This article describes how a fourth grade teacher helped his students learn about their home state through the experience of planning a simulated seven-day vacation trip. Data collected by the students was entered into a microcomputer filing and graphing system which helped them understand how to measure differences and make comparisons. (JDH)

Artificial intelligence techniques are used in computer programs to search out rapidly and retrieve information from very large databases. Programing advances have also led to the development of systems that provide expert consultation (expert systems). These systems, as applied to education, are the primary emphasis of this article. (LMO)

An important learning goal of a molecular biology curriculum is a certain proficiency level in experimental design. Currently students are confronted with experimental approaches in textbooks, in lectures and in the laboratory. However, most students do not reach a satisfactory level of competence in the design of experimental approaches. This…

Computer-based education that provides an automated, individual teacher surrogate for every student is increasingly impacting academia due to the evolution of microcomputers with increased capacities and decreased cost. A university must encourage the faculty by making available the necessary facilities, specialized user training, and other…

Computer-based education that provides an automated, individual teacher surrogate for every student is increasingly impacting academia due to the evolution of microcomputers with increased capacities and decreased cost. A university must encourage the faculty by making available the necessary facilities, specialized user training, and other…

Discussion of student-centered learning focuses on the use of scaffolds. Describes types of scaffolds embedded into a hypermedia database used by eleventh graders in a history class, and examines the types of scaffolds that were most successful at assisting students with information gathering and with assisting with group self-regulation.…

Provides a comparison of four database management programs commonly used in schools: AppleWorks, the DOS 3.3 and ProDOS versions of PFS, and MECC's Data Handler. Topics discussed include information storage, spelling checkers, editing functions, search strategies, graphs, printout formats, library applications, and HyperCard. (LRW)

Presented is an overview of "Boxer," a multipurpose computational user-friendly medium, the focus of this special issue presenting research involving its use. With its roots in LOGO, the design of Boxer is described and an overview of the articles in the issue is given. (MDH)

Presented is an activity in which students work in research teams to gather data, integrate computer analyses, and discover the relationships between variables by using a second class lever. A diagram of the lever, a list of processes involved in this activity, and an idealized data table are included. (KR)

Activities designed around packaged items such as toothpicks are used to teach students to identify variables, gather and analyze data, use statistics, and draw conclusions based on evidence. A computer database used to keep track of data is described. Curriculum extensions in writing, math, and art are included. (KR)

Describes a project developed for fifth graders that was designed to teach them about databases through collecting information for a community census. Activities supported by the census project are listed, including both noncomputer activities and computer activities; and an effective sequence of instruction with databases is discussed. (LRW)

Describes the creation of Web-based multipurpose multimedia databases concerned with the Supreme Court and other historically and politically significant institutions, events, and actors. Addresses four evaluation questions on whether the database will help less-skilled students; help bright students and scholars improve their understanding and…

Monitoring the learning process in computer supported collaborative learning (CSCL) environments is a key element for supporting the efficacy of tutor actions. This article proposes an approach for analysing learning processes in a CSCL environment to support tutors in their monitoring tasks. The approach entails tracking the interactions within…

This paper describes a National Science Foundation-sponsored project at Louisiana Technological University to develop computer-based laboratories for "hands-on" introductions to major topics of computer science. The underlying strategy is to develop structured laboratory environments that present abstract concepts through the use of…

The purpose of this study was to examine how students acquire their knowledge through peer collaboration in a new educational environment called "Computer Supported Intentional Learning Environment (CSILE)." Twenty-seven 5th- and 6th-grade students were instructed to create their collective database for a study topic,…