Target group Archives - EduTec Science

May122026 by Prof. Dr. Hendrik DrachslerNo Comments

How AI Systems Impact Mathematics Achievement in Rural Areas

Artificial Intelligence, PhD defense, School

On Friday, May 8, 2026, Rashmi Khazanchi successfully defended her doctoral dissertation, "Artificial Intelligence in Education: Impact of AI-Based Systems on Mathematics Achievement," at the Open Universiteit in Heerlen. The defense was supervised by Prof. Dr. Hendrik Drachsler, who holds a guest professorship at the Open Universiteit, alongside co-promotor Prof. Dr. Daniele Di Mitri (German University of Digital Sciences). The Research Question Khazanchi's work addresses a pressing challenge in education: whether AI-based learning systems can help close the mathematics achievement gap for students from socioeconomically disadvantaged backgrounds. Her research focused on students in a rural school district in South Georgia, USA — a setting often characterized by limited resources and a shortage of qualified teachers. What Was Studied The school implemented two AI-based systems to support struggling learners: ALEKS, an…

Dec182025 by Prof. Dr. Hendrik DrachslerNo Comments

New Pub: How Virtual Reality Mental Training Impacts Race Preparation in Recreational Runners

Augmented Reality, Computational Psychometrics, General education, Journal, New Pub, Publication

Can Virtual Reality Mental Training Help Recreational Runners Race Smarter? We’re glad to announce that our paper has just been published! 🎉 In this post, we share the key ideas and early findings from our newly published study exploring how virtual reality (VR) mental training—grounded in cognitive-behavioral (CB) techniques—may support long-distance recreational runners in adopting race strategies and strengthening motivation within a coaching context. What happens when cognitive-behavioral (CB) techniques like imagery and self-talk meet virtual reality (VR) in a coaching context? An exploratory study of recreational long-distance runners provides intriguing early signals. Why this study matters VR has been used in sports settings to support skill learning and performance, but it’s still relatively uncommon to see VR paired directly with cognitive-behavioral mental training—especially practical tools like imagery and self-talk…

Nov282025 by Heather WehnerNo Comments

Exploring the Future of Digital Teaching at #EduNext25

Artificial Intelligence, Conference, Event, Higher Education

On 26.11.2025 our team had the privilege of participating in #EduNext25, a full-day conference dedicated to the future of digitalization and AI in higher education. Hosted by studiumdigitale at Goethe University Frankfurt, the event brought together educators, researchers and innovators from across Hessen and beyond to discuss how technology can transform teaching and learning. The opening remarks by Prof. Dr. Viera Pirker, Minister TimonGremmels and Prof. Dr. Hendrik Drachsler set the tone: digitalization and AI are not just trends, they are essential tools for shaping the academic experience of tomorrow. One highlight was the EduConnect session, where universities from the HessenHub network and the QuiS program showcased their latest projects and approaches to digital learning. Another highlight was the panel discussion on strategic alliances for future teaching. Experts from various…

Nov142025 by Heather WehnerNo Comments

LAMASS@DiLea Study Report and Data Set Now Published

Empirical Study, Higher Education, Learning Analytics, Project, Publication, Report

What factors influence academic success and dropout rates in digital study formats at universities? What factors and effects at the subjective, curricular and institutional levels can be empirically measured and how do they interact in digital study formats? Can a factor analysis be used to compare digital and face-to-face study formats? The LAMASS@DiLea project team now present the answers to these questions in the newly published project report “LAMASS-Studie: Studienerfolg und Studienabbruch in digitalen Studienformaten”. It is a comprehensive analysis of academic success and dropout rates in digital study formats. The results of the study are valuable for existing digital study formats and for degree programs that wish to boost their use of digital technology. The dataset has also been published and is available to download. Modell des Studienabbruchs in…

Nov62025 by Nina MouhammadNo Comments

New Pub: From Nervous to Noteworthy: Evaluating SPEAKS

Competence development, Conference, Conference, Higher Education

Public speaking can be nerve-wracking, but it’s also a skill every professional needs. Many students leave higher education feeling unprepared to speak confidently in front of an audience. Traditional courses exist, but providing enough guidance to every student is time- and resource-intensive. This is where SPEAKS comes in. SPEAKS (Speech content Preparation for Effective and Authentic Knowledge Sharing) is an educational software designed to guide students through preparing the content of their speeches. The tool and its evaluation were presented at ECEL 2025 in a paper authored by Nina Mouhammad, Jan Schneider, Roland Klemke and Daniele Di Mitri as part of the HyTea-project, highlighting its potential to support students in developing better speech content and becoming more confident regarding public speaking. The tool uses a fully scripted, chat-based interface with…

Jul212025 by Heather WehnerNo Comments

New Pub: How Feedback Literacy Moderates Student Perceptions of Feedback

Feedback, Higher Education, Journal, New Pub

Whether or not students receive effective feedback can have a big impact on their overall learning process. The more qualitative and personalized the feedback is, the more effective it is in supporting the students with their individual learning goals. The latest developments in learning analytics and artificial intelligence have made it possible to provide a large number of students with personalized feedback automatically and simultaneously. Despite these technical advances, there is still much to be learned about the ability of students to use this feedback for their scholastic benefit. So far, only a limited number of studies have examined the impact of feedback literacy on students' perceptions of feedback, which is particularly true for technology-enhanced learning environments. A newly published paper addresses this issue and focuses on how students interpret…

Jun122025 by Heather WehnerNo Comments

New Pub: Tracking students’ progression in developing understanding of energy using AI technologies

Artificial Intelligence, Journal, Publication, School

[caption id="attachment_7553" align="alignright" width="400"] Instructional unit, with pre- and post-test, as well as lesson-set-level assessment[/caption] In physics education, some students fail to have the foundational knowledge of energy concepts needed to engage in societal debates on climate change and energy transformation. A newly published study highlights the potential of AI to identify students with different learning trajectories and to help bridge the knowledge gaps. The researchers used a digital workbook designed to teach energy concepts to collect detailed interaction data from over 500 students. After applying exclusion criteria, data from 172 students were analyzed to identify their productive and unproductive learning curves. [caption id="attachment_7554" align="alignleft" width="400"] Example single choice pretest item[/caption] By using machine learning, specifically random forest models, and natural language processing (NLP), the researchers were able to classify…

Feb52025 by Heather WehnerNo Comments

New Pub: Memorizing Plans With an App

Journal, Learning Analytics, Publication, School, Self-Regulation

Mobile phones and devices are an integral part of the daily lives of students, and educators are increasingly trying to take advantage of this day-to-day usage for educational purposes. But how can mobile technologies, like app-based learning activities, be designed to effectively help students in the learning process? [caption id="attachment_7331" align="alignright" width="500"] Screenshots of the reading (A), puzzle (B), and emoji (C) activity[/caption] A newly published study from Daniel Biedermann, Jasmin Breitwieser, Lea Nobbe, Hendrik Drachsler and Garvin Brod tries to answer this question. Using the PROMT app, the team compared three types of learning activities used by children aged 9 to 14 years to memorize one learning plan per day over the course of 27 days. The activities varied in their planned level of cognitive engagement based on the…

Jan242025 by Heather WehnerNo Comments

New Pub: The Student Feedback Literacy Instrument (SFLI)

Feedback, Further Education, Journal, New Pub

In the context of higher education, feedback plays an especially important role in the learning process. For students it is not only important to receive feedback, but also to be able to understand and process this feedback in a manner which helps them make learning progress. The knowledge, skills and attitudes students need to navigate the feedback process successfully are referred to as feedback literacy. A recently published study presents a refined version of the Student Feedback Literacy Instrument (SFLI), which offers a powerful tool to measure feedback literacy construct across multiple languages and cultures. The SFLI aims to measure feedback literacy across two key dimensions: feedback attitudes and feedback practices. The full-length version of the instrument was recently refined and tested, alongside a short-form version (SFLI-S), in a multilingual…

Dec192024 by Prof. Dr. Hendrik DrachslerNo Comments

Its a Wonderful (EduTec) Life: Reflecting 2024.

Alumni, Higher Education, School, Team

Near Christmas time, many people traditionally watch the movie classic “It’s a Wonderful Life” about a man named George, who loses his courage to face life on Christmas night due to a series of difficulties and ends up being saved by an angel who shows him how life would be for the people around him if he had never been born. Poor George has let himself get so caught up in the troubles of everyday life that he has lost sight of all the positive things that he has achieved and the impact he has on those around him. This movie reminds us that we are like George sometimes: we tend to focus on the negative things in daily life and sometimes lose our view of the bigger picture and…