The Ideology of Innovation Education and its Emergence as a New subject in Compulsory Schools

Vol. 3 No. 4

Year: 2008

Issue: Mar-May

Title: The Ideology of Innovation Education and its Emergence as a New subject in Compulsory Schools 

Author Name: Svanborg R Jonsdottir, Gisli Thorsteinsson, Tom Page 

Synopsis:

Innovation Education and Practical Use of Knowledge was introduced into the Icelandic National Curriculum for compulsory schools in 1999, where it is defined by the curriculum writers as a “school subject” but is not allocated any direct time in the recommended guidelines for subjects. This paper describes a master’s research project from the University of Iceland, Faculty of Pedagogy and Education which focuses on how Innovation Education emerged in Iceland and how the subject has developed; what makes the subject special; and what factors, internal and external, have influenced its dissemination. The paper will include an overview of the data collection and analysis methods and an overview of the findings.

Preparing Teachers to use Technology: Effects of Training Experience on Confidence and Knowledge

Vol. 3 No. 4

Year: 2008

Issue: Mar-May

Title: Preparing Teachers to use Technology: Effects of Training Experience on Confidence and Knowledge 

Author Name: Michele Alfieri, Jeremy I. Tutty 

Synopsis:

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between computer technology training experiences and pre-service teachers’ confidence and knowledge.  Participants enrolled in one of four distinct training experiences at two universities (computer literacy only, computer integration only, separate integration and literacy, combined integration and literacy) completed a survey developed to measure their confidence and knowledge of computer skills and integration.  Findings revealed that pre-service teachers whose experience included both computer literacy and computer integration training had more confidence for computer skills and integration than when the training experience included only one of the two.  Results also indicated that participants who completed computer literacy training by itself or in combination with integration training had significantly more knowledge than those who did not complete the literacy course.  Implications for training pre-service teachers on how to integrate technology are provided. 

Computer Use in Diverse Learning Contexts in ELS 2002: Gender, Race and Learner-Centeredness Effects and Implications

Vol. 3 No. 4

Year: 2008

Issue: Mar-May

Title: Computer Use in Diverse Learning Contexts in ELS 2002: Gender, Race and Learner-Centeredness Effects and Implications 

Author Name: Sunha Kim, Mido Chang 

Synopsis:

This paper examines the relation between computer use in diverse learning contexts and math achievement, and the gender and ethnicity-based differences in that relation. The study selected learner centeredness as a meaningful pedagogy in using computers because of its importance in technology-based learning. Along with the emerging notion of the importance of learner control in learning environments, technology has been expected to enable learner-centered learning environments. Moreover, learning models (including learner centeredness) suggest an important framework for successful integration of technology into teaching and learning. The study employs multiple regression models to 15,430 10th grade students from the Education Longitudinal Study 2002 (ELS: 2002), a US nationally representative database. The results confirm the significant effects of computer use in diverse contexts on student academic performance and its differential effects for gender and race. In particular, computer use for schoolwork was a significant predictor of math achievement for 10th graders, especially for Caucasian students. The effects of female students’ computer use for their own learning in math were lower than those for males; these effects were pronounced in the Hispanic and Asian groups. The study results have implications for the theory and practice of computer use.

Technology in Mathematics Classrooms: A Meta-Analysis of the Recent Literature

Vol. 3 No. 4

Year: 2008

Issue: Mar-May

Title: Technology in Mathematics Classrooms: A Meta-Analysis of the Recent Literature 

Author Name: Qing Li, Xin Ma 

Synopsis:

The increasingly use of technology in education does set off a flurry of research studies that focus on the successfulness and effectiveness of technology in elementary and secondary education. In this study, we conducted a comprehensive meta-analysis of research literature on technology in relation to mathematics teaching and learning. Particularly, the following main research questions were addressed in our meta-analysis:

1. What is the magnitude of the effects of technology on schooling outcomes concerning mathematics education?

2. How does the magnitude of the effects of technology fluctuate in response to various study features (e.g., gender, age, race) and design features (e.g., randomization, sample size, instruments)?

Based on a total of 81independent findings extracted from 39studies involving a total of 59,147 learners, the results of the series of meta-analyses conducted in this review indicate that technology can affect mathematics teaching and learning. 

Developing and Sustaining Schools as Technology-Enriched Learning Organizations

Vol. 3 No. 4

Year: 2008

Issue: Mar-May

Title: Developing and Sustaining Schools as Technology-Enriched Learning Organizations 

Author Name: Linda Cole Atkinson, Mary John O'hair , H. Dan O'hair , Leslie Ann Williams 

Synopsis:

During the last two decades, an assumption was advanced by policy makers that making technology available would result in effective technology transfer and integration in the teaching and learning process (Cuban, 2001); however, reality has been less kind with research presenting a pessimistic picture regarding the impact of technology in the classroom and on teachers’ instructional strategies (Becker, 2001).  The purpose of this study was to examine how technology-enriched learning environments can be developed and sustained through professional learning community (PLC) paradigms that make meaningful differences in teacher and student learning.

Information Technologies and Globalization: New Perspective of Teaching Learning Process

Vol. 3 No. 4

Year: 2008

Issue: Mar-May

Title: Information Technologies and Globalization: New Perspective of Teaching Learning Process 

Author Name: Irshad Hussain 

Synopsis:

This article discusses how information technologies and globalization have opened new avenues and horizons for educators and learners. It discusses different experiences of using information and communication technologies (ICTs) in teaching learning process the world over in the age of globalization. It focuses on the ways these new trends have promoted opportunities of flexible learning; possible at any time and any place in any discipline and a shift from teacher centered teaching to student centered learning. Presently accumulated knowledge and experience occupies central place and students have direct access to it. They can develop collaboration to work in groups. Teachers have to work in preparing and evaluating instructional materials and spend most of their time in coaching students how to retrieve and process information.

Performance Assessment In Language Testing

Vol. 3 No. 4

Year: 2008

Issue: Mar-May

Title: Performance Assessment In Language Testing 

Author Name: Dr. Mohammad Ali Salmani Nodoushan 

Synopsis:

Over the past few decades, educators in general, and language teachers in specific, were more inclined towards using testing techniques that resembeled real life-language performance. Unlike traditional paper-and-pencil language tests that required test-takers to attempt tests that were based on artificial and contrived language content, performance tests are authentic so that the test-taker is asked to perform language tasks that he or she will need to perform in real-life interactions. A very valuable type of performance test is called portofolio assessment in which a record of students' performance across a wide range of language tasks over a logical period of time is kept so that a profile of performance can be obtained for the evaluation of achievement. This paper will define performance assessment, trace its origins and development, explain how performance tests can be constructed, and describes the nature and advantages of portofolios.