The purpose of this descriptive study was to examine teacher instructional dilemmas and opportunities that emerged when students worked with interactive computer-based simulation models during the High-Adventure Science (HAS) project. The intervention included the HAS digital curriculum, designed for grades 7-12. Each curricular unit was framed to…

We have developed and demonstrated the effectiveness of a set of online interactive learning modules to accompany physics courses at first- and second-year university levels. Students access the modules prior to attending lectures to familiarize themselves with content which is then discussed and reaffirmed in class. Student surveys and access…

This exploratory study analyzes the digital literacy practices that resulted from learner-learner interactions within a virtual environment when collaboratively reading eighteen Spanish poems via a digital annotation tool over a four-week period in a college-level Hispanic literature course. Using an ecological theoretical perspective and…

The use of technology is becoming widespread in science and technology classes due to its overwhelming benefits in learning. Yet many English language teachers lack knowledge of the existing technologies and the 'know-how' to use it in the classroom. In this paper, the researchers report the pilot study conducted to explore the effects of virtual…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to report progress concerning the design of a computer-assisted simulation training (CAST) platform for developing decision-making skills in police students. The overarching aim is to outline a theoretical framework for the design of CAST to facilitate police students' development of search techniques in…

Simulation as a tool for medical education has gained considerable importance in the past years. Various studies have shown that the mastering of basic skills happens best if taught in a realistic and workplace-based context. It is necessary that simulation itself takes place in the realistic background of a genuine clinical or in an accordingly…

An overlooked feature in astronomy education is the need for students to learn to extrapolate three-dimensionality and the challenges that this may involve. Discerning critical features in the night sky that are embedded in dimensionality is a long-term learning process. Several articles have addressed the usefulness of three-dimensional (3D)…

Augmented reality is an emerging technology that utilizes mobile, context-aware devices (e.g., smartphones, tablets) that enable participants to interact with digital information embedded within the physical environment. This overview of design principles focuses on specific strategies that instructional designers can use to develop AR learning…

Higher education institutions are using virtual telepresence systems to engage in collaborative course redesign and research projects. These systems hold promise and challenge for inter-institutional work in STEM areas. This paper describes a case study involving two universities in the 4-VA consortium, and the redesign of a shared STEM lab. The…

Recent studies suggest that Second Life (SL) is a useful tool for educational purposes, specifically for the language learning. However, few studies provide data regarding the effect of SL on speaking anxiety of English as foreign language (EFL) learners. Thus, this paper aims at reviewing the studies on the role of SL as a language learning tool…

The Ed Media Center in Second Life provides multiple professional development opportunities for art educators to explore the educational potential of virtual worlds together. Since it's launch in 2009, it has hosted numerous events that address contemporary students' learning preferences and that enable artists and art educators to become…

This paper explains the design of a graphics-based virtual environment for instructing computer hardware concepts to students, especially those at the beginner level. Photorealistic visualizations and simulations are designed and programmed with interactive features allowing students to practice, explore, and test themselves on computer hardware…

Poor student engagement with academic readings has been frequently reported in college classrooms. As an effort to improve college students' reading engagement, researchers have developed a virtual environment in which students take on the role of tutor and teach a virtual tutee, the virtual tutee system (VTS). This research examined the…

As state boards of education and other state policymakers consider the future of schools, sorting fad technology from technology that accelerates learning is key. Virtual reality (VR) is one such technology with promise that seems unlikely to fizzle. Hailed as potentially transformative for education and still in the early stages of application,…

As literature has reported, it is usual that university students in statistics courses, and even statistics teachers, interpret the confidence level associated with a confidence interval as the probability that the parameter value will be between the lower and upper interval limits. To confront this misconception, class activities have been…