Dialogue act (DA) classification plays an important role in understanding, interpreting and modeling dialogue. Dialogue acts (DAs) represent the intended meaning of an utterance, which is associated with the illocutionary force (or the speaker's intention), such as greetings, questions, requests, statements, and agreements. In natural language…

Online educational resources (e.g., curricula, tutorials, documentation, Q&A sites) increasingly serve as key sources for secondary school students learning Computer Science Principles (CSP). A big obstacle to using these resources is finding information appropriate for the learning task and learner's background. Research shows that secondary…

Adaptive collaborative learning support (ACLS) aims to facilitate collaborative activities by providing intelligent feedback and support based on students' collaboration. Existing ACLS systems have been applied in various collaborative environments, ranging from co-located collaboration in the classroom to online learning environments. While these…

This study investigated the understudied area of virtual reality (VR) creation among elementary-aged youth, exploring their engagement in VR creation and the ways in which educators can facilitate this creative process. Using an embedded case study, the researcher examined how the youth visualize writing using the VR creation tool, CoSpaces. To…

Adaptive learning systems aim to emulate how skilled educators provide every student with the best possible learning experience. We investigate how these systems might be enriched by incorporating activities and indicators of social learning, which focus on the influences of learners' social context and interactions. This doctoral research aims to…

Storytelling is universal and is popular in many cultures where it is a medium people use to preserve their beliefs, social values, wisdom, and cultural experiences as well as transfer them from one generation to another. In American Samoa, over 90% of students are classified as English Language Learners (ELLs) and literacy rates are very low,…

The purpose of this qualitative, bounded case study was to understand how the specific medium of iTunes U facilitated a high school global collaboration experience for participating teachers and students in Philadelphia, PA, USA and Amsterdam, Netherlands and the academic, social, and emotional benefits participating in such a unique experience…

In this dissertation, I explore the idea of designing "flexible game systems". A flexible game system allows players (not software designers) to decide on what rules to enforce, who enforces them, and when. I explore this in the context of digital card games and introduce two design strategies for promoting flexibility. The first…

This narrative study examines using a real life simulated problem base learning activity during education of clinical staff, which is expected to design and develop clinically correct electronic charting systems. Expertise in healthcare does not readily transcend to the realm of manipulating software to collect patient data that is pertinent to…

Open Source Software (OSS) communities are homogenous and their lack of diversity is of concern to many within this field. This problem is becoming more pronounced as it is the practice of many technology companies to use OSS participation as a factor in the hiring process, disadvantaging those who are not a part of this community. We should…

This thesis explores the design and evaluation of a collaborative, inquiry learning Intelligent Tutoring System for ill-defined problem spaces. The common ground in the fields of Artificial Intelligence in Education and Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning is investigated to identify ways in which tutoring systems can employ both automated…

The purpose of this study was to explore the nature of students' mapping and discourse behaviors while constructing causal maps to articulate their understanding of a complex, ill-structured problem. In this study, six graduate-level students were assigned to one of three pair groups, and each pair used the causal mapping software program,…

Computing occupations are among the fastest growing in the U.S. and technological innovations are central to solving world problems. Yet only our most privileged students are learning to use technology for creative purposes through rigorous computer science education opportunities. In order to increase access for diverse students and females who…

For decades, African American students, nationwide, have consistently scored much lower on math and reading achievement tests than their European counterparts, creating what is known as the "White-Black Achievement Gap". The purpose of the research was to determine if self regulated learning and communal learning contexts, either…

Process models are often the basis for demonstrating improvement and compliance in software engineering organizations. A descriptive model is a type of process model describing the human activities in software development that actually occur. The purpose of a descriptive model is to provide a documented baseline for further process improvement…