ECT Brownbag Speaker Series

In this talk, Alex Wright will share findings from his doctoral research at the Carnegie Mellon School of Design, where he explored new frameworks and tools to help UX practitioners explore ways to incorporate more sustainable, long-term perspectives into their work. He argues that UX practitioners are uniquely positioned to bring about transformative change, but that doing so may require them to look beyond the traditional boundaries of UX practice and consider new perspectives from outside the field: namely, alternative economics, futures studies, and the literature of meaningful work.UX practice stands at a crossroads.

If, as some economists have argued, the world is moving towards a new post-Capitalist era—one marked by a period of degrowth, a shift towards a knowledge – and service – based economy, and the decline of traditional corporate hierarchies—what implications might such a transition hold for working designers and researchers? How would our practices need to evolve? This talk will explore those questions and invite participants to engage in a discussion of how they might shift their own practices towards more sustainable long-term outcomes.

About the speaker

Alex Wright is a User Experience leader at Google Search and recently completed his PhD in Design at Carnegie Mellon School of Design. He has previously held UX leadership roles at Instagram, Etsy, The New York Times, and IBM, and has worked as a consultant for clients including frog design, Microsoft, Adobe, the Internet Archive and the Long Now Foundation. From 2008-2019 he was a faculty member at the School of Visual Arts' MFA program in Interaction Design.

In today’s data-driven world, data literacy requires not only understanding data but also thinking critically about its sources and ethical implications (Franklin et al., 2020). This study, part of a DBIR project, explores comics as a tool for engaging seventh graders (N=80) in data reasoning through a two-year interdisciplinary curriculum in New York City. Students analyzed national and local survey data on friendship and created comics with Pixton to communicate findings. Through thematic analysis of their work and interviews from teachers and students, the study asks: What do narrative patterns in data comics reveal about students’ data reasoning? Please feel free to bring your own lunch as you join the conversation.

About the speaker

Marian Tes is an instructional designer and researcher passionate about enhancing learning through technology. She is a Senior Instructional Technologist at NYU’s School of Global Public Health, where she collaborates with faculty to design tech-driven solutions that support student learning. In this role, Marian develops educational content, researches best practices, and leads faculty training to foster more inclusive and impactful education in public health.

Marian is also completing her Ph.D. in Educational Communication & Technology at NYU. Her dissertation investigates how middle school students can engage in data literacy through arts-based pedagogy, specifically comic-making.

Negative feedback that indicates a discrepancy between the current achievement and the standards is an important source for further learning. However, it is often challenging for learners is to receive negative feedback, because they perceive it as self-threatening (Eskreis-Winkler & Fishbach, 2019). Hence, even though negative feedback can guide learners to regulate their further process of learning, the potential benefits of negative feedback often do not unfold(Kluger & DeNisi, 1996).

About the speaker

Susanne Narciss is a Professor of Psychology of Learning and Instruction (PsyLI) at Technische Universität Dresden. Her team conducts theory-driven and design-based psychological research focused on life-long learning and instruction within socio-technical systems.

The primary aim of her work is to provide conceptual, theoretical, and empirical insights into how learning tasks and formative feedback strategies can help learners use (digital) information resources effectively to develop competencies. Her current research interests include:

(a) promoting self-regulated learning,

(b) the role of motivation and metacognition in instructional contexts,

(c) the conditions and effects of interactive learning tasks, and

(d) the conditions and effects of informative tutoring feedback strategies.

Her contributions to feedback strategy research have been recognized as cutting-edge by the American Association for Educational Communication and Technology (AECT), which awarded her the prestigious AECT Distinguished Development Award in 2007.

Fostering social and emotional skills in early childhood is essential but resource-intensive for teachers. With children engaging with technology early, we explored whether AI could support social-emotional learning in kindergarten. We developed a platform with an AI companion, Ameet, who led interactive group activities, recognizing children, play objects, and responding to gestures. We tested two approaches: a social-focused one promoting collaboration and a task-focused one emphasizing individual work. Children in the social group showed more peer interaction and cohesion, while both groups exhibited learning gains. This study highlights how AI companions can enhance early education by supporting social interaction and learning.

About the speaker

Orly Fuhrman, PhD, is a researcher, lecturer, and developer of techno-pedagogical solutions, specializing in embodied learning. She is passionate about creating physical interfaces that allow technology to preserve the physical, social, and emotional contexts of learning.

Orly holds an M.A. in developmental psychology from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and a PhD in cognitive psychology from Stanford University. Her research career has spanned multiple disciplines, integrating methods from neuroscience, linguistics, anthropology, and cognitive science to explore the relationship between language and thought.

After completing her doctorate, she co-founded Lingua.ly, an AI-driven platform for personalized foreign language learning. She later joined the Israeli Center for Educational Technology (CET), focusing on adaptive learning solutions for literacy education. In parallel, she completed her post-doctoral training at Tel Aviv University, where she investigated the potential of virtual reality environments for foreign language vocabulary learning.

For the past three years, Orly has been leading the pedagogical development of the Ameet project at CET—a physical-digital platform designed to support social learning in kindergarten classrooms. Ameet, a digital companion, mediates activities where children interact with peers using tangible, real-world play objects, enhancing both their cognitive and social development.

Orly moved to New York with her family  in July, ready for the next adventure!

The psychological paradox of high-achievement and low self-belief for high-achieving middle school girls’ has rarely been explored, particularly in how this impacts girls’ sense of self as learners. This dissertation research aims to provide a nuanced understanding of the tensions, pressures, and rewards at play (e.g. internal and external rewards, gender norms, etc.) that shape girls’ sense of self, by employing the Listening Guide Method, a feminist qualitative research methodology of psychological inquiry. This talk will present preliminary insights including cultural, psychological, and relational patterns in high-achieving girls, revealing the psychological logic behind their sense of self as learners.

About the speaker

Originally from the Netherlands, Bernice d’Anjou has a background as both a middle school teacher and a designer/researcher of EdTech tools for elementary and middle school classrooms, for which she received a national award. She is passionate about understanding girls’ psychological process related to their educational development and she is currently a PhD candidate in Educational Communication and Technology at NYU. (Bernice holds a Masters in Science Education and Communication and a Masters in Industrial Design from University of Technology Eindhoven).

Provoked by numerous art-less walks during the pandemic, our Open Air Gallery AR project, is a smartphone-based locative media platform to display digital galleries and music albums in an interactive format. www.openairgalleryar.com 

Geri Hahn Art: Living Out Loud AR is a new type of interactive locative multimedia app for virtual exhibition, staged in Central Park, where people experience Augmented Reality (AR) art and music soundscapes on a walk. It features the art of New Jersey-based Geri Hahn, an artist-synesthete who uses synesthesia as her creative inspiration. The app includes music by Svetlana Rudenko (Piano, Logic Pro) and Mads Haahr (Synths), composed to transfer the art expression into music language using a unique multisensory design approach where art expression is translated into music texture, and location is chosen co-create the experience of natural landscape in the sense of psychogeography. Recorded talks with the artist give insights into her life in art, her inspiration and craft of expression. The Open Air Gallery AR project allows artists to exhibit to a wide audience without the limitations of a physical exhibition venue (e.g., availability, costs for rent). 

Previous AR exhibitions staged by Haunted Planet Studios include: 

• Synaesthesia Gallery AR [1] at Trinity College Dublin, Ireland (funding award from FENS and DANA Foundation for Brain Awareness Week 2021)

• Jack B. Yeats: Psychogeography AR [2], 2021, Dublin

• Alice Dali AR [3] at Durham University Botanic Garden, UK, 2024 (permanent experience)

• Yokai: Japanese Ghosts AR, 2024, staged at Herbert Park, Dublin, as part of Baggotonia Festival Fringe. 

Our research results showed a high level of interest in the genre and the promising social benefits of cooperative cultural play, fun for families, and great aesthetic experience for individuals interested in art and music. 

About the speaker

Prof. Mads Haahr, School of Computer Science and Statistics, Trinity College Dublin, Course Director for the MSc in Interactive Digital Media (IDM). Prof. Haahr conducts research into serious games with a focus on interactive digital narrative for cultural heritage. He has managed research grants for a total value of over €1.8M from Horizon Europe, Enterprise Ireland, the National Digital Research Centre and others. He partnered with five other EU Universities for current project LoGaCulture. He is the Founder, CEO and Creative Director for the award-winning serious game studio Haunted Planet Studios and also known for creating the Internet’s premier true random number service RANDOM.ORG. 

Dr Svetlana Rudenko, www.svetlana-rudenko.com    researcher and composer at Haunted Planet Studios, Dublin. Educator, Concert Pianist, Researcher on Music Art Perception, Neuroesthetics, Creative Synaesthesia, Cognitive Musicology, Multisensory Design for Digitally Enhanced Realities, AR/ MR for Education & Mental Health,  aesthetics for Sensory Substitution Devices, new forms of multimedia for music and cultural heritage. Some recent highlights: 

• Featured at British Neuroscience Association broadcast about Music Consciousness & Synaesthesia 2021 https://youtu.be/aoIzGNFg_kM?si=LL7B396Nsnnfbo9w 

• Featured in Irish Times for Creative Brain Week, TCD https://www.irishtimes.com/science/2024/03/28/new-horizons-on-maintaining-brain-health/ 

• Durham University (UK), DreaMR Mixed Reality Piano concert video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OL8B9hZhh6w&t=13s Images of Geri Hahn’s Art in Augmented Reality

In this talk, Dr. Mia Shaw discusses restorying through design, a pedagogical approach for interrogating and reimagining dominant narratives and myths through integrating critical literacy, speculative design, and Black Feminist-Womanist theories. Inspired by Black women’s quilting histories, Shaw positions computational quiltmaking as a possible vehicle for not only restorying through design but also uncovering the taken-for-granted imaginaries shaping STEM. She will report on workshops she developed and facilitated during 2019-2021 with high-school-aged participants at an informal, museum-based STEM program, in which youth restoryed myths about technology through designing interactive quilt patches.

About the speaker

Dr. Mia Shaw is an Assistant Professor/Faculty Fellow in the Department of Administration, Leadership, and Technology, as part of New York University Provost’s Postdoctoral Fellowship Program. She earned a PhD in Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education from the University of Pennsylvania, where she was advised by Dr. Yasmin Kafai. In addition, Mia earned an MEd in Curriculum & Instruction from University of Nevada-Las Vegas and BAH in Human Biology (with a focus in Adolescent Development) from Stanford University.

Mia’s focus on designing and evaluating justice-oriented, constructionist STEAM learning environments was shaped dramatically by her experiences teaching middle school science in Las Vegas and as a program coordinator for a STEM-focused nonprofit organization serving girls of Color in Oakland. Her research interests center on using creative, interdisciplinary technologies in order to support identity authorship, community building, and speculative literacy and design practices among Black and Brown youth. Epistemologically, Mia draws from Black Feminist and Womanist theories. In addition to research, Mia is also an illustrator and comic artist who has used her art to support educational research.

Before joining NYU, Mia was awarded the 2022 Ford Foundation Dissertation Fellowship to complete her dissertation study, which examined the design and implementation of a workshop where nondominant, high-school-aged youth designed interactive quilt patches that reimagined or “restor(y)ed” dominant narratives about computing technologies.

As a critical component of 21st-century skills, collaboration skills have been proven to enhance academic performance, workplace productivity, and foster responsible citizenship. Despite the extensive exploration of collaborative learning, the focus has predominantly been on leveraging collaboration for learning, rather than on learning collaboration itself.

In this presentation, I will share some preliminary findings from literature. The main question is: How can we develop a theoretically sound, technologically feasible, and pedagogically valid analytics-supported feedback system to help students develop their collaboration skills? I will propose an integrated framework as a starting point, through which we will navigate the current research landscape, assessing our progress and identifying future directions.

About the speaker

Xiaomeng Huang is a PhD candidate in Educational Communication and Technology. She is passionate about enhancing the development of 21st-century skills through multimodal learning analytics. Her current research centers on collaborative learning analytics, within which she seeks to use insights from fine-grained learning traces to create automated and actionable feedback for students to develop their collaboration skills. Xiaomeng holds a Master of Education in Technology, Innovation, and Education from Harvard University.

In the field of game-based learning, one of the challenges facing scholars and practitioners alike is determining how the emotions induced in players during gameplay experiences affect their ability to learn (Loderer at al., 2019; Loderer et al., 2020; Pawar et al., 2019; Plass et al., 2020). Emotional design research on learning games so far has skewed heavily toward visual aesthetics (Pawar et al., 2019) in games. My candidacy paper focuses on narrative, which is under-represented in this research area. There are currently only a handful of studies on the impact of game narrative on players’ emotions and a number of promising directions for future work (Bowers et al., 2013; Dickey, 2011 & 2019; D’Mello et al., 2014; Milne et al., 2010; Neville, 2010). Furthermore, there appears to be little guidance in the literature regarding how best to design game narrative that aligns with learning objectives (Dickey, 2015 is a rare example). In my candidacy paper, I look deeply at this issue and consider what actually constitutes game narrative, as well as how game narrative might support learning. I also review several existing studies on the impact of game narrative on players’ emotions and learning. In particular, I look at the specific elements of game narrative that were studied and the methodological approaches used. I conclude with a discussion around several research avenues that have the potential to bear fruit in the near future.

About the speaker

Jeff is a PhD candidate in the ECT doctoral program at Steinhardt, and a senior instructional designer for the Digital Learning team at Tandon. He earned his BA in Mathematics from Michigan State University, his MEd in Curriculum & Instruction from American College of Education, and his MS in Games For Learning at NYU. He currently teaches the Narrative, Digital Media, and Learning course for the LTXD/G4L masters programs. Jeff's research interests include narrative design and emotional design in games for learning. Prior to his instructional design work, Jeff taught mathematics for several years at a project-based learning high school in Illinois. Outside of school and work, Jeff enjoys running, reading books, taking his dog for long walks, and spending an embarrassing number of hours playing Final Fantasy XIV.

The various social, educational, and political contexts in which students and teachers are engaging in learning today - in-person, online, or hybrid - serve as an urgent call for the learning science community to discuss, develop, and practice a unified theory of Critical Digital Pedagogy - integrating research strands in Critical Pedagogy and Learning Science in technology-rich spaces. While there is a lot of musing and blogging today about critical pedagogy, digital pedagogy, inclusive education, and other adjacent concepts, there is little in the way of experimentation, theory-building, or academic studies. This talk is based on the literature review conducted for the dissertation research question, "How do university professors perceive educational elements aimed at confronting inequities in educational opportunity and achievement that empower students through technological/digital pedagogical approaches?"

About the speaker

Jonathan Martinez (he/him//el) currently works at the intersection of International Education, Critical Pedagogy, and Technology. At NYU's Office of Global Programs, Jonathan currently works supporting all efforts for academic planning and faculty engagement at NYU's global sites. He is a recently minted PhD candidate in NYU Steinhardt's Educational Communication and Technology Program.

Writing is a crucial communicative skill in a knowledge-based society. However, providing individual feedback to each student can be challenging for teachers during regular classroom learning. Technology and artificial intelligence offer new potential to address this problem and could help increase personalized learning opportunities. In this talk, I will present empirical results on the effectiveness of (generative) AI in providing feedback to students to improve their writing. I will also discuss the potential and challenges of implementing (AI) feedback systems in the classroom, identifying critical areas of future research. 

About the speaker

Jennifer Meyer is a postdoctoral researcher and Junior Research Group Leader at the Department of Educational Science and Educational Psychology at the Leibniz Institute for Science and Mathematics Education in Kiel, Germany. Her research is on the role of students‘ individual differences in learning, academic motivation, automated writing assessment, and the use and impact of (generative) AI in education. She received a diploma in psychology from the University of Kiel in 2019. She is a Jacobs Foundation Research Fellow.

Civic data theatre translates quantitative data into theatrical language to engage communities in deliberative conversations on relevant issues. It is a form of community-partnered arts based research that engages community stakeholders in collaborative, embodied analysis and sense-making.

In 2024 the Data Theatre Collaborative (Dani Snyder-Young, Jonathan Carr, Rahul Bhargava, Laura Perovich, Michael Arnold Mages, and Moira Zellner) facilitated a civic data theatre workshop with youth development organization Hyde Park Task Force. This workshop was organized by LivableStreets Alliance, who had been contracted by the city of Boston to engage community members in the process of redeveloping Southwest Corridor Park, which runs through the neighborhoods in which Hyde Park Task Force participants live.

In this workshop, young people used dramatic activities to analyze quantitative data about the redevelopment of the Southwest Corridor Park. Animating the data in theatrical form enabled young people to take ownership of it, deliberate over it, and use it to advocate for their vision for what they want the park to be. This unique process helped LivableStreets Alliance bring the young peoples’ perspectives to municipal decision-makers and directly impact the redevelopment process.

About the speaker

Civic data theatre translates quantitative data into theatrical language to engage communities in deliberative conversations on relevant issues. It is a form of community-partnered arts based research that engages community stakeholders in collaborative, embodied analysis and sense-making.

In 2024 the Data Theatre Collaborative (Dani Snyder-Young, Jonathan Carr, Rahul Bhargava, Laura Perovich, Michael Arnold Mages, and Moira Zellner) facilitated a civic data theatre workshop with youth development organization Hyde Park Task Force. This workshop was organized by LivableStreets Alliance, who had been contracted by the city of Boston to engage community members in the process of redeveloping Southwest Corridor Park, which runs through the neighborhoods in which Hyde Park Task Force participants live.

In this workshop, young people used dramatic activities to analyze quantitative data about the redevelopment of the Southwest Corridor Park. Animating the data in theatrical form enabled young people to take ownership of it, deliberate over it, and use it to advocate for their vision for what they want the park to be. This unique process helped LivableStreets Alliance bring the young peoples’ perspectives to municipal decision-makers and directly impact the redevelopment process.

Scientists and engineers have been working diligently on various models of artificial intelligence since 1955. Nobody was paying much attention (other than a few chess matches and a Jeopardy episode) until ChatGPT exploded onto the scene in the fall of 2022. Now we all have some questions. After a brief and non-technical review of how Large Language Models work, Prof. Neuman will take the long view -- Is Eliezer Yudkowsky correct in arguing that superintelligent agents will ultimately kill us all? Is there a practical way to align AI systems with human values? Is it possible that AI could actually augment human intelligence? Scientists and engineers have been working diligently on various models of artificial intelligence since 1955. Nobody was paying much attention (other than a few chess matches and a Jeopardy episode) until ChatGPT exploded onto the scene in the fall of 2022. Now we all have some questions. After a brief and non-technical review of how Large Language Models work, Prof. Neuman will take the long view -- Is Eliezer Yudkowsky correct in arguing that superintelligent agents will ultimately kill us all? Is there a practical way to align AI systems with human values? Is it possible that AI could actually augment human intelligence?

About the speaker

W. Russell Neuman is a specialist in new media and digital education and the Professor of Media Technology in Administration, Leadership, and Technology at New York University. He was the John Derby Evans Professor of Media Technology in Communication Studies and Research Professor at the Institute for Social Research at the University of Michigan and also taught at the University of Pennsylvania where he directed the Information and Society Program of the Annenberg Public Policy Center. He served as a Senior Policy Analyst in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy working in the areas of information technology, broadband policy and technologies for border security. His recent books include The Digital Difference: Media Technology and the Theory of Communication Effects (Harvard University Press, 2016), Media, Technology, and Society: Theories of Media Evolution (University of Michigan Press, 2010). He also taught at Harvard and Yale and was one of the founding faculty of the MIT Media Laboratory. His Ph.D. is from the University of California, Berkeley and his undergraduate degree is from Cornell University. Professor Neuman’s teaching and research focus on educational outcomes, information overload, information economics, modalities of learning, learning assessment and learning outside the classroom.

Formative feedback strategies are considered powerful means for effective teaching and learning. Yet, the large body of feedback research reveals that their effects depend from many factors (Lipnevich & Panadero, 2021; Panadero & Lipnevich, 2022; Wisnieswski, et al. 2020; Narciss, 2008; Shute 2008). 

In my talk, I will describe how tutoring feedback strategies can be designed and evaluated on the basis of the interactive two feedback loops model (ITFL-model; e.g. Narciss, 2008; 2013; 2017; 2020). The ITFL-model conceptualizes formative tutoring feedback as a multidimensional instructional activity that aims at contributing to the regulation of learning processes in such a way that learners acquire or improve their competencies needed to master learning tasks. Based on this multi-dimensional view of formative tutoring feedback several studies have been conducted (e.g., Narciss, 2004; Narciss & Huth, 2006; Narciss et al. 2014; Kapp, Spangenberger, Kruse, & Narciss, 2019; Narciss, Prescher, Khalifah, & Körndle, 2020; Laudel & Narciss, 2023). Selected insights of these studies will be used to illustrate and discuss methodological challenges and implications for designing and investigating multiple effects of feedback under multiple individual and situational conditions.

About the speaker

Susanne Narciss is a professor of Psychology of Learning and Instruction at Technische Universität Dresden. Her research Interests include desing and evaluation of interactive learning tasks, designing and evaluating feedback in instructional contexts,  multimedia tools for learning and instruction, psychological processes in academic writing, and self-regulated Learning with web-based learning environments. To learn more about her work, check this website: https://tu-dresden.de/mn/psychologie/ipep/lehrlern/die-professur/inhaberin?set_language=en

Presenting work from his forthcoming book, Mixed methods for psychological measurement: Using critical realism to reframe incommensurability, Dr. David Feldon offers a new perspective on measurement formation and validation that integrates both qualitative (idiographic) and quantitative (nomothetic) perspectives and data. Through a lens of critical realism, which recognizes idiographic and nomothetic facets of human phenomena as equivalently “real,” the modeling approaches presented honor and integrate both into measurement. In doing so, they provide new tools for conducting critical quantitative inquiry by infusing quantitative models with perspectives arising from differing contexts, life experiences, sensemaking, and positionalities. By reflecting these humanistic elements of experience as necessary and intrinsic to robust measurement, the resulting metrics do not erase the worldviews of individuals from marginalized backgrounds from quantified forms of data.

About the speaker

David F. Feldon is a professor of Instructional Technology and Learning Sciences in the College of Education and Human Services at Utah State University. His scholarship identifies mechanisms of learning and postsecondary education that facilitate the equitable development of expertise – specifically in STEM disciplines. His research attempts to build bridges from a deep understanding of motivation and cognition to broader cultural and structural influences that shape divergent pathways to expertise and professional success. Dr. Feldon was the 2019 recipient of the American Educational Research Association’s Division D Award for Significant Contributions to Educational Measurement and Research.

In my talk, I will stress the importance of addressing culture when designing and implementing learning analytics services. Learning analytics have been implemented in different countries with the purpose of improving learning and supporting teaching; yet, largely at a limited scale and so far with limited evidence of achieving their purpose. Even though some solutions seem promising, their transfer from one country to another might prove challenging and sometimes impossible due to various technical, social, contextual and cultural factors.  I will argue for a need to carefully consider one of these – largely underexplored by the learning analytics community – factors, namely cultural values when designing and implementing learning analytics systems. Viewing culture from a value-sensitive perspective, in this chapter, we: (1) exemplify two selected values (i.e., privacy and autonomy) that might play a significant role in the design of learning analytics systems, and (2) discuss opportunities for applying culture- and value-sensitive design methods that can guide the design of culturally aware learning analytics systems. 

About the speaker

Olga Viberg has obtained her PhD in Informatics at Örebro University School of Business (Sweden) in December 2015. She has been a lecturer at the School of Languages and Media Studies and at the School of Technology and Business Studies at Dalarna University, Sweden between 2008-2016. Currently she is an associate professor and docent in Media Technology with specialization in Technology-Enhanced Learning at the School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at KTH.

Viberg's research includes a focus on learning analytics in higher education, the application of mobile technology in education, mobile learning analytics, integration of formal and informal learning environments, design for learning, self-regulated learning, computer-assisted collaborative learning, cross-cultural research and responsible use of student data in education, focusing on the issues of privacy and trust. Olga is currently supervising 4 PhD students. She supervised one PhD candidate (A. Agelii Genlott, finished in 2020), 2 postdoctoral researchers, several visiting researchers, 30 master thesis projects, and > 50 bachelor degree projects during the last few years. She is currently (2023) supervising 6 master thesis projects, several bachelor degree theses, and is supervising two postdoctoral researchers (Digital Futures).

Viberg coordinates the Bachelor Degree course in Media Technology, two PhD courses: Introduction to Learning Analytics and Research Methods in Technology Enhanced Learning and teaches several other courses at different educational levels. Viberg is an active member of the Digital Futures group on Educational Transformation at KTH, https://www.digitalfutures.kth.se/about/governance/working-groups/engineering-education/ and several international networks (SIG Responsible Learning Analytics, EUROCALL, MALL etc.) She has served as the keynote speaker at several prestigious international conferences (e.g. EDUCON, IMCL). Viberg has also contributed to the UNESCO policy work on quality of online education and gave a keynote speech in Nov.2021.

Viberg is the main organizer of the Nordic Learning Analytics Summer Institute (2021 & 2022) and a part of the organizing committee of the 12th International Learning Analytics and Knowledge Conference. She has served as the PC chair for the two high-ranked conferences in 2023: Learning@Scale 2023 (https://learningatscale.acm.org/las2023/) and ECTEL2023 (https://ea-tel.eu/ectel2023/registration).

Just putting a group of people around a task does not guarantee a real collaboration; its necessary structure activities convey good communication and participation among group members. Games have been designed as a mechanism to support communication between people working on a group activity. 

In this talk, I will present the developments of software tools based on games in order to analyze the quality of the collaboration process for small groups working synchronously toward two goals: learning to collaborate and collaborating to learn. 

About the speaker

César A. Collazos is a Full Professor of the Computer Science Department at the University of Cauca-Colombia. He is also the Head of HCI-Collab, a collaborative network supporting HCI education in Iberomerican countries. His research areas of interest include: Computer Supported Collaborative Learning, Computer Supported Cooperative Work, and HCI. To learn more about his work, contact him through this email address: ccollazo@unicauca.edu.co. 

Interacting with objects in virtual reality (VR) can be an exciting experience. In the world of education, immersion matters. VR opens up a new dimension, making learning come alive. But here's the game-changer - Haptic Feedback. It's not just about what you see; it's about what you feel. This technology has the potential to impact the quality of education by making it more engaging and interactive.

We all know that feedback is the secret sauce for learning. Whether it's polishing your skills, mastering a concept, or refining your craft, feedback is the compass that guides you. With haptic feedback, you're not just seeing and hearing, you're physically sensing the learning process. Not all immersive feedback is created equal. We understand that every learner is unique. There's no one-size-fits-all guide. The presentation touches on how VR can be a catalyst to bridge individual differences in education.

Theories are great, but what really matters is practical application. I will present results from two empirical VR experiments we conducted during the last year following the established cognitive learning theories and pedagogical principles.

While much research focuses on visual and auditory feedback, the untapped potential of haptic feedback cannot be ignored. I believe it's the missing piece of the puzzle that can enhance your learning journey. My quest is to unravel the full potential of haptic feedback and its impact on education.

Are you curious about what haptic feedback in educational VR environments can achieve? We invite you to be part of this exciting presentation. Come to room 542 and try the VR experience with the haptic suit yourself.

About the speaker

Fabian Froehlich is an academic with a diverse background in film and media studies. Prior to pursuing his graduate studies, Fabian worked in the film industry, using his creativity and technical skills to entertain audiences. After transitioning to academia, he turned his attention to the use of media for educational purposes. His presentation focuses on the relationship between sense of presence, metacognition in educational VR. 

This work is aligned with the research of Virtual Reality Learning Environments (VRLEs), Emotional design, Audio and Emotions, Emotion Sensing and Emotions for Learning.

SoundCheck focuses on audio designs and their effects on learners’ emotions. SoundCheck aims to mediate affect via audio designs with the goal to enhance cognition. A catalogue of audio designs was composed from the ground up following strict heuristics found in the literature of sound, emotion and cognition.

To study these audio designs in VR, two innovations have been put forth: First, the Multilayered Affect-Audio Research System, MAARS, a taxonomy for VRLEs’ audio research and design. And second, a bio-sensing VR research platform, DreamVR, featuring calibrations rooms used to expose participants to auditory stimuli presentations.
The audio designs corresponding to the Feedback and Experiential layers will be tested using MAARS and DreamVR.

About the speaker

Al Olsen is a digital media designer and senior software developer. He works as an assistant research scientist at CREATE Lab, and in his spare time he produces music and spends time with his family.

As an ECT PhD Candidate at NYU, Al’s research focuses on the question: how does audio affect emotions in learners in a learning context? And moreover, can positive emotions be mediated to improve cognition using audio designs in a virtual reality learning environment?