This article discusses the use of computer-based technology in the educational system. The author contends that while this technology is useful as an instructional tool, it is no substitute for face-to-face education. The author provides four principles of learning that will allow teachers to use this type of technology in the service of discovery.

Energy issues have moved up the public agenda in recent decades, and were highlighted in President Bush's State of the Union address when he declared, "America is addicted to oil...." and pledging to "replace more than 75 percent of oil imports from the Middle East by 2025." The author observes that oil dependence and energy independence will be…

Most researchers and the Census Bureau expect the U.S. population to hit the 300 million mark sometime in October. This will make the United States the world's third most populous nation--behind China and India. In this article, the author found several websites dealing with the specific 300 million target, population growth in general, and…

Mass digitization of the bound volumes that we generally call "books" has begun, and, thanks to the interest in Google and all that it does, it is getting widespread media attention. The Open Content Alliance (OCA), a library initiative formed after Google announced its library book digitization project, has brought library digitization projects…

The Internet and the Web offer academic institutions solutions for covering the massive demand for education and transition towards student-centered, social constructivist educational models, in accordance with the demands of the knowledge-based society. This article reports on an investigation aimed at presenting a synthesis of recent research on…

Blogs and the whole gamut of interactive, Web-based tools are redefining how we connect with people and content on the Internet. This is the widely discussed next step known as Web 2.0, a truly revolutionary concept in which pervasive interactivity, where multitudes of users online actively exchange or contribute content, will transform the very…

This article presents operational guidelines or instructions to a newly graduated librarian from library school. The author discusses some important factors to consider in the field of library work as a school librarian. He also presents seven strategies to keep in mind for a successful first year for a school librarian: (1) put people first; (2)…

This article discusses two Cornell research studies on the prevalence of self-injury or "cutting" in today's youth, led by Janis Whitlock, and presents historical perspectives on the issue. The first study randomly surveyed 3,069 undergraduate and graduate students at Cornell University and Princeton University. Data showed that 17 percent of the…

This article deals with the Virtual Learning System (VLS) (http://eservices.nysed.gov/vls/) which has been developed by New York State's State Education Department. This article describes VLS and discusses advantages to teachers, students, parents and the general public. VLS is designed to encourage use of the Internet as a teaching tool and to…

With all the predictions of rapid and continuing change, it is curious that so many schools around the world have adopted standards-based reform models to capture the precise knowledge and skills that children must know and perform to be successful in the future. With the pace of change accelerating, much of this knowledge will be outdated and…

This new WebWare combines instructional text and Jmol interactive, animated illustrations that help students visualize the mechanism. It is concluded that by animating the fluxional behavior of a simple model for chiral metal catalyst Sn(amidinate)[subscript 2], in which axial/equatorial exchange within the amidinate rings occurs through a Berry…

In this article, we have explored the issues that Ministries of Education confront in their large-scale assessment policies and practices as literacy curricula expand to include the new literacies of information and communication technologies. Based on a series of interviews with Ministry personnel, we have described their current progress to…

A growing number of libraries have installed wireless data connections as a way of providing access to the Internet for members of the public. Some libraries have used their wireless networks to enable staff to use wireless devices to increase their mobility, effectiveness and responsiveness to client need particularly in providing reference and…

The present study investigated Arabic internet websites especially designed for pre-school children. A sample of 136 Arabic websites for kids of different ages was located and browsed. The sample covered websites specialized in stories, songs, games, kids' magazines, drawing and so on. It was found that no Arabic websites for pre-school kids are…

Electronic portfolios (eportfolios) represent an assessment measure with strong potential to provide feedback about student performance to improve curricula and pedagogy, to determine individual students' mastery of learning and support feedback for improvement, and to actively involve students in the assessment process. This study examined the…