This report compares two methods of teaching BASIC programming used to develop computer literacy among children in grades three through seven in British Columbia. Phase one of the project was designed to instruct children in grades five to seven on the arithmetic operations of writing simple BASIC programs. Instructional methods included using job…

Describes how informatics is being integrated into the Bulgarian schools' curriculum through the use of microcomputers, Logo, and appropriate software. A set of problems that could be used for introducing informatics is presented which is based on the programming notions of cycle, recursion, and coding. (LRW)

Survey of informatics developments within Danish schools discusses the report of the Johnsen Committee, which was mandated to undertake an assessment of public teaching of informatics; computer education in primary schools, general secondary schools, and secondary vocational schools; computing capacity; situation in the municipality of Odense; and…

Students in certain French language schools in eastern Ontario took part in this initial experiment in the teaching of computer and electronic programing at the elementary school level. This project had three objectives for optimizing the pedagogical impact of these first attempts at teaching programing: (1) to describe the context of this initial…

This guide to a 4-unit, required high school computer science course emphasizes problem solving and computer programming and is designed for use with a variety of hardware configurations and programming languages. An overview covers the program rationale, goals and objectives, program design and description, program implementation, time allotment,…

This survey was conducted to provide information on the level of computer usage in Canadian community colleges. A 19-question form was mailed to the deans of instruction in 175 Canadian public community colleges identified as such by Statistics Canada. Of these, 111 colleges returned their surveys (a 63% response rate), and the results were…

Describes 12 constraints imposed by culture on educational software portability. Nielsen's seven-level virtual protocol model of human-computer interaction is discussed as a framework for considering the constraints, a hypothetical example of adapting software for Mexico is included, and suggestions for overcoming constraints and making software…

The hierarchical model for the teaching of computer programming to children that is presented in this report comprises five content domains: (1) technical skills of controlling the machine; (2) mastery of the programming language; (3) understanding the structure of a computer program; (4) understanding the logical dynamics of the computer program;…

Designed to promote Manitoba students' familiarity with computer technology and their ability to interact with that technology, the Computer Applications and Technology 105 course is a one-credit course presented in 15 topical, non-sequential units that require 110-120 hours of instruction time. It has been developed with the assumption that each…

Three articles on the use of new technologies in education focus on (1) Digital Video Interactive (DVI) Technology and its value in designing and developing educational materials for children; (2) problem solving with computers by using functions; and (3) new information technology and educational change in Norway. (LRW)

Provides an overview of current issues in the implementation and usage of computers in Latin American schools. Ten major trends are discussed, including national policies, training for teachers, computer literacy, software, hardware, curriculum implementation based on programing languages, private support, the absence of networks, publications,…

Reviews national policy on informatics and education in Argentina. Lists government efforts to enhance computer literacy. Discusses the social context of computers. Calls for teacher training in computer techniques. Highlights the importance of computer resource specialists in schools. (CW)

An introductory computer literacy curriculum for teachers and administrators developed by the Science Teaching Centre of the Department of Education at Tel Aviv University covered four major topics: (1) The Information Society; (2) Computer Aided Learning; (3) Computer Languages and Education; and (4) Implementation of Computers in Schools--A…

The process through which the basic principles and concepts of computer programming language are acquired by children was investigated via the development and testing of a teaching unit for fourth and sixth grade students. This unit had three components: (1) basic programming without variables; (2) basic programming with variables; and (3)…