The open educational resource (OER) movement has the potential to have a truly transformative effect on higher education, but in order to do so it must move into the mainstream and facilitate widespread participation in the sharing or creating of resources and in their reuse. To help in this process, experience can be gained from projects and…

Animations were prepared using Adobe Flash MX and tested on elementary (3rd-5th grade) and secondary chemistry students. A pre- and post-test study was used to compare the learning gains of students who received the animations with those who received textbook reading time and discussion in class. The control and experimental groups were further…

The purpose of this study is to examine students' usage styles of the Internet for seeking information and to investigate whether information obtained from the Internet is a source of misconceptions. For this reason, a two-stage study was conducted. At the first stage, a questionnaire was developed to get information about students' Internet usage…

The Hudson River Watershed contains a variety of geologic, topographic, climatic, and hydrologic features and a diversity of land-use patterns--making it an ideal model for studying human impact on the coastal environment. In this article, the authors present the Hudson River Plume (HRP), a problem-based online module that explores nonpoint-source…

From MP3 players to cell phones to computer games, we're surrounded by a constant stream of ones and zeros. Do we really need to know how this technology works? While nobody can understand everything, digital technology is increasingly making our lives a collection of "black boxes" that we can use but have no idea how they work. Pursuing…

The trend to adopt more online technologies continues unabated in the higher education sector. This paper elaborates the means by which such technologies can be employed for pedagogical purposes beyond simply providing virtual spaces for bringing learners together. It shows how data about student "movement" within and across a learning community…

Purpose: In this research, the authors examined how social communication profiles during classroom activities differed between children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) and typically developing pair-matched peers. Method: Twelve pairs of children were observed in their classrooms 20 min a day for 4 days across 2 weeks. Coders…

This paper discusses some recent developments in digital media, research technologies and scholarly practices that are known under the umbrella term of "eResearch". Drawing on conceptual ideas of digital materialism, epistemic artefacts and epistemic tools, this paper discusses how the digital inscription of knowledge and knowing could…

Based on a specially adapted questionnaire, research was carried out to explore how resources in modern distance learning were being applied in rural elementary and middle schools in Western China, in order to enhance the usefulness of the allocated resources. One particular distance learning project was used as the subject of the study, and…

We investigated the collaborative writing actions carried out by 60 Open University of Israel graduate students as they built a wiki glossary of key course concepts. These actions were analysed using a taxonomy of collaborative writing actions (i.e. adding, editing and deleting information) in order to find out what students do and what they do…

Casyopee is an evolving project focusing on the development of both software and classroom situations to teach algebra and analysis at upper secondary level. In this article, we sketch the rationales for the Casyopee project in relationship with the focus on functions in upper secondary curricula. To evaluate Casyopee's contribution, we present…

The annual "Horizon Report" describes the continuing work of the New Media Consortium's Horizon Project, a qualitative research project established in 2002 that identifies and describes emerging technologies likely to have a large impact on teaching, learning, or creative inquiry on college and university campuses within the next five years. The…

Visual elements that used in lessons are necessary because they make learning more permanent. Also the visuals that used in evaluation part of the lesson should decrease the anxiety of students and provide them with correct evaluation. The board games among the visuals which can be used in evaluation part are quite effective for getting feedback…

Music education scholars and veteran teachers often assert that composition is an essential part of a child's participation in music, but like many music educators, the author was reluctant to include it as part of her daily beginning band curriculum. Time and money were limited, and she wanted to be sure to cover all the material that beginners…

This article presents findings from an evaluation of an instructional-technology professional development (PD) program that uses many practices advocated by PD experts. In this multiphase evaluation, evaluators examined the program, determined whether variations in program implementation had an impact on teacher outcomes, and then looked at…