This is a critical phase for Open Educational Resources (OER) movement: on one side the number of OER is increasing rapidly, and on other side debates about quality of OER-based courseware are heating up. These debates emanate from the fact that OER-based courseware are supposed to help users to follow a logical learning path and get an engaging,…

While researchers are examining the role of playing games to learn, others are looking at using game design as an instructional tool. However, game-design software may require additional time to train both teachers and students. In this article, the authors discuss the use of Microsoft PowerPoint as a tool for game-design instruction and the…

Multiuser immersive learning scenarios hold strong potential for lifelong learning as they can support the acquisition of higher order skills in an effective, efficient, and attractive way. Existing virtual worlds, game development platforms, and game engines only partly cater for the proliferation of such learning scenarios as they are often…

Outlines two critical assumptions made about the creation of an educational Web site and then describes the three essential steps needed to create one: outlining, diagramming, and storyboarding. Suggests questions to consider for evaluating the site. Five figures provide illustrations. (AEF)

This paper presents a specific bottom-up implementation method for getting started with multimedia for instructional support at the personal level. Some minimal top-down design considerations for an institutional multimedia system include: (1) the instructor should be able to take work from/to the desktop to/from the classroom; (2) the capability…

Examines methods of lecturing in the past, including blackboards, whiteboards, flip charts, and overhead transparencies; discusses the increasing use of computer technology and specifications for future systems; and describes possible scenarios for future lecturing technologies, including the generation of computer-assisted instructional materials…

Introduces a vision for how a multimedia learning system might work, and describes the design parameters involved in developing the EyeCue System, a large-scale interdisciplinary research-and-development project under development at North Carolina State University. (AEF)

For educators interested in developing Web sites, four major issues should be addressed--ethics, prerequisites, design, and layout. By giving attention to these four areas, teachers will develop Web sites that improve their teaching and increase the opportunities for student learning. Each of these areas is addressed in detail, including:…

The theory and practice of the instructional design system includes the categories of design, development, utilization, evaluation, and management; instructional designers and teachers need to determine an appropriate balance of structural knowledge and detailed knowledge acquisition. The purpose of this study was to determine what teachers'…

Reports on part of a project aimed at creating tools for training teachers in the diagnostic and adaptation process of Alternative Augmentative Communication (AAC) systems for disabled children. Based on evaluation results the long-term objective is to add tutorial and coaching features to the system to be used in special-education training…