Proposes a programing design curriculum based on three conceptual areas: process, symbolic representation, and methods of interpretation; and describes computer games and simulations in which design skills of simple and conditional sequencing, rule or constraint specification, hypothesis testing, and modeling are employed. (Author/CMV)

An interactive computer simulation implemented on the University of Illinois PLATO IV computer system models children with reading skill weaknesses and permits teacher trainees to identify these weaknesses by evaluating informal reading inventory (IRI) results. (RAO)

While a computer simulation training course did not make student teachers significantly more able to give an informal reading inventory for elementary students, they were able to diagnose reading weaknesses more accurately. (JD)

Considers online Internet chatting as a means to resolve simulation tasks in lieu of face-to-face negotiation and suggests that online chatting extends linguistic opportunities for participation in small-group settings while retaining the interactive qualities of spoken conversation. Concludes that language learners who are normally reluctant to…

The effects of limiting the availability of immediate feedback while using LOGO were studied for 48 students aged 9 to 11 solving rotation problems. Limiting feedback reduced the incidence of trial and error strategies, and higher level problem solving strategies were apparently used to compensate for the restricted feedback access. (SLD)

Discusses model-based simulation for training, explains an object-oriented approach, and describes RAPIDS, an authoring system for the production of interactive graphical models and instruction based on those models. Highlights include intelligent tutoring systems; transaction shells; tools for authoring models; and a course on retinal information…

Similarities in content, methods, sequence, and social context between adult education and cognitive apprenticeship make the latter an appropriate approach for a computer-assisted learning program for adults. (SK)

Discusses a prototype training system for organizational decision makers to help with information flow and reduce information overload. The system embeds an interactive simulation within a computer-based instruction system to enable decision makers to develop and employ information-filtering criteria. (Author/LRW)

This study evaluated computer assisted instruction in social skills using hypothetical animated social situations. Evaluation with eight preschool children with autism (and eight matched normal children) suggested the program's potential for teaching problem-solving skills to children with and without autism. Children with autism were…

In this paper we discuss how the Brigham Young University Technology Assisted Language Learning Group (BYU TALL Group) develops video-based dramatic narratives to increase the amount of context we provide to English as a second language (ESL) learners. First, we discuss the problem of decontextualization in education, the contextualism…

The objective of the current research program was to develop a prototype knowledge acquisition tool that could enable the investigation of knowledge acquisition issues for instructional systems. Our approach to accomplishing this objective entailed the identification of the types of knowledge to be acquired, the evaluation of methods of acquiring…

Proposes an enhanced approach to teaching topics in ecology--an approach that uses mathematical models and A Programming Language (APL) to produce short, quickly comprehensible computer "programs" that can be run to allow students to study the behavior of a particular model. (Author/IRT)

This report presents a look at the present state of simulation/gaming in higher education, two briefs on successful uses of simulation games, and some "street corner" suggestions on how to introduce them into an institution. (Author)

A British project in engineering science is described. Computer assisted instruction packages are being developed to provide students with experience with models or systems of models related to lecture material on electrical, electronic, nuclear, and mechanical engineering. (SD)

Computers can be used in a variety of ways in the social studies classroom: (1) as a productivity tool to relieve the teacher of the many bookkeeping tasks and allow for more time to be spent on instructional tasks; (2) in business applications such as data base files, electronic spreadsheets, word processing, computer graphics, and to store large…