Reviews the best currently available spelling software, including drill and practice, tutorial, game, and proofreading/word processing programs, and discusses criteria for spelling software selection. (MBR)

Microcomputer-based laboratories (MBLs) refer to a laboratory where a microcomputer gathers and displays data directly from the environment. Program listings for a response timer (using game paddles) to illustrate the nature of MBLs are presented. (JN)

Five aspects of computer assisted instruction in German are discussed: its history, the current rate of usage and success, the need for instructor training in computer literacy, the availability of courseware, and methods and aids for developing courseware. (MSE)

Describes a system in which the computer, by interacting with an information bank, produces an individual or group diagnostic profile specifying the nature of the factors that contribute to mathematics difficulties and student variability. The computer also generates suggestions for remediating the learning difficulties and accommodating student…

Discusses Japanese endeavors to create a new generation of computers endowed with intelligence, and the U.S. and European responses to these endeavors. Major U.S. efforts have been through private industry and the Defense Advanced Research Agency, while the National Science Foundation has increased support for developing advanced scientific…

Discusses the nature of electronic spreadsheets and their educational applications. These applications focus on rule guessing, functions, the binomial series, slopes, functions of functions, difference equations, simultaneous equations, and two-dimensional fields. (JN)

Research on effective beginning reading instruction has helped to define what instructional methods and content are most valuable. The research has shown that three important aspects of beginning reading instruction are alphabetic principles, reading fluency, and reading comprehension. A review of research in Part 1 of this Technical Paper…

EVA, a text processing tool designed to be self-contained and useful for a variety of languages, is described briefly, and its extensive coded character set is illustrated. Features, specifications, and database functions are noted. Its application in development of a Slovenian literary dictionary is also described. (MSE)

This paper describes several types of computer programs that can be useful to sports and recreation programs. Computerized tournament scheduling software is helpful to recreation and parks staff working with tournaments of 50 teams/individuals or more. Important features include team capacity, league formation, scheduling conflicts, scheduling…

The second session of IT@EDU98 consisted of four papers on multimedia and was chaired by Luu Tien Hiep (Lotus College, Vietnam). "Multimedia Education" (Tran Van Hao, Ngo Huy Hoang) describes "Multimedia Education v. 1.0," an educational software program for elementary school children that uses games to teach counting,…

The background of this paper is an internal research project at the German National Research Center for Information Technology, Integrated Publication and Information Systems Institute, (GMD-IPSI) dealing with software engineering, computer-supported cooperative learning (CSCL) and practical biotech knowledge. The project goal is to develop a…

In spite of the growing interest in interaction design, there remains a large user population that needs special interest: users with special needs. These users can dramatically benefit from software that better responds to their interaction needs, not to mention the fact that designing software that takes into account the special needs of such…

This paper presents an interdisciplinary research project that aims at developing an electronic vocabulary acquisition system for the German and the Italian language called ELDIT (Elektronisches Lern(er)worterbuch Deutsch Italienisch). The approach for studying and practicing the vocabulary. To ensure maximum effectiveness of the learning process,…

With the development of Career Oasis, King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals (KFUPM ) has pioneered the use of computer-based career guidance in Saudi Arabia. KFUPM contracted with Verbal Media, LLC, an American consulting company, to create a resource that would be available in both Arabic and English, in both online and paper-and-pencil…

Computer programming is a domain of knowledge that is generally considered difficult by students, many of whom experience low levels of achievement and become disillusioned. This paper suggests that cognitive load theory needs to be taken into account when designing instructional materials for this domain. The cognitive load that is experienced by…