Making evidence-based decisions in schools seems like an impossible task when hundreds of activities are available, the evidence base fails to address most of them, and budget deadlines are immovable. In addition, different stakeholders hold different views on what it means for a program, strategy, or intervention to "work." Fiona…

With the ubiquitous use of mobile technologies and the increasing demand for just-in-time training, there is a need to prepare and support instructional designers and educators to meet the pedagogical and technological development requirements of their target audience in the most effective and efficient way. This paper reviews the iterative…

One can barely keep up with the pace at which new educational games and apps are being introduced and digested in the market. With so many choices available, how do schools and teachers decide what to use? How do they have confidence their choices will result in desired outcomes? Education technology offers a number of potential benefits that can…

Hope Elementary School recently purchased tablets for all of its students to facilitate the use of technology in the classroom. The principal at Hope Elementary understands that technology can be an efficient and effective way for teachers to access materials and differentiate instruction to support the achievement of all learners. However, some…

Mobile technology has transformed the way consumers access and use information. The exponential growth of mobile apps makes finding suitable, easy-to-use nutrition and health-related apps challenging. A guide for consumers helps them ask important questions before downloading apps. The guide can be adapted for other Extension disciplines.

Today, many school districts are turning to business intelligence tools to retrieve, organize, and share knowledge for faster analysis and more effective, guided decision making. Business intelligence (BI) tools are the technologies and applications that gather and report information to help an organization's leaders make better decisions. BI…

Describes a computer-based decision support system for child welfare workers and provides a hypothetical example of computer use by a caseworker. Indicates ways caseworkers should become involved in the design of computer programs for agency records. (Author/RH)

This paper examines some of the theoretical and practical issues confronting educational administrators who must make decisions regarding the implementation of microcomputers in their schools. A conceptual framework is offered for understanding the stages involved in the innovation decision process. Several attributes of innovations are discussed…

The evolution of decision support systems (DSS) has enabled computer and information technology to assist the management process of decision making. Decision support systems are designed to look forward in time, to forecast outcomes of uncertain events. A 70-item bibliography is included. (MLW)

Discusses the problem of developing a comprehensive self-image to guide policy decisions in institutional management. Six characteristics of the problem are given, together with seven traditional organizational responses. Gaming/simulation is proposed as a solution, and an example of a case study simulation is included. (JJD)

Characteristics of a decision support system (DSS) and factors that influence system design are described, along with a decision support database at the University of Missouri-Columbia. Reasons that the institutional research office is in a unique position to support decision-making are identified. A review of the literature of DSS briefly covers…

Seeks to show why computer-based career guidance systems need to take on the educational role of helping people develop appropriate and effective ways of thinking about their career problems, rather than simply matching people with occupational databases. A computer program called SELSTRA, which seeks to meet these needs, is described. (Author/MBR)

Discusses a unique computer application called interactive art. The technique involves a series of events in which individuals/groups interact with sensors and television monitors hooked up to a central microcomputer. Numerous examples are provided to illustrate that individuals need not be passive in their entertainment, art appreciation, or…

Computer technology has become increasingly important as a management tool in the field of recreation and leisure. Computers used in the recreation profession perform the functions of recordkeeping, budget reports, and program maintenance. Benefits accrued from the use of computers include: budgeting, fiscal transactions, land-use planning, and…

As a demonstration of the application of heuristic devices to decision-theoretical techniques, an interactive computer program known as MAUD (Multiattribute Utility Decomposition) has been designed to support decision or choice problems that can be decomposed into component factors, or to act as a tool for investigating the microstructure of a…