ZHOU Junyi
	Lecturer
	School of Education, Beijing Language and Culture University

Junyi Zhou is a lecturer at the School of Education, Beijing Language and Culture University, and a member of the Lab of Learning Sciences at Peking University. Her research focuses on educational games, digital content creation, and generative-AI-supported learning. She is particularly interested in how emerging technologies and game-based learning environments can support meaningful learning experiences, digital literacy development, and creative engagement among learners.

Zhou has extensive experience in learning-sciences outreach and educational practice. She has delivered lectures on learning sciences to thousands of students at institutions including Tsinghua University High School, Changping No. 2 High School, and Ciqu High School. She is also one of the main speakers of “The Mystery of Learning” at Peking University High School. In addition to teaching and outreach, she has participated in the compilation of books such as “Teacher's Handbook of Learning Science Theory” and “The Value of Games: Research on the Design and Application of Educational Games.”

Her research has been published in domestic and international journals and conference proceedings, covering topics such as multimodal learning analytics, embodied scaffolding, digital game-based learning, computational learning environments, educational metaverse design, and generative-AI-supported learning. Her recent work also explores digital creation and digital literacy cultivation among adolescents through immersive virtual environments and AI-supported creative activities.

· Educational Games

· Digital Content Creation

Zhou Junyi, Liu Bei, Shang Junjie. Digital Creation for Digital Literacy Cultivation: Theory and Practice [J]. Journal of East China Normal University (Educational Sciences), 2026, 44(01): 94–104.

Zhou Junyi, Shang Junjie. From Simulation to Educational Metaverse: The Evolutionary Path and Ecological Reconstruction of Technology-Driven 3D Virtual Learning Environments [J]. China Educational Technology, 2025, (10): 55–61+78.

Shang Junjie, Zeng Jialing, Zhou Junyi. Design and Application of Mathematical Space Games from the Perspective of Learning Sciences [J]. E-Education Research, 2022, 43(07): 63–72.

Chen, A., Xiang, M., Zhou, J., Jia, J., Shang, J., Li, X., Gašević, D., & Fan, Y. (2025). Unpacking help-seeking process through multimodal learning analytics: A comparative study of ChatGPT vs Human expert. Computers & Education, 226, 105198.

Zeng, J., Zhang, P., Zhou, J., Shang, J., & Black, J. B. (2025). The impact of embodied scaffolding sequences on STEM conceptual learning. Educational Technology Research and Development, 73(2), 767–792.

Fu, Q., Gao, Z., Zhou, J., & Zheng, Y. (2021). CLSA: A novel deep learning model for MOOC dropout prediction. Computers & Electrical Engineering, 94, 107315.

Zhou, J., Dou, P., Liu, B., & Shang, J. (2025). Learning Programming by Making Games: Design and Development of MetaDream. In W. W. K. Ma, S. S. K. Cheung, C. Li, P. Prayadsab, & A. Mungwattana (Ed.), Blended Learning. Sustainable and Flexible Smart Learning (15721, pp. 115–125). Springer Nature Singapore.

Shang, J., & Zhou, J. (2024). How to Design Scientific, Happy and Effective Educational Games: Research on Educational Game Design from the Perspective of Learning Sciences. In C. Li, L. H. U, C. W. Fan, A. Lu, & W. W. K. Ma (Ed.), Blended Learning. Intelligent Computing in Education (14797, pp. 21–38). Springer.

Zhou, J., Su, H., Fan, Y., & Shang, J. (2025). The configuration effect of learner characteristics on learning outcomes in generative artificial intelligence supported environments. The 5th Annual Meeting of International Society of the Learning Sciences, Helsinki, Finland.

Zhou, J., Zeng, J., Black, J. B., & Shang, J. (2024). Exploring the effect of gestures in the learning of spatial abilities based on process data in educational games. The 4th Annual Meeting of International Society of the Learning Sciences, Buffalo, NY, USA.

Zhou, J., Zeng, J., Black, J. B., & Shang, J. (2023). Effects of different embodied scaffoldings on students' spatial abilities in digital game-based learning. The 31st International Conference on Computers in Education, Matsue, Japan.

Zhou, J., Huang, Y., Chen, G., & Fu, Q. (2023). Interdisciplinary cultivation of computational thinking and music: Design and development of music-assisted learning software. The 27th Global Chinese Conference on Computers in Education, Beijing, China.

Research Project

Research on Digital Creation and Digital Literacy Cultivation of Teenagers

Principal Investigator: To be added.

Leveraging Tencent's vibrant metaverse platform, “MetaDream,” as its foundation, this project establishes a virtual learning and creation space specifically designed for adolescents. It aims to systematically explore and foster the comprehensive development of teenagers' digital creation skills and digital literacy within an immersive environment. The core of the project lies in constructing a holistic digital creation ecosystem, which encompasses four key components:

• Learning Environment Construction: Within the “MetaCJ” platform, thematic scenes and interactive spaces are designed to stimulate creativity and provide a safe, engaging, and collaborative virtual learning environment for teenagers.
• Instructional Methodology Exploration: The project investigates novel pedagogical approaches based on gamified learning. Through challenges, workshops, and community activities, it guides teenagers to learn by doing while cultivating problem-solving skills and teamwork.
• Generative AI Scaffolding Integration: Generative AI is embedded as an intelligent creative assistant within the platform. Teenagers can use AI for tasks such as story generation, character design, and conceptual scene sketching. AI serves as a “creativity catalyst” and “technical scaffold,” helping lower the barrier to creation and support imagination.