Advantages and disadvantages of standard Rasch analysis computer programs are discussed. The unconditional maximum likelihood algorithm allows all observations to participate equally in determining the measures and calibrations to be obtained quickly from a data set. On the advantage side, standard Rasch programs can be used immediately, are…

This report summarizes a series of eight research studies related to the use of computer-assisted instruction (CAI) with mildly handicapped students at the junior high or high school level. Through videodisc and CAI the studies isolated the effects of the following design variables: (1) review cycles; (2) size of teaching sets; (3) explicit…

The three units of study presented are designed to promote space-related learning opportunities for gifted students and were prepared by recipients of the Scobee curriculum awards. In "Galactic Colonization for Our Future Astronauts" (Jacqueline Shimonauff), elementary-level students simulate a space experience in which a ship carries materials…

This essay summarizes the theory and practice of computer simulation, assesses the state of the art of simulation with respect to pedagogically relevant processes like learning, and speculates about the impact of such simulations on pedagogical research and practice. Arguing that the use of computer simulation as a technique for building formal…

The development of a principled microcomputer-based adventure game that simulates the experience of higher education for prospective students in British schools is discussed. Playing the game is intended to provide prospective students a "realistic role preview." Consideration is given to an earlier board game and research on student…

Five sets of activities for students are included in this document. Each is designed for use in junior high and secondary school mathematics instruction. The first Note concerns mathematics on postage stamps. Historical procedures and mathematicians, metric conversion, geometric ideas, and formulas are among the topics considered. Successful…

Designed to investigate whether or not science teachers can positively influence student achievement in, and attitude toward, science, this study focused on a specific teaching strategy and utilization of a computer-based simulation. The software package used in the study was the simulation, Volcanoes, by Earthware Computer Services. The sample…

Described is the development and evaluation of the Micro-Place Social Studies Curriculum, an instructional system for teaching economics and law concepts at the fifth grade level. The curriculum is based on a miniature market economy that requires students to provide food, clothing, and shelter cards for simulated families. Students own businesses…

Simulation was used as a teaching method in a family communication class to foster a feeling of empathy with others. Although the course was originally designed to be taught as a seminar, the large number of students prompted the division of students into groups of five or six, characterized as families, each of which was to discuss concepts and…

One of a series of developmental projects that have produced and evaluated applications of an advanced multimedia, computer-based technology for basic skills education for Army enlisted personnel, this project focused on the development of an integrated curriculum to teach learning strategies and problem-solving skills. The first task was to…

This paper reviews the basic elements of the EM approach to estimating item parameters and illustrates its use with one simulated and one real data set. In order to illustrate the use of the BILOG computer program, runs for 1-, 2-, and 3-parameter models are presented for the two sets of data. First is a set of responses from 1,000 persons to five…

In this paper the theory that human thinking proceeds according to the computer model, or symbol manipulation, is reviewed and challenged. The research used as subjects five highly rated tournament chess players who "thought aloud" during a chess game to provide tape recorded protocols of decisions made while playing. These protocols…

The objectives of this workshop, jointly sponsored by the State Education Commission of the People's Republic of China and the International Institute for Educational Planning (IIEP), were to: discuss the problem of the relationship between the development of higher education, industrial growth, and technical change; analyze the growth of the…

The central purpose of the present study was to evaluate several statistical techniques (analysis of variance (ANOVA) on raw gains, standardized ANOVA, standard analysis of covariance (ANCOVA), and z-score ANOVA) under various quasi-experimental conditions (three levels of reliability, three levels of sample size, three levels of gain, and the…

Three research efforts that used computer-based simulations for maintenance training were in progress when this report was written: Game-Based Learning, which investigated the use of computer-based games to train electronics diagnostic skills; Human Performance in Fault Diagnosis Tasks, which evaluated the use of context-free tasks to train…