Elementary teachers in an interdisciplinary master's program in math, science, and technology conducted action research projects. Analysis of 40 projects involving design technology showed that teachers were transformed by the research experience, improved reflective practice, and moved toward student-centered learning. Students with special needs…

Performance of 142 sixth graders in modular technology education using multimedia was significantly predicted by quantitative and verbal ability and prior knowledge. Cognitive style and intrinsic motivation had less significant relationships with performance. Identification of low verbal ability and lack of prior knowledge could improve students'…

Fourth graders built a model windmill using a three-step process: (1) open exploration of designs; (2) application of a standard model incorporating features of suggested designs; and (3) refinement of preliminary models. The approach required math, science, and technology teacher collaboration and adequate time. (Contains 21 references.) (SK)

The field of information technology is changing and those responsible for educating the next generation of technology professionals have responded with a new computing curriculum, which identifies five distinct technology majors: computer engineering, computer science, software engineering, information systems and information technology.…

Providing adequate computing lab support for Management Information Systems (MIS) and Computer Science (CS) programs is a perennial challenge for most academic institutions in the US and abroad. Factors, such as lack of physical space, budgetary constraints, conflicting needs of different courses, and rapid obsolescence of computing technology,…

The growth of the Indian IT industry has been of great interest to the international IT community. Nearly one third of fresh Indian engineering graduates are currently joining the IT industry irrespective of their specialization. The success of the Indian IT industry, however, has not been yet been leveraged for developing India as a preferred…

Few beginners find learning to program easy. There are many factors at work in this phenomenon with some being simply inherent in the subject itself, while others have more to do with deficiencies in learning methods and resources. As a result, many programming environments, software applications, and learning tools have been developed to address…

Stakeholders, such as future employers, parents, and educators, have raised their expectations of college graduates in the area of computer literacy. Computer skills and understanding are especially critical for business management graduates, who are expected to use computer technology as a tool in every aspect of their career. Business students…

In this paper, a required introductory programming course being taught to MIS undergraduates using the C++ programming language is described. Two factors make the objectives of the course--which are to provide students with an exposure to the logical organization of the computer in addition to teaching them basic programming logic--particularly…

The under-representation and poor retention of women in computing courses at Victoria University is a concern that has continued to defy all attempts to resolve it. Despite a range of initiatives created to encourage participation and improve retention of females in the courses, the percentage of female enrolments has declined significantly in…

In a Finnish study of four different academic disciplines, Ylijoki (2000) found that in Computer Science there was a disparity between the conceptions held by undergraduate students and staff about their discipline; students viewed it as being far more pragmatic and results focused than did their instructors. Not surprisingly, here at our…

The selection of a programming language for introductory courses has long been an informal process involving faculty evaluation, discussion, and consensus. As the number of faculty, students, and language options grows, this process becomes increasingly unwieldy. As it stands, the process currently lacks structure and replicability. Establishing a…

Proponents of hybrid learning proclaim it to be an effective and efficient way of expanding course content that supports in-depth delivery and analysis of knowledge (Young, 2002) and increases students satisfaction (Campos & Harasim, 1999; Dziuban & Moskal, 2001; Rivera, McAlister, & Rice, 2002; Wu & Hiltz, 2004). In the years to come, hybrid…

This paper reports on an investigation into first year students' perceptions of IT as a career. There are many stereotypes of the typical IT professional. These stereotypes are often depicted in the media and affect students' perceptions of the career and whether they should study IT or not. An exploratory study into male and female first year…

This paper presents an interactive educational environment for use over both "in situ" and distance-based modalities of teaching. Several technological issues relating to the design and development of the distributed virtual learning environment have also been raised. The PROVIDE framework proposed in this paper is a seamless distributed…