Papers by Ana Elena Guerrero-Roldán
Manual del processador de textos Writer, d'OpenOffice.Manual del procesador de textos Writer,... more Manual del processador de textos Writer, d'OpenOffice.Manual del procesador de textos Writer, de OpenOffice.Tutorial on Writer, OpenOffice word processor
Lecture notes in networks and systems, 2023
EDEN Conference Proceedings, Jun 14, 2016
Lecture Notes on Data Engineering and Communications Technologies, 2018
Data analyses provide the means for monitoring the quality of academic processes and the means fo... more Data analyses provide the means for monitoring the quality of academic processes and the means for assessing the fiscal and operational health of an organization. Data-driven decision making can help to empower academic leaders, faculty, and staff with quantitative insights that guide strategies pertaining to enrollment and retention, student support and quality assurance, communication, bullying intervention, academic progress, and academic integrity . However, the integration of analytics into the institutional context is not a trivial process. Much of the analytics approaches discussed in the literature take a theoretical stance outlining main considerations but lacking the pragmatic edge. Our aim in this chapter is to assist academic leaders in undertaking analytics design and implementation. To this end, we synthesize the existing research and propose a procedural framework for integrating data analysis techniques and methods into a process that facilitates data-driven decision making by aligning institutional needs with actionable strategies.
Nowadays, online learning has become a promising solution to personalize and increase flexibility... more Nowadays, online learning has become a promising solution to personalize and increase flexibility in the learning-teaching process. However, e-assessment is still questioned in terms of authorship and identity checking. Some virtual learning environments are introducing technological solutions, such as plagiarism detection tools, to increase the security when submitting assessment activities. However, this is a partial solution. When the activities are performed on third-party tools, as it is the case of intelligent tutoring systems, the identity and authorship checking can fail. This paper introduces a modular plagiarism detection tool that combines different input data sources in order to verify the authorship. A case study is presented to show the potential of the tool.
2017 IEEE 17th International Conference on Advanced Learning Technologies (ICALT), 2017
The aim of this research project is to evaluate a novel approach to providing academic integrity ... more The aim of this research project is to evaluate a novel approach to providing academic integrity through behavioral pattern analysis for continuous and on-demand assessments. Our objective is to empower instructors with efficient and automated tools that promote accountability and academic integrity, while providing students with an accessible, non-invasive, privacy preserving and convenient validation of the student-generated academic content. The contributions of the proposed study are threefold: (1) the bridged anonymity gap between learners and instructors, (2) an open source learning technology that enhances academic integrity, and (3) understanding of how the behavioral-based biometric technologies are perceived by students and instructors.
IEEE Revista Iberoamericana de Tecnologias del Aprendizaje, 2021
Online education is pushing universities to search for technologies that can support e-assessment... more Online education is pushing universities to search for technologies that can support e-assessment. Opinions and behaviors of stakeholders are required in order to develop such technologies. This paper underlines the need for mechanisms to prevent cheating and increase security, by analyzing the differences between students’ perceptions of cheating and the acts of academic dishonesty they commit, contributing to fill a gap in the literature on cheating behaviors in online education. The research questions are: RQ1) Are students aware of what constitutes cheating in online education? RQ2) Do students believe that an e-authentication system may increase their security and prevent cheating? RQ3) Would the use of an e-authentication system for assessment increase students’ trust? RQ4) What are students’ real cheating behaviors? 154 students taking an online course from the Computer Engineering and Telecommunications degree consented to participate in the study. The research instruments were two surveys, and two tools of the course (an intelligent tutoring system and an image plagiarism detection tool). Results show that the fact students know an e-authentication and authoring system is used may prevent cheating and make students feel more confident. The findings have significant implications for institutions interested in e-assessment secure systems.
Formative Assessment, Learning Data Analytics and Gamification, 2016
Adaptive systems aim to deliver personalized resources and activities based on the competences an... more Adaptive systems aim to deliver personalized resources and activities based on the competences and knowledge the learner has to acquire. Feedback provided by the assessment activities helps to evaluate the next step in the formative process of the learner. However, classical approaches do not take into account other evidences to select the further formative process. In this chapter, we focus on the adaptive e-assessment systems needed to select the next assessment activity to be deployed. In addition to help the learner to acquire knowledge, a trust-based e-assessment system is proposed to ensure a secure environment and authorship validation in online and blended learning environments while avoiding the time and physical space limitations imposed by face-to-face examination.
Applied Sciences
Learning-by-doing is a pedagogical approach that helps in learning skills through practice. An on... more Learning-by-doing is a pedagogical approach that helps in learning skills through practice. An online learning-by-doing tool, CodeLab, has been introduced to students undertaking the digital design and creation bachelor’s degree program at the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya. The tool has been used to facilitate and engage students, not well-acquainted with problem-solving techniques, in an introductory programming course. The aim of this study was to examine the factors that play vital roles in students’ acceptance of learning-by-doing tools that facilitate the development of problem-solving skills. The Unified Theory of Acceptance and the Use of Technology (UTAUT) model was used for this purpose and extended by adding the factor of motivation, which is essential for educational contexts. The results highlight that there is a strong relationship between acceptance and motivation, implying that students would use online learning-by-doing tools, such as CodeLab, depending on the amou...
International Journal of Educational Technology in Higher Education
Several tools and resources have been developed in the past years to enhance the teaching and lea... more Several tools and resources have been developed in the past years to enhance the teaching and learning process. Most of them are focused on the process itself, but few focus on the assessment process to detect at-risk learners for later acting through feedback to support them to succeed and pass the course. This research paper presents a case study using an adaptive system called Learning Intelligent System (LIS). The system includes an Early Warning System and tested in a fully online university to increase learners’ performance, reduce dropout, and ensure proper feedback to guide learners. LIS also aims to help teachers to detect critical cases to act on time with learners. The system has been tested in two first-year courses in the fully online BSc of Economics and Business at the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya. A total of 552 learners were participating in the case study. On the one hand, results show that performance is better than in previous semesters when using it. On the o...
Hacettepe University Journal of Education
Bu çalışmanın amacı, e-değerlendirme sürecinde kimlik doğrulama ve yazarlık kontrol sistemi kulla... more Bu çalışmanın amacı, e-değerlendirme sürecinde kimlik doğrulama ve yazarlık kontrol sistemi kullanımında öğrencilerin deneyimlerini belirlemektir. Çalışma, Avrupa Komisyonu tarafından finanse edilen Horizon 2020 projesi kapsamında geliştirilen TeSLA Projesi (Öğrenme için Uyarlanabilir Güvene dayalı bir e-Değerlendirme Sistemi) kapsamında gerçekleştirilmiştir. TeSLA sistemi, e-değerlendirmede kimlik doğrulama, yüz tanıma, ses tanıma, tuş vuruşu dinamikleri, yazarlık kontrolü ve intihal araçları gibi çeşitli araçları içermektedir. Çalışma, kesitsel anket çalışması olarak tasarlanmıştır. Katılımcılar, İspanya, Bulgaristan ve Türkiye'de TeSLA sistemini kullanan üç üniversiteden toplam 735 öğrencidir. Öğrenciler, 2018-2019 Bahar Dönemi boyunca 92 lisans ve lisansüstü düzeydeki derste e-değerlendirme faaliyetleri için TeSLA sistemini kullanmışlardır. Veriler, derslerde TeSLA sisteminin uygulanmasından önce bir ön anket ve sistemi test ettikten sonra bir son anket aracılığıyla toplanmıştır. Veri analizi için tanımlayıcı istatistikler ve tek yönlü ANOVA Testi kullanılmıştır. Sonuç olarak, öğrencilerin TeSLA sistemini kullanırken farklı algıları ve deneyimleri olduğu; olumlu görüşlerin yanında olumsuz görüşlerin de ortaya çıktığı görülmüştür. Bu sonuçlara bağlı olarak elde edilen bulgular, ilgili literatür kapsamında ayrıntılı olarak tartışılmıştır.
Advances in Intelligent Networking and Collaborative Systems, 2017
Managing integrity of continuous and authentic assessments in an open and distance environments i... more Managing integrity of continuous and authentic assessments in an open and distance environments is a complex process. The core challenge is to map student identities with their academic work in effective and efficient manners, while preserving privacy, ensuring minimal disruption, minimizing impacts on accessibility and convenience. To address this issue, we have developed a prototype cloud-based application entitled OpenProctor that employs machine-learning techniques to analyze patterns in the learner-produced textual content in order to provide identity and authorship assurance. In contrast to the traditional academic integrity approaches that seek to control the remote learning environment, our method takes advantage of the readily available learner-generated data to analyze how the students go about doing their academic work. We present the framework, the architecture and main functions of the OpenProctor system and discuss the future research directions and plans for the system’s future development.
Proceedings of the Future Technologies Conference (FTC) 2020, Volume 1, 2020
Personalized learning has evolved during the last decade by means of using artificial intelligenc... more Personalized learning has evolved during the last decade by means of using artificial intelligence. Datafication of education allows more detailed information gathering about students and create customized models to provide more accurate recommendations to them to better success in their learning process. This paper focuses on the description of the infrastructure to create a custom system to identify at-risk students, and particularly the backend system to create models based on machine learning algorithms to support such at-risk identification. The backend system has been designed in a general way to easily configure different models, and the infrastructure tried to meet the needs of the teachers and requirements of the system administrator such as scalability and data privacy. Finally, the system is run in a study case showing the results of an at-risk identification model in a real dataset of an online institution.
E-assessment is the process where technologies are used for the management of the end-to-end asse... more E-assessment is the process where technologies are used for the management of the end-to-end assessment process. It involves the use of any technology-based method that allows systematic inferences and judgments to be made about the student's skills, knowledge and capabilities acquisition. In online learning, technology is used to facilitate the implementation of the appropriate models that can be used for both teaching and learning. In addition, eassessment technologies allow creating tools able to improve student engagement and performance, offer possibilities to practice competences and skills, provide personalized feedback and improve student motivation. This paper presents a general e-assessment tool with a formative e-assessment model. The e-assessment tool under a formative assessment model is integrated into the learning process and provides aligned and authentic learning experience, focused on skill and knowledge acquisition. Results show that the e-assessment tool and its model had a positive effect on students' performance and learning. The tool itself is capable of providing students with personalized feedback, guidance and marks as well as automatically storing and tracking students' progress, competences and outcomes, going beyond the eassessment approach based mainly on quizzes. The e-assessment tool and model offer innovative assessment approaches, mainly focusing on skill assessment where dynamic and interactive questions were provided with the guidance of personalized feedback and hints.
Applied Sciences, 2021
Learning analytics is quickly evolving. Old fashioned dashboards with descriptive information and... more Learning analytics is quickly evolving. Old fashioned dashboards with descriptive information and trends about what happened in the past are slightly substituted by new dashboards with forecasting information and predicting relevant outcomes about learning. Artificial intelligence is aiding this revolution. The accessibility to computational resources has increased, and specific tools and packages for integrating artificial intelligence techniques leverage such new analytical tools. However, it is crucial to develop trustworthy systems, especially in education where skepticism about their application is due to the risk of teachers’ replacement. However, artificial intelligence systems should be seen as companions to empower teachers during the teaching and learning process. During the past years, the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya has advanced developing a data mart where all data about learners and campus utilization are stored for research purposes. The extensive collection of th...
The International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning, 2022
This work discusses a nudging intervention mechanism combined with an artificial intelligence (AI... more This work discusses a nudging intervention mechanism combined with an artificial intelligence (AI) system for early detection of learners’ risk of failing or dropping out. Different types of personalized nudges were designed according to educational principles and the learners’ risk classification. The impact on learners’ performance, dropout reduction, and satisfaction was evaluated through a study with 252 learners in a first-year course at a fully online university. Different learners’ groups were designed, with each receiving a different set of nudges. Results showed that nudges positively impacted the learners’ performance and satisfaction, and reduced dropout rates. The impact significantly increased when different types of nudges were provided. Our research reinforced the role of AI as useful in online, distance, and open learning for providing timely learner support, improved learning experiences, and enhanced learner-teacher communication.
EDULEARN Proceedings, 2019
It is already well-known that technological developments have an undeniable effect on education. ... more It is already well-known that technological developments have an undeniable effect on education. At most points, technological developments have a direct share in the improvement of the educational process. Early warning systems are one of these technological touches that affect education positively. Early warning systems, as an enhancement of learning analytics systems, are used to better support students based on their behavior and performance and identifying potential at-risk situations by collecting student data through technologies such as learning management systems or databases, which already have students previous signs of progress. Data, such as student participation, behavior and course performance constitute the basic input of an early warning system. Additionally, an early warning system does not require any special effort by teachers or any other participants rather than the existing data. It analyzes the risk status and achievement status of the participants for their future performance and presents them as a warning. This study aims to identify students at-risk by using the simple Gradual At-risk (GAR) predicting model in the Computer Structure course in the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (UOC) and to provide early feedback based on the chance to pass the course. Computer Structure course with 249 enrolled students expands the knowledge of the hardware components in the undergraduate Bachelor of Computer Science. The course has four assessment activities (AA) during the semester timeline, and the early warning system is capable to identify potential at-risk students from the very first activity with an accuracy of the 73.49%. This study extends a previous one, which was aimed to develop an early feedback prediction system for learners based on data available in our institutional datamart (known as the UOC Datamart). The results of this study will demonstrate the effectiveness of the early warning system to identify at-risk students based on the GAR model and by using the Green-Amber-Red risk classification.
In order to attain a good user experience in e-assessment systems, learners should be aware of ho... more In order to attain a good user experience in e-assessment systems, learners should be aware of how they are progressing in the courses and they should feel motivated and engaged. The goal of this paper is to propose an e-assessment system, that aims to increase the self-awareness of learners about the courses’ progress that they are taking, and also to improve the learner’s motivation and engagement. While designing the system, two major design challenges have been identified and addressed. The design challenges include, informing the learners about their progress and making the learners feel motivated to work harder and enhance their learning of the course contents and learning activities. The proposed system informs the learners about their progress and aims to keep them motivated by providing them with minimum grade predictions for the next learning activity they would perform, during the semester of an online course. The learners are also informed of their risk of failing the co...
Uploads
Papers by Ana Elena Guerrero-Roldán