This study was conducted to test the claim that some critical thinking software may facilitate the improvement of reasoning skills of a group of disadvantaged students. These students were participants in an Upward Bound project in Atlanta, Georgia. After an extensive search and review of numerous thinking and reasoning software programs, four promising programs were selected for a thorough evaluation. After several weeks it was perceived that one particular software package had revealed the qualities necessary for success in this project. The package chosen was Critical Thinking I & II by Compris, Inc. The major reason for its selection was that it employed many artificial intelligence features that the author felt would cause the students to question their own thinking in a friendly and non-threatening manner. The subjects participating in this study were sixty randomly chosen tenth grade students. From this group, thirty students were randomly chosen to become the experimental group and received computer assisted instruction. The remaining thirty students became the control group and received traditional instruction. The instructional time line for the project was three months of Saturday sessions with forty-five minutes of instruction for each session. The only difference in the treatment of the two groups were the methods of instruction and the time and place each group met. The experimental group met in a computer laboratory at 8:45 a.m. each Saturday, while the control group met at 9:45 a.m. in a regular classroom adjacent to the computer laboratory. The author taught, monitored and collected data on both groups. Upon completion of the instructional period the Watson-Glaser Critical Thinking Appraisal form ZM was administered to each group under normal classroom conditions. A t-test conducted on the posttest means showed a significance difference at the .05 level significance. This study employed an experimental posttest only design.

This study investigated the effects of both graphics and presentation format on information retention. An additional consideration was if the learning style of these students would also influence information retention. Subjects were selected from the "Introduction to Instructional Communications" courses at a Slate university in West Chester, Pennsylvania. The purpose of this study was to determine how college students' information retention of a reading passage would be affected by graphics supplementing text and by presentation media, which was paper copy or computer screen display. An "Informed Consent" form, demographics form and a Kolb Learning Styles Inventory (LSI) were completed during the initial meeting. Students were then assigned to one of four treatment groups - non-graphics/paper copy, graphics/paper copy, non-graphics /computer screen display, or graphics/computer screen display. One week later students read a short passage using one of the four treatments. Students reading from computer screen display were in a different room from those reading from paper copy. A paper and pencil, multiple choice test was given to each participant at one, two, and three week intervals following the reading. The textual material and tests for retention were materials that had been developed specifically for this study. The other instrument chosen for this study was the Learning Styles Inventory (LSI) (Kolb 1985). The graphics were developed by the investigator and were validated by experts who specializes in the design of visuals for education and instruction. Trained research assistants aided in conducting the research. A multivariate repeated measures analysis of variance (MANOVA) was used to analyze the three independent variables (media, graphics and learning styles), using the subject retention scores as the dependent variable. In addition any interaction between media and graphics was examined. There was a significant difference between the graphics and the non-graphics groups in that the non-graphics groups retained more over time than the graphics groups. The findings of this study do not support the evidence from previous research that graphics have a significant positive affect on information retention or that there is no significant difference between graphics and non-graphics for retention. In contrast to these previous studies, the mean retention scores of the graphics group were consistently lower than those of the non-graphics group. This study indicates that the media had no effect on the retention scores, despite previous research indicating a preference for paper copy as well as poorer performance using the computer. Also, the students' learning style did not have an impact on information retention. In reviewing the results of the study the reader must remember the high attrition rate and the tendency was for those who dropped out of the study to have lower GPA's. Therefore the results of the study can only be generalized to those with the higher GPA's. In addition, these results must be reviewed as preliminary because the small number of cases in some groups may result in unstable estimates.

The problem that was addressed in this study was the array of challenges in strategically planning for asynchronous distance learning networks and the Sharable Content Object Reference Model (SCORM) for the University of the Virgin Islands (UVI). This study addressed the following questions: What strategic considerations are necessary in effectively administering an ALN? How can strategic planning assist UVI's efforts to achieve its pedagogical goals and objectives? What strategic considerations are necessary to combine IT with pedagogy in an effective manner? What must be done through the validation process to improve the model to make it more applicable to practitioners? What must be done to the model to reflect the real-world online learning environment (OLE)? In what ways can the model that results from this study be used to improve current and future plans and operations? ALNs allow people to learn asynchronously without the constraints of time and space. The SCORM is a technological initiative that provides the means for content objects to be shared across multiple learning delivery environments. It uses ALNs to accommodate the pedagogical needs of dispersed learners and other stakeholders. In accordance with its intentions to enter the market of distance education, UVI is initiating efforts to offer courses asynchronously beyond the confines of its two campuses. This is a new initiative that is being adopted by UVI in its efforts to keep abreast with the educational needs and requirements of its audience and in its efforts to plan strategically to insure economic buoyancy. In this study, the researcher provided an object-oriented strategic planning model (OOSPM) that UVI can adopt, adapt, and implement in support of its goal to effect learning through an ALN. The objective was to provide an overview of the considerations involved in administering an ALN and the SCORM currently and in the future for higher education institutions.

This study was designed to determine if college students could significantly improve their critical thinking skills by completing a computer course in structured programming. Five sections of an introductory programming class formed the experimental group, while five sections of a computer literacy course formed the control group. Both groups took the Watson-Glaser Critical Thinking Appraisal, Form A, for their pre - test. Form B of the same test was their post-test. Possible correlates tested included gender, age group, class standing, and major area of study. Slippery Rock University students who were enrolled in the ten sections of either the introductory programming course (n = 71) or the computer literacy course (n = 122) in the spring semester of 1994 were tested at the beginning and end of the courses. Data were collected by means of a standardized test and a demographic survey. Hypotheses were tested at the .05 confidence level using a ~ test, an analysis of variance, or an analysis of covariance, whichever was applicable. Students in the programming course did significantly improve their critical thinking scores at the .10 confidence level, but not at the desired .05 confidence level. However, at the .05 confidence level, students in the programming course did increase their critical thinking scores significantly more than the students in the literacy course. The correlates tested - gender, age group, class standing, and major study area - were found to be not significantly related to critical thinking skills. These results spawned several curriculum recommendations. Suggestions for future studies included expanding the study group size, testing other programming languages, and encompassing several more semesters of time.

In the quest to achieve universal usability for all computer users, research continues to focus on older adult populations, particularly for those with disabilities. Multimodal feedback is a technique used where auditory, haptic, and visual cues are given to a computer user and their success and accuracy are gauged in the performance of computer tasks. Researchers have employed multi modal feedback to examine user performance on tasks that use a drag-and-drop graphical component, with the contention that additional study of multimodal feedback is needed using various subsets of these populations, particularly among older users with disabilities. One subset of the older population with disabilities is the older deaf computer user. Deaf computer users have difficulty in processing sounds and therefore would have difficulty processing the auditory component used in traditional multimodal feedback studies. The problem is that older deaf computer users, in the absence of the auditory feedback component, must rely on visual and haptic cues when using an interface that employs traditional multimodal feedback components. This study revealed how older deaf computer users of varying degrees of deafness gauge their task accuracy and perceived success with multimodal feedback cues when given traditional haptic and visual cues in conjunction with a modified auditory feedback component. The modified auditory component used in this study was a tooltip utilizing American Sign Language (ASL) to cue the user if they were successful. Sixty deaf participants at least 70 years of age, right-handed, with no physical or visual disabilities, and with limited computer experience participated in the experiment. The study found that the participants reported higher rankings of task performance, and lower rankings of perceived difficulty and frustration, but found no significant decreases in task performance time when the ASL tooltip was used. In addition, there were found to be more drag-and-drop errors across all levels of deafness among the participants when the ASL tooltip was used. Future studies of older deaf computer users should examine wider age ranges, varying levels of computer experience, and modifications to the ASL tooltip to decrease its feedback time.

In May 1986, a UNIXTM based minicomputer was donated to Nova University for use as a teaching tool in the undergraduate program in Computer Sciences, Computer Information Systems and Computer Systems. PC compatibles and Apple computers were also being used. This posed a problem when creating Computer Aided Instruction (CAI) because of the different platforms in use and the multiple authoring tools being used on these platforms. With the rising cost of software coupled with the inefficiency and no standardization of multiple authoring programs for multiple platforms made it imperative that a solution be found. The solution was to create a portable program that could be successfully adapted to run on a variety of hardware/operating system combinations without modification to run Cal modules. This study was accomplished in three phases. Phase one was to create and implement an authoring system using C on different platforms. Phase two was to design the CAI program modules that would run on an authoring system under the various platforms. And, lastly, phase three was to implement the design of the CAI module under various platforms.

The implementation of the Semantic Web has a problem, namely, that the Semantic Web ignores the different types of already-existing resources in the current implementation of the Web. The semi-structured nature of the Web makes it quite difficult to retrieve information relevant to specific users' needs. As a result, today's Web and the next-generation Semantic Web are not interoperable. The goal of this dissertation was to make the already-existing resources in the current implementation of the Web more meaningful to the Semantic Web without taking-away the openness of the Web. A framework was introduced that created a catalog of Internet resources that allows multi-access points to different resources and allows agents to discover the sought-after knowledge. These lookup fields were implemented in this Internet cataloging framework. This catalog was established to help computer-to-computer communication and information retrieval in general. The framework contributed to research in two ways: First, a prototype was created that can be used as a source for searching on the Internet. Second, the framework implemented the latest technologies of the Semantic Web to create the prototype.

The purpose of this study was to perform a needs assessment study of the computer laboratory in the business science division of a large community college. The needs assessment study included the creation of a mission statement and the development of goals and objectives for the computer laboratory. To measure how well the computer laboratory was meeting the objectives, a survey was administered to students in 24 computer-related classes and to 12 instructors of those classes. The survey covered the physical environment, the equipment, the software, the assistance, and the availability of the computer laboratory. It was found that both the students and the instructors were of the opinion that the computer laboratory was meeting the needs of the students in all areas. There were some significant differences in the levels of agreement between the students and the instructors. Recommendations for improvements were made which included up-grading the hardware, adopting a new instructional accounting software package, providing staff development opportunities focused at improving the quality of the instruction, and increasing the hours the laboratory is open.

High attrition rates are of serious administrative and public relations concerns for higher education institutions. High attrition rates could be an indication of permanently failing organizations, those whose performances, by any standard, fan short of expectations. It is imperative that colleges identify what leads distance education (DE) students to drop out so that appropriate preventative measures may be taken. There have been innumerable studies done on improving the quality of DE and on the subject of student attrition. However, two important factors remain unexplored. The development of advanced technologies in the last decade has had an important impact on education. The World Wide Web (WWW) has significantly changed the way we live, learn, work, and communicate. It has also revolutionized teaching and learning in many positive and effective ways. As a result, the Internet is quickly becoming the predominant technology used by higher education institutions to deliver DE courses. Yet, few attrition studies have been based solely on online DE. Published studies have approached persistence by using various models to predict attrition and contain factors such as personal, family, and economic considerations that institutions have limited power to control or affect. The approach this study used was to identify specific areas of students' needs and satisfaction, relevant to OLEs that are controllable by the institution by using both qualitative and quantitative data: 1) responses of a web-based priority/ agreement survey find out by online students, faculty and administrators/advisors; and 2) semi-structured, open-ended e-mail surveys. The qualitative and quantitative methods used in this study enabled the researcher to identify how effectively institutions are delivering what online adult students expect, need and want. The results from both approaches converged in certain categories providing complementary evidence to reinforce the study's results. Starkly contrasting responses were found between the students' quantitative and qualitative answers and the administrators' /advisors' answers, concerning the institutions ability to satisfy students in the area of instructional effectiveness. One of the qualitative questions in the study indicated several factors, not accounted for in previous studies, which are perceived to be of vital importance by the students surveyed. Recurring suggestions indicated the need for tutoring, mentoring, orientation, training, and examples of quality work. Another very important finding to emerge was the fact that the instructor has the greatest potential to affect persistence through factors directly under his control. The findings concluded that institutions may not be prioritizing the persistence agenda in a manner that proves most effective. Building upon the foundation of previously published studies and focusing upon factors within control of the institution, a model to increase persistence in postsecondary online education was developed.

This study investigated the effects of using computers in writing instruction on writing apprehension and attitude toward writing with the computer. Possible correlates of writing apprehension considered in the study were gender and GPA. Possible correlates of attitude toward writing with the computer were gender and the number of courses taken requiring in-class use of the computer. Analyses were conducted to determine if there was any correlation between the test instruments and to identify differences between the computer treatment group, the non-treatment comparison group, and an advanced placement group. Riverview High School seniors and advanced placement juniors (N=234) who were enrolled in English classes in the 1991 fall quarter were tested before and after completing nine weeks of writing instruction. Data about the subjects' writing attitudes and attitudes toward writing with the computer were collected by means of standardized scales, and demographic data for the subjects was obtained from a survey and the Riverview guidance department. Hypotheses were tested at a .05 confidence level using paired t-tests for dependent samples, unpaired t-tests for independent samples, Pearson product moment correlation coefficients, or analysis of variance. Because the analysis of variance indicated differences in writing attitude among the groups, a Scheffe F-test and a Fisher PLSD test were used to determine where the differences occurred. Of the possible correlates of writing apprehension tested, only gender was found to be significant. No correlates were found to be related significantly to attitude toward writing with the computer, and no significant correlation was found between the scales. Differences between the mean writing attitude scores and mean attitude toward writing with the computer scores were identified. Scores increased significantly in the computer treatment group on the Writing Attitude Scale (WAS) and the Attitude toward Writing with the Computer Scale (ATWCS). On both scales, posttest scores of the grade 12 treatment group were also significantly higher than those of the non-treatment grade 12 group. Scores did not increase significantly in the non-treatment group on the Writing Attitude Scale, but did increase significantly on the Attitude toward Writing with the Computer Scale, although the treatment group scores were still significantly higher. Several curriculum recommendations were made based upon the results of this study. Recommendations for future study included extending the duration of the study, testing more grade levels, and expanding the population from which subjects were drawn.