Mobile augmented reality applications are gaining prominence in education, but there is a need to design appropriate and enjoyable games to be used in educational contexts such as classrooms. This paper presents an interactive information system designed to support the implementation of an augmented reality application in the context of game-based learning. PlanetarySystemGO includes a location-based mobile augmented reality game designed to promote learning about the celestial bodies and planetary systems of the Universe, and a web application that interacts with the mobile device application. Besides face-to-face classes, this resource can also be used in online classes, which is very useful in social isolation situations as the ones caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Furthermore, it is the inclusion of the web application, with a back-office, in the information system that makes it possible to include curricula contents according to the grade level of students. Moreover, it is intended that teachers use the information system to include the contents they find appropriate to the grade level they teach. Therefore, it is crucial to provide their professional development to be able to use this resource. In this regard, a pilot study was conducted with teachers who participated in a STEM professional development programme in order to assess if the system is appropriate to be used by them. It is concluded that teachers found this resource relevant to motivate students to learn, and also acknowledged that the web application facilitated the introduction of appropriate curricula contents and also was useful to assess student performance during the game. Teachers need support, however, to implement these types of technologies which are not familiar to them. The necessary support can be provided through collaboration among the researchers and teachers in their schools. Besides engaging students to learn about celestial bodies, it is concluded that the information system can be used by teachers to introduce appropriate curricula contents and to be implemented in class.

Computer programming is a highly sought-after skill in the labour market, and there is a clear need for professionals in this field. The aim to produce qualified software developers is encouraged by the industry, by governments and education and training institutions focusing on increasingly younger audiences. These students' willingness to learn is hampered by the complexity of programming environments designed for experienced developers and targeted to productivity, which translates to high failure rates. To counter this trend, various teaching/learning environments have been created for which little knowledge of mathematics and logic is required. This paper presents IDE Algorithmi, an environment that makes use of natural language. The paper covers topics such as: flowchart- and text-based algorithm editing; flowchart display, pseudocodes and traditional software programming languages; algorithm design and debugging and its translation to the most popular programming languages in the business world.

Learning programming is a hard frustrating process for students with greatest difficulties. Programming involves thinking abstractly, which requires motivation and commitment. For this reason, traditional teaching approaches are being replaced by more attractive technological solutions such as Logo and Scratch. Although learning how to program with these tools is extremely fun and easy, they are very different from the commercial programming languages students will come across in the working world. This led to the creation of Algorithmi, a system designed to support the learning of algorithmics composed by an algorithmic language that can be translated into traditional programming languages, an algorithm editor that minimises mistakes and corrects algorithms; and an information system with a database of exercises which can be fed-in by the instructor. Algorithmi is being developed since 2016 and its usability was tested by faculty members and students. The enthusiasm was unanimous and, in the 2018/2019 academic year, Algorithmi will start to be taught in all introductory programming courses offered at IPT, and consequently its assessment in learning context.

Learning to program is a difficult task, therefore the teaching of programming has been the subject of intense research resulting in new methods and tools. Algorithmi is one of those tools and its main purpose is to help students learn programming by simplifying the programming language. This paper presents the automatic algorithm evaluation module and the components that enable this evaluation. This module was created to help teachers evaluate algorithms and to give feedback to students on the quality of the solutions proposed. The results on the use of the system are presented in class.

The cultural context and values of twentieth-century architecture and construction confirm the need to preserve them for future generations, given the multiple challenges to overcome. Raul Lino da Silva (1879–1974) is a celebrated Portuguese architect who worked throughout the twentieth century and whose architectural legacy is scattered from the north to the south of the country. The aim of this paper is to present the development of the website OnlineLino, which is related to the architectural and construction heritage of Raul Lino in the Médio Tejo region, an inland Portuguese territory with low demographic density. This work is focused on integrating documentary information dispersed across different digital funds, by aggregating it on a website that will be made available for public access in the future. To this end, data were collected from different funds, and the information was aggregated and systematised so that it could be included in the digital database developed, the OnlineLino website. The work was carried out by a multidisciplinary team in an academic setting, involving the areas of architecture, civil engineering, computer engineering and design. We hope that this website will contribute to the dissemination of Raul Lino’s architectural legacy, especially for buildings that are less studied and known.