Dr. Ilana[Ilana] Dubovi | Faculty of Medicine

General Information

Dr. Dubovi is a registered nurse (RN) who followed her passion for design and technology by studying and receiving her PhD in Education at the Department of Learning and Instructional Sciences, University of Haifa. She then completed two postdoc positions, first at the Instructional Technology and Learning Sciences department at Utah State University and second at the Faculty of Education at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Israel. Recently, she also completed studies in Data Science with a specialization in Machine Learning at Bar-Ilan University, further enriching her expertise in computational methods.

Her research encompasses a synergy of learning sciences theories, medical sciences, and educational digital technology. In recent years, her work has expanded to include data science and artificial intelligence (AI), focusing on their transformative potential in digital health and education. She integrates advanced computational methods, including machine learning and AI-driven analytics, to design personalized, adaptive educational technologies for healthcare and science education. Her prime interests are grounded in science-related healthcare topics and issues, examining how educational technology and AI can restructure the development of mechanistic schemes, cognitive and emotional learning processes among patients, students, and healthcare practitioners to improve both health outcomes and patient safety.

Research Interests

Learning Process: Cognitive and emotional aspects of learning
Learning Technologies: Adaptive and personalized learning environments powered by AI and machine learning
AI in Education: Leveraging machine learning and large language models to enhance personalized learning and instructional design
Digital Health and Wellbeing: Innovating AI-driven tools for health education, patient safety, and symptom management
Multimodal Learning Analytics: Integrating diverse data streams to classify engagement patterns and improve learning outcomes
Complex Systems: Understanding and teaching the dynamics of complex systems in science and health education
Model-Based Learning: Developing and analyzing conceptual and mechanistic reasoning frameworks
Simulations and Medical/Nursing Education: Utilizing immersive VR, AR, and simulation-based learning for skill acquisition and decision-making
Patient Education: Designing digital health solutions for enhancing patient engagement and self-management
Lifelong Learning and Non-Formal Learning: Exploring opportunities for upskilling and reskilling in the modern workforce
Psychophysiological Measurements of Learning Processes: Exploring multimodal data (electrodermal activity, eye tracking, and facial expression analysis) to understand cognitive, emotional, and behavioral engagement

Publications

Publications:

Dubovi, I., Levy, S.T. & Dagan, E. (2015). The Contribution of Computerized Simulation to Medication Dosage Calculation Skills. Guf Yeda, 13, 4-12. (in Hebrew, included in the VATAT list).

Dubovi I, Levy ST, & Dagan E. (2017). Now I know how! The learning process of medication administration among1. nursing students with non-immersive desktop virtual reality simulation. Computers & Education, 113, 16-27.

Dubovi I, Dagan E, Sader-Mazbar O, Nasar L, & Levy ST. (2018). Nursing Students Learning the Pharmacology of Diabetes Mellitus with Complexity-Based Computerized Models: A Quasi-Experimental Study. Nurse Education Today, 61, 175-181.

Levy S.T, Peleg R, Ofeck E, Tabor N, Dubovi I, Bluestein S, & Ben-Zur H. (2018). Designing for discovery learning of complexity principles of congestion by driving together in the traffic Jams simulation. Instructional Science, 46, 105-132.

Dubovi I. (2018). Designing for online computer-based clinical simulations: evaluation of instructional approaches. Nurse Education Today, 69; 67-73

Dubovi I, Levy, S.T. & Dagan, E. (2018). Situated Simulation Based Learning Environment to Improve Proportional Reasoning in Nursing Students. International Journal of Science and Mathematics Education, 1-19.

Dagan, E., Dubovi, I., Levy, M., Zuckerman‐Levin, N., & Levy, S. T. (2019). Adherence to diabetes care: knowledge of biochemical processes has a high impact on glycemic control among adolescents with type‐1 diabetes. Journal of Advanced Nursing.‏

Dubovi, I. (2019). Online Computer-Based Clinical Simulations: The Role of Visualizations. Clinical Simulation in Nursing, 33, 35-41.‏

Dubovi, I., & Lee, V. R. (2019). Instructional support for learning with agent-based simulations: A tale of vicarious and guided exploration learning approaches. Computers & Education, 142.

Lee, V. R., & Dubovi, I. (2019). At Home With Data: Family Engagements With Data Involved in Type 1 Diabetes Management. Journal of the Learning Sciences, 1-21.‏

Dubovi, I., Levy, S. T., Levy, M., Zuckerman Levin, N., & Dagan, E. (2020). Glycemic control in adolescents with type 1 diabetes: Are computerized simulations effective learning tools? Pediatric Diabetes. https://doi.org/10.1111/pedi.12974

Dubovi, I., & Tabak, I. (2020). An empirical analysis of knowledge co-construction in YouTube comments. Computers & Education, 103939. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2020.103939

Amit Aharon, A., Ruban, A., & Dubovi, I. (2020). Knowledge and information credibility evaluation strategies regarding COVID-19: A cross-sectional study. Nursing Outlook. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.outlook.2020.09.001

Aharon, A. A., Dubovi, I., & Ruban, A. Differences in mental health and health-related quality of life between the Israeli and Italian population during a COVID-19 quarantine. Quality of Life Research, 1-10. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11136-020-02746-5

Dubovi, I., & Tabak, I. (2021). Interactions between emotional and cognitive engagement with science on YouTube. Public Understanding of Science, 0963662521990848.‏ https://doi.org/10.1177/0963662521990848

Dubovi, I. (2022). Cognitive and emotional engagement while learning with VR: The perspective of multimodal methodology. Computers & Education, 104495. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2022.104495

Dubovi, I. (2022). Learning with virtual reality simulations: direct versus vicarious instructional experience. Interactive Learning Environments, 1-13. https://doi.org/10.1080/10494820.2022.2042313

Dubovi, I., Ruban, A., & Amit Aharon, A. (2022). The Role of Science-Based Knowledge on the SARS-CoV-2 Virus in Reducing COVID-19-Induced Anxiety among Nurses. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(12), 7070. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19127070

Dubovi, I., & Itzhaki, M. (2022). Playing the Role of a Nurse in a Virtual Reality Simulation: A Safe Environment for Emotion Management. Nurse Educator, 10-1097.‏doi: 10.1097/NNE.0000000000001269

Dubovi, I. & Adler., I. (2022) The impact of COVID-19 induced anxiety on students’ engagement while learning with online computer-based simulations: the mediating role of boredom. Interactive Learning Environments. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/10494820.2022.2100427

Liberman, L., & Dubovi, I. (2022). The effect of the modality principle to support learning with virtual reality: An eye‐tracking and electrodermal activity study. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning.‏ https://doi.org/10.1111/jcal.12763

Tabak, I., & Dubovi, I. (2023). What drives the public's use of data? The mediating role of trust in science and data literacy in functional scientific reasoning concerning COVID-19. Science Education, 1– 30. https://doi.org/10.1002/sce.21789

Dubovi. I. (2023). Facial expressions capturing emotional engagement while learning with desktop VR: the impact of emotional regulation and personality traits. Interactive Learning Environments. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/10494820.2023.2208173

Borer, H., & Dubovi, I. (2023). Fostering childbirth education on upright positions and mobility during labor in nulliparous women. BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth, 23(1), 870.‏ DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12884-023-06166-4

Merav Siani, Ilana Dubovi, Anna Borushko & Michal Haskel-Ittah (2024) Teaching immunology in the 21st century: a scoping review of emerging challenges and strategies, International Journal of Science Education, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/09500693.2023.2300380

Saban, M., & Dubovi, I. (2024). A comparative vignette study: Evaluating the potential role of a generative AI model in enhancing clinical decision‐making in nursing. Journal of Advanced Nursing. https://doi.org/10.1111/jan.16101

Naor, A. P., & Dubovi, I. (2025). Nurse-led inpatient education using a gamification approach for patients with mental illness: A quasi-experimental study. International Journal of Nursing Sciences.‏ https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijnss.2025.02.007

Grants & Awards:

Years	Grants / Awards	Other Researchers	Granted by Institute/Company	Title and Total Amount
2015-2018	Grant, Co-PI	PI- Efrat Dagan, PhD and Co-PI Sharona T. Levy, PhD	Ministry of Health, Chief Scientist	The Impact of computerized simulations on knowledge and decision-making, and balance indices in adolescence with diabetes mellitus type I
2019	Award		American Educational Research Association (AERA-2019)	New Investigator Award; Education in the Professions
2019-2020	PI		2019 Sigma/NLN Research Grant Award	Comparison of Learning with Virtual-Reality Simulation Versus Mannequin-Based Simulation to Roadmap the Role of Physical and Digital Simulated Experiences in Nursing Education
2020- 2021	PI		Joy Neuro-Wellness Research grant	Surprise and Engagement: What multimodal data can tell us about positive emotions while interacting with VR’s visual and tactile stimuli
2020-2021	PI	Co-PI Orit Karnieli-Miller	Faculty of Medicine Collaborative Grant, Tel-Aviv University	Educational technology to promote shared clinician-patient decision-making among patients with diabetes
2022-2024	PI	Co-PI Michal Haskel Ittah	The Israel National Institute For Health Policy Research	Digital health delivery of patient education: a case study of symptom self-management during cancer treatment
2023-2024	PI		Ministry of Defence	Multimodal automated data channels to improve engagement during learning and training