Considers the goal of creating communities of learners and how to integrate technology with learning. Highlights include cognitive apprenticeships; qualities of meaningful learning, including constructivism and collaboration; assumptions about technology, including knowledge construction; proper roles for technology; and how to support meaningful…

Discussion of the appropriate use of technology for distance education focuses on the need to examine why a delivery system is selected and proposes a method for selecting the medium based on course curricula and the need for motion. Use of the Internet for delivery is also considered. (Author/LRW)

Systemic approaches like outcome-based education can't accommodate the common good of rural areas; rural scholars are rightly skeptical of "the one best system" and supporting technologies. Educators should also question new technologies (distance education, computer-assisted instruction, and telecommunications) promising an even more…

Examines the role of educational technology from a constructivist perspective. Discusses the subset of computer-based technologies, especially the Internet, that are changing the way interactivity is defined, and examines how these technologies interface with constructivist approaches to pedagogy. Explores the place of constructivism as a…

This first article in a five-part professional development course designed for educators using technology focuses on how to gain access to the appropriate technology. Highlights include the minimum level of resources needed; planning; setting goals; professional growth; administrator support; and obstacles to using technology successfully. (LRW)

Considers the role of educational technology in two views of the school reform movement: one that demands more from the existing educational system, and one that calls for restructuring of the existing system. The effectiveness of technology is addressed, models for technology use are described, and technology and constructivism are discussed. (31…

This paper on the application of principles to computer-assisted language learning (CALL) first clarifies the the relationships between the capabilities of the computer (and computer-controlled technology) and the main approaches to second language learning. Fourteen common types of CALL programs are briefly reviewed. A "relational" classification…

Outlines design issues for developing an asynchronous distance course, including appropriate technology, format, academic rigor, communication and feedback, group identity, and evaluation. The components of a graduate course in psychology at the State University of New York at Cortland, currently being offered using this model are described, and…

Use of educational technology does not necessarily ensure educational quality unless objectives, curriculum, and the notion of competency are clearly defined. This article explores the importance of identifying competency, which is composed of domain-specific facts, knowledge, and cognitive skills. Recognition of the competency paradigm enables…

This book addresses the issues of appropriate use of computers with young children and how children and early childhood educators interact with the computer in early childhood settings. Part 1, "Young Children as Active Learners," contains chapter 1: "Listen to the Children: Observing Young Children's Discoveries with the…

Discussion of technological innovations in education focuses on the potentials of the microcomputer as a classroom instructional method. Programing, computer literacy, software applications, and problem solving are suggested as ways to incorporate computers into the curriculum, and examples of applications of computers in elementary and secondary…

Argues that the tendency to focus on the technical aspects of distance learning contributes to the infrequency of distance learning methods usage in education and training. Discusses the technical and human dimensions of distance learning, resistance to change, user perspective, and inertia and entropy. Outlines 10 human dimension principles…

Discusses the role of technology in education and presents 10 case studies of schools that have implemented technological solutions to curriculum objectives in kindergarten through eighth grade classrooms. Highlights include the role of the teacher; writing grant proposals; integrated learning systems; inservice training; curriculum models; local…

Describes activities of the Carter Center that focus on helping developing countries and suggests mutually beneficial roles universities in the United States could play. Topics discussed include the involvement of business in schools; the use of technology; foreign aid; planning for the future; and linking major universities with developing…

The goals of this study at Charles Sturt University (Australia) were to collect and interpret data about the way that students used various features of an electronic study guide in the context of a distance education setting and to uncover any relationship that affected the desirability of this medium of delivering educational materials. The study…