This usability study evaluated users' perceptions of a multimedia prototype for a new e-learning tool: Anatomy of the Central Nervous System: A Multimedia Course. Usability testing is a collection of formative evaluation methods that inform the developmental design of e-learning tools to maximize user acceptance, satisfaction, and adoption.…

Despite the national, state, and local emphasis on academic progress and standards, the curricular needs of the 3 million highly talented and gifted youth in the U.S. generally have not been embraced as a priority. In many high schools, academically precocious students are expected to progress on their own. The Individuals with Disabilities…

Instructional message design must attract attention and result in learning by facilitating perception, comprehension, and retention. The purposes of this research are: (1) to develop a conceptual framework for message design; (2) to develop a systematic procedure for message design; and (3) to provide one basis for the development of a performance…

Today there are dozens of instruments that claim to measure leadership capacities. Although every instrument has limitations and must be used carefully, the tests can be used to identify leadership potential. This digest summarizes the reasons for using formal assessments, the attributes measured by such tests, the ways in which leadership…

Educators participating in distance education have generally not received training in the production of effective video, although they do need to be able to appear in video suitable for effective instruction. The level of video quality required is referred to as "informal" video. Rapid prototyping is a concept in which formative…

The fourth edition of this curriculum planning resource takes users through the entire process of planning a social studies program, from deciding on a rationale to selecting curriculum materials to installing and maintaining the program. The guide incorporates current concerns such as standards-based curriculum, authentic assessment, and…

ECOSET was established to meet the demand from policy makers and the teaching community in the European Community (EC) Member States for evidence of the effectiveness of information technology in various learning situations in general and of various kinds of software in particular. The main goals of ECOSET were to identify organizations in the…

This lecture describes the organization and kinds of pedagogical research undertaken in the United Kingdom Open University and, through a case study of educational research in the recently introduced Arts Foundation Course (A102), to show how one type of research can contribute to course organization and development. The Institute of Educational…

This document considers both self-examination and external evaluation of gifted and talented education programs. Principles of the self-examination process are offered, noting similarities to external evaluation models. Principles of self-evaluation efforts include the importance of maintaining a nonjudgmental orientation, soliciting views from…

The literature on validity provides much more guidance on how to collect various kinds of validity evidence than it does on which kinds of evidence to collect in specific cases. An argument-based approach to validation redresses the balance by linking the kinds of evidence needed to validate a test-score interpretation to the details of the…

Turner's (1980) visual literacy test for high school students and adults was adapted for use with eighth grade students. The new version was limited to questions dealing with motion media, and a half-hour "M.A.S.H." narrative television program was chosen for the focus on television production techniques and the narrative elements of the…

Study units integrating library skills into the day-to-day teaching curriculum were cooperatively developed by classroom teachers and librarians at The King's Christian Junior and Senior High School in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. Teachers filled out forms to express their preferences for study unit subjects. Librarians then met with teachers to: (1)…

The first of three volumes, this report consists of a review of the literature on performance appraisal with special attention to the literature on certificated personnel in public education systems in the United States and Canada. The literature review shows that there are two predominant approaches to conducting performance appraisals and two…

A process of formative evaluation which considers moral, scientific, and social values as its criteria and which is conducted by project staff is proposed for the evaluation of educational television (ETV) programs produced by the South African Broadcasting Corporation. The theoretical framework of ETV evaluation is outlined in the first section,…

A study was conducted to determine the effectiveness of "Discretion vs. Valor," a simulation game designed to give North American players a chance to: (1) identify with "believers" (Christians) in the Soviet Union in order to form new images of these persons; (2) gain empathy for Christians by understanding the dilemmas they…