Today and tomorrow, the world needs individuals who can manipulate critical and creative thinking skills to solve problems as a team. With technology, the way knowledge is obtained, constructed and communicated have completely transformed and altered. When it comes to education, it is a matter of question whether education is capable of creating critical and creative thinkers who can answer the needs of social and economic world of today and tomorrow. On the other hand, computers and smart devices are threatening the integrity of knowledge and knowing by damaging the authority of teachers in classrooms changing the way teachers are perceived. Therefore, terms such as guide, facilitator or coach have started to sound interchangeable with the word teacher. It is a widely known fact that schools are the learning environments for children. However, it is not certain how much they learn and how much of the content is supported by the ICTs. At an age when people are surrounded by technology all the time at work, in schools and everywhere, technological tools and smart devices have advanced too fast. The advances in technological devices used every day have gone faster than the advances in educational research and pedagogical approaches which incorporate educational technologies. This being the case, innovation in educational activities can be ensured through an understanding of the benefits of using technologies in education. This study is aimed at presenting that innovation in education is to be handled carefully. In order for this, this paper reviews the previous studies regarding innovation as a prerequisite for novel learning environments and revising strategies for successful adaption of technology to education, thus creating innovative learning environments. In conclusion, innovation is of vital importance in transforming and reconstructing the learning environments along with the curricula, the role of the teacher and teacher training.

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This study aims to review and provide new perspectives for academic goal orientation. The study introduces first chronological history of goal orientation and depicts how goal orientation evolved into a new construct in learning from the discussion on motivational factors. At first, this study isolates goal orientation from motivation and provides novel insights into goal orientation as a separated factor affecting learning. Then, this study provides analyses of the adaptation work of the academic goal orientation questionnaire into the Turkish language. The translated scale was applied to a sample of 729 undergraduate students, 376 (51.6%) of which were female and 353 (48.4%) of which were male students at a state university in Turkey. For the structure validity of the translated scale, exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were carried out. Exploratory factor analysis yielded a three-factor structure of thirteen items accounting for 66.5% of the variance. Confirmatory factor analysis results suggested that the tested model of the translated scale yielded satisfactory goodness of fit. The total score of the translated academic goal orientation instrument is reliable (Cronbach's α = .84). The literature and the results from the application of the instrument suggest that the translated instrument offers valuable input into the curricula and syllabi in higher education in addition to providing insights to lecturers about the perceptions of the students towards the courses.