Describes Maine's GAIA (Greek goddess of the earth) Crossroads Project. Elementary and secondary students prepare maps of local land and water resources from computer analyses of satellite images of the coastline. Students mix technology and environmental awareness, learning they can control their future by advising the townspeople on development.…

Lists supplementary materials cited in the Educational Resources Information Center (ERIC) database that can help social studies teachers use computers effectively in the classroom. Provides

Illustrated is the use of spreadsheet programs for implementing finite difference numerical simulations of chromatography as an instructional tool in a separations course. Discussed are differential equations, discretization and integration, spreadsheet development, computer requirements, and typical simulation results. (CW)

This paper describes two innovative and linked approaches to teaching and student learning in the environmental and development geography of the Mekong region, a region remote from students' normal experiential options. The first approach is field-based learning through Field Schools carried out in Vietnam, Laos and Thailand. The second approach…

The IMMEX (Interactive Multi-Media Exercises) Web-based problem set platform enables the online delivery of complex, multimedia simulations, the rapid collection of student performance data, and has already been used in several genetic simulations. The next step is the use of these data to understand and improve student learning in a formative…

Kinetic models of a gas can be hard for students to understand. Typical tools do not display events at the microscopic level, yet computer simulations of the molecules lack a hands-on aspect. Here a new tool is described that combines the squeezing of a syringe with a computer simulation, and it is shown that this has worked well in class for both…

The purpose of this study was to investigate how exposure to classroom instruction affected the use of a computer simulation that was designed to provide students an opportunity to apply material presented in class. The study involved an analysis of a computer-based crisis communication case study designed for a college-level public relations…

Spatial abilities are fundamental to human functioning in the physical world. Spatial reasoning allows people to use concepts of shape, features, and relationships in both concrete and abstract ways, to make and use things in the world, to navigate, and to communicate. Surgeons, pilots, architects, engineers, mechanics, builders, farmers, trades…

This article discusses the relationship between procedural and conceptual problem solving in a computer-supported collaborative learning (CSCL) environment designed within the field of science education. The contribution of this article, and our understanding of this phenomenon, is anchored in our socio-cultural interpretation, and that implies…

This study aims at highlighting the collaborative activity of two high school students (age 14) in the cases of modeling the complex biological process of plant growth with two different tools: the "paper & pencil" concept mapping technique and the computer-supported educational environment "ModelsCreator". Students' shared activity in both cases…

Background: Although much has been written about the ways in which new technology might transform educational practice, particularly in the area of literacy learning, there is relatively little empirical work that explores the possibilities and problems--or even what such a transformation might look like in the classroom. 3D virtual worlds offer a…

Beginning in 1985, Apple Computer, Inc., and several school districts began a collaboration to examine the impact of computer saturation on instruction and learning in K-12 classrooms. The initial guiding question was simply put: What happens when teachers and students have constant access to technology? To provide "constant access,"…

This study investigated the effectiveness of computer simulations for enhancing the problem solving skills of high school students. Summaries of three related studies are presented. Results indicate that the computerized simulations enabled students to master the objectives of a biology course as effectively as traditional methods. (ML)

Announces the incorporation of a laboratory information management system (LIMS) into the academic environment. Describes the applications of a computer-automated laboratory system at one university. Stresses the benefits to students of the use of such a system in terms of entry into the industrial environment and to professors in grading. (CW)

Lists criteria for selecting quality computer software. Describes tutorial, drill and practice, test scoring, and simulations as innovative uses of microcomputers. Establishes a need for the use of computers and courseware as learning opportunities. Defines significant vocabulary terms and concepts to promote literacy. (RT)