Special Issue on: Disruption, Innovation, and Resiliency in Immersive Learning

Immersive learning applications have become increasingly popular in recent years as they offer users a more engaging and interactive learning experience. However, many definitions of “immersion” and “Immersive Learning” still exist, and we need consensus on how to apply them. We use the definition adopted by the Immersive Learning Research Network, which views immersion as a phenomenon with three dimensions: technical, narrative, and agency and an “immersive learning environment” as the surroundings where immersion develops (Beck et al., 2020, p. 1043).

Immersive learning environments have the potential to improve learning, augmenting conventional teaching methods towards the creation of engaging experiences for learners. However, there are still many challenges in designing meaningful experiences that address pedagogical needs (Beck et al., 2023) whilst considering current technology affordances to ensure that these experiences consolidate into well-established learning tools that are scalable and correctly assessed. Moreover, the interdisciplinary nature of these applications has created new bridges between researchers, computer scientists, educators, gamers, UI/UX designers, and developers while considering ethics and best practices, developing the field of Immersive Learning research.

In this regard, the Immersive Learning Research Network (iLRN) (https://immersivelrn.org/) has been working on creating and supporting a community for the different disciplines involved in creating immersive learning experiences towards developing the scientific, technical, and applied potential of immersive learning. Moreover, iLRN has challenged the community towards the systematization of this field with the Immersive Learning Knowledge Tree initiative, bridging their different epistemological landscapes to combine their efforts and develop the field of immersive learning research.

For all the reasons previously stated, we are glad to present this special issue on “Disruption, Innovation and Resiliency in Immersive Learning” as a way to provide a common theme for scientists, practitioners, organizations, and innovators across disciplines to share their research findings, experiences, and insights on the emerging scholarly knowledge base on how these technologies can be used to create experiences that educate, engage, and excite learners towards shaping the future immersive technologies for learning. This special issue was organized in collaboration with the Immersive Learning Research Network (iLRN) as a follow-up from their 8th annual International Conference (iLRN2022). The 8th annual International Conference of the Immersive Learning Research Network (iLRN2022), held between May 30 and June 4, 2022, offered two days of presentations and activities on the iLRN Virtual Campus (powered by ©Virbela), followed by three days on location at the FH University of Applied Sciences BFI in Vienna, Austria.

This special issue consists of 17 papers that followed a rigorous peer-review process following the Education and Information Technologies journal’s high standards (43.60% acceptance rate). The special issue accepted open submissions from the wider community and extended contributions from the iLRN2022 conference (with at least 50% new material). All contributions were independently evaluated in a double-anonymized review process and checked for plagiarism to ensure the authors followed the requirements.

We are grateful to authors and reviewers for contributing to this special issue. We hope this publication will be a valuable resource for scholars, practitioners, and researchers in immersive learning and inspire future discoveries and innovations in our exciting and rapidly evolving field. If you are not already involved, we invite you to read this special issue and join us in our subsequent events and ongoing initiatives.

This Special Issue was published by Springer.

To access the full issue please visit Springer's website: https://link.springer.com/journal/10639/topicalCollection/AC_61610738468812c0dd6d8fd9e3b56484

Editors

• Anasol Peña-Rios, British Telecom Research Labs, UK
• Daphne Economou, University of Westminster, UK
• Dennis Beck, University of Arkansas, USA

ISSN: 1360-2357 (Print) 1573-7608 (Online)

Copyright ©2024 - Springer. For reprints and permissions policies please visit Springer's website.

The papers in this publication reflect the authors' opinions. Their inclusion in this publication does not necessarily constitute endorsement by the editors or the Immersive Learning Research Network.

To cite this volume please use the recommended format:

Peña-Rios, A., Economou, D. & Beck, D. (Eds.) Special issue on “Disruption, Innovation and Resiliency in Immersive Learning”. Educ Inf Technol (2024).

For more information on the Academic Proceedings please visit https://publications.immersivelrn.org/index.php/academic.

For more information on the Practitioner Proceedings please visit https://publications.immersivelrn.org/index.php/practitioner.