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Majority of the students now have access to portable devices that can provide countless information at their fingertips through various resources such as learning games and interactive applications. These resources allow immediate communication and interaction between students and instructors. In this study we measured students’ perception of the effectiveness of using technological tools in lectures on their academic performance and their level of understanding of the course topic. Students, who have taken statistics courses at the University of Toronto completed a survey that identified variables connected to their perception of using technology in class and the ways in which, in turn, their learning experiences were enhanced. The results of the survey showed that a significant portion of students perceived that they gained a deeper level of understanding of lecture contents when technology was used in class. Thus, based on the results of our study, we recommend that instructors take advantage of using technology in their class in order to create a more immersive learning environment for their students than using traditional instructional methods

This paper investigated the extent to which senior high school students who typified the profile of the Arab Digital Generation (ADG) engaged with technology while outside the school. Data was collected using a questionnaire that measured the extent of the students’ engagement with digital technologies and their perceived media literacy. The results showed that the students had a lower frequency of engagement with digital devices for advanced purposes. Moreover, the results on the ADG and their media use patterns reflect an age characterized the generational change of technological practices and the dynamic stream of technological innovation that has occurred during the digital revolution. Given technology’s established position in the lives of the ADG, knowledge on the extent of technology use and the potential social and psychological implications of plasticity can and should be harnessed to stimulate greater positive engagement of the students in a digital economy and by extension, the entirety of the UAE society.

In intelligent e-learning systems that adapt a learning and teaching process to student knowledge, it is important to adapt the system as quickly as possible. However, adaptation is not possible until the student model is initialized. In this paper, a new approach to student model initialization using domain knowledge representative subset is described. The approach defines which concepts from domain knowledge should be included in the initial test so the system can make conclusions about what students truly know about domain knowledge. This representative subset of domain knowledge is defined using non-semantic mathematical approach based on graph theory. The initial test, created over a domain knowledge representative subset, guarantees encompassing all concepts that are relevant to domain knowledge. A two-level case study is conducted on what would be the representative subset of one selected domain knowledge. It compares semantically selected domain knowledge representative subsets (semantical analysis was done by domain area experts) to a non-semantical, mathematically selected domain knowledge representative subset. The results of the case study show that problems of inequality of semantically selected domain knowledge representative subsets are easily overcome using the presented approach.

Video games have become an important element of contemporary life. The need to use them in the field of education has given rise to the appearance of serious video games, which have been specially designed to achieve objectives at different educational levels and generate spaces for educational innovation. The purpose of this work is to investigate the use of serious video games in engineering education. A scoping review was carried out on serious video games that were used or designed for this purpose. The search was done in the Scopus and Web of Science databases between 2016 and 2021. The main results show that there is a strong inclination towards serious simulation video games, and they have a good degree of educational acceptance among engineering students.

The COVID-19 pandemic has produced profound changes in higher education, with the replacement of face-to-face instruction with distance or remote education, which involves the management of digital skills by teachers and students. The purpose of this research is to analyze the perception of professors with regard to digital skills and the use of gamified strategies in the teaching-learning process in a virtual context. A questionnaire was sent to 81 professors in different areas of knowledge at a Peruvian public university during the first academic semester of 2020. A strong correlation (r≥.700, p=.01) was found between the use of ICT and gamification as a resource for teaching-learning, and a moderate correlation between the knowledge of digital competences and the possibilities of application as part of the instructional strategies. From the results obtained, it is clear that the participants have a positive perception of digital skills and gamified strategies, regardless of academic degree or area of knowledge. This could provide support for the update of those proposals targeting professors in order to improve their digital skills.

Augmented Reality (AR) based learning provides real experiences for educators and new strategies for presenting physics concepts but also provides opportunities for students to interact interactively, spontaneously, and interestingly. Previous research has shown that AR has many advantages in education, but only a few focus on Independent Learning, such as freedom in problem solving and independent learning skills in physics learning. This study develops an Augmented Reality Integration (ARI) learning application based on the Physics Independent Learning (MPIL) model on the marine physics concept. This application is to explore the influence of ARI on 21st-Century Skills (21-CS) which consists of Critical Thinking, Collaboration, Communication, and Creativity. A Quasi-Experimental Method was used, and 88 students aged 20-22 were randomly assigned to the experimental and control groups. After an intervention for 3 weeks, it was found that integrating ARI technology into physics learning can (1) significantly increase students' Creativity Thinking and Critical Thinking on Marine physics concepts; (2) guiding students to further improve in Communication, and Collaboration in solving problems contained in the ARI application; and (3) stimulate students' learning motivation to be enthusiastic about learning physics concepts.

Teachers often use analogies to introduce unfamiliar or complex concepts. However, several studies have found that their knowledge on how to use them is limited or superficial. Similarly, the integration of technological resources in the teaching-learning processes is not always carried out efficiently, which evidences the need to improve teachers' digital competence. This paper provides a formative sequence on the use of analogies in teaching through mediation of technological resources, implemented in the context of the initial training of secondary education teachers. The results show a positive assessment by the students, a change in their perceptions on the subject and some progress in their classroom proposal designs. The conclusion is that it is necessary to train future teachers to deal with common teaching problems in a reflective, comprehensive and innovative way, which will undoubtedly be one of the challenges of education in the 21st century.

The higher education sector in Lebanon has undergone significant changes in the past twenty years, with a rapid increase in the number of higher education institutions that differ greatly in their missions, methodologies, and regulations. One of the remarkable differences between higher education institutions (HEI) in Lebanon is their vision and adaptation of technology into their institutions, with the lack of any government rules that guide HEIs to proper technology implementation strategies. While some institutions use international standards and models for quality assurance and management as a base for technology integration, others implement their own strategies of choosing and applying the technologies they deem appropriate. In this paper, we study the effect of technology adaptation strategies on HEIs in Lebanon, and propose a model for technology integration in higher education, based on the current needs and status of the Lebanese higher education system. We build our model on the goals of achieving and assuring high quality in the pedagogy, business, and technology sectors in the HEI.

It is evident that the society in which we live will demand more and more qualified and specialized positions in the different branches of engineering. Now we are in a highly digitized world in which information is continuously transmitted through data communication networks with the expectation of security and confidentiality. Students who are in their last year at high school face the problem of deciding their professional future. Therefore, there is a wide field of research for them in cryptographic techniques. In this work we have developed, together with a group of high school students, a cryptographic algorithm with substitution and transposition techniques as described by Feistel (1973) in order to create a more comprehensive knowledge about what they have been studying in their ICT subjects. In most cases the teaching methods are based on the teachers' own vision, as well as on the absence of knowledge of alternative methods and/or the impossibility of applying them physically in the classroom. With the active and cooperative methodology put forward in this work, objectives such as hard work, autonomous and collaborative learning and the exchange of knowledge have been absolutely fulfilled. Achieving them requires replacing traditional methods so that the student can adapt to new work challenges. A group of students, only three of whom finished, were voluntarily provided with the mentoring service in which the algorithm was designed. As a result, we were able to program in Python as a final project a symmetrical character-level encryption algorithm we've referred to as Azrael. Our findings indicate a demand for future endeavours to take into account the need for more projectbased work in ICT classrooms. The exchange of ideas between teacher and students has been the driven force behind the success of this activity

The research aimed to describe the development process of online learning application in physics for school course using the ADDIE model. This application is called Learning Management System Supported Smartphone (LMS3). LMS3 can facilitate preservice physics teacher to enhance digital literacy. The authors analyzed need assessment based on learning objectives, designed LMS3 in the form of a flow chart system and storyboard, produced LMS3 through professional programmers, filled in LMS3 content and conducted expert validation, implemented LMS3 in physics for school course, and evaluated LMS3 during implementation. This research is a descriptive study involving media and pedagogical experts as well as 40 preservice physics teachers in Tasikmalaya. Data collection techniques were carried out by the study of literature, the expert validation, and preservice physics teacher perception questionnaires. Expert validation and preservice physics teacher perception were obtained by using a Likert scale. The validation results from the experts were processed using the validation value equation developed by Aiken. The results of the expert validation show that the validation value is 1 and met the minimum validation requirements of the application. Perception of preservice physics teacher showed positive response to LMS3. The LMS3 has good display, function, and good effect on their learning motivation and digital literacy.

STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, Mathematics) learning is design to promote student’s interest in learning chemistry. Integration STEAM into chemistry learning is often seen as a challenge, such as not familiar and lack of knowledge on STEAM in chemistry. Coping, for this reason, a web-based STEAM online platform was designed. This paper reports the use of design-based research (DBR) to develop a web-based STEAM online platform. The paper focuses on two studies that step on the development and validation of the platform. In an attempt to implement theoretically designed learning environments in real-world classrooms, DBR was employed as an overarching framework of inquiry. The two cycles of DBR inquiry provide deep insights into the platform’s readability, comprehensibility, and feasibility. The implementation of the framework is specified along with further implications for researchers and practitioners

The present work analyzes the academic performance of students from at-risk groups from the perspective of Social Network Analysis (SNA), studying the academic and interaction information of 45 students belonging to at-risk groups who attended a pilot socio-academic course during one academic term. This information was used to create a sociogram, which served as the basis for determining the centrality metrics of the SNA. The relationships between these metrics and the academic variables were then studied by means of correlation analysis and linear regression with LASSO standardization. As a preview of the results, it was determined that the academic performance of the students in the pilot course was influenced, on the one hand, by their academic knowledge prior to being admitted to the university, represented by the score on the Mathematics and Geometry section of the diagnostic test, and on the other hand, by the dynamics of the social network in which they interacted in the classroom, represented by the eigenvector centrality. These results have significant potential for explaining the academic performance according to SNA metrics, and they provide evidence to support the implementation of practices that promote a healthy social environment in an academic context.

The inclusion and the Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) configure a field of great scientific interest in the current society. In this context, the attitudes of the teachers towards the ICT play an important role. The present article gathers the results of a study whose purpose was to determine how a teacher will use and integrate the ‘Information and Communication Technologies’ (ICT) in inclusive classrooms. This will also identify the factors that promote good educational practices supported by ICT. Towards this we prepared a case study of multiple cases. The questionnaire and group discussion are the techniques that are used for collecting required information. To validate the questionnaire, it was used the expert judgment method selected by the “Coefficient expert Competence” procedure or also named “K coefficient”. The Reliability was established by Cronbach’s Alfa method with a value of 0.87. The result shows that teachers in general have a positive attitude towards ICT, especially the male teachers with greater possibilities of interaction with ICT. This will also promote inclusive and cultures policies between networks of schools and it is presented as an important factor in developing good educational practice with the support of ICT.

The purpose of this descriptive study was to apply 2nd order confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and structural relationship models to identify the digital competency components essential to undergraduate students in Thai higher education institutions. The sample comprised 1,126 specialists in Information Technology, Computer Technology, Computer Education, Computer Science, and Computer Engineering working in public higher education instructions throughout the country. The selection was the result of multi-stage random sampling from 76 public higher education instructions that offer undergraduate education. The instrument was a questionnaire form on essential digital competency components for undergraduate students in higher education institutions. The question items employed a 7-point Likert scale and showed Cronbach's alpha values for the content validity and reliability at a range of.93-.97 per domain and .87-.99 per component. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics for general data and 2nd Order CFA analysis. The findings revealed that from 24 observed variables, there were 7 competency components.: 1) Fundamental of digital ; 2) Accessing digital information; 3) Using digital information; 4) Creating digital information and media; 5) Communicating digital information; 6) Managing digital information; and 7) Evaluating digital information. The discovery from this study was substantially constructive for Thai higher education institutions as it could be used to design an essential digital competency framework of the 21st century.

Research in education confirmed that students engage in learning when they feel connected with others and when they play an active role in their learning process. Therefore; social presence (SP) considered as an important component of effective learning in both face-face and online learning environment. Therefore, this study intended to investigate students’ perception about SP when using Web 2.0 tool for learning-based interaction and the difference in their perception based on gender and number of the semesters of the study. The participants of this study were 71 postgraduate students in one of the Malaysian public universities. The quantitative methods of data collection and data analysis were used in this study. Therefore, the researcher employed survey method using Online Social Presence Questionnaire (OSPQ) to collect the data. The data were analyzed using SPSS software to find mean, standard deviation of students’ perception of their social presence while using Web 2.0 tool for learning-based interaction. Independent sample t-test was used to find the difference in students perception based on their gender. Moreover, One-Way ANOVA was used to find the difference in students’ SP perception based on their semester of the study. The findings of this study showed that students expressed high perception about their social presence on Web 2.0 tool. Nonetheless, male students perceived higher social presence on Web 2.0 tool than female students. However, there were not significant differences in students’ perception of social presence neither based on the gender difference nor on the number of the semester of the study.