The effect of users' attitudes on electronic performance support systems implementation

Performance support (PS) platforms, also known as electronic performance support systems (EPSS), offer real‐time learning and performance enhancement. In 2008, Tel Aviv University and an Israeli telecommunication firm began researching implementation success factors. Preliminary findings and conclusions were discussed in an earlier Performance Improvement article (Gal & Nachmias, 2011). The current article focuses on the effects of users' attitudes on implementation issues and suggests a model for incorporating EPSS in organizations.     

LISTEN TO THE SILENCE: THE LEFT-BEHIND PHENOMENON AS SEEN THROUGH CLASSROOM VIDEOS AND TEACHERS’ REFLECTIONS

This study uses classroom videotapes to examine the phenomenon of students who are left behind during whole-class teaching. Zooming in via these videos enabled us to analyze these classroom situations by means of a compact, multi-perspective set of theories – van Hiele theory, conceptualization, and visual perception. The analysis provided a picture of the classroom interaction in which the sound of silence of those students who might not share understanding during the class discourse is ignored. Based on a sample of Taiwanese junior high school geometry classes, the study demonstrated how investigating situations of silence uncovered the possibility of teachers’ unawareness of student difficulties or their unsuccessful efforts to cope with them. Teachers’ post-lesson interviews and questionnaires shed additional light on the perspective of left-behind students. Implications of this method for pre- and in-service teachers’ programs are briefly discussed, and some recommendations for change are proposed. Electronic supplementary material  The online version of this article (doi:) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

Integration of an intelligent tutoring system in a course of computer network design

INTUITEL is a research project aiming to offer a personalized learning environment. The INTUITEL approach includes an Intelligent Tutoring System that gives students recommendations and feedback about what the best learning path is for them according to their profile, learning progress, context and environmental influences. INTUITEL combines efficient pedagogical-based recommendations with freedom of choice and it introduces this tutoring support in different Learning Management Systems. During the INTUITEL project various software and pedagogical testing procedures were defined to provide the development teams with feedback, both summative and formative. The current paper describes the initial user test, which was conducted at the University of Valladolid for the course “Network Design”. The experiment was focused on real learners’ reactions to INTUITEL recommendations received by an INTUITEL-enabled LMS. Nineteen students participated in a two phase testing procedure in order to analyze the learners’ behavior with INTUITEL, as well as obtaining information about how learners perceive the influence and usefulness of the tutoring system in online learning courses. Results show that students with INTUITEL follow learning paths that are more suitable for them. Besides, the general satisfaction level of participants is high. Most learners appreciate INTUITEL, would follow its recommendations and consider the messages shown by INTUITEL as useful and caring.     

Rencontre internationale d'experts de la recherche pédagogique,Atlantic City (USA), Février 1956

Sans résumé     

Online learning and performance support in organizational environments using performance support platforms

An electronic performance support system (EPSS) is a method that integrates learning and task performance into one single action by providing information and guidance during performance. Wide‐range EPSS effectiveness research has been conducted by Tel Aviv University in tandem with a large telecommunications firm implementing EPSS solutions. The objective was to identify the factors that were instrumental in the realization of EPSS's potential in corporate settings. This article focuses on effectiveness differences in two common organizational environments: the learning and the working domains.