<p>The information and communication technology, ICT, is opening new possibilities for the educational arena. Previous research shows that achieving positive educational outcomes requires more than simply providing access to computer hardware and software. How does this new technology affect the teaching and learning of physics? This thesis focuses on the field of geometrical optics. It reports two studies, both in Swedish upper secondary school. Important for the use of the ICT in physics education is the teaching strategy for using the new technology. The first study investigates with a questionnaire, how 37 teachers in a region of Sweden use computers in physics education and what intentions they follow while doing so. The results of this study show that teachers’ intentions for using ICT in their physics teaching were to increase students' interest for physics, to increase their motivation, to achieve variation in teaching, and to improve visualization and explanation of the phenomena of physics. The second study investigates students’ conceptual change in geometrical optics during a teaching sequence with computer-assisted instruction. For this purpose we choose the computer software "Constructing Physics Understanding (CPU)", which was developed with a base in research on students conceptions in optics. The thesis presents the teaching sequence developed together with the teacher. The study is based on a constructivist view of learning. The concepts analysed in this study were vision, image, ray and image formation. A first result of this study is a category system for conceptions around these concepts, found among the students. With these categories we found that students even at this level, of upper secondary school, have constructed well-known alternative conceptions before teaching, e.g. about a holistic conception of image. The results show also some learning progress: some alternative conceptions vanish, in some cases the physics conceptions are more often constructed after teaching. The students and the teacher also report that the CPU program gave new and useful opportunities to model multiple rays and to model vision.</p>

It was the purpose of this study to develop a set of criteria derived from curriculum theory to assist in the planning, use and evaluation of educational interactive videodisc. That set of criteria, referred to herein as the EIVD Curricular Base, consists of six sets of guidelines corresponding to Eisner's (1985) curriculum typologies: Development of Cognitive Processes, Curriculum as Technology, Curriculum for Personal Relevance, Curriculum for Social Adaptation, Curriculum for Social Reconstruction, and Academic Rationalism. The set of criteria was developed through the examination of three primary research questions: (1) What ways have those elements Beauchamp (1981) deemed necessary for any curriculum theory (definitions, values, design, engineering, and regeneration) been operationalized in Eisner's six curriculum typologies; (2) To what extent do interactive design characteristics identified by DeBloois (1979) apply to curriculum theory; (3) How can the ability of videodisc to simulate reality be integrated into the set of criteria? Further, the proposed set of criteria was critiqued against sample educational videodiscs to establish its veracity. The results of this study indicate that the Cognitive Processes curricular typology utilizes the potential of educational interactive videodisc to a greater extent than any other curricular typology in the EIVD Curricular Base. Therefore, it is recommended that an in-depth exploration of the Cognitive Process set of criteria be initiated. Ideally, the exploration would result in the research, design, production, use and evaluation of an actual videodisc program. Several, more general, recommendations regarding education's use of videodisc technology and courseware complete this study.

This study considered spontaneous versus feedback induced changes in probability strategies using grouped trials of two-choice problems. Third and sixth grade Anglo and Apache children were the focus of computer assisted instruction and diagnostics designed to maximize performance and measure understanding of probability concepts. Feedback, using indeterminate problems directed at specific strategies, in combination with a large problem set permitted examination of response latency and hypothesis alternation. Explicit training, in the form of computer based tutorials administered feedback as: (a) correctness and frequency information, (b) mathematical solutions, or (c) in a graphical format, targeted by weaknesses in the prevailing strategy. The tutorials encouraged an optimal proportional strategy and sought to affect the memorial accessibility or availability of information through the vividness of presentation. As the subject's response selection was based on the query to select for the best chance of winning, each bucket of the two-choice bucket problems was coded as containing target or winner (W) balls and distractor or loser (L) balls. Third and sixth grade subjects came to the task with position oriented strategies focusing on the winner or target elements. The strategies' sophistication was related to age with older children displaying less confusion and using proportional reasoning to a greater extent than the third grade children. Following the tutorial, the subjects displayed a marked decrease in winners strategies deferring instead to strategies focusing on both the winners and losers; however, there was a general tendency to return to the simpler strategies over the course of the posttest. These simpler strategies provided the fastest response latencies within this study. Posttest results indicated that both third and sixth grade subjects had made comparable gains in the use of strategies addressing both winners and losers. Based on the results of a long-term written test, sixth grade subjects appeared better able to retain or apply the knowledge that both winners and losers must be considered when addressing the two-choice bucket problems. Yet, for younger children, knowledge of these sophisticated strategies did not necessarily support generalization to other mathematical skills such as fraction understanding.

The purpose of this study was to examine the patterns of acquisition and use of microcomputer software in Arizona high school library media centers, and to determine the selection procedures used by the library media specialists or other designated personnel responsible for the library media centers. The instrument used in this study was a survey developed and reviewed by a committee of school library media specialists. Subjects selected as the target population were 130 Arizona high school library media specialists. The procedures used for testing the 13 hypotheses were: (1) point biserial correlation coefficients, (2) t-tests, and (3) frequency distributions. Significant findings were indicated for the analysis of data of six hypotheses. The conclusions are summarized as follows: (1) As the size of the student body increases, the availability of microcomputer software for library management purposes also increases. (2) As the size of the library media budget increases the availability of microcomputer software for library management purposes also increases. (3) A negative relationship between the size of the library media center budget and the intention to obtain microcomputer software for school-wide purposes presented an anomaly for the intuitive approach to the analysis. (4) The methods chosen for evaluating and selecting microcomputer software varied significantly for each type of software selected. (5) Cell means indicated that for each type of library management programs obtained by the library media center, three school-wide programs were obtained. (6) Microcomputer software is utilized in the library media center more than in either classroom or in computer labs. Recommendations for additional investigation were discussed.

A total of 47 teachers, randomly selected from 1328 elementary school teachers in a Southwestern urban school district, were randomly assigned to two six-hour, introductory computer in-services. Teachers receiving the BASIC in-service and the LOGO in-service were administered an attitude survey after the in-services. The survey was composed of seven demographic questions, 20-items designated to test attitudes toward computers in general and 20-items designed to test attitudes toward computers in the elementary school classroom. Scores were analyzed to determine the effect of the two treatments on attitudes as well as the effect of four demographic variables, regardless of treatment, on teacher's attitudes. There were no significant differences in attitudes of subjects receiving the BASIC in-service and those receiving the LOGO in-service. In addition, the previous computer training, grade level taught, and gender of the subjects, did not appear to affect their attitudes toward computers in general and in elementary school classrooms. One demographic variable, years of teaching experience, did significantly affect the mean scores on the attitude instrument. Those teachers in the study with one to fifteen years of teaching experience demonstrated a significantly more positive attitude toward computers in the elementary school classroom and toward computers in general as compared to those with 16 or more years of teaching experience.

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No description available.

<p>Web technologies have necessitated a transformation culture in higher education<br /> institutions. Many of these institutions are employing web technologies whose<br /> development, for varying reasons, is not supported by research in their field and<br /> domain of use. One such field is instructional design for the web learning.<br /> Although there is a lot of research on the most effective instructional design<br /> strategies, the use of research for web-based learning applications has been<br /> limited. <br /> <br /> This thesis reports on a study aimed at transforming the research on instructional<br /> design into practice by designing an instructional design system and providing an<br /> argument for its implementation. The argument is intended to facilitate the design<br /> and development of an instructional design subsystem of the web, that would in<br /> turn offer effective and efficient ways for creating web-based learning materials<br /> to instructors.<br /> <br /> The study started by examining the various paradigms, theories and practices of<br /> instructional design with the intent of using them to enrich and improve the<br /> practice of instructional design in web learning. It undertook a thorough and<br /> systematic review of the literature on instructional design in order to come up<br /> with an instructional design system. The design approach used successful design<br /> patterns that have been used elsewhere, e.g. in software design, to create common<br /> responses or solutions to recurrent problems and circumstances. Instructional<br /> design patterns were identified in this study as the recurrent problems or processes<br /> instructional designers go through while creating instructional materials, whose<br /> solutions can be reused over and over again.<br /> <br /> This study used an iterative developmental research process of finding and<br /> modelling an instructional design process as the research methodology. This<br /> process follows and builds on existing research on instructional models, theories<br /> and strategies, and ensures that the same methodology can be used to test the<br /> theories in the design, thus improving both the research and the design.</p>

The Outreach Project of the University of the Western Cape has since 1982 through various computer supported services been assisting grade 12 mathematics learners and educators at previously disadvantaged Western Cape high schools. This thesis described and appraised the MICSES2000 program of the Outreach Program, the latest innovative computer enhancing service to schools, with respect to its implementation, perceived and achieved programs by participating educators.

The advent of on-line Computer-Assisted Instruction and Computer Mediated Communication may improve instruction and communication in distance education in South African universities. On-line Computer-Assisted Instruction in distance education makes the reinforcement of knowledge both systematic and immediate. With instructional media such printed text, audio-cassettes, radio and television broadcasts the student at a distance is an isolated and passive recipient of knowledge. On-line Computer-Assisted Instruction supported by Computer Mediated Communication for interaction and feedback could close the gaps in time and distance between the teacher and the student in distance education. The current network capabilities of the computer makes it possible for such a student to interact with peers and lecturers before, during and after instructional episodes. Computer Mediated Communication can facilitate the use of electronic messaging such as Electronic Mail, Internet Relay Chat, List Servers, Multi-User Domains and Bulletin Board Services for interactions and feedback. This thesis investigates whether instruction and communication in South African universities with a distance education option can be improved using on-line Computer-Assisted Instruction and Computer Mediated Communication respectively. The thesis also makes proposals for their implementation in South Africa by analysing the applications of computer technology in degree awarding distance education institutions in some developed and developing countries that use on-line Computer-Assisted Instruction and Computer Mediated Communication. / Thesis (M.Sc.)-University of Natal, 1996.