Design Thinking Methodology for Increasing Quality of Experience of Augmented Reality Educational Games

Integration of technology in education with adequate pedagogical approaches creates new opportunities or improving the quality of teaching and learning experiences, raising students' interest and motivation for the classroom activities at the same time. Game-based learning implemented with different technologies can utilize students’ collaboration, energy, and enthusiasm. In order to increase the quality of experience of the learning process, elements of popular games (e.g. mobile games and augmented reality games) should be used in the educational context. This paper describes how design thinking methodology can be used to propose a model for the integration of games in education. The methodology defines the process of creating educational games starting from students’ attitudes and needs and moving towards needed educational outcomes. As an example case study augmented reality prototype game was designed in order to illustrate the possibilities and benefits of the proposed methodology. The achieved results confirm that the proposed methodology ensures a powerful gaming experience and high-quality learning experience.acceptedVersio

Use of Cloud Gaming in Education

The use of digital games in education has been the subject of research for many years and their usefulness has been confirmed by many studies and research projects. Standardized tests, such as PISA test, show that respondents achieved better reading, math and physics results if they used the computer more for gaming-related activities. It has been proven that the application of video games in education increases student motivation, improves several types of key skills—social and intellectual skills, reflexes and concentration. Nevertheless, there are several challenges associated with the application of video games in schools and they can be categorized as technical (network and end device limitations), competency (teachers’ knowledge in the area), qualitative (lack of educational games of high quality), and financial (high cost of purchasing games and equipment). The novel architecture for delivery of gaming content commonly referred to as “cloud gaming” has the potential to solve most of the present challenges of using games in education. A well-designed cloud gaming platform would enable seamless and simple usage for both students and teachers. While solving most of the present problems, cloud gaming introduces a set of new research challenges which will be discussed in this section

Increasing Quality of Learning Experience using Augmented Reality Educational Games

Adequate pedagogical approaches for integration of technology in the learning process create new opportunities for improving the quality of teaching and learning experiences, raising students’ interest and motivation for the classroom activities at the same time. Game-based learning implemented with different technologies can utilize students’ energy and enthusiasm for educational purposes. To increase the quality of experience of the learning process, elements of popular games (e.g., mobile games and augmented reality games) should be used in the educational context. This paper proposes methodological guideline that can be used for the integration of games in education. The methodological guideline defines the two steps process of creating educational games starting from students’ attitudes and needs, and then incorporates educational outcomes. As a case-study augmented reality educational games platform was designed to illustrate the possibilities and benefits of the proposed approach.publishedVersio

Učenička iskustva integracije tradicionalnih igara u osnovnoškolski program

Even though the potential of game-based learning is widely recognized, we need to understand students to effectively integrate games in the classroom environment. This study aims to identify relevant factors that influence students’ experience during the integration of traditional children’s games into the elementary school program. The research involved 142 students from different elementary schools who participated in multiple learning sessions with pure game-based activities or games technologically enhanced with asynchronous/synchronous distance learning. A structural equation model was developed and tested using students’ responses to a survey conducted after each session. The results suggest that students’ experience is directly influenced by their motivation to participate in the new environment, their attitude during purely game-based classes, and technological behaviour during classes with distance learning activities. We also found that students of different ages showed similar subjective experience and identified a clear distinction between students’ views and learning outcomes during in-class gaming and asynchronous/synchronous conditions.Iako je potencijal učenja zasnovanog na igri široko prepoznat, učinkovita integracija igara u okruženje učionice prije svega zahtijeva bolje razumijevanje učenika. Cilj ovog istraživanja jest identificirati relevantne čimbenike koji utječu na iskustva učenika prilikom integracije tradicionalnih dječjih igara u program osnovne škole. U istraživanju su sudjelovala 142 učenika iz različitih osnovnih škola, koji su pohađali veći broj sati na kojima su se koristile isključivo aktivnosti zasnovane na igri, odnosno igre tehnološki pojačane (a)sinkronim učenjem na daljinu. U sklopu istraživanja razvijen je model zasnovan na strukturnim jednadžbama, koji je testiran uz pomoć odgovora učenika, prikupljenih s pomoću anketa provođenih nakon svakog sata. Rezultati sugeriraju da na iskustvo učenika izravno utječe njihova motivacija za sudjelovanje u novom okruženju, njihovi stavovi (u vezi sa satima zasnovanim isključivo na igri), kao i tehnološka učinkovitost (u vezi sa satima koji uključuju aktivnosti zasnovane na učenju na daljinu). Također smo ustanovili da učenici različite dobi dijele slična subjektivna iskustva te identificirali jasnu razliku između stavova učenika i ishoda učenja u kontekstu igranja u učionici i (a)sinkronog učenja

Quality of experience in affective pervasive environments

The confluence of miniaturised powerful devices, widespread communication networks and mass remote storage has caused a fundamental shift in the user interaction design paradigm. The distinction between system and user in pervasive environments is evolving into an increasingly integrated loop of interaction, raising a number of opportunities to provide enhanced and personalised experiences. We propose a platform, based on a smart architecture, to address the identified opportunities in pervasive computing. Smart systems aim at acting upon an environment for improving quality of experience: a subjective measure that has been defined as an emotional reaction to products or services. The inclusion of an emotional dimension allows us to measure individual user responses and deliver personalised services with the potential to influence experiences positively. The platform, Cloud2Bubble, leverages pervasive systems to aggregate user and environment data with the goal of addressing personal preferences and supra-functional requirements. This, combined with its societal implications, results in a set of design principles as a concrete fruition of design contractualism. In particular, this thesis describes: - a review of intelligent ubiquitous environments and relevant technologies, including a definition of user experience as a dynamic affective construct; - a specification of main components for personal data aggregation and service personalisation, without compromising privacy, security or usability; - the implementation of a software platform and a methodological procedure for its instantiation; - an evaluation of the developed platform and its benefits for urban mobility and public transport information systems; - a set of design principles for the design of ubiquitous systems, with an impact on individual experience and collective awareness. Cloud2Bubble contributes towards the development of affective intelligent ubiquitous systems with the potential to enhance user experience in pervasive environments. In addition, the platform aims at minimising the risk of user digital exposure while supporting collective action.Open Acces

Planning and dynamic spectrum management in heterogeneous mobile networks with QoE optimization

The radio and network planning and optimisation are continuous processes that do not end after the network has been launched. To achieve the best trade-offs, especially between quality and costs, operators make use of several coverage and capacity enhancement methods. The research from this thesis proposes methods such as the implementation of cell zooming and Relay Stations (RSs) with dynamic sleep modes and Carrier Aggregation (CA) for coverage and capacity enhancements. Initially, a survey is presented on ubiquitous mesh networks implementation scenarios and an updated characterization of requirements for services and applications is proposed. The performance targets for the key parameters, delay, delay variation, information loss and throughput have been addressed for all types of services. Furthermore, with the increased competition, mobile operator’s success does not only depend on how good the offered Quality of Service (QoS) is, but also if it meets the end user’s expectations, i.e., Quality of Experience (QoE). In this context, a model for the mapping between QoS parameters and QoE has been proposed for multimedia traffic. The planning and optimization of fixed Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX) networks with RSs in conjunction with cell zooming has been addressed. The challenging case of a propagation measurement-based scenario in the hilly region of Covilhã has been considered. A cost/revenue function has been developed by taking into account the cost of building and maintaining the infrastructure with the use of RSs. This part of the work also investigates the energy efficiency and economic implications of the use of power saving modes for RSs in conjunction with cell zooming. Assuming that the RSs can be switched-off or zoomed out to zero in periods when the traffic exchange is low, such as nights and weekends, it has been shown that energy consumption may be reduced whereas cellular coverage and capacity, as well as economic performance may be improved. An integrated Common Radio Resource Management (iCRRM) entity is proposed that implements inter-band CA by performing scheduling between two Long Term Evolution – Advanced (LTE-A) Component Carriers (CCs). Considering the bandwidths available in Portugal, the 800 MHz and 2.6 GHz CCs have been considered whilst mobile video traffic is addressed. Through extensive simulations it has been found that the proposed multi-band schedulers overcome the capacity of LTE systems without CA. Result shown a clear improvement of the QoS, QoE and economic trade-off with CA

MediaSync: Handbook on Multimedia Synchronization

This book provides an approachable overview of the most recent advances in the fascinating field of media synchronization (mediasync), gathering contributions from the most representative and influential experts. Understanding the challenges of this field in the current multi-sensory, multi-device, and multi-protocol world is not an easy task. The book revisits the foundations of mediasync, including theoretical frameworks and models, highlights ongoing research efforts, like hybrid broadband broadcast (HBB) delivery and users' perception modeling (i.e., Quality of Experience or QoE), and paves the way for the future (e.g., towards the deployment of multi-sensory and ultra-realistic experiences). Although many advances around mediasync have been devised and deployed, this area of research is getting renewed attention to overcome remaining challenges in the next-generation (heterogeneous and ubiquitous) media ecosystem. Given the significant advances in this research area, its current relevance and the multiple disciplines it involves, the availability of a reference book on mediasync becomes necessary. This book fills the gap in this context. In particular, it addresses key aspects and reviews the most relevant contributions within the mediasync research space, from different perspectives. Mediasync: Handbook on Multimedia Synchronization is the perfect companion for scholars and practitioners that want to acquire strong knowledge about this research area, and also approach the challenges behind ensuring the best mediated experiences, by providing the adequate synchronization between the media elements that constitute these experiences