Training firefighters is a difficult process in which emotions and nonverbal behaviors play an important role. The authors have developed a mixed reality environment for training a small group of firefighters, which takes into account these aspects. The assessment of the environment was made up of three phases: assessing the virtual agents to…

The introduction of an open-ended MicroWorlds based assignment in a pre-service teaching degree produced interesting results. Students engaged with the task at very high levels and produced work of high quality; so much so that marking trends were reversed. This paper explores the design and implementation of the task and how for many students it…

Learning technologies are becoming a common, and in many cases essential, component of the contemporary learning environment. As such, those who design, implement and control these encompassing technologies have emerged as major contributors to the success (or otherwise) of such systems. This article considers the power and responsibilities of…

This article presents a model for conceptualising learner involvement in online environments. It takes as its starting point the emerging approach to service-user engagement in public-sector change in the United Kingdom. This is focused upon civic inclusion and empowered decision making. In turn this personalisation is related to issues…

This paper reports upon an active learning approach that promotes conceptual change when studying direct current electricity circuits, using free open source software, "Qucs". The study involved a total of 102 prospective mathematics teacher students. Prior to instruction, students' understanding of direct current electricity was…

Jerusalem College of Technology (JCT) is a multi-campus institution with identical syllabi for courses in every campus. Moreover, learning at JCT requires at the same time synchronous and asynchronous learning and teaching. For some introductory courses in Mathematics for Engineering students, websites have been built and now upgraded in order to…

This article reports on the findings of a study looking at the role of the school-based mentor in developing the competence of trainee teachers in relation to the use of information and communications technology (ICT) in the classroom. One key factor in determining the contribution of the mentor appears to be the level of confidence in his/her…

The goal of personalised eLearning is to support e-learning content, activities and collaboration, adapted to the specific needs and influenced by specific preferences of the learner and built on sound pedagogic strategies. One of the major challenges to the mainstream adoption of personalised eLearning is the complexity and time involved in…

This article details an investigation into the use of interactive whiteboards undertaken in five elementary schools in an English education authority. Evidence was collected by using a questionnaire containing closed and open questions, lesson observations, and structured interviews of teachers and headteachers. Potential benefits in the…

This paper investigates the correlation between the quality of instructional design and learning outcomes for early childhood students in the online synchronous cyber classroom. Today's generation of e-learners has access to highly engaging and well-designed multi-media synchronous classrooms. However little data exists on what constitutes…

This paper explores the role played by communication technologies and study orientations in the amplification and reduction of transactional distance in blended learning. Factor analysis and structural equation modelling of different communication modes (face to face, email and telephone) revealed that students experience at least some…

Digital tools are increasingly being used to support teaching in higher education. These tools place new demands on the tasks and responsibilities of the teacher, and can influence teacher roles. In this study we investigate the long-term use and development of a tool for facilitating the negotiation of meaning in argumentative student texts,…

This paper reports on a longitudinal, ethnomethodological case study of the development towards flexible delivery of the Botswana Technical Education Programme (BTEP), offered by Francistown College of Technical & Vocational Education (FCTVE). Data collection methods included documentary analysis, naturalistic participant observation, and…

This paper presents the findings from a project investigating management development for SME managers using an action learning programme, combining both face-to-face workshops and a virtual action learning environment. This programme was undertaken as part of the ENSeL (Engaging Networks for Sustainable eLearning) project, which was supported by…

Drawing on ancient Greek mythology, this article traces the learning experiences of 164 pre-service education students as they make the transition from a conventional face-to-face (f-2-f) learning environment to an Information and Communication Technology (ICT) rich setting. Influenced by Social Presence Theory (Short, Williams & Christie,…