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Initial exposure to the learning environment
During the students’ initial exposure to the learning environment, the facilitator should initiate discussion concerning the various challenges to effective communication and possible solutions to these challenges. The students should then be made aware of the usefulness or function of an expert system and also acquire insight into the components of an expert system.
It is advisable to show the students various video clips depicting communication taking place in differing contexts. These video clips should involve difficult or challenging situations in which communication between the parties involved is not conducted satisfactorily. Once the students have viewed these video clips the facilitator could obtain feedback from them and initiate a discussion by posing probing questions. The following questions may be effective in this regard:
• What went wrong in each of the clips?
• What could have been done better?
• What advice could have been given to the communicators in the video clips?
• Do you think that they need help in order to communicate better?
• What sort of help could be suggested?
Presenting the ill structured problem
Once the students have been sensitised to the challenges that may be present in a communication situation, it would be appropriate to make them aware of the ill structured problem that they will be required to explore during the design and development of the expert system. It is advisable for the facilitator to guide the students toward an understanding of the problem and outline the process that might need to be followed in order to develop a functional expert system that may provide a solution to the problem. On a face to face basis the facilitator should go through the process that needs to be followed in order to develop an expert system. This process can be outlined as follows:
• Become familiar with the definition of an expert system.
• Become familiar with the ways in which the logic of an expert system can be represented, i.e.
o Flow-diagram
o Pseudo code (natural language).
• Become familiar with how to use CourseLab as an expert system shell.
• Become familiar with the expertise of the human expert that the system will mimic (Domain knowledge, CMAPP).
• Work in groups to develop the expert system.
Explicating the expert system concept
When explaining what an expert system is, it is important that the facilitator provide the students with an accessible definition of an expert system and sketch its components. Students must also be made aware of the discrete roles that individuals may play when constructing an expert system.
The following is a definition and an outline of these components and roles:
• An expert system can be defined as a computer program that mimics or imitates the reasoning of a human expert.
• An expert system is typically comprised of:
o A knowledge base.
This knowledge base consists of facts and the rules that can be applied to those facts in order to solve problems.
o A user interface that enables information to be obtained from the novice user and which enables a solution or suggestion to be communicated to the user.
o An Inference engine that takes the user’s input and makes suggestions with reference to the knowledge base.
• Roles of the people involved in an expert system’s construction and use:
o Domain expert
o Knowledge engineer
o User
Demonstrating a functional expert system
Once the students have gained some insight into what an expert system is and what process needs to be followed in order to design and create one, the facilitator should demonstrate a functional expert system to the students using a data projector. This expert system should not be excessively complex or abstract and should be in a domain that the students are likely to be familiar with. An example of an expert system that could serve this purpose would be one that helps a novice identify a suitable type of dog. This expert system could ask the user questions regarding the dog’s size, coat length, maintenance and temperament and then recommend a type of dog that meets the criteria that the user has selected. It is useful to provide students with a handout that contains an algorithmic flow-diagram that outlines the logic of the expert system (see Addendum E). The facilitator should guide the students through the logic of each series of options using both the handout and the demonstration. The demonstration could also be supported by a paper-based step by step guide that outlines the development process using the applicable expert system shell (see Addendum I) as well as a handout that indicates common errors made while using the software (see Addendum J).
Chapter 1 Introduction to the research
1.1 Introduction
1.2 Definition of terms
1.3 Background
1.4 Aims of the research
1.5 Rationale and statement of the problem
1.6 Theoretical framework
1.7 Research questions
1.8 Research design
1.9 Delimiters of the study
1.10 Ethical considerations
1.11 Outline of chapters
Chapter 2 Literature study
2.1 Introduction
2.2 Learning theories applicable to educational computer technology
2.3 Computer technology as a cognitive tool
2.4 Expert systems
2.5 Higher-order thinking
2.6 Design-based research
2.7 Grounded theory
2.8 Research paradigm
2.9 Synthesis
2.10 Chapter summary
Chapter 3 Research design and research methods
3.1 Philosophical worldview applicable to this study
3.2 Strategy of inquiry
3.3 Design-based research
3.4 Sampling methods
3.5 Data collection
3.6 Data analysis
3.7 Trustworthiness of the research findings and analysis
3.8 Ethical considerations
Chapter 4 Data analysis and findings: Conjectures and principles associated with using computer technology as a cognitive tool to facilitate higherorder thinking
4.1 Introduction
4.2 Overview of the contact sessions held with the design team
4.3 Describing the learning environment
4.4 What conjectures and principles are associated with an intervention that uses computer technology as an expert system shell to develop higher-order thinking skills in foundation students at TUT?
4.5 Chapter summary
Chapter 5 Data analysis and findings: Exploring the experiences of students
5.1 Introduction
5.2 How will foundation students experience a learning intervention that uses technology in the form of an expert system shell in order to develop higher-order thinking skills?
5.3 Chapter summary
Chapter 6 Discussion and literature reflection
6.1 Introduction
6.2 Students left to discover information on their own
6.3 Practical application of understanding
6.4 Making connections with existing knowledge
6.5 Collaborating in groups
6.6 Representing understanding and knowledge
6.7 Designing a functional expert system
6.8 Developing a functional application
6.9 Exploring an ill structured problem
6.10 Alleviating cognitive load
6.11 Chapter summary
Chapter 7 Summary, conclusion and recommendations
7.1 Summary of the problem that gave rise to the research
7.2 Outlining the research design
7.3 Summary of the conjectures and principles
7.4 Summary of student experiences of a learning intervention based on conjectures and principles formulated to use computer technology in the form of an expert system shell in order to achieve higher-order thinking skills
7.5 Relevance of the study
7.6 Significance of the study
7.7 Suggestions for further research
7.8 Conclusion
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