It's not always easy to get teens talking. But when the author became a young adult specialist at the Wilbraham (Massachusetts) Public Library four years ago, that's exactly what she had to do. Her main mission was to bring in as many high schoolers as possible. She needed to find out exactly what they wanted from the library. when she asked them…

Games have always been a part of the human experience. Even the earliest of civilizations created games for enjoyment and entertainment. However, the educational value of those games is a relatively recent consideration. Over the previous fifty years, scholars have questioned the potential positive lessons learned from games such as Monopoly[R],…

In this paper we describe how we fostered learning by modifying an existing course which covered topics relevant to biosciences. This course was offered predominantly to first year undergraduate science, biomedical science and environment students. The students were trained to find reliable scientific information via computer searches, and shown…

A method is described for building a cost effective digital circuit capable of monitoring the solar radiation incident upon a remote solar cell. The circuit is built in two sections, the first, digitises the analogue voltage produced by the solar cell at a remote location and transmits the received signal to the second receiver circuit which…

Technology can be a powerful tool to increase motivation, engagement, and achievement (Park, Khan, and Petrina 2009). In this article, the authors describe their collaborative approach to integrating technology with a lab on bacterial transformation. Students view websites and create videos to increase their conceptual understanding. Although the…

It's always hard to know what to expect when bringing computers into an educational setting, as things are always changing. Student skills with computers are different today than they were 10 years ago, and 20 years ago almost counts as an alien world. Still, one hopes that some of these changes result in positive trends, such as student attitudes…

The ability to use computer-based technology is an essential skill set for students majoring in chemistry. This exercise details the introduction of appropriate uses for this technology in the organic chemistry series. The incorporation of chemically appropriate online resources (module 1), scientific databases (module 2), and the use of a…

It is important for educators to find the appropriate tool to unlock learning possibilities for students. A first step toward using the appropriate tool is for school librarians to review the course of study. They need to look at the units and projects taught in the past. They then need to think about how to integrate Web 2.0 applications to…

A classroom lecture at Capistrano Connections Academy in Southern California involves booting up the home computer, logging on to a Web site, and observing a teacher conducting a PowerPoint presentation of that day's lesson entirely online. Through microphone headsets, students can watch on their home computers, respond to the teacher's questions,…

Children are often intrigued by number patterns and games and so it makes sense for teachers to include them in their mathematics lessons. Puzzles encourage the use of critical thinking skills and provide practice in important skills areas. The use of games fosters mathematical learning and encourages the mathematical processes that children use.…

Interactive computer-based simulations have been applied in several contexts to teach statistical concepts in university level courses. In this report, the use of interactive simulations as part of summative assessment in a statistics course is described. Students accessed the simulations via the web and completed questions relating to the…

Describing an online faculty member or community college faculty member may soon be synonymous. The role of the online faculty and the knowledge and skills associated with the growth of online course enrollments are transforming the nature and characteristics of community college faculty as a profession. To accomplish these tasks, an online…

The Internet has expanded the potential for learning exponentially. Its greatest gift has been greater access, and while academics will continue to debate the "equivalency" of online course work, no one can dispute the personal empowerment that has resulted. Much like the goal of the Coke commercial, online learning has become a means for…

For the Garland Independent School District, a tournament was the tipping point. With too many of its students failing the math portion of state-mandated exams and in danger of being held back, the suburban Dallas district was determined to raise scores. The students lacked motivation, and Garland was seeking a better method of engaging them.…

Our paper introduces a new initiative on a common computer program used as a cognitive tool that facilitates learning "with" as opposed to learning "through" technology. The tool, which comprises a modification of a so-called boilerplate, is part of a joint learning system (Kim and Reeves, 2007) in which the tool, learner and activity are equal…