The 1994 CD-ROM in Primary schools government initiative increased by over two thousand, the number of primary schools who were using CD-ROM technology with their pupils. The investigation focuses of the way that this technology was being introduced, and later used, in four schools in two English shire counties. The findings are compared and contrasted with the results from a postal survey of primary schools, with postal addresses in the same two counties, who received a complete CD-ROM system under that 1994 government initiative as well as the findings of other researchers of the same initiative. The investigation focuses on the organisation and management of the CD-ROM system within the school. The advantages and disadvantages of siting decisions are examined along with the resulting effects upon pupils' use of the system. As the government initiative provided schools with both a system and a package of CD-ROM software, the investigation looks at the titles that proved most (and least) popular with schools. Since very few CD-ROMs were developed for education, teachers' criteria for choosing commercial CD-ROMs to use within the National Curriculum are examined as are the purchasing policies and the decision making processes of the four schools. Having observed the way in which the technology was introduced to pupils in the four schools, the investigation was continued to observe the pattern of use that developed and the way in which that use changed through the primary age range. Although the use by young pupils continued to include multimedia reading books, once pupils had learnt simple ordering skills, they were introduced to the use of CD-ROMs for information collection; eventually using CD-ROMs almost exclusively to supplement, rather than supplant, traditional information sources. Teachers recognised that CDROMs contained vast sources of information but that pupils required search skills in order to access that information. The ways in which teachers attempted to teach these skills using the CD-ROMs that were available to them were investigated. Although standard referencing methods enabled pupils to find information in books using, the task was different, and often more difficult with CD-ROMs, due to the nonstandard organisations of the titles that were designed for the home market and leisured browsing. The investigation looked at the ways in which pupils in the four schools were guided to find information and the ways in which that information was recorded and used within the curriculum. This was compared with the use of traditional source When CD-ROM technology was introduced into education, it had been expected to make changes both to the delivery of the curriculum and the ways in which pupils both collected and recorded information. The investigation looked for these anticipated changes within the four schools. As two of the schools had units for hearing impaired pupils, the investigation included observation of the ways in which the technology was used by those pupils both within the units and the mainstream classes seeking to discover possible advantages and disadvantages that the use of the technology made for pupils who could not access all of the available media. However, unlike secondary pupils, it would appear from this research that the use of CD-ROM technology brought an additional option of information source for primary pupils, but made little change to the structure of the curriculum.

The purpose of the research is to study the evolving role of the school library and information centre (SLIC) in primary and secondary education in digital Europe, not only in countries where schools have reached an advanced stage of usage of digital technology in education, but also in less advanced schools. This international research provides a bridge between two different disciplines – Comparative Education (Sociology) and Library and Information Science (LIS) – and attempts to provide information to both the educational and library communities throughout Europe regarding the role which SLICs play in the emerging educational global landscape and to determine whether or not these traditional, digital or virtual SLICs, and the work of the school librarian and information specialist, influence the quality of education and improve children's learning outcomes at different levels. First of all, the study examines a sub-matrix known as the KILM (Kalsbeek Information Literacy Matrix), which was developed as part of an educational matrix between 1997 and 2008 at the Kalsbeek College in Woerden, the Netherlands. The educational matrix attempts to introduce and implement educational reforms, ICT (Information and Communication Technologies) usage, educational technology and new forms of learning throughout the school in a orderly fashion while maintaining a high level of educational quality. This sub-matrix (KILM) identifies the role of the SLIC during the application of the educational matrix. The study then looks at success criteria which became apparent during the application of the sub-matrix and asks whether or not it would be possible to apply similar strategies to other schools libraries and information centres, firstly at Dutch national level and then in school libraries throughout Europe. The staffing, facilities and conditions in school libraries and information centres which were studied vary greatly, however, thanks to the willingness of teachers, school librarians and (school) library associations to share information and data, it has become possible to identify common problems and present some solutions.

People are living in a fast changing world today in both their business and personal lives. Information technology is everywhere, making it important to be able to use such technology for normal daily living. Business is carried out using information and communications technology; in the work environment companies use intranets to communicate with staff; governments are moving towards interacting with citizens online; people are communicating with family and friends using technology. However, with the rate of change in technology, it is difficult to define the skills needed to benefit from such technology; these skills are often called "digital literacy.” This research examines digital literacy in personal, social, educational and business life, as a competence which is vital for all citizens. Digital literacy has the potential to reduce or to increase the "digital divide", especially for people who may not have access to technology or for whom that technology is unusable, e.g. for persons with a disability. The European Union recognises the need for digital literacy and identifies it as a requirement for inclusion in the Information Society. In 1995, a project to define the computer skills needed by the "ordinary citizen" was initiated in Europe, the output of which was the European Computer Driving Licence (ECDL). This project has been successful with almost 12 million people enrolled by the end of 2011. The experiences of implementing ECDL in Ireland are studied, including the experiences of people with a disability who have taken the certification. The de facto standards, which define the current accepted digital competences, are evaluated, and the accessibility and usability issues, which could cause a barrier to full participation, are identified. The research examines how definitions of digital literacy have evolved and proposes a flexible framework for digital competence.

Information literacy (IL) is an opportunity for those who want to be independent learners. This study explored the IL practices in primary schools of Lahore, Pakistan. The literature review process identified that there is dearth of research based studies on IL in Pakistan. In Pakistan IL practices can be grouped into two categories: formal and informal. Unfortunately, these efforts have not been reported in the literature. The researcher based on her personal knowledge can confirm that most of the IL efforts in Pakistan are informal and at higher education level. Therefore, the study aimed to illuminate IL practices of teachers and pupils in primary schools in Lahore through an exploratory multiple case study approach. This study adopted a social constructivist stance (which is often combined with an interpretive approach) to investigate IL practices. Lahore is one of the big cities of Pakistan and capital city of the province Punjab (Pakistan). The ontological and epistemological stance of the present study takes a qualitative approach to understand the phenomenon in depth. After considering four possible qualitative methods (Phenomenography, Phenomenology, Grounded Theory and case study) case study approach was identified as having the best fit with the study’s objectives. The data was gathered through interviews, focus groups, task based activities, documents analysis and observation, in order to see the situation from different lenses. Additionally, the national Pakistani context for primary school education was outlined, and key elements of the Pakistani National Curriculum were analysed for evidence of IL. Situational analysis was adopted as a second approach to analysing the data, to explore the research aim in a wider context. The six primary schools’ (Public, Private trust, Private un-registered and Private elite class) cases were identified and selected after seeking data collection permission. The study participants were grade one and two teachers (class teachers and English language teachers), school children (5-7 years of age) and librarians. In total 11 teachers’ interviews, two librarians’ interviews and 12 focus groups with pupils were conducted from selected primary schools. The findings revealed that there was no IL practice in public, private trust and private un-registered schools. In addition, findings highlighted that teachers were teaching through traditional methods and the content of activity based and inquiry based teaching was missing. However, in the elite class private school, teachers were motivated and conducting classroom activities including creative writing and practice of thinking skills in order to organize information. It emerged that the school librarian and library teacher in public and elite class private schools had no role in IL instruction and they were not aware of this concept. Additionally, the results of six activity based tasks which were conducted after focus groups to assess children’s IL skills revealed that children had limited exposure to a variety of information sources. They ranked their elder brother/sisters and sources (books) used by them as very high. On the other hand, elite class private school children ranked internet (Google) and books high as their information sources. Analysis of related documents (English language, Mathematics and General Knowledge national curriculum and teacher guides) showed that English language curriculum and teacher guides have many provisions to integrate IL instruction, however the curriculum was not in practice in the selected schools. The researcher is the first person who investigated the information literacy situation at primary school level in Pakistan using a novel combination of thematic and situational analysis. The national implementation IL model based which emerged from the findings can be used by practitioners who wish to foster greater engagement with IL at the primary school level, and as a guide for future researchers. An Information literacy process- based framework for primary school children in Pakistan is proposed, based on case study findings. Finally, the situational analysis has revealed key factors which are implicated in the Pakistani context for IL in primary school education.

Media education and media literacy research and practice arguably incline towards reductionism by being focused on a single medium (e.g. film) or a group of media (e.g. digital) and by being predominantly preoccupied with learners’ reasoning and critical thinking. Moreover, whilst literacy theory and practice is no longer seen as a causal factor but rather an enabling one (as equally discovered by this research), the direct correlation between critical and creative media literacy and individuals’ as well as society’s wellbeing seems to dominate academic, public, policy, and educational debates. Much research has therefore aimed at adapting media literacy education, which had mostly been developed at the secondary level, to younger children and primary classrooms whilst neglecting education as a staged progress and the multidimensional developmental as well as sociocultural changes novice learners arguably undergo within the first years of compulsory education. There indeed are many valuable studies about media literacy education at primary level that address these issues, yet they are often country specific and conducted in one school or one classroom. This interdisciplinary and intercultural classroom research was instead interested in the current and potential ‘media learning’ – defined as intentional and naturally occurring learning about any media with, from, in, or even without the physical presence of, any media source – and was carried out in two Czech and two US public primary (lower elementary) schools across the first three grades with six to nine/ten year olds and their teachers. The research explored media’s role in the child’s in- and outof- school collective and individual thoughts, actions, feelings, and relationships, whilst asking how the child learnt, and could learn, about media within these processes and how the teacher facilitated, and could facilitate, such media learning. ‘Grounded philosophy’ was developed as a philosophy-led, flexible and responsive research methodology suitable for intercultural inductive research that, although being grounded in participants’ individual and collective sociocultural-historical context, is capable of arriving to transferrable and holistic conceptual understanding – or ‘a grounded philosophy’ that asks ‘what is’ as well as ‘what could be’. The methodology itself represents an original contribution to knowledge. In total, twelve classrooms were observed of which the twentyfour teachers together with specialised and managerial staff were interviewed, and sixty-five children (thirty-three girls and thirty-two boys) were involved in photo-elicitation group and individual interviews. The research discovered that, firstly, the teachers aimed to holistically address the whole learner, which was believed to be achievable only through acknowledging and drawing upon the child’s unique historicity. Secondly, the child’s media life was situated within his or her holistic system in which every experience was interconnected and dialogic – their past, present and future whole being and becoming, individual and collective media experience, classroom and media learning, as well as the diverse media platforms, texts, and practices – and thus hermeneutic. Such hermeneutic experience was an unfinalisable learning experience of which long-term value is arguably difficult to immediately evaluate, and thus instead of the adult judging the child’s media life from reductionist and cause-and-effect perspectives while teaching objective truths about media, the learner shall be guided by the teacher through learning to reflect on his or her own individual and collective media experience. The original argument therefore is for replacing reductionist media-centric with holistic and hermeneutic experience-centric research and educational approach to the primary school child’s learning that blends classroom and media experiences into one continuous and dialogic whole person learning. Honouring formal education as a staged process and primary education as a foundation of lifelong learning, the proposed (media and classroom) learning proceeds critical and creative media literacy education by building a foundation for lifelong learning about media.

Η παρούσα μεταπτυχιακή διατριβή είναι βιβλιογραφική και ασχολείται με έναν οργανισμό πιστοποίησης Μηχανικών (αποφοίτων Πολυτεχνικών Σχολών) και Πολυτεχνικών Τμημάτων. Ο οργανισμός αυτός ονομάζεται ABET (Accrediting Board for Engineering and Technology). Τα κριτήρια πιστοποίησης που χρησιμοποιεί χωρίζονται σε «σκληρές» και «επαγγελματικές» δεξιότητες. Η εργασία αυτή, ασχολείται με τις «επαγγελματικές» δεξιότητες και εξετάζει τον τρόπο με τον οποίο μπορούν να διδαχθούν και να αποτιμηθούν. Από μελέτες και έρευνες που αναφέρονται με λεπτομέρεια στην εργασία, έχει αποδειχθεί ότι η Παιδαγωγική της Συμμετοχής, η Κατανόηση των Διαφορών των Φοιτητών, η εξασφάλιση Επαγγελματιών Εκπαιδευτών Μηχανικών, τα Ολοκληρωμένα Προγράμματα Σπουδών και ο προσδιορισμός του Ρόλου του Εργαστηρίου συμβάλλουν στην υιοθέτηση των επαγγελματικών δεξιοτήτων από τους φοιτητές των Πολυτεχνικών Σχολών. Τέλος, αναφέρονται διάφορες μέθοδοι αξιολόγησής τους, με πολλά περιθώρια μελλοντικής έρευνας. / In this thesis, an accrediting organization is presented, whose name is ABET (Accrediting Board for Engineering and Technology) and accredits Engineers and their corresponding University Departments. ABET bases its accreditation on some criteria, which can be divided into “hard” and “professional” skills. In this thesis, professional skills are studied. The Pedagogies of Engagement, the Student Differences Understanding, the Professional Engineering Educators, the Integrated Engineering Curricula and the Role of the Laboratory in Engineering Education conduce to the professional skills adopting by the students. Finally, some assessment methods are referred, but with much work left to be done.

In the last decade, research on children's interactions with digital technology in early childhood has been emerging. A growing body of research has shown that children from a very young age have access to digital technology in their homes. Researchers have turned their attention on the potential of digital technology to be integrated in a playbased pedagogy and investigate what the positive outcomes for children might be. However, limited research has explored the different ways children between the ages of three and four years engage with digital technology or compared their engagement with non-digital activities in early childhood education. Therefore, this study aims to explore how children engage and interact with digital and non-digital activities. A mixed method approach was employed for this research study in order to explore how children engage and interact with digital and non-digital activities. The FraIM design: Framework for an Integrated Methodology supported the integration of quantitative method and qualitative method in this research study. The observation checklist was used to measure the children's levels of engagement to capture the extent to which they were engaged and the less structured observation gave an in-depth view into the different ways the children were engaged with digital and non-digital activities. 14 children between the ages of 3-4 years in an early childhood setting in England participated. Findings revealed that digital activities such as applications on an iPad can impact on children's engagement positively. Although the quantitative data indicated that higher levels of engagement occurred with digital activities than non-digital activities, the qualitative data showed that this difference is not immense. The data also showed that the children exhibited similar playful patterns of interactions while they interacted with digital and non-digital activities. The patterns include pleasure, spontaneity, role identification, intrinsic motivation, self-regulation, self-initiated actions and preference.

Information Technology is an essential part of the National Curriculum in the UK, yet despite the growth of IT in schools that this has generated, there is evidence that children are not to be taken into consideration enough when designing aspects of educational software. The functionality available in education software packages tends to be made available through static icons, yet there are problems with their implementation as they can at times cause confusion for the user in terms of the functionality that they are aiming to represent. In order to make icons in educational software more effective, and to meet the needs of children, of the use of animated icons has been suggested. Animating the function of the icon aims to provide a clarification of its meaning and demonstrate its capabilities, as well as explaining to the user the method of use. However, there is little information available on how to support the design of effective animated icons. Focusing on a target age group of 11 to 12 year olds, this thesis argues that some form of support mechanism should be developed for the design of animated icons to ensure that consideration is being given to the types of object that children find useful and accessible. A set of dimensions where guidance on visual aspects of the icon may be useful are developed through analysis of relevant literature and it is highlighted that they do not provide any insight into what types of object may be helpful in designing the animated icons. This thesis then argues that animated icon design can be usefully informed by psychological theories of learning and that using such theories as a base may provide an understanding of how children identify icon functionality. The thesis introduces and critiques Piaget’s Genetic Epistemology theory, Vygotsky’s Sociocultural theory and Leontjev’s Activity Theory, identifying aspects of the theories which may be of relevance to the design of animated icons. By investigating the relationships between the dimensions of animated icons and the concepts from the theories of learning, insights are developed into the impact of visual factors on a child’s identification and understanding of icon functionality. The thesis goes on to report a practical study where the sample is a group of 11 to 12 year old children. The practical study consists of three phases. The first phase gathers data related to the children’s familiarity with computers and the types of software packages that they use. The second phase looks at their use and recognition of static icon functionality. The last phase involves using the findings from phases 1 and 2 to create and evaluate a set of animated icons, the development of which is based on the relationships between the concepts from theories of learning and the identified dimensions of animated icons. The analysis of the evidence from the practical study leads to a small set of design principles being proposed that are aimed to provide advice/guidance on how to design animated icons effectively for this target age group, with an emphasis on the types of object that might be used. The principles are underpinned by the concepts from the theories of learning and presented in a manner that aims to be understandable by, and accessible to, designers.

This doctoral study sets out to investigate how Key Stage 2, primary school children (aged between 7 and 11 years) are being taught to develop information seeking skills and strategies that will allow them to become critical and literate users of information. The methodological approach adopted for this research study is that of interpretivist ethnography. This represents a move away from the traditional quantifiable approaches used in Library and Information Science (LIS) and focuses on gathering data in the natural setting in order to offer a rich picture of the information seeking behaviour of a small group of Key Stage 2 children. In order to become an integrated part of the natural setting it was necessary to become immersed in the school for an extended period of time, one academic school year. Taking a grounded theory approach meant that it was possible, right at the beginning of the fieldwork, to identify situations as they occurred. During the field research, a rich picture emerged of the information seeking strategies and skills of the group of children participating in the study. As the field research progressed, themes and patterns were identified which were then examined against previous research in order to identify similarities or differences in the findings of this study with other studies. The themes that unfolded from the data offered an information seeking model that was specific to the group of Key Stage 2 children. Within the model a further theoretical framework is offered that postulates that a zone of optimal learning exists. The theory suggests that there is an optimal cognitive zone that is the place where new information is assimilated so that it can become knowledge. The zone of optimal learning is the place where a child moves from incomprehension of new information to a cognitive understanding of that information. Investigatingth e influencesu pont he children'si nformations eekingb ehaviour served to highlight both strengths and weaknesses in the ways in which the children developed their information seeking skills and strategies and with this in mind a set of four suggestions are offered that aim to support the way in which information seeking strategies are delivered to Key Stage 2 children based on the children that participated in this study.