TY - CHAP A1 - Staufer, Susanne A1 - Hauser, Florian A1 - Ezer, Timur A1 - Grabinger, Lisa A1 - Nadimpalli, Vamsi Krishna A1 - Röhrl, Simon A1 - Bugert, Flemming A1 - Bittner, Dominik A1 - Mottok, Jürgen T1 - EVALUATION OF THE LEARNING MANAGEMENT SYSTEM PYTHIA T2 - EDULEARN Proceedings: 16th International Conference on Education and New Learning Technologies, Palma, Spain. 1-3 July, 2024 N2 - Learning management systems gain importance due to the Corona pandemic. To personalize such a learning management system, a Moodle adaption named Pythia was created. Pythia is implemented as a Moodle plugin solution. The possibility of generating learning paths with various algorithms and the change of the graphical user interface is significant. Learning paths are generated with two different algorithms. Nestor algorithm generates learning paths with a Bayesian network, while Tyche algorithm uses a Markov model. The graphical user interface is adapted to the generated learning paths where learning element symbols are customized and the individual learning paths are depicted. This paper presents the results of a qualitative survey among German students with the aim of evaluating the first version of the learning management system Pythia. 25 students took the subject “Software Engineering for Safe and Secure Systems” in the winter term of 2023/24. The 68 asked questions focus on usage behavior, graphical user interface, usability, preferences, volume, and quality of learning elements, and learning paths. Our Moodle course for the lecture contains seven sections, each section has minimum one subsection on which the learning path is calculated. Last three sections are designed by presenting minimum one learning element of each learning element category except the collaboration tool. In a previous work, ten learning element categories were designed and evaluated comprising manuscript, brief overview, learning goal, quiz, exercise, summary, three types of additional material, and collaboration tool. The first sections are left as they are initially designed by the lecturer (normal section). The survey considers the difference between normal sections and diverse sections. Furthermore, the generated learning paths are evaluated. 13 students undertook Nestor learning paths, whereas 12 undertook Tyche learning paths. The results suggest that for the majority of students, the learning element symbols are well-chosen. Moreover, all students wish the elements relevant to the exam to be labelled. 23 students are overwhelmed by the number of learning elements in the last sections of the Moodle course. In the future, some suggestions will be implemented such as the labelling of exam relevant learning elements. To overcome the overload of learning elements, a strategy could be developed like hiding learning elements not preferred by the learning path algorithm. KW - Learning management system (LMS) KW - questionnaire (study) KW - learning elements KW - learning paths KW - usability KW - graphical user interface (GUI) KW - Moodle KW - higher education area (HEA) Y1 - 2024 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:898-opus4-73474 SN - 2340-1117 SP - 9089 EP - 9098 PB - IATED ER - TY - CHAP A1 - Staufer, Susanne A1 - Bugert, Flemming A1 - Hauser, Florian A1 - Grabinger, Lisa A1 - Ezer, Timur A1 - Nadimpalli, Vamsi Krishna A1 - Bittner, Dominik A1 - Röhrl, Simon A1 - Mottok, Jürgen ED - Gómez Chova, Luis ED - González Martínez, Chelo ED - Lees, Joanna T1 - Tyche algorithm: Markov models for generating learning paths in learning management systems T2 - INTED2024 Proceedings: 18th International Technology, Education and Development Conference, Valencia, Spain. 4-6 March, 2024 N2 - In the intricate tapestry of the cosmos, where celestial threads weave stories of destiny, an enigmatic deity stands at the intersection of chance and fate — Tyche, the goddess of fortune. In science and probability, coincidence plays a distinctive role in Bayesian Networks (BNs) and Markov Models (MMs). This paper introduces the Tyche algorithm named after the goddess of fortune. The Tyche algorithm is a Markov model designed to generate learning paths in Learning Management Systems (LMSs). A learning path is a type of individualization that personalises the order of learning elements within an LMS course. Learning elements are fundamental components within an LMS course, depicting the learning content in diverse ways. In our case, the learning path tailoring is based on the learner’s learning style according to Felder-Silverman Learning Style Model (FSLSM) – an indicator for the ideal pathway and learning element for the learner’s optimum learning. The Tyche algorithm offers the advantage to provide students the most suitable learning path. Tyche is a MM structure with various matrices containing transition probabilities depending on the learning style. Nine categories of learning elements defined in a previous survey form the basis of the node structure of the MM. For a generic approach, a survey was designed to obtain the transition probabilities depending on the individual learning style. The survey with more than 100 German students participated is processed with the tool LimeSurvey. Students are asked about their learning style using the Index of Learning Styles (ILS) questionnaire according to Felder-Silverman and about the percentage probabilities of learning elements to get their individual sequence as learning path. The percentages are queried in two different ways. Firstly, the students were asked to provide a sequence of learning elements within each position of the sequence filled with probabilities for all learning elements. Secondly, a learning element is given and the students are asked to indicate which learning element they would work on next. The first way of asking for the probabilities is used to find the start node in the MM, whereas the second approach forms the probability matrices between the nodes within the MM. As result of the survey, the Tyche algorithm presents generic transition probabilities. It improves the learning process of individuals only by asking for their learning style: it generates individual learning paths through the learning elements within an LMS based on the MM explained above by solely getting the answers of the ILS questionnaire as input. In the future, other questionnaires such as BFI-10 for personality traits or LIST-K for learning strategies may offer a more comprehensive input. However, the next step is to evaluate Tyche with about 25 students in a software engineering lecture. This is planned for the year 2024. KW - Markov model KW - learning style KW - learning elements KW - learning management system KW - higher education area Y1 - 2024 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:898-opus4-71148 SN - 978-84-09-59215-9 SN - 2340-1079 SP - 4195 EP - 4205 PB - IATED Academy ER -