Computing devices and applications are now used beyond the desktop, in diverse environments, and this trend toward ubiquitous computing is evolving. In this study, we re-visit the interactivity concept and its applications for interactive function design in a ubiquitous-learning system (ULS). Further, we compare interactivity dimensions and…

This article introduced some of the issues and challenges faced by online learners who have disabilities by providing an overview of four major disability categories: visual impairments, hearing impairments, motor impairments, and cognitive impairments. It also discussed how assistive technologies and universal design are being incorporated in…

The Computer Anxiety Scale (CAS) measures the perceptions of individuals with respect to their anxiety toward computers. Although the CAS was developed a number of years ago, research has shown that its factor structure has remained stable. Recent cross-cultural studies using samples of college students from various countries have also shown that…

For distance-education students, the requirement for a laboratory course can present a significant hurdle to completing degree requirements. To better serve these nontraditional students, the authors developed a distance version of the laboratory course to provide a hands-on experience similar to that of on-campus students. In order to make the…

During the 1890s, the library media specialty was established through "a School Library Section as an integral part of the National Education Association" (Cole 90). In the ensuing decades, this role has expanded and changed; it demands a balancing act between the more traditional roles surrounding books and reading, and the newer expectations and…

Schools generally have been unable to keep up with the rapid technical changes in modern society. As a result, primary school age children worldwide are becoming self-taught independent e-learners and the gap between what they know and are able to do exceeds the learning outcomes for their schools' ICT (information communication technology)…

Internet websites for use in the social studies disciplines are often not easily accessed and used by young children, particularly those in the primary grades, without adult assistance. In this study a group of teachers and students evaluated a set of interactive websites designed specifically for young children on the hyperlinked US Government…

Five years after Consortium on Chicago School Research (CCSR) research revealed a "digital divide" among Chicago Public Schools (CPS) and limited computer usage by staff and students, this new study shows that district schools have overcome many of these obstacles, particularly in terms of technology access and use among teachers and…

This paper brings learning, mass media and technology together in a critical analysis of advertising and its gendered implications in terms of women's desires and investments in technology. It uses two advertisements for laptop computers that appeared in the same weekend news magazine as an analytical opportunity to examine collisions and…

Research into Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) in schools is well into its third decade but there is still a pressing need to better understand how computer-based technologies are influencing learning opportunities, and how the local conditions of schooling impact on teachers' attempts to integrate these technologies in their…

Shared databases are used for knowledge exchange in groups. Whether a person is willing to contribute knowledge to a shared database presents a social dilemma: Each group member saves time and energy by not contributing any information to the database and by using the database only to retrieve information which was contributed by others. But if…

When the author read that the history department at Middlebury College had "banned Wikipedia" she immediately wrote to the college's president, Ronald D. Liebowitz, to express her concern that such decision would lead to a national trend, one that would not be good for higher education. She states that Wikipedia is not just an encyclopedia. It is…

In this article, we report the observed differential uptake and use of computer programs and activities of seven boys and girls of high, medium and low attainment in a classroom in the UK where over 40 children aged 10 and 11 have a networked PC on their desk all day and every day. We observed the detail of what happened in the small space between…

Library media specialists hear about Web 2.0 in numerous professional journals and during conference workshops. They know that using this aspect of the Internet is second nature to many of their students, and therefore they feel a need to become knowledgeable about this means of information sharing. What better way to learn about blogs, wikis, or…

Feedback theory proposes that feedback influences the behavior of a system and its parts and that is governed by rules. This exploratory study attempts to test this theory in a graduate-level class on leadership theory. Twelve students were asked to participate in five online discussions, each lasting one week. The questions for each discussion…