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Education is susceptible to fads like games and iPads. Despite storytelling’s recent renaissance, storytelling is not a fad; it has been used throughout history for teaching and learning, but also for business, psychology or health care.... more
Education is susceptible to fads like games and iPads. Despite storytelling’s recent renaissance, storytelling is not a fad; it has been used throughout history for teaching and learning, but also for business, psychology or health care. Stories help us make meaning out of our experience and perception of the world that surround us. Stories also help build connections with prior knowledge and improve memory, as a result good stories are remembered longer by students than regular lessons. Given storytelling’s central role in living and learning, and the technological explosion during the past decades, it is not surprising to find digital storytelling entering the academic mainstream, so long after being essential for theatre, movies, and games.
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The potential of electronic books (ebooks) has been discussed widely, due mainly to their role in helping the user transform passive reading into interactive and dynamic learning, while promoting better retention and appropriation of... more
The potential of electronic books (ebooks) has been discussed widely, due mainly to their role in helping the user transform passive reading into interactive and dynamic learning, while promoting better retention and appropriation of materials. Taking this premise, the present study follows an exploratory and qualitative approach, discussing how the use of ebooks can improve learning, motivation, dynamism and interactivity in Distance Education. This study was supported by a bibliographic review and a survey method through an online questionnaire used as data collection instruments. The sample consisted of students who attended distance courses taught by the Open University ISCED-UnISCED in Mozambique. The scientific literature studied, and the results from the field research, show the practicality of using ebook as a learning resource and they facility the interactivity.
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Daily tasks like reading the news or just saying hello to a friend or family member is through technologies, online applications in the mobile devices. Being online is a natural way of life, but those how did not grow with these new... more
Daily tasks like reading the news or just saying hello to a friend or family member is through technologies, online applications in the mobile devices. Being online is a natural way of life, but those how did not grow with these new technologies and the internet feel outcast from the new online world. Senior citizens are looking to get themselves an update, connect with this online world, to be closer to family and friend members. It is simple as that, but is it? No. Without the fundamental knowledge on how to be safe on online browsing or using social media applications are the personal data of senior citizen safe and their own life safe? No. Through serious games, one can help them to learn all the matters in digital skills and more importantly in online web browsing.
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Digital storytelling for learning is aimed at creators and would-be practitioners in educational contexts, people who want to tell stories with digital technologies for the first time, those who are already using digital tools and want to... more
Digital storytelling for learning is aimed at creators and would-be practitioners in educational contexts, people who want to tell stories with digital technologies for the first time, those who are already using digital tools and want to try new approaches, teachers using non-digital means (like voice or print) who seek to cross the analog–digital divide. We will cover a wide range of ground, as the field has opened up. You may be a storyteller working in another medium, wanting to explore the digital world. You may be a teacher, or a student, or a communications professional. Whatever your background, herein you will find examples to draw on, practical uses to learn from, principles to apply, and some creative inspiration. (First part of a course; Johannes Kepler University, Linz)
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Digital storytelling for learning is aimed at creators and would-be practitioners in educational contexts, people who want to tell stories with digital technologies for the first time, those who are already using digital tools and want to... more
Digital storytelling for learning is aimed at creators and would-be practitioners in educational contexts, people who want to tell stories with digital technologies for the first time, those who are already using digital tools and want to try new approaches, teachers using non-digital means (like voice or print) who seek to cross the analog–digital divide. We will cover a wide range of ground, as the field has opened up. You may be a storyteller working in another medium, wanting to explore the digital world. You may be a teacher, or a student, or a communications professional. Whatever your background, herein you will find examples to draw on, practical uses to learn from, principles to apply, and some creative inspiration. (Second part of a course; Johannes Kepler University, Linz)
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Page 1. X-TEC Model and QEF Model: A Case Study Paula Escudeiro Informatics Engineering Department, Portugal paula@dei.isep.ipp.pt José Bidarra Universidade Aberta Lisboa, Portugal bidarra@univ-ab.pt Abstract: In ...
Research Interests: Computer Science and Tec
This paper argues that the dominant form of distance learning that is common in most e-learning systems rests on a set of learning devices and environments that may be outdated from the student’s perspective, namely because it is not... more
This paper argues that the dominant form of distance learning that is common in most e-learning systems rests on a set of learning devices and environments that may be outdated from the student’s perspective, namely because it is not supportive of learner empowerment and does not facilitate the efforts of self-directed learners. For this study we gathered and examined data on student’s use of Personal Learning Environments (PLEs) within a course on Mathematics Applied to Business offered by the Portuguese Open University (Universidade Aberta). We base the discussion on aspects that characterize student’s conceptions of PLEs, the emergence of connectivism as a new account of how learning occurs in a networked global environment, and conclude that an important goal of online course design should be to let students explore what the emergent Web 2.0 tools have to offer in distance learning. The widespread adoption of PLEs, bringing together learning from different contexts and sources o...
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The performance “Assum Livre” integrates a sequence of artifacts first presented for a PhD thesis, “Backyard of Sounds: A Path to Sound Immersion.” It was recently recreated in a cyberspace event, hence its transcription as a... more
The performance “Assum Livre” integrates a sequence of artifacts first presented for a PhD thesis, “Backyard of Sounds: A Path to Sound Immersion.” It was recently recreated in a cyberspace event, hence its transcription as a cyberperformance. It consists of an artistic proposal that seeks to reflect on freedom and imprisonment, evoking a metaphor that recreates the experience of the lockdown in 2020–2021. The performance is based on streaming a video recorded with the author and singer performing part of Teixeira's and Gonzaga's song, “Assum Preto,” simultaneously with the live performance of the other stanzas of the song. These alternate with the presentation of the lyrics and the materialization of the performer. As a backdrop, the authors have a projection of natural scenery representing freedom, depicting the natural habitat threatened by human intervention, enhanced by the natural soundscapes, and integrating the hybridization of image, sound, and live performance. Dis...
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In Project TEMPUS “Enhancement of Russian Creative Education: new Master Programme in Digital Arts in line with EU standards” (2014-2016) the Russian students had the opportunity to study in EU Universities for one semester. The... more
In Project TEMPUS “Enhancement of Russian Creative Education: new Master Programme in Digital Arts in line with EU standards” (2014-2016) the Russian students had the opportunity to study in EU Universities for one semester. The Universidade Aberta, in Portugal, didn’t have a master degree in Digital Arts so a pilot programme had to be created: a new postgraduation in Digital Art Practice. This new curriculum, using blearning (based on online and face to face activities) with transdisciplinary methods, aims a practice oriented training on digital art. It started with a deep understanding of Lisbon, the relationship between people, cultural and artistic spaces and their environments. This knowledge inspired the students to produce and to create an artistic artefact presented in exhibition to an audience. With this postgraduation new possibilities started for reflection about global challenges for education in the millennium.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
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In this paper we propose a new development model for Educational Software called X-TEC. It is based on the paradigms of software engineering applied to the construction of educational software. This model allows educational software... more
In this paper we propose a new development model for Educational Software called X-TEC. It is based on the paradigms of software engineering applied to the construction of educational software. This model allows educational software developers to reduce the gap between instructional design and technical development. Our approach presents two overlapping extensions: the instructional model and the learning environment. The instructional model will be related to the instructor/educational software and the learning environment will be associated with the student/educational software. The X-TEC model promotes the interaction between these two extensions, allowing the deployment of a common development platform
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Despite all the potential of augmented reality to improve the human-computer interface (HCI) and the user experience, it's still below the expected usage. The reason may be related to the fact that until recently the AR implementation... more
Despite all the potential of augmented reality to improve the human-computer interface (HCI) and the user experience, it's still below the expected usage. The reason may be related to the fact that until recently the AR implementation was mostly marker-based or GPS-based to trigger additional content (video, 3D, or other) to the reality identified with the camera. The research in this paper is focused on AR marker-less solutions that allows sharing AR content between users across the Cloud, based on the anchor identification. With this technological paradigm shift, the potential for use of new functional environments and an unprecedented status of HCI enrichment is achieved. In addition to the operations related to the applications functionality, the door opens for media-art artists to create AR models that can be shared in a multiple user environment across the Cloud.
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FeelOpo is an interactive art installation that allows contact with fragments of the immaterial heritage of the Oporto City in the North of Portugal. Through location-based storytelling of the living city, this interactive installation... more
FeelOpo is an interactive art installation that allows contact with fragments of the immaterial heritage of the Oporto City in the North of Portugal. Through location-based storytelling of the living city, this interactive installation allows visitors to explore, at different levels, several typical characteristics of this city, addressing aspects of cultural identity based on contrasting images and videos. The visitors feel and explore visual stories of the live city, through a process of appropriation and articulation of these narratives, generating an expansion of this intangible heritage.
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ComPassos com histórias explora o contributo da média-arte locativa para o registo da identidade e das vivências de uma comunidade através da exploração do espaço urbano da Vila de Caminha, geolocalizando narrativas digitais de memórias... more
ComPassos com histórias explora o contributo da média-arte locativa para o registo da identidade e das vivências de uma comunidade através da exploração do espaço urbano da Vila de Caminha, geolocalizando narrativas digitais de memórias urbanas e, incitando à (re)descoberta desse espaço, num exercício de deriva pelas memórias dos seus habitantes. O acesso a essas memórias é facilitado por duas vias, num plano digital através de um eBook interativo e num plano físico, real, através de uma aplicação, com tecnologia de Realidade Aumentada, que permite a visualização em formato de pequenos vídeos in loco.
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This paper discusses the concepts of game design and gamification of content, based on the development of a serious game aimed at making the process of learning sign language enjoyable and interactive. In this game the player controls a... more
This paper discusses the concepts of game design and gamification of content, based on the development of a serious game aimed at making the process of learning sign language enjoyable and interactive. In this game the player controls a character that interacts with various objects and nonplayer characters, with the aim of collecting several gestures from the Portuguese Sign Language corpus. The learning model used pushes forward the concept of gamification as a learning process valued by students and teachers alike, and illustrates how it may be used as a personalized device for amplifying learning. Our goal is to provide a new methodology to involve students and general public in learning specific subjects using a ludic, participatory and interactive approach supported by ICTbased tools. Thus, in this paper we argue that perhaps some education processes could be improved by adding the gaming factor through technologies that are able to involve students in a way that is more physic...
This paper discusses the concepts of game design and gamification of content, based on the development of a serious game aimed at making the process of learning sign language enjoyable and interactive. In this game the player controls a... more
This paper discusses the concepts of game design and gamification of content, based on the development of a serious game aimed at making the process of learning sign language enjoyable and interactive. In this game the player controls a character that interacts with various objects and non-player characters, with the aim of collecting several gestures from the Portuguese Sign Language corpus. The learning model used pushes forward the concept of gamification as a learning process valued by students and teachers alike, and illustrates how it may be used as a personalized device for amplifying learning. Our goal is to provide a new methodology to involve students and general public in learning specific subjects using a ludic, participatory and interactive approach supported by ICT-based tools. Thus, in this paper we argue that perhaps some education processes could be improved by adding the gaming factor through technologies that are able to involve students in a way that is more phys...
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Given the global spread of mobile platforms, such as iOS and Android, it is relevant to consider the potential of these devices in teaching and learning. Our exploratory research was designed to evaluate the possibility of using common... more
Given the global spread of mobile platforms, such as iOS and Android, it is relevant to consider the potential of these devices in teaching and learning. Our exploratory research was designed to evaluate the possibility of using common ebook formats to create gamebooks (gamified books) that are effective in teaching and learning. After analyzing the features available in many free or open tools, we decided to use iBooks Author to built a first model of a dynamic book that may function as an educational game for "Environmental Studies", aimed at children in the 4th grade, mostly 9-10 years old, in Portuguese schools. This paper presents the design and features of this interactive book titled "Adventures in the Guadiana River", developed using the Apple iBook format, and especially set for the iPad retina. Because this is a proprietary format we also built a prototype following the EPUB3 standard and developed new ways to interact with content within this universal...
ARTECH 2015 is the Seventh International Conference on Digital Arts, this time hosted by Universidade Aberta in the ancient village of Óbidos, Portugal. The goal of the conference is to promote the interest in the current digital culture... more
ARTECH 2015 is the Seventh International Conference on Digital Arts, this time hosted by Universidade Aberta in the ancient village of Óbidos, Portugal. The goal of the conference is to promote the interest in the current digital culture and its intersection with art and technology as an important research field, but also as a common space for discussion and exchange of new experiences. Seeking to foster greater understanding about digital arts and culture across a wide spectrum of cultural, disciplinary, and professional practices, this edition of the conference also includes a strand concerned with mobile technologies such as smartphones and tablets that have become widespread creation instruments.
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This article discusses the use of Transmedia Storytelling in blended learning, based on recent research and the need for an effective learning design. The interest in digital storytelling for educational purposes has increased over the... more
This article discusses the use of Transmedia Storytelling in blended learning, based on recent research and the need for an effective learning design. The interest in digital storytelling for educational purposes has increased over the last few years, with researchers also identifying key pedagogical features of new media that make these inherently powerful learning tools. Stories may have high impact in the development of resources for blended learning, and could well replace some forms of traditional teaching (such as expository lectures) but more likely they will remain just an alternative to other more conventional education methods. The trend towards learner centred strategies and collaborative learning shows the way to learning designs that should incorporate factors of knowledge construction (predominantly in group activities), authentic learning, and personalized learning experience, which merges agreeably with the integration of other factors such as games, digital storytelling, science inquiry, and technologies that are able to engage “Millennial” students.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
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Este estudo amplia o debate sobre os processos que emergem da confluência entre as linguagens artísticas e das mídias, a partir dos recursos de Realidade Virtual e Realidade Aumentada, expandindo o painel traçado por Pierre Lévy, Marshal... more
Este estudo amplia o debate sobre os processos que emergem da confluência entre as linguagens artísticas e das mídias, a partir dos recursos de Realidade Virtual e Realidade Aumentada, expandindo o painel traçado por Pierre Lévy, Marshal McLuhan, Vilém Flusser e Lev Manovich. Artistas, como Björk, vem explorando e se aproximando de tal perspectiva com o intuito de criar novas formas que reconfiguram os espaços de interação arte, jogos e media digitais. Este estudo reflete sobre como estes caminhos vêm desenhando novas arquiteturas e formas de confluência que colocam sujeitos e suas percepções em diálogo com tecnologias de inovação.
Research Interests: Humanities and Art
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Comunicação publicada nas atas da 10th International Conference on Digital Arts – ARTECH 2021, Aveiro, 13-15 de outubro de 2021.Pelo Futuro do Passado é uma instalação audiovisual interativa de caracter experimental que provoca uma... more
Comunicação publicada nas atas da 10th International Conference on Digital Arts – ARTECH 2021, Aveiro, 13-15 de outubro de 2021.Pelo Futuro do Passado é uma instalação audiovisual interativa de caracter experimental que provoca uma (re)conexão dos quatro elementos primordiais com a consciência e a ética, questionamento do mundo, a sociedade e a vida através de um processo de interação. Visa (re)criar significados ou reforçar sentidos sobre o ambiente, a vida e a globalização. Não nos dá respostas, mas permite-nos questionar as nossas escolhas.For the Future of the Past is an interactive audiovisual installation which supports a (re)connection of the four primordial elements with consciousness and ethics, questioning the world, society and life through an interaction process. It aims to (re)create meanings or reinforce meanings about the environment, life and globalization. It does not give us answers, but it allows us to question our choices.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
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This article presents a case-study of two distance learning courses, in order to address the question of universal adoption of mobile devices and applications by students, and the impact of these devices in personal learning environments... more
This article presents a case-study of two distance learning courses, in order to address the question of universal adoption of mobile devices and applications by students, and the impact of these devices in personal learning environments (PLEs). First, a critical discussion of the value of these concepts in the current technological context was carried out, followed by an analysis of their impact on educational use, based on data collected in online courses on physics and statistics at Universidade Aberta, the Portuguese Open University. The results indicated that all students have adopted mobile learning, and the make-up of an individual’s PLE depends more on the learning resources available rather than on gender or age. These findings can help provide more efficient ways to implement learning by connecting current social needs to learners’ mobile PLEs, particularly when flexibility of time and space are of utmost importance. Further studies at the Portuguese Open University will a...
Research Interests: Computer Science, Portuguese, Distance Education, Mobile Learning, Social Media, and 10 morePersonal Learning Environments, Open Educational Resources, Open University, Personal Learning Environment, Education Systems, Mobile Device, Flexibility in engineering design, Open Learning, Open Distance Learning, and E Learning
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For the Future of the Past is an interactive audiovisual installation which supports a (re)connection of the four primordial elements with consciousness and ethics, questioning the world, society and life through an interaction process.... more
For the Future of the Past is an interactive audiovisual installation which supports a (re)connection of the four primordial elements with consciousness and ethics, questioning the world, society and life through an interaction process. It aims to (re)create meanings or reinforce meanings about the environment, life and globalization. It does not give us answers, but it allows us to question our choices.
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Esta obra vem ao encontro das necessidade de muitos docentes, profissionais e investigadores que procuram desenvolver uma estratégia de aprendizagem a distância baseada em plataformas móveis.
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Comunicacao publicada nas atas da conferencia EADTU 2017, realizadas na Open University, Milton Keynes, de 25-27 de outubro de 2017.
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This article is a study on the immersive sound installation “Backyard Sounds”. The union of our artistic practice to theoretical research resulted on the birth of this project. One of the main objectives of “Backyard Sounds” was the... more
This article is a study on the immersive sound installation “Backyard Sounds”. The union of our artistic practice to theoretical research resulted on the birth of this project. One of the main objectives of “Backyard Sounds” was the consideration of the sounds of contemporaneity. Seeking to lead users to experience videos and sounds in a dark room, since sounds were only set off with the users' approach, sounds of nature and those produced by humans were used intentionally to demonstrate the inherent paradoxes of contemporary life. This research consists of a study on the immersive sound installation “Backyard Sounds”. The authors approach the artistic process involved in its creation and the concepts, notions, and reflections related to the computational artifact. The sounds heard were reveries of the soundscapes (concept of sounds of nature and others produced by humans), and it was intended to bring users the extreme paradoxes of contemporary life.
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As we look toward the future of education in the 21st century, the prominence of a robust STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) curriculum is unquestioned. However, low achievement in mathematics education has been an... more
As we look toward the future of education in the 21st century, the prominence of a robust STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) curriculum is unquestioned. However, low achievement in mathematics education has been an increasing problem in several countries. Mobile devices, smartphones, phablets and tablets, are widely available. This is a generation of digital natives. We cannot ignore that they are no longer the same students for which the education system was designed traditionally. Studying math is many times a cumbersome task. But this can be changed if the teacher takes advantage of the technology that is currently available. In this paper, we present the design and development of an ebook for STEM teaching and learning of mathematics. The teacher uses the template that we developed so that he can, in a user-friendly platform, write the ebook with the contents he designs for his students. In this way, the teacher has the possibility to include the problems that he finds suitable for the student. The teacher can produce and deliver the contents easily to students. Students can use this ebook in the classroom or outside the classroom in a blended learning model to solve problems. When students have difficulties in solving a problem they can watch the resolution of it. In this way, we want to provide the same opportunities to low achieving students that may struggle to learn the materials covered in class. Students have also access to complex problems that may provide additional stimulation for top performers students. In this way, we can provide a platform that is student-centered and teacher-friendly. We also describe the workflow for developing this ebook. It was implemented with the free and open standard EPUB 3 that is available for Android and iOS platforms. This specification supports video embedded in the ebook. In this paper it is shown how to take advantage of this feature, making videos available about lectures and problems resolutions, which is especially interesting for learning mathematics. We describe the difficulties found in the integration of mathematics expressions in the MathML description in EPUB 3.
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Esta obra vem ao encontro das necessidade de muitos docentes, profissionais e investigadores que procuram desenvolver uma estrategia de aprendizagem a distância baseada em plataformas moveis. Em primeiro lugar, procura clarificar a melhor... more
Esta obra vem ao encontro das necessidade de muitos docentes, profissionais e investigadores que procuram desenvolver uma estrategia de aprendizagem a distância baseada em plataformas moveis. Em primeiro lugar, procura clarificar a melhor forma de usar dispositivos moveis para melhorar a aprendizagem em cursos online. Em segundo lugar, descreve e explora o potencial da plataforma Moodle em termos de mobile learning, nomeadamente, selecao de um estilo do Moodle que seja mobile-friendly, exploracao da app Moodle Mobile, uso de componentes multimedia estaticas e dinâmicas, entre outras possibilidades. Existem no livro inumeras sugestoes de atividades de aprendizagem que sao perfeitamente adequadas para interacao em dispositivos moveis. Por exemplo, o fornecimento de podcasts, ligacao com redes sociais, aplicacao de fotografias, uso de audio e video, criacao de eBooks e bibliotecas de Apps, envio de feedback em audio, logs reflexivos, ferramentas de forum e chat, e muito mais.
Research Interests: Sociology and Humanities
Esta obra vem ao encontro das necessidade de muitos docentes, profissionais e investigadores que procuram desenvolver uma estratégia de aprendizagem a distância baseada em plataformas móveis. Em primeiro lugar, procura clarificar a melhor... more
Esta obra vem ao encontro das necessidade de muitos docentes, profissionais e investigadores que procuram desenvolver uma estratégia de aprendizagem a distância baseada em plataformas móveis. Em primeiro lugar, procura clarificar a melhor forma de usar dispositivos móveis para melhorar a aprendizagem em cursos online. Em segundo lugar, descreve e explora o potencial da plataforma Moodle em termos de mobile learning, nomeadamente, seleção de um estilo do Moodle que seja mobile-friendly, exploração da app Moodle Mobile, uso de componentes multimédia estáticas e dinâmicas, entre outras possibilidades. Existem no livro inúmeras sugestões de atividades de aprendizagem que são perfeitamente adequadas para interação em dispositivos móveis. Por exemplo, o fornecimento de podcasts, ligação com redes sociais, aplicação de fotografias, uso de áudio e vídeo, criação de eBooks e bibliotecas de Apps, envio de feedback em áudio, logs reflexivos, ferramentas de fórum e chat, e muito mais. O livro e...