M.B.A. / We are In the midst of the Information age wherein Information and communication technology has been growing exponentially to the extent that we are totally reliant on it In some way or the other. We have often heard of new buzzwords like e-commerce, e-business, e-solutlons with the latest being elearning. This Is being hailed as the concept that will revolutionize our education systems and how we learn. "Today's education system Is built on an agrarian model that worked In the years when we were a nation of farmers, foresters and fisherman. Schooling has changed to take on elements of the industrial revolution (factory-line, classes, assembly-line curriculum and teacher-foreman) that worked for the needs of the industrial age. New designs are needed to create the "knowledge workers" who will define the information age." (wwwa, 2000) This quotation alludes to the need to change the system of education to be more in tune with the needs of the 21st century. To this end McCombs (2000) has identified a "need for educational models that reconnect learners with others and with learning models that are person centered while also addressing the needs for learning experiences. Learning experiences In schools should prepare learners to be knowledge producers, knowledge users and socially responsible citizens. II Similarly Thornburg (1999) has argued that "we must move beyond the past where Information was seen as a scarce resource and education was a system for Imparting Information to benefit learners.

Technology education is an important factor in every learner’s education. It contributes to the intellectual and practical development of the learners to enable them to cope with the challenges of a technological society. The main purpose of the study was to investigate the extent to which the learning and teaching of technology were implemented in schools in the Mthatha District. The main research question was: What are the challenges for the implementation of technology learning area in the Senior Phase? Research sub questions were: What support does the Department of Education give to educators?; To what extent have the objectives of implementing the technology learning area been achieved?; and, What suggestions do educators have to improve implementation of technology education? There were 20 Junior Secondary Schools involved in the study. There were two groups of samples: (a) the educators’ sample and (b) the learners’ sample. The educators’ sample: The sample size was 20 educators consisting of those who were teaching technology in either all the Senior Phase grades (Grade 7, 8 and 9) or at least in one of the grades in the senior phase in his/her school. On the researcher’s request, the Principal of each school nominated an educator and hence there was one educator in the educators’ sample from each of the 20 schools. The learners’ sample: The sample size was 40 learners consisting of at least two learners from each of the 20 schools. On the researcher’s request each educator in the educators’ sample nominated two learners from the senior phase. The instrument which was made to collect data was a researcher-designed questionnaire. The researcher personally visited each school involved in the study and gave the questionnaires to the two learners and one educator from that particular school to complete them independently within five days. The researcher personally re-visited each school on a day after the agreed-upon 5-day period but only after confirming over the phone that the questionnaires were indeed completed. The data were analyzed manually. The results obtained revealed that the implementation of the technology learning area is challenged by a number of problems. Those which were specifically identified were: lack of resources especially the rural schools; lack of people who are knowledgeable on Outcomes-based education (OBE) or the OBE modes of learning & teaching technology and its assessment methods, ineffectiveness arising out of large and overcrowded classes, challenges originating from or as a consequence of redeployment and the rationalization of educators and the lack of human resource to assist in the implementation of technology. The study showed the need for the provision of supportive service and continuous contact with educators to offer advice and assistance in order to improve the quality of technology teaching and learning in schools. The professional knowledge and skills of subject advisors as well as educators needed to be extended, refreshed and updated.

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This study compared two methods of using a computer with cooperative learning groups. Hypermedia (HyperCard) and word processing (Microsoft Works) were used on a Macintosh computer by primary aged students to compile information based on a video presentation. Measures of achievement, retention and participation were made. Additionally, an attempt was made to assess learning preferences and compare performance for each of these computer methods with consideration for learning preference. Four main questions were posed: • Does the computer used interactively and non-linearly, as in hypermedia, promote better assimilation of information than using the computer linearly, as in word processing? • Does the computer used interactively and non-linearly, as in hypermedia, promote better retention of information than using the computer linearly, as in word processing? • Does the use of hypermedia in cooperative learning with groups composed of members with heterogeneous learning preferences promote participation more than word processing activities? • Does interactive hypermedia better meet the learning needs of more students than word processing regardless of learning preferences? Data were collected from sixty three primary-aged students from four schools in the Vancouver Lower Mainland area. The same computer-based test was used on students as a pre-test, post-test and retention test. Teachers assessed participation by observing individual students for one minute at random intervals. Participation was reported as an average of the number of seconds out of sixty that students exhibited on-task behavior. A computer-based learning preferences assessment was devised to measure two broad categories of learning preferences based on Howard Gardner's Seven Intelligences. The same assessment was made directly by teachers and alternate classroom workers by dividing students into the two categories of learning preferences based on their observations. Teachers also reported observations of the activities pertaining to quality of interactions, teaching demands and predictions of future learning outcomes after long term use of each method. The major conclusions of this study were: • No significant differences in achievement or retention were found between the word processing and hypermedia groups. • The HyperCard groups participated more than the word processing groups as measured by teacher ratings during the activities and as reported in the post-study teacher comments. • More time for the activities is needed to yield clearer results. • The tools used to assess learning preferences were not statistically reliable. • Learning preferences for some students are likely fluid and changing and therefore difficult to assess. • Increased participation scores for HyperCard are due to more students participating as opposed to the same participating students getting higher scores. This suggests that HyperCard involves more students regardless of learning preference. Considering these conclusions, these hypotheses were suggested: • Students use their whole minds in learning which requires an integration of dominant learning strengths. Categorizing students into groups based on discrete learning attributes has little meaning and could be harmful as a teaching practise. • It is necessary to find tools that can address the needs of divergent learning styles simultaneously. Hypermedia may be such a tool but more research is required to support this conjecture. • HyperCard has more features and is more complicated to use. Therefore more training is required to adequately use HyperCard than is required to adequately use word processing. Equivalent levels of training are required to yield clearer results. Additionally a discussion of the changing definition of literacy due to the increasing accessibility of information due to technology, stressed the importance of developing multimedia skills for students and teachers. It was suggested that the combination of hypermedia with cooperative learning will enhance communication and learning. This, in, turn,will advance the new, technology-based literacy. / Education, Faculty of / Graduate

The objective of this thesis is to explore the possible use of LOGO as a vehicle for computer assisted instruction in both secondary and post-secondary environments. The spectrum of current languages and systems for CAI is summarized by way of selected example languages and some of the most recent LOGO-based research is described. In particular, the work performed at BBN, MIT and at the University of Edinburgh is summarized. The remainder of the thesis is based on the author's experience in using LOGO at the University of British Columbia. Included are a new LOGO User's Manual and the results of an evaluation of both the language and the Manual as well as a discussion of the actions taken based on the students' responses. The thesis concludes with a comparison of LOGO with its nearest competitor (BASIC), a critique of the BCLOGO implementation and a final chapter containing the author's conclusions and proposals for future research. / Science, Faculty of / Computer Science, Department of / Graduate

The use of assisted reproductive technologies (ART) in Canada has increased rapidly over the past decade, with a 235% increase in reported ART cycle starts and a 190% increase in resultant clinical pregnancies from 2008-2018, outpacing our understanding of potential adverse perinatal outcomes. This dissertation project recognizes that the use of ART will continue to increase in both scale and scope, and that it will continue to be a valued means of overcoming infertility and involuntary childlessness. The balance of risks and benefits of these rapid technological innovations for human health is uncertain. Therefore, this project seeks to produce evidence about both the risks associated with ART as well as component treatment factors amenable to modification to make its use safer. While available evidence indicates that medically assisted pregnancies are at greater risk of placental complications, data are scarce, and estimates of specific effects are varied and not reported in the context of service provision for Canada. Linking data from the Canadian Assisted Reproductive Technologies Register to the Better Outcomes Registry & Network Ontario data, this project commenced with a foundational retrospective cohort study to assess the relationship between ART (in vitro fertilization (IVF) and intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI)) and placental and placentally-mediated complications by comparing assisted conceptions from four years of ART cycle starts to non-assisted conceptions. Building on the findings from the foundational study, two additional studies were performed to investigate the contributions of two treatment factors, day or stage of embryo at transfer and cryopreservation, to the observed patterns of risk. Compared to non-assisted pregnancies, we find that assisted pregnancies are associated with an increased risk of placental and placentally-mediated complications. Within assisted pregnancies, risk profiles are best achieved by stratifying the analysis by both treatment type (IVF or ICSI) and embryo transfer type (fresh or frozen), in keeping with clinical practice. Although we did not find the day or stage of embryo at transfer to be a primary independent contributor to the observed increase in risk of these complication, patterns observed in the relationship between method of cryopreservation and these outcomes warrant further investigation. This thesis concludes by arguing for the pursuit of a hierarchy of risk approach to the use of ART, which is supported by the findings of this project, as it may be the most effective method to guide technological innovation and policy implementation to mitigate the risks associated with ART while not being overly restrictive of the options available to those seeking to build a family.

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