Microcomputer Experience Research Articles

Predictors of computer anxiety and performance in information systems

This paper reports on the results of a study of business undergraduates undertaking an introductory unit in information systems. The focus of the study was to determine whether or not perceived knowledge of software, microcomputer experience, overall knowledge of computers, programming experience, and biological sex were predictors of computer anxiety. Analysis was carried out to assess the factor structure and the discriminatory power of the Computer Anxiety Rating Scale (CARS). Previous computer experience is an important element of success in undergraduate courses in information systems. Computer anxiety is definitely implicated in performance. Sex in general was not found to be a predictor of computer anxiety. However, females with low levels of perceived knowledge of software and limited experience with computers were predominant in the failing subgroup. The CARS appears to have a very high discriminatory capability. The CARS is easy to use and efficient. It can be used to identify and assist students who present with significant anxiety about using microcomputers.

Microcomputer Instruction in First-Year Engineering at Waterloo

During the last six years, microcomputer instruction to first-year engineering students at Waterloo has evolved to a stable format and content. Now, approximately 80% of new students have microcomputer experience. Hence, microcomputer software is demonstrated briefly in a laboratory equipped with an array of monitors and other multimedia facilities, and is followed immediately by student practice on a computer network. Students with limited experience receive additional laboratory demonstrations and personal assistance. Currently, students are introduced in the first week to the microcomputer network, and to a word processor. A brief memorandum is prepared by students to confirm their network access, and to detect students with poor writing skills. In weeks three to six, an electronic spreadsheet, graphing software, and other software are introduced. Assignments are integrated within an Introduction to Professional Engineering course. Microcomputer evaluation is based upon satisfactory completion of an engineering report, and two technical memoranda. Students acquire sufficient experience to continue self-directed learning with the assistance of full-time microcomputer consultants. Students realize that microcomputer skills are essential, both as engineering students and later, as engineering professionals, and their response has been quite favourable.

A comprehensive integrated computing curriculum for end-users

Microcomputers are relatively new to education. As their use expands, microcomputer experience is fast becoming a prerequisite skill for all students. Maintaining a relevant, manageable curriculum for this rapidly changing field is a challenge for educators. This paper proposes a plan for “Computing Across the Curriculum” which provides for multiple, flexible learning pathways in a manageable environment. The plan utilizes content-specific, workshop-style classes to create an integrated and comprehensive approach to computer education. The plan consists of three inter-related components: Concept Introduction and Reinforcement; Training for Specific Applications; and Integration Throughout the Curriculum. The Concept component introduces basic microcomputer principles and applications. The Training component develops skills in specific hardware and software packages. The Integration component applies microcomputer technology to subject areas throughout the curriculum. This plan has been implemented and tested with positive results. It provides students with more options than traditional approaches.

Computer Laboratory Specialists in Elementary Schools

AbstractMore schools are grouping computers into laboratory settings, and as labs are created, lab specialists are frequently hired to assist with computer activities Sixteen specialists from elementary schools in Southern California responded to a survey whose purpose was to describe the qualifications and roles of the specialists as well as the computer environments in which they work. A comparison group of 25 teachers in the schools with responding lab specialists also completed the questionnaire. Specialists had considerable microcomputer experience, but only 25% had a teaching credential. Their roles, however, required instruction of students in the use of software and hardware and management of students. Teachers and specialists had similar broad goals for microcomputer use; however, they viewed the impact of computers on academic and motivational outcomes differently.

Computer Administered Testing in a Classroom Setting

AbstractThis study utilized an empirical model to assess the equivalence of computerized testing methods compared to the traditional pencil-and-paper mode of testing. The controversy surrounding computerized testing is noted and the literature to date is surveyed. Using a regression design, student performance on the two administered modes was compared controlling for ability and past microcomputer experience. Three item formats (multiple-choice, true-false, and matching) were analyzed. While the computer mode produced comparable overall results to the pencil-and-paper mode, the matching question format showed a significant difference. Discussion emphasizes the implications of this study as support for the use of computerized testing in the classroom setting.

Integrating Technology: Attitudes as a Determinant of the Use of Microcomputers

This study was designed to investigate how attitudes affect students' use of microcomputers. Undergraduates ( N = 829) were surveyed before and after completing required assignments in business communication classes on the microcomputer. Data about students with the best and worst attitudes toward microcomputers were analyzed. Students with more computer experience are more likely to have positive attitudes toward computers than those with less experience. In addition, students with a more positive attitude 1) are more likely to complete assignments on microcomputers and 2) will more likely use microcomputers in the future than those with less experience. Types of training needs differ depending on students' level of microcomputer experience.

MAP-microcomputer applications project

The formation and operation of MAP, a microcomputer applications project designed to involve undergraduate engineering students in microcomputers, are described. The project was set up to accommodate students with a wide range of backgrounds, starting at one end of the scale with those with no microcomputer experience at all, and at the other end of the scale, including students with their own equipment and with several years of experience using it. The project has resulted in the generation of a wide range of powerful and useful computational tools suitable for use in a microcomputer-based engineering workstation environment. The programs have included analysis optimization, and sensitivity determination, as well as several programs in the area of filter design and approximation.< <ETX xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">&gt;</ETX>

The Effect of Group Size on Attitudes Toward Microcomputers

The attitudes of learning handicapped and nonhandicapped students toward microcomputers and their preference for working alone or with a partner was examined. Twenty learning handicapped and 20 nonhandicapped boys from upper elementary grades participated for 10 minutes, three times per week for a 4-week period on a microcomputer mathematics problem-solving task. Each student worked alone, with a handicapped partner, and with a nonhandicapped partner. Children were asked about their preference for working by themselves or in a dyad prior to and following the microcomputer experience. Attitudes toward computers were assessed as well in an exit interview. Results indicated that a majority of both handicapped and nonhandicapped students enjoyed working at the computer. For learning handicapped students, there were significant changes in group size preference from pretest to posttest: A majority of students preferred to work alone prior to the study, but a majority stated they preferred to work with a partner at the study's conclusion. Results differed for nonhandicapped students with a similar number preferring each group size at both measurement points.

Using Expert Systems to Troubleshoot Microprocessor-Based Control Systems: An Expectation-Based Approach

The emergence of microprocessor-based controllers has allowed major improvements in control flexibility from simple overall system architectures, but has led to an increase in the difficulty of controller repair, due to the increased complexity of internal hardware. To alleviate this problem, therefore, it would be extremely beneficial to be able to package the necessary microcomputer expertise in a computer-based “Expert System”, so that a technician without extensive microcomputer experience could effectively troubleshoot the control system. We describe an Expectation-based approach for such a troubleshooting expert system. In this approach, expert knowledge about cause-and-effect behavior and the implications of observations drives the inference mechanism to successful troubleshooting. The advantages of this approach are discussed, and an implemented system, FEXPR, is presented.

The Effect of Media and Amount of Microcomputer Experience on Examination Scores

Few studies have investigated the effect of media (microcomputer vs. paper and pencil) and microcomputer experience on examination scores. Available evidence is mixed regarding the use of the two media, and no evidence exists to suggest how experience with microcomputers might affect examination scores. In the present study, 413 university students enrolled in an introductory educational media course were blocked according to their amount of previous experience with microcomputers. Then 96 students were randomly selected and randomly assigned to either of two groups: (a) microcomputer examination group or (b) traditional paper and pencil examination group. The results indicated no differences between the two types of test administration nor among the three levels of experience. Such results imply that microcomputers do not lead to poorer results among students with little or no computer awareness. Thus, it is reasonable to recommend the use of microcomputers for student evaluation in university settings. Given the clear advantages of microcomputers (e.g., increased efficiency in test reproduction, administration, scoring, item banking, record keeping, and analysis), such a recommendation seems doubly justified.

High-Touch Low-Tech Tutor Tapes

Cassette tutor tapes are a simple but powerful instructional technique for teaching microcomputer skills. The media offers a private hands-on learning approach. Oregon State University students use cassette tutor tapes for an introductory microcomputer experience. The method is cost effective because approximately 150–200 students per quarter have access to only four Apple II computers. Tapes produced locally by media faculty are used in an established self-instructional system with minimal hardware and equipment. The tutor tape concept of “Learning by Listening to a Friend” has received excellent feedback at OSU. Nearly all students felt positive about the learning experience and would select the tutor tape approach over traditional group instruction.

An Innovative Therapy and Enrichment Program for Senior Adults Utilizing the Personal Computer

A hands-on microcomputer experience was provided to forty-one senior adults, over a three-week period, to serve as a therapeutic and rehabilitative tool, as well as a form of social and educational enrichment. Results indicated that thought-provoking games (Trivia and Hangperson) held the participht's highest level of attention and were perceived as exciting and stimulating; the keyboard was the easiest and preferred method of computer use; and in post-evaluations, 75% of the program participants indicated an interest in learning more about new challenging software.

Locus of Control among Computer-Using School Children: A Report of a Pilot Study

Forty-six high SES school-aged children (aged nine to fifteen) participated in a prototypical after-school and summer computer camp provided by an independent non-profit research laboratory. Following an initial sixteen-hour exposure to Logo and Bank Street Writer, children twelve years of age or less were found to minimally shift towards an internal locus of control (paired 1-tailed t-test significant at .03), as measured pre and posttest with the Nowicki-Strickland Locus of Control (LOC) Scale for Children. The LOC scale was chosen as an operationalization of Papert's concept of “empowering children” via microcomputer interaction. Because prior research on LOC has associated an internal LOC with positive learner attributes (such as the ability to delay gratification, persist on task, greater tendencies toward beneficial social interaction, less dogmatism, academic competence, social maturity, and possibly a correlate of independent, striving, and self-motivated behavior), it was felt that such an investigation could assist researchers in more clearly distinguishing between the reaction of different groups towards technology as a tool. Treatment consisted of a semi-structured sixteen-hour microcomputer experience in a class/lab environment. Software used in the study was restricted to Logo and Bank Street Writer. Classification of the LOC instrument by topic and response suggests that even highly internal-scoring children do not regard “planning” as an important process leading to successful outcomes in life. The relationship of this finding to a recent study conducted by Bank Street College utilizing Logo is discussed.

Microcomputer experience in analysis of flow cytometric DNA distributions

The program described analyses DNA histograms obtained in flow cytometry using the Gaussians method. The program is written in BASIC to run on a low-cost microcomputer. It utilizes a simple strategy to obtain good estimates of the parameters required for reducing the problem to a task solvable with linear least-squares methods. Features of the program are flexibility, since it is possible to choose different options for parametrization and spacing of Gaussians, and the fact that the operator is not required to provide interactive inspection or inputting parameter values. The capability and velocity of the program, in all its options, are tested and compared on a series of different (not computer-simulated) histograms obtained in our flow cytometry laboratory. Our results suggest that a fresh approach to parametrization may be useful.