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Experiential learning is considered to be a crucial factor in students' perceived learning outcomes. This study aims to explore the development of a mechanism in hospitality education and to analyze the learning outcomes (i.e. perceived quality, perceived value and learning satisfaction) using experiential learning (i.e. previous learning experience and personalized learning environment).

The course design consisted of two activities (instructing and learning activities) and three phases (before, during and after class) using the Moodle version 3.5 online platform as the educational and training site to sustain e-learning archives and activities. A longitudinal survey using a sample of 207 hospitality students in blended e-learning environment indicates positive relationships among the previously mentioned factors.

Results indicated that both previous learning experience and personalized learning environment have positive direct effects on perceived quality and perceived value, while both perceived quality and perceived value have positive direct effects on learning satisfaction. Furthermore, both perceived quality and perceived value mediate the relationship between previous learning experience and learning satisfaction, as well as the relationship between personalized learning environment and learning satisfaction.

These findings sustain the value of experiential learning, particularly the curriculum, student and faculty development in sustainable development education for hospitality.

The purpose of this paper is to articulate how the user experience (UX) approach was initiated and integrated into the centre’s scope of operations with the objective of improving the e-learning layout on the D2L learning management system (LMS). One of the most effective ways to collect user feedback has historically been to evaluate user interfaces using strategies from user testing. The integration of a UX approach by the Centre for ODL Experiences (COLE) at Wawasan Open University has led to a more user-oriented design of FlexLearn by conducting user testing on students as the target users of the platform and gathering course leaders’ (CLs) feedback after the presentation of the new template.

Since the process of design and development is a looping process, the first user testing methods employed were observation and interviews, which were conducted over the course of numerous sessions. The data collection used a mixed-methods approach, combining quantitative demographic and background data with qualitative feedback from open-ended questions and real-time interview responses. A standardized questionnaire gathered demographic information, while questions for feedback forms and interviews were adjusted based on specific tasks to explore usability and user interactions comprehensively.

The findings revealed overall positive feedback, with some concerns highlighted by the students who claimed to have trouble navigating the courses during the initial prototype. In addition to the qualitative data from the user testing session, a quantitative method based on an online questionnaire was also utilised for the CLs after the presentation of the final layout. Positive responses were received from the CLs, and constructive suggestions were considered for FlexLearn 3.0.

This paper is among the first that articulates the process of initiating and integrating user-centred design in an effort to improve the user experience of online and ODL platforms and LMSs. It will contribute to a dialogue on investigating and prioritising learners’ ODL experiences to ensure education equity across all levels or categories of students, which aligns with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

The integration of UX and user testing allows us to better identify what users like, their concerns and their needs. We gain important input on how easy or difficult it is to use the system, move around it and how much they enjoy using it. This feedback helps us make changes to the design so that the final product is more in line with what users want. It also allows us to discover problems before they become major, saving time and effort later on. Finally, integrating user input improves the LMS, delivering a more fun and successful learning experience for everyone.

User-friendly systems arise as institutions prioritise user-centred design, breaking down barriers for various learners. This develops an innovative culture, improving present learning experiences and setting a precedent for future generations. The emphasis on user demands helps to create a more accessible, adaptive and egalitarian educational landscape by connecting education with current technological trends. As education becomes more inclusive, the broader community benefits, emphasising the beneficial social impact of LMS user testing.

By articulating the process of integrating user testing on an LMS/e-learning prototype, helps us understand what users like, where they face problems and what needs improvement. By involving users in testing, we get valuable feedback on how easy it is to use the system, navigate around and overall, how much they enjoy using it. Case studies like this also offer universities concrete examples of real-world challenges and successes.

Considering the potential of Collaborative International Online Learning (COIL) for cross-boundaries interacting and collaborating effectively, this study aims to explore the intercultural awareness of pre-service language teachers after participating in a COIL project.

Following a quantitative research approach and an exploratory cross-sectional method, the authors administered a 13-item questionnaire to unveil the perceptions of 64 future language teachers from Spain after their online experience with counterparts from the USA.

Participants consider that COIL may have enhanced their intercultural and global awareness and equipped them with valuable skills and knowledge for the future, being women more positive than men. Moreover, the results also suggest that those participants who have not traveled abroad consider COIL to be a good opportunity to compensate for the lack of knowledge or experience with other cultures resulting from not having had the opportunity to visit other countries.

COIL needs to be seen as a powerful tool to promote global learning, intercultural understanding and the development of skills among students that will be vital for success in today’s interconnected world. Nevertheless, universities and teacher training centers need to rethink the preparation of future teachers for the increasing demands to prepare students for the requirements of the global world, and to do so, they need to consider that COIL may offer them significant benefits.

This work offers an interesting exploration of teachers’ attitudes toward COIL, providing insights into the potential of online collaboration for developing intercultural awareness.

The transformative impact of digital innovations on education has reshaped academic landscapes, affecting both instructional methods and evaluation systems. This study delves into the realm of distance education, exploring the intricate dynamics of digital access, equity and inclusivity, with a particular focus on their influence on learning outcomes.

A comprehensive survey involving 360 participants was conducted to gather data on various facets of the digital learning environment. Descriptive statistics illuminated participants' perceptions, while digital access disparities were analyzed through a chi-square test. Structural equation modelling (SEM) assessed direct relationships, mediation and moderation analyses and elucidated the nuanced influence of demographic parameters.

Descriptive analysis revealed generally positive perceptions of digital learning, with some variability in aspects like accessibility of learning materials and Internet connectivity. Digital access disparities were evident across demographic parameters, highlighting significant associations with gender, education, income, geographic location, religious affiliation and field of study. SEM indicated robust positive associations between digital access and learning outcomes, strategies for enhancing equity and inclusivity and their combined impact on overall academic success.

This study contributes original insights by comprehensively analyzing the interplay of digital access, equity and inclusivity in distance education and their impact on learning outcomes. The research unveils nuanced disparities across demographic dimensions, emphasizing the need for targeted interventions. The study’s integration of SEM, mediation and moderation analyses adds a sophisticated layer to the understanding of these relationships.

The purpose of this study is to identify the main perspectives and trends in educational data mining (EDM) in the e-learning environment from a managerial perspective.

This paper proposes a systematic literature review to identify the main perspectives and trends in EDM in the e-learning environment from a managerial perspective. The study domain of this review is restricted by the educational concepts of e-learning and management. The search for bibliographic material considered articles published in journals and papers published in conferences from 1994 to 2023, totaling 30 years of research in EDM.

From this review, it was observed that managers have been concerned about the effectiveness of the platform used by students as it contains the entire learning process and all the interactions performed, which enable the generation of information. From the data collected on these platforms, there are improvements and inferences that can be made about the actions of educators and human tutors (or automatic tutoring systems), curricular optimization or changes related to course content, proposal of evaluation criteria and also increase the understanding of different learning styles.

This review was conducted from the perspective of the manager, who is responsible for the direction of an institution of higher education, to assist the administration in creating strategies for the use of data mining to improve the learning process. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this review is original because other contributions do not focus on the manager.

The research aims at examining educators’ perceptions, attitudes and behavioral intentions toward learning analytics (LA) and the role of self-instruction within the proposed model for LA adoption.

A quantitative approach is utilized in which a questionnaire is designed as a tool for data collection and partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) is used for data analysis and model testing.

Results show that performance expectancy and effort expectancy have a significant effect on educators’ attitudes, which in turn significantly affect educators’ behavioral intentions. Self-instruction mediates the relationship between educators’ attitudes and behavioral intentions. The attitude towards LA mediates the relationship between LA performance expectancy and educators’ self-instruction. The research model explains 54% of the variance in learning analysis adoption.

Findings open a path for research on pedagogical factors affecting LA adoption and guide education managers toward facilitating LA adoption. The tested model contributes to LA and teaching and learning literature by highlighting the role of educators’ self-instruction in LA adoption.

This research paper aimed to investigate the affordances of using virtual reality (VR) in teaching culture among in-service teachers of teaching Persian to speakers of other languages (TPSOL) in Iran.

This qualitative case study, conducted at two Iranian universities, used purposeful sampling to select 34 eligible in-service Persian teachers from a pool of 73. Data collection used an open-ended questionnaire and interviews.

Before the TPSOL in-service training workshop, teachers expressed their reservations regarding the use of VR to teach culture in TPSOL courses. The emerged themes were “skepticism toward effectiveness,” “practicality concerns,” “limited awareness of VR applications,” “technological apprehension” and “prevalence of traditional teaching paradigms.” During the post-workshop interview, it was discovered that the teachers’ perceptions of VR in teaching culture had undergone a positive shift. The workshop generated emergent themes that reflected positive perceptions and affordances for using VR to teach culture in TPSOL, including “enhanced cultural immersion,” “increased student engagement,” “simulation of authentic cultural experiences,” and “facilitation of interactive learning environments.”

One primary limitation is the lack of prior experience with VR for teaching practices in real-world classrooms among the participants. While the study aimed to explore the potential of VR in enhancing pedagogical approaches, the absence of participants with prior exposure to VR in educational contexts may impact the generalizability of the findings to a broader population. Additionally, the study faced practical constraints, such as the unavailability of sufficient facilities in the workshop. As a result, the instructor had to project the VR cont7ent on a monitor, potentially diverging from the immersive nature of true VR experiences. These limitations offer opportunities for future research to refine methodologies and gain a more comprehensive understanding of the implications of integrating VR into teaching practices.

Extensive research has been conducted on the effectiveness of VR in language education. However, there is a significant gap in research on TPSOL, which is considered a less commonly taught language. This study aims to address this gap by exploring the use of VR in the TPSOL through the lenses of in-service teachers. As part of a larger investigation, this qualitative inquiry focuses on the perceptions of in-service teachers about VR, with a particular emphasis on the cultural understanding of the Persian language.

Today the research area on technology acceptance is mainly dependent on the theory of technology acceptance model (TAM). The TAM was used in this study primarily for the purpose of providing a basis for determining the impact of various external variables on the adoption of edtech platforms. The TAM is a theory of information systems that suggests steps for learners to take as they adopt and use new technologies. The primary TAM variables for adoption of edtech platforms are evaluated in this study: perceived usefulness (PU) and perceived ease of use (PEOU) by using the factors – perceived enjoyment (PE), information quality, electronic-word of mouth (e-WOM), perceived compatibility, computer self-efficacy and objective usability. By analyzing and defining the relationship between the external variables with respect to the adoption of edtech platform among students, we hope to contextualize the TAM model. The end result provides a clearer understanding of TAM and its growth as a useful model for technology adoption studies and for clarifying the relationship between the uptake of edtech platforms and technological acceptability. The study employed a qualitative methodology and selected publications and research papers about the adoption of technology. These were then carefully assessed, analyzed and scrutinized for the terms of how students adopted edtech platforms. It was proposed that the adoption of an edtech platform may result from proper training in technology usage and its application to real-world scenarios.

The objective of this research conducted in the city of Cuenca is to elaborate on the management platform model of the smart tourist destination (STD). The chapter provides the components to develop such a system as a pilot plan. To maximize the impact of the proposed approach and enhance the decision-making capacities of local actors, the metrics that the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) developed for the so-called intermediate cities in the study “Cuenca Sustainable City” are used. The platform (www.smarturcuenca.com) considers the transcendence of the current reality of the tourism sector, which is open to multidisciplinary work with other sectors to promote the rational use of cultural and natural resources through the Internet of Things (IoT).

The study directs attention to the psychological conditions experienced and knowledge management practices leveraged by faculty in higher education institutes (HEIs) to cope with the shift to emergency remote teaching caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. By focusing attention on faculty experiences during this transition, this study aims to examine an under-investigated effect of the pandemic in the Indian context.

Interpretative phenomenological analysis is used to analyze the data gathered in two waves through 40 in-depth interviews with 20 faculty members based in India over a year. The data were analyzed deductively using Kahn’s framework of engagement and robust coding protocols.

Eight subthemes across three psychological conditions (meaningfulness, availability and safety) were developed to discourse faculty experiences and challenges with emergency remote teaching related to their learning, identity, leveraged resources and support received from their employing educational institutes. The findings also present the coping strategies and knowledge management-related practices that the faculty used to adjust to each discussed challenge.

The study uses a longitudinal design and phenomenology as the analytical method, which offers a significant methodological contribution to the extant literature. Further, the study’s use of Kahn’s model to examine the faculty members’ transitions to emergency remote teaching in India offers novel insights into the COVID-19 pandemic’s effect on educational institutes in an under-investigated context.