Automating the Generation of Study Teams Through Genetic Algorithms Based on Learning Styles in Higher Education

Abstract

Both the International Education Organization (OIE) and UNESCO have stated that promoting collaborative activities is a key competence for sustainable development. This postulate focuses on collaboration with local and international networks. In this line, it is important to mention that, in each teamwork, the members are people who interact sharing objectives, rules and deadlines linked to the activity. Under this reality, it is essential to promote study-team activities in higher education, where students can develop skills to solve problems in multidisciplinary groups. To support the process of generating efficient study-teams, in this investigation we present a system capable of exploring the best alternatives to automatically organize homogeneous study-teams that favor the best performance. Our proposal uses a personalized genetic algorithm (GA), based on student learning styles and academic profile. The experimentation phase has yielded positive results compared to the self-organization method or the teacher imposition method.