How to Present Example-based Support to Improve Learning in ITSs?

Abstract

Worked Examples (WEs) and Erroneous Examples (ErrExs) have proven to be effective in supporting learning. It has been found that WEs are beneficial for novices, while ErrExs are more suitable for advanced students. However, how such learning materials should be presented in order to improve learning of different categories of students within Intelligent Tutoring Systems (ITSs) is still an open question. We focus on approaches that can be used to motivate students with different prior knowledge to gain benefits from example-based learning. As the first step, we conducted an experiment to find students’ preferences between the original interface and the refined interface of SQL-Tutor. The results indicate that most of the students prefer the refined interface, since its layout is clearer and the organization is more efficient during learning. We plan to conduct a study that will investigate ways to improve interaction between students and ErrExs during learning.