I-Hui Liou is a master’s student in the Learning Technologies program at the University of Texas at Austin. She received her master’s degree in Teaching English as a Foreign Language at National Tsing Hua University in Taiwan, and taught English at secondary schools. She joined the Alien Rescue team in Nov. 2017 and started from 3D modeling with Blender and 3D printing. She was engaged in content editing and development of cognitive tools in AR. Her interests include technology integration and instructional design, UI/UX design and digital inclusion.
Sa Liu received her Ph.D. from the dept. of Curriculum and Instruction specializing in Learning Technologies in 2018. She has a master’s degree in Educational Technology and a B.S. in Computer Science. She is a big fan of all kinds of games and joined Alien Rescue project in 2013 Spring. Her current research interests include serious games and game based learning, especially on the effects of learner characteristics during the problem solving process within serious game environment. She is currently Assistant professor at Harrisburg University of Science &Technology.
Wenting Zou is a doctoral candidate in the Learning Technologies program at The University of Texas at Austin. She earned her master’s degree in Educational Technology from the University of Hong Kong. Wenting joined Alien Rescue Team in 2015. She is contributing to the front-end development of the latest web-based version of the game. Her research interests include the use of Web 2.0 tools to enhance teaching & learning, and learning analytics in serious games.
Emily Naul received her Master’s degree in the Learning Technologies program in 2018. Before attending UT, she earned her bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Lewis & Clark College. Emily joined the Alien Rescue team in 2016, and since then she has been involved in 3D modeling and video production. Her research interests include game-based learning and design of educational multimedia.
Liuyi Shu received her Master’s degree in the Learning Technologies program in 2018. She has a B.S. in Educational Technology and a B.A. in English Literature. Her interests include instructional design and training development. She is passionate about designing e-learning with new media and creating problem-based learning. She joined Alien Rescue in the fall of 2016 and started with 3D learning environment design. Now she is working on Alien Rescue promotion videos and teacher’s portal redesign. She believes that technology makes education effective and efficient.
Larissa Rodionov received her Master’s degree in the Learning Technologies program in 2018. She received her bachelor’s degree in Russian from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She taught English both abroad and in the United States before settling in Austin. She joined the Alien Rescue team in 2017 and is involved in 3D modeling, video editing and designing the teacher’s portal. Her interests include problem-based learning and digital equity.
Louis is a doctoral student in the Learning Technology program. He majored in chemical engineering and business administration. Before coming to UT, he worked as a programmer, project manager and product manager for a credit rating company. His research interest is the measurement, collection, analysis, and reporting of data about learners and their contexts.
Jina received her Ph.D. from the dept. of Curriculum and Instruction specializing in Learning Technologies in 2017. She has been a member of the Alien Rescue project since 2010. Since she holds an M.A. in Learning Technologies and M.S. in Astronomy, her contributions are focused on developing content and teachers' manual. One of her research interests is how to efficiently deliver content (specifically science related) in order to motivate students learning in a game-based learning environment. Currently, she is Assistant professor at Utah State University.
Sukanya Moudgalya received her Master’s degree in the Learning Technologies program in 2018. She has a Bachelors degree in Biotechnology. Prior to UT, Sukanya was working as a content generator for a course development project in Public Health, in India. She joined the Alien Rescue team in 2015 and has been involved in 3D modeling, animation, and web designing. She is passionate about problem-based learning, game-based learning, and the design of learning environments. Her research interests also include examining ways to reduce compartmentalization of ‘subjects’ and to have instead holistic learning approaches.
Siqi Yi received her Master’s degree in the Learning Technologies program in 2017. She earned her Bachelor’s Degree in English Language and Literature. She has been a part of Alien Rescue since February 2016 and concentrates on 3D modeling and animation. Her research interests include integration of interactive multimedia in Education, game-based learning as well as web design. She has helped create alien model videos and participated in game design for the next new version of AR.
Hyeyeon was a doctoral student in the Learning Technology program at The University of Texas at Austin. She has a Bachelor’s degree in mathematics education, and has a master degree in Educational Technology. Since Fall in 2016, she has been a part of Alien Rescue for one year. She has been involved in 3D modeling, Photoshop, and animation. Her interests include self-regulated learning, co-regulation, and computer supported collaborative learning.
Logan Theodore received her Master’s degree in the Learning Technologies program in 2017. He joined the AR team in Fall 2015 and is working to redesign. His interests include: design, learning motivation, and competency based learning. Prior to beginning his graduate studies he was a 5th grade teacher and a management consultant for startups and mid-sized businesses. He holds a BS in Sociology from Brigham Young University.
Jeff Hodson was a doctoral student in the Learning Technologies program at The University of Texas at Austin. He has a master’s degree in Instructional Design and Educational Technology from the University of Utah. Jeff joined Alien Rescue during the fall 2015 semester, and his primary role has been front-end web development for cognitive tools. His research interests include motivation, self- regulated learning, self-efficacy, problem-based learning, and collaborative learning.
Yajun Qiu received her Master’s degree in the Learning Technologies program in 2016. His interests include immersive learning environment design, Web development and 3D modeling and animation. He takes a leading role in 3D design group and creating over 10 models and characters for Alien Rescue 5th version - WebGL. In addition, he was engaged in students and teachers interviewing and filmed school observation in spring 2015. In addition to his research, he is serving as a graduate assistant in UT Health Services, performing the duty of a computer programmer and Web developer.
Peishan Xu received her Master’s degree in the Learning Technologies program in 2016 and has a B.S. degree in Education Technology. She has been a part of Alien Rescue since 2014 and concentrates on 3D modeling, game design and web design. Her research interests include integration of interactive multimedia in Education, game-based learning, e- learning as well as human computer interaction. She worked on rebuilding the website and 3D models for Salamander Rescue. She is fond of exploring strategies of creative design and production in the context of better learning experience.
Caroline Cancelosi received her Master’s degree in the Learning Technologies program in 2016. She joined the Alien Rescue team in 2014 and is currently redesigning the user interface. Caroline also helps design the overall game aesthetic in collaboration with the 3D modeling team. Her interests include the gamification of learning, visual design, and adaptive instructional technologies.
Sara received Master’s degree in the Learning Technologies program in 2016. She joined the Alien Rescue team in the fall of 2015 and has worked on design of the interface, user experience, and teacher professional development portal. She is interested in game-based learning, immersive learning environments, and the use of VR/AR in instruction. She believes that one of the most important aspects of effective technology- and game-integration in the classroom is informed teacher adoption, and is currently working with the AR team to develop the best tools to aid in teacher use of Alien Rescue.
Jake Henson received her Master’s degree in the Learning Technologies program in 2017. Before that he was a 9-12 grade Audio/Visual Production teacher for 3 years, a free-lance grip and production assistant, a substitute teacher, a UT undergraduate film and english student, a lifeguard for 9 years, and a dairy hand for 3 years. As a 6th grader he read Greek and Egyptian mythology books, Animorphs, The Lord of the Rings, X-Men comics, played more video games than he should have, learned to play Chess, loved Star Wars, and won an award for reading all of that year’s Bluebonnet books. At the time he was determined to draw and write Superhero comics.
Jason Harron is a doctoral candidate in the Learning Technology program at The University of Texas at Austin. He holds an M.M. in Saxophone Performance and an M.B.A. from the University of North Texas. Jason is an experienced K-12 educator and works for the UTeach program as a Teaching Assistant training pre-service math and science teachers. When Jason’s not building, inventing, programming, or tinkering he enjoys cycling around Austin, performing on saxophone or piano, and repairing pinball machines. Jason joined the Alien Rescue team in July of 2014 and is currently leading the development of the ThreeJS-based engine for the next generation of AR. His research interests include mobile devices for immersive virtual reality, design thinking, the Maker Movement, creativity, and how we build capacities for failure as we learn to persevere.
Ryan Myers is a Ph.D. student in the Learning Technologies program at the University of Texas at Austin. He joined the Alien Rescue team in August 2013. Before coming to UT, Ryan taught middle school social studies for six years. He has a master’s degree in instructional design and technology, and bachelor’s degrees in social studies teaching and psychology. His research interests here at UT are digital game-based learning and problem-based learning. His main role on the Alien Rescue team is 3D modeling.
Amy received her Master’s degree in the Learning Technologies program in 2015. She has a BA in mathematics, and taught math at the high school level for eight years. She has been a part of Alien Rescue for one year, and hopes to bring more math concepts into Alien Rescue. She is also interested in providing teachers with the best tools to monitor students’ progress within the game as well as alternative ways to assess learning.
Jaejin received his Ph.D. from the dept. of Curriculum and Instruction specializing in Learning Technologies in 2015. He has 10 years of experience in the field of educational technology and 20 years of experience in the RC modeling hobby. He taught several classes such as Teaching Method and Educational Technology and Distance Education in South Korea. He joined Alien Rescue project in 2008 and was responsible for 3D modeling and animation. His research interest focuses on fantasy and 3D visual effect for educational game. He is also interested in expanding his profession in 3D modeling to 3D fantasy art and aero-design for hobby aircraft. He is currently Associate Research Fellow Korea Institute for Curriculum and Evaluation (KICE). S. Korea.
Mengwen Cao received her Master’s degree in the Learning Technologies program in 2014. Her interests are in the relationship between technology and education, including MOOC(Massive Open Online Courses), multimedia and interactive learning experience. She has been in the Alien Rescue and Salamander Rescue team since September 2012, which has given her opportunities to learn and sharpen different skills. She has helped redesign the AR site, filmed and edited the AR videos, photographed school observation. She has been working on 3D models as well as 2D designs. She also participated in game design, 3D modeling and user testing in SR. At the Knight Center, she has been maintaining the website and facilitating MOOCs.
Elena Winzeler received her Master’s degree in the Learning Technologies program in 2016. She currently works for the Meadows Center for Preventing Educational Risk developing computer-based instructional interventions for children who struggle with reading comprehension. A member of the AR team since 2013, she is passionate about designing maximally effective digital learning environments, integrating such features as adaptivity, game-based and gamified learning, and stealth assessment. Her work with AR has centered on improving teachers’ experiences; she has worked to design a digital handbook and developed screencasts to guide teachers in using the program. She has also participated in research using learning analytics and data visualization to study players’ in-game behaviors. This work is leading her to design an interactive digital dashboard that will provide students’ gameplay data to teachers for assessment and monitoring purposes.
Jason is an educational technologist at St. Edward’s University and has twenty years of experience in the field of educational technology. He recently co-taught a class in Global Social Problems at SEU that was recognized with a Hudspeth Award for Innovative Instruction. He has a Master’s degree in educational technology and is currently pursuing doctoral work in UT’s Learning Technologies program. His research interests focus on the role of sound in our experience of educational games. Jason enjoys designing sound and writing music for games like AR and is teaching a Digital Music and Audio class at SEU this Fall.
Matt O’Hair was a part of the Alien Rescue team since the Fall of 2011, which has given him the opportunity to learn 3D modeling, 2D design and computer game design. His contributions include creating many of the 3D and 2D graphics in the Alien Research Database, designing the Alien Rescue logo and giving feedback and suggestions about game design and user experience. Going forward, he plans to focus his efforts on the development of another learning game spearheaded by Dr. Liu called Salamander Rescue. (Matt graduated in May 2013 with a masters degree from UT-Austin.)
Chu-Wei Lu was a graduate student in Learning Technologies masters program. She is currently working part-time as a graphic/web designer and pre-K Chinese teacher. Her interests are teaching and designing interactive multimedia programs to facilitate learning. She joined AR development team in October 2011 and started to work on SR project in January 2012. She edited AR video and is working on probe redesign. Her responsibilities in SR include developing game concepts, storyboarding and 3D modeling. (Chu-Wei graduated in May 2013 with a masters degree from UT-Austin.)