Developing technology to help people teach and learn is an important topic in Human Computer Interaction (HCI). In this thesis we present three studies on this topic. In the first study, we demonstrate new games for learning mathematics and discuss the evidence for key design decisions from user studies. In the second study, we develop a real-time…

Educational games offer an opportunity to engage and inspire students to take interest in science, technology, engineering, and mathematical (STEM) subjects. Unobtrusive learning assessment techniques coupled with machine learning algorithms can be utilized to record students' in-game actions and formulate a model of the students' knowledge…

Educational strategies have evolved over the years due to research breakthroughs and the application of technology. By using the latest learning innovations, curriculum and instructional design can be enhanced and strengthened. Also, as learners move away from traditional scholarly media and toward technology-based education, students gain an…

Animation is one of the useful contemporary educational technologies in teaching complex subjects. There is a growing interest in proper use of learner-technology interaction to promote learning quality for different groups of learner needs. The purpose of this study is to investigate if an interaction approach supports weak learners, who have…

Embodied conversational agents (ECAs) have been used as virtual conversational partners in interpersonal skills training applications such as medical interviews, military decision making, and cultural training. Ideally, in interpersonal skills training users will perceive and treat the ECAs the same as they would real people. The perception and…

With the advancements of the human computer interaction field, nowadays it is possible for the users to use their body motions, such as swiping, pushing and moving, to interact with the content of computers or smart phones without traditional input devices like mouse and keyboard. With the introduction of gesture-based interface Kinect from…

The concept of usefulness has implicitly played a pivotal role in evaluation research, but the meaning of usefulness has changed over time from system reliability to user performance and learnability/ease of use for non-experts. Despite massive technical and social changes, usability remains the "gold standard" for system evaluation.…

The demands of an increasingly knowledge-based society and the dramatic advances in mobile phone technology are combining to spur the growth of mobile learning (mLearning). However, for mLearning to attain its full potential, it is essential to develop pedagogy and instructional design tailored to the needs of this new learning environment. At…

This dissertation bridges the fields of haptics, engineering, and education to realize some of the potential benefits haptic devices may have in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) education. Specifically, this dissertation demonstrates the development, implementation, and assessment of two haptic devices in engineering and math…

The significance of teaching the basics of engineering education in middle- and high-schools is generally acknowledged by policy makers, teachers and researchers in the U.S.A. as well as a number of developed and developing countries. Nevertheless, engineering topics are rarely covered by precollege curriculums. A key contributing factor is that…

Numerous efforts seek to increase awareness, interest, and participation in scientific and technological fields at the precollege level. Studies have shown these students are at a critical age where exposure to engineering and other related fields such as science, mathematics, and technology greatly impact their career goals. A variety of advanced…

This paper describes an approach for supporting inquiry learning from source materials, realised and tested through a tool-kit. The approach is optimised for tasks that require a student to make interpretations across sets of resources, where opinions and justifications may be hard to articulate. We adopt a dialogue-based approach to learning…

Simulation software used for modeling has become as ubiquitous as computers themselves. Despite growing reliance on simulation in educational and workplace settings, users encounter frustration in using simulation software programs. The authors conducted a study with 26 engineering students and interviewed them about their experience learning the…

HCI is a field which has an increasing popularity by virtue of the spread of the computers and internet and gradually contributes to the production of the user-friendlier software and hardware with the contribution of the scientists from different disciplines. Teacher candidates studying at the computer and instructional technologies department…

In this article we describe long-standing user interface issues with Dynamic Geometry Software and common approaches to address them. We describe first prototypes of multi-touch-capable DGS. We also give some hints on the educational benefits of proper user interface design.