ICTBook

Introduction to Information and Communication Technology in Education.
(Moursund)
Introduction to Information and
Communication Technology in
Education
"Smooth seas do not make skillful sailors." (African
Proverb)
"You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it
drink." (A familiar adae.)
!hese materials are "o#yriht (c) $%%& by 'avid (oursund. Permission is ranted to make
use of these materials for non)commercial, non)#rofit educational #ur#oses by schools, school
districts, collees, universities, and other non)#rofit and for)#rofit #reservice and inservice teacher
education orani*ations and activities.
+,+,%&
'avid (oursund
!eacher -ducation, .niversity of /reon
-uene, /reon 012%&
moursund3oreon.uoreon.edu
Contents
Preface....................................................................................$
%. 4i 5deas.............................................................................2
+. 6oundational (aterial.......................................................+2
$. 7ainin 5ncreased 5"! in -ducation -8#ertise.................$9
:. "om#ellin and Second /rder A##lications.....................:;
2. 7eneric "om#uter !ools...................................................29
&. 5"! as "urriculum "ontent...............................................&;
;. 5"! as an Aid to !eachin and <earnin...........................;2
1. 5"! in Assessment and Accountability..............................11
9. 5"! in S#ecial and 7ifted -ducation................................0$
0. Summary and =ecommendations....................................+%9
=eferences...........................................................................++&
5nde8...................................................................................+$%
Pae +
Introduction to Information and Communication Technology in Education. (Moursund)
Preface
">ithout a strule, there can be no #roress."
(6rederick 'oulass, +9+0)+90&)
"(en occasionally stumble over the truth, but most
of them #ick themselves u# and hurry off as if
nothin ever ha##ened." (Sir >inston "hurchill)
5nformation and "ommunication !echnoloy (5"!) is a ma?or challene to our educational
system. !his book is desined for use by Pre@)+$ #reservice and inservice teachers, and by
teachers of these teachers. 5t #rovides a brief overview of some of the key to#ics in the field of
5nformation and "ommunication !echnoloy (5"!) in education. 5 wrote this book to hel# serve
the needs of my students in a course titled !eachin and <earnin in the 'iital Ae. You can
access a syllabus for that course at
htt#A,,darkwin.uoreon.edu,Bmoursund,'iitalAe+,inde8.htm.
!he mission of this book is to hel# im#rove the education of Pre@)+$ students. A three)
#roned, research)based a##roach is used.
Goal # 1 of this book is to hel# you increase your e8#ertise as a teacher. !here is
substantial research that su##orts the contention that students et a better education when
they have CbetterD teachers.
Goal # 2 of this book is to hel# increase your knowlede and understandin of various
roles of 5"! in curriculum content, instruction, and assessment. !here is sinificant
research to su##ort the benefits of 5"! in these three areas. 5n addition, 5"! is now an
im#ortant content area in each of the disci#lines that you teach or are #re#arin to teach.
Goal # 3 of this book is to hel# you increase your hiher)order, critical thinkin, #roblem)
solvin knowlede and skills. S#ecial attention is #aid to roles of 5"! as an aid to solvin
com#le8 #roblems and accom#lishin com#le8 tasks in all curriculum areas. =esearch
suests that .S schools are not nearly as stron as they could be in hel#in students ain
increased e8#ertise in #roblem solvin and critical thinkin.
Eow that 5 have stated oals for this book, 5 want to make clear a non)oal. This book is not
designed to help you learn specific pieces of software. !he ty#ical first 5"! in -ducation
course for #reservice and inservice teachers has a stron focus on learnin to make use of various
#ieces of hardware, software, and connectivity. !his book is not desined as a substitute for, or a
ma?or aid to, learnin these rudiments of 5"! that are now bein learned by many students before
they et to collee.
!his book is desined to addresses some of the weaknesses of ty#ical first or second 5"! in
education courses that overem#hasi*e learnin com#uter a##lications and underem#hasi*e other
as#ects of the field of 5"! in education. !he book focuses on eneral to#ics such as 5"! in
curriculum, instruction, assessment, increasin #roblem)solvin e8#ertise of students, and in other
as#ects of a teacherFs #rofessional work. !he em#hasis is on hiher)order knowlede and skills.
Alternatively, this book can be used in a second 5"! in education course for #reservice and
inservice teachers, buildin on the Cbasic skillsD tauht in a first course. Gowever, throuhout the
Pae $
book we arue that basic skills (lower)order knowlede and skills, rudimentary use of some of the
eneral #ur#ose #ieces of com#uter software) should be interated in with hiher)order
knowlede and skills.
!he #rereHuisite for a course usin this book is an introductory level of knowlede and skill in
usin a word #rocessor in a deskto# #ublication environment, usin email, and usin the >eb.
Eowadays, lare numbers of students meet this #rereHuisite by the end of the &
th
rade, since such
knowlede and skills are only #art of the &
th
rade standards for students established by the
5nternational Society for !echnoloy in -ducation (5S!- E-!S n.d.). 5ncreasinly, instruction in
such basic skills is not considered to be an a##ro#riate #art of a collee)level curriculum that
carries credit towards a collee deree.
As you read this book, you will come to understand that 5"! in education is a broad, dee#,
and ra#idly rowin field of study. 5"! has the #otential to contribute to substantial im#rovements
in our educational system. !o date, relatively little of this #otential has been achieved. (oreover,
the #ace of chane of the 5"! field currently e8ceeds the #ace of #roress in makin effective use
of 5"! in education. !hus, the a# between the #otentials and the current uses of 5"! to im#rove
Pre@)+$ education is rowin.
5"! is a very ra#idly chanin field. >hat can you learn, and what can you hel# your students
learn, that will last for decades or a lifetime, rather than ?ust until the ne8t Cnew, im#roved, better,
faster, more #owerfulD 5"! #roduct a##ears on the marketI !his book will #rovide you with some
answers.
'avid (oursund
January $%%&
Pae :
Chapter 0
Big Ideas
"(ankind owes to the child the best it has to ive."
(.nited Eations 'eclaration of the =ihts of the
"hild, +0&0)
""ivili*ation advances by e8tendin the number of
im#ortant o#erations which we can #erform without
thinkin of them." (Alfred Eorth >hitehead)
5t is assumed that you are readin this book because you are a #reservice or inservice teacher,
and,or because you are interested in learnin more about how com#uters can contribute to
im#rovin our educational system. =elatively few #eo#le thorouhly read an entire te8tbook.
!heir enthusiasm, interest, and enery level tends to wane as the book dras on and on. !hus,
they often donFt reach the last cha#ter, which miht be the most vital.
!o address this #roblem, 5 have done two thins. 6irst, 5 have ke#t this book relatively short.
Second, 5 have #laced a lare chunk of my intended last cha#ter at the beinnin. Since it comes
before the ordinary first cha#ter, 5 have numbered it "ha#ter %. "ha#ter % contains a brief
introduction to and summary of the 4i 5deas (the unifyin, very im#ortant themes) covered in
this book.
5 ho#e that your readin of this cha#ter will lead you into readin subseHuent cha#ters. >hen
(and if) you reach the end of this book, #lease come back and read "ha#ter % aain. You may be
#leasantly sur#rised by how much you have learnedK
!he field of 5nformation and "ommunication !echnoloy (5"!) combines science and
technoloy. 5t includes the full rane of com#uter hardware and software, telecommunication and
cell #hones, the 5nternet and >eb, wired and wireless networks, diital still and video cameras,
robotics, and so on. 5t includes the field of "om#uter and 5nformation Science and a hue and
ra#idly rowin knowlede base that is bein develo#ed by #ractitioners and researchers. 5"! has
#roven to be a valuable aid to solvin #roblems and accom#lishin tasks in business, industry,
overnment, education, and many other human endeavors. !his remainder of this cha#ter lists a
few of the 4i 5deas (the im#ortant, lon)lastin, unifyin ideas) that have uided the
develo#ment of the material in this book.
Big Idea 1: Problem Solving Using Body and Mind Tools
!he diaram of 6iure %.+ illustrates the sinle most im#ortant idea in this book. !he idea is
that #ro#erly educated #eo#le, usin tools that aid their #hysical bodies and their minds, can solve
a wide variety of challenin #roblems and accom#lish a wide variety of challenin tasks. 5n
a##roachin these #roblems and tasks, sometimes #eo#le work in multi)#erson teams and
sometimes they work in one)#erson Cteams.D (any other #eo#le, throuh the collective
knowlede and tools of the human race, assist even a one)#erson team.
Pae 2
Tools to extend
mental capabilities.
Tools to extend physical
capabilities.
Formal and informal education and training to build mental and
physical capabilities and ones knowledge and skills to efectively
use mental and physical tools individually and as a team member.
Problem-Solving,
Task-Accomplishing
Team
6iure %.+. Problem)solvin, task)accom#lishin team.
!he center of the diaram is a #erson or rou# of #eo#le workin to solve a #roblem or
accom#lish a task. !he to# #art of the diaram focuses on the idea that throuhout human history,
humans have been develo#in tools to enhance the ca#abilities and #erformance of their bodies
and minds. !hink aboutA
L !he time hundreds of thousands of years ao when our ancestors develo#ed the makin of
fire, the stone a8, the s#ear, and the flint knife as tools to enhance the food atherin and
use ca#abilities.
L -leven thousand years ao when humans bean to develo# ariculture, alon with the
tools and methodoloies to raise and effectively use cro#s and farm animals.
L 6ive thousand years ao when humans develo#ed written lanuae, a very #owerful mind
tool. =eadin, writin, and arithmetic were develo#ed as an aid to solvin the #roblems
and accom#lishin the tasks of a thrivin and rowin aricultural society.
=eadin, writin, and arithmetic were the first tools that reHuired a formal and #rotracted
education system. .# to that time, the body and mind tools could be learned throuh informal
education and a##rentice systems. After that time, we bean to have formal schools that have
many of the characteristics of todayFs schools. !he #ast &,%%% years have seen a hue rowth in
the number of students receivin formal education and the lenth of that formal education.
Also durin the #ast &,%%% years, many new body and mind tools have been develo#ed, and
many of these have been widely ado#ted. 5n terms of the diaram of 6iure %.+, this means that
our informal and formal educational system has been faced by the need for continual chane in
order to a##ro#riately accommodate the chanin tools.
A library can be thouht of as bein a mind tool. 5t facilitates the sinle most im#ortant as#ect
of #roblem solvinMbuildin on the #revious work of others ((oursund, $%%2a). !he >eb is a
lobal library that is steadily rowin in the de#th and breadth of its contents. "ommunication
over distance and time is an essential com#onent of buildin on the work of other #eo#le. !hus,
the 5nternet (which includes the >eb) is of steadily rowin im#ortance in education.
/ver a #eriod of thousands of years, there has been steady #roress in CautomatinD or
#artially automatin mind and body tasks. Automated factory tools are, or course, an obvious
e8am#le of this #roress. 4ut, consider the develo#ment of ine8#ensive #a#er and writin
Pae &
instruments, and the develo#ment of alorithms for C#a#er and #encilD arithmetic com#utation.
!he combination of #a#er, #encil, and such alorithms is a #owerful aid to the human mind in
re#resentin and solvin arithmetic com#utational #roblems. 5"! now #lays a ma?or role in
factory automation. Gowever, it is beinnin to #lay an eHually ma?or role in the CautomationD of
#rocesses that the mind carries out. (ore and more mental tasks are bein aided by and,or carried
out by 5"! systems.
Such uses of 5"! raise a critical educational issueA If an ICT system can sole a type of
problem or accomplish a type of task that we currently teach students in school to do
without use of ICT! what should we now be teaching students about this problem or task"
Big Idea 2: ICT is a Change Agent
!he invention or develo#ment of a new #hysical body or mental tool creates both
o##ortunities and challenes. 5n brief summary, a new tool ty#icallyA
+. Gel#s us to CbetterD solve some #roblems and accom#lish some tasks that we are currently
addressin without the new tool. Gere, the term CbetterD may have meanins such asA in a
more cost effective mannerN fasterN more #reciselyN more reliablyN with less danerN and so
on.
$. Gel#s us to solve some #roblems and accom#lish some tasks that cannot be solved
without the new tool.
:. "reates new #roblems. 6or e8am#le, the develo#ment of the :=s created the educational
and social #roblems of who would receive a formal Crammar schoolD level of education
focusin on these to#ics, and who would #rovide this education. !his #roblem #receded
the diital divide #roblem by about &,%%% years.
5"! is an e8am#le of a technoloy that is a #owerful chane aent. 7oin back to 6iure %.+,
we can e8amine 5"! from the #oint of view of how it contributes to tools that enhance our
#hysical bodies. >e now have microsco#es, telesco#es, brain scannin eHui#ment, automated
factories, and a hue rane of other tools that are hihly de#endent on 5"!.
>e can also view 5"! as a mind tool. 5t is evident that 5"! incor#orates and e8tends some of
the #ower of readin, writin, and arithmetic. 6or e8am#le, the 5nternet facilitates lobal
communication and the >eb (a lobal library). 5"! facilitates the automation of many mental
activities.
5"! creates a number of #roblems in education, such as diital eHuity, the need for a relatively
e8#ensive addition to a schoolFs infrastructure, and how to #rovide a##ro#riate 5"! education for
#reservice and inservice teachers. 5"! in education creates #roblems of how to deal with #otential
chanes in curriculum content, instructional #rocesses, and assessment in a manner that leads to
students ettin a better education. 5"! creates the #roblem of decidin what we want students to
learn about 5"!.
>e are used to the idea that once a tool has been invented, it can be im#roved over time.
Gowever, humans have had little e8#erience with tools that have been develo#ed to a very useful
level, and then subseHuently im#roved by a factor of a million or more. !he hardware ca#abilities
of 5"! are still chanin very ra#idlyMdoublin in ca#abilities over a time s#an of less than two
years. !his ra#id #ace of chane is, in and of itself, a ma?or challene to our educational system.
Pae ;
Big Idea 3: Some Basic, Enduring Goals of Education
'avid Perkins' +00$ book contains an e8cellent overview of education and a wide variety of
attem#ts to im#rove our educational system. Ge analy*es these attem#ted im#rovements in terms
of how well they have contributed to accom#lishin the followin three basic and endurin oals
of education (Perkins, +00$, #&)A
+. AcHuisition and retention of knowlede and skills.
$. .nderstandin of one's acHuired knowlede and skills.
:. Active use of one's acHuired knowlede and skills. (!ransfer of learnin. Ability to a##ly
one's learnin to new settins. Ability to analy*e and solve novel #roblems.)
!hese three eneral oalsMacHuisition O retention, understandin, and use of knowlede O
skillsMhel# uide formal educational systems throuhout the world. !hey are widely acce#ted
oals that have endured over the years. !hey #rovide a solid startin #oint for the analysis of any
e8istin or #ro#osed educational system. >e want students to have a reat deal of learnin and
active use e8#erienceMboth in school and outside of schoolMin each of these three oal areas.
You will notice that these three eneral oals do not #oint to any s#ecific content areas. /ne
of the reasons these oals have endured over the years is that they are fle8ible enouh so that over
time, #eo#le can make chanes in curriculum content, instructional #rocesses, assessment, teacher
education, and so on. 5"! is a #owerful chane aent in all of these as#ects of our formal
educational system. !his book e8#lores 5"! from the #oint of view of the three oals stated by
Perkins. 5t looks at 5"! in terms of #ossible chanes in curriculum content, instructional
#rocesses, assessment, teacher education, and so on.
PerkinsF first oal focuses on acHuisition and retention. /ne of the strenths of 5"! lies in a
combination of information storae and retrieval, and in the automation of tasks that that can be
built on this ty#e of accumulated knowlede. 5"! systems are much more ca#able than #eo#le
when it comes to Huickly committin lare amount of material Cto memoryD and retainin this
memori*ed material #erfectly over a lon #eriod of time.
PerkinsF second oal focuses on understandin. >hat is your understandin of what it means
for you or some other human to understand somethinI 5n what sense does a com#uter system
CunderstandD somethinI As a #reservice or inservice teacher, it is very im#ortant that you have
clear insiht into the similarities and differences between human understandin and 5"! system
understandin. 5n what ways do these two ty#es of understandin com#lement each otherI
Pay s#ecial attention to the third oal. !here, the em#hasis is on #roblem solvin and other
hiher)order knowlede and skill activities. You know that 5"! systems can solve or hel# solve a
wide variety of #roblems. Gow does a com#uterFs hiher)order, #roblem)solvin knowlede and
skills com#are with a humanFs hiher)order and #roblem)solvin knowlede and skillsI 5n what
ways do these two ty#es of #roblem)solvin and other hiher)order knowlede and skills
com#lement each other or com#ete with each otherI
!he diaram in 6iure %.$ re#resents PerkinsF three oals of education from a lower)order to
hiher)order #oint of view. !his re#resentation of the three oals is intended to suest that
acHuisition, retention, and understandin are all oriented toward bein able to make effective use
of what one is learnin.
Pae 1
Giher)order
6iure %.$. ScaleA lower)order to hiher)order oals of education.
4loomFs ta8onomy #rovides another a##roach to analy*in lower)order versus hiher)order
knowlede and skills. 4loomFs +0&; scale (not an eHual interval scale) uses the labels knowlede,
com#rehension, a##lication, analysis, synthesis, and evaluation to define a continuum movin
from lower)order to hiher)order. At the second and third levels (com#rehension and a##lication)
4loom stresses that the student is e8#ected to have understandin that allows transfer to solvin
#roblems and accom#lishin tasks that he or she has not encountered before.
EoteA Althouh this book contains a lare number of citations and references, you can see that 5 did not
#rovide one for 4loomFs !a8onomy. >hen 5 recently did a 7oole search on 4loomFs !a8onomy, 5 ot
about 29,%%% hits. !his reassures me that anyone who needs to read more about this im#ortant to#ic will
be able to find a##ro#riate readin material without my hel#. 5t also suests a sinificant chane that is
oin on in the CscholarlyD world. Eowadays, 5 do much of my readin and other scholarly work sittin in
front of (or, holdin) a com#uter that is connected to the 5nternet. As 5 read, 5 often #ause to check
somethin out on the >eb. 5 certainly ho#e that you (my readers) are develo#in similar habits of mind
and will hel# your students to develo# such habits.
!here are other ways to define lower)order and hiher)order knowlede and skills. A learnerFs
#oint of view is re#resented in the diaram of 6iure %.:.
Expertise Scale Illustrating Lower-Order
and Higher-Order Knowledge and Skills
Novice World
Class
Current Level of
Expertise of Learner
Giher)order <ower)order
6iure %.:. A studentFs view of lower)order and hiher)order.
!he diaram of 6iure %.: stresses that a student does not understand lower)order and hiher)
order as se#arate ideas. =ather, the student combines his or her lower)order and hiher)order
knowlede and skills to #erform at a certain level of e8#ertise within a domain. 6rom this #oint of
view, Chiher)orderD is anythin that hel#s the student ain increased e8#ertise within the domain
Pae 9
and builds u#on current e8#ertise. !hus, instruction should be at a level indicated by the lare dot
in the diaramMat a level somewhat hiher than the studentFs current level of e8#ertise.
/bviously this creates some tension between instruction that focuses heavily on the lower)order
knowlede and skill as#ects of a domain, versus instruction that has been carefully desined to
balance learnin of lower)order and hiher)order knowlede and skills to hel# a student ain
increased e8#ertise.
6iure %.: also illustrated a ma?or difficulty of 5"! in education from a teacher #oint of view.
A teacher tends to think of any 5"! knowlede and skill that he or she does not #ossess as bein
hiher)order. 4ut, some of his or her students may already think of some of this 5"! knowlede
and skill as bein lower)order. !hus, the teacher may fail to facilitate students ainin such
CadvancedD (from the teacher #oint of view) knowlede and skills, while students are #erfectly
ca#able of ainin the knowlede and skills.
Big Idea 4: Developing and Increasing Expertise as a Teacher
!here is a difference between havin some level of e8#ertise and bein an e8#ert. >ithin any
domain or area of knowlede and skills that is under consideration, an e8#ertise scale runs from a
very low level to a very hih level. !he diaram in 6iure %.2 illustrates this idea throuh use of a
eneral)#ur#ose self)evaluation e8#ertise scale for a #reservice or inservice teacher. 5t cans be
used in any as#ect of bein a ood teacher, althouh the focus in the diaram is on an 5"!
e8#ertise area such as a word #rocessor or s#readsheet. 6or e8am#le, you miht use it to consider
your communications skills, your knowlede of the content of a #articular content area, or your
knowlede of the #edaoy of a #articular content area.
to#ic area
leader in this
6iure %.2. A eneral)#ur#ose e8#ertise scale for a teacher.
>e all know that a ood teacher has an a##ro#riate balance of e8#ertise in the content of
areas he or she teaches, and the #edaoy of teachin the content. -ach content area that you
teach or are #re#arin to teach is both broad and dee#. !he #edaoy of each content area is also
broad and dee#. >hat constitutes an Ca##ro#riate balanceD between content and #edaoy
e8#ertise for an individual teacher varies with the content area, the teacher, and the maturity of
the students, and so on.
As a teacher, you want to hel# your students move u# e8#ertise scales that corres#ond to the
to#ics and sub?ect areas that you teach. A hih level of e8#ertise in a domain is e8em#lified by
Pae 0
hih knowlede and skill that is efficiently and effectively a##lied to solvin the #roblems and
accom#lishin the tasks of the domain. Gere are a few thins to be aware ofA
+. <earners brins e8istin knowlede and skills to whatever new learnin task they face.
!his situation is the core of constructivism, which is an im#ortant com#onent of the "raft
and Science of !eachin and <earnin we discuss in the ne8t section of this cha#ter. !his
situation is also central to the idea of develo#in an 5ndividual -ducation Plan (5-P) for a
student.
$. <earners vary in their innate mental, #hysical, emotional, social, and other ca#abilities.
Eote, however, that the Cnature versus nurtureD issue is very com#le8. As teachers, our
oal is to hel# our students to develo# knowlede and skills that move them u# various
e8#ertise scales. Some students will move u# faster and some have the #otential to move
u# further than other students. All have the #otential to ain increased e8#ertise with a
domain.
:. 5t is very difficult (indeed, for the most #art it is im#ossible) to accurately #redict a lon
time in advance either how fast a learner will move u# an e8#ertise scale or how far alon
the scale the learner miht #roress. /ne of the thins that educators have learned is that
settin hih oals and standards is usually very desirable. 4ut, this must be done usin
common sense. (ost children will not become world)class athletes or world)class
scholarly researchers.
2. 5ncreasin e8#ertise draws u#on a combination of lower)order and hiher)order
knowlede and skills. >hile lower)order and hiher)order can be tauht and #racticed
somewhat se#arately from each other, seamless interation is a oal. -ducational research
and #ractice suests that this interation should be inherent to the teachin and learnin
#rocess at all rade levels.
After a #erson achieves a certain level of e8#ertise, this level is not automatically retained.
7enerally s#eakin, it takes #ractice to maintain a certain level of knowlede and skill. At some
stae in oneFs #hysical and mental develo#ment, an ain body and,or ain mind tend to decrease
oneFs ca#abilities. 6inally, over time the to# end of the e8#ertise scale tends to move to the riht.
As an e8am#le, consider a fully com#etent doctor whose medical #ractice work is sufficient to
maintain his or her current levels of knowlede and skills. !hen imaine ma?or #roress in the
field of medicine based u#on develo#ment of new technoloies and treatment methodoloies.
!hese develo#ments Craise the barDMin effect, they increase the level of e8#ertise the doctor
needs to be as ood as he or she was.
!his medical doctor story is a##licable to teachers. 5"! knowlede, skills, and effective use
are very im#ortant com#onents of e8#ertise in many areas, includin teachin. A teacher who is
not ainin a##ro#riate and increasin 5"! knowlede and skills and incor#oratin this into
curriculum, instruction, and assessment is actually decreasin in a very im#ortant com#onent of
his or her level of e8#ertise as a teacher.
Big Idea 5: Craft and Science of Teaching and Learning
>e now have &,%%% years of accumulated knowlede about teachin and learnin in school
environments. !his knowlede is called the "raft and Science of !eachin and <earnin.
!eachers and researchers have accumulated a hue amount of information about effective
teachin and learnin. As an e8am#le, consider the idea of teachin and learnin in a manner that
Pae +%
facilitates both retention and transfer to #roblems and tasks one will encounter in the future. !he
#ast two decades have witnessed the develo#ment of a low)road, hih)road theory of transfer.
!his theory hel#s us to desin curriculum content and instructional #rocesses that im#rove our
accom#lishment of the three educational oals listed by Perkins.
!he stimulus)res#onse theory of 4.6. Skinner has been su##lemented and to a reat e8tent
su#erseded by a variety of conitive learnin theories. An understandin of early childhood
develo#ment and learnin has led to Gead Start #rorams. An understandin of vitamins and
chemicals has led to the addition of folic acid and other vitamins in a variety of our foods, and to
removal of lead #aint and leaded as from our environment. >e have a rowin understandin of
the effects of class si*e and the value of tutorin or very small rou# instruction.
As another e8am#le, considerin hel#in dysle8ic students learn to read. Shaywit* ($%%:, #;)
indicates that some level of dysle8ia may affect as many as one)fifth of all students. !hus, as a
reular classroom teacher you are very a#t to have one or more students with some deree of
dysle8ia. 4rain science researchers have identified differences in brain CwirinD between students
who readily ain fluency (s#eed and accuracy) in readin, and those who donFt. !he brain imain
eHui#ment used by the brain researchers is de#endent on #owerful com#uters as well as other
technoloy.
=eadin s#ecialists and brain scientists are now workin toether to develo# effective
methods to hel# dysle8ic students to learn to read well. Some of their successful a##roaches make
use of hihly interactive com#uter)assisted learnin. /ften this com#uter)assisted learnin is
delivered over a telecommunications system, such as the 5nternet. 5n addition, dysle8ic students
benefit reatly from learnin to use a word #rocessor to do their writin (includin doin the
writin on tests) and bein iven more time to take tests.
5n summary, we know lots of ways to im#rove education. Gowever, we are not #articularly
successful in the wide scale im#lementation of our steadily rowin understandin of the "raft
and Science of !eachin and <earnin. 5"! #rovides us with tools that can hel# substantially in
this endeavor.
Big Idea 6: Taking Responsibility for Your Own Learning
A baby or toddler is naturally inHuisitive, intrinsically motivated, and an omnivorous learner. A
hue amount of learnin occurs in the informal educational environment #rovided by the
careivers. >e know that the Huality of this environment makes a hue difference (on averae) in
the learnin and conitive rowth of youn children. !hus, many children reachin the
kinderarten ae are a year or more behind the CaveraeD while many others are a year or more
ahead. Gead Start #rorams have shown that it is #ossible to sinificantly im#rove the situation
for the laards.
/ne of the oals of our formal educational system is to hel# each student develo# an
increasin level of e8#ertise as inde#endent, self)res#onsible, self)sufficient, intrinsically motivated
learner. -ducational researchers know Huite a bit about adult learners, and this knowlede
#rovides us with some insihts into how well our formal educational system is doin in hel#in
students learn to learn and learn to take res#onsibility for their own learnin. >e know that there
are very lare variations in our level of success in meetin oals of students becomin increasinly
res#onsible for their own learnin.
5"! enters this to#ic area in three key mannersA
Pae ++
+. Access to aids to learnin. 5"! brins us the 5nternet, the >eb, "om#uter)Assisted
<earnin, and 'istance <earnin.
$. Self)assessment and other aids to measurin oneFs #roress toward meetin oneFs #ersonal
learnin oals. (.se a >eb search enine to search for self)assessment. Perha#s you will
be sur#rised by the hue number of ChitsD that you obtain. 5 ot over 2 million hits usin
7oole in 'ecember $%%2.) !y#ically, "om#uter)Assisted <earnin and 'istance <earnin
include aids to measurin oneFs #roressMthat is, aids to self)assessment.
:. 5ndividuali*ation, and #rovidin increased o##ortunities for a student to #ursue his or her
areas of dee# interest and #assion. 5ntrinsic motivation is a very im#ortant as#ect of
education.
Final Remarks
!he diaram iven below in 6iure %.& hel#s to unify the ideas in this cha#ter. !his diaram
em#hasi*es the idea that 5"! systems all by themselves can solve some #roblems and accom#lish
some tasks much better than #eo#le. >e also know that #eo#le, without the use of 5"! systems,
can solve many #roblems and accom#lish many tasks much better than 5"! systems. 6inally, the
diaram indicates that that there are many #roblems and tasks where #eo#le and 5"! systems
workin toether can out #erform either 5"! systems or #eo#le workin alone.
Areas in which ordinary #eo#le
can readily out#erform ordinary
5"! systems.
Areas in which ordinary 5"!
systems can readily
out#erform ordinary #eo#le.
Areas in which #eo#le versus 5"!
system #erformance is currently
undecided and,or where the two toether
readily out#erform either alone.
6iure %.&. Peo#le versus 5"! systems
All teachers are faced by the issues raised in the diaram of 6iure %.&. A ma?or oal in
#reservice and inservice teacher education is to hel# #re#are teachers to effectively deal with this
challene. "urriculum content, instructional #rocesses, and assessment need to take into
consideration the basic framework of this diaram.
!he mission of this book is to hel# you im#rove the education of your students throuh
increasin your knowlede, understandin, and effective use of 5"! in education. As a #reservice
or inservice teacher, you know that 5"! has been hihly touted as a vehicle for im#rovin
Pae +$
education. Puite likely you do not know about the broad rane of #ossible uses of 5"! in
education and the research (or, lack there of) that suests these uses will im#rove education
!here are certain as#ects of im#rovin education that can be mass)#roduced and,or mass
distributed. !hat is, in some sense it is #ossible to a##ly ideas of automation to certain as#ects of
im#rovin education. 6or e8am#le, we can work at a national level to develo# better curriculum
content and books that are desined to hel# students learn this curriculum content. <are numbers
of such books can be #rinted and made available to lare numbers of students. Similarly videos
can be develo#ed that combine curriculum content with some of our ideas on what constitutes
effective instruction. Such videos can be distributed by broadcast and other methods in a manner
that reach lare numbers of students.
Gowever, ood teachin by humans currently lies at the very heart of ood education for
students. 7ood (human) teachers cannot be mass #roduced and,or mass distributed. As a
#reservice or inservice teacher, you have a res#onsibility of becomin as ood a teacher as you
can be. (ovin u# the Cood teacherD e8#ertise scale is a lifelon activity. !he #roress that you
make will contribute to im#rovin the education of your students.
Activities for Chapter 0
!he activities here and at the end of other cha#ters are mainly desined to uide you in
reflective consideration of the cha#ter. !hey are an interal com#onent of the content of the
cha#ter. S#end a few minutes thinkin about the HuestionsMeven if they are not reHuired
assinments. =emember, education should not be a battle between students and their teachers.
You are an adult, and you should be able to take res#onsibility for your own learnin.
+. Eow that you have read this cha#ter, Coff the to# of your headD name one idea covered in
the cha#ter that seems #articularly relevant to you, and name one idea that seems of
relatively less relevance to you. "om#are and contrast these two ideas from your #oint of
view, e8#lainin why one is of reater relevance (to you) than the other. Eote that this
ty#e of Huestion has lower)order and hiher)order com#onents. !he first #art of the
Huestion is lower)order. 5t asks you to select and name two ideas from the cha#ter. !he
second #art of the Huestion is hiher)order. 5t asks you to do some com#are and contrast
thinkin and #resentation of loical or emotional aruments.
$. "onsider your current level of e8#ertise as a #reservice or inservice teacher. >hat is one
of your s#ecific areas of relatively hih e8#ertiseI (!his is a lower)order Huestion, but
answerin it reHuires some understandin of the ?ob of bein a teacher and the idea of
e8#ertise in bein a teacher.) !hen share your current understandin of how 5"! is
affectin and,or miht soon affect this s#ecific area of your knowlede and skills. (!his is a
hiher)order Huestion). !he overall desin of this activity is based on the ideas of
constructivismMencourain you to understand and then build u#on your current
knowlede and skills.
Pae +:
Chapter 1
Foundational Material
"!hey know enouh who know how to learn."
(Genry Adams)
"A reat teacher makes hard thins easy." (=al#h
>aldo -merson)
!his book is about 5nformation and "ommunication !echnoloy (5"!) in education. Gere are
two key, unifyin ideasA
+. A new technoloy such as 5"! is develo#ed as an aid to hel#in to solve certain ty#es of
#roblems that #eo#le deem to be im#ortant. -ducation was not the drivin #roblem that
led to the develo#ment of 5"!. Gowever, 5"! has #roven to be a #owerful aid in
addressin a wide rane of #roblems in education and in many other fields.
$. A new technoloy creates #roblems. 6irst, there are the #roblems of chane, as old ways
of addressin certain #roblems ive way to new ways to address the same #roblems.
Second, the new technoloy facilitates the identification of old and new #roblems that can
make effective use of the technoloy. (any of these are #roblems that could not and
cannot be effectively addressed by older technoloies. 5n terms of our educational system,
5"! is the basis of many #roblems in curriculum content, teachin #rocesses, assessment,
and teacher education.
A Big Big Idea
!he diaram of 6iure +.+ illustrates the sinle most im#ortant idea in this book. !he idea is
that #ro#erly educated #eo#le, usin tools that aid their #hysical bodies and their minds, can solve
a wide variety of challenin #roblems and accom#lish a wide variety of challenin tasks. Such
tools em#ower us to do thins we cannot do without the tools.
Tools to extend
capabilities.
Problem-Solving,
Task-Accomplishing
Team
6iure +.+. Problem)solvin, task)accom#lishin team.
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Some e8am#les of mental tools (often called mind tools) include readin and writin,
arithmetic and mathematics, and 5"!. And, of course, you know that 5"! #lays a ma?or role in the
field of tools that e8tend #eo#leFs #hysical ca#abilities such as robots used in factory automation.
=esearchers and inventors are continually addin to our collection of mind and body tools.
!his means that our formal and informal education and trainin systems are faced by an onoin
and continually rowin challene. /ver the #ast century, the #ace of rowth of human mind and
body tools has accelerated. /ur formal educational system has res#onded by #rovidin (indeed,
reHuirin) more and more years of formal schoolin. !here has been a hue rowth in enrollment
in hiher education #rorams of study.
/ur educational system has made a lot of #roress in the #ast century. Gowever, it is evident
that the #ace of rowth of the Ctotality of human knowlede,D mind tools, and body tools far
e8ceeds the #ace of im#rovement in our formal education system. 6or e8am#le, there are a variety
of #ublished estimates on the rowth of human knowlede, and they tend to suest that a
doublin is occurrin every five to ten years, or even faster (Gow (uch 5nformation, $%%:).
!he invention or develo#ment of a new #hysical body or mental tool creates both
o##ortunities and challenes. 5n brief summary, a new toolA
+. Gel#s us to CbetterD solve some #roblems and accom#lish some e8istin tasks that we are
currently addressin without the new tool. Gere, the term CbetterD may have meanins
such asA in a more cost effective mannerN fasterN more #reciselyN with less danerN and so
on.
$. Gel#s us to solve some #roblems and accom#lish some tasks that cannot be solved
without the tool, and hel#s us to identify new #roblems and tasks that reHuire use of the
new tools.
:. "reates new #roblems. 5"! in education, for e8am#le, creates #roblems such as diital
eHuity, the need for a relatively e8#ensive addition to a schoolFs infrastructure, and how to
#rovide a##ro#riate 5"! education for #reservice and inservice teachers. 5! in education
creates #roblems of how to deal with #otential chanes in curriculum content, instructional
#rocesses, and assessment in a manner that leads to students ettin a better education.
ICT in Teaching and Learning
/ur formal education system has a &,%%%)year history, datin back to the develo#ment of
readin, writin, and arithmetic ('ivitt et al.). /ver this #eriod of time, educators have been faced
by #roblems such asA
L >hat is a##ro#riate content to include in the studentsF curriculumI
L >hat are effective instructional #ractices for hel#in students to learn the curriculum
contentI
L >hat are effective student assessment #ractices to su##ort student learnin and school
system accountabilityI
L >hat are effective #reservice and inservice teacher education #rorams of study that lead
to students havin effective (ood) teachersI
5t is evident that answers to these Huestions chane over time. Answers are stronly affected
by increases in human knowlede. 5n this book we are s#ecifically interested in how the answers
Pae +&
are bein affected by the develo#ments that are occurrin in 5"!. !hus we are led to four s#ecific
5"! in education HuestionsA
L >hat is a##ro#riate 5"! content to include in the studentsF curriculumI
L >hat are effective uses of 5"! for hel#in students to learn the non)5"! and the 5"!
curriculum contentI
L >hat are effective uses of 5"! in student assessment in non)5"! areas, and what are other
effective ways to assess student 5"! knowlede and skillsI
L >hat are effective #reservice and inservice teacher education #ractices that lead to
effective interation of 5"! into curriculum content, instructional #rocesses, assessment,
and teacherFs overall #rofessional learnin and workI
!hese are hard Huestions. (oreover, 5"! continues to chane at a very ra#id #ace. !hus,
answers to the Huestions are chanin and will continue to chane in the future.
!his issues raised in these Huestions are a challene to our Pre@)+$ and teacher education
system. 5t is a ma?or challene to both #reservice and inservice teachers. !he ra#id #ace of chane
in 5"! is continually outdatin their 5"! knowlede and skills.
Brain and Mind Science
>e now have &,%%% years of accumulated knowlede about teachin and learnin in school
environments. !his knowlede is called the "raft and Science of !eachin and <earnin. Part of
the #roress in the "raft and Science of !eachin and <earnin falls into the area called 4rain and
(ind Science. !he remainder of this section ives a brief introduction to that field. "ha#ter %
#rovides one e8am#le of such #roress in its discussion of dysle8ia. !he ne8t ma?or section of the
current cha#ter contains more information about the Science of !eachin and <earnin.
"ontinuin research on the science of the mind (#sycholoy), recent research on the science of
the brain (neuroscience), and ra#id continuin #roress in 5"! are makin sinificant
contributions to the field of #roblem solvin in all disci#lines. !he followin three sub sections
contain three 4i 5deas emerin from this #roress.
Brain Versus Computer
5n the early days of com#uters, #eo#le often referred to such machines as electronic brains.
-ven now, more than &% years later, many #eo#le still use this term. "ertainly a human brain and a
com#uter have some characteristics in common. GoweverA
L "om#uters are very ood at carryin out tasks in a mechanical, Cnon)thinkinD manner.
!hey are millions of times as fast as humans in tasks such as doin arithmetic calculations
or searchin throuh millions of #aes of te8t to find occurrences of a certain set of
words. (oreover, they can do such tasks without makin any errors.
L Guman brains are very ood at doin the thinkin and orchestratin the #rocesses reHuired
in many different very com#le8 tasks such as carryin on a conversation with a #erson,
readin for understandin, #osin #roblems, and solvin com#le8 #roblems. Gumans have
minds and consciousness. A humanFs brain,mind ca#ability for Cmeaninful understandinD
is far beyond the ca#abilities of the most advanced com#uters we currently have.
Pae +;
#ig Idea # 1$ !here are many thins that com#uters can do much better than human brains, and
there are many thins that human brains can do much better than com#uters. /ur educational
system can be sinificantly im#roved by buildin on the relative strenths of brains and com#uters,
and decreasin the em#hasis on attem#tin to CtrainD students to com#ete with com#uters. >e
need to increase the focus on students learnin to solve #roblems usin the strenths of their
brains and the strenths of 5"!.
Chunks and Chunking
Gere are three different ty#es of human memoryA
L Sensory memory stores data from oneFs senses, and for only a short time. 6or e8am#le,
visual sensory memory stores an imae for less than a second, and auditory sensory
memory stores aural information for less than four seconds.
L >orkin memory (short)term memory) can store and actively #rocess a small number of
chunks. 5t retains these chunks for less than $% seconds.
L <on)term memory has lare ca#acity and stores information for a lon time.
=esearch on short)term (CworkinD) memory indicates that for most #eo#le the si*e of this
memory is about 1 $ chunks. !his means, for e8am#le, that a ty#ical #erson can read or hear a
seven)diit tele#hone number and remember it lon enouh to key into a tele#hone key#ad. >hen
5 was a child, my home #hone number was the first two letters of the word diamond, followed by
five diits. !hus, to remember the number (which 5 still do, to this day) 5 needed to remember
only si8 chunks. 4ut, 5 had to be able to deci#her the first chunk, the word Cdiamond.D
<on)term memory has a very lare ca#acity, but this does not work like com#uter memory.
5n#ut to com#uter memory can be very ra#id (for e8am#le, the eHuivalent of an entire book in a
second), and can store such data letter #erfect for a lon #eriod of time. !he human brain can
memori*e lare amount of #oetry or other te8t. 4ut, this is a lon and slow #rocess for most
#eo#le. 4y dint of hard and sustained effort, an ordinary #erson can memori*e nearly letter #erfect
the eHuivalent of a few books. Gowever, the ty#ical #erson is not very ood at this. At the
current time, the >eb contains the eHuivalent of many millions of books.
/n the other hand, the human brain is very ood at learnin meaninful chunks of information.
!hink about the chunks such as constructivism, multi#lication, democracy, transfer of learnin,
and (o*art. .ndoubtedly these chunks have different meanins to me than they do for you. As an
e8am#le, for me, the chunk Cmulti#licationD covers multi#lication of #ositive and neative
inteers, fractions, decimal fractions, irrational numbers, com#le8 numbers, functions (such as
trionometric and #olynomial), matrices, and so on. (y breadth and de#th of meanin and
understandin was develo#ed throuh years of underraduate and raduate work in mathematics.
5t is useful to think of a chunk as a label or re#resentation (#erha#s a word, #hrase, visual
imae, sound, smell, taste, or touch) and a #ointer or inde8 term that does two thinsA
+. 5t can be used by short)term memory in a conscious, thinkin, #roblem)solvin #rocess.
$. 5t can be used to retrieve more detailed information from lon)term memory.
#ig Idea # 2$ /ur education system can be substantially im#roved by takin advantae of our
steadily increasin understandin of how the mind,brain deals learns and then uses its learnin in
#roblem solvin. "hunkin information to be learned and used is a #owerful aid to learnin and
#roblem solvin.
Pae +1
Augmentation to Brain/Mind
5n essence, readin and writin #rovide an aumentation to short)term and lon)term memory
for #ersonal use and that can be shared with others. 'ata and information can be stored and
retrieved with reat fidelity.
!he stronest memory is not as stron as the weakest ink. ("onfucius, &&+)210 4.".)
>ritin onto #a#er #rovides a #assive storae of data and information. !he CusinD of such
data and information is done by a humanFs brain,mind.
"om#uters add a new dimension to the storae and retrieval of data and information.
"om#uters can #rocess (carry out o#erations on) data and information. !hus, one can think of a
com#uter as a more #owerful aumentation to brain,mind than is #rovided by static storae on
#a#er or other hardco#y medium.
#ig Idea # 3A 5"! #rovides a ty#e of aumentation to oneFs brain,mind. !he #ower, ca#ability,
and value of this ty#e of aumentation continue to row ra#idly. "ertainly this is one of the most
im#ortant ideas in education at the current time.
Four Important Components of the Science of Teaching and Learning
!he Science of !eachin and <earnin (So!<) has made reat #roress in recent years.
4ransford et al. (+000), a book that is available free on the >eb, #rovides an e8cellent overview
of So!<. 5 stronly recommend that all #reservice and inservice teachers read the first cha#ter as
an introduction to this im#ortant field of study.
5n this section of "ha#ter + we #rovide brief introductions to four im#ortant com#onents of
So!<A constructivism, situated learnin, motivation, and transfer of learnin. -ach of these is
im#ortant to all teachers and all students at all rade levels and in all academic disci#lines.
Constructivism
"onstructivism is a learnin theory that says a learner constructs new knowlede and
understandin on to# of and interated with his or her current knowlede and understandin.
"onstructivist learnin is based on the #artici#antFs active enaement in critical thinkin, #roblem
solvin, search for meanin and understandin, and metaconition.
!he basic ideas of constructivism date back at least a hundred years, with much of this early
work bein done by John 'ewey (+9&0)+0&$). !he early research has been solidified by more
recent research by Jerome 4runer and many others (=yder, n.d.).
!he PresidentFs "ouncil of Advisors on Science and !echnoloy (P"AS!, +001) re#ort
summari*es the research literature on com#uters in education u# throuh +00;. 5t includes a
stron focus on constructivism as the most im#ortant underlyin learnin theory in the field.
Puotin Section 2.$ of the re#ortA
"onstructivist theory has iven rise to an a##roach to educational #ractice that #laces the locus of
initiative and control larely within the student, who ty#ically undertakes substantial, "authentic" tasks,
#resented in a realistic conte8t, that reHuire the self)directed a##lication of various sorts of knowlede and
skills for their successful e8ecution. Such activities often involve student)initiated inHuiries driven at least
in #art by the student's own curiosity, and are desined to motivate students in a more immediate way than
is ty#ical of traditional curricula based larely on the transmission of isolated facts.
"onstructivist curricula often em#hasi*e rou# activities desined in #art to facilitate the acHuisition of
collaborative skills of the sort that are often reHuired within contem#orary work environments. Such rou#
Pae +9
activities may offer students of varyin aes and ability levels, and havin different interests and #rior
e8#erience, the o##ortunity to teach each other )) a mode of interaction that has been found to offer
sinificant benefits to both tutor and tutee. -8#licit attention is also iven to the cultivation of hiher)
order thinkin skills, includin "meta)level" learnin )) the acHuisition of knowlede about how to learn,
and how to reconi*e and "debu" faulty mental models.
!hose of you who are familiar with #ro?ect)based learnin will see a stron #arallel between
P4< and the above discussion of constructivism. At the current time, this book does not contain a
cha#ter on 5"!)Assisted P4<. 5n lieu of this, 5 maintain a >ebsite on that to#ic ((oursund, P4<
>ebsite, n.d.). !hat >ebsite contains a detailed syllabus for a one)credit course on 5"!)Assisted
P4<, most of the readin material needed for such a course, and a lare annotated bibliora#hy. 5
stronly recommend that instruction on this to#ic be included in the same course where the book
you are currently readin is bein used.
Situated Learning
A learnin theory called Situated <earnin has been develo#in over the #ast two decades. 5t
focuses on the idea that much of what we learn is de#endent on the s#ecific situation
(environment, conte8t) in which the learnin occurs. Situated <earnin em#hasi*es learnin by
doin and learnin by addressin real, challenin #roblems.
5"! is a #owerful aid to "doin" and to "addressin real, challenin #roblems." !hus,
Situated <earnin and 5"! work well toether. Situated <earnin and "onstructivism are
com#atible and mutually su##ortive.
7re @earsley maintains a >ebsite that discusses a lare number of different learnin theories
(@earsley, n.d.). Puotin @earsleyA
QJeanR <ave arues that learnin as it normally occurs is a function of the activity, conte8t and culture in
which it occurs (i.e., it is situated). !his contrasts with most classroom learnin activities which involve
knowlede which is abstract and out of conte8t. Social interaction is a critical com#onent of situated
learnin )) learners become involved in a "community of #ractice" which embodies certain beliefs and
behaviors to be acHuired. As the beinner or newcomer moves from the #eri#hery of this community to its
center, they become more active and enaed within the culture and hence assume the role of e8#ert or
old)timer. 6urthermore, situated learnin is usually unintentional rather than deliberate. !hese ideas are
what <ave O >ener (+00+) call the #rocess of "leitimate #eri#heral #artici#ation."
Eowadays, the ma?ority of adults in the .nited States (and, in many other countries) routinely
make use of com#uters (email and the >eb), cell tele#hones, "' and 'S' #layers, and a lare
number of 5"! systems that are built into cars, !S sets, and so on. 4y the end of +000, the
number of com#uters bein used in the Cwhite collarD sector of business and industry in the .S
e8ceeded the number of workers in this sector. !hat is, the ratio of com#uters to workers
e8ceeded +.%.
!his situation is in stark contrast with student use of 5"! in Pre@)+$ schools. Schools in the
.S have an averae of about one microcom#uter #er four to five students. Althouh more than
half of these microcom#uters are now located in classrooms (as contrasted with com#uter labs),
their use is not routinely interated into everyday student work. A sinificant fraction of the
available 5"! resources are used for #layin ames or usin edutainment software that has
Huestionable educational value. 5t is common for students in elementary schools to be scheduled
into a com#uter lab for about 2%)&% minutes, one or twice a week. !he instruction in the lab and
the work done there is often not interated with their routine classroom work. Siewed from a
Situated <earnin #ers#ective, the eneral ty#es of uses of 5"! in school are relatively far
removed from the eneral oals for our educational system as well as from the oals for 5"! in
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education that have been set by many states and by the 5nternational Society for !echnoloy in
-ducation (5S!- E-!S, n.d.).
Motivation
A newborn childFs brain is desined to learn, is naturally curious, and is intrinsically (internally)
motivated to learn. 5f the child is #rovided with an environment that is reasonably conducive to
and su##ortive of learnin, learnin will occur at a ra#id #ace. !his learnin will include the
marvelous accom#lishment of learnin to s#eak and to understand s#eech, and learnin the culture
of his or her environment. A child raised in a bilinual, bicultural environment will become fluent
in two lanuaes and will become bicultural. !his s#eaks to a childFs learnin #otential, and to the
fact that our informal and formal educational system is not doin well in hel#in children achieve
their learnin #otentials.
You are familiar with many different forms of e8trinsic motivation, #erha#s based on a system
of rewards and,or #unishments. <ikely you are familiar with 4.6. SkinnerFs theory of behaviorism.
!hrouh a##ro#riate use of behaviorist #rinci#les, rats, cats, dos, #eo#le, and other animals can
be trained to elicit certain #redefined behaviors. !hese stimulus,res#onse ty#es of trainin have
#roven to be Huite effective. Eote, however, in terms of education of humans, behavioral learnin
theory has larely iven way to a variety of conitive learnin theories.
!here is no fine dividin line between intrinsic and e8trinsic motivation. 6or e8am#le, consider
a child rowin u# in the environment,culture of the home and community that includes the
routine #layin of musical instruments and en?oyment of music. Goward 7ardner lists musical
intellience as one of the eiht innate intelliences that #eo#le have (7ardner, n.d.). /ne can arue
that each #erson has a certain level of intrinsic motivation to learn and do music. 7rowin u# in a
musically rich environment,culture #rovides a ty#e of e8trinsic motivation that blends with a
childFs intrinsic music motivation. -ventually the child may develo# a hih level of intrinsic
motivation in the field of music, and he or she may #ursue a #rofessional career in this field.
!he music e8am#le illustrates a key idea in education. !eachers face the task of hel#in their
students to become intrinsically motivated. Students who are intrinsically motivated (inherently
interested) in a #articular learnin task will tend to learn more, better, faster, and remember loner
what they have learned. "ontrast this with a student who is e8trinsically motivated to #ass an
u#comin test. !he motivation may be to avoid failin a course, to et a ood rade in a course,
to #lease the teacher or #arents, to et a money reward from #arents, and so on. 4y and lare this
e8trinsic ty#e of motivation leads to a Cmemori*e, reuritate, and Huickly foretD ty#e of
learnin.
'urin my lifetime, 5 had the #leasure of watchin my children and some of my randchildren
row u# in 5"!)rich home environments. 6or many children, interactive com#uter ames and
other as#ects of 5"! are hihly attention rabbin and seem be intrinsically motivatin. >hen
iven an a##ro#riate su##ortive environment, many children become intrinsically motivated to
learn and routinely use 5"! for #lay and work.
/ver the years a number of C#roductivityD software tools have been that many #eo#le find to
be intrinsically motivatin. Perha#s the first e8am#le was the s#readsheet. A##ro8imately a half
million #eo#le acHuired A##le $e com#uters and this software because it fit so well with what they
wanted to do. A number of other intrinsically motivatin #ieces of tool software are discussed in
(oursund ($%%%).
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Transfer of Learning
!eachin for transfer is one of the seldom)s#ecified but most im#ortant oals in education. >e
want students to ain knowlede and skills that they can use both in school and outside of school,
immediately and in the future. !he article abstract Huoted below serves to define two ma?or
theories about transfer of learnin (Perkins and Solomon, +00$).
Transfer of learnin occurs when learnin in one conte8t enhances (#ositive transfer) or undermines
(neative transfer) a related #erformance in another conte8t. !ransfer includes near transfer (to closely
related conte8ts and #erformances) and far transfer (to rather different conte8ts and #erformances).
!ransfer is crucial to education, which enerally as#ires to im#act on conte8ts Huite different from the
conte8t of learnin. =esearch on transfer arues that very often transfer does not occur, es#ecially TTfar''
transfer. Gowever, sometimes far transfer does occur. 6indins from various sources suest that transfer
ha##ens by way of two rather different mechanisms. =efle8ive or low%road transfer involves the
trierin of well)#racticed routines by stimulus conditions similar to those in the learnin conte8t.
(indful or high%road transfer involves deliberate effortful abstraction and a search for connections.
"onventional educational #ractices often fail to establish the conditions either for refle8ive or mindful
transfer. Gowever, education can be desined to honor these conditions and achieve transfer.
!ransfer of learnin is common#lace and often done without conscious thouht. 6or e8am#le,
su##ose that when you were a child and learnin to tie your shoes, all of your shoes had brown,
cotton shoelaces. You mastered tyin brown, cotton shoelaces. !hen you ot new shoes. !he new
shoes were a little bier, and they had white, nylon shoe laces. !he chances are that you had no
trouble in transferrin your shoe)tyin skills to the new larer shoes with the different shoelaces.
!his is an e8am#le of refle8ive, low)road transfer.
Similarly, su##ose you have achieved a hih level of automaticity (s#eed and accuracy) in
keyboardin on a com#uter keyboard. !hen you can easily transfer this knowlede and skill
amon different com#uter keyboards.
!hese e8am#les ive us some insiht into one ty#e of transfer of learnin. !ransfer occurs at a
subconscious and refle8ive level if one has achieved automaticity of that which is to be
transferred, and if one is transferrin this learnin to a #roblem that is sufficiently similar to the
oriinal situation so that differences are handled at a subconscious level, #erha#s aided by a little
conscious thouht.
You know that it can take a reat deal of instruction and #ractice to achieve a hih level of
automaticity in keyboardin (or in many other areas, such as siht readin music and readin
te8t). !hus, in your everyday life you routinely encounter #roblems and tasks where you have not
achieved a hih level of automaticity in solvin the #roblem or accom#lishin the task. !his
#resents a challene to you as a learner and to our educational system as a facilitator of learnin.
>hat can school do to hel# you learn to deal with novel #roblem situationsI
6ar transfer or hih)road transfer #resent a ma?or challene to students and our educational
system. /ften our educational system and our students do #oorly even when #resented with very
sim#le as#ects of this challene. 6or e8am#le, a secondary school math class miht teach the
metric system of units. <ater in the day the students o to a science class. 6reHuently the science
teacher re#orts that the students claim a com#lete lack of knowlede about the metric system.
-ssentially no transfer of metric system learnin has occurred from the math class to the science
class.
/n a more eneral note, em#loyers often com#lain that their newly hired em#loyees have
totally inadeHuate educations. Part of their com#laint is that the em#loyees cannot #erform
various tasks on the ?ob that they "should have" learned to do while in school. Schools res#ond by
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sayin that the students have been tauht to accom#lish the tasks. "learly, this is a transfer of
learnin #roblem that is owned ?ointly by schools, em#loyees, and em#loyers.
Gih)road transfer involvesA conitive understandinN #ur#oseful and conscious analysisN
mindfulnessN and a##lication of strateies that cut across disci#lines. 5n hih)road transfer, there is
deliberate mindful abstraction of an idea that can transfer, and then conscious and deliberate
a##lication of the idea when faced by a #roblem where the idea may be useful.
6or e8am#le, su##ose that you are teachin your students to do #rocess writin. Your
students are leanin si8 ste#sA
+. brainstormin
$. orani*in the brainstormed ideas
:. develo#in a draft
2. obtainin feedback from oneself and others
&. revisin, which may involve oin back to earlier ste#s
;. #ublishinM#olishin the final #roduct and makin it available to others.
"an you think of #roblems other than writin in which this ;)ste# #rocess, or a modification of it,
miht be a##licable. Gow about com#osin musicI Gow about #aintin a #icture, desinin a
buildin, or choreora#hin a danceI Gow about doin a #ro?ect in a #ro?ect)based learnin
((oursund, P4< >ebsite, n.d.)I
5f you are teachin for hih)road transfer in this situation, you will teach your students that
many different #roblems can be solved by use of a eneral Process Procedure that is illustrated by
#rocess writin. You will have your students learn the name of and a reat deal about the Process
Procedure in some s#ecific area such as writin (the ;)ste# >ritin Process). 4ut, you will also
have your students e8#lore use of this Process Procedure in a number of different areas that are
relevant to the students and to the oals of our educational system. (-8am#les are iven in the
#revious #arara#h.)
A number of other e8am#les of teachin for hih)road transfer are iven in (oursund ($%%2).
5"! #lays an im#ortant role in the Process Procedure and in many other a##lications of hih road
transfer. 5n Process >ritin, for e8am#le, 5"! facilitates all si8 of the ste#s listed above. 5t is
#articularly useful in revision and in #ublishin.
Theory into Practice
!here is a hue a# between our accumulated research knowlede in education and our actual
school)based teachin and learnin #ractices. !o hel# you understand why this is the case, we will
briefly discuss constructivism, situated learnin, motivation, and transfer of learnin from the
#oint of view of a (hy#othetical) reader of this book.
Constructivism
Gere is a comment that miht have been made by a student in one of my classesA
5t is obvious to me that this course and its book are not s#ecifically desined to meet my #ersonal needs.
!he teacher and author do not know what 5 know and what 5 donFt know about the eneral field of
education or about 5"! in education. !hus, much of the content is too easy, too hard, not relevant to me,
and so on.(Gy#othetical =eader)
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-ach student is uniHue. -ach student learns by buildin (constructin) new knowlede on the
to# of (interated with) current knowlede. (any students find that this task is frustratin
because the instruction is not desined s#ecifically for them.
You are #robably familiar with the aruments that su##ort small class si*es. Amon other
thins, small class si*e su##orts more interaction between students and the teacher, and su##orts
more individualism of the curriculum content, instructional #rocess, and assessment. 5ndeed,
research on the benefits of students havin hihly Hualified #ersonal tutors suest that the ty#ical
averae student in our school system is Huite ca#able of learnin as well as current students who
are makin A rades (4loom, +092).
5t is #ossible to make a book hihly interactive and to tailor it to a s#ecific readerFs needs. !his
is what is done in Gihly 5nteractive 5ntellient "om#uter)Assisted <earnin (G55"A<). Gowever,
this is time consumin and e8#ensive. 5t can easily cost millions of dollars to develo# such a book
or course. !hus, the develo#ment of such books,courses is usually done only in situations where
there is a relatively lare mass market or where there is lare fundin from a overnment aency
or a #rivate foundation.
Gihly 5nteractive 5ntellient "om#uter)Assisted <earnin is a CnaturalD for many students
with learnin disabilities. 6or e8am#le, here is #art of the abstract of #a#er by du 4oulay and
<uckin ($%%+)A
!his #a#er reviews #roress in understandin certain as#ects of human e8#ert teachin and in develo#in
tutorin systems that im#lement those human teachin strateies and tactics. 5t concentrates #articularly
on how systems have dealt with student answers and how they have dealt with motivational issues,
referrin #articularly to work carried out at Susse8A for e8am#le, on res#ondin effectively to the studentFs
motivational state, on continent and Syotskian ins#ired teachin strateies and on the #lausibility
#roblem. !his latter is concerned with whether tactics that are effectively a##lied by human teachers can
be as effective when embodied in machine teachers.
!his means that in a ty#ical teachin,learnin situation in hiher education much of the burden
for constructivism lies with the individual learner. You (#ersonally) know what you know. 5t is
your ?ob to take the learnin materials and ado#t them to your current knowlede and skills, and
your s#ecific needs. !his is a very im#ort idea for teachers. You can learn to be a Cconstructivist
teacher.D Gowever, one of the most im#ortant thins you can do is to hel# you students learn to
be res#onsible, self)reliant, constructivist learners. !his idea can be interated into teachin
beinnin at the earliest rade levels, and then e8#anded u#on year after year as students #roress
throuh school. 5t is #art of the overall oal of hel#in students to become self)sufficient, lifelon
learners.
Situated Learning: A Staf Development Example
Gere is a comment that miht have been made by an inservice teacher in one of my classes or
worksho#sA
5 am an inservice teacher who is usin your book in a worksho# (short course) that 5 am takin. !he
worksho# includes teachers who are interested in a number of different rade levels. !he worksho# is
bein iven in a ty#ical adult education settin, in an environment that is far removed from the one that 5
face in my teachin. 5t seems to me that this is a #oor e8am#le of situated learnin. (Gy#othetical =eader)
5 tend to aree with the Gy#othetical =eader. As an inservice teacher, you want to use your
new 5"! knowlede and skills to work with Pre@)+$ students in classrooms where you teach.
"ertainly the adult education inservice or #reservice teacher education worksho# is Huite a bit
different than the environment in which you want to use the knowlede and skills that you are
Pae $:
ainin. !hus, you face a ma?or #roblem in transfer of learnin. As a teacher, one of my ?obs is to
hel# create conditions for hih)road transfer of learnin.
An effectively desined and facilitated #reservice or inservice course,worksho# can overcome
some of the difficulties that named by the Gy#othetical =eader. Gere are some of ways in which
this miht be doneA
+. !he facilitator can draw heavily on the teachin knowlede and e8#erience of the
#artici#ants. !his can be done in a manner that creates a discovery)based, hihly
interactive, sharin environment in which the #artici#ants ain a lot of Creal classroom
worldD knowlede and skills.
$. All of the rou# discussions and all of the assinments or activities can be desined to
allow #artici#ants to focus on ideas and e8am#les s#ecifically relevant to their own
teachin situation.
:. =ole)#layin, or facilitator modelin of teachin to children, can be em#loyed.
2. !he s#ecific situations that teachers will encounter in their schools and classrooms can be
a ma?or to#ic. !hus, #artici#ants can learn about how to make effective use of their new
knowlede and skills in a one)com#uter classroom, in a class where most (or few) of the
students have 5"! at home, in a classroom that has a #od of five 5nternet)connected
com#uters, in a com#uter lab, and so on.
&. All of the e8am#les #resented by the facilitator can be drawn from actual school classroom
settins.
;. Partici#ants can be #rovided with materials and access to materials that include detailed
classroom lesson #lans.
!he above list can be e8#anded. Gowever, all of the ideas are merely substitutes for a staff
develo#ment a##roach that has #roven very effective. 5t is a classroom demonstration in the
learnerFs classroom. 5n this a##roach, a facilitator visits your classroom and teaches your students.
You observe, #erha#s actin as an assistant. /ver time you radually move from bein an
observer,hel#er to doin the instruction. 6or e8am#le, in an elementary school settin the
worksho#,course facilitator miht do a writin lesson in which com#uters are used. You miht
then #resent a writin lesson later in the day or the ne8t day, with the facilitator servin as your
assistant and mentor. At a secondary school level the facilitator miht teach one #eriod, and you
miht then teach the same material usin the same techniHues in another section of the same
course later in the day.
!he trouble with this one)on)one a##roach is that it is Huite e8#ensive and does not lend itself
to reachin the lare number of #reservice and inservice teachers who need the 5"! education.
!hus, this a##roach is most often found in schools that have an 5"! coordinator whose duties
include staff develo#ment. 5t can also be used in a school where the teachers each assume some of
the staff develo#ment res#onsibilities in the school.
>hile the e8am#le of this section focuses on inservice teachers, the same ideas a##ly to
#reservice teacher education. 7enerally s#eakin, the CsituationD of #reservice education is Huite
different than the CsituationD in which the #reservice teacher will encounter on the ?ob.
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Motivation
Gere are three comments that miht have been made by students in one of my classes or
worksho#sA
5 have been told that 5 need to know more about 5"!, and there are #ressures Cfrom aboveD (reHuirements)
for me to learn more. Gowever, the school where 5 teach and the classrooms that 5 have visited are not
makin much use of 5"!. 5t is not clear to me that com#uters are im#rovin the education of studentsM
mainly they seem like a waste of time and money that miht better be s#ent on essentials such as
im#rovin student learnin of the : =s. 5 donFt have the time and enery to learn new thins that are not
immediately a##licable to hel#in my students. (Gy#othetical =eader U +)
5 have been routinely usin com#uters and the 5nternet for years, and 5 think they are reat. 5 think that all
students should have easy access to 5"! both in their classrooms and at home, and that they should make
routine use of such facilities. 5 really en?oy learnin more about 5"! and then makin use of my
increasin knowlede and skills. (Gy#othetical =eader U$)
5 admit it, 5 am a com#uter ?unkie. 5 live and breathe com#uters. 5 #robably s#end half of my time usin
my com#uter system, #layin com#uter ames, browsin interestin sites, listin to radio stations on the
>eb, and so on. 5 like to have the newest and fasted hardware and connectivity. 5 like to learn new #ieces
of software, and 5 like to hel# other #eo#le learn about com#uters. (Gy#othetical =eader U:)
Gy#othetical =eader U+ has some e8trinsic motivation. 5t may be that he or she is takin a
reHuired 5"! course and doesnFt #articularly like com#uters.
Gy#othetical =eader U$ has intrinsic motivation. As a #reservice or inservice teacher you
know that you will e8#erience better teachin results when most are all of your students are
intrinsically motivated to learn. Gowever, the reality is that this situation is not easy to achieve and
seldom occurs. (any of the #artici#ants in my worksho#s are not stronly intrinsically motivated
to learn 5"! and to a##ly their knowlede and skills in their teachin.
Gy#othetical =eader U: is almost #assionate about com#uters. /ne miht think of such
#assion as bein a very #owerful (#erha#s overwhelmin) intrinsic motivation.
5ntrinsic motivation is a #owerful aid to learnin. 7ood teachers are ood at hel#in students
to discover and build intrinsic motivation and #assion for various areas of learnin.
5t is assumed that you (a reader of this book) are an adult who has considerable intrinsic
motivation to become or to be a ood teacher. As an author, that makes my ?ob easy. All 5 have to
do is to hel# you understand the many benefits that 5"! brins to students and teachers. 5f you
become convinced that 5"! can facilitate students ettin a much better education, then it is likely
that you will become intrinsically motivated to #rovide such 5"! advantaes to your students.
Gowever, it is #ossible that no amount of evidence and aruments will convince you that
calculators, com#uters, and 5nternet connectivity (email and the >eb) are im#ortant to students in
our educational system. 5f this is the case, here is somethin that miht motivate you and hel# you
develo# intrinsic motivation as you read this book. Set a oal of becomin a hihly Hualified critic
of 5"! in education. Study 5"! in education from the #oint of view of identifyin its flaws and
failin. 5 have develo#ed a >eb #ae to hel# you et started ((oursund, Aruments Aainst
>ebsite, n.d.).
Transfer of Learning
Gere is a comment that miht have been made by a student in one of my classesA
Pae $&
5 think 5 understand the eneral conce#t of transfer of learnin. Gowever, 5 donFt see how it a##lies to
takin ideas from this book and usin them with my students. !his book seems far removed from my
teachin environment. (Gy#othetical =eader)
As noted earlier, the overarchin mission of this book is to im#rove the education of our
children. 4y readin about near,far transfer and about low)road,hih road transfer, you have
#robably increased your knowlede about how to teach for transfer. !eachin for transfer is one
of the most im#ortant ways to im#rove our educational system.
As also noted earlier, there is a hue a# between educational theory and educational #ractice.
You need to carefully e8amine your teachin knowlede, skills, and #ractices. Gere is some food
for thouht.
+. 'oes your curriculum include a lot of em#hasis on students ainin a hihly level of
automaticity (s#eed and accuracy) in certain areasI Perha#s you can identify one s#ecific
area in which you are strivin to develo# Cmachine)likeD ca#abilities in your students, but
where machines such as calculators and com#uters are far faster and more accurate. !ime
s#ent in achievin the automaticity for near transfer or low)road transfer is time that is not
available for teachin #roblem solvin, critical thinkin, and other hiher conition.
$. 'o your students often take a Cmemori*e and reuritateD a##roach to materials you
cover on your testsI "hances are that what they memori*e and reuritate is soon
forotten. !here is almost no retention, or transfer into the future.
:. (any of the ideas and #rocesses in #roblem solvin, critical thinkin and other hiher)
order conition transfer over time and across different disci#line areas. Gih road transfer
#rovides a model for teachin for transfer, and it is es#ecially relevant in teachin for
#roblem solvin, critical thinkin, and hiher)order conition.
2. !he chances are that your students have never been e8#licitly introduced to the idea of
transfer of learnin. -8#lore with your students their transfer of learnin ca#abilities and
limitations. !each them the vocabulary transfer of learning, low-road transfer, and high-
road transfer, and hel# them learn to identify when they are doin transfer of their
learnin.
As you read this book you will be e8#osed to many im#ortant educational ideas. Some will
directly relate to 5"! while others will a##ly to broader as#ects of education. As you ain
knowlede about one of these ideas, share it with some of your fellow #reservice or inservice
teachers, and with some of your students. !ry out the ideas in your teachin. !hat is, try
transferrin your new knowlede into environment outside of the one in which you are readin
this book.
Activities for Chapter1
+. 'o some reflective intros#ection about the intrinsic and e8trinsic motivation that has led
you to read this book. (ake some mental notes about what you e8#ect to et out of
readin this book. !hen think about what the Preface, "ha#ter %, and "ha#ter + contribute
toward these e8#ectations, and whether they have added to your list of e8#ectations.
$. (ake a list of some of your im#ortant knowlede and skill low)road transfer areas.
Analy*e your list and how you ain these low)road transfer ca#abilities.
:. (ake a list of some of your im#ortant knowlede and skill hih)road transfer areas.
Analy*e your list and how you ain these hih)road transfer ca#abilities
Pae $;
Pae $1
Chapter 2
Gaining Increased ICT in Education Expertise
"An e8#ert is a #erson who has made all the
mistakes that can be made in a very narrow field."
(Eiels 4ohr)
"5f you don't know where you are oin, you're likely
to end u# somewhere else." ('r. <aurence J. Peter,
+0+0)+00%)
!his book assumes that you have some introductory knowlede and skills in usin an 5"!
system for word #rocessin, email, and browsin the >eb. 6or each of these tools, you have a
level of 5"! e8#ertise that is useful to you. !his e8#ertise has likely come from some combination
of formal instruction, learnin from your #eers, self)instruction that includes trial and error, and a
lot of e8#erience. You have some sense of your level of e8#ertise relative to that of your #eers,
such as your fellow teachers or the members of your #reservice cohort class.
!his cha#ter e8#lores the idea of e8#ertise. >hile the s#ecific taret is e8#ertise in the area of
5"! in education, we will also look at e8#ertise on a broader scale.
How a Discipline is Defned
You have some knowlede about a lot of different disci#lines such as art, bioloy, chemistry,
dentistry, economics, forestry, and so on. A disci#lineMa coherent area of human endeavorMcan
be analy*ed from the #oint of view ofA
L !he ty#es of #roblems, tasks, and activities it addresses.
L 5ts accumulated accom#lishments such as results, achievements, #roducts, #erformances,
sco#e, #ower, uses, im#act on the societies of the world, and so on.
L 5ts history, culture, lanuae (includin notation and s#ecial vocabulary), and methods of
teachin, learnin, and assessment.
L 5ts tools, methodoloies, and ty#es of evidence and aruments used in solvin #roblems,
accom#lishin tasks, and recordin and sharin accumulated results.
5n this book we will think about disci#lines in this way. >e are #articularly interested in how 5"!
has contributed to the #roblems that a wide variety of disci#lines address, to the tools and
methodoloies that they use, and to the results that they have achieved.
6or e8am#le, consider 5"! in music. Some of the key as#ects of music are com#osition, vocal
and instrumental #erformance, and some combination of listenin, a##reciation, and criticism. You
know, of course, that 5"! now #lays a ma?or role in music distribution and that music #iracy via
the >eb is a ma?or issue. You also know about roles of com#uteri*ed musical #erformance
instruments and some roles of com#uters in com#osin (and #roducin written notation for)
music.
5"! brins a new dimension to music education for relatively youn children. Students can
learn some of the rudiments of com#osition, and can com#ose music, before they have develo#ed
the skills to #erform music on a Cby handD musical instrument. !hey can learn to use a com#uter
system for both com#osition and #erformance.
Pae $9
-ach disci#line can be e8amined from the #oint of view of how 5"! is contributin to the
content of the disci#linesMto the ty#es of #roblems and tasks that it addresses. You undoubtedly
know that com#uters and calculators have become interal com#onents of math and the sciences.
5n the sciences, for e8am#le, there are now three ma?or ways to e8#lore, understand, and CdoD a
science. !y#ically these are labeled theoretical, experimental, and computational. 5n +009, one of
the winners of the Eobel Pri*e in chemistry received the award for his work in "om#utational
"hemistry. !his involved the develo#ment of and use of com#uter models of chemical #rocesses.
"om#utational astronomy, bioloy, chemistry, etc. are now all im#ortant com#onents of their
res#ective disci#lines.
"om#uter modelin and use of com#uter models varies in im#ortance from disci#line to
disci#line. 6or e8am#le, it is really im#ortant in architecture, business enineerin, economics,
mathematics, and in all of the sciences. 5t is of less im#ortance in art, the humanities, music, and a
number of the social sciences.
@ee# in mind that com#uter modelin is only one as#ect of #ossible roles of 5"! as #art of the
content of a disci#line. -arlier in this section we briefly discussed some roles of 5"! in music. 5n
art, 5"! #rovides a variety of new media. "om#uters have substantially chaned the field of
ra#hic arts. Similar comments hold for enineerin drawin, where com#uter)aided desin has
emered as a ma?or com#onent of the content area ("A', n.d.).
Having Some Expertise vs. Being an Expert
!here is a difference between havin some level of e8#ertise and bein an e8#ert. >ithin any
domain or area of knowlede and skills that is under consideration, an e8#ertise scale runs from a
very low level to a very hih level. 6rom a teacher #oint of view, you want to hel# your students
move u# e8#ertise scales that corres#ond to the areas that you teach. Gere are a few thins to be
aware ofA
+. A learner brins e8istin knowlede and skills to whatever new learnin task they face.
!his situation is the core of constructivism.
$. <earners vary in their innate mental and #hysical ca#abilities. Eote, however, that the
Cnature versus nurtureD issue is very com#le8. As teachers, our oal is to hel# our students
to develo# knowlede and skills that move them u# various e8#ertise scales. Some
students will move u# faster and have the #otential to move u# further than other students.
:. 5t is very difficult (indeed, for the most #art it is im#ossible) to accurately #redict a lon
time in advance either how fast a learner will move u# a #articular e8#ertise scale or how
far alon the scale the learner miht #roress. /ne of the thins that educators have
learned is that settin hih oals and standards is usually very desirable. 4ut, this must be
done usin common sense. (ost children will not become world)class athletes or world)
renowned research #rofessors.
2. -8#ertise in a domain has many dimensions. Some of these dimensions, such as drive,
#ersistence, and motivation tend to cut across many different areas of e8#ertise. !here is
considerable transfer of learnin between areas of e8#ertise. Gowever, a hih level of
e8#ertise in a domain reHuires a hih level of knowlede within the domain.
&. 5ncreasin e8#ertise draws u#on ainin an a##ro#riate combination of e8#erience, and
lower)order and hiher)order knowlede and skills. >hile lower)order and hiher)order
can be tauht and #racticed somewhat se#arately from each other, seamless interation is
Pae $0
a oal. -ducational research and #ractice suests that this interation should be inherent
to the teachin and learnin #rocess.
;. A hih level of e8#ertise in a domain is e8em#lified by hih knowlede and skill that is
efficiently and effectively a##lied to solvin the #roblems and accom#lishin the tasks of
the domain. =ote memory, no matter how ood oneFs memory, is of limited value in
achievin a hih level of e8#ertise in a domain.
As an e8am#le of some of the above ideas, consider hel#in a student to ain increased
e8#ertise in writin in a word #rocessin environment. !his is obviously a com#le8 domain, since
it includes writin, word #rocessin, and deskto# #ublication, each of which is a com#le8 domain.
!hus, to move a student u# this e8#ertise scale we mihtA
+. Place most of our em#hasis on im#rovin the learnerFs writin knowlede and skills.
$. Place most of our em#hasis on im#rovin the learnerFs word #rocessin knowlede and
skills. !his miht include learnin fast keyboardin and,or learnin to make effective use
of voice in#ut. 5t miht also include learnin to com#ose and edit at a keyboard.
:. Place most of our em#hasis on im#rovin the learnerFs deskto# #ublication knowlede and
skills. !his miht include learnin #ae desin and layout, and effective use of ra#hics.
2. Seek a middle #osition that combines as#ects of +): in a manner that best contributes to
hel#in the student move u# the e8#ertise scale. !his CmiddleD #osition will vary from
student to student.
>e know that s#ellin, rammar, and writin leible (ood #enmanshi#) are all im#ortant
as#ects of (+). Gowever, in some sense these are lower)order as#ects as contrasted with
develo#in and re#resentin ideas that communicate effectively. Also, we know that a word
#rocessor is a #owerful aid to s#ellin and leibility, and it is also a useful aid in rammar. 5t is a
#owerful aid to layout and desin for effective communication. !hus, it miht #rove desirable to
#lace less em#hasis in (+) on s#ellin and leibility, and #erha#s less time on rammar (es#ecially
in the areas that a com#uter can do well). !his frees u# time for more em#hasis on hiher)order
as#ects of writin and time for learnin to use a word #rocessor. Some of the time miht be used
to hel# students ain increased knowlede and skills in #rocess writin and in #rocess writin in a
word #rocessin environment.
Eowadays, the trend is toward seekin a #osition somewhere between the e8tremes e8#ressed
in +):. >e know, of course, that constructivism and individuali*ation are im#ortant. !he
a##roaches $ and : #rovide an e8tra challene to our educational system since students vary
widely in their com#uter backround and e8#erience, and in their access to com#uters.
Exploring ICT Aspects of a Teachers Expertise
You are intrinsically and e8trinsically motivated to be a ood teacher. As a #reservice or
inservice teacher, you are faced by the challene of ainin an a##ro#riate level of e8#ertise in
teachin the various disci#lines you teach. >hat constitutes an a##ro#riate level of e8#ertiseI !his
is not an easy Huestion to answer. =esearch tells us that the effectiveness of a teacher de#ends on
a number of different thins, such as the si8 listed below.
L curriculumN content knowlede of the disci#lines bein tauht
L #edaoyN knowlede and skill in teachin the disci#lines
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L assessmentN knowlede and skill in assessment
L classroom manaement knowlede and skills
L eneral communication skills
L continued #rofessional rowthN bein a lifelon learner
5"! is now #art of the content of each disci#line that you teach or are #re#arin to teach. 5"!
is an aid to teachin any disci#line, and 5"! is an aid to assessment in any disci#line. 5"! tends to
be an added classroom manaement burden, whether com#uters are located in your classroom or
you take your students to a com#uter lab. 5"! is a useful aid to communication with #arents, your
fellow educators, and your students. 5"! #rovides a number of aids to learnin, both for teachers
and for their students. 5n brief summary, 5"! is now a sinificant com#onent of many different
as#ects of oneFs e8#ertise as a teacher.
<etFs e8#lore your knowlede and skill in word #rocessin and deskto# #ublication usin a
word #rocessor. 5s your word #rocessin and deskto# #ublication level of e8#ertise adeHuate to
the demands that you, your students, your school, and other as#ects of your #rofessional life
miht #lace on itI
/ne way to answer such a Huestion is throuh self)assessment. !ake a look at the self)
assessment instrument illustrated in 6iure $.+. .se this scale to assess your word #rocessin and
deskto# #ublication e8#ertise in the three areasA content, #edaoy, and assessment.
&
6iure $.+. 7eneral)#ur#ose e8#ertise scale for a #reservice or inservice teacher.
Presumably you would like to be able to say that you are a C:D or hiher on each of these
three areas. 4ut, how do you knowI 'o you know what the #rofessional teachin res#onsibilities
are or miht soon be in each of these three areasI
!o make this situation still more com#le8, there are many different com#uter tools that
students are usin or miht be usin in schools. "ha#ter 2 of this book lists a number of 5"!
eneric toolsMtools that cut across many disci#lines. "ha#ter & discusses some non)eneric 5"!
tools as well as 5"! content that is now an im#ortant #art of the content of various disci#lines.
Some hel# is available throuh the 5nternational Society for !echnoloy in -ducation (5S!-),
a non)#rofit #rofessional society that s#ecifically focuses on 5"! in #recollee education and in
teacher education. 5S!- has develo#ed Eational -ducational !echnoloy Standards (E-!S) for
students, teachers, and school administrators (5S!- E-!S, n.d.).
Pae :+
5n very brief summary, the 5S!- E-!S for teachers states that a teacher at the #recollee
level should meet the 5S!- E-!S for students raduatin from the +$
th
rade and should meet a
com#rehensive set of 5"! reHuirements that are s#ecific to the #rofession of bein a teacher.
!he 5S!- E-!S for #recollee students are orani*ed into si8 eneral cateories. (5S!-
E-!S).
+. 4asic o#erations and conce#ts
$. Social, ethical, and human issues
:. !echnoloy #roductivity tools
2. !echnoloy communications tools
&. !echnoloy research tools
;. !echnoloy #roblem)solvin and decision)makin tools
!hus, you can look at this list and see if it hel#s you to understand your current levels of
e8#ertise in use of a word #rocessor and in doin deskto# #ublication usin a word #rocessor.
Gowever, as you try to do this you will likely decide that you need still more information, because
this list is too eneral.
5S!- #rovides some additional detail in sets of benchmarks for students com#letin various
rade levels. !he &
th
rade standards listed below are Huoted below (5S!- E-!S, n.d.). !he
numbers in #arentheses at the end of each standard are from the list of eneral cateories +);
iven above.
Prior to com#letion of 7rade &, students willA
+. .se keyboards and other common in#ut and out#ut devices (includin ada#tive devices when
necessary) efficiently and effectively. (+)
$. 'iscuss common uses of technoloy in daily life and the advantaes and disadvantaes those uses
#rovide. (+, $)
:. 'iscuss basic issues related to res#onsible use of technoloy and information and describe #ersonal
conseHuences of ina##ro#riate use. ($)
2. .se eneral #ur#ose #roductivity tools and #eri#herals to su##ort #ersonal #roductivity, remediate
skill deficits, and facilitate learnin throuhout the curriculum. (:)
&. .se technoloy tools (e.., multimedia authorin, #resentation, >eb tools, diital cameras, scanners)
for individual and collaborative writin, communication, and #ublishin activities to create
knowlede #roducts for audiences inside and outside the classroom. (:, 2)
;. .se telecommunications efficiently to access remote information, communicate with others in su##ort
of direct and inde#endent learnin, and #ursue #ersonal interests. (2)
1. .se telecommunications and online resources (e.., e)mail, online discussions, >eb environments) to
#artici#ate in collaborative #roblem)solvin activities for the #ur#ose of develo#in solutions or
#roducts for audiences inside and outside the classroom. (2, &)
9. .se technoloy resources (e.., calculators, data collection #robes, videos, educational software) for
#roblem solvin, self)directed learnin, and e8tended learnin activities. (&, ;)
0. 'etermine which technoloy is useful and select the a##ro#riate tool(s) and technoloy resources to
address a variety of tasks and #roblems. (&, ;)
+%. -valuate the accuracy, relevance, a##ro#riateness, com#rehensiveness, and bias of electronic
information sources. (;)
Pae :$
!he chances are that you find this list of &
th
rade student standards somewhat hel#ful and
somewhat intimidatin. !hey do not #rovide enouh detail for you to adeHuately self)assess your
word #rocessin and deskto# #ublication knowlede and skills. Gowever, they suest that word
#rocessin is only a small #art of what a teacher needs to know about 5"! in education.
=emember, 5S!- recommends that all teachers meet the +$
th
rade standards for studentsK
Perha#s you do not yet satisfy the list of knowlede and skills iven in U& that are a##licable to
word #rocessin and the >eb. Also, you miht conclude that you need still more detailed
information to a##ro#riately self)assess yourself usin the scale in 6iure $.+.
!o continue in our self)assessment task, lets look more closely at word #rocessin and
deskto# #ublication. Gere are three #arara#hs that summari*e some of the key ideas in word
#rocessin and deskto# #ublication in a word #rocessin environmentA
+. A modern word #rocessor contains hundreds of aids to writin and editin. 6or e8am#le, it may
contain aids to hel# create headers, footers, #ae numberin, tables, styles, inde8, and table of
contents. 5t may contain an outliner, #rovisions for arranin a list in al#habetical or numerical order,
#rovisions for inclusion of and editin of ra#hics, and #rovisions for establishin >eb links. 5t
contains #rovisions for settin a first line indent and a hanin indent. 5n contains #rovisions to make
use of a variety of ty#efaces and ty#e si*es. 5t contains a s#ellin checker and may contain a rammar
checker. 5t contains #rovisions for savin files in a variety of formats, includin =!6.
$. 'eskto# #ublishin is the desin and layout of a hardco#y document for effective communication.
5ncreasin e8#ertise is shown by knowin and followin the rules about choices of ty#efaces, effective
use of white s#ace, desin, layout, V scan, ra#hics, and color to im#rove communication. 5t is also
shown by knowin how to desin and use "styles" (the style sheet facilities of the word #rocessor).
:. =esearch in writin suests that a si8)ste# a##roach, called Process >ritin, is a ood a##roach to
writin. Perha#s the sinle most im#ortant ste# is Crevise, revise, revise,D and a word #rocessor is
#articularly useful in this ste# Gowever, a word #rocessor is an im#ortant aid in all of the ste#s.
!hese three #arara#hs have the CflavorD of a word #rocessor as bein a tool to be used in
creatin and #ublishin hardco#y documents that communicate effectively. !he software #rovides
many aids. !he underlyin theory of desin, layout, ty#efaces, and so on contributes substantially
to effective communication. =esearch su##orts the value of learnin to make effective use of a
word #rocessor as an aid to increasin e8#ertise as a writer (7oldber, $%%:).
6inally, you will note that even at this level of detail, we have not mentioned any #articular
#iece of word #rocessin software or any #articular hardware #latform. >e have not discussed
s#eed and accuracy in keyboardin. >e have not discussed use of software for outlinin. >e have
not discussed how one teaches a student to make effective use of a word #rocessor in writin. 5n
short, we have made #roress, but we still have a lon way to o.
<et me summari*e the situation we are e8#lorin. You are used to the idea of Cwritin in the
content areaD and that every teacher has res#onsibility for hel#in students ain increased writin
skill. >ord #rocessin and deskto# #ublication are #art of the overall field of writin. As word
#rocessin and deskto# #ublication become more and more thorouhly interated into the
everyday school curriculum, you will be faced by increasin res#onsibility for hel#in your
students et better at use of these tools and ideas in the writin that they do.
Further Considerations About Word Processing
/ne of the intriuin as#ects of 5"! tools is that a #erson can ain a useful level of knowlede
and skill in a modest number of minutes. Gowever, each 5"! tool is useful as an aid to #roblem
solvin and accom#lishin a variety of hiher)order, challenin tasks. !hus, movin u# the
Pae ::
e8#ertise scale in use of a #articular tool reHuires a combination of learnin to use the tool better
and learnin to use the tool to solve com#le8 #roblems and accom#lish com#le8 tasks. !his
#rovides a stron arument for the routine interation of 5"! into each sub?ect area that students
study.
Gowever, such interation #resents ma?or challene to our educational system. As an e8am#le,
consider word #rocessin. A word #rocessor is a useful aid to #rocess writin. >ith a##ro#riate
instruction and #ractice, relatively youn students can learn to keyboard much faster than they can
#rint or handwrite, and the keyboardin #rovides much more leible te8t. !hus, a school miht
decide that its students should learn word #rocessin as #art of the overall #rocess of learnin
#rocess writin and learnin to communicate effectively in writin. Eow consider Huestions such
as the followinA
+. At what rade level or ae is it a##ro#riate for a student to bein to learn to use a word
#rocessorI
$. >hat should be dro##ed from the curriculum in order to make time for a student to learn
to effectively use a word #rocessorI Alternatively, is there ood evidence that knowin
how to effectively use a word #rocessor will save the student more time than it takes to
ain such knowlede and skillI
:. >ho should #rovide the needed instructionI (>hat are the desirable HualificationsI
=emember, a word #rocessor is not a ty#ewriter. A #erson who is skilled at teachin
ty#in may know little about word #rocessin and teachin a student to write in a word
#rocessin environment).
2. Gow much school time should be used in hel#in a student to become fast and accurate at
key boardinI (And, or course, at what ae or rade level should this be done, and what
should be dro##ed from the curriculum to #rovide the needed timeI)
&. As a student ains skill in usin a word #rocessor (includin the s#ellin checker and other
built)in aids to writin), should the student be allowed to (or, reHuired to) make use of this
facility in writin and in takin essay testsI
;. 5s use of a basal s#ellin te8t and weekly or more freHuent Cby handD s#ellin test an
effective and a##ro#riate #art of the curriculum when students routinely write usin a
word #rocessor with a built)in s#ellin checkerI
1. Gow should a teacher deal with the fact that some students have access to a word
#rocessor and other electronic aids to writin at home, and some do notI
9. Should cursive writin be dro##ed from the curriculumI
!hese ty#es of Huestions hel# to suest some of the breadth and de#th challenes that
teachers and schools face as they move toward reater interation of word #rocessin into the
everyday classroom. Somewhat similar challenes reet wides#read ado#tion of other com#uter
tools into the curriculum.
Final Remarks
!here are many eneral)#ur#ose 5"! tools that students can learn to use as they #roress
throuh Pre@)+$ education. "ha#ter 2 on 7eneric !ools discusses some of these. !he 5S!-
E-!S for students do not #rovide details on what students could or should learn over this full
rane of widely used, eneral)#ur#ose 5"! tools. Gowever, the CmessaeD in these student
Pae :2
standards and in the 5S!- E-!S for teachers is clear. A wide rane of 7eneric !ools are now
im#ortant to students at the Pre@)+$ level, and teachers need to be able to work effectively with
students who use these tools and,or are learnin to use these tools.
-ach of the 7eneric 5"! !ools has the characteristic that a very modest amount of knowlede
and skill is useful to the learner. Gowever, each is a #owerful aid to hiher)order thinkin and
#roblem solvin. At the current time, our educational system is doin a relatively #oor ?ob of
movin students u# the 5"! e8#ertise scale, toward usin 5"! as a routine aid to solvin com#le8
#roblems and accom#lishin com#le8 tasks.
!his cha#ter has iven you some insiht into roles and issues of a word #rocessor (and its
accom#anyin deskto# #ublication tool) as an aid to student written communication. !his same
ty#e of moderately dee# analysis can be done for each of the eneral)#ur#ose 5"! tools that are
relevant to solvin the #roblems and accom#lishin the tasks within the core curriculum areas
tauht at the Pre@)+$ levels. You, as a #reservice or inservice teacher, are faced by the challene
of ainin a##ro#riate levels of e8#ertise within these 5"! tool.
!he ne8t few cha#ters address some of the to#ics of various as#ects of 5"! in education in
which all teachers need to have a reasonable level of e8#ertise.
+. !his cha#ter e8#lored word #rocessin and deskto# #ublicationMone of the #rereHuisite
knowlede and skill areas assumed in this book. Select one of the two other #rereHuisite
areasMemail or the >ebMand analy*e it at the same level of de#th that this cha#ter
a##lied to word #rocessin and deskto# #ublication. As you do this analysis, reflect on the
level of knowlede and skill you need in this 5"! area to facilitate your students movin
u# the Cknowlede, skills, and e8#erienced userD e8#ertise scale in this 5"! area.
$. As a #reservice or inservice teacher, you have varyin levels of e8#ertise in various as#ects
of what it takes to be a hihly effective teacher. !hink about your teachin)oriented, but
not 5"!)oriented, area of reatest e8#ertise. Analy*e it from multi#le #oints of view, such
as your level of e8#ertise relative to other teachers, your level of e8#ertise relative to your
teachin needs, how you ained your current level of e8#ertise, what you are doin to
maintain or increase your current level of e8#ertise, critical com#onents that contribute to
your current hih level of e8#ertise, and so on.
:. !his cha#ter briefly discussed the idea of writin across the curriculum and tied it in with
word #rocessin and deskto# #ublication across the curriculum. Select some other student
knowlede and skill area. Analy*e it from the #oint of view of whether it should be an
Cacross the curriculumD area and the as#ects of 5"! that lie within that area. ('oin
library research as an aid to solvin a #roblem or accom#lishin a task #rovides a ood
e8am#le. .se this one as a last resort if you cannot think of any other.)
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Chapter 3
Compelling and Second Order Applications
"!he real #roblem is not whether machines think but
whether #eo#le do." (4.6. Skinner, +0;0)
"You don't ?ust learn knowledeN you have to create
it. 7et in the driver's seat, don't ?ust be a #assener.
You have to contribute to it or you don't understand
it." ('r. >. -dwards 'emin)
4y now you have beun to a##reciate some of the challenes that 5"! brins to education.
You may have beun to form some definite o#inions on a##ro#riate oals for 5"! in our formal
educational system. You may have develo#ed some ideas as to what should be added to the
curriculum, and what should be deleted.
!his cha#ter e8#lores two im#ortant ideas about 5"! in educationA
+. Some com#uter a##lications are intrinsically motivatin and have been widely ado#ted
because of this and their value to users. >e call them Compelling &pplications.
$. (uch of the 5"! use in our schools is at a relatively low level that we call 'irst (rder.
5"! will bein to have a much reater im#act on education as we move toward )econd
(rder a##lications.
A Little Bit of History
!he Cmass #roductionD of electronic diital com#uters bean in +0&+, with the 5ntroduction of
the .E5SA" 5. !hese early com#uters were e8#ensive and not terribly reliable. Gowever, they
were a valuable aid to solvin #roblems and accom#lishin tasks in business, overnment, military,
and research. 'urin the +0&%s, some collees and universities acHuired com#uters and develo#ed
courses on their use. 4y +0&9, there were already some #recollee students who were learnin
how to write com#uter #rorams in machine lanuae or in 6/=!=AE, a science)oriented
#rorammin lanuae.
EoteA !here are a hue number of >ebsites that focus on com#uter history. (y recent 7oole search usin
the term computer history and then a second search usin the term history of computers each re#orted
more than $% million hits. 5f this to#ic interests you, be sure to take a look at the "harles 4abbae
5nstitute at htt#A,,www.cbi.umn.edu,.
!he com#uter industry rew ra#idly, as did the ca#abilities of com#uters. !he +0;%s saw the
develo#ment of local area com#uter networks and time)shared com#utin. !he trend was to make
com#uters more readily available to #eo#le and more convenient to use. >hile the develo#ment
and sales of Clare, e8#ensiveD mainframe com#uters continued at a remarkable #ace, less
e8#ensive and smaller minicom#uters were develo#ed. 5t became common for scientists to have
minicom#uters in their laboratories.
!he latter half of the +01%s saw the develo#ment of microcom#uters. 5n the first few years, a
number of com#anies #roduced a variety of microcom#uters. !he A##le + was #roduced in +01;,
and various versions of the A##le $ had been in #roduction for years before 54( develo#ed and
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bean sellin its first microcom#uter in +09+. 5n the year $%%2, the worldwide sales of
microcom#uters were a##ro8imately +1& million machines, or about one #er :& #eo#le on earth.
5t is interestin to contem#late the fact that todayFs modestly #riced microcom#uter is hundreds of
times as fast as the million dollar mainframes of the early +01%s. (easured ?ust in terms of
com#ute #ower, current annual #roduction of microcom#uters is more than eHuivalent to one
circa +01% mainframe com#uter for each #erson on earth.
Compelling Applications
!here are a number of com#uter a##lications that are com#ellin (intrinsically motivatin) to
#eo#le, com#anies, overnment aencies, and so on. !he followin article discusses the idea of
com#ellin com#uter a##lications that many students and educations find to be intrinsically
motivatin.
Roles of IT in Improving Our Educational System
(oursund, '.7. (/ctober $%%%). =oles of 5! in 5m#rovin /ur -ducational System. Part $A
"om#ellin A##lications. Learning and Leading with Technology. -uene, /=A 5S!-.
=e#rinted with #ermission from Learning and Leading with Technology (c) $%%%)$%%+, 5S!-
(the 5nternational Society for !echnoloy in -ducation. 9%%.::;.&+0+ (..S. O "anada) or
&2+.:%$.:111, custWsvc3iste.or, htt#A,,www.iste.or,. =e#rint #ermission does not
constitute an endorsement by 5S!- of the #roduct, trainin, or course.
)))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))
>hen microcom#uters first started to become #o#ular in the late +01%s, most com#uter)usin
business#eo#le viewed them with disdain. (icrocom#uters were under#owered and not #articularly useful
in solvin the #roblems and accom#lishin the ty#es of tasks business#eo#le faced. 5nstead,
microcom#uters were "toys" that miht best be used to #lay ames or solve inconseHuential #roblems.
!his attitude toward microcom#uters was forever chaned with the +010 develo#ment of the first
s#readsheet software. A s#readsheet runnin on a "toy" com#uter was a #owerful aid to doin
bookkee#in and accountin tasks. (oreover, the software made it relatively easy to incor#orate formulas
(for e8am#le, com#ound interest and #ayment schedules) to hel# solve a #articular #roblem. !hus, the
s#readsheet software could handle many of the ty#es of real)world #roblems faced by business#eo#le.
!he s#readsheet had an additional feature, one that made it #articularly com#ellin. A s#readsheet can be
viewed as a ty#e of mathematical model for a #articular as#ect of a business (such as #ayroll or inventory).
>ith this com#uteri*ed mathematical model, it is easy to ask "what ifI" Huestions and et #rom#t
answers.
Compelling &pplications *Two +,amples and an (eriew-
)preadsheet. 6rom the #oint of view of business#eo#le, the s#readsheet was the first com#ellin
a##lication of a microcom#uter. 6or this #articular rou# of #eo#le, s#readsheet software has the
followin characteristicsA
+. 5t is intrinsically motivatin. (!he user is intrinsically motivated to learn to use the software, because
it is such a #owerful aid to doin his or her ?ob.) 5t em#owers the user to solve #roblems and
accom#lish tasks that the user cannot readily accom#lish without use of the software.
$. 5t is reasonably #riced. 5ndeed, the worker's increased #roductivity far overshadowed the cost of both
a microcom#uter and the software. !hus, it was advantaeous to businesses to #rovide such facilities
to their workers who had need for them.
:. !he time and effort needed to learn to use a s#readsheet is reasonable relative to the available time
and ca#abilities of many business#eo#le. /ne does not need to be a "rocket scientist" to learn to use a
s#readsheet. 5n some sense, the com#ellin a##lication embodies some of the knowlede of a field, so
Pae :1
that the user can more ra#idly ain a functional level of skill, as com#ared to a #erson who is learnin
how to do bookkee#in and accountin tasks by hand.
5t is im#ortant to make two #oints here. 6irst, com#ellin is in the eyes of the learner,user. 5ntrinsic
motivation makes an a##lication com#ellin.
Second, a com#ellin a##lication em#owers its user to do thins that are not readily done without the
com#uter system. S#readsheet models, alon with formulatin and answerin "what ifI" Huestions, are
very #owerful aids to re#resentin and solvin business #roblems.
5 sus#ect that most of us have not thouht much about how the s#readsheet and other business software
has chaned business education. -ssentially every hih school in the country has re#laced its ty#ewriter
labs with com#uter labs. Students now learn keyboardin instead of ty#in. !hey learn to re#resent and
solve bookkee#in and accountin #roblems usin s#readsheets and other accountin software. !hey learn
to develo# databases, and they do "electronic" filin. !he more)modern business #rorams are now
includin a focus on e)commerce, #re#arin their students to work in this ra#idly rowin as#ect of
business.
.esktop publishing. !he (acintosh com#uter that first became available in +092, with its ra#hic user
interface, was woefully under#owered. Gowever, it had a mouse, and it came with both word #rocessin
(allowin multi#le ty#efaces and font si*es) and ra#hics software. >ith the aid of a relatively ine8#ensive
laser #rinter, the user of such a system could do #rofessional)level deskto# #ublishin. !ake a look back at
the three com#onents 5 used to define a com#ellin a##lication. "learly, deskto# #ublishin is a
com#ellin a##lication for many #eo#le.
!hink about what this com#ellin a##lication did for mechanical drawin, enineerin drawin, and
ra#hic arts curricula at the secondary school level. And, think about the s#ill over into ?ournalism courses
(e.., the school news#a#er and yearbook). 5ndeed, we are now beinnin to e8#ect that all students
develo# a reasonable level of knowlede and skill in the desin and layout work reHuired in deskto#
#ublishin, even in elementary school.
Two /ey 0uestions
Eow, 5 want you to think about two im#ortant Huestions.
+. >hat evidence do we have that business students in our secondary schools are ettin a better
education because of 5!I
$. >hat are some additional e8am#les of com#ellin a##lications that have had or have the #otential to
have a sinificant effect on our educational systemI
!he first Huestion is im#ortant because it brins a new #ers#ective to sayin what constitutes an
im#rovement in education. >e no loner consider neat #enmanshi# or s#eed and accuracy in doin sim#le
arithmetic to be ma?or oals in business education. And althouh bein ood at s#ellin is still useful, its
im#ortance has decreased because of s#ellin checkers in word #rocessors.
Eowadays, we want raduates who can think, and who can re#resent and solve the ty#es of #roblems that
are common to the academic areas they have studied. >e want them to effectively use commonly available
aids to re#resent and solve such #roblems, and we want them to be ood at learnin new aids as they come
alon. >e want our raduates to have ood inter#ersonal skills so they can work effectively with their
fellow em#loyees and with customers.
/ur current business education #roram is much chaned from the #ast. =elative to contem#orary needs,
our business curriculum from $& years ao would be classified as "terrible." (ore than likely, $& years in
the future, our current business education #roram will be considered terrible. 4ecause 5! is such a
#owerful aid to solvin the #roblems and accom#lishin the tasks faced by business#eo#le, we are tryin
to hit a ra#idly movin taret. (5 ho#e you are sayin to yourselfA "Gmm. 5 wonder if there are other
com#onents of our educational system that are faced with similar difficulties because 5! is chanin so
ra#idly.")
!he second Huestion is im#ortant because it ets us started thinkin about other chanes that have already
occurred in our educational system because of com#ellin a##lications. (oreover, it ets us thinkin
about whether there miht be many com#ellin a##lications whose wides#read use could lead to
sinificant im#rovements in our educational system.
Pae :9
In )ummary
"om#ellin a##lications from business have been interated into our educational system and have
#roduced sinificant chanes in this system. A #erson who learns to make effective use of these
com#ellin a##lications is em#owered. !his #erson can solve #roblems and accom#lish tasks that are
deemed im#ortant in our society and than cannot readily be done without the use of 5!.
Perha#s you are detectin a #atternI "onsider the hy#othesis that com#ellin a##lications from business
are a#t to be #owerful chane aents in the @)+$ curriculum. =emember that the under#innins of science
are eneratin and testin hy#otheses. You can add to your understandin of the science of teachin and
learnin by testin this hy#othesis. Perha#s the hy#othesis is not correct. 'o you know some ood
e8am#les of com#ellin a##lications in business that have not had an effect on @)+$ educationI
Eow move your thinkin outside the business curriculum. S#end some time thinkin about the non)
business courses you teach or are familiar with. 6rom your #oint of view, are there com#ellin a##lications
that should be an interal com#onent of some of these coursesI Please send me your ideas about other
com#ellin a##lications that have, have not, or could affect @) +$ education.
First-Order and Second-Order Uses of ICT
As noted in "ha#ter $ of this book, it is Huite easy to develo# a #ersonally useful level of
knowlede and skill in usin such tools as a word #rocessor, email, and a >eb browser. 6or many
#eo#le, these three tools are sufficient ?ustification for ownin and reularly usin a com#uter.
!aken toether, they are a com#ellin set of tools. /ther #eo#le find that com#uter ames
(#erha#s #layed over the 5nternet) #rovide more than enouh reason for ownin and reularly
usin a com#uter.
-ssentially all students in our formal #recollee education system are learnin how to use a
word #rocessor, email, >eb browser, and various forms of edutainment (a word that combines
educational and entertainment) or entertainment software. Gowever, the nature and e8tent of this
5"! use in schools ?ust touches the surface of the current ca#abilities of 5"! in education. !he
followin article 5 wrote for Leading and Learning with Technology e8#lores the idea of movin
beyond such su#erficial uses of 5"! in education.
Getting to the Second Order
(oursund, '.7. ($%%$). Getting to the second order: Moving beyond amplification uses of
information and communications technology in education. <earnin and <eadin with
!echnoloy. v:% n+ ##;). =e#rinted with #ermission from Learning and Leading with
Technology (c) $%%$)$%%:, 5S!- (the 5nternational Society for !echnoloy in -ducation.
9%%.::;.&+0+ (..S. O "anada) or &2+.:%$.:111, custWsvc3iste.or, htt#A,,www.iste.or,.
=e#rint #ermission does not constitute an endorsement by 5S!- of the #roduct, trainin, or
course.
!his was an invited article that a##eared as #art of the celebration of the start of the :%th year
of #ublication of <earnin and <eadin with !echnoloy. 5 founded this #ublication in +012 and
served as -ditor)in)"hief until the end of A#ril $%%+.
)))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))
5 am #leased to have the o##ortunity to write for the first issue in Solume :% of <earnin O <eadin with
!echnoloy. >hen 5 started this #eriodical nearly :% years ao, 5 ave little thouht as to what its future
miht be.
<ike <earnin O <eadin with !echnoloy, the field of 5nformation and "ommunication !echnoloy
(5"!) in education has come a lon way))but it has ?ust scratched the surface of what is to come. 'urin
the #ast three decades, 5"! has had some limited effect on curriculum content, instructional #rocesses,
Pae :0
assessment, and the #rofessional lives of educators. 4ut, for the most #art our educational system has been
"business as usual," with many small (incremental) chanes. 5n total, our educational system has not
chaned much durin this time.
"ontrast this with the 5"!)based chanes outside of our educational system ("hristensen, $%%%N
(oursund, $%%+). !here have been substantial ains in #roductivity attributed to 5"!. (any new
com#anies have been created and have #ros#ered, and many other com#anies have #roven unable to
effectively deal with 5"!)related chanes.
(y #rediction is that the ne8t three decades will see 5"! bein a disru#tive force in education. <are
chanes will occur, and many of our schools and school systems that attem#t to follow the "traditional"
#ath of the #ast decades will not #ros#er. !his article looks at where 5"! in education is headed and what
educators can do now to hel# sinificantly im#rove the Huality of education our students are receivin.
Incremental Change
/n (ay ;, +0&2, =oer 4annister became the first #erson to break the 2)minute barrier in the mile foot
race. Since then, throuh better trainin, chanes in the track surface, better runnin shoes, and so on, the
world record for the mile has been broken a number of times, and it is now about : minutes 2: seconds.
!his is an e8cellent e8am#le of incremental chane, with small chanes occurrin from time to time. Eote
that the total im#rovement has been less than 9X.
Eow, think about two #ossible oals in #eo#le movementA
L !he oal is to have a #erson run a mile as fast as #ossible, aided by "sim#le technoloy" such as
ood runnin shoes, a ood runnin track, ood coachin, and riorous trainin.
L !he oal is for an ordinary #erson to Huickly move a distance of a mile usin a##ro#riate, safe,
modern technoloy.
"learly, the more so#histicated technoloy that is allowed in achievin the second oal has made it easy
for most #eo#le to break the 2)minute mile. 5ndeed, the technoloy need not be very so#histicated.
4icyclists and motorcyclists can move faster than the fastest runners. !he first locomotives #owered by
steam enines were not an incremental chane in trans#ortation))they were a revolutionary chane that
contributed to sinificant chanes in our society.
&mplification 1ersus )econd%(rder Change
.esktop 2ublication +,ample
!o a considerable e8tent, new inventions are first used to "am#lify" (do better, faster) what we are already
doin ((oursund, +001). !hus, a word #rocessor can be used like an electric ty#ewriter that has a
memory. .sin a word #rocessor like an electric ty#ewriter is an am#lification (i.e., first)order) use of
5"!. !his ty#e of use eventually led to deskto# #ublication, a second)order use of the technoloy. 'eskto#
#ublishin includesA
L desin for effective communication
L a##ro#riate use of styles and tem#lates
L a##ro#riate use of ty#efaces and color
L a##ro#riate use of ra#hicsN and
L meetin contem#orary #ublication standards
!he word #rocessor and deskto# #ublishin facilitate the "revise, revise, revise" and the #ublishin #hase
of #rocess writin. 'eskto# #ublishin was a disru#tive technoloy, and it substantially chaned the
#ublishin industry.
!hree conditions need to be satisfied to move from first)order to second)order a##lications of 5"!A
+. a##ro#riate hardware and software
$. a clearly reconi*able benefit (i.e., intrinsic motivation) to #eo#le who #otentially could make the
move
Pae 2%
:. formal and informal trainin and education to hel# interested #eo#le make the move
6or deskto# #ublishin, the a##ro#riate hardware and software became re available with the introduction
of the (acintosh com#uter and deskto# laser #rinter in +092. (any #eo#le in #ublishin reconi*ed the
#otential and were intrinsically motivated to move to deskto# #ublishin. !hrouh self)instruction,
learnin from their #eers, and worksho#s and loner courses, a lare number of #eo#le achieved levels of
e8#ertise that met their needs.
Some #eo#le would claim that our @)+$ students have also made the move, because essentially all hih
school raduates know how to use a word #rocessor. Gowever, for most of them, use of a word #rocessor is
essentially at the am#lification level and is far from meetin contem#orary standards for deskto#
#ublishin.
-ssentially the same analysis holds for develo#in and #ublishin documents in an interactive multimedia
environment, and for a number of other uses of 5"!. (any students and teachers find a variety of 5"!
a##lications to be intrinsically motivatin. Gowever, relatively few @)+$ students have moved
sinificantly beyond the am#lification level in their uses.
>hy is thisI <et's o back to the three conditions necessary to move from first)order to second)order use.
+. A##ro#riate hardware and software. !his is available in essentially all schools. 5ndeed, #erha#s $,: of
students have a##ro#riate facilities at home. !hus, this is not the reason why so few students move
beyond am#lification of first)order 5"! a##lications.
$. "learly reconi*able benefits. 6or the most #art, curriculum develo#ers, teachers, students, and many
other stakeholders do not reconi*e the #otential benefits of movin beyond am#lification. 6or
e8am#le, 5 am not aware of any statewide assessment of students that tests for knowlede and skills in
deskto# #ublication, interactive multimedia #ublication, or full interation of 5"! in math and science
education. Such an assessment would need to be in a hands on mode, with the electronic co#ies bein
carefully analy*ed and raded. (ost @)+$ students lack the maturity to reconi*e that somethin is
missin in their 5"! education, and they lack the knowlede of #otential benefits of the second)order
a##lications we are discussin.
:. !rainin and education. /f course, self)instruction o##ortunities for @)+$ students and their teachers
are widely available. 4ut, the formal instruction they are receivin))the students while they are in @)
+$ schoolsN the teachers while they are in their teacher education #rorams and inservice education))
is totally inadeHuate to the task.
ICT in 3ath +ducation +,ample
!he same ty#e of analysis as was used with deskto# #ublishin is relevant to math education, but
additional issues will emere. QYou can read more about 5"! in math education in (oursund ($%%$a)
listed at the end of this article.R (oreover, the a##roach used here can be a##lied to other disci#lines.
4ein with a set of oals for education in the disci#line bein analy*ed. 5n math education, we want
students toA
+. <earn math and how to solve math #roblems that they encounters as they, work, study, and #lay in a
wide variety of disci#line areas.
$. <earn to #ose mathematical #roblems and re#resent #roblem situations as mathematical #roblems.
:. <earn how to learn math.
<et's briefly analy*e the #otential for 5"! to affect these oals.
+. <earn math and how to solve math #roblems. Perha#s the larest #otential 5"! effect in math
education is that calculators and com#uters can solve a very wide rane of math #roblems. !hus, at
the current time our math education system s#ends the ma?ority of its teachin efforts and time
hel#in students learn to do #rocedural tasks that machines can do faster and more accurately. !he
analoy with the mile foot race and travelin a mile aided by technoloy seem #articularly #owerful
to me. A #erson #lus machine can out #erform a #erson alone in a wide variety of math #roblem)
solvin tasks. 6or e8am#le, consider ra#hin of functions and data.
Pae 2+
$. <earn to #ose mathematical #roblems and re#resent #roblem situations as mathematical #roblems.
!his area is increasinly im#ortant as use of com#utational modelin steadily rows in each
disci#line. 6or e8am#le, one of the winners of the Eobel Pri*e in "hemistry in +009 received the
award for +& years of work in com#utational modelin in chemistry. All of the sciences (includin
math) now include com#utational modelin as one of their ma?or com#onents. "om#utational
modelin in economics has lon been a #roductive a##roach to #roblems in this field. !he
s#readsheet is, of course, a #owerful aid to com#utational modelin in business and many other fields.
!he diiti*in and mani#ulation of film and video are e8am#les of usin com#utational modelin
that makes use of Huite so#histicated mathematics.
:. <earn to learn math. "om#uter)assisted learnin ("A<), intellient com#uter)assisted learnin
(5"A<), and distance learnin are all aids to learnin math. <arely, "A< has been used at an
am#lification level in math education, as an automated flash card system with lots of bells and
whistles. 6or the most #art, distance learnin is used to deliver the traditional curriculum. !he >eb is
a lobal library, and learnin to use the math lobal <ibrary is #art of learnin to learn math. 6or the
most #art, students are not learnin to use the math lobal library.
<et's return to our three)item list of what is needed to move from first order to second order, and look at it
from a math education #oint of view.
+. A##ro#riate hardware and software. (ath educators believe every student needs ready access to the
5"! systems to be used in math education. !his hel#s to e8#lain the em#hasis on handheld
calculators. At the current time, the "ready access" reHuirement cannot be met by #rovidin all
students with handheld 5nternet)connected com#uters, or la#to#s and deskto# machines. Proress in
handheld com#uters and wireless technoloy is radually eatin away at this #roblem.
$. "learly reconi*able benefits. !he use of handheld calculators on state and national assessments is
now enerally acce#ted. (any students choose to carry a calculator and,or to have one readily
available at home. 4ut, little #roress has occurred to allowin students to use more so#histicated 5"!
on math tests))thus, there is a severe restriction to #otential benefits to students.
:. !rainin and education. 5t takes very little time to learn to use a four)function calculator at an
am#lification level. Gowever, ask yourself the followin three HuestionsA
a. 'o my students and 5 know how to make effective use of the memory (e.., the (Y) and the
numerical constant features of a sim#le calculatorI
b. 'o my students and 5 know how to detect and correct keyin errorsI
c. 'o my students and 5 use a sim#le calculator comfortably and easily in a manner that brins this
com#utational #ower to all sub?ect areas that we addressI
Sery few teachers answer "yes" to all of these Huestions. 5t is evident that it takes sinificant trainin and
education to move beyond the am#lification level in use of a sim#le calculator. !he learnin effort
reHuired for more #owerful calculators and for com#uters is much larer.
Eow, let's imaine what would constitute movin math education into broad)based second)order 5"!
a##lications. Aain, 5 follow my list of three necessary conditions for this.
+. A##ro#riate hardware and software. Students need a com#uter system with a lare dis#lay, a full)si*e
keyboard, and ood connectivity. !hey need a full rane of software that is desined to su##ort the
learnin and usin of math both in a math classroom environment and in the other environments
(school, home, work, #lay) that they encounter.
$. "learly reconi*able benefits. Students will reconi*e the benefits when the tool becomes an interal
com#onent of curriculum, instruction. assessment, and a##lication in both the math classroom
environment and in a wide rane of environments outside of the math classroom. Students will be
able to accom#lish math)related tasks that they want to accom#lish (intrinsic motivation) and cannot
accom#lish without the technoloy.
:. !rainin and education. A substantial chane in math education is needed to achieve second)order
effects. Althouh calculators have iven us some hints as to what is #ossible, calculators are too
limited to transform math education. 5maine, for e8am#le, the effects of all @)+$ students havin
routine access to "?ust in time" hihly interactive intellient com#uter)assisted learnin and distance
Pae 2$
learnin that covers all to#ics in the @)+2 math curriculum. !his instruction would include built)in,
routine use of the ca#abilities of an 5"! system. 5t would be #rovided on an 5"! system with a lare
viewin screen, ood keyboard as well as voice in#ut, and ood connectivity to the 5nternet.
2roblem )oling
-ach academic disci#line addresses the issues of re#resentin and solvin the #roblems within the
disci#line. 5n this section, 5 use the term #roblem solvin to encom#ass a variety of tasks such asA
L #osin and answerin Huestions
L #osin and solvin #roblems
L #osin and accom#lishin tasks
L #osin and makin wise decisions
L usin hiher)order, critical, and wise thinkin to do all of the above
6iure :.+ illustrates si8 ste#s that miht occur as one encounters and works to solve a math #roblem
situation. !he same ty#e of diaram e8ists for each disci#line area. At the current time, however, the #oint
5 am tryin to make is #erha#s best illustrated in math.
/riinal #roblem situation
that is not clearly defined.
"learly)defined #roblem
to be solved.
5nformation (findins,
results) concernin the
#roblem to be solved.
CPureD com#utational or
alorithmic math #roblem.
Solved math #roblem.
1
2
3
4
5
6
6iure :.+. 'iaram of math #roblem solvin.
!he si8 ste#s areA
+. .nderstand the #roblem situation and translate into a clearly defined #roblem. >hat is the iven
initial situation and what is the oalI >hat are the resources and rules that a##ly to solvin the
#roblemI ((oursund, $%%$b).
$. (odel the #roblem as a math #roblem. !hat is, translate the #roblem into a "#ure" math #roblem.
!his is somewhat akin to what one does in translatin a word #roblem into a set of eHuations to be
solved.
:. Solve the #ure math #roblem.
2. !ranslate the results back into a statement about the #roblem to be solved. !his can be thouht of as
unmodelin, sort of the o##osite of ste# $.
&. "heck to see if the #roblem has actually been solved.
;. "heck to see if the oriinal #roblem situation is resolved (solved). 5f it hasn't, reformulate the #roblem
situation and,or #roblem and start over at ste# + or $.
Pae 2:
-stimates are that a##ro8imately 1&X of @)+$ math education time is s#ent hel#in students learn to do
ste# : with reasonable s#eed and accuracy. !hus, the time s#ent learnin the other ste#s is Huite limited.
Ste# : is what calculators and com#uters do best. !hat is, the reat ma?ority of the @)+$ math education
curriculum consists in teachin students to com#ete with machinesK !his suests that we miht decrease
the time s#ent in teachin by)hand methods of doin ste# :, and s#end the time that is saved in
develo#in reater skill in doin all of the other ste#s. !his would re#resent a substantial chane in math
education.
=emember, the analysis in this section focused on math. Gowever, the diaram of 6iure + is a##licable in
any academic disci#line. Steady #roress in each disci#line is increasin the number of ste# : #rocedures
that can be carried out by an 5"! system and in which 5"! is a ma?or hel# to a #erson carryin out a
#rocedure.
)cience of Teaching and 7earning
!here is a lare and ra#idly rowin body of knowlede called the Science of !eachin and <earnin
(4ransford et al., +000). !his research and #ractice)based knowlede #rovides a foundation for substantial
im#rovements in our educational system. !he #roblem, however, is how to achieve wides#read
im#lementation of this research and #ractice)based knowlede.
/ne way to think about this is to consider what can be mass #roduced and,or mass distributed, and what
cannot. 6or e8am#le, it is very difficult to chane the educational knowlede and skills of a few million
teachers. 5t is relatively easy to mass)#roduce and mass distribute four)function handheld calculators.
Althouh the writin of a book or a #iece of software is ty#ically done by a small number of #eo#le (not
mass #roduction), a book or software itself can be mass re#roduced and mass distributed.
5f 5"! is oin to hel# in substantially im#rovin education, it will be throuh as#ects of curriculum
content, instructional #rocesses, and assessment that can be mass)#roduced and,or mass)re#roduced, and
mass)distributed. !he followin list #rovides some e8am#les. 5t #rovides some insihts into the future of
education.
+. Gihly interactive intellient com#uter)assisted learnin (G55"A<) can be mass re#roduced and mass
distributed. -ventually we will have G55"A< that covers the full rane of curriculum that a @)+$
student #erson miht want to study. !his will be a slow, radual #rocess. G55"A< will incor#orate
what is known about the science and #ractice of effective teachin and learnin. -ventually we will
have a substantial amount of G55"A< that can teach better than an averae classroom teacher who is
attem#tin to teach a whole classroom full of students. At the current time there are a modest but
rowin number of e8am#les of such G55"A<. An e8cellent e8am#le is #rovided by the 6ast 6or>ord
software used to hel# severe s#eech delayed students (6ast 6or>ord, $%%$). Some of the "Gel#"
features bein built into modern #ieces of software can be cateori*ed as G55"A<.
$. Software that can solve or hel# solve a s#ecified cateory of #roblems can be mass)re#roduced and
mass)distributed. -8am#les include the s#ellin checker, thesaurus, and rammar checker in word)
#rocessin softwareN math #roblem)solvin software such as (athematica or (a#leN and statistics and
ra#hin software. 5t is disru#tive to curriculum content when curriculum is chaned from teachin
students to do tasks by hand to teachin students to do such tasks in a com#uter)assisted environment.
(any teachers are skilled in teachin the lower)order skills needed in #roblem solvin and are not
comfortable movin to an em#hasis on hiher)order skills.
:. 5nteractive assessment (com#uter)assisted testin) makin #ossible both self)assessment and
assessment at a time that is convenient to the student. !houh such tests are e8#ensive to develo#,
they are radually comin into wides#read use. -ventually it will be #ossible for students to easily
assess themselves on whatever they are strivin to learn. /ften this is a feature of G55"A<.
2. 5ndividuali*ed instruction. "onstructivism and individuali*ation are hihly touted in education, but
are not well im#lemented. !his is #artly because an individual teacher cannot readily know in detail
what each of their students knows and ad?ust the instruction so that it builds on the knowlede each
individual student already has. At the current time, develo#in and im#lementin an individual
education #lan is costly relative to the current #er)#u#il costs of eneral education. An interestin
as#ect of 5"! is that it can su##ort a reat deal of individuali*ation in a mass)#roduction mode.
Pae 22
&. All students will have routine access to the >eb. Eeither the teacher nor the books available in one's
classroom or school library hold a candle to the si*e of the emerin lobal library available on the
>eb. 5t is somewhat disru#tive to a teacher for students to find information the teacher does not
already know.
Concluding 8emarks
!he totality of human knowlede continues to row Huite ra#idly. !hus, our educational system is faced by
content)related #roblemsA
+. >hat should we hel# students store in their headsI =emember, a student can learn only a tiny (and
steadily decreasin) fraction of the totality of human knowlede. !hus, our educational system needs
to continually ree8amine this issue.
$. >hat should we hel# students learn to do makin use of aids such as 5"!, books, and other mind
toolsI =emember, a steadily rowin amount of this knowlede is stored in com#uters in "the 5"!
system can do it for you" mode (as in ste# : of 6iure +).
5"! can hel# students to learn more, better, and faster. Still, such im#rovements are incremental. !hey are
not second)order chanes. !hey cannot ho#e to bein to make a dent into the ra#idly rowin totality of
human knowlede.
5"! can solve many of the #roblems and accom#lish many of the tasks that students are currently learnin
to do by hand. (oreover, 5"! can hel# students become substantially more #roductive in solvin #roblems
and accom#lishin tasks. 5f a##ro#riately educated, a student workin with an 5"! system can far out
#erform a student who lacks such an aid in a wide rane of #roblem)solvin tasks. /ur educational system
will be sinificantly chane education in the ne8t three decades as it incor#orates the idea of educatin
students and 5"! to work toether.
6or 5"!)usin teachers, the messae is clear. >ork to move yourself and your students))your curriculum,
instruction and assessment))from am#lification (first)order) uses of 5"! to second)order uses of 5"!.
8esources
6ast 6or>ordA htt#A,,www.scientificlearnin.com,
(a#leA htt#A,,www.ma#lesoft.com,
(athematicaA htt#A,,www.wolfram.com,#roducts,mathematica
8eferences
4ransford, J. '., 4rown, A. <., O "ockin =. =. (-ds.). (+000). Gow #eo#le learnA 4rain, mind,
e8#erience, and school. >ashinton, '"A Eational Academy Press. Q/nlineR. Available
htt#A,,www.na#.edu,html,how#eo#le+,.
"hristensen, ". ($%%%). !he innovator's dilemmaA >hen new technoloies cause reat firms to fail. Eew
YorkA Gar#er 4usiness.
(oursund, '. 7. (+001). 4eyond am#lification. <earnin O <eadin with !echnoloy, $2(9), 2)&.
(oursund, '. 7. ($%%+). !he innovative educator's dilemma. <earnin O <eadin with !echnoloy,
$9(9), 2)&, +;.
(oursund, '. 7. ($%%$a). 5m#rovin mathematics education Q/nlineR. AvailableA
htt#A,,darkwin.uoreon.edu,Bmoursund,(ath,.
(oursund, '. 7. ($%%$b). 5ncreasin your e8#ertise as a #roblem solverA Some roles of com#uters
Q/nlineR. AvailableA htt#A,,darkwin.uoreon.edu,Bmoursund,PS4ook+00;,inde8.htm.
Terms
Computer%&ssisted 7earning *C&7-$ 5ncludes drill and #ractice, tutorials, simulations, and virtual
realities desined to hel# students learn. "A< includes the "Gel#" features built into software a##lications
and can be a com#onent of a >eb)based distance learnin course.
Pae 2&
Constructiism$ !he learnin theory that students construct knowlede by buildin on their current
knowlede. !his theory hel#s make the distinction between teachers teachin and students learnin, and it
su##orts the need for individuali*ation of instruction.
.isruptie Technology$ A new technoloy that is disru#tive to a current business or way of doin thins.
6or e8am#le, the automobile was disru#tive to the horse and buy industryN the microcom#uter and word
#rocessin software were disru#tive to the ty#ewriter industry.
9ighly Interactie Intelligent Computer%&ssisted Instruction *9IIC&7-$ 4ein with "A<. 'esin it
so there is a reat deal of interaction between the com#uter and the learner. -nhance this with artificial
intellience to im#rove the Huality of the instruction and the interaction. !he result is G55"A<. 6or more,
see <O< $9(1).
Information and Communications Technology *ICT-$ 5"! is an e8#ansion on the term information
technoloy (5!) desined to stress that communications technoloy such as the 5nternet is an im#ortant
com#onent of the field.
Intelligent Computer%&ssisted 7earning *IC&7-$ .se of artificial intellience to im#rove "A<. 6or
e8am#le, an 5"A< system may contain models of the learner, the curriculum content, the teachin
#rocess, assessment, reward structures, and so on. !hese are combined and used in an intellient fashion
to increase the Huality, Huantity, and s#eed of student learnin.
Final Remarks
Some #eo#le find one or more #ieces of software to be com#ellinMintrinsically motivatin
and attention rabbin. 6or a child, the #iece of software miht be a ame, an educational ame
(edutainment), a #roram for creatin and,or editin ra#hics, or #erha#s a word #rocessor.
Gowever, relatively few students are intrinsically motivated to learn a wide rane of eneral)
#ur#ose com#uter tools. And, still fewer students are intrinsically motivated to learn to routinely
use such tools at a second)order level. 5f you doubt this assertion, take a look at yourself and at
your fellow inservice or #reservice teachers. 'o you see a #lethora of #eo#le makin routine
second)order uses of a wide variety of 5"! toolsI
6or most students, a combination of e8trinsic and intrinsic motivation is needed to learn to use
a wide rane of eneral)#ur#ose 5"! tools. /ur educational system has the dual challene of
hel#in students learn to use these tools and creatin an environment in which it is to the learnerFs
advantae to learn to routinely and effectively use these tools. !hat is, our schools need to create
situated learnin environments in which students routinely are facilitated in makin second)order
uses of a wide rane of 5"! tools. !his is a res#onsibility of every classroom teacher.
+. !he & #it of 9istory section of this cha#ter mentioned timeshared com#uters. !he term
was not defined. !hus, you were left with the task of drawin on your own knowlede and
the conte8t #rovided by the #arara#h in order to build an understandin of what was
bein discussed. You were iven an o##ortunity to #ractice constructivism. 'id you think
about Ctime sharesD in real estateI 'id you think about how com#uters #rocess credit card
transactionsI 'id you do a >eb search or look in a dictionaryI !hink about your
constructivist activities in dealin with this term.
$. !hink about your own current uses of 5"!. >hat use do you find to be most com#ellin
(to you), and whyI Gow did you first et introduced to and interested in this com#ellin
a##licationI
Pae 2;
:. !hink about your own current uses of 5"! tools. 'ivide them into first)order and second)
order uses. Select one of your first)order uses that is somewhat intrinsically motivatin
(com#ellin) to you. >hat would it take for your use of this a##lication to become
second)order for youI
2. Select a rade level or sub?ect area that you teach or are #re#arin to teach. 6or this
teachin situation, select one #iece of software that you feel is very im#ortant to
em#hasi*e. !hat is, think about a #iece of software that is com#ellin to you and that you
would like your students to find com#ellin. Gow would you o about creatin a situated
learnin environment that is e8trinsically motivatin and that would move your students to
second)order use of this #iece of softwareI
Pae 21
Chapter 4
Generic Computer Tools

""om#uter Science is no more about com#uters than
astronomy is about telesco#es." (-dser 'i?kstra)
"An educated mind is, as it were, com#osed of all the
minds of #recedin aes." (4ernard <e 4ovier
6ontenelle, mathematical historian, (+;&1)+1&1)
!his is the first of a seHuence of cha#ters that e8#lore various com#onents of the field of 5"!
in education.
!he term "eneric tool" is used in this document to re#resent 5"! tools useful in many
different disci#lines and that miht be tauht to most or all students at the Pre@)+$ level. -ach has
been found to be com#ellin by a lare number of #eo#le and each is commercially viable. !y#ical
eneric tools includeA
L >ord #rocessor.
L 'atabase.
L S#readsheet.
L 7ra#hics (both Paint and 'raw).
L 7ra#hin (of data and functions), usin both com#uters and ra#hin calculators.
L 'eskto# #ublication systems.
L 'eskto# #resentation systems.
L (ultimedia and interactive non)linear hy#ermedia systems, includin workin with diital
still and motion video, color, sound, and animation.
L !elecommunications and connectivity, includin email, the >eb, search enines, and
rou#ware.
L "alculators (the full rane, from low)end 2)function calculators to hih)end calculators
that can solve eHuations, ra#h functions, and may be #rorammable).
!he 5nternational Society for !echnoloy in -ducation and a number of other #eo#le and
orani*ations have made recommendations about students learnin to use eneric tools. 6or
e8am#le, the Eational "ouncil of !eachers of (athematics has su##orted use of calculators in the
curriculum since +09%. 5S!- believes that all students can and should develo# a reasonable level
of skill in use of almost all of the tools listed above by the end of hih school. 5ndeed, 5S!-
recommends that most of the initial #hases of learnin to use these tools should be com#leted by
the end of the 9
th
rade (5S!- E-!S, n.d.).
An e8amination of the software for these various a##lication areas indicates that the software
is steadily im#rovin, but is ty#ically rowin more com#le8. 5t also reveals the develo#ment of
Ctem#lates" that contain substantial knowlede on a##ro#riate use of the tool. Sim#le e8am#les
Pae 29
are #rovided by tem#lates for various ty#es of letters to be used in corres#ondence, or tem#lates
for various ty#es of slides (visuals) to be used in a #resentation.
!here tend to be three commonly used a##roaches to hel#in students learn eneric tools. 5n
one a##roach, instruction in the tool occurs in an 5"! course or unit of instruction. 6or e8am#le,
in an elementary school a Ccom#uter teacherD miht #resent the instruction in a com#uter lab. A
second a##roach is for the instruction to be #resented as #art of a non)5"! course or unit of
study, with the instruction bein #resented by the reular classroom teacher. 6or e8am#le,
students in elementary school miht learn to use a 2)function calculator durin their math
instruction, and miht learn to use the >eb durin a social studies unit. A third a##roach is to
assume that students will learn from each other if,when the teacher creates an environment that
su##orts this ty#e of #eer instruction. -ach a##roach has advantaes and disadvantaes.
@ee# in mind that a ood teacher has ood knowlede of the content to be tauht as well as
ood knowlede of the #edaoy to be used. At all ae levels, students are able to hel# each other
learn. Gowever, ty#ically a student who is hel#in a #eer or a youner student to learn lacks both
the in)de#th content knowlede and the #edaoy knowlede that are needed to do a ood ?ob of
facilitatin learnin. 5n 5"!, #eer instruction is Huite successful in hel#in students to learn some
of the basic skills, such as how to #ut more #a#er into a #rinter, how to use a scanner, how to
take #ictures usin a diital camera, how to move #ictures from a diital camera into a com#uter,
some of the elements of usin a word #rocessor, and so on.
At one time many elementary schools set u# structures whereby students could demonstrate
basic 5"! knowlede and skills, and then be CcertifiedD to instruct and,or test their #eers in these
areas. (any teachers found this to be a Huite successful a##roach. 5t works well when the
em#hasis is on students learnin CroteD methods of accom#lishin certain tasks. 5t does not work
well when the em#hasis is on understandin, hiher)order knowlede and skills, and dealin with
com#le8 #roblems or tasks.
An 5"! teacher tends to know more than the reular classroom teacher about the eneric
a##lication bein tauht and tends to be more skilled and e8#erienced in teachin 5"!. Since the
same teacher may be teachin all students at a #articular rade level, or all students in a school,
this hel#s to ensure a common base of student knowlede about the a##lication.
Gowever, the instruction iven by an 5"! teacher in a com#uter lab is often not closely related
to the curriculum that students are currently studyin in their reular classroom. !ransfer of
learnin to the reular classroom and the sub?ects bein studied may be weak, or may not occur.
5n addition, it often ha##ens that the reular classroom teacher does not attend and #artici#ate
in the instruction #rovided by the 5"! teacher. !hus, the reular teacher does not know what his
or her students are learnin about 5"! and does not ain in knowlede of how to teach this as#ect
of 5"!.
!he 5S!- Eational -ducational !echnoloy Standards for !eachers calls for teachers to meet
the +$th rade 5S!- E-!S for Students as well as havin knowlede and skill in use of 5"! in
curriculum, instruction, and assessment (5S!- E-!S, n.d.). !hus, a ood a##roach to use when
an 5"! teacher is teachin the basic of use of eneric tools (es#ecially at the Pre@)& levels) isA
+. !he 5"! teacher and the reular classroom teacher work toether to #lan the com#uter lab
instruction so that it incor#orates activities that are relevant to the current curriculum in
the reular classroom.
Pae 20
$. !he reular classroom teacher serves as an assistant in the com#uter lab as his or her
students receive 5"! instruction on eneric a##lications.
:. !he reular classroom teacher then immediately reinforces this interation of 5"! into the
reular classroom curriculum by class discussions and activities. !he reular classroom
teacher #rovides the needed 5"! instruction for students who may have missed the
Ccom#uter labD day and,or who need additional instruction to achieve an a##ro#riate level
of knowlede and skills.
2. !he ne8t year, the reular classroom teacher #rovides the 5"! instruction in the com#uter
lab, or #rovides the needed instruction in his or her reular classroom.
Another a##roach is to have the 5"! teacher come to the reular classroom and work
toether with the reular classroom teacher to #resent instruction about 5"! eneric a##lications.
!he reular classroom teacher learns how to conduct such instruction by seein it role)modeled,
and so becomes Hualified to #rovide the instruction his or her own.
5n summary, every classroom teacher has a res#onsibility to learn to make effective use of the
5"! tools that his or her students are learnin to use. (oreover, the classroom teacher has a
res#onsibility to be able to assist his or her students in ainin increased 5"! knowlede and
skills, es#ecially in areas that relate to the curriculum the teacher is teachin. !he needed teacher
5"! knowlede and skills can be learned on the ?ob by an a##ro#riate combination of inservice
education, observin and hel#in a com#uter teacher or other classroom teachers, #racticin with
his or her students, and self)instruction.
A #reservice teacher can ain some of the needed 5"! knowlede and skills throuh 5"!
coursework, 5"! interated into (ethods courses, 5"! interated into #racticum (field
#lacement) and student teachin e8#eriences, and 5"! routinely interated into the other courses
taken while in a teacher education #roram of study.
The Challenge of Generic ICT Tools in Education
5n "ha#ter $ we made use of the followin e8#ertise scale for #reservice and inservice
teachersA
to#ic area
leader in this
6iure 2.+. 7eneral)#ur#ose e8#ertise scale for a teacher.
>e used this e8#ertise scale in discussin 5"! #rereHuisite knowlede and skills for this book
in the areas of word #rocessin O deskto# #ublication. !hrouh a s#ecific focus on word
Pae &%
#rocessin O deskto# #ublication, we suested the de#th and breadth of 5"! knowlede and
skills needed to be a C:D on the scale in 6iure 2.+
.#on initial ins#ection, you miht well decide that becomin a C:D or hiher over the full
rane of 5"! eneric tools mentioned at the beinnin of this cha#ter is essentially an im#ossible
task. You are aware, of course, that many students are learnin to use these tools at a C$D levelMa
level that is useful to them. (oreover, as they ain this C$D level of knowlede and skills, they are
ca#able of a##lyin it to their schoolwork. !he dilemma that this creates is #ictured in 6iure 2.$.
($) from #oint of
view of a &th
rade or 9th rade
#recollee
student.
($) from #oint of
view of a
#reservice teacher
in 2th or &th year
of collee.
(:) content knowlede
and skill, for a teacher.
(:) level of #edaoy with
re#ect to the 5"! tool for a
teacher.
(:) level of knowlede and
skill of ty#ical university
senior or raduate student.
6iure 2.$. An 5"! e8#ertise CdilemmaD faced by teachers.
6iure 2.$ is desined to illustrate the dual challene that a #reservice teacher faces. !he first
is movement u# the e8#ertise scale that is needed to maintain a useful level of knowlede and
skills relative to oneFs overall level of education and worldly e8#erience. !he second is movin
u#ward on three different e8#ertise scalesMone scale for 5"! content knowlede and skills
needed to be a student in collee, the second in becomin a (:) in the content from the #oint of
view of bein a ood teacher, and the third scale for 5"! #edaoy both within the disci#line of
5"! and within the disci#lines that the teacher is #re#arin to teach.
!he three)#roned as#ect of this diaram may be confusin. 5t is desined to suest that a
#reservice teacher needs far more 5"! knowlede and skills in the area of a eneric com#uter tool
than does his or her ty#ical (non)teacher education) fellow student.
/ne way to think about the challene of learnin a eneric a##lication is that the ty#ical
instruction manual for such an a##lication is several hundred #aes in lenth. Similarly, te8tbooks
written about a s#ecific eneric a##lication tend to be several hundred #aes in lenth and may be
desined to serve as the te8t for a substantial hih school or collee course. !his #rovides
evidence of the com#le8ity of a eneric a##lication.
!o cite a s#ecific e8am#le, consider (icrosoft >ord. 5 have seen estimates that the ty#ical
user of this word #rocessor uses less than &X of the ca#abilities of this eneric tool. You can do a
Huick check on your use of whatever word #rocessor you ty#ically use. <ook at each item on
Pae &+
each menu. 'o you understand it fullyI !hen s#end some time browsin the Gel# com#onent of
the a##lication. >hat #ercentae of the items listed there is Huite familiar to youI
Easy Entry, and Incremental Learning
!his section covers a very im#ortant idea about learnin 5"! tools that was first mentioned in
"ha#ter $. (ost 5"! tools have the characteristic of easy entry and incremental ste#s toward
increasin e8#ertise. A student (you, included) can ain a useful level of knowlede and skill in
usin a s#ecific 5"! tool in a modest number of minutes. !his allows you to bein usin the tool
to accom#lish tasks that you deem useful to you.
As you use the tool to solve #roblems and accom#lish tasks, you will soon run into situations
that you cannot readily handle. You become stuck and you need hel#. Peo#le vary considerably
about what they do ne8t. Some are self reliant, oin into a trial and error mode, or attem#tin to
obtain hel# from an instruction manual, te8tbook, or the softwareFs Chel#D features. /thers ask for
hel# from anybody who ha##ens to be readily available. Still others ive u#.
=emember that you want your students to become inde#endent, self)sufficient, intrinsically
motivated, lifelon learners. 'o you role model this set of characteristics when you encounter
#roblems when usin a #iece of com#uter softwareI Su##ose one of your students comes to you
with a #roblem encountered when usin a #iece of softwareI !he student is CstuckD while
attem#tin to solve a #roblem or accom#lish a task, and the student is somewhat or stronly
motivated (#erha#s an a##ro#riate combination of intrinsic and e8trinsic motivation). Gow do
you interact with the student in a manner that will lead to the student ainin increased e8#ertise
as an inde#endent, self)sufficient, intrinsically motivated, lifelon learnerI
/ne of the really im#ortant as#ects of students learnin 5"! a##lications while in school is
that many of the basic ideas of situated learnin can come into #lay. 4ein stuck when usin a
#iece of software in school is Huite a bit like bein stuck when usin a #iece of software at home
or on the ?ob. !hus, you want to hel# your students become unstuck with a clear #icture in mind
that you want transfer of learnin to occur to outside of school settins now and in the future.
A Scenario of Learning to Use a Word Processor
"onsider Pat, a #re)literate child of averae intellience, #erha#s three or four years old,
rowin u# in a home where the #arents have a com#uter and use com#uters on their ?obs. !hink
about PatFs first e8#osure to usin a word #rocessor. Pat has learned some or all of the letters of
the al#habet and #erha#s the s#ellin of his or her name. !hus, Pat can sit at a keyboard (#robably
on a #arentFs la#), key in letters and see them a##ear on the dis#lay screen, and #erha#s key in the
letters of his or her name.
Ee8t, think about Pat ?ust finishin the third rade. Pat has rown u# in a com#uter)rich home
environment and attended a school that #laces sinificant em#hasis on learnin to make use of
5"!. Pat has learned to read and is ?ust beinnin to read to learn. (!his is a transition that an
averae child can make by the end of the third rade.) !he school has em#hasi*ed rudiments of
touch keyboard and develo#in the beinnins of automaticity in keyboardin. !hus, Pat
keyboards at +% to+& or so words #er minute, which is faster than he or she can #rint and,or
handwrite.) Pat knows how to correct keyboardin errors, do very rudimentary editin at a
keyboard, and how to #rint out a word)#rocessed document. Also, Pat knows how to use a
#ortable keyboardin unit (such as an Al#haSmart) for keyboardin te8t, and how to transfer
this te8t into a la#to# of deskto# microcom#uter.
Pae &$
Eow, continue to follow Pat throuh the end of the fifth rade. Pat now keyboards at $&
words or more #er minute, and is comfortable in com#osin at a keyboard. !he increasin s#eed
has come from use of com#uter)assisted learnin software and self)instruction. !his s#eed
reHuires and achieves a level of automaticity that does not disa##ear if not used over a #eriod of
time, such as a summer. !wenty)five words #er minute is far faster than a ty#ical child can #rint or
write. Pat uses a s#ellin checker and is ade#t at correctin s#ellin errors. Pat also makes routine
use of the built)in dictionary and the rammar checker, and has learned the rudiments of deskto#
#ublishin. Pat saves documents to a server and to a #ortable medium, such as a removable disk,
movin documents from school to home and from home to school, and is Huite comfortable with
usin different makes and models of com#uters.
>e continue to follow the word #rocessin e8#loits of Pat throuh the eihth rade. Eow Pat
makes use of a style sheet and can create a new style sheet to fit a new writin situation. Pat
makes use of bulleted and numbered lists, and tables. Pat is relatively skilled in doin layout and
desin of a document to be deskto# #ublished, where the document includes #ictures, ra#hics,
and multi#le fonts, and may be a tri)fold brochure or a newsletter. Pat is accom#lished at usin
email attachments to send and receive word)#rocessed documents.
>hile we could continue to follow PatFs word)#rocessin e8#loits throuh the end of hih
school, we can see that a #attern has emered. Perha#s Pat continues to use com#uter)assisted
instruction software desined to teach Cfast keyboardinD in middle school or hih school, and
learns to keyboard at &% words #er minute. Perha#s Pat learns to make effective use of a voice
in#ut system and to make effective use of a combination of voice in#ut and keyboardin. >ord
#rocessin and deskto# #ublishin have become routine, everyday (and, ty#ically, many times a
day) #owerful tools for Pat. !his set of tools facilitates Pat in doin #rocess writin better than a
child who lacks the 5"! knowlede and skills. !he set of tools facilitates the Pat in desinin and
creatin deskto#)#ublished documents that communicate effectively. 6inally, as the need arises,
the Pat learns new features of a word #rocessor (constructs new knowlede and skill, buildin on
#revious knowlede and skill) with little or no aid from formal instruction #rovided by a teacher.
PatFs scenario is desined to suest a combination of school and home environments that
fosters incrementally increasin knowlede and skills, year after year. =elatively little direct
instruction is #rovided in school, but a facilitative and encourain environment is #rovided by
many teachers, year after year. Pat benefits from increasin knowlede and skills, and so intrinsic
motivation hel#s to drive PatFs #roress. Gowever, PatFs #arents and PatFs teachers all #lay a
sinificant role in the overall #rocess.
Desirable Levels of Expertise
!here are a number of eneric tools that have the characteristic that a student can ain a
useful level of knowlede and skill in a very short #eriod of time. >ord #rocessor, email, and >eb
browser tend to have this characteristic. 6or these and all eneric a##lications we can think of an
e8#ertise scale such as the one shown in 6iure 2.:.
Pae &:
+,pertise )cale for a Generic ICT Tool
6iure 2.:. -8#ertise scale for a learner learnin a eneric 5"! tool.
!he story of Pat iven in the #revious section illustrates a student achievin Cfluent, second)
order knowlede and skillsD in use of a word #rocessor by the end of hih school. Pat may also
have ained fluent, second)order knowlede and skills in use of email and the >eb.
4ut, what about a wide rane of other eneric toolsI A lot de#ends on the schools Pat
attended and the teachers Pat had. Pat clearly has the #otential. Gowever, for many of the Pats in
our schools, the #otential is not achieved. As a #reservice or inservice teacher, you should set a
#ersonal oal of hel#in to facilitate your students to achieve fluent, second)order knowlede and
skills over a wide rane of eneric 5"! tools.
Generic Tools and Problem Solving
!he story about Pat included some em#hasis on learnin to use a word #rocessor and deskto#
#ublishin to hel# solve the #roblem of effective written communication. 4y and lare, 5"!
#reservice and inservice education #lace little em#hasis on #roblem solvin, critical thinkin, and
other hiher)order knowlede and skill. Such instruction tends to assume that the learner will
transfer 5"! knowlede and skills into non)5"! disci#lines and will easily interate the 5"!
knowlede and skills into these disci#lines. .nfortunately, for most students this does not occur.
As an e8am#le, consider a studentFs Pre@)+$ education in the Social Sciences. !he >eb
#rovides access to a hue amount of historical and current date and information. Gowever, the
data and information is of varyin levels of correctness, has varyin levels of readability, and
covers a hue rane of to#ics.
!o be even more s#ecific, consider what a student miht learn about the disci#line of history.
>hat does it mean for a student to ain increasin e8#ertise in a disci#line such as historyI >hat
roles does the >eb #lay in thisI
>e all know that learnin history includes learnin some facts (names, dates, #laces, etc.)
Gowever, even more im#ortant is learnin to #ose historical #roblems, develo# hy#otheses, find
evidence and develo# loical aruments to su##ort these hy#otheses, and so on. =emember, each
disci#line is defined by the #roblems it addresses, its culture and the methodoloies and tools it
uses, and the results it has achieved. 5"! #rovides tools that are useful in any academic disci#line
of study.
"learly the >eb is now an e8cellent aid to findin #rimary resources, to e8#lorin the
collected historical knowlede that has been accumulated by the human race, to findin alternate
view#oints on historical events, and to e8#lore causality A student can ain such knowlede and
skills throuh a##ro#riate instruction and thorouh #artici#ation in a##ro#riate history)oriented
Pae &2
situated learnin environments. 5t is easy for a student to ain a rudimentary and useful level of
knowlede and skill in usin the >eb. 5t is a sinificant challene for a student to move u# the
Chistory educationD e8#ertise scale and to learn to make effective use of the >eb as #art of bein a
historian.
+. Select three or more eneric 5"! tools that you use. 6or each, think about how you
learned to use the tool and what recent #roress you have made in movin u# the
e8#ertise scale for knowlede and skill in usin this tool. "om#are and contrast your
answers amon the three or more eneric tools you are e8#lorin.
$. Gere is a little material about email Huoted from
htt#A,,darkwin.uoreon.edu,Bmoursund,5"!)#lannin,. Analy*e this information and your
#re#aration in email from the #oint of view of 6iure 2.$.
-mail includes sendin and receivin messaes (includin savin and deletin messaes), sendin
and receivin attachments, buildin and maintainin an address book, buildin and maintainin a
'istribution <ist, #artici#ation in chat rou#s, makin use of Eews 7rou#s, and makin use of
instant messain. 5t includes the knowlede of avoidin res#ondin to all of the #eo#le in a
'istribution <ist when you really only want to res#ond to one s#ecific #erson in the list
:. Select si8 or more of the eneric tools list iven in this cha#ter. 6or each, discuss the ty#es
of #roblems and,or tasks that this tool was #rimarily desined to hel# solve. (Perha#s you
miht want to look at the history of the develo#ment of each of these tools from a
causality, or Cneed for the toolD #oint of view.) !hen e8#lore the #roblem)solvin or task)
accom#lishin advantaes that the eneric 5"! tool user has when com#etin with a
#erson who does not have access to 5"! facilities and,or lacks knowlede and skill in
usin the eneric tool.
2. Select a rade level or a sub?ect area that you teach or are #re#arin to teach. Su##ose
that the averae student enterin your class is somewhat below rade level) in terms of
5S!- E-!S for Students) in use of one s#ecific 5"! eneric tool. 'escribe what you can
do to create a situated learnin environment that #rovides e8trinsic motivation, encouraes
intrinsic motivation, is constructivist, and moves your averae student to routine second)
order and rade level a##ro#riate use of this eneric tool.
&. Select a rade level or a sub?ect area that you teach or are #re#arin to teach, and select a
eneric tool that you feel is a##ro#riate to this rade level or course. 'iscuss the hiher)
order #roblem solvin and critical thinkin as#ects of this eneric tool with res#ect to
students you will be teachin.
Pae &&
Chapter 5
ICT as Curriculum Content
"... #edaoy is what our s#ecies does best. >e are
teachers, and we want to teach while sittin around
the cam#fire rather than bein continually #resent
durin our offs#rin's trial)and)error e8#eriences."
((ichael S. 7a**ania, +009)
"@nowlede is of two kinds. >e know a sub?ect
ourselves, or we know where we can find
information u#on it." (Samuel Johnson)
!his cha#ter e8#lores the idea of 5"! as curriculum content in #recollee education. !he
focus is onA
L 5"! as a disci#line in its own riht. !his disci#line is often called "om#uter and
5nformation Science.
L 5"! as a disci#line)s#ecific com#onent of non)5"! disci#lines. 6or e8am#le, one of the
winners of the +009 Eobel Pri*e in "hemistry was awarded this #ri*e for his #revious +&
years of work in "om#utational "hemistry. 4y the early +09%s C"om#utationalD had
beun to be an im#ortant #art of the content area in many different disci#lines, includin
all of the core curriculum areaA lanuae arts, math, science, and social science.
Characteristics of a Discipline
!he content of our Pre@)+$ curriculum is divided u# into a number of lare chunks that come
from a variety of disci#lines. (any #eo#le consider the most im#ortant CcoreD disci#lines to be
lanuae arts, math, science, and social science. Gowever, there are other #otential candidates for
CcoreD curriculum, includin art and music.
!he various core disci#lines are Huite different, but they share much in common. 6or each
disci#line, we can think of a learner beinnin as a novice and then movin u# an e8#ertise scale.
5t can take years of education, trainin, and e8#erience to achieve a reasonably hih level of
e8#ertise. 6or e8am#le, readin and writin are com#onents of lanuae arts that are stressed year
after year in the education of #recollee students. -ven then, many #eo#le feel that the readin
and writin skills of a ty#ical hih school raduate are not Cwhat they should be.D Similar
assertions are often made for the math, science, and social science knowlede and skills of hih
school raduates.
Another characteristic that the core disci#lines share is a learnin theory that includes
constructivism, situated learnin, transfer of learnin, lower)order knowlede and skills, and
hiher)order knowlede and skills. !he is a steadily rowin "raft and Science of !eachin and
<earnin that is a##licable to the teachin and learnin of all of the core curriculum disci#lines.
6inally, as we have said several times earlier in this book, each disci#line can be characteri*ed
by the ty#es of #roblems and tasks it addresses, its culture, includin the tools and methodoloies
that it uses, and the results that it has achieved. !hat is, solvin #roblems and accom#lishin tasks
are a characteristic of all core curriculum disci#lines.
Pae &;
"ommunication is another as#ect of all core curriculum disci#lines. "ommunication in all core
curriculum disci#lines is heavily de#endent on the readin, writin, s#eakin, and listenin
com#onents of the lanuae arts. Gowever, each disci#line tends to develo# s#ecial vocabulary
for re#resentin and communicatin about the ty#es of #roblems that it addresses. !hus, an
im#ortant as#ect of learnin a disci#line is learnin to understand and communicate usin its
s#ecial vocabulary. (oreover, the disci#line of 5"! has develo#ed a variety of aids to
communication. !hus, each of the core curriculum disci#lines is now makin use of
communication tools that come from 5"!.
The Language of Mathematics
(athematics is a disci#line that can trace its history back &,%%% years and more. 5t is a
disci#line whose results or collected knowlede cut across all disci#lines and is im#ortant in our
everyday lives.
(athematics #rovides a ood e8am#le of a disci#line that has develo#ed s#ecial vocabulary
and notation for re#resentin and solvin the ty#es of #roblems that it addresses. You are
undoubtedly familiar with some of the symbols used in mathematics, such asA
L the diits %, +, $, Z , 0
L symbols for the four basic arithmetic o#erations Y, , 8,
L a lare number of other symbols such as =, , <, >, , (, ), and .
/ne way to think about mathematics is that it is a lanuae. !his lanuae includes a lare
number of natural lanuae words that have been iven very #recise definitions for use in math,
and rules for combinin the words and symbols for communication about mathematical ideas. 6or
e8am#le, the conce#t of C#roofD in mathematics is somewhat different than the conce#t of #roof in
the social sciences, sciences, and in law.
As a disci#line rows, it often is divided into sub disci#lines. You are undoubtedly familiar
with some of the subdivisions of mathematics, such as arithmetic, alebra, eometry, #robability,
and statistics. You may have studied some calculus and other sub disci#lines of mathematics that
are found in a ty#ical underraduate collee deree #roram for math ma?ors.
You know that math is a broad, dee#, com#le8, and ever rowin disci#line. Since you know
somethin about calculators and com#uters, you know that some #arts of 5"! are #arts of the
content of mathematics. >e will say more about this later in this cha#ter.
4ut first, letFs look at the disci#line that underlies 5"!.
Computer and Information Science
!he disci#line of com#uter and information science bean to develo# lon before the first
com#uters were built. 6or e8am#le, the +90% ..S. census data was #rocessed by #uttin the data
onto #unch cards and usin automated sortin and countin machines. !he history of mechanical
calculators oes back well over :%% years, and the history of the abacus oes back at least $,&%%
years (=edin, n.d.).
!he first com#uter science de#artments (they are now often called "om#uter and 5nformation
Science 'e#artments, or "5S de#artments) in hiher education were established durin the later
+0&%s and early +0;%s. !y#ically this occurred in one of three waysA
Pae &1
L As a s#lit off from a mathematics de#artment, formin a de#artment with an orientation
toward math and the other areas of liberal arts.
L As a s#lit off from one or more de#artments in an -nineerin School, formin a
de#artment with an electrical enineerin orientation.
L As a s#lit off from one or more de#artments in a 4usiness School, formin a de#artment
with a business orientation.
!hese early "5S de#artments offered #rorams of study that included a ma?or focus on
com#uter #rorammin and solvin the ty#es of #roblems that occur in some s#ecific disci#linary
areas. !hus, a business)oriented com#uter science de#artment miht offer a variety of courses in
"/4/< #rorammin, with the focus bein on learnin to develo# com#uter systems to solve
business #roblems. An early enineerin oriented com#uter science de#artment miht offer
courses in 6/=!=AE #rorammin and courses about com#uter circuitry.
EoteA !here are millions of >ebsites that address the history of com#uter #rorammin lanuaes. (ore
than $,&%% different lanuaes have been develo#ed. Some have been desined to be Huite s#ecific to the
ty#es of #roblems from a narrow disci#line or sub disci#line, while others have been develo#ed to be Huite
eneral #ur#ose and useful over a wide rane of disci#lines.
Current CIS Departments
>hile the early liberal arts)oriented "5S de#artments included an em#hasis on com#uter
#rorammin, they also #laced considerable em#hasis on develo#in the CscienceD of "5S. !hus,
students in these de#artments studied such to#ics as information storae and retrieval, analysis of
alorithms, and software enineerin. =elatively early on, artificial intellience became an
im#ortant sub disci#line in "5S ((oursund, $%%2b). A few other im#ortant sub disci#lines in "5S
include com#uter networkin, modelin and simulation, and human)machine interface.
/ne of the unifyin ideas in "5S is that of procedures and procedural thinking. 5n "5S, a
#rocedure is a ste#)by)ste# set of instructions that can be inter#reted and carried out by a
s#ecified aent such as a com#uter or an automated machine. "5S has a stron em#hasis on
develo#in #rocedures that are desined to solve certain ty#es of #roblems, and on thinkin about
the ca#abilities and limitations of com#uter #rocedures.
!hus, "5S brins two ma?or thins to each non)"5S disci#lineA
+. Procedures and #rocedural thinkin. >hat as#ects of re#resentin and solvin the
#roblems in a disci#line can be automated or #artially automated by use of com#uters and
other 5"!I Gow does such automation or #artial automation affect what should be tauht,
how it should be tauht, and how it should be assessed in each of the current core
curriculum areas and the other disci#lines tauht in our schoolsI
$. Sarious sub disci#lines that are develo#in interdisci#linary tools. "om#uter networkin
has led to the develo#ment of the 5nternet and the >eb. Artificial 5ntellience has led to
the develo#ment of voice in#ut to com#uters, effective s#ellin and rammar checkers,
sinificant #roress in the automatic translation of lanuaes, and a variety of other tools
that are now in common use throuhout business and industry. Guman)machine interface
has hel#ed in the develo#ment of a number of different Cassistive technoloyD aids for
#eo#le with various ty#es of handica##in conditions.
Pae &9
Historical Impact of CIS on Precollege Education
!he early history of 5"! in #recollee education was stronly influenced by "om#uter and
5nformation Science 'e#artments and #eo#le who had a "5S orientation. As an e8am#le,
com#uter #rorammin was a ty#ical com#onent of early com#uter in education courses for
#reservice and inservice teachers. !wo #rorammin lanuaes received a lot of attention. 4AS5"
is a lanuae that was develo#ed at 'artmouth .niversity durin the +0;%s. 5ts use eventually
became thorouhly interated into the underraduate collee curriculum and eventually s#read to
#recollee education. !he oriinal versions of 4AS5" shared much in common with the
6/=!=AE #rorammin lanuae whose oriinal tareted lanuae was scientists, enineers,
and a##lied mathematicians.
!he <oo #rorammin lanuae was develo#ed soon after 4AS5". 5t was based on a
#rorammin lanuae that was develo#ed for use by researchers and #ractitioners in Artificial
5ntellience. <oo was s#ecifically desined for use by rade school students, but it has the
characteristic of meetin needs at all rade levels, includin collee and raduate school.
>ith the advent of microcom#uters came the idea of #rovidin eneric tools (as distinuished
from #rorammin lanuaes) that could be used by #eo#le who had not taken coursework of the
sort offered by a "5S de#artment. Sery youn students could learn to make effective use of a
word #rocessor. A##leFs introduction of the (acintosh com#uter in +092 o#ened the field of
a##lied com#uter ra#hics to students of all aes. 7radually the em#hasis on teachin com#uter
#rorammin to #reservice and inservice teachers (and, to their students) faded away. Eow, most
#reservice and inservice teachers receive very little or no instruction in com#uter #rorammin.
(ost #reservice and inservice teachers do not receive e8#licit instruction in #rocedures and
#rocedural thinkin from a "5S #oint of view.
Gowever, "5S is still alive and well in a number of hih schools. (any hih schools offer an
Advanced Placement course in "om#uter and 5nformation Science. 5t corres#onds rouhly to the
first year of collee "5S course for #otential "5S ma?ors. 5t contains a stron em#hasis on
com#uter #rorammin and #roblem solvin.
ICT as Content in Four Core Non-ICT Disciplines
!his section contains a brief e8#loration of how 5"! is affectin the content of four core
disci#lines or fields of studyA lanuae arts, mathematics, science, and social science. <etFs bein
with a summary of what we do not focus on in this section.
L Generic Tools. 7eneric 5"! tools tend to cut across all or most disci#lines. -ssentially all
of the eneric tools discussed in the #revious cha#ter have become commonly used tools
in lanuae arts, math, science, and social science. 6or the most #art, we will not #rovide
more detail here in this section.
L Computer%&ssisted 7earning. 5n "ha#ter 1 we will discuss "om#uter)Assisted <earnin.
As you already know, 5"! is now widely used as an aid to student learnin in all of the
core fields of study and in most other disci#lines. 6or the most #art, we will not #rovide
more detail here in this section.
>e close this section with a brief discussion about a com#onent of 5"! that is both eneric
and that is s#ecific to the content of each individual disci#line. Eetworks (includin the 5nternet,
email, and the >eb) are a com#onent of 5"! that cuts across all disci#lines but that is also Huite
s#ecific to each disci#line. -ach disci#line has its own ways of re#resentin the ty#es of #roblems
Pae &0
that it addresses and the results that it has achieved. !he collected knowlede from a disci#line
can be orani*ed in a manner that facilitates storae and retrieval, and then #laced in a
CtraditionalD #hysical library, or in an electronic library such as the >eb.
/ne as#ect of learnin a disci#line is to learn about the storae and retrieval of information
within that disci#line. !hus, as a student studies science, he or she should be learnin about the
sub disci#lines of science and how the accumulated knowlede of science is stored and retrieved.
5t is not sufficient to say that a student has learned to use a browser a search enine as eneric
tools for searchin the >eb. !he overall field of information storae and retrieval (includin the
disci#line of librarianshi#) is much more than this. 5t takes considerable understandin of a
disci#line and information retrieval within the disci#line to locate information that may be relevant
to a #articular #roblem or task, ?ude the Huality of the information, understand the information,
and make use of the information.
Language Arts
!he lanuae arts include a number of sub disci#lines such as s#eakin, listenin, readin,
writin, and literature. Gere are a few e8am#les of 5"! as content in the lanuae artsA
L 4efore the develo#ment of the word #rocessor, writin tended to be a linear #rocess. A
word #rocessor facilitates ski##in forward and backward, insertin, deletin, and movin
ma?or sections of te8t, and carryin out other non)linear writin activities. >hile writin in
a linear #a#er and #encil environment and writin usin a word #rocessor are closely
related activities, they differ Huite a bit. !he word #rocessor, electronic outliner, s#ellin
checker, rammar checker, built)in dictionary, and so on all #lay sinificant roles in the
writin #rocess. !hus, students can benefit by instruction on how to make effective use of
a word #rocessor when writin.
L Process writin has lon been considered an a##ro#riate model of how to teach and do
writin. !he final ste# in #rocess writin is the "#ublication" #hase. 'eskto# #ublication
has substantially chaned this #hase. 'eskto# #ublication includes ivin careful thouht
to desinin a document for effective communication. 'eskto# #ublication is now a
sinificant sub disci#line in written communication.
L 5nteractive multimedia (such as a ty#ical >ebsite) is now a common environment for
communication. Such multimedia often includes te8t, #ictures, ra#hics, video, sound, and
color. Students benefit by instruction on how to effectively read (view, use, learn from) an
interactive multimedia environment. As with the readin and writin of te8t, the writin
(creation) of multimedia documents can be considered as #art of the lanuae arts.
L <anuae arts includes students ainin skill in doin oral #resentations. Eowadays,
#resentation media are commonly used in oral #resentations. 'evelo#in and makin
effective use of #resentation media is an im#ortant com#onent of the lanuae arts.
Mathematics
L "hanes in curriculum due to chanes in tools or the introduction of new tools can be
subtle. 6or e8am#le, it used to be that students in first and second year hih school alebra
courses learned how to calculate sHuare roots usin #encil and #a#er, how to make use of
math tables, and how to inter#olate in math tables. Puite a bit of this content has
disa##eared from the curriculumN calculators have re#laced it.
Pae ;%
L "alculators can be a re#lacement for a substantial amount of time that is currently s#ent
learnin and usin #a#er and #encil com#utational skills. 7ra#hin and eHuation)solvin
calculators have facilitated sinificant chanes in the content of a number of hih school
math courses.
L Software #ackaes such as (a#le and (athematica can solve a wide rane of the ty#es of
#roblems students study in arithmetic, alebra, eometry, #robability, statistics, and
calculus. !his has led to sinificant chanes in the content of some calculus courses at the
hih school and collee level.
L "om#uter modelin and simulation are now one of the ma?or sub disci#lines of
mathematics. Such com#utational modelin and simulation is now a common tool in
enineerin, architecture, all of the sciences, and a number of other areas.
L Eumerical analysis is an im#ortant com#onent of mathematics. (5 did my Ph.'. research in
numerical analysis). "om#uters are now an im#ortant com#onent of that com#onent of
mathematics.
Science
.# until about $& years ao, the various science disci#lines tended to be classified as #ure and
a##liedMoften called theoretical and e8#erimental. 5"! has brouht a new cateoryM
com#utational modelin and simulation. 4y the early +09%s, some science researchers were doin
their work by drawin u#on the ideas from the theoretical and e8#erimental a##roaches, but
carryin out their work com#utationally. !heir theoretical models were re#resented as
com#utational models, and their e8#eriments were carried out on com#uters. 5n +009, one of the
winners of the Eobel Pri*e for "hemistry was a com#utational chemist. !he #ri*e was awarded
for work that he had beun more than +& years earlier. Gere are a few e8am#les of 5"! as content
in the sciencesA
L (icrocom#uter)4ased <aboratory ((4<) re#resents a sinificant chane in the content of
various science courses due to the ca#abilities of laboratory instruments with built)in 5"!
ca#abilities.
L 7lobal Positionin Systems (7PS) have re#laced or su##lemented a wide rane of
surveyin and naviational non)5"! methodoloies and tools.
L A variety of telesco#es and microsco#es now include #owerful built)in com#uters and
cannot function without the ca#abilities of such com#uters. !he same holds true for much
of the other instrumentation now used in the sciences.
Social Science
5"! has substantially chaned our society and other societies of the world. /ver the #ast
++,%%% years, lare #arts of the world have moved from bein hunter)atherer societies to bein
ararian societies to bein industrial ae societies to bein information ae societies. 5"! is a very
#owerful chane aent and now has a history that can be traced back well over +%% years. !hus, it
is an a##ro#riate content area for both history and current events. Gere are some other e8am#les
of 5"! as content in social science coursesA
L !he >eb is now a lobal library that contains a lare number of #rimary source
documents. !hus, students can now obtain information from #rimary sources rather than
?ust information filtered throuh the minds of their te8tbook authors.
Pae ;+
L 5"! makes it much easier to #ublish information and to kee# #ublished information u# to
date. !he teachin and learnin of various social studies disci#lines are sinificantly
chaned by havin current, u# to date information readily available.
L Students can readily communicate with students throuhout the country and in other
countries. !his chane in communication ca#abilities is somewhat akin to #rovidin
students access to #rimary resources.
L 7eora#hic 5nformation Systems (75S) #rovide a set of tools that are now routinely used
in eora#hy, environmental studies, city #lannin, and many other com#onents of the
social sciences. =ouhly s#eakin, a 75S can be thouht of as a s#readsheet)like #iece of
software desined to store and #rocess ma#s and detailed data that accom#anies ma#s.
L -conomic modelin and forecastin (usin com#uters) is now a routine com#onent of the
disci#lines of economics and business.
Final Remarks
5"! now has the #otential to be a sinificant content com#onent of each of the core disci#line
areas lanuae arts, mathematics, science, and social science, as well as other disci#lines tauht at
the #recollee and collee levels. !his fact creates a ma?or challene for our #reservice and
inservice teacher education #rorams and our methods of develo#in #recollee curriculum
standards.
Some #roress is occurrin in interatin 5"! tools as routine aids to re#resentin and solvin
#roblems in various com#onents of the #recollee curriculum. Gowever, the rate of #roress is
slow relative to the rate of develo#ment of new 5"!)based tools. !hus, there is a rowin a#
between the #otential and the actual student learnin of such tools as an aid to re#resentin and
solvin the #roblems that hel# to define the various disci#lines in our school curriculum.
/ur educational system was not desined to co#e with a ra#id #ace of chane in curriculum
content. /ur society has witnessed and is witnessin the economic and social disru#tions that are
occurrin as business and industry attem#t to co#e with the ra#id #ace of chane in 5"!. Some
#eo#le suest that somewhat similar disru#tive events should be occurrin in education. /thers
hold firm to the idea that education is and should be a stabili*in com#onent of our society and
social systems, and that it is desirable that this system not have a ra#id #ace of chane.
!his leaves many #reservice and inservice teachers cauht between a rock and a hard #laceK
+. -ach academic disci#line can be defined by the #roblems it addresses, its culture, includin
the tools and methodoloies that it uses, and the results that it has achieved. Pick one of
the content area disci#lines that you know best. /ff the to# of your head, define the
disci#line in terms of the #roblems it addresses, its culture, tools and methodoloies, and
the results that it has achieved. !hen carefully e8amine the 5"! #arts of your answer.
!hink about how to hel# students ain 5"! knowlede and skill within the disci#lines that
you know best.
$. 5 am #articularly interested in the roles of 5"! and 4rain Science in math education. 5 have
built a >ebsite on this s#ecific combination of to#ics. See
htt#A,,darkwin.uoreon.edu,Bmoursund,(ath,. Eo matter what area you teach in or are
#re#arin to teach, your formal education has included a lot of instruction in math.
Pae ;$
-8#lore the >ebsite dee#ly enouh to increase your knowlede of 5"! in math and math
education. You miht, for e8am#le, want to# browse my short book for elementary
teachers available at htt#A,,darkwin.uoreon.edu,Bmoursund,(ath,-l (ath 4ook.#df.
:. Select some disci#line that you teach or are #re#arin to teach. !o be a ood teacher of
[YV (the disci#line you have selected) you need to understand both the disci#line and
how to teach it. S#ecifically, you need to be able to answer the Huestion C>hat is [YVID
from the four #oints of view listed below. =eflect on and e8#lain what the disci#line [YV
isA
A. 5n a manner that is a##ro#riate to the [YV maturity and current
understandin of your students, and that hel#s contribute to their ainin an increased
understandin of the [YV disci#line.
4. 5n a manner that is foundational to your work as a teacher of [YV. Your
decisions about the [YV content, instructional #rocesses, and assessment used with
your students should be rooted in your adult level, #rofessional teacher level, of
understandin.
". 5n a manner that is a##ro#riate for e8#lainin your roles as a teacher and
what you teach to a wide rane of #eo#le such as #arents, your friends and
acHuaintances, and other #eo#le who have widely varyin backrounds in [YV.
'. 5n a manner that #rovides hel#s you as you strive to be a better teacher of
[YV. @ee# in mind that [YV is a steadily rowin and chanin field. !hus, for
e8am#le, you miht want an answer that hel#s you meet the challene of 5nformation
and "ommunication !echnoloy in [YV curriculum content, instruction, and
assessment.
Pae ;:
Chapter 6
ICT as an Aid to Teaching and Learning
"Sim#le thins should be sim#le. "om#le8 thins
should be #ossible." (Alan @ay)
"!he mind is not a vessel to be filled but a fire to be
kindled." (Plutarch)
A sim#le)minded descri#tion of a school is that it is a #lace where Cteachers teach and students
learn.D Gistorically, it is easy to understand why schools became #laces where #eo#le came
toether to learn and that human teachers facilitated the learnin. 4ooks were e8#ensive and not
readily available. !here were relatively few well)educated scholars and teachers. !hus, #eo#le
wantin to learn tended to come to #laces where there were books and scholars.
7utenberFs mid +&
th
century develo#ment of a #rintin #ress that used movable ty#e was a
ma?or contribution to education (7utenber 4ible). As books became relatively ine8#ensive and
more available, a learner could take more res#onsibility of his or her learnin and could carry out
this learnin at a time and #lace to fit his or her convenience. 5"! has added sinificantly to this
trend.
As noted in earlier cha#ters, there is a steadily rowin collection of #ractitioner and
researcher knowlede called the "raft and Science of !eachin and <earnin. -ducators often talk
about translatin theory into #ractice. !he CtheoryD they are talkin about is our collected
knowlede of the "raft and Science of !eachin and <earnin. !he challene is to translate this
theory into #ractices that im#rove the Huality of education bein received by students.
!here are lots of ways to translate this collected knowlede into #ractice. 6or e8am#le,
curriculum content, aids to instruction, and assessment instruments can be develo#ed that reflect
this knowlede. !hese materials can be widely distributed.
Another common a##roach is throuh #reservice and inservice education of teachers.
"ontinuin staff develo#ment is continued to be a crucial com#onent of our overall educational
system.
5"! brins us some very #owerful new aids to translatin theory into #ractice. !his cha#ter
addresses two of these aids, com#uter)assisted learnin and distance education.
ICT Availability
>e are used to the idea that books, tele#hones, and !S are readily available in most
households. >e are less used to the idea that com#uters with 5nternet connectivity have become a
common household item. Gere is some data Huoted from a news#a#er article ((ercury Eews,
$%%:).
5n $%%$, 9: #ercent of American family households (with at least one child aed $\+1) owned a com#uter,
and 19 #ercent of children lived in a home in which either they or a #arent used the 5nternet from home
("onnected to the 6uture).
Z
About 0% #ercent of #eo#le aes & to +1 use com#uters and &0 #ercent of them use the 5nternet )) rates that
are, in both cases, hiher than those of adults.
Pae ;2
-ven kinderartners are becomin more #lued inA /ne out of four &)year)olds uses the 5nternet.
!he fiures come from a new -ducation 'e#artment analysis of com#uter and 5nternet use by children
and adolescents in $%%+. A second re#ort from the aency, based on $%%$ data, shows 00 #ercent of #ublic
schools have 5nternet access, u# from :& #ercent eiht years ao.
!hese fiures from $%%$ are, of course, becomin increasinly out of date. As com#uter
access continues to row and as the nature of connectivity continues to chane, we radually take
it for ranted that a student has such facilities at home. >e now tend to assume that every
household has a tele#hone (hard wired or cellular), color television, and other CmodernD
technoloy. /f course, this is not a correct assum#tion.
"hildren with com#uters at home often have access to three or more of the followin eneral
cateories of softwareA
L Pure entertainment (ames that are not desined to be educational). Some of these ames
are now #layed online (on the 5nternet) with many thousands of #eo#le simultaneously
#layin the same ame, and with teams of #layers often workin toether toward some
common oals.
L Pure educational, desined s#ecifically to #rovide instruction to hel# the user learn.
L -dutainment (lyin some #lace on the line between #ure entertainment and #ure
educational).
L "ommunication tools and reference materials, includin email, >eb, and laser disc
encyclo#edias, books, and other reference materials.
L !ools such as a word #rocessor, ra#hic software (for e8am#le, software for editin
#hotos), and other eneric tools.
!here are other as#ects of 5"! intensive home environments. "ellular tele#hones, handheld
com#uter ames and toys, !S, P'As, 'S' #layers, "' #layers and recorders, and video ta#e
#layers and recorders are now common#lace. >hen children row u# in an 5"! intensive home
environment, they may ain many thousands of hours of e8#erience usin 5"! facilities. 6or the
elementary school ae rou#, use of the com#uter and electronic ames has overtaken use of !S.
!his (situated learnin) home environment can be com#ared and contrasted with school
environments where many students only et to use com#uters an hour or so a week in a com#uter
lab.
!he educational systems in the .nited States have made a determined effort to #rovide
com#uters and connectivity in all schools. Eowadays, it is unusual to find a school that does not
have com#uters and 5nternet connectivity. /n averae, our schools have a##ro8imately one
microcom#uter #er five students. =ouhly s#eakin, however, this means that students have about
three times as much 5"! at home as they have at school.
!here is a steady u#ward trend in the amount of com#ute #ower and connectivity #ower
(bandwidth) bein made available to students at school, at home, and in other #laces such as
#ublic libraries. (oreover, wireless connectivity is radually becomin available in lare reions,
such as whole cities. 6uturists can CseeD a time when availability and use of such mobile 5"! will
be routine for the reat ma?ority of #eo#le in the .S and many other countries.
!his trend toward ubiHuitous 5"! is chanin our society and is slowly beinnin to make a
sinificant contribution to translatin educational theory into #ractice. !he word CslowlyD is worth
re#eatin. /ur schools are strulin to meet the challene of continued ra#id chane in 5"!.
Pae ;&
Computer-Assisted Learning
/ver the #ast &% years, many different terms have been used to describe teachin bein done
by a com#uter system. 6or e8am#le, com#uter)based instruction and com#uter)assisted instruction
used to be common terms. !here has been a radual shift from these terms to the term com#uter)
assisted learnin. Amon other thins, this reflects the oal of hel#in students learn. "om#uter)
assisted learnin ("A<) #laces the em#hasis on student learnin rather than on teachin bein
done by a com#uter.
As with any im#ortant emerin area of the "raft and Science of !eachin and <earnin, there
have been a lare number of "A< research studies, and the literature contains many thousands of
CtestimonialsD (articles that are not research studies) toutin the merits of "A<. A 7oole search
of com#uter)assisted learnin currently #roduces nearly a million hits.
/ver the years, the research literature on "A< rew to a level that it could su##ort
metastudies. A metastudy is a careful analysis of a rou# of related studies (4oston, $%%$). 4y
+002, there were enouh metastudies of "A< so that James @ulik was able to conduct a meta)
metastudy of "A< (@ulik, +002). Gis conclusion is that, on averae over a wide rane of sub?ect
matter areas and a wide rane of students, "A< works. Students learn sinificantly faster and
better. @ulik re#orted an averae effect si*e of about .:& (a &%
th
#ercentile student becomin a ;2
th
#ercentile student) and timesavin of about $%X. !hat is, by +% years ao we knew that "A<
hel#s students learn sinificantly faster and better.
!here have been a number of more recent metastudies on "A<. !able ;.+ summari*es some of
these (E"=-<).
)ummary of 8ecent 3eta%&nalyses in +ducational Technology
&uthor*s- and .ate 'ocus : of
)tudies
+ffect )i;e
4ayraktar ($%%+)$%%$) "A5 in secondary and
collee science
2$ .$1:
4lok, /ostdam, /tter,and
/vermaat ($%%$)
"om#uter)based instructional
simulations
2$ .+0%
"avanauh ($%%+) 5nteractive distance
education technoloies
+0 .+21
"hristmann and 4adett
(+000)
"A5 in science ++ .$;;
"hristmann, 4adett, and
<uckin (+001)
"A5 in differin sub?ect areas $1 .$%0
"hristmann, <uckin, and
4adett (+001)
"A5 in secondary schools $9 .+1$
<ee (+000) "om#uter)based instructional
simulation
+0 .2+%
<ou, Abrami, and
d'A#ollonia ($%%+)
Small rou# versus
individuali*ed learnin with
technoloy
+$$ .+&%
>hitley (+001) 7ender differences in
com#uter)related attitudes
and behavior
9$ .$%0
3edian < 2= .2>?
Pae ;;
!able ;.+. Summary of some "A< metastudies.
Eotice that the fourth column of !able ;.+ ives the effect si*e. 5n metastudies, this term is
the difference between the means of treated and control sub?ects divided by the #ooled standard
deviation of the two rou#s. !he effect si*e can also be stated as a #ercentile standin, as shown
in !able ;.$ (-ffect Si*e, n.d.).
+ffect
)i;e
2ercentile
)tanding
2.0 97.7
1.9 97.1
1.8 96.4
1.7 95.5
1.6 94.5
1.5 93.3
1.4 91.9
1.3 90
1.2 88
1.1 86
1.0 84
0.9 82
0.8 79
0.7 76
0.6 73
0.5 69
0.4 66
0.3 62
0.2 58
0.1 54
0.0 50
!able ;.$. -ffect si*e and #ercentile standin.
An effect si*e of .$% is considered to be small, while an effect si*e of .&% is considered to be
medium, and an effect si*e of +.% is considered to be lare. =esults are often also re#orted in
terms of #ercentiles. =eferrin back to !able ;.+ and ;.$, the effect si*e of .$%0 re#resents a small
#ositive effect, with the e8#erimental rou# scorin at the &9th #ercentile of the control rou#
distribution. !he effect si*e of .2+% corres#onds to the #ositive effect of the e8#erimental rou#
scorin at the ;;
th
#ercentile of the control rou# distribution.
/ver the years, there has been a trend toward "A< becomin both more CintellientD and
more interactive. !he CintellienceD in this ty#e of "A< refers to the use of Artificial 5ntellience,
an im#ortant com#onent of the field of "om#uter and 5nformation Science. !hus, #eo#le now talk
about Gihly 5nteractive 5ntellient "om#uter)Assisted <earnin (G55"A<). Gere is a short article
5 wrote on this to#ic a few years ao.
Pae ;1
Highly Interactive Computing in Teaching and Learning
(oursund, '.7. (/ctober $%%%). oles of !T in !mproving "ur #ducational $ystem. %art &. 'ighly
!nteractive (omputing in Teaching and Learning. <earnin and <eadin with !echnoloy. -uene, /=A
5nternational Society for !echnoloy in -ducation.
=e#rinted with #ermission from <earnin and <eadin with !echnoloy (c) $%%%)$%%+, 5S!- (the
5nternational Society for !echnoloy in -ducation. 9%%.::;.&+0+ (..S. O "anada) or &2+.:%$.:111,
custWsvc3iste.or, htt#A,,www.iste.or,. =e#rint #ermission does not constitute an endorsement by 5S!- of
the #roduct, trainin, or course.
)))))))))))))))))))))))))
!his article is about roles of teachers, learners, and com#uters in hihly interactive teachin and learnin.
>hen most educators think about hihly interactive com#utin, their first thouht is about com#uter)
assisted instruction. 4ut, there are many other situations in which one uses a com#uter in a hihly
interactive manner. !he develo#ment of a s#readsheet model, and the use of it in askin and answerin
">hat ifI" Huestions, #rovides a ood e8am#le. !he interaction one does in editin a #hotora#h #rovides
another e8am#le. !his article e8#lores various as#ects of hihly interactive com#utin and makes some
suestions about how to im#rove our educational system.
Computer%&ssisted Instruction
>e all know that a com#uter can be a #owerful aid to learnin. >e know about "drill and #ractice" and
tutorial com#uter)assisted instruction ("A5), and we know about simulations used to train air#lane and
s#aceshi# #ilots. 5n all of these teachin,learnin situations, there is interactivity between the com#uter
system and the learner.
5n the #ilot trainin simulations, the learner is involved in a hihly interactive simulation of a real world
environment. !he simulation is attention)rabbin and realistic, and usually there is a hih intrinsic
motivation to learn. !hese characteristics contribute sinificantly to the learnin #rocess.
'rill and #ractice or tutorial "A5 tends to lack the real world flavor of #ilot)trainin simulations. A
standard attem#t to overcome this difficulty is to embed the "A5 in a ame)like, entertainment
environment. !he ame)like environment may #rove both attention)rabbin and intrinsically motivatin.
/n the other hand, it is #ossible that it contributes little to the desired learnin outcomes. !his is because
there may be little transfer from the learn environment to situations in which the learnin is to be a##lied.
Transfer of 7earning
!ransfer of learnin is closely related to the "A5 ideas iven above. !he com#uter simulations used in
#ilot trainin are so realistic that there is a hih level of transfer of learnin to real world #ilotin
situations. 6lyin the trainin simulator is less e8#ensive and less danerous than flyin a real air#lane or
s#aceshi#. (oreover, the com#uter simulation also allows the #ilot to ain e8#erience in dealin with
danerous emerency situations that are not a#t to occur very freHuently in the real world. All thins
considered, such "A5 simulations have many advantaes over emerin a trainee in a real world trainin
environment.
/n the other hand, the learnin that occurs in more traditional "A5 environments faces two transfer of
learnin difficulties. 6irst, there is the transfer from the com#uter environment to the non)com#uter
environment. Second, there is the transfer from the non)com#uter environment to the real world. !o
illustrate, a child may become ade#t at Huickly doin certain mental arithmetic feats in a hihly
interactive and entertainin ame environment. >ill the child be able to dis#lay the same level of skill in
the non)ame environment of a traditional classroom or on a traditional #encil and #a#er testI And, will
such traditional classroom knowlede and skill transfer to reconi*in and solvin somewhat similar
#roblems that the student encounters outside the classroomI
>e know how to use com#uters to make hihly interactive simulations that are so real world)like so that
there is a hih level of transfer of this learnin to the real world. !his #rovides us with a taret to aim at
as we develo# other ty#es of "A5 for use in our schools. >e have not come very far in this endeavor.
7earning and @&ttention@ in the 9uman 3ind
Pae ;9
!he body,brain receives in#ut from the five sensesA aural, taste, touch, visual, and smell. (6or sim#licity,
in the remainder of this article 5 will use the term mind in #lace of the term brain,body.) <earnin takes
#lace inside the mind. !his learnin is influenced by what the mind consciously does to #romote learnin,
as well as what it unconsciously does. !hus, we can think about im#rovin learnin by im#rovin the
e8ternal stimulus (what is #rovided from outside the mind) and by trainin the mind to learn better from
the stimuli that it receives and from what it has stored in the #ast.
!he mind's various in#ut systems are easily overwhelmed by the amount of in#ut that is or can be
available. !hus, the mind is desined to not #ay attention to most of the in#ut. !hat is, there is a continual
filterin mechanism bein a##lied. !he mind only #ays attention to a very small #art of the in#ut. 5t #ays
s#ecial attention to life threatenin and other danerous situations.
!he mind can consciously decide to focus its attention on certain internal and e8ternal com#onents of its
environment. !hat is, the conscious mind can focus its attention on stored data, information, knowlede,
and wisdom, and it can also decide to #ay attention to e8ternal stimuli.
!his selective attention mechanism #resents a ma?or challene to teachers. As a teacher, you want students
to #ay attention to what is oin on in the classroom. 4ut, you are com#etin aainst built)in mechanisms
that are desined to have the mind only #ay attention to really im#ortant thins. (any students
automatically filter out (that is, do not #ay attention to) what is oin on in the classroom. After all,
classrooms are desined to be safe #laces, so there is little chance of life)threatenin events occurrin,
such as an attack from a tier or a #oisonous snake. 5n a classroom, a student's mind can safely consider
events of #ast days or #ossible events in the future. !hese events may be far more attention rabbin than
the current events within the classroom. !he student #ays attention to and learns about these #ast and
#ossible future events, rather than what the teacher would like the student to be learnin.
6rom a teacher #oint of view, there is a com#etition oin on for the attention of a student's mind. !he
ood teacher is able to create an interactive learnin environment that hel#s to focus student attention on
im#ortant curriculum to#ics. A ood teacher and a ood educational environment can rab the attention of
the students in a class. Gihly interactive com#uter environments can add sinificantly to such a learnin
environment.
Interactiity in Tutorial )ettings
!he mind is desined to be able to learn. "onsider a situation faced by a very youn baby. !he baby's mind
reconi*es some form of discomfort (a belly ache, too cold) and #roduces the action of cryin. !he cryin
is heard by a #arent. !he #arent makes a uess as to the source of the discomfort and takes an action to
remedy the situation. !his baby)#arent interaction leads to learnin on the #art of both the baby and the
#arent.
A similar descri#tion fits well with a child learnin other non)verbal and verbal lanuae. !his is a ood
e8am#le of hihly interactive one)on)one "tutorin," with both the child and the adult learnin from the
interaction. !here is a very im#ortant #oint to be made here. !he nature, e8tent, and timin of the
feedback #rovided by the tutor (the adult) is determined by the best ?udment of the tutor. 5t is
individuali*ed and hihly #ersonali*ed based u#on #ast interaction with the child.
6rom the ty#e of analysis iven in this section, we can identify some of the characteristics of a ood tutor.
5t needs toA
+. Gave a ood "understandin" of what is to be learned and how humans learn it.
$. Gave a ood understandin of what the learner already knows and learnin characteristics of the
learner.
:. Provide feedback and interactivity that is a##ro#riate in nature, e8tent, and timin.
/ver the years, some #roress has been made in the develo#ment of drill and #ractice and tutorial "A5
that has these features. !here has been encourain #roress in the develo#ment of 5ntellient "A5
systems that make use of #roress that has been occurrin in the field of artificial intellience. Gowever,
we have a lon way to o. (uch of the interaction needed to make current "A5 into a rich learnin
environment must come from and throuh the learner. !his means that students need to learn to make
effective use of the ty#es of "A5 that we are currently able to #roduce.
Pae ;0
!his is not a whole lot different than a student learnin to learn from books. !he "A5 can be thouht of as
an interactive ty#e of book. <ittle learnin occurs in drill and #ractice or tutorial "A5 unless the student is
consciously and actively enaed, and has learned to make effective use of the medium.
:on%C&I Interactiity
5 s#end a sinificant fraction of my work time seated at a com#uter. 5 mainly use eneral)#ur#ose
com#uter tools such as word #rocessor, s#readsheet, #aint and draw ra#hics, -)mail, >eb browser, and
>eb authorin software.
!y#ically, my oal is to solve a #roblem or accom#lish a task. 5 use all of my com#uter tools in a hihly
interactive manner. !his ty#e of interaction is much different than one finds in a "A5 drill and #ractice or
tutorial environment. Sometimes 5 do most of the work in the interactions, such as when 5 am authorin
usin a word #rocessor or a >eb authorin system. /ther times the software carries much of the burden,
such as when my word #rocessor is checkin my s#ellin and rammar. Sometimes there is a nice
balance, as my >eb browser and 5 work toether to solve an information retrieval #roblem.
As 5 work to solve #roblems and accom#lish tasks, 5 learn a reat deal. !he combination of my mind and
the com#uter system #rovides me with information to be learned and feedback durin the learnin
#rocess. !his is consistent with situated learning, a learnin theory that su##orts #uttin the learner into
rich, real world #roblem)solvin environments ((oursundN =oschelle). Situated <earnin theory hel#s to
e8#lain the success of #roblem)based learnin and #ro?ect)based learnin. "om#uters can be a valuable
com#onent of a situated learnin environment.
At one time in my life, 5 s#ent a lot of time doin and teachin com#uter #rorammin. 5n the early years,
the nature of my interaction with the com#uter was limited by the slow turnaround of usin #unched cards
on a batch)#rocessin com#uter. !hen timeshared com#utin was develo#ed, and this reatly im#roved
the interaction. (icrocom#uters have further im#roved the human)machine interaction in com#uter
#roram. "om#uter #rorammin is now an e8am#le of hihly interactive com#utin. 5t is also an
e8cellent e8am#le of a situated learnin environment.
'inal 8emarks
<earnin occurs in one's mind. !his article focuses on various ty#es of learnin environments in which
there is interaction between a com#uter system and a #erson's mind. Such interactive learnin situations
can be im#roved byA
+. 5m#rovin the com#uter system. 6or e8am#le, we are makin #roress in develo#in 5ntellient "A5
systems that have some of the characteristics of a ood human tutor. !here are a number of e8am#les
of com#uter simulations that are e8cellent aids to learnin, but relatively few have been desined for
use at the #recollee level.
$. Gel#in the student learn to make effective use of the various ty#es of interactivity that a com#uter
can #rovide. /ften this takes considerable learnin on the #art of the student. Situated <earnin is a
learnin theory that fits well with immersin students into com#uter rich #roblem solvin
environments in a manner that will facilitate student learnin.
:. 5ncor#oratin ideas from Situated <earnin !heory.
8eferences
(oursund, '. ($%%%). "ommunities of 5!).sin -ducators Q/nlineR. Accessed ++,9,%+ and +$,+&,%2A
htt#A,,otec.uoreon.edu,it)usin)educators.htm.
=oschelle, J. >hat Should "ollaborative !echnoloy 4eI A Pers#ective from 'ewey and Situated
<earnin Q/nlineR. Accessed +$,+&,%2A htt#A,,o#enacademy.mindef.ov.s,/#enAcademy,<earnin
X$%=esources,-PSS,c+2Wa9.htm.
Distance Learning
!his section on 'istance <earnin is divided into three subsections. !he first is a CtraditionalD
overview of 'istance <earnin. !he second is more visionary (far out). !he third talks about the
very im#ortant conce#t of bandwidth.
Pae 1%
Traditional Overview of Distance Learning
'istance <earnin ('<) via "orres#ondence "ourses e8isted lon before the develo#ment of
the first com#uters. 5n corres#ondence courses the interactivity between student and instructor
was Huite slow, #erha#s measured in terms of several weeks for an interaction. /f course, airmail
im#roved this situation.
'< has been conducted by one)way (broadcast) radio as well as two)way radio. 5t has been
conducted by a combination of broadcast !S and surface or airmail. You can think of the
everyday !S that #eo#le watch and radio broadcasts that #eo#le listen to as ty#es of '<. (ost of
this com#onent of '< miht be classified as informal education, but some of the materials are well
suited for usin in formal educational settins.
5n more recent times, it has become common for '< to made use of two)way !S, email, and
the >eb. >e are radually seein a merer of these technoloies. !hus, we are radually movin
toward the situation of '< environments based on interactive two)way audio and video bein
made available on the >eb, and bein su##lemented by email, chat rooms, >eb)based tele#hone,
and so on.
As with initial research into "A<, the first issue in '< has tended to be measures of student
learnin via '< versus learnin via other modes of instruction. !here have been hundreds of such
studies. <are numbers of studies have re#orted Cno sinificant differenceD in learnin outcomes
(=ussell, n.d.). Gowever, the situation is much more com#le8 than is suested by this ty#e of
literature.
Schools #rovide a social settin in which #eo#le come toether and interact with each other.
As students #roress throuh years of schoolin, they become used to the idea that formal
education is conducted in this social settin and that the social and face)to)face interactions are a
key #art of schoolin. !his environment (think in terms of situated learnin) is a very #owerful
com#onent of formal education.
(any students who are #ut into '< environments do not become adeHuately enaed to do
the coursework. !hey lack the wherewithal of intrinsic and e8trinsic motivation to kee# them
seriously enaed in the necessary learnin tasks. !hus, many different '< courses have
e8#erienced dro# out rates and non)com#letion of &%X or more. (ost often the dro# out and
non)com#letin students are lum#ed toether for statistical #ur#oses. 4oth rou#s are counted as
dro# outs, and they are not fiured into the ClearninD effectiveness of the course. !hus, most
studies that re#ort Cno sinificant differenceD e8clude a sinificant #ercentae of the students who
bein the course.
<ynn <ary is currently the !echnoloy "oordinator for the <ane -ducational Service 'istrict
located in /reon. Ger doctorate dissertation on 'istance <earnin #rovides a ood overview of
the field (<ary, $%%$).
!he use of '< at the #recollee level is steadily rowin. !he Huality of the courses, the
screenin of #otential students, the desin to hel# students who miht otherwise dro# out, and
other im#rovements are increasin com#letion rates. 5nternet 55 is steadily makin #roress. 5t
#rovides a thousand or times the bandwidth of our currently widely used 5nternet (which can be
called 5nternet 5). 5nternet 55 makes #ossible hih bandwidth interactive !S alon with other
telecommunication ca#abilities that enhance communication. 'istance -ducation will be a steadily
rowin com#onent of both formal and informal education systems for many years to come.
Pae 1+
Visionary (Far Out) View of Distance Learning
<earnin takes #lace within a learnerFs body (which includes the brain) and mind. !he content
to be learned comes from within the mind,body and from outside the mind,body. 6or e8am#le, 5
can consciously think about a to#ic, come u# with some ideas that 5 feel are im#ortant, and
remember (learn) the ideas. All of this takes #lace within my mind,body. /r, 5 can read a book can
construct understandin and knowlede of some of its content. !he learnin takes #lace within my
mind,body, but 5 draw u#on resources both with and outside of my mind,body.
Eow, consider the nature of the e8ternal (outside the mind,body) aids to learnin. 5 have
mentioned books. /ther resources include teachers, !S, friends, the environments, and so on. (y
mind,body interacts with these e8ternal resources. (uch of this interaction occurs at a
subconscious level, with the mind not bein aware of it. <earnin can occur throuh this
subconscious interaction. Gowever, formal education systems (such as schools) tend to focus their
attention on creatin environments in which conscious, considered learnin occurs.
!he schoolin)oriented aids to learnin are all e8terior to the mind,brain. !hus, in some sense
all school)based education can be considered as 'istance <earnin. <etFs think about this in
reater de#th. "onsider a schoolin situation in which the learner has a team of #rivate tutors.
-ach tutor is hihly skilled and each knows one or more disci#lines in both breadth and de#th.
-ach is a human bein and has ood communication skills. -ach comes to know a considerable
amount about the learnerMes#ecially those as#ects of the learner that are relevant to learnin the
to#ic areas bein tauht by the tutor. !he tutors have lare libraries of resources materials 0books,
videos, and so on) that they can make available to the learner. 5n addition to all of this, the tutors
and this teachin situation have sufficient funds to take the learner on tri#s, immerse the learner in
various learnin environments (such as within the culture and lanuae of various countries), and
so on.
!his situation is sometimes called the Cold standardD for teachin,learnin. !he term Cold
standardD is meant to suest that this is about as ood as can be createdMrather than suestin
that it is very e8#ensive. Sery few #eo#le e8#erience such a hih Huality education.
6iure ;.: is an -8ternal <earnin -nvironment scale. 5t can be used to discuss our
CconventionalD and various efforts to make im#rovements in a cost effective manner.
Standard
The Gold
6iure ;.:. Scale re#resentin e8ternal learnin environments.
5t is #ossible to analy*e various com#onents of an e8ternal learnin. >e know, for e8am#le,
that school should be a safe #lace, that students need to have adeHuate food, clothin and shelter,
and so on. 4ut, letFs move beyond these essentials. >e know that each student is uniHue and that
Pae 1$
each student has uniHue learnin abilities. >e understand constructivism, intrinsic motivation,
e8trinsic motivation, and situation learnin. !hus, we try to desin the school)based learnin
environments so that they accommodate the various needs, abilities, and interests of the students.
'istance <earnin via 5"! adds a new com#onent to the e8ternal learnin environments that
we can create. Gere are a few e8am#les of such 'istance <earnin from the broad #oint of view
of this sub sectionA
L 5nteractive talkin toys and books.
L -lectronic books.
L !he Chel#D features built into a##lications software, com#uter ames, and so on.
L !he aids to solvin #roblems and accom#lishin tasks built into software tools. 6or
e8am#le, the s#ellin checker, rammar checker, dictionary, and thesaurus available in a
full)feature word #rocessor are all aids to learnin.
L Aids to communication such as cellular tele#hones and email.
L !he >eb, considered as a lobal library.
L "om#uter)assisted learninMthe full rane, from sim#le)minded drill and #ractice to
so#histicated simulations, #erha#s occurrin in a virtual reality environment.
L !he synchronous and asynchronous ty#es of 'istance learnin discussed in the #revious
sub section. !hese vary in lenth from a few seconds of tutorial on a s#ecific small to#ic to
full featured, full lenth courses.
>ith this broad view of 'istance <earnin, 5"! is already a sinificant com#onent of the
e8ternal learnin environment. 5t will continue to increase in im#ortance.
!o close this sub section, 5 want to make a final comment about the Cold standard.D >e
already have some hihly)interactive intellient com#uter)assisted learnin that is better than
human tutors in a variety of learnin situation. 6or e8am#le, the air#lane #ilot fliht simulators
allow #ilots to e8#erience and learn about a wide rane of emerencies in a manner that is more
effective and much safer than can be #rovided throuh the use of a human tutor and flyin in a
real air#lane. Eot only is 5"!)based '< Chere to stay,D it will continue to become more and more
im#ortant.
Bandwidth
(y mental model for traditional 5"!)based asynchronous and synchronous 'istance <earnin
is a #erson makin use of a networked com#uter. !he network connects the learnerFs com#uter to
other com#uters, and the s#eed (the bandwidth) of the connectivity is Huite im#ortant. 5t takes
only a modest bandwidth to #rovide interactive te8t. 4ut it takes a Huite hih bandwidth to work
with hih Huality video.
!erm bandwidth is most often used in discussions of the number of bits #er second or bytes
#er second that can be carried over some telecommunications channel. 6or e8am#le, a modem in a
com#uter miht be rated as a &;@ modem. !his means that it can transmit and receive &;@ bits
#er second, assumin that the wireless or wired connectivity can handle such a s#eed. A byte is
eiht bits, and can be used to code a collection of $&; characters ($ to the 9
th
is $&;), like those
found on a com#uter keyboard. >hen com#uter #eo#le use the symbol @, they usually mean C$ to
the +%
th
D which is +,%$2.
Pae 1:
A meabyte is $ to the $%
th
bytes, which is +,%29,&1; bytes. =ouhly s#eakin, a medium)
lenth novel that does not include #ictures is about a meabyte in lenth. 6or most #ur#oses it is
okay to think of a kilobyte (@4) as a thousand bytes, and a meabyte ((4) as a million bytes.
Su##ose that you are usin a &;@ modem and you want to download a medium lenth novel
that does not contain #ictures. !hen it will take rouhly two and a half minutes. !hat is not too
lon if your intent is then to read the entire novel.
Eow su##ose that you are interested in viewin a hih Huality #hotora#h of a #aintin. !he
com#uter dis#lay screen 5 am currently usin is set at a resolution of +,%$2 by 1;9 #i8els, and it is
set a Cthousands of colors.D >hat this means is that one full)screen #icture is +,%$2 8 1;9 8 $ 8 9
] +,++2,++$ bits of information. (!he C$D and the C9D come from the two bytes needed to code
the thousands of #ossible colors in one #i8el.) !his means that it takes about $% seconds to
download one such #icture to my com#uter usin a &;@ modem.
4ut, letFs further com#licate the situation. >hat 5 really want to do is view a hih Huality
video. !hat is, 5 want to look at a video that is :% frames #er second, and the Huality of the frames
is to be the Huality of the individual #icture discussed in the #revious #arara#h. !his means that it
will take about +% minutes to download one second of this video if 5 use my &;@ modem. Eow
you can bein to see why much hiher bandwidths are desirableK
!he discussion so far in this sub section focuses on the bandwidth between a learnerFs
com#uter and a com#uter system that is bein used to #rovide the 'istance <earnin content.
Eow letFs take the same ideas and a##ly them to the communication channel between a human
teacher and a class of students. !he teacher continually CbroadcastsD a multimedia C#roramD that
can be thouht of as consistin of very hih Huality video (e.., the teacher, the classroom, the
teacher movin about the classroom), audio (e.., the teacher talkin), smells (e.., #erha#s
deodorant and #erfume), and touch (#erha#s the teacher touches a student). Perha#s the teacher
#rovides the students with somethin to taste, for e8am#le in a science lesson on sweet and sour.
All of the students in the room contribute to and are an interal #art of this multimedia
#erformance.
!he teacher and the students are #rocessin a very hih bandwidth of information that they
receive throuh their senses. -ach does the #rocessin usin body and mindMa very #owerful
#rocessin system. -ach is continually makin conscious and subconscious decisions as to where
to focus attention and what to do with the hue amount of incomin data. -ach is sendin and
receivin data from the #oint of view of bein an intellient human bein.
5 find it interestin to think about the face)to)face, human)to)human interface and interaction
versus the com#uter system to human interface and interaction. !he later is steadily im#rovin
throuh the develo#ment of hiher bandwidth communication systems, virtual reality systems, and
more intellient and knowledeable com#uter systems. 5 en?oy watchin Star !rek television
#rorams and movies, and 5 es#ecially en?oy the Golodeck, which is a very so#histicated hihly
intellient virtual reality system. !odayFs frontiers of hihly interactive, intellient, virtual reality
systems have a lon way to o before they bein to com#are favorably with the Golodeck of
science fiction. 4utZsinificant #roress is occurrinK !he future of 5"!)based 'istance <earnin
is very brihtK
Final Remarks on Chapter 6 Topics
/ur formal educational system of schools and schoolin is a hue and slowly chanin social
system. 5"!, includin "A< and '<, are a #owerful chane aent. Eow and in the future it will be
Pae 12
interestin to watch the collision of the slow to chane formal educational system and the
#owerful chane aent.
5f you are a relatively youn inservice or #reservice teacher, you will have $% to :% years or
more of involvement in this collision. 'urin this time 5"! systems will row immensely in
ca#ability. "A< and '< will et better and better. 'urin your teachin career you will see
sinificant chanes in our formal education system brouht on by "A< and '<.
+. -8#lore your thouhts and feelins about the fact that in certain limited teachin and
learnin situations, G55"A< #roduces results that are better than what an averae teacher
#roduces when workin with a classroom of students.
$. -8#lore your thouhts and feelins about the fact that in certain limited teachin and
learnin situations, G55"A< #roduces results that are better than what an averae
individual tutor #roduces when workin with a student.
:. 7radually, Huite a bit of the G55"A< named in (+) and ($) iven above will become
available (at a reasonable cost) to students at home, to <ibraries, to Gome Schools, to
"harter Schools, to Private Schools, and to Public Schools. >hat are your thouhts and
feelins as to how this will chane the teachin #rofession and your career as a teacherI 5n
your thinkin, ive consideration to ideas of individuali*ation of instruction and
constructivism.
2. -8#lore and share your thouhts about the future of 5"! as an aid to teachin and learnin
as the Golodeck)like features of intellient, hihly interactive, virtual reality systems
continue to be im#roved and their costs continue to decline.
&. !hink about the numbers and mathematics used in discussion bandwidth. 6rom your #oint
of view, how relevant was this subsection of the book to the overall oal you have of
bein an effective 5"!)usin educator,
Pae 1&
Chapter 7
ICT in Assessment and Accountability
"5 hear and 5 foret. 5 see and 5 remember. 5 do and 5
understand." ("onfucius)
">hen 5 e8amine myself and my methods of
thouht, 5 come to the conclusion that the ift of
fantasy has meant more to me than my talent for
absorbin #ositive knowlede." (Albert -instein)
5"! is now a widely used aid to student assessment. 5n addition, the introduction of 5"! into
school curricula has brouht with it the need to assess student learnin of 5"!. 6inally, self)
assessment is of rowin im#ortance in education, and 5"! can #lay a sinificant role in it.
!here are a variety of ways to look at assessment. 6or e8am#le, we can ask if an assessment
instrument or an assessment system is reliable, valid, fair, authentic, and cost effective. >e can ask
if an assessment system #rovides a##ro#riate hel# to students, teachers, and others in im#rovin
our educational system. >e can ask if an assessment system contributes to accountability. !his
cha#ter discusses such issues from an 5"! #oint of view.
Overview of General Background Information
(ost #reservice teacher education #rorams include a course that s#ecifically focuses on
assessment, evaluation, and related to#ics. !he reference (-!S., n.d.) #rovides links to a lare
number of articles of #ossible interest to #reservice and inservice teachers.
!he /verview of 7eneral 4ackround 5nformation #art of the current cha#ter summari*es a
few of the key ideas that miht be covered in an introductory course on assessment. 5n this #art of
the cha#ter, there is little s#ecific mention of 5"!.
Assessment and Evaluation
Peo#le often confuse the two terms, assessment and ealuation. Puotin from 4rookhart
(+000)A
"Assessment" means to ather and inter#ret information about students' achievement, and "achievement"
means the level of attainment of learnin oals Z Assessin students' achievement is enerally
accom#lished throuh tests, classroom and take)home assinments, and assined #ro?ects. )trictly
speaking! @assessment@ refers to assignments and tasks that proide information! and @ealuation@
refers to Audgments based on that information. Q4old added for em#hasis.R
5n brief, assessment is the #rocess of atherin data about #erformance, and evaluation is the
analysis and the assinin of meanin and value to the assessment data.
Some as#ects of assessment can be automated throuh use of 5"!. 5"! also can #lay a
sinificant role in evaluation. Gowever, human ?udment is a key as#ect of evaluation in
education, so this is a situation in which one seeks an a##ro#riate balance between human and
5"! system ca#abilities in accom#lishin the task.
Pae 1;
Norm Referenced and Criterion Referenced Evaluating
State and national evaluation of student #erformance often involves com#arin students
aainst criteria (criterion referenced) or other students (norm referenced). !he followin two
definitions come from the "enter for the Study of -valuation lossary ("S-
htt#A,,www.cse.ucla.edu,resources,lossaryWset.htm).
"riterion)=eferenced Assessment. An assessment where an individual's #erformance is com#ared to a
s#ecific learnin ob?ective or #erformance standard and not to the #erformance of other students.
"riterion)referenced assessment tells us how well students are #erformin on s#ecific oals or standards
rather that ?ust tellin how their #erformance com#ares to a norm rou# of students nationally or locally.
5n criterion)referenced assessments, it is #ossible that none, or all, of the e8aminees will reach a #articular
oal or #erformance standard. 6or e8am#leA "all of the students demonstrated #roficiency in a##lyin
conce#ts from astronomy, meteoroloy, eoloy, oceanora#hy, and #hysics to describe the forces that
sha#e the earth."
Eorm)=eferenced Assessment. An assessment where student #erformance or #erformances are com#ared
to a larer rou#. .sually the larer rou# or "norm rou#" is a national sam#le re#resentin a wide and
diverse cross)section of students. Students, schools, districts, and even states are com#ared or rank)
ordered in relation to the norm rou#. !he #ur#ose of a norm)referenced assessment is usually to sort
students and not to measure achievement towards some criterion of #erformance.
5"! has contributed to the develo#ment and use of hue amounts of assessment data for the
#ur#oses of develo#in norm)referenced assessment instruments. !he ?udment of human e8#erts
in a field is a key as#ect of develo#in criterion)referenced assessment instruments.
Formative, Summative, and Residual Impact Evaluation
-valuation is sometimes divided into three cateoriesA
+. 6ormative evaluation. !his is evaluation that occurs in a timely manner to allow Cmid
courseD feedback and chanes in a teachin,learnin or other activity. 5n a
teachin,learnin classroom environment, such formative evaluation may result in letter or
numerical rades bein assined to and re#orted to students. Gowever, !hat is not a
necessary com#onent of formative evaluation. !he key issues is #rovidin feedback to
students and the teacher in a timely manner. 5"! can be useful in this endeavor.
$. Summative evaluation. !his is evaluation of a teachin,learnin activity or other activity
that summari*es the outcomes. 5t may be based on a combination of assessment data
arnered durin the course of the activity and assessment data arnered at the end or
shortly after the end of the activity. 6rom a student #oint of view, re#orts from summative
evaluation come after a unit of instruction has been com#leted, when it is too late for a
student to make chanes in his or her learnin and other work activities. 6rom a teacher
#oint of view, summative evaluation #rovides information about the effectiveness of a
lesson or seHuence of lessons, and it #rovides information that can be used to im#rove the
lessons for use sometime in the future.
:. <on)term residual im#act evaluation. !his is evaluation based on assessment data
athered well after a teachin,learnin or other activity has ended. 6or e8am#le, educators
are interested in the Cend of the subseHuent summerD residual im#act of instruction that
has occurred durin an academic year. As a teacher, you can do some residual im#act
evaluation of your students a few weeks or months after a unit of study has been
com#leted. You may be sur#rised by the results.
Pae 11
Reliable, Valid, and Fair Assessment
=esearchers and #ractitioners in assessment aree that assessment instruments should be
reliable, valid, and fair. !he followin two definitions come from the "enter for the Study of
-valuation ("S- 7lossary, n.d.).
=eliability. !he deree to which the results of an assessment are de#endable and consistently measure
#articular student knowlede and,or skills. =eliability is an indication of the consistency of scores across
raters, over time, or across different tasks or items that measure the same thin. !hus, reliability may be
e8#ressed as (a) the relationshi# between test items intended to measure the same skill or knowlede (item
reliability), (b) the relationshi# between two administrations of the same test to the same student or
students (test,retest reliability), or (c) the deree of areement between two or more raters (rater
reliability). An unreliable assessment cannot be valid.
Salidity. !he e8tent to which an assessment measures what it is su##osed to measure and the e8tent to
which inferences and actions made on the basis of test scores are a##ro#riate and accurate. 6or e8am#le, if
a student #erforms well on a readin test, how confident are we that that student is a ood readerI A valid
standards)based assessment is alined with the standards intended to be measured, #rovides an accurate
and reliable estimate of students' #erformance relative to the standard, and is fair. An assessment cannot
be valid if it is not reliable.
An assessment instrument may be both reliable and valid, but may not be desined to be
eHually fair to various subrou#s of #eo#le bein assessed. !he instrument may favor men over
women, or different ethnic rou#s, or different reliious rou#s, and so on. An assessment may
favor students who have taken a s#ecific course from a s#ecific teacher versus students who have
learned the material in other ways and,or from other teachers. An assessment instrument may
favor students who have rown u# in a hih socio)economic settin versus students from lower
socio)economic settin.
=eliability can be measured by use of a variety of statistical techniHues. Salidity can be
determined by a careful analysis of an assessment instrument in terms of the instructional oals,
instructional content, teachin methodoloy, and other aids to teachin and learnin involved in a
unit of study that is bein assessed. 5t is much harder to determine if an assessment instrument is
fair. Amon other difficulties is that of decidin who the assessment instrument should be fair to.
5"! is used various as#ects of administerin and scorin a wide variety of assessment
instruments. !his, by itself, does not ensure that an assessment instrument is reliable, valid, or fair.
Accumulated Knowledge Base
4oth assessment and evaluation are lare and com#le8 disci#lines. !hey are also the basis for a
very lare industry. 6or many years there was an -=5" "learinhouse on Assessment and
-valuation . Gowever, 6ederal 6undin for this endeavor ceased on 'ec +0, $%%:. Some of this
literature is available at the site of the electronic, #eer)reviewed ?ournal. %ractical )ssessment,
#valuation, and eview (n.d.).
!here is a substantial and steadily rowin research base of knowlede in assessment and
evaluation. A ood source of information on this research is the ."<A "enter for the Study of
-valuation. ("S-, n.d.). Puotin from the >ebsiteA
6or more than :; years, the ."<A "enter for the Study of -valuation ("S-) and, more recently, the
Eational "enter for =esearch on -valuation, Standards, and Student !estin ("=-SS!) have been on the
forefront of efforts to im#rove the Huality of education and learnin in America. Z
5n recent years, "S-,"=-SS! has rown to meet e8#anded needs resultin from chanes in federal and
state laws and has substantially broadened its research well beyond the @)+$ educator audience. !hrouh
Pae 19
the addition of several new #ro?ects, "S-,"=-SS! research and develo#ment now e8tends sinificantly
into #re)school and after)school #rorams and also includes studies of adult learnin usin advanced
technoloy.
!eachers, school districts, and our overall educational system make use of a variety of
assessment instruments. !hese vary widely in Huality and how well they su##ort evaluation needs.
(oreover, there are onoin efforts to im#rove assessment. /ne a##roach is throuh the use of
Alternative Assessment instruments and #rocedures.
Alternative Assessment
!he remainder of this cha#ter focuses on to#ics that are #articularly relevant to 5"! in
education.
!o a lare e8tent, CtraditionalD assessment in the .nited States is based on ob?ective testsM
true,false, multi#le choice, matchin, and so on. Gere is a definition of alternative assessment from
the "enter for the Study of -valuation lossary ("S-, n.d.).
&lternatie &ssessment (also authentic or #erformance assessment)A An assessment that reHuires students
to enerate a res#onse to a Huestion rather than choose from a set of res#onses #rovided to them.
-8hibitions, investiations, demonstrations, written or oral res#onses, ?ournals, and portfolios are
e8am#les of the assessment alternatives we think of when we use the term "alternative assessment."
5deally, alternative assessment reHuires students to actively accom#lish com#le8 and sinificant tasks,
while brinin to bear #rior knowlede, recent learnin, and relevant skills to solve realistic or authentic
#roblems. Alternative assessments are usually one key element of an assessment system.
Eotice the em#hasis iven to students accom#lishin com#le8 and sinificant tasks, and
students solvin realistic or authentic #roblems. As noted much earlier in this book, there is
considerable areement in oals of education that focus on students learnin to solve com#le8
#roblems and accom#lish com#le8 tasks. !he assessment issue is how to assess this ty#e of
student learnin.
5n recent years, one a##roach has to strive to make assessment be more Cauthentic.D 7rant
>iins has lon been a leader in this a##roach. Puotin from >iins (+00%)A
Assessment is authentic when we directly e8amine student #erformance on worthy intellectual tasks.
!raditional assessment, by contract, relies on indirect or #ro8y 'items'Mefficient, sim#listic substitutes
from which we think valid inferences can be made about the student's #erformance at those valued
challenes.
!he key idea is the issue of assessment that uses indirect or #ro8y items versus assessment
that directly e8amines student #erformance on Cworthy intellectual tasks. 6or e8am#le, su##ose
that we want to assess how well a student can write in a word #rocessin environment. >e could
analy*e this assessment task and decide we should ive the student a two)#art test. !he first #art
would be a #a#er and #encil writin taskM#erha#s writin a $%%)word essay on a s#ecified to#ic.
!his would be raded in a CtraditionalD manner that includes em#hasis on s#ellin, #unctuation,
leibility, content, and so on. !he second #art would be an ob?ective test on various as#ects of a
word #rocessor, includin where the on)off switch is located on a #articular machine, how to load
#a#er into a #rinter, what commands are used to load and save a file, and so on.
!his above e8am#le is mean to sound ridiculous. 5t em#hasi*es a far e8treme from authentic
assessment. "ontrast this with sim#ly seatin the student at a com#uter and askin the student to
make use of the com#uter to write, edit, save, and #rint out a $%%)word essay. You miht observe
the student carryin out this task, lookin for effective use of a word #rocessor as an aid to
#rocess writin (revise, revise, revise), s#ellin, certain as#ects of rammar, and countin words.
Pae 10
You would note whether the student a##ro#riately saves the document from time to time and
knows how to #rint a document. 5n additional to the assessment information you ained throuh
observations, you would read the document of content and overall (holistic) Huality of writin.
!y#ically, there is a reasonable amount of authenticity in traditional modes of assessment.
Gowever, the followin additional Huotations from >iins (+00%) em#hasi*e how authentic
assessment differs from traditional assessment.
Authentic assessments attend to whether the student can craft #olished, thorouh and ?ustifiable answers,
#erformances or #roducts. "onventional tests ty#ically only ask the student to select or write correct
res#onsesMirres#ective of reasons. (!here is rarely an adeHuate o##ortunity to #lan, revise and
substantiate res#onses on ty#ical tests, even when there are o#en)ended Huestions).
Z
Authentic tasks involve "ill)structured" challenes and roles that hel# students rehearse for the com#le8
ambiuities of the "ame" of adult and #rofessional life. !raditional tests are more like drills, assessin
static and too)often arbitrarily discrete or sim#listic elements of those activities.
Authentic assessment is an im#ortant idea throuhout all of education. 5"! brins new
challenes of authentic assessment of student knowlede and skills related to 5"! or makin use
of 5"! as students demonstrate knowlede and skill in non)5"! areas. !hink, for a moment, about
the workin environment of a ty#ical white)collar worker nowadays. /f course, the worker has a
tele#hone. !his #erson also has an 5nternet)connected com#uter sittin on his or her desk,
available for use on any work task that can benefit from the ty#es of tools that 5"! #rovides. !his
#erson learns to use 5"! as a routine aid to solvin #roblems, accom#lishin tasks, #roducin
re#orts, and so on.
Eow, contrast this with how we currently assess students who are in school. Sery few teachers
think it would be all riht to #rovide students routine access to a com#uter, email, the >eb, and a
cell tele#hone while takin tests. !eachers talk about #re#arin students for adult life and ?obs in
our society. 4ut, the assessment system used in schools is not authentic relative to adult life and
?obs.
!he function of school is not to hel# kids do well in school. !he function of school is to hel# kids do well
in life. (-lliot -isner, Professor of -ducation, Stanford .niversity)
!he #roblems of life are much more like the #roblems encountered in the arts. !hey are #roblems that
seldom have a sinle correct solutionN they are #roblems that are often subtle, occasionally ambiuous, and
sometimes dilemma)like. /ne would think that schools that wanted to #re#are students for life would
em#loy tasks and #roblems similar to those found outside of schools. !his is hardly the case. <ife outside
of school is seldom like school assinments))and hardly ever like a multi#le)choice test. ) from -lliot
-isnerFs book, The *ind of $chools +e ,eed
Nationwide and Statewide Assessment in ICT
Student learnin in the disci#line of 5"! and in the a##lications of 5"! throuhout the
curriculum have not yet been sub?ected to riorous nation)wide assessment. !hus, there is no firm
basis for either criterion)referenced or norm)referenced assessment in these areas for #recollee
students. Gowever, some states and #rovinces, both in the .nited States and elsewhere, have
tackled the #roblem of assessment of students in 5"! and its a##lications.
6or e8am#le, <eete ($%%:), discusses such assessment in Eew South >ales, Australia. Ger
document arues aainst the currently #ro#osed im#lementation of such assessment because the
Pae 9%
curriculum has not been adeHuately develo#ed and the teachers have not been adeHuately trained.
!he followin list of areas to be assessed is Huoted from her documentA
!he +% com#etencies that are to be covered across the sub?ect areas areA
+. /#erate effectively within the deskto# environment.
$. Perform basic o#erations within com#uter software #ackaes.
:. Perform core tasks common to software a##lications.
2. 'emonstrate basic word)#rocessin skills as they create, work with and modify te8t documents.
&. 'emonstrate basic s#readsheet skills as they create, work with and modify files.
;. 'emonstrate basic database skills to create, work with and modify files.
1. 'emonstrate basic multimedia skills to create, work with and modify multimedia)based files.
9. 'emonstrate basic ra#hics skills to create, work with and modify imaes.
0. "onduct research usin information and communication technoloies.
+%. 'emonstrate internet,intranet communication skills, includin use of email.
You will notice that there is no em#hasis on #roblem solvin and other hiher)order conition
in this list. !hus, from my #oint of view, this is an inadeHuate instrument.
Eorth "arolina has im#lemented a statewide test that is reHuired for raduation and that is
first administered in the 9
th
rade (E" Public Schools, n.d.). 6rom the E" Public Schools >ebsite
one can access !he =e#ort of Student Performance on the Eorth "arolina !ests of "om#uter
SkillsA $%%+)%$ (Acrobat $.; (4). And, within that re#ort one can access sam#le Huestions used
in the assessment. (!he !able of "ontents titles are clickable.)
!he test consists of a combination of multi#le choice and hands)on Huestions desined to be
administered entirely in a hands)on com#uter mode. !he followin (accessed +$,+&,%2) is Huoted
from htt#A,,www.nc#ublicschools.or,accountability,testin,com#uterskills,handbook,.
:orth Carolina
Tests of Computer )kills
*Graduation 8eBuirement-
)tudent 9andbooks
5nformation in both student handbooks, includin sam#le test items, electronic files, etc. must not be used
for #ersonal or financial ain. Eorth "arolina <-A,school officials, teachers, #arents, and students may
download and du#licate the handbooks and electronic files for instructional and educational #ur#oses only.
/thers may not du#licate the handbooks without #rior written #ermission from the E"'P5 'ivision of
Accountability Services,!estin Section.
^ The North Carolina Tests of Computer Skills Student Handbook (For Students Who Entered Grade
8 in the 2000200! S"hool #ear and $e%ond&, Published June $%%$. !his handbook for students e8#lains
the !ests of "om#uter Skills and #rovides sam#le Huestions and #re#aration strateies. !his handbook
contains sam#le items for the revised com#uter skills multi#le)choice and #erformance tests.
Gere are several sam#le Huestions Huoted from that documentA
1. !rish is editin the last #arara#h of her essay. She has decided to add another sentence before the
last sentence. >hich of the followin would be the most effi"ient #rocessI
A !y#e the sentence in another document and then #lace it in her essay where she wants it.
4 !y#e the sentence at the end of her essay and then move it to where she wants it.
Pae 9+
" !y#e the sentence at the end of her essay, co#y the new sentence, and then #aste it where she wants
it.
' Put the cursor at the #oint where she wants to add the sentence and then ty#e the sentence.
$. >hich search of an electronic #hone directory would find only the 'oe families livin on (ain Street
in area code 0+0I
A Eame ] C'oeD or Address ] C(ain StreetD or Area "ode ] C0+0D
4 Eame ] C'oeD and Address ] C(ain StreetD or Area "ode ] C0+0D
" Eame ] C'oeD or Address ] C(ain StreetD and Area "ode ] C0+0D
' Eame ] C'oeD and Address ] C(ain StreetD and Area "ode ] C0+0D
&. >hy is a web site an effective way to #resent a re#ort on an animal that you are studyinI
A Peo#le like to read re#orts on com#uters.
4 Peo#le can follow links to additional information, #ictures, or animal sounds.
" Peo#le do not have to read the re#ortN they can ?ust look at the #ictures and listen to the sounds.
' Peo#le can read a lon re#ort on one #ae by scrollin down so they do not have to o to another
web #ae.
1. >hich method is used to cite resource materials in multimedia #ro?ectsI
A bibliora#hy of #rint resources
4 bibliora#hy of three main sources
" bibliora#hy of online resources only
' bibliora#hy of all resources
/ne of the hands)on com#onents of the assessment is on use of a word #rocessor. Students
are iven a word #rocessor document in electronic form. !he directions areA
+. "enter the newsletter title, The $ocial $tudies T- %ro.ect /pdate, in bold $2)#oint ty#e.
$. 5n the first article, The 0ig 1our 0ecame the 0ig Three, make the followin editsA
L "enter the title in bold +2)#oint ty#e
L Sinle s#ace and left)alin the te8t in reular +$)#oint ty#e
L 5ndent the #arara#h
:. 5n the second article, !S Study to 4e !elevised, italici*e the title, !he Social -ffects of !elevision
in +0&9.
2. .se the s#ell checker to make certain all words are s#elled correctly.
&. 4elow the last article, ty#e the followin articleA Payin for Eoticeable Eames. QQEote to readerA A
short article is #rovided to be ty#ed in.RR =emember toA
L @ey as accurately as #ossible the title and #arara#hs in the bo8 below
L "enter and format the title in bold +2)#oint ty#e
L 5ndent the #arara#h
L <eft)alin the te8t in +$)#oint ty#e
L .se correct keyboardin techniHues
L .se word wra# and inore any differences between what you key and how the #arara#h
a##ear on this #ae
L .se the s#ell checker
Pae 9$
Rubrics for Assessment
A rubric is a scorin tool that can be used by students (for self assessment), #eers (#eer
assessment), teachers, and others. 5t lists im#ortant criteria a##licable to a #articular ty#e or #iece
of work. 5t also lists varyin levels of #ossible achievement of the criteria. 6iure 1.+ ives a very
eneral #ur#ose, si8 level scorin rubric. !his miht be useful to the teacher, but it is not useful to
the student. !he student cannot use this to self)assess or to assess his,her #eers.
7eel #rief .escription
+A -merent Student dis#lays few, if any, of the rudimentary
knowlede and skills that are e8#ected.
$A <imited Student dis#lays rudimentary knowlede and skills, but
often reHuires substantial individual hel# and
uidance.
:A 'evelo#in Student dis#lays a minimally adeHuate level of the
e8#ected knowlede and skills.
2A "a#able Student dis#lays a functional, adeHuate level of the
e8#ected knowlede and skills.
&A Stron Student dis#lays a hih level of the e8#ected knowlede
and skills.
;A -8ce#tional Student dis#lays an outstandin and creative,innovative
level of the e8#ected knowlede and skills.
!able 1.+. A eneric ;)level rubric.
!able 1.$ is an ada#tation of !able 1.+ to the situation of assessin student use of 5"! tools
while workin on a #ro?ect. 5t is a rubric that miht be used when a student is #roducin a
#roduct such as a written re#ort or an oral #resentation accom#anied by detailed handouts and
su##orted by #resentation media. Such a rubric miht be useful in authentic assessment of a
relatively authentic task)oriented assinment. !his rubric contains considerable more detail than
the rubric of 6iure 1.+, but it is still has sinificant weaknesses.
Pae 9:
7eel #rief .escription
+A -merent L Selected technoloy tools to assist in creatin the desired #roduct that were ina##ro#riate
for the task or student is not able to o#erate tool.
L !echnoloy was used but not to benefit the creation of a Huality #roduct.
L !echnoloy tools were tried by the student, but the reHuired #roduct could not be
#roduced.
L >as unable to resolve most technoloical obstacles relatin to the #ro?ect.
L -thical and #rofessional behavior was not shown or was ina##ro#riately shown throuh
lack of citations, co#yriht adherence, and ethics.
$A <imited L Selected lesser effective tools from what is available to create the desired #roduct.
L !echnoloy was used to address the tasks but few of the ca#abilities of the technoloies
were used to create the #roduct.
L !echnoloy tools are used and set u# a##ro#riately, but only with ma?or outside
assistance.
L >as able to solve only elementary technoloical obstacles.
L -thical and #rofessional behavior was occasionally shown throuh a##ro#riate citations,
co#yriht adherence, and ethics.
:A 'evelo#in L Selected a##ro#riate tools from what was available to create the desired #roduct, but only
with outside assistance.
L !echnoloies were used but assistance was needed for the basic ca#abilities of the
technoloy to create #roduct.
L !echnoloy tools were set u# and used a##ro#riately but reHuired some outside assistance.
L >as able to solve most basic obstacles associated with the #ro?ect.
L -thical and #rofessional behavior was enerally shown throuh a##ro#riate citations,
co#yriht adherence, and ethics.
2A "a#able L Selected adeHuate tools from what was available and a##ro#riate for creatin the desired
#roduct.
L !echnoloy was used in an a##ro#riate way and a##lied the basic ca#abilities of the
technoloy to create the #roduct.
L !echnoloy tools were set u# correctly and used a##ro#riately with minor assistance.
L >as able to solve some of the technoloy related #roblems associated with the #ro?ect.
L -thical and #rofessional behavior was shown throuh a##ro#riate citations, co#yriht
adherence, and ethics.
&A Stron L Selected Huality tools from what was available that was a##ro#riate to create Huality a
#roduct.
L !echnoloy was used in a##ro#riate ways and a##lied many of the features to create a
Huality #roduct.
L !echnoloy tools were set u# correctly and used a##ro#riately without assistance
followin established uidelines.
L Solved most technoloy related #roblems associated with the #ro?ect.
L -thical and #rofessional behavior was shown throuh a##ro#riate citations in #ro#er
form, co#yriht adherence, and ethics.
;A -8ce#tional L Selected the most a##ro#riate tools from what was available, to create hih Huality
#roducts.
L !echnoloy was used in an innovative way to create hiher Huality #roduct than
assinment antici#ated.
L !echnoloy tools were not only set u# correctly and used a##ro#riately but often
suestions are #rovided for im#rovement in the #rocedures.
L Solved all technoloy related #roblems associated with the #ro?ect.
L -thical and #rofessional behavior was shown throuh a##ro#riate citations in #ro#er
form, co#yriht adherence, and ethics.
6iure 1.$. A eneric 5"! tool)use rubric.
!o understand some of the weaknesses in the rubric of 6iure 1.$, consider a student who
receives a 2-(apable and who is lookin at the details of 3-#xceptional. Gow does the student
know that he or she did not selected the most a##ro#riate tools from what was available, to create
Pae 92
hih Huality #roductsI 'oes the student have any idea what was not Cmost a##ro#riateD amon
the tools that he or she selectedI 5f the student were to redo or to s#end more time on his or her
#roduct, does the feedback #rovided by the rubric and a ratin of 2-(apabable hel#ful in movin
toward #roducin a #roduct that would be 4-$trong or 3-#xceptional5
!he brief discussion of the rubrics iven in 6iures 1.+ and 1.$ hel#s to em#hasi*e the
difficulty in #rovidin evaluation that su##orts increased learnin and im#rovement in the Huality
of work that a student is doin. A ood rubric is fully understandable by the students who will be
assessed. !he rubric needs to be accom#anied by instruction so that students can self)assess their
work. <earnin to self)assess oneFs work in a disci#line is an im#ortant as#ect of learnin the
disci#line and movin u# the e8#ertise scale in the disci#line.
Some #eo#le who have thouht a lot about use of rubrics in assessment and have suested
that students should be involved in develo#in the rubrics that will be used in their assessment.
Some teachers have found that this idea works well in con?unction with hel#in students learn
what they will be assed on and how they will be assessed.
Still another set of assessment #ossibilities comes from the idea of com#uteri*in
(automatin) certain as#ects of the assessment)evaluation)feedback #rocess. !his to#ic is
addressed in the ne8t section.
ICT-Assisted Self-Assessment
!he first #art of this section focuses on self)assessment. !he second #art focuses on some
ideas of 5"!)assisted self)assessment.
Self-Assessment
You are an adult learner. Your #revious education has #rovided you with some hel# in movin
u# a scale that reflects your knowlede and skills about assessin your own learnin. 6iure 1.:
re#resents this idea.
+,pertise in )elf%&ssessment of 3y 7earning
EoviceA 5Fm
?ust a
beinner at
this.
-8#ertA 5Fm very
skilled and
e8#erienced at
this.
(ediumA 5 have
a useful level of
knowlede and
skills at this.
6iure 1.:. -8#ertise in self)assessment.
!hink of yourself as a learner makin use of this book to ain increased knowlede and skills
in bein a ood teacher who makes effective use of 5"! as an aid to student learnin. S#end a few
minutes doin metaconition on your learnin of the materials in this book. <et your
metaconition be uided by the followin Huestions.
Pae 9&
Am 5 learnin well enouhA
L so that the knowlede and skills will stay with me, for use in the futureI
L to transfer the knowlede and skills to situations where and when they are a##licableI
L to serve my current needs as a #reservice or inservice teacherI
L so that 5 can build on the knowlede and skills in the future, as the field of 5"! in
education continues to chane ra#idlyI
L so 5 have a much im#roved insiht into what 5 don't know, why 5 miht want to learn some
of the thins that 5 don't know, and #athways to doin the learninI
>hat are your thouhts and feelins about this metaconition e8erciseI Gave you asked
yourself such Huestions durin some of your #ast learnin e8#eriencesI 5s there any value in
askin yourself such HuestionsI
!he metaconition Huestions are hard Huestions, and the answers are Huite #ersonal to you.
!hese ty#es of Huestions closely relate to the ideas of constructivism. As an adult learner, you are
able to take much more res#onsibility for your learnin than an elementary or secondary school
student can. You are more aware of what you know, what you want to know, and why you want
to ain the increased knowlede and skills.
5s there value in hel#in your students learn to ask and answer the same kinds of HuestionsI
>hat miht you do as a teacher to hel# your students increase in e8#ertise as self)assessors of
their learninI
"ha#ter $ of this book contains an analysis of self)assessment of word #rocessin and doin
deskto# #ublication in a word #rocessin environment. You miht want to review this cha#ter to
hel# clarify your insihts into 5"! self)assessment.
!he cha#ter contains Huite a bit of detail about word #rocessin and deskto# #ublication.
Gowever, it is still inadeHuate, because it does not list a number of im#ortant a ty#ical modern
word #rocessor. Gere are three e8am#les of shortcominsA
+. >hat do you know about the use details of use of !ables in a word #rocessorI 'o you
know how to create and edit a table, si*e it to fit the data or information you are enterin,
format the table, and alin (#lace) the table a##ro#riately in your document as #art of the
#rocess of #re#arin your document for deskto# #ublicationI Su##ose that you decide
that two columns of a table you have word)#rocessed need to be interchaned. 'o you
know an efficient way to do thisI 'o you know how to im#ort a table or table data from
the >eb, from a s#readsheet, and from other word)#rocessed documentsI 'o you know
how to e8#ort a table from a word)#rocessed documentI
$. Another characteristic of the self)assessment instrument in "ha#ter $ is that it is not
Cautomated.D "ontrast it with an assessment #resented by com#uter, with the user enterin
res#onses via com#uter, and then the com#uter system CscorinD the results and #rovidin
detailed feedback to the user.
:. Still another characteristic of the self)assessment in "ha#ter $ is that it is weak on
authenticity. 5t does not ask you to actually com#lete various tasks on a com#uter.
!he discussion iven above #rovides an introduction to some of the ideas of self)assessment
and of 5"!)assisted self)assessment. 5n both cases we are #articularly interested in the feedback
Pae 9;
(formative evaluation) as#ects of self)assessment as an aid to the learner. A ma?or oal is to hel# a
#erson become more inde#endent and self)sufficient as a learner and as a user of his or her
learnin. 5n school, students become hihly de#endent on teachers facilitatin assessment
#rocesses, and #rovidin formative and summative evaluation feedback. !his a##roach is weak in
hel#in students to be able to ?ude the Huality of their own work, knowlede, and skills. Seldom
is it well interated, in a constructivist sense, with the s#ecific learnin #roress that each
individual student is enaed in.
<earnin to self)assess is am im#ortant and difficult oal in any unit of instruction. !here is
some #ublished literature on this to#ic, but to me the #ublished research and craft knowlede
seems inadeHuate. 5 donFt believe that our educational system is very successful in hel#in
students learn to self)assess over the various curriculum areas that they study.
!he followin is Huoted from <inda 4ruceFs >ebsite (4ruce, n.d.)A
5ncor#oratin a standards)based a##roach to teachin and learnin can be a creative and enrichin
endeavor. >hat's one key a##roachI Ask students to assess their own work.
6ive teachers in a suburban hih school recently im#lemented student self)assessment (SSA) activities in
their classes. !he results of this e8#erimentMin courses as different as #hysics and forein lanuaeM
revealed the #otential of SSA to make standards come alive for students. !he reactions of students and
teachers in this #ro?ect also indicated that student self)assessment #ractices offer solutions to some of the
concerns about standards that have been e8#ressed by both su##orters and o##onents of this a##roach to
school reform.
Z
5n eneral, SSA refers to trainin students to evaluate their own work for the #ur#ose of im#rovin it
(=olheiser O =oss, $%%%). !o become ca#able evaluators of their work, students must have
L a clear taret
L the o##ortunity to hel# create a definition of Huality work
L feedback
L the o##ortunity to correct or self)ad?ust their work before they turn it in
SSA also includes reflective activities in which students are #rom#ted to consider the strenths and
weaknesses of their work, make #lans for im#rovement, or interate the assinment with #revious
learnin (Paris O Ayres, +002N Stiins, +001N >iins, +009).
A +$,+&,%2 7oole search on Self)Assessment turns u# over 2 million hits. Puite a few of the
hits are self)assessment instruments, while very few of the hits are research results su##ortin
either the eneral effectiveness of self)assessment or the reliability, validity, and fairness of the
instruments that are discussed. Puite a few of the self)assessment instruments are available on and
administered by the >eb.
6or e8am#le, the >estern 7overnors .niversity is a university in the in the ..S. offerin
com#etency)based, online derees. 5t #rovides an online self)assessment instrument that a #erson
can use to hel# decide whether he or she will be successful in this mode of learnin (>estern
7overnors). You miht want to do a com#are and contrast with some of the instruments in a list
develo#ed by the .niversity of 5llinois (5llinois /nline .niversity). You may notice, for e8am#le
the varyin Huality of feedback or e8#lanation #rovided by the various instruments.
6rom a teachin and learnin #oint of view, a ood self)assessment instrument #rovides hih
Huality feedback desined to hel# the learner. Such self)assessment is a key com#onent of ood
"om#uter)Assisted learnin materials. Gowever, it is also an im#ortant as#ect of com#uter tools
Pae 91
and the CGel#D feature that accom#anies such tools. 6or e8am#le, consider the s#ellin and
rammar check in a modern word #rocessor. As you write, these to #ieces of software #rovide
feedback on your s#ellin and rammar. !he feedback is both immediate and e8actly focused on
your writin. "learly, such feedback is an aid to self)assessment.
Computer-Assisted Testing
!he remainder of this cha#ter focuses s#ecifically on roles of 5"! in Assessment and
-valuation.
A "om#uter)Assisted !estin System can be thouht of as a com#uter)based system that
#resents test Huestions, receives and scores the answers, #roduces a re#ort for the teacher, and
#roduces a re#ort for the students. 5t is easy to take any ob?ect test such as !,6 or (ulti#le
"hoice, and im#lement it in a "om#uter)Assisted !estin System.
5n a "om#uter)Assisted !estin System, the re#ort to the teacher may include information
about the reliability of the test, an analysis of which Huestions were the best discriminators
between students who did well and those who did #oorly on the test, and other ty#es of statistical
analysis. !he re#ort to the student may ive details on why a #articular answer was not correct,
and it miht contain suestions for where the correct answer was discussed in the assined
readins.
/ften a "om#uter)Assisted !estin System will make use of a lare databank of e8am
Huestions. Puestions #resented to a student miht be drawn at random from this databank of
Huestions. !his creates a situation in which each student is likely to be faced with a different set of
Huestions, and it facilitates allowin a student to take the test more than once.
Computer-Adaptive Testing
A "om#uter)Ada#tive !estin System ty#ically may include all of the features of a "om#uter)
Assisted !estin System. Gowever, there is one ma?or difference. A "om#uter)Ada#tive !estin
System is desined to #rovide a student with a seHuence of Huestions that allow the com#uter
system to ra#idly narrow in on a measure of the studentFs knowlede in the area bein tested.
Gere is a sim#le e8#lanation of how this is done. !he first Huestion asked of the student is at a
CmiddleD level of difficulty. 5f the student answers correctly, a somewhat harder Huestion is asked.
5f the student answers incorrectly, a somewhat easier Huestion is asked. !his #rocess is re#eated
until the com#uter system narrows in on a ood estimate of the studentFs level of #erformance.
5t tends to be both difficult and e8#ensive to develo# a valid, reliable, and fair "om#uter)
Ada#tive !est. You can see this by thinkin about how you miht develo# test Huestions in a
#articular disci#line area. You need to rank the Huestions in terms of difficulty. Su##ose, for
e8am#le, you are makin u# social science Huestions desined for a "om#uter Ada#tive !est to be
used with fifth rade students. !hen you would need to develo# Huestions that s#an a wide rane
of difficultyM#erha#s from first rade level to ninth rade level, or hiher. !he level of difficulty
of a Huestion de#ends on what the student has been tauht by you, by #revious teachers, and
many other factors.
EoteA !here is now Huite a bit of literature on "om#uter Ada#tive !estin. 5 ot nearly a million hits when
5 searched usin this term on +$,+2,%2. =udner (+009) contains a com#uter)based tutorial (an e8am#le of
"A<) on "om#uter Ada#tive !estin. "om#uter Ada#tive !estin is now widely used in testin at the
national level. 5ts use is ra#idly s#readin to the state and individual school district levels.
Pae 99
Accountability
At the current time, the #ublic Pre@)+$ school system in the .nited States is s#endin a little
more than two)#ercent of its budet on instructional uses of com#uters. >hile two)#ercent
sounds like a small #ercentae, this translates into about _1 billion #er year. (any #eo#le have
asked if these funds are bein wisely s#ent. !hey want to see solid evidence that such instructional
use of 5"! is im#rovin the education bein received by our students. !hey view this as an
accountability Huestion.
Accountability is closely related to assessment and evaluation. Su##ose that certain rou#s of
students, or schools, or school districts #erform #oorly relative to some set of e8#ectations. !hen
#eo#le ask the Huestion, Cwho is res#onsible (accountable) for this, and what are they oin to do
about itID
5n education, there are many different stakeholder rou#s such as students, teachers, school
administrators, school boards, #arents, ta8#ayers, leislators at a state and national level, state
overnors, and so on. -ach stakeholder rou# has its own views of the oals of education and
how to assess and evaluate #roress toward meetin these oals. -ach stakeholder rou# talks in
terms of accountabilityMwhich usually means holdin some rou# other than themselves
accountable or res#onsible for the outcomes that are bein achieved.
!his situation is made still more com#le8 because different stakeholders have different oalsN
different analyses of assessment data and information will lead to different results. >ithout too
much effort, essentially every school can be made to look like it a seriously deficient from some
#oint of view.
You may detect a certain amount of tonue in cheek cynicism in the #revious #arara#hs. A
stakeholder rou# could also assess and evaluate itself, and determine if it is meetin its
accountability res#onsibilities. >hile that does ha##en occasionally in education, the more
common occurrence is for one rou# to attem#t to #lace blame on others. 6or e8am#le, many
rou#s like to #oint to the #oor #erformance of students livin in core city areas. Gowever, it is
not a teacherFs fault if most of his or her students come from low socioeconomic neihborhoods
that include many #oor home situations. 4ut we know that such student backrounds are a Huite
accurate #redictor of future difficulty in school and in doin well on statewide assessments.
As a current or future teacher, you are well aware of the current #olitical as#ects of
accountability in education. You may not like some as#ects of the sinificantly increased em#hasis
on accountability that has occurred in recent years. You may think that it is ina##ro#riate to s#end
a lot of teacher and student time #re#arin for state and national assessment.
=eardless of your #osition on such accountability issues, you have a hih level of #ersonal
res#onsibility (accountability to yourself) to be as ood a teacher as you can be. A short #a#er by
<ee Shulman ($%%:), President of the "arneie 6oundation for the advancement of -ducation,
beins by discussin ood or not ood Samaritans who sto# and offer assistance at an accident
(or, ?ust drive on by.) Ge then saysA
(y #oint is that e8cellent teachin, like e8cellent medical care, is not sim#ly a matter of knowin the
latest techniHues and technoloies. -8cellence also entails an ethical and moral commitmentMwhat 5
miht call the "#edaoical im#erative." !eachers with this kind of interity feel an obliation to not ?ust
drive by. !hey sto# and hel#. !hey inHuire into the conseHuences of their work with students. !his is an
obliation that devolves on individual faculty members, on #rorams, on institutions, and even on
disci#linary communities. A #rofessional actively takes res#onsibilityN she does not wait to be held
accountable.
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5 am assumin that you have read the #recedin cha#ters of this book. !hus, you now have
relatively ood insiht into Huite a rane of ways in which 5"! can be used to im#rove education.
5f you are a #reservice teacher, #ay careful attention to 5"! use the ne8t time you visit a school. 5f
you are an inservice teacher, intros#ect and then o#en your eyes, and take a careful look at how
5"! is bein used by you and your fellow teachers. 5n either case, there is a ood chance that you
will be disa##ointed by what you see. /n averae, the 5"! facilities that are available to students
in school, at home, and in other locations are not bein used nearly as well as they could be used
to further the education of students ((oursundFs CAruments AainstD >ebsite, n.d.).
!he reasons for this are many and varied. (any of the reasons are beyond your #ersonal
control. Gowever, many of the reasons have to do with what individual teachers are doin or not
doin. You, #ersonally, have individual accountability for yourself. >ork to be an e8em#lar of
effective use of 5"! in educationK
+. Pretend you are talkin to a #arent, and the #arent asks about accountability for the lare
amounts of money that are bein s#ent on 5"! in education. Summari*e what you would
say.
$. 'o some self)assessment on your 5"! knowlede and skills by makin use of the sam#le
Huestions at Eorth "arolinaFs >ebsite
htt#A,,www.d#i.state.nc.us,accountability,testin,re#orts,. Summari*e your thouhts and
feelins about your #erformance on these 9
th
rade Huestions.
:. Select a course or rade level that you teach or are #re#arin to teach. Su##ose that it is
the beinnin of a school year and you have a new class of students. Gow would you
determine their 5"! knowlede and skills that are relevant to the uses you want to make
of 5"! with this classI 5n res#ondin to this Huestion, be relatively s#ecific. !hus, for
e8am#le, you miht want to make a list of the #rereHuisite knowlede and skills you
would like your students to have, and fiure out how you will determine whether they
actually meet these #rereHuisites.
2. Analy*e your answers to (:) from the #oint of view of your assessment bein valid,
reliable, fair, and authentic.
&. !he >ebsite Accessed +$,+&,%2A htt#A,,web.tickle.com,tests,uiH, contains an 5P test
desined for self)assessment. 5f you follow the instructions carefully, you will take a 2%
Huestion 5P test and the >ebsite will #rovide you with its estimate of your 5P. 5f you
decide to use this >ebsite, #lease note that they are also tryin to sell you some services.
You do not need to make a #urchase in order to take the test and receive their estimate of
your 5P. Analy*e your thinkin about the availability of such a Cservice.D
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Chapter =
ICT in Special and Gifted Education
5 am Huite often askedA Gow do you feel about havin
A<SI !he answer is, not a lot. 5 try to lead as normal
a life as #ossible, and not think about my condition,
or reret the thins it #revents me from doin, which
are not that many. (Steven Gawkin)
5 trust the time is comin, when the occu#ation of an
instructor to children will be deemed the most
honorable of human em#loyment. (Anelina
7rimke)
!his cha#ter addresses 5"! in S#ecial -ducation and 5"! in !alented O 7ifted -ducation
(!A7) as two se#arate to#ics. /f course, the to#ics overla#, and both are often included under
the title $pecial #ducation. (any children have two or more e8ce#tionalities, and may well be
both !A7 and S#ecial -ducation. Sery rouhly s#eakin, a##ro8imately & to +% #ercent of
students fit various definitions of !A7 and a##ro8imately +% to $% #ercent fit various definitions
of s#ecial education. Joan "offin estimates the fiure is $% #ercent ("offin, n.d.).
5n $%%:, about ;.$ million children (about ++.&X of #ublic school enrollment) received s#ecial
education services throuh federally su##orted #rorams. /f course, this fiure does not include
students who miht well meet the conditions to be receivin federal aid, but are not receivin aid.
And, the fiure does not include students who have handica##in conditions that are not on the
federal list. 6or e8am#le, a student may have a less sever form of one of the handica##in
conditions covered under 6ederal <aw 02)+2$, but still sufficiently severe to #resent ma?or
challenes to the student. /r, a child may have a handica##in condition not covered under the
federal law.
Advice to Preservice and Inservice Teachers
A eneral education teacher can ordinarily e8#ect to have both S#ecial -ducation and !A7
students in his or her classes. !hus, a eneral education teacher needs to know how to be a ood
teacher in workin with and meetin the needs of a hihly diverse set of students. !his cha#ter
#rovides an overview of some of the roles of 5"! in workin with S#ecial -ducation and !A7
students.
A key issue to kee# in mind as you read this cha#ter is summari*ed by the followin Huote
from "om#uter !echnoloy and Autism (+002)A
Z 5nstead of askin the followin HuestionA "Gow can 5 use com#uter technoloy at my dis#osal to hel#
this #articular handica##ed #ersonI", the #roblem ouht to be tackled in a diametrically o##osite manner,
with the Huestion bein asked as followsA "5 have before me a #erson whose handica# causes some
difficulty. 5n liht of what we know about this #erson and of his,her handica#, is there any way of hel#in
him,her with the use of com#uter aided technoloyI"
!his a##roach, which is based on the #erson and not on available technoloy, may lead to direct aids for
the handica##ed #erson or indirect aids for those workin with the handica##ed #erson. /ne becomes
fairly ra#idly aware of the obvious interaction and com#lementarity between these two ways of assistin
the handica##ed #erson. !he com#uter aided technoloy may involve various fields. !akin autism as an
e8am#le, the followin fields will have to be looked atA
L assistance with the dianosis,
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L assessment of learnin skills,
L com#uter aided teachin,
L assistance in communication and finally
L the develo#ment of research models for #roress in the understandin of autism.
Exceptionalities
(any #eo#le tend to have a hihly over sim#lified and incorrect mental model of students
fallin into one of three relatively distinct cateoriesA +) disabledN $) normalN and :) talented and
ifted. !his model does a ma?or disservice for students with e8ce#tionalities.
>hat is an e8ce#tionalityI !his is a com#le8 Huestion. 5t can be addressed from a leal #oint
of view by statin what the laws, rules, and reulations say at the federal, state, and school district
levels. 5t can be defined in terms of deviation from the mean on various measures. 5t can be
defined in terms of an individual student attem#tin to accommodate to a s#ecific school settin.
/ne #ossible startin #oint in thinkin about e8ce#tionalities is to think about the com#le8ity
of a #ersons mind and #hysical body. A ty#ical human brain contains more than +%% billion
neurons and more than a trillion cells. A brain has a hih level of #lasticity and is constantly bein
chaned as it receives and #rocesses in#uts and as it learns. -ven identical twins that have been
raised toether have sinificant differences in their brains. !his ty#e of a##roach to thinkin about
e8ce#tionalities miht lead to a conclusion that every student has sinificant e8ce#tionalities.
Internal, Personal Accommodations
Gowever, the #lasticity and intellience of a ty#ical #ersonFs brain facilitates the develo#ment
of internal and #ersonal accommodations that overcome or circumvent a lare number of
#roblems that miht be considered to be disabilities. !hus, we tend to talk about disabilities only
when they are so severe that a #erson cannot readily accommodate to them on his or her own.
As a #ersonal e8am#le, 5 am not very ood at s#ellin. >hen 5 had to write essays in class as
#art of a 6reshman -nlish "om#osition course, 5 had to carefully #lan my sentences so that they
did not include words 5 could not s#ell correctly. 5n addition, my handwritin left much to be
desired. 5 struled in such Creal timeD assessments, but 5 was smart enouh to circumvent my
s#ellin difficulties. 6ortunately, much of the rade in the course was based on weekly writin
assinments that were done outside of class. !here, 5 could make use of a dictionary and 5 could
#ut in the time needed to show that 5 could write reasonably well. Eow, of course, 5 use a word
#rocessor with a ood s#ellin checker. !his com#uter)based accommodation is a #owerful
CeHuali*erD when it comes to my s#ellin and handwritin.
Dual and Multiple Exceptionalities
Another ma?or flaw in the three)#art (disabled, normal, !A7) model is that many students
have two or more e8ce#tionalities. 6or e8am#le, a child may be both severely dysle8ic and
brilliant. Puotin from an -=5" 'iest ('ual -8ce#tionalities, +000)A
7ifted students with disablin conditions remain a ma?or rou# of underserved and understimulated youth
("line, +000). !he focus on accommodations for their disabilities may #reclude the reconition and
develo#ment of their conitive abilities. 5t is not une8#ected, then, to find a sinificant discre#ancy
between the measured academic #otential of these students and their actual #erformance in the classroom
(>hitmore O (aker, +09&). 5n order for these children to reach their #otential, it is im#erative that their
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intellectual strenths be reconi*ed and nurtured, at the same time as their disability is accommodated
a##ro#riately.
Exceptionalities and Minority Students
S#ecial education and !A7 education systems in our country have not done well in meetin
the needs of minority students. Puotin from the book Minority $tudents in $pecial and Gifted
#ducation by 'onovan and "hristo#er ($%%$)A
S#ecial education and ifted and talented #rorams were desined for children whose educational needs
are not well met in reular classrooms. 6rom their ince#tions, these #rorams have had dis#ro#ortionate
re#resentation of racial and ethnic minority students. >hat causes this dis#ro#ortionI 5s it a #roblemI
Minority $tudents in $pecial and Gifted #ducation considers #ossible contributors to that dis#arity,
includin early bioloical and environmental influences and ineHuities in o##ortunities for #reschool and
@)+$ education, as well as the #ossibilities of bias in the referral and assessment system that leads to
#lacement in s#ecial #rorams. 5t e8amines the data on early childhood e8#erience, on differences in
educational o##ortunity, and on referral and #lacement. !he book also considers whether dis#ro#ortionate
re#resentation should be considered a #roblem. 'o s#ecial education #rorams #rovide valuable
educational services, or do they set students off on a #ath of lower educational e8#ectationsI >ould
students not now #laced in ifted and talented #rorams benefit from raised e8#ectations, more riorous
classes, and the ifted label, or would they suffer failure in classes for which they are un#re#aredI
As a #reservice or inservice teacher you want to do your best in meetin the individual needs
of each of your students. As you ain in knowlede and skills (as you move u# the Cood teacher
e8#ertise scaleD) you will et better at dealin better with a wide rane of e8ce#tionalities and
with different levels or derees of these e8ce#tionalities. You will also et better an knowin when
you need the hel# of e8#erts who have more trainin and e8#erience than you in dealin with
s#ecific ty#es of e8ce#tionalities.
A Few Assistive Technology Success Stories
Assistive technoloy is defined by the +001 5ndividuals with 'isabilities -ducation Act as "any
item, #iece of eHui#ment, or #roduct system, whether acHuired commercially off the shelf,
modified, or customi*ed, that is used to increase, maintain, or im#rove functional ca#abilities of
children with disabilities." (5'-A)
5"! #lays a ma?or role in the field of assistive technoloies. !his section contains a few
e8am#les of #roress in assistive technoloies that have made substantial contributions to the lives
of a reat many #eo#le.
Kurzweil Reading Machine for the Blind
An e8cellent and com#ellin a##lication of 5"! for blind students was develo#ed by =ay
@ur*weil somewhat over $% years ao. !he @ur*weil readin machine could "read" te8t usin a
com#uter scanner, and "s#eak" the te8t as out#ut. 5nitially it was a bulky, _&%,%%% device.
!echnoloical #roress in the #ast two decade has led to handheld scannin devices costin well
under _&%% that can read and s#eak te8t. @ur*weil is a #rolific researcher, inventor, and writer
(@ur*weilA5.Eet).
Steven Hawking and ALS (Lou Gehrig Disease)
Steven Gawkin, born in +02$, has been a worldwide role model of com#uter)based
communication aids for #eo#le with severe s#eech communication disabilities. Gawkin has
Amyotro#hic <ateral Sclerosis (A<S). A<S is a relatively rare (a##ro8imately one in &%,%%%
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#eo#le) neurodeenerative disease that attacks nerve cells and #athways in the brain and s#inal
cord. As these cells die, voluntary muscle control and movement dies with them. Patients in the
later staes of A<S are totally #araly*ed, yet in most cases, their minds remain shar# and alert
(A<S).
You can learn more about Steven Gawkin by visitin his >ebsite (Gawkin). Puotin
GawkinA
5 am Huite often askedA Gow do you feel about havin A<SI !he answer is, not a lot. 5 try to lead as
normal a life as #ossible, and not think about my condition, or reret the thins it #revents me from doin,
which are not that many.
5t was a reat shock to me to discover that 5 had motor neurone disease. 5 had never been very well co)
ordinated #hysically as a child. 5 was not ood at ball ames, and my handwritin was the des#air of my
teachers. (aybe for this reason, 5 didn't care much for s#ort or #hysical activities. 4ut thins seemed to
chane when 5 went to /8ford, at the ae of +1. 5 took u# co8in and rowin. 5 was not 4oat =ace
standard, but 5 ot by at the level of inter)"ollee com#etition.
5n my third year at /8ford, however, 5 noticed that 5 seemed to be ettin more clumsy, and 5 fell over
once or twice for no a##arent reason. 4ut it was not until 5 was at "ambride, in the followin year, that
my father noticed, and took me to the family doctor. Ge referred me to a s#ecialist, and shortly after my
$+st birthday, 5 went into hos#ital for tests. 5 was in for two weeks, durin which 5 had a wide variety of
tests. !hey took a muscle sam#le from my arm, stuck electrodes into me, and in?ected some radio o#aHue
fluid into my s#ine, and watched it oin u# and down with 8)rays, as they tilted the bed. After all that,
they didn't tell me what 5 had, e8ce#t that it was not multi#le sclerosis, and that 5 was an a)ty#ical case. 5
athered, however, that they e8#ected it to continue to et worse, and that there was nothin they could
do, e8ce#t ive me vitamins. 5 could see that they didn't e8#ect them to have much effect. 5 didn't feel like
askin for more details, because they were obviously bad.
Cochlear Implant
A lare number of #eo#le are severely hearin im#aired. Peo#le with severe to #rofound
hearin loss are often called Cdeaf.D 5n the .nited States as a whole, #erha#s one in &%% to one in
+,%%% #eo#le fall into this cateory. Gowever, the #ercentaes are much smaller for school ae
children, since Csenior citi*ensD have a much hiher than averae number of cases of severe to
#rofound hearin im#airment.
!he cochlear im#lant has restored some hearin ca#ability to a number of deaf #eo#le. !he
followin Huote hel#s to #rovide insiht into #roblems faces by a child with a cochlear im#lant
and the childFs teachers, fellow students, and school (6ranklin, n.d.).
/n a #ersonal level, 5 was e8#osed to the challenes of hearin loss when, at the ae of three, our
randdauhter, Eicole, was stricken with meninitis and became #rofoundly deaf. >ithin a few months,
the decision was made to #roceed with a cochlear im#lant for Eicole and have her enrolled in a
mainstream #reschool. 5n those first two years of #reschool, it was determined that the acoustical
environment was satisfactory, iven that much of the academic instruction was done in small rou#s or
one)on)one. !he additional academic su##ort that Eicole received was delivered outside of the classroom
in a Huiet environment. 6or the rou# time, the school #urchased a Personal 6( Sound 6ield System that
was worn by the teacher and shared with each of the children as they contributed to discussions. !his
hel#ed Eicole considerably.
Gowever, when the time came to consider Eicole's kinderarten e8#erience, further discussions bean
reardin the acoustical environment in the classroom and the im#act it would have on her learnin
ca#abilities. !he cochlear im#lant, thouh a miraculous enineerin and medical achievement, does not
#rovide hearin ca#ability eHual to that of the #erson with normal hearin. 6urther accommodations
would have to be addressed to hel# Eicole succeed academically and socially in this mainstream
environment. At this time, my dauhter asked that 5 look at the classroom she would be attendin and
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make recommendations for modifications that miht im#rove the overall acoustical characteristics of the
room.
!he cochlear im#lant technoloy has tended to be divisive in the deaf community. (any deaf
#eo#le arue that the child should learn a sin lanuae (such as American Sin <anuae) and be
acculturated in the deaf community. !he followin Huote hel#s to e8#lain some of the
com#le8ities of this situation (Eational Association of the 'eaf).
!he most basic as#ect of the cochlear im#lant is to hel# the user #erceive sound, i.e., the sensation of
sound that is transmitted #ast the damaed cochlea to the brain. 5n this strictly sensorineural manner, the
im#lant worksA the sensation of sound is delivered to the brain. !he stated oal of the im#lant is for it to
function as a tool to enable deaf children to develo# lanuae based on s#oken communication.
"ochlear im#lants do not eliminate deafness. An im#lant is not a "cure" and an im#lanted individual is
still deaf. "ochlear im#lants may destroy what remainin hearin an individual may have. !herefore, if
the deaf or hard of hearin child or adult later #refers to use an e8ternal hearin aid, that choice may be
removed.
.nlike #ost)linually deafened children or adults who have had #rior e8#erience with sound
com#rehension, a #re)linually deafened child or adult does not have the auditory foundation that makes
learnin a s#oken lanuae easy. !he situation for those #roressively deafened or suddenly deafened later
in life is different. Althouh the im#lant's sinals to the brain are less refined than those #rovided by an
intact cochlea, an individual who is accustomed to receivin sinals about sound can fill in certain a#s
from memory. >hile the im#lant may work Huite well for #ost)linually deafened individuals, this result
?ust cannot be enerali*ed to #re)linually deafened children for whom s#oken lanuae develo#ment is
an arduous #rocess, reHuirin lon)term commitment by #arents, educators, and su##ort service #roviders,
with no uarantee that the desired oal will be achieved.
Dyslexia
A sinificant fraction of #eo#le have some level of a neuroloical disability that has come to be
called dysle8ia. !he definition iven here was ado#ted by the 5nternational 'ysle8ia Association
4oard of 'ysle8ia, Eov. +$, $%%$ (5'A). !his 'efinition is also used by the Eational 5nstitute of
"hild Gealth and Guman 'evelo#ment.
'ysle8ia is a s#ecific learnin disability that is neuroloical in oriin. 5t is characteri*ed by difficulties
with accurate and , or fluent word reconition and by #oor s#ellin and decodin abilities. !hese
difficulties ty#ically result from a deficit in the #honoloical com#onent of lanuae that is often
une8#ected in relation to other conitive abilities and the #rovision of effective classroom instruction.
Secondary conseHuences may include #roblems in readin com#rehension and reduced readin e8#erience
that can im#ede rowth of vocabulary and backround knowlede.
Sally Shaywit* ($%%:) has written an e8cellent and understandable book about dysle8ia. Ger
research suest that as many as +& to $% #ercent of #eo#le have some level of dysle8ia. Ger
book ives the followin three ste#s in the evaluation of a #erson for dysle8iaA
+. -stablish a readin #roblem accordin to ae and education.
$. 7ather evidence su##ortin its Cune8#ectednessDN hih learnin ca#ability may be determined solely on
the basis of an educational or #rofessional level of attainment.
:. 'emonstrate evidence of an isolated #honoloic weakness, with other hiher)level lanuae functions
relatively unaffected.
Ste# one is the most critical. =eadin tests are easy to understand once you recall that there are two ma?or
com#onents of readinA decodin (identifyin words) and com#rehension (understandin what is read).
Accordinly, the assessment focuses on how well the child reads words and on how well she understands
what she has read. >hile accuracy is critical early on, the ability to read fluently ains in im#ortance as
the child matures. A child who reads accurately but not fluently is dysle8ic.
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!he ordinary Carden varietyD com#uter is an im#ortant assistive device for many dysle8ic
students. Gere is the story of =ichard >anderman, a dysle8ic #erson (>anderman, n.d.)A
5'm a successful adult with a learnin disability (dysle8ia). Part of the reason for my success is that 5 use a
variety of tools, includin com#uters, to orani*e my life and e8#ress my ideas. 5n fact, if 5 didn't write
with a com#uter, 5 wouldn't be able to share this web site with you because 5 wouldn't be able to record,
work with, and share my ideas in writin. And 5 wouldn't know from #ersonal e8#erience how doin these
thins with a com#uter chanes the thinkin and writin #rocess for #eo#le like me.
5 had a hard time with school. (ost of my memories of school are nihtmarish. 5f 5 carried the learnin
disabilities seed (my enetics), then school did a reat ?ob of waterin and fertili*in it. School made the
e8#erience of havin a learnin disability worse than it would have been otherwise.
(uch of my success has come outside of school. 5 believe stronly in e8tracurricular, hands)on e8#erience.
5've been an artist, a #otter, a rock climber, a car mechanic, a teacher, a software develo#er, and more. All
of these e8#eriences have hel#ed me see the difference between my learnin disability and my intellience.
Normal Distribution of IQs
You undoubtedly have some familiarity with the conce#t of 5ntellience Puotient (5P). <ikely
you have an intuitive understandin that a #erson with above averae 5P tends to learn faster and
better than a #erson with averae or below averae 5P. Su##ose, for e8am#le, that we are lookin
at a student with an 5P of about ;&)1% (about two standard deviations below averae) and
another student with an 5P of about +:%)+:& (about two standards deviations above averae).
!hen research suests (on averae) that the 5P ;&)1% student will learn at less than one)half the
rate of an 5P +%% student, while the 5P +:%)+:& student will learn at more than twice the rate of
the 5P +%% student.
Such statements about learnin s#eed are rather eneral and Cloosey)oosey.D Gowever, they
suest that durin his or her teachin career, a ty#ical teacher will be faced by a wide rane of
students, with some students learnin #erha#s half as fast as the averae, and some students
learnin #erha#s twice as fast as the averae.
Such observations su##ort a sim#le)minded and seriously flawed a##roach to classifyin
students as S#ecial -ducation (due to low 5P) or as !A7 (due to hih 5P) is to use an 5P test
alon with an arbitrary definition as to what scores constitute bein S#ecial -ducation or !A7.
6iure 9.+ shows a Eormal curve with the shaded area re#resentin the area between the mean
and Y+ standard deviations.
6iure 9.+A Eormal distribution curve. 7ra#hic Accessed +$,+;,%2A
htt#A,,www.sasked.ov.sk.ca,currWcontent,mathb:%,data,les;,notes+.html
6iure 9.$ is a short table of data from a normal distribution. !his table indicates that a total of
;9.$;X of the area under a normal curve lies between \+ and Y+ standard deviations. 6rom this
table you can deduce that $.$9X of the area lies to the left of \$ standard deviations and $.$9X
lies to the riht of Y$ standards deviations.
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)pread 2roportion of Cases
Y or )+ standard deviation ;9.$;X
Y or \ +.& standard deviations 9;.;2X
Y or )$ standard deviations 0&.22X
Y or \ $.& Standard deviation 09.12
Y or ): standard deviations 00.12X
!able 9.$. Eormal curve data
Su##ose, for e8am#le, that one defines S#ecial -ducation to mean an 5P less than of eHual to
\$ standard deviations from the mean. 5f the #articular 5P test you are usin has a standard
deviation (S') of +;, then this would mean an 5P of ;9 or lower. 5f the student #o#ulation bein
tested has the same distribution characteri*es as that used to norm the 5P test, then about $.$9X
of the students would be classified as S#ecial -ducation. Similarly, if one defines !A7 to mean an
5P reater than or eHual to Y$ standard deviations, then this would mean an 5P of +:$ or hiher,
and about $.$9X of students would be classified as !A7.
A different (and still Huite arbitrary) cutoff #oint would be to use \+.& S' or lower for S#ecial
-ducation and Y +.& S' or hiher for !A7. !his would #lace a##ro8imately ;.;9X of students
into S#ecial -ducation with a cutoff 5P score of 1;, and ;.;9X of students into !A7, with a
cutoff 5P score+$2.
!hese 5P)based definitions of S#ecial -ducation and !A7 are seriously flawed. /ne obvious
flaw is that they ive no consideration to what students with a certain 5P (such as an 5P of ;& or
an 5P of +:&) can do. A more a##ro#riate a##roach is to use criteria other than 5P to identify
students with severe learnin disabilities and students who one wants to classify as !A7. !hen
ive a lare number of these students 5P tests. 6rom this ty#e of data one can develo# ranes of
5P scores and scores on other ty#es of tests that are useful in hel#in to determine if a student
should be classified as severe learnin disabled or !A7.
Another obvious flaw with the 5P a##roach is that different 5P tests em#hasi*e somewhat
different com#onents of 5P. As an e8am#le, #robably you are familiar with Goward 7ardnerFs
work on (ulti#le 5ntelliences. Gas identified eiht different CintelliencesD such as linuistic,
s#ecial, loical,mathematical and musical. 6rom the work of 7ardner and others, it is clear that a
#erson miht have substantial different intellience scores in different areas of intellience. Put
another way, if two different 5P tests #lace different weihts (for e8am#le, by usin different
numbers of Huestions) on various ty#es of 5P, then a #erson miht well score Huite differently on
the two tests.
Another ma?or flaw is that 5P tests do not measure #ersistence, drive, intrinsic motivation, and
other traits that make a hue difference in learnin, #roblem solvin, and other human activities.
Still another ma?or flaw is that 5P is a combination of nature and nature,environment. /n
averae, bein raised in an intellectually rich and a##ro#riately challenin home environment
leads to havin a hiher 5P, while bein raised in an intellectually #oor and ina##ro#riately
challenin home environment leads to havin a lower 5P.
5n brief summary, the fields of S#ecial -ducation and !A7 -ducation are com#le8 and contain
a hue and steadily rowin amount of research)based and #ractitioner)base knowlede. A
classification of s#ecial education or !A7 should not be based on one test, such as an 5P test. A
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studentFs #arents and classroom teachers can #lay a ma?or hole in hel#in to identify students with
s#ecial needs. 4ut, all school districts have access to s#ecial education and !A7 #rofessionals that
should be consulted early on.
Children with Special Needs
!here are many dianostic cateories of s#ecial education children, such as 'evelo#mental
'isabilities, Eeuroloical 5m#airments, <earnin 'isabilities, Physical 'isabilities, and so on. 5"!
is makin a sinificant contribution to hel#in to identify and meet the needs of children with
s#ecial needs.
!he .nited States and many other countries have made ma?or commitments (both leally and
fiscally) to hel# meet the needs of s#ecial education children. =esearch fundin has made #ossible
considerable #roress in this field. !his section #rovides a brief introduction to some of the roles
of 5"! in hel#in children with s#ecial needs.
Individual Education Program (IEP)
As you know, an 5ndividual -ducation Proram (5-P)Mwhich is also often called an
5ndividual -ducation PlanMis a central com#onent of work to hel# a s#ecial education student.
Puotin from an -=5" 'iest article (Smith, $%%%)A
!he 5ndividuali*ed -ducation Proram (5-P) is the cornerstone of the 5ndividuals with 'isabilities
-ducation Act (5'-A), which ensures educational o##ortunity for students with disabilities. !he 5-P is a
Huasi)contractual areement to uide, orchestrate, and document s#ecially desined instruction for each
student with a disability based on his or her uniHue academic, social, and behavioral needs.
Z
!he 5-P can be a dynamic #rocess wherein #rofessionals, #arents, and sometimes students, can #lan for an
instructional future that is truly res#onsive to the student's uniHue individual needs. >hen #rofessionals
understand the necessity for the 5-P and the o##ortunity it #rovides for collaboration, dynamic #lannin,
and successful im#lementation, the lawful intent of s#ecially desined instruction will be fulfilled. !he
5-P can be viewed as the #roduct of the referral #rocess and it can be viewed as an educational outline
delineatin the ma?or #art of the service and delivery #rocess.
7eneral discussions such as the one #rovided above do not #rovide much insiht into #ossible
roles of 5"! in an 5-P, nor difficulties in im#lementin a##ro#riate use of 5"!. /ften the
#rofessionals, #arents, and students involved in develo#in an 5-P have limited knowlede of
current ca#abilities of 5"! as an aid to a student with disabilities.
"om#uter software has been develo#ed to aid in the creation of 5-Ps and in maintainin the
records and develo#in the re#orts that are an im#ortant #art of creatin and im#lementin an 5-P
(5-P, n.d.).
CAL and DE
"om#uter)Assisted <earnin, #erha#s delivered over the 5nternet, may be a useful com#onent
of an 5-P. =easons for this are rooted in Cindividuali*ationD and in the "raft and Science of
!eachin and <earnin. >e know the benefits of students havin one)on)one and small rou#
tutorin by hihly Hualified teachers. "A< can achieve some of these benefits.
!he 6ast 6or>ord software that was initially develo#ed for use with students who are
severely s#eech delayed because the #honeme #rocessin com#onents of their brains work too
slowly #rovides an e8cellent e8am#le. Puotin from (6ast 6or>ord, n.d.)A
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!he fruit of this collaborative effort Qbetween 'r. Paula !allal and 'r. (ichael (er*enichR was the
develo#ment of 6ast 6or>ord <anuae, a "')=/( and 5nternet)based trainin #roram desined to
im#rove #honemic and #honoloical awareness so to im#act lanuae develo#ment. .sin interactive
com#uter ames and acoustically altered s#eech, the #roram is a means for trainin the brain to s#eed its
#rocessin of auditory information. 5nitially, s#eech sounds of short duration are stretched artificially,
makin them more readily distinuishable for a child with tem#oral auditory #rocessin deficit. As the
child becomes more #roficient at reconi*in the sounds, the 6ast 6or>ord <anuae #roram ad?usts to
the child's im#rovin level of com#etence by continually shortenin the duration of the sound, reHuirin
the brain to #rocess at faster rates of s#eech. !hrouh a daily re#etition of e8ercises s#annin si8 to eiht
weeks, brain cells in the auditory corte8 are develo#ed and trained to res#ond. !his formation of
alternative brain #athways enables the child to reconi*e #reviously unheard s#eech sounds when they are
a #art of the everyday flow of s#eech.
!he 6ast 6or>ord software #rovides an e8cellent e8am#le of #roress that is occurrin in
Gihly 5nteractive 5ntellient "om#uter)Assisted <earnin. !he software #rovides hihly
individuali*ed instruction and is rooted in our develo#in understandin of the human brain. !here
has been substantial research that su##orts the effectiveness of this software in hel#in to meet
needs of a wide rane of learners (Scientific <earnin "or#oration, n.d.). -arly uses of this
software with severely s#eech delayed students #roduced results that were far better than what
one)on)one hel# by s#eech thera#ists had been able to achieve. !he software is now bein used
with such students, but also for a much broader rane of students who are havin lanuae and
readin #roblems. !he software has also been used effectively with #eo#le havin cochlear
im#lants.
Assistive Technology
(any students can benefit from assistive technoloies, and the >eb #rovides e8cellent
resources on assistive technoloies (A4<-'A!A). Puotin from A4<-'A!AFs >ebsite (n.d.)A
A4<-'A!A is a federally funded #ro?ect whose #rimary mission is to #rovide information on assistive
technoloy and rehabilitation eHui#ment available from domestic and international sources to consumers,
orani*ations, #rofessionals, and careivers within the .nited States.
Z
!he A4<-'A!A database contains information on more than :%,%%% assistive technoloy #roducts (over
$%,%%% of which are currently available), from white canes to voice out#ut #rorams. !he database
contains detailed descri#tions of each #roduct includin #rice and com#any information. !he database
also contains information on non)commercial #rototy#es, customi*ed and one)of)a)kind #roducts, and do)
it)yourself desins. !o select devices most a##ro#riate to your needs, we suest combinin A4<-'A!A
information with #rofessional advice, #roduct evaluations, and hands)on #roduct trials.
5"! is now a routine com#onent of many assistive technoloies. A##le "om#uter "or#oration
has a lon history of su##ortin #eo#le with s#ecial needs that can be met throuh the use of
com#uters (A##le, n.d.).
5n recent years, wireless 5"! has reached a level that it is makin ma?or contributions to
assistive technoloy.
Advances in mobile wireless technoloy are #roducin #ortable communication, information, and control
devices that connect without wires to local, community, and nationwide networks. !hese mobile wireless
devices su##ort a wide rane of a##lications s#annin voice and data communication, remote monitorin,
and #osition findin. -8am#les of current mobile wireless #roducts include cell #hones, #aers, #ersonal
diital assistants (P'As), lobal #ositionin systems (7PS) and #ortable ) even wearable ) com#uters.
Althouh there are sinificant accessibility concerns, mobile wireless devices offer tremendous #otential
for assistin #eo#le with disabilities. !his web site serves as an information resource to #rovide an
overview of the mobile wireless technoloy, a##lications, and #roducts that are emerin and how these
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advances can be used to assist rehabilitation, health manaement, inde#endent livin, and Huality of life.
(>ireless =-=").
Attention Defcit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD)
Attention 'eficit Gy#eractive 'isorder (A'G'), also known as Attention 'eficit 'isorder
(A''), affects a lare number of students. A child with this disorder cannot maintain attention
and has #oor im#ulse control. !he child may be restless and overactive. !he child tends to attract
attention by constantly disturbin others.
.sually #eo#le attem#t to distinuish the A'G' sym#toms and behavior that are enetic from
those caused by a #renant motherFs use of drus and other such causes. Puotin from the
>ebsite (A'' A'G' 5nformation <ibrary, n.d.)A
Attention 'eficit Gy#eractivity 'isorder ) A'G' ) miht affect one, two, or several areas of the brain,
resultin in several different "styles" or "#rofiles" of children (and adults) with A'G'.
!hese different #rofiles im#act #erformance in these four areasA
L 6irst, #roblems with Attention.
L Second, #roblems with a lack of 5m#ulse "ontrol.
L !hird, #roblems with /ver)activity or (otor =estlessness,
L 6ourth, a #roblem which is not yet an "official" #roblem found in the dianostic manuals, but
ouht to beA bein easily 4ored.
!his >ebsite #rovides the estimate that about five)#ercent of students in the .nited States are
enetically A'G'. 5t also #rovides an estimate that another five to ten)#ercent of the student
#o#ulation may have neuroloical damae that result in a##ro8imately the same sym#toms as
A'G'. Such neuroloical damae miht, for e8am#le, come from e8#osure to alcohol and other
drus while in the uterus. Eote that these statistics suest that #erha#s +% to +& #ercent of
children have some level or form of A'G'.
A'G' is a sinificant #roblem to a #erson attem#tin to ad?ust to life in our current society,
in our schools, in many of our ?obs, and in other as#ects of our day)to)day life. /ne miht
con?ecture that these challenes did not e8ist in the hunter)ather world with its low #o#ulation
++,%%% and more years ao. 5n this sense, A'G' tends to have become a #roblem because of our
current schoolin system and other conditions in our current society.
-arlier in this cha#ter we briefly discussed dual e8ce#tionalities. !he followin Huoted
material discusses dual !A7 A'G' students (>ebb and <atimer, n.d.).
Goward's teachers say he ?ust isn't workin u# to his ability. Ge doesn't finish his assinments, or ?ust #uts
down answers without showin his workN his handwritin and s#ellin are #oor. Ge sits and fidets in
class, talks to others, and often disru#ts class by interru#tin others. Ge used to shout out the answers to
the teachers' Huestions (they were usually riht), but now he daydreams a lot and seems distracted. 'oes
Goward have Attention 'eficit Gy#eractivity 'isorder (A'G'), is he ifted, or bothI
Z
>hile the child who is hy#eractive has a very brief attention s#an in virtually every situation *usually
e,cept for teleision or computer games-, children who are ifted can concentrate comfortably for lon
#eriods on tasks that interest them, and do not reHuire immediate com#letion of those tasks or immediate
conseHuences. Q4oldface added for em#hasis.R
/ne of the thins we know about com#uters and com#uter ames is that many #eo#le find
them to be attention rabbin and attention holdin. Eotice the last #arara#h Huoted above. 5t is
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suestive of a #ossible role of 5"! in workin with A'G' students. !he article (-=5" 'iest
-&;0, n.d.) s#ecifically recommends C.se of a word #rocessor or com#uter for schoolwork.D
Eotice that a #revious section of this cha#ter discusses the value of a word #rocessor for dysle8ic
students.
Talented and Gifted (TAG)
!he !A7 desination covers a broad rane of students. /ne miht think of !A7 on a scale
that runs from ifted to #rofoundly ifted. A student near the left end of this scale may well learn
twice as fast as an averae student, while a student near the riht end of this scale may learn still
faster. A #rofoundly ifted child miht raduate from hih school and enter collee while other
students his or her ae are enterin the si8th rade.
>hile many !A7 students e8hibit a hih level of talent over a broad rane of disci#lines,
others may e8hibit less breadth and reater de#th. Puite likely you have heard of some child
#rodiies who e8hibited reat de#th of talent in one or more narrowly focused areas. >olfan
(o*art in music and 4obby 6isher in chess serve as ood e8am#les (Schaffhausen, n.d.). A
#rodiy needs an outlet to show his or her talents. !his needs to be an outlet in which one can
show very hih #erformance without masterin details that take years to master. !hus, a
somewhat narrow and self)contained disci#line is hel#ful. /r, multimedia miht be considered to
fit the bill, as we #rovide better and better aids to handlin needed details of #roduction and
editin.
Defnitions of Giftedness
6ormer .. S. "ommissioner of -ducation Sidney P. (arland, Jr., in his Auust +01+ re#ort to
"onress, stated ((arland, +01+)A
7ifted and talented children are those identified by #rofessionally Hualified #ersons who by virtue of
outstandin abilities are ca#able of hih #erformance. !hese are children who reHuire differentiated
educational #rorams and,or services beyond those normally #rovided by the reular school #roram in
order to reali*e their contribution to self and society.
Z
.sin a broad definition of iftedness, a school system could e8#ect to identify +%X to +&X or more of its
student #o#ulation as ifted and talented. A brief descri#tion of each area of iftedness or talent as defined
by the /ffice of 7ifted and !alented will hel# you understand this definition.
General intellectual ability or talent. <ay#ersons and educators alike usually define this in terms of a
hih intellience test score))usually two standard deviations above the mean))on individual or rou#
measures. Parents and teachers often reconi*e students with eneral intellectual talent by their wide)
ranin fund of eneral information and hih levels of vocabulary, memory, abstract word knowlede, and
abstract reasonin.
)pecific academic aptitude or talent. Students with s#ecific academic a#titudes are identified by their
outstandin #erformance on an achievement or a#titude test in one area such as mathematics or lanuae
arts. !he orani*ers of talent searches s#onsored by a number of universities and collees identify students
with s#ecific academic a#titude who score at the 01th #ercentile or hiher on standard achievement tests
and then ive these students the Scholastic A#titude !est (SA!). =emarkably lare numbers of students
score at these hih levels.
Creatie and productie thinking. !his is the ability to #roduce new ideas by brinin toether elements
usually thouht of as inde#endent or dissimilar and the a#titude for develo#in new meanins that have
social value. "haracteristics of creative and #roductive students include o#enness to e8#erience, settin
#ersonal standards for evaluation, ability to #lay with ideas, willinness to take risks, #reference for
com#le8ity, tolerance for ambiuity, #ositive self)imae, and the ability to become submered in a task.
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"reative and #roductive students are identified throuh the use of tests such as the !orrance !est of
"reative !hinkin or throuh demonstrated creative #erformance.
7eadership ability. <eadershi# can be defined as the ability to direct individuals or rou#s to a common
decision or action. Students who demonstrate iftedness in leadershi# ability use rou# skills and
neotiate in difficult situations. (any teachers reconi*e leadershi# throuh a student's keen interest and
skill in #roblem solvin. <eadershi# characteristics include self)confidence, res#onsibility, coo#eration, a
tendency to dominate, and the ability to ada#t readily to new situations. !hese students can be identified
throuh instruments such as the 6undamental 5nter#ersonal =elations /rientation 4ehavior (65=/)4).
1isual and performing arts. 7ifted students with talent in the arts demonstrate s#ecial talents in visual
art, music, dance, drama, or other related studies. !hese students can be identified by usin task
descri#tions such as the "reative Products Scales, which were develo#ed for the 'etroit Public Schools by
Patrick 4yrons and 4everly Eess Parke of >ayne State .niversity.
2sychomotor ability. !his involves kinesthetic motor abilities such as #ractical, s#atial, mechanical, and
#hysical skills. 5t is seldom used as a criterion in ifted #rorams.
!here are a variety of definitions and measures for ifted, hihly ifted, and #rofoundly ifted
students. !he followin Huote from the -=5" "learinhouse on 'isabilities and 7ifted -ducation
defines these three cateories in terms of scores on the >eschler 5ntellience Scale for "hildren
(-=5", Profoundly 7ifted).
Gihly and #rofoundly ifted students are children whose needs are so far beyond "ty#ical" ifted that they
reHuire e8traordinary resources. >hen tested with a >eschler 5ntellience Scale for "hildren (>5S"),
their scores rane from +2& to +&0 for hihly ifted and above +;% for #rofoundly ifted. 5n those ranes,
these children are as different in intellectual abilities from ifted children (usually +:% to +22) as ifted
are from a ty#ical reular education #o#ulation. 5P scores do not tell the whole storyN however, they are a
useful indicator of individual differences, #articularly when used to inform instruction.
Federal and State Support for TAG Students
.nlike children with disabilities, !alented and 7ifted children receive relatively little #rotection
under ..S. 6ederal <aw. >ithout a federal law to #rotect the leal rihts of ifted children, the
res#onsibility for such mandates rests with the states. (ore than :% states have a mandate to
serve ifted children, while the remainin ones have #ermissive leislation ("ouncil of State
'irectors of Prorams for the 7ifted, n.d.). !he nature and e8tent of !A7 services funded at a
state level vary widely from state to state. 5n /reon, for e8am#le, the fundin level is
a##ro8imately _$.&% #er student #er year. !he state mandates that !A7 students be served, but
the fiscal burden falls entirely on the local schools and school districts. Eeedless to say, this leads
to tremendous variations within the state as to how well these students are served.
!he 6ederal 7overnment does su##ort one ma?or !A7 #roram, the Jacob @. Javits 7ifted
and !alented Students -ducation Proram (Javits, n.d.).
5n 6Y $%%$, under the reauthori*ation of the -S-A (the Eo "hild <eft 4ehind Act), absolute #riorities
were established to encourae activities that contribute to an understandin of the most effective ways to
educate ifted and talented students who are economically disadvantaed, limited -nlish #roficient, or
who have disabilities. !his shift in focus builds u#on the outcomes of nearly +$& demonstration #rorams
and #ractices for educatin talented students nationwide since the ince#tion of the Javits #roram in +090.
Absolute PrioritiesA 7rants are awarded under two #riorities. Priority /ne su##orts initiatives to develo#
and "scale)u#" models servin students who are under)re#resented in ifted and talented #rorams.
Priority !wo su##orts state and local efforts to im#rove services for ifted and talented students.
Z
!he Javits #roram funds the Eational =esearch "enter on the 7ifted and !alented located at the
.niversity of "onnecticut at Storrs, in collaboration with the .niversity of Sirinia, Yale .niversity, and
"olumbia .niversity. !he consortium includes over :;% #ublic and #rivate schools, ::1 school districts,
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&$ State and territorial de#artments of education, and a consultant bank of +;1 researchers associated with
9; universities throuhout the .nited States and "anada.
Some General TAG Considerations
!A7 education e8isted well before the develo#ment of 5"!. As com#uters became available, a
variety of #eo#le e8#lored uses of them in !A7 education. 5n the early days of com#uters, it was
often thouht that if a !A7 student was iven access to a com#uter, then automatically and with
little or no instruction, reat thins would ha##en. Gowever, this is the e8ce#tion, rather than the
rule. 5t is true that Steve Jobs who hel#ed found A##le "or#oration and 4ill 7ates who founded
(icrosoft "or#oration Cmade itD without the benefit of a lot of 5"! hel# from their teachers.
5ndeed, a number of other e8am#les can be found of !A7 children who have had a hih level of
success in various as#ects of 5"! in business.
Gowever, such success stories are few and far between when measured aainst the !A7
#o#ulation. Su##ose, for e8am#le, one uses a somewhat strinent measure of iftedness, and that
only five)#ercent of students meet this definition and are classified as !A7. !his amounts to more
than $%%,%%% students at each rade level in ..S schools.
!hink about these students from the #oint of view of 'avid PerkinsF list of oals of education.
(6iure 9.+ is the same fiure we discussed in "ha#ter %.)
Giher)order
6iure 9.+. ScaleA lower)order to hiher)order oals of education.
As a teacher, what do want to hel# your !A7 students to accom#lishI You could focus on
such students memori*in a much larer amount of data and information, and then #racticin
enouh to facilitate lon)term retention of what has been memori*ed.
You could focus on your !A7 students ainin a broader and dee#er understandin of the
curriculum that you are teachin.
And, you could create an environment and set of reHuirements that #ushed your !A7 students
toward the hiher end of the scale, toward workin on com#le8 #roblems and tasks. !his is one of
the #laces in which 5"! can make a ma?or difference. Some #roblems and tasks take a very broad
and mature level of knowlede (and wisdom) to address. /thers are more narrowly focused.
Pae +%:
<etFs take music com#osition for an e8am#le. (usic is somewhat narrowly focused, which has
allowed it to #roduce #rodiies such as (o*art. Gowever, think about the difficulties faced by a
#erson who is oin to develo# musical com#osition knowlede and skills at a youn ae. /ne
difficulty is havin some way to #erform oneFs com#ositions, or to have them #erformed. Another
difficulty is havin some way to re#resent (for e8am#le, in musical notation) oneFs com#ositions.
4oth of these difficulties are now bein well addressed by music)s#ecific 5"! tools. >ith such
tools, even averae elementary school students can com#ose music and have it be #erformed by a
com#uter system.
Ee8t, lets consider the study of history. "ausality is of the most im#ortant ideas in the study of
history. !his involves the eneration and testin of hy#otheses, somewhat akin to what one does
in science and in other fields of inHuiry. !he traditional te8tbooks we make available to students
studyin history are severely limited in their usefulness in eneratin and testin hy#otheses, or in
e8#lorin other as#ects of causality. "ontrast such resources with the ra#idly rowin collection
of #rimary resources available on the >eb. @ee# in mind that history is #art of every disci#line.
!hus, the >eb o#ens u# the Cdee#D study of history by students at every rade level and in every
disci#line.
Ee8t, consider the field of hy#ermedia. >e have lon had sound recordin eHui#ment alon
with still and motion cameras. Gowever, the eHui#ment for editin #hotora#hs, video, and audio
has been both e8#ensive and difficult to learn to use. Eow, 5"! has made such facilities relatively
ine8#ensive and easy to learn to use. (oreover, such eHui#ment facilitates the develo#ment of
animation and of interactivity. !hese ca#abilities o#en u# an entire new rane of o##ortunities for
a #erson who is interested in communication usin hy#ermedia.
6inally, consider the disci#line of com#uter #rorammin. >ith #ro#er instruction, even
#rimary school students can learn to #roram in <oo or 4AS5". 6or such students, this o#ens u#
a new world of #roblems to be solved and tasks to be accom#lished. 5n some sense, this world is
self)contained, which means it facilitates the develo#ment of #rodiies. Gowever, this world
overla#s with the #roblems and tasks in every academic disci#line. !hus, com#uter #rorammin
is o#en ended both as an area of study in its own riht and as a tool in other academic disci#lines.
!he e8am#les share four thins in commonA
+. 5"! is a #owerful aid to re#resentin and hel#in to solve the #roblems. Gowever,
creativity, dee# and careful thinkin, and #ersistence are all essential.
$. =ole models of ood (hih level) #erformance are available to students.
:. 7uidance and instruction from well)Hualified #eo#le (teachers and other #rofessionals) is
of reat hel#.
2. !hey are all o#en ended. !here are no u##er limits to what a student miht learn and
achieve.
An Appropriately Challenging Curriculum
(any !A7 students are not adeHuately challened by the traditional curriculum and its
accom#anyin assessments. "om#uter)Assisted <earnin and 'istance <earnin o#en u# many
#ossibilities for challenin the abilities of !A7 students. Such courses can be used to broaden the
breadth and,or the de#th of a !A7 studentFs education.
Pae +%2
-arlier in our discussion of !A7 students we have mentioned that such students learn faster
and better than averae students. You reali*e, of course, that some students learn faster and better
than other students, even if they are not classified as !A7. !o hel# you understand the cumulative
effect of a reater rate of learnin, consider a student who learns ?ust &% #ercent faster and better
than the averae of his or her fellow students. Such a student miht well not even meet the local
school standards for bein classified as !A7. 4ut, such a student miht well be ca#able of
com#letin the +: years of @)+$ education and takin a riorous curriculum of study in 0 to +%
years.
!wo common a##roaches to workin with !A7 students are and acceleration. -nrichment
tends to focus on inclusion of the child in the reular classroom and rade level of his or her ae
#eers. Acceleration tends to focus on movin the child ahead in one or more disci#line areas or in
rade levels. /ur current secondary school system #rovides a combination of enrichment and
acceleration throuh its Ccollee #re#D curriculum that may include a number of advanced
#lacement courses. Students can stay in school with their ae rou# but may be able to earn as
much as a year of collee credits durin hih school. !he increasin availability of 'istance
<earnin advanced #lacement courses hel#s to make such o#tions available to students in schools
that do not offer such courses. 5n addition, we are now seein increasin em#hasis on makin
collee courses available to such students from a nearby community collee, collee, or university.
!here is Huite a lot of literature on CinclusionD of !A7 students in the reular classroom
curriculum. Meeting the ,eeds of Gifted $tudents: 6ifferentiating Mathematics and $cience
!nstruction is a ood e8am#le (E>=-<, +000). Puotin from the Preface of this bookA
(eetin the Eeeds of 7ifted StudentsA 'ifferentiatin (athematics and Science 5nstruction offers teachers
a variety of strateies and resources for #rovidin different levels of content and activities that will
challene all students, includin ifted learners. A consistent theme throuhout this #ublication is that
while many of the ideas come from the body of literature and research on ifted education, the strateies
are a##ro#riate and effective for a wide rane of students. Another im#ortant theme emerin from the
research base on ifted students is the need to re)e8amine the criteria and #rocesses used to desinate
some students as ifted, and thus by im#lication all other students as not ifted. "learly, relyin on a
narrow definition such as those who score in the to# +% #ercent on a standardi*ed achievement test can
e8clude students with s#ecial talents who may have difficulty in takin tests.
Assessment for TAG Students
A##ro#riate assessment of !A7 students is a sinificant challene. /ne of the im#ortant
characteristics of !A7 is the ability to #erform (solve #roblems, accom#lish tasks) well above the
level of oneFs #eers. !hus, alternative, authentic assessment is often suested as bein es#ecially
a##ro#riate for !A7 students. !he followin is Huoted from the >ebsite ((cAl#ine)A
<ikewise, the conce#t of iftedness has broadened to include a wide rane of abilities includin the
creative, social, visual and #erformin arts, etc. Assessments related to these wider dimensions have also
been develo#ed, althouh seldom with the deree of reliability associated with tests of "intellience" or
scholastic abilities.
Z
Eorm)referenced tests allow students with s#ecial abilities to e8cel, to be "to#s". Gowever, criterion
referenced assessments do not offer such o##ortunities. Assessment tasks related to this form of
assessment often have low "ceilins" (little challene) and #roress in small ste#)by)ste# increments and
seHuences. 5n a recent study, ifted students re#orted that assessments based on unit standards in school
trials in maths and eora#hy (secondary schools) lacked challene and were "borin" ("outts O
(cAl#ine, +00;). A wide rane of assessment #rocedures is available to teachers today. Some of these
#rocedures are relevant and #romisin for students with s#ecial abilities and many teachers in Eew
Pae +%&
Vealand are utilisin them well with this and other rou#s of students. 5 have selected three forms of
assessments, which are #articularly relevant for students with s#ecial abilities, for brief discussion over
three issues of Tall %oppies. !hese areA
L #ortfolio assessment
L authentic assessment
L self assessment.
Final Remarks
!his cha#ter e8#lores some as#ects of s#ecial and !A7 education. As a teacher, you need to
kee# in mind that individual differences are the norm. !hat is, each of your students is uniHue. /ur
educational system identifies some students as Cs#ecial educationD and some students as !A7.
Some students fall into both classification cateories.
/ur educational system has moved stronly in the direction of inclusion of s#ecial education
and !A7 students into the reular classroom. !his #resents a ma?or challene to teachers,
es#ecially teachers who have had little trainin and e8#erience in workin with s#ecial education
and !A7 students.
As noted throuhout this book, 5"! is a sinificant aid to both students and teachers, and it is
a sinificant challene to both students and teachers. 5n some as#ects of s#ecial education and
!A7 education these challenes are am#lified, and in some cases the rewards or successes are
am#lified. 5"! is but one com#onent of the set of knowlede, skills, and tools available to a
teacher. Sometimes, however, 5"! has the #ower to be es#ecially #owerful in hel#in to meet the
needs of a student.
+. 'o a careful intros#ection on your mental and #hysical strenths and weaknesses. <ook
for e8am#les of Ce8ce#tionalitiesD that you are aware of and have accommodated to.
$. Select a state and e8#lore its rules, reulations, and fundin for !A7. !he >eb is an
e8cellent resource for conductin such a study.
:. Steven Gawkin is an e8cellent e8am#le of a hihly ifted #erson whose has severe
disabilities. 5"! ada#tive technoloies have made ma?or contributions to his work and
Huality of life. -8#lore what he has done durin his career and look for other e8am#les of
hihly successful individuals with 'ual -8ce#tionalities who are makin substantial use of
5"! ada#tive technoloies.
2. S#end some time talkin to some s#ecial education and !A7 students. -8#lore their
understandin of their e8ce#tionalities, and e8#lore their use of 5"!. Pay s#ecial attention
to when and how they became aware of their e8ce#tionalities. 'o they feel that learnin
about their e8ce#tionalities has been advantaeous, or notI
Pae +%;
Chapter 9
Summary and Recommendations
">hen you're finished chanin, you're finished."
(4en?amin 6ranklin)
"5 never see what has been doneN 5 only see what
remains to be done." ((arie "urie)
CEever doubt that a small rou# of thouhtful
committed citi*ens can chane the worldA indeedN it's
the only thin that ever has.D ((araret (ead)
!his is the final cha#ter in the current form of this book. 5t beins with a brief summary of the
underlyin conce#tual idea of the book. 5t then #rovides a set of recommendations for readers.
6uture versions of the book may contain one or more additional cha#ters. 4ut, donFt hold
your breath while waitin for additions. 5nstead, #lease make use of the materials iven at
htt#A,,darkwin.uoreon.edu,Bmoursund,dave,6ree.html. (any of these free materials were
s#ecifically desined for use in 5"! courses and worksho#s for #reservice and inservice teachers.
ICT in Education from a Problem-Solving Point of View
5"! #rovides a wide rane of aids to solvin #roblems and accom#lishin tasks. 5"! is now a
sinificant com#onent of the basic content of each of the disci#lines that students study at the
#recollee level. 5n addition, 5"! #rovides eneric C#roductivity toolsD that cut across all of the
disci#lines that students study.
5"! is a dynamic field, rowin ra#idly in breadth and de#th. 4asic hardware ca#abilities of
5"!, such as com#uter s#eed, com#uter storae ca#acity, telecommunications bandwidth, and the
installed base are all rowin ra#idly. !he ne8t +&)$% years will likely brin us increases in
com#uter s#eed, memory ca#acity, and telecommunications bandwidth by a factor of +,%%% or
more. !hese hardware im#rovements, alon with continued #roress in software, will have a
#rofound im#act on the societies of our world.
!his book bean by em#hasi*in that the ideas in the diaram in 6iure 0.+ serve to unify this
book. Su##ose someone asks youA C>hat is the most im#ortant idea in educational use of 5"!ID 5
believe that you should res#ondA C5"! as an aid to solvin #roblems and accom#lishin tasks.D
You can then o on to e8#lain that solvin #roblems and accom#lishin tasks can be viewed from
a teacher #oint of view and from a student #oint of view. 5n both #oints of view, 5"! contributes
substantially to accom#lishin the core oals of education (Perkins, +00$, #&)A
!he ne8t two sub)sections briefly discuss the teacher and the student #oints of view.
Pae +%1
Tools to extend
capabilities.
Problem-Solving,
Task-Accomplishing
Team
6iure 0.+. Aids to #roblem solvin.
Teacher Point of View
A teacher has many res#onsibilities. Sometimes these are rou#ed into four ma?or cateoriesA
L "urriculum
L 5nstruction (#edaoy)
L Assessment
L Personal #rofessional rowth
4y now you should understand some im#ortant roles of 5"! in each of these four areas. 6or
e8am#le, you should understand the conce#t of C5"!inD across the curriculum and in the content
areas in the same way that you understand writin across the curriculum and in the content areas,
or readin across the curriculum and in the content areas.
5n addition, you should understand that 5"! is now #art of the core content in each of the
disci#lines you are teachin or #lannin to teach. !he im#ortance of 5"! as core content varies
with the disci#line, but is increasin in all disci#lines.
As a second e8am#le, consider #edaoy. /f course you understand roles of 5"! in
interactin with a class, such as via use of a deskto# #resentation system. You understand the
some of the value of havin your handout materials and tests in electronic form, and #erha#s the
value of havin a >ebsite to su##ort your teachin activities. You know that "om#uter)Assisted
<earnin is slowly but steadily im#rovin. You understand that there are now im#ortant content
areas in which Gihly 5nteractive 5ntellient "om#uter)Assisted <earnin is more effective than a
teacher workin with a classroom full of students.
5n the area of assessment, you know that at state and national levels there is rowin use of
"om#uter Ada#tive !estin. !his is radually filterin down to the individual school district and
school level. !he trend is clear. "om#uter Ada#tive !estin over core content areas such as
<anuae Arts, (athematics, Science, and Social Studies will radually become common#lace at
the individual school level. "A! will radually move toward #rovidin detailed feedback to
teachers on the strenths and weaknesses of individual students.
Also in assessment, you face the rowin task of authentic Chands)on 5"! facilitiesD
assessment. As students become more comfortable in the routine use of 5"!, and as the available
Pae +%9
of 5"! facilities at home and school continue to row, schools need to a##ro#riately address the
issue of hands)on 5"! assessment. As an e8am#le, su##ose that a child has s#ent years develo#in
skill at usin a word #rocessor to write. !hen it seems reasonable that tests that involve wirin
will allow the student to use a word #rocessor and the writin aids it #rovides.
6inally, consider your #rofessional career and the challenes of Ckee#in u#D and continued
#rofessional rowth. 5"! is both and aid and a #roblem in these endeavors. =emember, you can
look forward to im#rovements in 5"! hardware by a factor of +,%%% or more durin the ne8t +&
to $% years.
Student Point of View
A studentFs #oint of view of education tends to be Huite a bit different than the #oint of view
of a teacherFs and other adults. As teachers, we often talk about student)centered learnin or a
student)centered curriculum, instruction, and assessment. 4ut, to a very lare e8tent, curriculum
content is not determined by students. 5nstead, it is determined by te8tbook writers and
#ublishers, teachers, district and state curriculum committees, and so on. 6or the most #are,
instructional #rocesses are determined by teachers, and assessment is determined at a combination
of the teacher level and levels above the teacher.
!he #eo#le who determine curriculum, instruction, and assessment have in mind the ty#es of
educational oals stated by 'avid Perkins, and they also have in mind some other oals. 6or
e8am#le, we want each student to ood and continuin #roress toward achievin his or her Cfull
#otentials.D >e want each student to make a##ro#riate #roress toward bein an inde#endent,
self)sufficient, intrinsically motivated, lifelon learner. >e want each student to become a
res#onsible adult citi*en. A ood teacher is ood at enain students in these endeavors.
!hink, for a minute, how our educational system miht ive more #ower to students. >hat
miht student)centered education look like from a student #oint of viewI Gow can 5"! aid in
makin our educational system more student centeredI
Answers to this Huestion are both sim#le and com#le8. 6rom the very beinnin of formal
education we (educators) can increase our focus on student Huestion askin, #roblem solvin,
task accom#lishin, learnin to learn, self)assessment, and other hiher)order conitive skills. >e
can #rovide students with rade)a##ro#riate understandin of the idea that they bear a ma?or
res#onsibility in their own learnin and conitive rowth. >e can hel# students to see their rowth
as learners, and we can #rovide multi#le o##ortunities and methods for rowth and dis#layin the
rowth.
Gere is a sim#le)minded e8am#le to accom#any the above ideas. >ouldnFt it be interestin if
each day each student #osed one or more Huestions relevant to his or her learnin interests, and
then used the >eb to research answersI Perha#s you can think of ways to interate this idea into
your current or future teachin. And, you miht bein by interatin it into your current learnin
habits if this is not already one of your habits.
Who Has the Power?
/ne can analy*e our educational system from the view#oint of who has the #ower, or who is
a##ro#riately em#owered in the areas most im#ortant to the various #artici#ants. 6or e8am#le,
Seymour Sarason has analy*ed education from the #oint of view of how well teachers are
em#owered (Sarason, +00:). Ge arues that the best way to im#rove our educational system is to
increase the #ower of teachers.
Pae +%0
/ne can also analy*e our educational system from the #oint of view of the #ower of students.
5"! is shiftin #ower from teachers to students. Student access to the >eb #rovides a ood
e8am#le of how this is occurrin. A student can easily ain knowlede that his or her teacher does
not have. !hus, the teacher can no loner be considered Cthe fount of all knowlede.D
"om#uter)Assisted <earnin and 'istance <earnin are also em#owerin students. !he
teacher and the curriculum offered by a school must now com#ete with other sources of
instruction and academic credit.
5"!, in and of itself, tends to favor students over teachers. Students row u# with the
technoloy (thus, they are not faced by 5"! as a chane), while many teachers tend to strule to
ad?ust to the #ace of chane of 5"!.
Recommendations to Educators
6iure 0.$ is the same as 6iure %.&. 5n some sense it summari*es 5"!)related #roblems faced
by our educational system.
Areas in which ordinary #eo#le
can readily out#erform ordinary
5"! systems.
Areas in which ordinary 5"!
systems can readily
out#erform ordinary #eo#le.
Areas in which #eo#le versus 5"!
system #erformance is currently
undecided and,or where the two toether
readily out#erform either alone.
6iure 0.$. =oles of #eo#le and 5"! systems in solvin #roblems and accom#lishin tasks.
!he issues raised in this book and illustrated in 6iure 0.$ face all teachers. A ma?or oal in
#reservice and inservice teacher education is to hel# #re#are teachers to effectively deal with these
challenes. Gere is a set of recommendationA
8ecommendation # 1$ 5n each academic disci#line currently bein tauht in our schools,
5"! has become a useful aid to re#resentin and hel#in to solve #roblems and accom#lish
tasks. !hus, the diaram of 6iure 0.$ is a##licable to every teacher and student. !his
means that you need to learn about the ca#abilities and limitations of 5"! within the
disci#lines that you teach or #lan to teach. !he curriculum, instruction, and assessment in
your everyday classroom needs to adeHuately and a##ro#riately reflect your best insihts
into achievin an a##ro#riate balance amon the three com#onents of the diaram.
Pae ++%
An earlier #art of this cha#ter discusses lower)order and hiher)order knowlede and skills.
>e know that a #ath to increasin e8#ertise in a disci#line includes both lower)order and hiher)
order knowlede and skills. A teacher faces the challene of hel#in to chart a #ath that is
a##ro#riate to the current knowlede, skills, interests, intrinsic and e8trinsic motivation, and so on
of each individual student. (eetin this challene reHuires both a concerted effort on the #art of
the teacher and the understandin coo#eration of the individual student. Gere is a
recommendationA
8ecommendation # 2$ You should ado#t the oal of hel#in each student ain increased
e8#ertise in bein an inde#endent, self)sufficient learner. -ach learner should understand
(make #ersonal use of) constructivism, metaconition, lower)order and hiher)order
knowlede and skills, transfer of learnin, self)assessment, and ainin increased e8#ertise
within a disci#line. 5"! is Huite useful in creatin environments in which a student can
#ractice these ideas.
/ne of the ma?or oals of education is for a student to ain steadily increasin e8#ertise in the
very broad area of solvin #roblems and accom#lishin tasks. !his includes #osin #roblems and
tasks, Huestion askin, hiher)order CcriticalD thinkin, and makin wise decisions. Problem
solvin is #art of each disci#line. @ee# in mind that e8#ertise in #roblem solvin is built on a
combination of disci#line)s#ecific (domain)s#ecific) knowlede and skills, and broad)based
knowlede and skills that cut across many disci#lines. /ur educational system can become much
better at hel#in students transferrin their disci#line)s#ecific #roblem solvin e8#ertise to other
disci#lines. Gere is a recommendationA
8ecommendation #3$ You should ado#t the oal of hel#in each student understand the
ideas re#resented in 6iures %.+ to %.& in "ha#ter % at a level a##ro#riate to the students
conitive develo#ment. !hese diarams and the ideas that they summari*e should be
#eriodically revisited as a student moves from rade to rade, and as a student delves
more dee#ly into various disci#lines made available in secondary school. Your students
need to understand what it means to ain increasin e8#ertise in a disci#line, as well as
current and #otential roles of 5"! that are useful in achievin and #erformin at an
increasin level of e8#ertise.
5n each disci#line that you teach, hel# you students to understand what constitutes an
increasin level of e8#ertise within the disci#line and how the instruction you are currently
#rovidin contributes to this increasin e8#ertise. >eave this effort into an effort to
increase transfer of learnin of #roblem solvin e8#ertise into other disci#lines.
!eachin is a difficult and challenin #rofession. You may have heard the e8#ression CShe is a
`bornF teacher.D !his can be inter#reted as a comment about the nature versus nurture issue of
becomin a ood teacher. 7ood teachin reHuires a very broad rane of knowlede and skills.
7ood teachers vary tremendously in their mental, #hysical, emotional, social, and other areas of
innate abilities. A teacherFs e8#ertise is based on his or her develo#ed abilities to effectively use his
or her innate abilities that are relevant to bein a teacher. (ovin u# a Cood teacherD e8#ertise
scale is no different than movin u# any other e8#ertise scale. -very #reservice and inservice
teacher can become a better teacher. Gere is a recommendationA
8ecommendation # 4$ As a teacher, you have a substantial level of e8#ertise in hel#in
students learn, learn to learn, and to ain increased e8#ertise in a variety of disci#lines.
&pply this e,pertise to your own deelopment. -8amine your relative strenths and
Pae +++
weaknesses (your ca#acity) on a Cood teacherD e8#ertise scale. 'evelo# ways to self)
assess #roress you are makin toward becomin a better teacher.
5"! #rovides you with an area to #ractice ainin increased e8#ertise as a teacher. 5f you
consider your overall knowlede and skills as they relate to bein a ood teacher, you may
find that you have not yet achieved a ood balance between those that are 5"!)related and
those that are not 5"!)related. <ook for an e8am#le where the imbalance seems
#articularly stron. 'evise and im#lement a #lan to hel# address this imbalance.
You have some knowlede and skill in usin a variety of widely a##licable 5"! tools, such as
a word #rocessor, email, and the >eb. !here are many other eneric (eneral #ur#ose, a##licable
across many disci#lines) 5"! tools such as a s#readsheet, a database, and draw and #aint ra#hics.
!he 5nternational Society for !echnoloy in -ducation, as well as many states and school districts,
have set standards (oals) for student knowlede and skills in usin these tools (5S!- E-!S,
n.d.).
You need to ive careful thouht to the idea that a learnin oal miht be to learn a s#ecific
tool versus the idea that a learnin oal miht be to learn to effectively use a #articular tool as
#art of ainin e8#ertise within a disci#line. As an e8am#le, reat skill in usin a word #rocessor
(i.e., fast and accurate keyboardin, skillful use of a s#ellin checker) does not, in and of itself,
make a student into a better writer. !he oal is for a student to learn to make effective use of a
word #rocessor as #art of movin u# the e8#ertise scale in effective written communication. Gere
is a recommendationA
8ecommendation # 5$ 5"! #rovides a lare number of eneral)#ur#ose (eneric) tools,
as well as a still larer number of tools that are Huite s#ecific to #articular domains. -ach
tool is desined as aid to re#resentin and solvin the #roblems, and re#resentin and
accom#lishin the tasks, within one or more domains. 6rom a eneral education #oint of
view, increased e8#ertise in usin a tool should focus on its use as #art of increasin
#roblem)solvin, task)accom#lishin, and other hiher)order as#ects of e8#ertise within a
domain.
As a sim#le e8am#le, consider a four)function calculator. Some #eo#le learn touch
keyboardin of a four)function calculator. !his is hihly useful in a ?ob that reHuires reat
s#eed and accuracy at enterin numbers and doin sim#le arithmetic o#erations on them.
4ut, that skill is a very modest #art of learnin to understand, re#resent, and solve
arithmetic #roblems. 5t takes only a modest amount of time for a student to learn to make
effective use of a calculator. 5t takes years of instruction and #ractice for a student to meet
contem#orary standards of e8#ertise in the field of math that we call arithmetic.
Final Remarks
Gere is a Huote from /mar @hayyam, a mathematician (and, also successful in other fields).
htt#A,,www)rou#s.dcs.st)and.ac.uk,Bhistory,(athematicians,@hayyam.html. 4ornA +9 (ay +%29
in Eisha#ur, Persia (now 5ran) 'iedA 2 'ec ++:+ in Eisha#ur, Persia (now 5ran).
"!he (ovin 6iner writes, and, havin writ,
(oves onA nor all thy Piety nor >it
Shall lure it back to cancel half a <ine,
Eor all thy !ears wash out a >ord of it."
Pae ++$
>ritin and #ublishin have chaned Huite a bit since /mar @hayyamFs time. >ith the
assistance of my trusty word #rocessor and >ebsite com#osition software, 5 make freHuent
chanes in what 5 have written and #ublished. !hus, a more modern statementA
!he movin finers keyboard, and, havin keyboarded
(ove onN however, all thy Piety and >it
/ften lure them back to cancel half a <ine or more,
And thy tears can lead to washin out sentences and #arara#hs.
+. You have had many years of formal education. Analy*e the success of this education in
develo#in your e8#ertise to be an inde#endent, self)sufficient, intrinsically motivated,
lifelon learner. >hat miht have occurred in the #ast or what miht occur in the future to
move you u# this e8#ertise scaleI
$. >hat are your #ersonal thouhts about student)centered instruction and em#owerin
studentsI
:. Analy*e the five recommendations iven near the end of this cha#ter. >hich one do you
most aree with, and which one do you least aree with. >hyI
2. 4ased on your understandin of 5"! and education, add a si8th recommendation to the list
of recommendations iven near the end of this cha#ter.
Pae ++:
References
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are iven )) the Huestions to be su##lied by the
student." (Abraham Geschel, +0;%)
"Jude a man by his Huestions rather than his
answers." (Soltaire)
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Pae ++;
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Pae ++1
Shaywit*, Sally ($%%:). "vercoming dyslexia: ) new and complete science-based program for
reading problems at any level. EYA @no#f.
Shulman <ee S. (/ctober $%%:). Eo drive)by teachers. (arnegie %erspectives. Sol. +, Eo. +.
Accessed +$,+&,%2A
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Smith, Ste#hen >. ($%%%). "reatin useful 5ndividuali*ed -ducation Prorams. ERIC
Clearinghouse on Disabilities and Gifted Education.Accessed +$,+&,%2A
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soarin 5Ps. !echnos Puarterly. Accessed $,+2,%2A
htt#A,,www.technos.net,tHW%;,$sternber.htm.
>anderman, =ichard (n.d.). esources for the learning disabilities community. Accessed
+$,+&,%2A htt#A,,www.ldresources.com,siteWinfo,authors,wanderman.html.
>estern 7overnors (n.d.). Accessed +$,+&,%2A !n online study for you5
htt#A,,www.wu.edu,admissions,studentWe8#erience.as#.
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(learinghouse on 6isabilities and Gifted #ducation. Accessed +$,+&,%2A
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>ireless =ehabilitation -nineerin =esearch "enter (=-!", n.d.). Accessed +$,+&,%2A
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Pae ++9
5nde8
1 $ chunks, +9
A4<-'A!A, +%2
A''. $ee Attention 'eficit 'isorder
A'G'. $ee Attention 'eficit Gy#eractive 'isorder
Advanced Placement, ;$
advanced #lacement courses, ++%
Al#haSmart), &&
American Sin <anuae, +%%
Amyotro#hic <ateral Sclerosis, 00
Artificial 5ntellience, ;$
assessment, 9%
assistive technoloy, ;+
Attention, 1$
Attention 'eficit 'isorder, +%&
Attention 'eficit Gy#eractive 'isorder, +%&
attention rabbin, $$, 29, +%;
attention holdin, +%;
attention)rabbin, 1$
authentic assessment, ++%
autism, 0;
bandwidth, 11
4AS5", ;$
behaviorism, $+
4loomFs ta8onomy, 9
brain scientists, ++
"A<. $ee "om#uter)Assisted <earnin
calculator, &%
"5S. $ee "om#uter and 5nformation Science
"/4/<, ;+
cochlear im#lant, 00, +%2
"om#ellin A##lications, :9, :0
com#uter and information science, ;%
"om#uter and 5nformation Science 'e#artment, ;%
com#uter modelin, :%
com#uter teacher, &+
"om#uter)Ada#tive !estin System, 0$
com#uter)assisted instruction, ;0
com#uter)assisted learnin, ;0
"om#uter)Assisted !estin System, 0$
com#uter)based instruction, ;0
constructivism, +%, +0, $2
core curriculum, &0
"orres#ondence "ourses, 12
"raft and Science of !eachin and <earnin, ++, +1,
&0, ;1, +%2
criterion referenced, 9%
databank of e8am Huestions, 0$
diital divide, ;
disci#line, defined, $0
distance learnin, 22, 21, 12
dual e8ce#tionalities, 01, +%&
dysle8ia, +%%
dysle8ic students, ++
easy entry, &2
education versus trainin, $+
educational #ractice., $1
educational theory, $1
edutainment, 2+, ;9
effect si*e, 1%
electronic brain, +1
evaluation of student #erformance, 9%
criterion referenced, 9%
norm referenced, 9%
e8ce#tionalitiesI, 01
e8trinsic motivation, $+, 29
far transfer, $$
6ast 6or>ord, +%2
6ederal <aw 02)+2$, 0;
6irst /rder A##lications, :9
6/=!=AE, :9, ;+, ;$
ames, ;9
eneric tool, ++9
7eora#hic 5nformation System, ;&
ifted, +%1
75S. $ee 7eora#hic 5nformation System
lobal library, ;
7lobal Positionin System, ;2
oals of education, 1
7PS. $ee 7lobal Positionin System
rou#ware, &%
7utenber, ;1
Gawkin, Steven, 09
Gead Start, ++
hihly ifted, +%1
Gihly 5nteractive 5ntellient "om#uter)Assisted
<earnin, $2, 1+, +%2
hih)road transfer, ++, $$
G55"A<. $ee Gihly 5nteractive 5ntellient
"om#uter)Assisted <earnin. $ee Gihly
5nteractive 5ntellient "om#uter)Assisted
<earnin
Golodeck, 19
Goward 7ardner, +%$
human memory, +9
lon)term, +9
sensory, +9
short)term, +9
workin, +9
hy#ermedia, &%
5"!. $ee 5nformation and "ommunication
!echnoloy
5"! in music, $0
5-P. $ee 5ndividual -ducation Proram
5ndividual -ducation Plan, +%
5ndividual -ducation Proram, +%:
5ndividuals with 'isabilities -ducation Act, 09
informal education, 1&
Pae ++0
5nformation and "ommunication !echnoloy, $, +&
5ntellience Puotient, +%+
5nternational Society for !echnoloy in -ducation,
::, &%, ++9
5nternet 5, 1&
5nternet 55, 1&
intrinsic motivation, $+
intrinsically motivatin a##lications, :0
keyboardin, $$
@ulik, James, ;0
@ur*weil, =ay, 09
local area com#uter network, :9
<oo #rorammin lanuae, ;$
lon)term memory, +9
low)road transfer, ++, $$
(acintosh com#uter, ;$
mainframe com#uter, :9
Maple, ;2
Mathematica, ;2
(4<. $ee (icrocom#uter)4ased <aboratory
meabyte, 19
memori*e, reuritate, and Huickly foret, $+
metastudy, ;0
(icrocom#uter)4ased <aboratory, ;2
mind tool, 2, &
mindful transfer of learnin, $$
mindfulness, $:
minicom#uter, :9
mission of this book, $
modem, 11
motivation, +0, $+, $;
music, $0
Eational "ouncil of !eachers of (athematics, &%
Eational -ducational !echnoloy Standards, ::
near transfer, $$
neuroscience, +1
newborn child, $+
no sinificant difference, 1&
norm referenced, 9%
P"AS!. $ee PresidentFs "ouncil of Advisors on
Science and !echnoloy
PresidentFs "ouncil of Advisors on Science and
!echnoloy, +0
#rintin #ress, ;1
#rocedural thinkin, ;+
#rocedure, ;+
Process Procedure, $:
#rocess writin, $:
#rofoundly ifted, +%1
#sycholoy, +1
Public <aw 02)+2$, 0;
readin fluency, ++
refle8ive transfer of learnin, $$
science, :%
Science of !eachin and <earnin, +0
science of the brain, +1
science of the mind, +1
Second /rder, 2+
self)assessment, 9%
sensory memory, +9
Shaywit*, Sally, ++
short term memory, +9
situated learnin, +0, $%, $&, 20, 12, 1&
Skinner, 4.6., ++, $+
So!<. $ee Science of !eachin and <earnin
S#ecial -ducation, 0;
Star !rek, 19
student assessment. $ee assessment
style sheet, &&
!alented O 7ifted -ducation, 0;
!alented and 7ifted, +%;
acceleration, ++%
assessment, ++%
enrichment, ++%
tem#lates, &+
!heory into Practice, $2, ;1
time)shared com#utin, :9
trainin versus education, $+
transfer of learnin, +0, $$, $1
translatin theory into #ractice, ;1
..S. +90% census, ;%
Syotsky, $2
>eb, +9
>eschler 5ntellience Scale for "hildren, +%1
workin memory, +9
Pae +$%

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Introduction to Information and Communication Technology in Education.

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