This study introduces an optimized ensemble deep neural network (Optimized Ensemble Deep-NN) to enhance the accuracy of predicting student grades. This model solves the problem of different and complicated student performance data by using deep neural networks, ensemble learning, and a number of optimization algorithms, such as Adam, SGD, and RMS…

Popular item response theory (IRT) models are considered complex, mainly due to the inclusion of a random factor variable (latent variable). The random factor variable represents the incidental parameter problem since the number of parameters increases when including data of new persons. Therefore, IRT models require a specific estimation method…

As is rapidly becoming clear, data science increasingly permeates many aspects of life. Educational research recognizes the importance and complexity of learning data science. In line with this imperative, there is a growing need to investigate the factors that influence student performance in data science tasks. In this paper, we aimed to apply…

Emotions of learners are fundamental and significant in e-learning as they encourage learning. Machine learning models are presented in the literature to look at how emotions may affect e-learning results that are improved and optimized. Nevertheless, the models that have been suggested so far are appropriate for offline mode, whereby data for…

Churn in e-learning refers to learners who gradually perform less and become lethargic and may potentially drop out from the course. Churn prediction is a highly sensitive and critical task in an e-learning system because inaccurate predictions might cause undesired consequences. A lot of approaches proposed in the literature analyzed and modeled…

Cognitive diagnosis models (CDMs) are the assessment tools that provide valuable formative feedback about skill mastery at both the individual and population level. Recent work has explored the performance of CDMs with small sample sizes but has focused solely on the estimates of individual profiles. The current research focuses on obtaining…

Predicting student performance using educational data is a significant area of machine learning research. However, class imbalance in datasets and the challenge of developing interpretable models can hinder accuracy. This study compares different variations of the Synthetic Minority Oversampling Technique (SMOTE) combined with classification…

The estimation of RxC ecological inference contingency tables from aggregate data is one of the most salient and challenging problems in the field of quantitative social sciences, with major solutions proposed from both the ecological regression and the mathematical programming frameworks. In recent decades, there has been a drive to find…

This study addressed the cognitive impacts of providing correct and incorrect machine learning (ML) outputs in support of an object detection task. The study consisted of five experiments that manipulated the accuracy and importance of mock ML outputs. In each of the experiments, participants were given the T and L task with T-shaped targets and…

Sociologists increasingly face choices among competing algorithms that represent reasonable approaches to the same task, with little guidance in choosing among them. We develop a strategy that uses simulated data to identify the conditions under which different methods perform well and applies what is learned from the simulations to predict which…

University Examination Timetabling Problem is the most important combinational problem to develop a conflict-free timetable to execute all of the exams in and with the limited timeslots and other resources for universities, colleges or schools. It is also an important Nondeterministic Polynomial Time (NP)-hard problem that has no deterministic…

In this study, the accuracy of the artificial neural network (ANN) was assessed considering the uncertainties associated with the randomness of the data and the lack of learning. The Monte-Carlo algorithm was applied to simulate the randomness of the input variables and evaluate the output distribution. It has been shown that under certain…

Recent approaches to the detection of cheaters in tests employ detectors from the field of machine learning. Detectors based on supervised learning algorithms achieve high accuracy but require labeled data sets with identified cheaters for training. Labeled data sets are usually not available at an early stage of the assessment period. In this…

Purpose: This study aims to explore the perception of algorithm accuracy among data professionals in higher education. Design/methodology/approach: Social justice theory guided the qualitative descriptive study and emphasized four principles: access, participation, equity and human rights. Data collection included eight online open-ended…

Wildfires pose significant environmental threats in Australia, impacting ecosystems, human lives, and property. This review article provides a comprehensive analysis of various empirical and dynamic wildfire simulators alongside machine learning (ML) techniques employed for wildfire prediction in Australia. The study examines the effectiveness of…