Conceptual modeling of databases is a complex cognitive activity, particularly for novice database designers. The current research empirically tests a new pedagogy for this activity. It examines an instructional approach that stresses visualizing gradual transitions between levels of abstraction in different hierarchic levels of a relational…

Conceptual database design is a difficult task for novice database designers, such as students, and is also therefore particularly challenging for database educators to teach. In the teaching of database design, two general approaches are frequently emphasized: top-down and bottom-up. In this paper, we present an empirical comparison of students'…

Models in Software Engineering are considered as abstract representations of software systems. Models highlight relevant details for a certain purpose, whereas irrelevant ones are hidden. Models are supposed to make system comprehension easier by reducing complexity. Therefore, models should play a key role in education, since they would ease the…

Purpose: In tertiary institution, some students find it hard to learn database design theory, in particular, database normalization. The purpose of this paper is to develop a visualization tool to give students an interactive hands-on experience in database normalization process. Design/methodology/approach: The model-view-controller architecture…

This paper describes an active method for database design learning through practical tasks development by student teams in a face-to-face course. This method integrates project-based learning, and project management techniques and tools. Some scaffolding is provided at the beginning that forms a skeleton that adapts to a great variety of…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to present the design and implementation of music courseware that features a music search system that uses impression keywords. The paper applies the courseware to "Kansei" (sensibility) development for elementary and junior high school students. The objectives of this courseware are to cultivate…

Teaching and learning database design is difficult for both instructors and students. Students need to solve many problems with feedback and corrections. A Web-based specialized expert system was created to enable students to create designs online and receive immediate feedback. An experiment testing the system shows that it significantly enhances…

Business intelligence derived from data warehousing and data mining has become one of the most strategic management tools today, providing organizations with long-term competitive advantages. Business school curriculums and popular database textbooks cover data warehousing, but the examples and problem sets typically are small and unrealistic. The…

This paper presents a goal-based scenario approach to teaching introductory database concepts to undergraduates using two different scaffolding methods. One method, termed "worked-out examples," attempts to reduce extraneous cognitive load by requiring students to complete increasingly complex missing parts of worked out examples. The other…

Discussion of computer systems that help teachers plan and manage the learning process focuses on the development of a computer consulting system, ASSISTANT, which was designed to help teachers choose the most suitable educational technology and evaluate its effectiveness. The organization of the database is explained. (seven references) (LRW)

This paper describes the use of the CoFIND (Collaborative Filter in N Dimensions) system to evaluate two assessment styles. CoFIND is a resource database that organizes itself around its users' needs. Learners enter resources, categorize, then rate them using "qualities," aspects of resources which learners find worthwhile, the n…

Systems Analysis and Design is a core component of an education in information systems. To appeal to a wider range of constituents and facilitate the learning process, the content of a traditional Systems Analysis and Design course has been supplemented with an alternative modeling approach. This paper presents an instructional design that…