Software training is increasingly becoming more important to local governments and their employees. Many local governments are not using modem technology to fully take advantage of better and lower cost methods of doing business. Local governments operate from taxpayer funds and are always highly scrutinized on the spending of those funds. Thus, having the latest computers or the latest software has not been high on the priority lists for many local governments around the nation. Local governments can no longer ignore the technology available, and they are beginning to take advantage of these technologies to improve efficiency and production. This study will focus on how technology can be utilized to improve software training for local government employees. The traditional ways of acquiring software training by sending employees off to various training schools has become expensive and inefficient. In this study, an experiment will be conducted on two different training methods, traditional classroom instruction and computer based training (CBT) via an Intranet Training Program. The experiment and testing will be conducted in Hillsborough County, located in the West-Central part of the state of Florida, using local government employees (N=40). In the testing phase of the experiment, twenty subjects were given tests on specific timetables, seven days and thirty days, after completing several traditional classroom software courses. Also, a second group of twenty subjects were given tests at seven days and thirty days after completing several computer -based training courses via the company's intranet. The two types of training methods were evaluated for employee/student performance and retention of material learned. Based on the findings of the research, the study concluded that Intranet Training Programs significantly improve the ability of a local government employee to learn software programs more effectively than through traditional classroom instruction. The study also found that starting an Intranet Training Program and maintaining its operation was more cost effective to a local government organization than to continually send employees to local training schools. Finally, local government employees that were trained via an Intranet Training Program, were found to have learned the course at a faster pace than those that attended traditional classroom lecture, and maintained achieved higher level of knowledge retention.

The loss of library materials as well as of her departmental school materials has been a growing problem at Everett High School for the past several years. In recent years school budget cuts combined with a more mobile and transient student population has increased the awareness of the need for keeping better material accountability through efficient, accurate student obligation records. Decreased budgets, increased student loss of materials, and increased cost of replacement for those materials have focused administration attention on the need for an improved student obligation tracking system. Everett High School covers a four block campus site located in the central area of the city of Everett, Washington, a community of approximately 60,000 citizens. In recent year’s school budget cuts and a more mobile, transient student population has caused this problem to take a higher priority in administration plans and goals. Under the old system when a student withdrew, communication regarding return or replacement of materials broke down among departments. Often times students were expected to hand deliver their own obligation records for appropriate signatures before withdrawing. Under this system Obligation records were inaccurate, incomplete or lost. In several cases, students withdrew and their records transferred before an accurate accounting of their student obligations were recorded. Consequently, existing information that needed to be shared among various staff members was not properly processed in an accurate and timely manner resulting in: A. Library materials not returned. B. Textbooks not returned to teachers. c. Extracurricular equipment not returned (E .g. costumes for drama department). D. Fines for the above materials not collected. Working in cooperation with Everett High administrators and staff, the investigator constructed a timeline of procedures and methods to install an information sharing system that would significantly reduce student materials loss. It was determined that this developmental project would cover a four year period from September, 1987, through June, 1991. From September, 1989, through June, 1991, the system would be fully functioning with constant monitoring and evaluation consistent with established goals and expectations. Because accurate statistics could not be collected for unreturned materials from all Everett High departments, the investigator focused the statistical research on library materials unreturned or unreimbursed by withdrawn students for the period 1987-89, prior to installation of a LAN system. These figures provide the baseline data for the study. The LAN will be operational and the E.H.S. staff trained in its use by August, 1989. The LAN system will be fully functional from 1989-1991 and pertinent library data will be kept for this two year period for purposes of comparison with baseline data. Upon evaluating the various constraints placed on the investigator by administrators regarding time, finances, staff and hardware, the investigator chose to combine hardware already in place at Everett High School with other compatible hardware to establish a new communication system. It was necessary to purchase additional Macintosh microcomputers, Apple printers and one laser printer. Each microcomputer workstation was connected to the VAX through a twisted pair of telephone wires. This forced a star configuration with the VAX as the central server. The result was a local area network (LAN) in place at Everett High School. The benefits to the Everett School District of using a LAN communication system will not be known until the project terminates in June, 1991. If the LAN system is found to be financially beneficial at Everett High the system could be expanded to include other schools in the district as well as the central office.

This dissertation presents a new strategy for the automatic design of neural networks. The learning environment addressed is supervised learning from examples. Specifically, Radial Basis Functions (RBF) networks learning real-valued functions of real vectors as in non-linear regression applications are considered. The strategy is based upon the application of strong theoretical relationships between RBF networks and methods from approximation theory, robust statistics, and computational learning theory. The complexity of the network design is examined in detail from the formal definition of the learning problem to the establishment of the corresponding optimization problem. A novel strategy for the systematic and automatic design of RBF networks is developed based upon the coordinated evaluation of memorization and generalization of an incremental architecture. The architecture grows according to the monotonous increase of its generalization. Its corresponding learning method stands out due to its fast convergence and robustness. It represents one of the few learning methods whose computational complexity is precisely stated. It can be used in any non-linear regression tasks which are common in different disciplines of the natural and engineering sciences. Four learning methods are implemented for evaluation. The most complex is the one for the novel self-generating network architecture. Another learning method constitutes a strong contribution to the area of robust learning allowing the automatic detection of data outliers and the removal of their negative influence in the network approximation. It represents the first robust learning method for RBF networks available in the literature and is integrated into the overall strategy introduced in this work. Diverse functions are used to simulate training and test data. Data generated for evaluation is: noise-free, noisy, and with outliers as well as one- and multidimensional. The data with outliers allows the verification of the robustness of the introduced method. In addition, an evaluation example from the area of sensory data processing is chosen. This example consists in localizing a generic object based on range information in the framework of a grasping strategy. The relation to other works and a perspective for further research concludes this work.

Computer technology is gaining a foothold in education in the United States. The federal government, state education agencies, and local school systems have invested millions of dollars in wiring schools for the Internet as well as placing computer technology in the classroom. However, recent research indicates that teachers are not being prepared to use computer technology in the classroom. The goal of this dissertation was to evaluate the effectiveness of a portfolio-based technology requirement issued by the North Carolina Board of Education for initial licensure for preservice teachers who have graduated from the state's Institutions of Higher Education (IHE) beginning in 1999. Two questions guided the research: The first was "What is the perception of teachers now in the classroom as to how effective the portfolio requirement was in preparing them in regard to the Advanced Competencies?" The second was "If teachers do not believe that the portfolio requirement prepared them in regard to the Advanced Competencies, why not?" The research was comprised of a study conducted by surveying teachers in the North Carolina public school system regarding their perception as to how well the portfolio requirement prepared them to use technology in the classroom. Interviews were conducted to confirm and expand the findings of the survey. Notification of the survey was sent to each of the principals in the 2,350 public schools in the state of North Carolina. The principal in each school was asked to invite any teacher in that school who graduated from a North Carolina IHE from 1999 through 2002 to participate in the study by filling out the survey. There were 260 qualified responses that met the criteria for the study. The data from the qualified surveys were placed in a spreadsheet to facilitate analysis. In order to facilitate the analysis of the data, the "very satisfied" and the "satisfied" responses were gathered together into a "satisfied group", and the "dissatisfied" and "very dissatisfied" responses were gathered together into a "dissatisfied group." These two groups were then expressed as a percentage of the whole. It was hypothesized that a majority of the teachers who graduated since 1999 from North Carolina IHEs would respond that they were at least satisfied with how well the portfolio requirement prepared them in each of the 24 North Carolina Advanced Technology Competencies for Educators. The hypotheses were supported for 21 of the competencies. Results were inconclusive with two competencies: one stated that the teacher was to know the "the NC Computer Skills Assessment" and the other stated that the teacher was to know the "resources available including satellite, cable, wireless, and lTFS (Instructional Television Fixed Service)." The hypothesis was not supported for one competency that stated the teachers be prepared to "use media and technology to support learning for children whose primary language is not English." It was also hypothesized that a majority of the teachers would respond that they were at least satisfied with how well the portfolio requirement prepared them in each of the five divisions of the North Carolina Advanced Technology Competencies for Educators. The hypotheses were supported for all divisions. It was hypothesized that a majority of the teachers would respond that they were at least satisfied with how well the portfolio requirement prepared them in the North Carolina Advanced Technology Competencies for Educators as a whole. The hypothesis was supported for the Advanced Competencies as a whole. Finally, it was hypothesized that if a majority of the teachers who responded that they were less than satisfied with how well the portfolio requirement prepared them in the North Carolina Advanced Technology Competencies, the cause stated would be a combination of a lack of training in the classroom and opportunity in the student teacher experience. Interviews revealed that the reasons given for the lack of preparation for only applicable competency mentioned above centered on the lack of funding, personnel, and attention given to the needs of English as a Second Language (ESL) students during the teacher's college classes. Also, the lack of opportunities to work with ESL students during the student teaching experience seemed to exacerbate the problem. Therefore, this hypothesis was supported. The findings of this study will contribute to the effectiveness of initiatives that have been implemented across the country in order to properly prepare teachers to use computers in instruction. The portfolio requirement of the North Carolina School Board is one such initiative. A great deal of time and effort is being placed in the development and assessment of the technology portfolios that were the concentration of this study. Therefore, the data will serve as a baseline for future studies regarding the effectiveness of the portfolio requirement, and will aid in giving insight as to the future direction of the portfolio process.

The growth of the e-commerce industry has been nothing less than remarkable, changing the way people live, the way companies conduct business, and the way software engineers design. However, this environment still faces many challenges before it becomes a mainstay of the economy. One of those challenges is the usability of the ecommerce Web sites. In particular, the virtual characteristics of the Web are incapable of providing consumers physical contact with the products. Web site designers create ways to overcome the physical barrier with the features on their Web sites. These features are guided by the principles and techniques developed by the discipline of Usability Engineering, as well as the studied and proven preferences of online shoppers. This research study developed a model consisting of features and user-interface design principles that promote product interaction, including an index for measuring product interaction. The model was validated through usability evaluations of existing online shopping sites. The results of which showed that online shopping sites with higher levels of product interaction were more successful. However, there was evidence suggesting that online businesses may be able to do more to promote e-commerce. The results of the usability evaluations clearly showed several weak areas in Web design, causing usability problems and lost opportunities. Computer technology, in the form of a Web page, has the ability to simulate the sense of touch and feel of tangible products if used correctly. This research study concluded that Web pages and Web page design have not mastered this craft and still have a long way to go before this environment truly re-creates the atmosphere of a traditional store.

Given the increased use of microcomputers in school library media centers to perform a wide variety of tasks, library educators should address the integration of microcomputers into the library media curriculum. Therefore, the purpose of the study was to describe how library educators were integrating microcomputer applications such as word processing, database management, spreadsheets, and other applications into the library education curriculum. A secondary purpose was using the results of the study as a framework for the integration of microcomputer applications in appropriate areas of library media core courses at Armstrong State College, Georgia. Savannah. The specific research questions addressed in the study were as follows: How were library media educators currently providing instruction in microcomputers? How many undergraduate level library programs used microcomputer applications? What types of microcomputers were being used? How were microcomputer applications being used? Which courses used microcomputer applications? What kinds of microcomputer applications were being used by library media educators? How many library educators used locally produced applications? What were the content areas of locally produced applications? What provisions had been made for the availability of microcomputers? What factors had limited the extent to which library media educators were able to introduce microcomputer applications? What relationships existed between geographic region and program type and providing instruction in microcomputers as a part of the undergraduate library education program? In an effort to ascertain the extent to which library educators were using microcomputers, a survey questionnaire was mailed to 357 library educators representing 213 undergraduate library education programs in the United States. Of the 357 library educators mailed questionnaires, there were 202 returns or a 57 percent rate of return. Of this number, 92 responses were excluded from consideration because some institutions were no longer offering undergraduate library education programs, others offered only graduate programs, some library educators had retired or moved, other library educators had checked the First box on the questionnaire indicating that the teaching of library education courses was not one of their current responsibilities, and one respondent did not participate because the school had closed. These questionnaires were eliminated from the study; only 110 questionnaires were used. The nature of the data suggested the use of descriptive percentages. Statistics, primarily frequencies and However, chi-square analysis was used to determine whether a significant relationship existed between geographic region of library educators or program type and current use of microcomputers in library education. Results of the survey showed that 87, or 79.1 percent of the library educators representing 75 undergraduate programs were introducing microcomputer applications into the library education curriculum. Perhaps the most significant fact was that the majority of library educators were currently providing instruction in microcomputers by using a separate course or integrating microcomputer applications in library education courses. Cataloging was the course that most frequently incorporated microcomputer applications. Complementing lectures was the instructional method most frequently identified. In-class instruction was used to prepare and train students to use microcomputers. Word processing was the application most frequently used and Word Perfect was the word processing program of choice. Apple and IBM were the predominant brands used by library educators. Most microcomputers were located in a room designated as a computer lab or in the library. Finally, a lack of funds was the reason most cited as the greatest barrier in integrating microcomputer applications in library education courses. It was concluded that most library educators were introducing microcomputers in the library education curriculum. Recommendations were suggested for ways to integrate microcomputer applications into the library education curriculum. It was recommended that library educators introduce microcomputers into their curricula or existing core courses so that microcomputer applications could be an integral part of the library education program. It was recommended that a separate required introductory computer course be required for all students. That, in addition to the separate required course, microcomputer applications should be integrated into all core courses where appropriate. A systematic plan was developed that would serve as a guide for implementing the integration of microcomputer applications into library media core courses at Armstrong State College, Savannah, Georgia.

Over the past decade there has been a shift in the emphasis of emerging educational technology from use in online settings to supporting face-to-face and mixed delivery classes. Although emerging educational technology integration in the classroom has increased in recent years, technology acceptance and usage continue to be problematic for educational institutions. In this predictive study the researcher aimed to predict university instructors' intention to use emerging educational technology in traditional classrooms based on the contribution of computer self-efficacy (CSE), computer anxiety (CA), and experience with the use of technology (EUT), as measured by their contribution to the prediction of behavioral intention (BI). Fifty-six instructors from a small, private university were surveyed to determine their level of CSE, CA, and EUT, and their intention to use emerging educational technology in traditional classrooms. A theoretical model was proposed, and two statistical methods were used to formulate models and test predictive power: Multiple Linear Regression (MLR) and Ordinal Logistic Regression (OLR). It was predicted that CSE, CA, and EUT would have a significant impact on instructors' intention to use emerging educational technology in the classroom. Results showed overall significant models of the three aforementioned factors in predicting instructors' use of emerging educational technology in traditional classrooms. Additionally, results demonstrated that CSE was a significant predictor of the use of emerging educational technology in the classroom, while CA and EUT were not found to be significant predictors. Two important contributions of this study include I) an investigation of factors that contribute to instructors' acceptance of an emerging educational technology that has been developed specifically to respond to current demands of higher education, and 2) an investigation of key constructs contributing to instructors' intention to use emerging educational technology in the classroom.

The focus of this research was the individual or small organization. These organizations include small businesses, community groups, K-12 schools or community colleges, local government, and the individual user, as well as many others. In this work, all of these organizations as well as the individual user were collectively referred to as users. The common element shared by each of these users was that they each have legitimate purposes for access to Internet services or each provides a service or services that could be enhanced if distributed via the connectivity provided by the Internet. However, the costs of establishing a conventional Internet server and the associated connectivity are prohibitive to such small-scale organizations. The objectives of this research were to: Establish a definition of a low-cost decentralized distributed computing environment for Intel-based personal computers that will provide users the capability to access the full spectrum of Internet services while enabling them with the ability to retain control of their computing environment. Develop a replication process to replicate and distribute the defined environment in a modular form so as to facilitate installation on a target system. Conduct testing and evaluation of the architecture and replication process to validate its ease of configuration and installation, and compliance with the requirements to provide users the capability to access the full spectrum of Internet services while retaining complete control of their computing environment. This was accomplished in three phases: (a) Phase I - Define an objective architecture, (b) Phase II - Develop a technique for replicating and distributing the architecture, and (c) Phase III - Test and validate the architecture and the replication and distribution processes. Definition of the objective architecture was accomplished through development of a prototype system that successfully demonstrated all of the characteristics required by the objectives of this research. Following the definition of the architecture on the prototype system, development of a technique for replicating and distributing the architecture was undertaken. This was accomplished by developing a group of programs that configured a system to the needs of a target user, captured that configured system on a removable medium, and restored that configured system on the target hardware. Finally the architecture, as well as its replication and distribution processes were evaluated for validity using statistical analysis of data collected from test subjects acting as users. All of these tasks were accomplished within the Linux Operating System environment using only software tools developed by the researcher or tools that are a native component of Linux. The first objective of this research was satisfied by the researcher's selection of Linux and its suite of associated applications as the operating system that would host the solution system. The second objective of this research was accomplished by the researcher's development of a suite of software tools that replicated the configured environment, moved the replication to an appropriate media and restored the environment on a target system. Inviting a group of Linux users to use the tools and provide feedback via a survey satisfied the third objective of this research. It was concluded that the three objectives of this research and therefore the overall goal of this research were accomplished. In each measured evaluation of the architecture, procedures and programs developed by the researcher, the resulting data were plotted in the advanced area or the area tending toward the advanced level of maturity as defined by the Boloix and Robillard (1995) evaluation scale. In a like manner the resulting data were plotted in the exceptionally compliant range or higher on the normal distribution curve survey scale. The trend of results was consistently at the advanced level of maturity on the Boloix and Robillard (1995) evaluation scale or in the exceptionally compliant range of the normal distribution curve survey scale. The researcher found that the results of testing the defined architecture and replication process revealed users are able to quickly implement a fully configured Linux system with all the capabilities defined in the architecture. This resulting Linux system provided a low cost, decentralized, distributed computing environment for Intel-based personal computers that enabled users to access the full spectrum of Internet services while maintaining control of their computing environment. By accomplishing this objective the researcher's Linux system can provide fiscally constrained individuals or small organizations full access to Internet services without the high costs of establishing a conventional Internet server and associated connectivity, prohibitive to a small-scale organization.

This study was conducted to compare the mathematics achievement of an experimental group taught with computer-assisted instruction and a control group taught with traditional classroom instruction. Subjects were tenth grade students at Chattooga High School in summerville, Georgia. All students who participated in this study received at least fifty minutes of mathematics instruction per day. This included teacher presentation, discussion, small group work, drill and practice, classroom exercises, and homework assignments. Students in the control group practiced basic mathematics skills using pencil and paper while students in the experimental group practiced basic mathematics skills using computer-assisted instruction. Data for this study were student scores on the mathematics portion of the Georgia Basic skills Test. Student scores were analyzed in the areas of concept identification, component operations, and problem solving. The data were analyzed using a multivariate analysis of variance. The analysis was performed using SPSS-X statistical software. Analysis of the results showed no difference between the two groups and the null hypothesis was not rejected. Based on the results of this study, the researcher concluded that computers are as effective as traditional classroom instruction in the secondary mathematics classroom. Recommendations of this study include a comprehensive staff-development program for all teachers who will be using computers in the classroom. These teachers should also have computers available at all times for their personal use. The existing curriculum should be modified to effectively use technology in the classroom, and studies should be conducted to determine the effectiveness of computer-assisted instruction in other areas of the mathematics curriculum. Additionally, follow-up studies should be conducted to determine the effect of computer-assisted instruction on retention of basic mathematics facts.

The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of using a multimedia (hypermedia) instructional delivery system on content learning (achievement) for various learning styles of high school zoology students. Educators have long realized that it is impossible to teach students all they need to know, especially today with the evolution of an information society. The literature reviewed for this study indicates that there is a definite movement for change and restructuring in education and use of technology will definitely play a major role in these changes. A one group pre and posttest design was used. A multimedia program was created for this study using HyperCard as the authoring system and the Bio Sci" laser disc. The Kolb Learning Style Inventory (LSI) was utilized to determine the student's cognitive learning style. The student's achievement level was measured by an achievement test that was developed by the researcher. It is concluded from this study that using a multimedia instructional delivery system increased learning regardless of learning style and was equally beneficial to all types of learning style preferences. It is recommended that use of multimedia be given consideration as a viable method of instruction.