This study explored the dynamic interplay of social constructivism, game-based learning, and communities of practice in the context of teachers using Minecraft as an educational tool. This study used a teacher survey to collect insights from teachers who use Minecraft and are members of the Minecraft Teachers' Lounge. The research investigated how…

The purpose of this action research study was to investigate by using a PBL design if giving student more ownership in classroom cellphone policies has positive outcomes. This study looked at not only the behavioral aspect of classroom cellphone usage, but also the impacts of using a PBL design on student engagement, ownership, and knowledge…

The perceptions of Tennessee educators who successfully implemented blended learning in their classrooms were the main focus of this phenomenological study. Blended learning is a modality that uses stations which consist of a teacher-led station, an online station, and an off-line station. Teachers work in small groups with students while others…

Recent advancements in the cost, availability, and capability of augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) devices and software are spurring their mass distribution to the public. This fundamental shift in the use of AR and VR predominantly from military and academic research laboratories to the public presents new opportunities and…

This mixed-methods case study examined the predictors of student satisfaction in an online learning environment. With the growth of online education in recent years, there is a desire to have quality programs with high student satisfaction. Through the use of surveys and interviews, the researcher analyzed whether learning styles, age, computer…

Cross-community collaboration which expands community members' interaction to a larger social scale plays a crucial role in increasing information exchange and extending inquiry learning. This dissertation uses a design-based research approach which aims at testing a multi-level emergence design in multiple learning communities. This design serves…

This qualitative study examines the use of in a one-to-one initiative at an elementary school. Digital Didactical Design serves as the framework for this research which seeks to identify the ways in which teachers are using iPads[TM], the attributes of meaningful learning present in their instruction, and the benefits, challenges, and outcomes of…

The purpose of this multiple case design-based research study was to determine what elements were needed to assist two higher education instructors inexperienced in designing and teaching a blended learning course to successfully create and implement it, to document the instructors' perceptions about their first experience of teaching a blended…

The purpose of this study was to determine if one-to-one Chromebook use has an effect on student engagement and how one-to-one Chromebooks are used as an instructional tool. Specifically, what are the perceptions of middle school administrators and middle school core content-area teachers on one-to-one Chromebook use as an instructional tool and…

Research in team science suggests strategies for addressing difficulties that groups face when working together. This dissertation examines how student teams work in project based learning (PBL) environments, with the goal of creating strategies and technology to improve collaboration. The challenge of working in such a group is that the members…

The study compared traditional and nontraditional students' attitudes about the psychosocial learning environment and their influence on self-efficacy, enjoyment of online learning, and student satisfaction by using Moos' (1979) Model of Environmental and Personal Variables and the three dimensions of social climate as its theoretical framework.…

The purpose of this study was to explore the nature of students' mapping and discourse behaviors while constructing causal maps to articulate their understanding of a complex, ill-structured problem. In this study, six graduate-level students were assigned to one of three pair groups, and each pair used the causal mapping software program,…

When groups engage in math problem solving in an online environment like the VMT (Virtual Math Teams) service, they can face significant challenges from troubles of individual and group understanding that emerge in their problem-solving process. We are interested in how shared understanding is interactionally constructed and accomplished in a…

The purpose of this collective case study is to describe and explore a virtual learning community as experienced by women reentering higher education in an online graduate degree program. The grand tour question for this study was: How do reentry women in an online graduate program describe their experience in a virtual learning community? …

A decade of research studies document that while blended learning has experienced rapid growth on K-12 campuses, little is known about its diverse impacts on teachers in secondary schools. Narrowing this knowledge gap was the purpose of this study, as it addressed questions relating to the extent to which high school practitioners blended subject…