Ivon M. Arroyo Ed. D.
Ivon Arroyo is a research associate at the Center for Knowledge Communication , Computer Science Department at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.
Dr. Arroyo is internationally known as an active researcher in the area of intelligent multimedia tutoring systems and software learning environments for mathematics. She is known for her interdisciplinary proficiency in both Mathematics/Technology Education and Computer Science. Probably most known for her studies about customizing tutoring software to qualitative student characteristics (gender and cognitive traits), but also for the creation of pedagogically effective help modules that are used in local schools, rigorous evaluations of educational software, testing for the impact of software not only on students' achievement but especially on attitudes and affect. She has collaborated with researchers from several countries, and is currently working on a book on Diagnosing and Responding to affect in Educational Software with several renowned cognitive and computer science researchers from the United Kingdom and the rest of the world. Dr. Arroyo has participated in several multidisciplinary projects:
- Learning to Teach --using machine learning techniques to predict student learning and attitudes
- Customizing Resources for NSDL --customizing mathematics material within a digital library for each student
- Wayang Outpost/AnimalWorld --enhancing high school women’s mathematical competence
- AnimalWatch – enhancing young girls’ math competence and attitudes towards mathematics and computers
- “What kind of Math Software Works for Girls?”
- Modeling and supporting emotion during learning - and the recently awarded:
- " Teaching Every Student: Using Intelligent Tutoring and Universal Design to Customize the Mathematics Curriculum”
Dr. Arroyo has carried out multiple rigorous evaluations of adaptive tutoring systems, working not only on quantitative summative evaluations but on formative evaluations of tutors by analyzing fine-grained data of student interactions with the system, using the logs of past users to improve new versions of educational software (educational data mining). Besides actual learning, she has researched the impact of tutoring software on students' attitudes towards the taught subject.
Cognitive theories of learning and development are part of her research, particularly how those can be applied to make software learning environments more effective. She has applied Piagetian theories of cognitive development and the concept of Zone of Proximal Development to adapt the help provided in a mathematics tutor for children. She has studied the impact of spatial abilities and the ability to retrieve simple math facts (from memory) in relation to the representations used in the provided help.
These tutoring software are used by minorities and at-risk populations, many of which are struggling to pass grade 10 standardized tests in order to graduate. We are currently designing and building assessment tools for teachers (that accompany the ITS). The idea is to show teachers these are valuable for their own teaching, and thus facilitate the immersion of Intelligent Tutors to the classroom. We are opening up the authoring of questions to teachers and students, with the idea that problem-posing is an activity that can teach about math from an inquiry perspective.
