This evaluation report describes the first year of an innovative attempt by three Chicago-area high schools, IBM, and Ameritech to introduce computing and telecommunications resources into the educational environment. Information presented in this project report was gathered by the evaluation team in over 32 day-long site visits to the schools,…

Authentic assessment directly examines student performance on worthy intellectual tasks. The student determines the topic, the time allotted, the pacing, and the conditions under which the examples are generated. Authentic assessment is labor intensive, time-consuming, and expensive. Technology can provide the means for students to reflect on…

This is the third revision of a primer on all aspects of educational technology. It offers an authoritative overview of approaches and interpretations as well as detailed descriptions of specific techniques. Topics covered include: the nature of educational technology; basic educational strategies such as the teacher/institution-centered approach…

This fastback reference analyzes contrasting opinions about educational assessment and testing in the light of available evidence. The reform of student assessment is an essential component of the revitalization of American schools. Accountability issues relate to the proliferation of testing and the increasing use of high-stakes tests for policy…

This 2-year study examined how assistive technologies are used in educational programs for children who have significant multiple disabilities. Naturalistic inquiry incorporated qualitative collection procedures including observations, videotapes of children, and questionnaires and interviews with teachers and parents. Three groups of children…

A group of higher education policy experts identified the most pressing federal and state public policy developments likely to be debated in 1995. This report discusses the 10 issues identified: (1) student loan changes; (2) restricted taxpayer support; (3) tax policies; (4) federal support for research and other programs; (5) State Postsecondary…

This paper summarizes and extends an earlier study that reviewed the literature on technology effectiveness, focusing on computers, traditional distance education, two-way interactive telecommunications, multimedia, and the Internet. It also adds some tools for technology evaluation as well as a rationale for using regions to distribute…

This paper examines how, why, and by whom technology is being used in schools. Educational technology is defined as the systematic design and use of hardware and software to achieve specific objectives. Recent studies indicate that the most frequent location of computers in schools is in the administrative office; second is in the library media…

This videotape cassette portrays the role of portfolios for educational improvement through assessment in a California classroom participating in the Apple Classrooms of Tomorrow (ACOT) educational technology program. Elementary school students at the Stevens Creek School used computers for writing assignments, and included the best of their…

With funds from the International Business Machines (IBM) Corporation, Project SYNERGY was launched in January 1990 to address the problem of students entering colleges underprepared in basic skills and to make use of the tremendous potential for significant remediation through computers. Twenty-two institutions in the United States and Canada,…

A national telephone survey of 1,206 regular education teachers was conducted on behalf of the National Education Association to determine the incidence of school-provided educational technology and to assess teacher perceptions of their effects on the education process. Some forms of technology, such as photocopiers, television, and videocassette…

This project developed and evaluated an intervention program involving applications of technology to enhance the communication skills and behaviors of children with deaf blindness and other severe disabilities. Of interest were specific applications designed to increase attention, use of symbols, reception, expression of choice, awareness of…

Distance learning in Connecticut has begun to develop in the wake of telecommunications (TELCO) infrastructure modernization. Progress in this area is reviewed and discussed. The state has not yet adopted a standardized statewide policy governing the delivery of educational telecommunications programing, and various private producers currently…

The five essays in this volume represent the contributions of one group of leaders in the application of computers to the teaching and learning of foreign languages and illustrate present and future uses of technology in assisting language learning. Various pedagogical problems and approaches are considered in the papers. They are: (1)…

This study describes how some school districts have implemented full motion, two-way interactive video in rural small schools and communities. A prototype and guidelines for future implementation are presented. Researchers studied 14 school districts in the Oklahoma Panhandle and eastern New Mexico and three sites in Texas where the technology has…