TY - GEN
T1 - Assessing the impact of positive feedback in constraint-based tutors
AU - Barrow, Devon
AU - Mitrovic, Antonija
AU - Ohlsson, Stellan
AU - Grimley, Michael
PY - 2008/12/1
Y1 - 2008/12/1
N2 - Most existing Intelligent Tutoring Systems (ITSs) are built around cognitive learning theories, such as Ohlsson's theory of learning from performance errors and Anderson's ACT theories of skill acquisition, which focus primarily on providing negative feedback, facilitating learning by correcting errors. Research into the behavior of expert tutors suggest that experienced tutors use positive feedback quite extensively and successfully. This paper investigates positive feedback; learning by capturing and responding to correct behavior, supported by cognitive learning theories. Our aim is to develop and implement a systematic approach to delivering positive feedback in ITSs. We report on an evaluation study done in the context of SQL-Tutor, in which the control group used the original version of the system giving only negative feedback, while the experimental group received both negative and positive feedback. Results show that the experimental group students needed significantly less time to solve the same number of problems, in fewer attempts compared to those in the control group. Students in the experimental group also learn approximately the same number of concepts as students in the control group, but in much less time. This indicates that positive feedback facilitates learning and improves the effectiveness of learning in ITSs.
AB - Most existing Intelligent Tutoring Systems (ITSs) are built around cognitive learning theories, such as Ohlsson's theory of learning from performance errors and Anderson's ACT theories of skill acquisition, which focus primarily on providing negative feedback, facilitating learning by correcting errors. Research into the behavior of expert tutors suggest that experienced tutors use positive feedback quite extensively and successfully. This paper investigates positive feedback; learning by capturing and responding to correct behavior, supported by cognitive learning theories. Our aim is to develop and implement a systematic approach to delivering positive feedback in ITSs. We report on an evaluation study done in the context of SQL-Tutor, in which the control group used the original version of the system giving only negative feedback, while the experimental group received both negative and positive feedback. Results show that the experimental group students needed significantly less time to solve the same number of problems, in fewer attempts compared to those in the control group. Students in the experimental group also learn approximately the same number of concepts as students in the control group, but in much less time. This indicates that positive feedback facilitates learning and improves the effectiveness of learning in ITSs.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=70349887601&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/978-3-540-69132-7-29
DO - 10.1007/978-3-540-69132-7-29
M3 - Conference contribution
AN - SCOPUS:70349887601
SN - 3540691308
SN - 9783540691303
T3 - Lecture Notes in Computer Science (including subseries Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence and Lecture Notes in Bioinformatics)
SP - 250
EP - 259
BT - Intelligent Tutoring Systems - 9th International Conference, ITS 2008, Proceedings
T2 - 9th International Conference on Intelligent Tutoring Systems, ITS 2008
Y2 - 23 June 2008 through 27 June 2008
ER -