The present study aimed to examine the effects of a novel avatar interviewing aid during memory interviews with children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Thirty children were recruited for our study (Age: M = 7.60, SD = 0.68), half with ASD (13 boys; 2 girls) and the other half being neurotypical (13 boys; 2 girls). Children participated in a…

High-tech tools can be integrated to serve a number of purposes in the mathematics classroom, with different purposes being appropriate for different learning goals. We focus specifically on the various purposes for interactive simulations (sims). This study followed three experienced middle-school mathematics teachers integrating PhET sims into…

In this paper, we explore role-playing and experiential learning approaches applied in an immersive virtual environment for a professional counseling distance course. Training professional counselors requires practice and therefore possesses a challenge for the distant education. Although both counseling professionals' codes of ethics provide…

With the increasing attention to the role of parents in children's learning, what issues parents consider and how they behave when learning with their children when confronted with the emerging augmented reality (AR) technology may be worth exploring. This study was therefore conducted to qualitatively understand parents' conceptions of AR…

This study investigates the Jewish history engagement for middle school students "playing" in the Jewish Court of All Time (JCAT), an online simulation of a current events court case with historical roots (http://jcat.icsmich.org). Through an online platform across several schools, students research and play historical and current…

Augmented reality (AR) offers potential advantages for intensifying environmental context awareness and augmenting students' experiences in real-world environments by dynamically overlapping digital materials with a real-world environment. However, some challenges to AR learning environments have been described, such as participants' cognitive…

Research shows that use of high fidelity simulation (HFS) as a teaching strategy requires extensive amounts of faculty time and financial resources for faculty development and equipment. This project study addressed the challenges encountered in the integration of HFS into a Midwestern metropolitan baccalaureate nursing program. The purpose of…

Many virtual worlds have been adopted for implementation within educational settings because they are potentially useful for building effective learning environments. Since the flexibility of virtual worlds challenges to obtain effective and efficient educational outcomes, the design of such platforms need more attention. In the present study, the…

John Lester is currently the chief learning officer at ReactionGrid, a software company developing 3-D simulations and multiuser virtual world platforms. Lester's background includes working with Linden Lab on Second Life's education activities and neuroscience research. His primary focus is on collaborative learning and instructional…

The learning sciences community has made significant progress in understanding how people think and learn about complex systems. But less is known about how people make sense of the quantitative patterns and mathematical formalisms often used to study these systems. In this article, we make a case for attending to and supporting connections…

This paper discusses a study conducted in the fall of 2011 and the spring of 2012 which explored the use of existing 3D virtual environment technologies by bringing a selected permanent museum exhibit displayed at a museum located in central Mexico into an online 3Dimensional experience. Using mixed methods, the research study analyzed knowledge…

This paper focuses on methodologies of serious games deployment and evaluation. Particularly, this study will present a specific category of serious games that are based on Collaborative Virtual Environments and they aim to support Collaborative Learning. We call these serious games Collaborative Virtual Educational Games (CVEG). The paper aims to…

Despite the potential of augmented reality (AR) in enabling students to construct new understanding, little is known about how the processes and interactions with the multimedia lead to increased learning. This study seeks to explore the affordances of an AR tool on learning that is focused on the science concept of magnets and magnetic fields.…

Alternate reality games (ARGs) are a relatively new form of collaborative game that make use of both the virtual and real worlds to engage players in a series of challenges within a compelling narrative. The Alternate Reality Games for Orientation, Socialisation and Induction (ARGOSI) project aimed to use this game format to provide an alternative…

Lack of motivation and of real-world relevance have been identified as reasons for low interest in science among children. Game-based learning and storytelling are prominent methods for generating intrinsic motivation in learning. Real-world relevance requires connecting abstract scientific concepts with the real world. This can be done by…