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In this paper, animated pedagogical agents are looked at from an instructional design perspective. A "support-typology " was constructed based on different dimensions on which support can be described and different roles instructional agents can assume. This typology is used to analyze currently available pedagogical agents. This analysis indicates that current pedagogical agents are designed to provide support on content and problem solving aspects of the task and that they are capable of adapting their support to learning paths. The review of research on the relation between pedagogical agents and learning indicates that, although only limited research has been done, certain agent characteristics are relevant to take into account in further research on the effect of agents on learning. It can be concluded that pedagogical agents offer opportunities to be grasped in open learning environments. (Contains 38 references, 1 figure, and 1 table.) (Author