The virtual learning environment (VLE) is of great importance in Higher Education as a repository for course content, communication and student support. Students' satisfaction with the VLE may impact greatly on their engagement with the VLE itself, and, consequently, module content and learning more widely. In moving to a new VLE we wished to…

Over the past decade we have seen a rise in the adoption and proliferation of social technologies, and along with these a move to build on the capacity to embrace new pedagogies and practices that can open our boundaries for both teaching and learning. How do we determine what we mean by space specifically in online environments and how can we…

Avatars are gaining popularity as an emerging technology to facilitate learning and instruction. Avatars can be used as agents of e-learning applications or as part of immersive learning environments such as Second Life. Research indicates that avatar use has numerous potential benefits, including increased student engagement and opportunities for…

Many of the communities interested in learning and teaching technologies within higher education now accept the view that a conception of personal learning environments provides the most realistic and workable perspective of learners' interactions with and use of technology. This view may not be reflected in the behaviour of those parts of a…

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…

Rapid technological advances in the areas of telecommunications, computer technology and the Internet have made available to tutors and learners in the domain of online learning, a broad array of tools that provide the possibility to facilitate and enhance learning to higher levels of critical reflective thinking. Computer mediated communication…

The proliferation of online courses underscores the need to re-examine the foundations upon which courses are grounded. In particular, an emerging perspective in science education requires designers to account for scientific inquiry in student-centered science learning environments. With a focus on open-ended learning environments and grounded…