The University of Westminster began collecting and analyzing vendor usage reports since starting their e-book collections in 2004. They have used the results both to monitor the use of the collections and to calculate basic cost-per-use metrics that have informed decisions on whether to renew particular resources. In 2008, they sought to extend…

Mobile handheld devices are increasingly being used in education. In this paper, we undertook a review of empirical based articles to summarise the current research regarding the use of mobile handheld devices (personal digital assistants/PDAs, palmtops, and mobile phones) in K-12 and higher education settings. This review was guided by the…

An audience response system (ARS) permits students to respond to multiple choice questions using a remote control device. All responses are instantly displayed, usually in chart form, and subsequently reviewed and discussed by the instructor and the class. This paper offers a comprehensive review of teaching strategies used with ARS and includes a…

The question of how to present cultural heritage resources in a way that attracts potential users is becoming important in our ever-changing world. This paper describes MOSAICA system--a web 2.0-based toolbox, dedicated for the preservation and presentation of cultural heritage. This paper also describes an evaluation study that examined MOSAICA…

The term "innovation" is associated mainly with change in practice using educational technology. This paper explores the question of why innovations in online teaching and learning in higher education break down or deliver less than they promise: why they are so resource intensive, so prone to breakdown, and why they often fail to live…

Starting from Perkins' (1985) framework, this study addresses tool use in a computer-based learning environment. In line with Perkins, first the effects of tool use on performance were investigated to gain insight into the functionality of the tools. Next, the influence of advice was studied to identify whether this advice could make students more…

Assistive technology approaches to aid students with visual impairments are becoming commonplace in schools. These approaches, however, present challenges for assessment because students' level of access to different technologies may vary by school district and state. To better understand what assistive technology tools are used in reading…

Purpose: Older adults generally have an increased need for health care information. Whereas some use the Internet to look for this information, others use more traditional sources. This study gathered data from older adults to determine their health information needs, the perceived usefulness of sources of health information, and if there are…

The polarized political mood engendered by the most sharply partisan Presidential election campaigns in recent memory has had an especially deleterious effect on the image of public education. This increased scrutiny has largely fallen on the shoulders of rank and file teachers who now face the most precarious moment in terms of job security since…

Distance learning in developing countries has emerged as a way of widening access to education for tertiary applicants who qualify but could not otherwise gain admission due to the limited space in the existing tertiary institutions. The delivery of the program in Ghana, a developing country in Africa, is predominantly print-based and is supported…

Objective: The authors describe the epidemiology of infirmary chief complaints aboard a collegiate maritime training ship. Participants: They assessed patients (N = 646 visits) evaluated by the "USTS Enterprise" medical department during a 44-day sea term from January to February 2007. Methods: The authors conducted a retrospective chart review of…

Often, when an evaluation is needed, there is always a tendency to jump into data collection without first considering what might be already available. This paper demonstrates how an existing student database from a large school district could be used to provide some rigorous evidence regarding the impact of a supplementary teacher professional…

This paper gathers and analyzes self-reported user behavior data for public computers installed in varied neighborhoods in India to explore the relationship between environmental factors such as urbanicity and reported usage behaviors. There is evidence of large differences in usage behavior between urban and non-urban sites. Children at urban…

This article reports on a monitoring project commenced by the campus-network officials at Illinois State University that shows that the campus network is a haven for illegal activity. In an effort to bridge the divide between the university and the entertainment industry, Illinois State designed an unorthodox research program to give a detailed…

Most children take the Internet and the Web for granted. Unfortunately, many Web designers assume that children can use the Web effectively, and many teachers often think that their students know more about the Web than they actually do. Recently, a research team comprised of professors from the Kent State University School of Library and…