The 2018 academic year has finally come to an end. I thought things would settle down, but instead, I have been busy with graduate school entrance exams, oral examinations for master’s students, lectures, and much more. Also, with trial classes for SIP starting soon, I have been working with a professor since the evening, tinkering with the system and creating courses… Thank you very much.

Now, for the 2018 academic year, Professor Matsuda from Tokyo Metropolitan University and I served as the organizing committee for the Japan Society for Educational Technology (JSET) journal special issue, and this special issue, “Design, Practice, and Evaluation of Active Learning,” has now been published. The aspect of evaluation is particularly important in this special issue, and I believe we have gathered a diverse range of research on the topic. However, just like the previous special issue on Learning Analytics—or perhaps even more so—the acceptance results were quite rigorous. This is something we must address.

With Professor Matsuda as the chair, I served as vice-chair, and we asked two fresh and up-and-coming researchers, Professor Fukuyama from Meisei University and Professor Oyama from Osaka University, to join the organizing committee to help move the publication forward. We included a review article by Professor Yamauchi from the University of Tokyo, and two perspective articles—one by Professor Fukuyama and myself, and another by Professor Oyama and Professor Matsuda. These articles summarize the past, present, and future of active learning, discussing what has been required, what research has been conducted, how it has been evaluated in each phase, and from what perspectives research should be conducted in the future. We proceeded with the goal of this issue serving as a textbook, so I hope it will be a useful reference for everyone who intends to pursue research in active learning. Thank you, Professor Matsuda, and our young colleagues, Professor Fukuyama and Professor Oyama. Although the two younger members had no prior experience as organizers, they learned a great deal and worked diligently toward publication. I look forward to their continued success.

Finally, I would like to express my gratitude to everyone who submitted their work, the professors who served as reviewers, and everyone who accepted the role of editorial board member. This publication would not have been possible without your support. Thank you very much.

Japan Society for Educational Technology Journal Vol. 42 (3) Special Issue “Design, Practice, and Evaluation of Active Learning” https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/browse/jjet/42/3/_contents/-char/ja