This article develops an expanded, collaborative and structured view of the process of critiquing observed lesson fragments and shows how this process can be used as a model for developing students' understanding and thinking about teaching and learning processes. The authors introduce Carter's (2007) notion of a meta-genre, "[a] way of doing…

Education traditionally has been defined as a one-way relationship between teacher and learner. However, new technologies are dramatically changing that relationship in a multitude of ways. In this article, the authors describe some of these changes and explore one example of the intersection between technology and pedagogy, describing a college…

This paper reports on a design-based research (DBR) process for designing, implementing, and refining a problem-based learning (PBL) course on educational digital video (DV) use and production at the University of Lapland's Faculty of Education. The study focuses on the students' learning processes and outcomes from the viewpoint of meaningful…

The most pressing need in early childhood mathematics education in the United States is to improve early childhood teacher preparation. A Web-based video system, "Video Interactions for Teaching and Learning (VITAL)", is a novel and effective approach for teacher preparation integrated into early childhood mathematics education courses. With…

The purpose of this study is to investigate the integration of a cognitive apprenticeship model in a Web-based course. The subject of this study is an educational technology course for pre-service P-12 teacher education students. Specifically, this study presents student reports of how cognitive apprenticeship methods impacted student learning…

Video usage in educational contexts is on the rise. We examined 3 alternative theories about cognitive mechanisms of learning and their implications for instructional design when video is employed to enhance text-based learning. Hypothesis-testing procedures followed a falsificationist approach, grounded in philosophy of science literature.…

While many teachers and teacher educators agree that it is important to integrate new literacies and technologies into their teaching, educators are often perplexed about how to begin thinking about this task. Research reveals that educators use technologies for personal and communicative purposes, but teachers, for the most part, have not yet…

Drawing on research literature on online discussion and on reading and learning from the text, we argue that research on learning from text has much to offer but has been largely absent in informing the design and study of online learning environments. We propose several key issues to be considered in research and development of online discussion,…

Monitoring the learning process in computer supported collaborative learning (CSCL) environments is a key element for supporting the efficacy of tutor actions. This article proposes an approach for analysing learning processes in a CSCL environment to support tutors in their monitoring tasks. The approach entails tracking the interactions within…

This paper presents a methodology designed to explore the role of context in collaborative knowledge construction activity in asynchronous web-based discussion. The discussions of two student groups participating in a web-based teacher education course were compared. The comparison aimed to highlight the differences and similarities between the…

The introduction of an open-ended MicroWorlds based assignment in a pre-service teaching degree produced interesting results. Students engaged with the task at very high levels and produced work of high quality; so much so that marking trends were reversed. This paper explores the design and implementation of the task and how for many students it…

Background: Many of the agent-based products available to education today have been largely confined to games and instructional media that are often produced commercially by non-instructional professionals. Most of them lack customizability and are difficult to integrate into individual subject curriculum. With more agent authoring tools available…

There has been little research on how a content-based teacher education course can embed effective training in the use of the World Wide Web to search for information and present learning outcomes. To address this gap, the present study documents the experience of 64 pre-service and in-service teachers who completed a web-based group project in an…

The possibility of creating an appropriate online learning environment for distance adult students was examined in a study of 22 Pennsylvania State University (Penn State) students' attitudes regarding the online version of a course offered as part of Penn State's masters of education program. The students completed surveys before, during, and…