Explores the potential for and limitations to learning science when middle-school students interact with computer simulations designed by scientists and built by professional programmers. Findings suggest that computer simulations can be used effectively when teachers use learning needs to guide choice of pedagogical style and alternate…

Describes the pharma-CAL-ogy project, funded by Teaching and Learning Technology Programme (TLTP), which has developed various types of software for use in pharmacology courses. Topics include course organization and delivery software, drill and practice software, tutorial-type programs, simulations, and the need to integrate computer-assisted…

Describes three examples of learning environments that were created for the Web at Clyde Virtual University (Scotland) to enable task-oriented learning by allowing students to develop and apply skills and knowledge in a simulated environment. Discusses the staff's team approach, focusing on the end user, and the appropriate use of technology.…

The Internet-based CyberOlympics project involved 17 primary schools from five different countries competing against each other in an international sporting event (concurrent with the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games). Activities that benefited from Internet access, difficulties involved in running such projects, and suggestions as to how schools can…

Reports on a collaborative project developing CD-ROM multimedia resources for school leaders. Provides an overview of multimedia case-simulation concept, discusses collaborative project efforts with regional and state school leaders, highlights CD-ROM case design features, and summarizes preliminary findings associated with the Administrator Case…

This paper describes two innovative and linked approaches to teaching and student learning in the environmental and development geography of the Mekong region, a region remote from students' normal experiential options. The first approach is field-based learning through Field Schools carried out in Vietnam, Laos and Thailand. The second approach…

Constructively promoting the educational development of today's young tech savvy students and fostering the productive technological facility of tomorrow's youth requires harnessing new technological tools creatively. The MIT Teacher Education Program (TEP) focuses on the research and development of educational computer-based simulations and games…

There is an increasing need for business students to be taught the ability to think through ethical dilemmas faced by corporations conducting business on a global scale. This article describes a multiplayer online simulation game, ISLAND TELECOM, that exposes students to ethical dilemmas in international business. Through role playing and…

Kinetic models of a gas can be hard for students to understand. Typical tools do not display events at the microscopic level, yet computer simulations of the molecules lack a hands-on aspect. Here a new tool is described that combines the squeezing of a syringe with a computer simulation, and it is shown that this has worked well in class for both…

Background: Although much has been written about the ways in which new technology might transform educational practice, particularly in the area of literacy learning, there is relatively little empirical work that explores the possibilities and problems--or even what such a transformation might look like in the classroom. 3D virtual worlds offer a…

Today, at the end of 2007, there are evident consolidations in wireless, storage, and virtualization and the path forward seems clearer now than previously. Trends from last year continue strongly, particularly Web 2.0 and the shift to user-driven environments and Internet sites where significant data and video processing is available to those…

Graphical plans for construction of machinery and architecture have evolved over the last 6,000 years beginning from hieroglyphics to drawings on printable media, from the "Golden Age" of engineering graphics to the innovation of computer graphics and prototyping. The evolution of engineering design graphics as a profession has also evolved. Years…

This monograph attempts to show the importance of bringing marine biology into science classrooms, discusses what makes the ocean so important and explains why oceanography should be included in the science curriculum regardless of where students live. Section I, "Getting Started," includes discussions on the following: (1) "Why…

This review of the literature describes a number of ways in which microcomputers are being used to improve instruction. A discussion of types of software being used in instructional settings focuses primarily on the use of word processing programs by both instructors and students in writing. Descriptions of types of computer software that may be…

This state-of-the-art report on interactive video and instruction begins with a brief review of the current status of technology and technology transfer in schools. The nature of interactive video is then considered, including instructional applications of the technology and the components of an interactive video instructional system. Discussion…