Search results

The implementation of collaborative systems in learning situations frequently suffers from an emphasis on technical issues, which often leads to a neglect of the problems encountered when learners have to solve tasks jointly. This paper describes how a Simulated Student may be used in synchronous collaborative applications with the goal of monitoring students’ actions in order to detect and correct specific types of disfunctioning in collaboration. Several experiments were carried out with the intention of testing whether the Simulated Student was useful. Data showed that in the majority of the cases the Simulated Student detected and avoided “negative situations” and, what is more, it also improved students’ learning.

This study investigates simulated business learning and performance effectiveness during a simulation task. The learning and performance outcomes of two groups of postgraduate student participants are investigated namely: (a) participants who do not struggle with the task and (b) participants who do struggle with completing the task.

An experiment was conducted using a simulated business, which was manipulated into two initial commencement formats: positive initial format (PIF) and negative initial format (NIF). Individual performance on the task was measured via achievement of performance targets whilst individual learning was measured via causal cognitive maps.

Participants using PIF did not struggle with completing the task and achieved higher performance outcomes compared to participants using NIF, who struggled with completing the task. In addition, the positive association between learning and performance was significantly reduced for participants using NIF who struggled with completing the task

This study’s findings are tentative as the sample size is small and several moderator/mediator variables, which may influence the findings (i.e. student learning style/instructor style/cognitive factors), are outside the scope of the study and thus not included.

Causal cognitive mapping results and students’ self-assessment of learning during simulated business debriefing, may further help instructors/students identify the differences in individual learning outcomes between those who have and have not struggled with increasing simulated business performance.

By using an experiment and causal cognitive mapping to measure individual learning, this study contributes further empirical evidence to the literature.

This paper aims to examine three distinct aspects of authenticity that pre-service teachers (PSTs) experience when they engage with virtual classroom environments to develop their content-intensive instructional practice – task authenticity, student avatar authenticity and performance authenticity – and their perceptions about the usefulness of the simulated teaching experience to support their learning.

This paper explored these conceptions of authenticity and usefulness within a larger research study whose goal was to develop virtual environment tools to help elementary PSTs learn how to engage in one ambitious teaching practice: facilitating discussions that engage students in argumentation. To examine these aspects of authenticity and usefulness, this paper used a general qualitative deductive analysis approach to examine data from 104 interviews with 26 case study teachers and examined patterns in PSTs’ perceptions within and across interviews and authenticity aspects.

While these PSTs strongly value the utility of these tools to support their learning, findings point to variation in their perceptions of authenticity. Findings showed that most PSTs perceived the tasks as an authentic representation of the work of teaching. However, their perceptions of task authenticity did not always align with their perceptions of avatar or performance authenticity.

This paper argues that these three aspects of authenticity relate to, but expand upon, the broader notions of presence and plausibility noted in the literature on virtual environments and should be taken up more directly in future studies of users’ perceptions of virtual environments both within and outside of educational contexts.

The aim of the study was to explore aspects of learning in terms of gain in knowledge, confidence and empathy with immersive virtual reality (VR) from the patient perspective in undergraduate nursing students.

A pilot study integrating immersive VR experiences during clinical courses was facilitated based on the INACSL (2016) standards for simulation practices with a convenience sample of 165 nursing students in three levels of cohorts, using two different VR scenario simulations. Quantitative and qualitative data were collected through pre- and post-surveys.

Student participants embodied patients with chronic disease using immersive VR. Findings showed substantial gains in most measures of knowledge, confidence and empathy, with slightly less difference seen in lower level nursing students particularly with empathy and understanding.

Embodiment through immersive VR scenarios was shown to increase learner development. The positive findings from the pilot study justified continuance of integration of immersive VR in nursing education, recommending further use and research.

Simulated learning for nursing has known benefits on knowledge and understanding. Immersive VR is gaining recognition within nursing education as a method to enhance cognitive and affective knowledge. This paper hopes to add insights on the impact of immersive VR for student learning and encourage discussion about the future for innovative immersive teaching and learning approaches for experiential learning.

The purpose of this paper is to explore whether challenging experiences on development programmes would simulate leadership challenges and therefore stimulate the body’s autonomic nervous system response. The authors also aimed to determine whether increase in autonomic arousal would be related to learning, and/or moderated by personality variables.

The research used heart rate (HR) monitors to measure HR continuously over a two-day simulated learning experience. This was used to calculate autonomic arousal which was taken to be the difference between resting HR measured during sleep and HR during critical incidents (CIs) (HR). The authors correlated this with self-reports of learning immediately after, and one month after, the programme to assess the impact of autonomic arousal on perceived learning, as well as with variety of psychometric measures.

The research found significant correlations between (HR) during CIs and perceived learning which were not related to personality type. The research also found a significant correlation between (HR) and learning during a control event for individuals with “approach” personalities.

Whilst a significant result was found, the sample size of 28 was small. The research also did not empirically assess the valence or intensity of the emotions experienced, and used only a self-report measure of learning. Future research should replicate the findings with a larger sample size, attempt to measure these emotional dimensions, as well as obtain perceptions of learning from direct reports and line managers.

The findings from the research help clarify the mechanisms involved in the effectiveness of experiential learning, and contribute to the understanding of the influence of personality type on perceived learning from experiential methodologies. Such understanding has implications for business schools and learning and development professionals, suggesting that development experiences that challenge leaders are likely to result in learning that is longer lasting.

The research extends the literature regarding the value of learning through experience, the role of autonomic arousal on learning, and the impact of negative emotions on cognition. The research makes a unique contribution by exploring the impact of experience on arousal and learning in a simulated learning experience and over time, by demonstrating that simulated experiences induce emotional and physiological responses, and that these experiences are associated with increased learning.

Continual professional development is essential to foster and enhance professionals’ abilities. A wide variety of methods have been adopted to support professional learning for healthcare professions but many still focus upon a need to update knowledge and the learning of isolated competencies for practice. The purpose of this paper is to report upon a collaborative partnership that enabled the reframing of a professional development course away from this objectivist epistemology to foster pedagogically appropriate approaches nurturing the development of the knowledge and skills required for extended practice in specimen dissection.

An action research approach informed this study which drew upon aspects of simulated learning, “creative play” and “hands-on” practice to nurture development of the knowledge and mastery of essential skills required for extended practice in dissection. A questionnaire allowed the gathering of quantitative and qualitative data from delegates. Open coding of delegate free-text responses enabled thematic analysis of the data.

Delegates reported upon a positive learning and teaching experience providing them with a unique opportunity to develop the essential skills and knowledge required to enhance their extended practice. Four key themes were identified from delegate feedback: legitimacy of learning experience; safe-space for learning; confidence as a practitioner; and professional and social interactions.

Research into skill development in this field is currently lacking. Findings highlight the value of a creative approach to professional development which enables individuals to master the skills required for practice. It also underlines the importance and value of collaborative partnerships. As allied health professionals advance and extend their roles professional development must move away from the didactic delivery of isolated topics and ensure that it offers legitimate learning experiences allowing skill development and technique mastery alongside knowledge enhancement.

The paper aims to clarify the relationship between problem-solving skills and socialization of first-year university students and propose talent management strategies for university management, course instructors and administrators. Thus, this paper identifies three student clusters among the first-year bachelor students. This paper aims to propose a talent management framework and makes recommendations for course instructors and administrators.

In this paper, a Simulated Work Experience is applied to collect data on problem-solving skills and demographics of first-year business students. Based on the anonymous competency and demographic data of 546 students, 3 clusters were identified with a hierarchical K-means clustering method and linked with talent management and curriculum design strategies.

The paper provides empirical insights about how the demographic background of the first-year students affects the students' problem-solving skills. This paper identifies three clusters – laggers, unpolished diamonds and drivers – and proposes a talent management framework to support the students' personal and professional development. The proposed talent management framework is based on the direction of upskilling and type of talent management incentives and outlines four distinct categories: extracurricular reward, tutoring and catching up, perform-or-punish and up-or-out systems. This paper makes suggestions to course administrators and instructors how to incorporate talent management and competency mapping aspects into the curriculum and syllabus design activities.

The research is limited to problem-solving skills and focused only on first-year business students.

The paper includes practical implications for business school management, course administrators and instructors about competency mapping, talent management strategies, curriculum and syllabus design.

The research is based on the competency mapping of 546 first-year students at Budapest Business School. The data were collected via a Simulated Work Experience, where the students were participating in a virtual business project.

Conventional lecture-based educational approaches alone might not be able to portray the complexity of disaster risk management practice and its real-life dynamics. One work-integrated learning practice that can give students practical work-related experiences is simulation-based learning. However, there is a limited discourse on simulation-based learning in disaster risk management education at the tertiary level. As tertiary education plays a crucial role in developing capabilities within the workforce, simulation-based learning can evoke or replicate substantial aspects of the real world in a fully interactive fashion. This paper aims to present outcomes of simulation-based learning sessions the authors designed and delivered in a disaster risk management course.

The authors developed a framework to illustrate simulation-based learning in a disaster risk management programme. It was then used as a guide to design and execute simulation-based learning sessions. An autoethnographic methodology was then applied to reflectively narrate the experiences and feelings during the design and execution of the simulations.

The evaluation of the simulation sessions showed that participants were able to apply their knowledge and demonstrate the skills required to make critical decisions in disaster risk reduction. The conclusion from the simulation-based learning sessions is that making simulation-based learning a part of the pedagogy of disaster risk management education enables students to gain practical experience, deliberate ethical tensions and practical dilemmas and develop the ability to work with multiple perspectives.

The simulated workplace experience allowed students to experience decision-making as disaster risk management professionals, allowing them to integrate theory with practice.

The purpose of this case study is to describe a simulation-based assessment designed to assure student readiness for a first full-time clinical experience in an entry-level Doctor of Physical Therapy program that transitioned to mixed-mode instruction during the COVID-19 pandemic.

A cohort of 40 second-year physical therapy students whose content delivery mode, assessment methods and curricular sequence deviated from the curricular plan participated in a new assessment using standardized patients. The assessment was developed to preferentially address the knowledge, skills, abilities and professional behaviors (KSAs) that were typically assessed with other methods before the pandemic.

The assessment was useful in identifying students who required additional learning experiences to meet expected levels of competence before transition to a first full-time clinical experience. It also identified KSAs that needed to be strengthened within the entire cohort of students.

This case study provides an example of feasible implementation of an assessment of student readiness for clinical education that may guide future development of standardized assessments in health profession education (HPE) programs that have or plan to transition to mixed-mode content delivery.

This case study highlights the need and process for developing and implementing additional assessments in HPE programs when planned changes or unexpected variations in curriculum delivery occur. This evidence-based assessment preferentially addresses the affective domain of learning and includes competency standards that have recently been developed for physical therapy education in the USA.

This paper presents a set of instrumental case studies for the context-based learning of BIM in the milieu of knowledge-based practice in the AEC industry. The study aimed to examine students' actions and perspectives in a simulated learning environment for real-world BIM processes. The core intent was to provide an in-depth understanding of strategic and functional BIM implementation by synthesizing a suggestive pedagogical framework based on context-based learning approaches.

Derived from context-based approaches and experiential learning methods such as role-play, problem-based and active learning, the study involved a set of doctoral-level case studies. In a qualitative research study, these cases were devised and organized around industry-focused simulations on various levels of BIM implementation strategies.

Results from the case studies and the student responses suggest that the comprehensive evaluation of real-world BIM implementation simulations facilitates a solid understanding of the value of BIM. The participation of industry professionals catalyzes the development of strategic and functional BIM competencies.

The study proposes a well-structured and replicable BIM learning framework based on context-based learning approaches. The novel framework is adaptive and flexible for BIM education. It can provide students with the necessary skills, strategic vision and professional competencies for innovative practices in the 21st-century AEC Industry. The simulative learning settings, including the evaluation rubrics and connected instructional methods, can be implemented and further developed for similar education efforts.