Researchers have recently reported various issues and factors on ICT education. However, a framework that consists of the issues and factors has not been clarified. The existing methods for clarifying the framework of issues with idea generation and decision support have two major problems. The first one is requiring long discussions for resulting idea generation. The second one is the waiting time until finishing of idea generation. For solving these problems, we proposed Vote Based Evaluation (VBE) method that integrates idea generation and decision support. VBE method picks out issues and factors from persons, organizes them with directed graphs, selects approved factors with votes and thresholds, and finally arranges the issues in order according to the degrees of concerns. Moreover, we implemented VBE method in our Distributed Cooperative Evaluation System (DiCES) for improving effects of VBE methods and for spreading the method among persons through the Internet. This paper describes the rationale of VBE and DiCES, and presents some experimental results.

The purpose of this study is to obtain basic data that are useful for future study guidance by examining problem solving process and knowledge structure in Event Driven Type of programming. We examined the relation between knowledge structure that investigated it by 'Card Sorting' and problem solving process that was obtained by 'Problem solving process scale in event driven type of programming'. As a result, the next point became clear. 1) ‘Control structure’ and ‘Utilization of the object’ of knowledge structure are exerting the influence on problem solving. 2) The structure of excellent knowledge is useful for the process of ‘Planning and Realization of the plan’, ‘Action check’, ‘Modification of the error’ in processing procedure of programming. 3) The difference is not admitted in logic error and structure error search process by the standard of knowledge structure.

The purpose of this paper is to describe a WEB based Collabo-eNOTE system that provides the study in group learning effectively. The existing e-NOTEBOOK systems are difficult for learners to search the others’ useful note efficiently with the increase of learners. Therefore, it is necessary to select notes from enormous quantity of notes effectively. For solving this issue, in our study, the useful notes are recommended automatically based on the item-to-item collaborative filtering and content-based filtering by using learners’ reading history and notes’ content. We believe our system is effective for group learning.

This paper shows that text information improves the learning efficiency of the users in audio-video transmission over IP networks. Using three kinds of content types in subjective experiment, we measure learning efficiency with and without subtitles; we then compare the two cases. The learning efficiency is evaluated in terms of the ratio of correct answer. Even if the average amount of load traffic increases in the network, the ratio of correct answer keeps high values because of text information. As a result, we see that text information is effective in improving the learning efficiency in IP networks.

In this paper, we develop the activation support system in group communication, and report the evaluation results during the operation with four months. As the communication support system by means of internet technology, the Bulletin Board System (BBS), net news system, chatting, mailing list and so on are well known. However, in these system, we have no resources to know who gets informations and which informations each user gets. These problems prevent important informations from spreading all over the members. In this paper, we focus on the e-mail resource on mobile phone. Thus, we develop the news system by means of WEB technology (WEBNEWS). The system has functions similar to the net news system. In addition, the system has the e-mail function to the mobile phone, that is, the system requests that the members, who did not access the important content, should read it through the e-mail. From the evaluation experiments by comparing with the conventional net news system, finally, we success to show that the system is effective in communication efficiency and user accessibility.

PBD SPACE was developed as an interface for education using the Internet. This is equipped with some functions for supporting study and evaluation. This paper focused on PBD Brainstorming which is one idea-processing type interface of the function of PBD SPACE which is an interface for education using the Internet, and analysis of the effect was conducted. As a result, two knowledge was acquired. The 1st, it was effective in orienting the abstract contents of a proposal with the concrete contents of a proposal. The 2nd, as the feature of the produced report, it turned out that the report which suited meaning of a title has the concrete contents of a proposal, and that the number of characters also increases. The thing of two points was suggested from the above-mentioned thing. With a proposed type report subject, PBD Brainstorming can support a student’s text production. It is important to press a student to write “more mostly” “more concretely” in order to raise the goodness of fit to the meaning of a title of a report.

This paper reports on the practice of a lesson in a junior high school in which Error-based Simulation (EBS) was used to help students learn elementary mechanics. EBS simulates the motion of a mechanical system assuming that studentsﾕ erroneous solutions were correct. EBS has been proved to be effective in laboratory experiments. Twenty-four students participated in the lesson lasting 110 minutes and learned mechanics by using the system which generates and shows EBS. They also worked on the pre-/post-/delay-tests and were interviewed by the teacher after the lesson. The results are as follows: (1) Through the highly motivating lesson activities, the students discovered the knowledge of mechanics by themselves, (2) It was highly effective in improving the studentsﾕ performance in solving mechanics problems. Furthermore, this improvement was maintained, and (3) the usability of the system proved sufficient for practice in classroom lessons. These results are encouraging for the practical use of EBS in junior high school lessons.

In this paper, we introduce a new e-learning system for programming training, which provides a simple game-like user interface, and applies genetic algorithm for problem generation. The proposed system provides a man-machine interface such that the user solves programming problems by laying out program puzzle pieces, so that beginner level learners can easily work through the training in a game-like fashion. The proposed system applies genetic algorithm to the programming problem generation algorithm, so that the system can automatically generate many different patterns of programming problems which are suited for each learner's progress level. We tested the developed system in an actual programming language course, and compare the learning progress between students who used and students who did not use the proposed learning system. From the results of the comparison, we were able to confirm the validity of the proposed system.

We have designed and developed Java programming online course materials and conducted classes in: blended style and ‘fully e-learning’ style, from 2005 to 2006. We have improved content based on the results of questionnaires and comments from students year by year. In addition, we gave special care for students when we conducted ‘fully e-learning’ style. Consequently, we gave students the educational equivalent of blended style using ‘fully e-learning’. And we found that it is important that guidance and face-to-face sessions should be conducted in a suitable fashion, in addition to well-designed coursework, to achieve ‘fully e-learning’ successfully.