SIGMA (Simulation Graphical Modeling and Analysis) is a computer graphics environment for building, testing, and experimenting with discrete event simulation models on personal computers. It uses symbolic representations (computer animation) to depict the logic of large, complex discrete event systems for easier understanding and has proven itself…

A survey of over 700 Ontario secondary schools was conducted in 1987 and again in 1989 to determine the current status of computer programing pedagogy. Presents an overview of the computer education curriculum for grades 10-12 and results related to hardware utilization, choice of programing languages, availability of teacher and student…

In this paper, prepared for a European conference on mathematics education, the author examines three types of computer use in undergraduate and high school classrooms: Using the computer as an instructional tool for student development of algorithms, teaching about the computer itself, and use of computer-assisted instruction. (SD)

Describes an experiment conducted with students learning computer programing through an extension program. Concludes that both students and instructors are very interested in and motivated toward designing the length and frequency of class meetings to meet their particular needs. (Author/WM)

Seven graduate students in a seminar on classroom computing received instruction in LOGO programming. Programming protocols were collected periodically and examined for errors and misconceptions; in-depth interviews were conducted in order to understand specific misconceptions better. As novice students transit from instruction to experience in…

This paper describes Macintosh features which can be used in writing interactive programs. A program written in Microsoft BASIC (version 2.0 interpreter) is described which is used to produce plots of electric field produced by two-dimensional arrangements of point charges. It demonstrates the use of pull-down menus, windows on the screen, the…

The Caddo Career Center, a secondary vocational-technical school located in Shreveport, Louisiana, has undertaken an innovative approach to solving two problems common to vocational education: (1) how to provide time for vocational instructors to return to the "world of work" in order to keep up-to-date on computer technology; and (2) how to…

This paper lists 25 objectives which computer-using teachers have designated as important for job success, and presents 11 relevant tasks to serve as a basis for practice and assessment of the objectives. These tasks deal with instructional planning, question episodes, lesson evaluation, tutorial computer assisted instruction, drill and practice,…

Computer time-sharing offers many interesting possibilities for use in teaching computer technology. To test the hypothesis that with proper hardware and software, students using time-sharing as a teaching machine could acquire proficiency in the fundamentals of programing more easily than by using standard batch-processing techniques, the…

As part of an introductory computer programming course, students were assigned seven programs selected to expose them to the varied applications of BASIC. Three additional programs were selected by the students themselves from other courses or from topics in the text which had not been covered in class. The topic which seemed to arouse the…

The Multilingual Interpreter (MI), a language processor capable of executing more than one language, is being used at Western Washington State College to enhance interactive computing for computer-assisted instructional (CAI) users. The MI's two major functions are, first, that of scanning and translating a source language into internal…

In order to devise an aid for the teaching of formal languages and automata theory, a system was developed which allows a student to design, test, and change automata in an interactive manner. This process permits the user to observe the step-by-step operation of a defined automaton and to correct or alter its operation. Thus, the need for lengthy…

A three-part program investigated the use of computers at an inner-city high school. An attempt was made to introduce a digital computer for instructional purposes at the high school. A single portable teletype terminal and a simple programing language, BASIC, were used. It was found that a wide variety of students could benefit from this…

The science student has many avenues to learning how to program, including learning directly within the science course, in a special course on programing, or by self-study. Often a formal programing course is neither necessary or advisable. In general a pedagogical approach, aimed at bringing the student quickly to using the language, is better…

The essays in this volume deal with the relationship of the computer and the arts, especially the exploration and demonstration of connections between creativity and technology, the links between scientific or mathematical approaches, intuitions, and the more irrational and oblique urges associated with the making of music, art, and poetry. The…