Peels

: a personalized eLearning system

Abstract

This thesis studies the development and the effects of educational technology for the Personalized e-Learning System (Peels). Three major research works, 1) design of conceptual model, 2) development of prototype system, and 3) experimental study, were performed to take care of different research perspectives. Through this research, the use of Peels, to provide personalized learning materials to individual students, based on their ability and interests, to enhance their learning effectiveness was explored. A primary and two supporting research questions are then designed to evaluate the proposed mechanism. The primary research question is “Would Peels have a positive impact on students’ learning effectiveness?”; and the two supporting questions are “Is there a measurable difference in students’ learning performance between those using the proposed PCM delivery mechanism and the those using traditional course materials delivery approach? “ and “Whether the personalized learning contents meet the individual students’ needs and interests?” The proposed Peels included an agent-based architecture for the personalized learning environment and a Personalized Course Materials (PCM) delivery mechanism. Peels adopted intelligent agents to deliver learning materials in response to a user’s expressed requirements. Peels was proposed to achieve the personalization by employing intelligent agents’ autonomous, pre-active and proactive behaviors, and a multi-agent architecture. An experimental study was adopted in this research to compare the learning performance outcomes among different groups of students in order to investigate the pedagogical approach of Peels. By dividing students into two groups, each group of students was assigned with either the proposed personalized course materials or traditional learning materials. At the end, the learning performance of two student groups was evaluated by means of a quiz results. To further evaluate the level of student satisfaction, they were invited to complete a survey at the end of the course to examine the level of satisfaction. The findings and discussions presented in this research were based on the review of literatures. The findings of the experimental study indicate that Peels provide a significant improvement in learning effectiveness for students who were given the proposed personalized course materials via Peels in terms of test score, learning content, instant feedback, and learning pace. These research works were interrelated, and the research result formed as the foundation for subsequent research works. Finally, recommendation for incorporating computer games into personalized learning environment were made in order to make e-learning more attractive and stimulate students’ interest in learning on the Internet, is recommended.

Date of Award	2 Oct 2007
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	City University of Hong Kong
Supervisor	Qing LI (Supervisor)