Interactive assessment tool

• US 6,808,393 B2
• Filed: 11/21/2001
• Issued: 10/26/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 11/21/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Protigen Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Protigen Incorporated
• Inventors: Mascarenhas, Desmond D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Walberg, Teresa
• Assistant Examiner(s): Saadat, Cameron
• Application Number:
  US09/990,655
• Publication Number:
  US 20020133493A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,070 Days
• Field of Search: 434/322, 434/350, 434/118, 434/323, 434/236, 706/927
• US Class Current: 434/322
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/353 into predefined classes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 7/00 Electrically-operated teaching apparatus or devices working with questions and answers mechanically operated G09B3/00; computing arrangements G06F

Abstract

The present invention provides a method, system, and computer product to evaluate a user'"'"'s learning style. The user is presented with a series of interactive assessment exercises, wherein each exercise contains one or more clues, a number of correct cards, and a number of incorrect cards. The user'"'"'s responses, which include the types and number of moves made, the time it takes to select another card, and the like are received, recorded, or captured. Based on the user'"'"'s responses, the responses are evaluated and used in a learning style formula to determine the learning style of a user. The invention also provides for a method, system, and computer product that evaluate a user'"'"'s comprehension of a certain topic or subject matter. The user is presented with an interactive assessment exercise, wherein such exercise contains one or more clues, a number of correct cards, and a number of incorrect cards.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for on-line real-time evaluation of a user'"'"'s learning style, the method comprising the acts of:

(a) presenting a plurality of interactive assessment exercises to a user wherein each interactive assessment exercise displays a global objective or clue, a number of correct cards displaying distinct textual or graphical content, and a number of incorrect cards displaying distinct textual or graphical content wherein a relationship of content displayed on said cards to said global objective or clue is stronger for correct cards than for incorrect cards and wherein the number of incorrect cards is greater than the number of correct cards;

(b) receiving responses of said user from said plurality of interactive assessment exercises, wherein the user selects at least one card; and

(c) evaluating said user'"'"'s learning style based on search linearity, wherein a linear selection is a selection that results in one coordinate remaining the same between consecutive card selections, and the search linearity is the number of linear selections divided by the total number of cards presented to the user.

2. A computer implemented method for on-line real-time evaluation of a user'"'"'s learning style, the method comprising the acts of:

(a) presenting a plurality of interactive assessment exercises to a user wherein each interactive assesment exercise display a global objective or clue, a number of correct cards displaying distinct textual or graphical content and a number of incorrect cards displaying distinct textual or graphical content, wherein a relationship of content displayed on said cards to said global objective or clue is stronger for correct cards than for incorrect cards and wherein the number of incorrect cards is greater than the number of incorrect cards;

(b) receiving responses of said user from said plurality of interactive assessment exercises,wherein the user selects at least one card; and

(c) evaluating said user'"'"'s learning style based on search linearity, wherein a linear selection that results in one coordinate remaining the same between consecutive card selections, and the search linearity is the number of linear selections divided by the total number of card selection.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein textual or graphical content on a card can contain one or more keywords, phrases, sentences, Images, symbols, audio clips, video clips, or combinations thereof.

4. An apparatus for evaluating a user'"'"'s learning style, comprising:

(a) a computer having a server mechanism installed therein for receiving responses from a user, the user supplying responses from a client computer;

the server mechanism containing a first logic device for transmitting to the client computer, a plurality of interactive assessment exercises for presentation to the user wherein each interactive assessment exercise displays a global objective or clue, a number of correct cards displaying distinct textual or graphical content, and a number of incorrect cards displaying distinct textual or graphical content, wherein a relationship of content displayed on said cards to said global objective or clue is stronger for correct cards than for incorrect cards and wherein the number of incorrect cards is greater than the number of correct cards;

(b) the server mechanism containing a second logic device for receiving data from the client computer which represent responses from said user from said plurality of interactive assessment exessment wherein the user select at least one card; and

(c) a third logic device coupled to the second logic device for evaluating said user'"'"'s leaning style based on a computation of percentage thinking time, wherein thinking time is defined as a sum time in excess of a predetermined amount of time to complete a single, selection and percentage thinking time is the thinking time for all selections made divided by total time required to successfully complete an assessment exercise.

5. A computer-implemented method for real-time evaluation of a user'"'"'s learning style, the method comprising the acts of:

(a) presenting a plurality of interactive assessment exercises to a user wherein each interactive assessment exercise displays a global objective or clue, a number of correct cards displaying distinct textual or graphical content, and a number of incorrect cards displaying distinct textual or graphical content, wherein a relationship of content displayed on said cards to said global objective or clue is stronger for correct cards than for incorrect cards and wherein the number of incorrect cards is greater than the number of correct cards;

(b) receiving responses of said user from said plurality of interactive assessment exercises, wherein the user selects at least one card; and

(c) evaluating said user'"'"'s learning style based on a computation of percentage thinking time, wherein thinking time is defined as a sum time in excess of a predetermined amount of time to complete a single selection and percentage thinking time is the thinking time for all selections made divided by total time required to successfully complete an assessment exercise.