Advances in information technology are creating new possibilities for using immersive virtual environments for learning and assessment. Immersive Virtual Environments (IVEs) are three dimensional (3-D) contexts, either single or multi-user, where digitized participants can engage in virtual activities and experiences. Each participant takes on the identity of an avatar, a virtual persona that can move around the 3-D context. As the field approaches almost a decade of research on IVEs in education, we will take a step back in this symposium to examine lessons learned from the design of educational IVEs and to offer design heuristics for future development and research.