Research Interest
My research examines how instructional design can foster student well-being, sense of belonging, and psychological flourishing, with a particular focus on international students in higher education. Drawing on positive psychology and positive education, I investigate how reflection-based and other supportive learning interventions can help learners navigate challenge, build resilience, and thrive academically and personally. My work also reflects a broader interest in learners’ emotional experiences, professional identity development, AI/ML education integration, and the design of meaningful educational environments.
Research Activities
Throughout my four-year journey, I’ve been involved in several research projects that reflect my research interests.
Reflection Practice in Supporting International Student Well-being and Sense of Belonging
This dissertation project explored how reflection practices can support international students to develop a positive mindset and attitude that contributes to their well-being and strengthens their sense of belonging. The work examined how intentional reflection can help students process their experiences, build self-awareness, and develop a stronger connection to their well-being and sense of community. Through this project, I gained research experience and the ability to conduct research starting from scratch, with the ability to conduct literature review, research designs, data collection, IRB protocols, and data analysis.
The Implementation of Best Possible Self Intervention
Led by Dr. Suzhen Duan, this project focused on the implementation of the Best Possible Self intervention in online graduate education as a way to promote student well-being and future-oriented thinking. The research examined how structured reflective writing activities can encourage learners to imagine positive future selves, build motivation, and foster more meaningful learning experiences. Through this work, I explored the practical application of positive psychology interventions in educational settings and their potential to support both personal growth and academic engagement. I took part in several research papers supporting works, such as literature review, qualitative and quantitative data analysis, and gained valuable experience collaborating with talented researchers in the field.
Understanding Students’ Experience through Learning Analytics
Another line of work examines student experiences in online learning through different learning analytics, such as network analysis and BERT. These works reflect my interest and ability in using various methods to better understand the engagement patterns and the relationships among key elements that support students’ learning experience.
Technology Integration in Education
In addition to my research experience, I have also engaged in several research projects that involved innovative technology integrations in education.
- Carrying my background in digital storytelling, I participated in the project, Promoting Awareness of Environmental Sustainability Among Students in After-school Programs through Augmented Reality-based Activities. In this project, we designed three AR activities to support local after-school programs under the grant, Making Connections, Building Community: Engagement and Advocacy for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Grant. This project provided me with the opportunity to put theory into practice and engage in the community.
- With the rise of AI, I also worked with Dr. Huang on a project exploring in-service teachers’ perspectives about AI integration in Taiwan, South Korea, and the U.S. This project provided me opportunities to interview participants from my home country and get to know the struggles and experiences of AI from teachers and administrators from elementary, middle, and high school.
- Last but not least, under the guidance of Dr. Yu, the MIRA (Metacognitive Instructional Regulation Agents) lab provided interdisciplinary experiences that investigate how humans think, learn, and perform in an age of intelligent machines. I had the opportunity to provide my expertise in an instructional design perspective and collaborate with great minds from fields like Information Science and Data Science.