Developing an Online Test to Measure Writing and Speaking Skills Automatically

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 69-78
Author(s):  
Gordon Bateson
Keyword(s):  
Open Source ◽  
Test Reliability ◽  
Entrance Exams ◽  
Spoken English ◽  
Online Test ◽  
Large Numbers ◽  
Teachers And Students ◽  
Automatic Grading ◽  
Speaking Skills

As a result of the Japanese Ministry of Education's recent edict that students' written and spoken English should be assessed in university entrance exams, there is an urgent need for tools to help teachers and students prepare for these exams. Although some commercial tools already exist, they are generally expensive and inflexible. To address these shortcomings, a new open-source, online test for assessing English ability was developed. The test features the automatic grading not only of reading and listening, but also of speaking and writing. Thus, the general English ability of large numbers of students can be checked quickly online, making the test suitable for use in entrance exams and placements tests. It is based around the Moodle LMS and features several new plugins to automatically grade speaking and writing. This paper details plugin development, shows preliminary samples, and explains how test reliability will be verified by comparing students' scores with human-ratings and widely used tests such as IELTS, TOEIC, and CASEC.

scholarly journals CONSCIOUS USE OF CODE-SWITCHING TO IMPROVE FLUENCY IN SPOKEN ENGLISH OF BANGLADESHI STUDENTS

2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (6) ◽  
pp. 247-254
Author(s):  
Ehatasham Ul Hoque Eiten ◽  
M Hasan Parvez ◽  
Kaish Q Khan
Keyword(s):  
English Language ◽  
Language Teaching ◽  
Communicative Language Teaching ◽  
Code Switching ◽  
English Language Teaching ◽  
Tertiary Level ◽  
Spoken English ◽  
Teachers And Students ◽  
Three Phases ◽  
Speaking Skills

Purpose: Present-day English language teaching in Bangladesh, despite adopting Communicative Language Teaching (CLT), focuses more on accuracy (i.e. grammar) than fluency which is proved as a weak strategy. Fluency acquisition in speaking includes pronunciation, but focusing on pronunciation first, slows down the process of becoming a fluent speaker. Methodology: As code-switching exists at the tertiary level in Bangladesh and because of the tremendous fascination of Bangladeshi students towards Bengali, code-switching can be utilized as a tool to improve fluency in spoken English. Thus, this research proposes an alternative to existing approaches. Result: Once desired fluency is achieved; grammar and pronunciation will be emphasized respectively to attain proper speaking skills. The success of this process can be studied in three phases. In the first phase, it examines whether allowing code-switching while speaking English helps Bengali students achieve fluency or not. Applications: This research can be used for universities, teachers, and students. Novelty/Originality: In this research, the model of the Conscious Use of Code-Switching to Improve Fluency in Spoken English of Bangladeshi Students is presented in a comprehensive and complete manner.

scholarly journals Psi4 1.4: Open-Source Software for High-Throughput Quantum Chemistry

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Smith ◽  
Lori Burns ◽  
Andrew Simmonett ◽  
Robert Parrish ◽  
Matthew Schieber ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Perturbation Theory ◽  
Quantum Chemistry ◽  
Open Source ◽  
Density Functional ◽  
Many Body ◽  
Hartree Fock ◽  
Large Numbers ◽  
Many Body Perturbation Theory ◽  
Infrastructure Project ◽  
Job Specification

<div> <div> <div> <p>Psi4 is a free and open-source ab initio electronic structure program providing Hartree–Fock, density functional theory, many-body perturbation theory, configuration interaction, density cumulant theory, symmetry-adapted perturbation theory, and coupled-cluster theory. Most of the methods are quite efficient thanks to density fitting and multi-core parallelism. The program is a hybrid of C++ and Python, and calculations may be run with very simple text files or using the Python API, facilitating post-processing and complex workflows; method developers also have access to most of Psi4’s core functionality via Python. Job specification may be passed using The Molecular Sciences Software Institute (MolSSI) QCSchema data format, facilitating interoperability. A rewrite of our top-level computation driver, and concomitant adoption of the MolSSI QCArchive Infrastructure project, make the latest version of Psi4 well suited to distributed computation of large numbers of independent tasks. The project has fostered the development of independent software components that may be reused in other quantum chemistry programs. </p> </div> </div> </div>

Educational use of free and open source software (FOSS): international development and its implications for higher education

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Chenggui Duan ◽  
Tracy K. Lee
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Hong Kong ◽  
Open Source ◽  
International Development ◽  
Open Source Software ◽  
Relevant Literature ◽  
Control Cost ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Teachers And Students ◽  
Education In Hong Kong

Purpose Free and open-source software (FOSS) has been used worldwide because of the advantages of user control, cost-saving, flexibility, openness, freedom, more security and better stability. The purpose of this study is to explore the status quo of educational application of FOSS and the trends from international perspectives and its implications for higher education in Hong Kong. Design/methodology/approach The method of cluster analysis was used in this study. The Web of Science database was used as the data source and all relevant literature for the year 2010–2020 on the theme of “FOSS” was collected for analysis. The information visualization software CiteSpace was used for citation visualization analysis, revealing the research results of FOSS worldwide, including hot spots and development trends. Findings This paper found that FOSS has become an important research area and is playing an important role in the reform and development of education. Meanwhile, the development and application of FOSS have regional imbalances and strong differentiation, including the educational sector. The paper also found that although FOSS has entered the stage of interdisciplinary development, the research and development of FOSS in the field of education is insufficient, which poses a huge challenge to decision-makers, teachers and students. Originality/value Implications for higher education in Hong Kong including: attach importance to and vigorously promote FOSS research and practice to benefit more teachers and students; teachers and students need to be trained for acquiring the awareness and skills of FOSS applications and formulate different strategies; the government should provide greater support to formulate and implement a short and middle-term development plan to facilitate the application of FOSS; and Hong Kong higher education institutions may strengthen exchanges and cooperation with counterparts around the world to jointly promote the development of FOSS. It is hoped that the findings will provide a reference for the study and application of FOSS in higher education in Hong Kong.

Key Concepts and Definitions of Open Source Communities

2010 ◽  
pp. 753-760
Author(s):  
Ruben van Wendel de Joode ◽  
Sebastian Spaeth
Keyword(s):  
Software Development ◽  
Open Source ◽  
Open Source Software ◽  
Online Communities ◽  
Source Code ◽  
Professional Organizations ◽  
Large Numbers ◽  
Key Concepts ◽  
Open Source Communities ◽  
Do So

Most open source software is developed in online communities. These communities are typically referred to as “open source software communities” or “OSS communities.” In OSS communities, the source code, which is the human-readable part of software, is treated as something that is open and that should be downloadable and modifiable to anyone who wishes to do so. The availability of the source code has enabled a practice of decentralized software development in which large numbers of people contribute time and effort. Communities like Linux and Apache, for instance, have been able to connect thousands of individual programmers and professional organizations (although most project communities remain relatively small). These people and organizations are not confined to certain geographical places; on the contrary, they come from literally all continents and they interact and collaborate virtually.

scholarly journals Einige Erfahrungen und Gedanken über Hochschuldidaktik an der Massenuniversität / Some remarks and observation on teaching methods at university with mass student attendence

1976 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Carol Hagemann-White
Keyword(s):  
Teaching Methods ◽  
Final Section ◽  
University Teaching ◽  
Teaching Behavior ◽  
Large Numbers ◽  
University Of Berlin ◽  
Teachers And Students ◽  
Fruitful Cooperation ◽  
The University ◽  
The Relationship

AbstractThe author reports her experience of and observations on the teaching of sociology at the Free University of Berlin. She examines the teaching behavior of the instructors, the relationship between colleagues, and those between teachers and students. Certain tendencies in the practice of teaching are viewed as expressing a form of coping by projection with the failures experienced in trying to reform studies, failures that are in fact caused by the unfavorable real conditions at the university. A tendency to make university teaching more like schooling is observed; reasons for this are found in the effects of pressure towards professional competition, which prevents both fruitful cooperation between instructors and genuine communication with students. The additional difficulties experienced by women in teaching are described. In the final section conclusions are drawn in the form of practical suggestions which take account of the actual possibilities of a university with very large numbers of students.

scholarly journals Online Open-Source Writing Aid as a Pedagogical Tool

2018 ◽  
Vol 11 (8) ◽  
pp. 126
Author(s):  
Beata Lewis Sevcikova
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Open Source ◽  
Academic Writing ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
College Level ◽  
Writing Evaluation ◽  
Automated Writing Evaluation ◽  
Online Tools ◽  
Teachers And Students ◽  
Automated Feedback

The present research offers an assessment of the online open source tools used in the L2 academic writing, teaching, and learning environment. As fairly little research has been conducted on how to best use online automated proofreaders for educational purposes, the objective of this study is to examine the potential of such online tools. Unlike most studies focusing on Automated Writing Evaluation (AWE), this research concentrates only on the online, open-source writing aide, grammar, spelling and writing style improvement tools available either for free or as paid versions. The accessibility and ability to check language mistakes in academic writings such as college-level essays in real time motivates both, teachers and students. The findings of this empirical-based study indicate that despite some bias, computerized feedback facilitates language learning, assists in improving the quality of writing, and increases student confidence and motivation. The current study can help with the understanding of students’ needs in writing, as well as in their perception of automated feedback.

scholarly journals Teaching Speaking Skills through Role Play at Elementary Level: An Analysis

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 93
Author(s):  
Muhammad Safdar Bhatti
Keyword(s):  
Learning Process ◽  
Role Play ◽  
Elementary Level ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Teachers And Students ◽  
The Status ◽  
Post Test ◽  
Teaching Learning ◽  
Speaking Skills

English has won the status of International language. The quality of our expression depends on our use of speaking skills. The importance and value of speaking English have been accepted worldwide. In Pakistan, Teaching English was mainly focused upon reading and writing skills. But in today’s world, listening and speaking skills have become much more important than in the past. Recently, the value of role-play in the classroom situation has become mandatory to make the teaching-learning process easy, attractive, and interesting. The implementation of role-play was expected to be an effective way to improve the learners’ speaking skills. So in the present study, the focus is on this matter whether the use of role play can be beneficial in bringing a positive change in the teaching-learning process of speaking skills for elementary level learners. The collective problems of the teachers and students during speaking English were the main focus of the study. 360 students and twenty teachers of Bahawalpur region participated in this study. Pre-test, post-test, and questionnaire were used as a tool to collect the data from the respondents. The findings of the study showed that there was a significant difference between pre-test and post-test results. It was suggested that speech practice with the help of role play should be encouraged at the elementary level.

scholarly journals met: Expanding on old estimations of biodiversityfrom eDNA with a new software framework

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Molik ◽  
Caroline DeVoto ◽  
Daniel Molik
Keyword(s):  
Open Source ◽  
Open Source Software ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Environmental Dna ◽  
Software Framework ◽  
Large Numbers ◽  
Frame Work ◽  
Standing Problem

(1) Motivation: A long standing problem in Environmental DNA has been the inability to compute across large number of datasets. Here we introduce an Open Source software frame work that can store a large number of Environmental DNA datasets, as well as provide a platform for analysis, in an easily customizable way. We show the utility of such an approach by analyzing over 1400 arthropod datasets. (2) Results: This article introduces a new software framework, met, which utilizes large numbers ofmetabarcode datasets to draw conclusions about patterns of diversity at large spatial scales. Given more accurate estimations on the distribution of variance in metabarcode datasets, this software framework could facilitate novel analyses that are outside the scope of currently available similar platforms. (3) Availability: All code are published under the Mozilla Public License ver 2.0 on the met project page: https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/SPB8V

scholarly journals MVR ABBAS: MULTIMEDIA VIRTUAL REALITY GAME BERBICARA BAHASA ARAB UNTUK SISWA JENJANG MENENGAH PERTAMA

2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 44
Author(s):  
Novita Kusumadewi ◽  
Aziz Fajar Nurizki ◽  
Andri Bekti Pratama ◽  
Zukhaira Zukhaira
Keyword(s):  
Virtual Reality ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Writing Skills ◽  
Intercultural Education ◽  
Listening Skills ◽  
Teachers And Students ◽  
Arabic Speaking ◽  
Speaking Skills

Language learning must be carried out hierarchically from listening skills to writing skills. Although learning Arabic in Indonesia has been going on for centuries, learning listening skills and speaking Arabic still lacks adequate attention and focus. This happens because there is no proper language learning media available. Teachers rarely use and even never use media in learning Arabic, especially speaking skills. Based on the above problems, a solution is needed in the form of a variety of learning media that can be used by teachers and students in speaking learning, namely MVR Abbas (Multimedia Virtual Reality Arabic Speaking Game), an Arabic Speaking Game which not only teaches and trains related speaking skills only, but also has the contents of the material based on intercultural education considering learning languages will not be separated from learning the culture of the language.

scholarly journals Creating reproducible dynamic reports using data from the Secure Anonymised Information Linkage (SAIL) Databank

2017 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ting Wang
Keyword(s):  
Open Source ◽  
Source Code ◽  
Highly Efficient ◽  
Large Numbers ◽  
General Practices ◽  
R Packages ◽  
Automate Documentation ◽  
Using Data

ABSTRACT Introduction/BackgroundR, an open source analytical software has gained wide popularity for its powerful statistical and graphical techniques, little known is that it also proves to be a fantastic tool for generating automated, content specific documentation using a combination of extensible packages (i.e. R markdown, Pandoc, MiKTex, Knitr). One such example of using these techniques is to create content specific PDF reports for the 300 plus general practices in Wales who are contributing data to the Secure Anonymised Information Linkage (SAIL) Databank. Objectives1). Create large number of automated PDF reports 2). Content specific to individual practice ApproachThis project aimed to facilitate the production of a large number of similar reports (tailored to specific recipients) by reducing the repetition and manual effort required. This was done by using a combination of packages in R to create scripts to automate the production of large numbers of tailored reports that capture the characteristics of each individual practice. ResultsThe output of this piece of work was a set of tailored reports for more than 300 Walsh general practices contributing data to the Secure Anonymised Information Linkage (SAIL) Databank up to 2015. The production of these reports was automated using a combination of R packages; the source code is flexible and can be applied to a range of contexts. ConclusionMethods described in this talk is highly efficient and easy to adapt to different context (e.g. automate documentation for metadata)

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