 27 April 2021Accepted: 27 October 2021

ОНТОЛОГИЧЕСКАЯ МОДЕЛЬ ПРОЦЕССА ВЗАИМОДЕЙСТВИЯ ОБРАЗОВАТЕЛЬНОГО КОНТЕНТА И ОБУЧАЕМОГО В АРХИТЕКТУРЕ ИНТЕЛЛЕКТУАЛЬНЫХ ОБУЧАЮЩИХ СИСТЕМ

The article discusses using the educational content in the context of the changed requirements for the educational process. Organization of the modern educational process is analyzed from the point of view of the ecosystem concept, which allows the interaction of biotic (actors) and abiotic components (information technology architecture, standards, and specifications). To describe the use of educational content in the educational information system the university presents an “as-is” model in EPC notation. There have been determined the main promising functions of using educational content for implementation in information technology architecture. Based on a detailed analysis of literary sources, the concept of implementing the intellectual support for using educational content in the context of the architecture of information technologies of the university has been determined. From the perspective of creating a Personal Learning Environment and introducing intelligent means of supporting the educational process, it is proposed to implement two models in the format of ontologies: an educational content model and a learner's model. The educational content model is presented in the form of the Protégé ontology. The classes of ontology, the connections between them, and the data available in the university's information system are briefly characterized. A general approach to integrating such 
 a model into the typical architecture of the university information systems is described for the subsequent development of means of intellectual support for the actors of the educational process (namely, content developers). The UML case model is used to display the approach. When con-sidering integration issues, the experience of using such specifications and standards as LOM IEEE, SCORM, TinCanApi, and the principles of modern learning and content management sys-tems was taken into account. There are described the prospects for further work, general meth-odology of further research, the first stage of which is the presented work