Beyond Amplification: Using the Computer to Reorganize Mental Functioning
Computers are classically viewed as amplifiers of cognition. An alternative conceptualization is offered of computer as reorganizer of mental functioning. Software analyses illuminate the advantages of the latter approach for new visions of the potential cognitive benefits of computers. A new result emerges: Because the cognitive technologies we invent serve as instruments of cultural redefinition (shaping who we are by changing, not just amplifying, what we do), defining educational values beco
Learning Objects 2: Standards, Metadata, Repositories, and LCMS
This book is the second in a four-volume series. It builds upon the first volume by taking an extended and in-depth look at theorists' and practitioners' efforts to consolidate current knowledge and praxis. This consolidation centers around conceptual and technological issues related to standards, metadata, repositories, and the concept of the LCMS (Learning Content Management System). Part I contains six chapters that focus upon LO concepts vis-Ã -vis architecture. A discussion of syntax, seman
A Method for Creating Collaborative Mobile Learning Trails
In this paper I report results from recent trials in which students used mobile devices to collaboratively create, edit and share trails. These included 9- to 10-year-olds as well as adult diploma students, in the subject of horticulture in botanic gardens. Findings indicate that a narrow subject focus and a manageable amount of data capture are appropriate in most cases; trails are most effective when framed with structured tasks and a narrow focus. Structure can be introduced through the use o
Computational Mathetics: Towards a Science of Learning Systems Design
The aim of this report is simply to help put the design of computer-based systems to support learning on a more scientific footing. The aim is simply stated, but its achievement is more difficult. For one thing, it is not at all obvious what "more scientific" means in this context. However, it is essential for AI-ED research to take better account of the concepts of 'situation', 'context', 'community', 'discourse', 'social learning', and so on, but these terms need to be defined, not used as man
How GRID could improve E-Learning in the environmental science domain
This paper will outline the requirements for an interactive e-learning system defined as part of the German research project GIMOLUS [1].
After a short overview over the Open Grid Service Architecture (OGSA) it will be shown that the capabilities of existing e-learning solutions are too limited in order to fulfil these requirements.
The last part will show how a GIMOLUS system could be built using a GRID service architecture and what the benefits are in doing so.
Scripting argumentative knowledge construction in computer-supported learning environments
Computer-supported collaborative learning (CSCL) environments may encourage
learners to engage in argumentative knowledge construction. Argumentative
knowledge construction means that learners work together to elaborate on
concepts by constructing arguments and counterarguments. This is achieved
through discourse with the goal of acquiring knowledge within a specific domain.
However, learners may encounter problems relating to one of three dimensions
of argumentative knowledge construction. Firs
Pedagogical approaches for technology-integrated science teaching
The two separate projects described have examined how teachers exploit computer-based technologies in supporting learning of science at secondary level. This paper examines how pedagogical approaches associated with these technological tools are adapted to both the cognitive and structuring resources available in the classroom setting. Four teachers participated in the first study, undertaken as part of the InterActive Education project in Bristol; all of them used multimedia simulations in thei
PDAs and Handhelds: ICT at your side and not in your face
This paper stems from a trial at the Graduate School of Education in the University of Bristol supported by the Training and Development Agency for Schools (TDA) and set up to evaluate the potential of personal digital assistants with internet access to support initial teacher training (ITT) students in science.
Fourteen students were given PDAs selected to represent the range of then currently available PDAs with mobile phone connectivity in the UK. As a result the following areas were identifi
Les logiciels d'apprentissage : panoplie ou éventail ?
The main goal of this article is to elaborate a typology in the domain of computer-supported
learning. The first problem that has to be addressed concerns the diversity of computer-supported
learning programs and the multiple ways in which one could classify them. The proposed typology
is based on the pedagogical function aimed at by the teachers or designers. Moreover, we propose
a characterisation on three aspects : the tasks proposed to the learners, the theoretical viewpoint
underlying the d
Læring i praksis - fremstruktureringen af et
handlingsorienteret perspektiv
Introduktionen præsenterer afhandlingens emnemæssige baggrund, problemformulering og
metode. Den traditionelle angelsaksiske erkendelsesteoretiske opfattelse af viden hævdes at
have komplementære modpoler i læringsteorierne behaviorisme og kognitivisme. Disse
positioner problematiseres med eksempler fra hverdagsmæssige sammenhænge såvel som
med en række forskningsmæssige resultater. På baggrund heraf fremsættes problemformuleringen,
som lyder:
Er det muligt at udvikle et begreb om vi
Insight into Practical Utilization of Knowledge Management Technologies
The focus of knowledge management (KM) has shifted in the last few years towards the ways in which knowledge is created and shared. Nevertheless, KM technologies continue to be an important issue in KM practices. The present paper focuses on the technological solutions applied in the organizations at different stages of the knowledge management life cycle. On the bases of an overview of the knowledge management tools and technologies, the paper emphasizes on the most popular KM applications foun
Implementation of ICT in Higher Education as Interacting Activity Systems
Implementation of ICT in higher education is not a trivial process. It is however a process leading to a number
of challenges and problems. The paper develops a theoretical model of the implementation of ICT in higher
education based on activity theory and on a case study in a Danish university. The model suggest that
implementation in itself is an activity system. The implementation activity is composed of three processes:
Selection of ICT; adaptation of ICT and change of practice with ICT. Fur
The use of Collaborative Virtual Environments to provide student’s contextualisation in programmin
Experience has shown that one of the biggest difficulties that students find while learning programming languages is the understanding of its abstract concepts, and this difficulty translates into a lack of motivation for learning. We propose the use of a collaborative virtual environment to allow students to program within the context of a business-like professional programming environment, akin to that found in a software house, in order to make abstract concepts and requirements more concrete
Developing Interactive Learning Environments that can be used by all the classes having access to co
Our research team has developed and experimented software for the learning of algebra, named Aplusix, with the idea of being usable and useful for all the classes having access to computers, and of helping teachers to teach the curriculum. In this paper, we list 19 principles that we consider relevant to this goal and we briefly describe the Aplusix system. This system is distributed in France since early 2005 and will be distributed in many countries from 2006. It has proven to be efficient (st
Designing to see and share structure in number sequences
This paper reports on a design experiment in the
domain of number sequences conducted in the course of
the WebLabs project. We iteratively designed and tested a
set of activities and tools in which 10-14 year old students
used the ToonTalk programming environment to construct
models of sequences and series, and then shared their
models and their observations about them utilising a webbased
collaboration system. We report on the evolution of
a design pattern (programming method) called ‘StreamsÂ
Overview of e-learning standards
The following article presents an overview of the different standards developing in the
eLearning sector.
As any new technology, eLearning and its various functionalities need to be underpinned by a
standard reference schema. The existence of such a standard is mandatory for the
development of a new technology, as it allows the interoperability of resources that would
otherwise be incompatible. Interoperability is the keyword here, and its lack is the main
barrier to resource exchange and sharin
Using computers to learn logic: undergraduates' experiences
Learning formal logic can be difficult for many students. This paper describes some ongoing research into a computer program designed to help computer science undergraduates learn the natural deduction style of formal reasoning. Data collection methods included observation and videotaping of workshops, interviews, written tests, surveys, and logging of program usage. The paper focuses on students' experiences using the program to assist proof construction. It was found that videotaping students
A comparison of preferred learning styles, approaches and methods between information science and co
In recent years the two disciplines of Information and Library Studies and Computing Science have drawn closer together to the extent that now there are several Universities where they are combined in a single school of Information and Computing Science or Informatics. Currently, a single Higher Education Academy Subject Centre serves the two disciplines. However, there are marked differences between the disciplines observable immediately in the gender balance of their respective undergraduate c
Inventory of inquiry learning programs - updated version
Deliverable 18.1.2 presents the updated version of the inventory of inquiry learning programs of the Computer supported inquiry learning SIG. The aim of the inventory is to develop an exhaustive overview of applications, tools, web environments, and resources in the field of inquiry learning. The complete inventory is available on the website of the SIG (http://kaleidoscope.gw.utwente.nl/SIG.IL/). The present Deliverable (18.1.2) provides a description the changes that have been made and the mat
Do partners care about their mutual location? Spatial awareness in virtual environments
This paper reports on four experimental studies concerning regard to how people use space so as to solve problems collaboratively in virtual environments. Prior to presenting the results, it summarizes the wide range of literature concerning social uses of spatiality in human interactions. The experiments we conducted revealed that virtual space modifies and improves collaborative processes such as division of labor, grounding, communication, coordination, as well as the performance to the task.
