As university lecturers, we often struggle to provide our students with good quality feedback in a consistent manner. This is usually caused by the increasing imbalance in teacher-student ratios (Hounsell et al., 2008), as well as the pressure of academic life and the lack of time (Sadler, 2010). In addition, assessment practices should be…

The paper analyzes three major problems encountered by our team as we endeavored to turn problem solving examples in the domain of programming into highly reusable educational activities, which could be included as first class objects in various educational digital libraries. It also suggests three specific approaches to resolving these problems,…

This report provides short descriptions of systemic approaches for American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funding including: (1) 21st Century Classroom; (2) Comprehensive Professional Development; (3) Statewide Longitudinal Data Systems; (4) Formative Assessment; (5) Digital Content; (6) Virtual Learning; and (7) Learning Management Systems.

This paper presents both the design and the pilot formative evaluation study of a computer-based problem-solving environment (named LECGO: Learning Environment for programming using C using Geometrical Objects) for the learning of computer programming using C by beginners. In its design, constructivist and social learning theories were taken into…

This study examined the integration of technology enhanced formative assessment (FA) into teachers' practice. Participants were high school physics teachers interested in improving their use of a classroom response system (CRS) to promote FA. Data were collected using interviews, direct classroom observations, and collaborative discussions. The…

Web-based courses and programs have increasingly been developed by many academic institutions, organizations, and companies worldwide due to their benefits for both learners and educators. However, many of the developmental approaches lack two important considerations needed for implementing Web-based learning applications: (1) integration of the…

In this article we report on an 8-year process that included three successive iterations of the following cycle: (a) development of instructional technology, (b) formative evaluation, and (c) modification of the technology. From the first formative evaluation to the last, our students told us that they found heavily contextualized language…

ECOSET was established to meet the demand from policy makers and the teaching community in the European Community (EC) Member States for evidence of the effectiveness of information technology in various learning situations in general and of various kinds of software in particular. The main goals of ECOSET were to identify organizations in the…

This paper reviews a series of formative assessment studies that were conducted to inform and evaluate a large-scale instructional software development project at the University of Missouri-Rolla (UMR). The three-year project, entitled "Taking the Next Step in Engineering Education: Integrating Educational Software and Active Learning,"…

Discusses the importance of both formative and summative evaluation of instructional design technology in educational and business settings. Topics discussed include interactive video, computer assisted instruction, courseware, industrial training methods, cost effectiveness, learner performance data, current research, computer simulation, and…

Discussion of evaluation of computer-based learning (CBL) looks at six different approaches: use of quantitative data for assessment; student and staff attitudes and perceptions of computer use for learning; formative evaluation for CBL design; effectiveness of CBL in comparison to conventional instruction; evidence of whether CBL enables students…

This book enables educators at the elementary level to conduct formative evaluations of their technology programs in minimum time. Most of the technology is computer related, including word processing, graphics, desktop publishing, spreadsheets, databases, instructional software, programming, and telecommunications. The design of the book is aimed…

This paper reflects on the author's participation in two government-sponsored educational software development projects that used a holistic design paradigm in which classroom formative assessment and teacher input played a critical role in the development process. The two project were: R-WISE (Reading and Writing in a Supportive Environment)--a…

This paper describes how student reactions shaped the design of a WWW (World Wide Web)-based course environment at the University of Twente (Netherlands), using the example of a first year course. The first section discusses the importance of user interface (re)design for WWW-based courses. The University's focus on student evaluations of…

The EuroMET (European Meteorological Education and Training) project was created to address the education and training needs of professional meteorologists and students in tertiary education throughout Europe and more widely. Two courses, each modular in format, have been developed for the World Wide Web. The courses have been evaluated at three…