Abstract
We hardly find educational systems that allow computer science students to experiment with optimization algorithms with respect to the optimality property. We may highlight the GreedEx system, but it has the limitation of only being usable with a small set of predefined problems. In this chapter, we present a system similar to GreedEx but generic, called OptimEx. The contributions of the chapter are threefold. Firstly, we introduce the main features of the OptimEx system. Secondly, we describe different issues regarding its educational use: usage in educational scenarios, usage with different algorithm design techniques, and how it can inform us about students’ errors. Thirdly, we present the results of a usability evaluation conducted with students. As a result, students consider the system highly usable but they also report on a number of issues that should be addressed to enhance it.
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Acknowledgements
This work was supported by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness under research grant TIN2011-29542-C02-01, the Region of Madrid under research grant S2013/ICE-2715, and the Universidad Rey Juan Carlos under research grant 30VCPIGI15.
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Velázquez-Iturbide, J.Á. (2016). Design and Evaluation of OptimEx, an Experimentation System for Optimization Algorithms. In: Marcelino, M., Mendes, A., Gomes, M. (eds) ICT in Education. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-22900-3_4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-22900-3_4
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