A Result Confirmation-based Learning Behavior Analysis Framework for Exploring the Hidden Reasons behind Patterns and Strategies

• Main Authors: Fuzheng Zhao, Gwo-Jen Hwang, Chengjiu Yin
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: International Forum of Educational Technology & Society 2021-01-01
• Series: Educational Technology & Society
• Subjects: learning analytics; learning behavior pattern; learning analysis framework; result confirmation
• Online Access: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1-1dFh6m74XBgoZuGimo0337oIrNmjRwM/view

Educational data mining and learning analytics have become a very important topic in the field of education technology. Many frameworks have been proposed for learning analytics which make it possible to identify learning behavior patterns or strategies. However, it is difficult to understand the reason why behavior patterns occur and why certain strategies are used. In other words, all of the existing frameworks lack an important step, that is, result confirmation. In this paper, we propose a Result Confirmation-based Learning Behavior Analysis (ReCoLBA) framework, which adds a result confirmation step for exploring the hidden reasons underlying the learning patterns and strategies. Using this ReCoLBA framework, a case study was conducted which analyzed e-book reading data. In the case study, we found that the students had a tendency to delete markers after adding them. Through an investigation, we found that the students did this because they could not grasp the learning emphasis. To apply this finding, we proposed a learning strategy whereby the teacher highlights the learning emphasis before students read the learning materials. An experiment was conducted to examine the effectiveness of this strategy, and we found that it could indeed help students achieve better results, reduce repetitive behaviors and save time. The framework was therefore shown to be effective.