While the studio environment has been promoted as an ideal educational setting for project-based disciplines, few qualitative studies have been undertaken in a comprehensive way (Bose, 2007). This study responds to this need by adopting Grounded Theory methodology in a qualitative comparative approach. The research aims to explore the limitations…

With work-based learning (WBL) forming an increasingly prevalent dimension of modern higher education practice, conceptual models of the pedagogies underpinning WBL are increasingly emerging. There is broadening recognition of the need to capture and represent the values and presuppositions underlying WBL in order to support facilitators and…

This article presents a study of international students and their use of technology in a Scandinavian institution of Higher Education. A special emphasis is placed on patterns of use of a virtual learning environment (VLE) that is available to all the study programmes at the institution. Actor-Network Theory (ANT) is used as a theoretical approach…

Virtual classrooms and virtual activities have waxed and waned, with most focusing on fostering learning in the cognitive domain and, realistically, most becoming rapidly discontinued. But social virtual realities (SVR) are uniquely "social," so what about interpersonal skills? This article describes the authors' experiences exploring SVR as a…

This study is based on survey research conducted in 2010 and 2011, involving graduate students using a 3D immersive environment for their coursework. Investigators examined students' perceptions of community and presence via coursework offered in the immersive world. Utilizing the Sense of Community II index and the Communities of Inquiry survey,…

This article considers some of the unique affordances that Multi-User Virtual Environments--in particular, Second Life--present to the design of learning environments. Drawing upon some preliminary experiences of acquainting teachers in several schools in Singapore with Second Life, specific attention is paid to the inherent spatiality of the…

Transition from face-to-face to the online classroom is an enlightening journey. This is the cutting edge of a paradigm shift in K-12 education, and it is important for teachers to understand it. Many teachers may not receive a formal training program and should realize that it is not always an easy transition. Anything can happen, and never…

This book examines how common e-learning technologies open up compelling, if limited, experiential spaces for users, similar to the imaginary worlds opened up by works of fiction. However, these experiential worlds are markedly different from the "real" world of physical objects and embodied relations. This book shows these differences to be of…

The purpose of this paper is to present selected literature on learners and collaborative learning in virtual worlds. Research in virtual worlds on collaborative learners is gradually emerging and will gain in significance, particularly in online and distance education environments. It will be argued that the design and functionality of virtual…

Virtual Learning Environments (VLEs) in teacher education have a short history which is little longer than that of this journal. Twenty years ago they were the province of early adopters only and limited to email and, more unusually, asynchronous conferencing. Today, VLEs are widespread and mainstream, sophisticated and officially sanctioned…

Recent studies of online learning environments reveal the importance of interaction within the virtual environment. Abrami, Bernard, Bures, Borokhovski, and Tamim (2011) identify and study 3 types of student interactions: student-content, student-teacher, and student-student. This article builds on this classification of interactions as it…

Sebastian Thrun gave up tenure at Stanford University after 160,000 students signed up for his free online version of the course "Introduction to Artificial Intelligence." The experience completely changed his perspective on education, he said, so he ditched teaching at Stanford and launched the private Web site Udacity, which offers…

In recent years, e-learning has been used in a chemical engineering subject in the final course of a mining engineering degree, a subject concerned with fuel technology. The low results obtained by students in this subject have led the teacher to search for new strategies to increase grades. Such strategies have consisted of incorporating into the…

This paper analyses preconditions for trust in virtual learning environments. The concept of trust is discussed with reference to cases reporting trust in cyberspace and through a philosophical clarification holding that trust in the form of self-surrender is a common characteristic of all human co-existence. In virtual learning environments,…

Multimedia learning is innovative and has revolutionised the way we learn online. It is important to create a multimedia learning environment that stimulates active participation and effective learning. The significance of multimedia learning extends to include the cultivation of professional and personal experiences that reflect the reality of a…