A learning and assessment tool for web-based distributed education

ABSTRACT

Most distributed education environments provide lecture notes/slides and synchronous/asynchronous channels to facilitate student learning. These methods are not robust enough on their own, especially in the computing field where students learn programming theories and languages by viewing others' codes and by producing their own. Instructors need a tool to help easily generate meaningful descriptions of code examples and make comments directly related to students' code submissions. Similarly, students need access to an environment that allows them to view code descriptions and comments regarding submitted code assignments.The Learning and Assessment Tool for web-based distributed education is a semi-automatic aid that facilitates personalized learning. The instructor uses the embedded description feature of the tool to tailor comments to an individual student's coding assignment as well as to deliver examples of code with embedded descriptions that can be explored later by the student. The student, reading examples of code, will see visual cues in the form of colored text linked to embedded descriptions. Mouseovers of the text bring the instructor-provided descriptions into view which reduces the visual clutter that occurs when static descriptions are inserted between lines of code. Students are able to review only those descriptions needed to increase their knowledge about a particular section of the code. Experimental use of the tool was conducted in a graduate level Perl/CGI course being offered in a distributed education environment. Quizzes were administered to measure students' learning process. Results showed that tool-generated code description examples enhanced student learning. The best performance occurred when students were exposed to both tool-generated code description examples and to tool-generated instructor feedback.

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INDEX TERMS

Primary Classification:
  K. Computing Milieux
  K.3 COMPUTERS AND EDUCATION
      K.3.1 Computer Uses in Education

Additional Classification:
  K. Computing Milieux
  K.3 COMPUTERS AND EDUCATION
      K.3.2 Computer and Information Science Education

General Terms:
Design, Human Factors, Languages

Keywords:
assessment, distributed education, educational technology