International Journal of Learning Technologies and Learning Environments

Leveraging Gamification for Design and Implementation of an Online Learning Platform

Fahim Khan — Wed, 22 Jan 2025 11:58:39 +0000

Digital transformation of the education sector has garnered a lot of attention in recent times both from the industry and academia. Fueled by increased availability of the Internet and digital technologies, online education is going through rapid evolution. Many educational organizations have adopted online mode of operation, and dedicated e-learning platforms have emerged – making education available to a huge number of learners and encouraging lifelong learning. Taking advantage of the convenience of self-regulated anytime-anywhere education, millions of users enroll in online courses, but unfortunately only about a tenth of them complete these courses. One of the main reasons for this high dropout rate has been pointed out to be learners’ incapability to retain motivation, or – putting it the other way round – lack of strategy by content providers to retain learners’ motivation. Recently, gamification has been increasingly used in educational contents in order to retain learners’ motivation throughout the duration of the course. In the same vein of such research, in this paper, we present Quiz and Treasures, a web-based learning platform which incorporates various game elements. We thoroughly analyzed the pros and cons of our proposed gamified learning system through the lens of Octalysis – one of the most prominent contemporary frameworks for gamification – and juxtaposing that result with Self-determination theory in terms of extrinsic and intrinsic motivation. We also conducted a user study, result of which shows our application influenced positively in retaining learners’ motivation, with majority of them rating their experience as enjoying, and expressing intention to continue using the application. In addition, Quiz and Treasures allows instructors and administrators to register quizzes in advance and analyze results, enabling them to visually capture learners’ level of progress.

A Method to Detect Structure Errors using a Model Program

Ryosuke Nakai, Tetsuo Kamina — Sat, 25 Jan 2025 12:32:50 +0000

It is difficult for novice programmers to solve compilation errors and perform debugging using only the error messages output by the compiler and execution results. Failure to solve errors may cause students to lose interest in programming. In this study, we propose a method to support the learning of C language by detecting the cause of errors that the compiler cannot indicate. This detection is performed by comparing the differences between the model program and that of the novice, assuming a situation where model programs are prepared in advance, that is, an exercise-style class. In the proposed method, syntactic elements in the source code processed by the parser are expressed in the XML format. The proposed method compares this XML representation with the document type definition (DTD) generated from the model program. First, the syntactic elements in the source code of the program written by the novice are translated into XML format. Next, a DTD is generated from the model program. This DTD defines the structure that the model program should satisfy. The DTD detects the structural difference between the model and program written by the novice, which are likely to be the cause of errors. The feedback provided is expected to enhance the effectiveness of C language learning for novice programmers.

Case Studies of DRR Delivery Lessons Using ICT in Elementary School Classrooms in Japan

Mari Yasuda, Ryo Saito, Tatsuya Horita, Toshiaki Muramoto — Sat, 25 Jan 2025 11:50:38 +0000

The COVID-19 pandemic has made it difficult to conduct the face-to-face contact-based DRR (disaster risk reduction) delivery lessons that we had been providing in elementary schools. To overcome this challenge, we developed a video tool and practiced delivery lessons by using ICT in schools. This paper reports on three cases. In study 1, we conducted a delivery lesson by connecting the school broadcasting room to the classroom in a unidirectional manner. In study 2, we connected the laboratory in the university to the individual student’s computers. In study 3, we visited the school and carried out the lesson by connecting the school computer room with the teacher’s computer in the classroom. We summarized the differences among these three practices, as well as their various characteristics, and discussed the future directions of ICT-based DRR delivery lessons. The ICT-based DRR delivery lesson could bring new educational effects that have never been generated by the traditional delivery lessons.