2008 DEC 15 - (VerticalNews.com) -- "Educational learning environments have changed dramatically in the last 20 years. Advances in technology have enabled the World Wide Web and a sundry of other tools," scientists writing in the journal Etr&D - Educational Technology Research and Development report.

  "In response, many researchers have argued that one way to understand learning in a complex world is to examine user interactions within Massively Multiplayer Online Games (MMOGs) [Gee (2003). What video games have to teach us about learning and literacy. New York: Palgrave/St. Martin's; Squire (2003). Educational Researcher, 35(8), 19-29; Young, Schrader, & Zheng, 2006]. However, few empirical investigations have explored MMOGs as a context for learning. As a result, a 20-item, Likert-type instrument was administered to 2140 participants who actively play MMOGs. Items were designed to measure players' gaming experiences as they developed requisite skill sets and learned game content. Specifically, this investigation examined how participants' age ranges and levels of expertise relate to behaviors, strategies, and skills exhibited with an MMOG environment," wrote P.G. Schrader and colleagues, University of Nevada ...read more

  2008 DEC 15 - (VerticalNews.com) -- "Systems thinking is an essential cognitive skill that enables individuals to develop an integrative understanding of a given subject at the conceptual and systemic level. Yet, systems thinking is not usually an innate skill," scientists in the United States report.

  "Helping students develop systems-thinking skills warrants attention from educators. This paper describes a study examining the effects of utilising systems modelling as a cognitive tool in enhancing a group of graduate students' systems-thinking skills. A significant improvement was observed in the systems-thinking practises of the students," wrote W. Hung and colleagues, University of North Dakota ...read more

  2008 DEC 15 - (VerticalNews.com) -- "This paper examines the use of mixed methods for analyzing users' avatar-related activities in a virtual world. Server logs recorded keystroke-level activity for 595 participants over a six-month period in Whyville.net, an informal science website," scientists in the United States report.

  "Participants also completed surveys and participated in interviews regarding their experiences. Additionally, the study included online ethnographic observations of Whyville and offline observations of a subset of 88 users in classroom and after-school settings during their participation. A mixed-methods analysis identified a major user emphasis on avatar appearance and customization that was invariant across user typologies," wrote D.F. Feldon and colleagues, University of South Carolina ...read more