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Theological works were the prevailing literary works during the early Middle Ages. For western Europe at that time, the Catholic Church was the intellectual center of society and was, by far, the most productive source of literary works. The main purpose of these works was to increase the religious influence of the church on people and to guide the behavior of the audience. Literature was also used as a means of propaganda for the values and deeds of a king or a people, as was the case with the chansons de geste. Many medieval literary works, from the chanson de geste and finishing to the chivalry novel, have a high theological symbolism and many details of the text may be used as a support for various reading methods. The central figure of the chivalry novel emphasized was the knight-errant, bringing forth a new set of virtues, different from the warrior’s heroism and fidelity towards the senior. The knight–errant was always on the quest to punish injustice, help the poor, and serve God and one lady of his heart. Spite all obstacles, the real quest of the knight-errant was spiritual perfection. His journey was full of fictional adventures set in the medieval west. Exile and madness, decay and redemption, as well as a perpetual journey are specific features of mythical characters revived in the medieval characters. The novel Yvain- the Knight with the Lion of Chretien de Troyes is full of biblical symbols. The present article aims to emphasize the biblical symbolism of the fountain, considered the source of new perspectives, of a new destiny, as well as a passage towards a new stage in the life of Yvain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Current students are surrounded by ICT since an early age, being used to communicate, collaborate and access short information, generally presented in a visual form. In this context, education should take into account both the informal preconceptions/knowledge of students and their previously acquired competencies, their learning style based on visuals, their need to communicate and collaborate in the virtual environment. There are many strategies one can adopt to encourage students to study history. Perhaps, one of the most effective strategies in the context described above is one in which students are asked to "act as a historian" using specialized resources and applications. This role play would greatly benefit from the access to information as well as the collaborative and presentation advantages offered by modern technology. Examples of research questions that can serve as a basis for authentic learning activities are: What information can be extract by analyzing a historic drawing/cartoon? How can a photograph be analyzed from a historic viewpoint? How can the research results be presented in the virtual environment and in visual form using specialized applications? On the one hand, visual representations such as drawings, cartoons, photographs or posters are historical sources investigated by the students and on the other hand, said representations can serve as a way through which students can transmit their knowledge. Thus, we speak both of a digitization of historical resources and the study and interpretation of such means, the use of open educational resources or of various information media and the intertwining of the virtual environment with the historic reality in class. Our study presents the way in which digital cartoons, mind maps and other specialized web applications for generating visual representations can be used to teach/learn history. We describe the applications and possible learning activities based on them. We analyze the impact of using such applications taking into consideration that most of the examples have been developed by pre-service history teachers enrolled in the Teacher Training Program at the West University of Timisoara. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The internet represents an exceptional support for history teaching activities as it provides access to information from all fields of knowledge and activity, huge research and documenting possibilities, real time information updates, large grounds for imagination, creativity and resolute anticipation all while developing communicational informational processing competencies. According to the Horizon Report Europe 2014 - Schools Edition, the current tendencies in integrating ICT in education target open educational resources (OER) usage, the development of hybrid learning designs and a reevaluation of the role of the teacher as a mentor and facilitator of the learning process. The access to OERs and various online applications can be a real support for history teachers helping them improves the design of their lessons so that they can engage and motivate students more efficiently. However, it also represents an opportunity for students to learn in a new, exciting way which can lead to the development of the necessary 21st century skills (learning, life and carrier skills). Students can use ICT to search and select information and data sources during their history studies. This information can then be further refined and presented in class. Hence, ICT extends the range of tools and techniques which students can utilize when sharing their understanding of history, knowing that solid sources, a good, arguments-based presentation of the findings and a strong conclusion are of outmost importance. The way students interact with this information is shaped by the visualization technologies employed. Through the use of advanced visualization technologies such as augmented reality (AR), students can interact with and manipulate the information more easily by involving more than just their visual senses. Augmented reality has already been successfully used in archaeology (for the digital reconstruction of ancient constructions), architecture (for the digital display of future buildings and projects) or in large museums to facilitate the access of visitors to additional information about the works of interest. Starting from the above mentioned ideas, the present study offers several possibilities in which ICT and AR can be used in order to create authentic learning experiences within history classes, while also presenting and analysing several free visualization applications such as ZooBurst and Wikitude. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]