Explore the vast range of titles available.

This study aims to analyze the use of virtual reality and gamification in education by examining the existing literature. In addition to virtual reality, this study focuses on gamified virtual reality learning environments which refer to virtual reality learning environments that integrate gamification elements and mechanisms. Based on the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) statement, a systematic literature review was carried out. No limitations were set regarding educational level, type of study, subject, and publication year. The related articles were retrieved from 5 databases (ERIC, Google Scholar, IEEE, SCOPUS, and Web of Science). A total of 112 articles were included, 16 research questions were explored, and a thematic analysis was conducted. To evaluate the quality of the articles included, the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool (MMAT) was used. According to the findings, gamification and virtual reality support several pedagogical theories and approaches. Their adoption to and integration into education can enrich and transform traditional teaching and learning and were assessed positively by students and teachers. Gamification elements significantly affected students’ achievements. In comparison to traditional learning environments, gamified virtual reality learning environments were more motivating, engaging, and interactive and offered more opportunities for personalized and collaborative learning. Through the realistic and interactive experiences offered, students’ immersion and social presence can be enhanced, knowledge acquisition can be improved, and material comprehension can be facilitated. Positive changes in student attitude, behavior, and mentality as well as improved cognitive, physical, and social–emotional development were observed. When using learning environments that integrate both virtual reality and gamification, students’ learning outcomes, motivation, engagement, and self-efficacy were increased. Additionally, students’ academic performance, active involvement, and satisfaction were improved. Students’ curiosity, imagination, focus, and interest were enhanced and their skills and competences were developed. Finally, gamified virtual reality emerged as an effective educational tool that can improve learning at all educational levels, subjects, and contexts.

Over the years, a variety of frameworks, models and literacies have been developed to guide teacher educators in their efforts to build digital capabilities in their students, that will support them to use new and emerging technologies in their future classrooms. Generally, these focus on advancing students’ skills in using ‘educational’ applications and digitally-sourced information, or understanding effective blends of pedagogical, content and technological knowledge seen as supporting the integration of digital resources into teaching, to enhance subject learning outcomes. Within teacher education institutions courses developing these capabilities are commonly delivered as standalone entities, or there is an assumption that they will be generated by technology’s integration in other disciplines or through mandated assessment. However, significant research exists suggesting the current narrow focus on subject-related technical and information skills does not prepare students adequately with the breadth of knowledge and capabilities needed in today’s classrooms, and beyond. This article presents a conceptual framework introducing an expanded view of teacher digital competence (TDC). It moves beyond prevailing technical and literacies conceptualisations, arguing for more holistic and broader-based understandings that recognise the increasingly complex knowledge and skills young people need to function ethically, safely and productively in diverse, digitally-mediated environments. The implications of the framework are discussed, with specific reference to its interdisciplinary nature and the requirement of all faculty to engage purposefully and deliberately in delivering its objectives. Practical suggestions on how the framework might be used by faculty, are presented.

Metacognition, which involves the deliberate awareness and analysis of one’s own learning and thought processes, has gained significant traction among educational researchers. The burgeoning volume of metacognition studies underscores the importance of examining its current status and evolving trends. Leveraging topic modeling and bibliometrics on a dataset comprising 2568 papers spanning from 2000 to 2023, this study seeks to address questions like “What are the prevailing research themes in metacognition?” and “How has the level of research attention to these themes evolved over time?” This study also scrutinizes major journals, countries/regions, academic institutions, and collaborative networks, presenting a visual representation of their interconnections. Considering the analyses conducted, this study proffers several recommendations for the future of metacognition research. Firstly, it suggests the integration of metacognitive instruction, assessment, and feedback mechanisms into various educational domains, encompassing design, healthcare, language, teacher training, as well as special and early childhood education. Secondly, it advocates for the exploration and utilization of diverse metacognitive instructional strategies and analytics technologies to effectively bolster students’ metacognitive processes. Lastly, it underscores the significance of interdisciplinary collaborations between metacognition experts, educators, psychologists, computer scientists, and data scientists. Such collaborative efforts are envisioned to harness the potentials of big data and learning analytics technologies to inform pedagogical practices that nurture metacognitive skills. This study offers a comprehensive overview of metacognition research in the realm of education, shedding light on emerging trends in metacognitive instructional practices and providing valuable insights for charting the course of future investigations in this field.

This study explores the roles of students’ help-seeking profiles when seeking help from AI chatbots, specifically ChatGPT, in a digital game-based learning environment, Summon of Magicrystal . The study involved 102 middle school students who played an online game with the provision of ChatGPT and sought help from ChatGPT while solving physics problems. The results revealed that students’ help-seeking profiles, help-seeking threats, help-seeking avoidance, and instrumental help-seeking were positively correlated. Students’ instrumental help-seeking profile has a positive effect on game performance/engagement, while students’ avoidance help-seeking profile has a positive effect on the number of game attempts. The findings highlight the importance of students’ help-seeking profiles when considering designing AI-assisted game-based learning environments to better support students’ science learning.

Mastering correct pronunciation is crucial for effective Spanish language learning and communication. However, many existing language learning resources lack adequate coverage of pronunciation guidance and feedback mechanisms. This study aims to address this gap by developing SpanishBot, an innovative chatbot designed to facilitate the learning of Spanish letter pronunciations and their variations for non-native speakers. Forty-eight participants, unfamiliar with Spanish, were randomly divided into an experimental group using SpanishBot and a control group using independent learning methods. The experimental group interacted with SpanishBot over a 2-month period, which utilized Python programming and the Line instant messaging platform for delivering personalized pronunciation feedback and practice. Instruments included a pre-test and a post-test, as well as the SpanishBot system, which provided real-time feedback on pronunciation accuracy based on audio recordings. Findings revealed a statistically significant difference between the two groups’ post-test scores, with the experimental group demonstrating remarkable improvements in Spanish pronunciation proficiency. This study highlights SpanishBot’s potential in language education, specifically for Spanish pronunciation training.

This study explores factors that influence teachers’ technology adoption in technology-rich classrooms and how they interact by integrating task technology fit into the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM). A proposed model was tested via 343 survey responses from Grade 1–12 teachers using structural equation modeling. The results indicated technology task fit played an essential role in teachers’ technology adoption in technology-rich classrooms. Perceived ease of use, however, did not influence teachers’ intention to use technology as previously predicted. The findings suggest that to promote technology adoption in teaching, it is important to help teachers integrate technology into their instructional design and create a supportive culture with sufficient technological support.

This pilot study aimed to evaluate the development of writing skills among Master of Public Health (MPH) students after completing a public health writing assignment designed with a transparent framework. The assignment incorporated Lettersmith, a free educational technology tool that supports metacognition and the writing process. A secondary aim was to assess students′ perceptions  of the usefulness of Lettersmith in supporting their writing process. After using Lettersmith to complete their assignments, students reported feeling more confident in their writing skills, as well as in their ability to write more concisely and express ideas clearly. Most students indicated that the assignment expectations were clear and that Lettersmith was helpful during the writing process. A transparent, designed-focused approach to writing, paired  with the Lettersmith tool, may support students in becoming competent writers by enhancing their awareness of the writing process. Lettersmith can be applied to writing assignments in fields beyond public health.

Integrating Mixed Reality (MR) into nursing education and professional practice has recently captured significant interest as a transformative approach. This paper presents a comprehensive exploration and practical insights into designing and implementing an advanced MR training platform to provide nursing students with immersive experiences across various patient care scenarios. Further enhancing the platform’s utility is the incorporation of a unique conversational artificial intelligence (AI) module. This innovation breathes life into digital patients, enabling dynamic and realistic interactions that challenge nursing students to develop clinical reasoning skills in a controlled yet flexible MR environment. The AI’s capacity to understand and contextually react to the learner’s' verbal and behavioral inputs simulates authentic patient interactions. A total of 7 nursing students and 3 nursing faculty engaged in the pilot study, which served as a proving ground for the MR training system’s effectiveness. The study involved in-depth analysis, employing performance metrics, and evaluating situational awareness alongside cognitive workload using NASA Task Load Index (TLX) and learner’s thought verbalizations. The primary objective was to create a system that enhances nursing students' competencies and readiness for clinical healthcare practice. This system can potentially elevate the preparedness of new graduate nurses by providing a rich, interactive learning environment that mirrors the complexity of real-life clinical settings.

Conversational agents have been designed to improve instruction quality and support student learning. In addition to their instructional use, they can be incorporated into assessment—conversation-based assessment (CBA). This study primarily introduces a CBA with selected-response and constructed-response tests as a formative assessment tool for higher education students, while also reporting student attitudes. CBA was designed using Rasa and deployed to Google Chat for students in two sections of an undergraduate-level course to use. Results show that CBA with both formats produces high standard performance measures and confidence scores for each student response. Most students reported positive attitudes toward CBA via the survey. Overall, accurate dialogue moves within CBA underscore its effectiveness in measuring higher education students’ knowledge and skill, while positive student attitudes toward CBA indicate the promise of conversational agents to enhance student assessment experiences by providing a more interactive assessment environment.

Professional vision (PV), which includes the ability to perceive and interpret classroom events, is important for classroom behaviour management, particularly in the training of student teachers. However, to date, few assessment systems that can assess student teachers’ professional vision by immersing them in a realistic classroom environment (presence) from their own perspective (first-person perspective) have been developed. To address this gap, this study employs a design-based research approach to develop an immersive virtual reality (IVR) technology-based professional vision assessment system (IVR-based PVAS). The research outlines the four-stage process through which the system was constructed to meet the requirements of professional vision assessment and address the core challenges of the current assessment approach. Twenty-four student teachers were enrolled as participants in an implementation case study in which their perceptions and interpretations of seven classroom events related to student misbehaviour were assessed via an IVR-based PVAS. The participants’ problems with perception and interpretation were diagnosed with multiple assessment indices. The benefits of the IVR-based PVAS are summarised, and recommendations are provided for the use of this assessment system in both instruction and research.