Dynamic Distance Learning Framework Using Problem Based Assessment

Education is undergoing a major paradigm shift towards learning rather then teaching. Learning is no longer considered as a process transferring and distributing knowledge to the students. It is now viewed as a transformational process whereby students acquire facts, principles, and theories as conceptual tools for reasoning and problem solving in meaningful contexts. Internet is playing an important role for such student based learning. The objective of this paper is to develop an educational framework, using data mining technologies, with the help of Dynamic Web technologies (JSP and .net) that will be used by teachers to organize the course contents on the web according to existing infrastructure, experience, needs, and later on reorganizing it if necessary, depending upon the performance of students. The approach to organize the lecture contents is based on the adaptive learning theory, incorporating Problem Based Learning (PBL) strategy. For onlinereal time lectures and evaluations, we are using video conferencing tools (VCON Falcon IP, POLYCON view station FX) through IP, at a bandwidth of 1MB-DXX. Finally a good amount of emphasis is given on evaluation procedures that the tutor can adopt to evaluate the students, in order to provide them further course contents. Presently, the course syllabus and handouts on the web sites provided to the student are static in nature. Once distributed, these documents cannot be changed or modified, and also lack depth. When course materials are placed on the web, students can select a topic in the course outline and look at the description of a topic, and required reading assignments. Instructors can easily change schedules in these on-line documents and inform the students via e-mail. Students can also submit assignments, projects and takehome exams electronically. A course home page is comprised of syllabus, assignments, projects and exams, readings and references, class presentation charts and student handouts. Students in a course are mostly assessed on the basis of the questions like why, how what, etc. In this way a student can be graded and ranked, which gives in turn provides the feedback to student for future improvements and challenges. Most of the web sites are implemented on the theory of constructivism. Constructivists propose that the construction for new knowledge starts from one’s observations of events through past experiences. Hence, learning is the integration of new knowledge and behaviors into a framework and subsequently recalling relevant events in the appropriate situation. This theory is also applied in our educational framework.