Designing a technology‐enhanced flipped learning system to facilitate students' self‐regulation and performance

In recent years, the flipped classroom has become prevalent in many educational settings. Flipped classroom adopts a pedagogical model in which short video lectures are viewed by students at home before class so that the teacher can lead students to participate in activities, problem‐solving, and discussions. Yet the design or use of technology that employs planned instructional strategies with sustainable support of self‐regulation is scant. We propose a technology‐enhanced flipped language learning system (Flip2Learn) that provides facilitation and guidance for learning performance and self‐regulation. A quasi‐experimental study was carried out to examine whether Flip2Learn could enhance college students' self‐regulatory skills and later contribute to the learning performance in the flipped classrooms. The results showed that Flip2Learn not only better prepared students for flipped classrooms but also better promoted learning performance compared to the conventional flipped classrooms. The results of this research advanced our understanding of the dynamics of flipped classrooms and represented a revolutionary new approach to the technology‐enhanced learning for flipped classrooms.     

Interplay of prior knowledge,self‐regulation and motivation in complex multimedia learning environments

This study examined the direct and indirect effects of medical clerkship students' prior knowledge, self‐regulation and motivation on learning performance in complex multimedia learning environments. The data from 386 medical clerkship students from six medical schools were analysed using structural equation modeling. The structural model revealed that medical students' prior knowledge directly positively affected their learning outcome, self‐efficacy and performance approach goal orientation. The learners' self‐regulation had a significant positive direct effect on learning outcome. The learners' mastery goal orientation directly affected their learning outcome. Interestingly, inconsistent with our hypothesis, the learners' performance approach goal orientation showed a significant negative direct effect on learning outcome, and performance avoidance goal orientation had a significant positive effect on learning outcome. These findings help develop a more comprehensive understanding of the role of individual characteristics on learning performance of complex tasks in multimedia learning environments.     

A mobile gamification learning system for improving the learning motivation and achievements

This paper aims to investigate how a gamified learning approach influences science learning, achievement and motivation, through a context‐aware mobile learning environment, and explains the effects on motivation and student learning. A series of gamified learning activities, based on MGLS (Mobile Gamification Learning System), was developed and implemented in an elementary school science curriculum to improve student motivation and to help students engage more actively in their learning activities. The responses to our questionnaire indicate that students valued the outdoor learning activities made possible by the use of a smartphone and its functions. Pre‐ and post‐test results demonstrated that incorporating mobile and gamification technologies into a botanical learning process could achieve a better learning performance and a higher degree of motivation than either non‐gamified mobile learning or traditional instruction. Further, they revealed a positive relationship between learning achievement and motivation. The correlation coefficient for ARCS dimensions and post‐test shows that the ARCS‐A (attention) is greater than ARCS‐R, ARCS‐C and ARCS‐S. This means that the attention (ARCS‐A) of this system is an important dimension in this research. The results could provide parents, teachers and educational organizations with the necessary data to make more relevant educational decision.     

An interactive peer-assessment criteria development approach to improving students' art design performance using handheld devices

Engaging students in higher order thinking such as evaluation and analysis has been recognized as being an important strategy for helping them develop knowledge and skills, in particular, in creativeness-oriented learning activities such as artwork design. In this paper, an interactive peer-assessment criteria development approach is proposed to help students develop assessment criteria, learn from viewing peers' work, and make reflections in artwork design activities using mobile devices. To evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed approach, an experiment was conducted in an elementary school art course. A total of 103 students participating in the experiment were assigned to an experimental group and a control group. The students in the experimental group learned with the proposed approach, while those in the control group learned with the conventional peer assessment approach. From the experimental results, it was found that the proposed approach significantly improved the students' learning achievement, learning motivation and meta-cognitive awareness, suggesting the effectiveness of engaging students in assessment criteria development in an interactive manner.     

Perceptions of learning effectiveness in M‐learning: scale development and student awareness

The purpose of this study is to develop a multi‐dimensional scale to measure students' awareness of key competencies for M‐learning and to test its reliability and validity. The Key Competencies of Mobile Learning Scale (KCMLS) was determined via confirmatory factor analysis to have four dimensions: team collaboration, creative thinking, critical thinking and problem solving, and communication. The research subjects are 815 students from the elementary school that participate in M‐learning programme in Taiwan. The research results show that students have better self‐awareness in team collaboration and creative thinking, but have worse self‐awareness in critical thinking and problem solving. This study also found that there was no significant difference between genders in the KCMLS, but students who study in the schools that committed in M‐learning longer have higher awareness in all dimensions than students who study in the schools that committed to M‐learning in fewer years.     

Enhancing middle school students' scientific learning and motivation through agent‐based learning

Facing students' decreasing motivation to pursue scientific study, schools and educators need to coordinate new technologies with pedagogical agents to effectively sustain or promote students' scientific learning and motivation to learn. Although the provision of pedagogical agents in student learning has been studied previously, it is not clear what benefits the strategy might offer with regard to student motivation. This study proposes an agent‐based mechanism that integrates problem‐solving and inquiry‐based instructions to help students better understand complex scientific concepts and to sustain their motivation to learn science. In this study, a quasi‐experiment was conducted to evaluate the performance and feasibility of our proposed mechanism. The results revealed that the agent‐based mechanism was effective and feasible for enhancing students' learning and motivation to learn. The mechanism was associated with increases in the acquisition of knowledge when compared with the control group. Its effect in promoting and sustaining students' motivation was also statistically significant. Detailed discussions of the findings are provided in this study.     

The effect of a graph‐oriented computer‐assisted project‐based learning environment on argumentation skills

The purpose of this quasi‐experimental study was to explore how seventh graders in a suburban school in the United States developed argumentation skills and science knowledge in a project‐based learning environment that incorporated a graph‐oriented, computer‐assisted application. A total of 54 students (three classes) comprised this treatment condition and were engaged in a project‐based learning environment that incorporated a graph‐oriented, computer‐assisted application, whereas a total of 57 students (three classes) comprised the control condition and were engaged in a project‐based learning environment without this graph‐oriented, computer‐assisted application. Verbal collaborative argumentation was recorded and the students' post essays were collected. A random effects analysis of variance (ANOVA) was conducted and a significant difference in science knowledge about alternative energies between conditions was observed. A multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was conducted and there was a significant difference in counterargument and rebuttal skills between conditions. A qualitative analysis was conducted to examine how the graph‐oriented, computer‐assisted application supported students' development of argumentation skills and affected the quality of collaborative argumentation. The difference in argumentation structure and quality of argumentation between conditions might explain a difference in science knowledge as well counterargument and rebuttal skills (argumentation) between both conditions. This study concluded that a project‐based learning environment incorporating a graph‐oriented, computer‐assisted application was effective in improving students' science knowledge and developing their scientific argumentation skills.     

The impact of paper-based,computer-based and mobile-based self-assessment on students' science motivation and achievement

The present study focuses on the implementation of a self - assessment procedure in a Physics class, extended during a seven weeks period in a European secondary level school. The researchers used three modes of assessment based on paper and pencil, computer-web and mobile devices respectively. The aim of the study is to investigate the effect of each mode of assessment on students' motivation and achievement. Analysis of pre- and post-motivation tests revealed a more positive motivational orientation of students towards computers and mobile devices as assessment delivery mediums. Also, student evaluation implemented after the phase of the experimental procedure showed a significant increase in learning achievement for low-achieving students who participated in the mobile-based and computer-based assessment. The positive effects of computers and mobile devices on students' learning motivation suggest that they can be used as a promising alternative to paper and pencil assessment procedures.     

Improving the effectiveness of English vocabulary review by integrating ARCS with mobile game‐based learning

Memorizing English vocabulary is often considered uninteresting, and a lack of motivation exists during learning activities. Moreover, most vocabulary practice systems automatically select words from articles and do not provide integrated model methods for students. Therefore, this study constructed a mobile game‐based English vocabulary practice system, which imitates the popular block elimination game and combines test items of article, difficulty, and teacher model in accordance with curriculum objectives and demands. The participants were first‐year students and classified into traditional group (Group T) and game‐based group (Group G), and learning effectiveness and motivation were analysed in this study. According to statistical analysis results, students who used the game‐based vocabulary practice system, which could captivate their attention and interest, had higher learning effectiveness and provided positive feedback of learning motivation. Furthermore, English teachers could select teaching materials that are consistent with the features, knowledge, and cultural background of learners to improve the relevance dimension of learning motivation.     

Development of a contextual decision-making game for improving students' learning performance in a health education course

Heath education is an important component of the curriculum for fostering children's correct health knowledge and good daily life habits. However, educators have indicated that most children might fail to realize the importance and meaning of health education content owing to the lack of authentic scenarios and daily life experience. With the advancement of computer technologies, researchers have tried to develop multimedia learning content in order to improve students' learning performance. Among various technology-enhanced learning alternatives, digital game-based learning has been recognized as a highly potential approach to motivating students. However, several previous studies have indicated that, without properly incorporating learning content into game scenarios, the effectiveness of digital game-based learning might not be as good as expected in comparison with conventional technology-enhanced learning. In this study, a contextual digital game was developed for improving students' learning performance in an elementary school health education course. A quasi experiment was conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed approach by situating the experimental group in the game-based learning scenario and the control group to learn with conventional e-books. The experimental results showed that the proposed approach not only improved the students' learning motivation, but also their learning achievement and problem-solving competences. Moreover, the significant two-way interaction suggested that the contextual game-based learning approach benefited the higher motivation students more than the lower motivation ones in terms of the advanced knowledge, showing the importance and potential of applying contextual games to health education activities.     

Reconsidering off‐task: a comparative study of PDA‐mediated activities in four classrooms

Mobile technology is ubiquitous and diverse and permeates many aspects of daily life at home, during leisure activities, and in public spaces. The study presented here is of two sixth grade classes in Michigan, USA and two seventh grade classes in Norway. The students and the teachers in these four classrooms were equipped with mobile technologies (PDAs). We found that the students' PDA‐mediated actions in the classroom were not exclusively used for the tasks and activities set by the teacher, but that the students also used the PDAs on their own initiative – so‐called ‘off‐task’ activities. We analyze the findings by reconsidering off‐task activities from a sociocultural perspective.     

Mobile guide system using problem‐solving strategy for museum learning: a sequential learning behavioural pattern analysis

Mobile devices have been increasingly utilized in informal learning because of their high degree of portability; mobile guide systems (or electronic guidebooks) have also been adopted in museum learning, including those that combine learning strategies and the general audio–visual guide systems. To gain a deeper understanding of the features and limitations of these guide systems in a museum‐learning context and also to provide new designs that better guide learners in interacting with peers and exhibitions, in‐depth exploration of learners' actual visits and analyses of their behavioural patterns is crucial. This study was based on empirical observation and analysis of the learning behaviours (recorded on video) of 65 elementary‐school students who were placed into three groups: mobile guide with problem‐solving strategy, audio–visual mobile guide and paper‐based learning‐sheet guide. By coding and analysing the video and conducting sequential analysis and frequency analysis of learning‐related discussion content, behavioural interaction patterns were determined by which the features and limitations of the different types of guides were compared. Among the findings, it was discovered that the students in the problem‐solving mobile guide group showed a higher level of two‐way interactions with their peers and the exhibits, as well as more learning‐related discussions. Relevant suggestions for teachers, researchers and guide‐systems developers are also given.     

A cross‐cultural study of the effect of a graph‐oriented computer‐assisted project‐based learning environment on middle school students' science knowledge and argumentation skills

The purpose of this mixed‐methods study was to explore how seventh graders in a suburban school in the United States and sixth graders in an urban school in Taiwan developed argumentation skills and science knowledge in a project‐based learning environment that incorporated a graph‐oriented, computer‐assisted application (GOCAA). A total of 42 students comprised the treatment condition and were engaged in a project‐based learning environment that incorporated a GOCAA. Of these 42 students, 21 were located in the United States and 21 were located in Taiwan. A total of 26 students comprised the control condition and were engaged in a project‐based learning environment without the GOCAA. Of these 26 students, 15 were in the United States and 11 were in Taiwan. In each country, verbal collaborative argumentation was recorded and the students' post‐essays were collected. A one‐way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was conducted for each measure of science knowledge about alternative energies. The results showed a significant treatment effect for the outcome of scientific explanation among U.S. students, while among Taiwanese students, a significant treatment effect on scientific facts was observed. A one‐way ANOVA was additionally conducted for each measure of argumentation skills and a significant treatment effect on counterarguments and rebuttals was observed among the U.S. students, while in Taiwan, a significant treatment effect on reasoning and rebuttals was observed. A qualitative analysis was conducted to examine how the GOCAA supported students' development of argumentation skills in different countries. This study found distinct argumentation patterns between the U.S. and Taiwanese intervention teams. Additionally, a distinct gender difference in the use of evidence and division of labour was noted when the Taiwanese teams were compared with the U.S. teams, which may be explained by cultural differences. This study concluded that, in both the United States and Taiwan, a project‐based learning environment incorporating a GOCAA was effective in improving students' science knowledge and developing their scientific argumentation skills.     

Vocabulary learning by mobile‐assisted authentic content creation and social meaning‐making: two case studies

In recent years, we have witnessed the concomitant rise of communicative and contextualized approaches as well as the paradigmatic development of the mobile‐assisted language learning (MALL) framework in analysing language learning. The focus of MALL research has gradually shifted from content‐based (delivery of learning content through mobile devices) to design‐oriented (authentic and/or social mobile learning activities) study. In this paper, we present two novel case studies of MALL that emphasize learner‐created content. In learning English prepositions and Chinese idioms, respectively, the primary school students used the mobile devices assigned to them on a one‐to‐one basis to take photos in real‐life contexts so as to construct sentences with the newly acquired prepositions or idioms. Subsequently, the learners were voraciously engaged in classroom or online discussion of their semantic constructions, thereby enhancing their understanding of the proper usage of the prepositions or idioms. This work shows the potential of transforming language learning into an authentic seamless learning experience.     

A contextual game-based learning approach to improving students' inquiry-based learning performance in social studies courses

Inquiry-based learning, an effective instructional strategy, can be in the form of a problem or task for triggering student engagement. However, how to situate students in meaningful inquiry activities remains to be settled, especially for social studies courses. In this study, a contextual educational computer game is developed to improve students' learning performance based on an inquiry-based learning strategy. An experiment has been conducted on an elementary school social studies course to evaluate the effects of the proposed approach on the inquiry-based learning performances of students with different learning styles. The experimental results indicate that the proposed approach effectively enhanced the students' learning effects in terms of their learning achievement, learning motivation, satisfaction degree and flow state. Furthermore, it is also found that the proposed approach benefited the “active” learning style students more than the “reflective” style students in terms of learning achievement. This suggests the need to provide additional supports to students with particular learning styles in the future.     

Students' online interactive patterns in augmented reality-based inquiry activities

Inquiry learning has been developing for years and many countries have incorporated inquiry learning into the scope of K-12 education. Educators have indicated the importance of engaging students in knowledge-sharing activities during the inquiry learning process. In this study, a location-based augmented reality (AR) environment with a five-step guiding mechanism is developed to guide students to share knowledge in inquiry learning activities. To evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed approach in terms of promoting the knowledge sharing behaviors of students, an experiment has been conducted in an elementary school natural science course. The participants were 57 fourth-grade students from an elementary school in Northern Taiwan, divided into an experimental group of 28 students who learned with the AR-based approach and a control group of 29 students who learned with the conventional in-class mobile learning approach. The students' learning behaviors, including their movements in the real-world environment and interactions with peers, were recorded. Accordingly, the learning patterns and interactions of the two groups were analyzed via lag-sequential analysis and quantitative content analysis. It was found that, in comparison with the conventional inquiry-based mobile learning activity, the AR-based inquiry learning activity is able to engage the students in more interactions for knowledge construction. The findings of this study provide guidance for helping teachers develop effective strategies and learning designs for conducting inquiry-based learning activities.     

The effects of participation,performance, and interest in a game‐based writing environment

We have observed that many computer‐supported writing environments based on pedagogical strategies have only been designed to incorporate the cognitive aspects, but motivational aspects should also be included. Hence, we theorize that integrating game‐based learning into the writing environment may be a practical approach that can facilitate student participation, not only helping students learn how to write, but also sustaining their willingness to write. In this study, we investigate the effects of the game‐based writing environment on improving students' participation, performance, and interest in writing. An experiment was conducted to compare the effectiveness of 2 approaches to writing in language arts at an elementary school. Two hundred forty‐five third grade students participated in the experiment over a period of 1 year. One hundred thirty‐nine students were assigned to an experimental group and learned with a game‐based writing environment, and 106 students were in the contrast group and learned with an online writing environment. The empirical results show that the game‐based writing environment can effectively promote students' writing participation, writing performance, interest in writing, as well as their perceptions of the use of educational self‐management games. Some implications of the experimental results are also discussed.     

Improving early prediction of academic failure using sentiment analysis on self‐evaluated comments

This study presents a model for the early identification of students who are likely to fail in an academic course. To enhance predictive accuracy, sentiment analysis is used to identify affective information from text‐based self‐evaluated comments written by students. Experimental results demonstrated that adding extracted sentiment information from student self‐evaluations yields a significant improvement in early‐stage prediction quality. The results also indicate the limited early‐stage predictive value of structured data, such as homework completion, attendance, and exam grades, due to data sparseness at the beginning of the course. Thus, applying sentiment analysis to unstructured data (e.g., self‐evaluation comments) can play an important role in improving the accuracy of early‐stage predictions. The findings present educators with an opportunity to provide students with real‐time feedback and support to help students become self‐regulated learners. Using the exploring results for improvement in teaching and learning initiatives is important to maintain students' performances and the effectiveness of the learning process.     

Chinese undergraduate students' perceptions of mobile learning: Conceptions,learning profiles,and approaches

Close links between students' conceptions of and approaches to learning were established in the past research. However, only a few quantitative studies investigated this relationship particularly with regard to mobile learning (m‐learning). The correlation between learners' conceptions and approaches to m‐learning was analysed using a partial least squares analysis applied to data obtained from a sample of 971 undergraduate students in China. The results indicated that students' conceptions of m‐learning could be classified into reproductive, transitional, and constructive levels. Students may hold multiple m‐learning applications than a predominant one; hence, examining m‐learning as one monolithic entity may provide limited information. Latent profile analysis identified four learning profiles based on students' preferred m‐learning applications: passive, mixed, surface‐supportive, and high‐engagement.. Moreover, a general trend was observed, whereby students with reproductive and surface‐supportive learning profiles showed a tendency to adopt surface approaches, whereas those expressing constructive and mixed learning profiles were more inclined to adopt deep approaches. Interestingly, students with transitional conceptions and high‐engagement learning profiles tended to take both surface and deep approaches.     

A mixed methods assessment of students' flow experiences during a mobile augmented reality science game

Current studies have reported that secondary students are highly engaged while playing mobile augmented reality (AR) learning games. Some researchers have posited that players' engagement may indicate a flow experience, but no research results have confirmed this hypothesis with vision‐based AR learning games. This study investigated factors related to students' engagement – as characterized by flow theory – during a collaborative AR, forensic science mystery game using mobile devices. School Scene Investigators: The Case of the Stolen Score Sheets is a vision‐based AR game played inside the school environment with Quick Response codes. A mixed methods approach was employed with 68 urban middle school students. Data sources included pre‐ and post‐surveys, field observations and group interviews. Results showed that neither gender nor interest in science was an important predictor of variability in flow experience. Gaming attitude uniquely predicted 23% of the variance in flow experience. Student flow experience features included a flash of intensity, a sense of discovery and the desire for higher performance. The findings demonstrated a potential for mobile AR science games to increase science interest and help students learn collaboration skills. Implications for future research concerning mobile AR science games are discussed.