Complex Learning Environments Research Articles

Playing to learn: developing self-directed learning skills through serious games

Purpose Higher education is undergoing a significant transformation, demanding a rethinking of instructional methods, the establishment of novel assessment frameworks and the incorporation of state-of-the-art technologies to advance the development of learning competencies. The use of simulations is an alternative that offers satisfactory results and favors learning in new generations. This study aims to present a methodology for assessing the advancement of self-directed learning (SDL) in participants through simulation techniques and show that the incorporation of simulations can improve participants’ SDL skills. Design/methodology/approach This study uses a quantitative approach to evaluate the evolution of various competencies related to SDL among participants. Includes the application of scales specifically designed to measure readiness for SDL, the use of factor analysis to identify and validate essential factors and conducting hypothesis testing to verify shifts in students’ perceptions regarding the significance of SDL-related skills. Findings The findings of this study reveal a positive impact of simulations on the SDL readiness. Factor analysis identified five key factors: self-management skills, openness to learning opportunities, initiative and independence in learning, self-concept as an effective learner and desire for Learning. The use of simulations significantly improved critical thinking, logical reasoning, analysis and decision-making capabilities. These results demonstrate the effectiveness of this technique as a valuable tool for developing SDL skills and highlight the potential of such interventions in complex and uncertain learning environments. Research limitations/implications The study provided valuable insights into the impact of simulations in the logistics field, particularly in the development of SDL-related skills. There is a need for studies in other areas of knowledge that would allow for the generalization of these results. Likewise, it is advisable to use scales that measure the development of other types of skills. Additionally, the study’s focus on short-term effects may not fully capture the long-term development of SDL-related skills. Future research should address these limitations, expand the sample size, conduct longitudinal studies and explore possible contextual and external factors that may influence SDL outcomes in various educational settings, leading to broader and more robust conclusions. Practical implications The practical implications of this study are significant for both higher education institutions and educators in the logistics domain. The positive impact of the serious game on participants’ SDL skills highlights the potential of incorporating interactive and engaging learning tools in the curriculum. Educators can leverage serious games to foster critical thinking, logical reasoning and decision-making abilities in their students. Moreover, the identified key factors influencing SDL development provide valuable guidance for designing targeted interventions to enhance students’ self-management, initiative and love for learning. Social implications The social implications of this study underscore the importance of equipping individuals with SDL skills in a rapidly changing world. By integrating serious games and fostering SDL competencies, higher education institutions can contribute to a more adaptable and resilient workforce. Empowering students with critical thinking, innovative thinking and independent learning, they can enhance their ability to navigate the challenges of the labor market. This, in turn, may lead to a more informed and proactive society capable of addressing complex issues and making well-informed decisions. Originality/value This article arises from empirical exploration with students from two countries in Latin America (Mexico and Colombia), examining the importance of games in developing SDL skills. Furthermore, it promotes the use of a methodology with a low level of complexity, and that can be replicated with different games. This perspective adds valuable insights to the existing literature, offering practical implications for educators and institutions seeking effective strategies to promote SDL skills among students.

The effectiveness of case method in developing intrapreneurship among business students

Intrapreneurship skill has considered as the alternative learning outcomes of entrepreneurship education. However, entrepreneurship teachers need a complex learning program to develop intrapreneurship among business students. At the same time, The Ministry of Education and Culture of The Republic of Indonesia recommends university teachers implement case methods to deliver complex learning environments and build critical skills among students.  Therefore, this study aims to i) examine the effect of micro small medium enterprise (MSME) cases on the intrapreneurship of business students, ii) investigate the influence of MSME cases on flow experience in entrepreneurship education and iii) investigate the effect of flow experience during entrepreneurship education on intrapreneurship skill.  We used field experiments on entrepreneurship and digital business student in business development courses.  The result indicates that the case method effectively developed student intrapreneurship skill and flow experience during the course positively impacting student intrapreneurship skill.

Humans adaptively select different computational strategies in different learning environments.

The Rescorla-Wagner rule remains the most popular tool to describe human behavior in reinforcement learning tasks. Nevertheless, it cannot fit human learning in complex environments. Previous work proposed several hierarchical extensions of this learning rule. However, it remains unclear when a flat (nonhierarchical) versus a hierarchical strategy is adaptive, or when it is implemented by humans. To address this question, current work applies a nested modeling approach to evaluate multiple models in multiple reinforcement learning environments both computationally (which approach performs best) and empirically (which approach fits human data best). We consider 10 empirical data sets (N = 407) divided over three reinforcement learning environments. Our results demonstrate that different environments are best solved with different learning strategies; and that humans adaptively select the learning strategy that allows best performance. Specifically, while flat learning fitted best in less complex stable learning environments, humans employed more hierarchically complex models in more complex environments. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

How Do Operating Room Nurse Students Experience the Learning Environment in the Operating Room?

Please note this article was first published in Norwegian. You can read the Norwegian article here. Background: There is little research-based knowledge about how operating room nursing students experience the learning environment in an operating room. Results from international studies indicate that structural challenges such as time pressure, high demands for efficiency, and a minimum of time delegated to guidance are all characteristic of the learning environment. More insight into how operating room nursing students experience an operating room is an important element for improving the quality of practice studies in a high-tech and time-efficient environment. Aim: The purpose of the study is to describe operating room nursing students’ experiences of their learning environment in operating rooms. Method: The study has a qualitative and descriptive research design, utilizing systematic text condensation as an analytical method. Data was gathered through conducting focus-group interviews with operating room nursing students in their final semester of the nursing education study program. Results: Three main categories were brought up repeatedly by these students: 1) The significance of having supervisors, 2) The unclear responsibility with respect to formal and informal guidance in a multidisciplinary learning environment, and 3) The situation of learning in a complex and unpredictable learning environment. Conclusion: The results provide further insight into operating room nursing students’ experiences of their learning environment in authentic practice studies. The results can be utilized in further improving the learning environment for operating room nursing students.

Parallel executive pallio-motor loops in the pigeon brain.

A core component of the avian pallial cognitive network is the multimodal nidopallium caudolaterale (NCL) that is considered to be analogous to the mammalian prefrontal cortex (PFC). The NCL plays a key role in a multitude of executive tasks such as working memory, decision-making during navigation, and extinction learning in complex learning environments. Like the PFC, the NCL is positioned at the transition from ascending sensory to descending motor systems. For the latter, it sends descending premotor projections to the intermediate arcopallium (AI) and the medial striatum (MSt). To gain detailed insight into the organization of these projections, we conducted several retrograde and anterograde tracing experiments. First, we tested whether NCL neurons projecting to AI (NCLarco neurons) and MSt (NCLMSt neurons) are constituted by a single neuronal population with bifurcating neurons, or whether they form two distinct populations. Here, we found two distinct projection patterns to both target areas that were associated with different morphologies. Second, we revealed a weak topographic projection toward the medial and lateral striatum and a strong topographic projection toward AI with clearly distinguishable sensory termination fields. Third, we investigated the relationship between the descending NCL pathways to the arcopallium with those from the hyperpallium apicale, which harbors a second major descending pathway of the avian pallium. We embed our findings within a system of parallel pallio-motor loops that carry information from separate sensory modalities to different subpallial systems. Our results also provide insights into the evolution of the avian motor system from which, possibly, the song system has emerged.

Exploring the synergy between instructional design models and learning theories: A systematic literature review

To enhance education, we conducted a comprehensive investigation into integrating instructional design models (IDMs) and learning theories in this systematic literature review. We methodically selected and analyzed 25 publications from a pool of 1,102 documents using the preferred reportinfg items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses framework to guarantee a rigorous and systematic approach to literature selection. Our results demonstrate the worldwide span of study on this topic, including contributions from prestigious academic institutions and scholarly journals. This examination explores both the benefits and drawbacks of combining IDMs with learning theories. Noteworthy positives include increased student motivation, support for innovative teaching methods, and the development of complex and diverse learning environments. However, several shortcomings were observed. most notably relating to accessibility problems, evaluation difficulties, and questions about the adaptability of such integrated techniques. Our findings have implications for a broad range of stakeholders, including educators, instructional designers, and students functioning in a variety of educational contexts. The increase of learner motivation, the creation of novel pedagogical tools, the refining of teacher training programs, and the promotion of interdisciplinary learning methods are significant areas of focus. In addition, our evaluation uncovered a number of gaps in the current literature, indicating intriguing possibilities for future research. The examination of holistic learning environments, the untapped potential of integrated systems, the incorporation of educational robots into pedagogical tactics, and the refining of schema assessment approaches are notable research fields. By providing these insights, this systematic review not only adds to the current body of knowledge, but also has the potential to shape the future trajectory of educational practices, so acting as a significant resource for boosting learning outcomes in a variety of educational environments.

Rational inattention: A new theory of neurodivergent information seeking.

This paper presents rational inattention as a new, transdiagnostic theory of information seeking in neurodevelopmental conditions that have uneven cognitive and socio-emotional profiles, including developmental language disorder (DLD), dyslexia, dyscalculia and autism. Rational inattention holds that the optimal solution to minimizing epistemic uncertainty is to avoid imprecise information sources. The key theoretical contribution of this report is to endogenize imprecision, making it a function of the primary neurocognitive difficulties that have been invoked to explain neurodivergent phenotypes, including deficits in auditory perception, working memory, procedural learning and the social brain network. We argue that disengagement with information sources with low endogenous precision (e.g. speech in DLD, orthography-phonology mappings in dyslexia, numeric stimuli in dyscalculia and social signals in autism) constitutes resource-rational behaviour. We demonstrate the strength of this account in a series of computational simulations. In experiment 1, we simulate information seeking in artificial agents mimicking an array of neurodivergent phenotypes, which optimally explore a complex learning environment containing speech, text, numeric stimuli and social cues. In experiment 2, we simulate optimal information seeking in a cross-modal dual-task paradigm and qualitatively replicate empirical data from children with and without DLD. Across experiments, simulated agents' only aim was to maximally reduce epistemic uncertainty, with no difference in reward across information sources. We show that rational inattention emerges naturally in specific neurodivergent phenotypes as a function of low endogenous precision. For instance, an agent mimicking the DLD phenotype disengages with speech (and preferentially engages with alternative precise information sources) because endogenous imprecision renders speech not conducive to information gain. Because engagement is necessary for learning, simulation demonstrates how optimal information seeking may paradoxically contribute negatively to an already delayed learning trajectory in neurodivergent children. RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS: We present the first comprehensive theory of information seeking in neurodivergent children to date, centred on the notion of rational inattention. We demonstrate the strength of this account in a series of computational simulations involving artificial agents mimicking specific neurodivergent phenotypes that optimally explore a complex learning environment containing speech, text, numeric stimuli, and social cues. We show how optimal information seeking may, paradoxically, contribute negatively to an already delayed learning trajectory in neurodivergent children. This report advances our understanding of the factors shaping short-term decision making and long-term learning in neurodivergent children.

Glocal Evaluation Competencies for Learning As We Go: Zooming in and zooming out to connect system-level solutions to local beneficiaries

Identifying essential competencies for evaluators has received significant attention in recent years yet practical examples of how to apply competencies to real-time learning in complex environments are lacking. In particular, the experience of those at the local level - ultimate beneficiary individuals (UBIs) - can get lost when evaluations take a systems perspective. Experienced evaluators share how Learning as we go is used to describe utilization-focused developmental evaluation embedding evaluative thinking and building capacity in public sector programs, that support learning and adaptation to improve the lives of those most impacted by inequitable and unsustainable global systems.

The quality of teaching behaviors in learning environments of DHH students.

Classrooms are complex learning environments, with instruction, climate, and teacher-student interactions playing important roles in students' academic progress. To investigate the learning environments of deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) students, we developed a new observational tool called the Quality of the Learning Environment-DHH rating scale (QLE-DHH) and rated 98 teachers of DHH students being educated in a range of classroom environments. The present study sought to (1) determine if the items on the QLE-DHH are good indicators of theoretically meaningful dimensions of classroom quality; (2) determine to what extent these dimensions predicted language and reading outcomes of DHH students; and (3) examine how teachers of DHH students were rated on the indicators of classroom quality. The findings suggested that the QLE-DHH has excellent structural validity. Ratings predicted student reading outcomes. Finally, the QLE-DHH was able to capture teachers' strengths and skills in need of improvement. The QLE-DHH appears to hold promise for use in both research and teacher preparation programs.

Measuring learning in digital games: Applying a game‐based assessment framework

Digital games (DGs) have the potential to immerse learners in simulated real‐world environments that foster contextualised and active learning experiences. These also offer opportunities for performance assessments by providing an environment for students to carry out tasks requiring the application of knowledge and skills learned in the classroom. Although widely used for teaching and learning, there are challenges in using digital game applications for assessment. Designing assessments around tasks in complex learning environments like DGs is not always easy, particularly for educators new to using these technologies for teaching. This paper presents a game‐based assessment framework (GBAF) that is designed to be educator‐friendly and useful for the design of assessments for immersive learning environments. The application of the framework to the design of embedded and external (multiple‐choice questions) assessments is also presented. The GBAF offered an easy and structured basis for the design of two distinct assessments for a computer game. It provides educators with useful guidelines for designing assessments around pre‐existing games. Practitioner notesWhat is already known about this topicImmersive technologies are increasingly being used for teaching and learning due to their benefits to knowledge and skills acquisition. However, for educators interested in using these tools for formal classroom teaching, there is a lack of resources and guidance on assessment designs and implementations. The most commonly used assessment design framework, the evidence‐centred design (ECD), is complicated to use, requiring advanced machine learning skills to implement. This has so far limited its use to large‐scale computerised and game‐based testing.What this paper addsThis paper presents a framework developed to guide educators through the design and implementation of assessments when teaching with immersive learning applications. Grounded in the constructive alignment principles and the ECD framework, the game‐based assessment framework is designed to help educators align assessment tasks to game tasks and the intended learning outcomes. It also provides step‐by‐step guidelines for the identification of appropriate immersive applications. It shows the practical application of the framework to the design of embedded (in‐game) assessments and external (multiple‐choice tests) assessments.Implications for practice and/or policyThe framework presented in this paper provides a structured and pedagogically sound basis for the design of assessments when measuring performance, or skills and knowledge acquisition with immersive learning applications.

Webquest technology in foreign language classes

The article investigates webquests as an educational technology and examines its effectiveness in teaching foreign languages.
 Current conditions and the progressive development of society have significantly influenced the organization of education. Creative methods as relevant approaches to teaching, especially foreign languages, were studied in the article. Among the entire list of creative teaching technologies, the use of quests has attracted the attention of researchers and teachers due to its adequacy and adaptability to complex and changing learning environments. The study examines the essence of webquest technology, which meets the requirements of the online educational process. The current types of webquests and their characteristic features were also studied. Designing educational webquests requires careful preparation by the teacher. The possibility of creating webquests on online platforms greatly simplifies the preparatory work of the teacher and promotes the popularization of webquests among students. The process of creating a webquest for the discipline “German language” on the Genial.ly platform was described in detail in the article. The authors outlined the main stages of webquest preparation and design. The feasibility of selecting certain types of tasks within the created webquest while teaching this discipline was also described. The article presents the main results of the experiment with the use of webquests during the “German language” discipline for first-year students majoring in Philology and proves the effectiveness of webquests in teaching foreign languages, in particular.

Data-Driven Prediction of Students’ Online Learning Needs and Optimization of Knowledge Library Management

Thanks to the advancement of information technology, online learning has become a crucial tool of modern education, and the management of modern education is facing the challenges of how to effectively predict students’ learning needs and how to optimize the management of the knowledge library to support these needs. However, existing data-driven prediction approaches are flawed in handling complex learning environments and timely adapting to changes, so this study attempts to solve these questions by exploring the correlation between learning needs, the extraction of knowledge linkages, and the optimization of knowledge libraries based on rule updates. In our work, a new method was proposed for extracting learning needs and knowledge linkages to more accurately identify and predict students’ learning needs, and a rule-based knowledge library management optimization method was introduced to allow the knowledge library to more flexibly adapt to students’ learning needs and the changes in educational resources. In this way, this study offers a comprehensive and flexible solution for education management via the combination of these two aspects, which not only increases student satisfaction and improves teaching quality but also reduces resource waste and gives students a more personalized and efficient learning experience. Furthermore, the methods and findings of this study could also be used as references for data-driven decision-making in other fields.

Collaborative learning as constructivist practice: An exploratory qualitative descriptive study of faculty approaches to student group work

Collaborative learning is a common teaching technique, posited to align with a constructivist approach to teaching and learning. This qualitative descriptive study explores how, if at all, faculty implementation and discussion of collaborative learning shows evidence of it as a constructivist practice. Nineteen faculty at a large public mid-Atlantic university in the United States, representing a variety of academic disciplines, were interviewed about the ways in which they use collaborative learning in their courses. Driscoll’s five constructivist conditions for learning guided qualitative analysis: complex and relevant learning environments, social negotiation, multiple perspectives and modes of learning, ownership in learning, and self-awareness of knowledge construction. Faculty descriptions of collaborative learning provided a rich picture of its use and revealed ample alignment with these conditions. Faculty most often highlighted the ways in which collaborative learning supported the creation of complex and relevant learning environments and allowed for students’ ownership in learning. They least often discussed the ways in which collaborative learning supported self-awareness of knowledge construction and occasionally expressed challenges with social negotiation.

Exploring Tutor Experiences of 21st Century Skills during and after COVID-19: An ODeL Case Study

In this study, the researchers argue that the changes in 21st-century socio-economic and educational environments have significantly determined the requisite tutor skills in the 21st century. With the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic, knowledge of technology education has become an additional determinant for effective teaching in a 21st-century environment. This study aimed to interrogate tutor experiences concerning teaching approaches and pedagogies adopted during this period. The pedagogical expectations now demand that tutors integrate technology into teaching as well as transform the traditional teacher-centred to a learner-centred pedagogy. It is imperative that tutors should not only embrace pedagogical strategies involving ICT but also align the teaching-learning strategies to subject knowledge. A qualitative exploratory approach was employed for this study with a sample of five part-time tutors and two Tutor Coordinators who were purposefully selected to be interviewed online following an open-ended interview schedule. The study was anchored on the following questions: What were tutors’ teaching experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic, and how did they transition to online tuition? The findings depict the need for comprehensive training of tutors on digital literacy, combined with integrating pedagogical and disciplinary knowledge. The researchers applied the Technological, Pedagogical and Content Knowledge (TPACK) model as the theoretical lens to interpret the data. The findings should contribute towards bridging the literature gap but also equip the 21st-century tutor with the requisite skills for the complex teaching and learning environment dictated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Development of Chinese Danmaku Video Sites based on Self-Directed Learning (CDSDL) Model for Undergraduate Students in TAM Model

In an increasingly complex and uncertain learning environments, self-directed learning is an essential skill for living and working.The notion of self-directed learning emerged from the adult education profession, and experts emphasize the need of examining that the self-directed learning competence may be developed among university students.However, little research has been conducted to investigate the factors that influence Chinese Danmaku video sites for self-directed learning strategies intention and adoption as sustainability. The current study seeks to determine whether and to what extent the factors influence Chinese Danmaku video sites for self-directed learning intention and adoption as sustainability in relation to the two stages. And, it presents a research framework for combining the technology acceptance model (TAM) for adoption with Facilitating conditions (FC), individual cultural characteristics, social influence (SI) and the task fit technology model (TTF) for utility. In addition, to encourage higher education universities to ensure their long-term viability (sustainability) by using Chinese Danmaku video sites for self-directed learning, student satisfaction measures when students succeed in their studies and are satisfied with their overall experience. 

Cooperative Multi-Agent Learning in a Complex World: Challenges and Solutions

Over the past few years, artificial intelligence (AI) has achieved great success in a variety of applications, such as image classification and recommendation systems. This success has often been achieved by training machine learning models on static datasets, where inputs and desired outputs are provided. However, we are now seeing a shift in this paradigm. Instead of learning from static datasets, machine learning models are increasingly being trained through feedback from their interactions with the world. This is particularly important when machine learning models are deployed in the real world, as their decisions can often have an impact on other agents, turning the decision-making process into a multi-agent problem. As a result, multi-agent learning in complex environments is a critical area of research for the next generation of AI, particularly in the context of cooperative tasks. Cooperative multi-agent learning is an essential problem for practitioners to consider as it has the potential to enable a wide range of multi-agent tasks. In this presentation, we will review the background and challenges of cooperative multi-agent learning, and survey our research that aims to address these challenges.

Why they do and why they don’t: a combined criminological approach to understanding assignment outsourcing in higher education

Assignment outsourcing is an intractable challenge for higher education. While various academic and legislative approaches have sought to explain/respond to this problem, recent media, community, and government concerns suggest students are increasingly outsourcing assessments. This paper reports on the qualitative findings of an international survey (n = 7000 +) of students’ perceptions and experiences of outsourcing, to test the utility of a multi-theoretical criminological explanation for this behaviour. The results reveal a complex learning environment where students’ knowledge is shaped by an assemblage of social, cultural, and institutional influences; a learning environment where engagement in, or avoidance of, cheating are dynamic. Interdependent behaviours are learnt, shared or observed, and reinforced through peer networks. Interrogation of students’ qualitative comments emphasises that intervention is possible, albeit equally complex.

Combining clinical practice and education in critical care nursing-A trainee program for registered nurses.

The aim of this study was to describe the experiences of a master's-level critical care nursing program for trainees in postoperative and intensive care units. An exploratory design with a multidimensional approach was chosen. The study was conducted from 2018 to 2019 at a university hospital in southern Norway in collaboration with a university college of nursing. Data were collected through seven focus group interviews with trainees, preceptors, heads of departments, clinical nurse educators and professors (n= 26). The thematic analysis progressed from description to a deeper understanding, searching for manifest and latent patterns across the data. The COREQ checklist was used for reporting the study. The analysis resulted in one overarching theme: 'To walk the critical care nursing pathway - balancing competency, time, and challenges to become proficient'. The subthemes were 'expectations, obligations, and workload in unknown environments', 'constantly assessing while being assessed', 'continuous precepting and challenges', 'vulnerability and commitment' and 'thriving in the role, mastering new skills'. The study provides valuable insights into a complex learning environment and the importance of caring aspects for trainees during their critical care nursing education. Precepting, continuous competence assessment and clear learning outcomes are necessary to create a safe environment for the trainees during their development. The results advocate investing in inexperienced trainees' competency development to become proficient, creating a safe learning environment in a highly complex setting. This may also, as previous studies suggest, increase staff retention.

Visualization and metacognitive scaffolding in learning from animations

In two successive experiments, we compared a static and dynamic visualization format with respect to learning success. We provided metacognitive scaffolding in the form of cognitive and metacognitive prompts during the learning sequence. As covariates, learners’ domain-specific ability self-concept as well as prior knowledge and metacognitive learning strategies were assessed. Results suggest here that static visualization of transitions are superior to dynamic visualization of animations in the science classroom. In addition, metacognitive scaffolding might be helpful in complex and long-term learning environments, but not in short time and mostly linear learning sequences.

Augmented Reality Applications in Education and Examining Key Factors Affecting the Users’ Behaviors

Augmented Reality (AR) is increasingly influential in education. AR technology allows users to learn and practice in a simulated environment that enables repetition, correction, and failure without risk. The present study evaluated users’ attitudes towards using AR for learning complex tasks. The users are asked to interact with an AR Piling (ARP) application that shows various steps of a construction process. A set of selected practitioners and students used the application, and the evaluation involved various participants of different genders and backgrounds. A questionnaire was designed and data was collected through an online survey based on the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM). The model is modified considering education practices and adjusted to an AR app for learning purposes. The novelty of the model lies in various constructs such as technical quality, social influence, perceived immersion, learning, and perceived enjoyment. 200 responses were obtained and used for evaluating the proposed model. The attitude toward using AR and the perceived usefulness of AR were the two factors that determined the participants’ behavioral intention to use ARP. Respondents showed a high level of acceptance for AR. In education and higher learning contexts, the findings of this study contribute to a deeper understanding of how AR is accepted in complex learning environments. The study allows us to extend the TAM by examining how AR technology can be applied to teaching in universities and unpack the ways in which gender influences learning through AR application.