Many pedagogues have argued that learners should shape their own learning experience whilst tutors should facilitate this process of knowledge construction. Digital environments have been often used in an attempt to scaffold learning in these innovative learning settings. However the results obtained have been mixed both in terms of learning achievements and learners' satisfaction. We argue tha...

The didactical metaphor of scaffolding has become so ubiquitous in the rhetoric of education researchers and practitioners, that its meaning has become diffuse, its theoretical rationale unquestioned, and its pedagogical operationalization vague (Pea 2004). We submit that scaffolding is a victim of its own popularity: its adoption by multifarious and even competing theories of learning has rend...

Scaffolding is a widely used educational practice in which directed instruction gradually decreases as student competence increases—resulting in increased independent learning. This research introduces and evaluates an MR-based system for technology-mediated scaffolding in anesthesia education. Through merging real and virtual objects, the system addresses a vital problem in merging abstract an...

Intelligent tutoring systems (ITSs) are highly effective at fostering learning gains across a broad range of educational domains (VanLehn, 2011; Woolf, 2008). Tutorial planning is a critical component of ITSs, controlling how scaffolding is structured and delivered to learners. Tutorial planners operate at multiple levels, including the macro-level (e.g., selecting problems for learners to solv...

Vocabulary acquisition is a cognitive activity that poses significant challenge to second language learners. Non-literal language, particularly metaphor, has long been recognized as potent and linguistic tool for expressing understanding abstract concepts, emotions, experiences. However, some contend learning non-literal may impede L2 vocabulary acquisition. This research paper aimed investigat...

We describe a pilot study that explores whether or not medical students can understand visual representations of expert thinking. This research builds upon our previous work in developing a methodology to support knowledge elicitation and knowledge validation in the ill-defined domain of medical case-based instruction [1]. Second-year medical students were assigned to one of two feedback condit...

GPCRs play a key role in transmembrane signaling and are involved in many physiological processes, such as regulation of behavior, heart rate and the immune system. Therefore they are very important targets for pharmaceutical agents. Our project focuses on the b2 Adrenergic Receptor [1,2] (b2AR). The b2AR is mainly involved in vasodilation and bronchodilation in the human body. The recently sol...