Using touch screens presents a number of usability and accessibility challenges for blind people. Most touch screen-based user interfaces are optimized for visual interaction, and are therefore difficult or impossible to use without vision. This dissertation presents an approach to redesigning gesture-based user interfaces to enable blind people…

This study was designed to investigate the differences between two groups of fifth grade students' performance on the 2010 fifth grade Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) math test. The sample consisted of a group of fifth grade students receiving the traditional instruction from their classroom teacher and a group of fifth grade…

Two experiments were conducted to assess an online version of Keller's personalized system of instruction, called computer-aided personalized system of instruction (CAPSI), as part of a blended learning design with regard to course knowledge and critical thinking development. In Experiment 1, two lecture sections of an introduction to University…

This paper first provides an overview of factors that constrain ultimate attainment in adult second language (L2) pronunciation, finding that first language influence and the quantity and quality of L2 phonetic input account for much of the variation in the degree of foreign accent found across adult L2 learners. The author then evaluates current…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relative effectiveness of different types of visuals (static and animated) and instructional strategies (no strategy, questions, and questions plus feedback) used to complement visualized materials on students' learning of different educational objectives in a computer-based instructional (CBI)…

In the last decades, many education researchers have been trying to use computerized learning environments to enhance student learning. Without proper instructional supports and guidance, however, students often failed to acquire knowledge from computer-based learning activities. The objective of this study was to demonstrate how research-based…

Our research aims to identify children's communicative strategies when faced with the task of solving a geometric puzzle in CSCL contexts. We investigated how to identify and trace "distributed cognition" in problem-solving interactions based on discursive cohesion to objects, participants, and prior discursive content, and geometric and…

This paper addresses issues of language use and negotiation and utilizes cultural-historical activity theory (CHAT) as a framework to analyze and understand the complexity of the mediational and collaborative structures constituting computer supported collaborative writing in a second language (CSCWL2) activities. Following an introduction to CHAT…

E-learning in corporate training has been growing rapidly because of the pursuit of time and budget efficiency in course development and delivery. However, according to previous studies, efficiency does not always guarantee training effectiveness, which is the major concern of human resource development. It is therefore necessary to identify the…

Computer based simulations and games can be useful tools in teaching aspects of construction project management that are not easily transmitted through traditional lecture based approaches. However, it can be difficult to quantify their utility and it is essential to ensure that students are achieving the learning outcomes required rather than…

A longitudinal experiment was conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of new methods for learning neuroanatomy with computer-based instruction. Using a three-dimensional graphical model of the human brain and sections derived from the model, tools for exploring neuroanatomy were developed to encourage "adaptive exploration". This is an…

In the study, we investigated effects of 2 different versions of a web-based tutoring system to provide 5th-grade students with strategy instruction about text structure, which was an intervention to improve reading comprehension. The design feature assessed varied in individualization of instruction (individualized or standard). The more…

The authors present a comparative study of 2 in-company educational programs aimed at developing frontline operator capabilities in forensic methods. They discuss the relationship between the application of various forensic tools and conceptual techniques, the process (i.e., curriculum) for developing employee knowledge and capability, and the…

Current computer-assisted language learning (CALL) research has identified various potentials of technology for language learning. To realize and maximize these potentials, engaging students in self-initiated use of technology for language learning is a must. This study investigated Hong Kong university students' use of technology outside the…

College students in a psychology research-methods course learned concepts related to inferential statistics and hypothesis decision making. One group received equivalence-based instruction on conditional discriminations that were expected to promote the emergence of many untaught, academically useful abilities (i.e., stimulus equivalence group). A…