Like all learners, new online instructors need hands-on experience, feedback, and ongoing support to become comfortable and proficient in the virtual classroom. It is unrealistic to expect even the most self-motivated, creatively pedagogical, and technically inclined instructor to fly solo after just a few hours of training. With the authors'…

The power of culture to shape gender identities becomes particularly crucial for adolescents as they make the transition from child to adult. Yet as adults we offer little coherent, direct instruction in such matters. The author advocates supporting girls as they explore complex and empowering literacy practices, particularly online.

Teachers' attitudes toward the use of technology vary greatly. Studies show that many teachers have negative attitudes toward the use of technology and that gender differences exist, with females using technology less than their male counterparts. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of a technology-focused professional development…

This paper presents the design, implementation and assessment of the Columbia River Basin Environmental Research Project (CERP) curriculum. CERP is an online inquiry-based, regional geographic curriculum designed to improve technology skills and content knowledge about water quality and watershed-level processes. Student attitudes and knowledge…

Contrary to conventional expectations, the reality of computing education in Taiwan's vocational schools is not so practically oriented, and thus reveals much room for improvement. In this context, we conducted a quasi-experiment to examine the effects of applying web-based problem-based learning (PBL), web-based self-regulated learning (SRL), and…

This document provides an overview of the gender distribution of ICT and ICT-related employment in OECD countries, and ICT employment patterns are contrasted with overall employment to highlight differences. The authors discuss participation in ICT-related education and training, and differences in ICT access and use by gender. Overall,…

Gender differences have attracted attention in today's educational research and practice. Very few studies, however, explore the gender differences in the use of technology in higher education. The authors conducted a study on technology adoption at a large Canadian university. One of its purposes was to inform our understanding of how gender…

Influencing government policy in adult learning areas requires consistent efforts in having findings noticed by educational policymakers. Submissions by Adult Learning Australia and researchers have called for unified educational policies and practices across Australia. This paper argues that, whilst it is important to address macro issues of…

Over 400 e-learning grant applications from Australian primary schools were analysed to determine the nature of the proposed ICT based projects in literacy and numeracy. Three key dimensions emerged from the teacher descriptions: ICT infrastructure, motivation and ICT use, and pedagogy and innovation. The three dimensions, and the interactions…

The Invention Factory is a nontraditional youth-based, after-school program in Honolulu that teaches information technology and mechanics to teenagers through interactive, hands-on projects that improve human computer interaction for individuals with disabilities. One objective of the program is to stimulate interest in science and engineering…

Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL) is often presented as a promising learning method. However, it is also facing some new challenges. Apart from answering the question of whether or not working with CSCL generates satisfying learning outcomes, it is important to determine whether or not all participants profit from collaboration,…

This paper investigates the questions and considerations that should be discussed by administrators, faculty, and support staff when designing, developing and offering a hybrid (part online, part face-to-face) degree program. Using two Web questionnaires, data were gathered from nine instructors and approximately 450 students to evaluate student…

This paper is a preliminary report on a grant-funded project to use multimedia technology to create teacher portfolios. The workshop was the first step for testing the feasibility of multimedia for portfolio development for preservice and inservice professional development. The goals for the participants in the workshop were to begin learning…

This study is an interim follow-up to an investigation of how computer use influences the writing process used by high school students on a direct writing assessment (Wolfe and others, 1994). Whether students with less comfort and experience with word processors would receive lower scores on word-processed essays than those with more comfort and…

This document describes courses in grades 7-9 as well as comprehensive career planning that resulted from the Mississippi Tech Prep Initiative. Career Discovery at the seventh-grade level introduces students to career opportunities and the skills needed for various career paths. Computer Discovery at the eighth-grade level exposes students to a…