In the first decade of the 21st century, distance learning (usually subject to course fees and resulting in formal certification) was complemented by free-of-charge open learning courses with unlimited numbers of participants and no final certificate. Termed "massive open online courses" (MOOCs), these soon fell into different…

This article explains why elementary school children need civic education, identifies common obstacles that frustrate efforts, then describes how the Storypath approach can provide all students with opportunities for powerful civic learning. An actual application in a culturally diverse fourth-grade classroom illustrates how children grappled with…

Basic social interaction and executing certain tasks can be difficult for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The symptoms of such behaviour include inappropriate gestures, body language and facial expressions, lack of interest in certain tasks, cognitive disability in coordination of limbs, and a difficulty in comprehending tasks'…

Social work programs increasingly are engaged in deploying distance education models, yet questions remain about how to teach direct practice skills within this context. As field agency changes have limited practice opportunities for social work students, methods for helping interns develop direct practice skills in diverse field practicum…

In a previous work the author created the Education and Entertainment Grid by combining various taxonomies from the fields of play and learning. In this paper, a section of this grid known as the Entertainment Grid will be extended by including previously unused elements of Richard Bartle's online player types and Robert Caillois' play complexity.…

Millions of children and adults devote much of their leisure time to playing massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs). Most observers commonly categorize computer games as a play activity, but this article asks whether MMORPGs contain activities that might not be play. The author examines the phenomenon of online gaming and…

Interest in the instructional application of virtual worlds, such as "Second Life" (SL), has grown substantially. However, little information is available about effective instructional activities using virtual worlds. This case study illustrates lessons learned from a pilot integrating SL into a two-semester English course at a large…

Simulations in political science and pre-law courses are used as a tool for student engagement and classroom interaction and to get students interested in politics and law by engaging them in either the political or legal process. Much of the literature addresses how to conduct various simulations for particular classes, what the students learned…

The theory and lessons of knowledge exchange, in both a physical and virtual environment, suggest a framework for understanding the specific requirements for a digital design class in "Second Life". Through teaching and observing students who were asked to complete a machinima project, our research provided examples of the strengths and…

Effective virtual simulations can embed participants in imaginary worlds. Researchers working in virtual worlds and gaming often refer to "immersion," a state in which a participant or player loses track of time and becomes one with the simulation. Immersive settings have been shown to deepen learning. Ken Hudson's work with students…

A much more attractive way to use the internet was discovered. Users are represented by avatars in the fantasy persistent 3D world, and the avatars apparently come to occupy a special place in the hearts of their creators (Castronova, 2001). At present, millions of people worldwide have accounts to some kind of virtual environments. Virtual world…

Purpose: The aim of this paper is to give a critical assessment of a study designed to investigate the potential of a new method for teaching HRD students about performance appraisal. It is argued that this approach is in the vanguard of developments in IT and learning. Design/methodology/approach: The paper takes the form of an explorative study…

REEFGAME is a computer-assisted role-playing game that explores the interactions among management strategies, livelihood options, and ecological degradation in subsistence fishing communities. The tool has been successfully used in the Philippines and a variety of student workshops. In the field, REEFGAME operated as a two-way learning tool,…

Background: Immersive virtual worlds are one of a range of different platforms that can be grouped under the concept of mediated environments, i.e. environments that create a metaphorical space in which participants can position themselves and be embodied. Synthesising the literatures concerning the various mediated environment technologies…

In this paper we examine the transferability of the Jigsaw and Fishbowl collaborative learning techniques to the Second Life platform. Our aim is to assess the applicability of Second Life for collaborative learning by developing virtual tools and metaphors and exploiting the representational richness of this novel medium. In order to enhance the…