Self-Regulated Learning addresses key students’ competences for performance in higher education, particularly in engineering disciplines. Assessing these competences helps identify students’ gaps and provide appropriate support towards their development. Currently, the main self-regulated learning assessment tools are questionnaires with a large number of items administered in one session, for example, the MSLQ has 81 questionnaire items. Rather than snapshotting the students’ self-regulated learning competences in a single session, this manuscript proposes a novel assessment approach, the SMSRLQ, which includes 150 questionnaire items (81 from the MSLQ and 69 from other questionnaires) but spacing the items weekly and providing feedback monthly. The spaced approach was experienced on several Egyptian universities using a social network service (Facebook) and distributing students into control (113) and experimental groups (107). Many variations in the students’ answers are observed, with statistically significant differences between 11% to 30% in MAE and MAPE indicators. Variations in standard deviation, reliability and clustering between the approaches also were identified, demonstrating that there are clear differences between the two administration approaches. Regarding monthly feedback, the results show that it enhances students’ participation and improves their self-regulated learning competences: 77% of the experimental group respondents found that their self-learning knowledge was developed after the study, compared to 50% of the control group respondents.

Introduction: In recent years, different approaches have been used to conduct a subjective assessment of colonoscopy simulators. The purpose of this paper is to review these different approaches, specifically the ones used for computerized simulators, as the first step for the design of a standard validation procedure for this type of simulators. Methods: A systematic review was conducted by searching papers after 2010 in PubMed, Google Scholar, ScienceDirect, and IEEE Xplore databases. Papers were screened and reviewed for procedures regarding the subjective validation of computerized simulators for traditional colonoscopy with an endoscope. Results: An initial search in the databases identified 2094 papers, of which 7 remained after exhaustive review and application of exclusion criteria. All studies used questionnaires for subjective validation, with “face” being the most common validity type tested, while “content” validity and “usability” were less prominent. Conclusions: A classification of subscales for testing face validity was derived from the studies. The Colonoscopy Simulator Realism Questionnaire (CSRQ) was selected as the guide to follow for the development of future questionnaires related to subjective validation. Mislabeling of the validity tested in the studies due to ambiguous interpretations of the validity types was a common occurrence observed in the reviewed studies.

As virtual training environments for colonoscopy become more prevalent, addressing their limitations such as the scarcity of simulation scenarios and the lack of open, shareable models becomes essential. This paper introduces an editing tool developed to mitigate these issues by enabling non-technical users, such as surgeons, to create varied 3D models of the large intestine. The software employs a parametrized approach using a Bezier spline with control nodes, presets, blendshapes, and specific meshes to enable the generation of a wide range of large intestine configurations, sizes, and pathology conditions. The paper also includes the results of a pilot evaluation focused on the editor utility, model fidelity, and usability, involving 10 colonoscopy practitioners who completed a modeling task and provided feedback via a questionnaire. Results indicate a positive reception, highlighting the realism of the models, user-friendliness, and overall utility. This solution not only addresses key limitations in colonoscopy training, but also lays the foundation for future advancements in colonoscopy simulation technology. Graphical abstract