A1 Vertaisarvioitu alkuperäisartikkeli tieteellisessä lehdessä
Multi-Perspective Study of Novice Learners Adopting the Visual Algorithm Simulation Exercise System TRAKLA2
Tekijät: Laakso Mikko-Jussi, Salakoski Tapio, Grandell Linda, Qiu Xuemei, Korhonen Ari, Malmi Lauri
Julkaisuvuosi: 2005
Lehti:: Informatics in Education
Vuosikerta: 4
Numero: 1
Aloitussivu: 49
Lopetussivu: 68
Tiivistelmä
This paper presents results from three interrelated studies focusing on introducing
TRAKLA2 to students taking courses on data structures and algorithms at the University of Turku
and Åbo Akademi University in 2004. Using TRAKLA2 they got acquainted with a completely
new system for solving exercises that provided them with automatic feedback and the possibility
to resubmit their solutions. Besides comparing the students’ learning results, a survey was made
with 100 students on the changes in their attitudes towards web-based learning environments. In
addition, a usability evaluation was conducted in a human-computer interaction laboratory.
Our results show that TRAKLA2 considerably increased the positive attitudes towards webbased
learning. According to students’ self-evaluations, the best learning results are achieved by
combining traditional exercises with web-based ones. In addition, the numerical course statistics
were clearly better than in 2003 when only pen-and-paper exercises in class were used. The results
from the usability test were also very positive: no severe usability problems were revealed; in fact,
the results indicate that the system is very easy to learn and user-friendly as a whole.
This paper presents results from three interrelated studies focusing on introducing
TRAKLA2 to students taking courses on data structures and algorithms at the University of Turku
and Åbo Akademi University in 2004. Using TRAKLA2 they got acquainted with a completely
new system for solving exercises that provided them with automatic feedback and the possibility
to resubmit their solutions. Besides comparing the students’ learning results, a survey was made
with 100 students on the changes in their attitudes towards web-based learning environments. In
addition, a usability evaluation was conducted in a human-computer interaction laboratory.
Our results show that TRAKLA2 considerably increased the positive attitudes towards webbased
learning. According to students’ self-evaluations, the best learning results are achieved by
combining traditional exercises with web-based ones. In addition, the numerical course statistics
were clearly better than in 2003 when only pen-and-paper exercises in class were used. The results
from the usability test were also very positive: no severe usability problems were revealed; in fact,
the results indicate that the system is very easy to learn and user-friendly as a whole.
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