Visualizing Behavioral Data from a 3D Virtual Learning Environment: A Preliminary Study

Abstract

This paper describes a preliminary study which attempted to apply learning analytics methods to usage data generated by students with autism spectrum disorders using iSocial, a collaborative, threedimensional virtual learning environment. Drawing from similar methods in the area of learning and content management systems, the work presented in this paper considers two types of user behaviors that are not present in LMS/CMS and are unique to 3D VLEs: avatar movement and spoken dialogue. The method developed for capturing avatar movements and spoken dialogue and writing these data to a log file is explained, along with a description of the process the research team underwent in order to transform the log data into graphical depictions of user behavior over time. Examples of five different visualization types are examined. Conclusions and directions for future research are provided.

Discovering usage behaviors and engagement in an Educational Virtual World

“…Messages with objects and users: Data on the number of times that 3D characters made use of private messages to each other or received information from the different objects in the virtual environment. These data provide information on both social use, such as the 3D scanning environment, and the use of educational resources (Schmidt & Laffey, 2012). Sessions: Data about the time spent by users within the Virtual World and its distribution in time, number of sessions, average session duration, etc.…”

Towards Quantifying Player's Involvement in 3D Games Based-on Player Types

“…Visualization was used to display the analytics information in a more meaningful way [16] [28]. Player's involvement was estimated manually for each participant, caseby-case by a human.…”

Educational Innovation Successful Cases: Part 1

“…Metaverses are related to virtual worlds, 3D environments for user interaction, allowing both users interacting between them or users interacting with the virtual scenarios in the system (García-Peñalvo, Cruz-Benito, & Therón, 2014). In education (Allison & Miller, 2012;Baker, Wentz, & Woods, 2009; García-Peñalvo, Cruz-Benito, Maderuelo, Pérez-Blanco, & Martín-Suárez, 2014), the main difference with a typical Learning Management System (LMS) is that in these virtual worlds is possible to understand the users' behaviors in the environment through the tracking of different kind of actions, such as movements, conversations, etc., offering a more immersive space for the users (Schmidt & Laffey, 2012).…”