shelton :: research

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research projects

• Instructional Technology, Games and Learning
  • Look HERE for the wiki of Instructional Resources for Educational Games
• Culture and Context in Graphical Interpretation
• Role of Presence within Mixed-Reality Learning Environments

research statement

One of the characteristics that keeps me enthusiastic about the study of educational technology is its cross-disciplinary nature. Scholars with backgrounds ranging from engineering, math and science to those from language, composition and art all merge within this line of inquiry to study what happens when technology is merged with instruction. Educational technologists are concerned with topics that may range in focus and audience, but we all share concern with the impact of technology in today's learning environments. My niche within this discipline originates from my days as an engineer when I created scientific visualizations to transform complex information in ways to make it more easily understandable to everyday audiences. Now as a fledgling scholar myself, I have tried to merge my research interests with the activities and pursuits that are grounded within traditional educational technology and that have strong ties to learning sciences.

My interests can be described in two broad areas that have overlap in technical theme and share many theoretical perspectives.

The first area of research interest is the localizing and contextualizing of educational resources, in relationship to their availability and use. I have experienced some early success in obtaining funding and piloting research in this area, and want to continue my work as the world "flattens" in culture and understanding. The three specific threads of research within this category that interest me are the cultural interpretation of graphic symbols, instructional games and simulations, and modes of accessibility and universal design. This final thread covers issues of computer security and Internet safety.

The second area of research interest is most accurately described as the innovation of technology, and the role technology plays in mediating the understanding of complex concepts and phenomena. This category includes the investigation of how meaning is negotiated between people and technology-based artifacts, and the environments that support this negotiation. The three main threads of my research interest within this category include augmented reality, computer games, and instructional simulations. The roots of my approach relate directly to learning sciences in the way that "complex systems" might describe the interplay between learner and artifact, novice-and-expert, and the evolving understandings of how we understand the environment around us through the interpretation of our experiences. From my early empirical work and investigation of existing literature, it appears that the way students experience new phenomena as mediated through many different kinds of technological interfaces can change the way they develop their understanding of complex issues. I am not interested in revisiting the media-versus-methods debate, but rather building on an approach that accepts that learning is mediated by experiences that include more than the delivery medium itself. This is a perspective that I'm working from, but further exploration of this approach needs to be unpacked and considered while I investigate practice that can inform theory.

I believe studying the interactions between people and technology in context is of great significance. By investigating the social nature of technology we may advance the way we design interfaces and systems, in turn influencing the way we use computers to accomplish tasks and the way we communicate with each other. My preferred research methods, influenced in no small part by interactionist techniques, utilize ethnographic approaches including studying physical and cognitive activities to investigate what is happening and why they are happening. Some of these methods are put to use in my study of the Internet and technology adoption in the workplace.