A Purdue University (Indiana) pharmacy course on issues facing health care providers, consumers, and payers incorporated discussion of articles from health care journals, writing assignments, and small group exercises. Course assessment by pretest/posttest, students' brief essays, and formal course evaluation pointed to the course's positive…

Reports on a follow-up study of teachers in a course to meet certification requirements. Entry and exit questionnaires indicated that teachers' personal computer skills increased and that their integration of computers into instructional practice was extended by the course, which directly affected their outlook on technology use. (SM)

Describes the design and evaluation of a multimedia course on integrated circuit manufacturing that was developed at the University of California at Berkeley using IC-HIP (Integrated Circuit-Hypermedia in PICASSO), a hypermedia-based instructional system. Learning effects based on prior knowledge, methods of navigation, and other factors are…

Using a participatory-collaborative research design, nine Canadian-Native college students were interviewed to evaluate a two-week community-based course that uses Indigenous and Western knowledge systems to study environmental issues and impacts from Indigenous perspectives. Discusses issues in hands-on learning in First Nations communities,…

Reports on a course at Saint Thomas University (Florida) for preservice and inservice elementary teachers that emphasizes science content, science-education methods, and technology under the umbrella of environmental science. Finds that students feel more prepared to teach using a hands-on science approach after taking the course. Contains 23…

Describes a computer-mediated communication course for pre-service teachers that was developed as a problem-based learning environment for virtual interactions between three college campuses. Discusses design issues that include a needs assessment, course content analysis, and designing student activities; development and implementation issues;…

Use of the student portfolio as an assessment instrument in an interdisciplinary multimedia-development course is described. Guided by the principles of Total Quality Management (TQM), the portfolio is used both for continuous course improvement and for student self-assessment. The assessment portfolio is built on the Bloom taxonomy. A…

Active learning and research-oriented activities have been increasingly used in smaller, specialized science courses. Application of this type of scientific teaching to large enrollment introductory courses has been, however, a major challenge. The general microbiology lecture/laboratory course described has been designed to incorporate published…

One hundred and twenty-seven undergraduate business majors at a regional northwestern university completed a series of hypothetical choice tasks in which they were asked to choose between two courses that varied with respect to the instructor's course evaluations, grading leniency, the course's worth/usefulness, and the assigned workload. Data…

Assessment data from both an FYE-infused general education course (N = 153) and a first-year seminar (N = 392) were analyzed to identify students' perceptions about projects that required significant participation in out-of-class activities as an integral part of the course. The results from this analysis revealed that in addition to increasing…

The purpose of this study was to evaluate an online professional development course for inservice teachers in the area of information and communication technology (ICT) and concurrently explore the factors that influence online professional development. The study integrated quantitative and qualitative methods including survey, focus group and…

In an effort to meet the accrediting criteria of the Southern Association of Schools and Colleges, South Carolina Technical College undertook a comprehensive external evaluation of its continuing education program. Both process and products associated with the continuing education program were assessed using newly-generated and existing data.…

In winter 1995, a study was conducted at Rochester Community College (RCC), in Minnesota, to examine the effectiveness of a study skills class (SS198). Specifically, the study sought to determine if the course met established criteria of retaining 50% of completers in good academic standing for 1 year, to compare retention rates to non-enrolled…

Six papers examine innovations and trends in distance learning, frequently drawing upon empirical research or informal observations on distance learning students at Charles Sturt University (Australia). "On-Line Study Packages for Distance Education: Some Considerations of Conceptual Parameters" (Dirk M. R. Spennemann) discusses issues…

A basic algebra unit was developed at Utah Valley State College to emphasize applications of mathematical concepts in the work world, using video and computer-generated graphics to integrate textual material. The course was implemented in three introductory algebra sections involving 80 students and taught algebraic concepts using such areas as…