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The aim of this study has been to investigate the potential of collaborative learning using multimedia in the mathematics classroom. As part of the study, materials and approaches were developed and trialled in classrooms. These trials were carried out in three secondary schools in the Local Education Authorities of Rotherham, Sheffield and Barnsley. All the pupils involved in the classroom trials were 14 to 15 years old, in Years 9 and 10 of the National Curriculum. A case study approach was adopted and the study itself was divided into three major cycles. In Cycles 1 and 2 the focus of the development was on the integration of the use of the Domesday Interactive Video system, within a thematic approach involving practical activity, investigation, problem solving and small group collaboration. The chosen theme was that of Trees. The focus of development in Cycle 3 was the multimedia package entitled World of Number, which was sponsored by the National Curriculum Council. These resources were available on both laser disc and also CD ROM, with both versions being utilised in the classroom trials. Prior to Cycle 3 classroom trials the World of Number package was evaluated. This involved an initial evaluation by the researcher as an individual user, classroom observation of its use in school, interviews with classroom teachers and also a review of associated literature relating to evaluations and classroom use. The focus of the Cycle 3 classroom trials was on the multimedia-based activities involving one of the units from the package. This unit is based upon the analysis of video clips of motion from the real world using graphs involving speed, distance, height and time. The findings of this study have highlighted the potential of the use of multimedia in motivating pupils' interest and in promoting collaborative learning. The role of the system has been that of a medium for communication. As the study has developed the theoretical perspective offered by Vygotsky's cultural psychology has come to be increasingly relevant. Attention has been repeatedly drawn to the crucial importance of the role of the teacher and the notion of the orchestrating teacher has been seen to be resonant. The need for the provision of scaffolding by the teacher and also the need to integrate and coordinate multimedia-based activities with those of the wider classroom context has been emphasised. A micro-analysis of the discourse involved in the multimedia-based activities was carried out which revealed differences in terms of patterns of interaction. There was evidence of varying levels of collaboration and some quite superficial interaction. The importance of the role of the teacher in monitoring the peer interaction and in intervening where necessary has also been highlighted. By examining the development of pupil understanding, the analysis served to illuminate Vygotsky's notion of the function of egocentric speech and thus the direction of the development of thinking from the social to the individual, which is central to a sociocultural perspective. The study concludes with a consideration of the implications for the design of future multimedia resources, their mode of use, the role of the teacher and also the process of evaluation. Consideration is also given to possible further research questions and also to further related development.

This thesis reports research undertaken in two rather distinct phases. Firstly, the thesis reports a study of cognitive processes involved in the task of 'concept identification': given sample instances of a concept, the task is to identify the concept. A computer model which successfully reproduces responses similar to those observed in human subjects is described. Secondly, this thesis reports the design of a case-based learning system REFINER. The system is a 'Learning Apprentice System' for differential diagnosis tasks, to aid the transfer of knowledge from a domain expert to a computer. Knowledge is obtained from the expert(s) in the form of cases which have been diagnosed or classified, and not in the traditional form of classification 'rules' which the experts often find hard to specify. The REFINER program is therefore a Knowledge Acquisiton System which helps an expert refine his knowledge in a more 'natural' way than having rules 'extracted'. Further, the system has the ability to point out that two classifications are not distinct, and can then suggest to the user ways in which the inconsistency might be resolved. Although the system has been used most extensively in the medical domain, it is essentially domain independent.

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This thesis discusses how best to design, implement and evaluate a Case-Based Learning and Reasoning (CB-LR) model to assist accountants in identifying Top Management Fraud (TMF). There is no structured knowledge about TMF in the fonn of rules, only cases encountered by experienced auditors. The changing economic, financial and social environment has produced more fraud which at the same time has become increasingly complex to identify and isolate. Previous research shows that fraud has evaded auditors, and highlights a need for new computer-based learning and reasoning paradigms in this domain. Case-Based Reasoning (CBR) has been considered as an approach to building knowledge systems which involves reasoning about the current situation on the basis of pinpointing and resuscitating past instances. As with artificial intelligence in general, there is no standard readymade CBR method suitable for any domain or application: the challenge in CBR is to come up with methods that are suitable for problem-solving and learning in particular subject domains and for particular application environments. INCASE, a Top Management Fraud diagnostic application, has been designed with a specific methodology derived from Schank and Riesbeck's principles. INCASE works on the basis of the interviewees' concerns so that it can act as a 'stimulus agent' for decision support. The intention is for auditors to use it proactively in a conversational mode, focusing on learning and reasoning about the problem domain~ hence the use of the CB-LR model. Although evaluation methods relevant to traditional rule-based expert systems have been discussed in the literature, their emphasis on system issues was found to be inappropriate for this CB-LR application. Since there is no agreed and established method for evaluating a casebased tool, 'a new approach is discussed including verification (where the focus is on response accuracy of infonnation retrieval) and validation (where user judgement and satisfaction are key issues). One important component in the evaluation was an in-house questionnaire based on total quality management ideas. Findings from the evaluation of the TMF diagnostic system suggest that case-based learning and reasoning has a valuable part to play in assisting auditing profession in the detection of fraud

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The starting point for this research was the belief that interactive multimedia learning environments represent a significant evolution in computer based learning and therefore their design requires a re-examination of the underlying principles of learning and knowledge representation. Current multimedia learning environments (MLEs) can be seen as descendants of the earlier technologies of computer-aided learning (CAL), intelligent tutoring systems (ITS) and videodisc-based learning systems. As such they can benefit from much of the wisdom which emerged from those technologies. However, multimedia can be distinguished from earlier technologies by its much greater facility in bringing to the learner high levels of interaction with and control over still and moving image, animation, sound and graphics. Our intuition tells us that this facility has the potential to create learning environments which are not merely substitutes for "live" teaching, but which are capable of elucidating complex conceptual knowledge in ways which have not previously been possible. If the potential of interactive multimedia for learning is to be properly exploited then it needs to be better understood. MLEs should not just be regarded as a slicker version of CAL, ITS or videodisc but a new technology requiring a reinterpretation of the existing theories of learning and knowledge representation. The work described in this thesis aims to contribute to a better understanding of the ways in which MLEs can aid learning. A knowledge engineering approach was taken to the design of a MLE for civil engineers. This involved analysing in detail the knowledge content of the learning domain in terms of different paradigms of human learning and knowledge representation. From this basis, a design strategy was developed which matched the nature of the domain knowledge to the most appropriate delivery techniques. The Cognitive Apprenticeship Model (CAM) was shown to be able to support the integration and presentation of the different categories of knowledge in a coherent instructional framework. It is concluded that this approach is helpful in enabling designers of multimedia systems both to capture and to present a rich picture of the domain. The focus of the thesis is concentrated on the domain of Civil Engineering and the learning of concepts and design skills within that domain. However, much of it could be extended to other highly visual domains such as mechanical engineering. Many of the points can also be seen to be much more widely relevant to the design of any MLE.

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