Use Of Computers In Education Research Articles

Web-Based Learning (WBL): a challenge for foreign languaje teachers

The vast majority of research in the past two decades on the use of computers in education has focused on knowledge acquisition and retention. The focus of this article is to investigate the issues of self-efficacy, attitude, and performance in online courses. Web-based learning will be the term used to describe this type of computer use. The review of literature inquires into the evolution of Computer-Assisted Language Learning towards an integrative approach that leads to Web-based learning. The benefits, components and challenges of Web-based Learning are addressed as well as how this type of approachexploits authentic practice of listening, speaking, reading and writing. This article also probes the relationship Web-based learning and achieving authenticity through the World Wide Web. En las últimas dos décadas se ha realizado una amplia gama de investigaciones sobre el uso de las computadores a nivel educativo con un enfoque hacia la adquisición y retención del conocimiento. Este artículo investiga temas claves sobre la eficacia, actitud y desarrollo de los cursos en línea. La terminología para describir este tipo de educación se conoce como instrucción mediada por Internet. El marco teórico de este artículo examina la evolución de la enseñanza por medio de Internet hacia una metodología integrada que dirige la enseñanza de un idioma con acceso al Internet. Se describen las características de la Instrucción por medio del Internet y como este tipo de Instrucción da soporte para la adquisición de la comprensión auditiva, la comunicación oral, la lectura comprensiva y la redacción. Se hace énfasis muy particular en la relación de la Instrucción en Línea y el desarrollo de autenticidad por medio del Internet.

A multi-year investigation of the relationship between pedagogy, computer use and course effectiveness in postsecondary education

This study investigated the change in the relationship between pedagogy, computer-use and students’ perceptions about course-effectiveness over time. Students from a Canadian university completed a questionnaire in two different years (2003 = 1,834 participants and 2007 = 1,866 participants). Of greatest interest were characteristics of technology that interact with pedagogy to achieve positive learning outcomes. A factor analysis revealed a three-factor solution: “course-structure,” “active-learning,” and “computer-use.” Multiple regression analysis showed that the three variables are predictive of perceived course effectiveness, with “course-structure” being most predictive in both years. “Computer-use” was least predictive with the 2003 sample while it was second in predictive power with the 2007 sample, most likely reflecting increased technology integration in post-secondary education. When comparing use of various applications in “Arts” versus “Science” courses, results indicated higher computer technology use in 2007 for all applications with arts courses while only web-based computer applications increased in use with the science courses. Separate regression analyses were conducted for each type of program while comparing the two different study years with results indicating that “course-structure” is the most stable predictor. Findings reveal that while pedagogy seems to be of highest importance to students, the relationship between computer use and perceived course effectiveness is changing over time. Implications are discussed and suggestions for future research are presented.

Early childhood teachers’ thoughts and practices about the use of computers in early childhood education

Abstract This study was conducted to determine the thoughts and practices of early childhood teachers about the use of computers in early childhood education. The study has been carried out with 100 early childhood teachers who attended to a seminar about the early childhood education in Eskisehir and Afyon. To collect data, a “General Information Form” was used to determine the general characteristics of the teachers and their classroom, and a “Thoughts and Practices about the Use of Computers Questionnaire” was developed by the researchers and used in this study. The questionnaire includes a total of 11 questions related to the experiences, the purposes and the frequency of computer use; classroom assessments for activities with computer, thoughts about the status of children participate in activities and achieve goals of activities with computer. The results of the study show that the majority of the teachers acquire their information and skills of computer all by their experiences and state that computer use is appropriate in early childhood education. It is also stated that a major part of the teachers use the computer to support the activities in daily plans and include the computer 1–2 times at a week in their curriculum. Moreover, it is indicated that the teachers use the computer mostly in their music activities and intend to support children’s cognitive development by activities with computer. In addition, suggestions were made regarding the correct and effective use of computers in education programs.

Adoption Of Information Technology (IT) In Healthcare Delivery- Experience At A Tertiary Level Hospital

The earliest use of computers in health care was in administration. Hospitals instituted computerized budgeting and financial planning; medical offices used programs specifically designed to their needs. In recent years, the cost of providing high quality services and patient satisfaction in hospitals has increased tremendously. Using information system in healthcare has become one of the best solutions for hospital management to decrease cost, increase patient satisfaction, to improve hospital processes and to provide high quality patient care. Beginning with the computerization of hospital administrative tasks in the 1960s, the role of digital technology in medical care and its delivery has expanded at an ever-increasing pace. There are many programs that automate and computerize functions in health care environment. Traditionally the application of computer technology in healthcare is divided into three categories. Clinical applications of computers include anything that has to do with direct patient care, such as diagnosis, monitoring and treatment. Special purpose applications include the use of computers in education and some aspects of pharmacy. Administrative applications include office management, scheduling and accounting tasks. Information technology has brought about a big revolution in the health care industry. AIM: The aim was to study the extent of IT usage in hospitals and to share our experiences in HIS implementation. OBJECTIVES: The study was conducted with the following objectives: 1. To know the extent of IT usage in a tertiary level teaching hospital currently. 2. To assess the benefits in adopting IT in hospital practice. 3. To share our experience in HIS implementation. 4. To offer suggestions based on the study. MATERIALS & METHODS: The study was conducted in a large tertiary level multi- specialty teaching hospital. The study design is retrospective in nature which includes, literature review, perusal of records and registers & informal interviews with the staff of the IT department at the hospital This paper shares the experience in implementing, upgraded Hospital Information System (HIS) software into an already existing computerized system. The implications of having adopted multiple software modules specific to different clinical and special purpose applications has been highlighted. In an era of rapid advances in science and technology, dependability on biomedical equipments and the software that they support has become inevitable for taking decisions in healthcare delivery. There is a need to consider information technology (IT) compatibility at the very beginning, which is at the time of buying these high-end equipments, else the implementation and functioning of IT in hospitals will be in piece meal. Some suggestions in having a comprehensive HIS has also been incorporated in the study. In conclusion the benefits of implementing IT in healthcare in terms of productivity, cost, effectiveness etc may never be realized if we are not open to the future needs. That is adapting an ‘open system architecture’ which can be sensitized to the ever changing information technology

An Analysis of the Materials Constructed with GeoGebra by Primary Prospective Mathematics Teachers and Their Views about Dynamic Mathematics Software

With rapidly developing technology, recent changes in information and communication technology have led the educators to take step towards the integration of computer into learning environment (Akkaya, Tatar, & Kagizmanli, 2011). Computers are the most preferred and utilized instruments in education among the available technologies, and they have many features. With the improved use of computers in teaching and learning, quests also emerge in mathematics instruction. In mathematics education, it is important for students to learn information by structuring and discovering, and for learning environments to be formed accordingly. Such learning environments where students can learn mathematics can be formed using computers. Computers offer visual images of mathematical ideas, smooth the progress of arranging and analyzing data, and calculate competently and precisely (Tutak, Turkdogan, & Birgin, 2009). Computer-assisted mathematics instruction is composed of using computers in appropriate and planned times while instructing mathematics and benefitting from the materials that are prepared with purposive pieces of software. A great deal of these pieces of software is dynamic software. Dynamic software offers a setting where students can explore geometric relationships and make and test conjectures (Guven & Kosa, 2008). GeoGebra is one of software that are used in education environments. GeoGebra’s ability to dynamically drag and visualize the objects enables us to get a solid grasp of multiple problem situations and accordingly concretize the problems.

Automatic Student Plagiarism Detection: Future Perspectives

The availability and use of computers in teaching has seen an increase in the rate of plagiarism among students because of the wide availability of electronic texts online. While computer tools that have appeared in recent years are capable of detecting simple forms of plagiarism, such as copy-paste, a number of recent research studies devoted to evaluation and comparison of plagiarism detection tools revealed that these contain limitations in detecting complex forms of plagiarism such as extensive paraphrasing and use of technical tricks, such as replacing original characters with similar-looking characters from foreign alphabets. This article investigates limitations in automatic detection of student plagiarism and proposes ways on how these issues could be tackled in future systems by applying various natural language processing and information retrieval technologies. A classification of types of plagiarism is presented, and an analysis is provided of the most promising technologies that have the potential of dealing with the limitations of current state-of-the-art systems. Furthermore, the article concludes with a discussion on legal and ethical issues related to the use of plagiarism detection software. The article, hence, provides a “roadmap” for developing the next generation of plagiarism detection systems.

Factors influencing skilled use of the computer mouse by school-aged children

Effective use of computers in education for children requires consideration of individual and developmental characteristics of users. There is limited empirical evidence, however, to guide educational programming when it comes to children and their acquisition of computing skills. This paper reports on the influence of previous experience and visual-motor coordination ability on computer mouse speed, accuracy and fluency of 221 five to ten year old children controlling for age and gender. Findings suggest that while speed and accuracy of mouse performance improves, as expected, with age and visual-motor proficiency, fluency appears to be influenced by task conditions and engagement. Findings are interpreted in the context of motor learning to assist in understanding the developmental pre-requisites of skilled mouse use and subsequent implications for educational programming.

The Aspect of the Use of Personal Computers for Health and Dental Health Education at Schools-Quoted from the Information Obtained From Yogo Teachers at Elementary and Junior and Senior High Schools Through a Questionnaire

The Aspect of the Use of Personal Computers for Health and Dental Health Education at Schools-Quoted from the Information Obtained From Yogo Teachers at Elementary and Junior and Senior High Schools Through a Questionnaire

Inovação tecnológica no ensino da semiotécnica e semiologia em enfermagem neonatal: do desenvolvimento à utilização de um software educacional

As novas tecnologias têm apresentado as inúmeras possibilidades do uso do computador na educação. Assim, objetivamos descrever o processo de desenvolvimento de um software educacional sobre semiotécnica e semiologia do recém-nascido pré-termo. Utilizamos o referencial pedagógico da problematização e a metodologia de desenvolvimento de software de Bernardo. Resulta que o software Semiotécnica e semiologia do recém-nascido pré-termo apresenta tecnologia avançada, informatizada, interativa e com simulações que permitem a aproximação máxima da realidade, apresentando, gradativamente, a complexidade e as especificidades do recém-nascido pré-termo. Por meio de recursos de hipertexto apresenta-se uma série de mídias integradas: fotos, figuras, vídeos e sons. Este software possibilita aos docentes e estudantes vivenciar a inter-relação entre quatro vertentes: o conteúdo de semiotécnica e semiologia do recém-nascido pré-termo, novas abordagens pedagógicas, inovações tecnológicas em educação e utilização da primeira fase do Processo de Enfermagem atribuindo a organização do conteúdo em necessidades humanas básicas.

Improving Chemistry Education by Offering Salient Technology Training to Preservice Teachers. A Graduate-Level Course on Using Software To Teach Chemistry

This paper describes an upper-level undergraduate and graduate-level course on computers in chemical education that was developed and offered for the first time in Fall 2007. The course provides future chemistry teachers with exposure to current software tools that can improve productivity in teaching, curriculum development, and education research. Topics include features of Microsoft Office 2007, database programming using the structured query language, creating structured documents in extended markup language, drawing chemical structures and equipment using ChemSketch and Adobe Illustrator, using Virtual Lab activities in teaching, using data collection software such as Vernier LoggerPro, and creating animated tutorials in Adobe Captivate. Student performance is assessed using three different formats. Weekly assignments are completed based on the tools studied in class and uploaded electronically into the Blackboard course management system. At the end of the semester, each student creates a project based on one or more tools used in the course. In addition, graduate students present a paper incorporating recent literature citations on the use of computers in chemical education. Student response to this course has been very positive, and the course is offered regularly.

An Experimental Study into the use of computers for teaching of composition writing in English at Prince Edward School in Harare

This study was an experimental study which sought to establish how English language teachers used computers for teaching composition writing at Prince Edward High School in Harare. The findings of the study show that computers were rarely used in the teaching of composition despite the observation that the school appeared to be adequately equipped with computers. Teachers appear to prefer their traditional way of teaching, perhaps because of conservatism on their part. The study goes further to recommend that English teachers should be taught how to use computers at a general level then they should develop skills that enable them to use computers as a teaching tool in their subject area.

Educational Computer Use in Leisure Contexts: A Phenomenological Study of Adolescents’ Experiences at Internet Cafés

Computer use is a widespread leisure activity for adolescents. Leisure contexts, such as Internet cafés, constitute specific social environments for computer use and may hold significant educational potential. This article reports a phenomenological study of adolescents’ experiences of educational computer use at Internet cafés in Turkey. The purposes of the study were to understand and describe the phenomenon in depth and arrive at the essence of adolescents’ experiences with the phenomenon. Data were collected through series of in-depth phenomenological interviews with six adolescents and analyzed using phenomenal analysis. The results include potential benefits of Internet cafés as specific social leisure contexts of educational computer use for adolescent development. Implications for designing and studying computer-based informal learning environments are presented.

A multidimensional approach to determinants of computer use in primary education: teacher and school characteristics

AbstractThe central aim of this study was to test a model that integrates determinants of educational computer use. In particular, the article examines teacher and school characteristics that are associated with different types of computer use by primary school teachers. A survey was set up, involving 527 teachers from 68 primary schools in Flanders. A separate questionnaire was administered to information and communication technology (ICT) coordinators from the same schools to gather additional information about cultural and contextual school characteristics. The combined impact of both teacher and school characteristics was explored through a multilevel analysis. Besides the importance of school characteristics, the results reveal differential effects of specific characteristics on specific types of computer use. Cultural school characteristics for instance, such as the schools’ openness to change and the availability of an ICT school policy plan, are positively related to the use of computers as a learning tool and to the adoption of ICT in view of basic computer skills. In contrast, no cultural school characteristic seem to be associated with the use of computers as an information tool. In a comparable way, teacher characteristics are associated with specific types of computer use, e.g. the variable gender. In general, male teachers report integrating computers more often. In this study, it appears that gender differences only exist in relation to the adoption of computers as an information tool. The results demonstrate that a multidimensional approach provides more insight into the characteristics affecting computer use.

The impact of primary school teachers’ educational beliefs on the classroom use of computers

For many years, researchers have searched for the factors affecting the use of computers in the classroom. In studying the antecedents of educational computer use, many studies adopt a rather limited view because only technology-related variables, such as attitudes to computers and computer experience were taken into account. The present study centres on teachers’ educational beliefs (constructivist beliefs, traditional beliefs) as antecedent of computer use, while controlling for the impact of technology-related variables (computer experience, general computer attitudes) and demographical variables (sex, age). In order to identify differences in determinants of computer use in the classroom, multilevel modelling was used ( N = 525). For measuring primary teachers’ use of computers to support the leaching or learning process a modified version of the ‘Class Use of Computers’ scale of van Braak et al. [van Braak, J., Tondeur, J., & Valcke, M. (2004). Explaining different types of computer use among primary school teachers. European Journal of Psychology of Education, 19(4), 407–422] was used. The present article supports the hypothesis that teacher beliefs are significant determinants in explaining why teachers adopt computers in the classroom. Next to the impact of computer experience, general computer attitudes and gender, the results show a positive effect of constructivist beliefs on the classroom use of computers. Traditional beliefs have a negative impact on the classroom use of computers.

Instructors' Integration of Computer Technology: Examining the Role of Interaction

Abstract: Computer technology has the potential to provide rich resources for language teaching and learning. However, it continues to be underutilized, even though its availability, familiarity, and sophistication are steadily increasing. This case study explored the way in which three language instructors' beliefs about language teaching and learning affected their use of computers in teaching in a postsecondary context. Data consisted of six weeks of observations of classrooms and computer labs and interviews with the three instructors. The findings suggest that the instructors' beliefs about interaction affected their use of computers significantly more than their technological expertise, and imply that for computers to be used more widely, teacher preparation needs to take into consideration instructors' beliefs and approaches to language teaching.

A Review on Factors Impinges Computer Usage in Education

The growing body of literature associated with educational computer use had examined numerous variables and interrelationships in order to gain a better understanding of computer beliefs and use of computers within education. Teachers’ computer acceptance is an important factor to the successful use of computers in education. Thus it is significant to draw attention to the factors affecting teachers’ computer use and its implications to teachers’ professional development strategies. This article would be useful for future researchers who are seeking directions to further examine the determinants of computer technology acceptance and its utilization based on the technology acceptance model.

Twelve tips for computer-based assessment in medical education

The use of computers in education in general and in medical education in particular is nowadays well established, but the use of computer-based assessment (CBA) in higher education lags behind. In this article we explore the reasons for this situation and provide tips for teachers to guide the introduction of CBA, based on our experiences. Attention is given to benefits and drawbacks of CBA hardware solutions, the choice of software, types of test questions, security, instructing students and teachers and evaluation.

Towards the Construction of a Language for Describing the Learning Potential of Computing Activities

This paper represents a first attempt at constructing a language for describing the potential learning value of computers as a learning material. A lack of precision in describing the value computers add to the learning process has paradoxically made it easy for people to elevate the significance of using computers in pedestrian ways while simultaneously marginalizing higher-order uses such as Logo programming. Colleagues are invited to extend or challenge this paper's hypotheses. In the early 1980s Seymour Papert was dissatisfied with Robert Taylor's metaphors for the use of the in education. Taylor wrote about the as a tool, tutor or tutee (Taylor, 1980) while Papert described the as mudpie (Papert, 1980a; Papert, 1984) and then later more generally as material (Papert and Franz, 1987). The metaphor dominates most discourse regarding the use of computers in education. Educators and policy-makers alike use it to describe nearly every application of technology. It would be impossible to list all of the examples of computer as tool in common usage or even scholarship. This work attempts to define the continuum that lies between the use of computers to reinforce traditional practice and the powerful ideas Papert writes of in Mindstorms (Papert, 1980b). While Papert's subsequent work provides examples of the construction of powerful ideas he fails to identify less powerful uses of computers. This may be the result of simple omission or a desire to appear polite. In either case all manner of computer-based activities have been granted equivalence by an education community lacking a precise metric for assessing value. When combined with the liberal and often inaccurate use of terms like constructivist we are left with a culture of intellectual relativism in which the loudest voice sets the standard. Dichotomies like conservative/liberal, traditional/progressive, Democratic/Republican are inadequate for describing educational philosophy and its resulting translation into practice. Papert's instructionism vs. constructionism seems a more precise way of describing one's learning theory and the practice that follows. It seems impossible to invent an empirical metric for measuring the efficacy of use in the context of education. There are simply too many variables involved in a complex system such as education. The nature of learning is even more difficult to quantify in anything but a reductionist fashion. Therefore, I propose the creation of a continuum that spans the gulf between traditional education routines possibly enhanced by the use of a and the sort of powerful idea construction only possible with the purposeful use of the computer. The subjectivity of the examples are acknowledge, but are intended to generate discussion. Compelling examples of children, computers and powerful ideas will be presented at Eurologo.

Bases teóricas do projeto Geo-Escola: uso de computador para ensino de Geociências

The Geo-School project offers digital didactic materials to teachers of basic education of a given region. The material in CD-ROM comprises geologic data, images and maps. Three pilot-modules were developed at the basic- and medium-levels of education (the Brazilian basic education) in the Sao Paulo State: Jundiai-Atibaia, Sao Jose do Rio Preto and Campinas. The research has been started from an inquiry to teachers of Sciences and Geography of public and private educational institutions about themes that should be emphazised in classroom. After the themes are prioritized the resulting interaction involves lectures, theoretical-practical courses and fieldwork. The enrolled teachers have demanded a broader professional qualifying because they have been challenged to approach some interdisciplinary concepts as the terrestrial dynamics, water cycle and rock cycle. The project also reveals that teaching of geology / geosciences should play an active role to help forming a culture of sustainability. Education should allow any individual to recognize what the planet is, how it functions and the way life relationships develop, both in time and space. In a broad sense, Geosciences (as the modern conception of Earth System Science) may help students to construct an idea on mechanisms of planetary evolution and on the permanent interaction between the Earth spheres. The use of computers in education may explore visual language, which is strongly connected to geologic reasoning, as well as some typical methodological procedures of Geology, as multiple explanatory hypotheses, scientific descriptions, historical and analogical reasoning. This requires more incentive towards teacher training programs. Many specialists of the national community of Geology are the most capable people to decode principal concepts from a great volume of available information. Promoting interaction with teachers seems to open promising opportunities for diffusion of Geosciences.

Bases teóricas do projeto Geo-Escola: uso de computador para ensino de Geociências

The Geo-School project offers digital didactic materials to teachers of basic education of a given region. The material in CD-ROM comprises geologic data, images and maps. Three pilot-modules were developed at the basic- and medium-levels of education (the Brazilian basic education) in the São Paulo State: Jundiaí-Atibaia, São José do Rio Preto and Campinas. The research has been started from an inquiry to teachers of Sciences and Geography of public and private educational institutions about themes that should be emphazised in classroom. After the themes are prioritized the resulting interaction involves lectures, theoretical-practical courses and fieldwork. The enrolled teachers have demanded a broader professional qualifying because they have been challenged to approach some interdisciplinary concepts as the terrestrial dynamics, water cycle and rock cycle. The project also reveals that teaching of geology / geosciences should play an active role to help forming a culture of sustainability. Education should allow any individual to recognize what the planet is, how it functions and the way life relationships develop, both in time and space. In a broad sense, Geosciences (as the modern conception of Earth System Science) may help students to construct an idea on mechanisms of planetary evolution and on the permanent interaction between the Earth spheres. The use of computers in education may explore visual language, which is strongly connected to geologic reasoning, as well as some typical methodological procedures of Geology, as multiple explanatory hypotheses, scientific descriptions, historical and analogical reasoning. This requires more incentive towards teacher training programs. Many specialists of the national community of Geology are the most capable people to decode principal concepts from a great volume of available information. Promoting interaction with teachers seems to open promising opportunities for diffusion of Geosciences.