Teaching Information Retrieval as a Game
The talk presents some issues about teaching information retrieval to a heterogeneous group of students. It introduces a web-based tool which enables the students to playfully gain experience with the components of an information retrieval system (IRS). The system allows beginners to build an IRS by simply clicking and dragging the components. The system integrates game mechanics which leads to a playful experience. More experienced users can also modify the components or add new ones by programming in JavaScript. With this self-made system the students can easily and rapidly run evaluations like CLEF or TReC. By this they gain immediate insight in the effect of the different components of their retrieval system.
Maximilian Eibl is a professor of computer science at Chemnitz University of Technology, Germany. His research interests include information retrieval and human-computer interaction, focusing on applications in the cultural heritage and museums. He is currently visiting scholar at the Berkeley School of Information.