I report on a pilot study on the use of Google Maps to provide virtual field trips as a component of a wholly online graduate course on the history of astronomy. The Astronomical Tourist Web site (http://astronomy.swin.edu.au/sao/tourist), themed around the role that specific locations on Earth have contributed to the development of astronomical…

The increasingly diverse nature of today's schools and the need to increase the achievement of all students, no matter their background, requires 21st-century teachers to develop critical cultural competence. Looking at data is not enough. We have to know who our students are! This book shows you how to provide professional development that…

Meta communication plays a key role in foreign language learning and teaching. Broadly speaking, meta communication is communication about communication. Meta communication is something that goes beyond communication and all language learners and teachers should be familiar with its existence. It should be stressed that meta communication which…

"QuickAssist," the program presented in this paper, uses natural language processing (NLP) technologies. It places a range of NLP tools at the disposal of learners, intended to enable them to independently read and comprehend a German text of their choice while they extend their vocabulary, learn about different uses of particular words,…

This article presents a qualitative case study that uses discourse and social semiotic analysis methods in order to examine the rhetorical construction of fictional personas within an online role play used for learning in the college classroom. Of special focus are the differing patterns of semiotic resource use (for example, language and…

In today's Web 2.0 world, teachers are perpetually struggling with how to incorporate technology into the classroom effectively in order to meet the diverse literacy needs of 21st-century learners. Utilizing the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE, 2008) Position Statement addressing these needs, the theoretical framework of Lankshear…

Businesses and other organizations are relying increasingly on virtual teams to perform a range of business activities. A key challenge in utilizing virtual teams is to support collaboration among team members who are separated by distance and/or time. In this paper we use a research model based on a combination of the Technology Acceptance Model…

This study investigated criteria that 91 pre-service teachers used to evaluate award-winning virtual museum exhibits for future use in teaching. Individual differences affected ratings, including teaching experience, age and gender. A categorization of participants' reasons for selection included audience level, site design and information…

This descriptive study of the twenty regional Education Service Centers in Texas is an exploratory analysis of programs and services that promote school improvement. Data collected from each service center website enabled the researcher to determine which programs and services are available to school districts and also allowed the researcher to…

The access to a vast array of resources is facilitated by the Internet, which, in its turn, does not promote learning by itself as children and young people often use it passively. As a consequence, the teachers' role is regarded essential so that they are helped to interpret and analyze available information critically. Nowadays, when referring…

A disconnect exists between how students communicate using their mobile phones outside of school and how they use them in the classroom. Many high schools across the United States ban their use, even though numerous mobile learning strategies are available. Although research pertaining to m-learning has been conducted at the collegiate level, a…

As school districts face declining enrollment and stable or reduced funding they look for ways to contain costs and continue to provide a quality educational experience. In many states "a new wave of consolidation...may be at hand" (Kysilko, 2003). The research cites advantage for both consolidation and for maintaining small schools. The…

This paper presents findings from an action research project funded by the Scottish Government through Learning Connections (March 2006 to April 2007) to develop and explore the potential for enhancing literacies learning for adults with learning difficulties by engaging with their systems of care and/or support. The paper explores the ways in…

This article describes how to create an innovative learning (iLearning) organization. It begins by discussing the life cycle of knowledge in an organization, followed by a description of the theoretical foundation for iLearning. Next, the article presents an example of iLearning, followed by a description of the distributed nature of work, the…

This study extends the research into faculty and student use of contemporary academic technologies. The goals of the study are threefold. First, the study aims to unpack which technologies students and faculty use, and how often. Second, it aims to understand their experiences in the contexts in which they live them. Finally, it explores the…