Describes how microcomputer technology for processing textual data offers new options for the qualitative researcher in educational administration. Identifies both the potential benefits and limitations of such computer-assisted procedures, drawing on a study of local educational governance. Describes ETHNOGRAPH, a sophisticated, user-friendly…

The Apple Classroom of Tomorrow (ACOT) project is an attempt to alter the instructional premises of a selected group of seven experimental classrooms in the United States by saturating them with computer technology. A recent proposal submitted to Apple Computer described STAR (Sensible Technology Assessment/Research), which includes both…

Discusses epistemological issues involved in the use of qualitative methods to assess classroom-based microcomputer programs, specifically Apple Computer's "Apple Classrooms of Tomorrow." Six models of qualitative data design and use are examined: anecdotal, structured observations, case study, multisite case study, ethnography, and…

A qualitative study examined the effects of a hypermedia program on diversity training completed by 65 undergraduate students. Results showed that when different types of implementation groups were utilized, discussion (considered vital to diversity training) only occurred on a regular basis in facilitated groups, and to a lesser degree in pair…

The longitudinal research reported in this paper took place in a K-8 school setting located in a suburb east of Los Angeles (California). Over a period of five years the school experienced saturation of computer and video technology; state-funded support for change; and (eventually) a restructured organization of the school in support of change.…

Beginning in 1985, Apple Computer, Inc. and several school districts began a collaboration to examine the impact of intensive computer use on instruction and learning in K-12 classrooms. This paper follows the development of a Macintosh II-based management and retrieval system for text data undertaken to store and retrieve oral reflections of…

This paper presents the results of a qualitative study of the interaction between computer assisted instruction (CAI) and cooperative learning. The constructivist perspective is discussed in relation to other learning theories, and is emphasized as the theoretical basis for the study because of its focus on prior learning, student characteristics,…

Describes a microcomputer-based software package developed at the University of Surrey for teaching digital signal processing to undergraduate science and engineering students. Menu-driven software capabilities are explained, including demonstration of qualitative concepts and experimentation with quantitative data, and examples are given of…

Based on weekly reports sent via electronic mail, correspondence between sites, and bi-monthly audiotapes from teachers, this qualitative study analyses data from 32 elementary and secondary Apple Classrooms of Tomorrow (ACOT) teachers in five schools concerning management changes that occurred in teaching and learning in the new computerized…

Designed to describe effective computer inservice programs and to determine the components that contributed to their effectiveness, this study identified eight school districts from across the country that appeared to be providing outstanding computer training for teachers. Case studies of these eight model districts were conducted in which…

This evaluation report describes the first year of an innovative attempt by three Chicago-area high schools, IBM, and Ameritech to introduce computing and telecommunications resources into the educational environment. Information presented in this project report was gathered by the evaluation team in over 32 day-long site visits to the schools,…

The study described in this report examined the ways in which teachers prepare to teach using microcomputers. The participants in the study were four teachers who used computers in instruction, and who had been identified as outstanding by an educational foundation. They represented elementary special education, high school gifted education,…

Utilizing self-report data from 32 elementary and secondary teachers, this longitudinal, qualitative study examines the role shifts of both teachers and students as they adapted to teaching and learning in educational, technology-rich, Apple Classrooms of Tomorrow environments. At first, teachers in these instructionally innovative classrooms…

This report summarizes the results of studies of four computer-assisted integrated learning systems (ILS) designed to teach students arithmetic: two in Israel (TOAM--distributed in the United States as DEGEM and SEMEL) and two in the United States (CCC and WICAT). The qualitative and quantitative studies identified cognitive, sociological, and…