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Flora Jin

Publications and source records attributed to Flora Jin.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

The Text Aphasia Battery (TAB): A Clinically-Grounded Benchmark for Aphasia-Like Deficits in Language Models

Large language models (LLMs) have emerged as a candidate "model organism" for human language, offering an unprecedented opportunity to study the computational basis of linguistic disorders like aphasia. However, traditional clinical assessments are ill-suited for LLMs, as they presuppose human-like pragmatic pressures and probe cognitive processes not inherent to artificial architectures. We introduce the Text Aphasia Battery (TAB), a text-only benchmark adapted from the Quick Aphasia Battery (QAB) to assess aphasic-like deficits in LLMs. The TAB comprises four subtests: Connected Text, Word Comprehension, Sentence Comprehension, and Repetition. This paper details the TAB's design, subtests, and scoring criteria. To facilitate large-scale use, we validate an automated evaluation protocol using Gemini 2.5 Flash, which achieves reliability comparable to expert human raters (prevalence-weighted Cohen's kappa = 0.255 for model--consensus agreement vs. 0.286 for human--human agreement). We release TAB as a clinically-grounded, scalable framework for analyzing language deficits in artificial systems.

cs.CL

Dean of LLM Tutors: A Framework for Automated Quality Review of AI-generated Feedback

Large language model (LLM) tutors are increasingly used to generate educational feedback, but existing research has focused mainly on feedback generation rather than feedback evaluation. As a result, LLM-generated feedback may offer limited pedagogical value and carry risks of hallucination. The current study introduces DeanLLM, an automated review framework for comprehensively evaluating feedback generated by LLM tutors before it is shared with students. We developed a 16-dimension evaluation framework covering feedback content, educational effectiveness, and hallucination risks, and validated it using using human-expert annotations of LLM-generated tutor feedback on synthetic computer science assignment submissions derived from real coursework. We then examined whether LLMs could serve as automated LLM-generated tutor feedback reviewers, and used the best-performing reviewer to benchmark tutor feedback generated by 10 commercial LLMs. Psychometric analyses supported the reliability of the proposed framework and showed that human reviewers tended to evaluate feedback holistically, whereas the LLM reviewer separated rubric dimensions more mechanically. Standard zero-shot and few-shot prompting showed limited agreement with human experts for content-quality judgments. Supervised fine-tuning of GPT-4.1 with human-labelled examples containing scores only, without explanatory rationales, achieved the strongest alignment with expert judgments. Reasoning LLMs were particularly effective at hallucination detection and produced automated tutor feedback with stronger educational effectiveness and factuality than lightweight models. The findings indicate that DeanLLM offers a scalable way for automatically improving the reliability and safety of LLM tutor feedback, while also demonstrating that reviewer calibration and model choice remain critical for educational deployment.

cs.CY

SCALEFeedback: A Large-Scale Dataset of Synthetic Computer Science Assignments for LLM-generated Educational Feedback Research

Using Large Language Models (LLMs) to give educational feedback to students for their assignments has attracted much attention in the AI in Education (AIED) field. Yet, there is currently no large-scale open-source dataset of student assignments that includes detailed assignment descriptions, rubrics, and student submissions across various courses. As a result, research on generalisable methodology for automatic generation of effective and responsible educational feedback remains limited. In this paper, we introduce a synthetic computer science university assignment dataset for LLM-based educational feedback research, called SCALEFeedback (Synthetic Computer science Assignments for LLM Educational Feedback Research). The dataset is generated via Sophisticated Assignment Mimicry (SAM) framework specifically designed to synthesise this dataset and that utilizes one-to-one LLM-based imitation from real assignment descriptions, rubrics, and student submissions. Our open-source dataset contains 10,000 synthetic student submissions spanning 155 assignments across 59 university-level computer science courses. Technical validation confirmed that the synthetic dataset closely resembles real data while successfully eliminating personally identifiable information present in the source material. The creation of this dataset is a valuable contribution to researchers who aim to develop LLM-based generalisable methods for offering high-quality, automated educational feedback in a scalable way.

cs.CY

Self-regulated Learning Processes in Secondary Education: A Network Analysis of Trace-based Measures

While the capacity to self-regulate has been found to be crucial for secondary school students, prior studies often rely on self-report surveys and think-aloud protocols that present notable limitations in capturing self-regulated learning (SRL) processes. This study advances the understanding of SRL in secondary education by using trace data to examine SRL processes during multi-source writing tasks, with higher education participants included for comparison. We collected fine-grained trace data from 66 secondary school students and 59 university students working on the same writing tasks within a shared SRL-oriented learning environment. The data were labelled using Bannert's validated SRL coding scheme to reflect specific SRL processes, and we examined the relationship between these processes, essay performance, and educational levels. Using epistemic network analysis (ENA) to model and visualise the interconnected SRL processes in Bannert's coding scheme, we found that: (a) secondary school students predominantly engaged in three SRL processes -- Orientation, Re-reading, and Elaboration/Organisation; (b) high-performing secondary students engaged more in Re-reading, while low-performing students showed more Orientation process; and (c) higher education students exhibited more diverse SRL processes such as Monitoring and Evaluation than their secondary education counterparts, who heavily relied on following task instructions and rubrics to guide their writing. These findings highlight the necessity of designing scaffolding tools and developing teacher training programs to enhance awareness and development of SRL skills for secondary school learners.

cs.HC