Mission
My mission is to change the current educational paradigms using digital technologies, data and artificial intelligence and make learning more accessible and enjoyable.
Research interests: Artificial Intelligence in Education, Human-AI interaction, Multimodal Learning Analytics, Human Activity Recognition, Machine Learning, Educational Data Mining, Wearable Sensor Support, and Technology-Enhanced Learning.
Work Experience
Group research leader in “AI in Education” 11/2020 – present
I am a researcher at the DIPF, the Leibniz Institute for Research and Information in Education, in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. Since 09/2022, the PI of the BMBF-funded HyTea project. PhD candidates supervisor. I am a habilitation candidate and external lecturer in Responsible Artificial Intelligence at the faculty of Computer Science at the Goethe University of Frankfurt.
Post-doctoral researcher in “Artificial Intelligence” 11/2019 – 10/2020
Centre of Actionable Research of the Open Universiteit (CAROU) – Brightlands Smart Services Campus in Heerlen, The Netherlands. Supervisor: Dr. Stefano Bromuri (OU). Projects: MOBIUS modelling smart and safe Mobility for Urban Sustainability, NEXUS Virtual Assistant.
Ph.D. in “Wearable Support and Learning Analytics” 09/2016 – 09/2020
Faculty of Education (Welten Institute) Open Universiteit – The Netherlands. The PhD dissertation title was “Multimodal Tutor – Adaptive feedback from multimodal experiences.” Advisors: Prof. Hendrik Drachsler (OU/DIPF), Prof. Marcus Specht (TUD), Dr. Jan Schneider (DIPF).
Start-up founder / CTO 09/2018 – 08/2020 MyHealthData – Bari, Italy. MyHealthData is a platform that allows curating your medical records.
Web developer (part-time, freelance) 09/2010 – 12/2018
Dimstudio – Bari, Italy. Developed web solutions for clients in retailing, healthcare, medicine, tourism and social activism. Website: https://dimstud.io/
Research intern 09/2015 – 06/2016
Welten Insitute, Open Universiteit – Heerlen, The Netherlands. Led the project Learning Pulse, a research initiative of the Technology Enhanced Learning Innovation (TELI) group of the Open Universiteit. Advisors: Prof. H. Drachsler, Dr. M. Scheffel, Dr. D. Börner, Dr. S. Ternier.
IBM Extreme Blue intern 06/2015 – 09/2015 Centre for Advanced Studies IBM – Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Designed and prototyped a concept of an autonomous wi-fi drone for a telecommunication company. Advisors: Dr. Z. Slavic, Prof. N. Roos (UM).
Web developer and IT expert 09/2012 – 09/2014 Sinesi Gioielli srl – Bari, Italy.
Education
M.Sc. Artificial Intelligence 09/2014 – 07/2016 Data Science and Knowledge Engineering, Maastricht University – The Netherlands. Dissertation Title: “Visual Learning Pulse” – in cooperation with the Welten institute of the Open University of the Netherlands. Final grade: 9/10. Advisors: Dr. K. Driessens (UM), Dr. P. Bonizzi (UM).
B.Sc. Informatics and Digital Communication 10/2010 – 03/2014 Università degli Studi di Bari “Aldo Moro” – Italy.
Dissertation Title: “Learning Analytics for formative assessment in distance learning environments” - Final grade: 106/110. Advisors: Prof. T. Roselli (UniBA), Dr. V. Rossano (UniBA).
High School Diploma special. Computer Science 09/2005 – 07/2010
Scientific Lyceum “A. Scacchi”, Bari, Italy.Dissertation Title: “Cognitive-cultural capitalism and Knowledge Privatisation” - Final grade: 94/100.
Volunteering
yOUng (board member) 12/2017 – 10/2020
yOUng is the network of young employees of the Open Universiteit. OU ambassador of the Brightlands’ Young Professionals.
Lifelong Learning Platform (vice-president) 06/2014 – 06/2017
The platform of European civil society organisations in the field of Education and Lifelong Learning. Portfolio: Erasmus+, digital learning. http://www.lllplatform.eu/
OBESSU (board member) 05/2012 – 09/2014
The Organising Bureau of European School Student Unions advocates for the rights and represents the voice of secondary students in Europe. http://www.obessu.org/
Unione degli Studenti (international officer) 05/2012 – 09/2014
Italian school student union, member of Rete della Conoscenza and Forum Nazionale Giovani (Italian Youth council).