More than 20 years ago, it was argued that the use/integration of learning technologies for education in the coming decades would likely be less of a consequence of technological limitations than a result of limited human imagination combined with the constraints of old habits and social structures. However, over the last years, the rapid adoption of laptops, smartphones, tablet computers, and micro-controller kits in schools have reignited imaginations and are changing social habits and practices. Especially, novel practice-based learning and open-ended activities with a focus on Science, Technology, Art, Math and Engineering (STEAM) are starting to emerge, thus providing new opportunities for exploring and learning in these fields.

These digital ICT tools are introducing change into education landscape at many levels and in diverse ways; moreover, these processes can metaphorically be seen as a complex ecosystem on the verge of multiple transformations. The ideas and new learning conditions described above pose us with a number of challenging questions, as enumerated below; How do teachers and learners interact in these learning environments and which new interaction patterns and group dynamics emerge? How teacher and student roles are being redefined and what tools and processes can support them? How does peer collaboration unfold and how can collaboration be supported? How do students relate to the learning material and construct knowledge, and how do teachers organise new ways of teaching and assessment? Furthermore, how can we design physical spaces to reflect and to take advantages of these transformations?

These questions present researchers, designers, practitioners, and learners with new opportunities that need to be better understood and leveraged. This special issue aims at shedding light on the different emerging transformations of educational practices brought about by the introduction of digital tools with a focus on STEAM.