Real-time classroom simulations like TeachME, a University of Central Florida project, offer promise for a host of teacher-training applications. Through them, candidates could learn to work with different groups of students, or practice a discrete skill such as classroom management. Most of all, such simulations give teachers in training the…

Initiated in response to informal reports of vocabulary gains from gamers at universities in New Zealand and the Netherlands, this qualitative study explored how English language learners autonomously learn vocabulary while playing massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs). Using research processes inherent in Grounded Theory, data…

This paper reports empirical evidence on having students use AR-SaBEr, a simulation tool based on augmented reality (AR), to discover the basic principles of electricity through a series of experiments. AR-SaBEr was enhanced with knowledge-based support and inquiry-based scaffolding mechanisms, which proved useful for discovery learning in…

Although virtual field trips are becoming popular, there are few empirical studies of their impacts on student outcomes. This study reports on a meta-analytic evaluation of the impact of a virtual field trip on student perceptions of scientists. Specifically, the study examined the summary effect of zipTrips broadcasts on evaluation…

During the past 10 years, there has been a growing use of distance education, including the practice of holding classes in virtual world educational formats such as Second Life. Both the psychiatric and medical fields have caught on quickly to the functionality of virtual world teaching, yet social service educators have not ventured likewise.…

Based on cognitive load theory, the effect of different levels of instructional detail and expertise in a simulation-based environment on learning about concepts of correlation was investigated. Separate versions of the learning environment were designed for the four experimental conditions which differed only with regard to the levels of written…

In an increasingly multilingual world, it is important to examine methods that may lead to more efficient second language learning, as well as to analyze the mechanisms by which successful learning occurs. The purpose of the current study was to investigate how different learning contexts can impact the learning of Mandarin Chinese as a second…

This research attempted to create the historical context of Southern Taiwan in the late nineteenth century based on the martial art novel "Xiao-Mao" (Pussy) by designing a role-play digital game "Taiwan Epic Game" about the war time; in which, Taiwanese history, geography, and culture are presented in an innovative way with…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of worked examples using virtual manipulatives on the learning performance and attitudes of fifth grade students toward mathematics. The results showed that: (1) the utilization of non-routine examples could promote learning performance of equivalent fractions. (2) Learning with virtual…

Different approaches have explored how to provide seamless learning across multiple ICT-enabled physical and virtual spaces, including three-dimensional virtual worlds (3DVW). However, these approaches present limitations that may reduce their acceptance in authentic educational practice: The difficulties of authoring and sharing teacher-created…

This article presents a study performed to investigate the role of simulation in second language learning while using a virtual environment. Participants were asked to explore a virtual park while learning 15 new Czech verbs (action verbs that describe movements performed with either the hand or the foot, and abstract verbs). This learning…

Arizona Online Instruction (AOI) provided an instructional alternative to nearly fifty thousand K-12 students in Arizona during the 2012-2013 school year. Growth in online education underscores the importance of evolving the role of the K-12 virtual teacher as the human agent (Turvey, 2008) demonstrating social learning theory (Bandura, 1977) by…

Neuroanatomy is a difficult subject in medical education, with students often feeling worried and anxious before they have even started, potentially decreasing their engagement with the subject. At the University of Southampton, we incorporated the use of Twitter as a way of supporting students' learning on a neuroanatomy module to evaluate how it…

Recent studies have shown that simulation games may be useful tools for supporting foreign language education. However, much of this research has focused on games using 3D graphic technology, which entail technical requirements that may render them too complex for use in many educational contexts. Accordingly, we wanted to determine if less…

This study investigated the effect of an intervention regarding the use of simulations in science teaching on primary school preservice science teachers' (n = 36) self-assessed technological, pedagogical, and content knowledge (TPACK). The connection of their self-assessed TPACK on their views on the usefulness of simulations in science teaching…