From the point of view of cognitive psychology, learning may be defined as the acquisition of knowledge and skills. There is now doubt that learning is an extremely complex process. It is therefore not surprising that there are no simple answers to the question how and to what extend digital technologies support learning.

In formal education, we assume that learning has specific outcomes and that these can be measured and evaluated. If we argue that digital technologies allow for new ways of learning, we will also have to think about appropriate ways of assessing the outcomes of these new ways of learning.

Pirkko Hyvönen from the University of Oulu and his colleagues from the Open University of Catalunia performed a study on older citizens using tablet PCs. The environment allowed for collaborative learning which required a great deal of self- and co-regulation. Based on the contents of structured interviews, the researchers were able to identify a number of successful strategies participants used in dealing with the learning task.

Per Bergamin, Egon Werlen & Yve Boschud from the Swiss Distance University of Applied Science explored the learning behaviour of university students in a technology enhanced learning environment where collaborative learning was scaffolded. It was assumed that collaborative learning might result in extraneous cognitive overload. Results show a relationship between learning outcome and cognitive load, a relationship that was moderated by students’ motivation.

Antonio Bartolomé from Barcelona University and his colleagues from Vigo University studied the effect of blogs on learning. They assumed that the use of blogs enhances self-regulated learning. They blogs were assessed by students’ teachers who also used rubrics. It was found that rubrics complemented blogs in improving structure and organisation of students’ learning processes.