In this paper we challenge designers, researchers, teachers, students, and parents to re-assess and re-envision the value of technology-mediated feedback and e-assessment by examining the innovative roles feedback and assessment played in the design of three contemporary web-based learning environments. These environments include 1) an…

This study surveyed post-secondary instructors in 15 countries regarding their experiences using the virtual world Second Life as a teaching tool. Qualitative analysis of responses to open-ended questions suggests that Second Life offers a great deal of potential in realizing Grabinger and Dunlap's (2000) attributes of a rich environment for…

This paper addresses several components of successful language-learning methodologies--group work, task-based instruction, and wireless computer technologies--and examines how the interplay of these three was perceived by students in a second-year university foreign-language course. The technology component of our learning design plays a central…

The widespread proliferation of computer games for children as young as six months of age, merits a reexamination of their manner of use and a review of their facility to provide opportunities for developmental play. This article describes a research study conducted to explore the use of computer games by young children, specifically to…

The purpose of this paper is to present the Soft-skills Learning Triangle (SLT)--a model created to help coaches, mentors, and educators understand how web-technologies can be used to support management learning and soft-skills development. SLT emerged as part of a larger action-learning research project--the NewMindsets Management Education…

One innovative practice in higher education arising from advances in computer technology is the use of ePortfolio for learning and assessment. Although in theory ePortfolios are believed to yield benefits for learning, in practice ePortfolio use often leads to confusion and frustration. In this paper we ask: what is the relationship between…

Adventure learning (AL) provides learners with opportunities to explore real-world issues through authentic learning experiences within collaborative online learning environments. This paper reports on an AL program, designed using Keller's ARCS motivational model of instructional design, which encompassed more than 3 million learners worldwide.…

Growing science apathy at the K-12 education level represents an alarming development with potentially devastating consequences at individual, societal and economic levels. Technology has been incorporated in science education without fundamentally improving test scores or student attitudes. We claim the core of the problem is how technology is…

Written environments in online learning enable professional discourse to be analysed in depth and provide greater knowledge for improving learning and for planning and delivering courses aimed at professional development. Until now, research into professional discourse has highlighted the importance of interaction in the development of…

The goal of this study was to understand the roles of goal orientation and self-efficacy when learning from worked examples. A Web-based learning environment, used as a component of a traditional undergraduate chemistry course, served as the context for the study. Goal orientations were derived from Elliot and McGregor's (2001) achievement goals…

Interactive toys for children are becoming more popular for both play and educational purposes, yet an understanding of the dependent measures used to study such interactions has not yet been explored. This study takes advantage of the idea that robotic animals exhibit both living and pretend qualities, and are therefore ideal for studying…

This study compared student performances in role-playing activities in both a face-to-face (FTF) environment and a virtual 3D environment, Second Life (SL). We found that students produced a similar amount of communication in the two environments, but the communication styles were different. In SL role-playing activities, students took more…

The focus of this article is a mixed methods naturalistic research project investigating the relationship between learners' time working within multimedia cases and learners' outcomes. Research was conducted across multiple delivery contexts in four universities. Participants were undergraduate and graduate teacher education students completing…

Assessing the impact on learning of the use of mobile devices and associated applications is a complex challenge. This article reports on progress to date in a longitudinal study using a design research approach with three cohorts of 800 students each. Results are encouraging in terms of learning enhancement through select mobile application by a…

This article examines the qualitative findings from a mixed-methods comparison study of the use of an online multi-user virtual environment called Anytown which supplemented face-to-face writing instruction in a fourth grade classroom to determine implications for the design of such environments and the reported impact of this design on students…