## 4 Results
Active inquiry, collaborative workflows, and knowledge-construction activities \"assist learners increase the richness and complexity of their cognitive discourse\" [88]--clear indicators of DML. Furthermore, the fact that SVREs are pervasive, always-accessible environments facilitates student initiative and informal learning [79; 85; 96]. The studies examining social aspects of learning concluded that SVRE platforms are effective media for social interactions both among students and between teachers and students [6]. Students were able to collaborate successfully to co-create digital artefacts [67] and complete team-building activities [86]. Additionally, these studies suggested that SVREs could elicit heightened notions of both co-presence and social presence [27]. The increased sense of connection with their digital representations--avatars--captured and sustained the students' attention and made it easier for them to follow conversations [91]. Attention is the first critical step in the cognitive engagement of learners [72]. The use of avatars also helped students to feel companionship and encouraged them to communicate sincerely [95]. Even a few meetings in an SVRE can facilitate the emergence of virtual communities of practice and inquiry [27]. Virtual teams operating in SVREs can engage in meaningful tasks that propel teams to go through the group-development stages and build trust, which is a crucial factor for distributed team performance [94]. Peer interaction and explorative activities are the keys for learning effectiveness [89]. Collaborative problem solving and collaborative observation had higher effectiveness in cultivating sustainable intrinsic motivation and distant team performance than teacher-centered approaches to instruction [81; 88]. [PERSON] et al. [81] \begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{c c c} \hline \hline
**Learning Effects** & **Studies** & **Number of Studies (\%)** \\ \hline Positive impact on learning performance & [67; 69; 70; 72; 74; 76; 78; 79; 81; 82; 85; 90; 91] & 16 (48\%) \\ Positive impact on perceptions and satisfaction & [26; 66; 69; 70; 74; 75; 77; 77; 82; 84; 85; 89; 94; 96] & 14 (42\%) \\ Positive impact on collaboration & [26; 66; 69; 71; 85; 86; 89; 90; 93; 94] & 10 (30\%) \\ Positive impact on motivation & [72; 73; 76; 79; 82; 95] & 6 (18\%) \\ \hline \hline \end{tabular}
\end{table} 
Table 6: Learning effects in HE for distant learning with the use of SVREs. \begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{c c c} \hline \hline
**Level of DML Support** & **Studies** & **Number of Studies (\%)** \\ \hline High & [66; 67; 69; 71; 77; 79; 80; 85; 86] & 10 (30\%) \\ Medium & [26; 76; 78; 81; 82; 84; 89; 91; 94; 95; 96; 97; 98; 99; 94; 96] & 18 (54\%) \\ Low & [87; 88; 93] & 3 (9\%) \\ None & [27; 92] & 2 (6\%) \\ \hline \hline \end{tabular}
\end{table} 
Table 5: DML support of SVRE studies in higher education (HE). concluded that avatar-mediated tutoring and the associated recursive feedback observation led to significant learning gains. However, establishing a social presence is not sufficient in itself for the achievement of cognitive learning goals [85]. In any case, SVREs can enhance peer collaboration in e-learning either as stand-alone platforms [89] or when combined in blended environments with other collaborative tools or asynchronous learning platforms [79]. Effective peer collaboration and social interaction evoke interest and motivation [88]. Manuscripts studying affective aspects in education confirmed that engagement, motivation, and academic achievement depend heavily on students' perceptions and emotions [80]. Remote participants were more comfortable and relaxed in an SVRE in comparison to a physical space that was often associated with stress [85]. Online learners that had demonstrated feelings of reticence and nervousness felt empowered to participate freely in an avatar-mediated SVRE [76], as active, scaffolding activities in SVREs can enhance learners' self-efficacy [75].