This presentation focuses on theory, research, and practice in the application of simulations to preservice and inservice teacher education. The first of three major sections presents a brief historical review, featuring the pioneering work of Bert Kersh and his associates at the Teaching Research Division of the Oregon State System of Higher…

Four discrimination indices were compared, using score distributions which were normal, bimodal, and negatively skewed. The score distributions were systematically varied to represent the common circumstances of a military training situation using criterion-referenced mastery tests. Three 20-item tests were administered to 110 simulated subjects.…

These materials on geometric probability are the first unit in a course being developed by the Mathematics Department at the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics. This course is designed to prepare high school students who have completed Algebra 2 for the variety of math courses they will encounter in college. Assuming only a knowledge…

This paper describes the simulator phase of Commonwealth Edison's program for training and licensing operators of nuclear power stations. Topics covered include (1) preparing the students before starting the simulator phase; (2) the simulator schedule and the number of students that can be trained effectively in a class; (3) format and structure…

Activities designed for a fourth-year college German class involving role-playing and simulation of either real or realistic situations are described and explained. The situations are developed in genuine communicative settings encouraging dynamic exchange of ideas and opinions. Examples of simulations presented include a United Nations Security…

An evaluation of the instructional materials used by high school and college students who participated in the Model United Nations Program showed that the program is uncritical of the United Nations (U.N.) and biased against the United States and the West in general. These materials are strongly promoted by many prominent educational professional…

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of animated instruction and levels of practice on application learning in a computer-based instructional (CBI) science lesson. A total of 119 fourth and fifth grade students participated in an introductory lesson covering Newton's Laws of Motion. Three levels of visual elaboration (static…

This paper examines the cognitive processes associated with higher-order thinking strategies--i.e., cognitive processes directly associated with the employment of knowledge in the service of problem solving and creativity--in order to more clearly define a prescribed instructional method to improve problem-solving skills. The first section of the…

The target of difficulty of the Educational Technology Center (ETC) Heat and Temperature Group is basic thermal physics, particularly the differentiation between heat and temperature. High school teachers often find that thermal concepts are very difficult for their students to master and attribute students' difficulties at least in part to the…

In 1975, India's Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi, declared a state of emergency, temporarily suspending the civil liberties of this country's citizens. This classroom simulation, designed for use in secondary school world history classes, examines the various issues surrounding this declaration of emergency and includes: (1) an introduction to the…

To compile its projections of future employment levels, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) combines the following five interlinked models in a six-step process: a labor force model, an econometric model of the U.S. economy, an industry activity model, an industry labor demand model, and an occupational labor demand model. The BLS was asked to…

Policy Analysis and Simulation System (PASS) is an interactive microcomputer model that can be used by educational administrators, policy-makers, and planners to simulate and forecast, under conditions of environmental uncertainty, the impact of strategic policies on the projected trends and goals of educational performance. PASS generates…

This paper argues that electronic text applications in higher education can be conceptualized in terms of three communicational intentions of computer-based systems: informational, instructional, and instrumental (tool-oriented). Product-oriented and service-oriented applications of electronic text are contrasted, and instructional applications…

A technique for studying how parents think, make decisions, and solve childrearing problems, Computer-Presented Social Interactions (CPSI), is described. Two studies involving CPSI are presented. The first study concerns a common parental cognitive task: causal analysis of an undesired behavior. The task was to diagnose the cause of non-contingent…

This curriculum unit is intended to serve as a general introduction to the study of the traditions and culture of the vast heartland of the Eurasian land mass called Inner Asia. Objectives are to stimulate student and teacher interest in Inner Asian studies, as well as to encourage students to learn about the historical experience of other…