Material development is important for training beginner student interpreters, as it guides the direction of interpreting learning. One key principle is difficulty progression, which requires a good knowledge of the indicators of difficulty. Since text structure outweighs words and sentences in the information processing of consecutive…

Students' knowledge of vocabulary affects their reading comprehension. Despite abundant research findings in vocabulary learning, practical instructional methods for use in schools are typically underdeveloped. This article proposes a research-based method for teaching the meanings of base academic vocabulary (i.e., Tier 2) words. The method…

The relative worth of any evaluation instrument depends on user needs and the material being evaluated. Potential users of a good computer assisted instruction (CAI) instrument include purchasers, authors, reviewers, and publishers of CAI materials. Although each user has unique needs, a good instrument will serve both to educate and discriminate,…

This one-page consumer education materials evaluation form has been developed as a checklist for developers and users of business-sponsored educational materials. Criteria listed include issues such as target audience, design, and usability as well as objectivity and how the business sponsor is identified. The form is intended to prevent…

This project examines the impact of standards-based and curriculum reforms on the role of materials in educational systems in the United Kingdom, the United States of America, and Australia. The project focused on identifying activities undertaken by publishing companies and in educational systems to develop, select and use materials in the…

Presents suggestions for selecting authoring systems based on reviews of over one dozen systems; defines authoring systems; discusses their potential benefits; introduces background evaluation concepts; describes procedures for collecting information about system attributes; and presents a system selection checklist and an authoring system…

The development of a two week summer institute for seventh and eighth grade students who are gifted in math and science and are interested in computers is summarized, and various project materials are appended. Objectives of the 1982 microcomputer summer institute, which was sponsored by the State University of New York at Albany, included:…

Designed to provide basic information on joint planning of library services for jail populations by correctional and library personnel and inmates, this curriculum guide covers 10 topics: (1) a rationale for library services in jails; (2) the characteristics and role of the jail librarian; (3) the first steps in planning library services; (4)…

In 1990, the Dallas County Community College District's (DCCCD's) Computer Center recruited three technology scouts (faculty members interested in media) to locate, preview, and evaluate multimedia products that could be used in the classroom. The technology scout for the humanities found and previewed products that could be used in…

Developed for educators and trainers in the U.S. Navy, this Instructional Quality Inventory (IQI) is designed to provide quality control and evaluation procedures for instructional development. A by-step instructional development approach is provided for each of five categories: objective adequacy, test consistency, test adequacy, presentation…