Describes development of the Courseware Engineering Methodology (CEM), created to guide novices in designing effective courseware. Discusses CEM's four models: pedagogical (concerned with the courseware's pedagogical aspects), conceptual (dealing with software engineering), interface (relating to human-computer interaction), and hypermedia…

Examined whether there was a significant difference in learner outcomes from the use of Arthur (Gilbert & Han, 1999), a computer-based adaptive instructional system that provides personalized instruction to each learner. Found that Arthur does provide a significant difference in learner outcomes. (EV)

Early in his library career, John Shank realized that not only were students choosing Internet resources over library, resources, but Faculty members were, too. Shank is now widely recognized as a librarian who's likely to change that. In his current positions as instructional design librarian at Penn State Berks--Lehigh Valley College and…

This paper reports on a detailed investigation into the beliefs and practices of teachers in 22 computer-assisted learning projects in Australia in the mid-1990s. Detailed interview data were obtained, supported by the project software and other curriculum materials. The interview transcripts and documentary material were collated and condensed…

Modern day education reform, impacted by the No Child Left Behind Act, is dominated by accountability and results. At Polaris Career Center in Middleburg Heights, Ohio, student results are front and center. Students participating in a laptop and online curriculum initiative have documented astonishing achievement gains. Prior to the 2004 school…

Recent developments in digital rights enablement for video, plus inexpensive purpose-built applications such as the Media on Demand system, are now adding video to the montage of rich media objects for learning online. Video libraries and repositories can be customized and stored on local servers for access by place-based or distance learners as…

We propose to use didactical theory for the design of educational software. Here we present a set of didactical conditions, and explain how they shape the software design of Cabri-Euclide, a microworld used to learn "mathematical proof" in a geometry setting. The aim is to design software that does not include a predefined knowledge of problem…

In this work is proposed that an adaptation tool that is for the automatic generation and personalization of courses of a general-purpose LCMS that is named A Tutor. A Tutor is a Learning Content Management System. The architecture of the adaptation tool that allows a personalized sequencing of LOs in A Tutor for the learner's learning goals,…

It is widely accepted that inquiry-based curriculum programs have positive effects on cognitive achievement, process skills, and attitudes toward science (NRC 2000). Science teachers seek engaging, effective, and inquiry-based activities that are standards-aligned and convenient to implement in their classrooms. For many years, the web has…

Present Educational Modelling Languages are used to formally specify abstract learning scenarios in a machine-interpretable format. Current tooling does not provide teachers/designers with some graphical facilities to help them in reusing existent scenarios. They need human-readable representations. This paper discusses the UML4LD experimental…

Teaching staff, designing conventional courses in higher education, must make decisions about selecting content and activities to engage students in learning. When the Internet is chosen as the principal delivery vehicle it presents particular challenges for the design of active learning. Further challenges are added when working with a complex,…

Novak and Iuli [Novak, J. D. & Iuli, R. J. (1991). The use of meta-cognitive tools to facilitate knowledge production. In "A paper presented at the fourth Florida AI research symposium (FLAIRS '91)," Pensacola Beach, FL, May, 1991.] discuss the use of Concept Maps as meta-cognitive tools that help people to think about thinking. This work…

It is important for the teacher to choose effective software for students. It is also important for designers to know what features of educational software make it effective. But the results of studies dealing with the effectiveness of educational software are contradictory. One reason for such results might be the fact that meta-analysis covers…

The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of participation in Read 180, a teacher-mediated, computer-mediated reading instruction program, on the reading proficiency of 4th and 5th grade English Language Learners. The students who participated in the Read 180 program scored below the 25th percentile on the Florida Comprehensive…

Adaptation and personalization services in e-learning environments are considered the turning point of recent research efforts, as the "one-size-fits-all" approach has some important drawbacks, from the educational point of view. Adaptive Educational Hypermedia Systems in World Wide Web became a very active research field and the need of…