ethanporcaro/eric-fulltext-meta huggingface dataset:
Examining Interactivity in Synchronous Virtual Classrooms
Author: Martin, Florence
Date: 2012-06-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Educational Technology,Virtual Classrooms,Internet,Online Courses,Feedback (Response),Graduate Students,Teaching Styles,Distance Education,Satisfaction,Student Surveys,Higher Education,Evaluation,Learner Engagement,Blended Learning,Teacher Student Relationship,Outcomes of Education

Interaction is crucial to student satisfaction in online courses. Adding synchronous components (virtual classroom technologies) to online courses can facilitate interaction. In this study, interaction within a synchronous virtual classroom was investigated by surveying 21 graduate students in an instructional technology program in the southeastern United States. The students were asked about learner-learner, learner-instructor, learner-content, and learner-interface interactions. During an interview, the instructor was asked about strategies to promote these different forms of interaction. In addition, the academic, social, and technical aspects of interactions were examined in three course archives using Schullo's (2005) schema. Participants reported that the Wimba interface was easy to use and that various features, such as text chat and the webcam, facilitated interaction among the students and with the instructor in the virtual classroom. The importance of students' ability to receive immediate feedback and their experience as presenters was highlighted across the various kinds of interaction. The instructor's teaching style and visual presence were instrumental in engaging students with the content. The results suggest that student interaction, and hence learning, was aided by the live communication that occurred through the virtual classroom. This study has implications for those who are considering adopting virtual classroom technologies for their online or blended teaching. (Contains 7 tables and 1 figure.)
A Preliminary Examination of the Cost Savings and Learning Impacts of Using Open Textbooks in Middle and High School Science Classes
Author: Wiley, David
Date: 2012-06-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Adoption,Standardized Tests,Science Instruction,Science Teachers,Educational Resources,Textbooks,Science Education,Secondary School Science,Middle School Teachers,Secondary School Teachers,Comparative Analysis,Books,Electronic Publishing,Scores,Criterion Referenced Tests

Proponents of open educational resources claim that significant cost savings are possible when open textbooks displace traditional textbooks in the classroom. Over a period of two years, we worked with 20 middle and high school science teachers (collectively teaching approximately 3,900 students) who adopted open textbooks to understand the process and determine the overall cost of such an adoption. The teachers deployed open textbooks in multiple ways. Some of these methods cost more than traditional textbooks; however, we did identify and implement a successful model of open textbook adoption that reduces costs by over 50% compared to the cost of adopting traditional textbooks. In addition, we examined the standardized test scores of students using the open textbooks and found no apparent differences in the results of students who used open textbooks compared with previous years when the same teachers' students used traditional textbooks. However, given the limited sample of participating teachers, further investigation is needed. (Contains 8 tables and 2 figures.)
Using Self-Efficacy to Assess the Readiness of Nursing Educators and Students for Mobile Learning
Author: Kenny, Richard F.
Date: 2012-06-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Faculty,Self Efficacy,Foreign Countries,Electronic Learning,Nursing,Handheld Devices,Nursing Education,Technology Uses in Education,Case Studies,Educational Technology

The purpose of this study was to assess the self-efficacy of nursing faculty and students related to their potential use of mobile technology and to ask what implications this technology has for their teaching and learning in practice education contexts. We used a cross-sectional survey design involving students and faculty in two nursing education programs in a western Canadian college. In January, 2011, 121 faculty members and students completed the survey. Results showed a high level of ownership and use of mobile devices among our respondents. The median mobile self-efficacy score was 75 on a scale of 100, indicating that both faculty and students were highly confident in their use of mobile technologies and prepared to engage in mobile learning. (Contains 10 tables.)
Identification of Conflicting Questions in the PARES System
Author: Tsinakos, Avgoustos
Date: 2012-06-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Information Retrieval,Educational Testing,Continuing Education,Mathematics,Tests,Testing,Correlation,Adaptive Testing,Computer Assisted Testing,Electronic Learning,Equations (Mathematics)

Student testing and knowledge assessment is a significant aspect of the learning process. In a number of cases, it is expedient not to present the exact same test to all learners all the time (Pritchett, 1999). This may be desired so that cheating in the exam is made harder to carry out or so that the learners can take several practice tests on the same subject as part of the course. This study presents an e-testing platform, namely PARES, which aims to provide assessment services to academic staff by facilitating the creation and management of question banks and powering the delivery of nondeterministically generated test suites. PARES uses a conflict detection algorithm based on the vector space model to compute the similarity between questions and exclude questions which are deemed to have an unacceptably large similarity from appearing in the same test suite. The conflict detection algorithm and a statistical evaluation of its accuracy are presented. Evaluation results show that PARES succeeds in detecting question types at about 90% and its efficiency can be further increased through continuing education and enrichment of the system's correlation vocabulary. (Contains 1 table and 4 figures.)
Digital Literacies in Multiuser Virtual Environments among College-Level Developmental Readers
Author: Burgess, Melissa L.
Date: 2012-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Cohort Analysis,College Preparation,Low Achievement,Remedial Reading,Class Size,Computer Literacy,High Achievement,Cooperative Learning,Control Groups,Experimental Groups,Reading Achievement,Differences,Virtual Classrooms,Achievement Gains,Literacy,Higher Education

As the rate of developmental reading students continues to climb, so does the surge in digital platforms as a means to deliver postsecondary instruction. Students enrolled in developmental reading courses should not be assumed to have digital literacy skills simply because they have been termed a &quot;digitally literate generation.&quot; In this study, one digital technology--multiuser virtual environments (MUVEs)--provided a platform that allowed students to engage in learning opportunities congruent with digital literacy. Examined in this study were (a) the digital literacy skills of developmental readers, (b) the differences in digital literacies between developmental reading students who used a MUVE and those who did not, and (c) the behaviors exhibited by students indicating their degree of digital nativeness. Participants in the experimental group demonstrated digital literacy through reading activities and observations in the MUVE, Second Life, and made higher reading achievement gains over the control group. (Contains 2 tables.)
The Effects of Using a Critical Thinking Scoring Rubric to Assess Undergraduate Students' Reading Skills
Author: Leist, Cathy W.
Date: 2012-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Reading Achievement,Intervention,Reading Skills,Scoring Rubrics,Scoring,Critical Thinking,Undergraduate Students,Critical Reading,Prompting,Cues,Formative Evaluation,Outcome Measures,Achievement Gains,Achievement Rating

The purpose of this study was to investigate the use of a critical thinking rubric as an assessment of reading achievement for students enrolled in a reading intervention course. A reading prompt and scoring rubric, based on Richard Paul and Linda Elder's critical thinking framework, were created to assess critical reading in an intervention course. The prompt and rubric were used throughout the semester to provide formative reading assessment. The scoring rubric, which is responsive to reading as a cognitive process, was also used for precourse and postcourse assessment to provide a unique measure of reading achievement that incorporates the university's critical thinking initiative. A repeated measures design was used to assess the reading achievement of 164 students on five different reading prompts over the course of a fall semester. Results showed significantly higher postassessment rubric scores (p less than 0.001) and a significant change in rubric scores over time (p less than 0.05). (Contains 3 tables and 8 figures.)
In Search of the Right Book: Considerations in Common Read Book Selection
Author: Nadelson, Sandie G.
Date: 2012-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Reading Material Selection,Selection Criteria,Selection Tools,Educational Practices,Predictor Variables,Reading Programs,Student Development,Textbook Evaluation,Textbook Selection,College Programs

College and university adoption and use of books as common reads has increased over the last several years. The growing popularity has also brought to light significant variations in how colleges and universities select and use common read texts. In some higher educational institutions, one tome is selected for all freshmen to read and discuss primarily during the initial orientation program; such programs are often referred to as "freshman read" or "first-year read." Other institutions adopt a "common read," "campus read," or "one book" program, which involves selecting a book for the entire campus to read and discuss throughout the academic year. Regardless of how common reads are selected, implemented, or what they are called, there are a variety of goals that are consistent among common read practices. This article focuses on a discussion of several variables to consider that increase the chances of a successful common read program.
A Field-Based Deaf Education Teacher Training Model: Does It Make a Difference?
Author: Hadadian, Azar
Date: 2012-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Teaching Methods,Cultural Awareness,Deafness,Partial Hearing,Training Methods,Special Education Teachers,Participant Satisfaction,Field Experience Programs,Graduate Surveys,Residential Programs,Internship Programs,Questionnaires

This article provides professional perspective of a teacher-training model which relies heavily on an intensive, culturally immersive field experience for the teacher of the Deaf and hard of hearing. Survey results were based upon 21 past participants concerning their perceptions during their one-year internship experience at Indiana School for the Deaf (ISD). Formal and informal periodic evaluations of past ISD/BSU participants reinforced the author's perspectives that an intensive yearlong residential experience is critical for developing the linguistic, fluency, and cultural awareness that are not only vital but also indispensable for teachers of D/hh students. (This study does not intend to endorse any philosophy of the education of the Deaf. This study adopts an eclectic approach to teaching different philosophies for D/hh students.) (Contains 2 tables.)
A Vocabulary-Added Reading Intervention for English Learners At-Risk of Reading Difficulties
Author: Filippini, Alexis L.
Date: 2012-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Intervention,Semantics,Reading Difficulties,Second Language Learning,Emergent Literacy,Phonological Awareness,Vocabulary Development,At Risk Students,Intermode Differences,Spanish Speaking,English Language Learners,Control Groups,Experimental Groups,Morphology (Languages),Elementary School Students,Instructional Effectiveness,Effect Size,Achievement Gains,English Instruction

This study examined the added value of a vocabulary plus phonological awareness (vocab+) intervention against a phonological awareness (PA only) intervention only. The vocabulary intervention built networks among words through attention to morphological and semantic relationships. This supplementary classroom instruction augmented existing literacy curriculum in a 71 primarily Spanish-speaking English Learners (EL) in grade one, many &quot;at-risk&quot; of reading difficulty. Vocab+ lessons drew from expository text, and words were revisited throughout the program. The PA only group received a previously validated phonological awareness and decoding instruction with no vocabulary instruction. The treatment group (vocab+) spent 30% of the intervention on PA and decoding. Students demonstrated expected gains in vocabulary, while maintaining gains in phonological decoding equivalent to those of the PA only group. This study demonstrates initial justification for dedicating limited instructional minutes to vocabulary building in early literacy interventions while still dedicating a small portion of time to phonological awareness and decoding. (Contains 4 tables and 2 figures.)
Candidates of Written Language Disabilities among Undergraduate Students at the University of Jordan as Perceived by Students and Their Teachers
Author: Alkhamra, Hatem A.
Date: 2012-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Faculty,Reading Instruction,Written Language,Language Impairments,Foreign Countries,Handwriting,Sentence Structure,Undergraduate Students,Higher Education

This study aimed to explore writing problems among undergraduate students at the university level, based on students self reporting technique and the verification from their teachers' ratings. Twenty-eight students were considered good candidates for this research using two criteria of self reporting and high means of responses. Twenty-five faculty members teaching the previous sample were asked to fill in a similar survey conveying the current level of writing for the selected student. Results revealed four categories of handwriting problem; handwriting, sentence structure, vocabulary and spelling, and written expression. In addition, high agreement of written language problems from the perspective of both students and faculty members were also observed. A discussion of the results and implications for written language problems at the University of Jordan are provided. (Contains 4 tables.)
Curriculum Policies for Students with Special Needs in Australia
Author: Aspland, Tania
Date: 2012-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Curriculum Development,Foreign Countries,Special Needs Students,State Standards,Educational Policy,Accessibility (for Disabled),Curriculum Evaluation,Curriculum Research,Policy Analysis,Educational Objectives,Position Papers,Relevance (Education)

The curriculum policies for students with special needs across Australia have been reviewed. The Curriculum Framework in the Australian Capital Territory is used to inform their school based curriculum. The Northern Territory Curriculum Framework describes what learners are expected to achieve and what learners have achieved. The New South Wales and Western Australian Curriculum Framework identifies some essential and fundamental learning in each subject area and common outcomes for all students. The Tasmanian curriculum is organised into areas and standards, the areas being content based. The Queensland Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Framework is based on a set of essential learnings embedded within standards across all key subjects. The South Australian Curriculum, Standards and Accountability Framework are also based on essential learnings constituting of a series of expected outcomes in each subject area. The Victorian Essential Learning Standards outlines a set of common state-wide standards which schools use to plan student learning programs. In spite of each of the state and territory government's commitment towards inclusion, as manifested in the curricular provisions, the present review surfaces the lack of specialised documentation for these discrete group of learners.
Design of a Generic Questionnaire for Reflective Evaluation of a Virtual Reality-Based Intervention Using Virtual Dolphins for Children with Autism
Author: Chia, Noel Kok Hwee
Date: 2012-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Disabilities,Special Education,Intervention,Autism,Foreign Countries,Special Needs Students,Computer Simulation,Research and Development,Questionnaires,Information Technology,Children,Evaluation,Pervasive Developmental Disorders

There is an alarming increase in more Singaporean children diagnosed with special needs and it could be attributed to higher awareness and better screening procedure. However, research and development on various intervention strategies for children with special needs is still very lacking. With the introduction of information and communication technology, a wide range of useful intervention tools are now available to both special education professionals and parents with disabled children. In particular, interest in virtual reality (VR) within the domain of special education community is on the rise as reflected in a growing number of special issues of journals on this subject. VR offers a new channel to reach out to individuals with special needs such as cerebral palsy and autism. However, its effectiveness in intervention for such individuals has not been fully explored. In this paper, the authors have collaborated with a research team of the Pink Dolphin Simulation project at the Institute for Media Innovation, Singapore, to design a generic questionnaire for VR researchers and special education professionals to use in evaluating reflectively the possible benefits a VR-based intervention can offer. In this case, the VR-based intervention using the specially designed virtual dolphins was used for reflective evaluation. (Contains 4 figures.)
Dolphin Encounter for Special Children (DESC) Program: Effectiveness of Dolphin-Assisted Therapy for Children with Autism
Author: MdYusof, Mohamad Shaifudin Bin
Date: 2012-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Therapy,Interpersonal Relationship,Animals,Autism,Foreign Countries,Disabilities,Young Children,Outcomes of Treatment

Autism is a neuro-developmental syndrome of constitutional origin and whose cause could also be epigenetic, and its onset is usually around first three years of birth, with empathizing deficits that result in a triad of impairments in communication, social interaction, and imagination (or presence of stereotyped behaviors), but may, on the other hand, display or hide a strong systemizing drive that accounts for a distinct triad of strengths in good attention to detail, deep narrow interests, and islets of ability. In this study, 15 children (ten boys and five girls, aged between 9 and 10 years) with high-functioning autistic disorder underwent a 12-month Dolphin Encounter for Special Children (DESC) Program conducted by the Underwater World Singapore at the Dolphin Lagoon in Sentosa. Indo-pacific humpback dolphins were used in this dolphin-assisted therapy. A pre-/post-treatment design was used to determine if the 15 subjects showed significant improvement in the reduction of their autistic symptoms after they had completed the program. The results suggested that the subjects showed a significant reduction in stereotyped behaviors and a significant improvement in communication and social interaction. With a good effect size (d), their mean AQ remained within the average range for typical individuals with autism. (Contains 4 tables.)
Effect of Rhythmic Auditory Stimulation on Controlling Stepping Cadence of Individuals with Mental Retardation and Cerebral Palsy
Author: Varsamis, Panagiotis
Date: 2012-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Exercise,Stimulation,Metabolism,Cerebral Palsy,Mental Retardation,Auditory Stimuli,Disabilities,Secondary School Students,Motion,Foreign Countries

One of the purposes of Rhythmic Auditory Stimulation (RAS) is to improve the control of dysfunctional movement patterns. This study aimed to extend the line of research by focussing on secondary students with mental retardation and cerebral palsy. According to the study's assumption, cadence can be controlled through a stable and low signal cadence to the benefit of endurance during an aerobic exercise on a stair stepper. Two conditions (&quot;Do your best&quot; and &quot;RAS&quot;) were applied in a Latin square design. Results show that in the RAS condition, as compared to the &quot;Do your best&quot; condition, students significantly decreased their cadence, increased their training duration, kept their heart rate between the bounds suggested for aerobic exercise and decreased their intra-individual standard deviations in both cadence and heart rate per minute. The researchers suggest that a variable signal cadence could have an even greater effect on exercise duration. (Contains 4 tables.)
Effects of a Teacher Training Programme on Symptoms of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
Author: Froelich, Jan
Date: 2012-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder,Statistical Analysis,Control Groups,Teacher Education Programs,Intervention,Public Schools,Elementary Schools,Symptoms (Individual Disorders),Screening Tests,Anxiety Disorders,Classroom Techniques,Behavior Modification,Teaching Skills,Behavior Problems,Program Effectiveness,Elementary School Teachers

A substantial lack of effective school based interventions especially in the natural setting exists in the treatment of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. We performed a 18-week teacher training programme in a public elementary school with 378 pupils in 16 classes. After completing a screening assessment for symptoms related to ADHD and to Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) we identified 47 students and assigned them non-randomized together with their teachers to either an intervention or control group. Over 12 weeks teachers were given intensive information on ADHD and ODD on a weekly basis, including basic principles of behavioural management, classroom-relevant didactic aspects. Elements of behaviour modification were implemented in the school lessons. Results after statistical analysis indicated significant treatment effects on ADHD and ODD symptoms. We conclude that teacher training programmes may be helpful in improving teachers' skills in addressing attentional and disruptive behavioural problems in the classroom. (Contains 3 tables and 3 figures.)
Exploring Computer and Storybook Interventions for Children with High Functioning Autism
Author: Armstrong, Teresa Kay
Date: 2012-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Independent Living,Written Language,Autism,Early Intervention,Listening Comprehension,Intervention,Children,Special Education,Computers,Computer Assisted Instruction

Comprehension is a crucial academic skill that is necessary for independent living. Unfortunately many children with autism often exhibit difficulties being able to interpret and comprehend written language. There is limited research on effective comprehension practices to enhance the comprehension development of children with autism. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of two repeated reading interventions (computer and storybook) on the comprehension of five children with autism. Findings indicated that several of the children performed better than would otherwise have been expected for both interventions. Neither of the computer or storybook interventions showed to be more beneficial than the other, indicating that these interventions may both be effective in increasing some children's listening comprehension of text. (Contains 3 tables and 1 figure.)