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Electronic learning (e-learning) is a broader approach to learning that brings new opportunities for learning and teaching in many fields of education far from the traditional classroom environment. Over the past decades, research in the field indicates a proliferation of e-learning contents and discrepancies that affect interoperability patterns in education for students and teachers; however, little has been done to assess the usability of e-learning systems. From a different perspective, this study aims to provide information on the numerous findings relating to the cumulative results of e-learning in education. This systematic review uses a full protocol with the aim of standardizing and specifying all the procedures adopted to collect and code 99 academic articles from 2010 to 2018 with keywords: education and e-learning. The text analysis as conducted using the qualitative software Leximancer to extract meaning from the large number of articles retrieved. The results highlight four dominant themes, namely education systems and learning issues that in turn promote student behaviours and the use of online learning tools. This research contributes towards providing research propositions that can be used in a cogent theoretical framework and, based on the analysis, we also propose a new definition of e-learning. info:eu-repo/semantics/acceptedVersion

This meta-analysis looked at 17 studies which focused on the comparison of reading on screen and reading on paper in terms of reading comprehension and reading speed. The robust variance estimation (RVE)- based meta-analysis models were employed, followed by four different RVE meta-regression models to examine the potential effects of some of the covariates (moderators) on the mean differences in comprehension and reading speed between reading on screen and reading on paper. The RVE meta-analysis showed that reading on paper was better than reading on screen in terms of reading comprehension, and there were no significant differences between reading on paper and reading on screen in terms of reading speed. None of the moderators were significant at the 0.05 level. In the meanwhile, albeit not significant, examination of the p-values for the difference tests prior to 2013 and after 2013 respectively (not shown here) indicated that the magnitude of the difference in reading comprehension between paper and screen followed a diminishing trajectory. It was suggested that future meta-analyses include latest studies, and other potential moderators such as fonts, spacing, age and gender.

The aim of this study is to investigate whether personalization of mathematical word problems affects student achievement; and if it does, to find out whether the outcomes vary depending on computer and class environment in the teaching of mathematics. The sample of the research, conducted in the 2006-2007 fall semester, consists of 90 seventh grade in four sub-groups. During the application in the classroom, paper-based personalized and paper-based non-personalized problems were given. As to the computer environment, web-based personalized and web-based non-personalized problems were presented. After the application, an achievement test was performed as an achievement post-test parallel to the pre-test. The results show no significant difference between the scores of the groups who used personalized materials and the groups who used non-personalized materials. The results also indicate that no significant difference exists between those who studied in the computer-based environment and those in the paper-based environment.

The purpose of this study was to compare student performance on two proctored quizzes and one practice test taken in paper-based or computer-based testing mode using an equal number of algorithmic, conceptual, and definition questions to examine the effect of testing mode when students take multiple tests in class. Data were collected from 221 students enrolled in a general chemistry course at a Midwestern university. After learning the material in lecture, students completed two quizzes: Quiz 1 and Quiz 2. One quiz was delivered on paper and another quiz was taken on computer. Each quiz tested student understanding of different chemistry concepts and the quizzes were proctored on different days. Several days after Quiz 2, students took a practice test that tested the knowledge of Quiz 1 and Quiz 2 with different yet similar questions, and again, the testing mode of the practice test was either paper-and-pencil or computer. After each quiz and the practice test, students received feedback on their performance. Differences in performance between the quizzes and the practice test were measured with normalized gains and the differences between the normalized gains for each condition were analyzed using an Analysis of Variance. The results showed no significant testing mode effects among the four conditions overall, or for algorithmic, conceptual, or definition type of questions. Altogether, the results of the present study do not provide evidence to suggest that instructors need to be concerned about testing mode (paper versus computer) when designing and administering chemistry tests.

One consequence of the ongoing controversy on the implementation of digital tools in early writing instruction is a need to investigate the effect of different writing instruction tools such as pen(cil) and paper and tablet computers on early writing. The purpose of this pilot study is to develop a study design and a writing test to investigate the effect of writing instruction tool (tablet computer vs. pen and paper) and test format (digital vs. pen-and-paper) on early writing outcomes. For the writing test, our pilot study shows that pupils assessed by the digital test format wrote faster compared with those assessed by pen-and-paper format, independent of the writing instruction tool. Given the limitations of this pilot study in scope and its quasi-experimental nature, we provide some suggestions for the design of a larger scale study by taking into account the rapid development of the field of early writing instruction. We investigate the effect of tablet computer or pen-and-paper on early writing.We pilot a design to consider writing instruction tool and test format.Further, we developed a writing test targeting third-graders writing outcomes.Assessed by a digital format pupils wrote faster than those by pen-and-paper.

In the light of the continuing digital revolution in education and learning in general, and in literacy instruction in particular, the purpose of this review is to assess the emerging literature on such digital writing tools as computers and tablets compared with traditional writing tools like pen(cil) and paper, on early writing outcomes among first writers. We limited our review to studies published in international peer-reviewed journals during the last decade, within different theoretical perspectives. We identified a relatively small number of studies that can be categorized, as qualitative studies applying a case study design or within-subject design, and as quantitative studies, either quasi-experimental or cohort studies. These studies can be located within three research perspectives: 1) cognitive psychology, 2) neuroscience and learning and 3) socio-cultural theoretical perspective. While findings across the three perspectives were inconsistent, they were rather consistent within each perspective. While studies with a cognitive psychological and those with neuroscience and learning perspective point in favor of handwriting, studies with a socio-cultural perspective rather point in favor of digital writing. The studies that used a cognitive psychology and neuroscience and learning approach applied quasi-experimental or cohort designs, while studies based on a socio-cultural perspective mainly were qualitative. When analyzing the studies regarding methodological quality we found three flaws: small sample size (of quantitative studies); a lack of nesting effects; and inadequately controlling for experience for early writing. Facing an interdisciplinary research topic in rapid development, we provide some implications for further research, and suggestions in particular in terms of methodological challenges. We reviewed 10 studies on early writing comparing pen and paper and digital tools.These studies can be located within three theoretical perspectives.The majority indicate that handwriting outperforms keyboarding in early writing.Methodological flaws: inadequate control for experience; lack of nesting effects.

Recent meta-analyses (Delgado et al., 2018; Kong et al., 2018; Clinton, 2019) show that reading comprehension on paper is better than on screen among (young) adults. Children's screen reading comprehension, however, is underexplored. This article presents an experiment measuring the effect of reading medium on younger (10-year old) readers' comprehension, carried out in Norway in 2015. In a within-subjects design, students (n = 1139) took two comparable versions of a reading comprehension test – one on paper, and another digitally, with test version and order of medium counterbalanced. Probabilistic test theory models (two-parameter logistic (2 PL) and partial credit models) were employed for both versions of the test, allowing direct comparisons of student achievement across media. Results showed that the students in average achieved lower scores on the digital test than on the paper version. Almost a third of the students performed better on the paper test than they did on the computer test, and the negative effect of screen reading was most pronounced among high-performing girls. Scrolling and/or misplaced digital reading habits may be salient factors behind this difference, which sheds further light on children's reading performance and how this may be affected by screen technologies. Implications of these findings for education and for reading assessment are discussed.

On-screen reading is becoming increasingly prevalent in educational settings, and children are now are expected to comprehend texts that they read on screens. However, research suggests that reading on screen impairs comprehension compared to reading on paper. Furthermore, this medium effect is not reflected in adults' metacomprehension judgments, which often reflect greater overconfidence when reading on screen. Adults are therefore usually metacognitively unaware of the detrimental effect that on-screen reading has on their comprehension. Whether and how the medium affects children's metacomprehension has not been examined before. The main purpose of the present study was to examine the effect of the medium used for reading (screen vs. paper) on children's reading comprehension and metacomprehension. Fifth grade children (N = 38) read short texts, estimated their comprehension of each text, and answered a reading comprehension test. They completed this task on paper for two texts and on screen for two other texts. Results suggested that the children's reading comprehension was better when reading on paper than on screen, although initial reading time was equivalent. This paper advantage was independent of medium preferences, computer usage habits, or reading skills. Children's metacomprehension judgments were insensitive to the effect of medium, and their medium preferences further suggested that they were indifferent to the medium used for reading, both before and after experiencing the task on both media. These results suggest that children, like adults, are metacognitively unaware of the detrimental effect that on-screen reading has on their comprehension, and they are likely to make ineffective medium choices for their reading tasks.

Besides entertainment, games have shown to have the potential to impact a broader variety of cognitive abilities. Research has consistently shown that several aspects in cognition such as visual short-memory, multitasking and spatial skills can be enhanced by game play. In a previous study, it was found that playing Monkey Tales, a game aimed at training arithmetic skills, helped second grade pupils to increase their accuracy in mental calculation as compared to paper exercises. In this follow up study we explore whether traditional methods and game training differ in terms of the cognitive processes that both are able to impact. We incorporated standardized measures of working memory and visuo-motor skills. Additionally, the mathematics game was modified and its contents extracted to allow precise comparison between the gaming and paper exercises condition. Thus each single math exercise, type of question (e.g., multiple choice), quantity and order was perfectly matched in the game training and the traditional training conditions. Gains in arithmetical performance, and self-reported measures of enjoyment were also investigated. We found some evidence suggesting that arithmetic performance enhancement induced by game play and paper exercises differ not only in terms of enjoyment but also of working memory capacity improvements. We explore differences between traditional methods and game training.In both training conditions all math exercises were perfectly matched.We used standardized measures of working memory and visuo-motor skills.Differences in terms of enjoyment and working memory capacity were observed.

Alphabet books are an important instructional text used in early education. Advances in mobile technology have led to alphabet books of an electronic format with accompanying sound, animations, and interactive hot spots. This study investigates the differential effectiveness of paper alphabet books and alphabet eBooks in training alphabetic knowledge in 4-year-olds. Three groups of approximately 30 children were assigned to one of three conditions: paper alphabet book, alphabet eBook, or storybook control. Book reading sessions composed of three to four children were run twice a week over eight weeks, with child-book behaviours coded at each session. Measures of early reading ability were collected pre and post-intervention. Children in all conditions improved over time in emergent literacy but no significant differences between conditions were found. Children using paper alphabet books were more likely to say letter names, and their time oriented to the books predicted post-test letter-name and phonological awareness after controlling for pre-test scores. In contrast, time oriented to the alphabet eBooks made no prediction to post-test sores. Preschoolers were observed using various paper/electronic ABC books in 16 sessions.Participants in the ebook condition were more engaged with the books.ABC ebook users frequently activated hotspots but rarely said object or letter names.Paper ABC book users more often named letters, along with corresponding objects.Engagement with paper ABC books but not ABC ebooks predicted post-test early literacy.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of using procedural scaffoldings in fostering students' group discourse levels and learning outcomes in a paper-plus-smartphone collaborative learning context. All participants used built-in camera smartphones to learn new knowledge by scanning Quick Response (QR) codes, a type of two-dimensional barcode, embedded in paper-based learning materials in this study. Sixty undergraduate and graduate students enrolled at a four-year university in southern Taiwan participated in this study. Participants were randomly assigned into two different groups, using procedural scaffoldings learning and non-procedural scaffoldings learning. The learning unit about the Long Tail, an important concept used in products sales, was the learning task that participants were expected to complete. During the experiment, pretest-posttest and the completed group worksheets were used to collect data. The researchers applied content analyses, chi-square test, t-test, and ANCOVA to answer research questions. The findings indicated that participants in the experimental group using procedural scaffoldings achieved better learning outcomes than their counterparts in the control group in terms of group discourse levels, group learning, and individual learning.

Comprehension is the goal of reading. However, students often encounter reading difficulties due to the lack of background knowledge and proper reading strategy. Unfortunately, print text provides very limited assistance to one's reading comprehension through its static knowledge representations such as symbols, charts, and graphs. Integrating digital materials and reading strategy into paper-based reading activities may bring opportunities for learners to make meaning of the print material. In this study, QR codes were adopted in association with mobile technology to deliver supplementary materials and questions to support students' reading. QR codes were printed on paper prints to provide direct access to digital materials and scaffolded questions. Smartphones were used to scan the printed QR codes to fetch pre-designed digital resources and scaffolded questions over the Internet. A quasi-experiment was conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of direct access to the digital materials prepared by the instructor using QR codes and that of scaffolded questioning in improving students' reading comprehension. The results suggested that direct access to digital resources using QR codes does not significantly influence students' reading comprehension; however, the reading strategy of scaffolded questioning significantly improves students' understanding about the text. The survey showed that most students agreed that the integrated print-and-digital-material- based learning system benefits English reading comprehension but may not be as efficient as expected. The implications of the findings shed light on future improvement of the system.

This study aims at highlighting the collaborative activity of two high school students (age 14) in the cases of modeling the complex biological process of plant growth with two different tools: the 'paper & pencil' concept mapping technique and the computer-supported educational environment 'ModelsCreator'. Students' shared activity in both cases is carried out in the presence of a facilitator providing technical as well as cognitive support when necessary. The objective of the study is to highlight the ways in which the collaborating students are engaged in the plant growth modeling activity in the two cases and also identify the activity's similar and different aspects in each one. Our analysis is carried out on two complementary axes, the first of which concerns the process of collaboratively creating a plant growth model with each different tool, while the second has to do with the students' conceptualizations of the biological aspect of the modeling task in each case. A two-level analytic tool for the modeling process has been derived within the theoretical framework of 'activity theory' on the basis of the OCAF scheme for basic modeling operations and the scheme of Stratford et al. [Stratford, S. J., Krajcik, J., & Soloway, E. (1998). Secondary students' dynamic modeling processes: analyzing, reasoning about, synthesizing, and testing models of stream ecosystems. Journal of Science Education and Technology, 7(3), 215-234.] for higher-order modeling actions. According to our results, four major modeling actions (analysis, synthesis, testing-interpreting, technical and cognitive support) performed through a plethora of modeling operations define the steps of the modeling process in both cases, while specific qualitative differences can be actually identified. Finally, the students' conceptualizations of the biological aspect of the modeling task in the two-case activity is analyzed in regard with their capability of shifting reasoning between macro- and micro-levels, while educational implications are also discussed.

Computer-based assessment (CBA) is yet to have a significant impact on high-stakes educational assessment, but the equivalence between CBA and paper-and-pencil (P&P) test scores will become a central concern in education as CBA increases. It is argued that as CBA and P&P tests provide test takers with qualitatively different experiences, the impact of individual differences on the testing experience, and so statistical equivalence of scores, needs to be considered. As studies of score equivalence have largely ignored individual differences such as computer experience, computer anxiety and computer attitudes, the purpose of this paper is to highlight the potential effects of these. It is concluded that each of these areas is of significance to the study of equivalence and that the often inconsistent findings result from the rapid changes in exposure to technology.

A cross-section of 361 faculty, graduate and undergraduate students completed a survey that assessed computer availability, experience, attitudes toward computers, and use of computers while engaged in academic writing. Overall, computers served as a tool for all participants, however, undergraduates in the math and computer science areas were more comfortable with computers than others. Experience with computers increased with academic level, suggesting that academics currently use, and have been using, computers throughout their careers. Generally, there were few differences as a function of discipline or gender. Participants indicated different reasons for using computers during the process of writing academic papers relative to written/hard copies. Their responses indicate that these two formats may facilitate the writing process in unique ways. Rather than viewing continued use of hard copy as a transitional period to more extensive computer use, it may be that hard copy offers cognitive supports that may not be available in computer writing software.

In this paper we present a student module modeling knowledge states and learning skills of students in the field of Newtonian dynamics. Student data recorded during the exploratory activity in microworlds are used to infer mental representations concerning the concept of force. A fuzzy algorithm able to follow the cognitive states the student goes through in solving a task and to interpret the monitored changes is discussed.

Specific combinations of educational and ICT conditions including computer use may optimise learning processes, particularly for learners at risk. This position paper asks which curricular, instructional, and ICT characteristics can be expected to optimise learning processes and outcomes, and how to best achieve this optimization. A theoretical multilevel framework is developed to specify instructional, learning, and ICT conditions that may transform and optimise both teaching and learning. The empirical part of the paper reports on and analyses a participatory, user-oriented pilot study carried out in Dutch secondary education in the period 1999–2002. The goal was to explore how teachers can develop and practice computer-supported instructional and learning processes that are qualitatively more transparent, more flexible, and more sensitive to differences between learners, than most currently prevalent teaching practices. The pilot also resulted in a multilevel software prototype LINE which was developed to support the instructional management of learners, teachers, and school management. The outcomes of the pilot study are used to specify more transformation conditions which are required within and outside schools to optimise instruction and learning in both qualitative and quantitative ways. Finally, software functions to construct more generalised ‘Diagnostic, Instructional, and Management Systems’ (DIMS) are modelled and discussed.

This short paper describes the methodological design space facing a research group on a project concerning the effects on conceptual change of an intervention based on computer simulation software. The many interacting factors in such an intervention are mentioned: group work, the effect of supplementary materials, the “halo” effect of novel technology, the cost of using a control group. The possibility is discussed of extracting data, not just from pre- and post-tests, but from the iterations of the design of the material and software itself. Finally, issues to do with whether it is the computer that is the crucial feature of the intervention are raised.

In recent years a public debate has been growing around mobile media and young people, as research has found adverse relationships between the intensive use of smartphones and well-being in this age group. However, there is still a lack of structured interventions targeting teachers and schools on the issue. This paper shows the results of a pre-registered cluster randomised controlled trial evaluating the impact of a media education intervention focusing on screen time management and the conscious use of mobile devices. The impact of a teachertraining course is assessed on their 10th grade students (789 treated, 2572 controls), looking at their smartphone use, digital skills, and subjective well-being. Post-intervention differences, controlling for baseline measures at wave 1, show a moderate but significant decrease in smartphone pervasiveness and problematic use among treated students, with girls displaying greater beneficial effects than boys on withdrawal symptoms. Girls also show an increase insubjective well-being. No effect is found on the level of digital skills measured with an ad-hoc test. These results highlight that media education interventions focused on screen time management and content-related digital skills can be effectively incorporated into daily teaching and are relevant for students’ well-being. The paper also offers practical indications to develop effective media education interventions in a constant connectivity environment.

Technological advancements have improved the capabilities of pedagogical agents to communicate with students. However, an increased use of pedagogical agents in learning environments calls for a deeper understanding of student–agent communication to assess the effectiveness of pedagogical agents in learning. This study is a two-phase systematic review of scientific papers on pedagogical agent communication research published between 2010 and 2020, including review papers and original research papers. In the first phase, this study analyses literature reviews and meta-analyses to find the status and research gaps. The findings indicate that pedagogical agents' characteristics and impact on learning have been reviewed, but pedagogical agent communication and its relation to learning have not. In the second phase, the empirical studies of pedagogical agent communication are reviewed and classified into three categories that describe how pedagogical agent communication facilitates students' learning through (1) students' intrapersonal communication processes, (2) interpersonal communication between students and a pedagogical agent, and (3) by facilitating learning in a group. The findings show that pedagogical agent communication can enhance learning through intrapersonal communication of motivation, self-regulation, self-efficacy, and metacognition. At the interpersonal level, pedagogical agents aim to scaffold learning by giving feedback, prompts, and hints from learning processes and learning results. Pedagogical agents also support learning in a group by facilitating discussions and directing students' collaboration. Despite rapid technological advancements, pedagogical agents are not on the level to communicate fluently and human-like, which is likely to reduce their effectiveness and usability in learning. The review concludes that pedagogical agents’ communication needs to be developed toward adaptive, adequate, relational, and logical communication, which requires a multidisciplinary theoretical approach, the use of artificial intelligence, affective computing, and psychometric assessments. Recommendations for future research addressing the gaps identified in this systematic review are discussed. peerReviewed

There are a large variety of methodologies, contexts and perspectives that have been used to evaluate the use of technology in education. The vast array of literature involving learning technology evaluation makes it challenging to acquire an accurate sense of the different aspects of learning that are evaluated, and the possible approaches that can be used to evaluate them. This study conducted a systematic review of how technology use in education has been evaluated, based on 365 papers published in Computers and Education between 2015 and 2017. The papers analyzed encompassed a diverse range of education levels, disciplines and technologies, that were broadly commensurate with characterizations of the learning technology field from other studies. The analysis found that the evaluation of learning technology use tended to focus on eight themes: learning outcomes, affective elements, behaviors, design, technology elements, pedagogy, presence, and institutional environment. In the majority of studies (66.6%) at least one established instrument was used to evaluate the effectiveness of learning technology usage, however, a wide variety of instruments were observed within sub-themes of evaluation. The 22 instruments used to evaluate an aspect of learning technology usage in more than one study are identified. Evaluation trends for different disciplines, technologies and educational levels are also established. The findings provide an analytical framework that educators and researchers can utilize when evaluating the use of technology in education, and could potentially inform the development of new, more holistic and more robust evaluation methods.

International audience; The inclusion of adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) in mainstream environments, especially mainstream classrooms, is critically impeded by their difficulties in self-regulating their emotions. Albeit new technologies have shown tremendous emulation in the field of ASD, solutions to assist individuals with ASD in emotion regulation appear very limited. This paper addresses this critical challenge through the design and evaluation of a tablet-based application dedicated to supporting adolescents with ASD in self-regulating their emotions in mainstream inclusive classrooms. This system relies on well-proven (paper-based) emotion-regulation interventions reported by special-education teachers and families through a participatory design. The experiment included 14 adolescents with ASD (as well as 19 adolescents with Intellectual Disabilities) using the application during three months in mainstream schools. We compared these two groups with another group of 15 adolescents with ASD who were not equipped with our application. Usability performance as well as efficacy performance (emotion-regulation outcomes) have been investigated in situ. We showed that 1) our system is autonomously and successfully used in mainstream classrooms, 2) it is also an efficient support for adolescents with ASD to self-regulate their emotions. This paper demonstrates that emotion regulation of adolescents with ASD can be supported within mainstream classrooms through an assistive technology, in order to improve both behaviors and sociocognitive processes linked with core features of ASD. Moreover, it provides insights of a methodology suited to mainstream classrooms, building on previous research addressing specialized settings.

This study looks at the growth of eExams in five countries. An eExam is defined as ‘a timed, supervised, summative assessment conducted using each candidate's own computer running a standardised operating system’ (eExam, 2017), but local interpretations varied significantly. The literature revealed five main areas for the study: the scale of eExam adoption; assessment integrity (student cheating/security/reliability); eExam accessibility for students with disabilities; eExam architecture and affordances for assessing higher order thinking; and inter-sectoral relationships between universities and schools concerning eExam assessment environments. The methodology was qualitative and interpretist, using the constant comparison method from grounded theory for analysis (Corbin & Strauss, 1990, p. 9). Data were collected through interviews with 17 key individuals and from observations at sites which were purposively identified from the literature as diverse in eExam experience. The results provided a thick and robust description of practical eExam implementation. Adoption scales varied from less than 1% to 40% of examinations. Assessment integrity shared common concerns with pen-on-paper exams, and had some additional features, but were overall no more or less secure. eExams offered access to students with disabilities. The relationship between eExam architectures, affordances and assessment of higher order thinking was complex and contested, closely linked with perceived barriers and enablers. The quality of inter-sectoral relationships with respect to eExams was found to be generally poor. Academic workload reduction was a major enabler of eExams, and the policy drivers for curriculum transformation through improved affordances poorly articulated. Hurdles included lack of prior student experience of eExams. A clear enabler was the national adoption of a pathway to replacing pen-on-paper exams with eExams.

Multiple-choice examinations offer the ability to grade quickly as well as being able to assess concepts and understanding in a wide range of subjects. Consequently, many large classes use multiple-choice examinations. One problem, however, is that multiple-choice examinations are more prone to cheating than constructed-response style examinations. Multiple-choice examinations offer limited answer options, and these limited options can lead to sharing answers through collusion or gleaning answers from unwitting peers. To counter such cheating, this paper investigates a personalization approach to examinations whereby every student gets their own version of the examination that is different to the rest of their peers. Such personalization approach not only counters cheating, but also encourages students to focus on concepts rather than just answers. A software framework that facilitates generating personalized examination papers is developed, and the paper reports on the experience of using the approach in large classes. It discusses the administrative, technical, and pedagogical challenges posed by personalization and how these challenges might be overcome using the framework as well as accompanying processes. Surveys indicate that both students and staff are positive about using such a system.

YouTube is one of the most popular websites. It is a vast resource for educational content. To better understand the characteristics and impact of YouTube on education, we have analyzed a popular YouTube channel owned by the author of this paper. It has thousands of subscribers, millions of views, and hundreds of video lectures. We have used our private YouTube analytics data to provide an in-depth study of YouTube educational videos. Our analysis provides valuable information that can have major technical and commercial implications in the field of education. We perform in-depth time-series analysis of the channel data to reveal the trend, seasonality and temporal pattern for the educational videos on YouTube. In our study, we find the relationship between video uploading activity, channel's age and its popularity. We use an entropy-based decision tree classifier to find the features that are most important for the popularity of videos. We show that video rank and number of views follow the Zipf distribution for educational videos. We observe a strong correlation between the geographical location of viewers and the location of industry the channel caters to. Besides, we also provide knowledge regarding the popular devices and operating systems used for viewing the educational videos, main traffic sources, playback locations, translation activity, and demography of viewers. Overall, we believe that the results presented in this paper are crucial in understanding YouTube EDU videos characteristics which can be utilized for making well-informed decisions for improving educational content and learning technologies.

Instructors in STEM classrooms often frame students' interactions with technologies to help them learn content. For instance, in many STEM domains, instructors commonly help students translate physical 3D models into 2D drawings by prompting them to focus on (a) orienting physical 3D models and (b) generating 2D drawings. We investigate whether framing prompts that target either of these practices enhance the effectiveness of an educational technology that supports collaborative translation among multiple representations. To this end, we conducted a quasi-experiment with 565 undergraduate chemistry students. All students collaboratively built physical 3D models of molecules and translated them into 2D drawings. In a business-as-usual control condition, students drew on paper, without support from an educational technology. In two experimental conditions, students drew in an educational technology that provided feedback and prompted collaboration. One condition received framing prompts to focus on physical models (model condition); another received prompts to generate intermediary drawings on paper (draw condition). Compared to the control condition, the model condition showed higher learning gains, but the draw condition showed lower learning gains. Analyses of log data showed that students made more model-based errors, and the prompts in the model condition reduced these model-based errors. However, interviews with instructors showed that they prefer drawing-focused prompts, in contrast to our results. These findings offer theoretical insights into how students learn to translate among representations. Furthermore, they yield practical recommendations for the use of educational technologies that support learning with multiple representations.

This paper aims to review high-qualified empirical studies on teaching and learning robotics content knowledge in K-12 and explore future research perspectives of robotics education (RE) based on the reviewed papers. After a systematic search in online database via keyword search and snowballing approach, 22 SSCI journal papers are included in this review. Nine major factors are examined for each paper: sample groups, duration, robot types, robotics content knowledge, study type, intervention approaches, measurement instruments, major findings and instructional suggestions. The results indicate that: (1) most empirical studies were endured less than two months with a small sample size, the largest sample group was elementary school students, and most studies used LEGO robots; (2) more than half of the studies conducted a non-experimental research design, and observation, questionnaire, interview and evaluation of artifacts are commonly-used measurement instruments; and (3) instructional suggestions proposed in the 22 papers can be clustered into four themes: open environment, targeted design, appropriate pedagogy and timely support. Overall, the 22 papers suggest that RE shows great educational potential in K-12, however, there are indeed situations in which RE did not bring significant improvement in student learning. In view of this, we prospect the future research directions of RE and propose that more intervention studies with rigorous research design could be conducted in K-12.

Here, we report a study using computer role-play to investigate Disinhibited Social Engagement in 54 typically developing children aged 6, 8 and 10 years. Children completed 22 (theme-matched) vignettes and computerised scenarios that captured the themes of the specific symptoms of Disinhibited Social Engagement Disorder (DSM V, APA, 2013). Our newly created 22 "Paper pencil" vignettes and computer role-play scenarios were used in conjunction with the Strange Stories (O'Hare, Bremner, Nash, Happe & Pettigrew, 2009) and Parents and Teachers completed versions of the Relationship Problems Questionnaire (RPQ: Minnis et al., 2007). Our findings revealed the developmental (age) differences of social vulnerability/indiscriminate friendliness and potential advantages of computermediated role-play in comparison to “paper pencil” tasks. We argue that using a method of children role playing characters gives a better insight into children's true vulnerabilities. We discuss our findings in relation to using this methodology for clinicians and researchers to improve social skills in the most socially vulnerable children.

Deficits in social-emotional reciprocity, one of the diagnostic criteria of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), greatly hinders children with ASD from responding appropriately and adapting themselves in various social situations. Although evidences have shown that virtual reality environment is a promising tool for emotional and social adaptation skills training on ASD population, there is a lack of large-scale trials with intensive evaluations to support such findings. This paper presents a virtual reality enabled program for enhancing emotional and social adaptation skills for children with ASD. Six unique learning scenarios, of which one focuses on emotion control and relaxation strategies, four that simulate various social situations, and one that facilitates consolidation and generalization, are designed and developed with corresponding psychoeducation procedures and protocols. The learning scenarios are presented to the children via a 4-side immersive virtual reality environment (a.k.a., half-CAVE) with non-intrusive motion tracking. A total number of 94 children between the ages of 6–12 with clinical diagnosis of ASD participated in the 28-session program that lasted for 14 weeks. By comparing pre- and post-assessments, results reported in this paper show significant improvements in the project's primary measures on children's emotion expression and regulation and social-emotional reciprocity but not on other secondary measures.

This work forms part of a larger research work which advocates that audio-only learning mode can be developed into a full fledge audio-MOOC. The audio-MOOC should incorporate a learner-centric approach to provide effective learning capabilities to the oral and low-literate population. For long, audio-based learning (which includes variances in audio technologies) has been an established practice and has proved to be a successful means of conveying information to the mass especially for illiterate and semi-literate population. However, it is widely used as a supplement to Distance Education mode without exploiting its full potential. This paper aims at providing a comprehensive evaluation of existing audio learning systems which is missing in recent literature. There is no formal and established evaluation framework for evaluating such systems. Hence, this paper contributes to the audio-based learning research area by proposing a Technology, Organisation and Learner (TOL) evaluation model to analyse the existing audio learning systems. The proposed evaluation model uses a set of 50 criteria which is derived from a review of methodologies and strategies for multimedia evaluation. Besides, this work makes use of empirical data in the proposed TOL evaluation model to critically appraise various audio technologies used in learning. Recommendations are made for the development of full-fledge Audio-only Learning Management Systems/MOOCs. Moreover, the proposed evaluation model can also be used for the selection of media suited to the learning needs of organisations.

This paper aims to provide research-based evidence for highlighting the paradigm shifts of e-book research. The most popular e-book-related keywords (e.g., electronic book, e-book) were used to retrieve the most relevant and quality journal articles published in the recent decade (2010–2109) from the Web of Science. Unlike most e-book review studies based on content analysis, this present paper employed a co-citation network analysis to examine the bibliographic relationships for the development of e-book-supported learning research. While the co-citation analysis is to identify the most highly joint-referenced e-book articles, social network analysis is to visualize the e-book co-citation networks with the main characteristics of the research interest (e.g., the focused research subjects and variables that measured learning outcomes). After careful screening and reviewing of the search data, a total of 55 high-quality e-book articles with 1203 citations were collected and analyzed. The result of the e-book research networks across two periods provided a decade overview of the development of e-book-supported learning research. (1) Early research (2010–2014) focused on improving the emerging literacy of preschool children and the learning effects of e-books. A sub-stream of high-risk students' e-book use was also identified. (2) In recent years (2015–2019), e-books were used at various education levels and were adopted in more diverse learning contexts. For young children's e-book use, researchers focused on e-book reading for early literacy, especially in the situation of co-reading with an adult. For university students, researchers focused on developing e-book-based systems to achieve better results and reduce their anxiety during formal learning. Discussion and implications are provided.

A new school subject, Leaving Certificate Computer Science, was introduced in September 2018 into Irish schools in a period of curriculum reform and change. Drawing on concepts of teacher agency and learner agency, and viewed through a figurational sociology lens, this paper explored the realities of teaching LCCS and the role teacher agency and learner agency played in such enactment. Through a case study design, four teachers were interviewed in a focus group semi-structured manner. To delve deeper into the pedagogical approaches used in LCCS, a further one teacher and their nine students were interviewed. The findings highlight an influential relationship (positive and negative, encouraging and discouraging) between teachers’ agentic decisions in their process of achieving teacher agency and the students process of achieving learner agency. The paper offers a figurational viewpoint of the relationship between teacher agency and learner agency through a constructed Figure. We explicitly argue that the responsibility should not be placed on the teacher and student in achieving agency (as a product) but it is a combination of the teacher and the students and the other interdependent relationships within their figurations, alongside contextual factors, and educational social processes, which determine the fluctuation of the process of achieving teacher and learner agency. The paper provides considerations for computer science teacher education. peer-reviewed 2024-07-30

Technologies associated with online learning have led to many new feedback practices and expanded the meaning of feedback beyond the traditional focus on instructor comments, but conceptual work on online feedback has not followed. This paper investigates how online learning researchers understand feedback's role in teaching and learning, and discusses how these understandings influence what research questions are asked, and what online feedback practices are recommended.Through a qualitative analysis of the language used about feedback in leading research journals, we identified six distinct understandings of feedback based on six dominant conceptual metaphors. These are feedback is a treatment, feedback is a costly commodity, feedback is coaching, feedback is a command, feedback is a dialogue, and feedback is a learner tool.Each of these metaphors offers a coherent frame of entailments related to the roles and responsibilities of online instructors and online learners as well as some bigger assumptions about what role feedback should play in online teaching and learning. A comparison with current feedback research revealed that just two of the six metaphors align with the learner-centric feedback practices that are increasingly considered appropriate among feedback researchers. The paper discusses how the conceptualizations might reflect different challenges facing online education.The paper proposes that researchers interrogate their own conceptualizations to ensure that they align with their beliefs about feedback and its role in the learning process. It suggests that a more deliberate use of metaphors when conceptualizing feedback and online feedback practices is necessary for clarity of communication and helpful for driving the work on feedback in online learning forward.

Purpose The popularity of MOOCs (massive open online courses) has been increasing rapidly around the world, but there is a lack of research on knowledge diffusion in the MOOC learning forum. This article uses ERGMs (exponential random graph models) to synthesize user attributes from the perspective of social networks, social support and social capital to systematically explore the mechanism of knowledge diffusion in the MOOC learning forum. Design/methodology/approach First, the literature related to knowledge diffusion is reviewed to define two forms of knowledge diffusion in the MOOC learning forum, i.e., knowledge transferring and knowledge sharing. Second, based on social network theory, research hypotheses related to centrality, reciprocity, and transitivity are proposed; based on social support theory, research hypotheses related to emotional support, information support and sense of belonging support are proposed; and based on social capital theory, research hypotheses related to the number of posts and number of being liked are proposed. Third, “machine learning”, the most popular course on the Coursera platform, is selected as the research object. The data from March 2016 to December 2019 is obtained, and then, ERGMs are used to simulate the network and test the research hypotheses. Finally, based on the conclusions of this study, corresponding suggestions are proposed from the perspectives of MOOCs platform providers, MOOCs providers and MOOCs learners, to promote the development of MOOCs. Findings – (1) In the MOOC learning forum, users with high degree centrality contribute more, actively answering questions from other users, and transferring knowledge to others, but knowledge sharing between two users with high degree centrality is unlikely to occur. (2) Significant reciprocity features exist in knowledge transfer in the MOOC learning forum. (3) There is no significant triangular relationship structure in the knowledge sharing network of the MOOC learning forum, which means that multiple dyad sharing partners are more likely to be formed in the MOOC learning forum. (4) Users with emotion tendency tend to transfer knowledge to other users, and knowledge sharing is likely to occur between individuals with emotion tendency. (5) There is no tendency that users with low learning progress receive knowledge transferred by other users. (6) Teaching assistants, as users with higher knowledge potential in the MOOC learning forum, are prone to transfer knowledge to other users. (7) The trend of knowledge sharing between users in the same region is not obvious. (8) Users with more posts and users with more being liked are more likely to receive knowledge transfer by the other users, and thus, they are easier to obtain answers from. A possible explanation for this result could be that users with more posts and users with more being liked have a higher contribution to the MOOC learning forum, and therefore, questions they raised are more likely to attract attention. Theoretical implications First, current research on the MOOC learning forum focuses on the discussion of user behavior, but there is a lack of research on knowledge diffusion. Therefore, in terms of the research perspective, from the aspect of knowledge diffusion, this article defines two forms of knowledge diffusion: knowledge transfer and knowledge sharing. Then, knowledge transfer network and knowledge sharing network are constructed to explore user posting and replying behaviors, to expand the user behavior research in the MOOC learning forum. Second, current research on the user interaction network in the MOOC learning forum lacks comprehensive research on the network structure and user attributes. The micro logic embedded in the network structure must be systematically analyzed. Therefore, the network structure and user attributes are synthesized to explore the influencing factor of knowledge diffusion, which enriches the research content of the MOOC learning forum. Third, ERGMs are suitable for exploring potential factors of network formation, as well as the impact of multiple features simultaneously on network formation. Currently, ERGMs are widely used to research citation network formation mechanisms and social media network formation mechanisms. However, there is still a lack of research on user interaction networks in the MOOC learning forum while applying ERGMs. Therefore, this article introduces ERGMs into the knowledge diffusion research in the MOOC learning forum to provide effective research methods for modeling and simulating the knowledge diffusion networks. Practical implications (1) Since high degree centrality users actively answer questions from others, MOOCs platform providers can encourage high degree centrality users to participate in in-depth discussion in forums. Based on the reciprocity of knowledge transfer, MOOCs platform providers can add an information reminder function to remind users to receive information in real time, to promote knowledge transfer between users. Because of the unstable knowledge sharing relationship among learners in the knowledge sharing network of the MOOC learning forum, it is not easy to form a triangular relationship structure. MOOCs platform providers can add a function such as friend circles to enhance the stability of the knowledge sharing relationship and improve the efficiency of the knowledge exchange. (2) Since teaching assistants actively answer questions from other users and play a prominent role in knowledge transfer, course providers can set appropriate incentives for teaching assistants. Because users with emotional tendency are more likely to transfer knowledge, and knowledge sharing is likely to occur between users with emotion tendency, course providers can properly guide users to engage in emotion communication through the participation of teaching assistants, to promote knowledge sharing among users. Because users with low learning progress are usually in a low potential knowledge position, course providers should pay attention to such users to improve their learning interests with help from users in a high potential knowledge position, such as teaching assistants or users who have high learning progress. (3) Because questions raised by users who have more being liked and more posts are more likely to be answered as a result of accumulating social capital, MOOCs learners should actively participate in the course learning forum and have effective interactions with other users. With the increasing number of being liked and the increasing number of posts, users gradually accumulate more social capital to build a foundation for improving their own learning effect. Originality/value – First, at present, there are few studies on the mechanism of knowledge diffusion in the MOOC learning forum, and knowledge diffusion research is conducive to exploring the influencing factors of users' learning activities in the course learning forum. Therefore, this paper studies the influence mechanism of knowledge diffusion in the MOOC learning forum by integrating the network structure and user attributes to expand the knowledge diffusion research on the MOOC learning forum. Second, although SNA has been widely used in knowledge diffusion research, it is difficult for SNA to explore the potential factors for the formation of knowledge diffusion networks. ERGMs are based on relational data and use network local features as statistical items to explore the overall structural characteristics of the network. Therefore, this paper simulates knowledge diffusion networks of the MOOC learning forum based on ERGMs, systematically exploring the influence of the network structure and node attributes and their interaction with knowledge diffusion, which helps to reveal the socialization process and internal mechanism of the knowledge diffusion network.

Serious games are games with an educational purpose. In these games, players develop their skills by facing a number of challenges, and students are assessed according to their game playing behaviour. Assessment of serious game-based learning experiences has to take into account diverse features as game genre, pedagogical aim or game context. This paper analyses how skills are usually assessed in learning experiences based on serious games. To reach this objective, a systematic mapping study of more than 400 papers is undertaken. Papers were identified and classified according to a framework based on four categories: assessment aim, implementation, integration and primary assessment type. The reviewed literature mainly deals with contributions on methods and approaches for serious games. Results have revealed that most assessment methods are applied for a formative purpose more than for a certification purpose. Most frequent implementations such as game scoring and integrations like monitoring states were also uncovered. The main primary type of assessment detected was in-process. In addition, several limitations were found in the assessment methods: regarding the aim of assessment, certification of previous or attained skills was usually implemented out of the game; the scope of some implementations was limited because results were predefined earlier; and most of methods analysed present scalability issues because they rely on manual assessments. Such findings are analysed and discussed to clarify the state of the art and provide recommendations for further work in the area of serious games-based learning.

In this study, whether using Augment Reality (AR)-based learning materials could benefit high school students in the process of Chinese writing was explored, along with the pros and cons of using AR for acquiring Chinese writing skills. In order to reduce the gap between the designers and practitioner teachers, Chinese instructors were invited to co-design the AR-based writing materials to achieve the integration of learners, teachers and educational system technology developers in a collaborative process. The AR-based writing support system was provided to a total of 30 twelfth-grade students who participated in the experiment. The students in the experimental group participated in the writing activity using both AR-based learning material and paper-based supports, while the control group worked with only paper-based writing support materials. The results revealed that the AR techniques helped the intermediate-level students the most in their writing performance of content control, article structure and wording. The students, especially the low-achievers, reflected that the functions of the AR system supported them to start writing the first paragraph more quickly, and enriched their ideas. A possible mode for integrating AR techniques in writing courses is proposed. This paper could serve as a reference for educators and learning technology researchers who wish to design AR-guided writing learning materials or courses with the goal of encouraging learners to experience the writing process in a variety of settings.

This paper presents a 10-year review study that focuses on the investigation of the use of Digital Card Games (DCGs) as learning tools in education. Specific search terms keyed into 10 large scientific electronic databases identified 50 papers referring to the use of non-commercial DCGs in education during the last decade (20032013). The findings revealed that the DCGs reported in the reviewed papers: (a) were used for the learning of diverse subject disciplines across all educational levels and leaning towards the school curriculum, in two ways: game-construction and game-play, (b) were mainly proposed by their designers as meaningful, familiar and appealing learning contexts, in order to motivate and engage players/students and also to promote social, rich and constructivist educational experiences while at the same time integrating modern technologies and innovative gamed-based approaches, (c) were implemented using a plethora of digital tools, (d) mainly adopted social and constructivist views of learning during their design and use, although the views were explicitly reported in only a few of these, (e) were evaluated in more than half of the studies with positive results in terms of: student learning, attitudes towards DCGs and enrichment of social interaction and collaboration, (f) appeared to support students to acquire essential thinking skills through DCG-play. However, despite the rich DCG-game experiences reported in the reviewed papers, some essential but under-researched topics were also specified. Display Omitted Digital Card Games (DCGs) in Education: a ten year systematic review.DCGs were used in diverse: disciplines, educational levels, school curricula.DCG design/use mainly adopted social and constructivist views of learning.DCGs were proposed as meaningful familiar innovative & appealing learning contexts.DCGs were evaluated with positive results: learning, attitudes, thinking skills.

Mobile devices with touch screens, such as tablets are increasingly used in classrooms. Pragmatic advantages are seen in high mobility during computer-based learning due to a high portability of mobile devices and an easy online access to learning applications at places in and outside classrooms. From a psychological perspective, it is of special interest to examine how different modes of interaction with learning materials (e.g. through apps on tablets) affect performance and motivation. For example, touch screens can afford rather natural gestures and embodied interaction. For various contexts, the use of gestures to interact with information presentations (e.g. with 2-D and 3-D visualizations) has been shown to be beneficial for solving spatial tasks. It is of interest whether use of gestures can also improve learning from dynamic visual information presented on touch-based devices. We present and discuss a study in which we focused on the question of whether, for elementary school students, solving spatial tasks can be enhanced by using touch-gestures on mobile devices. Two conditions of spatial rotation tasks were compared using a within-and between subject design: an interactive, touch-based app allowing to physically rotate objects and a paper-based, static version. Elementary school students worked with both conditions, though in different orders. Findings suggest that the app-based, dynamic version improves task solving significantly with regard to success rate, mental and temporal efficiency. However, results clearly show that effects mostly exist only after children had first completed the paper-based, static trial of tasks in which they needed to mentally rotate the objects. The results indicate an additive, enhancing effect of the touch-based, dynamic interaction mode especially for children who already are capable of solving the tasks by using mental rotation processes. We investigated mental/physical rotation with elementary school children.Additive effects of touch-based, dynamic representations for spatial tasks were found.Gesture use is beneficial for rotation after mental pre-training.Effects relate to success rate, mental and temporal efficiency.

We examined the effectiveness of touchscreen media for teaching children to tell time from a clock. Experiment 1 was conducted with 123 preschoolers (M = 70.15 months, SD = 4.41) using two learning media: touchscreen and video, and three test media: iPad, toy, and paper, with between-subjects pre-and post-test design. After 10 min of exposure to the touchscreen or video learning media designed to teach children how to tell time, groups of children were tested with an iPad, a toy clock, or a clock printed on paper, respectively. Results showed that post-test scores across all groups were significantly higher than those at pre-test, for both learning media. Children in touchscreen-learning groups had a greater improvement from pre-test to post-test scores compared with video-learning groups. Moreover, children in iPad and toy test groups, had a greater improvement from pre-test to post-test scores than those in paper-test groups. Experiment 2 aimed to explore whether embodied cognition or the gesture as cues promoted children's learning and was conducted with 79 preschoolers (M = 70.92 months, SD = 4.80) using three learning media: touchscreen, gesture-watching, and nongesture-watching. Results showed that learning performance of the touchscreen group and gesture-watching group was better than that of the nongesture-watching group. Findings suggest that both the touchscreen and gesture-watching learning tools can improve young children's learning; children were able to transfer what they had learned on an iPad touchscreen to other media. Thus, it appears that gesture is a key factor in touchscreen learning.

With the increasing popularity of touchscreen devices, using technology to support young children's learning has become more accessible. However, given the relative novelty of tablet computers, the research regarding their effectiveness in education is limited. The current study extends findings of current research demonstrating that tablet computers helped students improve writing, reading, and math abilities of elementary students by examining how tablet computers could support the development of preschool children's writing ability. We explored the effects of two types of feedback afforded by tablet computers: concurrent, extrinsic feedback (i.e., feedback provided by a tablet computer as soon as an error was made) and intrinsic feedback (i.e., naturally occurring sensory information resulting from practicing writing with one's finger). Preschool children (ages 41-65 months) learned to write eight uppercase letters in small groups three times a week for eight weeks in one of three ways: paper and pencil, tablet computer and finger, or tablet computer and stylus. The number of letters correctly written on a paper-and-pencil posttest depended on the instructional condition. Those who practiced writing with a stylus on a tablet computer wrote a similar number of letters correctly at posttest as those who practiced using paper and pencil. This result suggests that concurrent, extrinsic feedback did not provide an additional benefit over the visual feedback in this context. More interestingly, those who practiced writing with their finger on a tablet computer wrote more letters correctly at posttest than those who practiced using a stylus on a tablet computer. This finding indicates that an enhanced tactile experience was more beneficial for learning to write on a tablet computer than increasing the similarity between the practice tasks and the transfer task. However, whether the use of tablet computers is superior to practicing with one's finger on paper worksheets remains an open question. Several future directions are offered. Immediate feedback provided by an iPad did not improve learning to write.Haptic feedback (via a finger on the iPad) was conducive to learning how to write.Preschoolers benefited more from using a finger than a stylus.Tablet computers appear to hold promise for teaching young children how to write.

Games-based Learning (GBL) has developed a reputation with educationalists it is perceived as a potentially engaging form of supplementary learning that could enhance the educational process and has been used at all levels of education including primary, secondary and tertiary education. Despite this recognition and utilisation there is still a lack of empirical evidence supporting GBL as an approach. This paper presents the findings of a systematic literature review performed from 2000 to 2013 specifically looking at quality empirical studies associated with the application of GBL in Primary Education (PE) categorising studies into: behavioural change, affective and motivational outcomes, perceptual and cognitive skills and knowledge acquisition and content understanding. This paper presents a synthesis of these high quality studies associated with GBL. The studies showed that GBL have been used to teach a variety of subjects to children and young people in PE with mathematics, science, language and social studies being the most popular. However, the analysis shows that more Randomised Controlled Trial (RCT) studies should be performed comparing GBL to traditional teaching approaches to ascertain if GBL is a useful, viable teaching approach at PE level; there is a distinct lack of longitudinal studies and further longitudinal studies are required; further studies are required looking at whether there are pedagogical benefits of using 2D or 3D games at PE level to assess if 3D immersive games are indeed necessary; further studies are also required to perform comparisons between single and collaborative play and to identify the pedagogical benefits. A large systematic literature review of computer games at primary education.Uses a multi-dimensional framework to ensure the quality of the studies analysed.Searches through 18,000 papers to identify 105 relevant papers in the field.Provides a snap-shot in time and repository in computer games for primary education.

Writing achievement levels are chronically low for K-12 students. As assessments follow the transition to computer-based writing, differences in technology access may exacerbate students’ difficulties. Indeed, the writing process is shaped by the tools we use and computer-based writing is different from writing with pen and paper. We examine the relationship between reported prior use of computers and students’ achievement on the first national computer-based writing assessment in the United States, the 2011 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) assessment. Using data from over 24,100 eighth grade students, we found that prior use of computers for school-related writing had a direct effect on writing achievement scores on the computer-based NAEP assessment. One standard deviation increase in prior use led to a 0.14 and 0.16 standard deviation increase in mean and scaled writing achievement scores respectively, with demographic controls and jackknife weighting in our SEM analysis. We also looked at earlier NAEP assessments and found that prior computer use did not positively affect the earlier pen and paper-based writing assessments.

The recent development of social networking brought new opportunities not only for socializing and marketing but also for knowledge sharing and learning. As the social computing technology is relatively new, a review of literature revealed lack of research on the impact of ways of using social networking sites (SNS) on knowledge sharing and learning among tertiary students. This paper aims to empirically examine the various categories of SNS use including: chatting and online discussion, creating knowledge and information content, file sharing, and enjoyment and entertainment by tertiary students at a University in Saudi Arabia. It will investigate the impact of these categories of SNS use on knowledge sharing and learning performance. We adopted a cross sectional survey questionnaire for data collection, and received 308 valid responses from a sample of students that include graduates and undergraduates. The results show that there are significant positive relationships between both chatting and online discussion and file sharing and knowledge sharing, and entertainment and enjoyment with student learning. The paper concludes with a discussion of the limitations and implications of this study, along with directions for further research. Increasing chatting and discussion in SN lead to increased knowledge sharing.Increasing file sharing in SN leads to increased knowledge sharing.Increasing enjoyment and entertainment in SN lead to increased learning.Increasing knowledge sharing in SN leads to increased student learning.

This paper proposes the design and application of an immersive virtual reality system to improve and train the emotional skills of students with autism spectrum disorders. It has been designed for primary school students between the ages of 7-12 and all participants have a confirmed diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder. The immersive environment allows the student to train and develop different social situations in a structured, visual and continuous manner. The use of a computer vision system to automatically determine the child's emotional state is proposed. This system has been created with two goals in mind, the first to update the social situations, with the student's emotional mood taken into account, and the second to confirm, automatically, if the child's behavior is appropriate in the represented social situation. The results described in this paper show a significant improvement in the children's emotional competences, in comparison with the results obtained until now using earlier virtual reality systems. Virtual reality to improve the emotional skills of ASD students.Immersive virtual reality system to create social situations where the students can practice their emotional responses.Design and implementation of protocols to evaluate the students' emotional response.Identify, develop and train appropriate emotional behaviors of ASD students.Immersive virtual reality system to create social situations to improve their emotional skills.