Intelligent and Adaptive Learning Systems : Technology Enhanced Support for Learners and Teachers

Technology enhanced learning takes place in many different forms and contexts, including formal and informal settings, individual and collaborative learning, learning in the classroom, at home, at work, and outdoor in real life situations, as well as desktop-based learning and learning by using mobile devices. Environments range from desktop-based learning systems such as learning management systems, which present learners with learning material and activities, to mobile, pervasive, and ubiquitous learning environments which are used in real life settings and enable learners to learn from real learning objects. In each of these forms and contexts, adaptive and intelligent support has potential to contribute in making such learning environments more personalized, user-friendly, and effective in supporting learners in learning. Intelligent and Adaptive Learning Systems: Technology Enhanced Support for Learners and Teachers focuses on how intelligent support and adaptive features can be integrated in currently used learning systems and discusses how intelligent and adaptive learning systems can be improved in order to provide a better learning environment for learners. This book provides academics as well as professional practitioners innovative research work for enhancing learning environments with adaptively and intelligent support in different contexts and settings, ranging from provision of courses and assessment in formal desktop-based learning systems to learning environments that support collaborative, informal, ubiquitous learning.

Sabine Graf has a PhD from Vienna University of Technology, Austria & is presently an Assistant Professor at Athabasca University, School of Computing & Information Systems, in Canada. Her research expertise & interests include adaptivity & personalization, student modeling, ubiquitous & mobile learning, artificial intelligence & collaborative learning technologies. She has published more than 60 peer-reviewed journal papers, book chapters & conference papers in these areas, of which three conference papers were awarded with the best paper award. Dr. Graf is Executive Board Member of the IEEE Technical Committee on Learning Technologies, Editor of the Learning Technology Newsletter, a publication of the IEEE Computer Society's Technical Committee on Learning Technology (TCLT) & Associate Editor of the International Journal of Interaction Design & Architectures. She is an active member of the research community, serving as editorial board member of three international journals, workshop chair & organizer of eight international workshops, doctoral consortium chair at three international conferences & guest editor of three special issues. Furthermore, Dr. Graf has been invited to given keynote/invited talks at universities/companies/conferences in Austria, Canada, Colombia, New Zealand, Taiwan & UK.

Dr. Fuhua Lin is a Professor & the Centre Chair of the School of Computing & Information Systems, of Athabasca University, Canada. Dr. Lin has been conducting research in Computers in Education since 1986. He obtained his PhD in Virtual Reality from Hong Kong University of Science & Technology in 1998. Prior to working in Athabasca University, Dr. Lin was an assistant research officer at the Institute for Information Technology (IIT) of the National Research Council (NRC) of Canada. Dr. Lin conducted post-doctoral research at the University of Calgary during 1998-1999.

Dr. Lin has garnered international recognition for his research in Artificial Intelligence (AI) in education & agent-based educational systems. His current research interest is applying AI technology through constructing effective & efficient algorithms to address challenges that may exist in traditional educational systems & to enhance online & distance learning environments, e.g. incorporating intelligence into virtual worlds for e-learning to build engaging, personalized & interactive social virtual learning environments for online learning.

Kinshuk is NSERC/iCORE/Xerox/Markin Industrial Research Chair for Adaptivity & Personalization in Informatics, Associate Dean of Faculty of Science & Technology & Full Professor in the School of Computing & Information Systems at Athabasca University, Canada. His work has been dedicated to advancing research on the innovative paradigms, architectures & implementations of learning systems for individualized & adaptive learning in increasingly global environments. He is the Founding Chair of IEEE Technical Committee on Learning Technology & the Editor of the SSCI indexed Journal of Educational Technology & Society. He has been involved in numerous large-scale research projects for exploration based adaptive educational environments & has published over 300 research papers in international refereed journals, conferences & book chapters.

Rory McGreal is a Professor of Computer Technologies in Education & the Associate Vice President of Athabasca University - Canada's Open University based in Alberta. He is also a UNESCO Chair in Open Educational Resources. He has been honored with the Wedemeyer Award for Distance Education practitioner. His present research interests include the use of open educational resources & standards in technology assisted learning, particularly in the development & application of learning objects.