Virtual worlds are highly immersive, engaging and popular computer mediated environments being explored by children and adults. Why then aren't more teachers using virtual worlds in the classroom with primary and secondary school students? Reasons often cited are the learning required to master the technology, low-end graphics cards, poor…

This study investigates primary school students' perceptions of interactive whiteboard technology and its influence on their learning during mathematics instruction. Using Bubble Dialogue templates, group interviews and lesson observations to gather data on student views and the classroom context, a theme-based description of student perceptions…

Australia was once a world leader for laptop adoption in schools. Now overtaken by extensive roll-outs of laptops in Maine and Uruguay, this paper seeks to explain why this lead was lost. Six case studies of government primary schools were undertaken to gather data about current initiatives. Comparative analysis shows how the potential of…

The world which students inhabit is increasingly digital, multimedia and online. A pedagogy is urgently needed to prepare students to be effective authors and participants in such a world. This paper reports on an on-going study which is seeking to develop a 3D multimodal authoring pedagogy in the middle years of schooling. A case study is used to…

Recent research has demonstrated a significant disadvantage for rural teachers in a variety of aspects of ICT use. This context provides a backdrop for two professional learning programs designed to support ICT-based pedagogies in teaching science in Victorian rural primary and secondary schools. In both programs the school-based workshops…

The application of ICT in education in rural and remote contexts is rapidly evolving and is actively being pursued as a solution to educational issues. ICT in education involves technological as well as pedagogical and social dimensions. This paper examines approaches being taken in developing ICT usage in Northern Territory schools for teaching…

When used in a pedagogically sound manner, interactive whiteboards (IWBs) are a valuable resource for connecting students with their learning. IWBs have been utilised in remote NSW schools for almost ten years, with other regional schools having only recently installed them. Exemplary teacher practice that demonstrated good pedagogy in the use of…

The study reported here investigated whether Year 6 boys were engaged through the use of an online journaling tool. This journaling tool allowed the students to self reflect on their behaviour and affective reaction in an online environment. Case study methodology was used with twelve boys from a regional primary school in Victoria, during the one…

The use of ICTs to support literacy in a minority Indigenous Australian language is an important domain of pedagogy that is often overlooked by teachers in these contexts. The development of new technological configurations in remote communities can be highly supportive of Indigenous languages spoken by a small number of people. This paper reports…

Effective integration of learning technologies into classrooms is a continuing issue, with many instances of new technologies making minimal impacts on classroom practice. Reports on the introduction of interactive whiteboards into UK schools over the past decade have revealed that their impact on both pedagogy and learning is at best neutral.…

The interactive whiteboard is a relatively new technology in Australian classrooms, especially in early years settings. This article reports on a case study in which an interactive whiteboard was placed in a Prep (Year 0) classroom in a Melbourne primary school. The teacher was then observed by making both audio and video recordings to watch for…

Females are under-represented in education, training and employment in the area of Information Communication Technology (ICT). Research shows that girls are tuning out to ICTs in school and they have a low participation rate in ICT related tertiary study and employment. The Tech Savvy report by the American Association of University Women (2000)…

This research explores how community cohesion can sustain teacher participation in a small scale, mixed mode (face to face and online) PD course. Secondary school teachers in Queensland undertook a mixed mode PD course utilising Education Queensland's Learning Place. The results indicate significantly longer participation than required and when…

This paper begins with three very "public" examples of how education providers across Australia are attempting to assimilate new teaching and learning technologies into existing teaching and learning structures. The transition, as predicted, is not altogether smooth. The dual concepts of the online classrooms as a "self-actualising theme park"…

This paper provides case studies that report on an ethnographic action research study to investigate the potential of the combination of wireless networking and portable computing at a primary school in Australia. Discusses student research projects, personal Web pages, making digital movies, student evaluations, and results of student interviews.…