Data from a brief survey of current and potential uses of minicomputers in small educational institutions suggests that the principal role of minicomputers in such institutions will be for school administration and for teaching the use of computers. In the instructional area, emphasis should be placed on teaching (1) the potentials and…

New technical specialties are emerging within the computer industry at a rate threatening the ability of educational institutions to train those who would understand and apply them. The industry's ability to undertake more ambitious projects and to thereby solve more complex problems is limited by an inadequate force of skilled manpower. Thus, it…

The New Paltz, New York, school district has used the IBM Vehicle Scheduling Program (VSP) for scheduling its bus runs. In the process the district has reduced its transportation costs by 33.9 percent over a two-year period. (IRT)

APL (A Programing Language), a computer language used thus far largely for mathematical and scientific applications, can be used to tabulate a survey. Since this computer application can be appreciated by social scientists as well as mathematicians, it serves as an invaluable pedagogical tool for presenting APL to nonscientific users. An…

This paper states that there are two fundamental reasons for the comparative absence of computer use for parks and recreation at the present time. These are (1) lack of clear cut cost justification and (2) reluctance on the part of recreation professionals to accept their role as managers and, consequently, to utilize modern management tools. The…

The introduction and diffusion of automatic computing facilities during the 1960's is reviewed; it is described as a time when research strategies in a broad variety of disciplines changed to take advantage of the newfound power provided by the computer. Several types of typical problems encountered by researchers who adopted the new technologies,…

User perception of data importance and the economic feasibility of hardware and storage devices will determine the future direction of online systems. A retrieval system's functions are ultimately dictated by database design. Early online sytems were designed for bibliographic information limited to citations only using sequential files. When…

Designed to illustrate effective course design for user-oriented materials for data processing education or training, this paper argues that conceptual knowledge should be integrated into a course only as it is needed to support task knowledge. The importance of determining the direction of a course by planning and controlling the informational…

In exploring the impact of microcomputers and the future of the university in 1985 and beyond, a distinction should be made between computing literacy--the ability to use a computer--and computer literacy, which goes beyond successful computer use to include knowing how to program in various computer languages and understanding what goes on…

While university researchers have long made use of the complex research-oriented applications of the computer and have discussed its utilization in the instructional process, in the early stages of computer use in higher education, two-year colleges made little or no use of its advanced research capabilities, and limited its use to business and…

The experience of Western Michigan University in the design and implementation of a combined information/decision support center is described. The center's design was in response to the outcomes of a long-range planning process, which helped identify unmet user needs. Three types of support were found to be required: education and consulting,…

A package of instructional materials for an undergraduate principles of accounting course at Danville Community College was developed based upon the following assumptions: (1) the principles of accounting student does not need to be able to write computer programs; (2) computerized accounting concepts should be presented in this course; (3)…

In this paper the theory that human thinking proceeds according to the computer model, or symbol manipulation, is reviewed and challenged. The research used as subjects five highly rated tournament chess players who "thought aloud" during a chess game to provide tape recorded protocols of decisions made while playing. These protocols…

A study, presented to the National Computer Conference, examined the existing methods of training highly competent and knowledgeable computer programers, analysts, and data processors. Four main sources of instruction were identified: (1) private electronic data processing (EDP) schools, (2) colleges, (3) manufacturers' schools, and (4) inhouse…

Results of a survey of school district data processing directors' attitudes toward the content of technology curriculum in educational administrator training programs are presented in this paper. Questionnaires sent to 152 large school districts yielded 78 usable returns, a 51 percent response rate. Respondents rated the following topics as most…