The theme and the priorities of the International Journal of Research in E-learning (IJREL) reflect the conceptual principles underlying the modernization of education and the reform of the educational systems in European countries, as well as national development strategies for the 21st century.

The article aims to discuss current research trends in the field of Distance Learning (DL). It consists of the following parts: (1) the definitions and characteristics of DL; (2) current directions of research in the field of DL, among others: measuring transactional distance in Web-Based Learning Environments, Problem-Based Learning (PBL) in DL, development of learning content and the task for MOOCs, effects of online course efficiency perceptions on Student Evaluation of Teaching (SET) measures, new technologies for the DL, the use of metacognitive and affective model Self-Regulated Learning (MASRL), questionnaire (Constructivist Learning on a Scale Higher Settings of Education [CLHES]) as a method of research of constructivist learning environment in higher education, Transactional Distance (TD) theory in DL and online community culture; (3) summary and conclusions with a particular focus on the use of DL methods in higher education. The article is based on the study of literature registered in the databases ERIC, LISA, and LISTA.

The authors substantiate the expediency of using video lessons and their fragments in the process of forming future teachers’ professional competency. The elaborated library includes video recordings of real mathematics lessons at primary school and videos of pupils solving certain types of problems with full commentaries, structured by classes and topics. The methods of using the video library by educators in the field Methods of Teaching Mathematics in Primary School and students majoring in specialty 013 Primary Education were developed. The effectiveness of using the video library as a means of teaching the course Methods of Teaching Mathematics in Primary School was verified experimentally by introducing it into the educational process of three Ukrainian universities.

This paper presents the results of a research study on the motives of students to study in the distance learning form at the University of Humanities and Economics in Lodz. The research was carried out using the method of semistructured interviews. The interviews were conducted among students of the first year of the follow-up Master’s degree in Pedagogy. The research was carried out in the years 2016–2019, in this period three stages of research were realised. The research group consisted of 20 students who had work and family responsibilities and were between 35 and 48 years old. In addition, respondents already had previous experience in combined and full-time studies. The interviews were recorded on a mobile phone and lasted about 40 minutes each. Data were analysed using open coding procedures. The goal of open coding was to thematically divide the analysed text. The analysed interviews were divided into units, which sometimes meant words, and sometimes sentences or paragraphs set according to their meaning, so the unit consisted of a semantic unit. A code has been assigned to each specified unit. Once the code list was created, we started to categorise data.

Current stage of ICT development necessitates the improvement of teaching tools, skills, and learning outcomes. The article discusses bright educational prospects of travel blogging for students of English as a second language (ESL). The authors suggest a short theoretical overview of research into travel blogosphere’s educational opportunities, while discussing a classification of travel blogs according to the type of sender vs receiver communication. On a wide and modern textual material the article considers such prominent features of travel storytelling as polysemantic vocabulary, compact meaning representation, strategies to present cultural information and verbal creativity which can be of true interest for students of B2 level and above. The readers can also learn about a few forms of activity with travel stories which are individual special sampling with some specific focus (pun, irony, creative instances of word building), presentation of foreign culture by means of English, project work for a small group of enthusiasts, sampling stories by country, by area or by activity, and presenting one concise story to the classroom, as their own post or a paper brochure.

The paper is devoted to utilisation of flipped learning for improving educational quality for IT students. The article discusses the advantages and disadvantages of flipped learning, the obstacles for its adoption are also described. The modification of educational functions, roles, actions, and interconnections of the participants during implementation of flipped learning is shown. Flipped learning implementation algorithm is proposed for a university discipline. Uniform architecture for flipped course which consists of face-to-face and online parts is provided. Forms and requirements for e-content are described. Approaches and technologies for implementing the online part of flipped learning are also discussed. Innovative educational technologies which may be useful at the stages of meaning realisation and knowledge reflection as well as for creating professional students’ skills are proposed. The proposed solutions are uniform and formed by generalisation of the knowledge about the data domain, they can be utilised at Ukrainian universities.

Modern teaching methods include both traditionally established approaches to the classroom and an entirely virtual approach aimed at learning from anywhere in the world at any time. Society is constantly witnessing increasingly popular platforms such as Coursera, Udacity, Udemy, and even YouTube, which are regarded as
aggregators of new knowledge.
The problem that is not addressed, however, is to what extent learning is effective in the process not only of the particular course but also within several interrelated courses of study. This article will describe a conceptual model for analysing the behaviour of intelligent agents who acquire knowledge by using
virtual tools to support the educational process, as well as ways to analyse the behaviour of the agents in question.

This article analyses various aspects of using robotics in education and examines the level of preparation and motivation of children and pupils. The authors carry out a comprehensive review of research and scientific publications regarding technological, didactical, methodological, and human aspects of using robotics in education. The article presents a report on a survey on pupils’ opinion on robotics in education, which was conducted during the third Silesian Science Festival, and discusses the exhibition stand presenting innovative digital technologies and methods in education and business as well as Photon robots.

The paper presents features and applications of hybrid reality technology and the Internet of Things. The analysed thesis states that such a solution is a favourable environment for the dissemination of knowledge through the concept of interaction of objects of postulated environment with the theoretical model of knowledge objects. The article discusses an initial version of the potential information system method. The method, in the form of a mathematical formula, makes it possible to evaluate objects in the postulated space. The article presents the case study implementing a similar environment in the service of advanced industrial equipment. The results of the analysis indicate a high potential of the postulated solution, which requires further refinement and research. At the same time, the practice of the implementation case points to technological and organisational threats which should be neutralised to ensure a high probability of the project’s success.

The objective of this article is to compare chemistry teaching in Poland and Ukraine at the primary schools level by discussing the possibilities of supporting education using a flipped classroom method (preemptive teaching) and ICT including free Google platform in chemical education. The article peruses some results of tests and surveys carried out among students in Polish and Ukrainian schools in the school year of 2018/2019 pointing out students’ motivation regarding ICT teaching support.

The Silesian Science Festival is an annual event organised by the University of Silesia in Katowice in cooperation with the Silesian University of Technology, Medical University of Silesia, the Jan Długosz University in Częstochowa, Academy of Fine Arts in Katowice, and The Jerzy Kukuczka Academy of Physical Education in Katowice. At the festival, specialists from almost all scientific/academic fields meet in one place.

One of the most important events in Poland in this field is the annual Virtual University Conference: Model, Tools, Practice. The symposium has a rich, 19-yearold tradition. Every year, the conference is alternately organised by Warsaw higher education institutions: Polish-Japanese Academy of Information Technology, Warsaw University of Life Sciences, University of Warsaw, and Warsaw University of Technology.