Editorial Overview

Abstract

One of the hallmarks of learner-centered instructional design is active learning. Three of the best papers of this year’s State University of New York/Conference on Instruction & Technology (SUNY/CIT) featured the use of educational technology for enhancing student engagement in learning. These active learning papers were selected by a review committee that was chaired by Dr. Chris Price of the SUNY Center for Professional Development. The first SUNY/CIT paper provides new insights for the current trend of applying digital gaming strategies to instructional systems. The focus of the paper is on engagement of students by gamifying instruction. The next paper discusses the integration of intercultural experiences to enhance student engagement in learning. The third paper also deals with active learning by showing how to design online discussion forums to improve student participation. The next two papers address the need for more informed analysis of how to make more effective use of learning management systems (LMS). The fourth paper provides a report of a study that explored the experiences of 20 instructors utilizing Blackboard Learn in traditional face-to-face (F2F) courses. This study provides a better understanding of the educational potential of LMS in the F2F classroom. The next paper discusses how analysis of LMS data can be used to guide the configuration of online assignments. New educational technologies continue to be developed for classroom use as well as independent student use. We conclude this issue of JETS with two papers that deal with the effective use of smart classrooms and student use of iPads. The objective of the sixth study was to determine the effects of smart classrooms among college students in Mathematics courses. The concluding paper explores the implementation of iPads, with a focus on the role of school leaders.