Main topic of this thesis is evaluation of user interfaces of learning management systems (LMS). It is the users and their interaction with the system who are the focus of user interface design within the field of Human Computer Interaction (HCI), and that is why user experience was taken into account for interface evaluation. The aim of the thesis was proposition of function criteria field that reflect users' requirements on the system and that can therefore serve as a basis for partial LMS evaluation. Within the scope of HCI interdisciplinarity, we focused on technical-psychological view (computer - human), complemented by the field that reflects the very purpose of LMS - pedagogical process. We believe that combination of general function criteria, which can be applied to any system, and learning content criteria is crucial for LMS evaluation, together with criteria concerning distribution forms and work methods. Based on defined areas, LMS Unifor courses from 2012- 2014 period of time and LMS Moodle courses from 2015-2017 period of time were evaluated using qualitative and quantitative research methods. The output of the research is a set of function criteria, which we regard to be elementary and suggest to be taken into account when considering a LMS.

Online basierte Lernplattformen sind an Universitäten und Hochschulen im Bereich der Lehre weitestgehend eingeführt. An Schulen werden diese Lernplattformen ebenfalls immer mehr genutzt. Bei der Nutzung von online basierten Lernplattformen verspricht man sich eine Reihe von Verbesserungen im Bereich der Selbstlernkompetenzen. In der vorliegenden Arbeit wird untersucht, in welcher Form Lernangebote auf der Basis von Lernplattformen über das Internet für Schüler bereitgestellt werden können und welche Konsequenzen sich für den Aufbau der Lernplattformen ergeben, wenn diese in der Schule eingesetzt werden. Parallel hierzu wird untersucht, wie stark sich die Selbstlernkompetenz der Schüler während der Nutzung von online basierten Lernplattformen verändert. Damit eine Zuordnung der entwickelten Szenarien zu den jeweiligen Lernplattformen vereinfacht wird, wurde ein Diagramm in der Form eines Fünfeckes entwickelt. Dieses Diagramm wird als didaktisches Pentagramm in der Arbeit eingeführt und verwendet. Bei der Nutzung der Lernplattformen wird die Möglichkeit der Kollaboration zwischen den Nutzern (Lehrende und Lerner) als Klassifikationskriterium aus der Sicht eines Lerners eingeführt. Daraus ergeben sich zwei Typen von Lernplattformen: - Primär kollaborative Systeme (PKS) bzw. Gruppenlernsysteme, bei denen die Kollaboration einen wesentlichen Bestandteil des Wissenserwerbs darstellt und - Sekundär kollaborative Systeme (SKS) bzw. Individuallernsysteme, bei denen eine Kollaboration mit anderen Lernern in den Hintergrund rückt. Der Einsatz der Lernplattformen wird zum einen durch einen Fragebogen zum anderen durch die Messung der Leistungsentwicklung im Vergleich zu Testgruppen ohne die Nutzung von online basierten Lernplattformen erfasst. Aus diesen Ergebnissen heraus werden allgemeine technische Anforderungen an Lernplattformen abgeleitet. Durch die Umsetzung dieser Forderungen soll sichergestellt werden, dass bei einem Einsatz der Lernplattformen im schulischen Bereich ein optimaler Lernerfolg erreicht werden kann. Es wird nachgewiesen, dass für Einsatz von online basierten Lernplattformen bei Lernern mit einer gering ausgeprägten Selbstlernkompetenz eine Steuerung des Lernweges notwendig ist. In diesem Fall führt der Einsatz von online basierten Lernplattformen des Types SKS zu einer Verbesserung der Lernleistung. Der kollaborative Ansatz unter Nutzung eines primär kollaborativen Systems bzw. Gruppenlernsystems führt bei den Testgruppen zwar zu einer Verbesserung der Selbstlernkompetenz, hierbei können jedoch keine Verbesserungen von Lernleistungen gegenüber dem klassischen Lehransatz nachgewiesen werden. ---- <img src="http://vg01.met.vgwort.de/na/532892aa69654092b591f5531a8bf22c" width="1" height="1" alt=""/>

Abstract in English, Afrikaans and Xhosa / Blended learning is referenced as the “best of both worlds” (Snart, 2010:xvi), which integrates Face-to-Face instruction with online learning. With interest in incorporating blended learning within the higher education curricula expanding, many private higher education institutions seek to understand how they can use educational technology effectively in blended learning to enhance undergraduate students’ learning engagement. This study investigated the nature and extent of private higher education students’ learning engagement in blended learning programmes within a private higher education provider. Through the lens of Bandura's (2000:121, 2009:180) Social Cognitive Theory, the study investigated private higher education students’ learning engagement in blended learning during the completion of their qualification and how it impacted teaching and learning. A descriptive quantitative research design was adopted, coupled with a positivist paradigm of inquiry. Utilising a cross-sectional survey it acquired descriptive data from a sample population of 567 respondents who answered the study’s research questions. The study found that student orientation programmes are associated with students’ perceived self-efficacy, subsequently affecting their engagement in blended learning programmes directly, and through the impact on outcome expectations, goals and socio-structural impediments. Additionally, socio-structural facilitators impacted outcome expectations and student engagement. The study’s results established a new framework, namely Social Cognitive Student Engagement in Blended Learning. / Gemengde leer word dikwels die “beste van twee wêrelde” genoem (Snart, 2010:xvi) aangesien onderrig nie alleen van aangesig tot aangesig nie, maar ook aanlyn geskied. Gesien die stygende belangstelling in die inskakeling van gemengde leer by hoëronderwysleerplanne, ondersoek talle private hoëronderwysinstellings maniere om opvoedkundige tegnologie in gemengde leer te gebruik om voorgraadse studente se leerbetrokkenheid te verbeter. In hierdie studie is ondersoek ingestel na die aard en omvang van studente se leerbetrokkenheid in die gemengdeleerprogramme wat by ʼn private verskaffer van hoër onderwys aangebied word. Hierdie studie het deur die lens van Bandura se sosiaal-kognitiewe teorie (2000:121, 2009:180) gekyk na studente se leerbetrokkenheid by gemengde leer in die verwerwing van ʼn kwalifikasie, en die uitwerking daarvan op onderrig en leer. Die navorsingsontwerp was deskriptief-kwantitatief en die ondersoekparadigma positivisties. Aan die hand van ʼn dwarssnitopname is beskrywende data by ʼn steekproefbevolking van 567 respondente ingewin. In die studie is bevind dat oriënteringsprogramme op studente se siening van hul eie selfwerksaamheid gemik is, hulle betrokkenheid by gemengdeleerprogramme verbeter, en daardeur hul uitkomsverwagtings, mikpunte en die mate waarin hulle sosiaal-strukturele struikelblokke oorkom, bepaal. Afgesien hiervan het sosiaal-strukturele fasiliteerders ʼn gunstige uitwerking op studente se uitkomsverwagtings en betrokkenheid gehad. ʼn Raamwerk is opgestel, naamlik die Sosiaal-Kognitiewe Betrokkenheid van Studente by Gemengde Leer. / Uhlelo lwemfundo ehlanganisiwe lubizwa, phecelezi nge “best of both worlds” (Snart, 2010:xvi), ukuhlanganisa umyalelo okhishwa ngendlela yokubhekana kwabantu ubuso nobuso kanye nohlelo lokufunda nge-inthanethi. Njengoba uthando lokufaka phakathi uhlelo lokufunda oluhlanganisiwe ngaphakathi kohlelo lwemfundo emazikweni aphakeme lya ngokuya lukhula nje, amaziko emfundo ephakeme amaningi angasese afuna ukuzwisisa ukuthi ngabe angabusebenzisa kanjani ngempumelelo ubuchwepheshe bethekinoloji bezemfundoi ohlelweni lwezokufunda oluhlanganisiwe ukuze kuqiniswe uhlelo lokufunda ngokuxoxisana nabafundi abasafundela iziqu zesigaba sokuqala. Lolu cwaningo luye lwaphenya ubunjalo kanye nezinga lokufunda kwabafundi ngokuxoxisana ezinhlelweni zokufunda okuhlanganisiwe ngaphakathi kweziko langasese lemfundo ephakeme. Ngokusebenzisa iso lomqondo wokufunda kaBandura (Bandura's social cognitive theory (2000:121, 2009:180), ucwaningo luye lwaphenya uhlelo lokufunda ngokuxoxisana nabafundi ohlelweni lokufunda ngokuhlanganyela ngesikhathi bephothula iziqu zabo kanye nangendlela lolu hlelo lunomthelela ngayo kwezokufundisa nokufunda. Idizayini yocwaningo oluchazayo olwencike kumanani luye lwamukelwa, ngokuthi luhambisane nohlelo lwe-positivist paradigm of inquiry. Ngokusebenzisa isaveyi i-cross-sectional survey, idatha echazayo yaqoqwa kwisampuli yenani lonke labaphenduli abayi-567. Ucwaningo luye lwathola ukuthi izinhlelo zokwamukela abafundi zihlobene nemiqondo yabafundi (students’ perceived self-efficacy), bese kulandelise ngokuthinta ngqo ukuxoxisana kwabo kwizinhlelo zokufunda ezihlanganisiwe. Ukwengeza, abahlanganisi besakhiwo somphakathi babe nomthelela phezu kwemiphumela elindelwe kanye nokuxoxisana nomfundi. Kuye kwasungulwa isakhiwo esisha, sona yilesi esilandelayo, phecelezi, Social Cognitive Student Engagement in Blended Learning. / Curriculum and Instructional Studies / M. Ed. (Curriculum Studies)

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / The emergence of information exchange and act of offering features through external interfaces is a vast but immensely valuable challenge, and essential elements of learning environments cannot be excluded. Nowadays, there are a lot of different service providers working in the learning systems market and each of them has their own advantages. On that premise, in today's world even large learning management systems are trying to cooperate with each other in order to be best. For instance, Instructure is a substantial company and can easily employ a dedicated team tasked with the development of a video conferencing functionality, but it chooses to use an open source alternative instead: The BigBlueButton. Unfortunately, different learning system manufacturers are using different technologies for various reasons, making integration that much harder. Standards in learning environments have come to resolve problems regarding exchanging information, providing and consuming functionalities externally and simultaneously minimizing the amount of effort needed to integrate systems. In addition to defining and simplifying these standards, careful consideration is essential when designing new, comprehensive and useful systems, as well as adding interoperability to existing systems, all which subsequently took part in this research. In this research I have reviewed most of the standards and protocols for integration in learning environments and proposed a revised approach for app stores in learning environments. Finally, as a case study, a learning tool has been developed to avail essential functionalities of a social educational learning management system integrated with other learning management systems. This tool supports the dominant and most popular standards for interoperability and can be added to learning management systems within seconds.

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I dagsläget är introduktionsutbildningen för sjuksköterskorna på kliniken för hematologi på Karolinska Universitetssjukhuset otillräcklig vilket kan bidra till en äventyrad patientsäkerhet. Kliniken hoppas på att, med hjälp av ett interaktivt nätbaserat lärverktyg, kunna effektivisera sjuksköterskornas interna utbildning, göra deras utbildningsmaterial lättare att lära och motivera dem till fortsatt lärande.   Detta examensarbete undersökte huruvida klinikens förhoppningar kunde uppnås. Detta undersöktes genom att skapa och utvärdera en prototyp till ett lärverktyg. Genom att kombinera teorier och forskning kring nätbaserad utbildning, användarcentrerad design, interaktionsdesign och lärandeperspektiv utvecklades ett prototypverktyg för nätbaserat lärande.   För att identifiera sjuksköterskornas behov och situation gjordes en förstudie i form av en enkät- och intervjuundersökning på klinikens personal samt en intervjustudie med ansvarig personal på kliniken och sjukhuset. En prototyp av verktyget utvecklades och dess användbarhet utvärderades tillsammans med sjuksköterskorna. Verktyget utvärderades även gällande hur det kunde effektivisera lärandet av det utbildningsmaterial inom cytostatika som tillhandahålls av landstinget; detta genom utformandet och testandet av en kurs.   Examensarbetets resultat identifierar de faktorer som bidrar till att göra ett nätbaserat lärverktyg användbart för klinikens personal. Dessa faktorer, tillsammans med identifierandet av de faktorer som påverkar deras lärandeprocess, bidrar till att effektivisera sjuksköterskornas introduktionsutbildning. Som slutsats kan ett lärverktyg som utvecklas tillsammans med berörd personal enligt en kombination av design- och lärandeperspektiv göras användbart och utbildande för att säkerställa sjuksköterskornas kompetenser och bidra till en ökad patientsäkerhet. / Today, the introductory training for the nurses of the clinic for hematology at the Karolinska University hospital is insufficient which could jeopardize the patient safety. The clinic is hoping, by using an interactive net based learning tool, to be able to streamline the nurses’ internal education, make their learning material more easily learnt and motivate them to continue learning.   This thesis examined whether the clinic’s desired results could be achieved. This was examined by creating and evaluate a prototype of a learning tool. By combining theories and research about net based education, user centered design, interaction design and learning perspectives a prototype was developed for net based learning.   In order to identify the nurses’ needs and situation, a pre-study was conducted in the form of surveys and interviews with the clinic’s personnel followed by an interview study with responsible staff at the clinic and the hospital. A prototype was developed and its usability was evaluated together with the nurses. The tool was also evaluated by its ability to streamline the learning of the educational material regarding Cytostatic which was given by the county council; this by designing and testing of a course.   The results of the thesis identifies the factors which contributes to making a net based learning tool usable for the clinics staff. These factors, together with identifying the factors that affect their learning process, contributes to streamline the nurses’ introductory training. In conclusion, a learning tool which has been developed with affected personnel through a combination of design and learning perspectives can be made usable and education in order to ensure the nurses’ competence and contribute to an increased patient safety.

In the rapidly evolving landscape of the Internet of Things (IoT), ensuring consistency and reliability becomes a top priority for a seamless user experience. In many instances, reliability is assessed through Quality of Service (QoS) metrics, sidelining traditional reliability metrics that thrive on time-dependent failure rates. The lack of a comprehensive framework that fully integrates all layers of an IoT system adds to the complexity. This gap makes it difficult to pinpoint specific areas that need improvement and to conduct a thorough assessment of the system’s reliability. This project addresses this intricate challenge, which holds significant relevance for industry professionals but remains unresolved. The project introduced an IoT architecture spanning the Power, Device, Edge, Application, and Cloud Layers. Within each layer, potential failure points were identified, and the reliability was analysed deploying time-based failure rates with an exponential distribution. Reliability Block Diagrams (RBDs) were employed to map the intricate inter-dependencies, though the framework’s adaptive nature allows for other system reliability methodologies. One of the primary outcomes of this research is the development of a new framework tailored for evaluating the reliability of various IoT system components. This framework yields insights into both system reliability and availability over time, serving as a pivotal tool for stakeholders such as device manufacturers, system integrators, network providers, and research institutions. The results show how the framework emerges as a pivotal starting point for IoT system reliability evaluation. Before this thesis, the feasibility of such a framework was uncertain, with concerns about its potential bias – being either too pessimistic or optimistic. Yet, the tangible results from this work affirm its capability to provide a balanced and reasonable reliability estimation, given the intricacies of IoT devices. This paves the way for subsequent research, enabling a deeper dive into targeted enhancements and fostering a nuanced understanding of IoT reliability. / I det snabbt föränderliga IoT-landskapet (Internet of Things) är det av högsta prioritet att säkerställa konsekvens och tillförlitlighet för en sömlös användarupplevelse. I många fall bedöms tillförlitligheten med hjälp av QoSmått (Quality of Service), vilket innebär att traditionella tillförlitlighetsmått som bygger på tidsberoende felfrekvenser åsidosätts. Avsaknaden av ett heltäckande ramverk som integrerar alla lager i ett IoT-system bidrar till komplexiteten. Denna brist gör det svårt att identifiera specifika områden som behöver förbättras och att göra en grundlig bedömning av systemets tillförlitlighet. Detta projekt tar itu med denna komplicerade utmaning, som har stor relevans för branschfolk men som fortfarande inte har lösts. Projektet introducerade en IoT-arkitektur som spänner över kraft-, enhets-, Edge-, applikationsoch molnlagren. Inom varje lager identifierades potentiella felpunkter och tillförlitligheten analyserades med hjälp av tidsbaserade felfrekvenser med en exponentiell fördelning. Tillförlitlighetsblockdiagram (RBD) användes för att kartlägga de komplicerade ömsesidiga beroendena, även om ramverkets adaptiva natur möjliggör andra metoder för systemtillförlitlighet. Ett av de främsta resultaten av denna forskning är utvecklingen av ett nytt ramverk som är skräddarsytt för att utvärdera tillförlitligheten hos olika IoT-systemkomponenter. Detta ramverk ger insikter om både systemets tillförlitlighet och tillgänglighet över tid, och fungerar som ett viktigt verktyg för intressenter som tillverkare av enheter, systemintegratörer, nätverksleverantörer och forskningsinstitutioner. Resultaten visar hur ramverket framstår som en viktig utgångspunkt för utvärdering av IoT-systemens tillförlitlighet. Före den här avhandlingen var det osäkert om ett sådant ramverk var genomförbart, med farhågor om dess potentiella partiskhet - att vara antingen för pessimistisk eller optimistisk. De konkreta resultaten från detta arbete bekräftar dock ramverkets förmåga att ge en balanserad och rimlig uppskattning av tillförlitligheten, med tanke på IoT-enheternas komplexitet. Detta banar väg för efterföljande forskning, vilket möjliggör en djupare analys av riktade förbättringar och främjar en nyanserad förståelse av IoT-tillförlitlighet.

Τα σύγχρονα πληροφοριακά συστήματα μάθησης τα οποία υποστηρίζουν εξ’ αποστάσεως εκπαίδευση, επιτρέπουν τη συστηματική διαχείριση του εκπαιδευτικού υλικού και υποστηρίζουν τις εκπαιδευτικές διαδικασίες των μαθημάτων. Τα συστήματα αυτά έχουν λειτουργικότητες όπως: η ανάρτηση ψηφιακού υλικού, η διεξαγωγή συζητήσεων, η ανάρτηση ασκήσεων-εργασιών, η πραγματοποίηση εξετάσεων και πολλές άλλες. Στόχος της συγκεκριμένης εργασίας είναι η διερεύνηση του χώρου των συστημάτων μάθησης τα οποία υποστηρίζουν εξ’ αποστάσεως εκπαίδευση καθώς επίσης και η παρουσίαση και η εφαρμογή μεθόδου αξιολόγησης τους, αξιολογώντας τα συστήματα σύμφωνα με μια λίστα λειτουργικών απαιτήσεων. Στο 1ο κεφάλαιο της διπλωματικής εργασίας γίνεται μια περιγραφή των βασικών εννοιών της εξ’αποστάσεως εκπαίδευσης καθώς επίσης και έννοιες που αφορούν τα συστήματα υποστήριξης μάθησης όπως:CBT, VLE, LMS, LCMS, CMS, Mobile Learning. Στο 2ο κεφάλαιο γίνεται μια επισκόπηση του χώρου των Συστημάτων Μάθησης Learning Course Management Systems (LCMS). Συγκεκριμένα γίνεται μία καταγραφή των χαρακτηριστικών των πιο δημοφιλών συστημάτων τόσο των εμπορικών όσο και των συστημάτων ανοικτού κώδικα με τη χρήση ενός κοινού template όπου καταγράφονται τα εξής στοιχεία: Κατασκευαστής, Σύντομη περιγραφή Λογισμικού, Πλεονεκτήματα (Δυνατά Σημεία ), Μειονεκτήματα (Αδυναμίες, Ελλείψεις), Πελατολόγιο, Τρέχουσα Έκδοση έτσι ώστε να μπορεί κάποιος εύκολα να τα συγκρίνει και να τα αξιολογήσει. Στο 3ο κεφάλαιο πραγματοποιείται ανάλυση απαιτήσεων ενός σύγχρονου συστήματος μάθησης έτσι ώστε να μπορεί να εφαρμοστεί η μεθοδολογία αξιολόγησης σε μια λίστα από χαρακτηριστικά-απαιτήσεις για τα συστήματα που παρουσιάζονται στο κεφάλαιο 2. Στο 4ο κεφάλαιο παρουσιάζεται η μεθοδολογία Αξιολόγησης των συστημάτων μάθησης η οποία στηρίζεται στη θεωρία της ασαφούς λογικής. Η συγκεκριμένη μεθοδολογία εφαρμόστηκε σαν μελέτη περίπτωσης για την αξιολόγηση συστημάτων εκπαιδευτικών δραστηριοτήτων προκειμένου να βρεθεί το πλέον κατάλληλο σύστημα για τις ανάγκες του Ελληνικού Ανοικτού Πανεπιστημίου. Τέλος στο κεφάλαιο 5 πραγματοποιείται η εφαρμογή της μεθοδολογίας αξιολόγησης μεταξύ των συστημάτων μάθησης και παρουσιάζονται τα αποτελέσματα- συμπεράσματα που εξάγονται από την εφαρμογή της μεθόδου ενώ στο τελευταίο κεφάλαιο (6ο ) παρουσιάζονται τα συμπεράσματα της εργασίας. / Modern learning information systems are designed to support distance education and have many features to support learning sequence such as: management of educational material, tools for uploading projects in several kinds (documents, multimedia files), many kinds of quizzes, grades management, forums, reports wiz and many others. The aim of this master thesis is the investigation of available learning course management systems(LCMS), requirements analysis for LCMS and presentation and implementation of an evaluation methodology for LCMS based on a requirements list. In the first chapter of this thesis, we describe the basic concepts and definitions of e-Learning, as well as concepts relating to learning support systems such as: CBT(Computer Based Training), VLE(Virtual Learning Environment), LMS(Learning Management Systems), LCMS(Learning Course Management Systems), CMS (Course Management Systems), Mobile Learning etc. The second chapter contains an investigation in the area of Learning Course Management Systems (LCMS). We used a common template in order to describe the features of the most popular LCMS (either Open Source or Commercial). The template contains features like: Small Description of any LCMS (Software Manufacturer and History, Active Users and Installations, Database Requirements, Web Server, Manufacturer Clients, Current Stable Version), Strengths of the Software, Weaknesses of the Software, Available Mobile Version. This features have been chosen in order to become easy the comparison and after that the evaluation of the systems. The third chapter contains requirements analysis of a modern learning course management system so that the evaluation methodology can be applied to a specified list of features-requirements for the systems presented in chapter 2. In the fourth chapter there is the presentation of the evaluation methodology which uses a multicriteria technical analysis which belongs to the field of methods of Multi-Criteria Group-based Decision Making Techniques, while uses methods of (intuitionistic) fuzzy logic. This method exports the results using a technique TOPSIS(Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution). In this chapter there is the theoretical description of the methodology which has been implemented as a case study for evaluating learning management systems in order to find the most suitable system for the needs of the Hellenic Open University(HOU). In Chapter 5 we will find the implementation steps of the methodology in order to exclude the most suitable LCMS for HOU and the final results(list of Systems). We will also find the conclusions of the implementation of this method. Finally the last chapter (6th) presents the final conclusions of the whole thesis and the added value this thesis offers in this field of research .