Tag: distance education

  • Home
  • distance education
28 Mar 2022
Elearning solutions
Blogpost, eLearning creativ technologies 0 comment

How are elearning solutions becoming better with AI paper graders? 

There has been a high improvement in e-learning solutions all over the world. But such solutions can yield better results when AI is used. This has been proven to be highly effective. Machine learning has become a part of our daily lives. It’s true because whenever we use apps to order food, it gives an estimated cost of the delivery time. If we have ordered previously from the app, it stores such information and, based on it, provides us with an estimate. Machine learning is now also used to create better e-learning solutions. The AI is getting used to becoming a substitute for teachers for assessing exam sheets because:

  • AI better evaluates students

The teachers are also using machine learning because it aids them. The teachers can assess students, but computers do it better when they do the same job. Through artificial intelligence, the PCs get a deeper insight into the learning ways of students. It helps them evaluate those areas where a student needs improvement.

When you have machine learning algorithms used in eLearning solutions, they can store and evaluate data about a student, like whether he is weak in grammar or spelling.

So, when programs are developed based on such data, his assessments can be checked faster. The student can also be checked for his understanding of the subject.

Artificial intelligence is also used to detect which students have cheated. Sometimes teachers can’t detect whether the students’ assignment has been completed by someone else, but AI can do it. It can analyze the student’s handwriting and find out whether it’s original or not. Someone could have completed the test in his handwriting, which a machine learning algorithm could detect through a scanned copy of the answer sheet.

  • Lack of human assessors

Here, a computer-based assessment is more beneficial because it does not rate students based on their handwriting. However, Handwritten e-learning assessments are used in the case of MOOCs. But the problem is how to get assessors for checking them. The students can upload their written assessments on an LMS. Essay-based questions test the advanced cognitive processes that MCQs can’t; the former must be included.

So, AI has been helping devise better test checking in e-learning solutions because the human assessors might be in short supply. Through AI, the teachers and the instructors have more time to spend with students. This is because AI has taken over their work of grading the exams. The AI Is also helping universities grade the admission essays submitted by students. The teachers are now getting relieved from the duty of segregating scanned answer sheets of students.

AI is used in elearning solutions for checking multiple questions submitted by students/employees.

In the traditional method of checking assessments, two teachers were assigned the job of grading the same exam paper. This method ensured that the students didn’t face any bias when their exam was checked. Although this method protected students’ interests, it was quite time-consuming for teachers. But due to AI-based grading solutions, the quality of checking assessments has not been affected, although the teachers’ time has been reduced.

  • Saves a teacher’s time

Learners can also have problems navigating through e-learning solutions. They might have queries that have to be answered in real-time. But the teachers don’t have time. So even when the teachers are busy attending other sessions, the employees/students can get answers through chatbots. The chatbots are like virtual instructors who can browse through the entire e-learning content to find the answers for students.

The virtual tutors developed through artificial intelligence are also providing to be helpful. It’s because they can recognize any stress in the student’s voice. This way, the teachers learn when does a student need attention. The teachers understand the students’ behaviors through an emotion detection AI algorithm, which lets them know whether a student understands something or not through his facial expressions and voice.

Essays don’t provide any help to students, unlike MCQ’S

The students need to be tested for their better understanding, and essays facilitate it because they have to think before writing anything. Unlike MCQs, the students don’t get any help through the various options present. However, the students should be given a time limit to answer essay-based questions, like 10-15 minutes. Also, they should have some hints about what to write on in an answer so that they don’t write ambiguous or nonrelated essay answers. The students should not be writing crap in answer sheets to make the answer lengthy.

What is a paper grader?

A paper grader is a software solution that is used for this purpose. This software provides accurate scores even to research papers. This software collects all the parameters used for grading through assignments checked by professors. It uses the same metrics for evaluating students’ papers. The AI paper grading software never becomes outdated because it continuously updates itself by scanning an answer sheet checked by a human assessor. Also, the software does not have any problem understanding handwriting because it has an optical character recognition feature.

It also helps evaluate the answers in different languages; hence the university does not need to hire multilingual assessors.

31 Mar 2021
distance education
Blogpost, eLearning creativ technologies 0 comment

How to make sure distance education makes students learn?

Distance education is forming the basis of educational strategies followed these days.

This is because the emergence of the global pandemic decided that the students and teachers adopt this format of learning quicker than sooner. However, getting the attention of students is even tougher in distance education rather than in classrooms. But, by following these tips, you can make sure that the students are hooked to asynchronous learning in which the teacher is not present with them.

The students should be motivated through the online learning sessions. Therefore, to trigger their interest, the following tools can be used:

  1. Audio and videos

    2. Videos and audios are the perfect way to arouse the interest of students. This method of teaching also explains the complex topics to them by grabbing their interest. The students are easily able to remember such concepts when they are taught through such methods.

  2. Analyzing information in smaller parts

    3. Also, learning should never be done as a whole. It should be done in small parts. That’s when it’s most beneficial for learners. There are different skills needed in learning. It involves getting information analyzing it and then preparing a final design in their mind. So, for students watching any kind of work is important. So, that’s how elearning designs should be built for them i.e. in an informative way.

  3. Inclusion of games

Games are an excellent way to make sure that the learners can get a better understanding of the materials. The role-playing games are excellent ways to make sure that the students get real-life situations better. They are given scenarios and their reactions are tested when they don the roles of fictional characters. There are also decision games in which they are asked to choose the best reaction in a hypothetical situation. The students can also be given traditional games where their performance is tested in a given time limit to do a task.

Problems in Distance Learning

Distance learning has one shortcoming. In real-life classes when students are not able to understand anything, they can ask their classmates about it. But this is not the case in distance learning where such interaction does not happen.

However, there are various ways in which you can respond to student’s queries in distance education:

  • Make sure that you inform students when you will be available on video conferencing tools or social networks.
  • You should take an interest in their problems and listen to them carefully
  • Be involved in the whole interaction process with students
  • Make sure students have ample online discussions between them. Ask specific students to find topics for such discussions.
  • Participate in such online discussions and ask questions from students
  • You can have such online discussions on all social media platforms such as Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

This is how students can be involved more in distance education.

 

05 Mar 2021
distance education
Blogpost, eLearning creativ technologies 0 comment

Should a student opt for distance education or regular education?

Distance learning has become quite popular now.

It’s because students want to work and study at the same time. When they enrol for a distance learning course, students can access online lectures anytime. They can study after taking time out from their busy schedules. Even the exams are held online and students can schedule the tests at any time of the day. Although the schools and universities are shut down to the Covid19 pandemic, there will be offline teaching once they open again soon. So, is it worthwhile for students to attend regular classes while they can enjoy the privileges of distance education?

Need for distance education

Distance education is getting popular because people are always trying to adapt to the changing needs of jobs. They sometimes have to work in two jobs. The socio-economic changes like inflation and a want for a better standing in society economically require people to increase their skills. Companies also want people who are multi-skilled to save costs. So, that’s why pursuing a Master’s degree or part-time courses like graphic designing through distance education has become popular. Someone who is just having a normal bachelor’s degree can’t survive without having some practical skills. Companies want someone skilled, skills that can’t be imbibed through traditional academic courses and hence pursuing distance learning with a job is needed. People are also willing to take time out to study after the job.

Benefits of distance education

Distance education can’t replace regular education because many things can’t be taught online.

Some of the advantages of distance learning are:

Large availability of courses

Anyone pursuing distance education knows that they have access to a huge plethora of courses. Distance learning based on MOOC’s has evolved and there are so many courses on the anvil for prospective students. The best part is that these courses are suited to the emerging needs of students. On the other hand, the curriculum of such courses gets revised quite often, as compared to regular learning where it stays the same year after year. So, since the universities don’t introduce new courses quite often, students can rely on regular education to fulfil their hunger for knowledge.

Also, the availability of lecturers is much more in distance learning which explains such wide availability of courses. It’s because the lecturers just have to record the lectures. They don’t have to handle a large number of students. This makes it easy for them. They don’t have to come and give a lecture at a specified time.

Also, the lectures can be much more comprehensive due to the use of online learning material and technologies.

Lesser time and money

Since the students don’t need to commute to the university to study, they can save a lot of time and commuting expenses.

But a disadvantage with such courses is that there are no regular assessments. The teachers don’t know how much a student is studying daily because they don’t interact with him in classes unlike in regular learning.

So, it’s upto a student to choose distance learning or regular learning.

 

17 Nov 2020
Online learning challenges
Blogpost, eLearning creativ technologies 0 comment

Challenges in online learning: How to overcome them?

All over the world elearning and online learning have taken over a big way in education.

However, teachers and students both are coping with the challenge. There is a big difference between elearning and online learning. Although both of them require web-based access, elearning requires someone to log in to a portal and complete online assessments and watch prerecorded lectures. On the other hand, in online learning, students and teachers are present at the same time although at different places and connected through a webcam. The teachers deliver lectures to students through special software. So, elearning is independent learning i.e. learning at own flexibility for a student.

Online learning requires some hard work from the student’s side. The students can feel less motivated because there is no communication with peers in such courses. So, they cannot feel the urge to complete the module. This issue can be resolved by making them go to schools at least once in a fortnight. To be successful in online learning, it’s better to encourage interactions among classmates.

Effects on students

    • Lack of time management: In elearning students also get the desire to perform because they don’t compete with anybody. Also, there is no time management needed if the classes are not conducted on time. In schools, online learning classes are taken on time. So, students are motivated to do things on time. But in elearning courses, this is not where students have to listen to prerecorded videos. There is also no extra pressure on students. So, students should build up self-motivation to have proper time management and complete the assessments and classes as per schedule in elearning courses.

 

    • Social isolation: It is one of the most important effects of elearning. Students don’t have any interaction with the teachers.

 

    • Slow feedback: Students also don’t get a simultaneous response to their answers, unlike a classroom in elearning. When they post their query on a chat messenger the teacher might not be online and respond with some delay.
      Moreover, although elearning modules have assessments built within them, they lack personalized answers given by humans. The solution to this problem is that professors can video chat with students during their office hours.

 

    • Lack of communication: Lack of communication may also manifest itself in other forms in online learning. The students since they don’t get a chance to interact much with other students and teachers, might not develop team skills also. In the future, such students might develop as graduates who have theoretical knowledge but can’t communicate well face-to-face. The solution to this problem is that students must be encouraged to give online lectures during such online learning and elearning to boost their communication skills.

 

    • Cheating during online tests: The students have a lot of options to cheat during their assessment. In classroom assessments, the teachers can monitor the students or there is a video feed but on online assessments, the students can access google. Although a webcam may be used to verify the student’s identity, sometimes, the students might turn the webcam off during the test and make someone else take the test on their behalf. So, checking students through online assessments is quite tough.

      There are measures built-in online learning tools which can prevent such cheating. Online proctoring is the ideal solution. In this technique, the student is verified before the test through the webcam where artificial intelligence is used to match his face with that given on ID. He can’t turn the webcam off during the test. The screen feeds of the students are shared. Even the audio and video activities are recorded and any background noise is treated as a red flag. Any unwanted objects captured in the video recording are also indicated as a red flag. This method also restricts candidates log in to their device through a specific IP address. It also makes sure that candidates are not able to switch windows during the test.

      So, this is how online learning is advancing despite its shortcomings.

 

©2022 Creativ Technologies. All rights reserved.

He was a German psychologist who is known for discovering the forgetting curve. According to this curve, the biggest decline in memory happens within 20 minutes, and then 1 hour.