Despite rapid advances, modeling a variety of instructional designs to support variations in teaching and learning during the design of educational technologies is still an open challenge. In this paper, we propose a patterns based approach for the design of educational technologies to address this challenge. This is in contrast with existing…

This study focuses on an educational game titled "Cellverse," a two-player cross-platform VR project intended to teach high school biology students about cell structure and function. In "Cellverse," players work in pairs to explore a human lung cell and diagnose and treat a dangerous genetic disorder. "Cellverse" is…

Learning Analytics (LA) systems can offer new insights into learners' behaviours through analysis of multiple data streams. There remains however a dearth of research about how LA interfaces can enable effective communication of educationally meaningful insights to teachers and learners. This highlights the need for a participatory, horizontal…

Research relevant to Captology in education is in its infancy. Despite its relative newness, a dearth of literature exists on the subject that addresses the design of a persuasive game for educational purposes. Up to this point, the literature does not include any instructional design theories or theoretical frameworks that can be used…

Due to a range of different affordances, mobile technologies can be used pedagogically for language teaching and learning. However, the connection of technology to education needs to be grounded in theoretical frameworks and methodological principles. Task-based language teaching (TBLT), as an optimal approach to language teaching and learning,…

In this article, we provide a conceptual model for the design of instructional scenarios integrating hypervideo as an instructional tool. The model provides a structural aid for making design decisions about using hypervideo in instruction. We start by introducing the theoretical rationale for hypervideo as a tool, exploiting three different…

The main challenges commonly associated with acquiring practical network engineering skills are the requirements for access to specialised and up-to-date network equipment, as well as the high costs associated with obtaining and maintaining this equipment. The PT Anywhere initiative addresses these challenges by offering a mobile environment for…

The ubiquity and educational potential of mobile applications are well acknowledged. This paper proposes six theory-based, pedagogical strategies to guide interaction design of mobile apps for young children. Also, to augment the capabilities of mobile devices, we used a humanoid robot integrated with a smartphone and developed an English-learning…

In this special issue, the authors purport to interrogate and further their understanding of the commonly cited term, "design," specifically "learner-generated designs." This issue brings together scholars from multiple disciplines, including learning sciences, literacy studies, science education, digital media, and pedagogy,…

In this article TENCompetence will be presented as a framework for lifelong competence development. More specifically, the relationship between the TENCompetence framework and the IMS Learning Design (LD) specification is explored. LD authoring has proven to be challenging and the toolset currently available is targeting expert users mostly…

In an increasingly networked and technologically mediated world, people need to continuously update their knowledge and skill base, so as to be able to self-direct their intentional learning projects. In addition to teaching domain-specific knowledge and skills, the role of higher education should be reorganizing current teaching and studying…

The paper proposes a framework for building ontology-aware learning object (LO) content. Previously ontologies were exclusively employed for enriching LOs' metadata. Although such an approach is useful, as it improves retrieval of relevant LOs from LO repositories, it does not enable one to reuse components of a LO, nor to incorporate an explicit…

Universities can offer eLearning 2.0 tools and services to learners while obtaining clear benefits from releasing the control over some learning content. This means a shift from the institution centred and monolithic model of traditional virtual learning environments (VLEs) to a more heterogeneous and open model. This article tries to plot an…

Digital learning environments are generally composed of resources that cumulatively meet some specified educational objective, with each resource facilitating the acquisition of a subset of the concepts to be learned. In such contexts narrative has, for example, been used to support the understanding and navigation of a course or curriculum…

The use of design patterns is now well established as an approach within the field of software systems as well as within the field of architecture. An initial effort was made to harness patterns as a tool for elaborating the design of the elements of personal learning environments as part of the University of Bolton's Personal Learning Environment…