Effective pedagogy, when harnessed by educators, can empower students to become creative problem solvers, innovative thinkers, and lifelong learners capable of thriving in the dynamic and interconnected world of the 21st-century. This study explores the impact of the teachers' pivotal role in using Design and Technology (D&T) teaching and…

Traditional teaching methods like lectures can hinder the integration of theoretical knowledge and practical skills in higher education. To address this challenge, digital simulation games (DSGs) offer promising solutions through immersive and interactive learning experiences. Research shows that DSGs can motivate learners, enhance subject…

An increasing number of studies has observed that immersive virtual reality (iVR) technology using head-mounted displays (HMDs) can facilitate learning outcomes. However, most studies have been exploratory and were executed in laboratory settings instead of being implemented and orchestrated in authentic teaching settings. Furthermore, iVR design…

PoliCultura is a collaborative digital storytelling program for schools (K-12), which has gathered so far more than 41,000 students. It is an example of authentic learning experience, for a number of reasons, including the fact that students are required to do a "professional" work that will be made public in the frame of a competition.…

Virtual reality (VR) in education has tremendous potential in providing immersive and interactive experiences for students. Immersive virtual reality (IVR) technologies and IVR learning experiences have been increasingly used in education settings to support a variety of instructional methods and outcomes by providing experiential and authentic…

Generative AI (GenAI) is transforming higher education. It has already challenged the validity of traditional assessment methods and revealed concerns about the authenticity and reliability of conventional approaches. This opinion piece proposes an expanded theoretical framework for contextual learning, incorporating practical, situational,…

We are surrounded by controversy--politics, religion, diets, and even science are all up for debate in our 24/7 world of social media and the internet. With this controversy comes a lot of misinformation and competition with what our students might otherwise be learning in our classrooms. I know this intimately, since I teach fitness and nutrition…

This review explores how artificial intelligence (AI henceforth) can reshape education through insights from situated learning literature. The objective was to critically examine opportunities and challenges of situated learning, and how AI could augment strengths while overcoming obstacles. A systematic review using the PRISMA method analyzed 60…

Teaching physics in real-life contexts continues to be a challenge for teachers at different educational levels. In this article, three context-rich problems are proposed to be implemented in the classroom for higher education, using the explosion that occurred in Beirut as a case study. These problems require the search and analysis of real data,…

Purpose: This paper aims to examine three distinct aspects of authenticity that pre-service teachers (PSTs) experience when they engage with virtual classroom environments to develop their content-intensive instructional practice -- task authenticity, student avatar authenticity and performance authenticity -- and their perceptions about the…

In response to the maker movement, administrators are adding 3D printers, laser cutters, vinyl cutters, and other computer-controlled machinery into school-based makerspaces at a rapid rate. These digital fabrication tools can potentially engage students in hands-on learning across all subject areas. However, adding these extra tools into schools…

Mobile devices, particularly smartphones, have become an integral part of daily lives, and we take them with us almost everywhere we go. In most cases these are examples of informal learning and how we now choose to find and utilise online information and create and share rich media. How then can we use these devices to learn in "formal"…

Artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly transforming our world, making it imperative to educate the next generation about both the potential benefits and the challenges associated with AI. This study presents a cross-disciplinary curriculum that connects AI and chemistry disciplines in the high school classroom. Particularly, we leverage machine…

Immersive virtual reality (VR) carries important potential, both for the creation of scientific knowledge and also for its communication. This is particularly important for studies of human spatial cognition, where psychologists now possess the power to combine the scale and fidelity of the real world with the malleability and control of the…

Purpose: Social media are increasingly being used in teaching and learning in higher education. This paper aims to explore multiple case studies to better understand how instructors decide to incorporate social media into learning. Design/methodology/approach: This qualitative case study used the technology acceptance model (TAM) to explore five…