4-6 July, 2012, Rome, Italy
More information at: http://www.ask4research.info/icalt2012/ 

Rationale and Background of the Workshop
According to modern pedagogy, Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education should aim to prepare students to generate and evaluate scientific evidence and explanations, to understand the nature and development of scientific knowledge, and to participate productively in scientific practices and discourse. This calls for a more significant contribution of hands-on approaches that improve the quality of learning. Hands-on approaches support several educational objectives such as they compare theory and practice, they help students learn how to employ specific tools and devices, and they provide real-world situations that require interaction with peers in circumstances that require problem solving skills developed through close collaboration, which are characterized by initiative and creativity. This also emphasizes the need to use experiments within learning activities, so as to engage students in active inquiry and enable them to create authentic learning experiences towards increasing their motivation about STEM fields. Although traditional laboratories have always played an important role in STEM education, online laboratories have recently attracted the attention of researchers and educational practitioners. There are many kinds of online laboratories, however, the most common are (a) virtual laboratories (model-based web simulations that complement hands-on exercises), (b) remote laboratories (real remote control of devices for distance learning hands-on sessions), and hybrid laboratories (a mixed approach: one part simulation and another part real remote control).

Over the past years, a significant number of remote and virtual laboratories have been developed and most of them are currently used in online STEM education. Remote and virtual laboratories have the potential to significantly reduce typical obstacles of traditional laboratories related to cost, time-inefficient use of facilities, and inadequate technical support and limited access and can bring the authentic environment of a research laboratory not only in the classroom but also outside the classroom to the students' desktop, as wells as to their mobile devices enabling them to have access to laboratory experiments without time and location restrictions.

Objectives of the Workshop
The proposed workshop aims to become a test-bed for exploring the use of remote and virtual laboratories in STEM education. Moreover, the proposed workshop aims to tackle issues related to software development of remote and virtual laboratories, as well as issues related with distributed architectures, reusability and discoverability, performance, access via mobile devices, integration with learning management systems, collaboration, authoring tools and evaluation methods.

Expected Audience
The workshop is addressed to the following audience:
- Educators, pedagogical experts, policy makers, experts in advanced technological applications and students interested in the design, development and application of remote and virtual laboratories in STEM education
- Designers of innovative educational applications and researchers who explore or want to explore new approaches in STEM education by adopting remote and virtual laboratories
- Students, educators, content providers and curriculum developers interested in projects that use remote and virtual laboratories in classrooms to enhance learning and enrich STEM curriculum

Anticipated Outcomes
The anticipated outcomes of the proposed workshop will be the following:
- The presentation of the design, application and analysis of innovative remote and virtual laboratories for enhancing STEM education
- The exchange of ideas and discussion about key research questions related with the adoption of remote and virtual laboratories in STEM education
- The extension of the educational practitioners' and researchers' network interested in this area

Important Dates
15 February 2012: Submission date for workshop papers
5 March 2012: Notification of acceptance 
15 March 2012: Authors' Registration Deadline 
1 April 2012: Submission of camera ready papers by authors
4-6 July 2012: ICALT 2012 Conference

Papers' Submission
Submissions should be sent via e-mail to Prof. Demetrios G. Sampson (sampson@iti.gr) by indicating in the subject line "ICALT 2012 Workshop Paper Submission"

Organization of the Workshop
The expected duration of the workshop is 2,5 hours. Speakers will give a presentation of 20 min including the time for a round of questions. The last 30 min of the session will be devoted to a general debate about the presented approaches and the future perspectives.

Workshop's Organizers
Manuel Castro, Spanish University for Distance Education (UNED), Spain
Ton de Jong, University of Twente, The Netherlands
Denis Gillet, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Switzerland
Demetrios G. Sampson, University of Piraeus & CERTH, Greece
Sofoklis Sotiriou, Ellinogermaniki Agogi, Greece