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People in modern society are media multitaskers due to portable devices and omnipresent wireless networks, and college students are no exception. Previous studies have indicated that students' media multitasking behaviours in class harm their academic performances, and understanding the reasons for college students' engagement in such behaviour is meaningful. However, the literature takes media multitasking behaviour as an audience behaviour, which ignores the interaction between students and their surroundings. This study fills this gap by emphasizing the role of the social learning process. A survey was conducted in a public and comprehensive university in western China, and a total of 457 valid respondents were obtained. The results from PLS‐SEM revealed that college students' in‐class media multitasking behaviours were influenced by both observational learning (ie, imitating others) and reinforcement learning (ie, in‐class interventions), and this learning process was shaped by students' media multitasking self‐efficacy and self‐management of learning. These findings contribute to the current literature by providing a relatively new perspective for understanding college students' in‐class media multitasking behaviours, and suggestions about how to deal with such behaviours are also provided. Practitioner notesWhat is already known about this topic In‐class media multitasking behaviours (ICMMBs) damage college students' academic performance.College students' ICMMBs are affected by individual factors, such as internet addiction and sensation seeking.Social learning theory is widely adopted as a general theoretical background to explain those behaviours of which possible consequences are easily observed no matter from others or from individuals themselves.What this paper adds This work enriches the media multitasking literature by investigating the predictors of ICMMBs from a relatively new perspective, that is, the social learning perspective.This work also contributes to the literature on media multitasking by examining how the social learning process of college students' ICMMBs differs across students.This work extends the application scope of social learning theory to the context of college students' ICMMBs.Implications for practice and/or policy. The role of imitating others proves the importance of the learning atmosphere in classrooms, so teachers or lecturers should pay special attention to build a learning atmosphere away from ICMMBs.Some in‐class interventions should be established, especially the formal policy of schools to require students to hand in their smartphones or other media before class and students' own mindfulness of such behaviour.Teachers or lecturers should take actions to lower the academic performance expectations of students with higher media multitasking self‐efficacy (MMSE) because students with higher MMSE often overestimate their capabilities to have good performance when conducting other tasks simultaneously. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Online teacher professional development is a branch of online learning, which offers educators opportunities to refine their pedagogical skills and collaboratively construct knowledge within professional learning communities. During these interactions, teachers often engage in knowledge construction while exhibiting diverse role characteristics. Investigating these role characteristics and knowledge construction patterns can enhance the comprehension of the interaction process and contribute to online teacher professional development design, addressing challenges such as weak activity and low collaboration. This study examined the key roles that actively interact or contribute to the online community in online teacher professional development, analysing interactive participation characteristics and knowledge construction behaviour patterns. Data were collected from an online teacher professional development activity in China. Statistical, content and lag sequence analysis methods were employed. Results showed that the three key roles had weak interaction persistence and different content quality in interactive participation characteristics. Knowledge construction behaviours of key roles were generally at a high level, with different patterns observed. Finally, the study proposed practical implications based on key roles' interactive participation characteristics and knowledge construction behaviour patterns. These implications may inspire the learning designs that promote online interaction and deep learning based on role characteristics in online teacher professional development.Practitioner notesWhat is already known about this topicOnline teacher professional development is an evolving and increasingly recognized field within education, positioned as a subset of online learning. Within professional learning communities, teachers engage in knowledge construction and display varied role characteristics.In large‐scale online teacher professional development, only a few consistently maintained knowledge sharing and interaction. These active participants, or 'key roles', account for the majority of interactions.The interactive characteristics of the key roles are rarely discussed.What this paper addsKey roles, while actively participating in the online community, do not necessarily maintain consistent activity throughout the learning process.The interactive participation behaviour of key roles tends to learn more towards 'following' rather than 'initiating'.The quality of interactive content from key roles varies widely. While they are responsible for a significant portion of interactions, it is not guaranteed that these interactions will always be of high quality.Knowledge construction behaviour patterns vary among key roles. Overall, their knowledge construction behaviours are generally at a high level and primarily transit among high stages of knowledge construction.Implications for practiceMaintain continuous interaction and posting high‐quality content prove to be challenging even for key roles. Course administrators should monitor and strategically enhance their engagement to prevent them from becoming lurkers.Understanding the behaviour patterns of key roles offers insights for increasing interaction enthusiasm among active participants.It is necessary to develop role‐specific scripts in professional learning communities, to tailor content for opinion leaders, contributors and boundary spanners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Writing is a fundamental skill linked closely with academic achievement, day‐to‐day communication, formal negotiations, and more. However, due to their lack of contextual experience, learning to write has been a demanding and complex cognitive process for most learners. As a result, learners struggle to exhibit positive learning behaviours and cognitive engagement in writing, let alone embrace deep and autonomous learning. To solve these problems, in the present study, a spherical video‐based virtual reality (SVVR) learning environment is developed to provide students with a contextual learning experience. Moreover, a peer feedback strategy is used to guide students in deep learning in writing. A quasi‐experimental study was conducted to verify the effectiveness of the proposed approach. A total of 79 students from one primary school in southeast China were recruited. The students were assigned to either the experimental group (EG) exposed to the peer‐feedback‐based SVVR (PF‐SVVR) approach or the control group (CG) exposed to the conventional SVVR (C‐SVVR) approach. The results show that PF‐SVVR had more positive effects than C‐SVVR in terms of students' writing performance, cognitive engagement and autonomous learning tendency. In addition, the PF‐SVVR approach was found to be more beneficial for triggering deep learning in writing than the C‐SVVR approach. This study further found that students in the PF‐SVVR group tended to exhibit less disorderly behaviours than those in the C‐SVVR group. Our study contributes to the prior literature by exploring the educational potential of the PF approach in the context of SVVR‐enabled writing learning. Practitioner notesWhat is already known about this topic Peer feedback approach provides opportunities for writing learners to regulate their longer‐term cognitive and behavioural competencies.Spherical video‐based virtual reality (SVVR) not only provides an authentic experiential learning context for learners, but it also significantly reduces the cost and the need for the high‐tech capabilities of traditional VR.What this paper adds A peer feedback‐based SVVR approach is proposed to promote students in learning to write.It was found that students' quality of learning to write can be improved by applying the PF‐SVVR approach in writing courses.Implications for practice and/or policy It is worth promoting the application of the peer feedback strategy and SVVR in school settings.The PF‐SVVR approach is useful for promoting young writing learners' cognitive engagement, autonomous learning tendency and deep learning.Further investigations on the effects of employing the PF‐SVVR approach in writing, with anonymous strategies in the process of giving or receiving peer feedback, are expected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While AI has become more prevalent in our society than ever, many young learners are found holding various naive, erroneous conceptions of AI due to the influence of their technology and media environments. To address this issue, this study seeks to propose a novel pedagogical solution to improve upper‐elementary school students' scientific understanding of AI. Following a theory‐informed design convention, we propose an embodied, analogical and disruptive (EAD) approach which is centred on a human–AI comparison through analogical teaching and embodied interaction. To evaluate the impact of this approach, a matched‐group experimental study with pre‐ and posttest interviews was conducted among 77 Grade 6 elementary students in China. The statistical analysis showed that the experimental group, learning via the EAD approach, significantly outperformed their counterparts receiving direct instruction in terms of student growth in understanding. Qualitative analyses revealed the strengths of the EAD approach in supporting student engagement, abstract thinking and system thinking, and its limitations in cognitive overload and communication issues. Patterns of student learning were identified, including their mental schemas and strategies. The EAD approach, as an evidence‐based, age‐appropriate pedagogical solution, demonstrates the value of embodied cognition and human–AI analogy in AI education in elementary education. Practitioner notesWhat is already known about this topic Many young students hold naive, erroneous conceptions about AI.Pedagogical design has long been a critical challenge in teaching AI in K‐12 schools.Human–AI analogies are often used to teach AI, but with obvious pitfalls to be fixed.What this paper adds An embodied, analogical and disruptive (EAD) approach is proposed to improve students' understandings of AI.An experimental study shows statistically significant greater gains in students' understanding with the EAD approach than with the conventional AI‐only direct instruction approach.Qualitative analysis shows the strength of the EAD approach in supporting student engagement, abstract thinking and systems thinking, and its limitations in cognitive overload and communication issues.Implications for practice and/or policy The EAD approach offers a novel pedagogical solution to promote inclusive and quality AI education for young learners.The EAD approach highlights the pedagogical value of embodied cognition and human–AI analogy in AI education.The EAD approach can complement programming and other plugged activities in AI, and more broadly technology and engineering education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although the educational potential of social media has been widely acknowledged, it remains unclear whether social media use might present opportunities for the development of math identity. This study drew on the socialization framework of math identity to examine the relationships between social media use for math learning, bicultural identity integration, ethnic‐math beliefs and math identity among ethnic minority high school students in China. Structural equation modelling results showed that (a) social media use was positively related to math identity; (b) high bicultural identity integration was positively associated with math identity, while biased ethnic‐math beliefs were negatively related to math identity and (c) social media use suppressed the socialization process of math identity, weakening the maladaptive roles of low bicultural identity integration and biased ethnic‐math beliefs in shaping math identity. Our findings highlight the beneficial role of social media use in student math learning. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed. Practitioner notesWhat is already known about this topicSocial media use for learning is associated with students' academic motivation, engagement and academic achievement.Social media use may have affordances for identity development, especially for ethnic minorities.The formation of ethnic minority students' math identity is intertwined with their math and ethnic socialization.What this paper addsSocial media use for math learning was directly and positively related to ethnic minorities' math identity.This study quantitatively confirmed the associations of bicultural identity integration and ethnic‐math beliefs with math identity.Social media use suppressed the relations of bicultural identity integration and ethnic‐math beliefs with math identity.Implications for practice and/or policyPromoting social media use for math learning benefits ethnic minority students' math identity.Social media use for math learning could alleviate the maladaptive role of low bicultural identity integration and biased ethnic‐math beliefs in math identity development.Ethnic minority students' math identity socialization processes merit attention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As an innovative evaluation tool, peer assessment is essential in Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs). In both formative and summative peer assessments in MOOCs, providing reliable feedback is crucial in enhancing learning outcomes. Peer assessment has been highlighted as a reliable tool in both traditional classrooms and small‐scale online learning contexts by a wealth of studies. Factors impacting the result of peer assessment have also been identified. However, such exploration in MOOCs is very limited. Through an examination of 5,722 assignment submissions and 56,794 review scores collected from 18 peer assessments in three courses on Chinese University MOOC platform, this study investigated the inter‐reliability of peer assessment in MOOCs utilizing Krippendorff's alpha and ICC[1]. It also revealed factors affecting peer assessment reliability in MOOCs. The results of this study show that students tended to mark extreme scores, and peer assessment in MOOCs seemed unreliable. In addition, the reliability of the peer assessment in these MOOCs was inversely correlated to the number of reviewers per assignment and reviews completed per reviewer. The assignment type also matters; peer assessment using e‐portfolios format was found more reliable than those using papers and proposals. Suggestions on how to improve the reliability of peer assessments in MOOCs are also provided. Practitioner notesWhat is already known about this topicBoth the formative and summative peer assessment mode, providing reliable feedback is needed, which is of great value for improving the quality of online learning.The reliability and influence factors of peer assessment has been highlighted by a wealth of studies in traditional classrooms and small‐scale online learning contexts.There are still limited explorations in MOOCs.What the paper addsThe students tended to give extreme scores in peer assessment in MOOC, and the peer assessment in MOOC may was not particularly reliable.The Assignment type being rated affected the reliability, and peer assessment using e‐portfolios format was found more reliable than those using papers and proposals.The reliability of peer assessment in MOOC was negative related to the number of reviewers per assignment and the reviews completed per reviewer.Implications for practice and/or policyAvoid using peer assessment as a summative assessment method, and should be assigned relatively low weights to final grades.Using papers and proposals as learning assignments can appropriately reduce the proportion of peer assessment in the final grade.Training on how to identify medium quality work should be provided.Instructional strategies should be designed to encourage learners to actively participate in peer assessments and thoroughly assess. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Writing is a recording process involving complex dynamic behaviours, which is closely connected with authentic contexts. A free authentic context can form a link with students' life experience and their prior knowledge, so that students' deep writing skills can be stimulated. However, in traditional writing activities, the lack of authentic experience is an important reason for students' poor writing achievements and low behavioural engagement. To address this problem, the current study used a spherical video‐based virtual reality (SVVR)‐supported Chinese composition writing approach, which can provide authentic contexts to support students' deep writing. An SVVR experiential learning model was developed and a quasi‐experiment was conducted in a primary school to verify the effectiveness of the proposed approach. A total of 59 fourth‐grade students from China were recruited and were randomly divided into the experimental group, which adopted the SVVR‐supported learning approach, and the control group, which adopted the non‐SVVR‐supported learning approach. The results show that the proposed approach can promote students' transition of learning behavioural engagement from medium to high, as well as the development of deep writing skills. It was found that students learning with the SVVR approach who acquired better deep writing skills tended to demonstrate better writing performance in relation to linguistic expressiveness and creative thinking than the students learning with the non‐SVVR approach. Practitioner notesWhat is already known about this topic There is an urgent need to use immersive technologies to promote deep learning and stimulate students' learning behavioural engagement in writing.Spherical video‐based virtual reality (SVVR) is one of the immersive VRs with a low technical barrier and low cost, which meets the needs of school settings.SVVR has been applied in areas of language, engineering, science, etc., while its impacts on students' composition writing achievements have generally been ignored, especially in primary schools.The characteristics of immersion, interaction and imagination in SVVR that allow students to have opportunities of experiential learning can potentially promote students' writing performance.What this paper adds A novel experiential learning model supported by the SVVR learning system was developed.An SVVR‐supported composition writing approach based on the proposed experiential learning model was used to promote primary school students' deep writing.It was found that students' composition writing performance, learning behavioural engagement and deep writing skills can be improved by applying the SVVR‐supported learning approach in writing courses.Implications for practice and/or policy It is worth promoting the application of SVVR in school settings because it is a low‐tech and low‐cost method of creating immersive learning environments.The SVVR‐supported composition writing approach is useful for promoting primary school students' deep writing.Further investigations on the effects of employing this approach in writing, with careful consideration of the development for interactivities of SVVR, are expected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The proliferation of screen‐free programmable robotics allows teachers to implement age‐appropriate integrated activities that can promote child learning and development. However, very scarce is known about the challenges of using programmable robots as a tool to empower children in minority communities. This mixed‐methods case study examined a Free Quality Kindergarten situated in a low‐income public housing estate in Hong Kong to explore the affordances and challenges of robot programming (RP) in early childhood education (ECE). Both quantitative and qualitative data were generated through videotaped observations, child assessments and teacher interviews to journey with the teaching team as they managed to implement the newly introduced RP curriculum. Child assessment evidence revealed that there was a statistically significant improvement in CT scores over 6 weeks of RP activities, while the pretest–posttest change of child self‐regulation scores was nonsignificant. Video analysis results further revealed that children's interaction level with the robot kit significantly predicted the change of self‐regulation over time. Qualitative results are presented to explicate the micro, meso and macro conditions that constrain the implementation of RP curriculum, including the following: (a) teachers' limited TPACK in RP education, (b) a disconnect between the RP curriculum and the school‐based curriculum, (c) limited resources and (d) the Confucian tradition and cultural barriers. These illustrate the intricacies involved in the implementation of RP education to empower marginalized children in under‐resourced ECE settings. This study will help bring systemic change to the ECE field by uncovering ecological difficulties in integrating new technologies to promote inclusiveness and sustainability for the future. Practitioner notesWhat is already known about this topic Screen‐free robot programming (RP) is beneficial for preschool children in terms of promoting their computational thinking (CT) and executive functioning.RP can be generally engaging for preschool children from a middle‐class background.What this paper adds The study is addressing the inclusiveness and sustainability according to the learning needs of kindergarten students, especially those from less privileged backgrounds.The story‐based approach to RP can cater to the learning needs and interests of children from a lower socio‐economic background, which is likely to enhance their CT skills.Children with a higher level of interaction with the robot kit benefited more from the RP activities in terms of self‐regulation skills.This study used multiple methods (ie, video analysis, teacher interview and child assessment) to reveal the effects of micro, meso and macro contexts on RP education in an under‐resourced Hong Kong kindergarten.Implications for practice and/or policy RP education should be cautiously prompted in diverse early childhood settings, especially the less privileged institutions, to enhance positive effects.Critical constraints on the use of programmable robots to empower marginalized children should be adequately addressed when trying to integrate RP into early childhood education.Teachers should receive training and continual support in RP‐related pedagogical strategies to facilitate and scaffold children's learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Children's unexpected cardiac arrest warrants cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) by kindergarten teachers. Yet, recent research revealed trained personnel reporting poor transfer of acquired skills during real‐world emergencies with conventional CPR training. Immersive virtual reality (IVR) training induces a greater sense of presence and agency than conventional CPR training and may be more effective in terms of increasing trainees' intention and initiative to perform CPR in real‐world emergencies. A quasi‐experiment was conducted to assess the effectiveness of the IVR‐based CPR training method in terms of enhancing the intention to perform CPR. The trial enrolled 50 participants, 25 of whom examined a child patient in an IVR virtual scenario, using an AED, and performed two rounds of two‐minute chest compressions. The remaining 25 participants were trained using a video with consistent content on a monitor. A generalised estimating equation analysis demonstrated that the IVR training method significantly increased prospective kindergarten teachers' self‐efficacy for performing CPR, positive attitudes towards CPR, and CPR knowledge. This advantage was also maintained after the five‐week follow‐up. Thus, CPR teaching via IVR looks to be an excellent way to enhance the intention to perform CPR and may be of great value in improving existing CPR training systems. Practitioner notesWhat is already known about this topic Many trainees who have received traditional cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) training hesitate to perform the skills learned in a real‐world emergency.The critical determinant of whether an individual performs a behaviour is the individual's 'intention' to perform that behaviour.Individual's self‐efficacy to perform CPR, attitudes towards CPR, and perceived social norms are three determinants that influence intention to perform CPR.Immersive media such as virtual reality may elicit more attitudinal changes and a greater sense of learner self‐efficacy than current mainstream media.What this paper adds The study's results indicated that compared to conventional technology‐supported video training, immersive virtual reality (IVR) training significantly increased participants' self‐efficacy about performing CPR, positive attitudes towards CPR and CPR knowledge.CPR training through IVR may enhance trainees' intention to perform CPR in real‐world emergencies.Implications for practice and/or policy The effectiveness of combining IVR technology into existing CPR training methods such as mixed reality training, which blends virtual environments with realistic mannequins, should be further examined in the future.IVR may be a more effective medium for enhancing the intention to perform behaviour than conventional technology. Future research could further experiment with the use of IVR as a behavioural intervention technique in education [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Programmable robotics is recently used in early childhood education (ECE) to introduce programming and computational thinking (CT) skills. However, there is a further need for research to contrast the efficacy of children's participation in robot programming and traditionally beneficial ECE activities. The present study thus investigated the effects of a robot programming intervention versus a block play program on kindergarteners' CT, sequencing ability, and self‐regulation. The experiment (robot programming) versus comparison (block play) condition was randomly assigned to four kindergarten classes, which included 101 kindergarteners (M = 64.78 months, SD = 7.64). Statistical analyses revealed that the robot programming group (N = 54) had experienced greater gains over time in sequencing ability relative to those in the block play group (N = 47; F = 5.09, p < 0.05). Children in the robot programming group with lower level of self‐regulation at baseline showed larger improvements in sequencing ability over time relative to the block play group (F = 2.37, p = 0.01). Also, children in the robot programming group with older age showed larger improvements in CT over time relative to the block play group (F = 2.40, p < 0.01). The study demonstrates the positive benefits of robot programming to early childhood development in terms of CT and sequencing ability, compared to a traditional curriculum activity in ECE—block play. Practitioner notesWhat is already known about this topic Screen‐free robot programming can enhance preschool children's computational thinking (CT).Block play can enhance preschool children's mathematics and executive functioning.Both robot programming and block play are engaging for preschool children.What this paper adds An unplugged CT assessment is used to measure and compare the effects of both robot programming and block play interventions among preschool children.Robot programming outperforms block play in promoting children's school readiness skills such as sequencing ability.Children with lower self‐regulation skills benefited more from the robot programming intervention.Implications for practice and/or policy Robot programming and CT education should be expanded in diverse early childhood settings to boost the positive effects.Technology‐enhanced curricula should be integrated into early childhood education.Teachers should receive training on robot programming in addition to more traditional skills such as scaffolding children's block play. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Situational engagement plays a critical role in promoting students' academic performance. In a smart classroom environment, this study collected longitudinal real‐time data for 105 college students at a university in central China to investigate the relationship among situational engagement, personal characteristics and learning environment perceptions. Hierarchical linear modelling showed that environmental perception and students' personal factors have different effects on situational engagement. Specifically, (1) social support perceptions, autonomous motivation and controlled motivation have a significant impact on behavioural engagement; (2) perceptions of social and media support, autonomous motivation and controlled motivation have a significant impact on shallow cognitive engagement; and (3) perceptions of teacher and social support, self‐efficacy and autonomous motivation significantly predict deep cognitive and emotional engagement. This study suggests that the effect of the perception regarding advanced technology‐supported learning environments on students' situational engagement is limited, and instructors should pay more attention to improving students' perceptions of teacher and social support, self‐efficacy and autonomous motivation to promote students' situational deep cognitive engagement in smart classrooms. Practitioner notesWhat is already known about this topic Compared with overall engagement, situational engagement fluctuates and changes with time and context.Situational engagement is a product of environmental and personal factors.Few studies have focused on the nature of situational engagement and how environmental and personal factors influence situational engagement in smart classrooms.What the paper adds This study contributes to the existing literature by investigating the critical factors that predict situational engagement, using the experience sampling method in a smart classroom at a Chinese university.Environmental perception, self‐efficacy and students' motivation factors have different effects on situational engagement in a smart classroom.Perceptions of teacher and social support, self‐efficacy and autonomous motivation significantly predict deep cognitive and emotional engagement, while perceptions of media support only have a significant impact on shallow cognitive engagement.Personal factors (controlled and autonomous motivation) moderate the relationship between environmental perception factors and situational engagement.Implications for practice and/or policy Rather than only providing external technology‐rich conditions, instructors should focus more on improving students' perceptions of teacher and social support, self‐efficacy and autonomous motivation in the smart classroom environment.Instructors should promote students' perception of teacher support and their autonomous motivation to enhance their deep cognitive engagement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To support young children's learning during the coronavirus 2019 (COVID‐19) pandemic, preschool educators in Hong Kong were required to teach with digital technologies. In this study, 1035 educators from 169 preschools reported their views and practices in an online survey, which we examined via multilevel mixed‐response analysis and thematic analysis. More than half of the respondents (53%) expected future online teaching to continue, and only 11% of educators believed that parents would reject this form of delivery. Administrators and teaching assistants were more likely than teachers to expect online preschool teaching to continue in the future. In addition, respondents with existing online platform experience, who taught the upper levels of preschool, or incorporated specific teaching practices (eg, after the online lesson, they assessed children and assigned homework tasks), were more likely than others to expect online teaching in the future. Many of these respondents also reported (a) difficulty with engaging their children when online and (b) inadequate support from parents for learning activities, which reduced the respondents' perceived likelihood of future online teaching. Administrators and teaching assistants were more likely than teachers to believe that parents would accept online teaching in the future. Respondents who felt they had inadequate training to teach online, children in families with inadequate technical skills and parents who believed that online lessons harmed children's well‐being, were less likely than others to believe that parents would accept online teaching in the future. These educators believed that online learning communities could connect parents and schools and foster interaction that could help align with educator's support for children's learning needs. Practitioner notesWhat is already known about technology integration for young children during COVID‐19COVID‐19 led to the closure of many schools, requiring teachers to teach online.Barriers to integrating technologies in preschool settings existed before the pandemic.Online teaching can support students' learning, but few studies have examined technology integration for preschoolers at home during a pandemic.What this paper addsThis paper adds new data on schooling during a pandemic. During the closures, preschool teachers applied two major online teaching approaches: (a) digital content interaction and (b) online human interaction.Technology integration was added to provide evidence of how teachers applied online learning resources for young children during COVID‐19.During closures, teachers often delivered learning resources via digital‐mediated learning platforms, but they were less likely than other educators to expect online teaching in the future.Educators who perceived greater engagement of children or support from parents were more likely to expect online teaching in the future.Implications for practice and/or policyThis study showed that some preschool teachers integrated technology into their teaching during a pandemic, and future studies can explore how to facilitate or extend this integration after the pandemic.This study showed the need for more interactive online teaching preparation to address young children's learning needs.Some teachers were responsive to feedback from children and monitored their learning during the online teaching process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Computational thinking (CT), which is a cognitive skill used to solve problems with computational solutions, has drawn increasing attention among researchers and practitioners due to the growing recognition of CT competence as a 21st century skill. Collaboration is commonly integrated into CT education to facilitate novice learning, but there is inadequate knowledge regarding the influences of collaboration in CT education. This meta‐analysis examined the overall effects on the cognitive, social and affective competencies of collaborative versus individual problem solving in CT through programming. We identified 33 publications involving 4717 learners, which allowed for 220 effect size comparisons. We found a medium effect size (Hedges' g = 0.562; p < 0.001) in favour of collaborative problem solving on cognitive learning outcomes and a small effect size (Hedges' g = 0.316; p < 0.01) on affective learning outcomes using a random‐effects model. Categorical moderator analysis revealed the moderating effects of educational level, programming environment, study duration, grouping method and group size. The competency model that was generated from the synthesized literature on collaborative computational problem solving yielded insights into the learning design and assessment of relevant activities. Practitioner notesWhat is already known about the topic?Although professional programming usually requires collaboration to accomplish common goals in the work environment, programming is predominantly taught on an individual basis in educational settings.Some intervention studies have reported inconsistent learning outcomes (positive and negative) from integrating collaborative problem solving (CPS) into programming education.There is a need for further scrutiny and exploration of the role of collaboration in the process of learning to program.What does this paper add?Our meta‐analysis showed that CPS is an effective pedagogical tool for developing students' cognitive, affective and social competencies.The moderator analysis revealed that CPS in programming has cognitive benefits irrespective of grouping method, group size and educational levels; however, there is a need for caution in regard to designing collaborative problem‐solving activities for different programming environments and durations.The model generated from the literature synthesis can yield insights into better assessing and designing collaborative problem‐solving activities.Implications for practice and/or policy?Integrating CPS into programming education can prepare students with 21st century skills.Social and affective competencies are crucial to students' learning capacity, which is an issue that needs to be better assessed.Future studies could look more rigorously into the effects of CPS in visual programming and robotics programming among younger age groups, such as primary or middle school students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Learning analytics (LA) has been widely adopted in research on education. However, most studies in the area have conducted LA after computer‐supported collaborative learning (CSCL) activities rather than during CSCL. To address this problem, this study proposed a LA‐based real‐time feedback approach based on a deep neural network model to improve CSCL performance. In total, 72 university students participated in the study and were randomly assigned to an experimental or control group. The students in the experimental group learned with the LA‐based real‐time feedback approach, whereas the students in the control group learned with the conventional online collaborative learning approach. To analyse the data, both quantitative and qualitative methods were adopted. The results indicated that the LA‐based real‐time feedback approach significantly promoted knowledge convergence, knowledge elaboration, interactive relationships and group performance. The interview results also confirmed the effectiveness of the proposed approach. Practitioner notesWhat is already known regarding this topic Learning analytics (LA) has been widely used in education.Most studies in the area have presented LA results only after collaborative learning and have lacked real‐time analysis and feedback.What this paper adds A LA‐based real‐time feedback approach was proposed and validated in the computer‐supported collaborative learning (CSCL) context.The experimental results indicated that the LA‐based real‐time feedback approach significantly promoted knowledge elaboration, knowledge convergence, interactive relationships and group performance.Implications for practice and/or policy To shed light on progress in CSCL, real‐time LA are recommended.Deep neural network models, such as bidirectional encoder representations from transformers, can be adopted to automatically analyse online discussion transcripts.Real‐time feedback based on LA results can promote CSCL performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Designing reflective activities for online video learning could enhance learning outcomes and, to some extent, influence learning processes (ie, attentional processes and emotional experiences). It is necessary to select different levels of reflective activities in online video learning according to learning processes and outcomes. This study examined to what extent different levels of reflection may affect the learning outcomes, and further explored the impact of reflection on learning processes. Participants, comprising 60 undergraduates, were randomly and equally assigned to two different groups: a reflection group and a critical reflection group, and each group member completed specific learning tasks. The results of the learning outcomes showed that critical reflection led to better transfer performance than reflection, but retention performance was the same in both conditions. Regarding process measures, eye‐tracking data indicated that the embedding of critical reflection strategies facilitated learners' visual attention, and controlled the difficulty of processing. Meanwhile, physiological data showed that the learners' reflection was accompanied by stress, and there was no significant difference between the two levels of reflection. Practitioner notesWhat is already known about this topicEmbedding reflections within videos is an effective instructional strategy for online learning which can facilitate students' deep learning.Recent studies have evaluated the effectiveness of reflection mostly through its impact on learning outcomes, yet focusing on the process of reflection is equally valuable.How to choose the level of reflection is critical and challenging. Whether it should combine the processes (including attentional processes and emotional experiences) and outcomes of reflection can be addressed through experimental research.What this paper addsSelecting different levels of reflection (ie, reflection and critical reflection) according to Kember's model and suggesting strategies (ie, retrospective interpretation reports and evaluation reports of problem solving) to guide reflection.The experimental design combined outcomes and processes in order to identify the most appropriate level of reflection in the context of video learning, and both offline and online measurements were taken (including eye tracking and physiological measures).Critical reflection leads to superior learning outcomes and has advantages for attentional processes. Additionally, reflection itself is the main factor influencing participants' stress, and there is no significant difference between the levels of reflection.Implications for practice and/or policyProviding guidance for different levels of reflection (ie, retrospective interpretation reports and evaluation report of problem solving), which helps inform the design of instructional videos and foster learners' reflective awareness.Educators should focus not only on the learning outcomes caused by reflection but also on the learning processes of reflection and the emotional experiences that accompany it, in order to choose an appropriate level of reflection.Whether the teaching goal is knowledge retention or transfer, educators should embed a high level of reflection for learners in instructional videos to promote deep thinking and processing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Studying the networked nature of social and cognitive aspects of learner interactions is the key to understanding how successful collaborative learning occurs in asynchronous online discussion forums (AODFs). Guided by network science and multiplex network analysis, this study compared the differences of network structure and properties between the social (learners as nodes and commenting on the others' contributions as edges) and cognitive (learners as nodes and explicitly quoting the others' contributions as edges) networks within an AODF. It additionally examined the differences of individual measures between these two monolayer networks and their integrated two multiplex networks. The two multiplex networks were respectively framed in superimposed and unfold approaches. Moreover, correlation analysis was conducted to examine the relationships between individual measures and learning performance across the four networks. Results showed key differences at the network and individual levels between the social and cognitive networks. The two networks had different compositions of participants, and students in the cognitive network occupied more central positions in general. Besides, certain individual measures in the multiplex networks were relatively higher and more related to learning performance than those in the monolayer networks. These results indicate that integrating multi‐aspect information of collaboration may be more conducive to unveiling learners' interaction patterns in asynchronous online discussions. Practitioner notesWhat is already known about this topic? Studying the networked nature of the social and cognitive aspects of learner interactions is the key to understanding how successful collaborative learning occurs.Social network analysis and content analysis are two commonly used methods to analyse learner interactions in asynchronous online discussions.There is a lack of research examining learners' overall interaction patterns by integrating social and cognitive interactions.What this paper adds? This study framed cognitive interactions as a networked phenomenon to unveil the way learners participate in the cognitive aspect of learner interactions.Multiplex network analysis (MNA) was introduced to integrate social and cognitive interactions to understand learners' overall interaction patterns.Integrating social and cognitive interactions led to a more closer relationship between learner interactions and learning performance.Implications for practice and/or policy? The proposed approach for framing the cognitive network and the introduced approach of MNA could be jointly employed to discern learners' overall interaction pattern in asynchronous online discussions.Course facilitators and instructors should be aware of the inconsistencies in social and cognitive interactions and then simultaneously examine them so as to acquire an accurate understanding of learners' diverse interactions.Pedagogical strategies for simultaneously facilitating social and cognitive interactions could be used to better improve learning performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A thorough understanding of how ICT support provided by teacher preparation programmes influences preservice teachers' technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK) has become increasingly essential. This study aimed at exploring the mediating role of ICT perception, perceived ICT competence and ICT self‐efficacy between university ICT support and preservice teachers' TPACK. Data were collected through an online self‐assessment questionnaire translated and adapted from existing studies and verified with confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). A total of 298 preservice teachers, who were senior students studying at three different normal universities in China, participated in this study. Structural equation modelling revealed the following: (a) university ICT support significantly predicted preservice teachers' ICT perception, perceivedICT competence and ICT self‐efficacy, but had no significant direct effects on their TPACK; (b) ICT self‐efficacy was a strong predictor of preservice teachers' TPACK and ICT perception was a weak one, while perceived ICT competence did not predict TPACK at all; and (c) among three potential mediators, ICT self‐efficacy mediated the most effects of university ICT support on preservice teachers' TPACK. These findings demonstrate strong positive effects of institutional support on preservice teachers' TPACK development, which was strongly underestimated in previous studies. Findings suggest normal universities should create practical opportunities for preservice teachers to perceive the power of technology, especially opportunities that could improve preservice teachers' self‐efficacy while applying technology into instruction. Practitioner notesWhat is already known about this topicICT support from schools is an essential precondition while enhancing in‐service teachers' motivation to apply ICT into instruction.Research revealing how ICT support provided by teacher preparation programmes affects preservice teachers' TPACK is absent.What the paper addsThis study adds to the previous literature by exploring the mediating role of ICT perception, perceived ICT competence and ICT self‐efficacy in the relationship between university ICT support and preservice teachers' TPACK.This study found that university ICT support significantly predicted preservice teachers' ICT perception, perceivedICT competence and ICT self‐efficacy, but had no significant direct effects on their TPACK.Among the three potential mediators, ICT self‐efficacy mediated the most effects of university ICT support on preservice teachers' TPACK.Implications for practice and/or policyNormal universities need to provide effective and professionally targeted ICT support to meet preservice teachers' needs.The mediating role of ICT self‐efficacy should be highlighted on the path from university ICT support to TPACK. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Social learning analytics (SLA) tools are designed to visually demonstrate online discussions with a goal to foster student engagement. However, empirical studies indicate controversial results of the effect of SLA tools on student engagement. This design‐based research designs a student‐facing SLA tool to demonstrate discussions from three perspectives and further uses mixed methods to investigate the effects of the tool. Results indicate the tools have positive influences on increasing student social‐cognitive engagement. The social network visualization has positive influences on both socially active and inactive students; it particularly increases peripheral students' social engagement. The topic network visualization improves all students' perspective expressions, indicating that demonstrating students' interested topics may increase cognitive engagement. The cognitive network visualization triggers students' information sharing, which is considered as the beginning of online engagement development. Based on the results, this research proposes integrated implications by considering learning theory, pedagogical supports and tool development. Practitioner notesWhat is already known about this topic SLA tools are designed to turn learning data into actionable insights of student engagement.Network‐oriented, content‐oriented and process‐oriented analytics are three major approaches.Extant empirical studies indicate controversial results of the effect of SLA tools on student engagement.What this paper adds This research designs a SLA tool to demonstrate student engagement via three network visualizations.This research uses mixed methods to examine students' social‐cognitive engagement.Results show that the designed SLA tools have positive influences on increasing students' engagement.Implications for practice and/or policy Design of SLA tools needs to consider learner agency, disposition and characteristic in the local context.Instructors should deliberately guide students reflect on the information demonstrated in the SLA tool.Future SLA design should make integrate multiple analytic results to reflect engagement in varied ways. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Online learning is currently adopted by educational institutions worldwide to provide students with ongoing education during the COVID‐19 pandemic. Even though online learning research has been advancing in uncovering student experiences in various settings (i.e., tertiary, adult, and professional education), very little progress has been achieved in understanding the experience of the K‐12 student population, especially when narrowed down to different school‐year segments (i.e., primary and secondary school students). This study explores how students at different stages of their K‐12 education reacted to the mandatory full‐time online learning during the COVID‐19 pandemic. For this purpose, we conducted a province‐wide survey study in which the online learning experience of 1,170,769 Chinese students was collected from the Guangdong Province of China. We performed cross‐tabulation and Chi‐square analysis to compare students' online learning conditions, experiences, and expectations. Results from this survey study provide evidence that students' online learning experiences are significantly different across school years. Foremost, policy implications were made to advise government authorises and schools on improving the delivery of online learning, and potential directions were identified for future research into K‐12 online learning. Practitioner notesWhat is already known about this topic Online learning has been widely adopted during the COVID‐19 pandemic to ensure the continuation of K‐12 education.Student success in K‐12 online education is substantially lower than in conventional schools.Students experienced various difficulties related to the delivery of online learning.What this paper adds Provide empirical evidence for the online learning experience of students in different school years.Identify the different needs of students in primary, middle, and high school.Identify the challenges of delivering online learning to students of different age.Implications for practice and/or policy Authority and schools need to provide sufficient technical support to students in online learning.The delivery of online learning needs to be customised for students in different school years. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research consisted of two studies to investigate how the Chinese rural educational system supported students' online learning and to determine the factors that influenced students' online learning quality (satisfaction and cognitive and social presence) during the COVID‐19 pandemic. Study 1, based on interviews with three curriculum officers, seven principals and 30 course teachers, found that great efforts were made to realize digital equity and education for all students. The necessity of providing resources and support to teachers and students (facilitating conditions) was recognized, along with the importance of teachers' online course design and organization and the facilitation of discourse (teaching presence and social presence). Based on the findings of Study 1 and the literature review, a conceptual model of facilitating conditions and teaching presence reported to influence students' online learning quality was generated. In Study 2, 1,409 students from three rural primary schools were surveyed to test the conceptual model. The results indicated that facilitating conditions influenced students' online learning quality through enhanced technology self‐efficacy and perceived usefulness. Teaching presence directly and positively predicted students' online learning quality. This research highlights the importance of creating a learning community and providing technology access and support to ensure online learning opportunities and quality for rural students. Practitioner notesWhat is already known about this topic Chinese students from rural or migrant schools have fewer opportunities to access computers and the Internet, lower frequencies of online activity and technology self‐efficacy and less training and parental and teacher support.Providing support and resources to encourage and facilitate technology use among teachers and students in rural and underdeveloped schools is of great importance.Identifying the factors that contribute to online learning quality among rural school students to tackle the transition to online learning is necessary.What this paper adds The rural government and schools have made great efforts to ensure digital equity and education for all students, despite family conditions.Facilitating purposeful interactions and providing timely feedback is critical for effective learning in online teaching.Facilitating conditions represented by available support and resources and teaching presence influence students' online learning quality in rural areas.Implications for practice and/or policy Providing digital equipment and resources to all students is the first step towards distance learning.Providing opportunities to improve teachers' digital competency is critical for providing quality online instruction.Providing students timely assistance and useful and learner‐friendly technologies to enhance their satisfaction and social and cognitive presence is necessary.Online instructors should create a friendly online learning environment, facilitate active discussion and purposeful reflection and create opportunities to promote students' open communication, group cohesion and meaning construction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]