Computer Sciences Commons^™

Introducing Parallelism To First-Year Cs Majors, Barbara M. Anthony, D. Cenk Erdil, Olga Glebova, Robert Montante

School of Computer Science & Engineering Faculty Publications

We propose to strengthen the computer science (CS) curriculum by embedding parallel concepts in a required first-semester seminar taken by all incoming declared CS majors. We introduce students to parallel computing concepts through a series of unplugged activities so that students see parallel approaches as a natural form of solution to a task. We describe a pilot offering of the class and activities, with measurements and analysis of what students self-report and their performance on assessments.

The Artificial University: Decision Support For Universities In The Covid-19 Era, Wesley J. Wildman, Saikou Y. Diallo, George Hodulik, Andrew Page, Andreas Tolk, Neha Gondal

VMASC Publications

Operating universities under pandemic conditions is a complex undertaking. The Artificial University (TAU) responds to this need. TAU is a configurable, open-source computer simulation of a university using a contact network based on publicly available information about university classes, residences, and activities. This study evaluates health outcomes for an array of interventions and testing protocols in an artificial university of 6,500 students, faculty, and staff. Findings suggest that physical distancing and centralized contact tracing are most effective at reducing infections, but there is a tipping point for compliance below which physical distancing is less effective. If student compliance is anything …

Cybersecurity Education Through Technological And Engineering Literacy Standards, Philip A. Reed, Steven A. Barbato

STEMPS Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Aligning Workforce Training Center Curricula With Local Business Needs, Elizabeth P. Burns

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Many cities in the United States have experienced job loss due to a shift from industrial-based to information and service economies, as well as the outsourcing of labor jobs to overseas locations. In the absence of industrial jobs once occupied by low-skilled workers, the problem that compelled this study was a perceived gap between the skills required by the employers who now hire such workers and the actual skills those workers have. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore the espoused skills required by employers in a rural region of the southeastern United States to inform the …

Interaction, Collaboration And Content Creation In Informal Online Learning Environments: Multidimensional Analyses Of Longitudinal Data From The Scratch Coding Community, Seung B. Lee

Theses and Dissertations

Despite rising levels of participation by children and adolescents in large, informal online learning communities, there has been limited research examining the role that social dynamics play on the online behavior of young users. In this context, this mixed-methods longitudinal study aimed to investigate the relationship between interaction, collaboration and content creation through the analysis of user-generated comments and log-data from the Scratch platform. The research focused on more than 45,000 comments associated with the online activity of 200 randomly selected participants over a period of three months in early 2012. A combination of methodological techniques was applied in the …

Examination Of Practices Used By Ap Computer Science Teachers With Higher Than Average Female Enrollment, Derek J. Miller

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

This dissertation examines the practices employed by AP Computer Science A teachers that can help recruit and retain female students in computer science. A survey was sent to teachers to see what practices they used in their classrooms and what practices they thought had the biggest influence on female student recruitment and retention. Of the five practice categories (recruitment, pedagogical, curricular, extracurricular, and mentoring), the survey respondents thought recruitment was the most influential and curricular was the least influential. After the survey, 12 teachers were chosen for interviews because they had a higher enrollment of female students than the rest …

Implementing Cloud-Based Enterprise Resource Planning Solutions In Small And Medium Enterprises, Ali Hamdar

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Lacking strategies to implement a cloud-based enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) can lead to a failed implementation. SME owners can improve company performance by integrating company processes by successfully implementing a cloud-based ERP solution. Grounded in the diffusion of innovation theory augmented with business process management design for Six Sigma, the purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to explore strategies SME owners use to implement cloud-based ERP solutions. The participants consisted of 4 SME owners in Lebanon who successfully implemented a cloud-based ERP solution and improved company performance and growth. Data were …

Youth Leadership Development Program Evaluation, Loreley Lyn Smith

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

In competitive youth sports organizations, few organizational leaders focus on leadership development to prepare youth for life situations. Sports organizational leaders are concerned about youth leadership development, as development allows youth to build skills necessary to understand their strengths and weaknesses and recognize ways to overcome fears. Grounded in social learning theory, the purpose of this summative program evaluation was to determine the extent to which a competitive youth sports leadership development program aligned with the organization’s primary objective to provide skilled athletic training while providing lessons to prepare youth for adulthood. The participants comprised 40 key stakeholders, including participants …

Machine Learning Techniques For Quantification Of Knee Segmentation From Mri, Sujeet More, Jimmy Singla, Ahed Abugabah, Ahmad Ali Alzubi

All Works

© 2020 Sujeet More et al. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is precise and efficient for interpreting the soft and hard tissues. Moreover, for the detailed diagnosis of varied diseases such as knee rheumatoid arthritis (RA), segmentation of the knee magnetic resonance image is a challenging and complex task that has been explored broadly. However, the accuracy and reproducibility of segmentation approaches may require prior extraction of tissues from MR images. The advances in computational methods for segmentation are reliant on several parameters such as the complexity of the tissue, quality, and acquisition process involved. This review paper focuses and briefly …

Ai Techniques For Covid-19, Adedoyin Ahmed Hussain, Ouns Bouachir, Fadi Al-Turjman, Moayad Aloqaily

All Works

© 2013 IEEE. Artificial Intelligence (AI) intent is to facilitate human limits. It is getting a standpoint on human administrations, filled by the growing availability of restorative clinical data and quick progression of insightful strategies. Motivated by the need to highlight the need for employing AI in battling the COVID-19 Crisis, this survey summarizes the current state of AI applications in clinical administrations while battling COVID-19. Furthermore, we highlight the application of Big Data while understanding this virus. We also overview various intelligence techniques and methods that can be applied to various types of medical information-based pandemic. We classify the …

Factors That Influence The Perception Of Higher Education Leaders In The Adoption Process Of Instructional Technology And Distance Education, Diego Tibaquirá

Theses and Dissertations

The problem addressed by this study was that many administrators at institutions of higher learning are faced with the task of finding ways to provide the latest technologies while being extremely constricted by budgets and the rising cost of education. The purpose of this study was to determine the factors that influence the perceptions of higher education leaders in the adoption process of Instructional Technology and Distance Education. This included an examination of the decision-making process and what determined if Instructional Technology and Distance Education were either implemented or upgraded at various higher learning institutions.

The researcher implemented a mixed-methods …

The Stained Glass Of Knowledge: On Understanding Novice Mental Models Of Computing, Briana Christina Bettin

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Learning to program can be a novel experience. The rigidity of programming can be at odds with beginning programmer's existing perceptions, and the concepts can feel entirely unfamiliar. These observations motivated this research, which explores two major questions: What factors influence how novices learn programming? and How can analogy by more appropriately leveraged in programming education?

This dissertation investigates the factors influencing novice programming through multiple methods. The CS1 classroom is observed as a "whole system", with consideration to the factors present in it that can influence the learning process. Learning's cognitive processes are elaborated to ground exploration into specifically …

Critiquing Antipatterns In Novice Code, Leo C. Ureel Ii

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Students in introductory computer science courses, are learning to program. Indeed, most students perceive that learning to code is the central topic explored in the courses. Students spend an enormous amount of time struggling to learn the syntax and understand semantics of a particular language. Instructors spend a similar amount of time reading student code and explaining the meaning of the cryptic error messages displayed by compilers. Messages provided by compilers are intended to give feedback on the adherence of one’s code to the language specification and conventions. Unfortunately, these message are geared towards experts who have a clear understanding …

Matlabta: A Style Critiquer For Novice Engineering Students, Marissa L. Walther

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Novice programmers, considered to be those who have yet to understand the fundamentals of programming, exist in both engineering and computing fields. Within computing, various resources exist to help novice programmers understand fundamentals and style guidelines such as WebTA, a code critique program that gives Java students feedback about their error and style issues. There is, however, a gap in automated code critique for MATLAB, a programming language that is popular in the engineering community. When it comes to MATLAB, there are not many programs that help novices understand their errors, and even fewer that help them understand style guidelines. …

The Effects Of Automated Grading On Computer Science Courses At The University Of New Orleans, Jerod F A Dunbar

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

This is a study of the impacts of the incorporation, into certain points of the Computer Science degree program at the University of New Orleans, of Course Management software with an Autograding component. The software in question, developed at Carnegie Mellon University, is called “Autolab.” We begin by dissecting Autolab in order to gain an understanding of its inner workings. We can then take out understanding of its functionality and apply that to an examination of fundamental changes to courses in the time since they incorporated the software. With that, we then compare Drop, Failure, Withdrawal rate data from before …

College Of Engineering Senior Design Competition Fall 2019, University Of Nevada, Las Vegas

Fred and Harriet Cox Senior Design Competition Projects

Part of every UNLV engineering student’s academic experience, the senior design project stimulates engineering innovation and entrepreneurship. Each student in their senior year chooses, plans, designs, and prototypes a product in this required element of the curriculum. A capstone to the student’s educational career, the senior design project encourages the student to use everything learned in the engineering program to create a practical, real world solution to an engineering challenge. The senior design competition helps focus the senior students in increasing the quality and potential for commercial application for their design projects. Judges from local industry evaluate the projects on …

Do My Students Understand? Automated Identification Of Doubts From Informal Reflections, Siaw Ling Lo, Kar Way Tan, Eng Lieh Ouh

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Traditionally teaching is usually one directional where the instructor imparts knowledge and there is minimal interaction between learners and instructor. With the focus on learner-centred pedagogy, it can be a challenge to provide timely and relevant guidance to individual learners according to their levels of understanding. One of the options available is to collect reflections from learners after each lesson to extract relevant and high-value feedback so that doubts or questions can be addressed in a timely manner. In this paper, we derived an approach to automate the identification of doubts from the informal reflections through features analysis and machine …

Smu Teaching Bank: Case Study Of A Multiyear Development Project Utilizing Student Resources, Alan Megargel, Terence P. C. Fan, Venky Shankararaman

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

A domain refers to a business sector such as banking, healthcare, insurance, manufacturing etc. For an IS student, it is imperative that the domain knowledge includes a comprehension and understanding of business processes, technology and data related to the chosen domain. For example, when learning the retail banking domain, an IS student must have an understanding of the transactions concerned with retail banking such as fund transfers and loan repayments. The student must also gain a strong foothold in transaction fulfilment processes, the various application services that are used, the data that is transferred, etc. Teaching domain knowledge is very …

Augmenting Education: Ethical Considerations For Incorporating Artificial Intelligence In Education, Dana Remian

Instructional Design Capstones Collection

Artificial intelligence (AI) has existed in theory and practice for decades, but applications have been relatively limited in most domains. Recent developments in AI and computing have placed AI-enhanced applications in various industries and a growing number of consumer products. AI platforms and services aimed at enhancing educational outcomes and taking over administrative tasks are becoming more prevalent and appearing in more and more classrooms and offices. Conversations about the disruption and ethical concerns created by AI are occurring in many fields. The development of the technology threatens to outpace academic discussion of its utility and pitfalls in education, however. …

The Experiences Of African American Male Computer Science Majors In Two Year Colleges, Simone Brookins Jenkins

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

As the field of computer science grows and the computing science workforce demands more qualified workers, the United States workforce will require underrepresented minorities to help meet these demands. African American males are a demographic that can help meet this need but there are few of them pursuing computer science careers and successfully graduating with computer science degrees. The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine the experiences of African American male two-year college students who are in pursuit of a degree in computer science. My findings indicated that the study participants’ experiences such as positive interactions with faculty …

Evaluating Conversation Agent Impact On Student Experience In A Distance Education Course, Grover Walters

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

We explore the efficacy of conversation agents operating as an instructional aid in a distance education course. Two aspects of efficacy are considered—conversation agent impact on student perceptions of the experience, and how different design features of the agent affect student perceptions of engagement. Evaluation of the agent is accomplished by collecting data from 24 undergraduate participants separated into random groups. We conduct two rounds of mixedmethod evaluation. Between the two rounds, a modification to the agent occurs based on the outcome of the first evaluation. Findings include limitations related to phrasing and data persistence features of the design that …

Characterizing Instructional Leader Interactions In A Social Learning Management System Using Social Network Analysis, Orven E. Llantos, Ma. Regina Justina E. Estuar

Department of Information Systems & Computer Science Faculty Publications

Online learning environments are designed with specific users and respective roles in mind. However, for social systems that thrive on the interaction between and among users, important features are developed based on relationships that evolve over time. Typical learning management systems are designed with the teacher and the student as primary users of the system. my.eskwela is a social learning management system that has been designed for use in public schools in the Philippines with the inclusion of an additional user, the school administrator. Although administrators influence on student learning through mediated effects of instructional leadership, pieces of literature are …

Read And Publish: What Can Libraries Expect?, Josh Horowitz

Charleston Library Conference

The author provides a publisher's perspective on the challenges and opportunities faced by a mid-sized society in navigating the current transition to open access licensing models.

Proposal For A Joint Cybersecurity And Information Technology Management Program, Christopher Simpson, Debra Bowen, William Reid, James Juarez

KSU Proceedings on Cybersecurity Education, Research and Practice

Cybersecurity and Information Technology Management programs have many similarities and many similar knowledge, skills, and abilities are taught across both programs. The skill mappings for the NICE Framework and the knowledge units required to become a National Security Agency and Department of Homeland Security Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense Education contain many information technology management functions. This paper explores one university’s perception on how a joint Cybersecurity and Information Technology Management program could be developed to upskill students to be work force ready.

Adversarial Thinking: Teaching Students To Think Like A Hacker, Frank Katz

KSU Proceedings on Cybersecurity Education, Research and Practice

Today’s college and university cybersecurity programs often contain multiple laboratory activities on various different hardware and software-based cybersecurity tools. These include preventive tools such as firewalls, virtual private networks, and intrusion detection systems. Some of these are tools used in attacking a network, such as packet sniffers and learning how to craft cross-site scripting attacks or man-in-the-middle attacks. All of these are important in learning cybersecurity. However, there is another important component of cybersecurity education – teaching students how to protect a system or network from attackers by learning their motivations, and how they think, developing the students’ “abilities to …

Integrating Mathematics And Biology In The Classroom: A Compendium Of Case Studies And Labs, Becky Sanft, Anne Walter

Annual Symposium on Biomathematics and Ecology Education and Research

No abstract provided.

Experiences Of Using Intelligent Virtual Assistants By Visually Impaired Students In Online Higher Education, Michele R. Forbes

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In today’s world, the attainment of higher education impacts the acquisition of competitive employment and, thus, quality of life. As a group, persons with disabilities continually fall behind others in such academic progress, requiring new efforts to support their earning of advanced credentials. Though highly beneficial for these individuals, obtaining a degree comes with elevated levels of stress. As enrollment of students with disabilities grows in all formats of higher education, those involved must understand the stress endured by these students and how to diminish it. Theories speculate that technology, such as intelligent virtual assistants, may be a viable tool …

Cloud Computing Architecture For Elearning Systems In Secondary Schools In Tanzania, Kennedy F. Mwakisole, Mussa M. Kissaka Dr, Joel S. Mtebe Phd

The African Journal of Information Systems

In recent years, schools have been investing heavily on information and communications technology (ICT) infrastructure to implement eLearning systems to enhance the quality of education in secondary schools in Tanzania. The majority of these systems are implemented using a traditional web-based eLearning approach on school premises which is costly and limits usage due to lack of scalability and flexibility. Consequently, many schools have started adopting cloud computing as a solution. However, this adaption depends on well-defined cloud eLearning architecture. This study proposed cloud architecture for implementing an eLearning system in secondary schools in Tanzania by adopting various layers proposed in …

Exercises Integrating High School Mathematics With Robot Motion Planning, Ronald I. Greenberg, George K. Thiruvathukal

Computer Science: Faculty Publications and Other Works

This paper presents progress in developing exercises for high school students incorporating level-appropriate mathematics into robotics activities. We assume mathematical foundations ranging from algebra to precalculus, whereas most prior work on integrating mathematics into robotics uses only very elementary mathematical reasoning or, at the other extreme, is comprised of technical papers or books using calculus and other advanced mathematics. The exercises suggested are relevant to any differerential-drive robot, which is an appropriate model for many different varieties of educational robots. They guide students towards comparing a variety of natural navigational strategies making use of typical movement primitives. The exercises align …

Soul Of Cafecs, Lucia Dettori, Steven Mcgee, Ron Greenberg, Dale Reed, Don Yanek, Andrew Rasmussen

Computer Science: Faculty Publications and Other Works

No abstract provided.