ICTs and Innovation For Didactics of Social Scienc...

ICTs and Innovation
for Didactics of Social

Sciences
Emilio José Delgado-Algarra

University of Huelva, Spain
Copyright © 2020. IGI Global. All rights reserved.
A volume in the Advances in Human

and Social Aspects of Technology
(AHSAT) Book Series
Delgado-Algarra, Emilio José. ICTs and Innovation for Didactics of Social Sciences, IGI Global, 2020. ProQuest Ebook Central,
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Names: Delgado Algarra, Emilio José, 1981- author.

Title: ICTs and innovation for didactics of social sciences / by Emilio
José Delgado-Algarra.
Description: Hershey : Information Science Reference, 2020. | Includes
bibliographical references and index. | Summary: “”This book focuses on
the didactics of social sciences and ITCs including issues related to
innovation, resources, and strategies for teachers. It also includes
strategies and resources related to virtual reality, augmented reality,
videogames, 3D printing, m-learning, b-learning, and virtual
classrooms”--Provided by publisher”-- Provided by publisher.
Identifiers: LCCN 2019044112 (print) | LCCN 2019044113 (ebook) | ISBN
9781799828822 (hardcover) | ISBN 9781799828839 (paperback) | ISBN
9781799828846 (ebook)
Subjects: LCSH: Information technology--Social aspects. | Information
technology--Study and teaching. | Computer-assisted instruction. |
Social sciences--Study and teaching.
Classification: LCC HC79.I55 D456 2020 (print) | LCC HC79.I55 (ebook) |
DDC 303.48/33--dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019044112
LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019044113
This book is published in the IGI Global book series Advances in Human and Social Aspects of
Technology (AHSAT) (ISSN: 2328-1316; eISSN: 2328-1324)
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Table of Contents
Preface.................................................................................................................. vii
Chapter 1
Social Sciences, Geography and History Teaching Based on Research:
Innovation and Professional Development..............................................................1
Chapter 2
Gamification and Game-Based Learning: Motivating Social Sciences
Education..............................................................................................................40
Chapter 3
Augmented Reality in Social Sciences Education: Integrating Virtual Layers
With Physical Reality............................................................................................75
Chapter 4
Virtual Reality, 3D Recreations and 3D Printing in Social Sciences
Education: Creating and Interacting With Virtual Worlds..................................102
Chapter 5
Learning Managements Systems and Open Educational Resources for the
Teaching of Social Sciences: Monitoring Students and Virtual Interaction.......131
Chapter 6
Massive Open Online Courses as a Specific Type of E-Learning: From
Sending Information to Sharing Knowledge.......................................................165
Chapter 7
B-Learning and Flipped Classroom in Social Sciences Education: School as a
Collaborative Space of Learning........................................................................193

Chapter 8
M-Learning as a Driving Force of Social Engagement, Responsible
Collaboration, and Student Interaction: Resources for Social Sciences
Education............................................................................................................226
Chapter 9
U-Learning and Virtual Classrooms in Social Sciences Education: Virtual
Learning Environments and Participation..........................................................246
Chapter 10
The Future of ICT/LKT in the Teaching and Learning of Social Sciences,
Geography, and History: Adaptive Learning and Artificial Intelligence............268
About the Author.............................................................................................. 292
Index................................................................................................................... 294
vii
Preface
Technological advances allow an improvement of immersion experiences with

ICT and didactic possibilities of them. On the other hand, with the expansion
of internet, mobile applications and video games, the use of ICT has become
common in the everyday environment of citizens, including teachers and
students. They can show relevant social problems and the development of
attractive historical representations for the present to the past with a future
projection; promoting a motivating, functional and rational use of technologies
to achieve deeper and more significant skills in the teaching and learning of
Social Sciences. Despite of the importance of geographical proximity, we
must not ignore the potential of media proximity in the knowledge of students.
Thus, from the teaching of the social sciences, prior knowledge in both areas
must be taken into account so that reality and virtuality connect and feed
each other. This learning can be supported by the change of dynamics and
processes and the access to sources of information that go beyond the local,
from a glocal perspective.
This book is a fundamental reference in innovation and educational research
on ICT for the teaching and learning of Social Sciences. It includes resources
and strategies useful for pre-service and in-service teachers of Primary and
Secondary education. This book will be useful for university teaching in
University Grades of Primary School Education and Masters on Secondary
Education, focusing in subjects related to the teaching and learning of Social
Sciences, including History and Geography. We will review strategies and
resources of virtual reality, augmented reality, videogames, 3D printing,
m-learning, b-learning, virtual classroom, etc. and emerging trends such as

Adaptive Learning Technologies, Artificial Intelligence or Robotics. In short,
this book shows updated technologies, strategies and resources that are useful
for teaching and learning social sciences from multiple perspectives that allow
infinite educational options and combinations; improving the connections
between society and educational environments. In general terms, this book
Preface
is designed for researchers and educators interested in understanding current

relevant ICT resources and innovative strategies for the didactic of social
sciences and didactic possibilities in relation to concrete conceptual contents,
resolution of problems, planning, taking of decisions, development of social
skills, attention, motivation and reflection in the area before mentioned,
promoting a necessary technological literacy.
Innovation accompanies us in our daily lives contributing to personal
growth and improving social participation. Regarding this, in chapter 1 “Social
Sciences, Geography and History Teaching based on Research: Innovation and
Professional Development”, the most important epistemological traditions of
the teaching-learning processes and the teaching models of teachers is reviewed.
Subsequently, chapter focus on an innovative methodological approach based
on school research, highlighting the role of relevant socio-environmental
issues, teacher professional knowledge, student’s daily knowledge and
metadisciplinary knowledge in the construction of meaningful school
knowledge connected with reality. Finally, evaluation from a formative and
professionalizing perspective will be approached; highlighting action research
as a reference to promote innovation and to systematize decision-making
for the transformation of teaching-learning processes, besides alternative
methodologies an some examples about innovative experiences regarding
the teaching and learning of Social Sciences, Geography and History.
Teachers can use game mechanics in non-game environment (gamification)
or they can consider playing a game as an option for the learning of several
contents. Chapter 2 “Gamification and Game-Based Learning: Motivating
Social Sciences Education” focuses on elements, benefits, strategies and some
of the most important resources in order to introduce or improve gamification
and game-based learning in the teaching of Social Sciences, Geography
and History. After reviewing the main strategies to introduce gamification
and Game-Based Learning in social sciences classes, specific resources are
presented, resources that will allow teacher to develop the aforementioned
strategies in order to motivate students and improve the development of
classes. They foster the construction of competences, facilitating the learning
of contents and the reaching of curricular objectives. Those resources for
gamification include creation, management and use of flashcards, games,

quizz games, maps, resources, quests, challenges, simulations, presentations,
infographics, posters, catalogs, images, playsheets, etc. Although gamification
is not a new concept, technological development and recognition of its
didactic possibilities have extended the educational experiences in a new
way, contributing significantly to education.
viii
Preface
The integration of physical reality and digital layers of information in real

time, layers that include text, symbols, audio, video and / or three-dimensional
objects, result of enriching or altering the information of the physical reality
and it is usual in everyday context. In other words, augmented reality has
been used for years in usual activities such as to marking an offside game
in football. Regarding computer and mobile applications AR is an emerging
technology in the daily environment with great potential in the educational field.
In chapter 3 “Augmented Reality in Social Sciences Education: Integrating
Virtual Layers with Physical Reality”, a brief theoretical review about the
reality of AR, strategies and some of the most important resources is made
in order to introduce or improve the implementation of AR in the teaching
of Social Sciences, Geography and History. Focusing attention on AR, its
inclusion in Social Science lessons contributes to educate in a responsible use
of AR. With an adequate didactic approach, it offers important advantages
such as improving of motivation, participation, commitment to the object of
study, teamwork and improvement in procedures.
Virtual Reality is a technology for the relocation and interaction of the
user with a digital environment created by computer through an interface
that recognizes the actions carried out in the real world. It allows users a
multimodal experience, making possible immersion in a digital world. On the
other hand, 3D modeling is a process of design and representation of an object
(3D model) in three dimensions with specialized software, model that could
become tangible through 3D printing. Virtual Reality, 3D modeling and 3D
printing technologies, with appropriate teaching proposals and appropriate
tools for process monitoring, offers students new ways of interacting with the
contents Social Sciences, Geography and History. Chapter 4 “Virtual Reality,
3D recreations and 3D printing in Social Sciences Education: Creating and
Interacting with Virtual Worlds” reviews the conceptualization of virtual
reality, virtual recreation and 3d printing, as well as the strategies for its use
in the teaching of Social Sciences, Geography and History. Finally, some
of the resources for the inclusion of VR experiences, 3D modeling and 3D
recreations and 3D printing in classes is reviewed. Regarding VR, a selection
has been carried out considering the maintenance by developers and flexibility
of resources to adapt them to the classroom needs. In general, there are

more and more resources for the management of classes with VR devices
and specific VR applications for teaching, virtual reality and 3D modeling/
painting in class that allows both interaction and several opportunities for
learning adapted to the needs of students.
ix
Preface
The Learning Management Systems (LMS) encompass a type of software

and web applications that facilitates the online delivery of course materials,
student tracking and presentation of work by students. In general, an LMS
focuses on the creation of course contents through a Learning Content
Management System (LCMS) and on the management of these contents.
LMS provides tools for students to integrate into groups to interact and
achieve assigned tasks and the interaction between students through the
forums enriches the construction of knowledge through communication
and discussions. Open Educational Resources (OER) are associated with
an open license that allows user to adapt and redistribute contents by others
without any restrictions or with limited restrictions. In general terms, LMS
have allowed learning analytics, adaptive learning and dynamic social
exchanges, many times functionality can be increased through the installation
or implementation of add-ons and importing OER from LCMS. Chapter 5
“Learning Managements Systems and Open Educational Resources for the
Teaching of Social Sciences: Monitoring Students and Virtual Interaction”
starts with a brief review about the history of distance education and LMS,
continuing with the main features and advantages of LMS. After, aspects such
as LCMS and OER is conceptualized. Finally, some of the most important
LMS (open source, SaaS/cloud based, propriety), LCMS and OER software
and websites useful for the management and design of your Social Sciences,
Geography and History classes is presented; offering possibilities that expand
the advantages for teachers and students in the process of teaching and learning.
In other words, some of the more significant LMS focusing on open source
LMS is reviewed; moreover, how to access to different OER types.
In recent years, training based on activities, courses and proposals has been
promoted where teaching-learning processes are mediated by technology.
Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) have opened the possibilities in terms
of design, offer and access to training courses. Considered as a very specific
type of e-Learning, its own characteristics are free access, non-limitation in
the number of students and automation of the evaluation processes without
the need for a direct relationship between teacher-student. There are several
types of MOOCs, but the most relevant are xMOOCs, traditional university
e-Learning courses that adapted to the characteristics of MOOC platforms,

and cMOOCs, oriented under the guidelines of connective learning. With the
popularization of MOOC courses from many universities, the number of web
platforms offering such courses has also grown. In chapter 6 “Massive Open
Online Courses as a Specific Type of e-Leaning: From Sending Information
to Sharing Knowledge” after conceptualizing MOOCs, MOOCs and their
Preface
types, focusing con xMOOCs and cMOOCs, and main MOOC search engines
from consolidated institutions is reviewed.
The lecture-driven classroom allows teachers to teach a lot of information
to students over a limited time. However, the traditional classroom lecture
format has also limited the communication between student and teacher. The
flipped classroom pedagogy is a type of b-Learning that inverts the traditional
classroom lecture. In flipped learning, students are required to read or view
pre-record lectures edited online by the teacher a part of their homework.
After, in class time, they focus on group activities, so that teachers must
rethink the design of the teaching and learning process in the classroom
with discussions and group work where students can make decisions, apply
theoretical knowledge and make mistakes. Regarding the teaching and
learning of Social Sciences, Geography and History, this approach implies
opportunities for students to learn high-level content, besides creative, critical
and collaborative skills according to current reality. Chapter 7 “B-Learning and
Flipped Classroom in Social Sciences Education: School as a Collaborative
Space of Learning” highlights the defining aspects of blended learning;
focusing on flipped classroom as an educational strategy with special attention
on the teaching and learning of the social sciences and including aspects
such as the conceptualization, pedagogical background, and benefits and
difficulties of its implementation in the school. Finally, some useful content
editing tools to introduce b-Learning and flipped classrooms in the social
science classroom are reviewed.
The normalization of the use of these devices offers facilities for exploration,
personalization of learning and greater adaptation to the rhythm of students.
In chapter 8 “M-Learning as a Driving of Social Engagement, Responsible
Collaboration and Students Interaction: Resources for Social Sciences
Education”, a conceptualization of m-Learning is presented; including the
main m-Learning features and focusing on application for Social Sciences
education. That section is divided into two parts. In a first subsection, general
applications that can be useful for teaching and learning Social Sciences is
reviewed, offering numerous procedural possibilities at the service of the
area. In a second subsection, some specific applications for the teaching of
Social Sciences, Geography and History that go beyond conceptual contents.

Finally, other resources and teaching guidance for m-Learning will be
presented, including relevant websites with lots of resources for the teaching
and learning of Social Sciences, Geography and History.
The development of internet, wireless devices and sensors, the expansion of
the use of mobile technologies or the development of applications have enabled
xi
Preface
the different ubiquitous learning modalities. U-Learning is an expanded model

from e-Learning and m-Learning with features such as mobile, collaborative,
interactive, omni-synchronous and experimental that fosters interaction and
breaks limitations by place and time in the teaching and learning of Social
Sciences, Geography and History. It is considered as a learning model that
integrates technology in the assessment and monitoring of educational
processes where virtual classrooms and Virtual Learning Environments are
highlighted. In a social context with lacks in civic engagement and democratic
participation, the interactive character of virtual classrooms, including social
networks, is essential. This is due to these technologies connect teachers,
students and parents in addition to encouraging participation in Virtual
Learning Environments. Chapter 9 “U-Learning and Virtual Classrooms in
Social Sciences Education: Virtual Learning Environments and Participation”
introduces virtual classrooms and Virtual Learning Environments (VLE);
highlighting that Learning Management Systems (LMS) offers technologies
for e-Learning and Learning Content Management System (LCMS) offers
contents for e-Learning that are useful in u-Learning, including tools related
to m-Learning. Finally, some tools useful for U-Learning will be presented,
focusing in resources to create virtual classrooms and VLE and considering
that due to the relationship of u-learning with e-Leaning and m-Learning,
some of these tools have already been reviewed in previous chapters from a
different perspective.
Most of experts considers that society has entered in a Fourth Industrial
Revolution that implies ubiquitous changes characterized by a fusion of
technologies that is blurring the lines that differentiate physical, digital,
and biological spheres. This implies to open a door to important changes in
the teaching and learning of the Social Sciences, Geography and History.
Regarding this, it is necessary that both citizens and organizations develop
new skills. Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a promising education technology for
the teaching and learning of Social Sciences. Adaptive learning, meanwhile,
is related to AI; personalizing the learning and offering contents adapted to
students. New challenges in the teaching of Social Sciences extends beyond
the learning of facts and events. As a result of changes in society of Fourth
Industrial Revolution, Thinking Based Learning (TBL) with the support of

Learning and knowledge technologies (LKT), creativity, critical thinking
and cooperation are some of the essential learning goals to participate in
society. Chapter 10 “The Future of ICT/LKT in the Teaching and Learning
of Social Sciences, Geography and History: Adaptive Learning and Artificial
Intelligence” refers to challenges for the teaching and learning of social
xii
Preface
sciences in the 21st century regarding ICT and innovation, adaptive learning
technologies, artificial intelligence, robotics and mixed reality.
Regarding current and emerging key trends from 2012 to over 2023, and
considering several sources such as Horizon Report 2019, some of the most
relevant sectors in the future will be education, media, information managers,
computer services and technological research. This book has been designed
taking as reference the social and educational needs of the present and the next
years and attending to needs that go beyond technological literacy. Moving
away from positions based on technological determinism, the development
of technologies no longer determines the changes in social structures or
the transformation of the teaching-learning process. Active nature of users
in the learning society stop focusing on instrumental aspects to emphasize
educational aspects and didactic adaptation. Teachers of Social Sciences
should be aware to the consequences of this new situation where ignoring
emerging technologies and not including responsible use of them in the
classroom implies a disconnection with social reality and social (and labor)
needs in the near future, a near future where procedural and attitudinal issues
such as adaptability to technological environments or critical and creative
thinking will be fundamental.
xiii
1
Chapter 1
Social Sciences, Geography
and History Teaching
Based on Research:
Innovation and Professional
Development
ABSTRACT
Innovation accompanies us in our daily lives contributing to personal
growth and improving social participation. Considering the most important
epistemological traditions of teaching-learning processes and teaching
models, research-based teaching model is a relevant approach to introduce
innovative didactic proposals. Selection, organization, and sequencing of
school knowledge in the teaching of social sciences, geography and history,
and the construction of meaningful school knowledge connected with the
social reality implies considering relevant socio-environmental issues, teacher
professional knowledge, student daily knowledge, and metadisciplinarity.
As a pedagogical base, in this chapter, the authors focus on epistemological
traditions of social sciences education, keys for the design of proposal from a
research-based approach, and finally, they focus on alternatives for evaluation
of students and the importance of action-research for systematization of
decision making and professional development.
DOI: 10.4018/978-1-7998-2882-2.ch001
Copyright © 2020, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited.
Social Sciences, Geography and History Teaching Based on Research
INTRODUCTION
Innovation accompanies us in our daily lives. When a new product or

service catches our attention, we usually classify it as “innovative”. In other
words, we know how to recognize something that can be innovative or not
and we intuitively associate it with something that can be useful in our
life or professional context. Despite this, answering the question “what is
innovation?” requires go beyond intuition. Das Gupta defines innovation
“the design, invention, development and/or implementation of new or altered
products, services, processes, systems, organization structures or business
models for the purpose of creating new value for customers” (2017: 345).
In other words, innovation it is not just what we consider new. As Vrba &
Mitchell (2019) indicated, it must add value to the organization, including
the following characteristics: it contributes to the success of an organization;
culture of innovation become essential to the success of business and education;
technology in educational practice has been increased to support new demands
of students and there are multiple options on useful applications to preparing
for action in social and professional environment.
Even though innovative actions can contribute to professional development
of teachers and learning improvement of students, not all of them allow the
development of institutional changes. Regarding this, we must understand
the difference between innovative experiences and innovation. Innovative
experience is associated with small-scale changes. Usually, it is carried out
by a person or small group, and that does not transcend from a very specific
context within the organization. When that person or that small group leaves
the organization, the innovative experience disappears. So educational
innovation can be defined as “management process of specific changes (in
ideas, materials or practices of the curriculum) until their consolidation,
with a view to personal and institutional growth” (De la Torre, 1997: 50);
establishing a clear differentiation with the educational reform, a process of
modification of the general teaching framework in terms of official curriculum.
Thus, another defining aspects of innovation are the depth of changes and
their permanence over time. Innovation must include a process of managing,
defining and consolidating changes, and a shared understanding of the

advantage of innovation for students, teaching staff and their institution (Puig
& Morales, 2013). In education, Pozuelos (2007) highlights that numerous
innovative experiences could be contextualized in a wider innovative project.
In general, these experiences can share a common topic, deliberative strategies

and plurality of outputs from students.
In this chapter, the most important epistemological traditions of the
teaching-learning process and teaching models will reviewed; focusing on an
innovative methodological proposal based on school research, highlighting the
role of relevant socio-environmental issues, teacher professional knowledge,
student’s daily knowledge and metadisciplinary knowledge in the construction
of significant school knowledge connected with reality. The final point will
approach the evaluation from a formative and professionalizing perspective;
highlighting action research as a reference to promote innovation and to
systematize decision-making on the transformation of teaching-learning
processes in Social Sciences area.
EPISTEMOLOGICAL TRADITIONS OF THE

TEACHING AND LEARNING PROCESSES
From a civic approach of education, López-Facal indicates that “all formal

education must be understood in its civic dimension” (2010: 5). This approach
determines the educational purposes in the teaching and learning of the Social
Sciences. Connected with the evolution in diactic of Social Sciences, it is
necessary to know the epistemological traditions. Considering the traditions
that have determined the aims of education from the nineteenth century to
the present day, positivist tradition must be highlighted. This line of thinking
from the nineteenth century influenced on the teaching of Social Sciences and
educational practice in general (Finocchio & García, 1993). The neo-positivist
social thinking increased in the middle of the 20th century, considering
social facts as measurable elements that allow predicting phenomena and
behaviors. This paradigm found a great reception because it was presumably
useful to solve the serious social problems in that time (Benejam, 1997a).
The positivist model follows the behavioral line. Regarding this model, the
teacher is the protagonist in the teaching-learning process and the methodology
is considered as closed tasks. It prioritizes the effectiveness of the system
over the diversity of students, proposing a hypothetical-deductive method

(or scientific method) in teaching.
An antipositivist epistemological framework is developed as an alternative
to positivism. In this way, the humanist or reconceptualist tradition criticized
technical rationality and it represented by two paradigms: the humanist
paradigm and the Marxist or critical paradigm. The humanist paradigm denies
the existence of a reality independent of the existence of people and their
subjectivity (Benejam, 1997b, Hervás & Miralles, 2004, Cuesta, 2011). In
line of thinking, students respond according to an innate process of maturation
and personal construction that determines the teaching-learning processes.
Under this paradigm, teaching is based on flexible proposals that respond to
student interests through study of relevant problems and acceptance of different
points of view. Teachers motivate mental activity and consider evaluation
as a means of adjusting the teacher to the needs of the teaching-learning
process. From the Marxist or critical paradigm, neither society nor school are
neutral because they respond to interests and needs of humans. This line of
thinking considers that the positivist tradition does not generate changes. In
other words, the critical school, detracts “neutrality” from behaviorists and
development of students’ personality from humanists; considering that it is a
priority for students to be critical with their value system. In relation to this
socio-critical paradigm, commitment and participation in critical activities
regarding relevant problems are essential to look for social alternatives.
McCutcheon (1995) and Misco (2007) affirm that students find numerous
possible solutions when they meet to solve a practical problem of a certain
complexity, considering that dialogue, debate and argumentation are considered
appropriate to find the most efficient conclusions.
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
AND TEACHERS ATTITUDE
Professional knowledge is set up by a dynamic representation of professional

ideals. In relation to this, several professional knowledge levels of progression
are established towards a teaching model based on school research. This
model is considered desirable due to the balance between flexibility and
planning, and because facilitates the integration of innovative experiences
and educational innovation. Regarding these levels of progression, the first
level is traditional model, after there are two intermediate levels, technological
model and spontaneist model, and the last level is the research model (figure
1). As Estepa-Giménez (2007) and Delgado-Algarra & Estepa-Giménez
(2017) indicates, professional development is progressive, but models are
ideal references that can never be considered as closed tags. In other words, no
teacher responds 100% to a single model, but practical activity can preferably
Figure 1. Relationship between different teaching models. Reworked from Delgado-

Algarra & Estepa-Giménez (2016: 524)
base on one of them.The attitude of Social Science teachers regarding

relevant socio-environmental problems and the controversial issues has been
classified into four types (Kelly, 1986; Simonneaux, 2007; López Facal, 2011)
(figure 2): exclusive neutrality, exclusive partiality, neutral impartiality,
and committed impartiality. A teacher who assumes an attitude of exclusive
neutrality, avoids debate or discussion and never gives his point of view. The
teacher who assumes an attitude of exclusive partiality avoids debate, giving
a single point of view, eliminating any contribution that contradicts it. With
this attitude increases the risk of indoctrination. Teacher can decide on work
or not about relevant socio-environmental problems or controversial issues
(absent curriculum). If teacher decide include social problems or controversial
issues in the classroom, neutrality, balance and commitment would be key
concepts, because they are going to define the afore mentioned four teaching
attitudes (figure 3) (Stradling, 1984; Pineda, 2015):
Figure 2. Teachers attitude regarding controversial issues. Translated from Delgado-

Algarra & Estepa-Giménez (2016: 524)
• Neutrality implies that the teacher does not show preference for any
positioning.
• Balance refers to the presentation of a wide variety of alternatives and
points of view by the teacher.
• Commitment is related to sharing of the teacher opinion with students.
Teachers who assumes a neutral impartial attitude encourages students’

interaction, but they do not share their points of view. In that case, balance
predominates, considering all the student positions as respectable. Teachers
must not consider the same value to all students’ opinions because some of
them are based on fake news widely diffused by lobbies and the dominant
culture. In other words, pretending neutrality is an irresponsible teacher attitude
because in the analysis of social problems must prevail the searching for truth
over balance (Bigelow and Peterson, 2002). Within neutral impartiality, there
is an option of procedural neutrality where the teacher acts impartially in the
discussion groups and encourage students’ debate with information, regardless
of his own positioning (Stenhouse, 1975). Neutrality is not synonymous with
having no values. The teacher has the responsibility to defend educational
values, not party values (Stenhouse, 1970). The teacher who assumes an
Figure 3. Controversial issues in the classroom. Key elements and deliberation

strategies
attitude of committed impartiality promotes debate, sharing his opinion with

students, but not imposing it. Committed impartiality shares with the exclusive
partiality the teacher’s commitment; however, the teacher’s attitude towards
the debate makes the exclusive partiality predisposed to indoctrination.
Neutral impartiality supporters consider that the teachers are situated in a
high position of power with respect to students because teachers have a more
developed knowledge and are going to evaluate students. Therefore, neutral
impartiality supporters consider that when teachers share their position or
actively participate in discussions, they are contributing to the indoctrination
of students. Authors who defend the committed impartiality criticize the
apparent neutrality of the teaching staff. As López Facal affirms there are
detestable opinions that not only must not be respected, but must be combated
(…) (2011: 13), referring to opinions based on prejudices, racism, ignorance,
etc.; highlighting the role of elements such as criticism, ethics and commitment
to the subject of study.
In addition to the inclusion of relevant problem problems and the

connection between past, present and future, use of interactive methods has
great possibilities in the teaching and learning of Social Sciences (Pagés &
Oller, 2007). Therefore, teaching activities that avoid debate or the interaction
between students would be considered inadequate from the perspective of
teaching and learning based on research. Regarding this and coinciding with
the conclusions of researches from Miller-Lane, Denton & May (2006) and
Delgado-Algarra & Estepa-Giménez (2017) among others; teachers that
support students’ interaction and discussion in the classroom prefers to assume
an attitude of neutral impartiality. The study on practice by Waldron (2017)
is significant too because it has shown that contextualization and intellectual
stimulation are crucial factors in didactic proposals with deliberative and
decision-making. In this kind of proposals, responsibilities are negotiated and
some of the dominant norms are critically questioned. We could establish an
analogous comparison between the teaching models and the teachers’ attitude
towards the inclusion of relevant issues in the classroom:
• In the traditional model, theoretical school contents and objectivity

predominate, while in the exclusive neutrality any possibility of sharing
opinions and arguments about the problem of studies is eliminated,
both by the teacher and by the students.
• In the spontaneist model, the spontaneous practice of the students
without planning predominates, while in neutral impartiality all the
contributions of the students are collected from a principle of balance
giving equal value to all the contributions of the students without
clearly defined limits or participation of teacher in the debate.
• In the technological model, the practical predominates, following very
closed protocols proposed by the teacher and must reach previously
prescribed results. On the other hand, in the exclusive partiality the
students do not have the possibility of refuting, but they must assume
that the teacher’s response is the only right response.
• In the research model, there is a balance between planning and flexibility
around the proposed problems, while in the committed impartiality, the
subjectivity of the teacher and students must be argued with facts and
information from several sources. Teacher encourages students to take
down their position, constructing critical ability, ethical positioning
and intellectual tools to oppose the authority with arguments.
In general, there is an important connection between innovation and research

teaching model and the existence of balance between rationality, planning,
flexibility and action is important. We refer to teachers who assume their
status as educators, are trained to face uncertainties and controversial issues,
reflect on practice and have a critical attitude towards school and professional
codes. In other words, a teacher who considers the school as a public space
for critical interaction and cultural reconstruction.
TOWARDS AN INNOVATIVE METHODOLOGICAL

APPROACH BASED ON SCHOOL RESEARCH
The priority purpose of education is to train citizens and provide useful

knowledge and skills for life in a school that goes beyond socialization and
the reproduction of dominant models, a school understood as an engine of
social change. In relation to “what to teach”, traditionally, school knowledge
has been conceived as a reduced version of scientific knowledge. However,
following the basic approach of the “Researching Our World Curriculum
Project” (Travé, Cañal & Pozuelos, 2003, Cañal, Pozuelos & Travé, 2005),
school knowledge is constructed progressively and by triangulation between
the relevant socio-environmental problems, the students’ everyday knowledge
and the teacher’s scientific knowledge; based on an ethical positioning that is
within the framework of metadisciplinary knowledge. In convergence with
this Curriculum Project and in relation to the characterization of didactic
models, an approach to the research teaching model is considered desirable.
The curricular development that we might consider desirable is based on the
following principles:
• Student activity: where students play an essential role in the process.

• Learning occurs in social contexts: collaborative activities among
students are necessary.
• Methodology of learning based on projects, problems or challenges:
where sessions are organized facilitating the knowledge of disciplinary
contents while internalizing methodological strategies related to the

teaching-learning process.
This curriculum project, among other issues, raises school research for
the teaching of Social Sciences as an alternative to the routine in the typical
teaching-learning process from traditional model. Thus, the research model is
based on curricular organizers for the construction and progressive structuring
of school knowledge based on questions or problems about social and cultural
subsystems. These curricular organizers are the following areas of research:
researching economic activities, researching current and historical societies,
researching human feeding, researching live, researching ecosystems,
researching human settlements, researching the earth and the universe,
researching machines and artifacts. This project is based on constructivism
and considers several fundamental elements (Estepa, 2007, Delgado-Algarra
& Lorca-Marín, 2019) (figure 4):
• Relevant social environmental problem: to respond through the teacher

and learning process.
• Scientific knowledge: related to what the teacher must know in order
to teach.
• Everyday knowledge: including previous ideas and difficulties. It is
necessary to clarify the difficulties involved.
• Meta-disciplinary knowledge: decisions of teachers based on their
professional ethics.
These four elements contribute to the selection, sequencing and organizing

school knowledge in an appropriate level to be significant to students. Teacher
consider previous ideas, conceptions and difficulties that are grouped into
everyday knowledge. This kind of knowledge implies stable and common
explanations that have internal coherence and that facilitates students
the understanding of social dynamics experiences. Scientific knowledge,
together with conceptions, facilitates the process of selection, sequencing and
organization of school knowledge in an appropriate level of complexity (figure
4). In this process, the teacher must make decisions from their professional
ethics based on their metadisciplinary knowledge and bring relevant socio-
environmental problems to the classroom.
10
Figure 4. Construction of school knowledge from an approach based on school

research.
Relevant Socio-Environmental Issues. Connection

Between Social Sciences Classes and Reality
Various studies (Canal, Costa & Santisteban, 2012; Kuş, 2015; Pineda,
2015; Delgado-Algarra & Estepa-Giménez, 2018) have highlighted the
effectiveness of deliberative and decision-making strategies, in addition to
the importance of analyzing relevant and controversial socio-environmental
issues in order to educate in democratic values. There are several big social
problems that demonstrate the need to promote a critical attitude in school
education. Some of these social problems are distrust in the political class,
intensification of migratory movements, fear of loss of identity and the
triumphs of ideological extremisms. Starting from current problems to the
past, the classical chronological order from the academicist perspective is
broken, ensuring the development of a teaching-learning process for a critical
citizenship committed to the present, aware of their rights and duties and able
to make decisions about real problems and relevant issues.

Closely related to professional knowledge, it is necessary that teachers
receive training and acquire enough security to include real problems and
controversies in Social Science classes. Regarding this, Waterson (2009) and
Yeager & Humphries (2011) researches highlight that a high percentage of
11
teaching staff has not received didactic training to introduce real problems
in their lessons. This situation is accompanied by fear of teacher to analyze
controversial issues with students. Yeager and Humphries (2011) research
concludes that most of teachers who include controversial topics in the
classroom do it because they consider that it contributes positively to become
students more efficient active participants in a democratic society.
In general, when teachers are not trained to work with the controversial
issues, they tend to avoid them in the classroom. This situation is due to
uncomfortable feeling of many teachers to set out controversial issues and
include discussions about. In other words, the discomfort is based on difficulties
of teachers to handle the uncertainty that can arise from working with relevant
socio-environmental problems and controversy. Regarding this, a research
with social science teachers conclude that the inclusion of controversial topics
from a critical perspective, despite contributing to the construction of a critical
and committed and democratic citizenship, encounters important obstacles
such as the existing taboo in both the school environment and the family
environment (Delgado-Algarra & Estepa-Giménez, 2017, 2018). Finally, in
relation to active, deliberative and decision-making strategies, as Nielsen
(2009) indicates, both argumentation and discussion allow students to develop
a critical and reflective attitude towards problems; making possible a functional
interaction between Social Science classes and the socio-environmental
context. So that “the inclusion of controversial topics in the classroom allows
participatory learning by promoting an active listening of diverse points of
view, enabling to express and change opinions in the light of new arguments
and information” (Pineda, 2015: 354-355). A school committed to society and
the democratic system should not ignore serious problems such as distrust
of politicians. Political polarization is accompanied by a social polarization
that is reflected in everyday conversations, in the media and social networks.
Ignoring relevant problems in the classroom involves turning our backs on the
world around students, a world that share information with them by media,
an information sometimes they cannot understand.
One of the main purposes in the teaching of Social Sciences is the
construction of students’ skill to participate critically and responsibly in a
democratic society, contributing to become themselves informed, trained

and active citizens in their environment. We consider that school content
must be connected to real problems (besides scientific knowledge, everyday
knowledge and metadisciplinary knowledge), offering students the opportunity
12
Figure 5. Proposal for democratic citizenship education. Re-elaboration based on

Santisteban & Pagés (2007)
to understand the world around them and to improve their social and civic
competence. In summary, in order to build an active, democratic, reflective
and responsible citizenship, it is necessary for the Social Sciences teachers to
implement critical didactics committed to a democratic education (figure 5).
Scientific Knowledge and its Relationship

with School Knowledge / Contents
Disciplines such as Sociology, Political Science, Anthropology, History, Art

History, Ethics and Geography have contributed to the analysis of political,

social and cultural phenomena, their changes and permanence. Political
phenomena are linked to political power and the action of governing where
the state acts as an institution that aspires to monopolize a political power that
may be conditioned by the demands of lobbies with media and / or economic
power. The form of organization that adopts power is the so-called political
13
system. Throughout history there have been different political systems that
are characterized by (Estepa-Giménez, 2007):
• The level of participation of the governed (for example, political

systems such as dictatorship or democracy).
• Types, functions and form of establishing institutions (according to
the head of state, republic, monarchy; independence [or not] between
legislative, executive and judicial powers; universal suffrage).
• Ideology or theories that sustains the political system (social democracy,
liberalism, neoliberalism, etc.).
• State configuration (parliament, legislative branch; Government and
state instruments such as public administration and security forces and
bodies, executive branch; administration of justice, judicial branch).
• Changes in the political system (French Revolution, Transition to
Democracy in Spain, fall of the Berlin Wall, etc.).
Sociology, Geography and History have contributed to the study of

social phenomena. In this sense, we highlight the type of social grouping,
classification in social classes (high, medium, low and excluded) and primary
groups (direct relationships: family, peer group, etc.) and secondary groups
(work, hobbies, beliefs, political ideologies, etc.), and social structure (stratified
society, class society, caciquism, etc.). As for cultural phenomena, culture
is based on a worldview that determines our behavior (worldview, norms
and values) and on tangible and intangible artificial social constructions
that are reflected in heritage; including issues such as cultural identity and
multiculturalism (which gives rise to complex socialization processes),
globalization, postmodernity and new cultural models and social movements.
Finally, regarding historical societies, we highlight the chronological time,
related to the dating of historical events and concepts such as succession,
simultaneity and periodization; internal time, related to concepts such as
rhythm and duration of historical processes; and change and continuity.
However, considering these categories independently can be overly
simplistic if you consider the elements of those categories without interaction
between them. From the aforementioned Curriculum Project, it is considered

that the knowledge and understanding of a society requires a systemic analysis
of these elements. The objective is to reveal and organize the conceptual
knowledge that may be of interest for the educational stage around the four
components that structure, in this case, current and historical societies are
understood as a system: unity and diversity in its elements, interactions
14
between them, forms of organization and processes of change (figure 6).

With “elements” we refer to the concept of diversity, linked to the concept
of unity. This is because the elements make up a great variety (diversity) of
parts that make up the system and, in turn, can be grouped based on common
characteristics (unity). The concept of “interaction” refers to the establishment
of relationships between the different elements of the system, including
causality and intentionality. Interaction implies knowing the processes that
occur between the elements and how they modify their nature. The concept
of “organization” implies the existence of regulations that determine a certain
configuration of reality. This concept allows to delve into the set of laws,
customs, rights and duties, norms and provisions that govern the operation
of the system. The concept of “change” is closely linked to the concepts of
space and time and to the dynamic nature of reality, allowing the study of
social systems to be approached from a historical perspective.
In this section, we will show the relationship between scientific and
school knowledge in order to clarify the confusion that usually exists in this
regard. From the perspective of a Social Science teaching based on school
research, school knowledge is selected, organized and sequenced considering
the relevant socio-environmental problems, scientific knowledge, daily
knowledge (conceptions and difficulties) and metadisciplinary knowledge.
However, traditionally, the school knowledge of Social Sciences, Geography
and History has been considered as cut from the scientific knowledge.
Scientific knowledge comes from disciplines, focusing attention on conceptual
learning over procedures and attitudes. In the conventional model, the student
is considered as a passive recipient of an encyclopedist school knowledge,
prioritizing the memorization of definitions, facts and dates that must be
evaluated by written exams. Usually, these exams prioritize repetition of
memorized school knowledge and relevant socio-environmental problems
or previous knowledge and difficulties of students are not take into account.
As García-Pérez (2017) indicates, teaching the same scientific knowledge
when we become teachers, in a more global area and with less specialized
students, does not make sense. However, the inertia of the tradition in the
teaching of Social Sciences is strong. School knowledge is found in the form
of definitions, descriptions, data sets or recitation of causes and consequences,

etc. that are rationed in the different sessions. Regarding this, Merchán (2005)
and García-Pérez (2015) point out that this dosage of conceptual school
knowledge is adapted to the structure of spaces, times, curricular regulations
and accreditation mechanisms through exams. In other words, needs for
reflection on school knowledge do not only imply focusing attention on the
15
Figure 6. Systemic analysis of the basic concepts about Current and Historical
Societies. Adapted and translated from Estepa-Giménez (2007: 43)
16
taught knowledge, but, from an integrative perspective, different dimensions

of what to learn should be analyzed:
• Epistemological dimension: types of knowledge, validity,

transformations, etc.
• Psychological dimension: student learning mechanisms.
• “Sociogenetic” dimension: because knowledge is developed in certain
social contexts.
• Ideological dimension: that determines the teacher’s choice by a type
of knowledge.
In other words, due to the influence of different dimensions in the selection,

organization and sequencing of Social Sciences school contents, it is important
to keep in mind that:
the knowledge taught by the teacher, the reasons why he chooses them,
the way he transmits them or presents them to his students, the materials he
uses, the problems he detects in student learning, the way he evaluates them,
etc. (Pagés, 1994: 48).
On the other hand, a didactic cannot be conceived only as a mere reflection
on school knowledge, or only as a curricular reflection, but the reflection
on school knowledge must be connected to the reflection on professional
knowledge (García Pérez, 1999: 136). Despite that, it is paradoxical that,
although teachers are experts in an area of knowledge, they sometimes
identify the content of the books with the content of the official curriculum.
In this way, although school knowledge is related to the reference scientific
knowledge, it is transformed into a peculiar knowledge quite different from
scientific knowledge and disconnected from the students’ everyday experiential
knowledge.
Everyday Knowledge and its Relationship

with School Knowledge / Contents
Students’ conceptions are generated from daily experiences and social

dynamics, allowing them to understand the world. Conceptions are very

consistent and very resistant to change. Likewise, depending on the role of
everyday knowledge, three levels of learning of school knowledge can be
established (García Díaz & Cubero, 2000): “simple” additive learning: where
students only learn if they are attentive to the teacher’s explanations, additive
17
learning “complex”: constructivist by substitution, there is an interest in the

conceptions of students because all of them are wrong and must be replaced
by scientific knowledge, and constructivism: desirable level at which the
processes of interpretation, integration and restructuring of students’ ideas
converge. We consider that, instead of ignoring everyday knowledge or
systematically considering it as an error, school knowledge must be built
and enriched from it. Moreover, what does not have scientific basis or is
erroneous will be modified through situations and practices in which students
understand this error. Teachers would propose a critical teaching-learning
process from a vision of evolutionary and integrative school knowledge
where it is built from everyday knowledge. In relation to the view of school
knowledge, Martín del Pozo (1999) establishes three levels of complexity:
• Encyclopedist vision of knowledge: where school subject is understood

as the addition of objective and closed knowledge.
• Divided and hierarchical view of knowledge: in which scientific
knowledge is considered an open reference for a closed school
knowledge.
• Relative, evolutionary and integrative vision of knowledge: where,
from a “moderate” relativistic approach, the integration of scientific
and everyday knowledge (together with metadisciplinary knowledge
and problems) ensures a social construction of school knowledge.
Similarly, in relation to the treatment of school content, Porlán (1999 a, 1999

b) establishes two levels: contents as a simplified and encyclopedic version
of disciplinary concepts, and contents as integration of diverse sources for
the enrichment of everyday knowledge. Regarding contents as a simplified
and encyclopedic version of disciplinary concepts, teacher consider school
knowledge as a simplified version of scientific knowledge; taking into account
an impoverished and stereotyped everyday knowledge. In relation to contents
as integration of diverse sources for the enrichment of everyday knowledge,
teacher consider, school knowledge must be learnt from different sources.
At this level, teacher understand the importance of everyday knowledge
enrichment in the learning of school knowledge. It corresponds with relative,

evolutionary and integrative vision of knowledge; focusing on everyday
knowledge. The diversity of conceptions and difficulties of the students are
placed in a gradient of complexity defined by four guiding criteria: elements
and organization, relationships and causality, change and time, and values.
Based on these guiding criteria, and in relation to school research in current
18
and historical societies, Estepa-Giménez (2007, 2017) establishes a general

hypothesis of progression in everyday knowledge:
• Syncretic view: it is proper in younger children, from the syncretic

view, reality is understood as undifferentiated and homogeneous.
Students perceive elements of the environment as isolated, unrelated
and without causation (or with intentional causality). The worldview is
static and self-centered, and the environment is a scenario or resource.
• Analytical view: it is developed during Primary Education. The world
is considered a sum of parts or simple relationships reflected in a
linear causality. In the analytical view of the world, different elements
are distinguished and categorized, but with a little organization
among them. At this level, students’ conceptions are considered
from an anthropocentric point of view. Reality is perceived from the
perspective of humans, or from a socio-centric point of view. From that
point of view, students analyze facts according to their sociocultural
perspective, not considering alternative perspectives.
• Systemic view: this vision can be achieved in Secondary Education
(but many adults never reach it). This vision is conceived as a network
of interactions and hierarchy of systems embedded in each other.
From a systemic view, the notion of interaction is understood from
a multicausal explanation and the dynamic perception of the system,
including its changes and permanence, is understood. This vision
supposes a high level of decentration, with a relativistic view and a
biocentric conception of the world that goes beyond human beings and
their own culture.
From an educational research model, the process of teaching and learning

Social Sciences in Primary and Secondary education is understood as a research.
“Investigating current and historical societies” is a wide area of research, this
area of research is structured in four fields of research or inclusive concepts
that are organizers of the area of research:
• Social organization: it includes concepts of primary and secondary

groups, social classes, gender and ethnicity. Although it includes three
levels for each concept, focusing attention on the levels of progression
of school knowledge around the field of social organization research:
◦◦ First level: students do not distinguish social aspects with respect
to economic or political aspects.
19
◦◦ Second level: students must know different institutions,

associations, organizations and social groups that exist in their
environment. They observe the relationships between not always
harmonious elements, accepting non-violent conflict in defense of
ideas from different positions.
◦◦ Third level: students conceive social organization as a subsystem
of social world, where structures with different human groups and
interactions can change.
• Political organization: it includes concepts of democracy, city hall,
province, autonomous community, central state, European Union,
government, parliament and constitution. The levels of progression of
school knowledge around political organization are as follows:
◦◦ First level: students consider that political issues are individual and
free of interest conflicts. Hierarchy of organization is unknown.
◦◦ Second level: students begin to understand political activity as
an activity carried out by some people and justified by ideas.
Political activity is organized hierarchically. Some people have
more power than others and they do different tasks.
◦◦ Third level: political aspects are understood as an activity that affects
society. Students are aware of the importance of participating.
Likewise, students consider that political organization is a
subsystem of the social world. Political organization can change
from transformations and interactions with other subsystems such
as economic and cultural ones.
• Culture: this field includes concepts of norms, values and social
identity. The levels of progression of school knowledge around cultural
issues are the following:
◦◦ First level: students link culture to people. They refer to societies,
organizations or human groups in general.
◦◦ Second level: students consider that culture must be constructed
through ideas, beliefs, norms, values and customs underlying
people’s behavior, especially affecting tangible manifestations
such as buildings or work tools.
◦◦ Third level: students consider culture as a subsystem of social

world. Culture changes can be based on transformations and
interactions with other subsystems are involved. It includes shared
understandings about the world (norms and values) and artificial
constructions that groups of people have created over time, both
tangible and intangible (rules, customs or institutions).
20
• Societies of the past: this is a cross field that includes concepts of

historical time, cultural heritage. Three levels about societies of the
past are:
◦◦ First level: students does not recognize the past beyond their own
existence. Personal and family history, everyday objects, etc.
allow students the reconstruction of the past.
◦◦ Second level: students extent time horizon from the observation
and analysis of political organization, social organization and
cultural manifestations of current societies in contrast to other
historical societies.
◦◦ Third level: students understand that humanity has lived in society
from the past and knowledge of the forms of political, social,
economic and cultural organization of the past help students to
improve the understanding of today’s societies.
Meta-Disciplinary Knowledge
School contents include disciplinary (school) contents. In the teaching of

Social Sciences, including Geography and History, school contents are not
synonym of scientific knowledge, disciplinary knowledge of reference from
areas such as History, Economics, Sociology, Geography, etc. Disciplinary
contents are specific contents of subject to be learnt by students. For example,
the French Revolution would be a disciplinary content of history subject.
Interdisciplinary contents are school contents that work cooperatively from
two or more subjects. For example, human food can be studied from different
approach such as natural sciences, social sciences, etc. In that case, a group
of teachers of natural sciences and social sciences can coordinate themselves
to teach the same topic from the perspective of their respective subjects. The
metadisciplinary knowledge is the knowledge about the nature of disciplinary
knowledge, the historical, sociological and epistemological analysis of the
disciplinary contents (the evolution of the scientific and epistemological
paradigms, the epistemological obstacles that have hindered the changes,
the interactions between scientific, ideological and social demands, etc.) - as
ideological worldviews that guide the reason for decisions in the scientific
and educational field (García Díaz & García Pérez, 2001: 2-3).
21
Metadisciplinary knowledge is formed by a set of conceptual, procedural

and attitudinal notions (Porlán, 1993; García Díaz, 1998). This kind of
knowledge is common to various specific didactics and it has a strong
structuring character from different fields of knowledge.
ALTERNATIVE METHODOLOGIES AN EVALUATION
Reflection on educational models has led to alternative methodologies.

These methodologies usually are focused on students, and often have been
designed to contribute to the social environment of students. Some of them
are Waldorf schools, Montessori schools, Reggio Emilia schools, Pestalozzi
education center, Changemaker schools, Aucouturier psychomotor practices
and Goldschmied teaching.
Regarding Waldorf schools, we must highlight Waldorf pedagogy. According
this, in early childhood education, teaching and learning process focuses on
practical activities and creative games. In primary education, focuses on the
development of artistic expression and social skills. In secondary education,
focuses on the development of reasoning and empathy. Evaluations Student
works are mostly qualitative, and they are integrated with day-to-day activities
in the classroom. Quantitative tests are minimal in primary education and
standardized tests are related to those necessary to enter the university. In
these schools, both teachers and the institution have great autonomy about
selection of school contents, teaching methodology and the organization of
authorities. Montessori schools is an educational model characterized by
emphasizing the activity directed by students, teacher observes and adapts
the learning environment to students; based on their spontaneity and choice.
The basic purpose of this method is to unlock the potential of each student
for comprehensive development in collaboration with the teacher.
In relation to Reggio Emilia schools, pedagogy is defined as an educational
approach student-centered that focus on kindergarten and primary education.
It is based on constructivist approach with self-guided and experiential
activities. The program of Reggio Emilia pedagogy focuses on principles of
respect, responsibility and community through exploration and discovery of

students. It allows students express their ideas by means of several symbolic
languages such as painting, sculpting, drama, etc. In Pestalozzi education
center, Pestalozzi considered that the solution to contradictions and poverty
in society was a good education. Approaches in this school are based on the
observation of educational experiences, interests and activities, etc. According
22
to Pestalozzi, human knowledge is constructed from sensible intuition. Thus,

in Pestalozzian schools, the teaching method must follow a proposal from
simple to the complex, adapting to the mental development of child. In other
words, knowledge must move forward, from confusing intuitions to clear
and distinct ideas.
Changemaker schools considers that children must be empathetic leaders,
capable of working in teams to solve problems for the good of all. They
are supported by Ashoka (branded Ashoka: Innovators of the Public), an
international organization that promotes social entrepreneurship to shape a
global, competitive citizen sector that allows social entrepreneurs to think
and act as changemakers. Aucouturier psychomotor practices is connect with
psychomotor education and it is a pedagogic and therapeutic approach, whose
aim of approach to support and aid an individual’s personal development.
They are based on holistic view of humans that considers each student as a
unity of physical, emotional and cognitive realities who interact with others
and social environment.
Goldschmied teaching considers heuristic play as a non-prescriptive
approach to learning, a kind of play defined by offering a group of children,
for a concrete period of time in a controlled environment, several objects and
receptacles to play freely without adult intervention and through curiosity
and exploration. Finally, with HighScope methods, students are encouraged
to choose what materials they would like to use, through active learning and
complete with hands-on experiences. Teachers are in place to support and
guide. Through a version of scaffolding, children are encouraged by teacher to
move to the next step in learning. The program takes an intentional learning
approach to education; making teachers and children active partners.
In addition to selecting, organization and sequencing of contents; at the
methodological level we propose a very general and adaptable sequence to
support the designing of didactic proposals for Social Science, including
Geography and History based on school research:
• Identification of real issues or problems that catch students’ attention.

This step includes initial search for information on selected problem
and define subproblems based on the students’ doubts. Class assembly

can be a good option to encourage participation and commitment to the
subject of study.
• Evaluation of previous knowledge and initial difficulties in relation to
problems and subproblems. Mural, subject blog, etc. on “what do we
know?” (previous ideas), “what do we want to know?” (interests), “what
23
have we learned?” (it will be completed throughout the development

of the unit).
• Progressive construction of an action scheme that allows students to
respond to problems and different subproblems.
• Design of activities that integrate concepts, procedures and attitudes,
and give a substantiated response to subproblems.
• Development of the activities in the didactic unit. students can
triangulate what they learn (“what have we learned?”) with what they
initially knew about the issue (“what do we know?”) and what they
were interested in knowing (“what do we want to know?”).
• Improvement and progressive qualification of the action scheme
to respond to problems and different subproblems through the
development of activities.
• Final reflection and possible application and adaptation of the action
scheme in analogous real situations. This step includes final evaluation
of students learning, teacher teaching and didactic unit integrated with
initial and continuous evaluation.
In the specific context of the teaching and learning of Social Sciences,

including Geography and History, although they are not majority experiences,
there are more and more innovative experiences (in some cases, published)
where, on many occasions, educational technologies or digital resources are
used. Some examples of activities in different educational stages that we
can mention are related to teaching about the Constitution of 1812 through
primary sources (Martín Jiménez, 2012, Sobrino, 2012), teaching of heritage
from the immediate environment (López Arroyo, 2014, Martínez Ezquerro,
2015, De Castro Martín, 2016, Molina Torres, 2017), Roman Empire through
workshops (Molina Torres, 2016), historical context of Goya through digitally
solving puzzles (Olmos, 2016), history around the discovery of archaeological
remains (Valls, 2016), use of mobile technologies for the teaching of Social
Sciences, Geography is History (Delgado-Algarra & Lorca-Marín, 2019),
edition of a digital newspaper in the Geography and History class (Aliaga
& Carrión, 2019), etc. Legislative changes and state programs can support
educational transformation; but, beyond them, different innovation experiences

become essential for educational and social change.
24
Figure 7. Triangulation of evaluation tools in justice-based evaluation
Alternative Evaluation Proposal: Justice-

Based Evaluation in Group Students Work
Exam remains the most widespread assessment tool (Alfageme & Miralles,
2009, Mochizuki, 2011). Nakamura (2011), on the other hand, proposes
as an ideal an evaluation system where both quantitative and qualitative
elements are combined; including initial, formative and final assessment.
From justice-based evaluation approach and in order to involve the students
in the process, students should have options to decide and contribute in their
evaluation. This approach implies metacognitive mechanisms and enhancing
of self-management in working groups through methodological strategies
connected with co-evaluation (Delgado-Algarra & Lorca Marín, 2018). From

the point of view of an evaluation understood as formative, this concern for
evaluative diversity is due to the existence of basic competences that work
simultaneously in responsible decision-making and processes of criticism
and self-criticism.
25
We are going to introduce a proposal of justice-based evaluation that was

used from several academic years in the teacher teaching subject “Didactic
of Social Sciences I” at the University of Huelva. In this subject, pre-service
teachers, in groups, designed their respective didactic units based on educational
research. This proposal can be adapted to Elementary school and Secondary
school students without problems. According the practical experience. This
proposal has facilitated the teacher’s review of the group units efficiently and
systemically, has provided to the students’ tools for self-management in group
activities and has provided reliable information on about the participation
of students in their respective groups. The triangulation of information from
several tools ensured formative support, impartiality and fairness in group
qualifications.
A properly evaluation of groups members regarding the design of a didactic
unit of Social based on school research was possible through the interaction
of three instruments that were triangulated (figure 7):
• Hetero-evaluation: direct assessment from teacher to student. In our

proposal, through hetero evaluation sheet that combines quantitative
and qualitative evaluation. It can be adapted and replaced by other
instruments such as the rubric.
• Co-evaluation: assessment between student teacher to student. In our
proposal, through a logbook, a qualitative instrument with several rows
and columns that allowed students in one group write about the process
of designing their systemic portfolio. Different dimensions included
contents worked in each group work session, contribution of each
group member in the session and difficulties of the group in the session.
• Self-evaluation: individual assessment of students about their own
learning by launching metacognitive and self-critical processes. In our
proposal, through ethical-academic report where students they should
indicate the score that they thought they deserve and argue it.
Students designed their systemic units in groups. Regarding the evaluation

of the process and result of group work, triangulation of evaluative tools
was carried out from a formative point of view. Hetero evaluation sheet (for
teachers) model must be adapted to the specific Social Sciences contents
(concepts, procedures and attitudes) (table 1). In the experience, it included
categories such as formal aspects, orthography and expression, exposition, and
observed evolution. According to the study conducted by Tomes, Wasylkiw
& Mockler (2011), when the teacher asks students to prepare a diary to
26
Table 1. Hetero-evaluation sheet
Maximum Real
Category Subcategory Observation
score score
… … … … …
Table 2. Logbook
What
What
have we What have I
Group difficulties
Date Attendance worked contributed
members have we
on this to the group?
had?
session?
Yes/Partial/No
Yes/Partial/No
Yes/Partial/No
Yes/Partial/No
Yes/Partial/No
… …. …. … … …
record aspects related to their training process, they become able to show a
greater ability to predict their academics results, with greater control over
their learning process. Considering the results of this research, justice-based
evaluation proposal includes a (physical or digital) logbook (table 2) with
a table structure that would allow the teacher to quickly know the internal
functioning of the groups; improving efficiency in autonomous resolution
of conflicts between members of groups.
In this evaluation proposal, the ethical-academic report is a document
that must be signed by all the group members. With this signature, students
declare that they have not plagiarized their didactic proposal and that the
contents of logbook have been reviewed and validated by all group members.
Students would explicitly assume responsibilities in situations of plagiarism
or non-veracity of information.
27
The justice-based evaluation proposal was designed to evaluate students in

relation to their respective group work. In general, this proposal is based on
a principle of justice in which it is considered unfair give the same score to
all students regarding group work because not all students commit to group
work in the same way. Justice-based evaluation proposal allowed teachers to
access to internal coherence of didactic units and facilitated tutoring tasks
by offering fast and functional information. The logbook solved problems
derived from the existence of authoritarian leaders in groups, extremely
unequal contributions or continuous absence of some of them to group work
sessions. These group problems affect the quality of didactic units based
on school research written by pre-service teachers. In addition, despite of
these situations generate internal conflicts, this evaluation proposal allowed
students to self-manage the group coordination so that they did not need the
teacher to solve internal group problems.
ACTION RESEARCH FOR THE PROFESSIONAL

DEVELOPMENT OF SOCIAL SCIENCES TEACHERS
In general, didactic units based on school research started from problems (and
subproblems) that students must respond through activities and tasks. However,
there are other types of problems that must be diagnosed by the teacher in
practice; problems that directly affect the students and the achievement of
some educational objectives. Teachers must recognize problems that affect
students and possible causes to adapt the educational action. In this process, it
is necessary that teachers assume commitment to their practice from a critical
perspective, including student’s environment and their own professional
practice. In action research process, variables such as the commitment,
professional development and changes in the practice are considered in order
to improve the quality in teaching-learning process (Delgado-Algarra, 2016).
As Ahumada, Antón & Peccinetti (2012) indicated, Kurt Lewin designed
methodology with the name “action research”. I was popularized in the Social
Sciences through Lewin works on psychological and social intervention. He
included aspects related to the participant research. However, his supporters

reduced the proposals to more operational research where efficiency was
above democratic debate (Oliveira & Waldenez, 2010). Action-research
could be linked to Deweyrian pragmatism. From this point of view, Stark
defines this investigative model as “an active process of investigation that
28
Figure 8. Spiral of action research. Retrieved from Delgado-Algarra (2015: 5)
does not admit the separation between the action and the reflection or the
theory and the practice” (2014: 87). This involves the following features in
this spiral process (Evans, 2010): collaborative, participative, democratic,
self-evaluative, active, reflexive, interactive, feedback, immediate application,
contextualized and linked to social change. When an action-research process
is carried out, four main stages in spiral are identified (figure 8): planning,
action, observation and reflection.
In planning step, initial information is critically collected, teacher formulated
the objectives and program a flexible and adaptable action in classroom. In

action step, the practice occurs in order to achieve the objectives and teacher
control its quality. Observation step allows teacher to be aware of the effects
of the action in the classroom. In reflection step, teacher evaluate the success
of the action research process and begins a new cycle. After reflection, the
29
Figure 9. Problems tree, objectives tree and action hypothesis in the planning phase
of the action
spiraling process continues, maintaining satisfactory actions and modifying

failed actions.
The commitment to social reality goes beyond changing the objectives or the
selection of contents. It is necessary to change the school culture, understood
as a public sphere, the role of teachers, understood as mediator, and the role
of students, understood as protagonist of the changes. Social Science teachers
should ensure a deliberative and participatory democracy in line with the
reality of young people, over isolated data and the simple transmission of
contents (Soberano & Torres, 2010, Navarro, 2012). This reflection requires
the detection of a problematic situation. When this situation is detected, based
on the Evans (2010) proposal, the spiral process of the four stages of action
research begins. Focusing on the first phase of planning, teacher collects the
most direct information, these consequences are associated with the students
and they are part of a larger central problem. Next, teachers determine several
causes that could have led to the aforementioned consequences (teaching
action, family environment, etc.), they must formulate the specific objectives
30
that affect their practice, as a result of which, they formulate expected results
around students (figure 9).
In order to move from the problem tree (problematic situation) to the
objective tree (desirable situation), teacher must design a flexible and adaptable
educational action proposal called the action hypothesis. This proposal involves
making decisions about their professional practice. Based on interaction and
decision-making, action-research processes have a strong epistemological
link with participatory democracy and professional commitment (Tanaka,
2014, Delgado-Algarra, 2015). So, regarding Participatory Action Research,
although we cannot give a closed and unique definition, could be defined as
a “research from a community perspective, from a participatory, commitment
and change approach, with all the agents involved from the beginning, is a
way to rethink the research from the traditional margins of academia” (Díez,
2013: 115).
In essence, it is necessary to develop a teaching practice that consider needs
of students (Komuro & Nishikawa, 2009). However, there is a predominant
disciplinary tradition that diverges with minority didactic experiences in which
students actively participate in truly democratic schools and alternative didactic
experiences where teachers are committed to professional improvement from
reflection on their practice (García Pérez & De Alba, 2009)). Thus, action
research was linked to the mobilizations of minority groups, so that the
functionality of actions for change was promoted through both individual
and collective increasing of the public understanding and transformation of
society.
CONCLUSION
When people carry out a reflection on a problem, they can try to solve them
to transform reality. In this situation they must also modify their values,
attitudes and interpersonal relationships because social transformation
starts from an individual transformation (Oliveira & Waldenez, 2010). It
is necessary to adapt the Social Sciences curriculum to the characteristics
of the center, students and context. According to the study on the learning
society developed by CISCO in 2010, in order to advance in the construction
of a learning society, teacher must focus on interdisciplinary collaboration,
critical thinking and problem solving the following 9 principles of learning
society (Chambers, 2010): culture of learning. motivation and commitment
to respond to challenges in future from the present, learning as an activity
31
(not a physical place), learning for everyone, different ways of learning, new
educational providers from public and private sectors, new networks between
people, universal physical and virtual infrastructure to achieve success, and
continuous innovation and feedback.
Regarding the school contents, Larson (2017) characterized as the essential
elements of History and Social Studies education: knowledge, skills, and
dispositions. Knowledge refers to the facts and concepts that students are
expected to learn, skills are related with abilities and dispositions refer to
the habits of mind that students need to learn in Social Sciences, including
Geography and History (such as self-expression, perseverance, etc.). In
coherence with Lawson’s representation of school knowledge, we recognize
the importance of scientific - disciplinary knowledge of teachers, relevant
social and environmental problems, student’s everyday knowledge (conceptions
and difficulties) and metadisciplinary knowledge in the selection of school
knowledge / school contents. Regarding this, we consider Researching Our
World Curriculum Project as a reference for the design of didactic units based
on school research. The ultimate purpose of these units is the learning of
school contents (concepts, procedures and attitudes) ensuring the construction
of critical and informed citizens, including the internalization of useful skills
for life. It should be clarified that the teaching of Social Sciences responds to
the understanding of the world, socio-environmental problems and efficient
participation, developing a critical attitude and commitment to social, political,
cultural, economic and historical reality.
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40
Chapter 2
Gamification and Game-
Based Learning:
Motivating Social Sciences Education
ABSTRACT
Teachers can use game mechanics in a non-game environment (gamification),
or they can consider playing a game as an option to learn content. In the
first case, adding elements inspired by games to the classroom environment
allows teachers to create a motivating atmosphere for the learning of social
sciences, geography, and history. The second case is directly related to
games that “teach” content through making decisions and observation of
consequences. With a focus on elements, benefits, strategies, and some of the
most important resources to introduce gamification and game-based learning
in social science education, the authors highlight student motivation and
learning of content and skills. Although gamification is not a new concept,
it can be considered that the technological development and the recognition
of its didactic possibilities have extended the educational experiences in a
new way, contributing significantly to education.
INTRODUCTION
The development of technologies and their inclusion in educational contexts,

in addition to acquiring a new dimension, is expanding possibilities. However,
we are not facing a new phenomenon either in the company or in education.
DOI: 10.4018/978-1-7998-2882-2.ch002
Gamification and Game-Based Learning
In this sense, the beginning of gamification was closely linked to business

context and the most remote origin is nineteenth century. One of the first
known experiences of gamification starts with the creation of S&H Green
Stamps company in 1896. This company was sponsored by Sperry and
Hutchinson stood out between the 30s and 60s of the 20th century and sold
stamps to retailers. Subsequently, they gave to customers rewards to loyalty in
establishments. Customers stuck prints in collector books that S&H provided
for free, generating customer loyalty evolved into so-called “affinity” programs
or “loyalty reward” programs (Tikkanen, s/f).
In general, gamification transfers the mechanics of games to the educational
and professional context in order to achieve better results. Rewards of concrete
actions improve motivation in the process of knowledge internalization and
skills development. In other words, gamification:
(…) seeks to stimulate participation and involvement in an activity through

the stimulus derived from the challenge linked to obtaining achievements
and satisfaction related to receiving rewards throughout the game. For this
reason, it has been progressively incorporated into classrooms, trying to
stimulate learning. The dynamics will work best when it allows to establish
a progression so that each time a challenge is overcome, a new one is posed.
The progression of challenges and the establishment of the constant incentive
system constitute two important difficulties for the design of gamified activities
in the classroom (Rivero, 2017: 5).
Regarding Game-Based Learning, in recent years, the use of video games

has been expanded in different age spectra. The report “The New Faces of
Gaming” of the Interactive Software Federation of Europe (ISFE) (2017),
and through the GameTrack survey (ISFE and Ipsos Connect), has covered
the European markets of the United Kingdom, Germany, France and Spain.
This report confirmed that around three quarters of young people between
6 and 24 played video games. Moreover, the popularization of the use of
smartphones and tablets has contributed in recent years to broaden the
age spectrum of the players. In this way, users from 6 to 64 years consider
themselves as players (gamers) from 8% in 2012 to 16% in 2016. Technological

development is allowing the immersion in playable experiences and the
educational possibilities of videogames to be extended with the support of
different peripherals and applications. An example of this is in augmented
41
reality, an emerging techno-social trend that has demonstrated its practical

effectiveness in both university and non-university training contexts (Cabero,
Leiva, Moreno, Barroso & López Meneses, 2017).
In this chapter we will focus on elements, benefits, strategies and some of
the most important resources in order to introduce or improve gamification and
game-based learning in the teaching of Social Sciences, including Geography
and History. After reviewing the main strategies to introduce gamification
and Game-Based Learning in our Social Sciences classes, we present specific
resources that will allow teachers to develop the aforementioned strategies
in order to motivate students and improve the development of classes to
build competencies, facilitating the learning of contents and the reaching
of curricular objectives. Those resources for gamification include creation,
management and use of flashcards, games, quizz games, maps, resources,
quests, challenges, simulations, presentations, infographics, posters, catalogs,
images, playsheets, etc.
ELEMENTS AND STRATEGIES FOR GAMIFICATION

AND GAME-BASED LEARNING
Teachers and game designers can fail to establish differences between Serious
Games, Game-Based Learning or Gamification. As Ayén (2017) indicates,
Serious Games start from a real problem and include it in a game to make it more
fun and easier to understand. In Game-Based Learning learners play games
(digital or non-digital) in order to learn contents (Keeler, 2014). Examples
of resources for Game-Based Learning are: World Peace Game Foundation,
World of Warcraft in School, Minecraft Edu or Portal 2. Gamification is
not a game, but it applies the techniques and elements of games in order to
motivate, encourage changes in attitudes, improve processes, etc. It is not
based only on rewards, points or rankings, but implies a pre-action analysis
process (Deterding, Dixon, Khaled & Nacke, 2011). The main differences
between gamification and game-based learning are organizated in table 1.
Elements and Benefits of Gamification

and Game-Based Learning
Gamification allows teachers to add elements inspired by games in the

classroom, creating an atmosphere associated with games to motivate
42
Table 1. Differences between gamification and game-based learning
Gamification Game-Based Learning

Adding game inspired elements to your course. Using games to meet learning outcomes.
Applying game mechanics to a non-game environment
Learning comes from playing the game.
to encourage behavior.
Can be accomplished using commercial or education-
Typically incorporates badges, awards, achievements.
oriented games.
Experience points (XP) may be used as substitute for
Promotes critical thinking and problem solving.
traditional grades.
Could provide students with choice in learning path. Can be accomplished with digital or non-digital games.
(Adapted from Isaacs, 2015)
learning (Isaacs, 2015). Gamification can be defined as the use of game-

based mechanics, aesthetics, and game thinking to engage people, motivate
action, promote learning, and solve problems (Kapp, 2012: 125). Examples
of resources for Gamification are 3D Game Lab, Class Craft, Class XP,
Samsung Nation or My Starbucks Rewards. Ayén (2017) analyzes some
of the most prominent elements of gamification: points, badges, awards,
leaderboards, levels, difficulty curve, roles, choosing your own adventure,
players, storytelling and aesthetics. Points are accumulated generating
perception of progression; badges are collectible awards achieved after
certain challenges; leaderboards are result tables; levels give a perception of
individual progression; difficulty must be increasing, roles are attributions
clearly defined; choosing your own adventure allows users different paths
to the same achievements; adaptation to players who can be social (enjoy
interaction), explorers (enjoy new experiences), winners (enjoy overcoming
challenges) and competitive (enjoy winning others); storytelling that includes
the description of the narrative universe and context; and aesthetics. Some
of the most common mistakes in gamification are related to lack of fun,
dissolution of content by prioritizing fun, distortion of content to adapt them
to the methodology, distortion of times derived from the oversizing of time
and distortion of evaluation not consistent with learning methodology.
Game-Based Learning implies games that “teach” contents. In these
games, students can make decisions and observe the consequences of them.
Martínez-Navarro (2017) collects the benefits of Game-Based Learning such
as support for the process of internalization of multidisciplinary knowledge,
understanding of different ways of think, improving problem solving skills,
improving strategic planning, decision making, development of social skills,
experience with various identities and experiences, improving attention and
43
concentration, increaseing motivation and fostering of critical thinking. Other

authors have highlighted different advantages regarding the application of
games in learning. Thus, the inclusion of games in learning, according to
Higgins et al. (1999), improves problem solving skills and promotes logical
and critical thinking. It also helps the development of emotional, aptitude
and intellectual abilities and improve cognitive skills; improving attention,
concentration, complex thinking and strategic planning; acceptance of forms
thinking differently from those of our environment; process of internalization
of multidisciplinary knowledge; basic decision making; development social
skills; experiment with different identities, And exploring new experiences
(Kirriemuir & McFarlane, 2004, Mitchell & Savill-Smith, 2004, Kenny &
McDaniel, 2011, Perrota et al., 2013, López-Peláez, 2014). In addition, the
playful component and its fun character attract and motivate students. Several
researches conclude that teaching method based on gamification motivate and
improve student’s engagement in the classroom with respect to conventional
teaching method (McGonigal, 2011, Simões, Díaz-Redondo & Fernández-
Vilas, 2012; Hong & Masood, 2014, Chapman & Rich, 2018).
Playsheets: An Example Between Gamification

and Game-Based Learning
There are other alternative options found between Gamification and Game-
Based Learning that are called Playsheets. They have questions to practice
concepts previously learned in the class by playing (on a device) in the
classroom or out of school. It is like a worksheet converted into a game by
adding things such as graphics, progress bar, leveling up, sound effects,
pop-up messages to indicate success or failure, badges or trophies, avatars,
leaderboards, or Storylines (Keeler, 2014). Benefits of playsheets are:
• Engagement: gaming elements motivate students to continue practicing.

• Feedback: digital playsheets give immediate feedback to students.
• Progress: a progress bar, adding stars, or tally of correct answers help
students feel that their efforts are resulting in a positive progress.
• Celebrate Success: playsheets often have elements that encourage

students and help them feel successful; motivating them to continue
playing.
44
• Self-Grading: teachers spend less time grading worksheets and

reviewing answers although digital playsheets and have more time to
design challenging activities.
We can design resources and work with playsheets through games at

Khan Academy or entering in the website Quia, where it is easy to grade
quizzes and offer supplemental activities to students that imitates popular
games. Moreover, it is possible to manager and share activities about Social
Sciences, including History or Geography, among other areas of knowledge.
Strategies for Gamification in Social Sciences ducation
People have contact with gamification in everyday life and teachers have
different ways to introduce it in the classroom (Hollaway, 2018). Some
examples of gamification in everyday life could be point cards from loyalty
programs, badges for collaboration, filling a completion bar to invite you
to continue completing your profile up to 100% in a professional network,
illumination of objectives achieved in fitness machines, etc. In addition, there
are many websites and mobile applications where users can achieve points,
raise levels, win stickers and medals, receive postcards, etc. Rewards, in
general, encourage specific actions such as, for example, sharing opinions
about shops or restaurants (Google® Local Guides), participating in a
forum or social network (Facebook® pages), planning and achieving weekly
goals (Habitica: Gamify your Tasks) or making random decisions (roulette
decisions). Regarding school context, teachers can use several strategies to
introduce gamification in Social Sciences classroom. TeachThought (2019)
recommends 10 ideas before to design gamification in the classroom: making
students co-designers, allowing second (and third) chances, providing instant
feedback, making progress visible, creating challenges or quests instead of
homework and projects, giving students voice and choice, offering individual
badges and rewards, designing a class-wide skills and achievement system,
implementing educational technology, and accepting failure and emphasizing
practice. Taking this into account, and defining contents, objectives and
competences, the next step is answer the following questions: how can I
apply this ideas in my Social Sciences classes? In order to focus on different
practical choices, the most important strategies are:
• Implementing an experience points (XP) system: The system of

experience points and the rise of levels of everyday tools such as Google®
45
Local Guides is a popular example of experience points system. In this

system, for each review of a visited place, the user is rewarded with
points and subsequent with a rise of level. In education, one of the
main references of experience points (XP) system1 is Sheldon’s (2011).
In this system, students start at 0 XP and they earn points through
completing quests (activities) in guilds (groups), couples (not from the
same groups) or individual. How many points they have at the end of
the course determines their grade. In this kind of alternative grading
system, levels can be aligned with competences.
• Student awards system: for example, after completing some tasks
regarding instructional videos. An alternative (and cooperative) option
is a class-wide reward system that encourage students to cooperate in
order to reach individual and group goals previously specified. Awards2
must be motivating for students.
• Organizing a tournament: totally competitive, where students can
compete in tournaments individually or in groups, from a cooperative
(intragroup) and competitive (intergroup) approach.
• Gamify homework: everyday geolocation applications such as Gowalla
or Foursquare, augmented reality applications such as Pokémon Go or
Harry Potter: Wizards Unite or the “featured fan” system of Facebook®
are examples of getting virtual badges to motivate to do certain tasks.
Gamify homework is based on the same premise, encouraging informal
learning and reinforcing school contents through student’s curiosity
via treasure hunting, quest, etc.
• Creating a digital classroom management system based on role playing
themes: with web-based tools such as ClassRealm, a customizable
web-based tool that teachers, students and parents can use in order to
track student achievements.
Strategies for Game-Based Learning

in Social Sciences Education
We have proposed an integration of game mechanics in the classroom;

nevertheless, integrating games that “teach” contents of Social Sciences

through simulations is the key step to jump from gamification to game-
based learning. Some options are board games (examples: Devir - Twilight
Struggle: The Cold War 1945 – 1989, Sid Meiers Civilization, 7 wonders)
and videogames (examples: Sim City, Sid Meiers Civilization, Assasins Creed
46
saga / Discovery tour). Games can be integrated in the teaching and learning
of Social Sciences, including Geography and History. One interesting example
is the proposal of Muñoz and Riquelme (2019) for Geography in the first year
of secondary education. That proposal is designed in 4 phases:
Phase 1: We play to Battleship / Sea Battle - students design the game board
(rows [A – J], columns [1 – 10]), place 2 or 3 ships on the board and
start a game to ensure that they control the dynamics of the game that
will be necessary later for geographic location.
Phase 2: Evaluation of previous knowledge - the world map: a world map
without information is distributed in the classroom. Students can place
continents and oceans in The Earth, teacher can use a wall map / projection
to complete it or compare the projection with a globe.
Phase 3: Numbers and letters become meridians and parallels - latitude and
longitude: students are invited to associate their game board with the
world map. Boxes with letters and numbers they used in game become
squares formed by meridians and parallels. Teacher must explain that
the geographical location is similar to location in game. At this time, the
most important parallels and meridians (Ecuador, Greenwich, tropics
and polar circles) are underlined and latitude and longitude from the
equator and the Greenwich meridian are explained, respectively.
Phase 4: Battleship / Sea Battle on a world map - finally, students play
Battleship / Sea Battle again, but in this case, using the world map as
a game board. Coordinates will now not be numbers and letters. New
coordinates are number of degrees with latitude (north or south) and
with longitude (east or west). For example, 30º north latitude and 45º
east longitude. While the students play, teacher must check possible
mistakes in gaming.
◦◦ Evaluation: teacher can ask students to find valid coordinates on
the map, for example, a continent, a country or an ocean.
Focusing on videogames, students make decisions and look at the

consequences with instantaneous feedback and small rewards. Coinciding with
the benefits of game-based learning indicated above, the Spanish Association

of Video Games also highlights the benefits of including videogames in
education (ABC, June 3, 2017). On the other hand, the negative criticisms
that link videogames with social isolation, addiction or school failure usually
have a questionable empirical structure and, not infrequently, is based on the
researcher’s prejudices. Thus, in relation to social isolation, for example,
47
issues such as the interaction that occurs in video games with multiplayer
(local or online) are ignored. Researchers that highlight the abusive and
irresponsible use of video games by children usually ignore causes such as
lack of parental control in the family context or rejection of video games in
school context. These situations generate a total lack of guidance regarding
the responsible use of games. Rejecting the use of video games implies a
total disconnection with the environment of students who, usually, become
accustomed to the use of games or mobile applications. However, in order
to start a properly game-based learning proposal with students, the first step
is the pre-selection a right game. As a guidance, teacher can start answering
the following questions:
• What historical time are they going to learn?

• What must students learn about that time?
• Why have we chosen this particular game?
• Is it a properly videogame for the educational stage?
Although the selection of game can be decided between teacher and students,
a clear justification for game selection is essential. Focusing on the teaching
and learning of Social Sciences, and regarding the contents, videogames can
show relevant social problems and concerns, including interactive historical
representations for the present with future projection thanks to simulations. In
general terms, in this area of knowledge, 5 categories related to the teaching of
Social Sciences can be stablished (Cuenca-López & Martín-Cáceres, 2010):
games about economy, games about social issues, games about geography,
games about art and games about history. Some of the contents of Social
Sciences in videogames are related to war and conflict, urban and territorial
management, democracy and citizenship, economy and commerce, and the
environment. From this point, in order to select the game, we must delve
into a didactic review. Martínez-Navarro (2017) organized didactic review
of games in eight categories (figure 1):
• Knowledge: are there useful concepts for Social Science learning?

Which?
• Positioning: regarding certain events in the game, can students adopt
a positioning? Has their positioning influence in playable experience?
Can they understand the thinking of others in game?
• Resolution: are presented relevant socio-environmental problems? Are
competencies set in motion to solve problems?
48
Figure 1. General categories for didactic review of videogames.
• Planning: are there planning phases for the action? Does it allow
student to consider advantages and disadvantages before putting it into
practice?
• Decision: is decision-making encouraged? what decisions can be
made? What are the difficulties in decision-making?
• Social: what is the role of social and civic competence? Are issues
related to identity raised? How are the social events that can be
experienced in game?
• Attention: can game catch students’ attention? What must they focus
on?
• Motivation: what is the motivation to continue playing? How can this
motivation improve Social Sciences learning?
49
In general, games can involve simulations, decision making, management,

resource management, artificial intelligence, a strategy where comprehension,
planning, execution, and revision processes come into play. Regarding this:
“The use of videogames in the classroom acquires its greatest meaning when it
is not the only reference for the study of a subject, but when it is integrated into
a sequence of activities based on planning, synthesis (search and structuring)
and evaluation activities” (Martín-Cáceres & Cuenca-López, 2019: 32).
After the selection of a videogame to be used in the classroom as a didactic

resource, strategies for the design and implementation must be defined from
several options (Heick, 2018):
• Play videogames at school: when school has the necessary technological

resources; such as, for example, Age of Empires.
• That the students play videogames at home: when students have the
necessary technological resources in house.
• Watch gameplays from students: when not all students have access to
videogames out of the school or they do not have equipment adapted
for them, some students can record, edit and upload gameplay to
YouTube. Adapting privacy and student security is essential.
• Analyze videogames: students can look for information about games,
developers, development or trends. This include analysis of video, text,
post in social networks, related art or movements linked to games.
• Reimagine videogames: developing a novel, comic, short film, etc. what
would change the game, justify the reason for the changes, evaluate the
impact of these changes and how they would benefit the learning of
specific contents of Social Sciences, including Geography and History,
and Civics.
• Planning videogames: this strategy requires considerable effort and
time. In this case, the integrated approach with other areas would be
advisable.
• Create videogames: students can create their video games, with
programs such as Scratch, or they can create their environments and

games, with, for example, Minecraft edu.
• Confront relevant social problems: confront relevant problems such
as terrorism (example, September the 12), the civil consequences of
war (example, This War of Mine), resource management (example,
SimCity Edu), understanding of the motivations that determine the
50
taking decisions in political-military strategies (examples, Nobunaga

Ambition, Age of Empires, Civilization) can have a positive impact
on the development of social and citizen engagement and on the
enrichment of critical awareness.
In general terms, although one of the issues to consider is the age rating3,
a large number of experiences with videogames have been published in
relation to Social Sciences classes; didactic experiences with videogames
from Age of Empires saga (Cuenca-López & Martín-Cáceres, 2010, Maguth,
List & Wunderle 2014), from Civilization saga (Delgado-Algarra, 2018a),
from Sim City saga (Delgado-Algarra, 2018a, Delgado-Algarra, Montes-
Navarro & Lorca-Marín, 2018), from Assasins Creed saga (Discovery Tour)
(Quintero Mora, 2018, Kasenti, Bugmann & Parent, 2019), etc. One of the
main keys to develop a successful gamification process is the understanding
and assimilation of the game dynamics by students. Game dynamics should
be designed to encourage the student to achieve educational objectives.
Proposed dynamics will depend on the didactic objectives. For example, to
foster interest in game, teacher can apply a dynamic of rewards; but to focus
the interest in the activity, teacher can apply a dynamic of the competition
and / or cooperation.
RESOURCES FOR GAMIFICATION

AND GAME-BASED LEARNING
After reviewing the main strategies to introduce gamification and game-

based learning in our Social Sciences classes, we present specific resources
to develop the aforementioned strategies in order to motivate students and
improve the educational process. First, some of the most significant resources
for Gamification in Social Sciences Education will be presented, after, some
resources to design playsheets and, finally, some iconic sagas and games for
Social Sciences, including Geography and History teaching.
Resources for Gamification in Social Sciences Education
The following resources for gamification include creation, management and

use of flashcards, games, quizz games, maps, resources, quests, challenges,
simulations, presentations, infographics, posters, catalogs and images,
51
playsheets, etc. The gamification web and mobile applications to be reviewed

are mainly: Brainscape, Cerebriti, Minecraft: Education Edition, Pear Deck,
Kahoot!, Edmodo, Classcraft, ClassDojo, Quizlet, The Play Brighter, Quizizz,
Trivinet and Genially.
Brainscape
From Institute of Education Sciences, Brainscape 4 is an online and mobile

flashcards app based on active recall, metacognition and spaced repetition.
It has one of the largest quantities and variety of digital cards for teaching
and allows users to access to hundreds of thematic flashcard decks. Those
thematic flashcard decks are also grouped into areas of Universal History,
History of Spain, Geography and Social Sciences in multiple languages and
options for each area. When you register in this app you can choose your role
(teacher or student). In the exclusive area for teachers in the website, there is
a section with multiple options where you have information about everything
you can do with Brainscape:
• Set up a fast class page: students will be able to access it via any web
or mobile device.
• Make or Find Flashcards: teachers can make their own flashcards,
borrow flashcards created by other educators, or students can create
them.
• Track students’ progress: assign studying or flashcard creation as
“homework”; analyze students’ study habits and identify weaknesses.
With free features teachers and students can find thousands of classes
created by publishers, teachers, and students, create it, share it, allow a
progressive study, allow students collaboration, allow students compare
commitment levels with classmates. Pro version has better options to check
students’ progress or the chance to upload images, animations and sounds
to created flashcards.
Teachers has the option to download it and use with their students other
apps from the same team according to areas of knowledge or specific contents
from the same publisher as, for example, Learn World Geography5 or from
other publishers such, for example, World Geography - Quiz Game6 with more
than 6.000 questions with 4 difficulties about maps, flags, capitals, population,
religion, language, etc. or History & Culture Trivia7 with questions about
52
Ancient History, Medieval History, Modern History, Mythology, Science and

Geography accompanied by cultural illustrations, paintings and photographs.
Cerebriti
Cerebriti8 is a gaming platform born in Spain that has expanded to the rest
of the world and allows students to improve their knowledge by developing
educational games or playing games developed by other users (or by the
teacher). Access to the platform is free and user can find games of different
themes, courses and ages; including the areas of Geography and History.
Game creation takes place in 4 steps: choose game, edit content, description
and publish. Focusing on the first phase, choosing the game to be created,
there are 10 types of games:
• Test: questions with several answers, one of them being the correct
one.
• Mute Map: where to place the answers.
• Look for the right answers: with multiple correct and incorrect answers.
• Find the couple (text): match words with their respective partners.
• Find the couple (image): join images with their respective partners.
• Carousel of questions: where user should identify the clues.
• Secret words: write the answer behind each clue.
• Identify the image: write the corresponding answer with each image.
• Ranking: classify the answers in the correct order.
• Blank list: no clues beyond the game title.
Although access to games is free, there is an educational version called

Celebriti edu9, a more advanced version for educational centers where teachers
can create a private space and provide students with a more personalized
attention. This is possible due to the following elements (figure 2): grading
elements, measuring devices academic evolution, exercise self-correction,
automated report generator, as well as statistics and other tools to detect any
need for reinforcement. The game creation tool that includes this website does
not require programming knowledge and allows you to transform any content
53
Figure 2. General Celebrity edu Gamification Proposal
into an interactive game. Likewise, it includes other elements of gamification

such as challenges, rankings and merits to increase student motivation.
Minecraft: Education Edition
Minecraft: Education Edition is a Minecraft10 version adapted to the educational

contexts that allows the teaching of different topics and downloading worlds
(resources). MinecraftEDU has a library of worlds created by teachers and

experts from around the world and a search filter such as objectives or age.
There are notable spaces derived from Minecraft such as GeoCraft11. This
resource was created in Spain to learn Geography, including recreations of
urban centers. It is also remarkable that Minecraft Maps12 website include
54
the option to locate maps of cities (both real and fictitious) created by the
community of users. There, you can download specific maps to work Geography
and History. There is also a Wiki to download more resources
The Block by Block Foundation13 began in 2012 with the radical idea of
integrating the Minecraft into public space to engage neighborhood in public
projects (including youth, older or people with disabilities). It was created
by United Nations and was connected with the reaching of UN Sustainable
Development Goals. According to the website, it is a tool for visualization
where citizens contribute with their ideas, empowering communities to
turn neglected urban spaces into vibrant places through the Block by Block
methodology where community and school are empowered to improve the
social environment:
Step 1: Model - select the urban environment to be improved and create a

Minecraft model using information from images, plans, Google maps
and other inputs.
Step 2: Mobilize - identify 30-60 people that live and work next to the urban
environment. Ensure broad representation of the community, including
youth, older people, and people with disabilities.
Step 3: Organize - organize community workshops (2-4 days; 30-60
participants; 1 computer per 2-4 participants) and identify a Minecraft
expert to lead training and provide support.
Step 4: Introduce - general design considerations for the selected space and
begin a shared dialogue on relevant issues.
Step 5: Observe - walk through the site in group and document with images.
Share reflections and observations.
Step 6: Teach - train participants in the fundamentals of using Minecraft.
Step 7: Team Up - break into teams of 2-4 people to develop ideas in Minecraft.
Step 8: Present - arrange for the teams to present models and advocate for
their ideas to stakeholders and professionals including urban planners,
architects, and local policy makers.
Step 9: Prioritize - workshop participants and stakeholders discuss how to
improve the public space and collaboratively prioritize the proposed
urban improvements.
Step 10: Plan - Minecraft models from workshop inform about cost estimates,
budget allocations, and professional design work.
Step 11: Build - engage the community in the final design, construction, and
maintenance of the urban environment. The community is involved in
55
conflict resolution, addressing unexpected issues related to the public

space.
Step 12: Advocate - expand impact by advocating for continued investment
in local urban environment transformation and beyond.
Figure 3. General Pear deck Gamification Proposal

56
Figure 4. Example of Quiz Screen from Kahoot (teacher device)
Block by Block has funded and activated dozens of public space projects
with an innovative methodology in more than 30 countries around the world.
As is indicated in the website, some examples are pilot projects in Nairobi
and Mumbai or restoration of Solar Park in Khulna (Bangladesh).
Pear Deck
Pear Deck14 was founded by educators and allows students to receive content
on their devices after introduce a code in students’ computer, mobile or other
devices, such as questions, images or support materials in parallel to the
teacher’s explanations. It enhances bidirectionality and a more personalized
follow-up in the classes (figure 3).
Kahoot!
Kahoot15 is an application and learning platform based on the game that was
created in 2013 by Professor Alf Inge Wang of the Norwegian University of
Science and Technology for educational purposes. Editing and creation tasks
require registration. When registering, four options appear that allow you to
use Kahoot as: school teacher, student, socially and at work.
57
Figure 5. Students device screen (options)
Teachers can design a new Kahoot (New K!), finding kahoots (for different
subjects and contents), manage then in “my kahoots” or review results in “my
results”. It is possible to search or design a game for your Social Science,
Geography and / or History classes with this tool. When developing a new
Kahoot (option that we are going to focus on), you have four options:
• Quiz: choose the correct answer from multiple options.

• Jumble: put answers in correct order.
• Discussion: plant questions for debate.
• Survey: for opinion questionnaires.
About the first option, entering Quiz teachers can write title, keywords,
include images or small opening videos, edit their visibility, language, type
of audience (school, university, etc.). After, they can add questions with the
following options:
• Question.
• Time limit.
• Ratings (yes / no).

• Answer 1, answer 2, answer 3 and answer 4 (it is necessary to mark the
correct one).
• Sources (optional).
• Image or video from Youtube (optional).
58
Figure 6. Students device screen (results)
When teachers have designed the contest and they want to launch it with
students, it only requires that students download the application on their mobile
devices or tablets. By pressing “Play”, teacher can choose between “classic”,
purely competitive, or “team mode” that combines intragroup cooperation
and intergroup competition. When teacher selects one of the two options,
a 7-digit pin number will appear. At this moment, students must open the
application on their respective devices, enter the specific code (no registration
required) and start the game. As was indicated by Delgado-Algarra (2018b)
and Delgado-Algarra & Lorca-Marín (2019) that game, both the response
speed and a correct response are valued. So that, students or groups that are
more impulsive can respond faster, but they are more likely to make a mistake.
Edmodo Gamificación
Edmodo16 is a learning platform founded in 2008 in California and used to

create virtual classes where students participate, collaborate and interact
through the browser. In relation to gamification, teachers can create challenges
and exercises, and they can assign pins to different students, not just the best:
the most creative solution, who have collaborated more, etc. We will not delve
into Edmodo now because we will return to it within the section of resources
for ubiquitous learning of chapter 9.
59
Classcraft
Classcraft17 is a very visual and videogame-like platform reminiscent of

classic saga games like “World of Warcraft” The platform allows students to
create their respective characters (warriors, healers and mages). They must
participate in missions (while they learn) and cooperate to obtain points to
improve equipment. In order to facilitate a Classcraft implementation, in the
“knowledge center” section, there are 4 sub-sections regarding support and
guidance for educational community members:
• Admin support: resources to help teachers to launch and manage

Classcraft at school.
• Teacher support: resources to help a teacher to start Classcraft in the
classroom.
• Parents support: information about the game and how to continue the
experience at home.
• Students support: resources for students to get basics of teamwork.
It is a free platform, but it has some payment options aimed at teachers.

Social sciences teachers can connect contents and learning activities onto
interactive maps with this platform and through quests. Teacher creates
a learning activity at each point on the map and each lesson becomes an
experience of choosing your own adventure; including features such as:
• Random selector and random events: in order to add surprises in the

classes.
• Timer and countdown: it can be included in exercises to make lessons
more dynamic.
• Sound level meter: teacher can measure noise in real time and grant
treasures for a silent classroom.
• Boss battles: teacher can do a formative evaluation with a collaborative
monster battle where the whole class wins or loses. This builds skills
for the whole class.
• Notes converter: turning them into points.
There are several kinds of activities such as worksheet, video, quiz or other
material, alongside an optional narrative element. When students complete
activities, the adventure continue. In order to design a didactic proposal, the
first step is writing a quest name and selecting a quest map from the world
60
of Classcraft. New quests are invisible to students until the teacher makes
them visible in “My Library”. The second step is placing onto the map a
fictional or real story to introduce students to the objective. In quest, teacher
can add lists by points or numbers, insert images or video, add links, create
tables, attach files, etc.
According the website information, the following settings are specific to
each class for students: objective rewards, assignments, due dates, self-paced
progress, discussion, Google Classroom lesson and assignment (if linked),
student progress and quest position on the world map. On the other hand, the
following settings are shared between classes: title, map, paths, objectives
linked (or not) to Google Classroom, number of objectives, objectives positions,
story, task titles and descriptions (only if they are not in Google Classroom
tasks). In addition, Classcraft allow teachers to learn more about students’
progress with statistics and it facilitates families the access to this platform
and communication; besides the development of a positive school culture.
Administrators can proactively monitor all positive and negative behaviors.
They can also set up consistent behavior rules to encourage PBIS18 (Positive
Behavioral Interventions & Supports) implementations and build a school
culture.
ClassDojo
ClassDojo19 is a free application and platform that works on different IOS

devices, Android and on any computer. This platform integrates gamification
elements; allowing teachers to keep track of the evolution of students and
inform parents about the progress of their children. In general, first three
steps are:
Step 1: Download the app (Android or iOS) or go to Classdojo website.

Step 2: Get set up by adding a class and students from the “School Directory”.
Step 3: Invite parents by clicking “Invite parents”. Print invitations or send
them by email.
When completing the first steps, from the web, the following recommended
actions are:
• Instantly say hello to all families by sending a Message.

• Welcome students by posting a classroom photo on Class Story.
61
Figure 7. Contributing to School-wide community with ClassDojo
• Give students ownership of the class culture by customizing skills

together.
• Let students show off their work by having them post to Portfolios.
It is possible to stablish a 1:1 connection with families. Moreover, both

teachers and families can leave encouraging comments for students. Through
School Story it is possible to create a school-wide community with school-
wide updates to all families, without problems about the language, because
ClassDojo translate texts to more than 35 languages; integrating all families
as a part of the school community (figure 7). Students can share their work
as Portfolios related top photos, videos, drawing, file upload, journaling or
annotations with previously approving rom teacher. It is possible to arrange

students in groups, display activities orientations, etc. In general, teachers have
the following toolkit: timer, random, group maker, noise meter, directions,
think pair share, etc.
62
Figure 8. Example of the diagram of the part of the proposal “Styles of columns and
their parts”. Retrieved from https://quizlet.com/218213867/estilos-de-columnas-y-
sus-partes-diagram/
Quizlet
Quizlet20 is a platform and app with ‘flashcards’ or ‘free study units’ that
allows teachers and students to create their own card packs or use those that
have been prepared by others. It contains thousands of packs to learn and
review different concepts. Therefore, users can find numerous flashcard packs
of Social Sciences, Geography is History in different languages.
Users can start it on any device and browser. In addition, this app allows
teachers to start Quizlet Live and a game with the students. It contributes
to the development of study habits and allows teachers to monitor student
progress, allowing information to be crossed. Regarding this, Quizlet Learning
Mode is driven by the New Learning Assistant Platform. That platform
uses data from millions of anonymous study sessions and triangulates them
with proven ideas of cognitive science, creating adaptation plans and study
notifications for each student.
63
It should be noted that the paid version for teachers allows them to add
personalized recordings and images, create interactive diagrams on various
topics (with images, audios, definitions, short answer questions, multiple
choice etc.) (figure 8), scan documents to create units and offline access.
Play Brighter
Play Brighter21 is a platform with anime aesthetics (Japanese animation)

created by teachers to design games for free. The teacher can configure the
universe where students can participate, including the creation of missions,
points assigned, challenges or new problems. Each game is presented to the
students as a “mission”, missions can be played during a lesson, as homework
or self-study.
After teacher signing up, platform invites you to start adding your students
on “students” tab (subsequently, the teacher provides them with the username
and password to enter), set your class a mission on “missions” tab, invite
other teachers to share students and questions with colleagues and expand
your school organizing your student into classes and year groups. In general,
steps are:
Step 1: Choose the questions - there is 15,000 questions, but it is easy for
teachers to create their own sets of questions adapted to their lessons.
Step 2: Make them into a play - teacher set ‘missions’ (challenges) for students
to play one of created games and progress by answering questions.
Teacher can choose students to assign to mission.
Step 3: Success gets rewarded - when students complete a mission, they earn
a special on-site money (not real) that can be spent to customize avatar.
Step 4: Marking - platform gives you detailed results for every student on
every mission with charts.
Missions can be customized with the creation of questions and, very

intuitively, can be integrated into the Social Sciences, Geography and History
classes. Completing missions, students will receive virtual money that can
be exchanged for prizes considered appropriate by the teacher. In addition,

group missions can be proposed to foster collaborative work.
64
Figure 9. Quizizz basics from teacher dashboard
Quizizz
Quizizz22 is a tool similar to Kahoot! which allows teachers to create tests to

perform in class in real time as a game. It allows text, images or audios to
be added to the questions. In addition, this tool allows teachers to share their
tests with other teachers or send them as homework to students.
65
When the student responds (or not) into the time limit, his position in
the ranking goes up or down. After finishing the game, a screen appears
indicating points (example, 12230 / 15000), final rank (example, 2/24),
accuracy (example, 86% correct), performance stats (example, 13 correct, 2
incorrect, 0 unattempted, 2.9s avg. time/ question, 6 longest streak), questions
for review to compare student answer with right answer in order to study,
and study flashcard elaborated from the quiz without answers on the front
(student must turn around them to check at the right answer).
Trivinet
Trivinet23 is a free game that allows users to play Trivial online from a computer
or from a device with Adroid operating system. It offers the option to set up
a Trivial game (questions and answers game) with students in a collaborative
way and it allows access to many topics with different difficulties. Teachers
can play directly in the “play” section or upload a specific trivial game for
their class group. It is possible to cloning games from other teachers in order
to continue designing based on it. There are Trivial games about different
themes and areas of knowledge, including Geography and History.
Genially
Genially24 is an intuitive and free tool with a very complete visual appearance
in basic version. It allows teachers to create presentations, infographics,
posters, catalogs and images with numerous designs and rich contents. It
is possible to include features that do not require programming knowledge:
• Animations: input, output, continuous, etc.

• Interactivity: allows teachers to add layers of information for
exploration, avoiding presentations with highly saturated content.
• Integration: from digital providers such as Google Maps, gadgets,
images (3D), videos, graphics, social networks, etc.
• Storytelling: with a visual component.
• Monitoring the success of contents.
It allows users to collaborate on the same document, create in the cloud,

customize with corporate images, more than 400 templates and hundreds of
resources (illustrations, icons, figures, maps, pins, etc.).
66
Resources for Game-Based Learning

in Social Sciences Education
Wunderle conducted an experience in social science classes with the classic

game Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings where students were encouraged
to connect class content with video game experience (Maguth, List &
Wunderle 2014). This experience was designed in 10 modules, and some
of them are: description of students gameplay screenshots (ImpPt key) in
module 3, answering the following questions: “What trade and transportation
networks have emerged in the game and what impact has this had on the
region? How does the impact of these networks compare to the impact of the
Silk Road on trade and the exchange of ideas?” (2015: 34); thinking about
how the decisions they made affected characters, families, and communities
represented in the game in module 7; or writing a reflection on “How have
you used diplomacy and war to build your civilization? Has one approach
been more beneficial than the other in the game? How did the preferred
approach selected compare to the approach used by the Monguls?” (2015:
35). Other classic saga useful for teaching of history and social sciences is
Meier’s Civilization / Civilization, a saga that started in 1991. Civilization
is a turn-based strategy game in which we manage an empire from a wide
variety: Spanish, Japanese, Romans, Carthaginians, Egyptians, Indians,
Incas, Greeks, Japanese, Koreans, Chinese, Mongols, Ottomans, Persians,
Russians, Sioux Indians, Zulus, Vikings, Portuguese, Sumerians ... among
many others. Each empire has a real leader and specific goals to be the leading
civilization in the world. SimCity is a city management simulator that became
very popular in the 90s. It gives users control over variables for the design
and management of the city; adapting to the budget and taking into account
natural disasters. There are other examples of games than can be used in
the teaching of history and social sciences such as: 1936, España en llamas;
Europa Universalis, Caesar, Total War, Valiant Hearts: The Great War, etc.
CONCLUSION
The technological development is allowing the immersion in the playable

experiences and extending the didactic possibilities of Gamification and
Game-Based Learning. This is possible with the support of different devices
67
and applications where games and interaction of students are basic elements.
Beyond the development of Information and Communication Technologies
(ICT) and the expansion of the use of mobile applications in the everyday
environment of students, strategies and resources for gamification of lessons
are connected with Technologies for Learning and Knowledge Technologies
(LKT) development.
Gamification responds to a process of implementation of recreational
procedures in educational environments. Regarding Game-Based Learning,
videogames without explicitly educational purposes can be used too as a
resource for the teaching of Social Sciences, Geography and History in different
educational stages. Due to the popularity of technologies, mobile and tablet
applications, and videogames in student life, gamification and game-based
learning have captured the interest of many of the studies in education. Most
of the research conclusions made to date highlight the advantages of the game
in the learning processes.
Although gamification is not a new concept, technological development
and recognition of its educational possibilities have extended the possibilities
in a new way, contributing significantly to the teaching and learning of
Social Sciences, Geography and History. In other words, the development of
technologies and the expansion of the use of tablets and mobiles in the daily
context of students should be considered in school. Taking into account the
social and students’ context, beyond encouraging motivation and contributing
to the understanding of Social Sciences contents, Gamification and Game-
Based Learning serves as guidance for responsible and critical use of them,
taking advantage of LKT educational possibilities. In addition, the succession
of challenges seeks to enhance participation and involvement in proposed
tasks, aspects that are considered especially relevant for the teaching of Social
Sciences, including Geography and History; areas that require commitment
to relevant socio-environmental issues.
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ENDNOTES
1
“Nuts-and-bolts” is a Powley’s (2017) adaptation to history teaching of
the Sheldon’s XP Grade System. It is a helpful example about designing
your own XP Grade System from Sheldon (2011) proposal. More
information here https://classroompowerups.com/2017/07/12/my-xp-
grading-nuts-and-bolts/
2
For design your students’ medals or awards, you can use the intuitive
web tool “Chicago Badge Studio”. You can Access here http://toolness.
github.io/chicago-badge-studio/studio.html
72
3
There are different rating systems in Europe, América and Canada, and
Japan:
- In the European context, regarding PEGI (Pan European Game
Information), you can find information about the two levels of game
information, PEGI Age Labels and Content Descriptors, here: http://
www.aevi.org.es/documentacion/el-codigo-pegi/,
- In the American and Canadian context, in relation to ESRB
(Entertainment Software Rating Board) you can find information about
Rating Categories, Content Descriptors here: https://www.esrb.org/.
- In the Japanese context, you can find information about rating and content
descriptor of CERO (Computer Entertainment Rating Organization)
rating system here: https://www.cero.gr.jp/en/publics/index/17/
4
How educators use brainscape: https://www.brainscape.com/teachers
5
Learn World Geography: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/learn-world-
geography/id385952415
6
World Geography-Quiz Game https://play.google.com/store/apps/
details?id=com.age.wgg.appspot&hl=en
7
History & Culture Trivia: https://play.google.com/store/apps/
details?id=eu.ionuticleanu.trivia&hl=en
8
Celebrity: https://www.cerebriti.com/
9
Celebriti edu: https://edu.cerebriti.com/
10
Open world game whose full version was released in 2011 and offers
the player freedom to choose how to play. In general, the game focuses
on the placement and destruction of cubic blocks on a fixed grid pattern,
cubes representing earth, stone, minerals, etc.
11
GeoCraft: https://geocraft.nl/english/
12
Minecraft Maps: http://www.minecraftmaps.com/
13
Block by Block Foundation https://www.blockbyblock.org/about
14
Pear Deck: https://www.peardeck.com/
15
Kahoot!: https://kahoot.com/
16
Edmodo: https://www.edmodo.com/
17
Classcraft: https://www.classcraft.com/
18
The Technical Assistance Center on PBIS was funded by the U.S.
Department of Education’s Office of Special Education Programs

(OSEP) and the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education (OESE),
and it supports schools, districts, and states to build systems capacity
for implementing a multi-tiered approach to social, emotional and
behavior support; improving social, emotional and academic outcomes
73
for all students, including students with disabilities and students from
underrepresented groups. More information here: https://www.pbis.org/
19
ClassDojo: https://www.classdojo.com/
20
Quizlet: https://quizlet.com/
21
Play Brighter: http://playbrighter.com/
22
Quizizz: https://quizizz.com/
23
Trivinet: https://www.trivinet.com/
24
Genially: https://www.genial.ly/
74
75
Chapter 3
Augmented Reality in Social
Sciences Education:
Integrating Virtual Layers
With Physical Reality
ABSTRACT
The integration of physical reality and layers of digital information in real
time can be diverse (text, symbols, audio, video, and/or three-dimensional
objects) with the result of enriching or altering the information of the
physical reality. It is also usual in the everyday context of citizens. In other
words, augmented reality has been used for years, for example, to mark
an offside game in football or to alter the face in real time. Regarding the
computer and mobile applications, they are those related to the AR, and
it is an increasingly widespread technology in the daily environment with
potential in the educational field. Educational software creators have noticed
that teachers can make a didactic use of AR technology in the classroom.
Beyond contributing to educate in a responsible use of AR, with an adequate
didactic approach, AR implies important advantages such as improving of
motivation, participation, commitment to the object of study, teamwork, and
procedure improvement.
DOI: 10.4018/978-1-7998-2882-2.ch003
Augmented Reality in Social Sciences Education
INTRODUCTION
Augmented reality (AR) is a technology used for years to mark an offside

game in football, show combat pilots information about the objectives through
the helmet or superimpose electrical diagrams on real circuits. Devices can
recognize shapes in the image captured by the camera or they can presuppose
what is in the image with the help of the coordinates and the direction of the
camera. The last option is the one used by most popular programs today. Mobile
phones with cameras are responsible for the popularity of AR applications.
Thus, it is necessary a device with camera such as a computer, tablet or
mobile device for the use of AR (Tanner, Karas & Schofield, 2014; Holley
& Howlett, 2016). Although this is enough to develop AR apps based on
markers, incorporation of the following elements is essential for development
and definitive popularization of AR apps:
• Global Positioning System (GPS): it allows the calculation of the

position of the device.
• Magnetometer: it allows to detect magnetic fields.
• Accelerometer: it allows measuring accelerations and inclinations of
the device.
In relation to the development of AR, virtual reality (VR), 3D printing,

mobile app, digital platforms, etc., Delgado-Algarra (2018) highlights the
work of teachers who have carried out innovative experiences in the classroom
(accompanied on many occasions by an educational research process) show
the advantages of didactic use of technologies and their contribution to
motivation and to the improvement of learning. Sometimes, AR integrate also
motivating tools as, for example, gamification, which we saw in chapter 2.
Avoiding positions that consider the inclusion of technologies as a goal
itself and considering the importance of professionalization of teaching work;
in this chapter, a brief theoretical review about the reality of AR, strategies and
some of the most important resources is made in order to introduce or improve
the implementation of AR in the teaching of Social Sciences, Geography
and History. Some of those useful applications are: Aumentaty Scope /

Aumentary Creator, Wikitude, Quiver Vision / Quiver Education, Star Map
/ Star Chart AR, Skyview, AR Planet Earth / Geography, 3DBear, CoSpaces
Edu, JigSpace, MERGE Cube, Metaverse, Asturica Emerge, Castellones del
Ceal AR, Cástulo Virtual, Cisneros Go!, Fuendetodos, La Alhambra - Castillo
Rojo, Museo Carlos V and Sorolla Museum AR, Geocaching®.
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Figure 1. Simplified representation of a “virtuality continuum” (Re-elaborated from

Milgran & Kishino, 2004)
CONCEPTUALIZATION AND FEATURES

OF AUGMENTED REALITY
The most primitive precursor of AR dates to 1962 with the construction of

the Sensorama prototype by Morton Heilig in 1962. In the 1950s, Heilig
considered that theater was an activity that could cover all the senses.
Finally, in 1962, he materialized his ideas in the mechanical projection
device accompanied by several short films that added visual experience,
3D stereoscopic vision, stereo sound and aromas. Sensorama became one
of the first known examples of multimodal immersion. The first AR system
would be created by Ivan Sutherland and his team in 1968. They built “The
Sword of Damocles”, the first VR head-mounted display (HMD) system. The
system created by Sutherland and his team was so heavy that was attached to
the ceiling; however, it allowed the visualization of virtual environments in
wireframe. Wireframe is a rendering algorithm for schematic representation
that results in a semi-transparent image in wire models. Currently, it is very
common for image editing and for the simplified presentation of web pages
that focuses on content architecture. After leaving Atari in 1985, Jaron Lanier
and Thomas G. Zimmerman founded VPL Research, creating the first VR
headsets and gloves and popularizing the term “Virtual Reality” in the late
80s of the 20th century.
The term “Augmented Reality”, meanwhile, was introduced in 1992 by
researcher Tom Caudell as a result of work developed in Boeing with the
team of engineers to find an alternative to cable configuration boards. The
alternative led to the idea of special headsets and virtual boards on real
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generic boards. In other words, this allowed to visualize complex digital

wiring diagrams on a real board. AR began to be considered as a modality
of VR. AR is a field of technology that supposes the perfect superposition
of virtual images in the real world, so that the virtual content is aligned with
the objects of the real world, allowing visualization and interaction (Azuma,
1997, Dey, Billinghurst, Lindeman and Swan, 2018). In 1997, the first mobile
AR system, The Touring Machine, was presented and it was supported by
a “see-though” display system that combined real image with graphics (2D
and 3D) on a transparent screen.
Azuma (1997) indicates that the AR combines real and virtual elements.
These elements are located in the same 3D coordinate system of reality and
allows real-time interaction. As García-Jiménez (2016) points out, the first
two characteristics are related to the tracking technology that underpins AR
and distinguishes it from other combinations of real and synthetic images
such as chroma key or photorealistic 3D effects in the cinema. Meanwhile,
Milgran, Takemura, Utsumi & Kishino (1994) conceptualized mixed reality
(RE-AR, AV-VE) as the incorporation of computer-generated objects in a
three-dimensional real-world scene (Augmented Reality) as the incorporation
of real objects in a virtual world (Augmented Virtuality), facilitating the
differentiation between VR and AR (figure 1). Moving away from the purely
technological point of view, Dubois (2000) emphasizes the importance of
augmentation functionality. In general terms, AR could be defined as:
A type of mixed reality formed by the integration in real time of physical

reality and a layer of digital information that can be diverse (text, symbols,
audio, video and / or three-dimensional objects) and with which interaction
is possible, with the result of enriching or altering the information of the
physical reality in which it is integrated (García-Jiménez, 2016: 20).
Thus, according to this definition, some AR properties are:
• Mixed reality: from the view of the continuous reality-virtuality, when

phenomena such as overlap, inclusion or substitution occurs, a hybrid
reality is formed.
• Consistent integration in real time: from triggers of physical reality
(trackable) whose rotation or displacement affects the associated
digital object.
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• Diversity of elements of the digital information layer: digital layers

linked to markers can contain text, graphics, symbols, audio, video,
three-dimensional objects, URL links, etc.
• Possibility of interaction: elements of digital layers can allow interaction
with the user or with reality itself. This interaction includes rotation,
enlargement, etc. of a 3D object1, URL playback, activation options in
an integrated video, touch interaction, voice interaction, etc.
• Information enrichment: it can be consistent or incoherent. Enrichment
is consistent when digital layer adds information to reality, but it is
inconsistent when digital layer does not add information to reality.
• Alteration of the information: digital layers alter the reality shown
on the device for recreational purposes (for example, FaceApp or
Snapchat facial masks) or for instrumental purposes (for example,
Alba Visualizer, to choose the color of the wall).
Based on complementary PC programs and web platforms, there are some

mobile app that use AR technology. The superposition of layers of information
can offers a new learning space useful in the educational context. However,
before reviewing formative possibilities of AR, there is a series of levels to
use of AR (Cawood & Fiala, 2008, Lens-Fitzgerald, 2009, Villalustre & Del
Moral, 2016):
Level 0: hyperlinks in the physical world through QR codes (Quick Response

Code) that are activated from any mobile device.
Level 1: AR based on markers, turning markers into activators. Markers are
black and white, quadrangular and schematic drawings for recognition
of 2D (usual) or 3D patters.
Level 2: AR without markers. Level 2 AR applications replace the use of
the markers by the GPS, accelerometer, magnetometer of the mobile
devices. They determine the location and orientation of the user and
to superimpose points of interest on the images of the real world. At
this level, there is also a recognition of surfaces in real time through
mediation of images obtained by the camera, placing digital content
anchored to that surface (trigger), including human body.

Level 3: Augmented vision with specific headsets (Google Glass, HoloLens,
etc.), high-tech contact lenses or others able to offer a completely
contextualized and immersive experience in the future.
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These authors classify the opening of hyperlinks through QR codes within

the zero level. In order to explain this, it should be clarified that many authors
do not consider that the use of QR codes can be considered AR. That is because
QR codes usually activate a web resource that is maximized, hiding reality
collected from the device’s camera. This total overlap affects the coherent
information enrichment, one of the main AR characteristics. According this
argumentation, the following classification consider different types of AR:
• AR with markers: related with level 1, markers are symbols printed on

paper that serve as a geometric reference to anchor virtual elements. It
is also called AR based on recognition and is one of the most commonly
used because all you need is a smartphone or tablet with a camera.
• AR without markers: related to level 2:
◦◦ It may not require an anchor to the real world. In this mode, user
moves the objects within their visibility, such as in decorating
applications.
◦◦ When it is produced an anchor of virtual elements from images
or objects with function as the markers, we talk about AR
based on the overlay. This type of technology uses images
(including panoramas and faces) and concrete objects (including
environments) to activate and display information. It implies a
total or partial replacement of the real vision to show an enlarged
version.
• Geolocation AR: related to level 2, it is the mode in which the device
combines information offered by the GPS and data downloaded from
Internet. It is also called AR based on location and it does not require
using any marker, just the environment as a trigger. As for the necessary
smartphone or tablet, it must have an accelerometer, magnetometer
and, obviously, GPS. Geocaching or Gymkhanas GPS are included
here.
• Projection AR: related to level 3, this type of AR projects an image
in physical elements and spaces of the real world. It is also called
AR based on projection, and it can be interactive, such as a keyboard
projected on a desk. Another example of AR based on projection

would be holograms, with specific devices such as different models of
AR headset “HoloLens”.
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AR technology has numerous functionalities that improve both people’s

lives and professional activity. There are AR developers working on different
functionalities (ARdev, s/f). In relation to the AR in vehicles, it is planned
that the windshield of the cars show speed, distance with another vehicle,
maps, indications, etc. The application of AR in medicine aims to offer more
information without distractions or, through protective glasses, superimpose
X-ray images (previously taken) on the patient’s body. AR in purchases seeks to
continue with the development of virtual rooms to try clothes before buying it,
see how a piece of furniture looks in a room or try a color change in the walls.
AR technology in tourism is already being used in a similar way to the use
of AR in vehicles, giving us information on buildings, important places, etc.
However, although technological improvement continues, there are currently
AR apps for tourism on specific places, such as pointing to a building and
overlapping old images that allow us to see how things were at another time.
Other apps are AR for translation, AR in sports, AR in architecture, AR in
the army or, as we will see in this chapter, AR in education.
STRATEGIES FOR AUGMENTED REALITY
AR technology is been introduced in educational levels (Fombona & Pascual,

2017). Cabero, García and Barroso (2016) considers that experiences have
been published in different disciplines, including social sciences, art, history,
geography, natural sciences, physics and chemistry. Incorporation of AR
is articulated in several ways focused on roles, places and tasks (Wu, Lee,
Chang & Liang, 2013):
• Roles: students play different roles in an AR environment, including

simulations and role plays; so that student behavior influences system
behavior.
• Places: interaction of students with physical environment through
mobile devices is emphasized, providing students with information on
certain places.
• Tasks: focuses on the design of learning tasks for students (individual

or collaborative) in AR environments; including project analysis,
problem solving and case studies.
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In recent years, the number of researches on possibilities of incorporating

AR in education has been increased. Thus, according to Muñoz (2014)
and Cabero & Barroso (2016), some of the multiple possibilities of AR in
education are:
• Creation, development and participation of geolocated routes and

gymkhanas.
• Access information about places, buildings, monuments and other
physical environments.
• Translation of texts in real time.
• Work in the classroom with books containing 3D objects.
• Learning based on discovery.
• Develop projects generating information in AR about points of interest
in the urban environment.
In the context of the teaching and learning of the social sciences, as

an example, we can mention the development of a didactic unit for the
understanding of artistic elements in Primary Education, including conceptual
contents about the Iberians and making use of the AR in Three phases (Sáenz-
López, Cózar & Domínguez Garrido, 2018: 65):
Phase I: explore images through AR with mobile devices and computers;

identifying different sculptures from a first contact.
Phase II: collection of information on art, culture and society of the pre-
Roman peoples and motive of these figures through group work. Detailed
information of each of them.
Phase III: identify general characteristics of Iberian art through the comparison
of different works. Religious elements, shapes (almond eyes, animal
body, sphinxes ...).
After implementation and analysis by triangulation of instruments,

authors of the didactic experience conclude that the integration of AR in
educational context does not generate a significant improvement in academic
performance. However, it produces significant improvements in motivation,

interest, enthusiasm, participation, commitment, teamwork and recognition
of artistic content during the learning process. In motivational terms, similar
results are obtained in the research of experience with AR technologies in a
self-learning process through a game developed by Iwata, Yamabe & Nakajima
(2011). A comparison between learning through AR and conventional PC-
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based learning assistance is carried out; but, in this case, an improvement

in user performance is recognized, highlighting a greater concentration and
improvement in problem solving. A study regarding an AR experience about
representation of the Earth with two classes of 5th of elementary education in
a school in the province of Seville (Spain) using Aumentaty Author / Viewer
app [nowadays Aumentaty Creator / Scope] concludes that a properly AR
experience allows an increasing of motivation and interest, and an improving
of academic results (Toledo-Morales & Sánchez-García, 2018). These results
are similar to those of other investigations and reviews such as those of Prendes
(2015) and Akcayir, Akcayir, Pektas, & Ocak (2016).
Other experiences that stand out as an alternative to AR through a screen
are those of Hatala & Wakkary (2005), who created a museum auditory
guide to educate users about museum objects, or Szymczak, Rassmus-Gröhn,
Magnusson & Hedvall (2012), who created a multisensory (audio-touch)
application to teach about the historical sites of a city (historical center and
archaeological site). In the last case, authors indicate that, in contrast to the
experience of AR through a screen, auditory-tactile proposals maintain the
focus of visual attention in the environment. Juan, Furió, Alem, Ashworth
& Cano (2011) developed the ARGreenet game to raise awareness about
recycling and teach how to recycle. Following pretest and posttest with
students between 8 and 13 years old, and comparing the results in relation to
the use of that game and another more basic alternative (BasicGreenet). The
conclusion of the combination of game and AR was considered more attractive
and intuitive for students, highlighting that mobile devices are good platforms
to learn about learning and to change in attitudes. The implementation of AR
in Social Science teaching and learning does not imply a great effort, only
some basic notions of computer science at user level in addition to the use
of easily accessible applications where teachers and students can manipulate
repositories scenes or create them from scratch (Cózar Gutiérrez, De Moya
Martínez Valley, Hernández Bravo & Hernández Bravo, 2015).
Villalustre, del Moral & Nereira-Piñeiro (2019) addressed scientific content
under the proposal about trees and shrubs around the school with 4th grade
students. Through the QR codes, they were able to develop different educational
itineraries. Hp Reveal (before Aurasma), Quiver-ed and QR editors were the

tools to delve the knowledge of responsible consumption among other issues.
It concludes with several experiences where Quiver and Chromville’s pre-
designed sheets-markers were used in issues related to the different projects.
After a SWOT analysis, contributions to learning knowledge related to concepts
for Primary School students stand out; highlighting the playful and motivating
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nature of this type of experiences, as well as the exercise of concentration,

involvement, autonomy, collaborative work and improvement of interaction
processes in the classroom. Researchers consider the suitability to adopt
active methodologies based on inquiry, although it requires complementary
teacher training that goes beyond the use of technical resources.
AR technology has great applicability in the teaching of Social Sciences,
Geography and History. Museums, on the other hand, have also realized the
potential of AR technology. It is increasingly common to find exhibition
proposals where AR technology is used, such as the exhibition “Technology,
Art and Heritage: Villages of Fire and Sea” held in 2019 in Chile. After
downloading the “Arte AR” application, visitors could see how stories of the
Selknam, Aonikenk, Yagan and Kawesqar came alive. However, it should
be noted that reviews of museum apps by authors such as Economou and
Meintani (2011) show that this technology has been used preferably to offer
information about visits and on guided tours. Current European trends in
relation to open-access AR apps on heritage content are (Luna, Rivero and
Vincent, 2019):
• Museums and other heritage presentation sites are main institutions on

the development of AR apps.
• From 2015 to 2018, open-access AR apps with heritage content are
mainly developed in Spain, United Kingdom and Italy, nevertheless,
they usually become outdated over time.
• Open-access AR apps with heritage contents are not fully adapted to
multiplatform systems, can be used during indoor and outdoor visits,
cannot be adjusted to user knowledge levels and largely focus on
heritage from Antiquity.
• Historical heritage is the focus, from a temporal and monumental
perspective.
• Communication is almost exclusively academic.
• AR is used for the reconstruction of spaces and monuments and,
usually, it is used to view heritage objects.
◦◦ A large percentage of apps require users to be in situ, with
activation by scanning codes, by activating GPS, etc.

• AR technology is usually the main point in the use of AR apps.
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Regarding geocaching, an outdoor recreational activity where participants

use a GPS technology and other navigational techniques, it hides and seeks
containers (geocaches / caches) at specific locations marked by coordinates
in real world. Geocaches include:
• Traditional geocache: a container in the indicated coordinates that can

contain exchange objects, in all geocaches there is a log book.
• Multi-cache: geocaches that use two or more locations. The first
location gives you clues to the second and so on, in the last one there
is a record book.
• Earthcache: a geologically special place on whose pages there are
educational notes next to the coordinates (http://www.geosociety.org/
earthcache).
• Letterbox hybrid: it is another form of treasure hunt that uses clues
instead of coordinates (http://www.letterboxing.org/), in addition,
these geocaches will contain a stamp used to record the visit, etc.
There is more information about geocache types and outdated geocache

information in Geocaching website2. González Sanz (2019) highlights two
Spanish projects about AR by geolocation (related to the city and heritage)
and m-learning. These projects are Eduloc, that has been created by Fundacio
Itinerarium and designed for the educational community, and “ARqueólogos del
Siglo XXI” (translated: ARchaeologists of the 21st Century), from Barcelona
City Council aimed at high school. Eduloc Project makes available to the
educational community a free web service to create itineraries and activities
based on the geolocation of the territory. These itineraries and activities are
designed from a computer and they are subsequently experienced by users
through a free mobile app. Students can follow routes designed by teachers or
designed by themselves (it can be used by other students). In this way, students
can consume, create and disseminate itineraries and activities. “ARqueólogos
del Siglo XXI” Project requires free registration for teachers and it is based
on Project Based Learning (PBL), collaborative work and gamification.
The project proposes students to discover about Barcelona in 1714 through
mobile devices, geolocation and AR. During the city tour, students assume
the role of archaeologists who must be guided by a georeferenced virtual
map. The location of each scenario in the route leads them to access a Point
of Interest (POI) where a series of multimedia documents in AR allows
them to contextualize the physical remains of the city of 1714. Based on
85
the information received in each POI, students must complete challenges to

unearth the hidden virtual “treasures” in heritage.
AUGMENTED REALITY RESOURCES FOR SOCIAL

SCIENCES, GEOGRAPHY AND HISTORY TEACHING
There are devices such as Microsoft Hololens, numerous mobile app and
videogames integrated with AR technology. AR is an emerging techno-social
technology that has demonstrated practical effectiveness in educational
contexts (Cabero, Leiva, Moreno, Barroso & López-Meneses, 2017). In this
context, some of mobile apps, computer programs and web platforms based
on AR technology are reviewed. They are available for different devices;
offering environments for exploration, experimentation, immersion and
useful research for the teaching and learning of Social Sciences, Geography
and History.
The following AR resources include apps and platforms related to AR with
markers, without markers, by geolocation including markers recognitions and
creators, AR scene creators, challenges, itineraries and maps, AR recreations,
gamification, etc. In general, technologies to create, manage, test and publish
AR content do not require programming skills. These apps and platforms are
useful or specific for the teaching and learning Social Sciences, Geography and
History. Some of them are: Aumentaty Scope / Aumentary Creator, Wikitude,
Quiver Vision / Quiver Education, Star Map / Star Chart AR, Skyview, AR
Planet Earth / Geography, 3DBear, CoSpaces Edu, JigSpace, MERGE Cube,
Metaverse, specific apps on heritage education and Geocaching®
Aumentaty Scope / Aumentary Creator
Aumentaty Scope3 allows you to view contents of previously developed

projects Aumentaty Creator4. In general, Aumentaty Creator is an application
that allows teachers to create scenes where 3D objects are associated with
markers. It is possible to associate multimedia information (videos, documents,
photos, etc.) with images, create POIs and design virtual routes.
This app was presented in Increase EDU 2017. It joins three technologies
that were previously used independently in Aumentaty: Author, Geo and
VSearch. Aumentaty Scope, meanwhile, this app replaces Aumentaty Viewer
and allows users to view all contents made with Creator and uploaded to the
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Figure 2. Relationship between the general functioning of Aumentaty Creator and

Aumentaty Scope.
Aumentaty Platform. The steps to create a project with Aumentaty Creator

and to share an Aumentaty Scope scene are (figure 2):
Step 1: Download free Aumentaty Creator for Mac or Windows from the
website.
Step 2: Push on “create a new project”.
87
Step 3: Create a new marker. Options are marker, geolocation and event.
Users can push “marker” and create it. After, pushing “add” will connect
the marker with an AR scene5. It has the option of including several
elements: image, 3D object, video chroma, video normal, etc.
Step 4: Add keywords, publish scenes for mobile devices and share them.
For the publication of contents, it is necessary to register in the Aumentaty

Platform. On this platform, users can publish AR scenes that include 3D
objects, associate information with images (texts, videos, photographs),
make routes and points of interest, etc. So that, other users can download,
rate, enrich and leave comments as a social network. The content can be
published with different levels of privacy.
Wikitude
Wikitude6 is a tool to create AR experiences whose Software Development

Kit recognizes, tracks and augments images, objects, scenes, geographical
location, etc. This tool allows print media to come alive with additional
augmented content, including buttons such as videos, animations and 3D
models. As it is indicated in Wikitude website, it is a Code-free AR Editor
that allow to users create, manage, test and publish AR contents without
programming skills. It is the go-to tool for users that wish to build easy AR
projects and it is designed with a drag and drop interface. In general terms,
130000 registered AR developers, 30000 AR apps and 180 countries joined
to Wikitude community. After adding 3D Tracking, Wikitude allows apps
to see in rooms and spaces, including object recognition.
Wikitude Academy7 (SDK EDU) supports students, teachers and academic
institutions that wish to use the Wikitude SDK in academic contexts for
teaching and learning purposes. At the beginning, we can highlight the
following steps:
• In the first step, enrollment of students and teachers at an

accredited academic institution, completing application form
on the Wikitude Academy page (https://www.wikitude.com/

wikitude-academy/#EduContactform).
• In the second step, Wikitude team analyses the applicant’s project and
eligibility for an EDU license.
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Wikitude allows the design and development of AR experiences with the

overlapping and combination of real and unreal elements and spaces; including
geolocation AR, 2D recognition, markerless AR and object recognition. It
brings packages, banners, brochures, magazines, books, labels and images to
life with videos, animations, 3D models, social media and customized buttons.
Quiver Vision / Quiver Education
Quiver8 in an application that allows the sheets printed from http://quivervision.

com (and later colored) to become a 3D object with custom colors. Within
Quiver there are colored packs that are divided into several categories. One
of these categories is Quiver Education which, in relation to social sciences,
includes templates for RA related to the solar system, stations, maps, flags
or monuments. In general terms, Quiver App combines physical coloring
with augmented reality technology to bring students a personalized color
experience.
Star Map / Star Chart AR
Star Map9 is an app that identify all the stars on the screen of the device
pointing to the sky with the mobile camera; offering information based on
the user situation in space. Star Map uses GPS technology and a precise 3D
Universe; calculating in real time the current position of stars and planets
visible from Earth and showing precisely where they are both day and night.
According the website, Star Map offers:
• Point and see, with option to look around the sky by moving your finger.
• Supports dynamic orientation view Android device.
• It allows students to see the night sky while holding your Android
Device at any angle.
• Accurately show all visible stars of both hemispheres (more than
5,000).
• It shows all planets of the solar system, including the Sun and the Moon
in addition to the 88 constellations.

• By touching a star or planet, students will get the data of what they are
looking at. It includes zoom and easily find stellar objects from a list
by categories.
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• It allows students to see the sky below the horizon and manually set
their position to discover what the sky looks like from anywhere in the
world.
Star Chart AR10 can be used in the classroom easily including an AR

rendered Earth and an AR Solar System with the Sun, planets, major moons,
dwarf planets, asteroids and Kuiper belt. Basic control are tap to place the
AR object, pinch to scale the AR object and two fingers tap to go back.
Skyview
Skyview11 is a similar app that offers detailed information about celestial

bodies. It allows the recognition and learning about solar system’s stars and
includes planets, constellations or stars, among others pointing the device
at the sky. According to the website, to learn about the Universe, there are
several options:
• Today widget & sightings view: it shows students a list of upcoming

sightings for satellites, stars, planets and more with reminders and it is
continuously updated.
• Explore All 88 Constellations & Constellations of the Zodiac: pointing
the device at the sky to find all 88 constellations, including all the
constellations of the zodiac and famous constellations such as the Big
Dipper, Orion, and the Southern Cross.
• Quick Stargazing Controls: students must tap the 3-lined button on the
left to show a quick controls panel and easily adjust planet size, star
visibility, take snapshots, etc. They can adapt the view:
§ Adjust visible star magnitude
§ Increase or decrease planet size
§ Turn on/off the augmented reality camera
§ Enable or disable sky object trajectories
§ Music controls
§ Gyroscope calibration
• Preserve your vision with night mode: students can turn on red and
green filters to preserve night vision when stargazing in low-light
conditions.
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AR Planet Earth / Geography
AR Planet Earth / Geography12 is an application for learning geography

with AR. It includes recognition of markers and blocks such as: wonders of
the world, seasons, Solar System, flags learning, natural areas of the world,
climatic zones, climate map, politic map, etc. with a digital interactive Earth
Glove to look for information situated on virtual space and for learning. The
AR proposal of AR Planet Earth / Geography includes:
• Flags and countries of the world.

• Wonders of the World.
• World map with Natural Regions.
• 3D Map.
• Climate zones.
• Maps of America, Europe, Asia and Africa.
• Political map.
• Topographic map of the world.
• Soils, seas and oceans
• Solar System
• Geographical Discoveries of the Early Middle Ages
• Seasons
Regarding “Wonders of the World”, after printing the pictures with

“Wonders of the World” and stick them on a real Earth Glove, students can
point the device at them. With pointing, students animate the wonders of the
world in their device. Clicking on these wonders’ representation, students
will send them to the 3D Earth Globe. Virtual glove contains the atlas of the
world with 240 countries, 4112 regions and 7144 settlements.
In relation to “Countries of the world”, after printing out the cards with
flags, students point the device at them, showing the flags on the digital
interactive Earth globe. About our planet, students can check about the
atmosphere, the day and night change, rotation, search cities and countries.
It includes school geography training material.
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Other Augmented Reality Applications

for the Social Sciences Education
In this section, we will present a brief description of other specific AR

applications useful for the teaching and learning of Social Sciences, Geography
and History. EBSCO13 (2019), a library resources service, has compiled
several significant AR applications that can personalize learning for Primary
and Secondary education students:
• 3DBear14: students can build and share scenes using 3D models

with this application’s object library or with content imported from
Thingiverse15. Teachers create and assign lessons through a web-based
dashboard. Students use this app to create scenes. Ready-made lesson
plans cover a range of topics where students can easily get lost in the
creation process, so teachers should schedule ample time for creativity
as well as set clear expectations that align with learning goals.
• CoSpaces Edu16: a design tool that allows students with coding
experience to create virtual 3D worlds, create infographics and tell
stories through virtual exhibits and tours. Teachers can create a class
and post assignments. It is possible to upload images and 360-degree
photos. In lesson plans, there is a specific space for Social Sciences.
• JigSpace17: an educational application that offers a library of
knowledge. Each “Jig” is a 3D presentation of how everyday things
work, explained in simple steps and viewed visually in augmented or
virtual reality. Students can view the several topics: the solar system,
history facts such as D-Day invasion strategy, etc.
• MERGE Cube18: this mobile tool is an AR multi-platform tool like
holding a hologram in hands. Students have different options to
download. Teachers can create experiences about history and students
can also develop the content, make applications, and see their creative
products in AR. It is also possible to use Google Sky Map to hand-held
planetarium.
• Metaverse19: recommended for ages 13 and older, this free platform
(website and app) allows users to create and share interactive AR

content. Teachers can use the tool to gamify learning with formative
assessments. Students can download the free mobile app to participate
in games created by the teacher (or other students), location-based
experiences, scavenger hunts, geocaching, etc. It is possible to
92
challenge students to work in teams to solve a riddle or puzzle, or to

bring VR to the classroom by incorporating a 360-degree video scene.
Students can create style stories or presentations to share with the
Metaverse community with the option “choose your own adventure”.
Content may not be suitable for all ages, so it is necessary a preview of
community contents by teacher before sharing with students.
There are other specific AR apps for the teaching of Social Sciences,
Geography and History. Thus, due to the importance of heritage education in
these areas of knowledge, some significant examples of AR applications for
heritage teaching and learning were selected and reviewed by Luna, Ibáñez
and Rivero (2019):
• Asturica Emerge: an app that starts from the Astúrica Emerge project
developed in Astorga (former Astúrica), León. It is aimed at the
realization of an itinerary in which spaces can be located, allowing
users to see how they were in Roman times. In addition, a map offers
information about two Roman museums of the city.
• Castellones del Ceal AR: this app offers information about the
archaeological site of Castellones de Ceal (Jaén), grave goods and the
most representative tomb of the place. On the other hand, it has an AR
function that is activated by scanning the codes found within the Ibero
Museum of Jaén; allowing a 3D reconstruction of the Iberian funeral
tombs.
• Cástulo Virtual: this app allows access to two types of content
according to the itinerary by scanning markers. The itinerary of the
Ibero-Roman City of Cástulo allows users to know through AR the
architectural hypotheses of the Mosaic of love, of the T Building and
of the Paten of Christ in majesty; also indicating location in space
and offering information. In the case of the Visitor Center, by means
of AR, some of the objects of the showcases can be visualized, with
complementary information on them.
• Cisneros Go!: This app shows a map with the points of interest of the
town of Alcalá de Henares (Madrid) to explore its streets and access

content related to these places. Upon arrival at these locations, assets
are located that the user must scan to access the AR tool. Following
the scan, Cardinal Cisneros emerges who acts as a guide and offers
explanations about the place. It includes the option of photographing
with Cardinal Cisneros and uploading the image to the Social Networks.
93
• Fuendetodos: it is a tourist app to know the Aragonese municipality that

consists of a section with challenges and another with itineraries. Using
this app requires a private session and the creation of a customizable
user profile. This profile includes the following challenges: “Say
potato!”, where you have to take 15 photos, “Like it!”, to share content
5 times in social networks; or “Chino chano”, traveling at least 5 km
in Fuendetodos. By completing these challenges, stars are awarded
as a prize, taking elements of gamification. In addition, it offers a
personalized gallery in which the user can upload photos of designed
itineraries.
• La Alhambra - Castillo Rojo (Red Castle): this app is presented as
a children’s audio guide to visit La Alhambra in Granada. However,
it incorporates other functionalities such as the integration of AR
technology, audios, games and challenges that the user must overcome.
Like the previous one, this app takes elements of gamification. The
itinerary is considered as a game where users must find the keys that
the Alhambra hides through the camera of the mobile device. To access
more information, throughout the tour users will find codes that allow
them to use AR technology and access more contents. This app is
divided by spaces of the Alhambra ant it offers information; including
explanations that are offered through audio (with a voiceover), images
and, in other cases, a virtual guide dedicated to interpret the heritage
where the user is located (up to four different characters can be
displayed).
• Carlos V Museum: this app allows access to a game or quiz with
questions about Carlos V must. It offers the possibility to access
contents beyond the information included in the museum because AR
technology. This is possible through scanning and recognition of codes
in the itinerary within the rooms.
• Sorolla Museum AR: this app allows users to make an itinerary through
the museum rooms. Sorolla acts as a guide with the support of AR
technology. This app is similar to “Cisneros Go!” app and it offers the
option of taking photographs with Sorolla and with his wife, with the
option to be shared on social networks.
Despite highlighting positive aspects of these apps, some usual limitations

in this type of resources are lack of adaptation at different levels or users
and predominance of informative discourse focused on conceptual contents
(Luna, Ibáñez & Rivero, 2019)
94
In relation to geocaching, Geocaching®20 app allows exploration, searching

for the right geocache (GC codes, locations, landmarks, etc.), share experience,
etc. Regarding projection AR and augmented vision, nowadays, there are
headsets / glasses that give used directions or give additional information in
real time. There are also AR headsets that create holograms that allow users
interactions with virtual elements. Some of these devices are as Microsoft
HoloLens, Google Glass Enterprise Edition, Magic Leap Lightwear, Epson
Moverio BT-300FPV Drone Edition, Vuzix Blade AR, Meta 2, Optinvent
Ora-2, Garmin Varia Vision, Solos, Everysight Raptor, ODG R-7 Smartglasses
System, etc. In the first steps in the third level of AR technology, there
are some researches linked to educational experiences that are focused on
possibilities of this technology in the classroom. Regarding this, Locklear
(2018) indicates that the concern about how the teachers keep informed is
present when dashboards that display how a student is doing are viewed with
a laptop or tablet that teacher want not to move continually. Taking this into
account, Holstein, McLaren & Aleven (2019) consider that Learning Analytic
(LA) tool Lumilo, a tool that aims to reframe intelligent tutoring systems (ITS)
as classroom sensors that involved teachers in the design process, enriches
experiences in Primary and Secondary classroom due to teachers can see
how their students are working in real time.
CONCLUSION
The development of AR has great potential for the future due to the improvement
of the experience with the development of current and future technologies.
With expansion of the use of technologies by students, they have become
essential for teachers in order to put into practice didactic proposals that
connect the learning of school and family contexts. It includes the use of
social networks, video games, instant messaging and different computer and
mobile apps (Aguaded & Cabero, 2014). Nowadays, AR is an increasingly
widespread technology in the daily environment of students and it is useful
in educational contexts. This educational approach of AR technology has
been considered by software creators.

The absolutely prohibition of the use of technologies in the classroom
due to the risks of addiction is not considered a right decision. In other
words, according to technological development produced in recent decades,
the prohibition is not a properly way to prevent the student from making
inappropriate use of technologies (Delgado-Algarra & Lorca-Marín, 2019).
95
The inclusion of everyday technologies such as AR in social science lessons

contributes to educate in a responsible use of AR and, with an adequate
didactic approach, it offers important advantages such as improving of
motivation, participation, commitment to the object of study, teamwork and
an improvement in procedures.
Coinciding with Sobrino (2011), we must consider the use of Information
and Communication Technologies (ICT) in school spaces does not imply an
automatic transformation of the educational practice. In other words, without
a properly didactic approach, the use of AR does not imply improvement in
the teaching and learning of social sciences. The use of AR in the classroom,
similar to the use of other ICTs and including Knowledge and Learning
Technologies (KLT), makes sense only if it offers advantages and contributes
to different dynamics. This conclusion is similar to Adell & Castañeda (2012)
conclusion. Thus, beyond technological evolution, what really is innovative
is the use of these technologies by teachers and students in the educational
contexts.
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ENDNOTES
1
Para crear objetos 3D existen programas específicos como Sketchup,
Blender o Tinkercad que repasaremos en el siguiente capítulo.
2
Geocaching website: https://www.geocaching.com/about/cache_types.
aspx
3
Aumentaty Scope: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.
aumentaty.scope&hl=en
4
Aumentary Creator: www.aumentaty.com
5
Tutorial de Aumentary Creator: https://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=q1OcE24aoq8
6
Wikitude: • PC: https://www.wikitude.com/; • Android: https://play.
google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.wikitude&hl=en
7
Wikitude Academy: https://www.wikitude.com/wikitude-academy/
8
Quiver Vision:
9
Star Map: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.
escapistgames.starchart&hl=es
10
Star Chart AR: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.
escapistgames.starchart.ar.free&hl=en
100
11
Skyview: https://www.terminaleleven.com/skyview/iphone/
12
AR Planet Earth / Geography: http://arkids.cards/geo-en
13
EBSCO: https://www.ebsco.com/blog/
14
3DBear: https://www.3dbear.io/
15
Thingiverse Education provides over a hundred free lessons that make
teaching with a 3D printer easier and more effective for different grades
of levels and subjects. It also provides a community where educators
can exchange best practices or remix projects.
16
CoSpaces Edu: https://cospaces.io/edu/
17
JigSpace: https://jig.space/
18
MERGE Cube: https://miniverse.io/cube
19
Metaverse: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.gometa.
metaverse&hl=en
20
Geocaching® https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.
groundspeak.geocaching.intro&hl=en
101
102
Chapter 4
Virtual Reality, 3D Recreations
and 3D Printing in Social
Sciences Education:
Creating and Interacting
With Virtual Worlds
ABSTRACT
Virtual reality is a technology for the relocation and interaction of users
with a digital environment created by computers through an interface that
recognizes actions carried out in the real world. It allows users a multimodal
experience, making possible immersion in a digital world. On the other hand,
3D modeling is a process of design and representation of an object (3D
model) in three dimensions with specialized software, a model that could
become tangible through 3D printing. Virtual reality, 3D modeling, and 3D
printing technologies, with appropriate teaching proposals and appropriate
tools for process monitoring, offer students new ways of interacting with
contents of social sciences, geography, and history. There are more resources
for the management of classes with VR devices and specific VR applications
for teaching. In general, virtual reality and 3D modeling/painting in class
allows both interaction and several opportunities for learning adapted to
the needs of students.
DOI: 10.4018/978-1-7998-2882-2.ch004
Virtual Reality, 3D Recreations and 3D Printing in Social Sciences Education
INTRODUCTION
In recent years, Virtual Reality (VR) is one of the main emerging tools in
educational environments (Freeman, Becker, Cummins, Davis, and Hall
Giesinger, 2017). According to previous chapters and based on Milgran,
Takemura, Utsumi and Kishino (1994) approach, mixed reality and continuous
reality-virtuality were basic aspects when differentiating between Real
Environment (RE), Augmented Reality (AR), Augmented Virtuality (AV) and
Virtual Environment (VE), understanding AR as the incorporation of computer-
generated objects in a 3D real-world scene and AV as the incorporation of
real objects in a virtual world. One of the specific features of VR is related
to the immersion level of experiences.
VR allows immersion in digital world, from different senses, involving sight
and hearing. It allows the user to immerse themselves in a digitally created
world (Díaz, 2016). VR is not just a technology at the service of entertainment.
As Everson, McDermott, Kain, Fernández & Horan, (2017), Johnston, Rae,
Ariotti, Bailey, Lija, Webb & McGhee, (2017) or Toca (2017) indicate, this
technology has been used in science, medicine, architecture, psychology,
engineering, military training, astronaut training, etc. With this technology,
new devices for domestic use have emerged with relatively low prices; VR
devices such as Oculus Rift, Play Station VR, Daydream, or VR Sky. It is
possible to buy a VR Headset / Head-mounted display (HMD) adapted to
include smartphones to VR experiences. Besides, users can manually build
it with a cardboard template at a very low price. Lower price options to use
this technology are driving the creation of VR experiences (Aznar, Romero
& Rodríguez, 2018; Piscitelli, 2017) and services of companies that offer
packs for these experiences (Díaz, Rodríguez & García, 2018; Brown &
Green, 2012). 3D modeling is the process of developing a representation of
an object (3D model) in three dimensions with specialized software. There
is a connection between 3D modeling and 3D printing; regarding this, 3D
model can also be physically created using 3D printing devices. 3D printing
is technology that allows build a 3D object with successive layers of material.
In this chapter, we will review the conceptualization of VR, virtual
recreation and 3D printing, as well as, the strategies for using them in the
teaching of Social Sciences, Geography and History. Finally, we will review
some of the resources for the inclusion of VR experiences, 3D modeling and
3D recreations in the classroom, including their usefulness for 3D printing.
103
Regarding VR, a selection has been carried out considering the maintenance
by developers and the flexibility of the resource to adapt it to the classroom
needs: View Master, ClassVR, ENGAGE (communicate / teach / learn),
CoSpaces Edu, Google Expeditions, Google Street View, Google Earth VR
and YouTube (360/180). Regarding 3D modeling software, we have selected
some integrated platforms and programs for 3D design, customize, sculpt,
draw on 3D models, etc. That programs are: Tinkercad, SketchUp, Blender,
Sculptris and Pixexix. Regarding 3D recreation software, we have selected
the following repositories: Thingiverse and Smithsonian X 3D. Some of the
3D model design tools are enriched by 3D repositories and almost all 3D
software allow the printing by 3D printer.
CONCEPTUALIZATION OF VIRTUAL REALITY
In 1962, Heilig materialized his immersion ideas in a mechanical projection

device called Sensorama where visual experience, 3D stereoscopic vision,
stereo sound and aromas were offered; becoming the first example of
multimodal immersion. The first virtual reality (VR) head-mounted display
(HMD) system, “The Sword of Damocles”, was created by Ivan Sutherland
and his team in 1968 and allowed the visualization of virtual environments in
wireframe (although it was so heavy that it should be hooked from the ceiling).
In 1981, Thomas Furnes boosted the “virtual cockpit” and, subsequently,
presented the “Visually Coupled Airborne Systems Simulator”, a helmet that
offered American war pilots additional flight information (Chain, 2008). In
the 80’s, several devices emerged, devices as, for example, DataGlove, a glove
that allows the recognition of real moving in virtual environment (López,
2013). Other alternative was PowerGlove, a peripheral of Nintendo to play
NES through a system of recognition of hand movements that although it
did not work satisfactorily enough, it was revolutionary. In the second half of
the 1980’s VR devices were developed such as: HMDs or optical followers
(Cruz, 2017). Jaron Lanier and Thomas G. Zimmerman, after leaving Atari
in 1985, founded VPL Research and created the first VR glasses and gloves,
popularizing the term “Virtual Reality” in the late 1980s of the twentieth
century.
In the 90s of the twentieth century, VR technology was introduced in the
world of video game consoles. For example, Sega released “Activator”, a
full-body motion-based video game controller unit that used infra-red beams
to interpret movements. This company also announced a VR headset called
104
Figure 1. VR Handheld
Sega VR. This headset was announced in 1991 and could revolutionize
the video game industry in the early 1990s, but only the arcade version
was released. The home console version was canceled. Some years after,
Nintendo recovered Sega’s innovative idea and adapted it, launching the
Virtual Boy on the market in 1995, a two-screen monochrome console that
reproduced 3D effect and that was a sales failure. Since approximately 2012,
and accompanied by an evident technological evolution, there is an increasing
introduction of the use of VR technology in homes and schools. Currently,
there are different VR hardware and devices options; however, there is still
an important space for the improvement of this technology. There are a lot
of definitions of VR, we have selected several conceptualizations that focus
on different features of VR:
• Gutiérrez (1997) and El-Tamini, Abidi & Al-Ahmari (2016) define

VR as a technology that involves the creation and interaction with an
interactive 3D world created by computer where the user perceives the
objects as present in space.
• More focused on the experience itself, Pérez-Martínez (2011) and
Díaz (2016) highlights the fact that VR technology aims for the user to
experience a simulated situation in which physical reality is replaced
by a digitally created environment. In other words, VR technology
allows users to interact with a simulated alternative world by computer

with several immersive levels and specific sensory experiences. In this
sense, Helsel (1992) refers to VR as a technology that allows interactive
simulation with a situation that is generated by man through technology,
stimulating perceptions and facilitating access to information.
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Figure 2. VR Projection
• VR allows the user to have multimodal experiences within an artificial

world created through computers, producing a relocation of the user
from the real context (Brigham, 2017, Cabero & Fernández, 2018).
• Kronqvist, Jokinen and Rousi (2016) & Ye (2016), on the other hand,
define VR as a technology that allows users to interact with the virtual
world through immersive experiences.
VR is a special kind of simulation that describes a computer-based

generation of experiences (Bullinger, Brauer & Braun, 1997). Alexander,
Westhoven & Conradi (2017) highlights three different types of VR according
to the level of immersion:
• Handheld: for non-immersive experiences (figure 1).

• Projection for semi-immersive experiences (figure 2),

• Head-mounted display: for immersive experiences.
Focus on Head-mounted display (HMD), this device can include monocular

or binocular vision, for AR or VR; and regarding operability, there are three
types of HMD (figure 3):
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Figure 3. Virtual Reality Head-mounted display
• VR HMD (mobile): cases without a screen or processor ready to insert

a mobile phone such as Gear VR (Samsung) or Cardboard (Google).
• VR HMD (without a processor): it includes a screen and sensors,
but require connection to an external device such as a computer or
video game console. Oculus Rift, PlayStation VR or HTC Live are
representative examples.
• VR HMD (autonomous): it includes the case, screen, sensors and
processor and does not require connection for their operation. Some
examples are Microsoft Hololens and others in development like Intel
Project Alloy, Daydream Standalone of Qualcomm and Google, or the
Exynos VR of Samsung.
In general, based on different definitions and advances in the development

of technology, VR can be defined as a technology for the relocation and
interaction of the user with a digital environment created by computer
through an interface that recognizes the actions carried out in the real world,
allowing a multimodal experience that requires at least handheld, projection
or head-mounted display.
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Beyond the HMD, and in order to increase the immersive nature of VR

experiences, other complementary devices are:
• Gloveone: gloves that allow user to send hand movements to the virtual
environment watched through the screen / HMD. It uses the sense of
touch in VR experiences. There are 10 actuators distributed along the
palm and fingertips of Gloveone and they vibrate independently at
different frequencies and intensities; reproducing touch sensations and
allowing to feel shapes and textures.
• Nyoibo: device to feel the weight of objects from VR experience. It
is an experimental mod that attaches to the top of a VIVE controller.
The mechanical device consists of several weights that can expand and
retract to distribute weight coherently regarding the virtual object hold
by the user.
• Virtuix Omni: a peripheral that simulates the effect of walking or
running inside the VR due to a slippery base where the movement of
user feet is collected. Omni is a locomotion simulator designed to work
as a game controller. It uses inertial sensors to track a user’s position,
and the length and velocity of steps. After, the information is sent to a
computer where data is translated into the game movements.
• Leap Motion: a sensor that captures hand and finger movements,
moving them into VR and AR.
• Feelreal: a mask that simulates hundreds of odors to improve the
immersion of the VR experience. Several titles support it and it is
possible to find YouTube VR with attached aroma tracks.
The two main components of the VR are user environment and virtual
environment. They are connected through the interface. The interface makes
it possible to recognize user actions (movement, voice, etc.) according to
their position and the direction of their gaze, actions that are now interpreted
in the virtual environment. At the same time, user receives coherent system
reactions (images, sounds, etc.). This generate a process of multimodal
interaction and immersion where the user’s physical and virtual environment
are connected. Thus, VR system is immersive when it can display a digitally

generated environment that brings the user closer to a real experience.
Immersion is possible with devices such as VR glasses, including others such
as movement pads, moving detection, haptic controls, etc. Due to the high
price of VR glasses, there are adapters that take advantage of the screens
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of mobile devices to achieve immersive experiences similar to experiences

achieved with autonomous VR HMD.
There are non-immersive VR experiences (the most common given their
low cost to the user) or semi-immersive. Non-immersive VR experiences do
not require glasses, gloves or other body position and motion detection devices
and would be similar to navigation. They are not always considered VR and
allow user interaction using a computer, keyboard and mouse (this activity
may include video games). In semi-immersive VR experiences, there are
four cube-shaped screens (three walls and the floor) with projectors oriented
to each of the walls. Glasses and movement tracking devices are necessary.
These semi-immersive VR experiences are developed when a better vision
of a real world is required within a virtual world.
The research results of Cózar Gutiérrez, González-Calero Somoza, Villena
Taranilla & Merino Armero (2019) show that the VR is motivating. These
results coincide with those of the systematic reviews carried out by Cabero
& Fernández (2018) and Kavanagh, Luxton, Wuensche & Plimmer (2017)
who conclude that this technological tool has great potential to positively
stimulate motivation and interactivity in learning processes. However, there
is an important space for the improvement of VR technology; besides, the use
of VR in teaching is analyzed (Observatory of Educational Innovation, 2017).
CONCEPTUALIZATION OF VIRTUAL
RECREATIONS AND 3D PRINTING
3D modeling is a process for the development of an object representation

(3D model) in three dimensions with specialized software. 3D model can
be created automatically or manually and it can be displayed as a 2D image
through a process called 3D rendering. 3D modeling software or modeling
apps allows teachers and students to produce 3D models. In other words, the
modeling stage consists of shaping individual objects that can be printed, can
be used in virtual environment, can be used AR or VR scenes, etc. Almost
all 3D models can be divided into two main categories:
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• Solid model is a consistent set of principles for mathematical and

computer modeling of three-dimensional solids distinguished by its
emphasis on physical fidelity.
• Shell model represents the surface of the object without volume. It is
the most usual visual model used in games and films. This model must
not have holes or cracks in the shell in order to look like as a real
object, so that polygonal meshes are the most common representation.
Regarding modeling process, there are several ways to represent a 3D

model. Nowadays, polygonal modeling with textures is de more usual modeling
option because, in addition to other advantages, textured polygonal models
are flexible and they can be quickly rendered. In polygonal modeling, in
order to form a polygon mesh, vertices are connected by lines as points in
3D space; emulating curved surfaces with a lot of polygons. There are other
popular options such as curve modeling or digital sculping.
There is a connection between 3D modeling and 3D printing. Regarding
this, 3D model can also be physically created using 3D printing devices. 3D
printing is a technology that allows build a 3D object with successive layers
of material. As indicated on the web printers3D.com, the most common
materials are PLA filament and ABS filament, materiales used by most users
of 3D printers. ABS is the most used in industry. It has a high melting point
and it can be polished, sanded, drilled, painted, glued, etc. with great ease.
It is a bit flexible and very resistant. PLA is most used material outside the
industry. Although it has a wide range of colors, it is more difficult to process
after printing and it has a lower resistance to high temperatures than ABS. It
should be noted that recyclers such as Filabot creates new filaments of leftover
materials from ABS, PLA, HIPS, PS, PC, PEEL, ULTEM, HDPE, PETG, PP,
etc. Johnson, Adams Becker, Estrada & Freeman (2015) and Maloy, Trust,
Kommers, Malinowski & LaRoche (2017) highlights that in order to create
a physical 3D model, a teacher or student must design the model, import the
model, or modify it using 3D modeling software, such as Tinkercad, SketchUp,
or Autodesk 123D, programs that will be reviewed in 3D modeling and 3D
printer resources block. There is an option to visit online repositories that
provide access to free 3D models. These models can be modified and/ or

printed by user. Some of these repositories are Thingiverse, National Institute
of Health 3D Print Exchange and Smithsonian X 3D.
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Strategies for Use of Virtual Reality in the

Teaching and Learning of Sciences
Understanding the technology is not enough to make a didactic use in social

science classes. Thus, VR in class allows both interaction and various
possibilities for learning; able to adapt to the needs of the students. As we have
indicated before, the high prices of VR technology devices can be reduced
with the creation of 3D card glasses, such as Google Cardboard. For making
a Google Cardboard VR Head-mounted, the following elements are essential:
Google Cardboard Template1, two specific lenses, cardboard, magnet, velcro,
elastic, scissors, hot glue, Android phone and / or smartphone. Some of the
advantages of using VR in education are that students enter situations with
greater realism than with a textbook. It allows teachers and / or students to
create a wide variety of environments and simulations difficult to observe in
the real world that can be controlled without external interferences. Garofalo
(2019) highlights some benefits of bringing VR to the classroom:
• Virtual trips: it is an attractive way to explore distant or historical places.

Regarding this, teachers can try out existing virtual reality programs
like Google Expeditions (which features over 900 tours). Besides, it
is possible to travel through museums, the Seven Wonders, Ancient
Egypt, etc. and they decide where to focus according to the Social
Sciences, History and Geography contents. In addition to using Google
Expeditions to travel, teachers and students can also use, for example,
Google Street View 360, RYOT VR, Youtube 360 or Discovery VR.
• Skills development: VR simulations help students learn practical skills
from realistic virtual spaces and contact with new cultures without
leaving the classroom.
• Special education: VR expands the possibility for students with
special needs, as it stimulates the imagination and allows sensations
and experiences.
• Collaboration: VR technology has the potential to increase collaboration
between teachers and students; increasing student motivation and
exploring knowledge together.

• Game-based learning: VR reality changes the way to use games for
learning by increasing engagement and motivation.
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Beyond viewing virtual images, students can create their own virtual
worlds through educational apps like CoSpaces Edu. Gavish, Gutiérrez,
Webel, Rodríguez, Pevery, Bockholt & Tecchia (2015), Webster (2016) and
Cantón, Arellano, Hernández & Nieva (2017) consider that VR also facilitates
new ways of communicating information. However, the popularity of the
use of VR technology in education is increasing immersion, interaction and
imagination; encouraging active research, and facilitating active observation
and metacognitive learning processes. The immersion developed in VR
environments allows multiple perspectives, localized learning and a transfer
of knowledge from an alternative personal experience. In this sense, the NMC
/ CoSN Horizon Report K-12 (Freeman et al., 2017) refers to this immersion
in the virtual world as a way to delve of learning. So, Liu, Dede, Huang &
Richards (2017) indicate that VR technology allows intense educational
experiences. In relation to the teaching of Social Sciences, Geography and
History, VR technology allows students to rebuild and visit monuments,
buildings or even places already destroyed as traveling in time.
However, despite all the advantages that VR technology offers in the
educational field, some of the most important limitations of the use of VR in
the Social Sciences, Geography and History classes are focused on economic
issues and lacks on teacher training. Regarding economic issues, although
costs can be reduced with Cardboard VR HDM, the introduction of VR in
the classroom requires an initial investment in resources and maintenance
costs. As in other cases of educational use of emerging technologies, teacher
training is a fundamental aspect for a properly use of VR in the teaching and
learning of social sciences. Without training, teachers can not feel competent
to work with VR in class. They need basic knowledge about strategies or
about platforms for managing VR teaching in the classroom, so, without that
knowledge, they will tend to avoid them. Class management with VR is an
issue that requires specific technical and didactic resources and knowledge
that not all teachers are willing to learn.
As we have seen before, we have several devices and mobile applications.
Despite its possibilities and the relative ease of using VR in educational
environments, in the most immersive version, it requires peripherals to
recognize the movement of the body that needs an important economic

investment. This technology is in development stage. Regarding this, the last
difficult is related to the fast evolution and obsolescence of VR technologies.
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THE USE OF VIRTUAL RECREATIONS AND 3D PRINTING

IN THE TEACHING AND LEARNING OF SCIENCES
According to Sacristán & Waeder (2016) and Cuesta & Mañas (2016), VR
is like a time machine that allows teachers to recreate virtually any type of
space and place it at any time. That means breaking the barriers of space
and time and allowing students to be transported to any time or place for
a meaningful and experiential learning of Social Sciences, Geography and
History. In general, virtual recreations of both buildings and historical
monuments, archeological sites, Egyptian tombs, etc, are usually inaccessible
due to economic, time or logistics reasons. Virtual recreations, connected
to VR, allow access to places that are destroyed or whose visit is difficult to
carry out in reality. In general, virtual recreation, along with VR technology,
can become a powerful tool to reconstruct the past.
The main difficulties for the inclusion of 3D modeling and recreation
technologies in the classroom are usually related, first, to the insecurities
derived from the lack of technical training of teachers and, secondly, the
uncertainty about how to take advantage of these technologies from a didactic
point of view. In this sense, Cuban (2016) indicates that with computers in
the classroom, history/social studies teachers may be reluctant regarding
the use of 3D technologies. They prefer to continue with teaching methods
such as lecture, whole group discussion, small-group work, reliance on the
textbook and worksheets, homework, and tests. Regarding this, about 50%
of high school history/social studies teachers use lecture method during
three quarters of class periods (Wiggins, 2015). For this reason: history/
social studies teachers may not consider using 3D technologies include a
belief that 3D modeling and printing is appropriate only for mathematics
and science classes. They do not see how 3D technologies can be directly
connected to the study of the past (Maloy, Trust, Kommers, Malinowski &
LaRoche, 2017: 231)
In other words, and regarding the aforementioned difficulties to introduce
emerging technologies in educational environments, Social Sciences teachers
may feel intimidated regarding the learning of a new technology or software
tool due to the lack of training or support for using 3D printers in classrooms.
Other teachers may be concerned about losing authority because students
would have more knowledge about this technology.
As an example of educational possibilities of 3D technology in the area
of Social Sciences, Geography and History, we can highlight the 3D printing
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project “Hidden Histories and Missing Monuments”. Participants of this project

were in-service teachers and the topic a properly use to high school level.
This 3D printing Project was developed by middle grade civics/government
class with the school’s yearly travel to Washington, DC following several
steps (Maloy, Trust, Kommers, Malinowski & LaRoche, 2017):
Step 1: in preparation for the travel, students discussed the monuments

and memorials they would be visiting or reading about (including
the Washington Monument, Lincoln Memorial, Jefferson Memorial,
Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial, Vietnam Veterans Memorial, and
Korean War Veterans Memorial) and other city’s historic landmarks,
like White House, the U.S. Capitol, the Supreme Court Building, and
the Smithsonian.
Step 2: after discussing the theme of Loewen’s book where is indicated that
“the landscape suffers from amnesia, not about everything, after the
discussion about many crucial events and issues of our past” (1999:
4) and the importance of uncovering “hidden and missing histories”;
students tried to identify individuals who were important in history, but
who do not appear in history textbooks or who have not received honors
with monuments and memorials.
Step 3: after discussion and debate, students selected some individuals and
they designed and print historical monuments honoring individuals.
For this, students explored the influential men and women in history
pages, and they were required to create a plaque to provide context for
their monument. Before starting their designs using Tinkercad (for 3D
modeling) they painted their ideas on paper.
Step 4: with the help of tutorials, students designed their 3D design of
monuments in 60 minutes with Tinkercad. After the designs were printed.
Step 5: 3D printed monuments were accompanied by plaques written by
students. Finally, they walked around all tables in order to learn about
hidden histories.
In relation to the teaching of history, heritage education is a line that can be

greatly enriched by combination of 3D modeling - 3D printing accompanied

by virtual 3D reconstruction of environments. It allows students to access how
some pieces were in the past, heritage buildings or contexts; recreations that
can be included in both VR experiences and AR experiences. Some of the
tools for construction of 3D recreations are Blender (a free and open-source
3D computer graphics software toolset that will be reviewed in the resources
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section), Substance Painter (a 3D painting software that allow user to texture

and render your 3D meshes) or Adobe Photoshop, etc. If 3D recreation is
maintained in the Virtual environment, with 3D printing the heritage elements
modeled in 3D become tangible.
RESOURCES FOR VIRTUAL REALITY AND

MODELING, 3D RECREATIONS AND 3D PRINTING
In recent years, both researchers and teachers in service have presented

proposals for changes in the teaching and learning of Social Sciences,
Geography and History, changes that have led to innovative experiences or
educational innovation. On the other hand, and coming from disciplines, the
scientific knowledge of teachers is a living knowledge that evolves due to
the work of disciplinary research. In addition, the exponential development
of technologies that allow multimodal and immersive experiences and
the adaptation of ICT to educational contexts in the form of Learning and
Knowledge Technologies (LKT) make resources such as VR - AR and
didactics apps become obsolete in a short time without proper maintenance
by developers and without adequate decision making by teachers. That is
why, in this section, we have selected some flexible platforms, services and
apps that can be adapted to teaching needs in Social Sciences, Geography and
History classes; platforms, services and applications that have a maintenance
by developers.
Virtual Reality Educational Resources
There are numerous VR resources on Internet, some of them Open-Access.

However, as we have indicated previously, considering the maintenance by
the developers and the flexibility of the resource to adapt it to the classroom
needs, a selection has been carried out. View Master is a page that offers
different services and products related to VR where you can highlight some
VR proposals to build historical VR experiences, explore the Solar System,
transports students to famous place, etc. ClassVR is a specific VR and AR

system for classroom than provides contents and tools to deliver lessons
to students. It allows teacher to use a drag and drop functionality to create
custom ‘playlists’ with a focus tracking feature that allows teacher to see
on his monitor what are students looking at. ENGAGE is an education and
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corporate training platform in VR for empowers teachers with an extensive

library of virtual objects, effects and virtual locations available on the platform.
CoSpaces Edu es a service that allows students create their own virtual
worlds utilizing a several tools and objects. Google Expeditions is a resource
that allows teachers to transport students to expeditions in order to explore
history and arts among others. We highlight Tour Creator where teachers and
students can create their own immersive tours; including 360° or 180° photos
or images. Google Street View is an app that allows teachers and students to
explore world landmarks, discover wonders and step inside locations such
as museums. It is possible to add custom Street View experiences where is
possible to use add a one–shot spherical camera for easy 360º photography.
Google Earth VR lets users to explore freely the world from totally new
perspectives and VR YouTube allows users to publish or viewing 360-degree
videos. VR180 an alternative stereoscopic video format where videos are
limited to a 180-degree field of view.
View Master
View Master2 is a page that offers different services and products related
to VR where user can buy glasses compatible with Android and iOS to
play and learn in the classroom (so gamification experiences are offered
simultaneously). In addition, on the website student can get different games
to learn and reinforce content of different subjects, including Social Sciences,
Geography and History contents. Within View Master, some VR proposals
are emphasized:
• View Master® Smithsonian allows student to build a VR historical

experience as the museum curator for Smithsonian Museum where
they can assemble, search for hidden objects in archives or complete
timelines to relive moments throughout history.
• View Master® Space allows students explore the Solar System or
experience the night sky, learning facts or tracing constellations.
• View Master® Destinations transports students to famous place,
including Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island in New York or the Tower
of London and Tower Bridge in London.
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ClassVR
ClassVR3 is a VR and AR system for the classroom that provides an immersive

experience for students regarding several subjects. With the option to create
360º photos and videos. ClassVR interface allows students to find, select and
launch activities using their hands or head movements; including gestures
control. ClassVR Portal provides contents and tools to deliver lessons to
students; allowing to search, upload, build, save and share with a drag and
drop functionality in order to create custom ‘playlists’ in a few. VR contents
include 3D models, and 360-degree photos and videos. Teacher can launch
activities and playlist of resources to multiple headsets (figure 4).
In order to avoid difficulties in student’s attention, teachers can guide
students to look at a specific part of a VR experience with dynamic Point of
Interest (POI). When teacher stablish a new POI, Students see a trail until
that point. In addition, the teacher can see on his monitor where are students
looking at with a focus tracking feature. According ClassVR website, from
2019, the platform includes Scenecraft tool with hundreds of educational
resources. With a drag and drop controls, teachers can build interactive and
dynamic experiences to stimulate discussions.
ENGAGE (communicate / teach / learn)
Engage4 is an education and corporate training platform in VR for empowers

teachers who, using the platform, can create VR training and experiences in
minutes. This is due to the use of tools does not require technical expertise. A
wide variety of effective and immersive virtual experiences can be created with
an extensive library of virtual objects, effects and virtual locations available
on the platform. It includes 3D objects, interactive objects, virtual locations,
media streaming, create contents, quiz and forms, session scheduling and up
to 36 remote users. Compatible with several VR HMD.
CoSpaces Edu
CoSpaces Edu allow students create their own virtual worlds utilizing several
tools and objects. When the creation is complete, students can explore and
interact with their virtual space via a smartphone and a VR HMD.
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Figure 4: ClassVR Portal and the management of VR devices
Google Expeditions
Google Expeditions5 features over 900 tours, this resource provides the
ability for teachers to transport students to virtual locations. These include

destinations that are typically historic or scientific in nature, with hundreds
of options available to teachers across content areas. As is indicated in the
website, Expeditions explore history, science, the arts, and the natural world.
Whether students are looking at Renaissance sculptures they can explore
them with this app. With Tour Creator, teachers can build virtual field trips
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or empower students to create their own immersive tours. Other functionality

is the design of virtual reality tours using your own 360° or 180° photos or
images, for example, from Street View.
Google Street View
Google Street View6 allows user to explore world landmarks, discover wonders
and walk inside locations such as museums. Users can create photo spheres
in order to add customed Street View experiences. Regarding this, there is an
option to start with the phone’s camera or add a one–shot spherical camera for
easy 360º photography, cameras like the Ricoh Theta S. After, it is possible
to publish to Google Maps in order to share new photo spheres.
Google Earth VR
Google Earth VR7 lets users to explore freely the world from totally new
perspectives in virtual reality. Users can walk (or fly) the streets of Tokyo,
Grand Canyon, Eiffel Tower, being possible to see the world’s cities,
landmarks, and natural wonders. Earth VR comes with cinematic tours and
destinations that send user to the Amazon River, the Manhattan skyline, the
Grand Canyon, the Swiss Alps, etc.
YouTube (360/ VR180)
In 2015, YouTube launched support for publishing and viewing 360-degree

videos, with playback on its website and its Android mobile apps. In other
words, with YouTube is possible to access to 360-degree videos, (also known as
immersive videos or spherical videos). 180 degree videos are more accessible
to produce than 360-degree video. Due to this, in 2017, Google and YouTube
began to promote an alternative stereoscopic video format known as VR180
where videos are limited to a 180-degree field of view.
Other Virtual Reality Educational Resources

There are many apps and videogames that can be played in VR and that are
specific and useful for teaching Social Sciences, Geography is History as
Stonehenge VR Sandbox, Great Piramid VR, Smithsonian American Art
Museum “Beyond The Walls”, The Museum of ThroughView, The VR
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Museum of Fine Art, The Night Café: A VR Tribute to Vincent Van Gogh,
Time Machine VR, Realities Go Places, Space Rours VR, etc.
• Stonehenge VR Sandbox: it is a learning experience originated as one

of the first room scale VR exhibits in a museum. With the Sandbox
Mode, learning possibilities are expanded for people of all ages with
the ability to build, paint and create their own ancient monument. The
Museum Mode start with a built-in tutorial and it prepares people of all
ages on how to interact in VR; including narrated voice, interactivity
and animations about history and the prehistoric monument in
Wiltshire, England.
• Great Piramid VR: it is a virtual 3D walk through The Great Pyramid in
Giza, Egypt. Students can explore and study the reconstruction of this
structure. It is possible to see the pyramid from different perspectives
and investigate the 3D interior in real time. It is a virtual adventure and
immersive learning experience that requires a VR HTC Vive headset.
• Smithsonian American Art Museum “Beyond the Walls”: a free VR
experience that situate students directly in the museum’s galleries
of the Smithsonian American Art Museum. It includes three unique
pieces for users to engage with interactive experience of the original
art pieces. Students can move freely around the museum’s east wing
and view a dozen paintings, four works of sculpture, and one video art
installation in high fidelity. Approaching to Adams Memorial, users
are transported into a 3D volumetric recreation in Rock Creek Park
Cemetery out of the museum. Requires a VR HTC Vive headset or
Oculus Rift.
• The Museum of ThroughView: this is a VR software which showcases 2D
to 3D conversions of famous paintings and old photographs; allowing
students to experience 3D paintings. A selection of 3D conversions
was made for the Looking Glass holographic display. With this tool,
students can look 3D images inside a glass like volume without the use
of additional aids.
• The VR Museum of Fine Art: with 1:1 scale sculptures and paintings
without rope barriers or glass walls where students can feel free to
explore the artwork
• The Night Café: A VR Tribute to Vincent Van Gogh: it is an immersive
VR environment that allows students to explore the world of Vincent
van Gogh walking freely in the painting and looking painted objects
from different angles.
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• Time Machine VR: this game allows students to travel back in time
with the mission of exploring the Jurassic and ancient creatures in seas.
It is possible to use a series of state-of-the-art tools to track, examine
and discover scientifically animals such as mosasaurs, livyatans,
megalodonts, etc.
• Realities Go Places: it brings real world locations into interactive VR
with photo-realism using photogrammetry. Users can explore places far
away, closed off to the general public or dangerous to visit and discover
their stories. It is possible to walk through Death Valley, to explore the
abandoned hospital Beelitz Heilstätten in the former GDR, to see at the
architecture of the Cologne Cathedral, to feel the confinement of a cell
in Alcatraz or to walk inside the ruins of 800 years old, Stauffer castle.
Resources for 3D Modeling, 3D

Recreation and 3D Printing
There are a lot of services and programs for 3D modeling and numerous
options for access to 3D-related content, such as textures, scripts, etc.,
individual models or collections. Many of the 3D elements made with 3D
modeling programs or downloaded from various repositories can become
tangible elements thanks to 3D printing. We have selected some significant
3D modeling software and 3D repositories. Regarding 3D modeling software,
we have selected some integrated platforms and programs for 3D design,
customize, sculpt, draw on 3D models, etc. That programs are: Tinkercad,
SketchUp, Blender, Sculptris and Pixexix. Regarding 3D recreation software,
we have selected the following repositories: Thingiverse and Smithsonian
X 3D. Some of the 3D model design tools are enriched by 3D repositories
and almost all 3D software allow that 3D designs can be print by 3D printer.
Tinkercad
Tinkercad is a free and intuitive 3D design app that allows teachers and
students to create 3D designs and print them (including brick models and
Minecraft models). In relation to 3D creations, it allows you to learn to design

in 3D from the beginning:
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• Insertion: place a form to add or remove material.

• Adjustment: move, rotate and adjust shapes freely in space.
• Combination: group a set of shapes to create models.
It also allows printing on any 3D printer with a standard STL file format.
Tinkercad Classrooms8 allows teachers to add students. Students to log-in
using a Nickname and Class Code created by the teacher, who accesses to
Tinkercad Classrooms by selecting Classes under the profile navigation. To
join a Class:
• Students click “Join Class” at Tinkercad.com.

• Students enter the Class code shared by teacher. Teacher must see
section above to display the Class code in large format on your screen
or write it on the chalkboard.
• Each student enters the unique nickname that teacher has created. After
this, students are already in. They can click “Create New Design” to
start designing.
Teacher can review students works from the classroom listing:
• Teacher see who has joined the classroom when the student’s name is
clickable in the class list page.
• Teacher clicks the student’s names to see their created designs.
SketchUp
SketchUp is a tool for visualize ideas, create designs 3D, customize 3D

space, communicate, collaborate and share; creating new experiences in VR
or projection AR. There is a specific educational product called SketchUp
for Schools9. It is the core SketchUp modeler available in a web browser for
any Primary or Secondary School. It is signed up with:
Google Suite for Education10: a cloud-based productivity suite that includes
mail, drive, classroom, docs, sheets, slides, sites, calendar and one-on-one
support from a Google for Education partner.

Microsoft Education11: it includes apps, learning tools, Office, One Note,
Skype, Sway [for creating and sharing interactive class resources] and Teams
[which brings together conversations, content, jobs and applications in one
place]).
122
Blender
Blender12 is a multiplatform computer program, especially dedicated to

modeling, lighting, rendering, animation and creation of three-dimensional
graphics. Also, it allows digital composition using the procedural technique
of nodes, video editing, sculpture (includes dynamic topology) and digital
painting. In Blender, in addition, users can develop video games due to it
has an internal game engine.
Sculptris and Pixexix
Sculptris13 is a free 3D modeling tool with which you can sculpt infinity of
objects from an initial block. It also allows users to define material properties
and paint on the object using textures, relief maps or colors. Pixexix14 is other
tool that allows students to draw on 3D models using any 2D image editor.
Thingiverse
Thingiverse15 is a design community for discovering, making, and sharing

3D printable things. It is one of the world’s largest 3D printing community
that encourage to create and remix 3D things, no matter the user’s technical
expertise or previous experience. Students can browse for 3D printable files
that they can download, remix, and customize. In the space of Thingiverse
Education16 provides over a hundred of free lessons that make teaching with a
3D printer easier and more effective for a variety of grade levels and subjects.
Searching can be made:
• By grades: in Primary, Secondary and university education.

• By educational projects: including Geography and History.
It is an open platform and all designs are encouraged to be licensed under

a Creative Commons license. It also provides a community where educators
can exchange best practices or remix projects.
123
Smithsonian X 3D
Smithsonian X 3D17 is a Platform linked to a 3D Program formed by a small

group of technologists and that work within the Smithsonian Institution’s
Digitization Program Office. The main mission is increase and diffusion of
knowledge using 3D scanning technology, analysis tools, and Smithsonian
distribution platform. The Smithsonian has more than 155 million unique
artifacts and specimens; then, this group is making 3D scanning projects
to small sets of items. According the website, some of these 3D scanning
projects are the Apollo 11 Command Module Columbia, the Cosmic Buddha
sculpture, President Abraham Lincoln’s life masks, the 1903 Wright Flyer,
and many others.
Smithsonian X 3D – Education18 is based on possibilities of using 3D objects
for Primary and Secondary students learning. Smithsonian X 3D – Education
viewer offers students the ability to explore some of the Smithsonian’s most
treasured objects with a high level of control to allow them exploration of
these objects and build lifelong observation and critical thinking skills. It
provided 3D education resources such as the eBook “The Mind behind the
Mask: 3D Technology and the Portrayal of Abraham Lincoln” and provides
interdisciplinary educational proposal that allow the use of original documents
and historical reconstructions
CONCLUSION
In this chapter, we conclude that VR is a technology for the relocation

and interaction of the user with a digital environment created by computer
through an interface that recognizes the actions carried out in the real world,
allowing a multimodal experience that requires at least handheld, projection
or head-mounted display. This implies different levels of immersion in virtual
experiences. There are multiple complementary devices to increase the
immersion of users such as Gloveone, Nyoibo, Virtuix Omni, Leap Motion
or Feelreal that respectively includes touching options, feeling the weight
walking or running in reality, capturing hand and finger movements and

simulating odors.
124
Teachers in this area sometimes consider 3D modeling and digital printing

is typical of natural science or math classes. However, educational proposals
for 3D modeling and printing for Social Sciences, Geography and History
and experiences with history teachers indicate that:
having students model, design, and print 3D objects related to standards-
based historical topics can create a framework for active, engaged learning
in the history and social studies classroom. (regarding their experience)
Each of the history projects incorporated 3D technologies into the schools’
required curricula. Each project asked students to function as researchers,
designers, and presenters of information. Each project involved group work
and hands-on activity that is the antithesis of passively receiving information
from a teacher or a book (Maloy, Trust, Kommers, Malinowski & LaRoche,
2017: 246)
However, despite all the advantages that VR technology offers in the
educational field, some of the most important limitations of the use of VR in
the teaching and learning of Social Sciences, Geography and History focus
on economic issues and lacks on teacher training. Regarding economic issues,
although costs can be reduced with Cardboard VR HDM, the introduction of
VR in the classroom requires an initial investment in resources and maintenance
costs. As in other cases in which educational use of emerging technologies
is made, teacher training itself is a fundamental aspect. Without adequate
training, teachers do not feel competent to work with VR in class nor have
knowledge about strategies and platforms for managing VR teaching in the
classroom, so they will tend to avoid them. In general, class management
with VR is an issue that requires specific technical and didactic resources and
knowledge that not all teachers want to learn. The main difficulties for the
inclusion of 3D modeling and recreation technologies in the classroom are
usually related to insecurities derived from the lack of technical training of
teachers and uncertainty about how to take advantage of these technologies
from a didactic point of view.
The development of VR technology is increasing possibilities of immersion
every day. In addition, the price’s drop of this technology is due to the use of
mobile devices and VR Carboards facilitating the entry of VR in the classroom.
Moreover, there are more and more resources for the management of classes
with VR devices and specific VR applications for the teaching Social Sciences,
Geography and History with more friendly digital environment for teachers
without programming knowledges. Understanding the technology is not
enough to make a didactic use in Social Science classes. Thus, VR and 3D
125
modeling/ painting in class allows both interaction and various possibilities

for learning that are able to adapt to the needs of students.
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ENDNOTES
1
You can download Google Cardboar Template here: https://vr.google.
com/cardboard/manufacturers/
2
View Master: http://www.view-master.com/en-us
3
ClassVR: www.classvr.com
4
Engage: https://engagevr.io/
5
Google Expeditions: https://edu.google.com/products/vr-ar/
expeditions/?modal_active=none
6
https://apps.apple.com/us/app/google-street-view/id904418768
7
Google Earth VR: https://store.steampowered.com/app/348250/
Google_Earth_VR/
8
Tinkercad Classrooms: https://www.tinkercad.com/teach
129
9
SketchUP for Schools: https://www.sketchup.com/products/sketchup-
for-schools
10
Google for Education: https://eduproducts.withgoogle.com/products/g-
suite/g-suite-for-education
11
Microsoft Education: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/education
12
Blender: http://www.blender.org/
13
Sculptris: http://pixologic.com/sculptris/
14
Pixexix: http://pixexix.sophiehoulden.com/
15
Thingverse: https://www.thingiverse.com/
16
Thingverse Education: https://www.thingiverse.com/education
17
Smithsonian X 3D https://3d.si.edu/
18
Smithsonian X 3D – Education: https://3d.si.edu/article/educators
130
131
Chapter 5
Learning Managements
Systems and Open Educational
Resources for the Teaching
of Social Sciences:
Monitoring Students and
Virtual Interaction
ABSTRACT
Learning Management Systems (LMS) include a type of software and web
applications that facilitate the online delivery of course materials, student
tracking, and work presentation by students. An LMS focuses on the creation
of course contents through a learning content management system (LCMS)
and on the management of those contents. LMS provides tools for students to
achieve assigned tasks and interact in groups or between students through the
forums that enrich the construction of knowledge through communication and
discussions. Open Educational Resources (OER) are associated with an open
license that allows teachers to adapt and redistribute contents without any
restrictions or with limited restrictions. In general terms, LMS have allowed
learning analytics, adaptive learning, and dynamic social exchanges. Finally,
functionality can be increased through the installation or implementation of

add-ons and importing OER from LCMS.
DOI: 10.4018/978-1-7998-2882-2.ch005
Learning Managements Systems and Open Educational Resources
INTRODUCTION
In recent years, educational environments around the world have increased

the interest in e-learning in order to adapt to educational needs of student
population. Using technologies in educational context responds to a need
to promote the efficiency of teaching, flexibility and connections with the
student’s reality (Alshormar & Bawaneh, 2018). In this context, we highlight
Learning Management System (LMS), a concept emerged from e-Learning.
The first LMS appeared in higher education in the late 1990s, but nowadays
the majority of LMS are related to corporate market. LMS make up the
largest segment of the learning system market (Davis, Carmean & Wagner,
2009). In The NMC Horizon Report: 2017 (Adams Becker, Cummins, Davis,
Freeman, Hall Giesinger & Ananthanarayanan, 2017), it is indicated that,
in the case of higher education, the most widespread brands of LMS are:
Canvas, Blackboard, Moodle, Edmodo, Desire2Learn and Sakai. Although
the percentage of LMS corresponding to alternative learning platforms and
course development is minority, since 2011, MOOC courses have generated
new possibilities. LMS have allowed learning analytics, adaptive learning
(chapter 10) and dynamic social exchanges, but the report indicates that
there is a need for new models, highlighting the conclusion reached by the
2017 Panel of Experts in Higher Education: LMS are owned by companies
that control the platforms, making it difficult to integrate external resources
that are better adapted to learning needs. These external resources such as
popular tools in the classroom (Google Apps, Wordpress, Slack, iTunes,
etc.) or technological advances that allow gamification, Adaptive Learning
Technologies or Open Educational Resources (OER) are not always integrated
into LMS. From the correspondence education using primarily print-based
materials to the extent of the use of internet and the technological improving,
the development of LMS has been possible.
In relation to confusions between, LMS, Learning Content Management
System (LCMS) and Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) (chapter 9),
understanding the differences between them allows teachers to search and
decide properly tools. LMS is a software for managing b-learning (chapter 7),
u-Learning (chapter 9), etc. Learning Content Management System (LCMS)

is a software that allows user to create, develop and publish contents. These
contents can be added to the learning experience through LMS. VLE is a
virtual space for e-learning that bring together technology (from LMS) and
contents (from LCMS) (figure 1). Considering this, in this chapter, we will
132
Figure 1. Relationship between Learning Management System, Learning Content

Management System and Virtual Learning Environment
start with a brief review about the history of distance education and LMS,
continuing with the main features and advantages of LMS. After, aspects such
as LCMS and Open Educational Resources (OER) will be conceptualized.
Finally, we will present some of the most important LMS (open source, SaaS/
cloud based, propriety), LCMS and OER software and websites useful for
the management and design of your Social Sciences, Geography and History
classes; offering possibilities that expand the advantages for teachers and
students in the teaching and learning process. In other words, we will review
some of the more significant LMS focusing on open source LMS, listing
some examples of SaaS / cloud-based LMS and propriety LMS. Regarding
open source LMS, we have selected Moodle, Canvas, ATutor and Chamilo;
Regarding SaaS / cloud-based LMS, we focus on Moodle; and, in relation to
propriety LMS, we focus on Blackboard Learn. Finally, we will review how
to access to different OER types.
THE SCOPE OF LEARNING MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

In this section, we will review the role that distance education has played
in the history and development of LMS, highlighting the expansion of
educational possibilities and attention to different social and educational
needs of citizens through a sequence of stages. They include correspondence
teaching, multimedia teaching, telematic teaching and online teaching. LMS
133
have features that, by means of an adequate didactic use, have contributed to

expand the didactic and communicative options for the teaching and learning
of Social Sciences, Geography and History; providing tools for interaction via
software and for presentation of contents and in relation to communication
tasks. On the other hand, the selection of one LMS depends on numerous
factors that usually go beyond the teacher decision. In relation to this, it is
necessary that the institution consider criteria such as the need to restrict
access allowing only students enrolled in the subject to access the content
and activities, to promote communication with students through several
communication tools, to track the teaching and learning process, to know
what the students read, where they access in LMS or when, and to evaluate
them (Sartori & Garcia, 2009, Almrashdeh et al., 2011). In spite of this, it
is necessary that teachers know the functionalities of the LMS that they are
going to use, because this will allow them to use LMS more efficiently and
adapted to the real needs of the students, in addition to a greater control over
the process of teaching and learning. For this reason, in this section, we will
also review the criteria for the selection of an LMS according to definitions,
options and possibilities in relation to students’ interaction, presentation of
contents and communication functions.
Distance Education in the History
The history of LMS relates to the history of distance education. Taking

this into account, we must review several historical phases of distance
education that allowed development of the LMS. There historical phases
are correspondence teaching, multimedia teaching, telematic teaching
and teaching through internet. Distance education is not a new concept.
Regarding the correspondence teaching, the first distance education course
was a correspondence course. The first major correspondence program was
established at the University of Chicago in the late 1800’s. It was designed
to “provide educational opportunities for those who were not among the elite
and who could not afford full-time residence at an educational institution,
was looked down on as inferior education” (McIsaac & Gunawardena, 2003:
357). In the European context, the first evidence of a correspondence teaching

course with bi-directional communication comes from England in 1840.
Regarding this, as Simonson, Smaldino & Zvacek (2015) indicates, Isaac
Pitman initiated a shorthand course by mailing texts. In Pitman’s system,
student feedback was a crucial innovation for the development of distance
134
learning. After, Charles Toussaint and Gustav Langenscheidt developed a

self-learning method. It was published in 1856 and became very popular.
The concept of e-Learning began its development in the early 20th
century, marked by the appearance of audio-video. Distance learning included
advantages from new types of information technology such as telephone
or radio, in 1920’s, or television, in 1930s. The use of audio and video as
electronic communications in education relates to the start of multimedia
teaching. In Europe, gradually, audio was included in schools and distance
education employed media and more sophisticated methods, but all large
distance teaching organizations were private. In United States, in 1920’s,
universities included 176 radio stations and, in 1930s, several universities
produced experimental television teaching programs (Simonson, Smaldino
& Zvacek, 2015). Distance learning needed regulation, then, in 1926, the
National Home Study Council (NHSC)1 started to review distance learning
programs, stablishing guidelines. During World War II, American Army,
Navy, and air force commissioned hundreds of educational films for training.
The first teaching machine was developed by Sidney L. Pressey, in 1920, and
it offered several types of practical exercises and question formats. In 1929,
Zerte, professor of University of Alberta in Canada, transformed this machine
into a problem cylinder that compared problems and solutions. After this the
focus of research shifted to video communication.
Satellite telecommunications technologies started to be used in educational
contexts; making possible telematic teaching and allowing to deliver lectures
by an expert. In this sense, students can see visuals of the teacher with
practical demonstration through video motion capture, simulation, videoclips
or presentation slides, listening audio accompanying them. Computer allowed
teachers to integrate technical and educational means and instruments for
student learning. After experiences such as telecast lectures by the University
of Houston in 1953 and the release of an adaptative teaching system (SAKI) by
Robert McKinnon Wood and Gordon Pask, in 1956; experts from University
of Illinois developed from 1960 Programmed Logic for Automated Operations
(PLATO). PLATO was licensed by Control Data Corporation and it was
based on the idea of automating teaching operations and contents exchange
irrespective of users’ location (Vadnere, 2018). Between 1970 and 1980 the idea
of computerizing courses had a rapid development. Regarding this, Western
Behavior Science Institute from California offered the first online grade. With
the development of the teaching though the internet, LMS was developed too.
Regarding LMS and in specific cases such as Virtual Classrooms, teacher,
students and learning resources may be situated at different non-centralized
135
locations. This feature allows that teaching and learning take place independent
of space and time. LMS can be used for u-Learning, blended learning, flipped
classroom and other training modalities related to e-Learning.
Learning Management System Features

and Selecting Criteria
LMS encompass a type of software and web applications that facilitates the
online delivery of course materials, student tracking and presentation of work by
students. In general, an LMS focuses on the creation of course content through
a Learning Content Management System (LCMS) and on the management
of that content from different sources without the possibility of authorship.
Some LMS may allow to manage progress toward the learning outcomes,
and they may be open source (Moodle, Canvas, ATutor, Chamilo) SAAS /
cloud based (Google Classroom, DoceboLMS, Comerstone OnDemand Inc,
CallidusCloud, EthosCE, WizIQ) or propriety (CERTPOINT Systems Inc.,
Blackboar Learning System, Desire2Learn, EduNxt, Engrade, JoomaLMS,
Kanmu, WizIQ?). LMS are used for the administration, distribution and
control of activities; allowing asynchronous work among the participants and
being the main functions (Ellis, 2009): manage users, resources, materials,
training activities and access, follow up and control the learning process,
perform evaluations, generate reports and manage communication services
such as discussion forums or videoconferences. From a general point of view,
Alshormar and Bawaneh (2018) highlight that LMS have numerous functions
according to providing tools for interaction with the software, regarding
presentation of contents and in relation to communication function. Regarding
the function of providing tools for students’ interaction, they consider that
the more usual are:
• Announcements: a tool that provides students with the latest news and
highlighted announcements from teachers (one or groups), review their
content alphabetically, historically or clicking on the icon.
• Timetable: a tool that informs students about dates of events regarding
the subjects, alerts can be related to events such as lectures and meetings
on the platform, face-to-face meetings, etc., learners can add the events
they want.
136
• Tasks: this inform to students about what must they to do; allowing
them to organize those tasks. Regarding the learning needs a teacher
can send different tasks to selected students.
• Estimates: it is related to the student’s assessments, including
intermediate or final tests.
• User Guide: this is an orientation tool that guides to students about the
participation in the course.
• Address book: a personal notebook for the student to put data. It
contains the addresses added by students too.
Continuing with these authors and regarding the presentation of contents,

LMS offers the following content display function within the Course Content
Option:
• Display textual information accompanied by pictures, animations and

other elements that organized according to a custom organization.
• Documents and files.
• References recommended by the teacher
• Links to important websites.
Finally, several options according to communication function must be

highlighted, indicating that LMS provides 3 main ways of communication
between students or between students and teacher:
• E-mail: LMS provides a directory of students’ names and E-mails.

• Discussion Board: an asynchronous interactive tool that allow to
student express an opinion on or ask question to be reviewed and
answered by peers later.
• Virtual Classroom: the network meeting system used by the software
that allows the interaction between students and teachers through the
Chat Panel; providing a graphic board like a whiteboard that allow the
transference of texts, images and graphics between them.
The advantages offered by LMS the teaching of social sciences, are directly
related to the criteria when selecting an LMS. Thus, some of the key criteria
that an institution must consider when selecting an LMS are (George Reyes
s / f):
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• Updates: the management system must continually be updated in order

to eliminate and correct errors found by users.
• Control: it guarantees the possibility of being able to exercise control in
relation to the evolution and outcome of the students. It also facilitates
communication with the teacher.
• Administration: provide students with administrative power and
structure educational resources in a single space.
• Custom: allows the academic institution to customize the space
according to its identity.
• Support: ensure that the supplier fully controls and dominates the
system in order to receive technical support.
• Affinity: affinity and support of international methods of online courses,
such as SCORM and AICC.
• Usability: it is essential to structure the platform in order to avoid
failures. This is related to the learning process of students.
• Stability: all technical failures in the system must be avoided so as not
to influence the connection of users.
Focusing on more technical issues, Zapara (2016), indicates that LMS allow
different levels of users to be established with different access privileges;
allowing remote access to teachers and students (access is restricted and
selective). With the use of browsers such as Nestscape, Internet Explorer,
Opera, etc., users can access the platform from any computer, Teachers can
withdraw and deposit information. It includes a common graphic interface
where the different multimedia elements of courses are integrated: text,
graphics, video, sounds, animations, etc. Users can access resources and any
information available on the Internet; updating and editing of information with
standard means or structuring information and spaces in hypertextual format.
E-Leaning Management and Teaching of Social Sciences
In general terms, conceptions generated from common physical experiences

and social dynamics, allow students to understand the world around them; then
conceptions are very consistent and resistant to change or modification in the

school context. In Primary Education, Secondary Education and University
Education, the teacher of Social Sciences, Geography and History must take
into account previous ideas and conceptions because Contents are built as
an integration of diverse sources for the enrichment of everyday knowledge
(Porlán, 1999). Focusing on Primary and Secondary school education, and
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according to chapter 1, teachers must have information about the level of

students’ everyday knowledge (syncretic, analytic and systemic) linked to
specific contents of school knowledge.
On the other hand, the ways to manage education through LMS in Primary
and Secondary schools or universities are different, these differences must be
known by the institution and teachers. Technological evolution has changed
interaction and increase the complexity of an LMS developed to achieve
educational goals (Sartori & Garcia, 2009, Oliveira, 2012), expansion and
management contexts (Souza, 2005), management of learners, learning
activities, the process of evaluation of e-learning and mapping skills (Vaz,
2007). The educational management of e-learning provides planning decisions,
organization, direction and control, and it is concerned with facilities, space,
time, money, information and people in a similar way. However, regarding
e-learning there are differences between them (Mill & Brito, 2009). Regarding
this, McGill and Klobas (2009) and Bach, Domingues & Walter (2013) point
out that LMS research is characterized by a diversity of studies conducted in
a wide variety of contexts and they consider it is difficult the generalization
of research results.
In this regard Belloni (2001) highlights that a significant trend is the
investment in equipment, and in research of appropriate methodologies and
training for their application. This emphasis reflects the need for improving
e-learning processes, considering students’ level. In South African universities
context, the research by Louwa, Brown & Muller (2009) about the distribution
of tasks and technologies with students of Social Sciences concluded that
students in South Africa, in most cases, are not resistant to the adoption of
technologies, but feel constrained due to practical issues such as the lack of
infrastructure, support and time. Macfadyen & Dawson (2010) indicate that
significant students’ information can be extracted from an LMS and it may
help teachers to extract and visualize real-time data on student engagement
and probability of success in their courses.
OPEN EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES AND

LEARNING CONTENT MANAGEMENT SYSTEM
OER refer to free and open educational teaching, learning and research
resources in digital support. These resources are associated with an open
license (example, Creative Commons) that allows the use, adaptation and
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redistribution of them by others without any restrictions or with limited

restrictions. In 2006, there were approximately 50 million resources; however,
there are currently more than 800 million (mostly in English). 70% of OER
are produced in Europe and North America and 30% in the rest of the world.
The majority of them are designed in English language. As indicated by
the Education 3.0 team (2017), OERs offer teachers and students access to
knowledge completely free and customizable. This is possible due to 4Rs
that are defining features of:
• Review to adapt, improve or update the educational resource.

• Remix with another resource to produce new resources.
• Reuse the original or reedited resource in other contexts.
• Redistribute that implies the option to make the copies to share.
Within the framework of the World Congress on OER, 2012 Paris OER
Declaration (UNESCO, 2012) is elaborated. This Declaration takes as reference
the right to education that appears in sources such as article 26.1 of the
Universal Declaration on Human Rights or Article 13.1 of the International
Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, etc.; establishing the
following recommendations for States:
• Foster awareness and use of OER.

• Facilitate enabling environments for use of Information and
Communications Technologies (ICT).
• Reinforce the development of strategies and policies on OER.
• Promote the understanding and use of open licensing frameworks.
• Support capacity building for the sustainable development of quality
learning materials.
• Foster strategic alliances for OER.
• Encourage the development and adaptation of OER in a variety of
languages and cultural contexts.
• Encourage research on OER.
• Facilitate finding, retrieving and sharing of OER.
• Encourage the open licensing of educational materials produced with

public funds.
In 2nd World Open Educational Resources (OER) Congress, organized by

UNESCO and the Government of Slovenia from 18-20 September 2017 in
Ljubljana who was Director-General at that moment said:
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OER must play a key role if all countries have a chance to achieve the
Sustainable Development Goal of quality and lifelong education, and build
peace through Knowledge Societies that are open and accessible to all (…)
OER will amplify this impact, through fully recognizing authorship while
being free to further share, retain, copy, redistribute or remix, including
translating into local languages and cultural contexts (UNESCO, 2017a).
That Congress concluded with the adoption of the 2017 Ljubljana OER
Action Plan, where the suggested actions are (UNESCO, 2017b: 7):
• Develop policy that requires publicly funded educational resources be

openly licensed.
• Ensure that sustainable financing models are in place to implement
OER policies and practices, including increasing domestic financing
for education.
• Provide incentives to teaching staff to publish editable, accessible OER
digital files in public repositories.
• Include statements supporting OER in governmental and institutional
vision and mission statements.
• Demonstrate in policy how effective use of OER can support and
benefit key development priorities, including the 2030 Agenda for
Sustainable Development.
• Use national and institutional policy as a tool to reinforce a holistic
approach and coordinate actions from different stakeholders.
• Encourage the establishment of links between OER policies and other
open education policies such as those for Open Access as well as those
for Open Government, Open Data, and Open Science more generally
(with regard to the licensing of public resources).
LCMS is a platform that allows teachers to create, manage, host and track
digital learning content. Both LCMS and LMS allow teachers and students
to host and deliver digital learning but the main differences are related to the
field of specialization (table 1).
Regarding kind of learning, LCMS is specialized in digital learning

content and LMS is a platform that allows teachers to manage lots of learning
experiences; including e-learning and more traditional forms of learning
and training such as scheduling face-to-face workshops. It facilitates learner
conversations through social forums and sharing resources. Regarding creation
of contents, LMS allow teachers to manage more learning experiences, but
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Table 1. Differents between LCMS and LMS regarding kind of learning and creation
of contents
LCMS LMS
Specialized in digital learning content Specialized in learning experiences
Creation and delivery in the same place No creation only management.
it is not possibly creating those learning experiences there. For manage

learning experiences teachers must use separate a authoring tool to build
their e-Learning, download it as a SCORM2 file and upload that file to the
LMS in order to manage and deliver the e-Learning. LCMS is specialized
in facilitating creation and delivery in the same place.
LEARNING MANAGEMENT SYSTEM RESOURCES
In this space, we will review some of the more significant LMS focusing on
open source LMS, listing some examples of SaaS / cloud-based LMS and
propriety LMS. Regarding open source LMS, we have selected: Moodle,
Canvas, ATutor and Chamilo. Regarding SaaS / cloud-based LMS, we focus
on Moodle. In relation to propriety LMS, we focus on Blackboard Learn.
Moodle is a widely-used free software license that allows users to custom it
in order to run, study, share and modify the software. Canvas is a LMS with
several ways of connections between students and teachers; including Canvas
K-12 an LMS platform designed for needs of Elementary and Secondary
schools. ATutor is an Open Source LMS used to develop and manage online
courses, and to create and share interoperable e-learning content. Chamilo
is an e-learning platform for the management of face-to-face, b-learning or
u-learning. Google Classroom is a free LMS, developed by Google for schools
on 2014, which aims such as to simplify creating, distributing, and grading
assignments without paper. It is a part of Google Classroom is part of the
Google Apps for Education Suite, which includes Google Docs, Gmail and
Google Calendar. Blackboard Learn is a virtual learning environment and
LMS with service for Higher School Education that allow teachers to manage
courses, with a customizable open architecture, and with a scalable design
that make it possible for teachers to integrate with authentication protocols
and student information systems.
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Moodle
Moodle3 is acronym for Modular Object-Oriented Dynamic Learning

Environment and it is a free and open-source LMS distributed under the GNU
General Public License, a widely-used free software license that allows users
to custom it in order to run, study, share and modify the software. Moodle is
useful for blended learning, distance education, flipped classroom and other
e-learning projects in schools, universities, workplaces, etc. (Horvat, Dobrota,
Krsmanovic & Cudanov, 2015). Moodle runs on Unix, Linux, FreeBSD,
Windows, OS X, NetWare and any other systems that support PHP and a
database. According the website, general features are:
• Intuitive interface: accessible, allowing users to navigate both on

computers and mobile devices.
• Custom dashboard: where current, past and future courses are shown,
in addition to pending work.
• Collaborative Activities and Tools: such as forums, wikis, glossaries,
database activities, etc.
• All-in-one calendar: this tool allows users to keep up the academic
calendar, including delivery dates within the course, group meetings
and other personal events.
• File management: allowing drag and drop files from cloud storage
services. These cloud storage services include MS OneDrive, Dropbox
and Google Drive.
• Simple and intuitive text editor: the editor allows users to give the
appropriate format for the text; allowing to add multimedia and images.
• Notifications: users can receive automatic pre-enabled alerts about
new tasks, deadlines, forum posts or private messengers.
• Progress monitoring: teacher and students can monitor the progress
and level of completion through different options for monitoring
individual activities or resources.
In addition to the general characteristics of Moodle, in Moodle website

it is highlighted some of its most important characteristics in terms of
administration, and development and management of the course. In relation
to the administrative characteristics: the design is customizable, both
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authentication and enrollment are secure, it has multilingual capability, it

allows the mass creation of courses easily, there are options for managing
user roles, it supports open standards, it has a high inter-operativity, it allows
to manage plugins with ease, it has regular security updates, it shows reports
and logbooks about activities and participation in the course. As for the
characteristics related to the development of the course and its management:
there are direct learning routes where classes can be directed by the instructor,
self-regulated, mixed or 100% online, it allows to foster collaboration with tools
such as wiki, it is possible the connection with external content and inserting
audio and video files, it allows students groups management and differentiating
activities these groups, it allows assigning people the qualification of some
tasks, managing moderation and control in the process and qualifying online,
there are options for own and peer evaluation, it includes integrated badges,
results and rubrics based on competencies, it is a private and safe space where
only teachers and students can access.
Canvas
Instructure, Inc. is an educational technology company. It is the developer and

publisher of Canvas4, a Web-based LMS, and Canvas Network, a Massive
Open Online Course (MOOC) platform. Instructure was born in 2008 due
to the efforts of two college graduate students to transform LMS approach.
LMS at several local schools including Utah State University and Brigham
Young University was tested before officially launching Canvas. Frustrated
by the cumbersome learning tools available now, they focused more on
administrators than developing several ways of connections between students
and teachers. According the website, with the expansion of Canvas LMS
Platform on the education market, it become the most widely adopted LMS
in North America, a LMS used by millions of students and teachers globally
across 70 countries. Nowadays, Canvas extends its impact on lifelong learning.
Canvas and Bridge5 platforms by Instructure support the convergence of the
academic and professional worlds. It is necessary to highlight some milestones
regarding the development of Canvas, due to the expansion of services and
possibilities.
In 2011, Instructure launched Canvas LMS. In 2011, the iOS app was
launched; in 2013, the Android app, enabling mobile access to the Canvas
LMS (Knighton, 2013). These apps were eventually split into Canvas Student
and Canvas Teacher, with specific features for students and teachers. In 2012,
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Canvas K–126 was launched by Instructure as an LMS platform designed

for needs of Elementary and Secondary schools; and Canvas Network began
offering MOOC. In 2015, Instructure formally launched Bridge, a people-
focused employee development. In 2016, Instructure launched Canvas Studio, a
collaborative video-learning platform; and it launched Canvas Parent, a mobile
app for parents (iOS and Android) that allow parents of K–12 students to be
informed on their children’s assignments, evaluation and overall schooling
(Erikson & Hutchion, 2016). In general, Canvas for Higher School Education
and Canvas for Elementary and Secondary Education have the following
products available:
• Canvas LMS: it allows teachers to import, build, and manage courses,

to grade and to communicate with students.
• Canvas Studio: it is an interactive, video-centric approach platform. It
allows faculty to create video and facilitates students to participate into
two-way discussion.
• Canvas Practice: it was created by teachers and it allows teams
to practice skills and receive feedback through peer-to-peer video
assessment and coaching.
• Canvas Catalog: it is an institution-branded storefront for schools.
This product allows teachers to promote courses (paid or free).
Finally, according the website, there are a lot of features of Canvas that we
have organized in two categories: teaching - learning features and technical
features. Regarding teaching - learning features, we highlight:
• Quiz Stats: it allows to analyze and improve individual assessments

and quiz questions.
• MagicMarker: track in real-time feature about how students are
performing and demonstrating their learning.
• Canvas Polls: for the incorporation of formative assessment. Teacher
can understand if his instructional pace is too fast or too slow
• User-Customizable Navigation: allowing teachers reorder navigation
links or to hide them by drag and drop.

• Automated Tasks: for fast course management.
• Mobile Annotation: it is possible to open, annotate, and submit
assignments using the Canvas mobile app.
• Graphic Analytics Reporting Engine: for turning students’ data into
meaningful insights.
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• SpeedGrader Annotations: teachers can preview and annotate student

submissions without download or upload files.
• Canvas Commons: it is possible sharing with this learning object
repository (LOR).
• Canvas Data: teachers can generate custom queries and reports that
allow him to access, analyze, and understand complex learning data.
• RSS Support: teachers can create announcements that feed directly
from external Web sites.
• SpeedGrader: within one frame, it is possible to view, score and
provide audio, video or written feedback on students’ submissions.
• LTI Integrations: teacher can use external services and tools through
LTI integrations
• Profiles: teachers can introduce themselves to students with a Canvas
profile.
• Learning Mastery for Students: students are Empowered to take control
of their learning.
• Turn Students into Creators: it is possible for students to create and share
audio, video, etc. within assignments, discussions, and collaborative
workspaces.
• Empower Groups with Collaborative Workspaces: making possible
work in groups.
Regarding technical features, we must highlight common core and state

standards; IOS and Android, Canvas can be used in mobile device; ease
of use, with intuitive interface; notification preferences, by email, text
message, twitter or LinkedIn; outcomes, connection each learning outcome
to a specific goal is possible; integrated media recorder, recording audio and
video messages is possible from canvas; download and upload files, from
external tools or to work offline; modern web standards: canvas is built using
the same web standards that, for example, use Google, Facebook or Twitter;
browser support, Canvas is accessible from any computer or mobile device
that has a web-standard browser; web conferencing, with real-time audio,
video, and whiteboard capabilities in synchronous online communication;
multimedia integrations, it is possible to insert audio, video, text, images,

etc. at every learning contact point.
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ATutor
ATutor7 is an Open Source LMS used to develop and manage online courses
and to create and share interoperable e-learning content. ATutor is adherend
to standards and, as an open source technology, teacher may copy, distribute,
and modify it under the terms of the GNU General Public License (GPL).
ATutor’s Origin came from e-learning and LMS research, after two studies
in 1999 and 2000 that focused on the accessibility of popular LMS to people
with disabilities. The first of these researches was a technical audit which
measured the courseware accessibility (Gay, Harrison, Richards & Treviranus,
1999) and the second research was a user study that involved people with
various types of disabilities participating in a 6 week online course, whose
units were presented in different LMS each week (Harrison, 2000).
According the website, besides more additional features and third-party
add-on software to extend or modify ATutor’s functionality8, standard features
in ATutor organized in four categories (teachers, students, administrators and
developers) are:
Regarding ATutor Features for Students
• Accessibility: ATutor conforms with international accessibility

standards. IMS/ISO AccessForAll support allows learners to configure
the environment and content to their specific needs.
• Social Networking: all ATutor users can develop a network of contacts,
create and join interest groups, link remote gadget applications, share
photos, etc.
• Things Current: current information as, for example, ongoing activity,
is presented in My Start Page.
• Security: with encrypted passwords.
• My Courses: teacher and students can manage the ATutor enrolled
courses.
• Inbox/Messaging: users can send and receive private messages.
• Student Profile: students can add personal information.
• Adaptive Navigation: including global, hierarchical, or sequential

navigation tools.
• Work Groups: learners can collaborate or communicate with others on
course projects and forums, share resources (with File Storage utility),
etc.
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• File Storage: storage utility and sharing by groups is possible.

• Group Blogs: each group has access to their own blog, posting public
messages or private messages to group members and teachers.
• Feedback: following an action such as writing, feedback is given to
consider errors to fix.
• Preference Settings: students can control visual display, content
adaptation, navigation controls and learning tools.
• Communication Tools: private mail, discussion forums, chat rooms or
“User’s Online” tool.
• IMS content packaging Content Package Viewer: standard Content
Packages can be exported from ATutor to be viewed offline.
• Content Tracker: students can keep track of the content pages they have
visited.
• Test Manager: students can practice take tests, review results, and keep
track of their scores.
• Glossary: access to words and phrases added to the glossary by the
teacher using the Glossary tool.
• Links Database: teachers and students’ groups, within courses, have a
tool for collecting links to Web-based information.
• Course Search: with a search engine for contents or courses.
• Content Repository Search: students can search a content related to the
topic.
Regarding Atutor Features for Teachers
• Social Networking: teachers have all the students networking features,

but theay can create course networking groups to enhance class
interaction.
• Instructor ATutor Handbook: a link to the full Handbook is available
on every screen and it can be also searched or browsed. Teacher can
include notes in the handbook.
• Guest Access to Courses: access to private courses through a guest
URL, sent by teacher
• SCORM Run-Time Environment & SCO Manager: teacher can add

pre-packaged, interactive, interoperable, content to his course.
• Course Tool Preferences: teachers can custom course preferences from
available course tools and modules menu; allowing drag-and-drop
course tools to change the order.
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• Course Manage Page: ATutor tools can be accessed quickly under

Manage tab.
• Content Usage: with the review of individual usage statistics, teacher
can identify gaps in contents or learning tendencies of each student.
• Work Groups Manager: teachers can create (manual or automatically)
work groups, providing them a private group area.
• File Storage: in addition to the File Manager, which contains files
associated from ATutor content pages, the File Storage utility can be
used to store and share private files.
• Assignment Drop Box: extending the File Storage.
• Content Editor: teachers can create content in HTML or plain text.
This content can be imported from a local editor or edited directly
online.
• Visual editor: with Visual Editor, it is possible to paste a MS Word
document to convert it converted to ATutor content.
• Accessibility Checker: integrated into the Content Editor, it allows
teachers to review the accessibility of content to people with disabilities
that may be using assistive technology.
• Interoperable Content: entire courses, or individual course units can be
packaged for viewing or redistribution. Content from other compliant
systems can be imported into ATutor.
• AContent Learning Objects Repository: teachers can search the
AContent repository for course related materials and download
conformant content packages or common cartridges from the repository
for viewing, or to import into a course. It is possible to export content
from ATutor into the repository, or export content from ATutor or from
the repository to be used in other LMS.
• Backup Manager: the entire content and structure of a course can be
backed up and stored on the ATutor server or downloaded and saved to
your local computer for security.
• News & Announcements: teachers can post messages to the course
Home Page to guide learners. For example, news can be used for
weekly introductions, for announcing important dates, for posting
critical information, etc.

• File Manager: teachers can upload and manage course related files.
• Test Manager: teacher can create tests with multiple choice, multiple
answer, true/false, Likert, ordering, matching, drag and drop, open
ended question types. etc. Feedback can be customized, and test results
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can be archived. It is possible to generate random question quizzes

from a Question Bank.
• Polls: teacher can create one question polls to quickly know student
opinions.
• FAQs: teacher can create a collection of Frequently Asked Questions.
• Forums: teachers can create and manage multiple forums for each of
their courses.
• Course Email: teachers can send bulk to all course students or
individual user.
• Course Properties: teachers can assign a course as public, protected, or
private, or hide a course while it is being developed.
• Enrolment Manager: teachers may import list of students to enroll them
in courses, to export an enrolment list or to import into other systems.
Automatically generate login names and passwords for students and
send them by email when a student is enrolled in a course.
• Privileges: with Enrollment Manager, teachers can assign course
members access to various teacher tools, creating teaching assistants
or co-instructors.
• Addon Modules: such as Google Search, RSS Feeds, EWiki, SCORM9
Player, Payments, Certificates, Open Meeting, Adobe Connect, etc.
Atutor LMS is certified by IMS Global Learning Consorcium Administrators

can install or update ATutor in few minutes, and custom ATutor themes
and functionality, extending them with feature modules. Teachers can
assemble, package and redistribute Web-based instructional content, import
prepackaged content, and manage their courses online. Students can learn
through an accessible, adaptive and social learning environment. Atutor
features for administrators are module manager, social networking, security,
administrator’s home page, Patcher module, administrator ATutor handbook,
multiple administrators, URLS, master student list, themes manager, general
statistics, secure course content, instructor request, users manager, enrolment
manager, course manager, backup manager, course categories and language
manager. Finally, Atutor features for developers can be summarized in
developer documentation, OAuth API, networking gadgets, networking API,

module developer documentation, Hello World template module, theme
designer documentation, Patcher Module, ATutor SVN code repository,
ATutor bug reports.
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Chamilo
Chamilo10 LMS is an e-learning platform for the management of face-to-face,

b-learning or u-learning. This is a free software licensed under the GNU /
GPLv3, which has been developed to facilitate global access to education
and knowledge. This LMS is supported by the Chamilo Association, a non-
profit association, which aims to promote software for education, maintain
a clear communication channel and build a network of service providers and
software contributors. A research on different strategies used by professors
through the implementation of the Chamilo LMS concludes that:
it is important to highlight how the integration of the Chamilo virtual
platform helps to generate different teaching strategies that strengthen
pedagogical practice by broadening and inviting the professor to use these
strategies, which mediate the curricular contents and the way to approach
them with the student in the classroom, recognizing that the integration of
ICT in the teaching and learning process, without a doubt, facilitates the
learning process (Gonzalez, Villota & Medina, 2017: 9).
In general, it is a free software that continues to be developed thanks to the
collaboration of several companies, organizations and individuals that share
the same vision based on collaborative and ethical development. Regarding
LCMS, Chamilo LCMS project was discontinued in 2015.
Google Classroom
Google Classroom11 is a free LMS, developed by Google for schools on 2014

to simplify creating, distributing and grading assignments without paper.
Google Classroom is part of the Google Apps for Education Suite, which
includes Google Docs, Gmail and Google Calendar, and its main purpose is
facilitate the process of sharing files between teachers and students (Ressler,
2017). Google Classroom combines the following google tools:
• Google Drive: it is a file storage and synchronization service developed

by Google.
• Google Docs: it is a free word processor from a web-based software

office suite offered by Google within its Google Drive service.
• Google Sheets: it is a free spreadsheet program from a web-based
software office suite offered by Google within its Google Drive service.
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• Google Slides: it is a presentation program from a web-based software

office suite offered by Google within its Google Drive service.
• Gmail: it is a free email service developed by Google and it is useful
for communication.
• Google Calendar: it is a time-management and scheduling calendar
service developed by Google.
Teachers have several options for students’ registration. Students can be

invited to join a class, sharing with them a private code or students’ registration
can be an automatic process by importing students lists from school domain.
Google Classroom platform is compatible with mobile apps available for iOS
and Android devices and let users take photos and attach to assignments, share
files from apps and offline access to information. According the website,
some of the most important features of Google Classroom are:
• Feedback using the comment bank.

• It is possible post, comment, and facilitate classroom discussions.
• Management regarding guardians, students, and co-teachers on the
People page.
• It allows teachers to assign and grade coursework securely. It is possible
to reuse or collaborate.
• It is possible to keep materials and resources organized in the Classwork
page.
• It is possible to eliminate distractions by giving quizzes in locked mode.
Other of SaaS / cloud LMS options are DoceboLMS, Comerstone,

OnDemand Inc, CallidusCloud, EthosCE, WizIQ.
Blackboar Learn
Previously Blackboard Learning Management System. Blackboar Learn12 is a

VLE and LMS with service for Higher School Education that was developed
by Blackboard Inc, an American company with corporate headquarters in
Washington, D.C. It is a Web-based server software that allow teachers to

manage courses, with a customizable open architecture, and with a scalable
design that allows them to integrate with authentication protocols and student
information systems. Regarding the installing, Blackboar Learn may be
installed on local servers or hosted by Blackboard ASP Solutions; allowing
to add online elements to courses and to develop online courses with no face-
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to-face meetings or few of them. On 2014, Blackboad moved to cloud (Learn

SaaS) and on 2015 start transition to “Ultra” upgrade interface of Blackboard
Learn. On 2018, the user experience was redesigned and moved to the second
most used in the world behind Moodle (Hill, 2018). Blackboard partnered
with OpenEd from October 2017 in order to integrate OER in this LMS.
With Blackboard Learn, as LMS, is possible communication and sharing
content. Regarding communication there are announcements, chat, discussions,
etc. Regarding to sharing content, some features are course content, that
allows teachers to post articles, assignments, videos etc., calendar, learning
modules, that allows teachers to post different lessons, assessments, including
quizzes, exams, etc., assignments, grade book to post grades on Blackboard
for students, and media library.
Blackboard has services for School Education. Blackboard Classroom is
a product that offers a comprehensive digital LMS for K-12 students and,
even though, some aspects may be similar to Blackboard learn, it has original
features. According the website, key features of Blackboard Classroom are:
• HD Virtual Classroom: video web-conferencing built for learning to

cultivate synchronous digital collaboration and power flipped learning.
• Access to digital and interactive content: it allows teachers to automate
elements of their class for personalized communications and learning
paths.
• Personalized learning designer: digital, interactive, and reusable
content can be created, including video, games, drag and drop, audio/
video, etc.
• Integration with tools for teaching: such as Google, OneDrive, Dropbox
and Box.
• Mobility: mobile apps, including interactive offline access, synchronous
collaboration and an app for parents to keep track of their children’s
progress.
• Analytics and Data Visualization: this feature facilities teacher to
make decisions based on data by tracking, analyzing, and monitoring
learning performance in the classroom, school, or across the district in
real-time.
Other options of propriety LMS are CERTPOINT Systems Inc.,

Desire2Learn, EduNxt, Engrade, JoomaLMS or Kanmu.
153
ACCESS TO OPEN EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES
As stated by UNESCO (2012, 2017a, 2017b), OER are fundamental for

access of all people to education throughout their live. In short, the right to
education is a fundamental right that requires a process of democratization
of education though open access of knowledge. Focusing on the teaching
and learning of Social Sciences, Geography and History, some significant
OER platforms useful for teachers and students are: Procomún, Curriki,
Learning Resource Exchange, Open Education Europa, Openstax CNX, OER
Commons, Wikieducator, Resources for history teachers, and Didactics of
Social Sciences and ICT.
Procomún
Procomún13 is an OER Network and repository created by the National

Institute of Educational Technologies and Teacher Training (INTEF) in
which didactic material is collected cataloged in a standardized way through
metadata (LOM-ES). Resources on this website are consistent with the teaching
curriculum of Infant, Primary and Secondary Education, Vocational Training
and Baccalaureate. In addition, it is an open network of educational resources
that works as a social network to create, value and disseminate experiences.
It consists of several criteria to define the first search:
• All contents: here the teacher can mark all the contents in learning
resources, articles, users, communities, questions, debates, surveys,
events, external content, learning itineraries, podcasts, webinars.
• Knowledge area: teacher can choose between multiple areas, including
Geography, History and Civic Education.
• Learning context: stage and course, including Infant, Primary,
Secondary, Vocational Training, Teacher Training, etc.
However, it allows more criteria to refine the search:

• Certified resources: certificates and non-certificates.

• Language: Spanish, English, etc.
• Collection, regional node (examples, Junta de Andalucía, Community
of Madrid, etc.) and tags (building, architecture, facade, arch, etc.).
• Resource type: photography, multimedia presentation, problem-based
learning, master lesson, sound effect, narrative text, exercise or closed
154
problem, questionnaire, didactic game, project-based, animation,

speech, music, simulation, web, concept map, WebQuest, video and
graphic.
Currilki
Curriki14 (name from “curriculum” + “wiki”) is a collaborative social

network for teachers with the option of share free learning resources, and
it includes free and open resources for parents and students with thousands
of standards-aligned lessons for Primary and Secondary education. Curriki
encourages collaboration on diverse experiences from around the world
in order to develop “best of breed” learning resources (peer-reviewed and
classroom-tested). Curriki Library allows teachers to search for courses, units
or lesson plans to save planning time. In order to focus a searching, teachers
have several options:
• More Options:
◦◦ Subject: including social studies
◦◦ Subject area: regarding social studies some subject area are
History (local / global), Geography and Civics.
◦◦ Search by standard: step 1, jurisdiction / organization, step 2,
document title, step 3, course of study.
◦◦ Education Level: grades of Kindergarten, Primary and Secondary
Education and Professional Development.
◦◦ Rating: from partners, Curriki and members.
◦◦ Type: application, article / essay, assessment, audio, curriculum,
diagram / illustration / map, e-book, fiction, full course, game,
graphic organizer / worksheet, interactive, lesson plan, manual,
non-fiction, other, photograph, Reading / excerpts, rubric, scope
and sequence, slides, table / graph / chart, textbook, unit, video,
vocabulary.
• Teachers can search resources, members and groups.
Members can save any resource to their private Curriki Library for quick
and easy access to those lessons later. Regarding communities, students
and teachers use Curriki Groups to collaborate on projects, curriculum
development, and district initiatives. Groups can be public or private and it
is possible share files without sending bulky attachments. It has numerous
partners and sponsors and it is used in a global context.
155
Learning Resource Exchange
Learning Resource Exchange15, with the support of the Ministries of Education

of Europe and connected with projects funded by the European Commission,
is a portal that offers a service for schools, both with open educational content
and with other services. Regarding the searching of resources, teachers can
do it by name, tags, languages, subjects (including the following subjects
Geography, History and Social Sciences) and / or providers.
According the website, this portal includes the following sections:
• Resource directory: start searching and find learning resources for

your classes.
• Member profile: create and manage your membership profile as a
registered user. With a registered user login, you can also rate, provide
comments and add resources to your Favorites. You can also view the
public profiles of other members.
• Information pages: read about LRE initiatives and contributing
organizations.
• News and events: see the latest news and the upcoming events related
to LRE.
All sections of the portal are available from the home page. It is possible
to return to home page from any other page of the portal clicking on the LRE
logo at the upper left-hand side corner. Regarding the discovering of resources
from the home page, teachers have the option to search only “travel well”
resources. They are resources that have the potential to be used in different
countries and learning contexts. Highlighted resources are resources that
Learning Resource Exchange staff has marked as interesting for users. Most
favorite resources are ‘favorites’ by other Learning Resource Exchange users.
Open Education Europa
In 2013, the European Commission created Open Education Europa16,

a repository with the aim of providing users with a portal of educational

resources open in different languages for students, professors and researchers
of the European Union. In relation to types, it includes academic articles on
learning, including case studies, e-Learning papers, teaching resources used in
the classroom and blog items. The European Commission’s Open Education
156
Europa (OEE) platform ran from 2013 until 2018. A selection of articles that
were published at OEE, including eLearning papers.
Openstax CNX
Openstax CNX17 is a dynamic non-profit digital repository that was founded

by Dr. Richard Baraniuk in 1999 at Rice University to provide authors and
learners with an open space where they can create, share and adapt educational
materials such as courses, books and reports. Filter options are publication
date, author, type, keyword and subject.
According the website, in relation to type, there are learning objects, called
“pages”, that are organized into textbook-style books in a host of disciplines;
including Social Sciences as a subject filter for searching didactic resources
and materials. Social sciences subject includes History and Geography
materials, moreover some authors upload them by educational grade. It is
part of OpenDOAR18 an open access repositories directory with a list of more
than 800 resource repositories.
OER Commons
OER Commons19 is a repository created in 2007 by the Institute for the

Study of Knowledge Management in Education. It has resources in several
languages and with a search engine for resources, collections and providers.
Filter resources includes:
• Education standards: in alphabetical order.

• Subject area: Social Sciences, History.
• Education levels: Preschool, Lower Primary, Upper Primary, Middle
School, High School, Post-Pecondary, etc.
• Material type: activity/lab, assessment, case study, diagram/illustration,
full course, game, homework/assignment, interactive, lecture, lecture
notes, lesson, module, primary source, reading, simulation, student
guide, syllabus, teaching/learning strategy, textbook, unit of study.
Wikieducator
Wikieducator20 is a community of educators with tutorials related to free

e-Learning contents. According the website, it is a collaborative tool for:
157
• planning of education projects linked with the development of free

content
• development of free content on Wikieducator for e-learning
• work on building open education resources (OERs) on how to create
OERs
• networking on funding proposals developed as free content
This space includes how to search, create, edit, use and share OER in
the classroom. This tutorial offers teacher practical information, tips and
instructions; teaching the teacher effective ways to search the Internet for
relevant information, resources and OER that fit their needs. It includes
ideas for teachers that can keep them up to date on resources of interest. It
is composed of the sections such as effective searching of OER or search
for audiovisual materials: such as images, animation, audio, video through
different web tools:
• Flickr Creative Commons Search is a widely used tool to download

and organize images. Teachers must decide what they want to do with
the images and what license fits they needs. Teachers can use Flickr
advanced search to specify at the bottom of the page if they are looking
for images under a Creative Commons license.
◦◦ Link: https://www.flickr.com/creativecommons/
• Wikimedia Commons is a repository where users can find images from
the public domain, images licensed by Creative Commons and images
licensed by GNU Free Documentation. Thay can search for images by
thematic categories, by type of audiovisual file (for example, animation,
maps, etc.), by full text and by license.
◦◦ Link: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Main_Page
• Freesound is a sound and noise platform licensed by Creative Commons.
◦◦ Link: https://freesound.org/
• CCmixter is a web space that offers songs under a Creative Commons
license. They allow reusing music by entering “open music”.
◦◦ Link: http://ccmixter.org/
Resources for History Teachers
Resources for history teachers 21 is organized by teachers and students from

the History and Political Science Teacher Education Program in the College
of Education at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and it focus on US
158
History, World History and World Geography among other topics, including
biographies, dramatic events and special topics to use in the classroom.
Didactics of Social Sciences and ICT
Didactics of Social Sciences and ICT22 (Didáctica de las Ciencas Sociales

y TIC) is the blog of Diego Sobrino, with resources for Secondary school
teachers, including educational projects and publications in the area,
multimedia elements, classroom blogs, resources (education and ICT’s,
History, Geography and Art), events and useful guidance for oppositions to
the faculty of Geography and History.
CONCLUSION
Beyond the phase of considering that using technology automatically implies

innovation has passed, there is a progressive adaptation that has normalized the
use of LMS in educational settings. Technological and didactical development
have allowed new possibilities in education, including the teaching and
learning of Social Sciences, Geography and History. LMS have allowed
learning analytics, adaptive learning and dynamic social exchanges, many
times functionality can be increased through the installation or implementation
of add-ons and importing elements from LCMS. These options are useful
to adapt a virtual environment to the needs of the specific teaching-learning
process. Ramírez (2013) argues that LMS provides tools for students to
integrate into groups to interact and achieve assigned tasks and the interaction
between students through forums that enrich the construction of knowledge
through communication and discussions. We agree with these words because,
despite the initial concerns of the educational community, communicative
and interactive possibilities have increased due to the usual characteristics of
the LMS. Usually, they allow students to work in groups created manually
or randomly by the teacher, create and join interest groups, collaborate or
communicate with others on course projects and share resources. Besides,
each group can access to their own blog, posting public messages or private
messages to group members and teachers, including use of private mail,
discussion forums, chat rooms, etc.
159
With the LMS, teachers have full control over student activity and
performance without programming knowledge; obtaining information that
allows them to adapt their teaching or share support resources with students
based on learning needs and contribute efficiently to improving of the process.
As Diaz indicated “it is computer environment in which we find many tools
grouped and optimized for teaching purposes. Its function includes allow the
creation and management of complete internet courses without the need for
a deep programming knowledge” (2009, 2). Regarding teaching experience
with Moodle, researches such as Fernández and Bermúdez (2009) conclude
that the development of didactic contents in LMS facilitates skills of didactic
aids management, introducing the using ICT for students and generating
different strategies by the teacher as selection, organization and sequencing
of contents, access to different resources in the platform, interaction with
students and promotion of collaborative work.
In general, LMS provides educational management technology to VLE,
and LCMS provides educational content management options to VLE.
Together with LMS and LCMS, OERs (not always integrated into LMS) have
promoted a process of democratization and expansion of education; generating
a solidarity exchange between teachers who share their non-profit resources
for education and training. This is due to OER are associated with an open
license (Creative Commons) that allows the use, adaptation and redistribution
of them by others without any restrictions or with limited restrictions. As we
will see in the next chapter, this formative democratization goes even further
with the expansion of the Massive Open Online Courses (MOOC) that have
contributed to give more relevance to virtual teaching-learning environments
and have responded to a social demand for specialized training.
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ENDNOTES
1
Nowadays Distance Education Accrediting Commission (DEAC), a
non-profit national educational accreditation agency in the United States.
2
SCORM: the most widely used e-Learning standard.
3
Moodle: https://moodle.org/
4
Canvas: https://www.instructure.com/canvas/
5
Bridge: https://www.instructure.com/bridge/
6
Canvas K-12: https://www.instructure.com/canvas/k-12/platform
7
Atutor: https://atutor.github.io/
8
Atutor modules: https://atutor.github.io/atutor/modules.html
9
SCORM is the acronym of Sharable Content Object Reference Model
and it is considered a set of learning objects packaged and structured
as free standard web didactic material that allows teachers to import,
reuse and share content (Godwin-Jones, 2004).
10
Chamilo: https://chamilo.org/en/download/
11
Google Classroom: https://classroom.google.com/h
12
Blackboard Learn: https://www.blackboard.com/index.html
13
Procomún: http://procomun.educalab.es/en
14
Curriki: https://www.curriki.org/
15
Learning Resource Exchange: http://lreforschools.eun.org/web/guest
16
Open Education Europe: https://www.schooleducationgateway.eu/en/
pub/resources/oee.htm
17
Openstax CNX: https://cnx.org/
18
OpenDOAR: http://v2.sherpa.ac.uk/opendoar/
19
OER Commons: https://www.oercommons.org/oer
20
Wikieducator: http://wikieducator.org/Open_Educational_Content_es/
olcos/SEARCH_es
21
Resources for history:
http://resourcesforhistoryteachers.pbworks.com/w/page/123820173/
FrontPage
22
https://diegosobrino.com/
164
165
Chapter 6
Massive Open Online
Courses as a Specific
Type of E-Learning:
From Sending Information
to Sharing Knowledge
ABSTRACT
In recent years, training based on activities and courses with teaching-learning
processes mediated by technology has been promoted. Massive Open Online
Courses (MOOCs) have opened the possibilities in terms of design, offer, and
access to training courses. Considered as a very specific type of e-Learning,
they are free access and non-limited in the number of students, and they
automate the evaluation processes without a direct relationship between
teacher-student. There are several types of MOOCs, but the most popular
are xMOOCs, usually traditional university e-Learning courses adapted to
MOOC platform features. cMOOCs are oriented under the guidelines of the
connective learning. With the popularization of MOOC courses from many
universities, the number of web platforms with these courses has increased.
Some of these platforms are Coursera, edX, Miriadax, and platforms and
tools such as Course Builder and Canvas.
DOI: 10.4018/978-1-7998-2882-2.ch006
Massive Open Online Courses as a Specific Type of E-Learning
INTRODUCTION
From information age to network society, there is an immediacy access to

information, needs for lifelong learning and a continuous change of students
that makes no sense to teach the same contents taught to students 20 years ago
or teach them in the same way. As Cabero (2015) indicates, one of the main
aspects that have contributed to pay more attention to new training needs of
teachers; including needs to improve competence in multiple literacies from
schools. Digital literacy is not the only step to make a didactic and efficient
use of technologies in the classroom, but it is essential. In recent years,
training based on activities, courses and proposals where teaching-learning
processes are mediated by technology has been promoted (Castaño-Muñoz,
Duart & Teresa, 2015; Estévez & García 2015; Roig-Vila, Mondéjar &
Lorenzo-Lledó, 2016; Colorado, Marín-Díaz & Zavala, 2016, Gómez Galán,
Martín Padilla, Bernal Bravo & López Meneses, 2017). Digital literacy must
be accompanied by training in the use of technologies for the teaching and
learning of Social Sciences, Geography and History; technologies that are
not always configured with a strictly didactic purpose, but that can be used
as educational resources.
In Computer-based training (CBT), any course may be delivered via
software installed on a single computer, through a corporate or educational
intranet, or via Internet (Web-based training). CBT can be synchronous and
asynchronous, as well as online, web-based, mobile, and distance learning.
Usually it is useful for training learners on a specific computer application
to improve technological skills and digital literacy. CBT can also be built
to train learners on other contents or skills, and due to the cost of design
these courses, it is more properly to train a larger number of students. In
relation to the use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT)
and Learning and Knowledge Technologies (KLT) in the teaching-learning
processes, educational proposals arise. These proposals allow both teachers and
students to participate within a digital online environment using technologies;
taking advantage of the possibilities of file sharing and communication with
Internet. This large-scale technological advancement has made possible
the development of e-Learning that, beyond the technological, enables the

management of student-centered learning with digital support.
Considering a learning more focused on teaching materials and less on
the interaction between students and teachers, the expansion of the Massive
Online Open Courses (MOOC) must be highlighted. MOOCs have opened
166
up the possibilities in terms of design, offer and access to training courses

(Yuan & Powell, 2013, Downes, 2013a, 2013b, López, Vázquez & Román,
2015), due to features such as free access, non-limitation in the number of
students and automation of evaluation processes without a direct relationship
between teacher-student. E-Learning, meanwhile, covers lessons developed
online, including teleformation, distance learning, virtual teaching or online
teaching in a flexible way. Therefore, MOOCs could be considered as a very
specific type of e-Learning that is usually more common in Higher Education
and that promise to increase educational opportunities worldwide (Literat,
2015). Although detractors consider MOOCs as a “low-quality” learning
proposal and a threat to current models of Higher Education, advantages
such as social inclusion, dissemination of knowledge, educational innovation
and internalization of higher education institutions (Teixeira, García-Cabot,
García-López, Mota & De-Marcos, 2016). Indeed, as indicated by Daniel
(2012), Christensen Steinmetz, Alcorn, Bennett, Woods and Emanuel (2013),
Vázquez-Cano & López-Meneses (2015) and Martín Padilla & Rodríguez
Fernández (2016) MOOCs, in addition to offering open and free training,
they arise as a need for work or scientific specialization where certification
is not the main objective.
As indicated Shah (2018), around 23 million new learners signed up for their
first MOOC in 2017, taking the total number of learners to 81 million. The top
five MOOC providers by registered users is Coursera (30 million), edX (14
million), XuetangX (9.3 million), Udacity (8 million) and FutureLearn (7.1
million). In this chapter, after conceptualizing MOOCs, we will delve MOOCs
conceptualization and MOOC types, focusing con xMOOCs and cMOOCs.
Finally, the main MOOC search engines and consolidated institutions will be
reviewed, including Coursera, Edx, MiriadaX, Course Builder and Canvas.
CONCEPTUALIZATION OF MASSIVE
OPEN ONLINE COURSES
The first MOOC dates from August 2008 and it was organized by George
Siemens and Stephen Downes at the University of Manitoba of Canada, an

open education course with 2300 students enrolled (Downes, 2012a; Daniel,
2012). The term MOOC was named by Dave Cormier and Bryan Alexander
that year. However, as indicated by Pernías & Luján-Mora (2013), 2011 would
mark a milestone in the history of MOOCs because more than 160,000 people
167
enrolled in an Artificial Intelligence (AI) course taught by Sebastian Thrun

& Peter Norvig at Stanford University through a startup called Know Labs
(currently, Udacity). In 2012, due to the high number of enrolled students
and based on the technology developed at Stanford, Daphne Koller and
Andrew Ng created Coursera, a platform supported by numerous prestigious
universities such as Yale, Princeton, Michigan or Penn. That same year, the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Harvard announced their
joint Edx Project (created from MITx at MIT). Subsequently, other platforms
such as MiriadaX or FutureLearn have emerged. The expansion of MOOCs
and the popularization of the term were reflected in the article “The Year of
the MOOC” from New York Times (Pappano, November 2, 2012).
MOOC are distance courses with no limit of participants, which can be
accessed online, and anyone can sign up for. In addition to videos, readings
and questionnaires, typical of a traditional course, they can make use of
interactive user forums that help build a community for students, teachers
and teaching assistants. Its acronym is important because defines them
(Pedreño, Moreno, Ramón & Pernías, 2013, Gómez Galán, Martín Padilla,
Bernal Bravo & López Meneses, 2013):
• Massive: they focus on demands of all users in a world with Internet

access.
• Open: its contents are usually open and can be shared and, some of
them, can be modified.
• Online: they are accessed and developed through the Internet and
autonomously.
• Course: they are structured by passing tests and focusing on teaching.

Not all users who access a MOOCs participate in the same way or with the
same depth. In this sense, Kizilcec, Piech & Schneider (2013) identified four
types of participants:
• Passive participants: they are users who access the course materials,
but they do not usually use the assessments and do not participate in
any communication activity.

• Active participants: they are users who use all the course materials,
who perform all (or most) of the assessments and participate in
communication activities through forums and social networks.
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• Disconnected users: they are users who perform the assessments at

the beginning of MOOCs; but, subsequently, they only access to some
classes or disappear completely from the course.
• Marauders: they are the users who limit themselves to superficially
explore the course and who watch some videos.
Regarding the teaching roles, most of these proposals focus on the student
and on how they internalize the course contents without direct transmission
from the teacher. Thus, teaching functions are more focused on the facilitation
of resources and orientation. As Medina-Salguero & Aguaded (2013) and
Vázquez Cano (2013) indicate, MOOCs need teachers to act as content
managers, search, group and share information continuously; automating and
optimizing resources, but taking into account that students must also filter,
add and enrich the course with their participation.
CLASSIFICATION OF MOOCs
The diversity of MOCCs with respect to the diversity of organization and

design, reflects different about what the training process should be, conditioning
the way in which contents are designed, what students should do and ways
in which they should be evaluated (Cabero, Llorente & Vázquez, 2014). As
indicated by Dron & Ostashewski (2015), in most of these proposals, students
are not treated as a source of knowledge but as a recipient or, in the best case,
as a constructor of this. It is worth noting the taxonomy of the MOOC types
enunciated by Clark (2013):
• MiniMOOC: MOOCs for content and skills that do not require long
timescales. This is more usual in commercial e-Learning courses
which tend to encourage a more intense experiences for hours and
days, not weeks. They are more suitable for precise tasks with very
specific learning objectives. Open Badges movement tends to be more
aligned with this type of MOOC. Open Badges is an open technical
standard originally developed by Mozilla Foundation that allows

issuing, awarding and sharing badges on the web through a technical
infrastructure. Open Badges, unlike mere visual representation, contain
metadata that indicates issuer, criteria, etc. and it is integrated with
many issuing platforms. In late 2018, Mozilla announced the migration
of Mozilla Backpack to Badgr [https://badgr.com], now native to
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open LMS Platform Canvas that allows teachers to see the progress
of their students in a course and export badging data associated to
the completion of modules in that course. Regarding Nano MOOC
(NOOC), it is related to Nano Learning Experience (NLE) and it gives
participants the opportunity to explore, to learn and to be evaluated
on a key element of a competition, a skill, or an area of knowledge. In
Nano MOOCs, periods of time range from a minimum of 1 hour to a
maximum of 20 hours.
• TransferMOOC: courses that have been transferred to a MOOC platform
based on the adaptation of existing e-Learning courses at universities.
They are led by teacher of one institution. Learners feel attracted by the
‘name’ of the institution or the academic. Many transferMOOCs mimic
the traditional academic course, including lectures, short quizzes,
texts and assessments. Numerous courses of Coursera, a platform of
MOOCs that we will review later, are transferMOOCs.
• MadeMOOC: Made MOOCs tend to more innovation in their use of
video. They tend to have more crafted and challenging assignments,
problem solving and various levels of sophisticated software-driven
interactive experiences. Accompanied by peer work and peer-
assessment, MadeMOOCs are more vocational in nature and their aim
is to acquire skills. Udacity courser are usually MadeMOOCS.
• SynchMOOC: these courses have a fixed start date, deadlines for
assignments and assessments and end date. Coursera offer courses on
strict start date, assignments and assessments deadlines, and end date.
• AsynchMOOC: these courses have not a fixed start date, deadlines for
assignments and assessments and end date. Asynchronous MOOCs
can be taken anytime and anywhere. In this line, SPOOC (Self-Paced
[SP]) is an open online course that allows users to develop a learning
experience focusing on the development of skills, especially those
related to network collaboration, autonomous learning management
and participation in educational communities.
• AdaptiveMOOC: AdaptiveMOOCs use adaptive algorithms to present
personalized learning experiences to students. These courses are based
on dynamic assessment and data gathering, and take learners on different,

personalized paths through the content, improving productivity in
online courses. These MOOCs tend not to deliver a linear structured
knowledge, but leaning experiences driven by algorithms. So that
analytics are used to improve the course in the future too. Cogbooks
courseware are significant examples of AdaptiveMOOCs. CogBooks
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Figure 1: The key characteristics of cMOOCs vs. xMOOCs (extracted from Yousef
et al. 2015: 312)
[https://www.cogbooks.com] is an Advanced Adaptive Learning

platform that allows to plug their coursewares into an existing system
(Blackboard, Canvas, D2L, etc.) and whose underlying recommendation
engine intelligently learns about each student interaction with the
course. It adapt the student’s path through the content and adapting the
process to each individual needs.
• GroupMOOC: Group MOOCs start with small groups of students
for collaboration. As an example, NovoEd (formerly Venture Lab),
developed by Stanford, offer both MOOCs and closed, limited number,
internal courses. The development of Group MOOCs is based on the
idea that some subjects and courses need a more focused approach
to groupwork. Regarding this, the groups are selected by geographic
location, ability and type, with co-evaluation proposal about
commitment and progress.
• ConnectivistMOOC: Connectivism is a learning theory that explains
how Internet technologies have created new opportunities for people to
learn and share information across the Internet and among themselves
(Siemens, 2005). ConnectivistMOOC type (cMOOC), that we will
describe after, was the first MOOCs type pioneered by Geoerge
Siemens and Stephen Downes in 2008.
In general, despite this classification, the international trend is to consider

two basic types of MOOCs: xMOOCs and cMOOCs (Downes, 2012, Siemens,
2012, Scopeo, 2013, Vázquez-Cano, López-Meneses & Sarasola, 2013, Yousef,
Chatti, Schroeder, Wosnitza & Jakobs, 2015). In general, xMOOCs are usually
traditional university e-Learning courses that adapt to the characteristics of
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MOOC platforms, while cMOOCs are oriented under the guidelines of the
connective learning of George Siemens and Stephen Downes (figure 1).
xMOOC, Individual Work and Tradition
The xMOOCs emphasize individual learning versus peer learning (Conole,

2013). These are the same online versions of traditional learning formats
(reading, instruction, discussion, etc.) that Universities develop in their
e-Learning actions. The development of this type of courses is similar to a
traditional course where the interaction between users is in the background
and where students receive the contents in a sequential and structured way
to be subsequently evaluated.
They generally start from a more closed virtual space, such as a web
platform where sign in is necessary. Although the teaching teams are
responsible for its design, as Martínez de Rituerto (2014) indicates, there
is a certain institutional planning in its conception and design to guarantee
quality minimums that benefit the institution itself in the form of good reviews
by users. Video classes tend to be very common as a way of presenting the
contents, especially those consisting of exhibitions by teachers accompanied
by presentations at Prezi or Power Point (Vázquez-Cano, López-Meneses
& Barroso-Osuna, 2015). From the theoretical point of view, instructional
model is quite close to behavioral model (E – R), reflecting the fact that
assessment tests offer immediate results that serve as behavior enhancers as
well as badges that students gain when performing some activities or tasks.
Ruiz-Bolívar adds that some platforms for adding courses such as Coursera,
EdX, Udacity, Khan Academy or MiriadaX follow this model.X
In xMOOCs, the highest number of people are enrolled (Martí, 2012);
responding to a business model that allows educators to create a brand image
or offer to users the option to get a course certification. Training actions of
EdX, Coursera and Udacity are supported by this type of design (Gómez
Galán, Martín Padilla, Bernal Bravo & López Meneses, 2017). Along
these lines, for Yousef, Chatti, Wosnitza & Schroeder (2015), xMOOCs
are characterized by replicating the traditional educational practices used
by formal education institutions; focusing on offering high quality content

through didactic approaches proposed by teachers. Usually, they are versions
of e-Learning courses located on MOOC platforms (Cabero, 2015); so, in
addition to offering flexible access and a variety of materials, they allow
teachers to combine face-to-face teaching with online teaching.
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In relation to this, Vázquez-Cano, López-Meneses & Sarasola point out

that “the big problem of this type of MOOC is the treatment of the student in
a massive way (without any type of individualization) and the methodological
format already overcome the trial-error in the evaluation tests” (2013: 33). In
this xMOOC proposal, the teacher, as an expert, must select the contents that
must be transmitted to the students and build the items that will be part of
the standardized and automated evaluation tools and that must be overcome
to acquire the course certificate (Valverde, 2014). Contents are transmitted
unidirectionally to students who must respond to activities individually, without
any dialogue between the educational community or collective construction
of knowledge. The teaching role is expert and makes use of unidirectional
communication with a very limited participation. The evaluation model of
the xMOOCs is very similar to the evaluation model of traditional virtual
training classes, where random exams are constructed for each participant
from questions database.
cMOOC as a Group Work Proposal

Based on Connectivism
The type of cMOOC course is related to a learning theory called connectivism

(Siemens 2008, 2010). According to Moya (2013), from this theory of learning,
knowledge goes from focusing on a teacher who assumes the role of expert,
to focusing on the interactions between students of the course; considering
that, following these interactions, students determine how learning will occur.
From a theoretical point of view, it is based, on the connectivism proposed
by Siemens (2005), whose principles are:
• Diversity of opinions is essential to produce learning and knowledge.

• The process of connecting specialized sources of information defines
learning.
• Learning can reside in non-human devices.
• Ability to know more has a greater weight in the learning process than
previously known.
• Maintenance of the connections is necessary to facilitate continuous

learning.
• Ability to see connections between areas, ideas and concepts is
fundamental.
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• All connectivist activities must be updated, with accurate and current

knowledge.
• The decision-making process starts from the learning process.
According to the connectivism, alterations in informative environment

affect the decision taken, so a valid decision today may not be tomorrow
(Gómez Galán, Martín Padilla, Bernal Bravo & López Meneses, 2017). For
this reason, in order to solve problems at present, it is important that knowledge
be accurate and current and that the contrast and interaction between sources
of information be facilitated. Wade (2012), considers that connectivism is
a theory that provides guidance, highlighting the idea that learning lies in
building and connecting distributed knowledge in a network of connections.
Unlike xMOOCs, in cMOOCs, formal curriculum or the traditional
LMS is replaced by Web 2.0 tools, such as blogs, wikis and social media
platforms. Presented contents are minimal, so that students develop search
procedures, location and connection between information. This information
can be based on both the student’s context and the sources provided by the
students’ Personal Learning Environments (PLE) (Ruiz-Palmero, Sánchez
& Gómez, 2013; Cabero, 2014). Parallel to the PLE, we find the Personal
Learning Network (PLN) that is linked to the learning that occurs when we
exchange information and knowledge with other people. The relationship
between PLE and PLN has been widely discussed; however, currently, PLE
is considered as the whole in which technologies, personal networks and
usage strategies are integrated. The PLN would be, one of the parts of that
whole, that gives meaning to learning by focusing on interactions between
people. Technologies would be the resources that allow maintaining these
interactions and searching, analyzing and generating information. Platforms
initially designed for the construction of PLE can allow both teachers and
students to add their own cMOOCs.
The last type of MOOC that we can find is a hybrid model between the
two types mentioned above (Scopeo, 2013; Vázquez et al., 2013). Hybrid
model adopts approaches to the two proposals presented so far. It emphasizes
the resolution of some types of tasks and activities that the student must
progressively perform during the course. In general terms:

Different types of tasks can be incorporated: case resolution, reading and
analysis of documents, construction of resources in different formats, website
analysis, blog and wikis development, concept mapping, problem solving,
configuration of crosswords about scientific terms, among others. Activities
that can be developed both individually and in groups or collaboratively.
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Regarding the evaluation of the students, in these MOOCs the procedure

of the analysis of the quality of the tasks carried out is followed, evaluation
that can be carried out by an assistant in the program, or by peer evaluation
(Cabero, Llorente & Vázquez, 2014: 21)
In the Virtual Learning Environments (VLE) the tendency is for students
to be the center of the teaching process, allowing their active participation in
the creation of knowledge and generating new learning dynamics that allow
the development of personal autonomy through the component learning social.
In a virtual environment that allows (Siemens, 2012): the construction of
social networks; personalized training; adapting the teaching to each student;
competency learning and formation of socio-collaborative learning groups.
Based on networked learning and connectivism, cMOOCs focus more on the
interaction between users for the creation of knowledge than on the presentation
of formal content (Siemens, 2007, Ravenscroft, 2011, Lugton, 2012).
In this type of courses, through different learning environments and prior
location of knowledge pills in the network, a process of critical analysis of the
information is generated, in addition to a validation, rejection or modification
by democratic consensus of students, members of each work group. It should
be noted that, as Martínez de Rituerto (2014) states, this search process,
critical analysis and decision-making regarding the validation of information,
results in an extension and improvement of the initial learning proposal,
allowing students to give a meaning to the learning experience with the rest
of the classmates. In general, as highlighted by Cabero & Marín (2014), the
evaluation is less formalized and regulated than in the case of the xMOOCs;
acquiring greater relevance peer evaluation, evidence evaluation and other
more open evaluation models.
In general, as we have seen before, the xMOOCs focus on controlling the
course design and contents that are presented. However, in cMOOC, students,
through interaction with other people, learn, unlearn and give meaning to
their training (Martí, 2012, Peláez & Posada, 2013). Taking as a reference
the four pillars of education pointed out in the Report of the International
Commission on education for the twenty-first century of UNESCO, the
Delors Report (1996: 34): learn to know, learn to do, learn to live together
and learn to be; table 1 shows a comparison between xMOOC and cMOOC.
In xMOOCs, the idea that learning is generated through an exchange
of information and through participation in a joint and interactive teaching
facilitated by technology leads Cabero & Marín (2014) to talk about a
formative action with a certain resemblance to a social learning network. In
other words, learning primarily focuses on the acquisition of skills through
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Table 4. Relationship between the Pillars of Education and MOOC
Pillars of education xMOOC cMOOC

- Learning centered on the information - Learning from sharing knowledge with
Learn to know transmitted by the teacher. others.
- Linear and guided learning. - Active and participatory learning.
- Tasks depend on the involvement of
- Proposed tasks assess that contents have
the participants and their relationship with
been assumed from a self-assessment.
Learn to do the rest.
- It is a more active learning, highlighting
- Learning is passive.
learning by doing: «learning by doing».
- The connection established in this
- From the approach of the xMOOC
course modality is a good example of
model, this perspective of learning to live
Learn to live together shared, collaborative, cooperative learning
together is not contemplated, since the
and, therefore, implies a relationship with
learning process is totally individual.
the rest of the course community.
- The proposal clearly reflects this
- xMOOCs propose a totally
learning, since it always implies that the
individualized learning, so it will depend
connection with the rest of the participants
on the participant himself who develops
Learn to be and the interactions make us grow and
or not.
develop as people.
- Training and lifelong learning character: - Maintains the essence of lifelong
long life learning. learning: long life learning.
(Re-elaborated from Moya, 2013: 167)
conversations, requiring a wide range of materials and the development of

high levels of learner control in relation to places and modes of interaction. In
general, the existence of weekly synchronous sessions with guest facilitators
and speakers, in addition to information exchanges through forums, blogs and
social networks, and the use of a variety of resources such as concept maps,
videos, presentations, multimedia and podcasts are usually common (Gómez
Galán, Martín Padilla, Bernal Bravo & López Meneses, 2017).
Vizoso-Martín (2013) affirm that the main obstacle encountered by
cMOOCs is that they are entering disruptively in university contexts,
generating a conflict both with the way of teaching and with the business
model of universities. Another of the difficulties of the cMOOC is that it
is extremely more complex to establish fixed competencies for all students
since the people who participate in them set their own learning goals and the
type of commitment (Lugton, 2012). Likewise, students must want to work

collaboratively, an aspect that is not always well received (Cabero, Marín &
llorente, 2013). This also makes the certification processes more complex, due
to the difficulties in specifying the competences achieved. Finally, regardless
of the type of MOOC, students must have (Vázquez-Cano & Sevillano, 2011):
high technological and instrumental skills, high digital competence, strong
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level of autonomy for learning, and high competence in self-regulation of

learning. Despite the difficulties, like Bartolomé and Steffens (2015), we
believe that cMOOCs have greater potential than xMOOCs for learning and
its self-regulation, allowing greater interactivity with the sources and with
other participants in the course. In addition, while the xMOOCs focus on
providing knowledge; cMOOCs function as VLE where students are allowed
a more active participation in acquiring, sharing and creating knowledge.
Scharmer (2017), from MIT, considers that in recent years there has been
an evolution of MOOCs:
• MOOC 1.0 - One-to-Many: Professor lecturing to a global audience.

• MOOC 2.0 - One-to-One: Lecture plus individual or small-group
exercises.
• MOOC 3.0 - Many-to-Many: Massive decentralized peer-to-peer
teaching.
• MOOC 4.0 - Many-to-One: Deep listening among learners as a vehicle
for sensing one’s highest future possibility through the eyes of others.
MOOC PLATFORMS IN EDUCATION
With the rise of MOOC courses from many universities, the number of web
platforms offering such courses has also grown. Some of these platforms
are Coursera, edX and Miriadax (table 2). Moreover, we will review Course
Builder and Canvas.
Coursera
Coursera1 is a platform of MOOC courses that was born 2011, from the hand
of teachers at Stanford University, in order to provide free courses worldwide.
They are part of Coursera more than 148 educational institutions around the
world, among which are some of the most prestigious universities, such as
Princeton, Johns Hopkins, Brown or the Berklee College of Music, among
many others. Among the Spanish universities are the Autonomous University
of Barcelona, the University of Navarra and the University of Barcelona
The Coursera platform is available in different languages (English,
Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese, French and Russian). It has courses, both free
and paid, in different languages, from English to Spanish, through French,
Italian, Russian or Chinese, among others, with which it has courses in
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Table 2. Comparison of MOOC platforms based on the analyzed characteristics
COURSERA edX MIRIADAX

Birth 2011 2012 2013
MIT and Telefónica and Banco
Founders Stanford University
Harvard University Santander
Members / partners Universities primarily Universities primarily Universities primarily
NO (only Spanish and
Multilanguage Yes Yes
Portuguese)
Spanish included Yes Yes Yes
Topics covered Multiple (10) Multiple (30) Multiple (27)
Price of courses Paid and free Free Free
Payment required in the
case of the certificate of
Certification Payment required Payment required improvement. With free
certification option for
participation certificate.
Difficulty level of
No Yes No
MOOC indicated
Catalog filtering Basic Advanced Very basic
Interface courses Good Good Good
General information
Yes Yes Yes
about the course
Navigability /Course
Good Very good Good
structure
Forum Yes Yes Yes
Questionnaires and
Questionnaires and essay
Evaluation Type tasks (essay, revised, Questionnaires and essay tasks
tasks
honors, etc.)
It has a progress section
It has a specific section on
Obteained ratings apart No, within each activity where information about
qualifications
the evaluation is shown
Blog course No No Yes
Download resources No No No
Support Not featured Yes, featured Yes, featured
App for mobile devices iOS and Android iOS and Android iOS and Android
(Retrieved from Martín-Padilla & Ramírez-Fernández, 2016: 16).
more languages than it initially has translated its platform. It also offers the
possibility of filtering the courses according to the available languages, after
selecting the general category. As for the topics offered are very varied and
include different categories among which is social sciences. Within these
categories we can find different fields and disciplines represented. Many of
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these training actions are introductory and others require a certain degree of
prior knowledge in the area of study in order to continue their development
with advantage. However, the level of delving is not information that is
reflected in the catalog, but, rather, it is an issue inherent in the subject itself.
Registration on the page is free. Once the person has registered, you can
access a list of available courses and make the one you want. Some indicate
the exact date they will begin; others are only planned in the absence of a
definitive date. A few days before the start of the course, an email is sent to
the registered people welcoming and briefly explaining how the course works.
At the same time, access to the virtual course is enabled so that students can
become familiar with the different parts of it.
The platform has several “Help Forums” in which assistance can be
requested for certain problems, whether of a technical nature or issues more
related to management. In addition, there are several “Help Articles” in which
the most common problems that users may encounter are answered: problems
with the account, account settings, problems with the use of certain web
browsers, etc. The structure of the course may vary, but the most common
is to find the following design:
• Course information: this section provides information on the purpose

of the course as well as the skills that students can develop. It also
details the teaching team that has designed the course and tutor it, as
well as the university or universities that support it. Finally, the course
program and information on how to overcome it are included.
• Preview of the course: this section provides an overview on the planning
of the course organized in weeks, indicating the number of multimedia
resources that should be viewed each week and the questionnaires or
tasks to be performed in each. Selecting a specific week gives access
to the following contents:
◦◦ Learning objectives: the objectives pursued with the content of
the module are described.
◦◦ Videos: lessons recorded by the teaching team with the explanations
corresponding to each topic. Each video usually lasts between 10
and 15 minutes and each topic can contain several video lessons.
◦◦ Forums: discussion and meeting forums between students,
teaching staff and support team. Study groups are usually formed
by languages, countries or interests. For example, groups of
Spanish or “homeschoolers”.
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◦◦ Questionnaires: questionnaires are tasks that are automatically

graded and used to assess students’ knowledge in a course. In some
courses, the questionnaires are called “homework” or “exams”,
but both serve for students to demonstrate the acquisition of
knowledge.
◦◦ Tasks: we can find different types of tasks:
▪▪ Rehearsal tasks: these are tasks in which the students must
send a text following the established premises and which will
subsequently be reviewed by the teaching team.
▪▪ Peer reviewed tasks: It is a variation of the essay tasks in
which the review is carried out by the students. each student
receives comments from other people who are taking the
course and each student should also review other people’s
homework and make comments.
▪▪ Homework with honors: some courses have optional
assignments that can be completed for special recognition.
They are not necessary to pass the course and do not affect
the grade.
▪▪ Programming tasks: these are tasks that require developing
and executing a computer program to solve a problem and are
automatically qualified. Some programming tasks influence
the final grade of the course, while others are only practical.
▪▪ Math tasks: these are questionnaires that allow you to write
mathematical functions and certain constants using basic
symbols.
Some courses require a high work rate for students. You have to view the
videos, read the proposed texts, perform the questionnaires, perform the tasks,
review and comment on the tasks of the other students, etc.
The duration of the course’s ranges between 4 and 11 weeks, and the ideal
workload is 8-10 hours per week, although afterwards students can organize
the study time as they wish. An element that facilitates this aspect is that
Coursera has decidedly opted for the possibilities offered by mobile learning
and it has an app for smartphones and tablets, both for iOS and Android.
From the app it is possible to make new registrations, or follow the courses
in which we have registered, by “streaming” the video sessions of the course
or saving them for later viewing in “off-line” mode.
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As for the help that can be received as a student, there is usually a very
willingness, by the organization and teaching teams, to help and advice students,
especially in courses taught in languages other than their native language.
The platform has the possibility of accessing through mobile devices using
an app for both Android and iOS.
Edx
edX2 is a MOOC course platform created in 2012 jointly by MIT (Massachusetts

Institute of Technology) and Harvard University. This is a non-profit and “open-
source” project that, during these years, has joined more than 90 educational
institutions around the world such as the University of Berkeley, the Sorbonne
University of Paris, the University from Princeton, Oxford University, etc.
The Spanish institutions include the Polytechnic University of Valencia, the
Carlos III University of Madrid or the Autonomous University of Madrid. The
full list can be accessed at https://www.edx.org/schools-partners#members.
Being a non-profit initiative, access to courses is completely free. However,
if you want to receive some type of certification you have to make payments,
using the money raised for the maintenance and improvement of the resources
that are made available to teachers and students. The courses offered are
organized around a series of subjects that include Social Sciences and History.
In training catalog, edX offers very detailed information regarding the
characteristics of its MOOC courses. From the data offered, it can be verified
that most of them are in English (85.6%), Spanish is the second language with
the greatest presence (7.7%), followed by Chinese (3.3%) and French (2.3%).
There are courses in other languages (German, Japanese, Portuguese, etc.).
Among these courses we can find MOOC with different levels of complexity.
Most of the courses offered are of initiation (57.39%), although there are also
intermediate (32.24%) and advanced (20.27%) courses.
The edX platform offers an excellent search engine for courses with
different levels of filter that serves different search variables, so it is very
easy for students to find the course that best suits their needs. The criteria
to filter the search are:
• Availability of MOOCs: assets, start shortly, soon, own pace, archived.

• Subjects or subjects (according to the list already commented).
• Type of training action: verified courses, programs, MOOCs, with
credits, micromasters, etc.
• By university or organizing institution of the MOOC.
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• Level: advanced, intermediate, initiation.

• Language in which it is taught.
As for the resources available in each MOOC course, edX offers a very
clear, simple and intuitive interface. At the top we find access to the different
tools of the course:
• Start: when accessing each course, home page shows a summary

in which news and information about course updates are provided.
Information on important dates of the course and the content structure
of the course as hyperlinks appear on the right side of the screen. A
link is also shown on this screen through which to contact the support
team.
• Course: accessing this section, the structure of the course is available in
the left side menu. The courses are organized by weeks and within each
week an organization is established by themes. To access the contents
of each topic, a menu is available at the top of the screen, from which
we can access the different videos, questionnaires and tasks, as well as
move to previous or subsequent topics. The usual thing is to alternate
video and test questionnaire that refers to the contents worked. The
tasks can be a multiple-choice test questionnaire or essay type tasks in
which students must write a larger text.
• Discussion: through this link you can access the different discussion
forums of the course. Usually a discussion forum is established for
each topic (or subtopic) and a presentation or cafeteria forum where
students can discuss other topics of their choice.
• Progress: this section shows the progress of students regarding the
development of the course. It shows a general graph and detailed
information by week and, within it, by topics.
• Program: this section provides detailed information on the characteristics
of the MOOC course: duration in weeks, course objectives, contents,
prerequisites, information on the evaluation and role of each task in the
final qualification, etc.
• Frequently asked questions: this page contains frequently asked

questions in the form of explanatory videos; answers to the most
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common questions about the operation of the platform and other

questions related to the course.
MiriadaX
MiríadaX3 is the largest Spanish-Portuguese platform in the world that saw

the light in 2013. The project involves, on the one hand, Telefónica Learning
Services, which is the company of “Telefónica Educación Digital” specialized
in offering integral online learning solutions for education and training, and,
on the other hand, Universia, the largest network of Spanish and Portuguese-
speaking universities, promoted by Banco Santander. The project is supported
by more than 90 prestigious Latin American universities and institutions and
has more than three million students and more than 2,000 teachers.
The platform is presented in three possible languages: Spanish, Portuguese
and English. As for the topics that we work on, we can find multiple topics
among which is Geography and History
The search engine of the course catalog is less functional than on other
platforms. It offers a search engine with which to search based on a topic or
keyword. On the other hand, the filtering is reduced to selecting a general
theme or to perform a filtering from the university or institution that sponsors
the MOOC course.
The course interface is simple, clear and intuitive. It has a support section
where you can ask for help or access the Frequently Asked Questions and
Answers of the students (FAQ). In addition, in this section anyone can send
their suggestions regarding the operation of the platform or regarding topics
that might be of interest. When we access the MOOC we find in the upper
right a menu with the different sections:
• Start: this section usually shows an introduction or presentation video

of the course and then the content structure. As usual in this type of
platform, each course is organized in modules, in order to facilitate its
monitoring by students. These modules include publications, readings
and audiovisual material narrated by the teaching team in charge of
the course in question. The university or institution that organizes the

course, the duration in weeks of this one, it is also highlighted on the
home page.
• Syllabus: this section shows the structure of the course but focusing
especially on the terms of completion of each module and the different
activities and delivery dates of each.
183
• Notes: this section shows the results obtained in the activities of

the course. It indicates date and time of realization and, in its case,
approximate percentage of progress of each activity.
• Forum: within the course there is access to the forums in which you can
consult, answer questions and participate with the other participants.
• Blog: in this section, user can access a specific blog of the MOOC
course that is managed by the teaching team and which can include
information about the development of the course or information of
interest or to expand knowledge.
At the end of each module, an evaluation system will be carried out and
at the end of the course, some of the courses will have to do a final job. In
this regard, and in relation to certifications, MiriadaX offers two different
types of certifications:
• Certificate of participation: it is achieved when user exceed at least

75% of the modules of the course. It recognizes user participation in
the MOOC and can be downloaded as a diploma in PDF format and as
a badge.
• Certificate of achievement: user can get this certificate, upon payment
of its cost (€ 40), those registered who request it and that exceed 100%
of course modules. It can be downloaded as a diploma in PDF format
and as a badge.
Course Builder
Course Builder4 is an Open Source (Apache 2.0), from Google Open Online
Education that also includes insights, Online Course Kit and Google for
Education (a LMS). Teachers can use it to create their online course according
the website. Course Builder:
• has a rich feature set

• massively scales because it runs on Google infrastructure
• is completely free to use (Google App Engine charges may apply but it
comes with a free tier)
• supports multiple courses on the same instance (multitenancy)
• has support for Google Analytics and Google Tag Manager
• allows you to keep and own your data
• allows you to keep your organization’s brand
184
• requires no programming to create or run your course

• is relatively quick to get up and running
Course Authors (teachers, instructors, instructional designers, etc.) can

begin designing their content in “Create a Course”. A Course Builder is
composed of course the following elements:
• Units: group lessons together under one topic.

• Lessons; it includes instructional contents. A lesson is part of a unit.
• Assessments: contain questions and other material. They are scored and
provide insight into the course’s performance through course analytics.
• Links: point students to additional content outside of Course Builder.
• Questions: are in a question bank and are independent of the course
outline.
Teachers can manage the composition of their course and its elements in the
course outline. Teacher can add content to elements (using the content editor,
uploading files, and creating videos), questions to assessments and lessons.
It is possible to change course settings in order to enable other features and
teacher, as an author, can use skills, tracks, and labels to organize elements.
Canvas
Canvas5 is a LMS that includes the functionality of creating MOOCs. Materials

can be created in different languages, allows users to create and receive
messages through social networks. When designing the course it is possible
to create the course from scratch or use predefined designs using tables;
include a system to assess the level; the option to insert videos, audios and
graphic material; the possibility of integrating video and chat; the creation of
learning groups or teams; the monitoring of student activity in real time; or
the existence of an integrated calendar with Google Calendar, iCal or Outlook.
CONCLUSION
Considered a subset of e-Learning, MOOCs have contributed to give more

relevance to the VLE and have responded to a social demand for specialized
training; they have contributed to the reflection on the need to redefine
teaching roles; they have placed the student as a protagonist in the evaluation
185
of their learning; they have made the offer of training courses more flexible
and open; contibuting to the development of new software tools for online
training (Valverde Berrocoso, 2014). MOOCs are expected to be the
instrument that defines training through the Internet in the coming years
(González & Carabantes, 2017). However, there is no doubt that there are
many disadvantages and that it is essential to examine them from a critical
and situated perspective. In this sense, despite the educational advantages of
the cMOOCs with respect to the xMOOCs, the difficulties of interaction in
MOOCs has contributed to the incresing of xMOOCs, unidirectional and not
very flexible MOOC proposals. Regarding this situation, Gómez Galán, Martín
Padilla, Bernal Bravo & López Meneses (2017) adds a series of difficulties
that the MOOC movement has to overcome to ensure its sustainability in the
future, among which we highlight:
• The pedagogical design.

• “Monetization.”
• The certification of studies.
• The monitoring of the training.
• Student authentication.
• The competence approach of its development.
In general, “the movement must overcome a pedagogical model encapsulated

in an ‘impoverished e-learning’ and move towards more collaborative and
competence models, taking into account the cultural and linguistic diversity of
different sociocultural areas and contexts” (Vázquez-Cano & López-Meneses,
2014: 85). The high dropout rate must be attended, which is especially
pronounced in the first weeks of the course. Due to the predominance of
xMOOCs, the majority evaluation is still eminently quantitative based on
automatisms (true or false, multiple choice self-assessment test); compared
to other alternatives such as based on social interaction (blogs, wikis, forums,
etc.) or based on authority (Sánchez Acosta & Escribano Otero, 2014). In
the last case, the evaluation is carried out by a teacher, specialist or peers
with pre-established criteria. However, it is rare because the massive nature
of MOOCs. As for the future of MOOCs, with the development of Artificial

Intelligence (AI), a bot would act as a teacher, leading to the existence of
courses guided by the mentioned bots (Huffpost, 2017, December 06). In
general, as we can see, one of the great challenges of MOOCs is to propose
flexible and quality teaching proposals.
186
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ENDNOTES
1
Coursera: https://www.coursera.org/
2
edX: https://www.edx.org/
3
MiriadaX: https://miriadax.net/home
4
Course Builder: https://edu.google.com/openonline/course-builder/
index.html
5
Canvas: https://www.instructure.com/canvas/en-gb
192
193
Chapter 7
B-Learning and Flipped
Classroom in Social
Sciences Education:
School as a Collaborative
Space of Learning
ABSTRACT
Lecture-driven classrooms allow teachers to teach a lot of information to
students over a limited time. However, the traditional classroom lecture
format has also limited the communication between student and teacher. The
flipped classroom pedagogy is a type of b-Learning that inverts the traditional
classroom lecture content delivery. In flipped learning, students are required
to read or view prerecorded lectures edited online by the teacher as a part
of their homework. After, in class time, they focus on group activities, so
that teachers must rethink the design of the teaching and learning process
in the classroom with discussions and group work where students can make
decisions, apply theoretical knowledge, and make mistakes. Regarding the
teaching and learning of social sciences, geography, and history, this approach
implies opportunities for students to learn high-level content, besides creative,
critical, and collaborative skills.
DOI: 10.4018/978-1-7998-2882-2.ch007
B-Learning and Flipped Classroom in Social Sciences Education
INTRODUCTION
Despite the expansion of technology into the everyday life experiences of

students, the prominent form of learning is the traditional lecture-driven
classroom (Butt, 2014). The lecture-driven classroom allows teachers to teach
a lot of information to students over a limited time. However, the traditional
classroom lecture format has also limited the communication between student
and teacher due to students passively learn to think replicating the thinking of
teachers in order to pass evaluations. Moreover, inability to practice the skills
learned from lectures may be uncertain for students (Bass, 2012, Wallace,
Walker, Braseby & Sweet, 2014).
The flipped classroom pedagogy inverts the traditional classroom lecture
content delivery; implying learning opportunities for students. In flipped
pedagogy, students are required to read, or view pre-record lectures edited
online by the teacher as a part of their homework (Strayer, 2012). Considering
this, class time is focused on group activities, so that teachers can rethink the
design of the process in the classroom towards class discussions and group
work where students can make decisions, apply theoretical knowledge and
make mistakes. That occurs while they improve their communication skills,
become more efficient in collaborative work and feel more competent in
relation to content; building civic and social skills among others and learning
a significant content (concepts, procedures and attitudes). As Gomez-Lanier
(2018) indicates, collaborative learning fosters critical thinking and self-
directed learning, leading students to apply and practice technical skill and
developing an active refinement of higher-order thinking such as problem-
solving, creativity and efficiency.
In this chapter, we will highlight the defining aspects of blended learning
(b-Learning). Subsequently, we will focus on the flipped classroom as an
educational strategy; paying attention on the teaching and learning of the Social
Sciences and including aspects such as conceptualization and pedagogical
background, in addition to benefits and difficulties of its implementation in
schools. Finally, we will review some useful content editing tools to introduce
b-Learning and flipped classrooms in the Social Science classroom.
194
TPACK MODEL AND BLENDED LEARNING
Technology has increased the possibilities of interaction, management and

content creation. It has opened new ways of highly efficient evaluation and has
allowed substantial changes in the teaching-learning processes. Technologies
have offered new possibilities of access to studies through the virtualization of
the teaching-learning processes. However, technological skills are not enough;
emerging new teaching models designed to take advantage of this new horizon
significantly. In this sense, the Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge
(TPACK) model by Mishra and Koehler (2006) focuses on technological
knowledge (TK), pedagogical knowledge (PK), and content knowledge
(CK); providing an approach for teacher in order to face the implementing of
educational technology. The TPACK framework outlines that CK (what) and
PK (how) are the basis for any effective educational technology integration.
Moreover, implementation of technology must communicate the content
and support the pedagogy in order to improve students’ learning experience.
TK, PK, and CK can be combined in various ways within the TPACK
framework, then, regarding the teaching of Social Sciences, Geography and
History (figure 1):
• Technological Content Knowledge (TCK) – it is related to teachers’

understanding about how technology and Social Sciences contents
can influence each other. TCK involves understanding about how a
Social Sciences subject can be communicated via different educational
technologies; considering which specific educational technologies
tools might be best suited for a specific subject.
• Technological Pedagogical Knowledge (TPK) – it is related to teachers’
understanding about how particular technologies can change teaching
and learning experiences by introducing new pedagogical benefits and
difficulties. TPK involve understanding about how those tools can be
implemented with pedagogy in ways that are appropriate to the subject
and development of lessons.
• Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK) – it describes the relation
between pedagogical practices and specific learning objectives.

• TPACK – it is the triangulation of CK, PK and TK.
195
Figure 1. Technological Pedagogical Knowledge (TPACK). Adapted from Koehler

(2011)
Thus, in general terms, the TPACK model of Mishra & Koehler (2006)
could be considered as a theoretical framework for the adequate integration of
ICT in education; concluding that the true challenge of a teacher is to combine
knowledge of area contents, specific teaching and of ICT in a specific context
(Salinas, Benito & Lizana, 2014, Bryan & Volchenkova, 2016). In this sense,
it is very important to highlight that a teacher of Social Sciences, Geography

and History can not consider that his teaching is innovative because the fact
of changing the physical format to digital format. If, for example, we use the
Learning Management Systems (LMS) as a simple repository of dosed texts
including reading (and copy and paste) in a similar way to conventional textbook
196
activities, the use of technologies does not imply any learning benefit over
not using it. We cannot talk about innovation maintaining the same models
from physical to digital format. Any didactic proposal must allow the use of
the information, developing procedures and attitudes that allow the learning
of higher-level contents that go beyond a reproduction of facts and events.
Regardless of the use of technology, when we talk about face-to-face
learning, the physical presence of the students (the usual classes) is required.
When the learning is non-face-to-face, the physical presence of the student
is not necessary. Technological development and its educational use have
allowed students to attend classes virtually or to directly develop their learning
courses completely autonomously through ubiquitous learning (u-Learning)
through the internet and thanks to platforms like the LMS. However, between
the face-to-face learning and distance learning there is a mixed model called
blended learning (b-Learning) that allows students to work by combining face-
to-face with online teaching-learning processes. As Gómez-Gómez (2017)
indicates, in distance or virtual (and face-to-face) teaching, constructivism
is the basis on which the semi-presence teaching learning processes are
based. In other words, ICT and KLT can facilitate collaborative work, search,
selection, editing and sending of information, greater control in the evaluation
processes and greater efficiency when making decisions.
As Friesen (2012) indicates, “b-Learning” appears to have been in use
since late 1990s. However, from 2006 to the present, b-Learning has been
understood as the range of possibilities presented by combining Internet
and digital media with established classroom forms that require the physical
co‐presence of teacher and students (Graham, 2006). For Friesen (2012),
“b-Learning” designates the range of possibilities presented by combining
Internet and digital media with established classroom forms that require the
physical co-presence of teacher and students. Valiathan (2014) classified
b-Learning models into three types:
• Skill-driven: aimed at the acquisition of specific knowledge and skills.

The teacher gives feedback and support.
• Attitude-driven: aimed at the development of new attitudes and
behaviors. Peer-to-peer interaction and group work are central.

• Competence-driven: aimed at capturing tacit knowledge. Learners
must observe experts at work.
197
However, according b-Learning, the most influential typology approach

is related to the following classification in four models (Staker & Horn,
2012: 8-15):
• Rotation model: a program in which within a given course or subject

(e.g., math), students rotate on a fixed schedule or at the teacher’s
discretion between learning modalities, at least one of which is online
learning. Other modalities might include activities such as small-group
or full-class instruction, group projects, individual tutoring, and pencil-
and-paper assignments.
◦◦ Station-Rotation model: a program in which within a course or
subject, students rotate on a fixed schedule or at the teacher’s
discretion between learning modalities, at least one of which is
online learning. Other stations might include activities such as
small-group or full-class instruction, group projects, individual
tutoring, and pencil-and-paper assignments.
◦◦ Lab-Rotation model: a rotation-model implementation in which,
within a course or subject, students rotate on a fixed schedule or at
the teacher’s discretion among locations on the campus. At least
one of these spaces is a learning lab for predominantly online
learning, while the additional classroom other learning modalities.
◦◦ Flipped-Classroom model: rotation-model implementation
in which, within a course or subject, students rotate on a fixed
schedule between face-to-face teacher-guided practice (or
projects) on campus during the standard school day and online
delivery of content and instruction of the same subject from a
remote location (often home) after school. The primary delivery
of content and instruction is online.
◦◦ Individual-Rotation model: a rotation-model implementation
in which, within a given course or subject, students rotate on
an individually customized, fixed schedule among learning
modalities, at least one of which is online learning. An algorithm
or teacher sets individual student schedules.
• Flex model: a program in which content and instruction are delivered

primarily by the Internet, students move on an individually customized,
fluid schedule among learning modalities, and the teacher-of-record
is on-site. The teacher-of-record or other adults provide face-to-face
support on a flexible and adaptive as-needed basis through activities
such as small-group instruction, group projects, and individual tutoring.
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• Self-blend model: describes a scenario in which students choose to take

one or more courses entirely online to supplement traditional courses
and the teacher-of-record is the online teacher. Students may take the
online courses either on the brick-and-mortar campus or off-site. This
differs from full-time online learning and the Enriched-Virtual model
(see the next definition) because it is not a whole-school experience.
Students self-blend some individual online courses and take other
courses at a brick-and-mortar campus with face-to-face teachers.
• Enriched-Virtual model: a whole-school experience in which within
each course, students divide their time between attending a brick-and-
mortar campus and learning remotely using online delivery of content
and instruction. Many Enriched-Virtual programs began as full-time
online schools and then developed blended programs to provide
students with brick-and-mortar school experiences. The Enriched-
Virtual model differs from the Flipped Classroom because in Enriched-
Virtual programs, students seldom attend the brick-and-mortar campus
every weekday. It differs from the Self-Blend model because it is a
whole-school experience, not a course-by-course model.
They note different variants of the rotation model, according to the type
of student rotation in the classroom to another room or off-campus. We will
focus on the most interesting variant of the rotation model: flipped classroom.
FLIPPED CLASSRROM AS A DIDACTIC STRATEGY

IN THE TEACHING OF SOCIAL SCIENCES
Conceptualization and Pedagogical Background
Flipped classroom is an instructional strategy and one kind of b-Learning

that reverses traditional learning environments by delivering (usually online)
instructional contents outside of the classroom; moving activities and
traditionally considered homework into the classroom. In Students, at home,
watch online lectures, collaborate in online discussions or carry out research;

while they build a significant understanding of concepts using instructional
concepts in proposal tasks in the classroom with the teacher guidance. Flipped
classroom shifts the teaching practice to a learner-centered model in which
time in the classroom is used to explore and delve in topics initially introduced
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outside of the classroom. Contents can be sent and introduced through several
forms: video lessons, online collaborative discussions, digital research and
text readings. Video lessons are the most usual option in flipped classrooms.
They can be prepared by the teacher or by third parties and ideal length of
them is from eight to twelve minutes.
Inverting classroom implies a change in the role of the teacher. In flipped
classrooms, teacher guides students and supports them in solving the problems
through activities and tasks. Teacher of Social Sciences, Geography and
History must have technical and didactical competencies to make a flipped
learning possible. It includes professional competences, like those that are
necessary in a didactical approach based on school research. As Garralón
(2017) indicates, teacher:
• It must detect the potential of students both in the curricular area

of Social Sciences, Geography and History and in their social and
personal skills.
• It is a generator of teamwork and must teach to work in a systematic
and effective way through cooperative learning.
• It facilitates that students can learn by discovery and step by step
during the monitoring process of the equipment in this way, the teacher
ensures that the student strengthens the learning significantly.
• It answers and solves the students’ doubts.
• It provides feedback periodically.
• It provides motivation and remember homework throughout the course.
• It identifies the obstacles and difficulties that arise to offer the necessary
help to the student.
Research indicates that the flipped classroom and flipped learning allows
teachers to simultaneously teach course content and practice the application
of that content (Demski, 2013). In order words, flipped classroom must not
be understood as a series of online videos that teacher facilitates to students
to be watched by them without a sense of direction. A successful flipped
classroom must allow students to (Bennett, Kern, Gudenrath & McIntosh,
2012; Bergmann, Overmyer & Wilie, 2013, Cohen & Brugar, 2013):
• lead discussions in class regarding content studies and gain more

knowledge.
• demonstrate high order thinking skills.
• apply content to real situations.
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• collaborate with others and understand some contents reviewing

videos as needed.
• ask questions motivating another one to build a relationship with the
teacher.
• engage in active learning.
The increase of interaction between teacher and students along with students’
interactions amongst teammates fosters critical thinking skills, communication
skills and practical experience (Al-Zahrani, 2015). Students can listen to the
different points of view of classmates; learning with their group members
through communication and processes based on practice. In other words,
through group discussions students develop skills for organizing, reviewing,
analyzing and evaluating information. This change of model is proposed as
an alternative to the passive reception of information and subsequent “duties”
where such knowledge is supposedly applied. With the current technological
development and due to the democratization of access to information and it is
necessary that the teacher be the main source of information. The challenge
is that students know how to work with information, discuss with their
classmates and use it in specific tasks that go beyond copying and pasting;
learning during that process a much more enriching and functional school
knowledge.
In relation to the teaching and learning of Social Sciences, Geography
and History and looking at the main verbs above, we can understand that
lead, demonstrate, apply, collaborate, ask and engage requires a selection,
sequencing and organization of content connected with the socio-environmental
reality, the students’ previous ideas, the disciplinary scientific knowledge of
reference and the approach of situations in which students need to access to
new information, discuss and argue. In order achieve all this, it is evident
that watching videos is not enough, it is necessary to propose a solid and
properly structured learning strategy where interest is generated to learn to
solve properly contextualized tasks in the real world. From the approach
of a school understood as an engine for social improvement and to connect
students with the social context in a meaningful way; building learning based
on previous learning and transforming stable conceptions that have been

constructed by intuition. These conceptions allow the student to understand
the world regardless of whether they are incompatible with the social science
of reference. Therefore, it is so important that in the teaching-learning process
situations arise in which it is the student himself who understands that part of
his previous knowledge is useful and which conflicts with the new learning
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when solving problems. In the teaching and learning of the Social Sciences,
for example, if a student considers that in Democracy, in a Parliamentary
Monarchy, the king rules. It is not enough to show him in a video that the
king is the head of state and he does not govern. Situations and tasks must
be raised, supported by the questions that can be inserted in the video itself
in which the student reflects on: What is the role of the president regarding
the government? And the parliament? What is the meaning of a government
by someone who has not been elected by citizens? Is that compatible with
a democracy?
In the flipped classroom, students learn new knowledge that must be
connected by them to past learning. In other words, school knowledge is
constructed progressively and by triangulation between the relevant socio-
environmental problems, the students’ everyday knowledge and the teacher’s
scientific knowledge; based on an ethical positioning that is within the
framework of metadisciplinary knowledge (Cañal, Pozuelos & Travé, 2005).
Students converse with peers in the classroom, leading them to delve their
learning. Regarding the connection between prior knowledge and new scholar
knowledge, Logan (2015) and García Díaz & Cubero (2000) indicate that social
constructivist theory fits with the benefits of flipped classroom in the process
of learning as Piaget and Vygotsky explained it. In other words, desirable
level includes processes of interpretation, integration and restructuring of
students’ ideas to build a new knowledge than can be understood by them.
Benefits and Difficulties of Flipped Classrooms Approach
Through group discussions, students share and listen to different points of

view; learning in group experiences with how teammates process ideas.
Meantime, students are improving their processes of organizing, reviewing,
analyzing and evaluating information; contributing to the development of
critical thinking skills through active and collaborative learning (Reddan,
McNally & Chipperfield, 2016). Students engage in significant discussions
with their teachers and classmates, doing experiential class activities in-class
with the teacher support (Enfield, 2013; Davies, Dean & Ball, 2013, Butt,
2014; Sengel, 2016). Flipped classroom model allow teachers to visualize

capabilities and technologies to promote communication and critical thinking
in a collaborative educational environment (Strayer, 2012; Martin & Schwartz,
2014; Al-Zahrani, 2015). Moreover, in flipped classroom environment, during
class time, through a creative use of technology, students create a participatory
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environment for collaboration, socialization, and class community with

different contents and contexts (Jenkins, Purushotma, Weigel, Clinton &
Robinson, 2009, Mazur, Brown & Jacobsen, 2015). Consequently, flipped
learning supports social and collaborative opportunities improving basics
competencies in workplaces and social environments (Brunsell & Horejsi,
2013, Hamdan, McKnight, McKnight & Arfstrom, 2013).
According to research conducted by Enfield (2013), Davies, Dean & Ball
(2013) and Butt (2014) students usually do not read or view the teacher’s required
assignments outside of class; because they expect the teacher to explain tasks
during class. Besides, students view flipped classrooms negatively because
they must complete and prepare more work in flipped classrooms compared
to conventional transmissive models (Findlay-Thompson & Mombourquette,
2014; Sengel, 2016). In the book, Flip your classroom: Reach every student
in every class every day, Bergmann & Sams (2012) recommend to teachers
that create their own content videos, with the possibility of including humor
and animation and recommending short videos with several ways to assess
student learning. As Hantla (2014) indicates, this book is a useful support
for nontraditional way of teaching with a section with experienced flippers
that need other challenges.
Regarding benefits, flipped classroom allows teacher to aware of
misunderstandings of the content by students, making possible an efficient
feedback (Morgan, 2014). Including a fast feedback, teacher is free to create
challenging videos involving other co-workers to exchange points of view.
Handen, McKnight, McKnight & Arfstron (2013) highlight that studies on
the flipped learning show how students reach achievements with positive
comments from parents. Although students usually value flipped experiences
as positive, Bishop & Verleger (2013) research concluded that not all students
feel comfortable with it. The explanation about this is based on this model
works if student looks at video and does a quiz prior the class meeting, in
that case, students prefer activity-based class meetings. As was concluded
in several studies (Vaughn, 2014, Jarvis, Halvorson, Sadeque & Johnson,
2014), flipped approach improves student engagement, preparation, and
achievement, but there is a need to guide to best practices.
In relation to difficulties, implementation presents problems due to possible

lacks in technology infrastructure to access to online materials and resources
(Sparks, 2011). In the same way, Education Next (2013) indicated that this
method only works for upper-income or private schools. Parents must provide
the technology, and this can establish unfair differences between students,
because differences in family economics are ignored and this highlight the
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inequities. Johnson (2013) suggests attending to the following problems

related to the incorporation of this model in school: flipped classroom frees
students from physically attending to the classroom, it increase inequalities
and a division between those who have the technology and those who do
not, it makes the teacher seem unnecessary and it does away with a good
in-person lecture by the teacher.
USEFUL TOOLS IN BLENDER LEARNING

AND FLIPPED CLASSROOMS FOR SOCIAL
SCIENCES, HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY
In flipped classroom, teacher can use numerous tools. Therefore, in this

section, we present some of the most used tools. Resources have been classified
based on their functionality (figure 2). Thus, tools for content management
(platforms) are useful to disseminate accessible contents from home.
In order to deliver contents to students, content editing tools are useful
to make presentations. The edition can be managed online (through a
URL) or offline, once the presentation is finished (example, Power Point).
There are tools to deliver contents and to edit them, but where can students
find edited contents? In this regard, content bank tools are also important.
Obviously, this edition will be less personalized than if done by the teacher;
however, when it is necessary, the option to edit resources with the tools is
possible. Also interesting are the tools to create virtual murals that allow
the incorporation of text, video, images, audios, links and other materials
such as PDF documents, Word, Power Point, among others or evaluation
tools, which allow teachers to insert questionnaires into videos edited and
let students know points involved in tasks.
Content Bank and Content Edition Tools
Podcasting
It is related to distribution of multimedia files, usually audio or video and

including improved podcasts (which combine images and goodbye) and
screencast podcasts (by computer screen recording). Some popular podcast
servers are:
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Figure 2. Types of tools for flipped classroom
• Google Podcasts: this application is a podcast player to discover

and listen to the world’s podcasts; including the following features:
customize listening experience and listen on multiples device.
• Player FM: a server that allows access to web and media podcast from
different countries and in different languages, which has more than 500
categories including social sciences1, Geography 2 or History3. It also
has application in Play Store and App Store.
• Ivoox: it allows users to search, create and distribute podcasts. It has
the category “history and beliefs” and it is possible to listen to online
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radio or Ivoox originals; allowing users to download podcasts in PC or

in Ivoox device application.
• Speaker: similar to Ivoox, it allows users to search, create and distribute
podcasts, audio, video, etc. Include a Content Management System.
Speaker creations can be distributed by Spotify, Google Podcasts,
Apple Podcasts, etc.
Educational Video
Also called Video-Lesson, it is an audiovisual material created with didactic

intentionality. Educational videos include many options: presentations (Power
Point, Keynote, etc.) adding voiceover, animated presentations, recording
on a blackboard (or slidepaper), screenshot and webcam, and recording of
a teacher giving a class. As López Ardao (2017) indicates, the materials
needed to make a quality educational video are a good camera or webcam, an
omnidirectional desktop microphone for voiceovers or a lapel microphone to
record the classes; introducing some recommendations as short videos (no more
than 10 minutes) where a concept is explained; including the option to design
a small video presentation with slides that show the teacher’s head. Another
option is to design by drawing videos on Khan type. Recommended agility
and brevity in all cases. Next, several programs have been grouped according
to the different types of educational videos: presentations, animations, class
recording on a blackboard or slide paper and screenshot (Screencast)
• Presentations: programs that allow teachers and students to create

video presentations by recording the voice over, recording the intervals
and converting to video format.
◦◦ Microsoft Power Point it is a presentation program developed
by Microsoft for different operating systems. It is integrated in
an office package called Microsoft Office. It allows teachers and
students quickly create, edit, view, present or share presentations.
This program makes it possible for students to collaborate with
others inviting them to edit, view or provide feedback on their slides
and manage permissions or see who is working in presentation.

◦◦ Keynote: it is presentation tool for Apple that allow teachers to
choose from over several themes, make slides with videos, charts,
etc., add transitions and animations, and record and edit audio
clips.
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• Aminations: tools that allow users to create animations. For the

explanation of a concept, it is recommended to create short animations
(few minutes).
◦◦ Powtoon4: it allows teachers and students to create animations
with ready-to-use templates with “drag and drop” functionality.
Education materials come to life in school projects.
◦◦ Animaker5: Animaker is a collection of animated characters,
properties, BGs, icons, charts and maps allows users to create
presentations in 6 video styles that can be selected and mixed,
using multiple styles: 2D, infographics, handcraft, whiteboard,
2.5D or tipography.
◦◦ Biteable6: with this tool, teachers and students can create videos
starting from a lot of templates with a built-in library where they
can use thousands of real-life clips and animations.
◦◦ VideoScribe7: it is a software that allows teachers and students to
create a digital animation technique known as ‘video scribing’ or
“whiteboard animation” than combines animation and voice (we
can watch lots of examples of “video scribing” in the YouTube
channel Academia Play). According the website VideoScribe, it
has an easy drag and drop functionality, instant access to a library
of thousands of customizable images and music, support from
a professional team and a community ready to help you at any
time and a host of other features make it favored by businesses,
educators and millions worldwide. Due to the facility of this
software, videos with this technique can be created by teacher and
by students.
• Recording class on a blackboard or slidepaper: applications that
allow the design of videos where the teacher share on a tablet. There
is also the option of placing a static camera in front of a blackboard or
slidepaper.
◦◦ Khan Academy8: it is a platform that offers practice exercises,
instructional videos and a personalized learning dashboard and
allows teacher record their lessons. Khan Academy popularized
this type of videos.

◦◦ Show me9: this tool allows users to record what we write and draw
on images or backgrounds and add the voiceover. For iPad.
◦◦ Explain Everything10: this tool allows users to create dynamic and
interactive presentations. It is possible to write, draw, move objects,
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adding media from multiple sources, clip arts (with an extensive

library) and voiceover. For Apple, Android and Windows.
◦◦ Docery11: this tool allows users to visualize on the iPad the computer
screen, in addition to interacting, drawing and alternating with a
digital whiteboard and recording the whole class with a voiceover.
• Screencast: users can create video lessons by displaying the computer
screen and integrating video images from a webcam and audio.
◦◦ Panopto12: online tool to create a video lessons. Teachers can
record webcam images, presentations or screencast. It includes
activities, surveys and other ways of interaction in the recording.
Teachers can upload video lessons to the network and share it
with their students. Teacher has the option to control students task
about visualizing the video and re-editing when the recording is
finished.
◦◦ Screencast_o_Matic13: tool to capture what is displayed on the
computer screen and to add the audio or video from the webcam.
The application allows teachers to edit videos after recording, add
credits and transitions, save them in different formats and publish
them on the network through the Screencast_o_Matic platform.
◦◦ EDpuzzle14: this online app allows teachers to select educational
videos, edit them, add an explanatory audio, assign them to their
students and evaluate through inserted questions throughout the
viewing.
◦◦ Moovly15: this program allows teachers to create their explainer
video, video presentation, video tutorial or video animation. It
is useful for teachers, students and school administrators. Movly
captures the computer screen while the teacher uses the browser,
writes and draws, adding the voice over and the webcam video.
It allows combining videos, illustrations, animations, sounds, etc.
including own music
◦◦ Screencastify16: it is a Google Chrome extension to create
screencasts that include bookmarks and pointers.
• Other useful tools to create educational videos:
◦◦ ATube catcher: this tool allows users to download YouTube

videos and / or audios to different formats (mp3, mp4, HD, etc.)
and qualities.
◦◦ Freemade Video Downloader: it downloads YouTube videos and
form other 10,000 sites, saving videos, playlists and channels in
HD, MP4, MP3, AVI, 3GP, FLV, etc.
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◦◦ Freemade Video Converter: it converts video and movies from

over 500 formats and gadgets. It is possible to convert to MP4,
MP3, AVI, WMV, DVD, iPhone, Android or convert YouTube to
any format.
◦◦ Freemade Audio Converter: it converts music files from over 50
audio formats.
◦◦ Convert MP3, WMA, WAV, M4A, AAC, FLAC. Extract audio
from video.
◦◦ Fremade Movie Maker: it allows users to create videos; adding
music, special effects, cut, trim, join files. It supports over 500
video formats MP4, AVI, WMV, DVD, MKV, FLV, etc.
Wiki
It is a knowledge base website on which users collaboratively work as a

virtual community and from the web browser to search, create, edit (write
and save), location (link page), check, correct and delete information of a
Wiki (page). Most of the current wikis keep a history of changes that allow
students to easily recover any previous state and see which user made each
change. It allows students to manage the operation of the group and provides
the teacher with information on the participation of each member in the group
of students. Some of the uses of Wiki in education are (Adel, 2007, Richardson,
2010, Beristain, Méndez & Solares, 2015): promote communication between
students from the same group, develop collaborative skills, elaborate texts,
gather information, re-elaborate textbooks, enrich group work, present works,
review and correct works, create content, create glossaries, prepare school
newsletters and carry out Collaborative Projects As an example, Wikipedia
is the most famous encyclopedia based on wikis nowadays; but, regarding
educational use of Wiki, we highlight the following Wikis creation service
providers:
• PBWorks – Wikis17 is an online space to create private wikis to capture

and share knowledge, find knowledge through searching, combine
content, links, and embedded images, videos, and files, and organize
content visually and by folder. PBWorks – Education18 is an online
space to publish schedules, lectures, notes, and assignments, enable
collaborative group projects, keep parents involved and informed,
encourage students to share and show off their work, interact with
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other classes, across town or around the world. It is connected with

wiki service too.
• MediaWiki19 allows students to collect and organize knowledge and
make it available to people. It powers Wikipedia and also this website
and is multilingual, free (licensed under version 2 of the General Public
License [GNU]), open, extensible, and customizable.
• Twiki20 is an open source Wiki and web application platform that allows
students to collaborate globally, manage projects, share documents,
share knowledge, use as intranet and create web apps.
Youtube
YouTube21 is a popular website dedicated to sharing videos. On YouTube,

students and teachers can find primary audiovisual sources with great value
for history classes, documentaries and educational videos edited with tools
such as those mentioned above. Reviewing all YouTube channels that offer
useful contents for the teaching of Social Sciences, Geography and History
is an unrealistic task. Moreover, that would make little sense because one of
the reference sources of this area of knowledge are current news. However,
we can highlight examples of interesting channels:
• British Pathé22: Pathé News was a producer of news report and

documentaries in the United Kingdom. The Pathé News archive is
known today as British Pathé. The archive covers different historical
events, including events of First and Second World Wars. Its collection,
multiple primary sources, was uploaded to this YouTube channel, with
208.000 videos from 1896 to 1979.
◦◦ Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/
UCGp4u0WHLsK8OAxnvwiTyhA
• ArteHistoria23: ArteHistoria YouTube channel with hundreds of
contents of historical themes in Spanish. Videos in this channel
include maps, animations and digitization of documents. Especially
recommended to discover the evolution of the villages and settlements
that inhabited the Iberian Peninsula. Regarding the website, it includes

useful information as sources. The website is visual and intuitively
organized into the following categories: works (35,000), characters
(10,400), monuments (3150), document pages (150,000), videos
(1000), museums (2300), places, schools, Styles and glossaries.
◦◦ Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/artehistoriacom
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• Discerning History24: it is a channel with a didactic approach where

the most important events in history and their impact are shown. It has
documentaries that include interviews and testimonials from experts
or people linked to the facts. It offers numerous documentaries about
the History of America; including documentaries about the events that
built the nation.
◦◦ Channel: https://www.youtube.com/DiscerningHistory
• Academia Play25: this channel includes short videos about history
based on a digital animation technique known as ‘video scribing’
or “whiteboard animation” that is characterized by telling a story or
explaining a specific topic on a white board.
◦◦ Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/
UCv05qOuJ6Igbe-EyQibJgwQ
Vimeo
Vimeo26 is an ad-free video platform that provide free video viewing services
similar to YouTube. It has launched several products that enable quality video
creation at scale. It includes streaming services, 360-degree video support,
and support for virtual reality platforms and smartphones, stereoscopic video,
etc. There are other video platforms such as the European video-sharing
technology platform Dailymotion.
Prezi
Prezi27 is an alternative to Power Point for presentations and works as an open

canvas that allows both the teacher and the students to organize and visualize
a presentation as a whole set. It facilitates the organization of content with
drag and drop, that does not interfere with the design. It has a zoom function
that allows the user to put the focus on fundamental details and to freely
navigate a conversational presentation.
Genially
As we look in the chapter 2, Genially 28 is an intuitive and free tool with a

complete basic version and very visual appearance that allows users to create
presentations, infographics, posters, catalogs and images with numerous
designs and contents. It is possible to include the following features without
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programming knowledge: animations; interactivity, allowing user to add

layers of information for exploration; integration, from digital providers such
as Google Maps, gadgets, images (3D), videos, graphics, social networks,
etc.; storytelling, with a visual component; and monitoring the success of
the content. It allows users to collaborate on the same document, create in
the cloud, customize with corporate images, more than 400 templates and
hundreds of resources (illustrations, icons, figures, maps, pins, etc.).
Emaze
Emaze29 allows the user to create presentations, websites, e-cards, blogs and
photo albums with several templates.
• Presentations: it is possible to add audio, photo, video, live iframes,

custom forms, web pages, infographics and special effects.
• Websites: users can build their own custom website without design or
programming knowledge. User must select templates and, moreover,
they have the option to use Automaze tool that automatically create
custom websites.
• E-cards: it is possible to select and create interactive e-cards and
invitations from templates; customizing them with photos, videos and
other details, and adjusting the designs and layout in the Emaze editor.
• Blogs: after choosing an Emaze template with the style and layout,
users can change text, write posts, adjust designs, embed live social
feeds30 and web pages, etc. Finally, it is possible to publish blog from
Emaze
• Photo Albums: after choosing a ready-made template or create their
own from scratch, users can directly upload photos and videos from
social media to Emaze. Finally, it is possible to share albums from
Emaze.
CmapTools; Mindomo
CmapTools31 is a tool that allows users to build and share concept maps with
many customizable options. Mindomo32 is an online collaborative software
to build concept maps where users can create, view and share mind maps in
a search engine.
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Content Management Tools
Regarding Open Educational Resources (OER) and Learning Management

System (LMS) we invite to reader to go to Chapter 5 in order to delve about
them. In relation to Virtual Learning Environment (VLE), we invite reader
to read chapter 9. The access to OER is useful in cases that imply sharing
information, including b-Learning and flipped classrooms. OER refers to
free and open educational teaching, learning and research resources in digital
support. These resources are associated with an open license (such as Creative
Commons). Moreover, it is possible adaptation and redistribution of these
resources by others without any restrictions or with limited restrictions. OER
are not always integrated into LMS, a concept emerged from e-Learning. As we
indicated previously, LMS encompass a type of software and web applications
that facilitates the online delivery of course materials, student tracking and
presentation of work by students. In general, an LMS focuses on the creation
of course content through a Learning Content Management System (LCMS)
and on the management of that content from different sources. Regarding
LMS and in specific cases such as Virtual Classrooms, teacher, students and
learning resources may be situated at different non-centralized locations. This
feature allows that teaching and learning take place independent of space and
time. LMS can be used for u-Learning, b-Larning, flipped classroom and
other training modalities related to e-Learning. The relation between LMS
and LCMS define a VLE. Social networks are highly motivating content
managers tools that have multiple possibilities. Regarding social networks,
we consider that Youtube is a right platform to start making educational use
of social networks in the classroom. There is no need to worry about age
limits for access. The possibilities of YouTube in educational field are, for
example, creation of a channel to upload visual content, creation of videos
and upload them by teacher or students. Regarding the use of Twitter, Jiménez
(2012) summarizes 12 methods of using it. Based on this classification, we
have eliminated some methods and deeply modified others to focus on the
teaching of Social Sciences, Geography and History, resulting in 14 methods
to use this social network in the classroom:
• Bulletin board: publish news regarding the utility course for students.
Each of them should become a follower of the teacher and add a hashtag
that includes the subject and the course.
213
• Abstracts: to work on the ability to synthesize ideas and concepts,

the teacher can allow each student a limited number of tweets for this
synthesis, being able to publish them gradually on Twitter.
• Sharing links: the teacher can assign each student a number of
weekly tweets where they share links with their classmates about, for
example, World War II or another topic or problem without repeated
links between classmates. It is very important to incorporate a hashtag
on the topic, so that all students can see what others publications. It
is essential consider validity and reliability of sources to avoid the
expansion of fake news or uncritical internalization of ideologically
biased information.
• Follow a famous character: teacher can assign a famous character to
each student or group who will have to follow him/her on Twitter and
document his/her activity. Information must be exposed later in class,
stablishing a debate about it. In this case, students can pay attention
on tweets related to topics that they are working in class; including
the position and arguments of the respective famous characters in
relation to problems (current and historical) that may be current and
that are related to the topic. In this case, it is essential that the teacher
assigns diverse and ideologically plural characters and offer students
enough freedom to participate in debate. This will avoid biased and
intellectually poor debates where students participate with a single
position, the teacher’s position. The imposition of teacher position
as the only right position contribute to indoctrination of students and
decline of their critical thinking.
• Fake news hunter: a large amount of information is shared every day
through social networks. However, not all of that information is real.
Look for examples of fake news on the networks and argue why in
class it is focused on the need to learn to contrast the information
they receive through social networks or by any other means such as
television or websites.
• Riddles and clues: as a game, teacher can publish riddles and give
clues about issues related to Social Sciences, Geography or History so
that students seek specific information. This is intended for students to

learn to locate appropriate information.
• Represents a historical character: teacher can assign each student a
historical character. The task would be to document about the character
and create his / her Twitter account, where students tweet posts by
214
getting into the role of each character and imagining how they would
participate in social network.
• Hashtag of the day: teacher can start the class by writing the hashtag of
that class in a corner of the board. That hashtag would be active until
the next class, being able to comment, review and debate about the
contents worked in class and encouraging attention in class, because
that will allow them to participate later in these debates.
• Collaborative work: establishing an order, teacher can get a complete
work together. Teacher continues to talk about a particular topic
worked in class (for example, Ancient Greece) with the corresponding
hashtag, the first student follows with a tweet, the second and so on
giving a response time of 1 or 2 minutes to each student to write a
tweet expanding the information of the previous one. If a student takes
longer, the turn goes to the next student.
• Expressions, before and now: teacher can publish a word or expression
and students can search for information about its origin, focusing
on its historical, political and social context. Finally, the meaning is
compared in the present and in the past by analyzing the historical,
social and cultural reasons of these differences or similarities.
• Summary of the day: the teacher can share with students’ summaries of
what has been given in the class through several tweets. Students will
only have to follow the teacher to see what he/she publishes.
• Discussion between classes: teachers can promote debate between
classes by creating discussions about current news or related to Social
Science, Geography and History contents that involve different groups
from the same school (or from other schools), in sessions virtually
supervised by teachers.
• Our projects: regarding Social Sciences teaching and learning through
Project Based Learning or School Research, students can publish tweets
about their projects or about what are they investigating. Teachers can
offer some guidance: what is the most interesting that they have done
in the group work session, who is the interviewed person, what they
have discovered or learned, what difficulties they have faced to, etc.
• Informing parents: if parents follow the teacher, they can know about
the lessons in each class.
In relation to Facebook the great advantage over Twitter is that it allows

the creation of private groups for the classroom environment, managed
and moderated by the teacher. Through this social network, and within the
215
groups, the teacher can share content, raise activities and generate debates.
With Instagram, students can upload images and create albums to summarize
Social Science activities. As for Snapchat, the teacher can create stories that
disappear in a short space of time where you can organize tasks with clues.
It is very important to consider the disadvantages and problems derived from
the use of social networks in the teaching of Social Sciences. In general, the
disadvantages of using social networks in the classroom are directly related to
the inappropriate or irresponsible use of social networks in everyday life. As
indicated in the REDEM World Education Network (2017), the introduction
of social networks in the classroom has to be done step by step, respecting
the times and age of the students and, above all, being very clear that the use
of social networks in the teaching - learning processes must be permanently
tutored by the teacher. In addition, the parents of students must agree it.
Therefore, this global network considers that some of the disadvantages of
using social networks in the classroom according to experts are:
• Distraction and excessive use time: it is necessary to make clear from

the beginning the rules and limits of use.
• Excessive dependence: related to the first point, the addictive capacity
of social networks must be taken into account. They should be used as
a complement not as a priority educational tool.
• Aggressive debates: the teacher must act as a moderator, supervising
and detecting possible cases of cyberbullying or incorrect behavior.
• Risk for personal information: we must clarify the rules on privacy
and, given the potential risks, it is very important for students to be
clear about how to communicate data without the need to disseminate
personal information.
• Lack of physical interaction: given the convenience of sharing
information and working in the virtual environment, it is necessary
that they carry out activities that put them in direct contact with their
peers. In flipped classrooms, for example, students do practical tasks in
the classroom with their respective groups.
Other Content Management Tool is the blog. A blog is a website that works
as a diary where users upload content that is often frequently updated, and it
can receive comments from readers. There are numerous types of blogs such
as personal blog, microblogging or corporate blog. Among the different types
of blogs, is the educational blog. In educational blog, teachers and students
can upload materials, experiences, reflections and didactic content, with
216
periodic dissemination of the activities carried out in the Social Sciences,

Geography or History classes. These blogs allow teachers to communicate
with the educational community. Students can create a blog where they
upload their group activities. Some examples of websites to create blogs
are Wordpress, Blogger or Weebly for Education, which allows teacher to
create web and blog, and also manage student accounts. JClic is formed by
a set of computer applications that are used for carrying out different types
of educational activities: puzzles, associations, text exercises, crosswords.
Evaluation Tools
Kahoot application is a game-based learning platform that was created

by Professor Alf Inge Wang of the Norwegian University of Science and
Technology for clearly educational purposes in 2013. When registering, four
options appear that allow Kahoot to be used as: teacher, student, socially or
at work. Thus, to edit and create a Kahoot it is necessary to register; allowing
different options such as developing a new Kahoot (New K!), finding Kahoots
made by other users, accessing my kahoots or my results. When developing a
new Kahoot (option that we are going to focus on) four options appear: Quiz
(choose the correct answer from multiple options), Jumble (place answers in
correct order), Discussion (ask questions for debate) and Survey (to opinion
questionnaires). Focusing on Quiz, when entering this option, you can put
title, keywords, include images or small opening videos, edit their visibility,
language, type of audience (school, university, etc.). Once this is defined,
we will add questions, appearing the following options: question, time limit,
scores (yes / no), answers [1, 2, 3, 4] (it is necessary to mark the correct one),
sources (optional), image or YouTube video (optional). By pressing “Play”
you can choose between “classic”, competitive individual, or “team mode”
that combines intragroup cooperation and intergroup competition. When
teacher select one of the two options, a 7-digit pin number will appear on the
screen. Without registration, students only need to download the application
on their mobile device or tablet, or open the corresponding website and enter
a 7-digit pin number, starting the experience when the teacher makes sure
that all students have been able to access.

As we said in content bank and content edition tools to section, EDpuzzle
allows teachers to select and edit educational videos, adding explanatory audio.
Regarding evaluation, teacher can assign these videos to their students and
evaluate them through inserted questions throughout the viewing. Playposit
217
allows instructors to enrich video content with a variety of powerful interactions

ranging from multiple choice questions to graded fill-in-the blanks. Learners
receive feedback to increase long-term retention. Teacher receives immediate,
accessible data (both performance and behavior-based) to effectively
improve concepts, automatically assign grades and address deficiencies.
It can be connected with LMS. With Socrative allow teachers to visualize
student understanding quizzing and grading at the speed of learning. This
tool facilities immediate feedbacks in the learning process; giving teachers
a way to monitor and evaluate learning that saves time for educators while
delivering interactions for learners. As we looked in chapter 2, Quizlet is a
platform and app of ‘flashcards’ or ‘free study units’ that allows users to create
their own card packs or use those that have been prepared by others; having
thousands of packs to learn and review different concepts. Therefore, you
can find numerous flashcard packs of Social Sciences, Geography is History
in different languages. Students can adjust their grading settings for each set
that they are learning, incorporating feedback. Gnowledge is a specific tool
to create test that allows to store results, scores and answer; share tests with
students and peers; and learn with randomized questions. Vialogues is a tool
to discuss videos, it is possible to open a debate related to the content of the
videos, in addition to adding questions that students should answer later.
There are other tools useful for b-Learning and flipped classrooms. With
the tools to create virtual murals we can incorporate into our murals: text,
video, images, audios, links and other materials such as PDF documents,
Word, Power Point, among others. Some of these tools are Padlet (it allows
to make whiteboards, documents and pages and users can invite collaborators
to add content, comment, like and make edits in real-time), Glogster
(multimedia posters with 3D), Murally (for online brainstorming) and Lino
(photo sharing and digital sticks). With the tools for creating and evaluating
text content teachers can create, distribute by platform and evaluate reading
tasks complemented by questions and support tools. Actively Learn is an
example of this kind of tools.
CONCLUSION
Technology has increased the possibilities of interaction, management and

content creation. It has opened new ways of highly efficient evaluation and
has allowed substantial changes in the teaching-learning processes. The
technologies have offered new possibilities of access to studies through the
218
virtualization of the teaching-learning processes. However, technological skills

are not enough; emerging new teaching models designed to take advantage of
this new horizon significantly. Flipped learning is a model that is proposed
as an alternative to passive reception of information and subsequent “school
assignments” where such knowledge is supposedly applied (predominantly
copy and paste). With the current technological development and due to the
democratization of access to information, a teaching practice based almost
entirely on the oral exposition of information that students must learn is
totally anachronistic and misses the opportunity for students to learn high-
level contents (including concepts, procedures and attitudes) according to
current reality. The challenge is that students know how to use the information,
discuss it with their classmates, use it in specific tasks and even relativize it
by contrasting sources. Learning during this process contributes to a more
enriching school knowledge and critical thinking skills, a school knowledge
connected to the needs of current students and connected with the social
world around them. The flipped classroom shifts the teaching practice to a
learner-centered model in which time in the classroom is used to explore and
delve in topics initially introduced outside of the classroom. Contents can be
sent and introduced through several forms: video lessons, online collaborative
discussions, digital research and text readings.
Flipped classroom allows teacher to aware of misunderstandings of the
contents by students, making possible an efficient feedback. Including a
fast feedback, teacher is free to create challenging videos involving other
co-workers to exchange points of view. Flipped approach improves student
engagement, preparation, and achievement, but there is a need to guide to
best practices. In relation to difficulties, flipped classroom frees students
from physically attending to the classroom, it increases inequalities and a
division between those who have the technology and those who do not, it
makes the teacher seem unnecessary and it does away with a good in-person
lecture by the teacher.
Flipped approach is not for every class or every teacher. Teachers would
benefit from training in how to actively get students involved in the approach.
There must be a change in thinking if this approach will work for teachers
and students. What we can learn from this approach is how powerful active
teaching is in the classroom (Logan, 2015). Trying to encourage students
to come to class prepared is not a new battle for teachers because teachers
understand the effect prepared students can have on how much can be learned.
The most important feature in this approach is still the teacher who understands
the students and has a repertoire of many teaching methods. Bergmann and
219
Sams, the founders, believe that teachers should use the videos they create
and offer other sources as alternatives.
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ENDNOTES
1
Postcast de Ciencias Sociales en PlayerFM: • https://player.fm/
es/featured/social-sciences (Spanish); • https://player.fm/featured/
geography (English)
2
Postcast de Geografía en PlayerFM: • https://player.fm/es/podcasts/
geograf%25C3%25ADa (Spanish); • https://player.fm/featured/history
(English)
3
Postcast de Geografía en PlayerFM: • https://player.fm/es/podcasts/
historia (Spanish); • https://player.fm/featured/social-sciences (English)
4
Powtoon: https://www.powtoon.com/
5
Animaker: https://www.animaker.com/
6
Biteable: https://biteable.com/
7
VideoScribe: https://www.videoscribe.co/en/
8
Khan Academy: https://www.khanacademy.org/
9
Show me: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/showme-interactive-
whiteboard/id445066279
10
Explain Everything: https://explaineverything.com/
11
Docery: https://doceri.com/
12
Panopto: https://www.panopto.com/panopto-for-education/
13
Screencast o Matic: https://screencast-o-matic.com/
14
EDpuzzle: https://edpuzzle.com/
15
Moovly: https://www.moovly.com/
16
Screencastify: https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/screencastify-
screen-vide/mmeijimgabbpbgpdklnllpncmdofkcpn?hl=en
17
PBWorks – Wikis: http://www.pbworks.com/wikis.html
18
PBWorks – Education: http://www.pbworks.com/education.html
19
MediaWiki: https://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/MediaWiki
20
Twiki: https://twiki.org/
21
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/
22
British Pathé; https://www.britishpathe.com/
23
Artehistoria website: https://www.artehistoria.com/
24
Discerning History website: http://discerninghistory.com/
224
25
Academia Play website: https://academiaplay.es/
26
Vimeo: https://vimeo.com/
27
Prezi: https://prezi.com/
28
Genially: https://www.genial.ly/
29
Emaze: https://www.emaze.com/
30
In order to create a unified social media feeds there are lots of tools
such as Juicer (https://www.juicer.io/) or Social Feed (https://wordpress.
org/plugins/wp-social-feed/).
31
CmapTools: https://cmap.ihmc.us/cmaptools/
32
Mindomo: https://www.mindomo.com/
225
226
Chapter 8
M-Learning as a Driving
Force of Social Engagement,
Responsible Collaboration,
and Student Interaction:
Resources for Social Sciences Education
ABSTRACT
The normalization of the use of these devices offers facilities for exploration,
personalization of learning, and greater adaptation to the rhythm of students.
In this chapter, a conceptualization of m-Learning will be presented including
the main m-Learning features. After, the authors focus on applications for
social sciences education. This chapter is divided into two parts. The authors
review general applications that can be useful for the teaching and learning
of social sciences, offering numerous procedural possibilities at the service of
the area. After, they review some specific applications that, beyond concepts
and facts, offer multiple procedural possibilities connected with conceptual
contents of this area of knowledge. Finally, other resources and teaching
guidance for m-Learning will be presented, including relevant websites with
lots of resources for the teaching and learning of social sciences, geography,
and history.
DOI: 10.4018/978-1-7998-2882-2.ch008
M-Learning as a Driving Force of Social Engagement, Responsible Collaboration
INTRODUCTION
The report “The New Faces of Gaming” by Interactive Software Federation

of Europe (ISFE) (2017), and through the GameTrack survey (ISFE and Ipsos
Connect) that has covered the European markets of the United Kingdom,
Germany, France and Spain, confirms a popularization of the use of smartphones
and tablets. The expansion of the use of mobile devices (smartphones, smart
watches and tablets) has generated new forms of communication and made
possible the development of mobile learning (m-Learning). The normalization
of the use of these devices offers facilities for exploration, personalization
of learning and greater adaptation to the rhythm of students. As indicated
by Becker, Cummins, Davis, Freeman, Hall Giesinger & Ananthanarayanan
(2017), students can also use mobile phones to implement some fundamental
skills in the 21st century; including communication, collaboration and content
creation, also facilitating the teacher-student interaction.
M-Learning is a type of e-Learning, an education approach where Internet
and mobile devices are used. Mobile devices such as tablets and smartphones
allow students to obtain learning materials through mobile apps, social
interactions and online educational contexts. Flexibility of these devices
make possible that students can access to education anywhere and anytime.
The research of Klimova (2019) reveal that, based on students’ needs and
with teacher orientations, learning materials and tools such as mobile apps
are effective in the enhancement of students’ performance. Moreover, they
contribute to the improvement of learning outcomes. As in e-Learning,
m-Learning is a way for educational institutions to deliver knowledge and
educational contents to students on any platform, anyplace and any time.
However, in this case, students can use mobile apps and tools with mobile
devices to complete assignments and upload them to teachers, download
course resources or collaborate online with groups to complete tasks.
In this chapter, a conceptualization of m-Learning will be presented;
including the main m-Learning features. After, we will focus on apps for
Social Sciences education. That section is divided into two parts. In a first
subsection, general apps, useful for teaching and learning Social Sciences,
will be reviewed; offering numerous procedural possibilities at the service of

the area. In a second subsection, we will review some specific apps for the
teaching of Social Sciences, Geography and History that go beyond conceptual
contents and offers multiple procedural possibilities explicitly and naturally
227
connected with conceptual contents of this areas of knowledge. Finally, other

resources and teaching guidance for m-Learning will be presented, including
relevant websites with lots of resources for the teaching and learning of Social
Sciences, Geography and History.
CONCEPTUALIZATION AND
CHARACTERISTICS OF M-LEARNING
As Farley, Murphy & Rees (2013) indicates, researchers have the challenge to
provide a unified definition of m-Learning different from e-Learning. Osman,
El-Hussein & Cronje (2010) highlight the mobility as a significant point on
the most of definitions of m-Learning in three categories: mobility of learners,
mobility of technology, mobility of learning in the landscape. Mobile devices
are widely used to support a learning with lots of opportunities such as free
access or reduced restrictions in terms of time and space (Adebayo, 2010;
Brown & Mbati, 2015; Aghaee, Jobe, Karunaratne, Smedberg, Hansson &
Tedre, 2016; Moreno-Agudelo & Valencia-Arias, 2017). In other words, from
a general point of view, m-Learning are practices that use mobile devices
and technologies of wireless data transfer extend for teaching and learning
processes (Pardo & Balestrini, 2010). As Depetris, Tavela & Castro (2012)
and Gómez-Ramirez, Valencia-Arias & Duque (2019) indicates, m-Learning
combined with a Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) is derived from mobile
technology and Web 2.0; introducing advantages that include personalization
of learning experiences and selection of device, place, and time, and including
an improvement of the design of learning environments where experiences
adapted to the student’s reality are promoted. In general, we can define
m-Learning as a type of e-Learning that occurs through mobile devices, apps
and internet, and that allows students to learn autonomously whenever and
wherever they want, including immediate interaction, contextualization and
natural integration in their daily activity.
From a technical point of view, some difficulties of introducing of
m-learning in education is related to connectivity, small screen sizes, limited
computation power, limited memory capacity or short battery life (Tabor,

2016). From techno-centric and student-centric frameworks, new pedagogical
frameworks recognize that there is a symmetry between the student and the
device (Deaton, Herron & Deaton, 2018). Also, researches like the research
of Elfeky & Masadeh (2016) show that mobile learning have a significant
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effect on both students’ academic achievement and conversational skills.

This due to mobile devices are common supports in the students’ daily lives
and they are not strangers to them, but despite the increase in the use of
mobile devices among students, cultural differences in teaching practices
and current social tendencies are key factors for the acceptance and use
of this technology (Gómez-Ramirez, Valencia-Arias & Duque, 2019: 157).
However, other studies as Kuznekoff & Titsworth (2013) and Chu (2012)
concludes that m-Learning is not an effective learning style and could not
affect learners’ academic achievement. The teacher should not overvalue
the digital competences of students just because they use mobile devices
or because they were born in the 21st century. Beyond access to mobile
devices, both the use of technology and its integration into the teaching-
learning process contribute to digital competences of students. That is, each
app and each didactic approach involves knowing specific aspects of the use
of that app and didactic guidelines that determine the interaction with the
learning of Social Sciences, Geography and History. Connected with types
of interactions regarding place, time and situation, according to the type of
feedback that students receive, and based on theories from Psychology and
Pedagogy, m-Learning models can be classified in six broad theory-based
categories of activity (Naismith, Lonsdale, Vavoula & Sharples, 2004: 2-4):
• Behaviorist: activities that promote learning as a change in learners

‘observable actions. In the behaviorist paradigm, learning is thought to
be best facilitated through the reinforcement of an association between
a particular stimulus and a response. Applying this to educational
technology, computer-aided learning is the presentation of a problem
(stimulus)followed by the contribution on the part of the learner of
the solution (response). Feedback from the system then provides the
reinforcement.
• Constructivist: activities in which learners actively construct new
ideas or concepts based on both their previous and current knowledge.
In the constructivist approach, learning is an active process in which
learners construct new ideas or concepts based on both their current
and past knowledge. Learners are encouraged to be active constructors

of knowledge, with mobile devices now embedding them in a realistic
context at the same time as offering access to supporting tools.
• Situated: activities that promote learning within an authentic context
and culture Situated learning posits that learning can be enhanced by
ensuring that it takes place in an authentic context. Mobile devices
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are especially well suited to context-aware applications simply because

they are available in different contexts, and so can draw on those
contexts to enhance the learning activity. The museum and gallery
sector has been on the forefront of context-aware mobile computing by
providing additional information about exhibits and displays based on
the visitor’s location within them.
• Collaborative: activities that promote learning through social
interaction Collaborative learning has sprung out from research on
computer-supported collaborative work and learning (CSCW/L) and is
based on the role of social interactions in the process of learning.
• Informal and lifelong activities that support learning outside a dedicated
learning environment and formal curriculum Research on informal and
lifelong learning recognizes that learning happens all of the time and
is influenced both by our environment and the particular situations we
are faced with.
• Learning and teaching support: activities that assist in the coordination
of learners and resources for learning activities Education as a process
relies on a great deal of coordination of learners and resources. Mobile
devices can be used by teachers for attendance reporting, reviewing
student marks, general access of central school data, and managing
their schedules more effectively. In higher education, mobile devices
can provide course material to students, including due dates for
assignments and information about timetable and room changes.
M-Learning is not achieved automatically and simply by using technology.

As we said on other chapters, the use of technologies must be accompanied
with a didactic foundation. Regarding this, in general terms, m-Learning has
the following benefits (Jisc, 2011):
• Reduction of technical and learning barriers.

• Contact with mentors, tutors and peers anywhere.
• Adaptation to the life of the students and use of dead times.
• Reception of reminders and messages that help manage time.
• Portability that allows learning anywhere, anytime.

• Data register.
• Immediacy of communication and data exchange.
• Delivery of easy-to-manage e-learning resources.
• Contextualization with the help of GPS technology.
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• Integration of abstract or representative knowledge and specific or

environmentally situated knowledge.
• Promotion of active learning.
• Enabling new learning environments.
• Increased accessibility of students with special educational needs.
The research of Al-Adwan, Al-Madadha & Zvirzdinaite (2018) concludes

a relative advantage, complexity, social influence, facilitating conditions
and perceived enjoyment as key facilitators to introducing m-Learning in
education, but self-management of learning is considered as a key inhibitor. In
other words, in a similar way of Ali and Arshad (2016) and Poong Yamaguchi
& Takada (2016), it is considered the positive influence of m-Learning in
relation to students’ perceptions of enjoyment.
M-LEARNING RESOURCES IN SOCIAL SCIENCES,

GEOGRAPHY AND HISTORY EDUCATION
This section is divided into two parts. In a first subsection, general useful
apps for teaching and learning Social Sciences will be reviewed; offering
numerous procedural possibilities at the service of the area. In a second
subsection, we will review some specific apps for the teaching of Social
Sciences, Geography and History that go beyond the merely conceptual and
offers multiple procedural possibilities explicitly and naturally connected
with conceptual contents of this area of knowledge.
General m-Learning Resources in

Social Sciences Education
Due to the challenge of implementing m-Leaning in the classroom, Aula

Planeta (2018), organizes m-Learning resources in four broad categories:
management tools, such as Additio or iDoceo; communication tools, such as
Telegram, Remind, Skype of Google Hangouts; processing, presentation and
document management tools, such as Dropbox, Google Drive, Box, Prezi,

Slideshare, Scribd, Flipboard, Simplemind or Mindono; and multimedia
content creation tools, including creation of image (example, Flickr), sound
(example, the SounCloud [repository] or the Spreaker DJ [editor]), video
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(example, Magisto or Lapse It), tutorials and presentations (example, Explain

Everything, Comic Strip It or Comic Book).
• Additio / iDoceo: this app centralizes the management of classes

with features such as digital gradebook, lesson planner, rubrics,
customized reports, record of attendance, timetable, seating plan and
calendar, working offline on mobile devices, using and importing data,
communication with students and their families, etc.
• Telegram / Remind: both are messaging apps. However, the second one
has been explicitly created for educational uses and it includes class
creation and joining classes through the introduction of a code offered
by the teacher. Only users with owner permission can send notice to all
group members.
• Skype / Google Hangouts: they are very popular tools for chat and
videoconferences. They can be introduced in the teaching of Social
Sciences to offer support to students. Experts or relevant people to the
development of activities can be invited, allowing dialogue, creation
of discussion groups, etc. In general, educators like Nielsen (2013)
propose didactic uses of these tools, considering online classes or
webinars, school connection or meetings.
• Prezi: it is a tool for presentations with design templates, reusable
presentations and a PowerPoint to Prezi converter with a large image
library and a multitude of easily customizable graphics, diagrams and
designs.
• Slideshare: it allows users to discover or share what they know through
presentations, infographics, documents, etc.
• Scribd: a service for access to books, audio books and journals.
• Flipboard: it aggregates contents from social media, news feeds, photo
sharing sites and other websites; presenting them in magazine format
and allowing users to save stories into Flipboard magazines.
• Simplemind: it allows users to design multiple mind maps on one page,
horizontal, vertical, top-down and list auto layout for brainstorming.
• Mindono: it allows users to design mental and conceptual maps,
diagrams and Gantt diagrams.

• Flickr: it is an image and video hosting service.
• SounCloud: it is an online audio distribution platform that allows users
to upload, promote and share audio.
• Spreaker DJ: it provides users with tools they need to start a podcast
and distribute it on iTunes, Spotify, etc.
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• Magisto: it is a video editor useful to make fast social videos with lots
of high-quality video and image options.
• Lapse It: this app is used to get and record time lapse videos. Time
lapse is a photograph technique that shows an accelerated view of
slowly changing events such as movement of clouds, the rising and
setting of the sun, etc.
• Explain Everything: it is a mobile whiteboard app to teach, present,
sketchnote, create videos and collaborate in work groups.
• Comic Strip It: it is a tool to create comic-books, comic-strips, and
storyboards using an Android phone.
• Comic Book: it is an app to create comics with different graphic effects,
105 inspiring layouts, 374 hand-drawn comic Stickers, 12 caption and
text tools, or auto-content from Facebook and Flickr.
There are lots of apps for m-Learning that can be use in the teaching
and learning of Social Sciences, Geography and History. In relation to
this, as indicated by Becker, Cummins, Davis, Freeman, Hall Giesinger &
Ananthanarayanan (2017), Hotseat1 is a mobile app that has been developed at
Purdue University (United States) and it allows students to publish questions
and comments in real time during class development. These questions are
published anonymously or through their respective social media profiles;
including participation through SMS, answering questions from others, like the
messages or answering questionnaires. These authors highlight that teachers
recognize as benefits a greater involvement, adaptation of teaching based on
student feedback, also helping the most introverted students to participate.
SPECIFIC M-LEARNING RESOURCES FOR SOCIAL

SCIENCES, GEOGRAPHY AND HISTORY EDUCATION
In Educational Technology and m-Learning websites (Educators Technology,

2017), some relevant social studies app for m-Learning were selected. They
are National Archives DocsTeach, Google Earth, Today In History, Stack the
Countries, Learn World Geography, History and Social Studies, Geo Touch,
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Historia World, News-O-Matic EDU, Student News Daily, DOGOnews and

Know Your World.
• National Archives DocsTeach: DocsTeach is an app for learning with

documents, from the U.S. National Archives. Students can enter a
classroom code to access and complete activities assigned to them or
it is possible to choose them from a selection of learning activities by
historical era.
◦◦ Website: http://cort.as/-QfUI
• Google Earth: it allows users to cross through landmarks and cities in
3D, completing the experience with Street View.
◦◦ Website: http://cort.as/-QfTZ
• Today In History: a way to get key facts about iconic global events and
fun facts from across the centuries, delivered right to mobile devices.
◦◦ Website: http://cort.as/-QfY2
• Stack the Countries: it is designed to makes learning about the world
fun. The countries come to life in a colorful and dynamic game.
◦◦ Website: http://cort.as/-Qg8j
• Learn World Geography: it supports students to learn faster about
world maps and capitals using cognitive science techniques.
◦◦ Website: http://cort.as/-QgBk
• History and Social Studies: it allows users to discover wonders and
mysteries of the ancient world with these 5 history apps that help
students learn about history, packed with historical facts, animations,
illustrated encyclopedias, maps and audio narrative that describe key
events, famous people, inventions and discoveries.
◦◦ Website: http://cort.as/-QgGk
• Geo Touch: it is useful to learn the shape and location of each of the
US states and US landmarks, including countries in the Americas,
Europe, Asia, and Africa.
◦◦ Website: http://cort.as/-QgK5
• Historia World: it is a quiz to test student’s general knowledge in
History.
◦◦ Website: http://cort.as/-QgLI
• News-O-Matic EDU: it delivers news regarding interest of students.
◦◦ Website: http://cort.as/-QgML
• Student News Daily: it provides current events materials for the high
school classroom. Content categories include a Daily News Article and
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weekly World Events. Moreover, comprehension and critical thinking

questions, background and resources below the article.
◦◦ Website: http://cort.as/-QgOm
• DOGOnews: it has over 3,000 articles on topics ranging from Science
and Social Studies to International current events.
◦◦ Website: http://cort.as/-QgPx
• Know Your World: it focusses on learning of Continents, Tectonic
Plates and Volcanoes of the world in a simple to use touch game.
Moreover, it allows students to explore each topic and, after, take a
quiz to test their knowledge.
◦◦ Website: http://cort.as/-QgQT
Other History teaching apps are, for example, History Vault, Study AP
World History, Udemy or WHExperience. On the other hand, Wallen (2014)
hightlight five applications for creating timelines: Timeglider, RWT Timeline,
Tiki-Toki, Capzles and myHistro. They can be useful to organize facts and
events in time and in order to delve in causes and consequences.
OTHER RESOURCES AND TEACHING GUIDANCES

FOR THE TEACHING AND LEARNING OF SOCIAL
SCIENCES, GEOGRAPHY AND HISTORY
Moll (2016), on the other hand, defines a mobile app like any computer app
that is carried out on smartphones and tablets and that is distributed through
mobile operating systems. Moreover, he makes a classification around
functionality with some examples that may be useful for the user. Some of
those examples we have seen previously. In addition, throughout different
chapters, we have seen other apps that can be used through mobile devices
and that are not in the following list. This classification could be useful as
a basic orientation: apps to create lists of students and tasks (Wunderlist,
Google Talk, Busy, Astrid, etc.); apps to take notes (Evernote, Colornote,
Plaintext, Google Keep, etc.); apps to take notes manually (Penultimate,
Noteshelf, Papyrus, Bamboo, etc.); apps to be used as teacher’s notebook

(Idoceo, Classtime, Homework, Shedule, etc.); apps for content creation
(Socrative, Movenote, etc.); apps to create presentations (VideoScribe, etc.);
photography apps (Picsart, PixirExpress, Colorsplash, Photogrid, etc.); apps
to make recordings or audio programs (Soundcloud, Downcast, Spreaker,
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etc.); and Storage apps (Dropbox, Google Drive, etc.). On the other hand,
some general ideas to use these apps for the teaching and learning of Social
Sciences, Geography and History are:
• Creation by groups of sequenced animated videos about some historical

events.
• Consultation of dictionaries and digital encyclopedias about the mean
of some words related to this area of knowledge.
• Development of a podcast or radio program in a simulated socio-
historical context from the past; including several positions and
discussion about one historical event.
• Creation of digital books with iBooks as a conclusion of unit with
the most important contents for students, including why they did that
selection and the main difficult issues for them when they studied about
those contents.
• Development of a sound bank with old historical records related the
topic or preparation of audio notes with argumentation and critical
position about social, geographical and/or historical issues.
These and many other ideas indicated in other chapters must be integrated
into broader teaching-learning processes of the Social Sciences, which
involve selection, sequencing and organization of contents considered by the
integration of concepts, procedures and attitudes. That promotes social and civic
competences, in addition to other necessary competencies in societies related
to creativity, critical thinking and collaboration; or that integrate continuous
and plural evaluation tasks as part of the teaching - learning methodology.
Websites for Social Sciences Education
Finally, according the Franklin HS Library (s/f), the following websites

(and apps) includes some relevant and useful resources for Social Sciences
education. Also, in order to improve the guidance, we will highlight the
most important features for the teaching and learning of Social Sciences,
Geography and History:
• Important Documents in American History: this space allows access

to primary sources. According to the website it includes milestone
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documents from American History. Additionally, users can access to a

collection of teaching guides that are aligned with State Standards for
use in classrooms.
◦◦ Website: http://cort.as/-Qd-R
• PBS Learning Social Studies: this website makes possible to explore
the past and learn about the present with resources on Government,
Civics, Economics, Geography, Elementary Social Studies, U.S.
History and World History. These resources can be selected by grade
and type, including interactive video, interactive lesson, lesson plan,
media gallery, audio, image, document, webpage, collection.
◦◦ Website: https://www.pbslearningmedia.org/subjects/
social-studies/
• National Council for The Social Studies: a website with resources for
teaching in order to preparing students for College, Career and Civic
life. It needs membership.
◦◦ Website: https://www.socialstudies.org/
• Social Studies Interactives: this website upgrade Interactive Sites for
all platforms and they are classified in 35 Social Studies topics such
as American Revolution, Civil War, Countries, conflict and solutions,
economy, goods and services, industrial revolution, landforms, Past
and Present, resources natural or man-made, etc.
◦◦ Website: http://interactivesites.weebly.com/social-studies.html
• Library of Congress: in this library, users can access to books, audio
recordings, videos, maps, newspapers, personal narratives, photos,
prints, drawings, software, e-resources, 3D objects, etc.
◦◦ Website: https://www.loc.gov/
• Smithsonian Learning Lab: it supports learning with an online resources
and tools; allowing students to access to millions of Smithsonian digital
images, recordings, texts, and videos in history, art and culture, and the
sciences and access to thousands of examples of resources organized and
structured for teaching and learning by educators and subject experts
in collections. Teachers can create adapted collections of resources,
share those collections and discoveries with the Smithsonian learning
community and stay connected with the Learning Lab Community.

◦◦ Website: https://learninglab.si.edu/
• Google Arts and Culture: it has collaborated with over 1,200 museums,
galleries and institutions in 70 countries to make their exhibits
available for everyone online; allowing users to visit exhibits, zoom
in on artworks and browse thousands of stories, photos, videos and
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manuscripts. According the app page, it allows users to create their own
collections and sharing them, travel with tours of iconic sites, famous
buildings and natural wonders, on one screen or in VR. It includes art
recognizer and art selfie.
◦◦ Website: https://artsandculture.google.com/
• World History: World History for Us All is innovative model
curriculum for teaching world history in middle and high schools
created by national collaboration of teachers, collegiate instructors,
and educational technology specialists. According the website, it offers
teaching units, lesson plans and resources. It presents the human past
as a single story rather than unconnected stories of many civilizations,
helps teachers meet state and national standards, enables teachers
to survey world history without excluding major peoples, regions,
or time periods, helps students understand the past by connecting
specific subject matter to larger historical patterns, draws on up-to-date
historical research and may be readily adapted to a variety of world
history programs.
◦◦ Website: https://whfua.history.ucla.edu/
• EDSITEment: related to humanities education, it includes lesson plans,
curricula, teacher’s guides, student activities (and real innovative
experiences) and readings.
◦◦ Website: https://edsitement.neh.gov/
• Newsela: website to improve the engagement of students regarding the
reading of topics in different subjects; including text sets for Social
Studies.
◦◦ Website: https://newsela.com/
• CNN 10: CNN 10 replaces CNN Student News and it offers 10-minute
news that can be seen as a streamed video or can be downloaded as a
free podcast. According de website, the show’s priority is to identify
stories of international significance and then clearly describe why
they’re making news, who is affected, and how the events fit into a
complex, international society. Students can learn from every story
on CNN 10. The show maintains a neutral position on controversial
topics and it seeks to provide multiple viewpoints, clear illustrations,

and general overviews instead of graphic descriptions.
◦◦ Website: https://edition.cnn.com/cnn10
• Discovery Education: Discovery Education - Experience offers real
world curriculum resources, packaged with instructional strategies
and personalized for needs of teachers regarding the teaching and
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learning processes. Discovery Education - Social Studies Techbook is

a resource focus on asking for the present and understanding the past.
According the website, this resource has been designed to use with an
inquiry-based approach to enhance literacy and critical thinking skills
in order to allow students to approach inquiry through the 5Es: Engage,
Explore, Explain, Extend, and Evaluate. From stories of ancient
cultures to current events.
◦◦ Website: https://www.discoveryeducation.com/
• Centre for Civic Education: it is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization
based in California with the mission to promoting an enlightened and
responsible citizenry committed to democratic principles and actively
engaged in the practice of democracy in the United States and other
countries. According the website this Center offers effective programs
in civic education for democracy. Some of the main curricular programs
of this Center are We the People: Project Citizen (at upper elementary,
middle, and high school levels and in colleges and universities) or
Foundations of Democracy (which is used in classrooms ranging from
kindergarten through the twelfth grade).
◦◦ Website: http://www.civiced.org/
• iCivics: this app is useful to engage students meaningful civic
learning provides teachers free resources to use in their classrooms. It
includes iCivic games and Curriculum Units related to foundation of
Government, Civil Rights, Landmark Library, Media and Influence,
International Affairs, etc.
◦◦ Website: https://www.icivics.org/
• Channel One News: curriculum and searchable video library of more
than 4,000 videos; including different topics of Social Sciences.
◦◦ Website: https://www.channelone.com/educators/
• Google Life: LIFE photo archive has millions of historic photos from
the 1750s to today. According the website, most photographs were
never published and are now available for the first time through the
joint work of LIFE and Google.
◦◦ Website: http://images.google.com/hosted/life
• DocsTeach Digital Vaults: it is an online tool for teaching with

documents, from the National Archives. According the website,
teachers can access primary source-based online learning activities
and assign them to their students; with the options for creating a free
DocsTeach account to build custom activities about different Social
Sciences topics.
239
◦◦ Website: https://www.docsteach.org/digital-vaults
• Museums of The World: this page connect students with thousands of
museums and galleries from all over the world in one place. Searching
categories are Country, City and type.
◦◦ Website: http://museu.ms/
• Digital Public Library of America: it includers more than 35,000,000
images, texts, videos, and sounds from across the United States.
◦◦ Website: https://dp.la/
• Internet History Sourcebooks Project: it includes a collection of public
domain and copy-permitted historical texts for educational use in high-
school and university courses. Sources can be available to students and
documents associated with a “western civilization”; providing also
much information on Byzantine, Islamic, Jewish, Indian, East Asian,
and African history.
◦◦ Website: https://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/index.asp
• Historic Newspapers: this page allow students to use historic
newspapers from the world’s largest archive from specific dates.
◦◦ Website: https://www.historic-newspapers.co.uk/
• Digital History Project: in the space “Teaching Digital History”
involves methodological questions, narrative theories, computational
programming, technical writing, group projects, and digital media
productions. Moreover, undergraduate and graduate student projects
and course syllabi.
◦◦ Website: http://digitalhistory.unl.edu/
• Facing History and Ourselves: this website is related to use of history
lessons to challenge teachers and their students to stand up to bigotry
and hate. According the website, independent research studies show
that experience in a Facing History classroom motivates students to
become upstanders in their communities, whether by challenging
negative stereotypes at the dinner table, standing up to a bully in their
neighborhood, or registering to vote when they are eligible.
◦◦ Website: https://www.facinghistory.org/
• The History Engine: it is a collection of thousands of historical
“episodes” that shows a wide-ranging portrait of the past that is freely

available to scholars, teachers, and the general public. Creating an
episode for the History Engine gives students the opportunity to learn
history by doing the work (researching, writing, and publishing) of a
historian.
◦◦ Website: http://historyengine.richmond.edu/
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• Teaching History: it includes teaching materials, history contents and

relevant practices for Elementary School, Middle School and High
School and related to historical thinking and digital classroom.
◦◦ Website: https://teachinghistory.org/
• Histography: it is like a huge timeline with facts and events from 1600
to 2000 that can be filtered by music, wars, politics, empires, etc.
◦◦ Website: http://histography.io/
• Zoom In: it is a website for support empowering students to think
deeply and write critically about pivotal moments in US history that
includes interactive, document-based inquiry lessons designed by
historians and teachers.
◦◦ Website: http://zoomin.edc.org/
As we can see, these websites offer resources to be used in the teaching

and learning of Social Sciences, Geography, History and Civics; supporting
teachers with didactic orientations and allowing them to create and share
their own collections and teaching proposals. Nowadays, the difficulty in
teaching Social Sciences is not a shortage of access to resources. In other
words, there are numerous options to access primary sources, texts, audios,
news, images, maps, collections, etc. The biggest challenge today is useful to
get students to look for concrete information from valid and reliable sources
to solve cases and situations related to the topics of study. Students should
do this search by critically contrasting information, discussing, reflecting
and collaborating to make use of information and build deeper knowledge;
knowledge that contributes to the development of digital competence and
social and civic competence, among others. Regarding this, a change of role
of teacher is necessary. Without considering the teacher as a center of the
Social Sciences, Geography and History class, they supports and guides the
students to build their knowledge actively and autonomously.
CONCLUSION
A study by Bustillo, Rivera, Guzman & Ramos (2017) shows how, through
the use of mobile apps, the teacher uses different teaching strategies with the
intention of generating meaningful learning for certain themes. In general,
m-Learning is a type of e-Learning that occurs through mobile devices, apps
and internet. It that allows students to learn autonomously whenever and
wherever they want, including immediate interaction, contextualization and
241
natural integration in their daily activity. Moreover, m-Learning not only

fosters the way we access information, but also helps learners be innovative
and good problem-solvers (West, 2013). This implies a necessary change of
teaching role focused on students for the construction of Social Sciences,
Geography and History content, where the teacher supports and guides
the students to build their knowledge actively and autonomously. Among
the strategies used by the teacher, that research delineates the integration
of curriculum, intrinsic motivation of the students to develop the different
situations provided to students or using several resources, among others. In
general terms,
M-Learning has moved the educational space from the classroom to the
screen of a mobile device. This decentralization is the challenge to face
when designing teaching-learning processes that take advantage of this
virtual space and optimize the communication and didactics on a specific
topic. Curricular contents and didactic support should stimulate the user
to continue learning through research, socialization, as well as deepening
knowledge through other learning tools (…). The importance of integrating
new and more agile tools of communication, information dissemination, and
knowledge transmission will only be possible when institutions clarify and
understand the organizational landscape that defines them (Gómez-Ramirez,
Valencia-Arias & Duque, 2019: 157-158).
Nowadays, one of main challenges in Social Sciences education is the
development of digital and critical skills that allow students to look for
information in order to solve cases and situations related to topics of Social
Sciences, Geography and History. With the popularity of internet and Social
Networks, contrasting information is essential to avoid indoctrination. Beyond
access to mobile devices, both the use of technology and its integration into
the teaching-learning process conditions digital competences of students. In
other words, each app and didactic approach involves knowing specific aspects
of the use of that app and didactic guidelines that determine the interaction
with the learning of Social Sciences, Geography and History. Students will
use mobile devices, then, teachers have the option to take advantage of the
motivation generated by these devices and the advantages offered by mobile
phones and tablets to access, create and share information collaboratively

and from multiple proposals with a didactically relevant use of the internet
and mobile apps.
242
REFERENCES
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brookingsmobilelearning_final.pdf
ENDNOTE
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Hotseat: https://www.openhotseat.org/Login?ReturnUrl=https%3a%2
f%2fwww.openhotseat.org%2f
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Chapter 9
U-Learning and Virtual
Classrooms in Social
Sciences Education:
Virtual Learning Environments
and Participation
ABSTRACT
The development of internet, wireless devices, and sensors; the expansion of the
use of mobile technologies; or the development of applications have enabled
different ubiquitous learning modalities. u-Learning is an expanded model
from e-learning and m-Learning with features such as mobile, collaborative,
interactive, omni-synchronous, and experimental that fosters interaction and
breaks limitations by place and time in the teaching and learning of social
sciences, geography, and history. U-Learning is considered as a learning model
that integrates technology in the assessment and monitoring of educational
processes of the students, a learning model where virtual classrooms and
virtual learning environments are highlighted. In a social context with a lack
of civic engagement and democratic participation, interactive character of
virtual classrooms, including social networks, is essential because they connect
teachers, students, and parents in addition to encouraging participation in
virtual learning environments.
DOI: 10.4018/978-1-7998-2882-2.ch009
U-Learning and Virtual Classrooms in Social Sciences Education
INTRODUCTION
Although the term “ubiquitous technology” dates to 1910, the term “ubiquitous
computing” would be coined in 1988 by Weisser when referring to the presence
and integration of computers in people’s lives to facilitate problem solving.
However, in the educational context, the development of the internet, wireless
devices and sensors, the expansion of the use of mobile technologies or the
development of apps have enabled the development of different ubiquitous
learning modalities (Delgado-Algarra & Lorca-Marín, 2019). With the
expansion of internet and the use of handheld devices, teachers can implement
ubiquitous learning (u-Learning) in Virtual Learning Environment (VLE)
as an extension of e-Learning environments that include apps and services
related to mobile devices (Case, 2008). In other words, u-Learning is originated
by the convergence of e-Learning and m-Learning (figure 1) and it allows
learning to take place independently of time and place through features
such as permanence of the work, accessibility to materials from anywhere,
immediacy to access the materials at any time, interactivity, activities based
on needs and concerns, and adaptability. U-Learning transcends beyond
the classroom, empowering students in relation to knowledge management
through VLE. Due to the importance of interaction between teachers, students
and family, the current virtual classrooms offer multiple tools to facilitate
discussion, interaction and information exchange. It incorporates defining
elements of a social network and sometimes contributes to the creation of
virtual learning communities.
In this chapter, the main features of u-Learning (mobile, collaborative,
interactive, omni-synchronous, experimental) will be reviewed, considering
it as a model that integrates technology in the assessment and monitoring of
educational processes of the students and breaking the limitations by place and
time in the teaching and learning of Social Sciences, Geography and History.
Regarding u-Learning, we will introduce virtual classrooms and Virtual
Learning Environments (VLE); highlighting that Learning Management
Systems (LMS) offers technologies for e-Learning and Learning Content
Management System (LCMS) offers contents useful for e-Learning and
u-Learning; including, in this case, tools related to m-Learning. Finally,

we will present some tools useful for U-Learning, focusing in resources to
create virtual classrooms and VLE; considering that due to the relationship of
247
Figure 1. relation between u-Learning, e-Learning and m-Learning
u-Learning with e-Leaning and m-Learning, some of these tools have already
been reviewed in previous chapters from a different perspective.
U-LEARNING: EXPANDING PARTICIPATION

AND EDUCATIONAL EXPERIENCES FROM
E-LEARNING AND M-LEARNING
According to Oliveira (2012) and De Oliveira, De Almeida & Nakayama

(2016), Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) can be important
components for innovation and e-Learning. They make e-Learning closer
to the classroom regarding interaction, in order to improve the process of
mediated communication, systematic guidance and constant monitoring.
Moreover, they are focused on the development of skills and attitudes that allow
autonomous learning of students. The evolution of information technologies
(IT) and technological structure have an important role in the development
of e-Learning (Pimentel, Freitas & Siqueira, 2011). As Bof (2005) indicates,
e-Learning is a complex educational modality that requires an efficient and
systemic management in order to achieve educational goals. Regarding this,
it is essential establish strategies and mechanisms to define educational goals,

instructional design, steps and activities, mechanisms to support the learning
system, technologies, evaluation system, formal academic procedures and
functioning of the system.
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Where e-learning promotes the acquisition of information, present all over

the world at a one place, its subset m-learning (mobile learning) system
grabs the information anywhere at any time. As we know mobile devices are
electronics devices and they come under the category of e-learning systems
but since they work on different platform and need special type of protocol
stack and applications they have been grouped differently. The technological
improvement has now empowered us to learn everywhere, every time and
anything in real-time. This ubiquitous learning tools provide proficiency to
understand those things also that come under the region that are difficult
to reach, such as wild life, natural resources, plant habitats, geographical
structure of any region etc. Here it can be observed that u-learning is a
combination of m-learning and e-learning with some additional technology
that provides real time and context based application (Mishra, Yadav &
Choudhary, 2013)
In other words, u-Learning needs an operational definition of structure of

course design, didactic materials, information sources and distribution, and
evaluation system is established. In general terms, e-Learning modalities need
a management process that occurs with the support of LMS. Management
implies an efficient use of resources to achieve objectives. In this process,
u-Learning implies interaction between resources (facilities, space, time,
money, information and people) and administrative functions that involve
activities of planning, setting goals and developing strategies and actions to
achieve them; organization, what and how should be done, and who should
do it, managing, related to lead and motivate members; control, focus on
monitoring performance to ensure that goals are achieved (Fayol, 1990,
Sobral & Peci, 2008, Mill & Brito, 2009).
In general terms, u-Learning is originated by the convergence of e-Learning
and m-Learning, allowing learning to take place independently of time and
place (Casey, 2005, 2008). Thus, as García-Perea (2015) indicates, while some
of the main challenges of teachers are the training and the improvement of the
process of teaching and learning, taking advantages of didactic technological
resources. Some of the characteristics of u-Learning are permanence of the
work, accessibility to materials from anywhere, immediacy to access the

materials at any time, interactivity, activities based on needs and concerns,
and adaptability. There is science in the news (Jiménez-Liso et al., 2010), in
the movies, on TV, in science centers and museums, on the Internet (De Pro,
2011), in video games (Lorca-Marín, 2014). The contents are not only found
in those formal contexts typical of more traditional educational systems, the
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ubiquity of the means of learning forces us to rethink the teaching means. In

this sense, virtual education, with all its devices and applications, is forcing
universities to facilitate new ways of learning (e-Learning, blended learning,
collaborative learning, mobile learning, ubiquitous learning, invisible
learning, liquid, rhizomatic learning, mediated learning, etc.), synchronous
and asynchronous way, structured and flexible, open and massive that are
changing the structures of universities and their way of teaching (García
Aretio & Ruiz Corbella, 2014: 12).
As Velandia-Mesa, Serrano-Pastor & Martínez-Segura (2017) indicate,
u-Learning emerges from an inclusive learning paradigm where are assimilated
elements of e-Learning and m-Learning; integrating technology in the
assessment and monitoring of educational processes of the students and
breaking the limitations by place and time. In general terms, e-Learning and
u-Learning have differentiating characteristics regarding the kind of interaction
in the construction of learning and the interaction with ICT. The characteristics
of e-Learning, m-Learning, and u-Learning from technical point of view
and from educational point of view are synthesized, respectively, in table 1
(Mishra, Yadav & Choudhary, 2013) and table 2 (Laouris & Eteokleous, 2005).
As Arévalo (2018) indicates, B-learning and the redesign of learning
spaces have increased. Both in e-Learning and b-Learning, they are different
from face-to-face learning different from face-to-face learning or is combined
with the latter. The notion of e-Learning is related to the idea of online
learning (Gómez & Montero, 2015). The concept of ubiquity characterizes
the educational reality in which the teaching and learning processes transcend
the boundaries of the classroom (Cobo & moravec, 2011; Gong & Wallace,
2012; Hashim, Tan & Rashid, 2014). Mobile devices act as facilitators,
enabling interaction between users in different spaces and at different times,
asynchronously, so that all participants in the teaching and learning process
can be virtually present in many places at once (García Aretio, 2017: 14).
Adding that u-Learning is one that is generated in an environment where
students can access different digital devices and services, as well as mobile
devices, as long as they need them (García Aretio, 2017: 20)
Among the potential identified in this way of conceiving learning, it
stands out that it blurs the space-time boundaries; facilitating access and
the production of collaborative knowledge mediated by a horizontal and
participatory interaction (Rodríguez Zidán, Claudia Cabrera & Zorilla, 2019).
Díez-Gutierrez and Diaz-Nafría define ubiquitous technology as the technology
that allows interaction between people, groups and networks, mediated by
devices ranging from mobile phones to alternative social networks or the deep
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Table 1. Basics of e-Learning, m-Learning and u-Learning technical features
Features E-learning M-learning U-learning

Sensor networks, wearable
Internet connection
computers, Geographical
Hardware CD, desktops, mobile Mobile devices,
Information System,
requirements devices, webcam, internet connection.
Virtual reality based
television etc.
projector, RFID system.
Mobile operating
Technologies system, WAP,
Operating system,
GPRS, GPS,
TCP/IP protocol Operating system,
some specific
Software suit, internetworking Location aware protocol,
applications,
requirements communication sensor network software
Bluetooth, Wi-Fi
technology and required suit
and wireless
applications
communication
technology
Cloud + mobile Cloud + mobile + Context
Computation Technique Cloud computing
computing aware computing
Personalization of Very low due to use of
Devices are used
Privacy concern the devices reduces high security methods and
publically.
privacy issues. systems.
High computational Usually use Service or application
Discovery and research support power supports to access the oriented architecture
discovery and research. information. promotes research activity.
Type of device Usually wired Wireless Invisible
Usually restricted to a Everywhere, every time in
Accessibility Anywhere, any time.
region. a right way.
Complexity Low Moderate Highly complex
Applications Long distance learning Personal use Application oriented.
(Retrieved from Mishra, Yadav & Choudhary, 2013)
Table 2. Basics of e-Learning, m-Learning and u-Learning educational features
Features e-Learning m-Learning u-Learning

Device Computer Mobile device Smart PDA
Connectivity Broadband GPRS, 3G, 4G, Bluetooth Wifi, 3/4G, NFC, QSR
Content Multimedia Light Interoperable
Learning approach Interactive Spontaneous Invisible
Information flow Hyperlinked Connected Associated

Communication Collaborative In network Personalized
Mode Virtual or blended Geo-positioned Ubiquitous
Education Formal Informal Non formal
Teaching method Virtual Shared Personalized
(Adapted from Laouris & Eteokleous, 2005)
251
internet (2018: 55). Moreover, they write about the concept of Ubiquitous
Learning Ecologies, considering as environments that foster and support
the creation of networks and expanded Learning Communities mediated by
digital technologies. Thus, in general, as we said above, the widespread use
of mobile devices is impacting not only on access to information, but also
on ways of people interaction.
VIRTUAL CLASSROOM Y VIRTUAL

LEARNING ENVIRONMENT
U-Learning implies a connection between e-learning and m-learning.

U-Learning transcends beyond the classroom, empowering students in relation
to knowledge management through virtual learning scenarios. LMS offers
technologies for e-Learning and Learning Content Management System
(LCMS) offers contents for e-Learning. Together, they make possible a
Virtual Learning Environment (VLE).
In other words, LMS is a software for managing b-Learning, u-Learning,
etc. and LCMS is a software that allows users to create, develop and publish
contents. These contents can be added to the learning experience through
LMS. Then, VLE is a virtual space for e-Learning that bring together
technology (from LMS) and contents (from LCMS). When e-Learning is
considered from an approach of allowing learning independently of time
and place with the support of m-Learning, we are including b-Learning into
that VLE (figure 2). The introduction of VLE must consider the interaction
with students. Regarding this, Casamayor et al (2008) establishes 5 general
stages of training in virtual education where communication is integrated:
Stage 1: Access and motivation: it is the first contact that students have in
relation to the course. A welcome message providing some guidance,
technical support, contact mail, etc.
Stage 2: Online socialization: after solving technical problems, an explicit
communication and exchange rules must be established by mail, forum
or any other tool.

Stage 3: Information exchange: by interaction with the contents of the course,
teacher - student interaction and student - student interaction.
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Figure 2. Relation between u-Learning and Virtual Learning Environment from a

holistic point of view
Stage 4: knowledge construction: through activities that allow students

collaboration, reflection, critical capacity and the expansion of
contributions
Stage 5: Development: the way of applying school knowledge in both the
students’ daily context and in new contexts is proposed.
A virtual classroom is an online classroom where students can communicate

and interact with peers and teacher, access to different resources and engage
with those resources through work groups, allowing the learning of functional
school knowledge and complex skills that implies contents, procedures and
attitudes.
Regarding the teaching and learning of Social Sciences, Geography and
History, in the virtual classrooms, the connection between social, political,
cultural, economic, geographical or historic issues with primary resources

and relevant problems are essential. From a holistic and functional point of
view of the teaching and learning of Social Sciences, virtual classroom is like
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a “window” to look, analyze and understand the reality. Virtual classroom

should be a space for reflection, discussion and making decisions considering
the resources and their interaction with the real context in processes of
problem solving. Virtual classroom stablishes a connection between past,
present and future. Ferriman (2019) indicates teachers should consider current
characteristics of virtual classrooms:
• Mobile: mobile accessibility allows students greater flexibility, and this

applies across the VLE. Whereas in the past, students had forums as
places for long-form discussion, but now they have lots of alternative
options with messaging applications. Moreover, other examples of
mobile possibilities are audio lessons (like podcasts), mini (like micro
games) or lots of apps that use advanced technologies.
• Collaborative: related with technology evolution, virtual learners work
with each other more than ever before; chatting in forums, teaming
up on group projects, competing for high scores on the leaderboard.
In some cases, these experiences are related to new defining feature
of online courses with alternative didactic processes to conventional
unidirectional model. Technologies and a properly didactic background
allow students to feel transpositions to physical classrooms and build
relationships with other students.
• Interactive: in conventional learning, students sit in a classroom, they
listen to a lecture and take notes. Virtual classrooms, with a properly
didactic approach, allow students a greater freedom to engage with the
material creatively in order to adapt and respond c considering inputs.
Gamified lessons or flipped classrooms are examples of how virtual
classrooms have increased interactivity.
• Omni-synchronous: there are differences between synchronous
learning, students and teacher need to be in the same place at the same
time for the lesson, and asynchronous learning, teacher can post a
lesson, and students can complete it in most convenient time for them.
But virtual classroom can offer a live lesson into a lesson plan via a
chatroom or conference; increasing the value of the course, motivating
students, and helping them feel engaged with topics. That is why,
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nowadays, virtual classrooms incorporate real-time group sessions and

private tutoring.
• Experimental: virtual classrooms offer new ways for teachers to
deliver effective learning content. In virtual classrooms, students can
interact with lessons in alternative ways and they can understand the
connection of school context with the real world.
RESOURCES FOR U-LEARNING
There are several studies on implementation and management of distance

learning courses, use of ICT in education, quality of evaluation and satisfaction
regarding the using of LMS, didactics in the distance learning content,
professional skills evaluation, contributions of IT to teaching, learning and
development of skills related to distance education (Bach, Domingues and
Walter, 2013). Authors also state that ICT can offer and, qualitative improve
in education; with an emphasis on pedagogical (Sartori & Garcia, 2009,
Matucheski & Lupion, 2010, Macfadyen & Dawson, 2010) and technological
aspects (Belanger & Jordan, 2000, Romero, Ventura & García, 2008, McGill
& Klobas, 2009), from the perspective of teachers/tutors and/or students
(Derouin, Fritzsche & Salas, 2004, Coates, James & Baldwin, 2005, Mackay &
Stockport, 2006, Mcgill & Hoobs, 2008, Lonn & Teasley, 2009, Almrashedh
et al., 2011). We will present some useful tools. However, due to the strong
relationship of u-Learning with e-Leaning and m-Learning, some of these
tools have already been reviewed in previous chapters.
Classroom
Classroom1 is a Google for Education tool created with educators that helps
students and teachers in the organization of assignments, boost of collaboration
and fostering a better communication. teacher-approved apps are integrated
with Classroom, apps such as:
• Classcraft: a tool for gamification that we reviewed in chapter 2.

• Pear Deck: a presentation platform that allows teacher to connect all
of the room’s devices in an interactive lesson without codes or long
URLs.
• Quizizz: other gamification tool that allows teachers to conduct student-
paced formative assessments in a fun and engaging way.
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According the website, this tool allows users the following features:
• Tackle administrative tasks more efficiently: Classroom streamlines

repetitive tasks and makes it easy to focus on teaching.
• Learning management at no cost: Classroom is free for schools and
included with sign up for G Suite for Education.
• Work anywhere, anytime, and on any device: teachers and students can
sign in from any computer or mobile device to access class assignments,
course materials, and feedback.
• More time for richer feedback: Teachers can track student progress
to know where and when to give extra feedback. With simplified
workflows, teachers can focus on giving students constructive and
personalized recommendations.
Moreover, Classroom allows users to:
• Give a fast feedback using the comment bank.

• Post, comment and facilitate classroom discussions.
• Manage and view guardians, students, and co-teachers on People page.
• Assign and grade coursework securely - and reuse or collaborate.
• Keep materials and resources organized in the Classwork page.
• Eliminate distractions by giving quizzes in locked mode.
Tiching
Tiching2 is a school education network adapted to the different countries of

Latin America and Spain. In Tiching, teachers find educational resources
classified by courses and subjects and they can classify resources in library
folders or create didactic sequences and digital books with them. Moreover,
it allows students to participate in groups and exchange doubts, experiences
and resources with teachers and classmates. User must choose country,
stage (for example, in the case of Spain, Infant, Primary, Secondary and
Baccalaureate) and course. From this moment, it is possible to define the
following search criteria:
• Competencies.
• Typology: resources, sequences, books.
• Language.
• Media type: video, audio, text, image and interactive.
256
• Type of activity: exercise, test or test, experiment, game or theory.

• Recipients: teachers, students or relatives.
• Type of audience: class, small group, individual.
• Creator: all, publishers or teachers.
Webinar
A Webinar3, whose word is formed by web + seminar, can be used on LMS,

including b-Learning and u-Learning. Students can follow webinars via a PC,
Mac, tablet or smartphone, and they can see and hear the speaker through
audio and video. Video and image can be accompanied by PowerPoint
slides in the presentation. As a seminar, a webinar is a form of one-to-many
communication where a presenter can reach a large and specific group of
online viewers from a single location. As a synchronous technology, interaction
during a webinar is possible; offering several interactive opportunities such
as: ask, chat, poll, survey, test, call to action or Twitter. From a teaching
and educational perspective, webinars are interesting due to the interaction
options. Webinars are very useful to facilitate contact with expert speakers or
with somebody who has something interesting to explain in relation to Social
Sciences, Geography and History. It expands possibilities with respect to a
face-to-face expert visit. In other words, a webinar is similar to a meeting in
person, but it allows students to interact with each other and/ or with speaker
sharing information and content, in real time through a videoconference
(Barahona, s/f). Three easy tools to create webinars are Go to Webinar4,
Youtube Live5 or ClassOnLive6.
Social Networks and Virtual Classrooms
In chapter 7 on b-Learning and flipped classrooms, within the sub-section

of content management tools, we reviewed the strategies for introducing
educational uses of popular social networks such as Facebook, Twitter or
Instagram. In that chapter we highlighted YouTube as a previous step for
the introduction of the didactic and controlled use of social networks in the
classroom. Likewise, the benefits and disadvantages of introducing social

networks in the teaching and learning of Social Sciences, Geography and
History were stated. When we hear about social networks, the first reaction is to
think about Facebook or Twitter; however, we must clarify that, in addition to
the existence of “generic” social networks that offer possibilities in education,
257
there are some social networks aimed specifically at the educational field.
This type of social networks allow teachers, students and families to contact.
As the Education 3.0 (2018) team indicates, some of these educational social
networks are:
• Cyber correspondents7 (cibercorresponsales): it brings together three

functionalities. It is social network for young people between 12 and
17 years old where they can express themselves in a safe environment.
It is an educational and free ICT resource that is used by social
organizations, institutes, children’s centers and local administrations. It
also serves as a digital newspaper made by young people who express
their ideas to others.
• Internet in the classroom8 (Internet en el Aula): this is the name of
the social teaching network from INTEF, the National Institute of
Educational Technology and Teacher Training (Ministry of Education
and Vocational Training, Government of Spain). Internet in the
classroom is a social network where teaching communities share their
experiences and resources for the use of the Internet in the classroom.
Some of the features offered to teachers are:
◦◦ Forum: in this section, teachers can open a new topic and
interact with other teachers to share experiences, resources,
etc. General topics are projects, good practices, tools, teaching
materials, devices, skills, methodologies, news, training, admin
communiqués, AI activities, various.
◦◦ Groups: You can search for groups by different criteria, including
the area.
◦◦ Blogs: where you can view blogs, write, access the most active
entries, etc.
◦◦ Multimedia: where podcasts and videos are included.
◦◦ Good practices 2.0: where a portal, a blog and a wiki are included.
◦◦ Workshops: designed by teachers.
◦◦ Webinars: which includes presentations and Internet YouTube
channel in the Classroom.
• Clipit 9: this free educational social network developed by the

Rey Juan Carlos University make possible to put into practice new
methodologies for an active role of students in their learning process,
such as b-Learning, flipped classroom, project work, etc. In general
terms, Clipit is a collaborative work environment where concepts
are explained and exposed through making and publishing videos to
258
be visualized by classmates who offer suggestions for improvement.

According the website, Clipit offers a collaborative environment
to learn by teaching where students learn by creating videos and
evaluating the results of their peers. The best videos can become part
of Clipit’s educational resources.
◦◦ Creation of rubrics
◦◦ Guide the discussion process
◦◦ Assessment tests
◦◦ Learning analytics.
• Brainly10: this tool specializes in the field of social learning and
e-Learning and it is based on the exchange of knowledge, ideas
and mutual help. Brainly is aimed at students with different levels,
including children schooling at home, as well as, parents and teachers.
The questions can be consulted according to the subjects (Geography,
History, Art, Social Sciences etc.) and it is available in several
languages.
• Docsity11: it is an educational social network that allows students to
search, consult or download content shared by other students, consult
notes, news, educational videos, etc. related to several subjects such
as history. It is a source of consultation for university students,
highlighting the area of Blogs with articles about different careers. It
also allows students to exchange opinions, answer questions and receive
notifications. Here, students share their studying materials to help other
students. Students with more active participation accumulate points to
expand the access to different options on the webpage.
• Edmodo12: educational platform founded by Nic Borg and Jeff O’Hara
in 2008. This platform works as a social network and in which teachers,
families and students can participate. It allows teachers to create closed
and private groups, send papers, share links and documents, attach files,
etc. Teachers has the option to invite students to participate in online
discussions (necessary to sign up with a username and password). The
teacher, in Edmodo, is the only one who can create the groups and
manage them, while the students (and their families) need to know the
access code to these groups to check the contents that are uploaded.
• Some Edmodo features for teachers are:
◦◦ Communication tools like Posts and Messages.
◦◦ Sharing digital assignments, creating quizzes, or bringing the
teacher favorite tools onboard.
◦◦ Exploring Discover, browsing Spotlight, or following hashtags
259
Some features for students are:

◦◦ Organizing students work with class folders and a built-in Planner
◦◦ Easy to message the teacher or get help from classmates.
◦◦ Mindfulness activities, games, etc. on Discover
Some features for families are:
◦◦ Easy to send their child’s teachers a direct message or follow class
updates
◦◦ Keeping track of their child’s progress wherever they are with the
Edmodo for Parents mobile application.
Some features por schools are:
◦◦ With Edmodo for Schools, the school network becomes an online
learning community, where your school can communicate,
collaborate, and learn.
◦◦ Administrators gain tools to support the school network, sharing
resources with all teachers and learners from a school, and
monitoring the use.
• Eduskopia13: it is a social network that is defined as a space for
reflection and debate that also invites the educational community to
generate new ideas collaboratively, as well as to put them into practice.
Moreover, they offer workshops, talks, seminars or training aimed at
parents, students, educators, organizations ...
• Other Education14 (Otra Educación): it is defined as a free secure virtual
school, with a social network structure for Primary and Secondary
teachers and students. It also offers different educational tools,
including an easy tool for comic generator. Regarding comic generator
teachers and students can create their own comics by selecting different
characters and modifying some features such as colors. The Creator of
comics is an educational tool that has been developed in collaboration
with a pilot school; considering many of his advice after real tests with
elementary students. After signing up, users must click on the “Create
a comic” option in the menu on the left. Then, it is necessary to write a
title and a description, as well as how many bullets the comic will count.
Subsequently, the background images for the vignettes are chosen.
These images can be extracted from the platform or from a computer.

Finally, characters and texts are added. The generated comics can be
viewed in the browser or they can be exported to PDF for printing.
260
If teacher has a virtual school in this social network, comics can be

exported directly to created groups.
• RedAlumnos15: it is a training platform that allows teachers and students
contact each other; so that the teacher can teach online courses and
support their face-to-face classes. It can also be installed in a teaching
center and have virtual classrooms, online exams, edublogs, chats, etc.
• Schoology16: it is a platform that allows teachers and students to
participate in discussion forums, bulletin boards, grade books, rewards
and a tool for conducting evaluation questionnaires. In addition, it
is possible to create courses with a different options of interactivity
possibilities.
The central feature in all of these tools is students participation and the
importance of promoting student´s interaction, and reflection. The knowledge
about the lacks in civic engagement and participation in Democracy nowadays
is based on researches that, as Kenna & Hensley (2019) indicates, conclude
that there is a gradual decline in the civic and political participation among
youth (ages 18-29) since the 1970s. Regarding that, these authors state that
teachers can use social media to improve students’ civic engagement and they
highlight classroom techniques for using social media in Social Sciences such
as: virtual social networks, micro-blogging and backchanneling; providing
feed-back to the user (Lala, Milhorat, Inoue, Ishida, Takanashi & Kawahara,
2017). Due to the importance of interaction between teachers, students
and family; the current virtual classrooms offer multiple tools to facilitate
discussion, interaction and information exchange; incorporating defining
elements of a social network and sometimes contributing to the creation of
virtual learning communities.
CONCLUSION
The expansion of the use of ICTs by citizens has been followed by the usual
use of mobile apps and tablets on everyday context. In learning proposals,
on the other hand, it is possible to ignore this reality and prohibit the use
of technologies in the classroom. However, we consider that, from a school
understood as an engine of social change, it is desirable to include the
responsible and meaningful use of ICT, mobile apps and digital devices in
the teaching-learning processes (Delgado-Algarra & Lorca-Marín, 2019).
Likewise, we consider that the inclusion of technologies should be done taking
261
advantage of their possibilities to generate new experiences that allow the

learning of conceptual contents of Social Sciences, Geography and History
from a functional and applied point of view. Due to progressively more jobs
and daily tasks will be managed by the technologies, during the learning
process, the use of them must be designed to develop new capabilities that
will be essential in social and labor world in the short- and medium-term
future such as Digital literacy, collaboration, creativity and critical thinking.
An effective u-Learning process in the educational context, connected to
daily life and work, tends to reinforce the acquisition of instrumental skills,
cognitive-intellectual skills, socio-communicative skills, emotional skills
and digital skills which could facilitate the establishment of a critical and
extended citizenship (Rendueles, 2016). Regarding Social and Civic skills,
there are several doubts regarding the Civic construction by communities of
expanded learning that implies expanded learning networks from a wider
learning sphere (Díez-Gutierrez & Diaz-Nafría, 2018). The first one is about
the establishing (or not) of the knowledge dialogue, democratic relations, and
social participation (Putnam, 2009, Marí, 2010) and the fostering of cohesion
as is indicated in “Europe 2020 Strategy” (EC 2010). Authors such as Bernabé
(2017) consider that this could stress social exclusion, disintegration, the
digital divide or decreasing trust in the possibility of achieving a reflexive
and critical society.
In relation to u-Learning, the phase of considering the use of ICT as goal
and as an educational innovation has been overcome. Based on constructivism
and educational needs to participate in the current and future society, an
innovative or alternative ICT experience cannot be limited to reproducing
conventional unidirectional models by changing the physical medium to the
digital one but keeping the processes intact. It does not make sense to maintain
the same processes and passively transmit factual knowledge ignoring the
development of deeper skills where the specific contents of the area make
sense to students. At present we know that considering educational innovation
to the digitalization and dosage of school texts through LMS, such as Moodle
or Blackboard, is a mistake. The interaction between the curricular elements,
262
the definition of the didactic processes and take advantages of technologies, in

addition to the uses of materials and resources will determine the innovative
(or not) nature of u-Learning.
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ENDNOTES
1
Classroom: https://edu.google.com/products/classroom/?modal_
active=non
2
Tiching: http://es.tiching.com/
3
Webinar: https://www.webinar.nl/en/webinars/what-is-a-webinar/
4
Go to Webinar: https://www.gotomeeting.com/webinar
5
Youtube Live: https://www.youtube.com/live_dashboard_splash
6
ClassOnLive: https://www.classonlive.com/
7
Cyber correspondents: https://www.cibercorresponsales.org/
8
Internet in the Classroom: http://internetaula.ning.com/
9
Clipit: http://clipit.es/urjc/
10
Brainly: https://brainly.lat/
11
Docsity: https://www.docsity.com/en/
12
Edmodo: https://new.edmodo.com/?go2url=%2F%3Flanguage%3Des
13
Eduskopia: https://eduskopia.com/
14
Other Education: https://www.otraeducacion.es/
15
RedAlumnos: http://www.redalumnos.com/
16
Schoology: https://www.schoology.com/
267
268
Chapter 10
The Future of ICT/LKT
in the Teaching and
Learning of Social Sciences,
Geography, and History:
Adaptive Learning and
Artificial Intelligence
ABSTRACT
Most experts consider that society has entered in a Fourth Industrial Revolution
that implies ubiquitous changes characterized by a fusion of technologies
that is blurring the lines that differentiate physical, digital, and biological
spheres. This implies to open a door to important changes in the teaching and
learning of the social sciences, geography, and history. Regarding this, it is
necessary that both citizens and organizations develop new skills. Artificial
intelligence as education technology is possible due to digital and online
tools. Adaptive learning, meanwhile, is related to artificial intelligence,
personalizing the learning and offering contents adapted to students. New
challenges in the teaching of social sciences extends beyond the learning
of facts and events. As a result of changes in society of Fourth Industrial
Revolution, thinking-based learning (TBL) with the support of learning and

knowledge technologies (LKT), creativity, critical thinking, and cooperation
are some of the essential learning goals to participate in society.
DOI: 10.4018/978-1-7998-2882-2.ch010
The Future of ICT/LKT in the Teaching and Learning of Social Sciences, Geography
INTRODUCTION
The development and widespread use of the internet, the expansion of the
use of mobile technologies and the development of all kinds of apps for
laptops, mobiles and tablets have developed different learning modalities
with Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) and Knowledge
and Learning Technologies (KLT) in the following terms (Delgado-Algarra
& Lorca-Marín, 2019): e-Learning are lessons developed online, including
teleformation, distance learning, virtual teaching or online teaching in a
flexible way. Regarding m-Learning, they are lessons developed through
mobile devices and they are able to develop asynchronous, synchronous or
interaction learning during the lessons. In relation to b-Learning they are
lessons developed in a blended way that combines asynchronous meetings
of e-Learning with synchronous meetings of face-to-face, including virtual
learning environments (LMS), multimedia resources, virtual communication
tools (forums, in its non-face-to-face phase) emails, etc.), downloadable
documents, videoconferences, webinars, inverted classroom, project work,
etc. Finally, u-Learning is related to ubiquitous learning lessons supported
in the extension of e-Learning environments with the inclusion of apps and
services associated with mobile devices. In general, the most relevant sectors
would be education, media, information managers, computer services and
technological research. Moving away from positions based on technological
determinism, the development of technologies no longer determines the
changes in social structures or the transformation of the teaching-learning
process. Nowadays, adaptive systems are at least composed of methods
that allow users to organize contents to be learned, techniques of matching
the presentation of properly contents adapted to individual students in a
personalized way and multiple assessment inputs to evaluate students’ skills.
On the other hand, as a new social, political and economic challenge, ABC
Newspaper (September 25, 2017) talk about Artificial Intelligence (AI) as
an unstoppable process.
On the other hand, most of experts considers that society has entered in the
fourth industrial revolution. It implies ubiquitous changes characterized by
a fusion of technologies that is blurring the lines that differentiate physical,

digital and biological spheres (Klaus, 2015). Authors such as Arntz, Gregory
& Zierahn (2016) indicates that this digitization and automation of work is
one of the most important societal and economic trends in the world. This
269
has influence over education possibilities and, due to the importance for the
current society, teachers of Social Sciences, Geography and History should
not ignore these changes that affect the lives of people in society, connecting
past, present and future and including these changes as relevant social and
environmental issues. In other words, in the fourth industrial revolution people
will be replaced by robots in certain jobs (and new jobs will be created). This
would imply important changes at social and economic level in the mid-term
that should be considered as an issue for research, analysis and reflection in
the teaching and learning of Social Sciences with other school areas such as
natural sciences.
With the development of AI and robotics, the European Parliament’s Legal
Affairs Committee (2016) urges the European Union to harmonize safety,
ethical and legal standards. These are the nine laws contained in the European
civil laws rules in robotics document prepared by the European Chamber:
protect human beings from damage caused by robots, respect the rejection of
attention by a robot, protect human freedom against robots, protect humanity
against privacy violations committed by a robot, management of personal
data processed by robots, protect humanity against the risk of manipulation
by robots, avoid the dissolution of social ties, equal access to progress in
robotics and restrict human access to improvement technologies. Regarding
this, as Schwab (2015) indicates, according to early results from a survey by
the World Economic Forum, it can be anticipated profound disruptions from
the increasing adoption of mobile Internet, cloud technology, flexible works,
3-D printing or new energy supplies, among other changes. This author adds
that whenever technology is more and more responsible for knowledge-based
work, cognitive skills in the school will remains important, but behavioral
and non-cognitive skills necessary for collaboration, innovation and problem-
solving will become essential as well. In this chapter we are going to talk about
challenges for the teaching and learning of social sciences in XXI century
regarding ICT and innovation, adaptive learning technologies, artificial
intelligence, robotics and mixed reality.
270
CHALLENGES OF THE TEACHING AND

LEARNING OF SOCIAL SCIENCES IN XXI
CENTURY: ITC, LKT AND INNOVATION
The information society, the knowledge society and the learning society
imply profound changes in the teaching and learning of the Social Sciences,
Geography and History. In this sense, as Alfonso-Sánchez (2016) indicates,
it is necessary that both citizens and organizations develop new cognitive
demands and new capacities; assuming a series of ethical principles that
provide opportunities for community development. The knowledge society,
in developed countries since the mid-twentieth century, and the information
society, since the early 2000s, are based on access to information, freedom
of expression and linguistic diversity. In general, two clearly differentiated
areas are identified within the knowledge society (Bueno, 2001, Alfonso-
Sánchez, 2016):
• Areas of creation and exchange of knowledge:

◦◦ Organizational spaces to share, cooperative models and knowledge
communities.
◦◦ Platforms in the network for general and knowledge sharing,
which can lead to the creation of cyber communities.
◦◦ Science and technology parks
◦◦ Knowledge markets
• Areas of dissemination and application of knowledge.
◦◦ Regions and communities.
◦◦ Cities and neighborhoods.
◦◦ Companies and organizations.
◦◦ Organizational units in addition to social groups or work groups.
Information and knowledge have become a basic element of asynchronous

communication; counting on the support of access to technology. Thus, some
characteristics of we should highlight are summarized below (García Perea,
2015):
• Knowledge replaces other forms of knowledge with science.

• The rules are discussed and new rules are developed, generating a
transformation of power structures.
271
• Access to information generates an increase in user culture, allowing

reflection.
• Access to information and communication technologies (ICT) causes a
reduction in cultural, social and economic gaps.
• The denial of access to the use of ICT generates social exclusion.
• The sensationalism and the propaganda of deception comes more
easily and has a greater diffusion on the part of the users.
• In recent years, the use of social networks has been promoted, with its
advantages and disadvantages.
The new role of the teacher in the face of the new challenges that the
digital era will pose and in his role in the process, must pass not only by the
use of the materials, but also by a behavior, an attitude, a model that will
make this an approach such that it is necessary to consider its definition to
move from a formative, educating role, to a dynamic role, of orientation
and tutoring. (Lorca-Marín et al, 2017). One of the great advances of the
21st century is the easy access that students have to a large amount of
information. The real difficulty is that students learn to look for information
from valid and reliable sources, who know how to select information, who
know how to contrast it or who understand the interests of those who select
and hide information. Textbooks are victims of intellectual impoverishment
or “dumbing-down” (Bennetta, 1997, Mejía, 2009), which is enhanced by
the intellectual impoverishment that occurs in the mass media, whose The
objective is also to become objects of mass consumption “for all” (Coles and
Amstrong, 2007). As López Facal affirms: “it is practically impossible to
treat History in some 300 pages with some depth if it is not making each of
the chapters a succession of facts, dates, concepts and unconnected characters
and difficult to understand” (2011: 9). This problem has been studied by
multiple researchers and is linked to the so-called “readability formulas”
(Boston, 1986), that is, it is linked to a process of mechanization of the level
of complexity and extension of the words depending on the grade level of
students who, in general, are used by authors and publishers of textbooks, a
process that, far from being new, dates back to Sherman’s literary analysis in
1893, a seminal piece in the study of readability (Dubay, 2007). In general,

for editors, producing and publishing a textbook is a challenge, because they
must face up to the demands of school curricula, their possible interpretations,
the tradition some teachers want to keep and the change that others demand,
the dilemmas that result from the tensions between a profitable product that
can sell well and the educational service that requests quality in terms of
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teaching and content, the interests of different social groups and the careful
treatment of genders, ethnic groups and political, religious and environmental
movements, among others” (Mejia, 2009: 467).
Interest in textbooks as resources for socialization of future adult citizens is
especially evident in case Social Science, Geography and History textbooks,
whose contents and its use in classroom can facilitate the setup of a social
reality determined by prevailing political force. This situation implies that
textbooks in this area are always object to criticisms and, in this way, ideological
factors emerging from them can be especially conflicting.
The teaching of social sciences connected with socio-environmental reality
allows students to connect with the world; However, the information you
receive may be potentially false or have an ideological bias with indoctrinating
intentions. Therefore, the change of the role of the teacher from manager and
transmitter of knowledge to guidance and guidance of the teaching-learning
process, a process where the student learns to search, select and make use of
information in an active and critical way, is has seen more power than ever
with the development of ICT. The possibilities of ICT and the expansion of
their daily use among students through the internet, video games and mobile
devices have not always had a real reflection in educational practice. Thus,
highlighting that the presence of technologies in the classroom or their use
does not guarantee educational innovation and, focusing on praxis, Gómez,
Ortuño & Miralles (2018), consider that it is necessary to take advantage of
the use of the Internet with a purpose teaching, highlighting its possibilities
in terms of information transmission and communication facilities.
In general, the most relevant sectors to generate a learning society would
be education, the media, information managers, computer services and
technological research. All this leads us to go one step further and talk about
what is known as the learning society, a concept that was formulated in the
work The Learning Society (Hutchins, 1970) and which, at present, refers to
the approach of a Cooperative and universal learning, supported by the use
of technologies and the increasing virtualization of learning spaces. Within
the knowledge society in which developed countries have been located since
the mid-twentieth century) and information (since the beginning of the new
millennium), based on access to information, freedom of expression and

linguistic diversity; At present, information has become the basic element
of asynchronous communication with the support of access to technology,
and some of its positive and negative characteristics must be highlighted
(García Perea, 2015):
273
• Knowledge allows a more just society where other forms of knowledge

are replaced by science.
• There is a debate about the rules and assumptions of society, and new
rules are developed, transforming power structures.
• An increase in user culture is generated by access to information, in
addition to the reflection and review of expert knowledge.
• There is a decrease in cultural, social and economic gaps due to access
to information and communication technologies.
• Denying access to information and knowledge leads to social exclusion.
• Society is subordinated to sensationalism and the propaganda of
deception.
• There has been a boost from social networks, with their advantages and
disadvantages.
In general, the most relevant sectors would be education, media, information

managers, computer services and technological research. Moving away
from positions based on technological determinism, the development of
technologies no longer determines the changes in social structures or the
transformation of the teaching-learning process. The active nature that is
required by users in the learning society has resulted in a referral to what is
known as Technologies for Learning and Knowledge Technologies (LKT),
which, unlike Technologies of Information and Communication (ICT), stop
focusing on instrumental aspects to emphasize educational aspects that require
didactic mediation. In this sense, as Cabero, Leiva, Moreno, Barroso & López
Meneses (2016) indicates, it is responsibility of teachers to take advantage
of the technologies promoting innovative environments that allow, among
other things, to acquire a series of competencies considered fundamental. In
general, we move from ICT to LKT.
In socio-political context we must highlight the Empowerment and
Participation Technologies (EPT). These technologies can contribute to
fostering empowerment and participation and making government processes
more efficient and transparent by encouraging communication and information-
sharing within government and among people and organizations. This is
facilitated by e-government apps that provide services and information to

citizens over the Internet and other communication networks. EPT connects
individuals and local communities. In other words, citizens are encouraged
to participate in the democratic processes and it is especially relevant for
marginalized individuals to shape their own development solutions with
other individuals to participate in political and institutional decision-making
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processes. In the teaching of Social Sciences, Geography and History it is

interesting propose activities where students can learn about EPT and analyze
them in order to understand advantages and lacks and how citizens can use
these technologies to participate in decision making processes or solve social
problems.
Due to the ease in accessing information and the amount of information
they receive by different means (much of that information, false), another of
the great challenges in 21st century education is to teach students to select
information, analyze it and hire it for the resolution of socio-environmental
problems. For this, it is necessary to raise situations that enable these processes:
raise a question or problematic situation, invite to think about different options
and seek information from each of them, contrast the information, discuss
it, think about the consequences of each option, take a decision and respond
to the problem with arguments based on Social Sciences, Geography and
History. Thinking Based Learning (TBL) focus on a teaching process to
think by visualizing the processes for problem solving and making decisions
with a set of tools: routines and thinking skills such as organization of ideas,
creative thinking and critical thinking. Keys elements and advantages of this
methodological approach are (Swartz, 2008, Sató, 2018):
• Exercising and working on critical and creative thinking within the

framework of curricular content, and therefore changing the approach
with which content is addressed: memorizing and learning basic notions
are not the goals of Social Sciences teaching, TBL approach considers
that students must put content into practice, assimilating procedures to
generate and develop a higher level knowledge.
• Acquiring thought routines through different tools and strategies (such
as specific questions and graphic organizers) and working together
in cooperative groups is essential. In Social Sciences, students must
review several options to solve problems and cases, considering the
available options, learning to think and make decisions, analyzing
positive and negative consequences, and selecting the best option
according to different variables.
• Putting different strategies into practice and acquiring skills and

thinking skills useful for their student, work and personal trajectory.
These skills include such as:
275
◦◦ Searching, processing, analysis, classification and evaluation of

the information.
◦◦ Creativity, curiosity and innovation
◦◦ Problem solving approach
◦◦ Decision making
◦◦ Effort, perseverance and overcoming errors or challenges
◦◦ Search for accuracy, accuracy and precision
◦◦ Autonomy and ability to collaboration
◦◦ Listening, understanding and empathy
◦◦ Oral and written expression
In EDUCAUSE Horizon Report 2019 are considered the following

impeding education technology adoption in three groups (Alexander et al.
2019): solvable, those that we understand and know how to solve, difficult
those that we understand but for which solutions are elusive, and wicked,
those that are complex to even define, much less address. Regarding solvable
challenges this report highlight improving digital fluency or increasing
demand for digital learning experience and instructional design expertise.
Regarding difficult challenges, the evolving roles of faculty with educational
technology strategies or achievement gap are considered, and in relation to
wicked challenges, this report indicates the difficulties about advancing digital
equity or rethinking the practice of teaching. Considering the conclusions of
this report about important developments in technology for education three
time-to-adoption horizon are established. Mobile learning and analytics
technologies (about 2019), mixed reality and AI (about 2022), blockchain
and virtual assistants (over 2023).
Mobile learning is related to lessons developed through mobile devices,
being able to develop asynchronous, synchronous or interaction learning
during the lessons. We wrote about m-Learning in chapter 8. Regarding
analytics technologies, they go beyond static, descriptive analyses of student
learning, grades, and behaviors. Analytics capabilities will be key elements of
student success initiatives in the years ahead and include dynamic, connected,
predictive, and personalized systems and data. Regarding this, in this chapter,
we will focus on adaptive learning. Mixed reality is a hybrid emerging

environment where digital and physical objects interactively coexist with
several levels of immersion. Mixed reality includes virtual reality, that was
reviewed in chapter 2, and augmented reality and holograms, reviewed in
chapter 3. AI is a combination of algorithms for creation to create machines
that have the same capabilities as humans; including systems that think like
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humans, that act like humans, that think rationally or that act rationally. In
this chapter, we review AI and robotics.
Blockchain is a data structure in which the information contained is grouped
into sets (blocks) to which meta-information relative to another block of the
previous chain is added in a timeline. Depending on the access to the data,
Blockchains can be public or private. Depending on the permissions, they
can be with permissions or without permissions. According to combinations
of access and permits, they can be public without permission, public with
permits and private with permits. Blockchain could provide to individual
students an accurate record of their knowledge and skills useful for students
who transfer among several institutions or those who want to transition,
for example, from formal education environment to the civilian workplace.
Finally, virtual assistants correspond to a technology that allows users to
naturally interfaced with a device by speaking commands, asking questions
or using gestures to learn, work, and stay connected to others in the virtual
environment. AI-augmented machine learning has increased the accuracy of
automatic speech recognition (ASR) and related natural language processing
(NLP). They are becoming familiar alternatives for users to conversationally
interact with their mobile devices and voice-activated home assistants, so that
current popular virtual assistants are Siri, Alexa or Google Assistant. Just
as search engine optimization (SEO) has dominated the consumer sector to
improve the optimization of web search results, voice engine optimization
(VEO) has the potential to contribute to a broader diversity; including in
future the introduction of virtual assistants in education through the growth
of broad language options and less bias.
New challenges in the teaching of Social Sciences extends beyond the
learning of facts and events. As a result of changes in society of Fourth Industrial
Revolution, TBL with the support of LKT, creativity and cooperation are
some of the essential learning goals. Due to the expansion of internet use and
the didactic use of technologies, it has been possible to transform learning
experiences from the traditional classroom to online and mixed learning.
However, if we add to this the expansion of the use of mobile phones and
tablets, in addition to the development and use of mobile applications, through
a didactic approach that significantly exploits these resources, it offers a wide

range of possibilities and expands the possibilities in the within a learning
society where we have passed the automation phase and the mere integration
of technologies to focus attention on the didactic aspects of their use.
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ADAPTIVE LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES
According to NMC Horizon Report 2018, Adaptive Learning Technologies

“refers to technologies that monitor student progress and use data to modify
instruction at any time” (Becker, Brown, Dahlstrom, Davis, DePaul, Diaz &
Pomerantz 2018: 42). They are linked to personalized learning approaches
and learning analytics. On the other hand, based on the student’s abilities,
Adaptive Learning Technologies generate a dynamic adjustment of the didactic
sequence and the contents. This adaptation aims to improve student learning
with automated interventions or with teacher intervention taking as reference
the data provided by the system. In other words, the main objective of these
technologies is to guide students precisely and logically by adapting their
learning itinerary, promoting active learning, and offering greater support to
at-risk students. These technologies evaluate the factors that influence student
completion and success. The defenders of these technologies highlight that
they help solve educational problems such as cost, access and quality. In
addition, the few investigations that exist in relation to these technologies
show positive results.
Adaptive systems are at least composed of methods that allow to organize
contents to be learned, techniques of matching the presentation of properly
contents adapted to individual students in a personalized way and multiple
assessment inputs to evaluate students’ skills. Continuing with the same
author, Adaptive system need several features regarding contents, assessment
and competency frameworks. In the table 1, it is presented and adaptation
of Pugliese (2016) proposal to the teaching of social sciences, history and
geography.
The characteristics of Adaptive Systems implemented in Adaptive Teaching
Technologies emphasizes the construction of school knowledge. In the field of
social science education, these approaches have an important relationship with
the INM Curriculum Project. As we highlighted in chapter 1, this project is
based on constructivism and it considers the following fundamental elements
(Travé, Cañal & Pozuelos, 2003, Estepa, 2007, Delgado-Algarra & Lorca-
Marín, 2019): everyday knowledge scientific knowledge meta-disciplinary
knowledge relevant social environmental problem. In other words, everyday

knowledge, that includes previous ideas, conceptions and difficulties; scientific
knowledge, related to what the teacher must know in order to teach; Meta-
disciplinary knowledge, decisions of teachers based on their professional
ethics and wider ideas; and relevant social environmental problem (and sub-
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Table 1. basic Adaptive System features and teaching of social sciences

Category Subcategory Descriptor
Content modules are designed to index critical concepts, connected to a multistep problem
as a series of sub-problems. It is useful to stablish a connection between school knowledge
and relevant social and environmental problems. Scaffolding methods statistically provide
Content Scaffolding
different questions to various students, depending on the students’ level of proficiency.
Student can apply the contents to a variety of situations regarding the recognized previous
knowledge.
Students must practice discussion and develop social and civics skills. Regarding this,
adaptive systems allow a content-driven group collaboration. Personalized learning can
Social Interaction facilitate resource-sharing capabilities and ways for collaboration between students working
groups; linking customized content to students’ profiles or interests or grouping automatically
students depending on parallel interests.
CONTENT
Adaptive systems must be able of configuring a predetermined content sequencing and
Content Inter- variable sequencing in relation to ongoing measurements of skill mastery. Interoperable
operability content management systems allow to identify proper contents in an ongoing and dynamic
way, based on what the adaptive system knows about students’ knowledge.
The built-in capability of developing key identifiers linking content to other content is
important. Metadata is a necessary method for advanced tagging of content with underlying
data about each module of content (example, subject area identifiers, age and level, learning
Metadata outcome). Metadata describes information about other data. However, the most significant
here is that metadata schema allows achieve a personalized state; because without advanced
metadata schema is impossible to achieve that personalized state, one of the main features in
adaptive systems
Criterion-referenced assessments are designed to show students achievement in relation
to a set of defined outcomes. This model of assessment is useful to determine the level of
mastery of students regarding specific knowledge and skills previously defined. Normed-
Normed- vs. reference assessments have been designed to compare individual students’ achievement
Criterion-Referenced to the achievement of representative sample of peers or “norm group”. This model of
Assessments: assessment compares students to other students in the same norm group. Learners do not
address questions regarding a particular skill or demonstrated knowledge. Nowadays, the
most adaptive systems use only a Normed-reference assessment process, because this is a key
component to situate an adaptive content.
Adaptive tests can achieve accurate placement of a student in an individualized learning path,
then predictive capabilities are derived from adaptive assessment design. Regarding this,
Predictive
the response to the previous question can change the next test question. It is important the
Psychometric Design
existence of predictive values to automate the selection of questions based on the student’s
ASSESSMENT responses and reports that connect rates to the student’s instructional needs.
Student mastery (or non-mastery) of a set of attributes or skills are determined by
diagnostic classification models. The diagnosis of cognition, particular skill competency,
Diagnostic
or sub-competency of a defined outcome is important in adaptive systems to align teaching,
Classification
learning, and assessment. In the adaptive processes, timely diagnostic feedback about
Modeling
students’ weaknesses and strengths allow teachers to guide teaching and learning in the
adaptive processes.
Zone of proximal development is the difference between what learners can do without
Zone of Proximal help and what they can do with help. It also allows adaptive systems the measurement and
Development providing next-step guidance and feedback. Zone of proximal development is a key element
in content scaffolding.
The measurement of learners’ interpretation about what they know provides adaptive systems
Self-Assessment with benchmarks on the quality of students learning behavior. Students’ self-Assessment is
compared with what the adaptive system knows about a completed sequential work.
continued on following page
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Table 1 continued
Category Subcategory Descriptor
Skills are defined units of knowledge, skills, and abilities used in evaluation. Skill standards
libraries are built as a correlative “reference point” or outcome in modular adaptive content
and assessment; informing students about what is expected of them. Through the use of
a standard it is possible to judge a competence achievement that is not dependent on the
performance of other students, and standards libraries inform learners, as well as other
Skill Standards stakeholders, about what is expected of them. Competency and skill definitions must allow to
Libraries confirm mastery (or not) in a student’s ability to source, process, manage, communicate, and
apply knowledge across diverse contexts. Regarding the teaching of social sciences, the mere
memorization of merely conceptual school knowledge is not considered desirable. The school
contents of social sciences, geography and history are alive, as is the disciplinary content
Competency of the reference sciences; in addition, it is necessary to integrate concepts, procedures and
frameworks varied attitudes that make possible the construction of social and civic competence.
In a competency framework, identified skills and competencies are defined by “sub-
Competencies/Sub- competencies”. They are specific facets of an individual, aggregate competency. Students’
Competencies progress is reviewed through mastery of a series of sub-competencies that accredits to an
overall competency as a key indicator of future success.
Prior learning assessment is student-centered, and it place learners at a starting point for the
Prerequisite
next viable competency to be learned in order to build on existing knowledge. Assessing
Knowledge and
broad ranges of prior knowledge before entering an adaptive course shortcut the course-
Prior Knowledge
pacing process. In adaptive systems new knowledge becoming prior knowledge to start
Qualifiers
building further knowledge and competency.
(Adapted from Pugliese, 2016)
problems) for the construction of properly and significant school knowledge

is similar the Adaptive System features organized in Content, Assessment
and Competency frameworks.
In general terms, several researchers have demonstrated that predictive
models developed with historical data from previous cohorts of students,
including patter of activity and correlation with academic achievement, can
be valid (Whitmer, 2012, Agnihotri & Ott, 2014, Jayaprakash et al., 2014,
Civitas Learning, 2016). Regarding the use of Adaptive Learning Technologies,
the NMC Horizon Report: 2017 (Adams Becker, Cummins, Davis, Freeman,
Hall Giesinger & Ananthanarayanan, 2017) indicates that, at the Technical
University of Colorado (United States), almost 82% of teachers use Intellipath,
the adaptive learning platform of the university. Through research, they have
concluded that students have greater control over their work, progress more
quickly through materials that are known to them, students demonstrate
more committed and greater confidence in the mastery of different areas of
knowledge. The NMC Horizon Report: 2017 also highlights a project between
the University of Beijing and the International University of La Rioja called

PERFORM for the development of software that takes advantage of student
data in order to provide personalized recommendations. This initiative,
beyond improving student academic results, offers researchers the opportunity
280
to observe the learning patterns of students from different cultures. Other

advantages of Adaptive Learning Technologies include (Pugliese, 2016):
• Automated processes of student assessment and predictive analysis

that results in a better teacher time efficiency.
• Adaptive systems can solve difficulties in public education regarding
learning mastery among a demographically diverse set of students.
• Adaptive systems adapt the course content progression based on
students’ skill, decreasing the teachers load.
• Executed effectively, the cost efficiencies in automated feedback and
remediation without formal instructor intervention have shown major
improvements in student learning.
• Regulating course content degree of difficulty results in better course
engagement and progression.
• Students receive real-time response to their ongoing coursework with
a detailed feedback.
• Adaptive systems encourage student ownership of their learning
through automated feedback cycles prompting them to take action
independently of the class instructor.
• Adaptive systems conform to individual students’ varied lifestyles.
• Teachers receive data with insights into individual students’ needs;
allowing teachers to better allocate time to students who need
remediation.
• Adaptive systems reveal how individual students learn.
• Adaptive systems empower teachers because data analysis of student
progression gives to teachers significant information to improve the
course.
• Adaptive system allows teachers to access to a data-driven feedback
informing in real time.
In Europe, JISC analyzed 11 case studies in its Learning Analytics in

Higher Education report: A Review of UK and International Practice (Sclater,
Peasgood & Mullan, 2016); where it was concluded that adaptive learning
systems help foster a more personalized and self-directed approach to learning;

being appropriate to teach basic skills.
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ARTIFICIAL INTELIGENCE AND ROBOTICS
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a combination of algorithms for creation to

create machines that have the same capabilities as humans. Computer science
experts Russell and Norvig (2019) differentiate several types of artificial
intelligence: systems that think like humans, systems that act like humans,
systems that think rationally, and systems that act rationally. When systems
automate activities such as decision making, problem solving and learning,
we are talking about systems that think like humans. In general terms, AI:uses
computer systems to accomplish tasks and activities that have historically relied
on human cognition. Advances in computer science are creating intelligent
machines that functionally approximate human reasoning more than ever
before. Harnessing big data, AI uses foundations of algorithmic machine
learning to make predictions that allow for human-like task completion
and decision-making. As the programming, data, and networks driving AI
mature, so does the potential that industries such as education see in its
application. However, as AI develops more human-like capability, ethical
questions surrounding data use, inclusivity, algorithmic bias, and surveillance
become increasingly important to consider. Despite ethical concerns, the
higher education sector of AI applications related to teaching and learning
is projected to grow significantly (Alexander et al, 2019: 27).
An example of this type of AI is artificial neural network where humans
must transfer their knowledge to the dataset in order for a neural network to
learn the correlation between labels and data (deep learning) in a process
of supervised learning that, as Nicholson (s/f) indicates, allows system
to detect faces, identify people in images or recognize facial expressions
(angry, joyful, etc.), identify objects in images (stop signs, pedestrians, lane
markers…), recognize gestures in video, detect voices, identify speakers,
transcribe speech to text, recognize sentiment in voices, classify text as spam
(in emails), or fraudulent (in insurance claims); recognize sentiment in text
(customer feedback), etc. Regarding systems that act like humans, these
are computers that do tasks similarly to how people do it. An example of
this type of AI is a robot. When systems try to emulate the rational logical
thinking of humans, making machines perceive, reason and act accordingly,

we are talking about systems that think rationally. An example of this type
of AI is an Expert system that simulate human reasoning in the same way
as an expert in an area of specialization would do. It includes monitoring to
anticipate possible incidents, design in engineering and industry, planning
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from a simulator and a control system that concludes with the ordering of a
set of actions, control consisting in performing the tasks of interpretation,
diagnosis and repair sequentially, simulation to create models based on facts,
observations and interpretations, instruction to monitor the learning process
and detect errors, and information retrieval. In relation to systems that act
rationally: ideally, they are those that try to rationalize human behavior, such
as intelligent agents, autonomous entity which acts and directs its activity
towards achieving goals.
On the other hand, the three laws of robotics from the short story of
science fiction Runaround (that Asimov first published in 1942, in the journal
Astounding Science Fiction and which was reprinted) acquire a significant
importance as a consideration to be taken into account by the European
Parliament (2017) in the definition of the “general principles related to the
development of robotics and artificial intelligence for civil use” within the
Civil Law Standards on Robotics recommended to European Commission.
These science fiction reference laws of robotics are (Asimov, 1950: 40):
• A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a
human being to come to harm.
• A robot must obey the orders given it by human beings except where
such orders would conflict with the First Law.
• A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does
not conflict with the First or Second Laws
Considering the benefits of an adequate, efficient, transparent and coherent

regulatory approach, from the European Parliament (2017), which approves
the Civil Law Rules on robotics, considering that the three laws of Asimov
robotics would be aimed at designers, manufacturers and robot operators
Among the general principles, the European Parliament: “emphasises the
importance of the flexibility of skills and of social, creative and digital
skills in education; is certain that, in addition to schools imparting academic
knowledge, lifelong learning needs to be achieved through lifelong activity”
(2017: 13, principle 45). Adaptive learning use basic algorithms AI; existing
a connection between them. This allows system to personalize the learning

and to offer a content adapted to the needs of the students; based on student
performance and their commitment to content. This increase the collection
of data about students learning in institutions and it requires tools to extract
and analyze them.
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A significant example is Watson AI tutor in Watson Education1 is an

intelligent tutoring system designed to improve student outcomes and
engagement in relation to any topic. This system work around AI software
building on IBM’s Watson platform and from Pearson Education learning and
content expertise to allow students to receive support in digital courseware
from an AI-based tutor. Watson AI tutor organizes multiple learning activities
through a Socratic natural language conversation conducted via chat (Ventura
et al, 2018). Regarding natural language processing, this system contains
several innovations, including short answer scoring (Saha et al., 2018),
assessment generation (Dhamecha et al., 2018) and question recommendation
(Ahn et al., 2018). According the website, IBM Watson Education is focused
on using AI to improve learning outcomes and implement solutions through
supporting all students following three steps:
• Personalized content for students based on mastery: lessons, activities

and assignments for students based on nowadays society.
• Enhancing early childhood vocabulary development: tablet-based
vocabulary learning app that can identify areas that require additional
focus.
• 1:1 AI-based tutoring for students: it allows users to track students
progress, adapts the conversation, and provides insights to instructors.
This platform relies on digital trends and Watson AI technology in order to

give teachers the tools they need to include most effective and to help learners
to reach the top of their abilities. From this point of view, it is considered
that assistant in the classroom helps to reach the learning goals of students
and encourages lifelong learning with the individualized necessary tools.
We wrote about high level skills for social and workplaces environment
above. Regarding this and directly related to employability skills (critical
thinking, problem solving, team working, communication, leadership and
interculturalism), we can highlight Edulai2,. According the website, it is an
intelligent software integrated into the learning management system (LMS)
that allows teacher to assess how online students develop those employability
skills. Edulai measures students’ skills with a formative and a summative

e-assessment considering the AI engine and based on key pedagogical
principles. This software suggests student’s high-quality targeted content and
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Table 2. Key Trends Accelerating Technology Adoption in Education
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 0ver
T1
T2
T3
T4
T5
T6
T7
T8
T9
T10
T11
T12
T13
T14
T15
T16
T17
T18
T19
(Reworked from Alexander et al, 2019: 5-6, EDUCAUSE Horizon Report 2019)
LEGEND
T1 ® Blended Learning Designs.
T2 ® Growing Focus on Measuring Learning.
T3 ® Advancing Cultures of Innovation.
T4 ® Redesigning Learning Spaces.
T5 ® Deeper Learning Approaches.
T6 ® Collaborative Learning.
T7 ® Evolution of Online Learning.
T8 ® Rethinking the Roles of Educators.
T9 ® Proliferation of Open Educational Resources.
T10 ® Rethinking How Institutions Work.
T11 ® Cross-Institution & Cross-Sector Collaboration.
T12 ® Students as Creators.
T13 ® Agile Approaches to Change.
T14 ® Ubiquity of Social Media.
T15 ® Blending Formal and Informal Learning.
T16 ® Decentralized IT Support.

T17 ® Ubiquitous Learning.
T18 ® Rise of New Forms of Interdisciplinary Studies.
T19 ® Modularized and Disaggregated Degrees.
285
next skills level according their previous developed skills. It allows teacher
to monitor process of skills development and he receive information about
the content suggested to the student. Once Edulai proves that the skill has
been mastered, it is captured in a badge which can be collected into a public
digital portfolio accessible also by potential employers in future.
CONCLUSION
The teacher of Social Sciences should be aware to the consequences of

this new situation where ignoring emerging technologies and not including
responsible use of them in the classroom implies a disconnection with social
reality and social (and labor) needs in the near future, where procedural and
attitudinal issues such as adaptability to technological environments (Butler
-Adam, 2018) or critical and creative thinking will be fundamental (Holt &
Elufiede, 2019). Over the years, different trends in educational environment
have been considered. Thus, key trends and key trends forecast from 2012
to over 2023 are presented in table 1:
In general, the most relevant sectors would be education, media, information
managers, computer services and technological research. Moving away from
positions based on technological determinism, the development of technologies
no longer determines the changes in social structures or the transformation
of the teaching-learning process. Regarding this, the active nature that is
required by users in the learning society has resulted in a referral to what is
known as LKT, which, unlike ICT, stop focusing on instrumental aspects
to emphasize educational aspects that require didactic mediation. One step
beyond, Adaptive Learning Technologies generate a dynamic adjustment
of the didactic sequence and the contents. This adaptation aims to improve
student learning with automated interventions or with teacher intervention
taking as reference the data provided by the system. In other words, the main
objective of these technologies is to guide students precisely and logically
by adapting their learning itinerary, promoting active learning, and offering
greater support to at-risk students. AI can personalize experiences, reduce
workloads, and assist teachers with analysis of large and complex number
of data sets useful for teaching and learning improvement. However, there
are concerns over equity, inclusion, and privacy.
The potential of artificial intelligence for education is still developing.
There is greater development in the consumer sector, where, for example,
virtual assistants interpret verbal cues to respond in the form of conversation,
286
reflecting human interaction. However, NMC Horizon Report 2018 indicates

that there is a widespread concern that the field is advancing faster than
people can understand, requiring greater clarity to increase user confidence.
AI is a promising education technology because digital and online tools
are increasingly important in the teaching and learning of Social Sciences.
Adaptive learning, meanwhile, is related to AI, using basic algorithms of
this one to personalize the learning and to offer a content that adapts to the
needs of the students. This customization is based on student performance
and their commitment to content. The growing collection of data on student
learning by institutions requires tools to extract and analyze them.
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ENDNOTES
1
IBM Watson Education: https://www.ibm.com/watson/education
2
Edulai: https://smarthink.org/edulai#new-page
291
292
About the Author
Emilio Delgado-Algarra is a doctor in Research in the Teaching and

Learning of Social Sciences. Associate Professor in the Faculty of Education
Psychology and Sports Sciences at the University of Huelva, member of the
Research Center in Contemporary Thought and Innovation for Social De-
velopment (COIDESO), in the research group DESYM “Initial Training and
Professional Development of Teachers” and in Red14: Interuniversity Network
in Didactics of the Social Sciences. EPITEC R&D Project researcher (code
EDU2015-67953-P), funded by the Ministry of Economy and Competitive-
ness. Organizer, director and guest speaker in Conferences, Congresses and
Symposiums of international scope in several countries. Author of numerous
communications, articles, book chapters and books. Editor of specialized
books such as “Handbook of Research on Citizenship and Heritage Educa-
tion” (editors Delgado-Algarra & Cuenca-López, 2020). Main research lines
focus on teaching history and social studies, citizen education and memory
in the Spanish-Japanese context, plurilingualism and multiculturalism, action
research and ICT in the Didactics of Social Sciences. He has participated in
numerous educational innovation projects and coordinated educational in-
novation projects such as “Professional development of teachers in training
to work on current conflicts and relevant socio-environmental issues through
deliberation and decision-making. Collaborative action research design and
case study”. Committed to academic internationalization and the promotion
of citizen participation through research-based education, he is director of
the East Asian Academic and Cultural Center, a center approved by the Uni-
versity Governing Council and Coordinator in the Japanese headquarters of

“Innovagogia” international teaching group. Involved in tasks of academic
About the Author
management and improvement of educational quality, he has been Coordi-

nator of the Department of Didactics of Social Sciences in the Department
of Integrated Didactics. Moreover, nowadays, he is Chairman of the Quality
Commission of the University Degree in Primary Education at the University
of Huelva and member of the Quality Commission of the Faculty of Educa-
tion, Psychology and Sports Sciences.
293
294
Index
3D Modeling 102-104, 109-110, 113-114, cMOOC 173, 175-176

121, 123, 125 Conceptions 10, 15, 17-18, 32, 138, 201,
3D Printing 76, 102-103, 109-110, 113- 278
115, 121, 123 Content Bank 204, 217
Content Edition 204, 217
A Content Management 131-133, 136, 139,
160, 204, 213, 216, 247, 252, 257
Action Research 3, 28-31 Contextualization 8, 228, 241
Adaptive Learning Technologies 132, 270,
278, 280-281, 286 E
Alternative Evaluation 25
Applications 2, 41, 45, 48, 52, 68, 75-76, Educational Innovation 2, 4, 109, 115, 167,
83, 92-93, 102, 112, 115, 122, 125, 262, 273
131, 136, 213, 217, 226, 235, 246, e-Learning 132, 135-136, 139, 141-143,
249-250, 277, 282 147, 151, 156-157, 165-167, 171-172,
AR Resources 86 185-186, 213, 227-228, 241, 246-250,
AR With Markers 86 252, 269
Artificial Intelligence 50, 168, 186, 268- Evaluation 1, 3-4, 22, 25-28, 43, 50, 139,
270, 282-283, 286 144-145, 165, 167, 173, 175, 184-
Augmented Reality 41, 75-78, 81, 86, 89, 186, 195, 197, 204, 217-218, 236,
92, 103, 276 248-249, 255
Autonomous Learning 248
F
B
Flipped Classroom 136, 143, 193-194,
b-Learning 132, 142, 151, 193-194, 197- 199-200, 202-205, 213, 219
199, 213, 218, 250, 252, 257, 269
G
C
Game-Based Learning 40-44, 46-48, 51,
Challenges 31, 41-43, 45, 51, 54, 59, 64, 67-68, 217
68, 86, 186, 203, 242, 249, 268, 270- Gamification 40-46, 51-52, 54, 56, 59, 61,
272, 275-277 67-68, 76, 85-86, 116, 132
Civics 114, 241 Geolocation AR 89
Index
H S
History Teaching 1, 51, 86, 235 Science 5, 11-13, 15, 23, 30, 40, 53, 57-58,
63, 67, 83, 96, 103, 111, 113, 118, 125,
L 135, 158, 194, 201, 216-217, 249, 273,
278, 282-283
Learning Management Systems 131, 196, Social Networks 12, 95, 175-176, 185, 212-
247 213, 216, 242, 246, 250, 257-258, 261
Social Sciences Education 1, 40, 46, 51,
M 67, 75, 92, 102, 193, 226-227, 231,
236, 242, 246
m-Learning 85, 226-231, 233, 241-242,
246-250, 252, 255, 269, 276 T
MOOC 132, 144-145, 160, 165-169, 172-
174, 176-177, 181-183, 186 Teaching Strategies 151, 241
MOOC Platforms 172, 177 Thinking Based Learning 275
Trends 84, 269, 284, 286
O
U
Open Educational Resources 131-133,
139-140, 154, 213 u-Learning 132, 136, 142, 151, 197, 213,
Open Resources 155 246, 248-250, 252-253, 255, 257,
262-263, 269
P
V
Problems 3-6, 8-12, 15, 17, 23, 26, 28, 30,
32, 43, 48, 62, 64, 135, 174, 179, 200, Videogames 41, 46-51, 68, 86, 119
202-204, 216, 253, 275, 278 Virtual Classroom 252-254
Virtual Learning Environment 132-133,
R 142, 213, 228, 247, 252-253
Virtual Reality 76-77, 102-104, 107, 111,
Research Teaching Model 9 115, 119, 211, 276
Resources 24, 40, 42-43, 45, 51, 54-55, 59, Virtuality Continuum 77
66-68, 76, 84, 86, 92, 94, 102-103, VR Resources 115
110, 112, 114-115, 117, 119, 121-122,
124-125, 131-133, 135-136, 138-142, W
154-160, 166, 169, 174, 176, 181-182,
203-204, 212-213, 226-228, 231, 233, Websites 45, 133, 212, 217, 226, 228, 233,
235-236, 241-242, 247, 249, 253-256, 236, 241
263, 269, 273, 277
X
Robotics 270, 277, 282-283
xMOOC 172-173, 175
295

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ICTs and Innovation

for Didactics of Social

Emilio José Delgado-Algarra

A volume in the Advances in Human

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Delgado Algarra, Emilio José, 1981- author.

British Cataloguing in Publication Data

All work contributed to this book is new, previously-unpublished material.

For electronic access to this publication, please contact: eresources@igi-global.com.

Editor-in-Chief: Ashish Dwivedi, The University of Hull, UK

Civic Engagement Frameworks and Strategic Leadership Practices for Organization

Civic Engagement in Social and Political Constructs

Recent Advances in Digital Media Impacts on Identity, Sexuality, and Relationships

Human Capital Formation for the Fourth Industrial Revolution

Handbook of Research on Politics in the Computer Age

For an entire list of titles in this series, please visit:

701 East Chocolate Avenue, Hershey, PA 17033, USA

About the Author.............................................................................................. 292

Technological advances allow an improvement of immersion experiences with

m-learning, b-learning, virtual classroom, etc. and emerging trends such as

is designed for researchers and educators interested in understanding current

gamification include creation, management and use of flashcards, games,

The integration of physical reality and digital layers of information in real

of resources to adapt them to the classroom needs. In general, there are

The Learning Management Systems (LMS) encompass a type of software

e-Learning courses that adapted to the characteristics of MOOC platforms,

Social Sciences, Geography and History that go beyond conceptual contents.

the different ubiquitous learning modalities. U-Learning is an expanded model

Industrial Revolution, Thinking Based Learning (TBL) with the support of

decision making and professional development.

Innovation accompanies us in our daily lives. When a new product or

defining and consolidating changes, and a shared understanding of the

In general, these experiences can share a common topic, deliberative strategies

EPISTEMOLOGICAL TRADITIONS OF THE

From a civic approach of education, López-Facal indicates that “all formal

over the diversity of students, proposing a hypothetical-deductive method

Professional knowledge is set up by a dynamic representation of professional

Figure 1. Relationship between different teaching models. Reworked from Delgado-

base on one of them.The attitude of Social Science teachers regarding

Figure 2. Teachers attitude regarding controversial issues. Translated from Delgado-

Teachers who assumes a neutral impartial attitude encourages students’

Figure 3. Controversial issues in the classroom. Key elements and deliberation

attitude of committed impartiality promotes debate, sharing his opinion with

In addition to the inclusion of relevant problem problems and the

• In the traditional model, theoretical school contents and objectivity

In general, there is an important connection between innovation and research

TOWARDS AN INNOVATIVE METHODOLOGICAL

The priority purpose of education is to train citizens and provide useful

• Student activity: where students play an essential role in the process.

contents while internalizing methodological strategies related to the

• Relevant social environmental problem: to respond through the teacher

These four elements contribute to the selection, sequencing and organizing

Figure 4. Construction of school knowledge from an approach based on school

Relevant Socio-Environmental Issues. Connection

to make decisions about real problems and relevant issues.

democratic society, contributing to become themselves informed, trained

Figure 5. Proposal for democratic citizenship education. Re-elaboration based on

Scientific Knowledge and its Relationship

Disciplines such as Sociology, Political Science, Anthropology, History, Art

History, Ethics and Geography have contributed to the analysis of political,

• The level of participation of the governed (for example, political

Sociology, Geography and History have contributed to the study of