The current use of microcomputers in the British educational system seems dogged by a mainframe philosophy. As a consequence, the educational potential of microcomputer peripherals has not been carefully considered. Research is urgently needed in this area so that decisions are made on strong educational and technical grounds. (Author/LLS)

Discusses developments in computer education at the elementary secondary level in Tasmania, South Australia, and West Australia. Six references are listed. (LLS)

Discussion of how palmtop computers were used in an English secondary school over the course of a year focuses on the perceived effectiveness of such computers in an educational setting and on how teachers' and students' knowledge and use of content-free applications increased over time. (Author/LRW)

Presents an overview of Instructional Programming System, an authoring tool used for production of programs for computer-assisted instruction, including its language, structure, and mode of operations. Illustrative examples of use and results of initial investigations of its potential as tool in open-learning environment are given. Eighteen…

Discussion of computer-aided publishing hardware and software emphasizes their impact on the production of printed learning materials, especially for distance education and self-instructional texts. Highlights include desktop publishing; electronic publishing; typographic design considerations; distinguishing textual features; implications for…

Describes the evolution of courseware development and compares existing development methods, including traditional programing languages, authoring languages, and authoring systems. The use of a product which includes a customized courseware generator or authoring system is proposed, and an example is described that used HyperCard to teach the…

Describes a study that was conducted in Scotland to determine whether untrained classroom teachers could learn HyperCard from a minimal manual and then create their own stacks. The development of the minimal manual is discussed, use of the manual and software is analyzed, and teachers' attitudes are examined. (Contains five references.) (LRW)

Examines current state of Logo programming language and research on Logo and presents conclusions about the efficacy of Logo as a research and teaching tool. Conclusions discuss use of Logo to teach computer literacy; transfer of training; representativeness and reliability of Logo research results; and Logo research methodology. (Author/MBR)

Describes the Microelectronics Education Programme (MEP), a plan developed to help British secondary school students learn about microcomputers and the role of technology in society, and its successor, the Microelectronics Support Unit (MESU). Highlights include curriculum development, teacher training, computer assisted instruction and the…

Reviews current psycholinguistic research concerning language problems faced by deaf children and considers several requirements for a meaningful language learning environment for the deaf through the use of computer assisted instruction. A computer assisted language manipulation program is also described. (Author)

A group of 20 students studied chemistry with the same lecturer in three different physical environments: (1) computers on lab benches; (2) computers around the walls; and (3) computers in cluster groups of four. Students preferred the cluster groups, suggesting that physical features of learning environments should be considered in learning with…

Describes a learner-centered revision class for undergraduate mathematics students at a Scottish university that used computer-assisted learning (CAL) and added an element of formative evaluation. The Computer Aided Learning in Mathematics (CALM) Project is explained, CALM software is discussed, and their influences on teaching strategies are…

Describes a survey of microcomputer use for adults with learning disability within The Home Farm Trust, a United Kingdom national organization for people with learning disability that was carried out in light of a planned organization-wide initiative to introduce modern information and communications technology to service users. (Author/LRW)

Briefly describes some experiments in human-machine interaction in the context of its relevance to multimedia audiovisual instruction, with emphasis on the use of microcomputer systems augmented with slides or audiocassettes. Fifteen references are listed. (Author/LLS)

Describes two experiments which demonstrate improvement in reading speed as a result of an uncomplicated BASIC computer program which automatically assigns phrase structure to grammatical sentences to produce syntactically formatted text. Both experiments indicate poor readers are aided by this type of format. (MBR)