CALL FOR PAPERS: Rethinking educational spaces. Future Classroom, metaverse and AI

2024-07-03

We live in a society in which few things remain untouched by technology, whether they are objects, actions, or behaviors, either because of its appeal and its way of making everyday tasks easier, or simply because it is hard to ignore. Such is the magnitude of these changes that the literature has already suggested we are facing a process of (re)ontologising our world. In some way, the transition to a culture dominated by the screen and the internet is having major ontological implications. One of the first consequences of this social transformation is that we are increasingly living in a digital world, and less so in an analogue one. Technological devices that were initially introduced as instruments to support our way of being and behaving have ended up creating new realities, spaces that are qualitatively different to the ones we were once familiar with.

All these transformations also have their correlation in the field of education. ICT and cyberspace have enabled flexible and seemingly immaterial spaces in various senses. On the one hand, everything that takes place in the physical space of the classroom continues afterwards in the virtual environment, an example of this is remote learning. On the other hand, we are witnessing the reconfiguration of the educational space into what we now know as Future Classroom. These types of classrooms are characterized by their capacity to accommodate everything: lectures, teamwork, free movement, individual activity, etc. Unlike the traditional classroom, located in a physical and temporal space, we find ourselves in a context where space no longer dictates the learning time, as the educational action becomes delocalized. These classrooms also allow for conducting education in these spaces, extending to fully digitized spaces such as Virtual Reality, Augmented Reality, or more immersive experiences with Artificial Intelligence. Finally, we must not forget how our relationship with other spaces outside the classroom, such as the natural environment, is increasingly also mediated by the use of screens. All of these changes come with political and ontological implications for the educational domain.

From a neutral point of view that neither supports nor opposes Future Classrooms and their different approaches, methodologies, and perspectives, this monograph seeks proposals that go beyond a didactic or instrumental approach. We propose that perhaps it's time to conduct research that focuses on technology as a tool with inherent educational implications, as a technology that is transforming our educational spaces and our ways of educating. That is why this monograph seeks to address the following questions:

  • Future Classrooms: What implications do these new digital spaces have? Can they be considered equally as real as physical space? What is the role of the ed-tech sector in the production of the future classroom?
  • Metaverse and AI: What pedagogical implications does the use of Chat GPT have in the world of education? Should we (re)think the ways of educating? Can a chatbot be an assistant to the teacher or educator? How can we evaluate AI's intelligent, ethical, and pedagogical use in university teaching?
  • What implications do these new spaces have for policy makers? Do we have to regulate the role of the educational technology industry in education?
  • Technology-mediated spaces. How and to what extent do innovative spaces such as Living Labs allow for a rebalancing between natural and technological spaces?
  • The role of educators (teachers, social educators, pedagogues…): Should educators be involved in the design process of these technologies? What educators/teachers are being affected by these new spaces? What do they think about it? How do educators (teachers, pedagogues…) perceive the influence of the educational technology industry?

Guest editors: Judith Martín Lucas1, Fanny Pettersson2 and J. Ola Lindberg2

1 University of Salamanca, Spain

2 University of Umeå, Sweden

Deadlines:

  • September 30th, 2024: deadline to submit abstracts (up to 500 words).
  • October 31st, 2024: communication of preliminary acceptance of abstracts.
  • January 31st, 2025: deadline to submit full papers.
  • June, 2025: expected data of publication

Abstracts should be sent to: digital.education.review@ub.edu

Please, revise the submission guidelines for additional information on how to prepare your manuscript to meet the journla’s requirements.