Many students approach the transition to secondary school with feelings of both excitement and apprehension, but it is excitement that usually prevails. For students with Asperger's Syndrome, however, those aspects of secondary school that most students anticipate with great enthusiasm, such as being in a new and larger environment, having…

We report on an educational project in particle physics based on Feynman diagrams. By dropping the mathematical aspect of the method and keeping just the iconic one, it is possible to convey many different concepts from the world of elementary particles, such as antimatter, conservation laws, particle creation and destruction, real and virtual…

To counter user disorientation and cognitive overload, hypertext environments often incorporate navigational aids in the form of graphical overviews of the hypertext structure. The aim of the present experimental investigation of learning in hypertext environments was to examine the impact of such graphical overviews on learning achievement in…

Educators increasingly recognize that students need a more contemporary, multimodal literacy that requires them to examine how their written, oral, visual, and electronic modes of communication inform one another to generate meaning. Helping students hone their multimodal literacies will enable them to develop PowerPoint presentations in ways that…

Visual stimuli are inescapable in contemporary business communication. The temptation is great to pick a few genres dominated by visual elements and teach them discreetly, but the carryover may be minimal, and time is precious. In this article, the author describes a three-pronged approach to teaching visual aspects of business communication.…

This DVD (duration: 1 hour 53 seconds) features 30 video vignettes that show parents and children--aged birth to 3 years--interacting during everyday play and routines. These vignettes, some in English and some in Spanish, are designed to be tools for professionals to use both in direct work with families and for training other early child…

This book presents strategies you can integrate into everyday instruction in every subject area and across grade levels. It shows teachers how to motivate and engage students with instructional strategies that promote learning. There are 26 chapters in this book, one for each of the letter of the alphabet. The practical examples make it easy to…

Many academics continue to approach the multi-path and multi-voiced capacity of the Internet's networked nodal structure as if it were a book with pages and paragraphs and sentences that flow together in one direction to make a whole. A different approach to that of traditional writing, is required to make effective use of the distinctive…

This article summarizes the findings of research studies designed to improve the comprehension of expository text for students with learning disabilities. Twenty-nine studies were located that met the inclusion criteria. Interventions gleaned from the review were categorized as content enhancement (i.e., advance and graphic organizers, visual…

Educators at elementary, middle, and high school levels will find that integrating digital tools and resources--many commonly used by students in their "out of school" lives--can be a springboard to creativity and new skills. In this article, the author describes how word processors, presentation software and hardware, mind-mapping applications,…

How quickly can new staff members who come with minimal qualifcations in early childhood education be trained? Is there a way to develop a sense of history and community in child care programs, honoring diversity while documenting the learning process and engagement individuals have with each other? In an age of fast-paced electronic media and…

The purpose of this paper is to sensitize instructional message designers to the stereotypical signals which may be inherent in computer clip-art selections. A rationale is presented for the power of message design, and the differences between gender equality and gender equity are discussed. Several computer clip-art libraries were analyzed, and…

The interactive multimedia application described here attempts to provide learners and teachers with a common frame of reference for communicating about visual media. The system is based on a list of concepts related to composition, and illustrates those concepts with photographs, paintings, graphic designs, and motion picture scenes. The ability…

The guide is intended as a practical aid in professional development programs for teachers and administrators involved in implementing Alberta's (Canada) new French second language curriculum. Its content is based on research in professional development for second language teachers, and it offers possible formats for workshops relating to…

Virtual reality is a newly emerging tool for scientific visualization that makes possible multisensory, three-dimensional modeling of scientific data. While the emphasis is on visualization, the other senses are added to enhance what the scientist can visualize. Researchers are working to extend the sensory range of what can be perceived in…