The use of head mounted displays (HMDs) to experience virtual realities (VR) has become increasingly common. As this technology becomes more affordable, immersive and easier to use, it also becomes more serviceable in educational and training contexts. Even though the technology, content and feasibility for K-12 school purposes are still being developed, it is reasonable to expect that the call or 'push' to use HMD VR in K-12 schools will increase, especially as there is now a greater economic interest in the use of digital technologies in educational contexts. This article aims to inform the process of implementing HMD VR in K-12 contexts by researching the preconditions and challenges of use from a teacher perspective. It does this by analysing the organisational, institutional, contextual and practical challenges and opportunities in the implementation of HMD VR in K-12 school contexts. The data draws on (a) interviews, informal conversations and observations of teachers testing HMD VR and different VR applications in a Digital Learning Lab (DLL) and (b) data from a project involving upper secondary school history teachers discussing the planned implementation of HMD VR in their teaching and being in the DLL. The main findings are related to: (a) economy and technology, (b) initial learning barriers, (c) organisation and practical enactment for teaching and learning, (d) curricula, syllabuses and expected learning outcomes and (e) teachers' competences, professional development and trust. The consequences for educational contexts and possible ways forward are also discussed.

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The digitalisation of educational contexts has changed the practice of teaching and learning. In this, teachers have a key role in enacting digital technologies for this purpose and have different opportunities to do so. This article explores how digitalisation can affect teachers by focusing on: (a) how teachers manage to capitalise on digitalisation; and (b) how digitalisation can affect and reconstruct their self-understanding. Two teacher colleagues of English as a foreign language (EFL) in the same teaching team are interviewed and observed. Drawing on the interplay between self-image, self-esteem, job motivation, and task perception, it is shown how the teachers' self-understanding is played out and changes due to the call for digitalisation. Whereas one of the teachers has been able to capitalise on digitalisation in a way that has been beneficial both professionally and personally, the other has felt pressurised by it. A conclusion is that a limited or extended use of digital technologies should not be taken as an indicator of teaching quality.

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Theoretical outcomes of design-based research (DBR) are often presented in the form of local theory design principles. This article suggests a complementary theoretical construction in DBR, in the form of a design framework at a higher abstract level, to study and inform educational design with ICT in different situated contexts. Laurillard's Conversational Framework (CF) is used as a conceptual lens to analyse how eight teachers use or envisage using technology to support learning in one-to-one environments. The findings demonstrate how the researcher uses the CF to discern different aspects of the teachers' situated design practices. In the study, ICT is primarily used to support communication and the exchange of knowledge representations between the teachers and their students. Considerably fewer examples are found where ICT is used to support communication, collaborative creation and modelling between peers. However, the interview analyses reveal that the teachers' intentions to apply ICT to support learning often include this second type of ICT use. Reasons for this discrepancy between the expressed intentions and de facto use of ICT include limitations in technical know-how and a perceived conflict between collaborative learning, existing school cultures and individual assessment. The findings suggest that in DBR, an analytical design framework could be an important tool for researchers and teachers when analysing and discussing educational uses of ICT. The CF provides a promising basis for a design framework, but should be expanded to include interactions with actors outside the classroom.