Computer Literacy Classes Research Articles

Evaluation of information ethical issues among undergraduate students: An exploratory study

Background: Higher education is increasingly making use of information and communication technology (ICT) to deliver educational services. Young adults at higher educational institutions are also making use of ICTs in their daily lives but are not taught how to do so ethically. Software piracy, plagiarism and cheating, while making use of ICTs, are the most common ethical dilemmas that will face digital natives.Objective: The purpose of this article was to investigate information ethics of young adults at a higher education institution in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa.Method: This study made use of a positive, quantitative survey approach. A closed-ended questionnaire was distributed to a group of 312 first-year students, who had registered for a computer literacy class. A response rate of 69.2% was recorded, resulting in 216 students participating in the study. The results were analysed using descriptive and inferential (t-tests) statistics in SPSS V22.Results: The results indicated that plagiarism is a problem among first-year students, and elements of authorship should be included in the curriculum. Students understood what software piracy was but did not think it was wrong to copy software from the Internet. Finally, the students understood that cheating, while making use of technology, is wrong and should be avoided.Conclusion: The recommendation of the study then is that information ethics must be included in the undergraduate curriculum in order to prepare students to deal with these ethical problems.

WristEye: Wrist-Wearable Devices and a System for Supporting Elderly Computer Learners

Today, there is an increase in the number of elderly people who want to start using computers and the Internet. However, elderly people are hindered by limited education, limited knowledge of digital information, words they do not know, and not knowing how to use the computer keyboard and mouse. The setbacks and frustration they face in learning to use the computer causes them to feel computer anxiety. This paper proposes a computer-learning-assisted system equipped with wrist-wearable devices to help elderly computer learners as they perform computer learning tasks. This system, named the WristEyesystem, can discern and analyze learners' attitudes, reactions, and behaviors as they participate in computer literacy classes. In the WristEyesystem, a kinematic sensor attached to a student's wrist can detect differences in wrist orientation and vertical acceleration and determine which learning computer operations are in process, i.e., directing the mouse, hitting the keyboard, idle, and random undirected movement of the mouse. Moreover, a remote backend server receives the detected signal from the wearable unit by a wireless sensor network and then analyzes the corresponding computer learning effectiveness to produce results in graphic and score form to an instructor who can use this information to better tailor his lessons and activities to the needs of the learners.

The Spies’ Guide to Cyberspace

After the news broke about the National Security Agency's (NSA) eavesdropping tactics, I read the agency's declassified document Untangling the Web: A Guide to Internet Research, (1) and remembered a scene from The X-Files. Mulder explains to Scully his theory of some mind-bogglingly nefarious government conspiracy. Scully looks at him patiently and says, Mulder, you're talking about people who can't even balance the budget. Listening to the latest news on the NSA, I feel like Mulder: these people are capable of anything. Reading the initial sections of Untangling the Web, I feel like Scully, and ask myself, who are these people? I was shocked at how embarrassingly basic some of the tips are (Browsers assume the prefix 'http://' unless you tell them otherwise [p. 28]). Others are painful cliches (When you do a search, you are going through more information in less than 30 seconds than a librarian could probably scan in an entire career thirty years ago [p. 12]). The aforementioned are the sort of facts included in computer literacy classes for senior citizens. The argument can be made that a guide to Internet research needs to be comprehensive and cover all the basics. But how basic does one need to get? Apparently quite basic, although I can't imagine for whom could the brief explanatory section titled Why Do We Need to the Internet? conceivably be necessary. This section of Untangling the Web illustrates the painful truth that most Internet users think they are better searchers than they actually are, and the authors are simply doing what good reference librarians should always do: adjust their instructions and assistance to the level of guidance the patron needs. Furthermore, that the authors felt the need to write about the web at such a basic level illustrates the ubiquity of illiteracy. I've had to explain to supposed digital natives the difference between an email address and a website URL. Apparently, even in the inner rooms of the Puzzle Palace, illiteracy abounds. Much of the actual search advice is less embarrassing but nothing that a decent reference librarian doesn't already know, thus making an unintended argument for the continued necessity of librarians in the age of the search engine--even at the NSA. For example, use more than one search engine; depending on the type of information you want, a database may be a better source than Google; and--my favorite--consider the accuracy and currency of information before using (p. 26). Brilliant. Anyone who reads Untangling the Web with the hope of learning how to spy on the neighbors--a hope encouraged by silly and inaccurate news coverage (e.g., from Wired.com, Use These Secret NSA Google Search Tips to Become Your Own Spy Agency) (2)--will be gravely disappointed, for the most part. The fact that a Freedom of Information Act request was necessary to make Untangling the Web public is a telling indication of the federal government's post-September 11 mania for secrecy and the ludicrous lengths it can reach. After reading Untangling the Web, I can be sure of one thing: I missed a possible career path. Liberal arts majors frequently wonder what they can do for a living postcollege (yours truly was a history and English double major), and the authors of Untangling the Web probably have bachelor's degrees in English or comparative literature. (3) In the first twenty pages, I encountered references to Borges, Freud, Karl Popper, the myth of Sisyphus, Daedalus and Proteus, the tenth-century bibliophile Abdul Kassem Ismail, and Tristram Shandy. So, English majors of America: along with going to law school, getting an MLS, or signing up for AmeriCorps, you can consider becoming a spy--or at least working with them. Untangling the Web was written in 2007 and is at times touchingly dated (at least to IT nerds). The author predicts that Ask.com has a shot at giving Google serious competition and recommends the now-defunct Pandia for metasearching. …

(I)literate Identities in Adult Basic Education: A Case Study of a Latino Woman in an ESOL and Computer Literacy Class

Adult Basic Education (ABE), namely English to Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) in the United States has been understood and assessed as the mastering of skills increasingly aimed at meeting the demands of the workplace. This ethnographic case study examines how the literacy practices a Latino woman engages in through her participation in an ABE-ESOL class relate to her developing identities of mother, student and citizen. Using Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA), the findings demonstrate the contextual nature of adult literacy, showing how learners appropriate available tools and texts and enact purposeful and meaningful literacy practices, which traditional ABE assessment dismiss or do not account for. Implications for adult literacy pedagogy and research are discussed.

The effect of student opinions about course content on student engagement and achievement in computer literacy courses

The study investigates whether student opinions about course content relate to achievement and how their opinions characterize them about engagement with coursework in computer literacy classes. 212 undergraduate students’ achievement, opinions about course content, and engagement with coursework were identified in fall 2007. Students were asked to list the topics they found beneficial and unbeneficial. According to the results, students who found the least favorite topic unbeneficial were less successful. Students with different opinions about the content had different engagement characteristics, too. Findings are a call for more careful consideration of student opinions for improved overall success in school.

A Methodical Formative Evaluation of Computer Literacy Course: What and How to Teach

Introduction Evaluation is the process of gathering information that will facilitate improving a program (formative) or that will help determining its value (summative). Many experts have analyzed the difference between and summative evaluation. Markle (1989) stated that summative is to prove but is to improve the programs or the product. According to Baker and Alkin (1973), summative is the for validation while is the for revision. The term formative evaluation was coined by Scriven (1967) and is the process of collecting qualitative or quantitative data during the developmental stage of the instructional design process (Seels & Glasgow, 1990). The data collected is used to provide immediate feedback and helps to make revisions or modifications to the program before the final product is developed. One can evaluate almost anything, such as a person, a curriculum, a student, a process, a product, or a program (Tessmer, 1993). In the process of instructional development, the instructional designer evaluates the instructional materials to determine weaknesses in the instruction so that the material can be modified (Smith & Ragan, 1999). In this study, the focus of research is a approach where is done to improve the curriculum design of computer rather than a summative to prove the overall effectiveness of the curriculum. Formative of the course helped the instructors identify if the students achieved sufficient mastery of skills in the curriculum for the course, or if further instruction was needed in specific areas. It also helped to identify if both the instructors and students agreed on the importance of the instructional content and strategies of the course. Formative Evaluation in Computer Literacy Computer has been defined as an understanding of computer characteristics, capabilities, and applications, as well as ability to implement this knowledge in the skillful, productive use of computer applications suitable to individual roles in society (Simonson, Mauere, Montag-Toradi, & Whitaker, 1987, p. 233). Gupta (2006) defines it as the individual's ability to operate a computer system. This includes having a basic understanding of the file management processes such as formatting a disk and how to save, copy, delete, open, and print documents. It also involves using computer applications software to perform personal or job-related tasks, using web browsers and search engines online, and being able to email. Computer is a fundamental part of the undergraduate curriculum in this decade. It is as basic to undergraduate students as the course work in the core curriculum (Dugger, Meade, Delany, & Nichols, 2003). Students educated in computer use the computer skills in most of the other courses in their discipline. Previous studies have found that computer competency is essential to both academic and career achievement (Davis, 1999). Many studies have discussed the contents of computer course and instructional strategies in terms of learning effectiveness. An all-purpose computer literacy class that expects everything to be taught in one semester is considered unrealistic (Beard, 1993). According to Ndahi and Gupta's study (2000) on workforce training, the most frequently required computer skills were word processing and the knowledge of database software. In addition, the trainees voiced a strong interest in learning file management and preparing presentations. Gupta (2006) found that basic parts and functions of information systems, system software, security and privacy issues, the use of application software (word processor, using a spreadsheet, preparing a presentation), and accessing remote computers should be among the course objectives of a basic computer course. …

A Web-based lab manual for CS 1

No one can deny the impact the web is having on education. Computer Science education is no exception. Computer literacy classes now include units on web surfing and personal web page creation [6]. Data structures students have web tools for viewing algorithms and dynamic data structures [2, 4-5]. Computer graphics students have 2D and 3D visualization tools [7], and database students learn to access remote databases using ODBC or JDBC over the web [1]. Special courses in web technologies are being added to the curriculum in many departments [3]. It is only natural for a laboratory manual for Computer Science 1 to be presented as an interactive web document. Pedagogically, how does such a laboratory manual compare with the traditional hard-copy manual? What are its strengths and weaknesses? Which approach do students prefer? We sought to answer these and other questions from our empirical study of Computer Science I students. The results of the study and the lessons learned will be described in this article.

On teaching computer literacy to future secondary school teachers

This paper discusses our experience in teaching computer literacy classes to non-majors with a future career as secondary school teachers. The backgrounds of the students, our teaching philosophy, course organization and conduction as well as the feedbacks from our students are detailed. From the feedbacks it can be seen that the central goal of computer and application literacy is accomplished. Furthermore, students' perceptions of computers has turned from negative to positive.

Successfully Teaching Relational Database Concepts to Computer Literacy Students: The Spreadsheet Metaphor

A challenge facing computer literacy classes is the proper course content level. The challenge is to take the students to a higher level academically but without driving them away because they feel an “easy” course has become “hard.” Accepting this challenge, we have moved the database portion of the computer literacy class beyond keystrokes (rote learning) to data modeling using the spreadsheet as a metaphor for a relational database. Although not found in the current literature, this metaphor facilitates the understanding of the foundations of relational theory and enables computer literacy students to designnormalized multi‐entity databases within several class sessions. Students then combine relational theory and their keystroke knowledge of dBASE to implement finished applications. The resultant applications are free of the data redundancy problems that often plague non‐normalized databases.

Should a computer literacy class be the first required course for data processing majors

Should a computer literacy class be the first required course for data processing majors