Betty's Brain is an open-ended learning environment in which students learn about science topics by teaching a virtual agent named Betty through the construction of a visual causal map that represents the relevant science phenomena. The task is complex, and success requires the use of metacognitive strategies that support knowledge acquisition,…

For the forty-first time, the Association for Educational Communications and Technology (AECT) is sponsoring the publication of these Proceedings. Papers published in this volume were presented at the annual AECT Convention in Kansas City, Missouri. The Proceedings of AECT's Convention are published in two volumes. Volume 1 contains twenty-seven…

The Association Supporting Computer Users in Education (ASCUE) is a group of people interested in small college computing issues. It is a blend of people from all over the country who use computers in their teaching, academic support, and administrative support functions. Begun in 1968 as the College and University Eleven-Thirty Users' Group…

As educators consider using social networking sites, like Facebook, for educational innovations, they must be aware of possible vulnerabilities associated with the blurring of social and professional boundaries. This research uses social domain theory to examine how students rate the appropriateness of various faculty postings, behaviors, and…

The literature of the science education does not offer much data concerning meaning generation (MG) and learning to learn together (L2L2) processes. The objective of this paper is the study of how a group of students working with an on-line Platform, interact, collaborate and express themselves to generate meanings with regard to moving in 3d…

The purpose of this study was to explore how critical and reflective thinking about race and culture evolved and manifested in online threaded discussions among pre-service teachers during a required Multicultural Education course. Because of the ubiquitous presence of computer-mediated forms of communication, research has increased in recent…

Knowledge creation involves the generation of new ideas, facts and insights through interaction with people to meet challenges and changes. Online and offline professional groups and networks are some of the avenues for generating new knowledge and innovation in practices. Guidance counselling is one the areas that needs to constantly remain…

This paper examines how Chinese international students from a public land-grant university used online community to construct their cultural and ethnic identities. The author delves into the question of how online community enables these students to gain successful cultural assimilation. Extending on Baym's (2000) theoretical framework of online…

This research applied a mixed-method design to explore how best to promote learning in authentic contexts in an online graduate course in instructional message design. The students used Twitter apps on their mobile devices to collect, share, and comment on authentic design examples found in their daily lives. The data sources included tweets…

The college sophomore year is considered a difficult year for many students. College sophomores tend to experience the least amount of attention and support during a time when they are pursuing academic and personal goals. When these students encounter challenges that coincide with a limited amount of assistance with decision making, they can…

Most parents of teenagers are concerned about what their teenage children do online and how their behavior could be monitored by others. Some parents are taking steps to observe, discuss, and check up on their children's digital footprints. A new survey of 802 parents and their teens shows that: (1) 81% of parents of online teens say they are…

The role of the ESL teacher is that of both educator and advocate. Frequently ESL teachers work with a population that presents complex challenges to the school culture at large. The distribution of the ELL population within a school system may require the ESL teacher to fulfill responsibilities at multiple schools, thus maintaining an itinerant…

The purpose of this study was to explore the codependencies of the social and technical structures that yield Wikipedia the website and Wikipedia the community. In doing so, the research investigated the implications of such a sociotechnical system for the maintenance of the project and the emergence of collective intelligence. Using a theoretical…

The purpose of this dissertation was to investigate whether powerful language training affected student participation, impression formation, and gender communication style in online discussions. Powerful language was defined as a lack of the use of powerless language. Participants in this study were 507 freshmen taking a first-year college…

The level of success of the Mexican INEA (National Institute for the Education of Adults) academic program implemented in the U.S. has never been examined. INEA developed five goals for its students in the U.S. that supplement the general goals that the program has for all its students in Mexico. The 5 supplementary goals are to provide access to…