Research Initiation: Measuring mental demand of interactive textbooks using wearables and web analytics

交互式教科书创造了一种新的基于网络的主动学习形式。与传统的静态教科书相比，参与这些多感官互动体验的学生可能会学习得更快或更容易。在这个项目中，我们将使用非侵入性的可穿戴腕带收集学生的心理需求数据，因为他们“阅读”交互式基于网络的教科书称为zyBooks。更好地了解学生对教科书不同元素的心理需求，可以为未来教材的设计提供参考。为这项研究开发的测量平台也可以在课堂环境之外使用，包括学习小组和有组织的活动，如黑客松。因此，拟议的研究有可能显着推进我们的理解，通过收购的技术和专业技能和知识，在正式和非正式的设置工程师的形成。互动教科书，如zyBooks，被发现比传统教科书有更高的阅读率，并且他们的阅读率也被发现与课程成绩相关。然而，很难确定交互式教科书的哪些组成部分推动了阅读率的提高。拟议的研究目标，通过提供一个平台，不断测量心理需求的学生从事互动教科书通过阅读，观看动画，互动解决问题。该项目将使用非侵入式可穿戴腕带收集学生的生理数据，并将这些数据与zyBooks的基于网络的交互数据同步。研究小组将首先在受控实验室环境中收集数据，学生将参与一系列阅读和解决问题的任务，然后他们将使用NASA任务负荷指数自我报告他们的心理需求。利用从这两个数据流中提取的特征，研究团队将训练一种机器学习算法来预测学生自我报告的心理需求。在研究的第二阶段，该团队将收集学生在自然的日常学习环境中学习的数据，并使用经过训练的机器学习算法来预测学生的心理需求，这将导致学生在zyBook中通过不同的动画，活动和练习来持续测量他们的心理需求。该测量平台将为使用可穿戴设备改变教学和学习迈出第一步，并可用于探索其他教学问题。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Interactive textbooks have created a new web-based form of active learning. Students participating in these multi-sensory, interactive experiences may be learning faster or easier compared to traditional static textbooks. In this project, we will collect data on students' mental demand using non-invasive wearable wristbands as they "read" interactive web-based textbooks called zyBooks. Better understanding of students' mental demand in response to different elements of the textbooks could then inform the design of future instructional materials. The measurement platform developed for this study could also be used outside classroom settings, including study groups and organized events such as Hackathons. Therefore, the proposed research has the potential to significantly advance our understanding about formation of engineers through the acquisition of technical and professional skills and knowledge in both formal and informal settings. Interactive textbooks, such as zyBooks, have been found to have much higher reading rates than traditional textbooks, and their reading rates have also been found to be correlated with course grades. However, it is difficult to ascertain which components of an interactive textbook are driving the increased reading rates. The proposed research targets this problem by providing a platform for continuous measurement of mental demand as students engage with an interactive textbook through reading, watching animations, and interactive problem solving. This project will collect physiological data on students using non-invasive wearable wristbands and synchronize this data with web-based interaction data from zyBooks. The research team will first collect data in a controlled laboratory setting where students will partake in a set of reading and problem solving tasks, and then they will self report their mental demand using the NASA Task Load Index. Using features extracted from the two data streams, the research team will train a machine learning algorithm to predict the student's self-reported mental demand. In phase 2 of the study, the team will collect data on students studying in their natural, everyday study settings and use the trained machine learning algorithm to predict the students' mental demand, which will result in a continuous measurement of students' mental demand as they progress through different animations, activities, and exercises in the zyBook. The measurement platform will provide a first step towards the use of wearables to transform teaching and learning and can be used to explore additional pedagogical questions.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.