International Journal of Modern Education and Computer Science (IJMECS)

ISSN: 2075-0161 (Print)

ISSN: 2075-017X (Online)

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5815/ijmecs

Website: https://www.mecs-press.org/ijmecs

Published By: MECS Press

Frequency: 6 issues per year

Number(s) Available: 132

(IJMECS) in Google Scholar Citations / h5-index

IJMECS is committed to bridge the theory and practice of modern education and computer science. From innovative ideas to specific algorithms and full system implementations, IJMECS publishes original, peer-reviewed, and high quality articles in the areas of modern education and computer science. IJMECS is a well-indexed scholarly journal and is indispensable reading and references for people working at the cutting edge of computer science, modern education and applications.

 

IJMECS has been abstracted or indexed by several world class databases: Scopus, SCImago, Google Scholar, Microsoft Academic Search, CrossRef, Baidu Wenku, IndexCopernicus, IET Inspec, EBSCO, JournalSeek, ULRICH's Periodicals Directory, WorldCat, Scirus, Academic Journals Database, Stanford University Libraries, Cornell University Library, UniSA Library, CNKI Scholar, ProQuest, J-Gate, ZDB, BASE, OhioLINK, iThenticate, Open Access Articles, Open Science Directory, National Science Library of Chinese Academy of Sciences, The HKU Scholars Hub, etc..

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IJMECS Vol. 16, No. 5, Oct. 2024

REGULAR PAPERS

Igniting Curiosity: The Role of STEAM Education in Enhancing Early Academic, Language Skills and Motivation for Science

By Ozgun Uyanik Aktulun Umit Unsal Kaya Ali Ibrahim Can Gozum Michail Kalogiannakis Stamatios Papadakis

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5815/ijmecs.2024.05.01, Pub. Date: 8 Oct. 2024

The "Igniting Curiosity: A STEAM Journey for Young Minds" (IC-SJYM) program integrates Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Mathematics (STEAM) into early childhood education to enhance linguistic and scientific engagement among 5 to 6-year-olds. This study uses a mixed-methods design to evaluate the program's effectiveness, utilizing the Kaufman Survey of Early Academic and Language Skills (K-SEALS) and the Teacher Rating Scale of Children's Motivation for Science (TRS-CMS), alongside qualitative feedback from educators. Results show that the experimental group, following the IC-SJYM program, demonstrated significant improvements in academic performance and motivation towards science compared to a control group with a traditional curriculum. Additionally, qualitative analyses highlight the program's positive impact on expressive language skills, innovative thinking, and a sustained interest in scientific inquiry. These findings suggest that an integrative STEAM curriculum can significantly enhance early learning experiences, advocating for its broader adoption. The IC-SJYM program's success in fostering intellectual curiosity and academic excellence underscores the critical role of STEAM in early childhood education and calls for further research into its potential to revolutionize educational paradigms for young learners.

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The Effect of Threats from Using the Artificial Intelligence on the Educational Process in the Context of Information Security: A Methodological Approach to Modeling and Ordering Impact Levels

By Myroslav Kryshtanovych Iryna Gavrysh Oleksandra Khltobina Ihor Havrylov Yevhen Gren

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5815/ijmecs.2024.05.02, Pub. Date: 8 Oct. 2024

The main purpose of the article is to highlight and determine the level of influence of the most significant threats from the use of artificial intelligence in the educational process in the context of ensuring information security. To achieve this goal, the research methodology involves the use of an expert analysis method, which, through the Delphi method, will help to identify the most significant threats to the use of artificial intelligence in the educational process, a paired comparison method, which is necessary to implement the hierarchical analysis method, which in turn aims to organize a certain list of experts. As a result of the study, the most significant modern threats to the use of artificial intelligence in the educational process in the context of ensuring information security were identified. The resulting matrix of hierarchical ordering of threats made it possible to divide them into those that require immediate intervention and those that are less important. The innovativeness of the results obtained is revealed through the established methodological approach to modeling the ordering of the influence of threats from the use of artificial intelligence on the educational process in the context of ensuring information security. The study is limited by taking into account only the specifics of the educational process in Ukraine.

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Innovative Approaches to Higher Education: Blended Learning in Kazakhstan

By Aliya Mombek Botagoz Baymuhambetova Sholpan Kulmanova Galina Kolesnikova Gulnara Kuzbakova Bota Suleimenova Samal Tauyekel Elmira Nauryzbayeva

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5815/ijmecs.2024.05.03, Pub. Date: 8 Oct. 2024

The research problem is based on the study of the possibilities of expanding methodological approaches, educational technologies, and educational programs for the implementation of blended learning and increasing the level of its effectiveness in the educational system of Kazakhstan. This study aims to identify the best conditions for implementing blended learning that would meet the technical capabilities of the university, the educational programs, and the interests and needs of all participants of the educational process. For this, the following data collection methods were used: online surveys, quantitative and qualitative analyses, and facilitation tools, such as World Café, Future  
Search, ranking, and Spearman's correlation analysis. The results show that more than half of the students (58%) and teachers (65%) were not satisfied with the existing structure of blended learning at the university. This research suggests involving all participants in the educating process when adopting the blended mode of learning to enhance the efficacy of the blended learning program. The practical significance of this research lies in its determination of the optimal conditions for implementing blended learning in the university programs of Kazakhstan. The engagement of all stakeholders in the Learning pathway in decision-making regarding hybrid education, taking into account the technical capabilities of universities and the individual needs of students and instructors, aims not only to address current issues but also to enhance the quality of education and prepare graduates to meet the demands of the contemporary labor market. Such an approach to research and innovation implementation in Kazakhstan's education could foster the development of more flexible, adaptive, and effective educational systems that meet the requirements of the modern world.

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Optimizing Knapsack Problem with Improved SHLO Variations

By Amol C. Adamuthe Harshad Kumbhar

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5815/ijmecs.2024.05.04, Pub. Date: 8 Oct. 2024

The Simple Human Learning Optimization (SHLO) algorithm, drawing inspiration from human learning mechanisms, is a robust metaheuristic. This study introduces three tailored variations of the SHLO algorithm for optimizing the 0/1 Knapsack Problem. While these variants utilize the same SHLO operators for learning, their distinctiveness lies in how they generate new solutions, specifically in the selection of learning operators and bits for updating. To assess their efficacy, comprehensive tests were conducted using four benchmark datasets for the 0/1 Knapsack Problem. The results, encompassing 42 instances from three datasets, reveal that both SHLO and its proposed variations yield optimal solutions for small instances of the problem. Notably, for datasets 2 and 3, the performance of SHLO variations 2 and 3 outpaces that of the Harmony Search Algorithm and the Flower Pollination Algorithm. In particular, Variation 3 demonstrates superior performance compared to SHLO and variations 1 and 2 concerning optimal solution quality, success rate, convergence speed, and execution time. This makes Variation 3 notably more efficient than other approaches for both small and large instances of the 0/1 Knapsack Problem. Impressively, Variation 3 exhibits a remarkable 14x speed improvement over SHLO for large datasets.

[...] Read more.
Information Technology for Gender Voice Recognition Based on Machine Learning Methods

By Victoria Vysotska Denys Shavaiev Michal Gregus Yuriy Ushenko Zhengbing Hu Dmytro Uhryn

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5815/ijmecs.2024.05.05, Pub. Date: 8 Oct. 2024

The growing use of social networks and the steady popularity of online communication make the task of detecting gender from posts necessary for a variety of applications, including modern education, political research, public opinion analysis, personalized advertising, cyber security and biometric systems, marketing research, etc. This study aims to develop information technology for gender voice recognition by sound based on supervised learning using machine learning algorithms. A model, methods and means of recognition and gender classification of voice speech samples are proposed based on their acoustic properties and machine learning. In our voice gender recognition project, we used a model built based on the neural network using the TensorFlow library and Keras. The speaker’s voice was analysed for various acoustic features, such as frequency, spectral characteristics, amplitude, modulation, etc. The basic model we created is a typical neural network for text classification. It consists of the input layer, hidden layers, and the output layer. For text processing, we use a pre-trained word vector space such as Word2Vec or GloVe. We also used such techniques as dropout to prevent model overtraining, such activation functions as ReLU (Rectified Linear Unit) for non-linearity, and a softmax function in the last layer to obtain class probabilities. To train a model, we used the Adam optimizer, which is a popular gradient descent optimization method, and the “sparse categorical cross-entropy” loss function, since we are dealing with multi-class classification. After training the model, we saved it to a file for further use and evaluation of new data. The application of neural networks in our project allowed us to build a powerful model that can recognize a speaker’s gender by voice with high accuracy.  The intelligent system was trained using machine learning methods with each of the methods being analysed for accuracy: K-Nearest Neighbours (98.10%), Decision Tree (96,69%), Logistic Regression (98.11%), Random Forest (96.65%), Support Vector Machine (98.26%), neural networks (98.11%). Additional techniques such as regularization and optimization can be used to improve model performance and prevent overtraining.

[...] Read more.
Improve Usability of Multidimensional Data Exploration with Water Fountain Based 3D User Interface Metaphor

By A.S.K. Wijayawardena Ruvan Abeysekera M.W.P Maduranga

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5815/ijmecs.2024.05.06, Pub. Date: 8 Oct. 2024

Big data such as social network data, financial data, and disease data have multiple dimensions that are more complicated to interpret by the human brain. In this regard, the concept of three-dimensional metaphor-based information visualization and navigation has become very important for big data visualization. The three-dimensional visual metaphors can be used to represent information allowing dealing with more abstract data of larger volumes. Therefore new three-dimensional metaphors are needed for the visualization of multidimensional attributes into easily readable and understandable forms. When compared with 2D data representations, 3D brings many advantages in complex data visualization. But most of the existing 3D visualizations result in complex Graphical User Interfaces that require high cognitive efforts to clearly understand these datasets. Therefore this paper presents a novel 3D user interface metaphor for visual analytics of multidimensional data which leads to drawing better conclusions on the datasets. The proposed system represents information in a more realistic 3D setting. The concept of the 3D water fountain metaphor is adopted to implement the novel data exploration mechanism in 3D space. This paper provides an outline of the proposed conceptual design. Employing a Vector-Borne Disease dataset as a case study, a proof-of-concept prototype based on this conceptual design is developed. The applicability of the conceptual metaphor is showcased through two distinct experiments, each involving four groups engaged in decision-making scenarios within the realm of multidimensional data visualization. Key findings reveal that 85% of the data analysis tasks were efficiently completed using the proposed 3D metaphor. Notably, user satisfaction levels including feedback on learnability, interface aesthetics, ease of use, and overall user experience were graded high. These key findings of the evaluation underscore the heightened potential of 3D user interface metaphors for facilitating visual analytics of multidimensional datasets.

[...] Read more.
A Comprehensive Study to Analyze Student Evaluations of Teaching in Online Education

By Nyme Ahmed Sultanul Arifeen Hamim Dip Nandi

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5815/ijmecs.2024.05.07, Pub. Date: 8 Oct. 2024

The rise of online education has changed the way students usually learn by making educational materials easier to get to and creating a global learning community. While online education offers numerous benefits, it is also crucial to acknowledge its certain drawbacks, such as the potential reduction in interaction between students and teachers, which might increase signs of isolation among students and impede opportunities for collaborative learning. Therefore, Student Evaluations of Teaching (SET) play a critical role in identifying areas for improvement from the students' standpoint, thereby promoting constructive communication between students and teachers. This research conducts a comparison among the traditional Educational Data Mining (EDM) techniques to find out the best-performing classifier for analyzing student evaluations of teaching online. It is accomplished by first extracting the dataset from the student evaluations of teaching at X-University and then applying six different classifiers to the dataset that were extracted. The results demonstrated that Logistic Regression, Naive Bayes, and K-Nearest Neighbors (KNN) exhibited a notably high level of accuracy compared to other classification techniques. The findings of this research will provide guidance for future researchers in applying a wider range of classification techniques to extensive datasets and in implementing the necessary adjustments to achieve superior results.

[...] Read more.
Predicting College Students’ Placements Based on Academic Performance Using Machine Learning Approaches

By Mukesh Kumar Nidhi Walia Sushil Bansal Girish Kumar Korhan Cengiz

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5815/ijmecs.2023.06.01, Pub. Date: 8 Dec. 2023

Predicting College placements based on academic performance is critical to supporting educational institutions and students in making informed decisions about future career paths. The present research investigates the use of Machine Learning (ML) algorithms to predict college students' placements using academic performance data. The study makes use of a dataset that includes a variety of academic markers, such as grades, test scores, and extracurricular activities, obtained from a varied sample of college students. To create predictive models, the study analyses numerous ML algorithms, including Logistic Regression, Gaussian Naive Bayes, Random Forest, Support Vector Machine, and K-Nearest Neighbour. The predictive models are evaluated using performance criteria such as accuracy, precision, recall, and F1-score. The most effective machine learning method for forecasting students' placements based on academic achievement is identified through a comparative study. The findings show that Random Forest approaches have the potential to effectively forecast college student placements. The findings show that academic factors such as grades and test scores have a considerable impact on prediction accuracy. The findings of this study could be beneficial to educational institutions, students, and career counsellors.

[...] Read more.
LLMs Performance on Vietnamese High School Biology Examination

By Xuan-Quy Dao Ngoc-Bich Le

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5815/ijmecs.2023.06.02, Pub. Date: 8 Dec. 2023

Large Language Models (LLMs) have received significant attention due to their potential to transform the field of education and assessment through the provision of automated responses to a diverse range of inquiries. The objective of this research is to examine the efficacy of three LLMs - ChatGPT, BingChat, and Bard - in relation to their performance on the Vietnamese High School Biology Examination dataset. This dataset consists of a wide range of biology questions that vary in difficulty and context. By conducting a thorough analysis, we are able to reveal the merits and drawbacks of each LLM, thereby providing valuable insights for their successful incorporation into educational platforms. This study examines the proficiency of LLMs in various levels of questioning, namely Knowledge, Comprehension, Application, and High Application. The findings of the study reveal complex and subtle patterns in performance. The versatility of ChatGPT is evident as it showcases potential across multiple levels. Nevertheless, it encounters difficulties in maintaining consistency and effectively addressing complex application queries. BingChat and Bard demonstrate strong performance in tasks related to factual recall, comprehension, and interpretation, indicating their effectiveness in facilitating fundamental learning. Additional investigation encompasses educational environments. The analysis indicates that the utilization of BingChat and Bard has the potential to augment factual and comprehension learning experiences. However, it is crucial to acknowledge the indispensable significance of human expertise in tackling complex application inquiries. The research conducted emphasizes the importance of adopting a well-rounded approach to the integration of LLMs, taking into account their capabilities while also recognizing their limitations. The refinement of LLM capabilities and the resolution of challenges in addressing advanced application scenarios can be achieved through collaboration among educators, developers, and AI researchers.

[...] Read more.
Project-Based Learning with Gallery Walk: The Association with the Learning Motivation and Achievement

By Zamree Che-aron Wannisa Matcha

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5815/ijmecs.2023.05.01, Pub. Date: 8 Oct. 2023

With the rapid and constant changes in computer and information technology, the content and learning methods in Computer Science related courses need to be continuously adapted and consistently aligned with the latest developments in the field. This paper proposes a learning approach called the Gallery-walk integrated Project-Based Learning (G-PBL) which can develop students’ lifelong learning skills that are extremely crucial for Computer Science students. The G-PBL was designed by incorporating the advantages of Project-Based Learning (PBL) and gallery walk learning strategy. In contrast to traditional PBL where students may present their project work to instructors only, students have to present their project work to their classmates as part of the G-PBL approach. All students are required to evaluate their peers’ project work and then give feedback and suggestions. For the research experiments, the G-PBL was implemented as an instructional approach in two Computer Science related courses. This study focuses on exploring the differences in knowledge gain, learning motivation, and perceived usefulness when learning by using the teacher-centered and G-PBL approach. Moreover, the impact of gender differences on learning outcomes is also investigated. The results reveal that using the G-PBL approach helps students to gain more knowledge significantly, for both male and female students. In terms of motivation, female students are more favorable toward the G-PBL approach. On the contrary, male students prefer learning via a teacher-centered approach. Regarding the perceived usefulness, female students strongly view the G-PBL as a highly effective learning approach, whereas male students are more prone to concur that the teacher-centered approach is a more effective learning method.

[...] Read more.
House Price Prediction using a Machine Learning Model: A Survey of Literature

By Nor Hamizah Zulkifley Shuzlina Abdul Rahman Nor Hasbiah Ubaidullah Ismail Ibrahim

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5815/ijmecs.2020.06.04, Pub. Date: 8 Dec. 2020

Data mining is now commonly applied in the real estate market. Data mining's ability to extract relevant knowledge from raw data makes it very useful to predict house prices, key housing attributes, and many more. Research has stated that the fluctuations in house prices are often a concern for house owners and the real estate market. A survey of literature is carried out to analyze the relevant attributes and the most efficient models to forecast the house prices. The findings of this analysis verified the use of the Artificial Neural Network, Support Vector Regression and XGBoost as the most efficient models compared to others. Moreover, our findings also suggest that locational attributes and structural attributes are prominent factors in predicting house prices. This study will be of tremendous benefit, especially to housing developers and researchers, to ascertain the most significant attributes to determine house prices and to acknowledge the best machine learning model to be used to conduct a study in this field.

[...] Read more.
Analyzing Students’ Performance Using Fuzzy Logic and Hierarchical Linear Regression

By Dao Thi Thanh Loan Nguyen Duy Tho Nguyen Huu Nghia Vu Dinh Chien Tran Anh Tuan

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5815/ijmecs.2024.01.01, Pub. Date: 8 Feb. 2024

Due to the COVID-19 situation, all activities, including education, were shifted to online platforms. Consequently, instructors encountered increased challenges in evaluating students. In traditional assessment methods, instructors often face ambiguous cases when evaluating students’ competencies. Recent research has focused on the effectiveness of fuzzy logic in assessing students’ competencies, considering the presence of uncertain factors or multiple variables. Additionally, demographic characteristics, which can potentially influence students’ performance, are not typically utilized as inputs in the fuzzy logic method. Therefore, analyzing students’ performance by incorporating these factors is crucial in suggesting adjustments to teaching and learning strategies. In this study, we employ a combination of fuzzy logic and hierarchical linear regression to analyze students’ performance. The experiment involved 318 students from various programs and showed that the hybrid approach assessed students’ performance with greater nuance and adaptability when compared to a traditional method. Moreover, the findings in this study revealed the following: 1) There are differences in students’ performance between traditional and fuzzy evaluation methods; 2) The learning method is an impact on students’ fuzzy grades; 3) Students studying online do not perform better than those studying onsite. These findings suggest that instructors and educators should explore effective strategies being fair and suitable in assessment and learning.

[...] Read more.
Teachers’ Use of Technology and Constructivism

By Abbas Pourhosein Gilakjani Lai-Mei Leong Hairul Nizam Ismail

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5815/ijmecs.2013.04.07, Pub. Date: 8 Apr. 2013

Technology has changed the way we teach and the way we learn. Many learning theories can be used to apply and integrate this technology more effectively. There is a close relationship between technology and constructivism, the implementation of each one benefiting the other. Constructivism states that learning takes place in contexts, while technology refers to the designs and environments that engage learners. Recent efforts to integrate technology in the classroom have been within the context of a constructivist framework. The purpose of this paper is to examine the definition of constructivism, incorporating technology into the classroom, successful technology integration into the classroom, factors contributing to teachers’ use of technology, role of technology in a constructivist classroom, teacher’s use of learning theories to enable more effective use of technology, learning with technology: constructivist perspective, and constructivism as a framework for educational technology. This paper explains whether technology by itself can make the education process more effective or if technology needs an appropriate instructional theory to indicate its positive effect on the learner.

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A Match or Mismatch Between Learning Styles of the Learners and Teaching Styles of the Teachers

By Abbas Pourhosein Gilakjani

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5815/ijmecs.2012.11.05, Pub. Date: 8 Nov. 2012

It is important to study learning styles because recent studies have shown that a match between teaching and learning styles helps to motivate students´ process of learning. That is why teachers should identify their own teaching styles as well as their learning styles to obtain better results in the classroom. The aim is to have a balanced teaching style and to adapt activities to meet students´ style and to involve teachers in this type of research to assure the results found in this research study. Over 100 students complete a questionnaire to determine if their learning styles are auditory, visual, or kinesthetic. Discovering these learning styles will allow the students to determine their own personal strengths and weaknesses and learn from them. Teachers can incorporate learning styles into their classroom by identifying the learning styles of each of their students, matching teaching styles to learning styles for difficult tasks, strengthening weaker learning styles. The purpose of this study is to explain learning styles, teaching styles match or mismatch between learning and teaching styles, visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learning styles among Iranian learners, and pedagogical implications for the EFL/ESL classroom. A review of the literature along with analysis of the data will determine how learning styles match the teaching styles.

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Factors Affecting Entrepreneurial Motivation and Intention of University Students in Hanoi, Vietnam

By Do Thi Minh Hue Tran Phuong Thao Pham Canh Toan Hoang Dinh Luong Phan Thi Hao Do Thi Huyen Nguyen Thi Hoa

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5815/ijmecs.2022.02.01, Pub. Date: 8 Apr. 2022

Entrepreneurship is the key driver of economic progress in many countries; thus, many countries have introduced policies to promote a more entrepreneurial environment. This study assesses the impact of factors affecting entrepreneurial intention of university students. The data was collected through a survey of 341 students at 09 leading universities in Hanoi, Vietnam and analyzed using structural equation modeling (SEM) with SPSS and Amos software. The research results show that entrepreneurial skills, entrepreneurial environment and subjective norms either directly or indirectly affect business motivation and entrepreneurial intention of university students. Thus, it is suggested that university and other educational institutions should provide more activities and taught courses that help students acquire the knowledge and skills necessary for entrepreneurship.

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The Significant Role of Multimedia in Motivating EFL Learners’ Interest in English Language Learning

By Abbas Pourhosein Gilakjani

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5815/ijmecs.2012.04.08, Pub. Date: 8 Apr. 2012

The use of multimedia in teaching and learning leads to higher learning. Multimedia refers to any computer-mediated software or interactive application that integrates text, color, graphical images, animation, audio sound, and full motion video in a single application. Multimedia learning systems offer a potentially venue for improving student understanding about language. Teachers try to find the most effective way to create a better foreign language teaching and learning environment through multimedia technologies. In this paper, the researcher defines multimedia, elaborates the rationale for using multimedia, identifies multimedia learning, mentions principles of multimedia, explains theoretical basis of multimedia English teaching, reviews roles of teachers and learners in multimedia environment, discusses the relationship between multimedia and learning, and states the strength of multimedia English teaching. The review of literature shows that teachers need to make full use of multimedia to create an authentic language teaching and learning environment where students can easily acquire a language naturally and effectively.

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Extended Reality Model for Accessibility in Learning for Deaf and Hearing Students (Programming Logic Case)

By Martha Segura Ramiro Osorio Adriana Zavala

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5815/ijmecs.2023.04.01, Pub. Date: 8 Aug. 2023

A group of researchers and developers from Colombia and Mexico have recognised that the development of state-of-the-art Extended Reality software, a key technology for the Metaverse, has great potential to improve teaching-learning processes in educational institutions. However, the development process does not take into account accessibility, universal design and inclusion, especially for the deaf student community. An extended reality model is proposed for the creation of this type of software as a tool to support access to knowledge, based on information gathering, requirements analysis, user-centred design and video game programming, including the ludic and didactic. The aim is to minimise the barriers that limit the learning of programming logic by students with hearing disabilities through the use of new technologies, creating spaces in virtual worlds that are understandable, usable and practical in conditions of safety, comfort and as much autonomy as possible. To validate the model, a mixed reality software prototype was designed and programmed to train students in programming logic, both deaf and hearing. User and heuristic tests were carried out, showing how immersion can improve knowledge acquisition processes and develop skills in higher education students.

[...] Read more.
Predicting College Students’ Placements Based on Academic Performance Using Machine Learning Approaches

By Mukesh Kumar Nidhi Walia Sushil Bansal Girish Kumar Korhan Cengiz

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5815/ijmecs.2023.06.01, Pub. Date: 8 Dec. 2023

Predicting College placements based on academic performance is critical to supporting educational institutions and students in making informed decisions about future career paths. The present research investigates the use of Machine Learning (ML) algorithms to predict college students' placements using academic performance data. The study makes use of a dataset that includes a variety of academic markers, such as grades, test scores, and extracurricular activities, obtained from a varied sample of college students. To create predictive models, the study analyses numerous ML algorithms, including Logistic Regression, Gaussian Naive Bayes, Random Forest, Support Vector Machine, and K-Nearest Neighbour. The predictive models are evaluated using performance criteria such as accuracy, precision, recall, and F1-score. The most effective machine learning method for forecasting students' placements based on academic achievement is identified through a comparative study. The findings show that Random Forest approaches have the potential to effectively forecast college student placements. The findings show that academic factors such as grades and test scores have a considerable impact on prediction accuracy. The findings of this study could be beneficial to educational institutions, students, and career counsellors.

[...] Read more.
Development of Collaborative Learning and Programming (CLP): A Learning Model on Object Oriented Programming Course

By Efan Efan Krismadinata Krismadinata Cherifa Boudia Muhammad Giatman Mukhlidi Muskhir Hasan Maksum

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5815/ijmecs.2024.03.01, Pub. Date: 8 Jun. 2024

There appears to be a tendency for the strategies and methods that have been offered in OOP course learning to affect the improvement of individual skills only. There is a significant need for learning strategies which are relevant and able of improving collaborative working skills. The purpose of this study is to develop a Collaborative Learning and Programming model suitable for Object-Oriented Programming courses and assess its validity, practicality, and effectiveness. The implementation of the CLP model was conducted using the ADDIE development procedure by involving 7 experts, 35 experimental class students, 23 control class students and 4 lecturers of the Object-Oriented Programming course. The survey results showed that the CLP model was valid, practical, and effective in achieving these goals. The validity test results were verified based on experts' assessment, indicating that the aspects contained in the CLP model were valid with an Aiken's value V =0.89. The practicality test results indicated that the model was highly practical with the practicality value of 89.95% from students and 89.67% from lecturers. Finally, using the CLP model demonstrated its effectiveness in reducing the abstraction and complexity of OOP courses and improving student collaboration, particularly in programming tasks. The significance of conducting this survey is that it provides evidence for the effectiveness of the CLP model in achieving its intended goals and can inform the development of future OOP courses and programming tasks. The survey was conducted well, as it used both expert assessment and student and lecturer feedback to assess the validity, practicality, and effectiveness of the CLP model.

[...] Read more.
Project-Based Learning with Gallery Walk: The Association with the Learning Motivation and Achievement

By Zamree Che-aron Wannisa Matcha

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5815/ijmecs.2023.05.01, Pub. Date: 8 Oct. 2023

With the rapid and constant changes in computer and information technology, the content and learning methods in Computer Science related courses need to be continuously adapted and consistently aligned with the latest developments in the field. This paper proposes a learning approach called the Gallery-walk integrated Project-Based Learning (G-PBL) which can develop students’ lifelong learning skills that are extremely crucial for Computer Science students. The G-PBL was designed by incorporating the advantages of Project-Based Learning (PBL) and gallery walk learning strategy. In contrast to traditional PBL where students may present their project work to instructors only, students have to present their project work to their classmates as part of the G-PBL approach. All students are required to evaluate their peers’ project work and then give feedback and suggestions. For the research experiments, the G-PBL was implemented as an instructional approach in two Computer Science related courses. This study focuses on exploring the differences in knowledge gain, learning motivation, and perceived usefulness when learning by using the teacher-centered and G-PBL approach. Moreover, the impact of gender differences on learning outcomes is also investigated. The results reveal that using the G-PBL approach helps students to gain more knowledge significantly, for both male and female students. In terms of motivation, female students are more favorable toward the G-PBL approach. On the contrary, male students prefer learning via a teacher-centered approach. Regarding the perceived usefulness, female students strongly view the G-PBL as a highly effective learning approach, whereas male students are more prone to concur that the teacher-centered approach is a more effective learning method.

[...] Read more.
Analyzing Students’ Performance Using Fuzzy Logic and Hierarchical Linear Regression

By Dao Thi Thanh Loan Nguyen Duy Tho Nguyen Huu Nghia Vu Dinh Chien Tran Anh Tuan

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5815/ijmecs.2024.01.01, Pub. Date: 8 Feb. 2024

Due to the COVID-19 situation, all activities, including education, were shifted to online platforms. Consequently, instructors encountered increased challenges in evaluating students. In traditional assessment methods, instructors often face ambiguous cases when evaluating students’ competencies. Recent research has focused on the effectiveness of fuzzy logic in assessing students’ competencies, considering the presence of uncertain factors or multiple variables. Additionally, demographic characteristics, which can potentially influence students’ performance, are not typically utilized as inputs in the fuzzy logic method. Therefore, analyzing students’ performance by incorporating these factors is crucial in suggesting adjustments to teaching and learning strategies. In this study, we employ a combination of fuzzy logic and hierarchical linear regression to analyze students’ performance. The experiment involved 318 students from various programs and showed that the hybrid approach assessed students’ performance with greater nuance and adaptability when compared to a traditional method. Moreover, the findings in this study revealed the following: 1) There are differences in students’ performance between traditional and fuzzy evaluation methods; 2) The learning method is an impact on students’ fuzzy grades; 3) Students studying online do not perform better than those studying onsite. These findings suggest that instructors and educators should explore effective strategies being fair and suitable in assessment and learning.

[...] Read more.
House Price Prediction using a Machine Learning Model: A Survey of Literature

By Nor Hamizah Zulkifley Shuzlina Abdul Rahman Nor Hasbiah Ubaidullah Ismail Ibrahim

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5815/ijmecs.2020.06.04, Pub. Date: 8 Dec. 2020

Data mining is now commonly applied in the real estate market. Data mining's ability to extract relevant knowledge from raw data makes it very useful to predict house prices, key housing attributes, and many more. Research has stated that the fluctuations in house prices are often a concern for house owners and the real estate market. A survey of literature is carried out to analyze the relevant attributes and the most efficient models to forecast the house prices. The findings of this analysis verified the use of the Artificial Neural Network, Support Vector Regression and XGBoost as the most efficient models compared to others. Moreover, our findings also suggest that locational attributes and structural attributes are prominent factors in predicting house prices. This study will be of tremendous benefit, especially to housing developers and researchers, to ascertain the most significant attributes to determine house prices and to acknowledge the best machine learning model to be used to conduct a study in this field.

[...] Read more.
Analysis of Student’s Academic Performance based on their Time Spent on Extra-Curricular Activities using Machine Learning Techniques

By Neeta Sharma Shanmuganathan Appukutti Umang Garg Jayati Mukherjee Sneha Mishra

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5815/ijmecs.2023.01.04, Pub. Date: 8 Feb. 2023

The foundational tenet of any nation's prosperity, character, and progress is education. Thus, a lot of emphasis is laid on quality of education and education delivery system in India with current financial year (2022-23) education budget outlay of Rs. 1,04,277.72 crores. This research contributes in analyzing how students perform in academics depending upon the time spent on their extracurricular activities with the help of three Machine Learning prediction algorithms namely Decision Tree, Random Forest and KNN. Additionally, in order to comprehend the underlying causes of the shortcomings in each machine learning technique, comparisons of the prediction outcomes obtained by these various techniques are made. On our dataset, the Decision Tree outscored all other algorithms, achieving F1 84 and an accuracy of 85%. The research, which is at an introductory level, is meant to open the door for more complexes, specialised, and in-depth studies in the area of predicting the performance in academics.

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Comparison of Simple Additive Weighting Method and Weighted Performance Indicator Method for Lecturer Performance Assessment

By Terttiaavini Yusuf Hartono Ermatita Dian Palupi Rini

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5815/ijmecs.2023.02.01, Pub. Date: 8 Apr. 2023

The development of methods for assessing lecturers' performance is needed to motivate lecturers to achieve institutional targets. Currently, lecturers are required to be able to adapt to the rapid development of technology. Lecturer performance assessment must be done periodically. Competence is measured as a basis for planning resource development activities. The method that is often used for assessing lecturer performance is the Simple Additive Weighting (SAW) method. However, the SAW method has drawbacks, namely 1) the process of determining criteria is only carried out by the leadership (subjective); 2) The SAW method can only be applied to multi-criteria data ; 3) Data ranking problems. Based on this deficiency, a new method was built, namely, the Weighted Performance Indicator (WPI) method using respondents’ opinion to determine the criteria. This study aims to compare the performance of the two methods. Testing criteria using SPPS application dan WPI method, while testing methods utilized the SAW method and the WPI method. The results of the criterion test show the Percentage of Similarity of data validity = 96.7 % witht the minimum percentage limit (MPL) = 40%. While the results of the SAW method and WPI method testing resulted in the highest score in the 13th alternative, namely SAW score (v13) = 793.76 and WP score (WP13) = 0.928, and the lowest value in the 30th alternative, SAW score (v30) = 18.60 and WP score (WP30) = 0.140. the ranking positions in these two methods show similarities. However, for other alternatives, the rating value can be different. 
The WPI method is a scientific development in the field of decision support systems that can be applied to other performance assessments, such other human resources, system performance assesment etc. 
The results of this study prove that the WPI method can be used as a performance assessment method with different characteristics from the SAW method.

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Factors Affecting Entrepreneurial Motivation and Intention of University Students in Hanoi, Vietnam

By Do Thi Minh Hue Tran Phuong Thao Pham Canh Toan Hoang Dinh Luong Phan Thi Hao Do Thi Huyen Nguyen Thi Hoa

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5815/ijmecs.2022.02.01, Pub. Date: 8 Apr. 2022

Entrepreneurship is the key driver of economic progress in many countries; thus, many countries have introduced policies to promote a more entrepreneurial environment. This study assesses the impact of factors affecting entrepreneurial intention of university students. The data was collected through a survey of 341 students at 09 leading universities in Hanoi, Vietnam and analyzed using structural equation modeling (SEM) with SPSS and Amos software. The research results show that entrepreneurial skills, entrepreneurial environment and subjective norms either directly or indirectly affect business motivation and entrepreneurial intention of university students. Thus, it is suggested that university and other educational institutions should provide more activities and taught courses that help students acquire the knowledge and skills necessary for entrepreneurship.

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Optimised MLP Neural Network Model for Optimum Prognostic Learning of out of School Children Trend in Africa: Implication for Guidance and Counselling

By Edith Edimo Joseph Joseph Isabona Odaro Osayande Ikechi Irisi

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5815/ijmecs.2023.01.01, Pub. Date: 8 Feb. 2023

One crucial and intricate problem in the education sector that must be dealt with is children who initially enrolled in schools but later dropped out before finishing mandatory primary education. These children are generally referred to as out-of-school children. To contribute to the discuss, this paper presents the development of a robust Multilayer Perceptron (MLP) based Neural Network Model (NN) for optimal prognostic learning of out-of-school children trends in Africa. First, the Bayesian optimization algorithm has been engaged to determine the best MLP hyperparameters and their specific training values. Secondly, MLP-tuned hyperparameters were employed for optimal prognostic learning of different out-of-school children data trends in Africa. Thirdly, to assess the proposed MLP-NN model's prognostic performance, two error metrics were utilized, which are the Correlation coefficient (R) and Normalized root means square error (NRMSE). Among other things, a higher R and lower NRMSE values indicate a better MLP-NN precision performance. The all-inclusive results of the developed MLP-NN model indicate a satisfactory prediction capacity, attaining low NRMSE values between 0.017 - 0.310 during training and 0.034 - 0.233 during testing, respectively. In terms of correlation fits, the out-of-school children's data and the ones obtained with the developed MLP-NN model recorded high correlation precision training/testing performance values of 0.9968/0.9974, 0.9801/0.9373, 0.9977/0.9948 and 0.9957/0.9970, respectively. Thus, the MLP-NN model has made it possible to reliably predict the different patterns and trends rate of out-of-school children in Africa. One of the implications for counselling, among others, is that if every African government is seriously committed to funding education at the foundation level, there would be a reduction in the number of out-of-school children as observed in the out-of-school children data.

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Adoption of Blended Learning in Ghanaian Senior High Schools: A Case Study in a Less Endowed School

By Ebenezer Eghan Najim Ussiph ObedAppiah

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5815/ijmecs.2023.05.06, Pub. Date: 8 Oct. 2023

During COVID-19 pandemic, most tertiary institutions in Ghana were compelled to continue delivering of lectures online using internet technologies as was in the case of other countries. Senior high schools in Ghana were, however, not asked to do same, currently, the setting of most literature on blended or online learning in Ghana is focused on tertiary education. This paper situates the blended learning model in a less endowed senior high school to unearth the prospect of its implementation. The research provides an alternative to the traditional face-to-face learning, which is faced with the challenge of inadequate infrastructure, high number of students to class ratio, less compatibility with 21st learning skills and long-life learning in Ghana.
A customed Moodle application as web application tool, hosted students online in both synchronous and asynchronous interactions. Purposive quota sampling size technique was used to select an appreciable sample size to fully go through the traditional face-face model for a term and then study through the blended learning model for another term. Students’ examination performances for both were analyzed with a paired t test statistical model. Interviews with participants were conducted to ascertain their evaluation of the blended learning model and questionnaires were also administered to discover the institutional, technological, and human resource readiness for blended learning in senior high schools. The analysis of the data gathered, proved that blended learning in senior high schools has high prospect and is better alternative to face-to-face learning in Ghana.

 

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