Very little research is available nationwide that measures the administrative use of computers in rural schools. A state survey of 154 rural Kentucky secondary school principals (representing a 51% response rate) focused on their knowledge about computers and use of computers for school administrative purposes. Only 14% of respondents had a…

This report on an expert meeting, which was held to consider the training needs of local and regional planners in developing countries in the use and application of information systems and technology, presents both a report of the meeting and a summary of the proceedings. The meeting report includes a brief introduction, the conclusions reached…

This paper begins with a description of the context and background of cognitive research into knowledge acquisition and representation for computer based training. The nature of concept maps is alluded to and examples are given of the ways that maps can facilitate knowledge elicitation. It is noted that: (1) the concept knowledge in this research…

This survey of intelligent tutoring systems describes the components of these systems, different teaching scenarios, and the relation of these systems to a theory of instruction. It argues that the underlying pedagogical approach is to make latent knowledge manifest by using different forms of quantitative modeling: (1) simulating physical…

CBESS (Computer-Based Educational Software System) is a set of 22 programs addressing authoring, instructional delivery, and instructional management. The programs are divided into five groups: (1) Computer-Based Memorization System (CBMS), which helps students acquire and maintain declarative (factual) knowledge (11 programs); (2) Language Skills…

The Processing Services department of the Library of Congress initiated a project to learn about expert systems technology and to examine potential applications of expert systems to functions in their department, e.g., acquisitions, cataloging, and serials control. (An expert system is defined as an artificial intelligence computer program which…

The six "thought pieces" presented in this document summarize the personal perspectives of conference participants on issues raised in formal or information discussions, but not part of the central themes of the conference or conference papers. They include: (1) "Assuming That..." (Anne Nicol, Apple Computer, Inc.); (2) "A…

This paper describes Connect Ed, a program offering graduate and undergraduate courses for credit via computer conferencing. It is noted that these courses are offered in conjunction with the Masters Degree in Media Studies at the New School for Social Research and the Polytechnic Institute, both in New York City. A progress report on Connect Ed's…

Describes the development of ScriptWriter, a computer program designed at the University of Southern California to help create software for computer assisted instruction. Topics discussed include the graphics editor; text editor; font editor; a programming language called IQ; its use with interactive video and speech; and current applications.…

The concepts of usability and user-centered design (UCD) have grown in popularity over the past 20 years as measured by the number of research and mainstream articles devoted to their discussion. As with all new developments, however, there are always the questions of how things work in practice compared to theory. A survey of 83 software…

This paper looks at the analysis leading to and design of a Web-based "hint system." The hints are designed to help middle-grade teachers participating in a mathematics professional development effort, called InterMath, achieve a high degree of success when working open-ended mathematical investigations. The model upon which InterMath is…

Providers of online information with a high visual content face an uncompromising dilemma--how to achieve fast delivery while maintaining good picture quality. As storage space or bandwidth increases, the demands placed on it by the user are always two steps ahead. Since limited bandwidth for communicating images looks like it may remain a problem…

The purpose of this study was two-fold: (1) to investigate the effects of visual information, background knowledge, and academic reading experience, and (2) to identify the non-native readers' problems in comprehending Japanese academic texts. Sixty-three foreign students studying at universities and graduate schools in Japan participated in this…

The aim of this exploratory study is to identify the skills needed by developers of Electronic Commerce (e-Commerce) systems. The paper proposes a framework pertaining to three categories of e-Commerce development knowledge: technical, human, and organizational. The initial findings reveal that there are some 16 possible e-Commerce skills tapping…

Regulatory agencies around the world require that those involved in producing pharmaceutical products be adequately trained. E-learning can accomplish this, providing consistent delivery and learner assessment. However, there are some unique expectations that regulators and the pharmaceutical industry have of e-learning solutions. These include…