Focusing on the current status of the language laboratory in instructional use, this report stresses the need to employ a systems approach in the selection and operation of laboratory equipment. The author points out the interrelatedness of the key factors in any system, including: (1) people, (2) method, (3) instructional materials, (4)…

The authors define environmental simulation as the selection, manipulation and/or modification of any number and combination of the five senses to create an experience which simulates a real or imaginary environment. They see the goal of environmental simulation as producing affective-cognitive-psychomotor outcomes which can be set, modified,…

An audiovisual teaching machine (AVTM) presents programed audio and visual material simultaneously to a student and accepts his response. If his response is correct, the machine proceeds with the lesson; if it is incorrect, the machine so indicates and permits another choice (linear) or automatically presents supplementary material (branching).…

Suggestions are given for using "Deutsche Welle" (DW)(German shortwave radio broadcast) programs to maintain or improve language skills of both instructors and students. Another function of DW radio includes helping students keep abreast of current events in the German-speaking world which, in turn, allows students and their teacher to be more…

The purpose of this study was to examine the use of video streaming of student speeches on the Internet as a method of feedback. Streaming video refers to motion video with accompanying audio that is delivered live or asynchronously and is available at the click of a mouse on a website. A random sample of 73 undergraduate students enrolled in…

The CYCLOPS system of Britain's Open University enhances the teleconference method of distance teaching by providing cassette tapes containing needed graphics and the necessary telephones and television monitors for their use at regional study centers. Despite technical problems, the student response has been as good as with face-to-face…

Presents the fourth in a series of articles on high fidelity sound reproduction. Discusses high fidelity sound systems, including the acoustics of the listening room. (Author/SK)

Study with first grade teachers and students explored the impact of book-rich classroom environments and home rereading on reading motivation, comprehension, and fluency. Results showed enhanced comprehension for book-rich classrooms, both with and without a home component; home rereading increased reading motivation and promoted parental…

Sound-field amplification is an educational tool that allows control of the acoustic environment in a classroom. Teachers wear small microphones that transmit sound to a receiver system attached to loudspeakers around the classroom. The goal of sound-field amplification is to amplify the teacher's voice by a few decibels, and to provide uniform…

A podcast is a method of distributing multimedia files, usually (but not limited to) audio in the MP3 format, over the Internet to subscribers. Anybody can be a subscriber--one only needs the proper software to receive the subscription. In this article, the author discusses how to create one's own podcast. Before creating the podcast, one needs a…

At some point in their educations, students must learn copious amounts of information. To do this, they use a variety of well-known strategies such as study groups, note-taking services, and videotapes of lectures. In fall 2004, a group of first-year dental students at the University of Michigan (U-M) School of Dentistry asked to have all dental…

Paired listening was originally developed as a research tool with the aim to understand the strategies used by L2 learners when listening to recorded speech in the target language. It offers researchers a useful combination of direct observation and verbal data, whilst avoiding the common drawbacks of subjective introspection. This paper examines…

In the fall of 2005, the Orange County Library System (OCLS), located in the Orlando metropolitan area of Florida, launched a mission to explore podcasting. This article, written in the form of a "captain's log," prepares the reader for their own journey into the universe of successfully launching podcasts and a vodcast (video podcast).…

In an article in the "Northern Star," a university student newspaper, reporter Lauren Stott began a lyrical note: "It's every student's dream: Wake up for school, stumble over to the computer, and download the day's class lectures ... then crawl back into bed--iPod in one hand, notebook in the other." The object of the student journalist's…

This article discusses the possible answers to most librarians' questions and how advanced and hi-technology help them in the library world. Many of the answers to librarians' questions regarding digital media depend upon community/patron awareness and library resources. In this article, the author presents some quoted statements from electronic…