This report describes Indiana University's At-Risk Program, which uses distance education and a collaborative training approach to provide field-based coursework to practicing teachers. The focus of the training is upon improving educational services to at-risk students and mildly handicapped students in rural schools. The program consists of…

The effects of analogical and schematic illustrations on the comprehension and retention of expository prose were compared. The population was 191 eighth-grade students at Mahomet Junior High School, Illinois; 134 students' scores were used. Subjects were assigned to two groups through the random distribution of treatment booklets that included a…

The first of two articles in this issue of Policy Briefs focuses on the potential of modern technology to transform education in terms of what is taught, how it is taught, and how the educational enterprise is managed. Judson Hixson and Debra Beauprez center their discussion around five categories of issues that have emerged from this increased…

This practicum report describes a program designed to increase elementary teachers' comfort and skill in the use of computer related technology for the purpose of establishing effective integration of instructional technology. Other stated ancillary goals included improved instructional effectiveness in the classroom through the development of an…

Computers and other forms of technology are revolutionizing many aspects of society. U.S. education has sought to enhance the technological revolution, and to make computers available to students at all levels. However, in spite of wider availability, not all students are attaining equal access to computers and other items. This report seeks to…

This study was conducted to investigate five research questions concerning computer teachers: (1) How do male and female computer teachers compare in terms of professional preparation and experience? (2) What are the demographics of computer teachers currently in the classroom? (3) How do computer teachers' perceive their male and female students?…

The report details developments in three areas of United States foreign language instruction, each reflecting major changes in the way foreign language educators think about their role and the way in which they structure the learning process for students. The first section describes the adoption of a voluntary national standard for testing…

This paper briefly describes the design and development of The Museum Visitor's Prototype, an interactive multimedia videodisk that was developed for the Museum Education Consortium. The consortium, which consists of the education departments of seven art museums, investigates the roles that technology might play in museum and art education, and…

Although today's schools are rapidly acquiring computers and increasingly relying on them for instructional purposes, training of teachers to use computers in the classroom has not kept up with this trend. If teachers are to be held accountable for integrating computers into their instructional repertoire, they deserve systematic exposure to…

This newsletter special issue provides a compendium of information, strategies, and resources concerning the use of technology by individuals with special needs. A section on strategies for the effective use of technology contains the following papers: "A Philosophy for the Use of Technology in Special Education" (A. Edward Blackhurst…

Increasingly, technology is incorporated into second language teaching and learning both in and out of classroom situations. The computer alone has many capabilities for enhancing language learning, but when combined with other technologies, the possibilities multiply for information retrieval, interactive audio- and video-assisted learning, use…

In evaluating IMAGE, an open-ended computer assisted learning program designed to enable English children to produce, modify, and print artwork created on the computer, teachers' perceptions of the program were focused on what the software package can do and what can be learned from using the program. Eighty teachers utilized the package in their…

This book offers an alternative conceptual framework for effectively incorporating computer use within the heterogeneous classroom. The framework integrates Vygotskian social-learning theory with Allport's contact theory and the principles of cooperative learning. In Part 1 an essential element is identified for each of these areas. These are, in…

This book addresses the patterns of school failure that are often faced by subordinated minority groups in the United States by presenting a socioacademic framework based on the notion that all groups can have comparable access to quality schooling, can realize comparable participation in the schooling, and can derive comparable education benefits…

This report describes a program for formulating and implementing a staff development plan for technology within the Lake Forest School District (Delaware). The study focused on increasing teacher use of technology, primarily computers, through increased staff development. Attitudinal changes toward the use of technology were also investigated. Two…