Presents responses of leaders from six simulation companies about challenges and opportunities of soft-skills simulations in e-learning. Discussion includes: evaluation metrics; role of subject matter experts in developing simulations; video versus computer graphics; technology needed to run simulations; technology breakthroughs; pricing;…

The 3D computer graphics (3D-CG) animation using a virtual actor's speaking is very effective as an educational medium. But it takes a long time to produce a 3D-CG animation. To reduce the cost of producing 3D-CG educational contents and improve the capability of the education system, we have developed a new education system using Virtual Actor.…

Despite a long tradition, conventional anatomy education based on dissection is declining. This study tested a new virtual reality (VR) technique for anatomy learning based on virtual contrast injection. The aim was to assess whether students value this new three-dimensional (3D) visualization method as a learning tool and what value they gain…

Modern information technology and computer science curricula employ a variety of graphical tools and development environments to facilitate student learning of introductory programming concepts and techniques. While the provision of interactive features and the use of visualization can enhance students' understanding and assist them in grasping…

In this study, integration of art and science instruction was applied in an experimental computer art graphics class, as undergraduates learned geological concepts and processes through creating computer art graphics. The qualitative study concerning students' perception of integrative instruction was made from the students' point of view.…

This paper describes a National Science Foundation-sponsored project at Louisiana Technological University to develop computer-based laboratories for "hands-on" introductions to major topics of computer science. The underlying strategy is to develop structured laboratory environments that present abstract concepts through the use of…

Graduate students often have difficulty understanding the concepts behind the various models of instructional design (ID). In order to help students in an introductory ID course come to a better understanding of the similarities and differences between various instructional models, the models were developed into dynamic computer graphics to use…

In this paper, an instructor at Miami University Middletown (Ohio) describes how Authorware (by Macromedia) proved to be a valuable tool in developing interactive computer tutorials for physics instruction. Obstacles to improved instruction that had presented themselves were as follows: (1) some of the students' learning styles were not being…

Researchers investigated whether there was a difference in learning when teachers used PowerPoint software. Study participants were 143 students in a teacher education program at a mid-sized midwestern university. Students ranged in age from 20-48 years and were primarily Caucasian. Class size ranged from 33-39 students each of the four semesters…

A computer-based method of communicating syntactic knowledge to deaf students was designed, building on the visual orientation of deaf students and employing such American Sign Language techniques as visualization and directionality. The computer-based instructional treatments were presented as an educational game called the "Yes-No Game," with…

A midwestern university is testing a program that uses the Apple II computer to help students in an advertising research course develop their skills in preparing and presenting research reports using computer generated graphics for both oral and written presentations. One of the course requirements is the preparation of a final project, including…

"Intermedia" is a hypermedia system which was developed for use in university research and teaching. It provides a framework for object-oriented, direct manipulation editors and applications, and the capability to link together materials created with those applications. Instructors are able to construct exploratory environments for their…

A study compared the amount of contact and the attitudes of young and old individuals toward computers and computer-based instruction (CAI). Developmental differences were examined in the effectiveness of two instructional design features--the use of pictorial (graphics) versus highlighting--and extent of learner participation. Fifty elderly…

These three volumes list and describe a total of 65 new educational software products. The lists are the result of February and September 1988 polls of 10 computer coordinators from large educational software preview centers and evaluation agencies, who were asked to identify new products they had seen which, in their professional opinion, were…

Two questions about the effects of microcomputer-based laboratory (MBL) activities on graphing skills were addressed in this study: (1) the extent to which activities help students link their concrete experiences with motion with graphic representations of these experiences; and (2) the degree of importance of the real-time aspect of the MBL in…