A computer literacy assessment instrument was developed to evaluate the current level of computer literacy of students enrolled in agricultural classes at Texas A&M University. A faculty member from each of the 19 departments in the College of Agriculture was asked to recommend two classes representative of the students in his or her department,…

An instrument to measure the computer literacy of science teachers in grades K-12 is being developed. This instrument, the Test of Computer Literacy for Science Teachers (TCLST), is part of ENLIST Micros (a project to develop a curriculum for training science teachers to use computers). The instrument, based on essential competencies for computer…

As more school districts install computers at all grade levels, order and evaluate instructional software, and send educational personnel to computer seminars, curriculum decisions concerning computers become mandatory. To clarify the conditions or factors which might affect the rationality of a school district's decision on computer literacy…

Argues that a needs assessment model that is comprehensive and accounts for both cognitive and affective factors would be important to understanding the role of microcomputers in learning environments and describes a study that sought to design a computer literacy curriculum in response to real teachers' needs. (MBR)

The symbolic function of curricular debate, as it is manifested in the minimum competency testing movement (MCT), is investigated. Curricular debate necessarily reflects the demands of the society in which it arises. The topics that are addressed spring from this milieu and the language in which issues are couched must be appropriate to it.…

Project DISC (Developing Indian Software Curriculum) was initiated in the Rapid City (South Dakota) school district to improve Native American children's reading and language arts ability and to provide them with microcomputer skills. During the summer of 1982, introductory computer activities were planned, a computer specialist was hired, and…

This paper discusses the concept of information literacy as the main framework within which the concept of computer literacy may be defined, describes in detail the design of a complete curriculum in information literacy intended for all students in elementary and junior high schools, and provides an example of this design with a specific learning…

The hierarchical model for the teaching of computer programming to children that is presented in this report comprises five content domains: (1) technical skills of controlling the machine; (2) mastery of the programming language; (3) understanding the structure of a computer program; (4) understanding the logical dynamics of the computer program;…

This report of a 1984 conference on the computer as a teaching tool provides summaries of presentations on the role of the computer in the teaching of science, mathematics, computer literacy, and language arts. Analyses of themes emerging from the conference are then presented under four headings: (1) The Computer and the Curriculum (the computer…

ENLIST Micros, a project designed to improve quality and quantity of microcomputer use in science teaching, is described. Rationale and procedures behind its development; description of the pilot test model; results of the initial field test and an implementation study; description of the revised ENLIST Micros curriculum; and recommendations for…

Describes the Microelectronics Education Programme (MEP), a plan developed to help British secondary school students learn about microcomputers and the role of technology in society, and its successor, the Microelectronics Support Unit (MESU). Highlights include curriculum development, teacher training, computer assisted instruction and the…

Presented in this paper is a model of a preservice teachers' course on the use of computers for science and technology instruction. The main goal of the course is to lead the students to realize the potential offered by the medium for instructional purposes and to develop self-confidence. (Author/KR)

In order to discover the extent to which the rhetoric surrounding computers in schools is matched by reality, a study of computer use and teacher acceptance was undertaken in a large upper elementary school (grades 4-6) in an affluent, semi-rural community near a major metropolitan area. The school was near the end of its five year instructional…

This collection consists of 21 papers presented at the July 1983 Annual Summer Conference on "The Computer: Extension of the Human Mind II," in Eugene, Oregon. Six papers were presented at general interest sessions; 15 were from special interest group sessions. The general interest papers include David Ahl's "Keeping Up with Computers in Education…

This report presents the results of a survey conducted among all primary and secondary schools in Leicestershire (England) in 1985 to examine the role of microcomputers in schools, and the extent to which their introduction had led to a shift in teaching emphasis toward providing more skill-based curricula (i.e., study skills for life) rather than…