This article presents a qualitative case study that uses discourse and social semiotic analysis methods in order to examine the rhetorical construction of fictional personas within an online role play used for learning in the college classroom. Of special focus are the differing patterns of semiotic resource use (for example, language and…

A virtual world was created in an effort to supplement the study of the novel "The Natural Daughter". The educational impact of the virtual world experience on college students of English Literature was assessed using concept mapping as a measure of conceptual change. While conceptual change was evident, the origin of the growth was…

This paper reports on findings from a five-teacher, exploratory case study, critically observing their implementation of a technology-intensive, augmented reality (AR) mathematics curriculum unit, along with its paper-based control. The unit itself was intended to promote multiple proportional-reasoning strategies with urban, public, middle school…

The "Horizon Report" series is the most visible outcome of the New Media Consortium's Horizon Project, an ongoing research effort established in 2002 that identifies and describes emerging technologies likely to have a large impact on teaching, learning, research, or creative expression within education around the globe. This volume, the "2010…

The relative positions of the sun, moon, and earth, their movements, and their relationships are abstract and difficult to understand astronomical concepts in elementary school science. This study proposes a three-dimensional (3-D) virtual reality (VR) model named the "Sun and Moon System." This e-learning resource was designed by…

Science educators and school administrators are reexamining the educational value of animal dissection in the nation's schools and are focusing on simulation as an instructional alternative. One implication of the debate is that simulations can lead to equivalent learning to hands-on dissection. The second implication is whether dissection is…

"Economic competitiveness" is at the top of national, regional and global political and economic agendas. Several countries in all regions of the world have established policies and institutions devoted to economic competitiveness, including in developing and transition countries. This leads to the question of how to define national economic…

This article evaluated the impact of a four-lesson science module on the attitudes of secondary school students. This science module (on cancer and modern biotechnology) utilises several design principles, related to a social constructivist perspective on learning. The expectation was that the module would help students become more articulate in…

This paper explores and discusses arguments for the use of virtual environments and interactive avatars in supporting the achievement of student learning goals within conventional educational contexts. It describes and evaluates arguments promoted by some authors (eg, van den Brekel, 2007; Deuchar & Nodder, 2003; Dickey, 2003; Facer, 2004; de…

As it happens in other fields of engineering, blended learning is widely used to teach process control topics. In this paper, the inclusion of a reactive element--a Fuzzy Logic based controller--is proposed for a blended learning approach in an introductory control engineering course. This controller has been designed in order to regulate the…

An interactive simulation program was developed for use in teaching students how to handle public relations problems. The program user is placed in the role of assistant newsletter editor, facing a series of decision-making situations. Each choice the user makes affects the subsequent reality created by the program, which is designed to provide…

OsmoBeaker is a CD-ROM designed to enhance the learning of diffusion and osmosis by presenting interactive experimentation to the student. The software provides several computer simulations that take the student through different scenarios with cells, having different concentrations of solutes in them.

This research examines the use simulation, "StarPower," as an instrument to teach students about ethics in management and leadership. The paper begins with an overview of sources of learning in leadership and management development and later focuses specifically on the use of simulations. This is followed by a brief explanation of the…

In this article, the author describes the fluid nature of the scholar's identity and how personal and professional roles in higher education can collide (the role of professor and blogging academic or blogademic). The author states that while prominent academics who start blogging have an initial advantage based on their established reputations,…

New technology has brought with it new tools for learning, and research has shown that the educational potential of video games resonates with scholars, teachers, and students alike. In "Augmented Learning", Eric Klopfer describes the largely untapped potential of mobile learning games--games played on such handheld devices as cell phones, Game…