m-learning: ESkaLATE

Development ofa  software environment for  course-integrated,  adaptive learningofferings on mathematical  topics of Electrical Engineering

The aim of the project is to develop a software environment for learning and practicing elementary correlations in the mathematics bridge course. The Mathematical Bridge Course of the Department of Electrical Engineering/Computer Science teaches and repeats the mathematics of the upper secondary school and partly also of the middle school in order to consolidate the basics for the understanding of the regular courses for the first-year students. It compensates for existing deficits, which is an essential prerequisite for further academic success. Comparable offerings exist in many STEM disciplines.

The bridge course, which has so far been based on conventional classroom instruction and limited use of the Moodle learning platform, is to be expanded here to include a tailored e-learning component. The aim is to deepen the learning process and to increase the motivation of the participants in a playful way to deal with mathematical issues. 

The planned software environment for prompt practice of the material currently being covered is to be usable at any time and any place and adaptively adjust to the individual learning level of each user. It consists of a smartphone app for the location-independent solution of short tasks according to a multiple-choice method specially modified for this purpose, a central server for the coordination of the exercise process, which allows an overview of the overall status of a cohort at any time, and a module for the topic-specific creation of exercises with the possibility of generating a large number of task variants semi-automatically.

Mathematics is a major hurdle to success in the introductory phase of studies and later courses in electrical engineering at the University of Kassel and other universities. In recent years, numerous voluntary support measures have therefore been developed in the area of basic mathematics. These include a preliminary course extended to six weeks, a learning center and a greatly expanded consultation hours system. As a special feature, the initially voluntary mathematical bridge course was made compulsory for those who were unable to successfully pass an entrance exam at school level. The reason for this was the recognizable lack of motivation on the part of the students concerned to participate. However, even compulsory participation can only lead to success if the students concerned approach their learning task with motivation.

In order to achieve this and at the same time to establish repetitive practice, the aim here is to create an opportunity to integrate practice into everyday life in a playful way via the personal smart phone. Based on previous experience from the mathematical bridge course, a suitable e-learning offer has been planned and is now to be implemented. The basic conceptual design of the system has already been completed; this project application is intended to realize the practical implementation and optimization of the user interface during an introductory phase.

In recent years, the Department of Electrical Engineering/Computer Science has already gained extensive expertise in the development of cross-platform smartphone apps and the associated database-supported client-server systems. In particular, the OLIF project should be mentioned here, in which a system for online lecture surveys has been developed and made operational with great success in cooperation with the Teaching Service Center of the University of Kassel.

2016-12-22: Detailed implementation planning based on a requirements analysis for the server side has started.

2016-12-01: Work on the project has started, the first step is a technical requirements analysis for the server and client software.