The author's gaming-simulation course at Western Carolina University has been 30 years in the making. Its structure, content, and instructional methods are heavily influenced by the author's professorial aspirations and experience in the use of simulations. In this brief article, the author shares some of his early use of educational games and…

This article describes the authors' experience of developing a business gaming course for business people in Japan. The course that was developed consists of (a) simple gaming experiments among multiple students using ALEXANDER ISLANDS, a tiny business game on the World Wide Web; (b) lectures to make the students understand the core concepts of…

Information and Communications Technology (ICT) plays a dominant role in enhancing teaching and learning. Similar advances have been made in the use of multimedia in the classroom. These advances are coupled with newer developmental tools and techniques. This paper examines the design and development of a simulation on water conservation. Science…

Based on the exploratory study of a 3D multiuser virtual environment (3D MUVE), known as Quest Atlantis (QA), in a series of Primary Four (10- to 11-year-olds) Science lessons at Orchard Primary School in Singapore, this paper examines the issues of learning engagement and describes the socio-cultural context of QA's implementation. The students…

In this paper we argue that the use of audit trail data for research and evaluation purposes has attracted scepticism due to real and perceived difficulties associated with the data's interpretation. We suggest that educational technology researchers and evaluators need to better understand how audit trail data can be processed and analysed…

In 2005 an existing undergraduate course in project management was converted from face-to-face mode to wholly online mode. Wholly online mode means that there are no face-to-face classes at all, and all teaching and learning is facilitated through an online environment. The revised project management course was designed with an underlying…

Teachers must gauge students' understandings and confusions. Yet most research about teacher thinking neglects teachers' ideas about confusion and students' perspectives about their interactions with their teacher when they are confused. This study examines two high school English teachers' and six of their students' thinking about confusion,…

This book brings together leading experts to offer an in-depth examination of how computer technology can play an invaluable part in educational efforts through its unique capacities to support the development of students' understanding of difficult concepts. Focusing on three broad themes-the nature of understanding, the potential of technology…

The four games in this booklet are designed to stimulate critical thinking about the effects of structural and cultural issues on society and on the process of social change. The first and original game, "The Growth Game," gives participants a hands-on experience with the basic theoretical constructs of a Marxian critique of the mainstream tenets…

The goal of the research reported here was to examine how teachers perceived their role as coach, as well as how they actually interacted with students in a computer simulation environment. Simulations like "The Chelsea Bank" significantly impact the role of the teacher in the learning environment. The learner is placed in the role of…

A qualitative study examined the uses to which 14 adult learners put their acquired knowledge from a graduate-level course in organizational behavior both in and outside classroom settings. The course goal was to empower learners to use organizational theory to improve the performance of vocational education personnel. The 14 learners, who ranged…

The College Outcome Measures Program (COMP) and its role in an era when standardized testing is being questioned and authentic assessment is championed are discussed. Authentic assessment should not mean discarding measurement expertise and existing technology. It is an approach to measuring the quality and level of performance that uses real…

Growing interest in adult literacy has encouraged research and innovative programming in the field. This paper examines several pieces of software created by the Institute for the Study of Adult Literacy at Pennsylvania State University and explains their underlying conceptual foundations and the integration of visual materials. The Penn State…

This paper presents a model for designing computer-based simulation environments within a constructivist framework for the K-12 school setting. The following primary criteria for the development of simulations are proposed: (1) the problem needs to be authentic; (2) the cognitive demand in learning should be authentic; (3) scaffolding supports a…

These materials include the script for a mock trial in which students are asked to role play the participants in a case based on the facts of New Jersey v. T.L.O., 469 U.S. 325 (1985). The case raised questions involving a students' rights to protection against unreasonable searches and seizures under the Fourth Amendment and schools' needs to…