A well-designed experiment is the best method for establishing efficacy of any intervention, be it medical, behavioral, or educational in nature. This paper reviews the steps necessary in conducting a comparative experiment in an educational setting, and illustrates how these steps might be fulfilled within the context of a large-scale randomized…

This research study employs a second-order meta-analysis procedure to summarize 40 years of research activity addressing the question, does computer technology use affect student achievement in formal face-to-face classrooms as compared to classrooms that do not use technology? A study-level meta-analytic validation was also conducted for purposes…

In this paper we report on a study of a short-term mathematics program for grade 7-8 gifted students that integrated open-ended mathematics tasks with the arts (poetry and drama) and with technology. The program was offered partially online and partially in a classroom setting. The study sought to investigate (a) students' perceptions of their…

Within the (Computer-Supported) Collaborative Learning (CS)CL research community, there has been an extensive dialogue on theories and perspectives on learning from collaboration, approaches to scaffold (script) the collaborative process, and most recently research methodology. In contrast, the issue of assessment of collaborative learning has…

The design and empirical validation of a computer-based learning environment for acquiring long division skills, called the long division machine (LDM), are described. The construction of the LDM is primarily based on the didactic method of progressive schematisation. It offers the student a game-like environment for solving division problems by…

Not every art department is fortunate enough to have access to digital cameras and image-editing software, but if a scanner, computer, and printer are available, students can create some imaginative and surreal work. This high-school level lesson begins with a discussion of self-portraits, and then moves to students creating images by scanning…

How can children lead productive and satisfying lives in the 21st century if school teachers are having them use technology from the 20th century? The hallmark of the 21st century global workplace is the computer. According to a recent Pew Internet and American Life Project study, "The Digital Disconnect: The Widening Gap between…

The creation of the first SCORM (Shareable Content Object Reference Model) object offers some challenges and difficulties which go beyond the facilities offered by content generation applications. In particular, the creation of really reusable, searchable learning objects requires a detailed consideration of metadata, where some institutional…

Purpose: In this study, the authors examined emerging comprehension monitoring, including error detection, evaluation, and correction within the context of story understanding in preschool children with and without language impairment. Method: Thirty-seven children between the ages of 30 and 61 months completed an online comprehension monitoring…

This article discusses the growing demand of using touchscreen interface. Consumers are now seeing touchscreens in a wide variety of electronics, not only in competitors to the iPhone from Sony, Samsung, Motorola, LG and T-Mobile, but also in desktop PCs, printers and copiers, televisions, and MP3 players. Teens, if they don't have a touch-enabled…

The introduction of elearning often leads to an increase in the time staff spends on tutoring. To alleviate the workload of staff tutors, we developed a model for organizing and supporting learner-related interactions in elearning systems. It makes use of the knowledge and experience of peers and builds on the assumption that (lifelong) learners,…

Some might argue that the true ability to think, perceive, and analyse mathematically is the ability to solve problems. Others might say that it has more to do with advanced applications of procedures in particular contexts. The author would like to put a slightly different spin on this by viewing it, at least partly, in terms of one's ability to…

Political and institutional support has enabled many institutions of learning to spend millions of dollars to acquire educational computing tools (Ficklen and Muscara, "Am Educ" 25(3):22-29, 2001) that have not been effectively integrated into the curriculum. While access to educational technology tools has remarkably improved in most schools,…

This article explores the Digital Vaults and offers suggestions in introducing this site to students. The Digital Vaults, inspired by the permanent Public Vaults exhibition launched by the National Archives in 2004, is not just another website, but it designed to be an online exhibit and teaching tool, by offering both exposure to historical…

This article describes how some teachers such as Gamal Sherif are turning to electronic resources to capture students' interest in the election. Sherif, who teaches history and science at the Science Leadership Academy, a public school in Philadelphia, said "the technology is fun and helpful, but it's also a tool one can use to get a better…