Transforming educational technologies through the integration of large language models (LLMs) and virtual reality (VR) offers the potential for immersive and interactive learning experiences. However, the effects of LLMs on user engagement and attention in educational environments remain open questions. In this study, we utilized a fully…

Purpose: This study aims to explore if and to what extent an online avatar-assisted virtual classroom can work to alleviate groups of Japanese university students' anxiety around giving spoken presentations. It also explores how to create a more inclusive language learning environment and encourage interaction between the students in the virtual…

Three Dimensional Multi-User Virtual Environments (MUVEs) are promising tools in education because of the unique affordances they offer. These learning affordances imply certain actions that in turn can lead to corresponding learning activities. There seems to be a lack of reports on which of the affordances of MUVEs for learning and teaching are…

We investigated the instructional effectiveness of using an interactive and immersive virtual reality (IVR) simulation versus a video for teaching scientific knowledge in 2 between-subjects experiments. In Experiment 1, 131 high school students (84 females) used a science simulation that involved forensic analysis of a collected DNA sample in a…

Simulations and virtual or remote laboratories are increasingly used in schools. The extent to which individual experimental skills can be acquired when experimenting in digital applications is, however, questionable. This paper focuses on finding multimedia features for digital experiments to support the transfer of measured values from the…

Developers and designers of virtual and augmented reality (VR/AR) products are expressing concerns regarding accountability for ethical design and use of VR/AR products in virtual learning environments. Within the field of education, more research is needed to determine how VR/AR designers make decisions regarding ethical issues, and particularly…

This article presents three types of (inter)active learning pedagogical tools to better prepare future administrators for complex, real-world tasks. We propose a framework of narrative linearity and responsiveness to examine digital cases, digital simulations, and clinical simulations as bridging pedagogies from abstract class-based methods to…

Virtual simulation training has gained in usage in various educational fields and offers the potential to support and reinforce learning goals when practical experience is not possible. Teaching practice experience in an English as a Foreign Language (EFL) classroom is critical, yet frequently unobtainable for students in Teaching English to…

This study presents the main advances made in recent years by an innovative teaching group at the University of Almeria, who are attempting to incorporate alternative spaces for teaching--learning interaction. This group is developing a new line of study to obtain the main vectors for creating an accessible 3D virtual campus on the Second Life…

Despite increasing college enrollment and growing diversity of the college student population, college completion rates are low. Many colleges are exploring ways to leverage technology to improve student retention and increase the educational options for and success of their diverse student bodies. Web-based course or learning management systems…

Within an online science teacher education course, an important although secondary goal was to prepare students for a high-stakes licensure portfolio at some time after course completion. Thus, various communication technologies including synchronous virtual reality meetings and asynchronous student self-created video commentaries were interwoven…

In this study, we investigate how immersive 3D geovisualization can be used in higher education. Based on MacEachren and Kraak's geovisualization cube, we examine the usage of immersive 3D geovisualization and its usefulness in a research-based learning module on flood risk, called GEOSimulator. Results of a survey among participating students…

Increased recognition of the role of the body and environment in cognition has taken place in recent decades in the form of new theories of embodied and extended cognition. The growing use of ever more sophisticated computer-generated 3D virtual worlds and avatars has added a new dimension to these theories of cognition. Both developments provide…

Due to the unique applications of virtual reality in many modern contexts, Second Life (SL) offers inimitable opportunities for research and exploration and experiential learning as part of a distance learning curriculum assignment. A review of current research regarding SL examined real world social influences in online interactions and what the…

Recent studies of learner interaction in virtual worlds have tended to select basic tasks involving open-ended communication. There is evidence that such tasks are supportive of language acquisition, however it may also be beneficial to consider more complex tasks. Research in task-based learning has identified features such as non-linguistic…