Showing papers by "Marco Ronchetti published in 2014"

Video-Based Learning and Open Online Courses

Abstract: In this article, we provide an overview of the emerging research area on Analytics and Video-Based Learning. Although there are many and diverse ways of designing learning videos, there is limited understanding of the efficacy and usefulness of each method. Therefore, we survey the state-of-the-art in the design, development and evaluation of open and video-based courses. The main objective is to highlight the importance and benefits of analytics and to support instructors with the appropriate resources for improving the use of their courses. This can be achieved by combining and analyzing learners' interactions with other available data obtained from learners, as such video analytics open new avenues for research on open and video-based courses. In addition to the guidelines for video-based analytics we have selected five indicative case-studies that provide in-depth analysis..

Business process assignment and execution in mobile environments

Abstract: Mobile devices are emerging as working equipment Developing and maintaining mobile applications for evolving business is costly Business Process Management technologies enable loose-coupling and composition of services to support the evolving business logic Business Process Management becomes pervasive and more powerful when it interweaves mobile devices However, traditional Business Process execution is inefficient in mobile environments: the computational capabilities on mobile devices are various; the movement of devices changes their connectivity In this paper, we propose a model of mobile computational capability and connectivity Based on that, we define the constraints of mobile environments and the requirements to execute a business process A process assignment algorithm and its optimized version considering the cost are designed Our approach enables more flexible and efficient business process deployment in mobile environments Preliminary results including a graphical process designer and Android based process engine are tested in a mobile-assisted healthcare project

A Web-Based Peer Interaction Framework for Improved Assessment and Supervision of Students

Abstract: One of the challenges of both traditional and contemporary instructional media in higher education is creating a sustainable teaching-learning environment that ensures continuous engagement of students and provides efficient means of assessing their performance. We present a peer-based framework designed to increase active participation of students in courses administered in both traditional and blended learning settings. Students are continuously engaged in attention-eliciting tasks and are assessed by their peers. The framework allows semi-automated assignment of tasks to students. In completing these tasks, students ask questions, answer questions from other students, evaluate the quality of question-answer pairs and rate answers provided by their peers. We have implemented this framework in several courses and run extensive experiments to assess the effectiveness of our approach. We discuss the results of students’ surveys of this approach, which, in general, has been perceived as useful in achieving better learning outcomes.

Modeling and Composition of Environment-as-a-Service

Abstract: Wireless enabled electronic devices are becoming cheaper, more powerful and thus more popular. They include sensors, actuators, smartphones, tablets, and other complex devices. They can carry out complex tasks, cooperating with their "neighbors". However, it is difficult to develop mobile applications to exploit the full power of available resources because the computational capabilities on devices are obviously not homogeneous, and their connectivity changes with physical movement. In this paper, we propose a mobile environment model to describe the connected devices and study the structural and behavioral characteristics of the environments. Based on the model, we design the routing protocols and a language to support the composition of environments. We propose a framework to provide a unified, flexible and scalable service for task/process deployment and execution on top of the heterogeneous and dynamic mobile environments.

Understanding User Requirements for the Design of a Semantic Digital Library Interface

Abstract: This paper discusses the role of interaction and user experience in the design of an interface of search for digital libraries. We present our preliminary work in the design of an advanced interaction interface for “Publicamente”, a web based semantic multimedia digital library that allows the archiving, management and access to a collection of heterogeneous documents types. In this paper we explore the user requirements, and present the design guidelines for the interface of the system. Users of “Publicamente” are be both expert users and casual users and the interface need to being able to accommodate different search styles, make semantic technologies transparent to casual users, and leverage on the semantic layer in the presentation of the retrieved information and its context.