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The adoption of Information and Communication Technologies in early childhood education is crucial for adapting traditional classrooms to the digital era. Over time, young children are increasingly using touch screen technologies such as tablets at home and in early childhood settings. However, the literature shows that there is a significant gap in knowledge of using this technology in early childhood education. Most researchers have focused on the pedagogical theory behind using touch screen devices, but there have not been many empirical studies about how these technologies affect students' learning processes. This paper presents three learning experiences where early childhood students perform educational activities using tablet computers, interactive whiteboards, and paper cards. The results show that students who used the technology were more motivated and achieved better results that those who used paper cards. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic: The use of ICT in childhood education offers new possibilities for teachers to provide new and more visual digital learning content to their students.Touch technologies seem suitable for young students. Because their motor skills are not fully developed yet, interacting with computers through a mouse and a keyboard is more difficult than doing it through natural gestures.There are many studies in higher education levels that demonstrate that proper use of ICT in education can lead to an increase of the students' motivation and learning. What this paper adds: Three empirical studies in three different childhood education classrooms to shed some light about how ICT can impact positively students learning.A comparison of interactive whiteboards and tablet computers benefits regarding more traditional methodologies in childhood education.Insights about how hardware and software can be combined to provide students a suitable learning environment in childhood education classrooms. Implications for practice and/or policy: Teachers should consider how they will create the workgroups. It is highly advisable to create heterogeneous groups taking into account the students' skills. This way, members of the same group can help each other, creating a richer learning scenario.Several teachers who participated in our studies said that they were not able to use ICT in their classrooms because they did not have enough digital competences. Our studies and the results obtained led them consider integrating technology in their classrooms. The good results obtained by the students who worked with technology changed the teachers' perspective about the use of technology in the classroom.Students showed a great interest in the use of tablet computers and interactive whiteboards, which translated into higher motivation compared with the students who solved the activities on paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Given students' lack of self‐directed learning skills and the growing concern about implementing massive online open courses (MOOCs) in K12 education, learning strategies are needed to facilitate MOOC learning. Many studies have provided different strategies for effective learning in MOOCs. However, there is still limited research to confirm whether these strategies effectively support MOOC learning when deployed by secondary schools, which are not MOOC developers. Objectives: This mixed‐method study examines the provision of different learning strategies, including a learning guide, an academic mentoring programme, a training workshop, and a reimbursement scheme, and investigates the impact of these strategies on student learning in MOOCs. Methods: The study uses two data sources: (1) surveys with 40 participants and (2) semi‐structured interviews with 12 participants. The quantitative data were analysed with descriptive statistics and Fisher's exact test, and the qualitative data were analysed with thematic analysis. Results and Conclusion: The findings indicate that MOOC learners had positive attitudes towards the overall school support, with mentoring enjoying great popularity amongst the students. In terms of the effectiveness of the school support, the mentoring programme and reimbursement scheme were more effective than the university training and learning guide. The paper discusses the implications for researchers and educators. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic: There are a large number of K12 MOOC implementations, which are (i) STEM‐related and computer science courses, and (ii) from Europe and the USA.Limited studies provided different learning strategies for MOOC learning from the perspective of K12 schools, which are not MOOC developers.There is a need to explore MOOC initiatives encompassing a wide variety of subjects, including computer science MOOCs and non‐computer science MOOCs, in regions beyond Europe and the USA.There is also a need for further scrutiny of the effectiveness of learning strategies provided by the K12 school. What this paper adds: Our study launched the first MOOC implementation in K12, encompassing several subject areas beyond computer science in the region of Asia.Our study provided different learning strategies adopted by the K12 school, and the analysis revealed that MOOC learners took positive attitudes towards overall school support with mentoring enjoying great popularity with these students.Our study examined the effectiveness of school support and identified that mentoring and reimbursement are more effective than university training and the learning guide. Implications for practitioners: The insights gained from the study enable other K12 schools and educators to implement MOOC into existing school infrastructures successfully.These strategies provided in the MOOC implementation program can be helpful in many different online learning contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Study: The research discusses the need for a paradigm shift in engineering education current practices to accommodate the digital native students. The paper emphasizes the importance of integrating disruptive technologies, namely Virtual Reality (VR) through Head Mounted Displays VR (HMD VR) and Desktop Based VR (DB VR) and comparing it with the traditional teaching methods. The research focuses on second‐year undergraduate students enrolled in a concrete structures course. Objectives: The objective of the study is to analyse the impact of DB VR and HMD VR on students' motivation, performance and workload in comparison with traditional 2D drawings. The study also aims to investigate how simulation sickness and system usability could impact students' motivation and performance when interpreting concrete structures. Methods: The study divided second‐year civil engineering students into three groups, 2D, DB VR and HMD VR. The performance and motivation levels of students were assessed based on the number of mistakes identified and an intrinsic motivation survey. Furthermore, data on system usability and simulation sickness were collected. Spearman rank correlation was conducted to analyse the relationships between the variables tested. Results: The results have shown that students' motivation and performance were much higher when using VR in general and HMD VR specifically, students' efficiency and accuracy were also observed. On the other hand, usability was found to be moderately correlated with motivation, with students rating HMD VR as the most usable approach. A moderate inverse correlation was observed between simulation sickness and motivation, indicating that higher simulation sickness led to lower motivation levels. Conclusion: The study concludes that integrating VR in general, DB VR, or HMD VR into a concrete structures course for undergraduate students can significantly improve students' performance and motivation. Furthermore, enhancing usability of any of the methods used can also improve the performance and motivation. On the other hand, simulation sickness inversely affects motivation and performance, therefore, VR developers and educators should not neglect it. Lay Description: What is already known about the topic: Traditional teaching methods in engineering education require improvement.Integrating digital technologies into engineering education enhances performance.Digital technologies can potentially enhance motivation. What this paper adds: Compares traditional teaching methods for concrete structures interpretation with virtual reality.Establishes correlations between motivation, performance and usabilityIntroduces how desktop‐based VR and head‐mounted display VR can produce varying results. Implications for practice and/or policy: Decision‐makers can use the information to integrate updated pedagogy into engineering curricula.Allows for further exploration of different digital technologies that can be used for concrete structure interpretation.Allows instructors to introduce virtual reality in their courses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the development of a technology‐supported environment, it is plausible to provide rich process‐oriented feedback in a timely manner. In this paper, we developed a learning analytics dashboard (LAD) based on process‐oriented feedback in iTutor to offer learners their final scores, sub‐scale reports, and corresponding suggestions on further learning content. We adopted a quasi‐experimental design to investigate the effectiveness of the report on students' learning. Ninety‐four freshman from two classes participated in this research. The two classes were divided into the LAD group and the original analytics report (OAR) based on a product‐oriented feedback group. Before the experiment, all the students took the prior knowledge assessment. After a semester's instruction, all the students took the post‐test of the summative assessment. Results indicated that students in the LAD group experienced better learning effectiveness than students in the OAR group. LAD based on process‐oriented feedback was also effective in improving the skill learning effectiveness of the students with low‐level prior knowledge. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic: Feedback is crucial and a growing body of research has investigated the effect of types of feedback.Process‐oriented feedback is continually incorporated in assessment process to support learning.Learning analytics dashboard (LAD) is a great tool for delivering feedback to students. What this paper adds: Develop a LAD based on process‐oriented feedback and implement it in iTutor.Analyse and visualize process‐oriented feedback content based on the process data automatically collected by iTutor.Verify the effectiveness of LAD based on process‐oriented feedback through a quasi‐experiment. Implications for practise and/or policy: Process‐oriented feedback is the main embodiment of learning analysis technology.Students with low prior knowledge benefit more from LAD based on process‐oriented feedback. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: As the concept of flipped classrooms continues to gain interest across disciplines, more research is needed to strengthen the instructional design by integrating active learning strategies and emerging technologies. Among various possibilities, little is known about how game‐based learning combined with Augmented Reality (AR) can be effectively infused into language education to establish supportive flipped learning contexts. Objectives: This study thus proposed an AR‐enhanced game‐based learning (ARGBL) approach, featuring the use of an augmented board game to engage students actively in classroom activities. It further compared the effects of the proposed approach with traditional game‐based learning on the students' vocabulary acquisition and creative thinking as they were instructed to learn English as a foreign language (EFL) in flipped classrooms. Methods: A quasi‐experimental design was adopted to examine the effectiveness of the proposed approach to promote the students' participation in flipped in‐class activities, thereby improving their learning outcomes. Participants were recruited from two classes of the same undergraduate course, one of which was designated as the experimental group to take part in game‐based learning activities in class by playing an AR‐enhanced board game, and the other as the comparison group to learn by playing a paper‐and‐pencil game with identical puzzle content. The desired student learning outcomes were measured by pre‐ and post‐intervention vocabulary tests and creative thinking tests, supplemented by individual interviews. Results: Results indicated that the students in the experimental group significantly outperformed their counterparts in vocabulary acquisition and creative thinking. They also expressed positive perceptions of the augmented game‐based learning experience in the flipped EFL classroom. Take Away: ARGBL can be a promising approach to improving student learning, and it is particularly beneficial to the design of classroom activities in flipped learning contexts due to its affordances for enriched content visualization and active learner engagement through gameplay. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic: Flipping the classroom is becoming prevalent in education, and researchers have stressed the need to move beyond comparing the outcomes of flipped and non‐flipped settings in order to advance innovation and examine the effectiveness of instructional design.Recent research has shown positive effects of using AR technology for content delivery, with location‐based context‐aware applications being more commonly applied in language education, while the potential of image‐based AR also warrants research attention.Learning by playing games has been considered an engaging strategy that provides benefits for learner engagement, but not all game genres have been fully studied. What this paper adds: This study proposed an ARGBL approach, applying image‐based AR to augment board gaming activities in class when the classroom was flipped.The ARGBL approach was found to significantly improve the students' English vocabulary acquisition.The ARGBL approach was found to significantly enhance the students' creative thinking development. Implications for practice: The innovative merger of image‐based AR and physical board gaming pieces into a hybrid form of mediation, namely the AR‐enhanced board game, likely encouraged face‐to‐face interaction of meaningful language use in flipped in‐class activities, thereby leading to the vocabulary growth and creative thinking development of EFL learners.The effectiveness of the ARGBL approach should be considered as an integrated whole with a holistic understanding of the interplay between the AR technology and the active learning strategy through gameplay in the broader pedagogical context of flipped classrooms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: In 2018, it was found that only a quarter of Grade 3 children in India were reading at grade level. A growing demand for English education has further limited children's literacy achievement. Despite a strong evidence base in favour of using systematic phonics for building English literacy skills, many teachers in India continue to use rote‐methods of literacy instruction. Objectives: We aimed to examine the efficacy of GraphoLearn (GL) English Rime, a computer‐assisted reading intervention, in improving the foundational literacy skills of 1st and 2nd grade students who were attending an English medium school in India. Methods: A total of 136 students across 6 classrooms were randomly allocated to play either GL or a control math game over a 5‐week intervention period. Students were pre‐ and post‐tested on various English literacy skills using tasks built into the GL software as well as through oral and paper‐based tasks. Results and Conclusions: Students who played GL showed significantly greater and faster development on in‐game measures of letter‐sound knowledge, rime unit recognition, and word recognition as compared to students who did not play GL. In addition, GL resulted in greater effects on these measures for students with stronger English literacy skills prior to the start of the intervention. No differences were found between groups on the oral and paper‐based tasks. Implications: GL was able to quickly and effectively teach critical sub‐skills for reading. However, a lack of effects on the out‐of‐game measures opens the door for further discussion on the successful implementation of such interventions. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic:India has an ongoing literacy crisis with many children failing to acquire functional literacy skills.Under‐resourced schools,outdated pedagogical methods, and a demand for English‐medium education are partially to blame.Globally, technology is being increasingly looked at to help improve student learning levels across all subject areas.There are a lack of studies examining the efficacy of various ed‐tech tools to improve literacy in the context of India.What this paper adds:The study aimed to test GraphoLearn English (GL), a mobile game designed to teach and practice early reading skills through phonics with first and second graders.Results showed that children who played GL outperformed those who did not play on critical literacy skills such as letter‐sound knowledge and word recognition.In addition, GL was more effective for those who had higher pre‐existing English literacy skills.However, improvements were only seen on measures assessed in the game and not on measures assessed orally or on paper.Implications for practice and/or policy:GL and other educational technologies can be extremely effective tools which allow for an individualized learning experience.However, it is important that for any educational game, learning moves beyond the game itself.Teachers are critical players in this process and must ensure that tech‐based instruction is integrated with teacher‐led instruction.Policy makers and school administration must ensure that teachers are adequately trained on when, with whom, and how to use such technologies before they are introduced. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: While the use of digital technologies in collaborative design tasks have gained acceptance amongst educational researchers and instructors, few studies have analysed the application of video‐supported collaborative learning‐by‐design (VSC‐LBD) in the authentic setting of professional education and training. Objectives: This study on VSC‐LBD investigated the learning processes and outcomes of nursing students who collaboratively used a hypervideo authoring tool to learn the procedure about urinary catheter insertion. We hypothesized that the students who collaboratively used a hypervideo authoring tool to learn about a professional procedure would outperform those exposed to a traditional lesson on the same procedure. Further, we assumed that the students who created an instructional video from scratch would obtain higher learning scores than those who worked on existing footage. Methods: Participants (N = 60) worked in groups and were assigned to three conditions: in the first each group recorded a video while simulating the procedure and then turned the footage into a hypervideo (VSC‐LBD1); in the second condition each group already received the raw video to turn it into a hypervideo (VSC‐LBD1); in the third participants attended a traditional lesson (control). Pre‐ and post‐tests measured procedural knowledge acquisition. The co‐regulation episodes within the groups that produced the best and worst videos were assessed and measured. Results and Conclusions: The students in the two VSC‐LBD conditions significantly outperformed those in the control condition. No differences were found between making an original video and using existing footage. More co‐regulatory processing episodes were found in the best video group compared to the other groups. Takeaways: This study supports theoretical assumptions on the value of VSC‐LBD in authentic learning environments and provide useful information to instructors willing to adopt collaborative use of interactive video tools. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic: Video‐based technologies, and more in particular hypervideo with its additional affordances, results an effective tool to support procedural learning.Hypervideo designing is a fruitful Learning‐By‐Design (LBD) activity that allows learners to transform and restructure knowledge.From a pedagogical point of view, giving students collaborative design tasks on video materials showed to be quite effective. What this paper adds: Few studies have investigated the application of video‐supported collaborative learning‐by‐design (VSC‐LBD) in the authentic setting of professional education and training. The same is true when it comes to procedural knowledge acquisition applied to clinical procedures, with most studies focussing on conceptual knowledge acquisition.When working with a learning‐by‐design approach, a clear distinction between the benefit of designing a video from scratch and of designing the hyper‐ components was lacking.Adopting a VSC‐LBD pedagogical approach to support learning of professional procedures in the nursing sector showed to be very effective both looking at the learning processes and the learning outcomes. Implications for practice and/or policy: This study proposes a collaborative design activity to learn professional procedures and demonstrates its affordances in terms of learning gains compared to a traditional lesson.Giving students a collaborative design task to build a hypervideo seems more important than just giving them a design task on the starting video depicting the procedureThe paper provides instructors with the necessary information to develop pedagogically sound design VSC‐LBD activities in time‐sensitive yet effective ways. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Some children enter elementary school with large vocabulary delays, which negatively influence their later school performance. A rich home language environment can support vocabulary development through frequent high-quality parent-toddler interaction. Elaborated picture home activities can support this rich home language environment. This study compares the effects of a multimedia versus a paper elaborated picture on the parent-toddler interaction and toddlers' vocabulary development. In a within-subjects design, 20 toddlers (age 3-4) discussed a multimedia and a paper elaborated picture with a parent. Results showed that toddlers knew significantly more words (receptively and expressively) after both activities. Moreover, the improvement in receptive vocabulary knowledge was significantly larger with the multimedia elaborated picture compared with the paper-based picture. In addition, both parent and toddler engaged in a significant higher level of decontextualized language in response to multimedia. The present study shows that multimedia elaborated pictures can support parents at home to engage in a parent-toddler interaction that is richer and supports the development of receptive vocabulary more compared with traditional paper-based activities. In the future, multimedia-based home activities for toddlers' vocabulary development, supporting parent-child interaction, can be offered relatively cheap and easily via internet. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Writing is an important and complex skill, which could be enhanced by teaching students effective writing strategies such as outlining. Electronic outlining ‐ integrated feature in Microsoft® Word – has been shown to enhance students' writing performance. However, little is known about the optimal didactic approach for electronic outlining. Objective: This study examined the effects of learning to use electronic outlining either via observational learning or via learning‐by‐doing on students' argumentative writing performance. Methods: Students (N = 129, 10th‐grade) were assigned with their complete class to one of three conditions: a control (traditional pen and paper outlines via learning‐by‐doing), outline (electronic outlines via learning‐by‐doing) or observation (electronic outlines via observational learning) condition. Students followed an argumentative writing lesson‐series that differed across conditions in terms of planning strategies and didactic approaches used. To examine the influence of the different conditions on students' writing, argumentative texts were used as pre‐ and post‐tests, and the quality was evaluated with an analytic assessment protocol. In addition, data regarding students' perceived mental effort and the organisation of the writing process were collected. Finally, students' attitudes towards electronic outlining were assessed. Results and Conclusion: Although the overall text structure had improved after the lesson series, no significant differences were found between conditions. Electronic outlining increased the total amount of time dedicated to the texts as well as the revision ratio. Students in the observation condition showed a higher pause ratio and a lower fluency on the post‐test as compared to students who learned by doing (both control and outline conditions). With regard to perceived mental effort, students in the outline and control conditions perceived significant decreases over tasks, as opposed to those in the observation condition. In conclusion, the self‐reports indicate that students in the outline condition appropriated electronic outlining significantly better than those in the observation condition, suggesting that practice enhanced students' appropriation of electronic outlining. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic: Planning as a writing strategy helps students organise their writing and reduce mental effort.Electronic outlining is an effective and efficient tool to support a planning strategy.Observational learning is an effective didactic approach in writing education. What this paper adds: Traditional planning and electronic outlining via either observational learning or learning‐by‐doing affect writing products equally.Tool appropriation is greater for students who learned‐by‐doing. Implications for practice: Importance of elaborated and explicit (strategy) instruction.Advantage of video‐based modelling for teacher efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This research is inspired by the challenges encountered in interpreter training, changes in learning needs in the technological era, the educational paradigm shift caused by the COVID‐19 pandemic, the lack of studies on combining virtual reality (VR)_and mobile technologies, and literature gaps in the field of the incorporation of technology in interpreter education. Objectives: This research aims to develop a mobile‐based VR application for bi‐directional English‐Chinese and Chinese‐English interpreting learning named 'Virtual Interpreting Practice' (VIP) based on an interpreting competence model and to investigate its impact on students' self‐rated language and interpreting proficiency levels as well as their declarative knowledge and operative skills as reflected in different interpreting modes (sight and consecutive) and language directions (English‐Chinese and Chinese‐English). The VIP app contains learning resources, including 13 learning modules covering both interpreting modes, practical topics and contexts, video lectures and demonstrations, fully immersive VR and non‐VR practice, glossary lists, source texts, translated texts and an online feedback platform. Methods: Thirty‐one native Chinese‐speaking English as a second/foreign (ESL/EFL) undergraduate students used the app for self‐directed learning. The data were collected by the pre‐study and post‐study questionnaires as well as the pre‐test and post‐test. Results and Conclusions: The results indicate that the use of VIP significantly raised the students' self‐rated language and interpreting proficiency levels as well as their interpreting performance in both modes and language directions. While the students performed better in sight interpreting and Chinese‐English interpreting, they achieved a significantly higher improvement rate in consecutive interpreting and English‐Chinese interpreting. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic: A number of studies have demonstrated the use of virtual reality (VR) provides users with senses of multiple presence, enhances learner engagement and motivation, and facilitates collaborative, situated, immersive and experiential learning that is not often available in traditional learning environments.The increasing availability of VR has created new opportunities in the area of mobile‐assisted language learning (MALL), paving the way for a new research area called VR‐assisted language learning (VRALL).Using VRALL, numerous benefits in various language skills have been identified, such as listening, speaking, writing and vocabulary acquisition. What this paper adds: While blending VR and mobile technologies may play a more significant role in education settings and create more advantages, the impact of this combination for interpreting learning has remained an unexplored area in higher education. This paper has addressed the research gaps in which there is a lack of VR language learning apps that are bilingual, mobile‐based and specifically designed for interpreting practice in highly immersive learning environments.The results indicate that the use of VIP significantly raised the students' self‐rated language and interpreting proficiency levels as well as their interpreting performance in both sight and consecutive interpreting and language directions (English‐Chinese and Chinese‐English).While the students performed better in sight interpreting and Chinese‐English interpreting, they achieved a significantly higher improvement rate in consecutive interpreting and English‐Chinese interpreting. Implications for practice and/or policy: The results have implications for the roles of students and teachers. The app developed in this study shifts the teacher‐led approach to student‐centred learning. While it allows more learning autonomy, its effectiveness may largely depend on students' ability to self‐regulate and engage.It appears that the effectiveness of VRALL depends on a number of individual and contextual factors, e.g. the design and functionality of the apps, availability of the internet connection and smartphones as well as learning needs and motivation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The use of e‐exams in higher education is increasing. However, the role of student diversity in the acceptance of e‐exams is an under‐researched topic. In the current study, we considered student diversity in terms of three sociodemographic characteristics (age, gender, and second language) and three dispositional student characteristics (computer anxiety, test anxiety, and technology openness). Objectives: The main objective of this study was to investigate the relationship between student diversity and acceptance of e‐exams. Methods: Our research combined cross‐sectional analyses (N = 1639) with data from a natural experiment on the introduction of e‐exams versus the established paper‐pencil exams (N = 626) and used both self‐report and institutional data. Sociodemographic and dispositional characteristics were indirectly related to pre‐exam acceptance via expectancy variables from the Technology Acceptance Model framework. Results and Conclusions: Comparisons of post‐exam acceptance showed that practical experience with the e‐exam led to a significant increase in e‐exam acceptance, and that students with low openness toward technology particularly benefited from this effect. Students' exam performance (i.e., grades) was unrelated to the exam format or their pre‐exam acceptance of the e‐exam format, and this was true across students' sociodemographic and dispositional characteristics. Takeaway: Student diversity plays a role in e‐exam acceptance, but its influence is mitigated by first‐hand experience with e‐exams. The practical implications for higher education institutions aiming to implement e‐exams are discussed. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic: The use of e‐exams in higher education is increasingThe role of student diversity for e‐exam acceptance is unclearTechnology acceptance is predicted by expectancies towards new system What this paper adds: We investigated students' sociodemographic and dispositional diversityDiversity predicted e‐exam acceptance via the expectanciesIn a natural experiment, first‐hand experience increased e‐exam acceptanceNo difference between performance in e‐exams and paper‐pencil‐exams found Implications of the study findings for practitioners: Higher education institutions implementing e‐exams should consider diversitySupport for older students and students with low technology openness neededNo student groups systematically disadvantaged by e‐exam implementationPractice rooms can increase experience with new system before exam [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Studies: Captioning and repetition are widely used multimedia instructional devices for non‐native students. Generally, studies in this area have tended to focus on second language literacy skills rather than on learning new content knowledge. Additionally, posttests were administered immediately after the treatments, while the delayed influences of captioning and repetition have never been investigated. Objectives: This paper addressed these research gaps in two separate studies. More specifically, this study attempted to examine the influences of captioning and repetition on non‐native students' immediate and relayed retention. Methods: In Study One, three captioning conditions; word‐by‐word captions, closed captions, and no‐captions; were compared to examine their efficacies in immediate and delayed content knowledge retention on 82 Chinese university students. To address the limitations in Study One as the multimedia lesson was short and played only once, Study Two incorporated captioning and two repetition types in its design. One hundred and eleven Chinese university students watch a video lesson in one of four captioning and repetition conditions. Results: The statistical analyses of Study One indicated that there were no significant differences in both immediate and delayed retention test scores across the three captioning condition. Similarly, in Study Two, there were no significant differences in retention tests scores across the four captioning and repetition conditions. Findings: Neither the availability of captions nor the repetition types had any impact on the Chinese students' immediate or delayed content knowledge retention, which lent support to existing studies. Based on the research results, the limitations and future study possibilities are discussed. Lay Description: What Is Already Known About This TopicEmpirical studies on captioning have focused on immediate learning right after the treatment, so have studies on repetition.Empirical studies on multimedia lessons for non‐native students have focused on English language learning. What This Paper AddsThree types of captioning were compared to examine their efficacies in both immediate and delayed content retention of Chinese students.Two types of repetition were compared to examine their efficacies in both immediate and delayed content retention of Chinese students. Implications for Practice and/or Policy:Neither the availability of captions nor the repetition types had any impact on the Chinese students' immediate or delayed content knowledge retention.The availability of textual keywords adjacent to their corresponding graphics might have compromised the efficacy of captioning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Guided gaze is the instructor's gaze towards teaching materials to guide students' attention, and it plays a vital role in enhancing video‐based education. The duration of guided gaze, indicating how long instructors focus on teaching materials, varies based on the lecture design. Nevertheless, the impact of varying durations of guided gaze, especially concerning students' prior knowledge, remains inadequately understood. Objectives: This study investigates the influence of the instructor's guided gaze duration and students' prior knowledge on learning performance and affective experiences in video lectures. Methods: 145 fifth‐grade students participated and were divided into high and low prior knowledge groups based on a pre‐test. Within each group, students were randomly assigned to view one of three video lectures with different guided gaze durations (high vs. medium vs. low). Learning performance and affective experiences (learning experience, satisfaction, and emotions) were measured as dependent variables. Results and Conclusion: The results revealed that low guided gaze duration significantly improves learning performance for students with low prior knowledge. Conversely, high guided gaze duration negatively impacts learning experience, satisfaction, and positive emotions. Additionally, students with high prior knowledge reported higher learning experience and satisfaction. These findings highlight the interaction between guided gaze duration and prior knowledge in students' learning performance. Implications: Our findings provide valuable implications for the design of guided gaze duration in video lectures based on students' prior knowledge. By adjusting guided gaze duration appropriately, instructors can optimise students' learning performance and affective experiences. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic: Guided gaze is the instructor's gaze on teaching materials, guiding students' attention to relevant information.Guided gaze duration measures the amount of time instructors spend looking at teaching materials.Prior knowledge can modulate the impact of instructors' guidance on students' learning performance.It remains unclear whether guided gaze duration affects the learning outcomes of students with varied prior knowledge. What this paper adds: Guided gaze duration is divided into three levels (high, medium, and low), indicating the percentage of time the instructor looks at teaching materials.High guided gaze duration has negative effects on students' learning experience, satisfaction, and positive emotions.Students with high prior knowledge have higher learning performance, experience, and satisfaction.Low guided gaze duration improves learning performance for students with low prior knowledge. Implications for practice and/or policy: Instructors should use low guided gaze duration for students with low prior knowledge.Instructors should aim to reduce the use of high guided gaze duration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Immersive virtual reality (IVR) is a new technology that could motivate learners, but also could contain distracting elements that increase cognitive demands on learners. In contrast, learning with conventional media, such as a narrated slideshow could be less motivating, but also less distracting. Objectives: This experiment investigates: (1) in what situations executive function and working memory capacity play a role in learning in IVR and a slideshow lesson and (2) whether people learn science content better with IVR or with a narrated slideshow lesson. Method: Participants watched a lesson on ocean acidification either using a head‐mounted display IVR device or a pre‐recorded narrated slideshow lesson. A week later, they took a test on this material and completed tasks to assess executive function and working memory capacity. Results and Conclusion: On a post‐test, there was no difference between IVR and slideshow lessons, but there were differences in the role of executive function in learning with these two media. For students learning in IVR, executive function correlated significantly with post‐test scores, such that learners with stronger executive function did better on the posttest than those with weaker executive function, while for students learning with a slideshow lesson, executive function and working memory capacity did not correlate significantly with posttest scores. This research indicates that it is important to understand how a learner's attentional controls impact their understanding when using IVR for learning. Lay Description: What is already know about this topic: Immersive virtual reality increases demands on cognition for learners.Immersive virtual reality for learning has inconsistent effects in prior research.Executive function and working memory capacity are important components in processing material while learning. What this paper adds: Research focused on the role individual differences play in learning with technology.Using common cognitive assessments to understand the process of learning better. Implications for practice and/or policy: Executive function predicted test score for an immersive virtual reality lesson.Use of immersive technology needs to take into account executive function to reduce potential inequity in learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Game‐based learning can frame problem‐solving as a sense‐making experience with domain‐specific tasks for school students. However, multiple challenges arise when trying to support learners in such a complex, problem‐oriented learning environment. Objectives and Methods: With an architecture‐themed mathematics learning game, we conducted two mixed‐method studies to explore the impact and design of game‐based mathematical experience on the math problem‐solving performance of middle school students. Results and Conclusions: The study findings suggested a positive impact of game‐based math experience on math problem‐solving for middle school students. Problematization‐oriented game‐based math tasks with structuring features enhanced students' reasoning with problems and channelled it to doing mathematics. Takeaways: The current research findings support the initiative to frame learning as a sense‐making experience with domain‐specific tasks and inform the design of game‐based mathematical experience and learning support. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic: Realistic mathematical practices frame learning as a sense‐making experience.Challenges arise when involving learners in realistic mathematical experiences driven by domain‐specific tasks. What this paper adds: Game‐based simulation of math tasks framed learning as sense‐making experience.Game‐based math experiencing promoted math contextual problem‐solving performance.Structuring features enhanced problematized experiencing with math tasks. Implications for practice and/or policy: Teachers can integrate and facilitate game‐based math experiencing in class.Efforts should be made to make game‐based math tasks meaningful for students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Limited research on the effectiveness of additional online and face‐to‐face practise opportunities for promoting active learning among Chinese EFL learners in higher education. Current understanding of self‐regulated and collaborative learning theories in educational contexts. Objectives: To establish the efficacy of interactive online and face‐to‐face practise opportunities for enhancing active learning among Chinese EFL learners. Methods: Employed mixed methods research to assess the impact of different types of practise opportunities on 116 EFL learners. Utilised methodological triangulation of QUAN + QUAL data and one‐way ANOVA for interpretation. Results and conclusions: The study demonstrated the effectiveness of integrating online and face‐to‐face practise opportunities to enhance active learning. Empirical evidence supports the pedagogical and theoretical benefits of these opportunities for promoting active learning among EFL learners. Lay Summary: What is currently known about this topic: Limited scholarly exploration of supplementary practise opportunities for active learning among Chinese EFL learnersExisting understanding of self‐regulated and collaborative learning theories in educational contexts What does this paper add: Establishes the effectiveness of interactive online and face‐to‐face practise opportunities for promoting active learningProvides empirical evidence supporting the integration of these opportunities to enhance active learning Implications for practise/or policy: Advocates for the combined use of online and face‐to‐face practise opportunities to enrich engagement, problem‐solving, feedback, and motivation among EFL learnersSuggests the development of instructional frameworks based on self‐regulated and collaborative learning theories for enhanced CALL courses [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Online collaboration tools have been identified as potentially effective means for enhancing student learning, motivation, and engagement in science education. However, their effectiveness in improving science education outcomes among middle school students remains uncertain. Objectives: The study aimed to investigate the impact of online collaboration tools on science education outcomes among middle school students, focusing on learning achievement, engagement, and motivation. Methods: A quasi‐experimental design with a pretest‐posttest control group was used in this study. A total of 60 eighth‐grade middle school students were involved in the study, with both the experimental and control groups comprising 30 students each. The experimental group incorporated the use of digital collaboration platforms, including Asana, Slack, and Team Viewer, as instrumental components of group project execution and discussion in their science lessons. Conversely, the control group adhered to the current educational approach in Turkey, characterized by the employment of an inquiry‐based learning strategy in their science instruction. Data was collected over eight weeks using a science achievement test, engagement scale, and science motivation scale. Results: The experimental group demonstrated significantly higher post‐test scores compared to the control group, suggesting that online collaboration tools positively impacted science education outcomes. Additionally, survey data indicated high levels of engagement and motivation among the experimental group students when using the online collaboration tools. Conclusions: The findings support the notion that online collaboration tools can effectively enhance learning, motivation, and engagement in science education among middle school students. These results have significant implications for educators, educational institutions, policymakers, and curriculum developers. Further research is needed to examine the potential of these tools in various educational contexts and with different student populations. This will help broaden the understanding of how online collaboration tools can be integrated into diverse learning environments, potentially benefiting a larger number of students and further improving science education outcomes. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic: Technology's role, particularly online collaboration tools, in enriching science education is undebatable (Donkin & Rasmussen, 2021; Rahmawati et al., 2022). Such tools have been theorized to bolster student learning outcomes, motivation, and engagement (Donnelly et al., 2013; Ekici, 2017; Khazanchi & Khazanchi, 2019). Yet, the empirical evidence validating their efficacy in science educational settings remains sparse. What this paper adds: This research delves into the influence of online collaboration tools on science learning outcomes among middle school learners. Data indicates that employing these digital tools substantially elevates student performance, as gauged by a science achievement test. Furthermore, students navigating through these online collaborative platforms recorded elevated levels of both engagement and motivation. The primary effectiveness of online collaboration tools stems from their ability to foster specific behaviours, such as increased communication frequency and structured task management, which can amplify learning and group collaboration through their facilitated structured interactions. Implications for practice and/or policy: This study's conclusions offer pivotal insights for educators, academic institutions, policy framers, and curriculum architects. Online collaborative platforms exhibit promise in amplifying student outcomes and engagement within the realm of science education. It is imperative to broaden this research scope to discern the tools' potential across varied educational environments and diverse student demographics. There is a compelling case for stakeholders, especially educators and policymakers, to contemplate incorporating these online tools into science pedagogy, aiming to magnify student learning experiences and engagement levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Vocabulary learning in a second language (L2) encompasses crucial aspects, including single words and collocations. Research indicates that L2 learners can incidentally learn single words from captioned videos, but less is known about the incidental learning outcomes of collocations, let alone the differences in learning gains for single words and collocations under different captioned conditions, as well as individual differences that may account for such differences. Objectives: This study aimed to fill this gap by comparing the learning gains of single words and collocations while investigating the influence of vocabulary knowledge (VK) and working memory (WM) on the learning results within diverse forms of captioning conditions: full captions, keyword captions, and no captions. Methods: The study involved 129 young Chinese ESL learners who completed vocabulary tests assessing their meaning recall before, immediately after, and 2 weeks after the study, as well as tests for VK and WM. Results and Conclusions: The results showed that full captions are the most efficacious condition for enhancing both single word and collocation learning. The depth of VK, as well as phonological and complex WM, were significant factors in the learning of new language items. Takeaways: Different types of captioning (full or keyword) contribute differently to the learning of various language items. Individual differences in WM and depth of VK among learners should be considered when utilizing captioned videos for language learning. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic: The type of captions employed does influence incidental single word learning.Incidental collocation learning from captioned videos is worth to be investigated due to the essential role of collocation knowledge in L2 development and the limited classroom time.The breadth of prior vocabulary knowledge (VK) does impact the incidental learning of single words across different captioned conditions. However, the findings remain inconclusive.Working memory (WM) plays a vital role in single word learning. However, limited emphasis has been placed on the examination of how WM affects the incidental learning of collocations across various captioning conditions. What this paper adds: Different captioned conditions play different roles in the incidental learning of different language units: single word learning benefits most from full captioning, whereas both full and keyword captioning lead to significant improvements in incidental collocation learning.The depth of VK is a key determinant of both single word and collocation learning from captioned videos, but its impact is greater for collocations.The breadth of VK is more relevant to collocation learning than single word learning.Both phonological and complex WM play an important role in learning both single words and collocations, but their contribution is greater for collocations. Implications for practice and/or policy: L2 policymakers can incorporate short storytelling videos into the EFL curriculum to facilitate vocabulary learning among young learners and ultimately enhance their L2 proficiency.Teachers can strategically design and implement various types of captioned videos (full or keyword) as out‐of‐class extensive viewing activities, targeting different language components such as single words and collocations.Teachers should be mindful of individual differences (e.g., VK and WM) among learners when utilizing captioned videos for language learning, particularly when it comes to incidental collocation learning.Parents are encouraged to include short storytelling videos with captions as part of their children's home entertainment activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Educational technology designs in developing countries mostly focus on making knowledge resources widely available, through MOOCs, repositories and computer‐based tutoring. The use of digital media for cognitive augmentation, particularly interactive designs that help learners understand modelling topics in STEM, is underexplored. We report a 3‐year design study examining this potential in the Indian context, testing two iterations of an interactive system, Touchy‐Feely Vectors (TFV). The design supports learning vectors, a modelling topic pre‐university students struggle with. Virtual lesson‐plans were co‐designed with teachers to augment — but not replace — their existing practices, and to address classroom and resource constraints. Pre‐post testing of TFV‐1 (a computer‐based prototype) showed that it helped students develop a more integrated vector concept, and improved their reasoning. Field‐implementation of TFV‐2 (a textbook‐linked touch‐screen based design) in 6‐classrooms (3‐Control, N=135; 3‐Experimental, N=131) showed that it fostered cognitive engagement in average‐students and geometry‐algebra integration (model‐based reasoning) in good‐students. These results, along with a requirements analysis based on textbooks, indicate that the interaction possibilities supported by different representational media critically shape student reasoning. The study also illustrates a systematic approach to design and test digital media systems that support cognitive augmentation in developing countries. Lay description: What is already known about this topic: Computational modelling is central to model‐based reasoning (MBR) in contemporary scientific practice. Education needs to change to support this new way of thinking. However, it is not clear how this could be done systematically in developing countries.Textbooks are thus not replaceable in developing nation contexts, and any digital media designed to help develop model‐based reasoning in students would need to work with textbooks and existing teaching/learning practice. It is unclear how this could be done.When learning basic model‐based reasoning using static textbook media, students struggle with core MBR topics like vectors. What this paper adds: The paper reports a 3‐year design‐based study, where a vector simulation system was developed (Touchy‐Feely Vectors), which addressed the following issues. Addressing 2 above, the study illustrates a design that builds on static textbook media and associated practices.Addressing 3 above, a 2‐phase field test of the design (N = 266) showed that the system changes student reasoning, towards better integration of algebra and geometry, while reasoning with vectors.Addressing 1 above, the study provides a new model to implement the learning of modelling using interactive simulations, in developing country classrooms.Addressing 1 above, the study offers a clear model for designing such interventions in developing country contexts.More broadly, the study reveals how the nature of the medium used to present science content changes student cognition and reasoning. Implications for practice and/or policy: For curricula: The design we present can be extended easily, to develop similar systems for other topics. The design also illustrates how teachers adopt technology when they participate in the design.For policy: This design provides a workable policy alternative to the costly model of the digital medium replacing current media and its teaching/learning practices.For Research and Pedagogy: Our results suggest that researchers and teachers need to examine the capabilities and constraints of different media while analysing learning difficulties, and develop ways to address these issues [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Context: Most studies about programming misconceptions are conducted at the undergraduate and graduate levels. Since the age level for starting learning programming is getting lower, there is a need for determining programming misconceptions for younger learners. Objective: Our goal is to determine programming misconceptions and their time‐resistance for programming novices at the K‐12 level using Python as a text‐based programming language. Method: We conducted research in the school settings during informatics classes among 98 fifth‐grade students in three elementary schools. We analysed the data collected from two Python tests students took immediately after programming lectures and 5 months later. Results and Conclusions: We detected seven misconceptions: (a) Assigning the expression instead of the calculated value, (b) When reassigning the variable value, assigning the sum value to the variable, (c) Using the symbolic name of the variable instead of its value, (d) Using the first (or previously) assigned variable value, (e) Datatype misconception, (f) Sequencing misconception, and (g) Swapping variable values. By shifting focus on variables and spending more time introducing variables and sequencing during teaching, the appearance of known misconceptions is minimized compared to previous findings. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic: Programming misconceptions are known issues since the beginning of learning programming in the early 1980sMost programming misconceptions are time resistant.Most studies about misconceptions are conducted at the undergraduate and graduate levels. What this paper adds: The goal of the study is to determine programming misconceptions for programming novices at the K‐12 level.Three more misconceptions about basic programming concepts are revealed compared to the previous findings.By shifting focus on variables and spending more time introducing variables and sequencing during teaching, the appearance of known misconceptions is minimized. Implications for practice and/or policy: Being aware of misconceptions is an important aspect of a teacher's pedagogical knowledge to foster students learning.Aiming to prevent the known misconceptions, teachers can minimize it by interventions during teaching.The educators should emphasize the underlying conceptual programming concepts rather than syntactic ones related to the programming language. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: As adequate support, virtual reality (VR) has been increasingly introduced into the classroom to help students learn a new language. However, empirical studies exploring the educational potential of using 360° spherical video‐based virtual reality (SVVR) in high‐school Chinese language classrooms are still lacking. Objectives: A mind mapping‐based SVVR learning system is proposed for international high‐school students' Chinese courses and examines its effects on improving Chinese learning achievements and perceptions among Grade 10 students who learn Chinese as a foreign language. Methods: This study adopted a quasi‐experiment design. Participants (N = 66) were assigned to one of three conditions: mind mapping‐based SVVR (MMBSVVR), conventional SVVR (CSVVR), or traditional lecturing (TL). Our mixed‐method approach employed pre‐and post‐tests to measure Chinese learning achievements, questionnaires to measure Chinese learning motivation, problem‐solving ability, and self‐efficacy, and semi‐structured interviews to further explore students' feelings and attitudes about Chinese courses in corresponding learning environments. Results and Conclusions: The results showed that the MMBSVVR classroom significantly improved high students' Chinese learning achievements in Chinese vocabulary and making sentence, problem‐solving ability, and self‐efficacy. Moreover, SVVR stimulates students' learning interest and class participation, and mind mapping provides students with a clear guide to arrange the knowledge. These findings help interpret the relationships between MMBSVVR and learning achievements, Chinese learning motivation, problem‐solving ability, and self‐efficacy in an international high school Chinese courses, thus providing insight on integrating MMBSVVR into existing classrooms. Lay Description: What is Already Known about this Topic: By creating fully immersive 3D environments, 360° spherical video‐based virtual reality (SVVR) in promoting language learning has been confirmed by many scholars with a focus on English language learning.Mind mapping effectively enables second language learners to review and retain new words in the target language meaningfully. Also, it can create a more vivid learning atmosphere through images and graphics and promote learners' memory and learning motivation. What This Paper Adds: A mind mapping‐based SVVR learning system has been developed with the support of the constructivism theory.A mind mapping‐based SVVR learning system is proposed to facilitate international students' Chinese learning performance in Chinese vocabulary acquisition and sentence construction.In addition to promoting international students' learning outcomes, the proposed approach indicated promising results in learning motivation, problem‐solving ability, and self‐efficacy. Implications for Practice and/or Policy: This study provides an evidence base for further research through the utilization of VR learning environments in Chinese language classrooms.This study advocates introducing SVVR technology in the Chinese learning classrooms to increase the learning context for international students. It is also worth encouraging scholars to design VR learning systems with different learning strategies.Due to the cognitive requirements of the Chinese language learning process, it is necessary to introduce mind maps in the SVVR learning system to assist students in constructing knowledge and combining prior and new knowledge to generate long‐term memory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Mobile‐based micro‐learning has gained a lot of attention lately, especially for work‐based and corporate training. It combines features of mobile learning and micro‐learning to deliver small learning units and short‐term learning activities. The current study uses the lens of the Self‐Determination Theory of motivation and proposes a series of Mobile‐Based micro‐Learning and Assessment (MBmLA) homework activities to improve high school students' motivation and learning performance in science. An experiment was conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed approach. One hundred and eight students of a senior‐level high school in Europe were randomly assigned into either a control condition (conventional paper‐based homework approach) or an experimental (MBmLA approach) condition. The study carried out for a period of 5 weeks. From the experimental results, it was found that, in comparison to the conventional paper‐based approach, the proposed MBmLA approach enhanced students' basic psychological needs of self‐perceived autonomy, competence, and relatedness and improved students' exam performance in terms of factual knowledge. Moreover, students self‐reported greater learning satisfaction with the mobile‐based microassessment and micro‐learning homework tasks. Implications on educational practices as well as future research are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Reading comprehension is an interactive process. Yet, instructional needs are usually identified with isolated componential tests. This study examined whether a dynamic approach, in which componential abilities are measured within the same text and global text comprehension is facilitated via feedback, can help in understanding variation in children's reading comprehension. Objectives: With a pretest‐posttest control group design, componential abilities before and after feedback were related to growth in global text comprehension within the same text. Methods: At pretest, third to fifth graders read 30 short texts, each followed by one global text comprehension question. This was repeated at posttest, but additional questions were asked with feedback prior to each global text comprehension question. The vocabulary group received two vocabulary questions with feedback (n = 97). The vocabulary plus integration group received two vocabulary questions and one sentence‐integration question with feedback (n = 98). The control group (n = 98) only answered the global text comprehension questions. Results and Conclusion: Participants in the experimental conditions who needed feedback (i.e., lower‐skilled) experienced a decrease in global text comprehension, whereas this was not found for the control group and participants in the experimental groups who did not need feedback (i.e., higher‐skilled). There was also less decrease among those lower‐skilled participants who had profited from the feedback. Implications: It is concluded from explorative analyses that not feedback but the overall design caused the decrease. Conceptually, the dynamic approach is worth further research. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic: Reading comprehension is a complex interaction of several componential abilities at word level, sentence level, and text level (e.g., vocabulary and sentence‐integration).Instruction should adapt to the profile of strengths and weaknesses in componential abilities.Assessing componential abilities with isolated tests does not align with the interactive processes in reading comprehension.Measuring learning ability can help to identify children with low responsiveness to instruction. What this paper adds: Reading comprehension is profiled by asking questions on vocabulary, sentence‐integration, and global text comprehension for the same text in third to fifth graders (8–11 years olds).Feedback is provided after a mistake in a vocabulary and sentence‐integration question, and the feedback effect on global text comprehension is measured with a pretest‐posttest design.Children who receive feedback decrease in global text comprehension but children with higher skills in componential abilities decrease less.Explorative analyses and previous research indicate that the assessment design had a negative impact on performance, for example, via cognitive load, attention, self‐esteem, and motivation. Implications for practice and/or policy: Global text comprehension cannot always be facilitated by providing feedback on vocabulary and sentence‐integration within the same text.The design of the assessment and its influence on performance should be carefully considered by instructional designers, educators, and researchers, especially in case of young learners.It remains unclear from this study if facilitating global text comprehension via feedback with a dynamic approach is useful to understand variation in children's reading comprehension.The dynamic approach with a proper design may potentially still provide a useful insight in individual differences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Study: The effects of the flipped classroom (FC) on students' academic performance remain ambiguous, and the use of pre‐class videos may be one of the main factors hindering students' progress. A software package called GeoGebra has been proposed as a substitute for pre‐class videos to aid students' learning. Objective: This study investigates the effect of the FC using GeoGebra (FCG) on mathematical performance and memory among senior secondary students. Methods: One hundred and sixty students of a senior high school in China were selected. A quasi‐experimental design was implemented in which the classes were split into the intervention group (FCG), control group A (FCV) and control group B (TL) by random assignment. Pretest, Post‐test 1 and Post‐test 2 were introduced. Results and Conclusion: The results indicate that both the FCG and the FC with pre‐class videos (FCV) were more effective than traditional lectures in enhancing students' academic test scores, and that the effect of the FCG was comparable to its video counterpart, F(2, 136) = 3.752, ρ = 0.026, η2 = 0.052. Although their effects were similar, the qualitative results revealed some hidden benefits associated with the replacement of pre‐class video with GeoGebra. Furthermore, although they were equally effective in promoting students' performance in the short‐term, the long‐term effects on academic performance of both forms of FC were non‐significant when compared with traditional lectures. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic: Flipped classroom is an effective strategy in teaching mathematics.Among those challenges, video may be one of the main factors hindering the effect of flipped classroom. What this paper adds: GeoGebra could be an effective alternative to video.Effect between the flipped classroom using GeoGebra and the flipped classroom using video were similar.Both the flipped classroom with GeoGebra and the flipped classroom with videos were more effective than traditional lectures. Implications for practice and/or policy: Students' short‐term performance could be enhanced by visualisation provided by flipped classroom.To enhance students' long‐term performance, an appropriate amount of homework is suggested. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The increasing prevalence of Artificial Intelligence (AI) language models, exemplified by ChatGPT, has sparked inquiries into their influence on creative writing skills in educational contexts. This study aims to quantitatively investigate whether ChatGPT's use negatively affects university students' creative writing abilities, focusing on originality, content presentation, accuracy, and elaboration in essays. The research adopts an experimental approach to shed light on this concern. Objective: This study aims to quantitatively investigate whether the utilization of ChatGPT, an AI chatbot, adversely affects specific dimensions of creative writing skills among university students, with an emphasis on originality, content presentation, accuracy, and elaboration. Method: The experimental study involves 600 students from 10 universities, divided into a control and an experimental group (EGp). The EGp incorporates ChatGPT in their creative writing process as an intervention. The study evaluates originality, content presentation, accuracy, and elaboration, utilizing the Wilcoxon Signed‐Rank Test for analysis. Results and Conclusion: The findings reveal a detrimental association between ChatGPT use and university students' creative writing abilities. Analysing both machine‐based and human‐based assessments substantiates earlier qualitative observations regarding ChatGPT's adverse impact on creative writing. This study highlights the necessity of approaching AI integration, particularly in creative writing disciplines, with caution. While AI tools have merits, their integration should be thoughtful, considering the potential drawbacks. These insights inform future research and educational practices, guiding the effective incorporation of AI while nurturing students' writing skills. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic: ChatGPT poses an ethical dilemma regarding its use in the field of academiaQualitative claims and opinions have been raised in prior studies regarding its use in the creative writing processPrior studies have both supported and opposed its use but with very limited quantitative approaches while most of the opinions remain qualitativeSome prior studies opine in support of ChatGPT's ability as an authorSeveral factors measuring creativity has been identified by previous studies but a constructive approach in the light of advanced Artificial Intelligence (AI) based chatbots like ChatGPT is missing in such literature What this paper adds: An experimental approach to provide a valid quantitative proof of the qualitative claims over ChatGPT's detrimental effect towards creativity in writing, which was absent in prior studiesA multifactor‐based formula to measure creativity in a quantitative formA quantitative view of the factors that are affected in either a positive way or a negative way in a user by ChatGPT, providing a holistic picture to determine its extent of useA statistical and theoretical understanding over an unexplored topic like creative writing in the light of ChatGPTA quantitative proof why ChatGPT should not be considered as an author Implications for practice and/or policy: Educators may implement changes in assigning tasks to students compared to their earlier practices, based on the identified factors that are being affected negatively, to ensure ChatGPT does not hinder a student's creativity at a greater extentThe extent of using ChatGPT should be limited to self‐learning as positive effect was experienced through the experimentPolicymakers may use the findings of the study to impose strict policies in academia for ensuring academic integrity (Example: must use of plagiarism detecting software for checking scripts, assigning tasks to students which require more analytical abilities, providing tasks which are not properly readable by LLM's like ChatGPT such as image‐based questions, case studies etc.) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Goal setting has been established in the literature as a critical component of self‐regulated learning and for effective problem‐solving. Yet, surprisingly little attention has been focused on goal‐directed behaviour in digital game‐based learning environments (GBLEs) despite their expanding use in educational contexts. Objectives: The current study examined the impact of goal assignment in a GBLE aligned with curricular objectives and played in a classroom context. Methods: Eighth‐grade students (N = 59) in the experiment were randomly assigned to either a mastery goal condition or a performance goal condition before playing Crystal Island—Outbreak. Goal orientation was measured before gameplay, monitoring judgements assessed during gameplay, and enjoyment was measured after game play. Results and Conclusions: Two important results emerged that contribute to the existing literature on goals and GBLEs. First, assignment to the mastery goal condition resulted in significantly higher enjoyment ratings and monitoring judgements but not game performance while considering the influence of pre‐existing goal‐orientation. Second, self‐reported mastery goal orientation and videogame play frequency predicted enjoyment in the game. Implications: The results suggest that enjoyment can be facilitated by orienting students to adopt mastery goals and that developers should consider integrating mastery‐based instructions in their GBLEs. Moreover, instructional goals can influence students regardless of incoming goal orientations. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic: Goal setting has been understudied in game‐based learning environments.Goal setting is a critical component of developing self‐regulated learning skills. What this paper adds: Evidence that assignment to a mastery goal leads to higher reported enjoyment.Evidence that assignment to a mastery goal leads to higher monitoring judgements.Evidence that incoming goal orientations predict enjoyment in a serious game. Implications for practice and/or policy: Enjoyment can be facilitated by orienting students to adopt mastery goals.Serious game developers should consider integrating mastery‐based instructions.Instructional goals can influence students regardless of incoming goal orientations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Little is known about the effectiveness of instructors when presenting content in videos alone. In recent years, researchers have increasingly begun to explore the effects of instructors' social cues (e.g., eye gaze, body orientation, etc.) on learning. However, previous studies exploring the effects of eye gaze have confounded the role of body orientation, while studies exploring body orientation have confounded the role of eye gaze. Objectives: To explore the role of direct gaze and body orientation in learning with instructional videos, absent an instructional screen, in a less confounded manner. Methods: A total of 63 subjects were presented select concepts regarding schizophrenia. Eye‐tracking technology combined with current theories of parasocial interaction and social agency was used to explore different social cues that affect learning performance. Students were randomly assigned to one of three experimental conditions: frontal body + direct gaze group (FD group), frontal body + no direct gaze group (FND group), and lateral body + no direct gaze group (LND group). Result and Conclusions: Direct gaze facilitated students' immediate retention and transfer scores, reduced learners' extraneous cognitive load, and guided students' attention to the instructor. However, counter to our expectations, parasocial interaction did not affect social cues. Implications: In both online and offline classes, instruction is expected to be enhanced by focusing on the camera to the extent possible, particularly when instructional screens are absent. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic: In recent years, how instructors' social cues (eye gaze, body orientation, gestures, etc.) can improve video learning has aroused widespread concern.Instructors' eye gaze and body orientation can increase society and improve learning in the online learning environment.The empirical research confounds the role of eye gaze and body orientation on video learning when only the instructors are present. What this paper adds: When only the instructor is present in the video, instructor's direct gaze can foster learner's learning outcome in the instructional video.When only the instructor is present in the video, instructor's direct gaze can draw the learner's attention to the instructor's face.When only the instructor is present in the video, instructor's direct gaze can reduce learner's extraneous cognitive load. Implications for practice and/or policy: In online teaching, educators should consider looking at the camera as much as possible, especially when there are no instructional screens. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Existing studies confirm that some video games can change players' attitudes. However, since we do not know the specific elements responsible for attitude change, the potential of video games to achieve desired educational or behavioural outcomes often remains unfulfilled. Objectives: To fill the research gap, our study examined whether the perspective‐taking game mechanic in the serious game Czechoslovakia 38–89: Borderlands, which had previously been shown to affect attitudes, would have the same effect on another sample of players with different characteristics. Methods: We have assessed the effect of a historical video game using a perspective‐taking mechanic on players' explicit and implicit attitudes. Explicit attitude changes were measured at a general level, meaning a broad evaluation of a depicted historical event, and at a specific level, meaning a more detailed evaluation of specific aspects of the event. Simultaneously, we measured the effect of players' perceived attitude importance on attitude change. The study used a sample of 137 young adults. Results and Conclusions: This study's results indicate a significant pretest‐posttest explicit attitude change on the general level and on a specific level in comparison to the control group. Perspective‐taking game mechanics is particularly important for explicit attitude change. No change was found in implicit attitudes. The effect of the perceived attitude importance on attitude change was not confirmed. Takeaways: As one of the first to focus on the effects of specific game mechanics on attitudes, this study confirmed that perspective‐taking has stable, short‐term effects on attitude change even across different research samples. Lay Description: What is currently known about the subject matter: It is unclear why some video games can change players' attitudes while others do not.Several studies confirm video games' effect on explicit, but not on implicit, attitudes.Research on the effects of game mechanics on attitude changes is in its infancy.Very few studies focus on what role player characteristics play in their attitude changes. What our paper adds to this: Perspective‐taking as game mechanics changes explicit attitudes across populations.Perceived importance of players' attitudes towards topics not necessarily affects attitude changes.We show that only some facets of attitudes are influenced by the video game. Implications of study findings for practitioners: Particular game mechanics seem to be essential for attitude changes in players.Attitude importance and other player characteristics need further research in the video game context.DIF‐C analysis can provide more detailed information on changes in more complex explicit attitude concepts.Video games can affect the way we interpret the world around us. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: There are deficiencies in ensuring the permanence of some theoretical information taught in nursing education and transferring it to practice environment. Mobile‐assisted teaching can be useful to eliminate deficiencies. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of mobile‐assisted teaching on nursing students' learning ventrogluteal injection. Methodology: The study was conducted in Turkey between February and June 2022. This study is a single group pre‐posttest intervention. The study sample consisted of 354 students studying in the 2nd, 3rd and 4th grades in Turkey. After the students completed the Introductory Characteristics Form and Ventrogluteal Region Information Suggestion Form in the pre‐test, the researchers sent a ventrogluteal injection animation video to their mobile phones. The students who watched the video completed the Ventrogluteal Region Information Suggestion Form and Mobile Education Activity Form in the final test. Results and Conclusion: There was a statistically significant difference between the pre‐posttest score medians of the students (p < 0.001). While the preference of the students for the ventrogluteal region in intramuscular injection was 28.5% before mobile learning, it increased to 51.1% after the training. In this study, after the training given through mobile learning, the knowledge level of the students about ventrogluteal injection and their preferences for ventrogluteal injection increased. In line with these results, mobile‐assisted education should be used in nursing education. Lay Description: What is already known about this topicDue to the high number of students per teaching staff in Turkey, it takes time for the theoretical education of the students to turn into practice.It is recommended that students prefer and use the ventrogluteal (VG) region for intramuscular drug injection.The students had difficulties because the nurses guiding them in clinical practice did not use the VG area.There are difficulties in applying the VG region injection in practice. What this paper addsMobile‐based intramuscular injection skill application increased the knowledge level of the students.Mobile applications make it easier to remember the learned information and apply it in the clinic. Implications for practice and/or policyMobile applications demonstrating skill practice provide a resource for nursing students to watch and learn whenever they want.It ensures that the student is always ready for invasive procedures to be performed on the patient in the clinic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Study: As flipped learning is a flexible pedagogical methodology to tailor students' needs and maximize the learning effects, this study integrated peer learning with MosoTeach‐supported flipped mode in an undergraduate blended EFL course. MosoTeach is a popular online learning platform in China with a variety of learning resources. Objectives: The study aimed to test the impact of MosoTeach flipped learning (MTFL) mode on undergraduate EFL students' perceived motivation, participation, feedback, and test performance. Methods: A quasi‐experimental design was carried out in Z university during the spring semester of 2020, with the experimental group (n = 34) adopting the MTFL model and a control group (n = 33) the non‐flipped mode. Results and Conclusions: The independent t‐test results showed that the experimental MTFL group outperformed the control group in post‐test scores, and a positive correlation was found in the relationship between the experimental MTFL group's post‐test scores and MosoTeach learning experience points (LEPs). Moreover, the course perception questionnaire survey indicated a higher level of students' perceived motivation, participation, and feedback in the experimental MTFL group, which corresponded to the results of the content analysis of students' responses to open‐ended questions and reflective reports. But students in both groups experienced challenges such as isolation, procrastination and technological anxiety. Lay Description: What is currently known about this topicFlipped language learning is mostly reported to be effective in improving EFL learning.Peer learning is mostly reported to be effective in improving EFL learning.MosoTeach was investigated in English learning contexts before, but without experimental design. What this paper addsMosoTeach proved as a valid online learning platform in flipped language learning, and the learning experience points (LEPs) on MosoTeach could predict students' exam performance.Students in the experimental group (MosoTeach‐supported flipped) had better exam performance and a higher level of motivation, participation and feedback.Students in both groups experienced isolation, procrastination and technological anxiety. Implications for practice:Peer discussion boards in MosoTeach provide learning support effectively for students in pre‐class learning.Group projects and peer assessment in MosoTeach integrate pre‐class peer discussion into in‐class interaction successfully.MosoTeach provides equal opportunity for every student in the large‐size Chinese English classes, thus contributing to the equity of in‐class peer interactions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Students who are blind are integrated into public schools in many countries, yet are often excluded from full participation in science since most learning materials are visual. To create a compensatory route, an existing model‐based inquiry‐learning environment was adapted by means of sonification (addition of non‐speech sounds that represent dynamic information). The learning environment uses agent‐based models and a complex systems approach to teach the Kinetic Molecular Theory (KMT) and Gas Laws. The models are accompanied by a workbook consisting of text (printed or auditory) and images (printed or tactile). Objectives: The current research examined whether such perceptual compensation creates a comparable learning environment for learners who are blind compared with learners who are sighted using the original learning environment. The aim of the study is to expand knowledge about how the auditory channel may compensate the visual channel among individuals who are blind. Methods: Conceptual learning in science and reasoning about complex systems were assessed using pre‐ and post‐questionnaires. To explore learners' learning progression throughout the unit, four progression analysis 'windows' were selected. These were groups of adjacent or nearly adjacent items in the workbook that permitted a glimpse of learners' progression. Results: The sonified environment not only supported the learning of learners who are blind compared with the learning of learners who are sighted using visual material, but even furthered their learning with respect to diffusion, one of the more challenging concepts in KMT. It seems the types of sonified representations used in this study increased listeners' sensitivity to the micro‐level interactions in a way less accessible in visual representations. Takeaways: Sonified environments can be provide learners who are blind with equitable participation by compensating and complementing the visual channel. Sonification can have implications for students who are blind as well as students who are sighted. Lay Description: What is already known: Sonification is the use of non‐speech sounds to represent dynamic information. Sonification can potentialy be used to allow equitable participation for students who are blind. What this paper adds: To test this, the study compared the outcomes of learners who are blind who used a sonified learning environment (L2C) to that of learners who are sighted who used a visual environment. Implications for practice: Learners who are blind showed equal or better learning outcomes using the sonified models compared with the learners who are sighted using the visual models. There are major implications for integrating students who are blind in public school classrooms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Providing students with worked out problem solutions is a beneficial instructional technique in STEM disciplines, and studying examples that have been worked out incorrectly may be especially helpful for reducing misconceptions in students with low prior content knowledge. However, past results are inconclusive and the effects of incorrect worked examples alone or in combination with correct examples remains unclear. Objectives: We aim to address whether studying incorrect examples alone or in combination with correct examples can support the reduction of students' fraction misconceptions, operationalized as errors made with high confidence. Methods: After incorrectly solving a sampling problem, 130 students in 4th through 11th grade in the U.S. were randomly assigned to a condition in an online problem set focused on fraction equivalence. Students studied either single‐type worked examples (i.e., correct or incorrect; n = 49) or combination‐type worked examples (correct and incorrect; n = 41) or engaged in a problem‐solving control (n = 50). Results: Studying a combination of correct and incorrect worked examples was as effective as the problem‐solving control with feedback at improving fraction equivalence knowledge and reducing the rate of high‐confidence errors. Students in both the combination condition and the problem‐solving with feedback condition outperformed those who studied either correct or incorrect worked examples alone. Conclusions: Results support the inclusion of a combination of correct and incorrect worked examples when teaching students with low prior content knowledge. Studying a combination of example types within an online tutor helps to reduce misconceptions about fractions, a topic students commonly struggle with. A problem‐solving task with corrective feedback worked equally well. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic: Studying worked examples of mathematical solutions improves student learning.Incorrect examples, either alone or in combination with correct examples, are particularly effective for improving learning for students with low prior knowledge in the target content.Comparing correct and incorrect examples is also effective at improving problem‐solving but this effect may be specific to those with high prior knowledge.Still unknown are the impacts of these different combinations of examples on misconceptions in particular. What this paper adds: We show that studying a combination of correct and incorrect examples reduces math misconceptions.Problem‐solving with corrective feedback within an online tutor also has this effect. Implications for practice and/or policy: Using a combination of example types will help reduce students' misconceptions about fractions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The number of artificial intelligence (AI) literacy studies in K‐12 education has recently increased, with most research focusing on primary and secondary education contexts. Little research focuses on AI literacy programs in early childhood education. Objectives: The aim of this mixed‐methods study is to examine the feasibility of an AI literacy program called "AI4KG" and explore how it might affect kindergarteners' perceptions of robots and attitudes towards engineering and science. Methods: A total of 26 child–parent dyads recruited from a Hong Kong kindergarten were involved in this study, consisting of 26 children (Mage = 4 years, SD = 0.28) and their parents. Quantitative and qualitative data were collected through surveys and interviews designed to explore children's perceptions of robots and attitudes towards engineering and science, and parents' perceptions of the AI4KG intervention. Results: It is found that children have increased their perceptions of robots after the AI literacy program, but the AI4KG curriculum had no significant effects on kindergarten children's engineering and science attitudes. Most parents (22 out of 26) agreed that their children's AI knowledge, AI skills, and AI attitudes have been enhanced after learning through the AI4KG curriculum. Conclusions: This study suggests that the AI4KG curriculum is potentially effective in promoting early AI literacy and favourable attitudes towards the technology, but further research is needed to develop age‐appropriate measures and assess its long‐term impact on children's education and career paths. Lay Description: What is currently known about this topic?: AI literacy is becoming important as AI transforms society, but few studies have explored AI literacy in early childhood education.Prior research found AI activities can positively influence older children's views of robots and engineering. What does this paper add?: It evaluates an 8‐week AI literacy curriculum called AI4KG for kindergarteners in Hong Kong.The curriculum used tools like Teachable Machine and taught concepts through play and storytelling.It improved children's perceptions of robots but did not significantly impact engineering/science attitudes.Parents perceived improvements in children's AI knowledge, skills, and attitudes after the curriculum. Implications for practice/policy: The curriculum provides an example for developing age‐appropriate AI literacy activities.More rigorous research on impacts over time is needed, but results suggest potential benefits of AI literacy in early childhood.Policymakers could consider incorporating AI literacy into kindergarten curricula to prepare children for the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Flipped classroom (FC) model has become increasingly popular in dental education (DE) with its strengths for students. However, major concerns are lack of interaction, unwillingness to complete the assignments, low engagement during the pre‐class activities because of an unwell‐designed instructional setting of FC. Objectives: The recent study aims to investigate the effects of video‐driven discussions integrated into the flipped classroom (VdDs‐FC) model on dental students' (DSs) learning achievement, practical performance, and higher‐order thinking skills in a restorative dentistry course. Methods: This study adopted a sequential explanatory design from mixed‐methods research. A total of 96 DSs participated in a dentistry faculty of Türkiye. They were randomly divided into two groups: VdDs‐FC group and the conventional flipped classroom (c‐FC) group. Results and conclusions: The results showed that the VdDs‐FC model had significant positive effects on the practical performance of DSs in practical subjects and their problem‐solving and critical thinking skills. However, there was no significant difference between the two groups in learning achievement and creativity. The use of FC in the c‐FC group did not lead to any difference in the students' achievements. Moreover, the qualitative results indicated that the VdDs‐FC model has the potential for enhancing peer learning, practical classroom activities, and higher‐order thinking skills. Implications: This study also includes several instructional implications and suggestions for educators, researchers, and practitioners on use of FC in dentistry. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic: Flipped learning has become a rapidly growing area of dentistry research.Discussion board could be beneficial to increasing dental students' higher order thinking skills, especially problem solving and critical thinking.Video‐driven discussions into flipped classroom provide several opportunities for practical performance in dental education, not for theoretical knowledge. What this paper adds: Video‐driven discussions into flipped classroom model is proposed.We compared two learning environments by including traditional flipped classroom.We found that the integrated model with flipped classroom can have a positive impact on students' achievement.Online discussions usage contributed to higher cognitive, affective, and behavioural learning outcomes.Based on interview data, the proposed model supports peer learning. Implications for practice and/or policy: Dental educators should integrated the digital discussion boards as out‐of‐class activities in the pre‐clinical dental training.From dental educators' perspective, they should be carefully trained in FC design (interaction elements, material design, integration with different methods, etc.).From instructional design perspective, micro videos should have case‐based or problem‐based activities to discuss.From learner perspective, an integration of the flipped classroom with different technologies could have a positive effect on increasing learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Studies on the effectiveness of block‐based environments continue to produce inconsistent results. A strong reason for this is that most studies compare environments that are not equivalent to each other or to the level of learners. Moreover, studies that present evidence of the effectiveness of block‐based environments by comparing equivalent environments are limited. Objectives: This study aims to scrutinize the effects of programming training to be held in equivalent environments (block‐based and text‐based) with university students who do not have prior programming knowledge and experience on achievement, logical thinking, and motivation. Methods: The study was conducted by using an experimental pretest‐posttest control group design. The study was conducted with 60 students, the total consisting of 30 students in the experimental group and 30 students in the control group. In the experimental group, block‐based visual programming training with Scratch was conducted and the control group received text‐based programming training with Small Basic. The training was maintained for 10 weeks, for 4 h a week in each group. The programming achievement test, the logical thinking skills test, and the motivation scale were used to collect the data. Results and Conclusions: The results showed that the use of a block‐based environment in programming training contributed positively to the development of students' logical thinking skills, and motivation for learning programming. In contrast, there was evidence that this training did not make a difference on programming success. Implications: The findings of the study provided evidence of the effectiveness of block‐based training in comparisons made in equivalent environments. Focusing research on this issue may contribute to the improvement of the current understanding. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic?: Programming is a competency that students have difficulty in the learning process.Studies on the effectiveness of block‐based environments present inconsistent results.Studies examining the effectiveness of learning programming in equivalent environments (such as Scratch versus Small Basic) are limited. What this paper adds?: The effectiveness of programming environments was examined in equivalent environments.Learning programming in a block‐based environment contributed more positively to students' logical thinking and motivation.The impact of block and text‐based environments on programming achievement was similar. Implications for practice and/or policy: The use of a block‐based environment in programming education provides positive contributions to the development of novice undergraduate students' logical thinking skills and motivation.The issue of equivalence of environments is critical in research comparing programming achievement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Although conventional writing procedures are still the dominant instructional procedures in English as a foreign language (EFL) contexts, instructors are still struggling with time limitations to improve EFL students writing skills properly. Additionally, EFL students are not engaged in the writing process since they lack the required information about the writing tasks. Objectives: The present study, therefore, applied a sequential explanatory mixed‐methods approach to explore the impact of a flipped writing classroom on EFL students' writing skills (i.e. writing content, writing organization, and language use) and writing motivation on the one hand and possibly recommend a better instructional procedure for students' writing skills and writing motivation in EFL context on the other hand. Methods: To this aim, two intact classes were selected as the participants of the study. The two classes were randomly assigned to a flipped classroom with 27 EFL students and a non‐flipped classroom with 24 EFL students. The non‐flipped classroom was instructed through conventional writing instruction over 16 sessions whereas the flipped classroom was taught with the same content in a flipped writing mode in 10 sessions. Two timed writing tasks, a writing motivation scale, and an individual semi‐structured interview were used to gather the required data. Results and Conclusions: The findings indicated that the flipped writing classroom outperformed the non‐flipped writing classroom in improving the EFL students' writing performance, writing organization, language use, and writing motivation; however, no significant differences were found between the two groups' writing content. Moreover, the data analysis from the individual semi‐structured interview indicated that the flipped students had positive attitudes and perceptions towards the flipped writing classroom which further supported the quantitative findings. Implications: Practical implications for collaborative writing instruction using video clips and other electronic materials are suggested. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic: In a flipped classroom model, English language students can view video clips prior to class time in order to use the class time for doing academic exercises and projects in a collaborative manner.As in student‐centred learning environments, a flipped classroom engages English language students in more active learning processes, encourages them to enquire about the video lectures, and tests and evaluates their skills in applying knowledge.Individual differences, such as motivational variables and affective factors disjointedly or conjointly affect writing processes, especially in English language contexts. What this paper adds: Flipping an English language collaborative writing course improves English language students' writing performance, writing organization, language use, and writing motivation.Flipped classroom is more effective than non‐flipped classroom in improving English language students' writing performance, writing organisation, language use, and writing motivation.Flipped English language students hold positive attitudes and perceptions towards flipped collaborative writing classroom. Pedagogical implications: English language instructors are recommended to design a flipped classroom to provide English language students with video clips before class time, so students can have more collaborative and evaluative writing activities during the class time.English language students can have and receive more peer/instructor writing mediations on the writing tasks and make better use of class time (based on the video clips) and develop their writing performance accordingly.By designing a flipped classroom, English language students can enhance their writing motivation, and also, they properly cover the required materials in a shorter time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Virtual reality (VR) is considered a promising approach to support learning. An instructional design is essential to optimize cognitive processes. Studies show that VR has unique instructional and pedagogical requirements. Objectives: To evaluate the effectiveness and applicability of the modality principle, which was previously validated in 2D classic multimedia, for learning with VR. The modality principle states that multimedia information presented as spoken narration is superior to on‐screen text. Methods: A prospective experimental study with two compared conditions of instruction: VR‐based learning guided by on‐screen text (n = 34) versus spoken narration (n = 28). Students' cognitive learning experiences were captured by eye‐tracking and electrodermal activity (EDA). In addition, students' knowledge was evaluated using a pre–post knowledge test. Results and Conclusions: Overall, there was no significant difference in knowledge retention between the participants who learned with on‐screen text compared to spoken narration. However, results from the eye‐tracking analysis showed that students who learned with the on‐screen text devoted longer visual attention toward important learning activity areas of interest, suggesting a better ability to discern between relevant and irrelevant information. Conversely, students who learned with the spoken narration expressed significantly more EDA peak responses, proposing a higher cognitive load. Implications: This study outlines that while learning with VR was effective, the modality principle might not apply to learning with VR. Moreover, the analysis of the learning process suggests even an inverse effect, favouring the provision of instructional scaffolds as on‐screen text. Future research should evaluate this effect on long‐term knowledge retention. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic?: VR can increase learners' engagement and impact their cognitive processing.VR has different instructional requirements than classic multimedia learning material.The modality principle states that audio‐visual is superior to visual‐only information. What this paper adds?: This study evaluated the impact of the modality design principle to scaffolded learning with VR.In terms of achievements learning with textual and audio instruction was comparable.Eye‐tracking analysis showed that learning with on‐screen text was characterized by longer visual attention to the important learning objects.Learning with the auditory narration was associated with a higher cognitive load as measured by EDA and more performance errors.In both study conditions, students tended to focus more on the less important information in the learning activity. Implications of the study's findings for practitioners: VR‐based simulations are effective to support learning and knowledge gaining.The modality principle is not fully applicable to support learning in VR‐based learning environments.Instructional design should take into consideration that novices often notice the non‐salient information in VR. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Despite the potential of captioned videos, limited attention has been paid to the role of vocabulary knowledge (VK) and working memory (WM) in incidental vocabulary learning under different captioning conditions. Objectives: The present study aimed to bridge this gap by assessing VK and WM in incidental vocabulary learning under different captioning conditions. Methods: A total of 101 Chinese primary school students were assigned to one of the three conditions: watch fully captioned videos (n = 33), watch keyword captioned videos (n = 35), and watch videos without captions (n = 33). A vocabulary test measuring recognition and recall of form and meaning served as a pretest, posttest and delayed posttest. The learners also completed tests for VK and WM. Results and Conclusions: The findings supported that both full captions and keyword captions made significant contributions to the incidental learning of form recognition and initial meaning recall and to the retention of form recognition but not of delayed meaning recall. The parameters of breadth and depth of VK and phonological WM impacted incidental vocabulary learning outcomes. The findings emphasized the important role of full captioning and keyword captioning for incidental vocabulary learning and the need to consider the role of VK and WM in incidental vocabulary learning from captioned videos. Takeaways: Captioning is a promising tool for vocabulary learning, but individual differences in VK and WM should be considered to maximize the benefits of captioning on vocabulary learning. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic: The role of vocabulary knowledge in incidental vocabulary learning from captioned videosThe role of working memory in incidental vocabulary learning from audiovisual input without captions. What this paper: The effects of different caption conditions on incidental vocabulary learning.The role of vocabulary knowledge and working memory in incidental vocabulary learning from captioned videos. Implications for practices: Both full captions and keywords trigger the instillation of early form‐meaning connections of new words.Breadth and depth of VK as well as phonological WM make independent and significant contributions to incidental vocabulary learning from captioned videos. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The conventional classroom does not seem to adequately address the gender disparity in technology education. This could negatively affect the contributions of the female gender to national development. There was a need to advance a setting that enhances the participation of women in technology education. Aims: This study evaluated desktop Virtual Reality (VR) to know whether it enhances equal academic achievement and learning interests of female and male students. Materials and Methods: A toss of a coin was used to divide the six universities into two major groups; three universities were taught with ElectricVlab, while the other three universities were taught in the conventional classroom. Each of the six intact classes sat in clusters of five students and the whole class was taught the construction of an audio amplifier together using a demonstration method of teaching. A Vocational Interest scale and a researcher‐made achievement test with reliability coefficient=0.89 were used for data collection. Two‐way Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) was used to analyse means and test hypotheses at a 0.05 level of significance. Results: The study found no significant difference between the mean achievement and interests of female and male students in the VR group. There was a significant interaction effect between gender and teaching environment. This study predicts that VR could bring women up to the same level of interest and achievement as men, but conventional classroom methods could not. Conclusions: Curriculum planners should consider piloting virtual reality to enhance gender‐fair education, as it shows initial promise in the teaching of electronic technology education. Virtual reality for teaching and learning can be a part of postgraduate studies in universities, especially in academic fields where virtual reality has been found effective. This study may guide other studies and add to available literature. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic?: Enrolment of females in electronics technology education has been lower than that of males.Academic achievement of females in electronics technology education was lower than their male counterparts.Virtual reality has been used to improve teaching and learning in some educational fields, but it was not effective in some other fields.Some researchers used virtual reality to augment inadequate learning facilities.The evaluation of educational virtual reality applications might have primarily focused on the usability of the apps instead of learning outcomes.Gender gaps in human capital development are well‐documented, but it seems more evidence is required on how best to close those gaps. What this paper adds?: Suggest a potential learning environment for reducing the gender disparity in the achievement and interest of electronics technology students.Further contributions to the area of a learning environment in the teaching and learning process.This may be a piece of additional research‐based evidence on how best to close gender disparity in technology education.A virtual reality learning environment might bring female students up to the same levels of academic achievement as men, but the conventional classroom setting cannot.There could be a significant interaction effect between gender and the learning environment in the teaching and learning of electronic technology education. Implications for practice and/or policy: Curriculum planners might consider piloting virtual reality for reducing gender imbalance and enhancing gender‐fair technology education, as it shows initial promise in the teaching of electronic technology education.Virtual reality may be adopted to augment learning facilities in electronic technology education in universities, especially in laboratory practices.Budgets for funding universities could include resources for virtual reality equipment.The use of virtual reality for teaching and learning can be a part of postgraduate studies in universities, especially in academic fields where virtual reality has been found effective and competence in VR should be considered for the employment of technology education lecturers and support staff in higher institutions.This study may guide other studies and add to the available literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: This study investigates the effectiveness of the segmentation principle from the cognitive theory of multimedia learning as well as the effectiveness of the generative learning strategy of summarization in immersive virtual reality (IVR) within a sample of preadolescents. Although previous research has supported the effectiveness of these instructional methods in multimedia learning, it remains unclear whether segmentation, summarization or the combination of both are superior to a stand‐alone IVR lesson in facilitating learning. Methods: To address this gap, 190 sixth to seventh grade students learned about the human body in an IVR lesson. Students were randomly assigned to one of four experimental conditions: (a) an IVR lesson divided into four segments (segmentation condition); (b) an IVR lesson, where students summarized after the entire lesson (summarizing condition); (c) an IVR lesson presented in four segments, where students summarized after each segment (combined condition); and (d) an IVR lesson without any manipulation (control condition). Results: Results indicated that, compared to the control condition, adding segmentation or summarization to an IVR lesson leads to better transfer, but not to acquiring more factual knowledge. Combining the two methods did not improve learning. Conclusion: The findings support the evidence that choosing appropriate instructional methods for IVR lessons can foster transfer. Lay Description: What is currently known about the subject matter: The use of immersive virtual reality (IVR) in classroom settings is increasing rapidlyThere are mixed results related to the efficiency of using IVR for learning facts and conceptsFew studies have investigated if efficient instructional design guidelines generalize to IVRFew studies have investigated the efficiency of IVR within a children sample What their paper adds: A class‐room investigation of the value of using different instructional design methods for designing IVR lessons within a children sampleResults indicated that, compared to the control condition, adding segmentation or summarization to an IVR lesson leads to better transferAdding segmentation or summarization did not lead to more factual knowledge Implications of study findings for practitioners: Choosing appropriate instructional methods for IVR lessons can foster transferStudents profit most from IVR lessons when they are given opportunities for refection during or following the immersive experience [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: In recent years, the importance of emotions in learning has been increasingly recognized. Applying emotional design to induce positive emotions has been considered a means to enhance the instructional effectiveness of digital learning environments. However, only a few studies have examined the specific effects of emotional design in game‐based learning. Objectives: This quasi‐experimental study utilized a value‐added research approach to investigate whether emotional design applied to scaffolding in a game‐based learning environment improves learning and motivational outcomes more than emotionally neutral scaffolding. Methods: A total of 138 participants, mean age of 11.5 (SD = 0.73) participated in the study. A total of 68 participants played the base version of a fraction learning game (Number Trace), where scaffolding was provided with emotionally neutral mathematical notations, and 70 participants played the value‐added version of the game using emotionally designed animated scaffolding agents. Pre‐and post‐tests were used to measure conceptual fraction knowledge and self‐reported measures of situational interest and situational self‐efficacy to evaluate motivational outcomes. Results and Conclusions: Our results indicate that the emotional design applied to scaffolds can improve the educational value of a game‐based learning environment by enhancing players' situational interest and situational self‐efficacy. However, although the intervention improved the participants' conceptual fraction knowledge, there was no significant difference between the scaffolding conditions in participants' learning outcomes. Takeaways: The results suggest that emotional design can increase the educational impact of game‐based learning by promoting the development of interest, as well as improving self‐efficacy. Lay Description: What is currently known about the subject matter: Learning games that include scaffolding can enhance learning outcomes.Emotional design can enhance learning outcomes.Only a few studies have examined effects of emotional design in game‐based learning.There are no studies examining the effects of emotional design of scaffolding. What this paper adds to this: The study is the first to examine the effects of emotionally designed scaffolds in game‐based learning.Emotional design applied to scaffolds did not enhance learning more than emotionally neutral scaffolds.Emotional design applied to scaffolds enhanced participants' situational interest and situational self‐efficacy. The implications of study findings for practitioners: The study confirms that math games that include number line mechanics and scaffolding can be effective.The results demonstrated that emotional design of scaffolds did not harm learning.The results confirm that emotional design of instructional features is useful as it can enhance motivational outcomes.Learning effects of emotionally designed features should be examined with longer interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a large volume of published studies describing the positive role of Augmented Reality (AR) in educational settings. However, there is a paucity of empirical work that explores its role in supporting primary school pupil's motivation and creativity. Moreover, numerous studies have confirmed that pupils have difficulties in learning geometry and thinking geometrically. In this context, this paper explores the possibility of using AR software for low‐grade primary school pupils to enhance their creative thinking and increase their motivation during the informal geometry training course. A research‐based design process is adopted to replicate the primary school pupil's learning in this study, where pupils in the experimental group used mobile application to access AR virtual manipulatives, pupils in the control group used physical manipulatives. The applied AR technology allows pupils to handle 2D and 3D rounded corners and simple closed curves to find the most effective solutions for some learning challenges. Sixty‐two pupils from the first‐grade primary school in Egypt have participated in this study with the aim of investigating: (a) the primary school pupil's achievements and creative thinking in using AR techniques, and (b) the specific strategies that can increase their motivation and engagement. The most obvious finding to emerge from this study is that there was no statistically significant difference between the groups in geometry learning achievement, while statistically significant differences were found between the groups in the motivation and creative thinking skills in favour of the experimental group. Lay Description: What is already known about this topicAugmented Reality must have three characteristics: combining the real and virtual worlds, having real‐time interaction with the user and is being registered in a 3D environment.There is a growing body of literature that recognizes the importance of the 21st century skills in the new global economy.There has been significant interest in utilized AR in higher education. However, limited research has been conducted about integrating AR techniques to enhance young children's creative thinking skills and motivation in informal learning scenarios.To date, there are few studies that have investigated the association between augmented environment and learning theories. What this paper addsIntroduced an iterative methodology based on the cognitive theory of multimedia learning integrating the Universal Design for Learning (UDL) as the inclusive learning approach for creating Smart‐flashcard as a mobile AR applications for elementary school.Research studies on informal learning are particularly limited, so this study can fill a gap in the literature.This paper provides a conceptual approach for AR design, based on multimedia learning theory.AR Smart‐flashcard application represents a shift away from traditional textbooks, flashcards and other learning material where children are limited to viewing learning content passively towards a more dynamic and augmented one. Implications for practice and/or policyUsing AR applications, children interact with the 3D models, enhance creativity and collaboration in teams.The informal education can play a crucial role in developing some of the skills required for the 21st century.The study also highlights the need for new approaches combing the technical learning tools and pedagogical foundation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of a computer-based story, which was designed in anchored instruction framework, on sixth-grade students' mathematics word problem-solving achievement. Problems were embedded in a story presented on a computer as computer story, and then compared with the paper-based version of the same story and to a condition that presented the problems as typical, isolated word problems (i.e., a non-story condition including only problems). One hundred twenty-eight sixth-grade students from two public middle schools in Turkey participated in this study. In a pretest-posttest experimental design, students were randomly assigned to one of the treatment groups mentioned earlier in which they solved the same mathematics word problems. A one-way analysis of covariance was used to analyse students' achievement in the treatment groups. The results indicated that students who solved the problems in the computer story treatment had significantly higher achievement scores than students who solved the problems in the paper story and isolated word problems treatments. In addition, the story was found to be significantly more effective than the non-story treatment when it was presented on computer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Video lectures which include the instructor's presence are becoming increasingly popular. Presenting a real human does, however, entail higher financial and time costs in making videos, and one innovative approach to reduce costs has been to generate a virtual speaking instructor. Objectives: The current study examined whether the use of a virtual instructor in video lectures would facilitate learning as well as a human instructor, and whether manipulating the virtual instructor's characteristics (i.e., voice and appearance) might optimize the effectiveness of the virtual instructor. Methods: Our study set four conditions. In the control condition, students watched a human instructor. In the experiment conditions, students watched one of (a) a virtual instructor which used the human instructor's voice and an AI image, (b) a virtual instructor which spoke in an AI voice with an AI image made to speak using text‐to‐speech and lip synthesis techniques, or (c) a virtual instructor with used an AI voice and an AI likable‐image of an instructor. Results and Conclusions: The AI likable instructor condition had a significant positive effect on students' learning performance and motivation, without decreasing the attention students paid to the learning materials. Implications: Our findings suggest that instructional video designers can make use of AI voices and AI images of likable humans as instructors to motivate students and enhance their learning performance. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic: Video lectures which include the instructor's presence are becoming increasingly popular.Presenting a virtual instructor (i.e., a pedagogical agent) in video lectures has been shown to reduce costs of video production, both financially and in terms of time. What this paper adds: An AI‐generated voice and an AI‐generated image facilitated more students' transfer performance than a human instructor.The AI likable instructor condition had a significant positive effect on students' learning performance and motivation, without decreasing the attention students paid to the learning materials. Implications for practice and/or policy: We encourage instructional designers to use AI‐generated voices and AI‐generated images connected to a virtual instructor instead of a human instructor in video lectures.We encourage instructional designers to use likable human images (as defined by the students themselves) as a way to motivate students more and enhance their learning performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The transition from teacher‐centred towards student‐centred approaches in English language teaching, accompanied by developments in educational technology, has attracted researchers' attention to reverse teaching or flipped class. The related literature asserts that this mode of instruction might influence instructors' and students' participation in the class. Objectives: To shed more light on the role of flipped class in affecting language learning strategies and skills, this study applied a sequential explanatory mixed‐methods approach to explore the impact of flipped class on English as a foreign language (EFL) learners' writing metacognitive strategies and writing skills. Methods: Forty‐six intermediate EFL learners with an age range of 21–27, studying at a private language institute, were randomly divided into two groups of 23 learners. The two groups were randomly assigned to a flipped class, which received writing metacognitive strategies and writing skills through video clips before the class time, and a non‐flipped class, which received writing metacognitive strategies and writing skills in a conventional way during the class time. Results and Conclusions: The results revealed that both flipped and non‐flipped classes improved the EFL learners' writing metacognitive strategies, writing performance, writing content, and writing organisation. Furthermore, one‐way ANCOVA analyses indicated that the flipped class outperformed the non‐flipped class in writing metacognitive strategies, writing performance, writing content, and writing organisation. Thematic analyses, which were used to help analyse individual semi‐structured interviews, uncovered a number of categories and themes, signifying the flipped learners' positive perceptions towards the flipped class, such as enhancing motivation, self‐confidence, and writing collaboration. Implications: Pedagogical implications were discussed for flipping writing metacognitive strategies and writing skills. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic?: Metacognitive strategies, including planning, monitoring, and evaluation strategies, help English language learners become more successful writers.Writing skills, including writing content, writing organisation, and language use, help learners deal with collaborative writing activities effectively.Flipped class has been shown to be an effective mode of instruction to improve English language learners' language learning strategies and skills. What this paper adds?: Flipped class improves English language learners' writing metacognitive strategies, writing performance, writing content, and writing organisation.Flipped class is more effective than non‐flipped class in improving English language learners' writing metacognitive strategies and writing skills.English language learners' motivation, self‐confidence, and writing collaboration are increased as a result of the flipped writing course. Pedagogical implications: Writing metacognitive strategies and writing skills need to be flipped in English language contexts in order to free up time for more effective in‐class collaborative writing activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Children are vulnerable in earthquakes, but they are also essential to foster earthquake‐resilient communities. It is critical to enhance the preparedness of children against earthquakes through effective education and training. Immersive virtual reality (IVR) and serious games (SGs) are innovative digital technologies that enable realistic and engaging training environments. However, little research has been made on the applications of IVR SGs for earthquake training targeting children. In order to fill this gap, this paper presents an IVR SG training system based on a problem‐based gaming framework. Three instructional mechanisms within the training system, namely prior instruction, immediate feedback, and post‐game assessment, were investigated to promote learning through effective reflection. A controlled experiment involving 125 secondary school students aged from 11 to 15 years old was undertaken, using leaflets as a traditional training approach for the control group and the IVR SG training system as the main intervention. Results revealed that the IVR SG training system with post‐game assessment was the most effective way to train children, with greater knowledge acquisition and self‐efficacy improvement observed. Possible improvements, such as increasing the time for reflection and differentiating the stimulation between positive and negative feedback, are suggested for further research. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic?: IVR SGs have potentials to train people in emergency behavioural responses, corresponding to problem‐based learning principles.Instructional mechanisms including immediate feedback, post‐game assessment, and prior instruction have been applied in IVR SGs in the literature. What this paper adds?: The present paper examines the pedagogical impacts of the three instructional mechanisms within IVR SGs.The present paper investigates the effectiveness of IVR SG‐based earthquake emergency training, targeting children. Implications for practice and/or policy: IVR SGs with the three instructional mechanisms effectively improve the self‐efficacy of children in the case of dealing with earthquake emergencies.IVR SGs with prior instruction and post‐game assessment facilitate learning, manifesting in significant knowledge gain after training.IVR SGs have the potential to train children in earthquake emergency responses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This study is the first to address the topic of schematic versus realistic dynamic visualization with particular focus on the human movement effect (HME) when the content to be learned takes the form of a computer algorithm. An AlgoRythmics dance choreography illustration (HM‐realistic) was compared with an abstract computer animation (schematic). Previous research in the field of dynamic visualizations found schematic illustrations to be more effective, but the examined realistic representations did not include HME. Objectives: The objective of this study was to explore the process of comprehension of computer algorithms from these two types of representations (abstract animation vs. dance choreography illustration). Methods: The experiment (pre‐test, study phase, post‐test) involved 84 undergraduate students and included the following conditions (2 × 2 between‐participants‐design): HM‐realistic → HM‐realistic, schematic → schematic, HM‐realistic → schematic, schematic → HM‐realistic. Results and Conclusions: The results reveal that: (i) the group of participants who saw the dance choreography twice outperformed those who saw the computer animation twice; (ii) dance choreography illustration is only beneficial if it is presented as the second visualization. These findings are apparently contrary to the conclusions of some relevant previous research in the field, but they are in line with recent results regarding the HME. Takeaways: Realistic dynamic visualizations can be more effective than schematic ones if they involve human movement. To benefit maximally from realistic visualization, students need to have previously viewed it or to have previously viewed the isomorphic schematic presentation of it. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic: Studies that researched whether animation aids learners' understanding of dynamic phenomena have reported mixed results.When human movement is used to illustrate the learning content, dynamic visualizations have consistently proven to be superior to static visualizations.Various studies have explored dynamic visualizations under different combinations of schematic and/or realistic representations. Participants who were exposed exclusively to realistic animations exhibited significantly lower performance compared to their counterparts in the other conditions. What this paper adds: Realistic dynamic visualizations can be more effective than schematic ones if they involve human movement.This result is apparently contrary to the conclusions of some relevant previous research in the field of schematic versus realistic dynamic visualizations, but it is in line with recent findings regarding the so‐called human movement effect.To benefit maximally from realistic visualization, students need to have previously viewed it or to have previously viewed the isomorphic schematic presentation of it. Implications for practice and/or policy: The study provides a new insight into the research field of dynamic visualizations and valuable guidelines for instructional design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Collaborative learning has become a crucial approach to promoting online in‐service teacher training. Appropriate peer recommendation for group composition is the basis to ensure productive learning outcomes of collaborative learning. However, there is a lack of understanding of the impact of peer recommendation on in‐service teachers' online training. Objectives: Therefore, based on the collaborative filtering approach, a peer recommendation mechanism for in‐service teachers was constructed in this study. We investigated the effects of the constructed mechanism on in‐service teachers' online learning performance, interactive knowledge construction behavioural patterns and social networks. Methods: In this study, 82 in‐service teachers were recruited to participate in the study. Participants under the experimental condition (n = 41) were invited to apply collaborative filtering‐based peer recommendation mechanism for grouping, while participants under the control condition (n = 41) were invited to use random grouping method. Participants' interaction data were collected from online collaborative discussion activities in a 5‐week asynchronous online course. The pre‐post knowledge test, content analysis, lag sequential analysis and social network analysis were used to analyse the differences between groups. Results and Conclusions: The following findings were revealed: (1) the experimental group performed better than the control group in terms of online learning performance; (2) interactive knowledge construction behavioural patterns generated in collaborative activities showed that the experimental group achieved deeper level of knowledge construction in collaboration than the control group; (3) social networks generated in collaborative activities showed that the experimental group had tighter interaction relationships than the control group. Therefore, the peer recommendation mechanism could be useful to improve peer recommendation for group composition and had positive effects on in‐service teachers' online training. Implications: This study can shed light on the construction of peer recommendation mechanism in recommending appropriate peers for in‐service teachers and different learners in online collaborative learning. Lay Description: What is currently known about this topic: Appropriate learning peers are conducive to promoting effective online collaborative learning. What this paper adds: This study constructed a collaborative filtering‐based peer recommendation mechanism for recommending appropriate learning peers to improve online collaborative learning of in‐service teachers. The implications of study findings for practitioners: The study findings provide insights into the construction of mechanisms for recommending learning peers in online teacher training and computer‐supported collaborative learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Taiwan's higher education institutions prioritize interdisciplinary knowledge and cultural competence in cultural design, emphasizing the value of immersion in the local environment to develop cultural competence. However, challenges arise from the disappearance of traditional local lifestyles and limitations of traditional outdoor lectures such as group size and learning environment. Mobile augmented reality technology serves as a personal learning tool to overcome these challenges, enabling learners to uncover hidden knowledge in scenic locations and improving learning efficiency. Objective: The study utilized learning analytics to investigate the impact of using mobile augmented reality on enhancing learners' cultural competence. Methods: The study used both qualitative and quasi‐experimental quantitative research to evaluate the effects of mobile augmented reality on cultural competence. A total of 78 third‐year university students participated in the study, with 37 of them using mobile augmented reality to learn about culture. The researchers utilized both the Mann–Whitney U test and interviews to compare the effectiveness of mobile augmented reality with that of a 'real' tour guide in field courses. Results: The experimental results indicate that learners were able to continuously seek and find information about local culture through field exploration with mobile augmented reality, resulting in similar effects to those of attending a live lecture. Conclusions: It showed that incorporating mobile AR into field visits can create gamified and active learning scenarios that enhance immersion and drive active learning in local culture. The results in greater cultural knowledge and understanding, leading to the development of cultural competence in students. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic: There is a heightened emphasis on cultivating and demonstrating cultural competence across various fields due to the significantly grow of cultural and creative industries.Relying solely on traditional classroom teaching for learning about local culture may result in a diminished impact, as a comprehensive understanding of culture necessitates a keen sense of life.To address the limitations of traditional classroom lectures, educators continuously strive to enhance teaching methodologies by developing innovative approaches, such as experiential learning and community‐based learning, which involve hands‐on activities and real‐world engagement to foster increased learning motivation and improved effectiveness.Augmented reality (AR), a technology that overlays virtual images onto real scenes in real time, has gained extensive usage in diverse fields such as medicine, national defence, education, and entertainment, offering interactive gaming experiences and providing an opportunity to experience the culture and past lives of locals in the field, enhancing learners' understanding of cultural history and creating immersive encounters during visits.Particularly in digital learning, the integration of AR enables learners to engage with additional content through mobile devices, fostering an immersive and gamified learning experience. What this paper adds: The use of the AR app for learning about the local culture yielded comparable outcomes to traditional guided tours.Participants actively engaged in self‐directed learning and demonstrated a sense of initiative while utilizing AR.The flexibility and autonomy provided by field learning, which extended beyond the course period, allowed participants to revisit the field and explore at their own pace using AR.Demonstrates that participants took control and responsibility for their own learning, leading to an enhancement in learner autonomy.Participants who utilized the Roaming Jingliao AR system to explore cultural scenarios exhibited enhanced knowledge and attitudes regarding cultural competence, specifically in areas such as cultural understanding, rice food cultural knowledge, Songjiang folk arts, and skills and practices, which can be attributed to the immersive and autonomous nature of AR‐based knowledge learning in outdoor guided courses, minimizing the influence of external environmental factors and facilitating a deeper understanding of the content compared to traditional guided tours. Implications for practice and/or policy: The findings of this study highlight the importance of considering the limitations associated with a relatively small sample size when conducting research within a university curriculum. To enhance the validity and reliability of future studies, practitioners and policymakers should prioritize the inclusion of larger and more diverse samples, enabling a more comprehensive understanding of the impact of AR technology on cultural learning and informing evidence‐based practices and policies.The study's focus on a specific group of participants and their contextual background highlights the need for future research to include participants from diverse educational settings and cultural backgrounds, ensuring that the findings are more applicable and relevant to a broader population. Practitioners and policymakers should consider the importance of inclusivity and diversity when designing and implementing cultural learning interventions using AR technology.The recognition of technological limitations highlights the importance of considering the specific AR system used in cultural learning interventions. Practitioners and policymakers should be cautious when adopting AR technologies and recognize that different AR systems or platforms may yield different outcomes. Future research should focus on evaluating the effectiveness of various AR systems and platforms to inform decision‐making regarding the selection and implementation of AR technologies for cultural learning initiatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Technologies may successfully be used to mediate, aid, and diversify learning, but several studies indicate that technologies cannot substitute outdoor learning and its experiential nature. To halt human‐induced biodiversity loss, teachers should acquire a deep understanding of the principles of ecology, including the challenging concept of biodiversity. Only few studies have investigated learning about biodiversity outdoors guided by technology. Objectives: The aim of this study was to examine student teachers' current knowledge of the concept of biodiversity, to test how well technology‐mediated mobile learning in outdoor settings affects their understanding of the concept, and to determine the students' ability to estimate biodiversity in situ. Methods: Student teachers (N = 121) participated in a technology‐mediated nature trail. Research data was gathered through open‐ended questions in pre‐ and post‐test questionnaires and an assignment during the trail. Data were analysed using both qualitative and quantitative methods. Results and Conclusions: Results showed that significantly, more students included species and ecosystem diversity in their definitions of biodiversity after the trail, but the inclusion of genetic diversity remained low. Student's estimations of biodiversity in situ and related arguments indicate that they had difficulties in connecting their observations with their assessments of biodiversity. Implications: The study indicates that biodiversity is still a challenging concept, but also that outdoor learning mediated by technology has potential to untangle the concept. Understanding the importance of genetic diversity for species survival should be given special attention. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic: Research shows that sensory experiences and interaction with natural environments are important when learning about nature and, therefore, for example, virtual environments cannot substitute outdoor learning.Research also indicates that mobile technologies can successfully be used to support learning outdoors.Previous studies show that the concept of biodiversity is still largely unknown to the public and even teachers, yet there are only few studies where technology has been used outdoors to promote learning about biodiversity. What this paper adds: The goal of the study was to test how well a technology‐mediated nature trail (TMNT) – in which outdoor environment with all its' sensory experiences and observations made in authentic environments – can promote learning about the concept of biodiversity.The study showed that the concept of biodiversity is still poorly known among student teachers and, although knowledge about species and ecosystem diversity increased significantly during the study, the concept of genetic diversity remained especially hard to grasp.The TMNT was successful in mediating student teachers through the trail and observing the desired aspects of biodiversity – it is also easy to modify compared to for example, physical nature trail signs. Implications for practice and/or policy: Biodiversity and its meaning for ecosystems is an important and challenging topic – technology‐mediated outdoor learning has potential to promote this understanding.Teacher educators should place special emphasis on promoting their students' knowledge of biodiversity and their ability to observe the natural environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]