Teaching the Internet is hard because the technology keeps changing, the system is complex, the environment is relatively unstable, and it is hard to know how much one needs to know in order to successfully use the Internet. The Internet is a pseudo-complex knowledge domain--the "rules" vary, and it is hard to tell which are the…

This publication is based on work conducted at the North Central Regional Educational Laboratory (NCREL), which serves seven states in the Midwest. Part of the national research and development system administered by the Office of Educational Research and Improvement, U.S. Department of Education, the regional educational laboratories provide…

Recent increases in the speed and accessibility of computers and networks have made it possible to administer tests on-line. On-line assessment can be conducted in a controlled setting, such as a testing center, or distributed over local area networks or the Internet to libraries and student homes, allowing students the flexibility to complete…

This study investigated the role of new information management technologies in facilitating student teacher supervision across the supervisory triad of student teacher, cooperating teacher, and university supervisor. The study investigated how data routinely generated by teachers and stored within an Instructional Information Management System…

This study examined how children, drawn from K-6 grades in 3 primary schools in southwest Sydney, use computers in their homes and the physical and social environments within which they use them. Key issues explored were diversity of access, range of uses, and factors which influence use, including gender, age, and parental and sibling role…

Even in schools where there is a strong push to adopt and use technologies, the road to content fulfillment is a long one. The technology learning curve tends to eclipse content learning temporarily--both students and teachers seem to orient to technology until they become comfortable. This dilemma has important implications for teachers'…

The Secretary's Conference on Educational Technology: Evaluating the Effectiveness of Technology (July 12-13, 1999) noted a shift in schools' focus on technology. Where once the emphasis was on building and implementing a technology infrastructure, today it is on evaluating the effectiveness of its use in schools and classrooms. Conference…

This paper discusses a pilot project in progress at Mantua Elementary School in Fairfax, Virginia begun on September 1, 1999 to develop, improve, and extend the school's current system of evaluating the effects of educational technology on student learning. The following sections are included: Purpose of the Project; Drawing upon the…

This paper reports on the results and future research work within the paradigm of Configurable Collaborative Distance Learning, called Espacios Virtuales de Apredizaje (EVA). The paper focuses on: (1) description of the main concepts, including virtual learning spaces for knowledge, collaboration, consulting, and experimentation, a…

The SAGRES system is an educational environment built on the World Wide Web that facilitates the presentation of the information bases of a museum in a way that is adapted to the individual characteristics of each visitor. The interaction with the system may occur individually or in groups of students. The system also offers resources to support…

This paper focuses on the purposes, theoretical model, and functionality of the SMILE (Solution Mapping Intelligent Learning Environment) Maker--a World Wide Web-based problem-solving tool. From an instructional design point of view, an attempt to establish a balance between constructivism/instructivism, content-treatment…

Use of electronic communication options to access foreign language teaching resources is discussed, illustrated with examples from programs and applications found in New York State. The discussion is divided into four sections, each addressing an aspect of electronic communication for preparing for and teaching a foreign language: issues of access…

This paper describes a model for connecting the constructs underlying strong Professional Development Schools (PDS) with the infusion of standards-based technology; a model that can be replicated cost effectively and efficiently for both schools and colleges. Manhattan College, New York, collaborated with IN-TECH, a newly developed middle school…

The integration of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA's) real-world data and educational environments makes the curricular planning and implementation less focused upon purely theoretical matter and further focused upon the actual day-to-day understanding of difficult conceptual underpinnings of subject matter. This is of…

The European project, UNIVERSAL--Universal Exchange for Pan-European Higher Education, is an attempt to demonstrate an open exchange of learning resources (LRs) between higher education institutions across Europe. The goal is to create and manage an open market of learning resources by introducing a brokerage platform with a standard way of…