Potential Learning Benefits Research Articles

Postdigital Game-Based Learning: Complexity, Continuity, and Contingency

AbstractDiscourses that establish the potential learning benefits of digital games for schooling too often focus on learning as a product of relations between student and gameplay, adopting overly deterministic positions that have long been associated with digital technologies and education. This paper draws on ideas from postdigitalism to problematise such narrow conceptualisations of digital game-based learning (DGBL). The analysis of one Australian school’s experience of incorporating digital games into their senior English curriculum provides a break from broad generations and allows a focus on the web of relations within which digital games exist when deployed in formal school contexts. An analytical framework which draws on three ideas emerging from postdigital studies is utilized to explore relations of power through which digital games interact as they are played and studied in schools. This analysis suggests that unitary logics about learning and digital games are insufficient and highlights the importance of engaging with the complexity, continuity and contingency in DGBL contexts to combat the hyperbole that surrounds digital games and education. Postdigital attention on actual instances of digital game deployment reveals the fragility of all knowledge claims about these technologies, contributing to a more critical discourse regarding their potential to impact school learning.

Why don’t students draw when learning from science texts?

This study explored why students rarely create drawings when learning from science texts despite potential learning benefits. Undergraduates (n = 114) studied a 10-part text on the human respiratory system and took notes by choosing their own strategies (free choice group) or by choosing to create a drawing or write a verbal summary (forced choice group). Other students were instructed to create drawings (draw group) or write summaries (summarize group). All students then completed a series of post-tests. The forced choice group chose to draw significantly more frequently than the free choice group; however, both groups still overwhelmingly chose summarizing. Participants across all groups reported lower prior experience, lower expectancies for success, lower perceived value, and higher perceived cost of drawing compared to summarizing. Students’ prior experiences and beliefs about drawing were also associated with how frequently they chose to draw, providing implications for future instructional interventions.

From Traditional to Digital: Children’s Learning of Traditional Chinese Culture Through Festival-Related Storytelling

Multimedia technology is a potentially efficient supplementary storytelling strategy. However, the effectiveness of multimedia storytelling for teaching about traditional festivals is unknown. We compared the effects of traditional storytelling (TST) and multimedia digital storytelling (MDST) on learning achievements, attitudes, and preferences towards studying traditional Chinese festivals. A quasiexperimental intervention (8-week lessons about two festivals) was conducted with experimental and control groups of 58 third graders from Guangdong Province, China. We found MDST increased children’s learning outcomes and preferences towards learning about Chinese festivals. The MDST group showed larger gains in academic performance than the TST group–although they showed similar positive effects, they were more pronounced in the MDST group. Overall, MDST has substantial potential learning benefits, and multimedia digital technology can effectively stimulate students’ interest in learning about Chinese traditions and culture. The implications of using MDST for traditional culture and festival education and future research recommendations are discussed.

A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF TEACHER PERCEPTIONS ON AI-ENABLED GAMIFIED ASSESSMENT PLATFORMS IN SAUDI ARABIAN AND INDIAN HIGHER EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS

This study investigated how educators in higher education from Saudi Arabia and India perceive AI-powered gamified assessment platforms (AGATs). We aimed to compare teacher perceptions across these two culturally distinct educational systems, considering factors like perceived usefulness, ease of use, trust in AI, and the appeal of gamification. Online surveys gathered data from a diverse sample of teachers in both countries. A total of 120 respondents participated, with an equal representation from India (n=60) and Saudi Arabia (n=60). The analysis compared the average scores and standard deviations for each group using paired-sample t-tests. While initial perceptions may appear similar, significant differences emerged between the two groups, particularly indicating Saudi Arabian teachers greater receptivity to AGATs. The surveys explored user experience, perceived effectiveness of AGATs, and attitudes towards gamification and AI assessments. While some potential variations in perceptions emerged (Table 1.2), paired-sample t-tests (Table 1.3) revealed statistically significant differences between the two groups. Interestingly, initial analyses suggest Saudi Arabian teachers might be slightly more receptive to AGATs, warranting further investigation. These findings, though limited by the online survey methodology, highlight the importance of understanding teacher perceptions for successful AGAT implementation. Future research with larger and more diverse samples, potentially incorporating qualitative methods, could provide deeper insights into these variations. In conclusion, although potential variations in teacher perceptions across countries were observed, statistically significant differences were established, leading to the rejection of the null hypothesis. This underscores the need for future research with larger, more diverse samples and the potential value of qualitative methods to delve deeper into the underlying reasons for these variations. Ultimately, considering teacher perceptions is crucial for successful AGAT implementation. By understanding these nuances, we can tailor educational technology like AGATs to better suit the needs of teachers across diverse contexts, ultimately promoting effective integration and maximizing their potential benefits for student learning.

Algorithmically-driven writing and academic integrity: exploring educators' practices, perceptions, and policies in AI era

BackgroundDespite global interest in the interface of Algorithmically-driven writing tools (ADWTs) and academic integrity, empirical data considering educators' perspectives on the challenges, benefits, and policies of ADWTs use remain scarce.AimThis study responds to calls for empirical investigation concerning the affordances and encumbrances of ADWTs, and their implications for academic integrity.MethodsUsing a cross-sectional survey research design, we recruited through snowball sampling 100 graduate students and faculty members representing ten disciplines. Participants completed an online survey on perceptions, practices, and policies in the utilization of ADWTs in education. The Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) helped us understand the factors influencing the acceptance and use of ADWTs.ResultsThe study found that teacher respondents highly value the diverse ways ADWTs can support their educational goals (perceived usefulness). However, they must overcome their barrier threshold such as limited access to these tools (perception of external control), a perceived lack of knowledge on their use (computer self-efficacy), and concerns about ADWTs' impact on academic integrity, creativity, and more (output quality).ConclusionAI technologies are making headway in more educational institutions because of their proven and potential benefits for teaching, learning, assessment, and research. However, AI in education, particularly ADWTs, demands critical awareness of ethical protocols and entails collaboration and empowerment of all stakeholders by introducing innovations that showcase human intelligence over AI or partnership with AI.

‘Your past prepares you for who you will become’: reoccurring themes in the individual pasts of maker education teachers

ABSTRACT Maker education offer numerous potential benefits for student learning; however, we currently lack an understanding of the ways in which educators integrate these pedagogies into regular practice. This qualitative study examines the background and motivations of 12 educators involved in makerspace initiatives at their respective schools in Israel. Through a thematic analysis of interviews, this study presents several overlapping characteristics of teachers who chose maker education as their way of teaching, to reveal the conditions under which maker educators are created naturally, and the features and attitudes that characterise them. Recognising these intersecting characteristics can enable schools to provide essential support systems for prospective maker educators.

Leveraging Collaborative Project-Based Learning to Encourage Speaking Proficiency in EFL classroom: A Case Study in Engineering Department

The study aims to explore students' perspectives on the implementation of collaborative project-based learning (CPBL) in the Engineering Department as a means to enhance their understanding of the subject matter and develop problem-solving abilities. A quasi-experimental design was employed, and data was collected through a semi-structured questionnaire. The results indicate that CPBL has the potential to improve students' speaking and presentation skills in various aspects, including grammar, discourse competence, sociolinguistics, strategic competence, fluency, accuracy, and presentation skills. The study also recommends further investigation into computer-mediated communication within group projects and suggests incorporating controlled and energizing task speaking during comparison evaluations to foster reflective thinking among both teachers and students. In summary, this research highlights the positive impact of CPBL on language and presentation skills within the Engineering Department, emphasizing its potential benefits for student learning.

Audio-synchronized textual enhancement in foreign language pronunciation learning from videos

The benefits of multimodal input on foreign language listening comprehension and vocabulary learning are well-established, but only recently has its impact on pronunciation been explored. In this study, we audio-synchronized the highlighting of target words in captions to promote the activation of their phonolexical representations at the time they are auditorily processed and improve phonological updating in the mental lexicon. We recorded the eye movements of 58 L1-Spanish/Catalan learners of English as they watched two videos with target words (TWs) highlighted 500 ms or 300 ms before auditory onset, highlighted from caption onset or, alternatively, under one of two control conditions (unenhanced and uncaptioned). We assessed updating of phonolexical forms in terms of more accurate and faster rejection of mispronunciations of the TWs from pre-to post-test. Results showed that 300 ms synchronized enhancement and unsynchronized enhancement led to longer fixation duration, unsynchronized enhancement reduced TW skipping probability, and both synchronized conditions promoted higher audio-visual synchrony in learners' caption reading. While only the unsynchronized condition resulted in more accurate responses at post-test, all enhancement conditions led to significantly faster rejection of mispronunciations. These initial findings call for further research on audio-synchronized enhancement and its potential benefits for L2 pronunciation learning.

Developing a Comprehensive Reading Test for Undergraduate Students: An LMS-Based Reading Test

There has been a significant increase in the development of reading assessment methods by educators and researchers. However, very few of these assessments have been integrated into a Learning Management System (LMS) platform, with current LMS usage primarily focused on course content delivery. This research aims to address this gap by developing a comprehensive LMS-based reading test to measure students' reading competence. Additionally, the study seeks to explore students' perspectives on the use of the developed instrument. The development of the instrument followed a Research & Development (R&D) approach using the 4D model, which consists of defining, designing, developing, and disseminating stages. The participants of this study were undergraduate English as a Foreign Language (EFL) students from Universitas Madako Tolitoli. In total, 50 reading test items were successfully developed. Both validity and reliability tests were conducted: the validity test was performed by experts in the field and followed by a pilot test with a small sample of students. The results indicated that the test items were reliable, with a Cronbach's Alpha score of 0.75. However, 6 of the items (12%) were deemed to need improvement or were considered invalid, while the remaining 44 items (88%) were judged to be valid. Students' perceptions of the LMS-based reading test were generally positive across three aspects: usability and accessibility, engagement and motivation, and the impact of the LMS on language learning outcomes. In light of the limitations of the current study, suggestions for improvement were also provided. These will serve to guide future research in this area, with the aim of refining the LMS-based reading test and further enhancing its potential benefits for student learning.

Exploring the use of tutorial recordings for beginner distance learners of Chinese

Abstract Previous research into listening to recorded tutorial interaction highlights the potential of tutorial recordings as a scalable resource in online contexts. Dialogue between tutor and learner or between peers may mediate the understanding not just of direct participants, but also of listeners, and listening to interactive recordings may facilitate deep learning. In language learning, both direct and indirect interactions have been shown to contribute to language development. This is relevant for online learning design, especially so in contexts where no tutorials are provided, and students are confronted with a challenging language such as Chinese. This paper reports on a small-scale project which explored potential learning benefits of working with recordings of online tutorials in a non-accredited, self-directed course for beginner learners of Chinese through surveys and stimulated recall interviews. Our analysis of the data shows that viewers focused on different visual and auditory elements of the recordings; they participated vicariously in interactions between a teacher and students, and they reported benefits for language learning and motivation. Findings suggest that these perceived benefits and preferences are linked to linguistic competence in comparison with direct attenders. The study aims to feed into a larger research project including more languages and accredited courses at the next stage.

Chinese University Students’ Attitudes and Perceptions in Learning English Using ChatGPT

Since its release into the public domain, the generative AI tool - ChatGPT has arisen wide attention by its sophisticated capacity to carry out complex tasks. Many educators have researched the advanced tool in offering potential benefits for language teaching and learning. This research is designed for assessing Chinese university students’ attitudes towards using ChatGPT to improve their English learning and their perceptions regarding the advantages and disadvantages of ChatGPT. In this study, data were collected from 109 undergraduate Chinese students, using a questionnaire consisting of 5-point Likert scale questions. The findings of the study show that the students believe ChatGPT is an effective tool to support them in learning English but information security should be taken into further consideration. Policymakers, technology experts, researchers, and educators could work together on how ChatGPT and other evolving generative AI tools could be used safely and effectively in English teaching and learning

Evaluating user interface of a mobile augmented reality coloring application for children with autism: An eye-tracking investigation

Mobile augmented reality (AR) solutions are increasingly being used to facilitate learning and skills training for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Derived from the fact that mobile AR systems can be embedded with multimedia effects, such as 3D animations, sounds or personalized images, with potential benefits for learning and engagement. Many mobile AR-based applications have been developed over the past decade; however, little is known about how children with autism interact with mobile AR application interface elements, which limits the accessible user interface (UI) design of such applications. In this study, we conducted an eye-tracking experiment to examine how children with autism interact differently with the UI of mobile AR coloring apps compared to typically developing (TD) children. Both quantitative and qualitative data suggest that 1) icons and images were more attractive to ASD children and could facilitate their understanding of the task more effectively; 2) a richer interface makes participants with autism focus more on irrelevant elements; and 3) the size and position of icons affected their speed of information processing. We recommend that UI be designed to suit the characteristics of children with autism. For example, visual stimuli such as icons or images should be meaningful; screen elements need to be simple and clear; background distractions should be avoided; and text also needs to be brief and precise. This study is expected to inspire researchers to provide AR apps with accessible UIs in the future and improve the user experience (UX) of children with autism.

An information theoretic score for learning hierarchical concepts.

How do humans learn the regularities of their complex noisy world in a robust manner? There is ample evidence that much of this learning and development occurs in an unsupervised fashion via interactions with the environment. Both the structure of the world as well as the brain appear hierarchical in a number of ways, and structured hierarchical representations offer potential benefits for efficient learning and organization of knowledge, such as concepts (patterns) sharing parts (subpatterns), and for providing a foundation for symbolic computation and language. A major question arises: what drives the processes behind acquiring such hierarchical spatiotemporal concepts? We posit that the goal of advancing one's predictions is a major driver for learning such hierarchies and introduce an information-theoretic score that shows promise in guiding the processes, and, in particular, motivating the learner to build larger concepts. We have been exploring the challenges of building an integrated learning and developing system within the framework of prediction games, wherein concepts serve as (1) predictors, (2) targets of prediction, and (3) building blocks for future higher-level concepts. Our current implementation works on raw text: it begins at a low level, such as characters, which are the hardwired or primitive concepts, and grows its vocabulary of networked hierarchical concepts over time. Concepts are strings or n-grams in our current realization, but we hope to relax this limitation, e.g., to a larger subclass of finite automata. After an overview of the current system, we focus on the score, named CORE. CORE is based on comparing the prediction performance of the system with a simple baseline system that is limited to predicting with the primitives. CORE incorporates a tradeoff between how strongly a concept is predicted (or how well it fits its context, i.e., nearby predicted concepts) vs. how well it matches the (ground) "reality," i.e., the lowest level observations (the characters in the input episode). CORE is applicable to generative models such as probabilistic finite state machines (beyond strings). We highlight a few properties of CORE with examples. The learning is scalable and open-ended. For instance, thousands of concepts are learned after hundreds of thousands of episodes. We give examples of what is learned, and we also empirically compare with transformer neural networks and n-gram language models to situate the current implementation with respect to state-of-the-art and to further illustrate the similarities and differences with existing techniques. We touch on a variety of challenges and promising future directions in advancing the approach, in particular, the challenge of learning concepts with a more sophisticated structure.

Implementing Remote Collaboration in a Virtual Patient Platform: Usability Study.

BackgroundLearning with virtual patients is highly popular for fostering clinical reasoning in medical education. However, little learning with virtual patients is done collaboratively, despite the potential learning benefits of collaborative versus individual learning.ObjectiveThis paper describes the implementation of student collaboration in a virtual patient platform. Our aim was to allow pairs of students to communicate remotely with each other during virtual patient learning sessions. We hypothesized that we could provide a collaborative tool that did not impair the usability of the system compared to individual learning and that this would lead to better diagnostic accuracy for the pairs of students.MethodsImplementing the collaboration tool had five steps: (1) searching for a suitable software library, (2) implementing the application programming interface, (3) performing technical adaptations to ensure high-quality connections for the users, (4) designing and developing the user interface, and (5) testing the usability of the tool in 270 virtual patient sessions. We compared dyad to individual diagnostic accuracy and usability with the 10-item System Usability Scale.ResultsWe recruited 137 students who worked on 6 virtual patients. Out of 270 virtual patient sessions per group (45 dyads times 6 virtual patients, and 47 students working individually times 6 virtual patients minus 2 randomly selected deleted sessions) the students made successful diagnoses in 143/270 sessions (53%, SD 26%) when working alone and 192/270 sessions (71%, SD 20%) when collaborating (P=.04, η2=0.12). A usability questionnaire given to the students who used the collaboration tool showed a usability score of 82.16 (SD 1.31), representing a B+ grade.ConclusionsThe collaboration tool provides a generic approach for collaboration that can be used with most virtual patient systems. The collaboration tool helped students diagnose virtual patients and had good overall usability. More broadly, the collaboration tool will provide an array of new possibilities for researchers and medical educators alike to design courses for collaborative learning with virtual patients.

The benefits of successive relearning on multiple learning outcomes.

Successive relearning involves repeated retrieval practice of the same information (with feedback) over multiple, spaced sessions. We implemented successive relearning in an introductory psychology class to explore potential learning benefits. After each weekly lecture, students were sent links via email to engage in three learning practice sessions, each separated by two days. Half the students engaged in successive relearning (relearn condition), answering 20 fill-in-the-blank questions with corrective feedback. Within each session, correctly answered questions were dropped, whereas incorrectly answered questions were presented up to 2 more times. The other half of students restudied the same 20 sentences without blanks twice per session (restudy condition). Unlike previous research, we controlled the exposure duration of the learning materials between the relearn and restudy conditions. Learning practice sessions continued throughout the remaining 10 weeks of the semester, with students alternating each week between the relearning and restudying tasks. Recall of course material at the end of the semester was better for relearning compared to restudying. Increased recall during relearning sessions was associated with further learning benefits including improved metacognition, increased self-reported sense of mastery, increased attentional control, and reduced anxiety. Individual differences were not associated with the benefit of relearning over restudying in the retention tests. Qualitative feedback indicated that students found successive relearning to be enjoyable and valuable. Our research indicates that successive relearning is a valuable addition to any university course and is easy to implement using digital resources.

Can Gamification Influence the Academic Performance of Students?

Gamification along with a whole range of other active methodologies are being incorporated into university classrooms due to their potential benefits for student learning. The aim of this paper was to analyse how a multimodal learning environment based on gamification could affect the final grades of university students in a subject taught at the Faculty of Education in a spanish university. The research was made up of 133 Spanish university students (Mage = 19.60; SDage = 0.43 years old). A quasi-experimental post-test design with a control group was used. The control group and the intervention group consisted of 66 and 67 students respectively. A multimodal gamified learning environment was set up for the intervention group, in contrast to traditional teaching methods which were reserved for the control group. Each one was implemented throughout an academic year. The results revealed statistically significant differences in the final average grade (p < 0.001), with students from the intervention group obtaining higher overall scores. The same occurred in the voluntary learning tasks, with students from the intervention group earning more Health Points (p = 0.006), more Experience Points (p = 0.005), a higher Total Score (p = 0.002) and a higher Level Achieved (p = 0.002). These findings point to the fact that a multimodal gamified learning environment can influence the academic performance of students. However, more scientific research has to be carried out in order to support these findings.

A Systematic Review of Exploring the Potential of Teachable Agents in English Learning

Language learning has dramatically influenced the extensiveness of web-based learning, AI applications, smart content, personalized tutoring systems, virtual facilitators. This paper aims to review the empirical evidence on the application of intelligent agents in English learning to define the future research perspectives of Teachable Agents-assisted English education. After a systematic online data search, the investigator analyzed nine empirical studies on how Teachable agents have potential English teaching and learning benefits. The results indicate that (1) most studies conducted with large sample size at university level followed by elementary level, (2) instructional design were in dialogue and image form, (3) emerged two categories- Interaction and integration, (4) most of them used experimental research in different settings. This study suggests that TAs substantially play a supportive role, enhance their involvement, scaffold their learning, and become self-regulated learners. Hence, we prospect the need for a future-oriented vision regarding AI and intelligent technologies- assisted language learning for non-native speakers.

What makes a maker teacher? Examining key characteristics of two maker educators

Maker pedagogies offer numerous potential benefits for student learning; however, we currently lack an understanding of the ways in which educators integrate these pedagogies into regular practice. This qualitative study examines the professional learning and trajectory of two educators involved in makerspace initiatives at their respective schools in lower-income communities. Through thematic analysis of interviews, photos, videos, and field notes, we identified several overlapping characteristics supporting teachers’ transition into maker educators, including identification with maker values, proficiency with interdisciplinary program planning, and access to a multidimensional maker culture. Recognizing these intersecting characteristics can enable schools to provide essential support systems for prospective maker educators.

The 22nd Convention of the Media Ecology Association

The 22nd Convention of the Media Ecology Association

The unexplored potential of virtual reality for cultural learning

<p>Educational technology tools that improve learning and foster engagement are constantly sought by teachers and researchers. In the domain of Computer-Assisted Language Learning a variety of tools, for instance blogs and podcasts, have been used to promote language and cultural learning (Shih, 2015). More recently, virtual reality has been identified as a technology with great potential for the creation of meaningful and contextualized learning experiences. Despite the learning affordances of virtual reality, in language education most of the literature has focused on the low-immersive version, whereas research investigating highly immersive virtual environments has only emerged in recent years (e.g., Berti, 2019; Blyth, 2018). In other fields, the use of highly immersive virtual reality has been compared to traditional pedagogical resources and demonstrated that students’ learning improved with the use of virtual environments as compared to two-dimensional video and textbook learning conditions (Allcoat & von Mühlenen, 2018). Considering the potential learning benefits of this technology, this paper argues that longitudinal empirical research in language education is strongly needed to investigate its potential unexplored impact on language and cultural learning.</p>