While blogs, wikis and social networking sites are enjoying high levels of attention as tools to support learning, Really Simple Syndication (RSS) remains the "poor cousin" of these technologies in the higher education classroom, with relatively low uptake amongst educators and students. In this article, the authors argue that the affordances of…

This paper will consider some of the new directions for curriculum that have been promoted to ensure that contemporary school experiences are relevant to the lives of the young people who attend them. It will then provide two examples and a discussion of activities that have been created in the context of such new conceptualizations to highlight…

The World Declaration on Education for All in 1990 and the World Education Forum in Dakar in 2000 reaffirmed the right to learn and a commitment to meet the basic learning needs of all people by expanding learning opportunities and working for a fully literate society. In the Indian context, especially in rural India, it is still a cherished…

Attempts to frame the study of teaching and learning in explicitly scientific terms are not new, but they have been growing in prominence. Journals, conferences, and centres of "learning science" are appearing with remarkable frequency. However, in most of these invocations of an educational "science", "science" itself is understood largely in…

Identifies stages in the process of educational software development: pre-specification stage in which educators identify the software's educational considerations; specification stage in which educators and programers work together to develop the program; documentation stage; field testing stage; and support stage. (MBR)

Suggests international cooperation for educational software development could be achieved by adoption of a common operating system; international definition and development of an educational shell; common development language acceptance; and development of an educational dissemination and cooperative framework. Rationale for common operating…

Discusses the problems involved when instructional media is exchanged between countries using different curricula, pedagogical styles, cinematographic styles, fields of study, and languages. (CHC)

Discusses the technical considerations that should be dealt with regarding the quality of original films and duplication of films. A sample questionnaire dealing with these questions is included. (CHC)

Describes problems involved in making Swedish language versions of foreign films. (CHC)

Discusses the problems encountered in using foreign films and educational television programs in a developing nation. (CHC)

Figurative (visual representation) and commentator (verbal representation) functions and their use in audiovisual media are discussed. Three categories each of visual and aural media are established: real images, artificial forms, and graphic signs; and sound effects, music, and the spoken language. (RAO)

Discusses interaction and the need for considering cultural dimensions when translating instructional materials between nations. A taxonomy of educational objectives for interaction is introduced and Stolovitch's procedures for learning verification and revision (LVR) are discussed, including case studies describing interactive radio instruction,…

Discussion of the preservation of language and culture in small linguistic societies focuses on Iceland. The history of the Icelandic language is explained, problems with translation from English are described, the use of native languages in education is discussed, and the role of the English language is considered. (LRW)

Defines and discusses the concept of small languages. Topics addressed include political status; official status (e.g., as a national language); distinctiveness; robustness or the degree of feasibility; social function; education to support the language; functions of literacy; and appropriate technology for use with particular languages. (12…

Examines the resilience of small languages in the face of larger ones. Highlights include the concept of one dominant language, such as Esperanto; the threat of television to small visual-language societies; the power of visual media; man's relationship to language; and the resilience of language. (LRW)