Children ages 2, 3 and 4 years participated in a novel hide-and-seek search task presented on a touchscreen monitor. On beacon trials, the target hiding place could be located using a beacon cue, but on landmark trials, searching required the use of a nearby landmark cue. In Experiment 1, 2-year-olds performed less accurately than older children…

This paper discusses the development of a documentation technique for collaborative interactions. We describe the original version of the technique as used for a single learner collaborating with a software based learning partner; the second generation of the technique, which required adaptation for application to the analysis of group use of…

Some remember when they accessed the Internet through the telephone on a 300-baud modem. It was slow and it was not easy, but it gave them a view of the world. Now there is the web, idiot-proof email, and practically unlimited wireless connectivity. Having gone from desktop computers to laptops, now a major push is moving connectivity into the…

Audit trail analysis can provide valuable insights to researchers and evaluators interested in comparing and contrasting designers' expectations of use and students' actual patterns of use of educational technology environments (ETEs). Sequence analysis techniques are particularly effective but have been neglected to some extent because of real…

Electronic examination systems, which include Internet-based system, require extremely complicated installation, configuration and maintenance of software as well as hardware. In this paper, we present the design and development of a flexible, easy-to-use and secure examination system (e-Test), in which any commonly used computer can be used as a…

This article proposes a mathematical model of Intelligent Tutoring Systems (ITS), based on observations of the behaviour of these systems. One of the most important problems of pedagogical software is to establish a common language between the knowledge areas involved in their development, basically pedagogical, computing and domain areas. A…

This study focuses on how to support students who have to work together in small groups, and who do not know each other, in performing grounding discussion. It compares two different implementations of a script, one using a structured interface, one using a textual instruction, on students' discussion behavior. The experiment involved two…

The culture of the young may, in fact, be a harbinger enticing us to follow a pathway from which will emerge the re-conceptualized educational practices of this new century. The culture of those older will, no doubt, strive to maintain the more golden aspects of their now historical learning experiences. One of the tasks of all educators, but…

Speech technology--especially automatic speech recognition--has now advanced to a level where it can be of great benefit both to able-bodied people and those with various disabilities. In this paper we describe an application "TalkMaths" which, using the output from a commonly-used conventional automatic speech recognition system,…

Statistical clustering is critical in designing scalable image retrieval systems. This paper presents a scalable algorithm for indexing and retrieving images based on region segmentation. The method uses statistical clustering on region features and IRM (Integrated Region Matching), a measure developed to evaluate overall similarity between images…

Describes interfacing a hand-held oxygen probe with a microcomputer and suggests experiments for undergraduate chemistry courses that could facilitate student understanding of aquatic environmental processes which involve dissolved oxygen. Data can be analyzed through the program or exported into other software. Presents results of an experiment…

Develops a probabilistic model of the usage of an awareness-maintaining mechanism in a collaborative hypertext database system. Studies longitudinal time series data of user-database interaction. Finds that the recurring patterns in the occurrences of the awareness-seeking event were related to several contextual aspects of the Computer Supported…

Provides information on designing an effective and efficient computer user interface. Topics include determining an audience's mental model of the subject; creating effective navigation systems; components of the interface; what to consider when designing the interface; and the multimedia interface design process. (Author/LRW)

Describes the development of "Online" magazine, considers the impact it has had on its target audience of online searchers, and discusses changes in the online information field during the last 20 years. Topics include growth of the Internet; price competition; quality of information; and user interfaces. (LRW)

Demonstrates that college students' responses to a talking-face computer interface differ from their responses to a text-display interface. In reaction to a humanlike interface, subjects attributed some personality traits to it, were more aroused by it, and tended to present themselves more positively. Gender differences in interface reactions…