German language classrooms lack authentic materials, especially at the intermediate and beginner levels. Authentic materials are generally substituted for mock materials in the target language, which creates an unrealistic and inauthentic second language (L2) environment. Additionally, authentic materials are oftentimes reserved for advanced L2…

Smart cities surveil through ubiquitous and intrusive data collection via networked sensors. Smart city efforts are also frequently imagined as primarily top-down and male visions of the future in service of economic benefit. The smart campus presents a new dimension of smart city urbanism as an identified gap in literature. In the following…

Makerspaces can support educational experiences in prototyping for young learners, while physical computing platforms enable high levels of creativity and expression. However, each of these have high barriers of entry, especially for youth without prior experience. Commercial microcontrollers have become a popular tool to use when designing both…

This study aimed to understand how and why social media and other online platforms are used as curricular resources by preservice teachers during their semester of student teaching. Furthermore, the study examined how preservice art teachers critically analyzed and transformed their approach to using online sources through the use of a curricular…

This thesis explores the use of Augmented Reality (AR) in two challenging scenarios -- autism therapy, and network-constrained, remote collaboration. In the first half of this thesis, we highlight the design and implementation of CustomAR and Augmented Playgrounds -- two applications that leverage the visualization and contextual abilities of AR…

Formerly incarcerated individuals face a number of obstacles transitioning home, among which job search is one of the critical issues. While searching for a job can be difficult for most people, returning citizens face additional obstacles due to their criminal records, gaps in employment, and reduced professional networks. Furthermore, returning…

Purpose. The purpose of this qualitative study was to identify and describe the impact of instructional technology on lesson effectiveness and obstacles to incorporating instructional technology into lesson design as perceived by elementary school teachers. Methodology. A qualitative ethnographic method was used in this study. Triangulation was…

The information age has revolutionized how people communicate, access information and learn. Today's students are locating, evaluating and using information in significantly different ways than they did just a generation ago (Holman, 2009). As students evolve their learning strategies, there is a need for teachers to evolve the way in which they…

Researchers have spent years understanding resource utilization to improve scheduling, load balancing, and system management through short-term prediction of resource utilization. Early research focused primarily on single operating systems; later, interest shifted to distributed systems and, finally, into web services. In each case researchers…

The following qualitative study examines the usability of a custom-designed Internet safety tutorial, targeted at elderly individuals who use the Internet regularly, for effectively conveying critical information regarding online fraud, scams, and other cyber security. The elderly population is especially at risk when it comes to fraudulent…

After a brain injury, children often return to school with complex learning needs. Most special educators receive little specific preparation relating to TBI and may lack the experience to assist children to reach their full potential. This study examined novice teachers' perceptions of the value of the academic and in-service professional…

Wireless mesh networks (WMNs) have recently emerged to be a cost-effective solution to support large-scale wireless Internet access. They have numerous applications, such as broadband Internet access, building automation, and intelligent transportation systems. One research challenge for Internet-based WMNs is to design efficient mobility…

In a Service Oriented Architecture (SOA), the hierarchical complexity of Web Services (WS) and their interactions with the underlying Application Server (AS) create new challenges in providing a realistic estimate of WS performance and reliability. The current approaches often treat the entire WS environment as a black-box. Thus, the sensitivity…

Humanity has entered an era where computing technology is virtually ubiquitous. From websites and mobile devices to computers embedded in appliances on our kitchen counters and automobiles parked in our driveways, information and communication technologies (ICTs) and IT artifacts are fundamentally changing the ways we interact with our world.…

The ability to solve problems in a variety of contexts is becoming increasingly important in our rapidly changing technological society. Problem-solving is a complex process that is important for everyday life and crucial for learning physics. Although there is a great deal of effort to improve student problem solving skills throughout the…