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…

Virtual Worlds (VWs) in foreign language education are slowly becoming more popular. Many studies have looked at the affordances of these worlds and how they affect some aspects of language acquisition. However, it is still unknown to what extent, if any, these virtual worlds can play a role in affecting motivation and anxiety. The purpose of this…

The present study investigated the phenomenon of buying "virtual assets" for game avatars. Virtual Assets are items that are bought with real-world money for an avatar in-game. Weapons, items, pets, mounts and skin customisations are the most popular examples. Using a qualitative methodology--in this case Interpretative phenomenological…

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…

The role of computer-assisted instruction in promoting intrinsic and extrinsic motivation among Nigerian secondary school chemistry students was investigated in this study. The study employed two modes of computer-assisted instruction (computer simulation instruction and computer tutorial instructional packages) and two levels of gender (male and…

Due to the unique applications of virtual reality in many modern contexts, Second Life (SL) offers inimitable opportunities for research and exploration and experiential learning as part of a distance learning curriculum assignment. A review of current research regarding SL examined real world social influences in online interactions and what the…

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…

In this study we investigated the pedagogical context of whole-class teaching with computer simulations. We examined relations between the attitudes and learning goals of teachers and their students regarding the use of simulations in whole-class teaching, and how teachers implement these simulations in their teaching practices. We observed…

This work investigates the effectiveness of simulated robots as tools to support the learning of programming. After the completion of a systematic review and exploratory research, a multi-case case study was undertaken. A simulator, named Kebot, was developed and used to run four 10-hour programming workshops. Twenty-three student participants…

Three-dimensional (3-D) virtual worlds differ from other learning environments in their similarity to real life, providing opportunities for more effective communication and interaction. With these features, 3-D virtual worlds possess considerable potential to enhance learning opportunities. For effective learning, the users' motivation levels and…

Design based research was utilized to investigate how students use a greenhouse effect simulation in order to derive best learning practices. During this process, students recognized the authentic scientific process involving computer simulations. The simulation used is embedded within an inquiry-based technology-mediated science curriculum known…

This paper reports on a study, "MUSE", which involved Secondary (Grade 7) students in designing and constructing a virtual museum. It presents a description and evaluation of the design and implementation of the technologically-mediated intervention within a language curriculum that emphasizes multimodal meaning-making and expression.…

Many courses for elementary school are based upon teacher presentation and explanation of basic topics, rather than allowing students to develop their own knowledge. This traditional model may turn elementary-level lessons into an extremely theoretical, boring and non-effective process. In this context, research in mathematics elementary education…

This article reports an exploratory study carried out at a public university in Bogotá, Colombia, with two indigenous students who took a level I virtual English-course during the second term of 2008 and the first term of 2009. The aim was to analyse their attitudes towards the learning of English through the virtual modality. Interviews,…

Organizing and implementing telecollaboration projects in foreign language curricula is not an easy endeavour (Belz & Thorne, 2006; Guth & Helm, 2010), as pedagogical, organizational and technical issues have to be addressed before cross-cultural interaction sessions can be carried out (O'Dowd & Ritter, 2006). These issues make many teaching…