Practical solutions are needed to ensure that communication centers remain viable resources for the 21st century student (Nair, 2011). In order to preserve the communication center's status as a necessary campus space, and to increase its influence beyond a single physical location, technology must be employed as a means to enhance student…

The Rescorla-Wagner model is one of the cornerstones of learning theory. However, many students in undergraduate courses find the model's concepts difficult to grasp, and the model is often the students' first exposure to computational models in psychology. This article describes an interactive simulation based on an Excel(r) spreadsheet program…

Wageningen Agricultural University's use of systems approaches and simulation for undergraduate, graduate, and postgraduate education suggests the following elements are necessary: (1) congruence between the aims/interests of teachers and participants; (2) appropriate course level; (3) applicability to relevant research fields; and (4) a range of…

While videodisks lost the home-entertainment market to videotapes in the 1980s, they may be emerging as a valuable instructional tool for simulating real-life situations. High costs and production time and lack of standardized technology remain constraints on the medium's use. (MSE)

Task-based learning (TBL) is an educationally sound, effective, and efficient strategy for delivering relevant education. In TBL, the tasks of the health care professional provide the context and the focus for learning, but are not the objective of the student's learning. Students gain a basic understanding of the principles of health and disease…

Elaborates on the use of simulated families in training novice-level therapists. Outlines a process for preparing students for the simulation, reviews live supervision interventions, describes a procedure for conducting the postsession discussion, and clarifies the family therapy skills that can be taught with the use of simulation. (LLL)

Describes learnings originating from a simple pendulum simulation using "interactive physics" simulations. Discusses tension in the rope, acceleration of the pendulum bob, and initial displacements. (JRH)

Describes a role-play exercise that offers an experiential means to teach counseling students about process consultation. Claims exercise provides an experiential framework for understanding the role of the consultant but also illustrates the complexity of interpersonal dynamics within an existing organization. (ABL)

Describes two teaching simulations which can be used to introduce students to problems encountered in field research. The first simulation deals with gaining access to a research setting, while the second concerns some ethical difficulties which may potentially confront a field researcher. A number of reasons for using simulations in preference to…

A day-long prison simulation for a Wheaton College sociology class, held in a county jail that is generally used to house inmates while they are waiting to appear in court, is described. The course, which focuses on prisons, homelessness, and AIDS, aims to increase students' empathy for others. (MLW)

The Summer Institute of Computer Literacy, held at Pepperdine University in 1982, dealt with the uses of computing in higher education administration. These proceedings contain papers from presenters at the Institute. Every presentation paper could not be obtained; in such cases permission was secured to print a previously published paper authored…

Computational science is defined as science done on a computer. A computer can serve as a laboratory for researchers who cannot experiment with their subjects, and as a calculator for those who otherwise might need centuries to solve some problems mathematically. The National Science Foundation's support of supercomputers is discussed. (MLW)

Discusses the use of computer programs in science and mathematics. Provides examples of how computation offers a new means of describing and investigating scientific and mathematical systems and how computer simulation can be used to examine new kinds of models for natural phenomena. (JN)

Presents four probability problems, their simulations, and analyses. The first illustrates a discrete situation for which it is possible to list the sample space. The second and third are continuous--the number of possible outcomes is infinite. The last is discrete with a surprising continuous extension question which leads to l/e. (JN)

The National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded support for supercomputer centers at Cornell University, Princeton University, University of California (San Diego), and University of Illinois. These centers are to be the nucleus of a national academic network for use by scientists and engineers throughout the United States. (DH)