"Constructionism" is a theory of learning proposed by Seymour Papert of MIT. Co-instructors for a first year seminar for undergraduate students provided education students with a one-semester constructionist experience to learn by engaging with technology. Students used LEGO[R] construction bricks and pieces to solve problems by building, working…

The Sioux Hudson Literacy Council in partnership with AlphaPlus Centre in Toronto, Ontario and Confederation College, Sioux Lookout Campus, is making groundbreaking strides to reach adult learners who reside in remote, isolated communities of Northwestern Ontario. Generous funding from the National Literacy Secretariat in collaboration with…

This paper shares some of the experiences in online coordination and teacher development which have emerged in the English Language Department at the "Universitat Oberta de Catalunya". The advantages and disadvantages of coordination in an asynchronous computer-mediated environment form the backdrop to those issues which we consider to…

Current approaches to language pedagogy recognize the fact that ESL learners need explicit help to improve the grammatical accuracy of their writing. This research investigates the utility of an online resource intended to improve advanced-level ESL learners' writing by increasing their grammatical awareness and ability to correct the grammatical…

The development of an engineering curriculum assumes a body of knowledge that students, as future engineers, will need to know. Students acquire this body of knowledge through lectures, laboratories, projects and assignments and other means. The question then arises, how does one select the content and processes that are appropriate for the…

FODEM (FOrmative DEvelopment Method) is a design method for developing digital learning environments for widely dispersed learning communities. These are communities in which the geographical distribution and density of learners is low when compared to the kind of learning communities in which there is a high distribution and density of learners…

Independent learners study in highly varied circumstances that impact upon the educational process. Media technologies can provide many new educational opportunities, but are context dependent. As educators, we need to develop a better understanding of learners by considering their attitudes and preferences for using media technologies in their…

This paper reports on an investigation into the first time implementation of a technology education unit of work by a beginning primary school teacher. The researchers monitored the teacher's implementation of the unit across a 6 week period using an interpretivist research approach. A variety of data sources were drawn upon including teacher and…

This paper outlines issues around learning to write and considers the range of difficulties children may experience. The role of Information and Communications Technology in facilitating writing development is considered. Software applications that can be used to support aspects of the writing process and target teaching are outlined. Criteria for…

This article describes an extended collaboration between a development team and an evaluation team working with GenScope, an open-ended exploratory software tool. In some respects, this was a routine evaluation, documenting substantial gains (of roughly 1 SD) in genetics reasoning ability in all but 1 of 17 classes, despite challenges presented by…

Cognitive processing limitations restrict the number of complex information items held and processed in human working memory. To overcome such limitations, a verbal working memory channel is used to construct an if-then proposition representation of facts and a visual working memory channel is used to construct a visual imagery of geometric…

Teamwork skills such as conflict resolution and communication strategies are challenging to teach. The use of stories may help develop these complex skills. Although engagement is generally seen as a key component of learning environments, what constitutes engagement has not been fully explored. The purpose of this study was to examine how…

In most middle- and upper-income homes across the United States, children, youth, and their families have access to the world's information-technology resources at their fingertips, while in low-income communities, access to technology and the opportunities it provides are often limited to brief periods of computer use and Internet access at…

One often hears about the need to prepare American technical education students to compete in the burgeoning global manufacturing community. In addition, one hears experts say that learning certain programs and techniques can put the youth first in line for jobs where beating the offshore competition depends on production speed, product quality,…

This paper describes the implementation of an e-learning strategy at a single higher education institution in terms of the levers used to promote effective uptake and ensure sustainable embedding. The focus of this work was at the level of the academic school using a range of change practices including the appointment of school-based learning…