"Faculty" is one element of virtual education curricula that facilitates the learning process. However, the lack of physical presence has led to a need to redefine the faculty role. This qualitative study considered the changing roles of faculty in virtual environments in universities in Iran. The main question was What role(s) do…

Distance Learning supported by the WEB is a reality which is growing fast and, like any technological or empirical innovation, it reveals positive and negative aspects. An important aspect is in relation to the monitoring of the activities done by the students since an accurate online assessment of the knowledge acquired is an open and, therefore,…

In recent years, the development of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) has contributed to the generation of a number of interesting initiatives in the field of music education and training in virtual learning environments. However, music education initiatives employing virtual learning environments have replicated and perpetuated the…

The demonstration of patient-based cases using automated technology [virtual patients (VPs)] has been available to health science educators for a number of decades. Despite the promise of VPs as an easily accessible and moldable platform, their widespread acceptance and integration into medical curricula have been slow. Here, the authors review…

Business simulation games (BSGs) enable students to practice making decisions in a virtual environment, accumulate experience in application of strategies, and train themselves in modes of decision-making. This study examines the value sought by players of BSG. In this study, a means-end chain (MEC) model was adopted as the basis, and ladder…

We have conducted an education project to communicate the wave energy concept to high school students. A virtual reality system that combines both hardware and software is developed in this project to simulate the buoy-wave interaction. This first-of-its-kind wave energy unit is portable and physics-based, allowing students to conduct a number of…

This think piece by Carolyn Alexander-Bennett is a reflection of her keynote speech at DEANZ2016 conference, which was held from 17-20th April at the University of Waikato, New Zealand. In her speech Carolyn revisits the issues, developments, and technology trends that led to the birth of FarNet (an online cluster of schools catering for the…

Personal learning environments (PLEs) are Web 2.0 tools and services by which users' access, construct, manage, and share educational contents in order to meet their learning needs. These environments enable users to manage their learning according to their own personal preferences. They further promote socialization and collaboration with their…

This study focuses on the effectiveness of using multimedia virtual simulation in Islamic Studies in Malaysia. Virtual simulation methods embedded in Microsoft PowerPoint was used in this study to determine the effectiveness of these modes to motivate students on the topic of pilgrimage in the Islamic Studies subject. Pilgrimage topic has been…

Virtual charter schools have emerged over the last decade as an increasingly popular alternative to traditional public schooling. Unlike their face-to-face counterparts, virtual charter schools educate students through blended or entirely online curricula. They present a host of new policy issues that should be scrutinized in order to ensure that…

This study explores students' choices of verbal and text interaction in a synchronous Live Virtual Classroom (LVC) environment that mixed onsite and online learners. Data were collected from analysis of recorded LVC sessions and post-course interviews with students in two different offerings of a graduate instructional design course that used…

This article discusses the effectiveness of using an approach based on a virtual learning environment (VLE) to enhance the close-reading skills of first-year English undergraduates. The first two sections explore the practical and theoretical issues involved in adopting such an approach; the third describes the design and functions of a VLE…

Institutions of higher education are increasingly asking students to use the online environment, or virtual campus, when carrying out business related to college life. In this paper, we report findings from a study conducted to learn more about the experiences of college students with learning disabilities as they interacted with this virtual…

As part of the European Union, Romania has established strategic goals for the transition to a high quality educational system. In this respect, the efforts to align with standards requested by the European Community became more pregnant. Romanian integration strategy 2007-2013 stipulates, through specific objectives, the requirement, that the…

Virtual worlds have become an invaluable space for online learning and the exploration of digital cultures. Communication departments can benefit from using these spaces to educate their students in the logistics of virtual worlds and as a way to better understand how the process of interpersonal and global communication functions in both online…