June 19th
11.30—13.30 Fostering Intelligent Education and Smart Cities
- Academic Staff Perceptions and Attitudes towards Learning Analytics: A Case Study (authors: Sirje Virkus, Sigrid Mandre and Tiina Kasuk)
- Enhancing Load Evaluation in Intelligent Tutoring Systems through Velocity-Based Training (authors: Vincent Guarnieri, Laurentiu-Marian Neagu, Eric Rigaud, Sebastien Travadel and Mihai Dascalu)
- Intelligent Tutoring System and Learning: Complexity and Resilience (author: Michele Della Ventura)
- How cities can learn: key concepts, role of ICT and research gaps (authors: Pradipta Banerjee and Sobah Abbas Petersen)
- Smart Cities and Smart Regions Roadmap (author: Ralf-Martin Soe)
14.30—15:30 Telepresence Technology in Education
- TelePresence – Social Justice for the Online “Other”? (authors: Jessica Blakeborough and Triin Roosalu)
- HoloLearn: Towards a hologram mediated hybrid education (authors: Bibeg Limbu, Roland van Roijen, Michel Beerens and Marcus Specht)
- Using telepresence robots for remote participation in technical subjects in higher education (authors: Mohammad Tariq Meeran, Janika Leoste, Fuad Budagov, Jaanus Pöial, Kristel Marmor)
June 20th
10.30—12.00 Digital Transformation in Education:
- The Transformation of Art Teaching Process: A Qualitative Study of Digital Mediated Teaching (authors: Antonina Korepanova and Kai Pata)
- Digital turn in social work education and practice (authors: Karmen T Toros, Asgeir Falch-Eriksen, Rafaela Lehtme, Koidu Saia, Alison McInnes, Sarah Soppitt,
Rebecca Oswald and Samantha Walker) - Sustainable digital transition with students’ experience and smartphones at D. Maria II school cluster (authors: Maria José Fonseca and Óscar Mealha)
- An Evaluation of Participatory Video as Teaching Digital Storytelling against Climate-driven Inequalities (authors: Katharina Koller, Evangelos Kapros, Martina Lindorfer and Maria Koutsombogera)
13.00—14.30 Exploring Game-Based Learning and Gamification in Education
- Implementation of Minecraft in Education to introduce Sustainable Development Goals: Approaching Renewable Energy through Game-based Learning (authors: Tamas Kersanszki, Zoltan Marton, Kristof Fenyvesi, Ildiko Holik, Zsolt Lavicza)
- A systematic mapping review of research concerning the use of games in teacher training (authors: Francesca Pozzi, Erica Volta, Marcello Passerelli and Donatella Persico)
- Unplugging Math: Integrating Computational Thinking into Mathematics Education Through Poly-Universe (authors: Branko Anđić, Filiz Mumcu, Mathias Tejera, Eva Schmidthaler and Zsolt Lavicza)
- Design of an Adaptive Hybrid Gamification Teaching Method and Its Practice in Computer Science and Animation Teaching (authors: Xiaozhu Wang, Li Wang, Shengzhuo Liu and Paul Adams.)
Abstracts
Academic Staff Perceptions and Attitudes towards Learning Analytics: A Case Study (authors: Sirje Virkus, Sigrid Mandre and Tiina Kasuk)
The interest towards using learning analytics in a variety of educational contexts is growing, as they have a great potential to enable data-informed decision-making for students, faculty, and staff. This paper describes a study, examining the perceptions and attitudes of university academic staff towards learning analytics in two Estonian HEIs. This exploratory research aimed to obtain evidence-based information on how the academic staff perceived the role of learning analytics in enhancing learning and teaching in higher education, and what challenges they face. The study found that academic staff had a mostly positive perception of learning analytics and expressed the need for access to data on student progress, learning materials engagement, prior knowledge, and technology familiarity. The major challenges and obstacles associated with the implementation and adoption of learning analytics in higher education from the perspective of academic staff were concerns about ethics and privacy, need for training and support, and technical challenges. The successful implementation and use of learning analytics in higher education requires careful consideration of these challenges and obstacles, as well as strategies to address them.
Enhancing Load Evaluation in Intelligent Tutoring Systems through Velocity-Based Training (authors: Vincent Guarnieri, Laurentiu-Marian Neagu, Eric Rigaud, Sebastien Travadel and Mihai Dascalu)
Personalized learning is one of the main characteristics of an Intelligent Tutoring System (ITS). In the case of strength development, individualization consists in defining exercise characteristics starting from a program template and adjusting the function of several data such as student characteristics, calibration test results, fatigue level estimation, or estimation of the number of repetitions in reserve. A recent ITS built for supporting the development of strength skills is <System X>, currently in the second release. Most data collected within <System X> is subjective and relies on students’ self-evaluation abilities. To complete them with objective ones, a study evaluating the relevance of Velocity Based Training (VBT) demonstrates that an ITS’s GUI module can collect the speed of realization of a movement performed by a student through computer vision technologies. The added value of the approach is that the system can support the definition of an objective measure of the difference between prescribed and realized exercise. Lessons from the study support the definition of requirements to enhance the <System X> v2.0 learning individualization functionalities.
Intelligent Tutoring System and Learning: Complexity and Resilience (author: Michele Della Ventura)
The paper aims to investigate, through a case study, the relationship between learning and Information and Communication Technologies (ICT), in a historical moment in which the rampant use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) is to forcefully intertwine with the teaching-learning process. The research aims to outline, in particular, one of the possible ways of using AI with students in the study of solfeggio and ear-training, through a digital tutor who supports specific activities proposed by the teacher. The project idea stems from the desire to investigate more closely the relationship between students and new technologies, and to understand their educational potential and the expression of student needs. The results show that Artificial Intelligence is a useful tool in the didactic field taken into consideration, but at the same time that there is much to be done, since the road traveled up to here can be a good starting point for reaching long-term educational goals.
How cities can learn: key concepts, role of ICT and research gaps (authors: Pradipta Banerjee and Sobah Abbas Petersen)
Learning in cities using the support of technological solutions, particularly with ICT focus, has remained a point of interest for researchers, propelled by the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal 4, which is to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote Lifelong Learning opportunities for all. Citizens of cities are considered learners who learn in cities through formal and informal education processes, enhanced by digital technology. Such Lifelong Learning considers that knowledge growth would enhance the functioning of cities leading to an increase in the smartness of the cities. However, even though learning in a city by its citizens has been considered, the role of the city in the learning process, and how a city itself as a system can learn (city learning) to meet the emerging challenges and opportunities have not received research focus. Understanding how a city learns along with its citizens is essential to support twin transitions in cities, to meet Sustainable Development Goals. We aim to explore how existing frameworks for city transformations, considering learning in cities, have addressed city learning. We conducted a scoping review to identify the relevant literature and analyse the main concepts and the role of ICT in this context. This study presents the main concepts in the literature and the research gaps in addressing city learning. We conclude that research is required to develop a conceptual framework for city learning through interactions and knowledge exchange among the elements and stakeholders of a city supported by ICT.
TelePresence – Social Justice for the Online “Other”? (authors: Jessica Blakeborough and Triin Roosalu)
This paper discusses the institutional change in higher education to accommodate inclusive hybrid learning environments. Based on the empirical example of usage of TelePresence device to enable access to on-site learning space for non-traditional disabled international student, this paper draws on the experiences of the learner and the learning facilitator to reveal the extent to which a socially just learning environment was created and where it fell short. The paper contributes to growing understanding of barriers in promoting inclusive hybrid learning in higher education institutions with strong culture of internationalization by highlighting at least three dimensions of ‘othering’ that online learners may be subjected to in such occasions. By pointing out how each dimension, especially simultaneous exclusion according to those, impacts the quality of learning experience we argue these may contribute to fail the learner – unless carefully considered when designing such new learning environments with the aim to promote inclusive learning and secure social and disability justice.
HoloLearn: Towards a hologram mediated hybrid education (authors: Bibeg Limbu, Roland van Roijen, Michel Beerens and Marcus Specht)
Educational institutions worldwide were thrust into adopting an online educational models due to the COVID-19 pandemic exposing severe limitations of tools used in online education, much to chagrin of both teachers and students. However, despite these limitations, hybrid educational models garnered significant interest. Holograms have shown potential in addressing several of the limitations of online educational tools that are currently in use. This paper reports the findings of an exploratory pilot study which investigates the benefits and limitations of holograms in hybrid & online educational models. The study compares student’s holographic viewing experience of the teacher in several dimensions such as presence, zoom exhaustion & fatigue etc. Results are drawn from the comparison across a holographic display, virtual reality glasses, a video conferencing tool, and a tele-presence robot. The paper concludes with takeaways for the future steps of the study.
Using telepresence robots for remote participation in technical subjects in higher education (authors: Mohammad Tariq Meeran, Janika Leoste, Fuad Budagov, Jaanus Pöial, Kristel Marmor)
Remote participation in higher education courses, especially in tech-nical subjects, is challenging, as there is a lot of practical knowledge to be applied or directly instructed, and it has to happen at the university premises since the labs are set up there. In this study, we allowed three ICT lecturers teaching at the undergraduate level to experiment with telepresence robots, augment the teach-ing and learning environment and understand their readiness to adopt this tech-nology. The experiments were documented, and semi-structured interviews were conducted with participants. We found that using telepresence robots in labs re-quires both a well-planned teaching process and appropriate teaching environ-ment settings to overcome technical limitations. As for future studies, there is a need for studies with bigger samples of ICT lecturers to implement these pro-posed scenarios to understand better the possibilities of effectively using telepresence robots for hybrid teaching in ICT subjects.
The Transformation of Art Teaching Process: A Qualitative Study of Digital Mediated Teaching (authors: Antonina Korepanova and Kai Pata)
This paper argues that digital mediation in art education transforms the art teaching process at a deeper level. The transition of traditional art lessons into online-mediated form during the Corona pandemic revealed several critical constraints. The data from interviews with 23 art teachers from different countries proves that teachers face different problems when they try to replicate their lessons in a digitally mediated environment, and they are prone to being dissatisfied with the teaching process and the results. There is evidence that digital mediation shifts the traditional art teaching process, which has been dominated by individual guidance, towards a more socially and culturally mediated process. This paper argues that when art teachers start using digital opportunities beyond the mediation environments that open up digital heritage to provide an immediate cultural loop, add the layers of algorithm-supported transmutations for art objects, and prompt for collaboration and reflective processes on these, this may radically change the digital teaching of traditional painting and drawing.
Digital turn in social work education and practice (authors: Karmen T Toros, Asgeir Falch-Eriksen, Rafaela Lehtme, Koidu Saia, Alison McInnes, Sarah Soppitt,
Rebecca Oswald and Samantha Walker)
This article examines current literature relating to the use of digital technology in social work education. The systematic review follows the PRISMA statement and includes 14 peer-reviewed articles published in multiple academic journals from 2013 to 2021 reporting primary research with social work students and educators. Four main themes emerged from data analysis: type of learning tools as intervention; impact on the learning process; impact on professional competence; and the value in the context of preparing students for practice. Findings indicate that various interventions (simulated clients/avatars, scenarios and activities) for developing social work competences are used via active learning classroom, videoconferencing platform Zoom, a Web conferencing program Centra, virtual world educational format Second Life, SBIRT simulation, digital storytelling and others. Simulated activities and exercises supported linking theoretical knowledge with practice. Furthermore, simulation-based learning contributed to mastering students’ practice skills, specifically building therapeutic relationships, assessment skills, ethical decision-making/behaviour, and reflexivity. The overall impression of the research literature is that social work education has a considerable potential to train social work students to become better practitioners and that educational institutions must embrace technology to remain relevant to the field of practice.
Sustainable digital transition with students’ experience and smartphones at D. Maria II school cluster (authors: Maria José Fonseca and Óscar Mealha)
This work discusses the contribution of a learning ecosystem’s stakeholder experience to develop and validate a model of infocommunicational ser-vices capable of being mediated by a mobile app. The research uses a case study method with a sample of students (n=135), teachers (n=49) and par-ents (n=49), qualitative data collection techniques and took place during the second half of 2021. Part of this work was developed with COVID-19 restrictions. The model was represented by a conceptual prototype of a mo-bile app, with 7 task scenarios and was also used as a research instrument during the inquiry moments, along 3 research phases, moderated by the re-search team. This work was all developed as a case study in the context of D. Maria II school cluster at Famalicão, Portugal. The main results contain evidence that stakeholders should be directly engaged in digital transition strategies. In this case, students have a relevant role, complemented by the validation and discussion of teachers and parents. Some examples of the in-formation and communication services that represent a takeaway of this process are: access to personal information and implementation of “interest badges”; synchronous and asynchronous communication; peer assessment; collaborative work; study management, etc.
An Evaluation of Participatory Video as Teaching Digital Storytelling against Climate-driven Inequalities (authors: Katharina Koller, Evangelos Kapros, Martina Lindorfer and Maria Koutsombogera)
Participatory video (PV) is a method of film-making originating in the field of international development practice. The idea is to adopt a “bottom-up” approach to film-making which can facilitate marginalised communities to introduce their voices in the final product. In this paper we will discuss a project that seeks out to implement PV for underprivileged groups in Europe concerning Climate Action inequalities. Our project aims to answer the question of whether the benefits of PV can be applied in this setting while, applying best practices for PV, the power gaps of international-development focused implementations can be avoided. The execution of the project in 5 European countries showed that the method carries its opportunities and limitations as seen in international development projects. The results can be used as guiding principles for practitioners in the field of PV but are also important for policy-makers who may want to understand how and when to support and lead local PV climate-related initiatives.
Implementation of Minecraft in Education to introduce Sustainable Development Goals: Approaching Renewable Energy through Game-based Learning (authors: Tamas Kersanszki, Zoltan Marton, Kristof Fenyvesi, Ildiko Holik, Zsolt Lavicza)
Teaching STEAM subjects (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Mathe-matics) is often challenging in basic education because of students’ lack of interest and motivation. New, interactive methods and innovative, stimu-lating learning environments are needed to make learning an experience for students instead of traditional, face-to-face teaching. Game-based educa-tional approaches can playfully integrated the curriculum, thus providing an opportunity for education to become interactive so that the students par-ticipate in the teaching-learning process with pleasure and motivation. Minecraft is a multiplatform video game that is already popular among stu-dents and can be successfully used in game-based education. The study pre-sents the application possibilities of Minecraft in integrated education of STEAM fields through the example of teaching a specific topic. The devel-opment was tested within the framework of a summer camp, where the 10-16-year-old participants explored the topics of renewable energy sources with Minecraft. In order to examine the success of such an approach, we ex-amined the students’ current level of knowledge with a questionnaire about renewable energy sources, to assess the characteristics of the collaboration, we used the collaborative abilities questionnaire, and to explore the charac-teristics of the camp, we used the school creative climate questionnaire. Based on the experiences and recearches of the camp that the application of game-based learning with Minecraft, was successful to raise students’ inter-est, increasing their motivation, mastering the knowledge material, produc-tive task solving and cooperation to work on sustainable development goals.
A systematic mapping review of research concerning the use of games in teacher training (authors: Francesca Pozzi, Erica Volta, Marcello Passerelli and Donatella Persico)
This systematic mapping review provides an up-to-date picture of research on the use of games and game-based learning (GBL) in teacher training. Documents were retrieved systematically from Scopus and Web of Science, resulting in 38 studies that met the inclusion criteria. The review examines the evolution over time of the field, the kind of venues in which studies are being published, the proportion of primary studies being published, the type of games being employed, the type of training in which they are used and, finally, the purpose for using them in teacher training. Results high-light that only three records are secondary studies, highlighting the immatu-rity of the field. The experiences reported in the studies are evenly distrib-uted between those targeting pre-service and in-service teachers, and most of them aim to stimulate the adoption of GBL in the classroom, rather than using games explicitly as a tool for teacher training. The types of games used in teacher training vary, with most being based on 2D environments, while virtual/augmented reality and board games are emerging trends. The purpos-es of game usage in teacher training include stimulating adoption of these technologies, and developing teaching skills, digital competences, and learning design skills, with simulators and role-playing games being used to prepare trainee teachers for class management. The review highlights a dearth of research and experiences in the field, but the emerging trends could guide future teacher training initiatives to develop teachers’ compe-tences rather than just encouraging them to adopt these technologies in class.
Unplugging Math: Integrating Computational Thinking into Mathematics Education Through Poly-Universe (authors: Branko Anđić, Filiz Mumcu, Mathias Tejera, Eva Schmidthaler and Zsolt Lavicza)
How to teach CT skills and the quality of students’ understanding of CT are research issues we need to address. In this study, an unplugged pro-gramming activity was designed, developed, and implemented. The results were evaluated to serve as an example of how CT can be integrated into mathematics education. We used Poly-Universe educational game to design an unplugged programming activity. Then we used it to develop pre-service teachers’ CT skills and investigate their opinions about using this game in their future teach-ing. This game serves as an additional tool that can be employed to integrate CT and mathematics education creatively and engagingly. In this study, we investi-gate the possibilities of using this game to develop the pre-service teachers’ CT skills and explore their opinion about using it in their future teaching. This study is modeled by a Type 1 instructional product design and development study. Twenty-two pre-service mathematics teachers participated in this study. The study was conducted in four phases: explanation of the game, theoretical CT, practical CT, and pre-service teachers as task creators. Data were collected using a questionnaire and analyzed using descriptive statistics. The results showed that the participants found the activity interesting, enjoyable, and useful for teaching. It was also found that the activity promoted collaboration and in-creased pre-service teachers’ confidence in problem-solving. The study pro-vides insight into the use of unplugged programming and the Poly-Universe game to integrate CT principles into mathematics education.
Design of an Adaptive Hybrid Gamification Teaching Method and Its Practice in Computer Science and Animation Teaching (authors: Xiaozhu Wang, Li Wang, Shengzhuo Liu and Paul Adams).
Gamification is recognized as a creative tool in education, particularly in online environment, with the potential to enhance the motivation and performance of students. However, the challenges it presents are becoming increasingly evident. By examining recent research and practice, this paper proposes an adaptive hybrid gamification teaching method, which adaptively adjusts game difficulty levels based on the knowledge and learning behavior of online learning students. A hybrid game teaching strategy integrating competition, cooperation, reward and other elements was developed, and the learning process was recorded and evaluated. Students’ situational cognitive experience, collaborative social experience, and motivation-based proactive experience were comprehensively considered. Through the teaching experiment, it was concluded that this method can adjust the game difficulty adaptively according to the students’ learning basis, reduce the cognitive load, obtain a good flow experience, effectively alleviate the low immersion of online education, and improve the students’ participation in online course learning.