The onslaught of COVID-19 has fundamentally upended the landscape of learning in universities. Learners from diverse backgrounds were abruptly forced into the sphere of online learning. Therefore, question arises whether learners from different backgrounds or learners' characteristics, together with their learning environment, would impact the…

Online learning can be a lonely experience. Social presence and interaction are a few proposed ways to combat students' feelings of loneliness from peers and their instructor. Given that online course popularity and opportunities continue to grow, it is necessary to examine possible ways to alleviate perceptions of loneliness, especially given its…

Online learning has become more popular in higher education since it adds convenience and flexibility to students' schedule. But, it has faced difficulties in the retention of the continuity of students and ensure continual growth in course. Dropout is a concerning factor in online course continuity. Therefore, it has sparked great interest among…

Interactive Learning Environments (ILE) is a leading international journal in the design and use of interactive learning environments. In this study we conduct a comprehensive bibliometric analysis spanning three decades to objectively examine the journal's impactful authors, citation patterns, collaboration networks and emerging trends.…

Given the growing use of online learning environments in higher education, it is important to further unravel how students' use is influenced by their perceptions towards these learning environments. This study includes the perceived quality of the instructional design based on the First Principles of Instruction of Merrill and students'…

The main objective of this paper is to analyse the effect of the affordances of a virtual learning environment and a personal learning environment (PLE) in the configuration of the students' personal networks in a higher education context. The results are discussed in light of the adaptation of the students to the learning network made up by two…

Learning persistence in a cyber-learning environment is not only an index determining the success or failure of individual learners but also a source of important information to establish the management direction of educational programs in an organization. Accordingly, learners need to be motivated to continue to grow in order to ensure both…

In 2003, Deakin University implemented a centralised learning management system (LMS) under the banner of Deakin Studies Online (DSO), as well as implementing policies requiring all its units of study to have at least a basic online presence from 2004. Given the scope of the university's commitment to online education, it was considered essential…

There have been a number of frameworks and models developed to support different aspects of interactive learning. Some were developed to deal with course design through the application of authoring tools, whereas others such as conversational, advisory, and ontology-based systems were used in virtual classrooms to improve and support collaborative…

Metaphor appears to be an innate tendency in human communication and can be shown to have significant potential when applied to the design of online learning environments. This paper describes and discusses an example of an online research methods learning resource that employs metaphoric navigation. Feedback from the tutors who design and…

Web-based technologies are the medium of choice for most universities as they move their offerings off campus and online. As we continue to move our own programs online we are challenged to consider what elements of our traditional experiences to preserve online, and which ones to modify, and to recognize the impact of the tools we use on our…