The two studies in this dissertation identify and address two related research gaps in literature on healthcare virtual support communities. Study one suggested that the exclusive emphasis on social support behavior and its impacts on individual well-being in virtual support communities has led to the neglect of another type of social interaction…

Stochastic understanding of probability distribution undergirds development of conceptual connections between probability and statistics and supports development of a principled understanding of statistical inference. This study investigated the impact of an instructional course intervention designed to support development of stochastic…

Purpose: The aim of this research is the development of a problem-based curriculum for robotic surgical training and its evaluation. Design/methodology/approach: First, the aim and objectives of the curriculum are defined and the background learning theories that guide our work are introduced. The methodology for designing the simulator-based…

This study explores the positive learning effect of formulating English sentences via Social Network Service (SNS; "Kakao-Talk") on less proficient L2 university students' (LPSs') writing, when the application is utilized as a tool to link in and out-of class activities in a multimodal-learning environment. Its objective is also to…

While pedagogical and technological affordances of three-dimensional (3D) multiuser virtual worlds in various educational disciplines are largely well-known, a study about their effect on high school students' engagement in introductory programming courses is still lacking. This case study presents students' opinions about their participation in a…

High performance, massively-parallel multi-physics simulations are built on efficient mesh data structures. Most data structures are designed from the bottom up, focusing on the implementation of linear algebra routines. In this thesis, we explore a top-down approach to design, evaluating the various needs of many aspects of simulation, not just…

Simulation games are games for learning based on a reference in the real world. We propose a model for authenticity in this context as a result of a compromise among learning, playing and realism. In the health game used to apply this model, students interact with characters in the game through phone messages, mail messages, SMS and video.…

Students are very familiar with digital media and computers. The aim of this study was to take advantage of this skill-set and examine evidence of psychological engagement in a personalized web-based learning experience, given the more general interest in student engagement of students in Higher Education. In this study, 117 students each raised…

Currently not many people would doubt that computers play an essential role in both public and private life in many countries. However, somewhat surprisingly, evidence of computer use is difficult to find in German state schools although other countries have managed to implement computer-based teaching and learning in their schools. This paper…

Traditional science instruction is typically reliant on visual modes of learning, such as textbooks and graphs. Furthermore, since science instruction is often heavily dependent upon visual cues, students with visual impairment often do not have access to the same educational opportunities in most science classes (Jones, Minogue, Oppewal, Cook,…

Advanced three-dimensional virtual environment technology, similar to that used by the film and computer games industry, can allow educational developers to rapidly create realistic online vir-tual environments. This technology has been used to generate a range of interactive Virtual Real-ity (VR) learning environments across a spectrum of…

It is a common misconception that game-based learning is, by its very nature, engaging for the majority of learners. This is not necessarily the case, particularly for learners in Higher Education who may need to be persuaded of the value of learning games. For some learners, games may simply not be perceived as engaging--either in terms of an…

This report introduces a short, hands-on activity that addresses a key challenge in teaching quantitative methods to students who lack confidence or experience with statistical analysis. Used near the beginning of the course, this activity helps students develop an intuitive insight regarding a number of abstract concepts which are key to…

Software for simulation-based learning of electronics was implemented to help learners understand complex and abstract concepts through observing external representations and exploring concept models. The software comprises modules for visualization and simulative manipulation. Differences in learning performance of using the learning software…

The article begins with an abbreviated CV of the author and then recounts the formation of Society for the Advancement of Games and Simulation in Education and Training (SAGSET) and the early days of simulation and gaming in the United Kingdom. Four strands of elements of development are described together with the key events of the 1970s and…