This paper examines the professional implications for teachers and managers in new and evolving forms of professional development using Web 2.0 tools in a European context. Research findings are presented from the "Creative Use of Media" learning event developed through a European eTwinning Learning Lab initiative in spring of 2009. The…

Various Web 2.0 technologies can be used to support pedagogy. Examples include wikis, blogs, and social media including forum discussions. Online class forum discussions involving electronic text can result in robust strings of data containing meta-knowledge, inherent meaning, themes and patterns. Based on instructional design, learning outcomes…

Children with exceptional learning needs find it very difficult to retain content information from the regular curriculum. Many content teachers also find it difficult to adapt curriculum to the learning needs of these exception children within the confines of the classroom and without any assistance. Although many schools are equipped with…

The researcher examined the effects of two alternative instructional methods, Programmed Learning Sequenced (PLS) and Interactive Whiteboard (IWB), on the mathematics achievement and attitude of eighth graders. The relationship between specific Dunn & Dunn learning-style elements and the posttest scores after instruction with the PLS and IWB…

This article surveys research in the areas of aesthetics and design, usability, visual aesthetics in education, and recent statistics related to online education. The focus of the article is on defining the role of visual content and aesthetics in the user interface and exploring what importance aesthetics and visual content have to education.…

This study investigated the effects of captioning during video-based listening activities. Second- and fourth-year learners of Arabic, Chinese, Spanish, and Russian watched three short videos with and without captioning in randomized order. Spanish learners had two additional groups: one watched the videos twice with no captioning, and another…

In the field of learning and instruction, feedback is considered an elementary component for supporting and regulating learning processes. Feedback plays a particularly important role in highly self-regulated model-centered learning environments because it facilitates the development of mental models, thus improving expertise and expert…

The use of visual aids is expected to have a positive effect on students' learning. However, not all visual aids work equally well. A recent meta-analytic research which examined 42 studies has found that the use of animated visuals does not facilitate learning (Anglin, Vaez & Cunnincham, 2004). The failure of visual aids can be attributed to…

Today, many school districts are turning to business intelligence tools to retrieve, organize, and share knowledge for faster analysis and more effective, guided decision making. Business intelligence (BI) tools are the technologies and applications that gather and report information to help an organization's leaders make better decisions. BI…

Some crucial issues in visual research involving children in schools are examined: the contradictions between the current widespread practice of visual recordings in public and private spheres and the cautious approach adopted in educational research; the dominance of adults and text in school research despite technology providing accessible ways…

Current methods of teaching basic amplifier design at the undergraduate level need further development to match today's technological advances. The general class approach to amplifier design is analytical and heavily based on mathematical manipulations. However, the students mathematical abilities are generally modest, creating a void in which…

This article examines two constructs--ritual and intellectual integrity--as they might unfold in early childhood settings. The authors use the popular practices of closed-ended crafts, calendar exercises, and worksheets to highlight the difference between learning experiences that have become formulaic habits and those that reflect rich and potent…

After the fall of the Berlin Wall and the collapse of state socialism in Eastern and Central Europe, cartographers were faced with choices on how the new post-Cold War political landscape would be mapped. One such group called the Pluto Project had been producing atlases since 1981 with a progressive point of view about the nature of state power…

Most historians interested in the cultural history of nineteenth-century America are familiar with the lyceum movement, first popularized by Massachusetts' Josiah Holbrook. While lyceums were extremely popular during the 1820s and 1830s, they disappeared with the advent of the Civil War--though later providing inspiration for Chautauquan lectures…

This study examines undergraduate business students' use of PowerPoint slides provided as a supplement to class attendance, textbook reading, and other traditional course resources. We survey students in 4 diverse (accounting, marketing, management, and information systems) lower-level undergraduate courses in which the instructor provided…