Techknowlogia Journal 2001 Mac April

TM
Volume 3, Issue 2 March/April 2001
This issue is co-sponsored by:

UNESCO; Academy for Educational Development; Educational Testing Service
The contents of this Issue do not necessarily reflect the policies or the views of the co-sponsors or their affiliates
Thematic Focus: Technology for Science and Mathematics Education
5 Touching the Untouchable

Wadi D. Haddad, Editor
ICTs may be the only way to recapture the real world of science and mathematics and reopen it to the
learner. They can animate, simulate, capture reality, add movement to static concepts, and extend our touch
to the whole universe.
7 New Trends in Science and Mathematics Education

Our understanding of the nature of learning and of science and mathematics is shifting and resulting in
more effective science and mathematics education programs.
10 Capacity Building for Science and Math Education

Molly Teas, Consultant to the Program for Capacity Building in Science, and Yoshiko Koda, World Bank
This article explores the gap between the world of scientists and that of science education in developing
countries and introduces a program that is attempting to bridge this gap.
14 The Potential of Technologies for the Enhancement of Science and Mathematics Teaching and
Learning
Wadi Haddad and Sonia Jurich
The authors review the potential of technologies in motivating learning, decoding concepts, reinforcing the
basics, applying knowledge, enhancing exploration, bringing the world into the classroom and creating
collaborative environments.
! 1 ! TechKnowLogia, March/April, 2001 © Knowledge Enterprise, Inc. www.TechKnowLogia.org

19 TechKnowNews
♦ Firm Introduces Nigerian Translation Software ♦ Classrooms Go Paperless in Omaha ♦ US-Based Online
MBA Programs for Lebanese Students ♦ Under-Privileged South Africa School Enters Technological Age ♦
Sylvan International Universities (SIU) Announces Global University Network ♦
21 The Jason Project: The Search for the Golden Fleece

Bram Duchovnay, JASON Project Content Manager
The Jason Project was created to encourage scientists and students to collaborate on research expeditions
using advanced communications technologies. This article describes this project and the benefits it has
brought to all involved.
25 Learning by Doing Science: Two Internet-Based Cases

Editorial Staff
Information and communication technologies provide the tools for a “learning by doing” strategy that
increases students’ awareness of science as a lively and highly relevant subject. This article presents two
examples of Internet-based collaborative environments for science education using the “learning by doing”
approach: GLOBE and CSILE.
27 International Virtual Education Network (IVEN) for the Enhancement of Science and Math
Learning in Latin America
Wadi D. Haddad, Coordinating Adviser, IVEN
IVEN is a pilot collaborative cross-country project in Latin America that aims to harness the potential of
information and communication technologies by combining conceptions of effective learning with appropriate
computer, video and communication technologies.
30 Science Literacy: Project 2061/AAAS Experiences in Panama

Fernando Cajas, Project 2061, American Association for the Advancement of Science
The article outlines efforts in reforming science, mathematics, and technology education and describes the
kind of professional development programs that Project 2061 has designed for Panama and the plans for
scaling up such programs at a national level.
34 The IMMEX Project: Technology for Problem-Solving

Anais Dyer, IMMEX Project and Ron Stevens, Ph.D. Director, IMMEX Project
The IMMEX project offers an innovative, problem-solving software system that is designed to pose complex,
real-life problems to students, for which there are multiple solution pathways.
36 Realizing the Possibilities: A Technology-Assisted Learning Center at Universidad Mayor de

San Andrés, La Paz, Bolivia
Kelly Curran, Natalie Maier, and Theresa Norton, JHPIEGO
"For Maria Elena, the TALC is a window to the world, allowing her to access up-to-date medical articles and
e-mail family and friends. Her education and personal satisfaction have taken a quantum leap."

39 Web-based Simulations for Science and Math Instruction
Gregg B. Jackson, Associate Professor & Coordinator, Education Policy Program, and John Jones, Master’s
Degree Student, George Washington University
This article explores the advantages, forms, uses and costs of web-based simulations, and provides 8
examples of simulations for mathematics and science instruction.
42 Computer Drill and Practice Tutorials: Are They Effective?

Sonia Jurich
This article reviews evaluation studies of effectiveness of Computer-Assisted Instruction (CAI) and explores
the question of whether computer tutorials should be adopted.
45 Interactive Radio Instruction for Mathematics: Applications and Adaptations from Around
the World
Andrea Bosch, Education Development Center
Fourteen applications of IRI in mathematics have been developed in 12 countries worldwide. The author
reviews these programs, their evolution, their effectiveness in terms of learning gains, outreach, and decrease
in gender gaps, and their cost-effectiveness.
52 Evaluating Computer and Web Instruction: New Opportunities

Gregg B. Jackson, Associate Professor & Coordinator, Education Policy Program, George Washington
University
The technologies underlying computer and Web instruction offer new opportunities to ascertain the actual
instruction taking place with computers or the Web and new means of measuring the student outcomes.
55 Sources of Objective Assessment of Web and Multi-media Learning Materials in Science and
Mathematics
Norma Garcia and Laurence Wolff, Inter-American Development Bank
This article describes some web sites that offer non-commercial, objective judgement of the quality of web-
and software-based science and mathematics educational materials.
57 sciLINKS: The World’s a Click Away

Tyson Brown, Manager, National Science Teachers Association
sciLINKS, an innovative initiative by the National Science Teachers Association, harnesses the power of the
Internet by linking relevant, age-appropriate, peer-reviewed Web pages to the pages of science textbooks by
placing sciLINKS icons and codes in textbook margins at key subject areas.

60 WorthWhileWebs
Sonia Jurich
This issue of TechKnowLogia presents selected Math and Science web sties of interest to readers of all
ages. These sites cover the spectrum of simulations, animations, problem solving, lesson plans, exhibits, and
related links in English, Spanish, French, Italian, and Chinese.
63 Animation: Breathing Life into Objects

Rafael Chargel
Animation has progressed extensively since the coming of the digital revolution. Animation software comes in
a variety of forms; each configured toward a highly specialized need. This article explores several varieties of
animation software and their uses.
65 AED/LearnLink: Affordable Access to Modern ICTs in Bulgaria

The Academy for Educational Development (AED) LearnLink project describes, in this article, the
development of Public Computer and Communication Centers (PC3s) in Bulgaria, the desired outcomes, and
challenges faced.
67 Distance Education for Basic Education in the E-9 Countries

Teresa Murtagh, UNESCO
This article summarizes a study on the use of distance education in the nine high-population countries (E-9)
to achieve basic education for all.
70 A Western Caribbean Profile: Innovating with ICT on a Shoe-String

Errol Miller, Professor of Teacher Education and Director of the Institute of Education, University of the West
Indies, Mona
The Joint Board of Teacher Education of the Western caribbean, identified information and communication
technologies as a critical resource to improve the quality of teacher education through the better
management of their operations. This article describes the development of a College Manager Information
System and database - conceived and executed with no external assistance - and the experiences gained
and lessons learned.
Editorial Calendar for Year 2001

YEAR 2001
January/ March/ May/ July/ September/ November/
February April June August October December
Management Science and Math e-Learning for Social Studies Early Childhood Language
of Education Education the Work Place Development and Education
Systems Parental
Education

Wadi D. Haddad, Editor
Touching the Untouchable!

The Future is Changing • All graduates need the ability to integrate knowledge
from different disciplines and apply them to the solution
As we enter the 21st century, countries, institutions and indi- of real-life problems, in a society that is becoming more
viduals are facing daunting economic, social and develop- technologically sophisticated and dependent.
mental challenges. The workplace is becoming more knowl-
edge and technology based. But knowledge itself, both basic Not What It Should Be
and applied, is being generated very fast and is growing ex-
ponentially. More new information has been produced Science and mathematics are supposed to provide conceptual
within the last three decades, than in the last five millennia. and technological tools that allow people to describe and
We should be poised for dramatic scientific advances and explain how the world works with power and precision, and
break-throughs in the macro-frontiers of the universe on the to achieve a richer understanding and appreciation of the
one hand, and microscopic secrets of the human body on the world they experience. Unfortunately though, school condi-
other hand – and everything in between. tions, in most cases, have reduced the wonderful, dynamic
and multidimensional world of science into flat texts,
But not all generated knowledge is at the sophisticated lev- scripted demonstrations and occasional cookbook experi-
els. We should expect similar developments in areas related ments. Similarly, the world of mathematical constructs, con-
to everyday life and to the marketplace. In fact, all facets of cepts and relationships has been transformed into drill and
society are becoming knowledge dependent. Moreover, par- practice of computations and abstract problems.
ticipation in a modern technological world necessitates a
significant level of scientific and technological understand- What It Could Be
ing. This applies to all areas of everyday living, including
banking, business transactions, health services, transportation
vehicles, home appliances, utilities, communication and in- The integration of modern information and communication
formation exchange. technologies (ICTs) into the teaching/learning process of
science and mathematics may be the only way to recapture
the real world of science and mathematics and reopen it to
Science and Math for All the learner. ICTs, properly developed and integrated into
instructional activities have the potential to:
A cursory analysis of these challenges quickly points to the
crucial role of school science and mathematics in meeting • Allow materials to be presented in multiple media for
them. What is not always obvious is the need to enhance multi-channel learning;
science and mathematics teaching and learning for every • Motivate and engage students in the learning process;
citizen: • Bring abstract concepts to life;
• Enhance critical thinking and other higher levels of cog-
• College-bound graduates need a solid scientific and nitive skills and processes;
technological foundation that compares well with inter- • Provide opportunities for students to practice basic skills
national standards, to serve as preparation for speciali- on their own time and pace;
zation in these fields and for the creation of a cadre of • Allow students to utilize the information acquired to
scientists, innovators and managers of transfer of knowl- solve problems, formulate new problems, and explain
edge and technology; the world around them;
• Graduates entering the market place need the necessary • Provide for access to scientific research, researchers and
knowledge and skills to function in the workplace and databases;
the tools to access, assess, adopt and apply new knowl-
• Bring the world into the classroom in the most cost-
edge acquired through conventional and advanced
effective (and in some cases the only) way; and
means to apply in new jobs;
• Offer (via Internet) teachers and students a platform
through which they can communicate with colleagues

from distant places, exchange work, develop research,
and function as if there were no geographical bounda- TechKnowLogia™
ries. Published by
Knowledge Enterprise, Inc.
Virtual Labs
In editorial collaboration with
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Or-
All school systems want to provide labs because science is ganization (UNESCO )
empirical. But few schools have them, fewer have them Organization for Economic Co-operation
equipped and fewer yet are willing to risk using them. Tech- and Development (OECD )
nology allows for video and digital demonstrations as well as EDITOR-IN-CHIEF:
digital simulations of lab activities in a very real manner - Wadi D. Haddad, President, Knowledge Enterprise, Inc.
but without the risks and costs associated with lab experi-
ments. Simulations of science lab experiments could also use INTERNATIONAL ADVISORY BOARD:
Gajaraj Dhanarajan, President & CEO,
real data. Datalogging is a type of software that enables the The Commonwealth of Learning
use of actual sensors and probes connected to the computer. Dee Dickenson, CEO, New Horizons for Learning
Rather than feeding the information manually to the com- Alexandra Draxler, Director, Task force on Education for
puter, the sensor directly uploads the measurement, thus re- the Twenty-first Century (UNESCO)
Jacques Hallak, Ass't. Director-General/Education ,
ducing the margin of error, and reproducing a situation that is UNESCO
closer to an actual experiment. Pedro Paulo Poppovic, Secretary of Distance Education,
Federal Ministry of Education, Brazil
Computer simulations are particularly helpful for learning Nicholas Veliotes, President Emeritus,
Association of American Publishers
science in the following situations: Jarl Bengtsson, Head, CERI, OEDC
• Experiments that are too risky, expensive or time con- ADVISORY EDITORIAL COMMITTEE:
Joanne Capper, Sr. Education Specialist, World Bank
suming to be conducted in a school laboratory, such as Claudio Castro, Chief Education Adviser, IDB
those involving volatile gases; Gregg Jackson, Assoc. Prof., George Washington Univ.
• “Tidy” experiments that require precision so that stu- James Johnson, Deputy Director, GIIC
dents can see patterns and trends; students may not be Frank Method, Dir., Washington Office, UNESCO
Laurence Wolff, Sr. Consultant, IDB
able to achieve the necessary precision without simula- Mary Fontaine, LearnLink, AED
tion tools; Sonia Jurich, Consultant
• Experiments that break the laws of nature, such as ex-
ploring kinematics collisions that violate conservation of MANAGING EDITOR:
Sandra Semaan
momentum law; and
• When ethical issues are at stake, such as in the case of GENERAL QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS
some biology experiments. FEEDBACK ON ARTICLES
EDITORIAL MATTERS:
TechKnowLogia@KnowledgeEnterprise.org
Simulations should not totally replace hands-on activities.
They should rather prepare the learner to conduct real-life SPONSORSHIP AND ADVERTISING
experiments - in the same manner that flight simulations pre- Sandra@KnowledgeEnterprise.org
pare the student-pilot for test flying.
ADDRESS AND FAX
Knowledge Enterprise, Inc.
Beyond Replication P.O. Box 3027
Oakton, VA 22124
U.S.A.
If technology-enhanced programs are taped classrooms, Fax: 703-242-2279
digital texts and PowerPoint transparencies, then we are
missing on the tremendous potential of technologies that can This Issue is Co-Sponsored By:
animate, simulate, capture reality, add movement to static
UNESCO,
concepts, and extend our touch to the whole universe. With Academy for Educational Development (AED),
imagination and appropriate tools, we can steal the thunder Educational Testing Service (ETS)
and touch the lightening!
Wadi D. Haddad

Nature of Student Learning
Studies in cognitive psychology and brain science have
identified several principles with significant implications
Research and experience have consis- for the teaching of science and mathematics:2
tently shown that the teaching of basic
facts, laws and theories alone, no mat- • Learning engages the entire physiology, and some
ter how successful, does not meet the aspects of how the brain is wired are affected by experi-
ence;
pedagogical and societal demands for
science and mathematics education in • Learning is influenced and organized by emotions and
a sustainable manner, nor do class- mind-sets based on expectancy, personal biases and preju-
dices, degree of self-esteem, and the need for social inter-
rooms structured around a behavioral
action;
learning theory in which teaching was
telling and learning was memorizing. • Memory is organized both spatially (allowing for “in-
Our understanding of the nature of stant” memory of experiences that build upon one another)
and through a set of systems for rote learning;
learning and of science and mathemat-
ics is shifting and resulting in more • Humans possess a need to make sense of the environ-
effective science and mathematics ment, and understand and remember best when facts and
education programs.1 skills are embedded in natural, spatial memory, or ordinary
experiences. Further, the search for meaning takes place
by “patterning” or attempts to meaningfully organize and
categorize information;
• The brain downshifts under perceived threats and learns optimally when appropriately challenged;
• Concepts are learned best when they arise in a variety of contexts, are represented in a variety of ways, and when students
have a chance to use the concepts on authentic tasks;
• Learning to do well involves practice in doing. Students cannot learn to think critically, analyze information, communicate
scientific ideas, make logical arguments, work as part of a team, and acquire other desirable skills unless they are permit-
ted and encouraged to do those things over and over in many contexts; and,
• Effective learning requires feedback. Students must be able to feel free to express ideas and to receive analysis and com-
ment from their peers. Such feedback helps students reflect on their ideas and performance, and see relationships among
items of knowledge and test their validity.
Nature of Scientific Knowledge

Our understanding of the nature of scientific knowledge is shifting. The notion of science as a collection of facts and proc-
esses is now replaced by one in which science provides conceptual and technological tools that allow people to describe and
explain how the world works with power and precision, and to achieve a richer understanding and appreciation of the world
they experience. Thus the science classroom is transformed into an inquiry-based culture - a community of explorers - where

curiosity, creativity, and questioning are valued, where resources and opportunities are made readily available, and where stu-
dents can "work" like scientists engaged in the process of collective sense-making.
Instructional Implications
These new understandings are leading to enhanced instructional programs in sciences that have the following characteristics:
• Hands-on: Students are actually allowed to perform science (directly and vicariously) as they construct meaning and ac-
quire understanding. It takes these subjects out of the realm of the magical or extraordinary.
• Minds-on: Activities focus on core concepts, allowing students to develop higher-order thinking processes and skills, and
encouraging them to question and seek answers that enhance their knowledge and thereby acquire an understanding of the
physical universe in which they live.
• Reality-on: Students are presented with problem-solving activities that incorporate authentic, real-life questions and issues
in a format that encourages drawing on multi-disciplinary knowledge, collaborative effort, dialogue with informed expert
sources, and generalization to broader ideas and application. The objective is to promote students’ insight into the real sci-
entific, technological, business and every-day world, and the skills needed to live and work effectively.
Foundations of Mathematics Education

The enhancement of mathematics education has followed a path similar to that of science. For decades, behaviorism was (and
in many places still is) the predominant foundation for mathematics teaching: building "bonds" between a mathematical
stimulus and a response (the correct answer). Thus drill and practice on math facts and computation, thought to "strengthen"
the bonds between questions and responses, became the chief mode of instruction. With the advancements in cognitive science,
outlined above, the view of math changed from "numbers and computations" to "math as problem solving," leading to the fol-
lowing major shifts in math education:
Drill and Practice View Problem Solving View

Research Base Behaviorism Cognitive Sciences
Goals of Math Mastery of isolated facts and skills Understanding of mathematical

Instruction concepts to apply to new problem
situations
Goals of Learning Applying computation skills and Problem solving; understanding

memorizing math facts to get the the conceptual nature of the prob-
right answer lem, knowing when to employ
skills and facts as tools to solve the
problem
Views of Learner Passive; vessel receiving knowledge Active; connecting prior knowledge
from external sources to new formal knowledge

Implications for Math Teaching/Learning
Important findings from cognitive research have had the following implications for math teaching:
Principle Implications
Thinking is a continual process and is fundamental to Instruction should provide opportunities for thinking
learning mathematics. The development of mathematical and reasoning throughout the math curriculum; basic
thinking does not linearly follow the acquisition of basic skills instruction should not be separated from thinking
skills. skills instruction; if students practice skills before they
understand the underlying concepts, they will have
difficulty learning the conceptual knowledge later and
lack the power to use mathematics.
Thinking and knowledge are not separate components of Students must be provided opportunities to construct
mathematical competency but rather are highly related. mathematical knowledge through thinking and rea-
The quality of mathematical thinking and reasoning is de- soning, and to think and reason with their mathemati-
pendent on what one knows, and the development of what cal knowledge, as they attempt to make sense of their
one knows is dependent on mathematical thinking. experiences through real world problem solving.
Students actively construct knowledge through doing and Instruction should help students understand mathe-
problem solving rather than by passively assimilating infor- matical concepts rather than just give them isolated
mation from the teacher and textbook. facts and procedures. Students should solve problems
in order to construct formal mathematics knowledge
(e.g. representing physical events with algebraic sym-
bolism).
Problems are solved in various ways and knowledge is of- Students should be encouraged to solve mathematical
ten constructed by groups of people. problems collaboratively, listen to and challenge each
other, and value different problem solving approaches.
Instructional Implications
Just as in science, these understandings are leading to enhanced instructional mathematics programs that have the following
characteristics:
• Hands-on, involving students in really doing mathematics - experimenting first-hand with physical and simulated objects
and mathematical constructs before learning abstract mathematical concepts.
• Minds-on, focusing on the core concepts and critical thinking processes and skills needed for students to create and re-
create mathematical concepts and relationships in their own minds.
• Reality-on, allowing students to explore, discover, discuss, and meaningfully construct mathematical concepts and rela-
tionships in contexts that involve real-world problems and projects that are relevant and interesting to the learner.
Benefits
A hands-on, minds-on and reality-on approach makes science and math education:
• Engaging in the sense that students are involved in the learning process and not viewed simply as “receptacles” for
knowledge;
• Authentic, since what they are learning has meaning to them as individuals, as members of society, and as workers in the
market place; and,
• Sustainable in the sense that the students are quipped with modern tools for life-long learning.
1
Some parts of this article have benefited from materials posted on NCREL’s web site: http://www.ncrel.org
2
Mindshifts: A Brain-based Process for Restructuring Schools and Renewing Education, by Geoffrey Caine, Renate Nummela
Caine, and Sam Crowell, Tucson: Zephyr Press, 1994.

Molly Teas and Yoshiko Koda1
If you ask policy makers and education planners whether
science and mathematics education is important for the social In contrast, students in 17 countries scored lower than the
and economic development of their nation, you will probably international average in mathematics and students in 15
hear a resounding 'yes'. But science and mathematics are countries scored lower than the international average in sci-
perceived as two of the most difficult subjects to teach and to ence. Although these low scoring countries include some
learn. Both developing and industrialized countries are upper-middle and high-income countries, most of them are
working to improve the quality of primary and secondary low to lower-middle income countries (IEA 2000).
science and mathematics education, yet many of them have
not met with great success. The developing country participation in TIMSS-R (origi-
nated in 1999) is still relatively low, so we can only make an
Science and mathematics education would seem to benefit inference from these scores. However, the results seem to
from links between scientists and educators. Yet, especially imply relatively weak scientific and mathematical literacy in
in developing countries, the isolation of scientists from each developing countries. The necessity of a reexamination of
other and from educators and international networks, and the science education methods and the structure of science edu-
lack of institutional ties between scientists and educators cation in these countries has never been more important.
means that a tremendous opportunity to improve education is
being lost. Inadequate Teacher Preparation
Inadequate teacher preparation is one of several factors re-
In this article, we explore the gap between the world of sci- lated to low student science and mathematics competencies
entists and that of science education in developing countries. in many countries.4 Avalos illustrates the situation in Chile
We then introduce a program, sponsored by the International by comparing several universities that offer pre-service edu-
Council for Science (ICSU), that is attempting to bridge this cation. One of the institutions, for instance, mandates an
gap. initial 3-year basic science program that is offered by the
Faculty of Sciences. Students must complete these courses
The Status of Science and Mathematics before their pedagogical training. In the initial 3-year cycle,
students are required to learn a much higher level of science
Weak Student Performance than what is required for them to teach in the classroom. In
Many developing countries lag behind industrialized coun- addition, the science courses taught at universities frequently
tries in science and mathematics test scores. Data from the do not reflect the primary and secondary curriculum; school
Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) science often requires broader subjects such as health and the
of student achievement in primary and secondary science and environment that are outside the traditional disciplines such
mathematics (originated in 1995) shows that out of 38 coun- as physics, biology and chemistry (Avalos 1995). This sys-
tries, students in 21 of them surpassed the international aver- tem not only fails to prepare teachers adequately, it also al-
age in mathematics and students in 23 of them surpassed the ienates students who want to pursue a professional career in
international average in science. 2 Most of the countries with teaching.
the high scores are upper-middle to high-income countries
with the exception of some lower-middle income countries Chile reflects a structural problem found in many other
from Eastern Europe (i.e., Bulgaria, Latvia, Lithuania, and countries where scientists and education specialists (i.e.,
the Russian Federation).3 Faulty of Science and Department of Education in the above

case) are not effectively connected. As a consequence, cluding teachers, parents, science supervisors, curriculum
teachers are not getting the training and ongoing support that developers, publishers, scientists, business and industries,
they need. This is a problem for at least two reasons: and many others.
• First, a high quality science and mathematics education
is required if students are to be encouraged to continue While the standards developed by the National Research
on in science. Nations need to build a strong pool of sci- Council are not necessarily accepted by everyone in the
entists over the long term who can not only make the United States, they are one indication of a growing move-
most of new technologies but who will make discoveries ment towards more collaboration between scientists, science
that will pay off in 50 years. and mathematics educators and policy-makers.
• Second, students need to attain everyday life skills, in-
cluding skills they will need in the future for the chang- Efforts in other countries to increase collaboration between
ing labor market. Science and mathematics courses scientists and science teachers include an initiative in France,
should help prepare students to reason, make decisions, La Main a la Pate. The emphasis of the new program is on
solve problems and benefit from new technologies and teacher training and teachers’ connections to scientists. A
resources many of which are related to better environ- program Internet site promotes exchanges among teachers,
mental practices and improved health care. This in turn provides classroom materials, Internet-based science re-
requires teachers to have solid subject knowledge and sources, and consultation by scientists and educators. In ad-
pedagogical skills. dition to its implementation in France, La Main a la Pate has
generated considerable interest in other countries of the
Need for Collaboration to Improve Science world. Most recently, an agreement of cooperation was
signed between China and the French Academy of Science
Education for support of the project’s diffusion in China.
In the original TIMSS research conducted in 1995, students In the increasingly competitive global environment, the
in the United States did not perform well relative to their TIMSS-R's results highlight the challenge that many coun-
peers in many of other industrialized countries. This has tries face to improve science and mathematics education.
caused a considerable amount of concern among U.S. policy Basic scientific and mathematical knowledge is necessary
makers and education specialists. Most recently, the U.S. not just for future scientists but also for citizens to live
National Commission on Mathematics and Science Teaching healthy, productive lives. Educators are looking for ways to
for the 21st Century urged the US government to promote make the most of existing resources – teachers and scientists
science and technology education for all Americans in their – to find new ways to bring them together in a way that bene-
publication, “Before It’s Too Late.” fits science education for all.
New scientific discoveries not only add to basic
knowledge, they also transform jobs, the lives of The International Council for Science – Efforts
families, and the shape of public issues. The in Capacity Building5
mathematical and scientific preparation of each
new generation - beginning with the one now in The International Council for Science (ICSU) has launched
school - has become the precondition not just to the Program for Capacity Building in Science to increase the
progress but to the future itself, as the links among quality of science teaching and learning around the world,
economy, technologies, and education tighten in a with a particular focus on primary education in developing
rapidly changing workplace. (National Commission countries. While still in an early stage of development, the
on Mathematics and Science Teaching for the 21st program has identified several ways to marshal the world-
Century 2000) wide network of ICSU members and associates to help meet
its aims. The major projects of the Program for Capacity
In the U.S., efforts to develop standards for science and Building in Science (PCBS) are (1) Teach Science, an Inter-
mathematics learning include the National Science Education net web site for science educators, (2) the Science Corps, a
Standards by the National Research Council of the U.S. new way to connect volunteer scientists with science educa-
National Academy of Science. These standards define the tors and policy-makers in their own countries and regions,
scientific knowledge that all Americans should acquire for and (3) an international project to connect scientists and sci-
the 21st century and include standards both for science ence education professionals through meetings and other
teaching and for science teachers’ professional development activities.
(NRC 1995). Having recognized the need to incorporate a
wide range of views in identifying core skills, the standards ICSU is uniquely positioned to advance this program. The
were developed in collaboration with a wide variety of actors organization is 70 years old and is comprised of nearly all of
and stakeholders in science and mathematics education in- the world’s national academies of science and 25 scientific

unions. The purpose of the organization is to promote the included. In the future, the PCBS hopes to expand the site to
application of basic sciences to development and human wel- create new environments to transmit the ideas of scientists
fare through its’ network of volunteer scientists. Their work and the science education community through a variety of
includes conducting research, providing technical advice, forums and languages.
collaborating with and strengthening other science-related
organizations, and dissemination of information. The PCBS has recently begun mobilizing the support of its
international scientific union membership to contribute to the
Dr. Leon Lederman, Nobel Prize winner in Physics, led the site. They will begin by identifying the best science and sci-
effort to establish the PCBS within ICSU. As the founder of ence education sites in their own countries, using a common
the Chicago TAMS group (Teachers Academy for Math and set of criteria. These sites would be evaluated and, when ap-
Science), Dr. Lederman knew that scientists could have a propriate, linked to the Teach Science site.
positive impact on school systems. Now as co-chairman of
the Committee for Capacity Building in Science together The Science Corps
with Dr. Shirley Malcom, Director of Education & Human The goal of the Science Corps is to close the gap between
Resources Program at the American Association for the Ad- scientists and teaching professionals in their own countries
vancement of Science, the program, described below, has by using an existing resource – local scientists, technologists
begun taking shape. and mathematicians. To date, such efforts are rare because
while every country has some science and technology capac-
The Teach Science Internet Web Site ity among its citizens, the scattered nature of that community
Teachers in developing countries, like their counterparts in and the emigration of many scientists often constrict optimal
the United States, often work autonomously, with little op- utilization of its science and technology talent. This is par-
portunity to collaborate, share what works and what doesn’t ticularly the case for women scientists. The Science Corps
work, and to get new ideas. The Teach Science Internet web aims to promote opportunities for scientists to better support
site (http://www.teachscience.org) addresses this problem by their country’s development and to find opportunities for
promoting information transfer between and among science collaboration with the science education and policy commu-
educators and scientists. In building the site, the program nities in their country or region. Women scientists will have
took into account recent research showing that teachers want a special role to play in promoting the participation of girls in
and need accurate reliable information and that hands-on science, in strengthening the efforts of young women scien-
methods were the best way to teach science. It recognized tists in their countries and in conducting research on the
that there are many excellent sites already existing with good status and prospects of women in science and technology.
science content. But few of these sites specifically address
the needs of science educators and policy-makers in devel- While the Science Corps program will vary according to in-
oping countries nor do they provide professional develop- dividual country needs and interests, other possible activities
ment information for the African, Latin American and Asian include advising on science and mathematics curriculum and
regions. It also took into account the fact that users would materials development and evaluation, and working on
want to download information from the site since so few teacher professional development. Another function of the
have reliable access to the Internet. As well, the information Science Corps will be to contribute to the Teach Science web
had to be relevant to the developing country setting where site. Scientists, technologists and mathematicians would
resources are often scarce and teachers must rely on locally work to collect, evaluate and submit the most appropriate and
available materials. accurate materials and curricula available to assist science
educators.
The Teach Science site is simple, to enable quick download-
ing of information and to ensure that teachers and education Linking Scientists and Educators Around the World
professionals using dated equipment can access it. While The Program for Capacity Building in Science has hosted
there was a temptation to create a more graphically exciting two conferences to bring together scientists with the science
site with customized resources, it was determined that in education community. The first, in 1999 in Budapest, Hun-
order to reach the largest number of potential users, tables, gary included 51 scientists, mathematicians and educators
sidebars and detailed graphic images would be minimized. including classroom teachers and education policy makers
from 21 countries. For many participants, it was the first time
The site includes sample lesson plans for each grade level they learned about ongoing science education efforts in their
using hands-on methods wherever possible, information on own countries. For others, it was an opportunity to learn
professional development in different regions, scholarship more about what works and doesn’t work in other countries,
and grant opportunities for educators in developing countries to compare their programs with others, and to gather new
and articles on different aspects of science education. A ideas.
newsroom and form for users to contribute to the site are also

As a result of the Budapest meeting, the group was invited to tries. Despite their relatively young age, these ICSU pro-
extend and follow-up their efforts in Beijing, China in the grams have already demonstrated the need for such efforts
year 2000. Invited there by the Chinese Vice-Minister of and the potential for progress. By combining their skills and
Education and member of the Committee for Capacity love for science, scientists, mathematicians and educators in
Building in Science, Professor Wei Yu, the Beijing confer- both fields can assist their countries to better prepare their
ence aimed to provide a forum to discuss strategies on how children for the ever-changing global economy and begin
to better link the science and education communities in order bridging the gap between countries in science and technol-
to improve primary school science education. An emphasis ogy.
was placed on sharing practices, ideas and research to ad-
dress common concerns in primary school science and References
mathematics education while acknowledging and incorpo- • Avalos, Beatrice. 1995. Issues in Science Teacher Edu-
rating differences in approaches based on geography, history, cation. Paris: IIEP.
language and other factors. The potential of technology was • Caillods, Francoise, Gabriele Gottelmann-Duret, and
strongly recognized at the conference as a mechanism to en- Keith Lewin. 1997. Science Education and Develop-
able cooperation, networking and exchange of ideas using ment: Planning and Policy Issues at Secondary Level.
the Internet and growing world connectivity. Paris: IIEP.
• Lewin, Keith. 2000. Mapping Science Education Policy
Results of the Beijing meeting included the development of
in Developing Countries. Washington, DC: World Bank.
several plans of action. These included: a plan by the China
• Moreno, Nancy. 1999. "K-12 Science Education Re-
representatives who developed a set of science education
form-A Primer for Scientists." Bioscience. 49:7.
reform initiatives in light of conference discussions, a plan
by a group of representatives in the Asia Pacific region to • Martin, Michael, O. et al. 2000. TIMSS 1999: Interna-
develop an information exchange network on curriculum and tional science Report. Boston: International Study
teacher development, a refinement of the ICSU Science Center.
Corps initiative, and several other outreach and networking • Mullis, Ina V.S. et al. 2000. TIMSS 1999: International
activities. Finally, the value of such international meetings Mathematics Report. Boston: International Study Cen-
was reiterated in Beijing, along with a commitment to con- ter.
vene the next conference in Brazil in 2002. The Brazil con- • National Commission on Mathematics and Science
ference will strive to increase the diversity of participating Teaching for the 21st Century. 2000. Before It's Too
countries and regions represented and to increase the empha- Late. Washington, DC: US Department of Education.
sis on mathematics education. • National Research Council. 1995. National Science
Education Standards. Washington, DC: National Acad-
****** emy of Science.
• Sussman, Art, ed. 1993. Science Education Partner-
Taken together, these three programs, the Teach Science ships: Manual for Scientists and K-12 Teachers. San
Internet web site, the Science Corps and activities to estab- Francisco: University of California.
lish global links between professionals, form the nucleus of a
new effort to improve science education in developing coun-
1
Molly Teas, Former Program for Capacity Building in Science (PCBS) Program Director and now a consultant to the pro-
gram. Yoshiko Koda, Human Development Network, Education Group, The World Bank. The views expressed in this article
are entirely those of the authors and should not be attributed to their organizations.
2
TIMSS was originally conducted in 1995 for the 4th grade, 8th grade, and the final year of schools. In 1999 the study was re-
peated for the 8th grade (TIMSS-R). The 1999 study included 41 countries and data from 38 of those countries are publicly
available. The number of developing countries that participated in the study increased in 1999.
3
Classification of the country’s income level is based on the World Bank’s Edstats.
4
For a more comprehensive discussion on science education policy issues in developing countries, see Lewin 2000 and Cail-
lods 1997.
5
To Contact the ICSU Program for Capacity Building in Science:
Call: +1-202-326-6680 (Molly Teas AAAS), or write to:
Molly Teas or Shirley Malcom
ICSU Program for Capacity Building in Science (AAAS)
1200 New York Avenue, N.W., Washington, DC 20005-3920, USA

The Potential of Technologies
For the Enhancement of Science and Mathematics
Teaching and Learning1
Wadi Haddad & Sonia Jurich
T he integration of modern information and communica-

Videos, television, and computer multimedia software are
excellent instructional aides to engage students in the learn-
ing process. By using sound, color and movement, the tech-
tion technologies (ICTs) into the teaching/learning process of
science and mathematics has great potential. In fact, it could nologies stimulate the students’ sensorial apparatus and bring
be the only way by which countries can meet their educa- a sense of enjoyment to the learning process. Kenyan chil-
tional aspirations within reasonable time and resources. Al- dren will be more enthusiastic about studying acceleration
though the focus of the article is on technology, the emphasis when watching a video of their countrymen’s feats at the
on the word “potential” reflects our understanding that tech- Olympic games. Mexican children will certainly remember
nologies are tools, and their effectiveness depends on how any lesson about trajectories if the teacher shows a soccer
they are employed. game as motivator. To introduce a lesson on properties of
ideal gases, the Brazilian Telecurso (see TechKnowLogia,
Technologies allow materials to be presented in multiple November/December 1999) shows a video on the risks of
media, enhance critical thinking and other higher levels of bottled gas – the most common kitchen fuel in the country.
cognitive skills and processes, and provide for access to The videos reproduce situations that are concrete and famil-
worldwide information resources. They also may be the iar, presented in enjoyable ways. As a result, science and
most cost-effective (and in some cases the only) means for mathematics – those distant, abstract disciplines – become
bringing the world into the classroom and performing simu- real, meaningful and necessary.
lations of science lab experiments using real data and model
processes. More specifically, technologies have unique ad- More than reproducing reality, technology makes available
vantages in the following areas: virtual experiences that entice curiosity and open new fron-
tiers of knowledge. For children and youth in tropical re-
gions, for instance, a film about the Himalayan Mountains
Motivating to Learn offers the opportunity to discuss properties of gases or
changes in blood composition, and also the different ways
T
people relate to nature. The Internet brings into the schools
he famous astronomer Carl Sagan used to say that all the power of instruments that no school could ever afford.
At the web site of the Space Telescope Science Institute
children start out as scientists, full of curiosity and questions
(http://oposite.stsci.edu/pubinfo/), students can observe plan-
about the world, but schools eventually destroy their curios-
ets and stars through the lens of the Hubble Space Telescope.
ity. The first, and probably most challenging task in an ef-
At the Molecular Expressions Website
fective teaching/learning process is to motivate students to
(http://micro.magnet.fsu.edu), they may examine tiny insects
learn. For math and science teachers, this task can be even
under fluorescence microscopy, or study details of DNA
more daunting, since their subjects are highly abstract, com-
structure.
plex, and appear disconnected from the students’ reality.
New pedagogic methods indicate that students are motivated
when the learning activities are authentic, challenging, mul- Decoding Concepts
tidisciplinary and multisensorial. Authentic activities have a
close relationship to the “real world,” that is, to the students’
surroundings. They build on experiences that are meaningful
to the students and challenge their view of the world and
I CTs have the potential to improve the learning process in
their curiosity. Being authentic, these learning activities help different ways. As research suggests, the acquisition of sci-
to break the walls between different types of learning: lan- entific and mathematical concepts is similar to the acquisi-
guage, arts, mathematics or science. Through the use of tion of a new language. When confronted with verbal or
real-life stimuli, they cater to different types of learners - written material that has unfamiliar vocabulary, most people
visual, auditory, sensorial, and psychomotor. tend to shy away or openly reject the material. A similar
reaction occurs when students are confronted with strange

concepts and symbols. Images (graphics, icons, etc.) have had more/less difficulty, etc. With this history, the teacher
the ability to decode the unfamiliar language into known can design an individualized plan to help students attain their
representations, thus making the material more enjoyable and educational goals.
easier to apprehend. The use of different symbolic systems
also helps different types of learners – visual, psychomotor, CAI was introduced for educational purposes more than fifty
affective – who may be struggling with the abstract concepts. years ago, mostly for the teaching of basic mathematics
Good-quality audio videos and interactive multimedia soft- skills. Currently, CAI is being used for different subject
ware are particularly helpful in making those symbolic matters, including foreign language teaching. Research
translations. In addition, the process assists the teacher in shows that students using CAI learn faster, and retention can
challenging ingrained misconceptions. For instance, a mo- be increased by 50 percent. These students are also more
tion detector connected to a computer (or simulated in the likely to complete their courses. The use of CAI for military
program) proves to the students that there is a pattern in the training cut the training period by one third. In addition, CAI
free fall of a body and that the object is accelerating at a con- is less costly than other measures that aim to improve student
stant rate – an observation that is not immediately apparent. achievement, such as individual tutors and extra class time
Graphics and charts offer different representations of the (for more on evaluation of CAI programs, see “Computer
object’s behavior during the fall to reinforce the initial ob- Drill and Practice Tutorials: Are They Effective?” in this
servation. How different would have been Galileo’s fate if Issue.)
he could have shown to his prosecutors satellite images of
the movement of planets around the sun!
Applying the Knowledge
Reinforcing the Basics
U nderstanding concepts and mastering basic skills are
A lthough modern pedagogy emphasizes the use of inquiry

only part of the process. Students must be able to utilize the
information acquired to solve problems, formulate new
and exploration as the preferred teaching strategy, teachers problems, and explain the world around them. Computer
would need more than a lifetime to transmit basic math and applications have the potential to store massive amounts of
sciences knowledge solely through this method. Even re- data, plot curves, conduct statistical tests, simulate real-life
searchers do not start from scratch. They build on what oth- experiments, build mathematical models, and produce reports
ers have constructed. Moreover, non-structured learning – all this with speed and accuracy. Computers also save
environments, based solely on open-ended investigation, can classroom time. While computers are doing repetitive tasks
be confusing to some students, who require more structure and long calculations, teachers and students can concentrate
and organization. For these reasons, there is a place for their time on analytical activities that require higher order
structured learning of basic knowledge and skills. thinking skills.
Computer-aided instruction (CAI) profits from three advan- In a chemistry class on acids and bases, students can use
tages of technology over the human brain: speed, memory simple spreadsheets to store a series of pH measurements for
power, and the capability to repeat tasks indefinitely without posterior analysis. Spreadsheets, different from paper-pencil
reducing performance. These programs offer students the process, store large amounts of data and provide immediate
opportunity to practice basic skills on their own time and visualization as tables, charts and graphics. This fast re-
pace. They function as automated tutors, presenting a hierar- sponse favors the detection of errors and new lines worthy of
chy of concepts and skills that the students need to master inquiry. Data logging is a type of software that enables the
before they are allowed to proceed to the next level. Gener- use of actual sensors and probes connected to the computer,
ally, the material is divided into modules of increasing diffi- as described in the above example about acceleration. Rather
culty. Students are evaluated at the end of each module, re- than feeding the information manually to the computer, the
ceiving an immediate feedback. If they respond correctly to sensor uploads the measurement, thus reducing the margin of
a determined percentage of questions, they can move to a error, and reproducing a situation that is closer to an actual
more advanced unit. Otherwise, they may either repeat the experiment. ICT has also the potential to link what is
module, or enter remedial modules, until they have mastered learned in the classroom to contexts that are familiar to the
the skill. Some programs integrate computer and textbook students. Through videos and video clips, students can see
instruction. Students who are struggling with a specific topic scientists working in environments to which they do not have
can practice the lesson as long as they need without the pres- access, and help them to visualize how the concepts learned
sure of their more advanced peers. The program can keep a are employed in real-life situations.
history of the students’ performance: the lessons they have
mastered, within how many attempts, the topics where they Computer simulations go a step further and enable teachers

and students to virtually reproduce the scientists’ work.2 have the opportunity to move from a role of passive receptors
Before a class on respiratory systems, students can use of information to builders of knowledge.
simulations to test their ideas on gas exchange in the lungs.
The teacher uses the results of their experiments to highlight The Internet provides access to real databases and connec-
discrepancies between students’ beliefs and actual reactions tions with large learning communities, thus becoming a pow-
of the organism in response to changes, such as feedback, erful source of inquiry and exploration. For instance, the
bypass, etc. Since no material is used or destroyed during National Center for Health Statistics web page
virtual experiments, these programs offer a cost-effective (http://www.cdc.gov/nchswww) has information on numbers
tool for science education. Rodrigues suggests the following of births and deaths in the United States. The National Geo-
situations where computer simulations are particularly help- physical Data Center (http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov) and the
ful:3 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
(http://www.noaa.gov) have data on tides, planetary orbits,
• Experiments that are too risky, expensive or time and average monthly temperatures. The information is pre-
consuming to be conducted in a school laboratory, sented numerically and graphically and is continuously up-
such as those involving volatile gases; dated. Students can use the information to understand con-
• “Tidy” experiments that require high precision so cepts of percentage variation, slope, functions, sine curves,
that students can see patterns and trends; students correlation, and more.
may not be able to achieve the necessary precision
without simulation tools; The “Rats in Space” Project is an example of the Internet
• Experiments that break the laws of nature, such as potential to enrich well-planned science activities. The proj-
exploring kinematics collisions that violate conser- ect involves a high school biology class in the U.S., NASA
vation of momentum law; scientists researching human bone loss in conditions of mi-
• When ethical issues are at stake, such as in the case cro-gravity, and the Knowledge Integration Environment
of experiments with animals; project (KIE) (http://www.kie.berkeley.edu/kie.html). Dur-
• Instrumental data capturing and display; and, ing the planning stage, KIE mediated online discussions be-
• Mathematical modeling. tween the teacher and a NASA representative to ensure that
the final design met the educational objectives defined by the
teacher and NASA’s scientific standards. The project re-
Inquiry and Exploration quired the students to ponder about ethics issues in science,
including the need for research and whether the research
A
could be done without the rats. After a lesson on models,
critical skill of a scientist is the ability to ask good students maintained online discussions with the scientists
about the validity of models for scientific research. They
questions and develop appropriate strategies to pursue the
reviewed data concerning bone growth and remodeling
answers. The inquiry process is a source of affective and
(adapted from the real database, which was found too diffi-
intellectual enjoyment and a main reason that many are
cult for the students to comprehend) and had to criticize the
drawn to science. This sense of adventure is taken away in a
evidence in terms of modeling assumptions. The project,
traditional classroom, where questions and answers are un-
which has been expanded, enabled students to go beyond the
related to students’ interests, and where research is reduced
acquisition of basic science concepts to developing critical
to a word in the textbook. The problem for many educators
thinking skills and appreciation for science with the support
is that “doing science” requires resources that are unavailable
of actual scientists.4
in traditional classrooms, such as large databases and well-
equipped laboratories.
Beyond the Classroom Walls
ICTs have the potential to let students explore the world in
cost-effective and safe ways. Videos and computer anima-
tions can bring movement to static textbook lessons. As de-
scribed before, spreadsheets can store and analyze data,
S cience and mathematics are universal disciplines of
while computer simulations enable vicarious experiences in knowledge that have no national barriers and can be applied
safe environments. Using these tools, students can initiate to all areas of life. However, the limited resources of tradi-
their own inquiry process, develop hypotheses and test them. tional classrooms create a false impression that the fields of
In a virtual reality setting, students can manipulate parame- science and mathematics are self-contained and have little
ters, contexts and environments, and try different scenarios. relationship with life outside school. Science and mathe-
In the process, they learn science and about science content matics teaching becomes theoretical, “bookish,” and to many
but also the reasoning behind the content, and the methods youth, boring.
utilized to reach scientific conclusions. Most of all, they

ICTs have the potential to break the walls of the classroom The process motivates students’ curiosity, and learning be-
so that students may experience science and mathematics “in comes an adventure worthy of pursuit. It also gives the stu-
the field.” Videos, television broadcasts, and online virtual dents the confidence that science is not a mystery too com-
exhibits enable students in schools anywhere in the world to plex for them to understand. Eight years of research shows
visit guided tours of museums located in cities that they may that CSILE students surpass students in control classrooms
never visit, such as the Yokohama Science Center, in Japan on measures of higher-order thinking skills, such as depth of
(http://www.city.yokohama.jp/yhspot/ysc/ysc/e-menu.html) understanding, identifying conceptual difficulties and reflec-
or the Exploratorium (http://www.exploratorium.edu) in San tion. They also scored higher than the control group on stan-
Francisco, U.S.A. They can observe scientists and explorers dardized tests for reading, language and vocabulary.5
at work, and participate in talks with astronauts in space
(http://spaceflight.nasa.gov). Through e-mail and online
discussions, students are exposed to different points of view Teacher Support
and multi-cultural perspectives. ICTs restore the universal
meaning and purpose of science and mathematics, and have
the potential to provide students in remote schools of devel- D emocracy is a nice dream that has yet to arrive at
oping nations with experiences similar to those lived by their schools. Across the world, schools in poor and remote areas
peers in more developed countries. tend to have the least money and the least qualified teachers.
Many science and mathematics teachers in those schools
have no specialization and just minimum training; some will
Creating Collaborative not have a college degree. Scripted lessons, supported by
Environ
Environments carefully designed radio and television programs, provide
these teachers with updated content and appropriate strate-
S cientific work has always been dependent on communi-

gies so that all children can have quality education, regard-
less of their teachers’ training.6 Distance learning strategies
can reach teachers in remote areas and provide them with
cation. The scientific community has been quite creative in
maintaining open channels where they can discuss different training and support.
perspectives on a common topic, obtain information, work
on similar or complementary projects, replicate experiments, The Internet has a number of web sites dedicated to support
and share breakthroughs. It is not surprising that e-mail was mathematics and science teachers. These sites include lesson
the product of a scientist’s need to communicate with col- plans, suggestions for educational activities, chat rooms, or
leagues. The modern workplace, having destroyed the pro- forums for discussions of specific topics. Some have anima-
duction line, is a collaborative environment, where workers tions that the teachers can use to demonstrate concepts or
must share knowledge and cooperate to accomplish a com- entice the students to test an idea. Conference proceedings
mon goal. This reality deeply contrasts with traditional are regularly published on the web. Most collaborative
classroom organizations, where students tend to work in iso- learning projects, such as KIE, offer teacher support and
lation through tasks that boost competition, rather than coop- training. Indeed contrary to the idea that technology is
eration. Students leave the school not used to share ideas, coming to replace the teacher, ICT is proving to be an im-
divide tasks and collaborate. portant teacher aide.7
Information and communication technologies, as the name

indicates, expand the power of individuals and communities
Evaluation
to acquire and exchange information. In addition, ICTs pro-
vide the tools for communication even among geographically
distant partners. Fax, one-way interactive video and e-mail E valuation is an essential part of the teaching/learning
enable fast and asynchronous contact and exchange of infor- process. It may occur alongside the process, through daily
mation. Videoconferencing and Internet-based chat rooms observations of student performance, or at determined stages,
ensure conversations regardless of distance. The Computer through tests and examinations. Students can be tested for
Supported Intentional Learning Environment (CSILE) mastery of specific skills and the ability to use determined
(http://csile.oise.utoronto.ca) is an Internet-based collabora- procedures. Evaluations can also include samples of stu-
tive environment that offers a shared database for students dents’ work, a history of their accomplishments or struggles,
who want to place a question or raise a hypothesis. Other and documentation that show their progress throughout the
project participants access this information and make com- course. ICT can be used for all the above purposes.
ments and suggestions. The system notifies the author when
comments are received. The author can use the comments to CAI programs test individual students on specific skills.
refine ideas, research responses and advance the inquiry. They also provide students with the opportunity to review the

content, practice skills, or move into remedial modules until tion, qualitative measures indicate that technology-rich envi-
they master the topic. This saves teacher time for planning ronments promote higher-order cognitive learning, such as
and development of classroom activities. Most educational deeper understanding of concepts, ability to develop different
software also includes an assessment component at the end solutions for a problem, and proficiency in using informa-
of each lesson or module that helps students to evaluate tion. Research also suggests that technology can help im-
where they stand in relation to the content being taught. prove the learning environment by encouraging creativity
Spreadsheets organize student quantifiable information, such and exploration, emphasizing collaboration, and changing the
as attendance, finished and unfinished projects, tests taken, nature of learning from passive reception of information to
grades, etc. This information is easily accessed as graphics, an active process of investigation and discovery.
to show the student progress individually or in relation to the
whole class. The software can also issue reports for discus- Caution must be taken though, because an excellent technol-
sion with parents, colleagues or principals. Such graphs and ogy cannot compensate for badly planned lessons or irrele-
reports can be important tools when requesting funding in- vant curricula. For ICTs to become a powerful tool in the
creases or changes in regulations or policies. They can also teaching/learning of math and science, it is essential to:
be incorporated into student portfolios of use for college ad-
missions and job applications. • Ensure appropriate access to the technology for
teachers and students;
• Prepare teachers in educational uses of ICT, in
Conclusion terms of both skills and attitudes;
• Use technology to support a dynamic instructional
T o the question of whether ICTs are helping students to
program including the development of higher-order
thinking skills; and
learn more and better, the answer is both enthusiastic and • Integrate ICT use into the overall curriculum.
cautionary. Evidence that ICTs can help students improve
their academic achievement in math and science is mounting,
even when traditional standardized tests are used. In addi-
Endnotes
1
Adapted from: Haddad, Wadi D. and Jurich, Sonia (2000). Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) for
the Enhancement of Science and Mathematics Education: A Review of Research, Methodologies and Tools. Washington, DC:
Knowledge Enterprise, Inc. (Unpublished)
2
For a description of simulations for skills training and medical use, see Castro, Wolff & Garcia’s “Skills Training:
Where Simulations are at Home,” and Jurich’s “Technology for Skill Training: A Medical Affair” in the July/August 2000 is-
sue of TechKnowLogia.
3
Rodrigues, S. (1997). Review of Computer Based Technologies on Students’ Learning of School Science. Computers
across the Secondary Curriculum. Victoria Department of Education, Australia. Available at:
http://www.sofweb.vic.edu.au/lt/pdfs/chapter3.pdf.
4
Linn, M.C., Shear, L., Bell, P. & Slotta, J.D. (1999). Organizing Principles for Science Education Partnerships: Case
Studies of Students’ Learning about ‘Rats in Space’ and ‘Deformed Frogs’. Educational Technology Research & Develop-
ment, 47 (2): 61-84.
5
Scardamalia & Bereiter in Schacter, J. (1999). The Impact of Education Technology on Student Achievement: What
the Most Current Research Has to Say. Milken Exchange on Education Technology. Available at:
http://www.mff.org/pubs/ME161.pdf.
6
See at TechKnowLogia archives the following articles on educational use of radio and television that talk about
scripted lessons: “Are you Talkin’ to Me? Interactive Radio Instruction; ” Tilson’s “Ethiopia: Educational Radio and Televi-
sion;” Oujo’s “Radio – Wiring the School with Wireless;” and Castro, Wolff, & Garcia’s “Mexico’s Telesecundária: Bringing
Education by Television to Rural Areas.”
7
For instance, Jackson’s “Technology for Teacher Support” in the November/December 2000 issue of TechKnowLo-
gia. See also the WorthWhileWebs section in this issue.

TechKnowNews
Firm Introduces Nigerian Classrooms Go Paperless in
Translation Software Omaha
Paradigm International Limited, a Nigerian software Omaha North High School is setting the example for the
development firm, launched a series of software that will paperless society. With over 1,000 computers for the
address the specific educational and technological needs of 2,200 students and 150 faculty, this high tech high-school
the country. The series includes Schools®, Lingua®, uses everything from email to Internet browsing to keep
PrintWatch® and PiHyper®. Schools® is a fully students connected, interested, and learned. Students and
customizable shareware package that can be used to teachers (and parents) communicate with each other over
manage the entire information system of Nursery, Primary email – everyone has an email account. Teachers have
and Secondary schools. Using multimedia, it can store, also developed their own web pages where students can
retrieve, query and report desired data about the staff, access lectures and lesson plans and read each other’s
students, inventory and accounts of an institution. It was writings, as in the case of teacher Brad Fuersts’ English
developed as shareware to encourage automation of class.
elementary schools as much as possible.
A marketing teacher at Omaha North, Lori Shea, says her
Lingua® is a word processor and translator for English, classroom is 98% paperless. "I was really bored with my
Hausa, Igbo, Yoruba and a custom language of the user's old teaching ways," she said. "Before, my idea of using
choice. The implications are that documents may be technology was to write out transparencies for the
produced on the computer with native dialects. This overhead. Now I can't even remember the last time I told
software will be useful to publishing outfits, religious them to get paper out to do something. They're literally
groups, multimedia and entertainment related using technology in everything they do."
organizations, local and foreign educational institutions,
business centers, individuals, foreigners and Nigerians in Despite being faced with the usual challenges of being so
the Diaspora. Chairman of Paradigm, Mr. Olumuyiwa high tech – students emailing “notes” during class, and
Asaolu, hopes that Lingua® will open up a new world of teachers that are reluctant to use new technologies –
printed and electronic literature such as in the production Omaha High continues to move forward and show the
and translation of indigenous textbooks, tracts, song books, world that this model can really work.
multi-captioned movies, etc. as well as enhance the
learning of other languages. "It's nice because there's no paper involved," said Brian
Bremer. "Every one of us - I mean every one - likes it."
PrintWatch® is an automatic printer monitoring
application that will record and can produce a month’s Source: Omaha World-Herald
worth of reports about the printing activities of a particular http://www.omaha.com/index.atp?u_div=3&u_hdg=5&u_s
printer or network and comes with built-in security that id=62927
makes the product "tamper-proof." PiHyper® is a tool for
software developers that will help produce more efficient
and robust programs. US-Based Online MBA Program
for Lebanese Students
Source: This Day, January 25, 2001
http://www.allafrica.com
Michigan-based Oakland University began offering, in
January 2001, an online MBA program for students in
Lebanon. This move was inspired by the fact that Detroit,

Michigan, is populated by nearly 300,000 Arab- a long way in addressing the problem of the skills shortage
Americans, most of whom are of Lebanese origin. in our country." He adds, "We are proud to be associated
Oakland, which is near Detroit, considered this as one of with SBS, which have shown unwavering commitment to
the critical components in deciding to start this program. uplifting our community. There is no better example of a
shared vision between two entities than this one. We urge
The M.B.A. program will combine distance courses with all the scholars and community members to look after this
Beirut-based seminars. In the last segment of the program, facility and guard it as one of their assets," says
students will travel to Michigan where they will meet with Dabengwa.
their instructors as well as with the local business
community. John C. Gardner, the dean of the university’s Anthony Davies, the Director of Sales & Marketing of
School of Business Administration hopes that the program SBS Africa Holdings says SBS is delighted to be involved
will eventually draw students from nearby Jordan and in the joint venture with MTN. "We strive to uplift
Saudi Arabia, as well as from the territories administered previously disadvantaged communities. Not only is
by the Palestinian Authority. Calvinia a remote and rural community, but it is a part of
the country that is often forgotten, says Davies. "The
Local Lebanese businesses are sure that with the right advent of the Internet has given us the opportunity to bring
international MBA degree, well-trained managers can world class education opportunities to these previously
expect to double or triple their salaries, as there is a disadvantaged communities, which are so eager to learn,"
desperate need for quality educated executives. he adds.
Source: The Chronicle of Higher Education Source: ITWeb

http://www.chronicle.com http://www.allafrica.com
Under-Privileged South Africa Sylvan International Universities

School Enters Technological (SIU) Announces Global
Age University Network
MTN, a large cellular company in South Africa, and SBS Ralph Appadoo, President and CEO of Sylvan
Africa Holdings Ltd., a leading IT firm, will be International Universities, announced in January, “Today
establishing a fully-equipped computer center at the three preeminent international private universities joined
Hantam Secondary School at Calvinia. The center will be together to become charter members of a global university
equipped with personal computers, printers, Diginet lines, network that will bring tangible benefits to each institution
telephones lines and network cabling. Software giant, and its students.” Universidad Europea de Madrid (UEM),
Microsoft, has also donated about R40,000 worth of Universidad del Valle de Mexico (UVM) and Universidad
software, including Windows 98, Office 2000 and de las Americas (UDLA) signed memoranda of
Encarata. Six people will be trained in computer skills and understanding calling for broad cooperation among the
applications. three institutions. Total student population of this network
reaches nearly 55,000 students. Sylvan will apply its
The center will help bring Hantam into the information “Sylvan Signature” approach to the networks’ programs.
age, as well as serve as a community learning center for This approach includes the integration of English
local businessmen and others to hone their computer skills. Language Proficiency, as well as the use of Information
MTN Chief Executive, Sifiso Dabengwa, says, "MTN is a Technology both as a learning tool and as subject matter.
young company, which started operations under the new
democratic government. Through its social vision it has To learn more about SIU and its programs, go to:
managed to position itself as a leader in understanding the http://www.sylvan.net.
needs of the community within which it does business. We
at MTN have dedicated ourselves towards helping the Source: Sylvan Learning Centers, Press Release, January
community. We are aware that MTN's contribution is only 18, 2001. http://www.sylvan.net
a drop in the ocean, but we believe our contribution will go

The Jason Project: The Search for the Golden Fleece
Bram Duchovnay*
For me, it is all about answering the question “Why?”-- Dr. Robert Ballard
Imagine collecting arthropods in the treetops of the Amazon cational and scientific institutions. We then identified a di-
rainforest canopy, measuring the temperature of flowing lava verse group of scientists and experts who conduct ongoing
in Hawai’i, or descending in a submersible into the mysteri- research at our field locations and could share the excitement
ous depths of the Sea of Cortez. At your side is a research of their work with students and teachers. Some of our team
team made up of prominent scientists, top-notch teachers, members this year include: Sam Gon, director of science for
dedicated students, leading technology providers, and skilled the Nature Conservancy of Hawai’i, who uses GIS (Geo-
multimedia experts. Your mission is to search for answers to graphic Information Systems) and GPS (Global Positioning
science’s big questions. You are part of the JASON Project. System) tools to map and study Hawaiian ecosystems;
Luanne Johnson, conservation biologist for the USGS (U.S.
Twelve years ago, Dr. Robert Ballard (see box ) created the Geological Survey) Biological Resource Division, who man-
JASON Project to encourage scientists and students to col- ages a research and conservation project on the Palila honey-
laborate on research expeditions using advanced communi- creeper; Jim Kauahikaua, geophysicist for Hawaiian Volcano
cation technology. A prominent scientist, explorer, and edu- Observatory, who studies how lava flows using infrared
cator, Dr. Ballard and his visionary project have bridged the video and other tools, and Frank Howarth, an entomologist
scientific and education communities by making scientific with the Bishop Museum, who studies arthropod communi-
research an exciting adventure for students and teachers in ties living deep within Hawai’i’s lava tubes.
the classroom. The mission of the JASON Foundation for
Education, founded in 1990 to administer the JASON Proj-
ect’s year-long learning expeditions, is to bring the excite- Dr. Robert Ballard
ment of exploration and discovery to middle-school students
and teachers and help them to gain the scientific literacy and Dr. Robert D. Ballard founded the JASON Project in 1989
technological skills that they need for the future. after receiving thousands of letters from school children
wanting to know how he discovered the RMS Titanic. Dr.
There has been much recent debate about education reform Ballard is also the founder and head of the Institute for
and the level of student performance in math and science.1 At Exploration (IFE) in Mystic, Connecticut, an explorer in
the same time, the field of science education has experienced residence at National Geographic, and Commander in the
a rapid transformation in response to the increasing ubiquity
U.S. Naval Reserve.
of information technology. Amidst these heated battles and
changing times, the JASON Project, like its namesake Jason
of Greek mythology, is working hard not to lose sight of the Dr. Ballard has led or participated in more than 100 deep-
Golden Fleece.2 The quest for knowledge—to understand sea expeditions using deep-diving submersibles.
earth’s systems, to study life on earth, and to understand the These included the first manned exploration of the Mid-
technology that makes this research possible—is the driving Ocean Ridge, the discovery of warm water springs and
force behind the JASON Project. their unusual animal communities in the Galapagos Rift,
the first discovery of polymetallic sulfides, the discovery
I would like to share this ever-evolving experiment in sci- of high temperature black smokers, the discovery of
ence education with you by describing our experience with R.M.S. Titanic and the German battleship Bismarck, and
the JASON Project and then discuss some of the current
recent archaeological discoveries from the Black Sea
challenges and opportunities for science educators through-
out the world. floor.
Dr. Ballard has published over 50 scientific articles, writ-

The JASON Research Expedition ten many scholarly and popular books, and participated in
Each of JASON’s annual expeditions begins with a site sur- the production of numerous television programs.
vey. During our current expedition, JASON XII, Hawai’i: A
Living Laboratory (JASON XII), we selected several field After identifying our host experts, we transformed their re-
locations in Hawai’i and built partnerships with various edu- search into a learning framework that conveys the richness

and complexity of their stories. Our staff gathered oral histo- expedition site and conduct their own investigations. During
ries, data, and maps for a print curriculum, produced video JASON XII, for example, students have created GIS maps of
footage of students and researchers conducting field research lava flows, classified fish species located in Hawai’i’s deep
at various field locations in Hawai’i, collected GIS data, reefs, participated in ecological restoration projects, trans-
photographs, and audio and video clips for a set of online formed classrooms into lava tubes, and compared aquatic
tools, and coordinated logistics and technical details to pro- data from their local site with data from sites from around the
duce a live satellite broadcast.3 country.
To bring these multimedia tools to educators and students

throughout the world, JASON relies on its collaboration with Throughout the year, teachers and students use several online
a diverse international network of universities, science and tools, such as workshops, message boards, simulations, and
technology museums, school districts, aquariums, technology contests, in order to facilitate year-long interactivity between
companies, and state and regional educational networks. scientists and our global community. One highlight of the
Each partner site offers local professional development for JASON expedition is a live, two-week satellite broadcast
teachers, hosts our live satellite broadcasts, and provides during the late winter (this year’s expedition was January 29
ongoing support to classrooms throughout the year. – February 9). During the broadcast, a small group of re-
searchers and teachers and students (known as Argonauts)
shares its discoveries from the expedition field site with
classrooms all over the globe.
The Benefits of JASON’s Expeditionary Approach

JASON’s unique expeditionary approach, made possible
through partnerships with government agencies and leading
global corporations,4 has led to several advances in the field
of science education and successfully impacted how students
learn and teachers teach.
Focusing on Learners: Student-Centered Programs
The research expedition excites and engages learners. The

thrill of discovery, the risk of adventure, and the use of cut-
ting-edge technology draw learners into the experience. Sci-
entists and students on past JASON expeditions have pio-
neered new scientific discoveries and innovative uses of
technology, such as the first live “ocean-to-ocean underwater
communication,” the development of a common name for a
new species of rainforest canopy beetle, and the discovery of
new hydrothermal vent communities in the Mediterranean
Teachers practice using the JASON Project’s in- Sea.
quiry-based exercises in hands-on teacher training
During expeditions, students work to solve scientific prob-
lems. In this learning environment, mastery of scientific con-
Teachers begin the JASON Project by participating in pro- cepts, vocabulary, and skills is almost seamless. Dick
fessional development workshops. These workshops model McManus, a science and technology coordinator from New
new methods of teaching science content using JASON’s York, explains how JASON brings educational standards to
suite of multimedia tools. They guide students into the expe- life: “Students don’t even realize that they are learning….
dition by discussing novels and conducting classroom activi- Teachers love JASON because you are using language arts,
ties about the geography, history, and culture of the expedi- math, and science in an integrated way. Our fifth graders
tion site. Through readings, videos, and Internet chat ses- show their enthusiasm to each other and with the fourth
sions, students make personal contact with host researchers graders and the fourth graders then can’t wait to do JASON
and observe how they work. Then, through a series of in- the following year.”5
quiry-based exercises, including local field studies, gathering
and analyzing data, designing experiments, and building As students investigate the cutting-edge work of JASON’s
models, students emulate the field research conducted at the host researchers, such as studying lava tubes in Hawai’i,

measuring the mass balance of glaciers and its impact on search, but must be continuously learning in their class-
Jokulhlaups in Iceland, or observing the volcanic activity on rooms. As Theresa Spina, a teacher Argonaut from JASON
Jupiter’s moons, they learn about science “as it happens.” X explains, “I learn right along with the students. My stu-
This experience is not only exciting and relevant to students’ dents know I am learning with them and its exciting and fun
lives, but fosters critical thinking skills and helps students for both of us.”
understand and evaluate current science news.
The ongoing support of a global online community encour-
ages teachers to learn new methodologies and try new con-
tent. Message boards are a popular forum for veteran teach-
ers to mentor new teachers, try new pedagogy, and share
resources. Many teachers participate in our online profes-
sional development courses during the school year, which
help them stay current on issues of standards and assessment,
become familiar with new educational technologies, and re-
ceive individual feedback. We design these programs to dif-
ferentiate pathways for teachers to adopt technology tools,
whether they are experienced technology users or beginners.
While many educators are finding innovative uses for tech-

nology in the classroom, others are still not fully capitalizing
Each local site downlinks the live, 2-week satellite
on the potential of technology. Many teachers that have ac-
broadcast of the JASON expedition.
cess are still slow to adopt technology other than word proc-
As students work side-by-side with researchers, students essing, spreadsheets and basic web research in their lessons.
meet positive role models: real, diverse, people doing inter- Continued professional development for teachers in both
esting work. Melissa Inouye, a student Argonaut on educational technology and science education is an interna-
JASON’s fifth expedition, describes her experience: “I real- tional need.6
ized that scientists don’t have to be stuffy or overly smart or
unfriendly. They’re just like me. Wherever they go, they’re We believe that technology taught in the context of content
always asking ‘why?’ I found out that science isn’t always has a far greater chance of being incorporated into a teacher’s
easy. But I’ve never seen so many amazing things.” repertoire of strategies than technology training alone. To
help address the needs of our nation’s teachers, we are lead-
Yet several challenges remain. How do we ensure that stu- ing a new initiative, the JASON Academy, to augment our
dents are applying their skills and knowledge to real-life online offerings and provide teachers with a suite of online
situations outside the classroom? How do we help families courses on a variety of core science topics. Building on
and communities foster their children’s curiosity and passion JASON’s content expertise and existing online tools, the
for exploration? How do we share our mission of inquiry- JASON Academy will provide educators with an efficient
based learning, scientific discovery, and skill building with and inexpensive way to obtain advanced certification in sci-
after school programs, home schools, and community service ence education and a set of skills that they can apply imme-
organizations? To address some of these concerns, JASON is diately in the classroom.
launching a new initiative entitled JASON Beyond School.
Based on our rich archive of existing multimedia content, we The Power of Partnership: JASON’s Global Com
Com-
are developing a wide range of simple and flexible programs munity
for a variety of contexts outside of the traditional classroom.
In this model, students will guide their own learning, assisted
The JASON Project encourages students and teachers to use
with minimal supervision by volunteers, facilitators, or their technology to explore the world and make new discoveries
parents. like the Argonauts of ancient Greece. While scientists and
explorers have always crossed international boundaries, not
Modeling New Methods of Teaching: JASON’s Profes- until recently, have students and teachers had the opportunity
sional Development Programs to follow. Economic and logistical barriers may preclude
every student from actually going on scientific expeditions or
Infusing current research into the classroom transforms the working one-on-one with a mentor scientist. However, ad-
traditional role of science educator. Each expedition provides vanced communication technologies and innovative partner-
a framework for teachers to advance into new science con-
ships between corporations, government agencies, and non-
tent from year to year. Teachers cannot rely on antiquated
profit institutions, both at the core of the JASON Project,
textbooks to instruct their students about cutting-edge re-

help bring the excitement of scientific exploration to students shared data collection projects, and moderated message
and educators all over the world. boards all extend beyond national borders. These tools fa-
cilitate global community, not only bringing cutting-edge
The success of our program lies in the power of our partner- research to remote communities (imagine Peruvian shamans
ships. Partner organizations throughout the United States and chatting with students from rural Minnesota), but enable lo-
in countries such as Peru, Mexico, Australia, and Sweden cal learners to celebrate the uniqueness of their communities.
each have worked to strengthen established programs and Classrooms everywhere—from deep within the Amazon to
provide local learners access to our global community. Al- the outskirts of Australia—are using technology. JASON’s
though we base our content upon U.S. education standards, partnership with the Amazon Center for Environmental Edu-
local sites throughout the world adapt our materials to their cation, our host organization during our tenth expedition,
specific educational needs. Teachers in Sweden may empha- engendered a new international program that trains Peruvian
size field studies to meet local curricular requirements, teachers to use field research and multimedia tools to teach
whereas classrooms in Long Island focus their studies on about the rainforest. This new partnership is just one of the
watershed analysis to meet New York state standards, and many ways that the JASON Project has been reaching into
educators in Arkansas integrate the visual and performing new communities in the United States and abroad. As we
arts with science instruction. Local partners have helped look forward to a new generation of JASON expeditions, we
JASON develop interactive exercises that encourage student will continue our quest for knowledge, keeping our eyes
participation during our live broadcasts. Some sites invite fixed on the Golden Fleece.
local experts, incorporate hands-on exhibits, and display stu-
dent work to further involve classrooms. To learn more about the JASON Project, visit
www.jasonproject.org. The author can be reached at the
Technology tools such as online professional development JASON Foundation for Education, PO Box 587, Needham
courses, chat sessions with researchers, online journals, Heights, MA 02494. E-mail: bram@jason.org.
*
Bram Duchovnay is the JASON Project Content Manager. For the last four years, he has worked on a variety of curriculum
development, evaluation, professional development, international, and online projects.
1
The National Science Board’s Preparing Our Children: Math and Science Education in the National Interest (page 3) ex-
plains that according to the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMMS), “U.S. students are not taught what
they need to know,” NSF (March 1999). For a different opinion, see W. Gibbs and D. Fox “The False Crisis in Science Educa-
tion,” Scientific American (October 1999).
2
The JASON Project takes it name from the Greek hero Jason, who in the mythology of the Western world was the first great
explorer to sail the seas. Over 3,000 years ago, according to legend, Jason outfitted a ship called the Argo and set out in search
of a famous golden fleece, the woolly hide of a golden ram. Jason took with him a crew that included the most famous of
Greek heroes and called his crew the Argonauts, a word that literally means "sailors (Greek nautes) on the Argo."
3
Some of our live broadcasts have been easier to coordinate than others. For example, during JASON X, JASON transformed
two barges from the local town of Iquitos, Peru into an enormous production studio and towed them several hours up the Ama-
zon river. Fortunately, these barges remained afloat. Nine years ago, ten days before our third expedition to the Galapagos Is-
lands, the barge carrying most of our expedition equipment sank in 9,000 feet of water. A historic recovery effort led by the
U.S. and Ecuadorian government and JASON supporters worldwide replaced the equipment and the broadcasts began on time.
4
Key government sponsors include National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Aeronautic and
Space Administration/Agency (NASA), Department of Education (DOE), and the Office of Naval Research (ONR).
5
Almost three-quarters of surveyed teachers reported that students’ class participation, interest in school, and attitudes towards
science activities improved as a result of the JASON Project, and 65 percent of surveyed teachers reported that they used
JASON materials to meet education standards, JASON X Evaluation Report, (September 1999).
6
Preparing Our Children reports that in the U.S. only 1 in 3 teachers feel prepared to teach life science and only 1 in 10 feel
prepared to teach physical science. Only 1 in 2 feel prepared to integrate computers into instruction. The CEO Report on Edu-
cation and Technology reports that only 20 percent of middle school teachers were science majors in college (February 1999).

Learning by Doing Science:
Two Internet-Based Cases
Prepared by Editorial Staff
Information and communication technologies provide the

tools for a “learning by doing” strategy that increases
the students’ awareness of science as a lively and highly
relevant subject, while giving them the opportunity to do
science. The case studies below show two examples of us-
ing Internet-based collaborative environments for science
education within a “learning by doing” approach.
Global Learning and Observations The students conduct measurements and analyze the data
to Benefit the Environment that are then sent to be stored in a central database. Scien-
tists utilize this data for their research. Data and findings
(GLOBE)
are available to all participants in numeric and graphic
representation, and ongoing communication between
GLOBE offers teachers and students, from kindergarten to
schools and scientists is maintained. To ensure that the
high school, the opportunity to participate in actual scien-
data collected is compatible, participant schools must use
tific research. The project, open to schools around the
the same software and measurement tools and must com-
world, focuses mostly on mapping and understanding pat-
ply with established scientific protocols (which are all on
terns and changes in three major areas: atmos-
their web page). In addition, the teachers receive training
phere/climate, hydrology/water chemistry, and land
and ongoing support.
cover/biology. The project, launched on Earth Day 1994,
is administered by an interagency partnership that includes
A four-year evaluation of GLOBE found that participating
some of the most renowned scientific organizations in the
students perform better than their peers in activities that
United States, including the National Oceanic and Atmos-
require understanding of science, including ability to inter-
pheric Administration (NOAA), the National Aeronautics
pret data and apply science concepts. They also showed a
and Space Administration (NASA), and the National Sci-
greater appreciation of science. In addition, the project
ence Foundation (NSF).
instills in the students pride for their work, which is taken
seriously by scientists and community members. Two
GLOBE has three main objectives: improve mathematics
examples demonstrate the reach of GLOBE.
and science education, raise environmental awareness, and
contribute to a worldwide scientific database about Earth.
In a USA town, a Fire Company asked a group of students
To attain these objectives, GLOBE scientists help teachers
who participated in the GLOBE project to examine the
and students develop meaningful science projects, such as
reason for a foul smell in their station. The students made
measurements of pH in the water or analyses of tempera-
a series of pH measurements of the local water supply and
ture readings to observe changing patterns. GLOBE proj-
became suspicious of gas pollution in the area. Govern-
ects can be implemented in different ways: as part of a
ment scientists, using the students’ measurements, were
science class, a separate class, a club, a lunch group, and
able to confirm a gas tank leak in the vicinity. The gas
any other creative venue. In kindergarten and grades 1-3,
was infiltrating the soil and causing health problems.
GLOBE teachers work with fewer than ten children per
From this experience, the students gained more than the
project. Groups for older children can be much larger.
community applause and recognition. They gained first-
Parents may participate as volunteers and, in some cases,
hand experience that science can be exciting and, most of
they have been instrumental in ensuring the continuity of
all, that science is essential for our everyday life.
the measurements while the teachers take some vacation
time.
In Switzerland, GLOBE students associated with students
from a nearby technical institute to install solar panels on

the school rooftop. The panels are expected to supply ments and suggestions. The system notifies the author
about 5% of the school’s electricity needs. Before install- when comments are received. The author then uses the
ing the panels, the students had to research about solar comments to refine ideas, research responses and advance
energy and the technical requirements to install the panels. the inquiry. The information can be entered as notes,
The experience has generated much curiosity among stu- drawings or graphics.
dents, and has given a few others the necessary push to
decide that they want to pursue electrical engineering ca- The software used - WebCSILE, - is compatible with Net-
reers. scape and Microsoft Explorer, so that schools can be con-
nected either internally or through the Internet. The most
Currently, about 9,500 schools in more than 90 countries common installation consists of eight computers in a class-
participate in GLOBE, and participation continues to grow, room networked to a common server. WebCSILE permits
although only a small percentage of these schools contrib- the participants to read and create database notes, and col-
ute data to the central database. A recent training of new laborate with others using CSILE's commenting and dis-
GLOBE teachers in Katmandu, Nepal, congregated more cussion facilities. A more sophisticated version, Knowl-
than 80 teachers from seven Asian countries and New edge Forum, has the ability to use graphics and organize
Zealand. Information on GLOBE, including evaluations of notes into different windows.
the project, can be found at http://www.globe.gov.
The process has been found to motivate students’ curiosity,
and help them to develop an inquisitive attitude. Research
on misconceptions of scientific concepts found that stu-
dents using a CSILE environment are more prone to ex-
pose their misconceptions than students in traditional
classroom. This process facilitates an open discussion
about scientific myths and facts, and enhances under-
standing. Eight years of research shows that students using
CSILE environments surpass students in control class-
rooms on measures of higher-order thinking skills, such as
depth of understanding, identifying conceptual difficulties
These two images showing temperature variations in and reflection. They also score higher than the control
North America and Europe were constructed with data group on standardized tests for reading, language and vo-
provided by GLOBE students cabulary.1
The first version of CSILE was installed in 1986 into two

Computer Supported Toronto classrooms for grades 5/6 using a local area net-
work. CSILE/Knowledge Forum is now used in different
Intentional Learning contexts, from elementary to working places in about ten
Environment (CSILE) countries, including Canada, USA, Japan, Finland and the
Netherlands. Feedback from teachers is incorporated into
CSILE is a network environment the ongoing research process to improve the environment.
where students can develop threaded The project is based at the Centre for Applied Cognitive
discussions. Under teacher’s guidance, or as an independ- Science, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, Uni-
ent project, the student places a hypothesis or comments versity of Toronto (Canada) and information can be found
about a project in a communal database. Other project at http://csile.oise.utoronto.ca.
participants can access this information and make com-
1
Schacter, J. (1999). The Impact of Education Technology on Student Achievement: What The Most Current Research Has to
Say. Milken Exchange on Education Technology. Available at: http://www.mff.org/pubs/ME161.pdf.

International
Virtual Education
Network
For the Enhancement of Science and Math Learning
In Latin America
Wadi D. Haddad
Coordinating Adviser, IVEN
What is IVEN Rationale

The International Virtual Education Network (IVEN) for the There is a convergence in the status of science and mathe-
Enhancement of Science and Mathematics Learning is a pilot matics teaching at the secondary level in participating coun-
collaborative cross-country project in Latin America. The tries that can be summarized as follows:
project aims to harness the potential of information and • There have been substantive reform efforts to align the
communication technologies by combining conceptions of science and mathematics curricula with the modern so-
effective learning with appropriate computer, video and cietal demands and the theories of learning along the
communication technologies. following lines:
♦ Balancing content with context and process;
IVEN is a comprehensive program that involves instructional ♦ Balancing content with social, environmental and
design of teaching/learning activities, production of web- technological concerns;
based multimedia curricular materials, staff training, a distri- ♦ Building an element of real-life problem-solving
bution communication network, learning achievement as- situations that call on multidisciplinary inputs; and,
sessment and program evaluation. ♦ Going beyond the basic cognitive skills into higher
level competencies of synthesis, application, prob-
Participating countries: Brazil, Colombia and Venezuela lem-solving, learning to learn, etc.
Funded by: Country resources, a grant and loans from Inter • The science and mathematics program is intended to be
American Development Bank (http://www.iadb.org) , and a hands-on, minds-on and reality-on, but the organization
start-up grant from UNESCO (http://www.unesco.org). of instruction leaves major gaps between the intended
Timing: The project was designed in 1999 and launched in and the actual.
2000. The pilot phase will require 3-4 years.
• There is a wide variation in the background and qualifi-
Advisory Coordinating Secretariat: Knowledge Enterprise, cations of teachers. There is a significant number of
Inc. (http://www.knowledgeenterprise.org)

teachers that are not specialized in the subject they teach training, a distribution communication network, learning
and some do not even hold a university degree. achievement assessment and program evaluation.
• Student assessment is predominantly based on written • IVEN enhances the classroom and is not a substitute for
tests, oral questions and lab reports. the classroom setting – The project aims to enhance the
• There are many serious attempts to use learning tech- role of the teacher as a facilitator and leader of the
nologies, including on-line networks and production of teaching/learning process, and to equally enhance the
educational software. Also a number of schools are well role of the student as a learner, thinker, investigator and
equipped and connected to the Internet. What is lacking problem-solver.
is a comprehensive approach to the introduction of • IVEN is Internet-based and not Internet-dependent - The
multi-media materials and processes as an integral part system proposes to make the best use of the potential
of the teaching/learning program of secondary science and resources of the Internet. Yet, it is designed in such
and mathematics. a way that schools can access all the content provided by
the network without the need to go through the Internet.
Latin American countries face a formidable task of enhanc- • IVEN is sophisticated technologically and instruction-
ing science and mathematics education and providing the ally, but not complicated - The system will utilize cut-
conditions for hands-on, minds-on and reality-on teach- ting-edge technologies and processes for its design and
ing/learning programs. To attempt to do that with conven- material development, but the front-end components for
tional tools is like digging a tunnel with a spoon. Modern teacher and student use are simple and user-friendly.
information technologies, if properly utilized, offer Latin Schools can participate in the network with modest in-
American countries the potential to leapfrog to the cutting frastructure and technical skills.
edge of science and mathematics education.
In order to face the formidable task of enhancing science and IVEN is not: IVEN is:
mathematics education, harness the potential of information
and communication technologies, and achieve economies of X technology project ! education project
scale and expertise, the three participating countries have X curriculum reform ! instructional reform
agreed to develop an International Virtual Education Net- X substitute for class- ! classroom enhance-
room ment
work (IVEN) for the Enhancement of Science and Mathe-
matics Learning that combines conceptions of effective X resource add-on ! integrated system
learning with appropriate computer, video and communica- X Internet-dependent ! Internet-based
tion technologies. X complicated ! sophisticated
General Framework Pilot Phase and Scaling Up

IVEN starts with a pilot developmental phase of about
Foundational Parameters four years to allow for materials development under experi-
mental conditions, and for the trial of these materials in a
IVEN is structured within the following parameters:
small number of schools. The pilot phase will be submitted
to a rigorous formative and summative evaluation to test for
• IVEN is an educational project and not a technology feasibility, effectiveness and cost benefit before expanding
project - The project proposes to exploit the potential of on a larger scale. The pilot phase is restricted to:
technology to influence the teaching/learning process, as
outlined in above.
• No more than 50 schools in each of the participating
• IVEN is an instructional reform and not a curriculum countries.
reform - The curricula of the participating countries are
• Science and mathematics courses of the last two grades
taken as a given. IVEN aims to enhance the translation
of secondary education.
of these curricula into an effective instructional scheme.
• IVEN is an integrated system and not an additional layer
At the end of this pilot phase the following “products”
of educational input – The project proposes to enhance
will have been achieved:
instructional strategies within existing systems of edu-
cation, rather than creating parallel systems. It will,
• A fully developed multi-media program covering the
therefore, be a comprehensive program that involves ar-
total two-year science and mathematics program.
ticulation of learning objectives, translation of objec-
• A trained cadre of multimedia production specialists in
tives/standards into teaching/learning activities, produc-
each participating country.
tion of web-based multimedia curricular materials, staff

• Trained personnel in the use of science and math learn- given a sensitization and orientation program regarding
ing modules in all the pilot schools. the virtual network, its potential and use. A set of ex-
• A physical infrastructure within schools and across perimental learning/teaching modules will be used to
countries. demonstrate the essence of the network.
• Staff training. Staff training is centered around the stan-
Once this pilot phase is successfully completed and the dards set for science and mathematics education, the
evaluation results are incorporated into the structure of the teaching/learning program, and most importantly, the
Virtual network, then the Network can be scaled up over student learning modules and the corresponding teach-
time in four directions: ers' guiding modules.
• On-line access to resources, including the teachers'
• More secondary schools in the pilot countries guiding modules, teaching tips, chat-rooms with other
• More countries in Latin America teachers, and centers of science and mathematics educa-
• Other levels of science and mathematics education tion.
• Other school subjects
• Life-long education More specifically, the pilot phase of IVEN covers the fol-
lowing five components:
Overall Design 1. Blueprint of instructional activities.
The engine of this initiative is the multimedia virtual net- 2. Production and evaluation of teaching/learning modules.
work. IVEN is actually three interrelated networks: 3. Distribution of modules.
4. Application of modules in pilot schools.
First, IVEN is a network of mathematics and science elec- 5. Evaluation of the pilot program.
tronic content developers. It draws together and trains, for
each country, a team of content specialists, master teachers, Status of the Project
technical experts, and electronic curriculum developers to
work collaboratively across countries -- via a virtual network The start-up stage has been completed. It involved the devel-
-- to develop electronically enhanced mathematics and sci- opment of the institutional, financial, human, instructional
ence “learning modules.” The supporting infrastructure and technical infrastructure. More specifically the following
consists of a state-of-the-art central development laboratory steps have been achieved:
connected to sets of workstations in the participating coun-
tries. • Agreement among participating countries on project
design and on institutional and financial arrangements;
Second, IVEN is a physical network for the distribution of • Recruitment and training of production teams;
mathematics and science learning modules. The organizing • Development of a collaborative web site for communi-
premises of the distributional network are as follows: cation among production teams;
• Development of a restricted institutional web site that
• The system is built around a distributed database and a includes a clearinghouse of resources of science and
World Wide Web architecture that uses the Internet and math multimedia materials and web sites;
its TCP/IP network protocol as its delivery system. • Design of distributional network;
• Most content is stored locally at the school level on an • Production of prototype multimedia teaching/learning
Internet “proxy” server until connectivity improvements modules; and,
provide a means for more central storage of content. • Processing of loans from the Inter American Develop-
• Because video is storage and connectivity “intensive,” ment Bank to cover expenditure.
video aspects of learning modules will be delivered in
the form of videotapes or DVDs until such time when Countries are now ready to move into the development
local connectivity improves. This does not exclude sup- phase, which includes the following:
plementary broadcasts where the infrastructure already
exists. • Development of distributional web site;
• Production and testing of modules;
Third, IVEN is a human network of participating schools. • Selection and equipping of pilot schools;
Preparation and support of the human network entails: • Training of teachers in pilot schools; and,
• Evaluation of pilot program.
• Orientation. For the commitment to be on a solid basis,
the schools that are tentatively selected as candidates are

Science Literacy:
Project 2061/AAAS
2061/ Experiences in Panama
Fernando Cajas*
Project 2061
American Association for the Advancement of Science
This article describes the current work of Project 2061 in Latin America, par-
ticularly in Panama. First it provides a background on the AAAS/Project 2061
efforts in reforming science, mathematics, and technology education. Then it
sets the context and nature of current science, mathematics, and technology
education reforms. The article describes the kind of professional development
programs that Project 2061 has designed for Panama and the plans for scaling
up such programs at a national level. It ends with a set of recommendations to
improve the teaching and learning of science, mathematics, and technology
education in Panama.
What Is Project 2061 to get started; Atlas of Science Literacy (2001) illustrates the
growth of conceptual connections among benchmarks (e.g.,
Project 2061 of the American Association for what ideas about gravity are to be introduced at different
the Advancement of Science is a long-term ages, where specific ideas about gravity come from, how
science, mathematics, and technology educa- they are connected, and where they lead); Resources for Sci-
tion reform initiative that benefits K-12 stu- ence Literacy: Curriculum Materials (in preparation) sheds
dents. The Project maintains that achieving light on the content and instructional characteristics of text-
adult literacy in science, mathematics, and technology re- books that can contribute to student learning; and Resources
quires (a) establishing clear, coherent learning goals; (b) cre- for Science Literacy: Professional Development (1997a) pro-
ating the instructional resources to pursue those goals; and vides materials and information for building the knowledge
(c) creating a supportive environment for their successful and skills teachers will need to help their students reach the
implementation. learning goals.
With the publication of Science for All Americans (1990) and Project 2061 In Latin America
Benchmarks for Science Literacy (1993), Project 2061 con-
tributed a set of coherent learning goals that have helped to During the last three years Project 2061 has been exploring
shape state and national standards, including those presented the status of science, mathematics, and technology education
in National Science Education Standards (National Research in Latin America, particularly in Panama. We have found
Council, 1996). Over the past 15 years, Project 2061 has that:
promoted a systemic approach to improving K-12 science,
mathematics, and technology education, as described in • teaching tends to be based on memorization of facts
Blueprints for Reform (AAAS, 1998a). Its most recent efforts (teaching is telling, learning is remembering);
have resulted in tools for improving specific parts of the • curricula are incoherent and do not address important
system: Designs for Science Literacy (2000) lays out princi- scientific, mathematical, and technological ideas;
ples for increasing curriculum coherence and suggests ways

• teachers do not have the material and social support between Project 2061 and Panama. Project 2061 started
needed to implement comprehensive reforms (e.g., there working with a group of fifteen mentors who have had op-
are only few good curriculum materials); and portunities to use many of Project 2061's tools such as Sci-
• teachers are not well prepared and there is almost no ence for All Americans (AAAS 1990) --a narrative account
professional development for them. of the concepts and skills necessary for basic adult literacy in
science, mathematics, and technology and Benchmarks for
These findings are not a surprise since they simply confirm Science Literacy (AAAS 1993) --which lists specific goals
what has already been reported by other international studies. for student learning for four grade ranges, or “steps along the
The Third International Mathematics and Science Study, way” toward achieving science literacy.
TIMSS, has provided rich information about the status of
curriculum and instruction in a number of countries. TIMSS Project 2061 Professional
revealed that even in “developed” countries, curricula are Development Program staff
members have traveled to
incoherent (Schmidt, Raizen, Britton & Valverde, 1997). In Project 2061
the United States, for example, students learn extensive lists Panama to work directly with
the 15 mentors and 20 leaders maintains that
of specialized terms but their education does not provide
them with opportunities to understand the powerful scien- who come from 10 pilot teachers are the
tific, mathematical, and technological ideas behind this spe- schools. Mentors are those key players in the
cialized terminology. who began the program two education of stu-
years ago when the collabora-
dents and what
The Nature of Current Reform Proposals tion between Project 2061 and
SENACYT began (January teachers do in
Improving science, mathematics and technology education 1999). Leaders are those classrooms has
has been the focus of several efforts around the world (Black teachers who joined the pro- enormous impli-
gram one year later (January
& Atkin, 1996). Each of these efforts has different roots and cations for stu-
provides different models for changing teaching and learn- 2000). The mentors and lead-
ers have learned to look dent learning.
ing. Every day there is a greater consensus on the need for
helping teachers to move from didactic practices to new closely at the meaning of spe-
more effective practices. Such practices are new in the sense cific learning goals through a
that they are informed by research and have been tested in structured study procedure, and gained an understanding of
real classrooms (See a summary of them in How People effective instructional strategies, such as those in Project
Learn report, NRC, 1999). These practices have emerged as 2061's Curriculum Materials Analysis Procedure. During
the outcomes of a reform movement based on the overarch- several workshops, the mentors and leaders have examined
ing goal of science literacy with the following characteristics: research that documents necessary prerequisite ideas, com-
mon student misconceptions and difficulties with specific
• Include all students (democratization); content ideas, and the instructional strategies that have been
shown to be effective in teaching those ideas.
• Increase the coherence of what is taught (more connec-
tions within science, mathematics and technology); and
Workshops have centered on model lessons from exemplary
• Teach for understanding and meaningful applications
science, mathematics, and technology curriculum materials.
(relevance).
The mentors and leaders are now designing lessons based on
their learning goals. This study has proven to be very effec-
Professional Development Programs in Pan- tive in different cultural contexts (Stigler & Hiebert, 1999).
ama The conversations that grow out of this lesson design work
are rich and help the teachers to understand better the nature
In 1998, the Science and Technology Office of Panama of their disciplines. As the lessons are designed, Project 2061
(SENACYT) contacted Project 2061 to propose a collabora- has been involved in critiquing them, and assisting with revi-
tion. With the support of the Inter-American Development sions and preparation for piloting. The teachers try out the
Bank, Project 2061 staff designed a long-term professional lessons in their classes and invite other teachers, leaders, and
development program to provide Panamanian teachers with mentors in this Panama project to observe and critique the
the tools and resources necessary to enact new and more ef- lessons. This feedback is used to improve the lessons, both
fective teaching practices. Project 2061 maintains that for content and instruction.
teachers are the key players in the education of students and
what teachers do in classrooms has enormous implications Because of Project 2061’s long-term relationship with the
for student learning. Therefore, teaching teachers how to mentors, we have had a unique opportunity to study and
teach for understanding is a key goal of the collaboration document the way teachers learn and change their practice

through strong professional development efforts. Working ing on small scale with the mentors. The plan is to use the
together through this Panama Project has helped to create Internet to make available teacher support materials, includ-
contexts for collaboration between the mentors, leaders, and ing, for example, student work samples or video clips of
teachers. The Panama Project is an example of the way in teachers carrying out instructional activities with helpful
which a strong, consistent professional development activity comments about implementing them. This will provide elec-
can effect change in an educational system. tronic communication in support of professional communi-
ties including teachers with some experience in the use of
Translation of the materials for particular materials, curriculum developers and university-
The impor- workshops and the actual transla- based resource people who are implementing effective
tance of ini- tion of the delivering of workshops teaching practices. However, before doing this work it will
tiative on the have been difficult because --as it be necessary to identify such good teaching practices.
was described above-- what is
part of the
needed is a cultural interpretation Documenting what, how, and when the teachers are learning
educators in a rather than literal translation. In is critical. Each teacher in the Panama Project maintains a
system can addition, National Panamanian portfolio of student work, activities, and lessons they have
not be over- programs (learning goals) and cur- designed. However, more resources must be used to gather
riculum materials used in schools empirical evidence of the changes that take place. Teachers
stated.
tend to be of low quality. That is, and university faculty alike need guidance in how to conduct
they are not coherent and do not research on their own teaching and on the learning that goes
take into account what is now known about how people learn on in their classrooms, using approaches such as interview-
science, mathematics and technology ideas and skills. In the ing students and documenting their learning. They need
short term these problems have been partially solved by guidance in how to observe lessons of other teachers with a
translating examples of good curriculum materials (i.e., ma- critical eye and give productive feedback.
terials that have been highly rated in light of Project 2061’s
evaluation procedure, AAAS, 2000). The mentors are begin- Concluding Comments
ning to review their national goals and are providing feed-
back to the Ministry of Education. It is expected that in the The importance of initiative on the part of the educators in a
long term the Panamanians will have a set of coherent learn- system can not be overstated. By sharing the responsibilities
ing goals and will adapt or develop good curriculum materi- for systemic reform, they are more likely to move ahead with
als. effecting change in their schools. The Panamanians took the
opportunity to help in scaling up the project. They planned
Scaling Up Effective Teaching Practices how to extend the original six schools to ten schools and then
how to design a national expansion. With Project 2061 staff,
In addition to ongoing work with learning goals and lesson Panamanian mentors and leaders designed the activities and
design, the Panamanian mentors and leaders are currently experiences that helped develop the new "leaders" group.
engaged in scaling up the reform effort in their country from They continue to sustain the project and to work towards its
a local level to a national level. Since there is evidence that expansion.
the teaching practices they are using are working at a small
scale, the Panamanians want to explore how to scale them So far the most important outcome of the Panama Project is
up. The mentors and leaders are working with Project 2061 that there is a group of teachers who form a community of
staff to prepare a preliminary formal plan describing what learners engaged in improving teaching and learning science,
they have done, including case studies of some of their mathematics and technology. The challenge is how to allo-
teachers, showing how instruction has changed, and the re- cate conceptual, material, and social resources for these
sources they will need to make this happen on a larger scale. teachers to sustain their efforts and then scale them up. In the
Among the ideas in the plan is the creation of a National case of Panama, Project 2061 suggests that in order to do so,
Center that would provide support for Panamanian teachers it is necessary to:
through guidance, resources, and information. Centers
would be established to provide more localized support for • support more research on learning and teaching specific
reform in a district and educational technology will provide scientific, mathematical and technological ideas identi-
the support for teachers to communicate with each other fied for literacy in the Latin American context;
within and outside Panama. • determine and provide the resources for teachers that are
needed in school districts to move the reform effort for-
The Panamanians have been considering the use of technol- ward;
ogy as electronic tools that can provide resources for teach- • identify curriculum materials and models that show co-
ers and students in their efforts for scaling up what is work- herence between content, instruction, and assessment;

• study the potential that technology has for supporting, • look more closely at factors other than content and in-
sustaining and scaling up effective teaching practices; struction that affect student learning, such as family, en-
• continue the collaboration between university faculty vironment, and socioeconomic status.
and K-12 teachers, between teachers at similar grade
levels, and between the Panama Project and Project
2061; and
References
• American Association for the Advancement of Science (1990). Science for All Americans. New York: Oxford
University Press. http://www.project2061.org/tools/sfaaol/sfaatoc.htm
• American Association for the Advancement of Science (1993). Benchmarks for Science Literacy. New York:
Oxford University Press. http://www.project2061.org/tools/benchol/bolframe.htm
• American Association for the Advancement of Science (1997a). Resource for Science Literacy. New York: Ox-
ford University Press.
• American Association for the Advancement of Science (1997b). Ciencia Conocimiento para Todos. México:
Harla. http://www.project2061.org/esp/tools/benchol/bolframe.htm
• American Association for the Advancement of Science (1998a). Blueprints for Reform. New York: Oxford
University Press. http://www.project2061.org/tools/bluepol/blpframe.htm
• American Association for the Advancement of Science (1998b). Avances en el Conocimiento Cientifico.
México Harla. http://www.project2061.org/esp/tools/sfaaol/sfaatoc.htm
• American Association for the Advancement of Science (2000). Designs for Science Literacy. New York: Ox-
ford University Press.
• American Association for the Advancement of Science, (2001). Atlas of Science Literacy. Author; Washington
D.C. http://www.project2061.org/tools/atlas/default.htm
• Black, P. & Atkin, J. M.(1996). Changing the Subject: Innovation in Science, Mathematics And Technology
Education. Routledge: London.
• National Research Council (1996). National Science Education Standards. Washington D.C.: National Acad-
emy Press.
• National Research Council (1999). How People Learn: Bridging Research and Practice. M. S. Donovan, J. D.
Bransford and J. W. Pellegrino (Eds.). National Academy Press: Washington D.C.
http://books.nap.edu/catalog/9457.html
• Schmidt, W. H., McKnight, C. C., and Raizen, S. A. (1997). A Splintered Vision: An Investigation of the U.S.
Science and Mathematics Education. TIMSS, United States. Kluwer Academic Publisher: Dordrecht.
http://nces.ed.gov/timss/
• Stigler, W., & Hiebert, J. (1999). The Teaching Gap: Best Ideas from the World's Teachers for Improving Edu-
cation In The Classroom. New York: Free Press.
*
The author thanks Kathleen Morris (AAAS/Project 2061) and Yoshiko Koda (World Bank) for their comments.

The IMMEX Project:
Technology for Problem Solving
Anais Dyer, IMMEX Project; Ron Stevens, Ph.D., Director, IMMEX Project
The IMMEX Project is many things: it is a resource to educators who are interested in inte-
grating meaningful technology into their curriculum, an educational research team investi-
gating the role of metacognition in computer-based learning activities and a program dedi-
cated to providing training in technology to both pre-service and in-service teachers. At
the heart of these activities is an innovative, problem-solving software system called
IMMEX (Interactive Multi-media Exercises) that is designed to pose complex, real-life
problems to students, for which there are multiple solution pathways.
Solving Real-life Problems

The IMMEX software, developed initially for use with UCLA (University of California
Los Angeles) medical students, allows K-12 teachers to determine not only if students
know the material being taught but also if they understand and can apply the material to
solve real-world problems. Use of IMMEX activities reinforces students’ learning of class-
room and subject content while also developing students’ problem-solving skills.
A typical IMMEX problem-set begins with a scenario in which background information is

given and a complex, multi-step problem is posed. The problems are designed to encour-
age student inquiry by requiring the student to gather information from a variety of sources,
called menu-items, which can be selected in any sequence in order to arrive at a solution.
Much of the information given by the menu-items will aid the student in piecing together a
viable solution to the previously posed problem; however, not all of the information is
helpful. In fact, some of this information is irrelevant. Students are challenged to discern
between relevant and irrelevant information—therefore they have to truly understand the
content and its context.
For example, in our most extensively used problem called, True Roots, a high school stu-
dent named Leucine becomes unsure that her parents are her true biological parents. So, to
be sure, she launches an investigation into the possibility that she was switched at birth.
She knows that there were 5 other children born on that same day at the hospital. True
Roots presents students with the following resources for each of the other children born on
that day: pedigrees, fingerprints, bloodtypes, karyotypes, DNA fingerprinting, birth certifi-
cates of all 5 of the other families and children born on that day as well as her own infor-
mation. She also has newspaper clippings and records of interviews with various family
members and hospital workers. The problem can neither be solved by simply looking at
one or two pieces of information, nor is there a single correct or perfect strategy that will
give the student the solution; students need to synthesize information from the various
sources and apply their knowledge of genetics in order to find the solution.
Creating Problem-sets
IMMEX has shown to be an exceedingly flexible tool for educators due to the ease with
which problem-sets can be created or modified. We encourage teachers to create their own
problem-sets (most problem-sets are teacher authored) or to modify existing problem-sets
in order to ensure relevance to their classroom and curriculum. Problem-sets can be rela-
tively easily adapted to make them easier or harder depending on the students’ needs, and

they can also be translated into other languages. Several of the problem-sets have been translated into Spanish and a few have
been designed in French, Dutch and German. We have also found that IMMEX is neither culturally, nor gender biased. We
have found no significant differences in performance levels across such groups or across varying socio-economic levels.
Observing Students’ Thinking

One of the unique components of the IMMEX software is its ability to track students’ every move while they are solving a
problem, thus providing a detailed record of the student’s decision making process. While students are choosing the menu-
items that will help them towards the answer, in the background the software is tracking menu-item selection, the order in
which the items were selected, and the amount of time spent on each selection. It’s the ultimate “show your work” tool. This
component of the IMMEX software allows the teacher and student to literally visualize a student’s thinking process which then
helps the teacher to see just where the student is succeeding or struggling and to intervene appropriately. This tracking also
serves as the basis for our research on student thinking, analysis and metacognition.
For example, we have found that without intervention, whatever type of strategy students use the first time going through a
problem-set, they will continue to rely on this type of strategy in successive cases as well as in similar problem-sets, regardless
of effectiveness. We have found that having students review a graphical representation of their strategy and explaining their
selections and the selection order, to be most consistently successful in modifying a student’s strategy. For more on this study,
see The Use of Artificial Neural Nets (ANN) to Help Evaluate Student Problem-solving Strategies.
(http://www.umich.edu/%7Eicls/proceedings/abstracts/ab108.html)
Training Teachers
We have also learned that, no matter how effective and dynamic the IMMEX problem-solving software is, effective software is
only part of the education technology equation—extensive teacher training in technology is also required. To this end, the
IMMEX Project has been funded by the U.S. Department of Education’s Preparing Tomorrow's Teachers to Use Technology,
(PT3), initiative to work with a consortium of educators to train new teachers to use new technologies to enhance learning and
effectively infuse technology into their curriculum. Both California State University of Northridge and the University of Min-
nesota use the IMMEX model not only to demonstrate exemplary implementation models, but also to train teachers in Internet
usage, PowerPoint, Microsoft Word, and other basic computer skills. There are even problem-sets designed to establish effec-
tive strategies in handling various situations that often arise when dealing with administrative, school site and classroom man-
agement.
Collaboration with Other Programs

In addition to the above collaboration, the IMMEX project continues to build on its roots with such projects as the AIR
AWARE asthma education program in Los Angeles, which is an Asthma education program intended to improve the way
young students with asthma handle decisions regarding their asthma and to help them practice good asthma management as a
regular part of their life style. This is done through simulation of asthma episodes using the IMMEX software. Another of our
valuable collaborations was with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. The intention of this collaboration was to expand the
science content/process knowledge of secondary school science teachers through the development and integration of new and
in-depth hands on activities for their classrooms.
To date, IMMEX problem-sets on the web have been used over 40,000 times as well as countless sessions on standalone com-
puters in individual classrooms. Although most of the available problem-sets are intended for secondary science classrooms,
there are IMMEX problem-sets for primary levels as well as disciplines, such as math and history.
To learn more about the IMMEX project and its commitment to education through technology and future
projects, visit our website at http://www.immex.ucla.edu.

REALIZING THE POSSIBILITIES:
A TECHNOLOGY-ASSISTED LEARNING CENTER
AT UNIVERSIDAD MAYOR DE SAN ANDRÉS, LA PAZ, BOLIVIA1
by Kelly Curran, Natalie Maier, and Theresa Norton2
If anyone doubts the value faculty and students place on the siastically received. JHPIEGO decided to build on the expe-
technology-assisted learning center (TALC) at the Universi- rience in Haiti by setting up a similar center at UMSA.
dad Mayor de San Andrés (UMSA), La Paz, Bolivia, they
have only to ask Maria Elena Sanchez (fictitious name). Getting Started
Maria Elena is a medical school student who skips lunch to After discussing the process for establishing a TALC, UMSA
be able to afford the $.80 (US equivalent) per hour charge to and JHPIEGO agreed to partner in establishing a TALC in
use the TALC. For Maria Elena, the TALC is a window to the Health Sciences Library. JHPIEGO would provide the
the world, allowing her to access up-to-date medical articles equipment and arrange for Internet access, while the UMSA
and e-mail family and friends. She is able to develop com- would make an adequate room available and provide staff to
puter skills and hone her use of English (the language of administer the center. As it turned out, the administrator (also
many scientific publications). Her education and personal a librarian) would be the key proponent for the center and
satisfaction have taken a quantum largely responsible for its success.
leap.
With the support of Bolivian
This article describes how the idea of physicians in the United States,
establishing a TALC in a Health UMSA began by renovating and
Sciences library in Bolivia grew into furnishing a room within the Health
a springboard for a university Sciences Library. In September
participating in the on-line world in 1999, JHPIEGO and technical
innovative ways. personnel in Bolivia installed eight
computer workstations, a network
An Idea Takes Shape server, Internet access through a
JHPIEGO, an affiliate of the Johns cable modem connection, and a CD-
Hopkins University, is a non-profit ROM library of health related titles.
corporation that works globally to improve the health of
families by strengthening reproductive health services. It Implementation
accomplishes this goal by strengthening the education and With the TALC established, training, access, and cost-
training systems that support healthcare professionals. recovery were the next issues to address, and these would
ensure sustainability of the center in terms of supply and
Under a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Agency for demand.
International Development, JHPIEGO began working with
authorities, faculty, staff and students at the UMSA medical Training
and nursing schools in 1998. The goal was to strengthen pre- Training, in addition to Internet access, is an essential ele-
service education and training so that UMSA could produce ment of the service the TALC provides. About 30% of the
medical and nursing graduates who were better able to meet TALC’s operating hours are spent on training. In the first
the primary health care needs of Bolivia's population. As two months of the TALC’s operation, Chief Medical Librar-
JHPIEGO helped introduce updated reproductive health in- ian and TALC Coordinator Marilín Sanchez trained three
formation into the curriculum, it began to see the need to groups of faculty (with the help of a consultant co-trainer).
provide faculty and staff with long-term access to current She taught each group two sessions per day, three days per
health resources. Given the extremely limited resources in week for one month. In the next 6 months, she trained three
the Health Sciences library at UMSA, JHPIEGO realized that additional groups, until about 20% of the 250 faculty mem-
electronic access in the form of computers, CD-ROMs, and bers had been trained. Faculty from the Nursing, Medical and
the Internet would provide the best solution. At about the Nutrition schools had received training, while faculty from
same time, JHPIEGO had finished establishing a TALC at an the School of Medical Technology was scheduled for up-
in-service training center in Petionville, Haiti at the Institute coming training. In addition to university faculty, JHPIEGO's
of Haitian Health and Community Service, which was enthu- in-service trainers residing in La Paz had also been trained at
the TALC.

Access 2000, faculty, staff, trainers and students logged over 3,000
The TALC is open to all UMSA faculty, staff and students. Internet hours. About 90% of the use was Internet-based
In addition to medical and nursing students, staff from the medical research.
hospital across the street and other students may also use the
computers when the center is being lightly used. Initially, Cost Recovery System Works
due to staffing constraints, the TALC was open only from Once implemented, the cost-recovery mechanism generated
9:00 a.m. –12:00 p.m. and 2:30-6:00 p.m. Monday through more than 50% of the annual Internet connection costs in less
Friday. Popular demand and revenue from Internet and than 6 months. Due to the long approval time for the plan,
training customers made it possible to hire an additional staff the cost-recovery mechanism was not in place early enough
member. The TALC now operates from 8:00 a.m. – 7:00 to generate revenue to pay the total up-front annual cost of
p.m., Monday through Friday. the Internet connection. The JHPIEGO Bolivia project con-
tributed the difference for 2001, but expects the TALC will
Despite the fact that few students and faculty members at be self-sustaining by October 2001.
UMSA read English, the prevalence of English language
websites does not necessarily inhibit usage of the Internet. Innovative Uses of the TALC
Ms. Sanchez has trained TALC users to use Spanish search As faculty, staff and trainers at UMSA have seen how
engines and the Spanish edition of JHPIEGO's ReproLine quickly technology is embraced as an important tool, they
website (http://www.reproline.jhu.edu) to locate the infor- have developed and implemented their own visions of how
mation they needed. TALC users who do search in English the technology can strengthen their pre-service education and
often do so to improve their English language skills. Some in-service training.
TALC users also employ Internet-based translation pro-
grams. Although these programs are not 100% accurate, they These visions involve using the TALC for more than just
at least convey the idea of the text to the reader. academic research. The TALC use has grown to offer op-
portunities for distance learning, provide its users with access
Cost-Recovery to virtual libraries and help Bolivia’s health community col-
A cost-recovery program has been implemented to ensure the laborate with other countries through e-mail and other infor-
sustainability of the UMSA TALC. All costs were paid for in mation technologies. The TALC also has been used for com-
the first year by JHPIEGO, including 12 months of cable puter training conducted by consultants from other countries
modem Internet access. Ms. Sanchez developed a cost- in the LAC (Latin America and Caribbean) region. In an in-
recovery plan, which proposed that users be charged 5 Bo- terview, Ms. Sanchez said that she believed that the TALC
livianos ($0.80) per hour, and faculty members be charged had helped to influence a variety of decisions and policies at
30 Bolivianos ($5.00) to be trained in each computer appli- the university level that have helped UMSA and the Bolivian
cation (Internet usage, Microsoft PowerPoint, Microsoft medical community embrace these new technologies and
Word). Users would get one hour free by presenting receipts stay current. In 2000, Bolivia was represented for the first
for five paid hours. These funds would then be deposited into time at the International Congress on Medical Librarianship.
a savings account to pay for recurring costs such as paper, Ms. Sanchez traveled to the conference in London to discuss
ink cartridges, computer maintenance and the Internet con- the TALC experience and its role in establishing a network
nection. The plan was approved in February 2000 and be- of health sciences libraries in Bolivia.
came standard practice.
Within the first year after opening the TALC, the UMSA
Accomplishments staff initiated three projects to promote South-to-South col-
By the end of the first year, the UMSA and JHPIEGO agreed laboration for Bolivia. These are:
that the TALC project had been a success. TALC users said
they finally were a part of the modern world. One of the first Library Network – The UMSA Medical Library is currently
UMSA faculty members trained at the TALC (a woman who the designated coordinating center for a network of health
had, until then, never used the Internet) said that she enrolled sciences libraries in the LAC region. Since the TALC
in the training because she worried that having no Internet opened, the Biblioteca Regional de Medicina (BIREME) has
access had caused the medical school to fall far behind the worked with UMSA and Ms. Sanchez to create a virtual
world’s medical community. Access to the Internet now en- medical library to be shared among other schools in the Bo-
sured that students and faculty need not fear falling behind livian BIREME network, including Sucre, Santa Cruz and
for lack of up-to-date information. Tarija.
High-level of Use Online Journals – After a week of training in web develop-

Data gathered via logbooks and informal surveys further ment, Ms. Sanchez worked with Proyecto SCIELO (the Sci-
illustrated the success. Between October 1999 and September entific Electronic Library Online) and was able to post jour-

nals online. Students and faculty now have online access to a public health module on the Internet (to allow for on-line
the Bolivian Medical Journal, the Sucre Medical Journal, the research on anatomy and social medicine).
Bolivian Food and Nutrition Journal, and the Journal of the
Bolivian Medical College. Future Plans
With the installation of the TALC at UMSA, many things
Distance Education – A consultant from the LAC region have and will continue to change. One idea being pursued is
worked with a group of UMSA faculty (Dean of the Faculty the development of a Master's program in Reproductive
of Medicine, the Vice-Dean, Chief of Nursing, Chief of the Health through distance learning. The proposed course would
Medical School, and Chief of the School of Public Health) to be targeted at doctors and nurses posted to rural areas (under
develop a distance education course for Bolivia. JHPIEGO a new 4-year contract where they would be given an incen-
staff, consultants and UMSA librarian, Ms. Sanchez, are tive to stay in rural areas in exchange for additional pay).
primarily responsible for learning how to organize the dis- Clinicians could take the course (coming to La Paz for their
tance education course. They will, in turn, train the medical clinical skills training) and finish their Master's at the same
faculty to offer the new course. UMSA representatives are time that they finish the 4-year contract. The course would
currently looking for funding to support the implementation improve their knowledge of reproductive health, clinic man-
of this course. agement, health education and surgical skills. Distance
learning options such as CD-ROM, video, Internet-based and
TALC Raises the Bar of Academic Requirements print media are being explored. Donors will be asked to sup-
In addition to the new projects, access to technology and the port two to three participants each, including purchase of a
Internet have influenced new graduation requirements and computer.
provided incentive for faculty to hone their own skills. Weak
skills in English and computers had put faculty and students Summary
at a distinct disadvantage. Because such skills are often pre- While the TALC is not solely responsible for making Bolivia
requisites for scholarships, for example, faculty and students “a part of the modern world,” these accomplishments and
were often unable to apply. Medical students at UMSA will plans for the future demonstrate that the TALC is well on its
now be required to have computer skills as well as the ability way to achieving its goals. However, while many of the ac-
to read English before embarking on their internship year. complishments described previously are excellent success
Ms. Sanchez believes these new requirements are one indi- stories, there are implications. For example, while the vari-
cation of the TALC’s influence. Access to the TALC helped ous departments are using the TALC for their classes, the
university officials realize that computer skills, access to the library cannot collect fees from all users. Also, with the new
Internet and the ability to read English were essential tools requirement that first year medical students complete a pub-
for their students and faculty. lic health module online, library staff members are concerned
that the 1000 first-year medical students will overwhelm the
TALC Use Becomes Part of Curriculum TALC. Ms. Sanchez and her staff will be challenged to care-
Finally, many departments at UMSA have incorporated use fully plan TALC use and maintain flexibility.
of the TALC into their curriculum. For example, the Mas-
ter’s in Public Health (MPH) program uses the TALC for In just over a year, the TALC has become an essential re-
epidemiology and biostatistics classes as well as for the web- source for many UMSA faculty members and students. As
based National Health Information System (SNIS) for two interest in the TALC grows, so does its potential. It is up to
weeks each year. The Master's programs for higher educa- those TALC users to determine how the TALC will become
tion, family medicine, forensic medicine and biochemis- useful to them, and this success story demonstrates that there
try/nutrition are also using the computers. In addition, the is no shortage of uses and ideas. Whether used for Internet
medical school has implemented a curriculum change and access, basic computer training, access to a virtual library or
beginning in 2001, first year medical students will complete a connection to other schools, organizations and colleagues,
the UMSA TALC has had many successes and is just getting
started.
1
Financial support for this project was provided by the Office of Population, Center for Population, Health and Nutri-
tion/Global Programs, Field Support and Research Bureau/CMT Division, U.S. Agency for International Development, under
the terms of Award No. HRN-A-00-98-00041-00. The opinions expressed herein are those of JHPIEGO and do not necessarily
reflect the views of the U.S. Agency for International Development.
2
The authors can be reached by e-mail at kcurran@jhpiego.org (Kelly Curran), nmaier@jhpiego.org (Natalie Maier) and
tnorton@jhpiego.org (Theresa Norton); by phone at 1.410.955.8558; or by postal mail at JHPIEGO Corporation, 1615 Thames
Street, Suite 200, Baltimore, Maryland USA 21231.

Gregg B. Jackson and John Jones1
Pre-historic man simulated a hunt by throwing spears at a target. For the past 30 years, computer simulations have been de-
veloped to assist in education and training. Many instructional simulations are now available on the Web and more are sure to
come over the following years.
Educational simulations provide interactive representations of reality. They allow students to test or discover how a phenome-
non works, what affects it, and how it impacts other phenomena. The student is able to manipulate the model of reality and
quickly discern the impacts of the manipulation. While most traditional instruction is aimed at helping students minimize their
mistakes, most educational simulations are designed to have students make many mistakes and learn from them more quickly
than would otherwise be possible.
• They can cut the costs of many students conducting ac-

WWhhyy UUssee SSiimmuullaattiioonnss tual experiments in laboratories; and
• They can automatically record student responses for
There are several advantages to Web-based simulations for review by teachers and the developers of the simulation.
the teaching of mathematics and science.
Simulations for the teaching of mathematics and science also
• They are more realistic than written exercises or de- have some disadvantages. These include:
scriptions of phenomena; • Simulations may over-simplify the phenomena to the
• They are more convenient to use than conducting actual point that the students do not gain a good understanding
experiments; of them;
• They can accelerate exposure to a wide range of phe- • They may inadvertently provide clues that allow stu-
nomena in a given amount of time and provide immedi- dents to reach high levels of performance with phenom-
ate feedback. ena that they do not understand well;
• They can eliminate dangers inherent in working with the • They may create a false sense of safety that could be
real phenomena; dysfunctional when students move on to work directly
• They can slow down fast processes, such as those of a with dangerous phenomena; and
lightning strike, and they can speed up slow processes, • Some students may “game” the simulation, focusing on
such as those of the evolution of a species, so that both maximizing performance by means that would be inef-
can be observed; fective, risky, or expensive in real experiments.
• They can simplify the complexity of a phenomenon that
would initially overwhelm most students, and then
gradually introduce it;
FFoorrmmss ooff SSiimmuullaattiioonnss
• They can initially provide some clues that would not be
available when working directly with a phenomenon and Simulations can vary on several dimensions. Some simula-
then withdraw them gradually; tions provide most of the information in text, describing a
• They can allow students to stop the simulation at any complex situation to which the student is to respond; others
point if they need time to think, to “rewind” the simula- rely heavily on graphs, icons, and animation; still others use
tion when they have missed something, and to repeat the varying degrees of virtual reality. Many simulations are self-
simulation when they want to try out other responses; contained as initially developed. Some, however, download
• They can motivate students who are bored with tradi- data that are collected by other sources such as a national
tional classroom instruction and reading; weather bureau or from a space shuttle, some have students

key in data that they have collected on a given phenomenon, the site will notify you of that and link you to a site that pro-
and some input data through external probes connected to the vides a free download. Make sure to close down all other
students’ computer, such as temperature gauges and heart active applications on your machine before starting the
rate monitors (these latter simulations are often called micro- download.
computer-based laboratories). Simulations vary on whether
they are designed for students to use individually, with col- The “Mathforum” site offers early primary education “ac-
leagues, or with many students around the globe. Some tivities” in basic geometry and measurement. For each activ-
simulations require that students work through the simulation ity there are stated objectives, a manipulative exercise with
according to a fixed sequence, some vary the sequence de- materials widely available in schools and homes, a “technol-
pending on students’ prior responses, and some allow the ogy activity” to be conducted with a colorful interactive
students complete freedom in how the simulation is used. simulation, and references to children’s books that treat the
Simulations also vary on the form and degree of interactivity. same topic. This is an easy-to-use site for both teachers and
One form of interaction has students practice previously students. http://mathforum.com/varnelle/index.html
taught knowledge and skills; a second form encourages stu-
dents to explore, experiment, predict, and invent, and to infer “BBC Online Education” offers an all-purpose education
new knowledge from their work; a third but uncommon form site. It has many instructional aids, including some simula-
asks students to construct simulations to provoke systemic tions, but the site is difficult to navigate. A click on
thinking about a given phenomenon. “Schools” takes one to a page with resources organized by
grade level, with links to various subjects. For instance, for
the age 4-11 group, click on “MegaMaths,’” then on “World
UUssee ooff SSiimmuullaattiioonnss iinn of Tables,” then on “Pick a Number,” then to any card
IInnssttrruuccttiioonn shown, and then on “Patterns and Hints” to reach a dynamic
multiplication table. “Table Tournament” provides a fast-
Simulations serve as enriched substitutes for written exer- paced multiplication tables game with captivating graphics
cises in texts and workbooks. They can be used to prepare that, for instance, require the users to answer multiplication
students for demanding laboratory experiments that might problems quickly before a rolling bolder crashes into them.
otherwise be unsafe or expensive. They can also be used as “Tell Us Your Top Tips” offers tips on doing multiplication
substitutes for laboratory work. quickly. http://www.bbc.co.uk/education/home/
Most simulations are designed for individual student interac- “ExploreMath.com” offers a series of high school mathe-
tion, or for small groups of students sharing one computer. matics simulations, most of which show the relationship
Web-based simulations also make possible, for the first time, between equations and their corresponding two-dimensional
the use of data input and control by thousands of students graphs. The user can modify the equation and see how that
scattered across the globe. affects the graph, or modify the graph and see how that alters
the equation. This is one of the few simulations that permit
A teacher, before a class, can demonstrate web-based simu- the latter form of interaction. There is also a library of lesson
lations. That will require only one computer per class, but plans that make use of the simulations.
unless the class is quite small, an LCD projector will be http://www.exploremath.com
needed so that all students can see the computer screen. This
is generally considered the least preferable way of using University of Minnesota’s “Geometry Center” offers several
simulations because it removes students from the direct in- interactive simulations of college-level geometry. Generally
teraction. However, the benefits to students can be enhanced the user specifies functions or coordinates, and then sees the
by having the class decide on each move to be taken or by geometric representation. The simulation includes hyper-
letting individual students take turns controlling the keyboard bolic triangles, Lorenz equations, projective conics, and
as the others look on. Teichmuller navigation. These interactive components are in
the two-fold link titled, “Interactive Web and Java Applica-
tions.” There are brief instructions for using the simulations,
EExxaammpplleess ooff SSiimmuullaattiioonnss but no instructional guides or lesson plans. This site also
ffoorr MMaatthheemmaattiiccss aanndd SScciieennccee offers downloadable software and other resources for teach-
IInnssttrruuccttiioonn ers of advanced geometry. Although the site is no longer
being maintained, it remains functional.
http://www.geom.umn.edu
The following are the best simulations that were found dur-
ing a brief review of English language sites. Many of these The “Visual Calculus” site has an extensive set of visual re-
sites require Shockwave, Flash, and sometimes other plug- sources to accompany a two-semester college course in cal-
ins. If your computer does not already have what is needed,

culus. Some of the resources are Web-based interactive CCoossttss ooff WWeebb--BBaasseedd
simulations and some are free downloadable simulation SSiimmuullaattiioonnss
software that can be run from individual microcomputers.
Ironically, many of the simulations are of the TI-85 and TI-
86 graphing calculators. Short tutorials precede the visuali- There are many Web-based simulations that are currently
zations. The professor who developed this site also has available for free. That doesn’t mean using them will be
posted the syllabi for the courses that he teaches with these without costs. Their use requires one or more computers,
Web-based resources, so that other instructors can see how perhaps an LCD projector, and Internet connection. Most of
they are integrated with the course. the simulations are currently in English. Countries using
http://archives.math.utk.edu/visual.calculus other languages of instruction have two options—they can
contract with the developers to convert the English text, and
The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis offers a “Living in sometimes audio, or they can develop their own simulations.
Space: Design a Space Station” site that starts the young user The effort required of the latter should not be under-
(about age 6-10) with a brief non-interactive simulation of a estimated.
space shuttle launch. Then, if he/she is smart enough to click
“Skip intro” just below the shuttle window, an interactive Despite these substantial costs, simulations can be cost-
shuttle design simulation is presented. The user is asked to effective in developing countries under certain circum-
design a habitable space station, making decisions that draw stances. That would be so if the simulations preclude the
upon an understanding of both human biology and the nature need to build, equip, and supply expensive laboratories; or
of space--about the air to be breathed, the amount of water when considerable numbers of computers with Internet con-
needed, and the appropriate diet. If the user responds with an nections are already present and underutilized.
incorrect choice, he/she is nicely told why it is wrong and
asked to answer again. This is a low-tech simulation using Web-based simulations often cannot be downloaded to an
only linked pages of graphics, text, and links. individual microcomputer because they require frequent ex-
http://www.childrensmuseum.org/cosmicquest/index.html changes with the home server. Because of that, they are not
well suited where Internet connections are slow, unreliable,
“ExploreScience.com” includes a substantial number of or expensive. In those situations the better option is to li-
simulations about building blocks, mechanics, wave motion, cense the simulations and install them on local area network
electromagnetism, optics, astronomy, and life sciences. The server.
mechanics simulations include those of two colliding masses,
an inclined plane, and freefall. The user can change the vari- SSeelleeccttiinngg WWeebb--BBaasseedd
ables and visually see what happens. There are no instruc-
tional guides or lesson plans to go with the simulations. SSiimmuullaattiioonnss
http://www.explorescience.com
Several criteria should be considered when selecting Web-
The “Annenberg Teachers’ Lab” is intended to provide based simulations. The curriculum objectives and current
teachers with a deeper understanding of commonly taught student achievement of those objectives should be a major
mathematics and science concepts. Of the four posted labs, criterion by which simulations are selected. Simulations
only the “Light” lab was functional when checked. It pro- should address priority objectives that would not otherwise
vides some instruction and then interactive simulations. be well met. It is important that the simulations be neither
There are brief instructions on how to use the simulation. too easy nor too difficult for most of the students using them.
Several questions are to be answered by use of the simula- Some simulations require considerable time to work through,
tion, and then there are additional questions that ask for gen- and others take only a few minutes. Simulations vary in their
eral principles and rules inferred from the simulation. While requirements for hardware (usually at least 64 megabytes of
presented as a teacher preparation tool, students could also RAM and 200 kHz machines) and the needed browser soft-
use the site. http://www.learner.org/teacherslab ware versions. The titles of simulations, and the promotional
materials, do not always represent the simulation well; so the
simulations should be tried out thoroughly by a few teachers
and students before making large commitments to using
them.
1
Gregg Jackson is Associate Professor and Coordinator of the Education Policy Program at The George Washington Univer-
sity in Washington DC. John Jones is a master’s degree student in that program.

Are They Effective?
Sonia Jurich
What is CAI? ties beyond the simple drill-and-practice, such as simula-

tions, graphing and even modeling.
Drill and practice software, generally called Computer-
Assisted Instruction (CAI), has been used in education for What does evaluation say about CAI?
over 30 years. From simple mathematics tutorials, these
programs expanded their reach to a variety of academic and Evaluations of computer tutorials tend to be inconsistent,
vocational subjects, and to all levels of the educational ranging from “significantly improved” to “no statistical sig-
structure, from elementary grades to higher education. They nificance found.” Cotton (2000) reviews 35 studies related
are also frequently used for job skill development and mili- to the use of CAI conducted throughout the 1980s, when the
tary training. The program functions as an automated tutor. programs were popular. Overall, results were encouraging.
The topic to be taught is divided into modules of increasing When compared to students receiving only traditional,
complexity. The students work at their own time and pace, teacher-direct instruction, students who had the teacher in-
starting with the basic modules. At the end of each module, struction supplemented by CAI were found to learn faster –
the students must complete an evaluation. If they answer sometimes as much as 40 percent faster – and had better re-
correctly a determined percentage of questions, they can tention rates (measured through higher scores in delayed
move to a more advanced module. Otherwise, they may re- tests). They also improved their attitudes toward school and
peat the module until they have mastered the targeted con- their potential as learners. CAI students had better atten-
cept or skill (some programs offer remedial modules). dance rates, showed higher motivation and cooperated better
with peers.
CAI utilizes the capacity of computer technologies to: pro-
vide immediate feedback, perform repetitive tasks with equal Kulik (1994) reviewed approximately 550 individual studies
precision, and store large amounts of data. The program conducted between 1978 and 1991 using a meta-analysis
enables the students to practice the skills or concepts as many technique. His findings are similar to Cotton’s: on average,
times as necessary until mastery is achieved. The students students who use CAI learn faster and retain more than stu-
can work at home or elsewhere in out-of-school hours, sav- dents who had only traditional instruction. In addition, they
ing classroom time for more complex and creative activities. develop more positive attitudes toward school. Evaluators
Moreover, the students can work on their own, without the for the Carnegie Learning’s Cognitive Tutor, a tutorial soft-
pressure from their more advanced peers. The programs are ware for mathematics, compared public school students in
designed to provide encouragement through supportive two U.S.A. cities: a group used the Tutorial and a compari-
statements when the students respond to the questions cor- son group received only traditional instruction. Student
rectly, or sympathetic expressions and a chance to correct achievement was compared using national standardized tests.
when the answers are wrong. Many programs have an in- On average, students who used the Algebra I Tutorial per-
formation management system that keeps a history of the formed 85 percent better on assessments of complex mathe-
students’ activity, including the number of attempts to pass matical problem solving and thinking, and 14 percent better
each module, the types of errors made or the time spent on on standardized assessments of basic mathematical skills
each question. Teachers can use this history to develop an than their peers who did not use the program. Students who
individualized plan that fits each student’s needs. Most re- had completed the three-course sequence (Algebra I, Ge-
cent CAI software integrates features that encourage activi- ometry and Algebra II) performed on average 30 percent

better on the Third International Mathematics and Science rials. Likewise, tutorials may receive different labels.
Study (TIMSS) assessment, and 227 percent better on real- Evaluations of CAI programs may be comparing quite differ-
world problem solving assessments.1 A smaller study com- ent approaches, particularly because many studies do not
pared two groups of students attending a calculus course: one describe the software used. Some tutorials are limited to
group used computer tutorials to enhance the lessons, and the basic memorization and reinforcement activities, while oth-
other received only teacher-direct instruction. When the ers can be quite sophisticated, emphasizing higher-order
groups were compared, the students who used the software thinking skills activities. For instance, the Mathematical
showed improved understanding of key concepts (Cooley, Abstract Reasoning Tutor, MARTHA, is a computer tutorial
1997). In contrast, a review of six years of qualitative and that focuses on abstract reasoning on mathematics, including
quantitative studies on the use of computer tutorials for sci- modeling (Wheeler & Regian, 1999).
ence teaching questioned the reliability of CAI results. Ac-
cording to this study, advancement through the program lev- The quality of the programs also varies. Not all drill-and-
els did not ensure that the student had mastered the concepts, practice software have undergone research and testing to
nor the lack of advancement reflected that mastery had not ensure efficacy, and many are not regularly updated. Re-
been achieved (Hativa, 1994). searchers who use standardized tests to assess the impact of
tutorials must assess the relationship between what is taught
Rather than asking whether CAI improves student’s aca- in the program and what is required in the test. Washington
demic achievement in general, more recent studies are fo- et al (1999) comment that the content of the tutorial used in
cusing on the behavior of specific types of tutorials, groups their study corresponded only minimally to the material re-
of students and types of skills. Wheeler & Regian (1999) quired for the midterm and final exams. In this case, the
looked at the use of a computer tutorial to teach word prob- treatment and control groups were being compared with a
lem solving to ninth-grade students. The study compares measure that did not reflect the treatment.
639 students divided into three groups: a group received tra-
ditional instruction, a second group received instruction plus Which skills seem to respond better to tutorials and for
a simple word problem computer tutorial, and the third group whom tutorials work better, or do not work at all, are two
received instruction plus a word problem software containing questions that merit further attention. Burchfield & Gifford
active instruction. The research found that students using the (1995) tested the efficacy of tutorial software to teach inte-
active tutorial improved significantly more than the other two grated science process skills (control variables, define opera-
groups. Although improvement occurred in both abstract tionally, formulate hypotheses, interpret data, experiment and
and concrete reasoning, the gains in the abstract reasoning formulate models). The tutorial did not show significant
were not as large as the gains in the concrete subtest. Gon- improvement in the targeted skills, but students using the
zález & Birch (2000) compared three different tutorial ap- program scored much better than a control group on meas-
proaches to introducing elementary statistics concepts to ures related to ability to graph and interpret data. Cotton’s
college students. The approaches included traditional paper- review indicates that CAI programs are particularly useful
and-pencil tutorial, basic tutorial software, and multimedia for students who require structured content and flexible
software. In the post-test, students using tutorials showed a learning time, such as children and youth with disabilities
better comprehension of statistics than those who did not use and those struggling academically. For this group, the soft-
tutorials. Those using the basic tutorial program also fin- ware is a patient tutor that is never angry or frustrated, never
ished the tests much faster.2 The use of computer tutorial to embarrasses the child in front of others, and never forgets to
provide or reinforce basic concepts in complex subjects is say a word of praise or encouragement (Cotton, 2000). Yet,
also the topic of a study by Washington, Parnianpour & this effect may be relevant only in the case of younger users
Fraser (1999). The authors utilized the tutorial in an intro- and may have no significance for college students
ductory college class on biomechanics and verified a signifi- (Burchfield & Gifford, 1999).
cant improvement in basic concepts for students using the
tutorial, although differences in final grades between control Should we adopt computer tutorials?
and treatment groups were not significant.
If planning to buy computer tutorials, teachers and educators
What should we conclude? should carefully examine the programs focusing on:
It is clearly tempting to say that “more research is neces- • Program objectives – the tutorial’s objectives must
sary,” the self-protective statement so common among re- correspond and complement the educational goals de-
searchers. No one will err by requiring more research on fined by the teacher;
anything, but research is a too vague word for a field with so • Purpose for use – CAI is a tool, not a replacement for
many intervening variables. The term CAI is not universal a well-planned learning experience; research suggests
and may indicate programs other than drill and practice tuto-

that the program is more effective when used to rein- • Cost-effectiveness – a more expensive program does not
force or clarify topics that were discussed in class; necessarily mean a better one; the software should be
• Potential use – how frequently will the program be evaluated against educational objectives and potential
used? Where? Does it take from classroom time or benefits.
complement it? Does the school have a place where
students can use the program outside classroom time? Research suggests that computer tutorials improve basic
• Content quality – is the content correct and updated? skills in mathematics and science for students in all grade
Is the level of difficulty appropriate for the students? levels, from elementary to undergraduate school.3 However,
How well is the content integrated with the curriculum they are not a panacea that will ensure successful learning for
and the lesson plan? all students in all situations, but simply a tool that can be
• Presentation quality – uninteresting software will not effectively employed to boost students’ academic achieve-
motivate the students, while a fancy software with weak ment and interest. As any tool, the final success of the proj-
content will not help; ect will depend on how well it is used.
• Program requirements – before buying the tutorial,
it is important to examine hardware requirements, par-
ticularly memory requirements;
References
• Burchfield, M.L. & Gifford, W. (1995). The Effect of Computer-Assisted Instruction on the Science Process Skills of
Community College Students. Paper Presented at the Annual Meeting of the Mid-South Educational Research Asso-
ciation.
• Cotton, K. (2000). Computer-Assisted Instruction. School Improvement Research Series (SIRS) # 10, Northwest Re-
gional Educational Laboratory. Available at: http://www.nwrel.org/scpd/sirs/5/cu10.html.
• Cooley, L.A. (1997). Evaluating Student Understanding in a Calculus Course Enhanced by a Computer Algebra Sys-
tem. Primus, 7 (4): 308-316.
• González, G.M. & Birch, M.A. (2000). Evaluating the Instructional Efficacy of Computer-Mediated Interactive Mul-
timedia: Comparing Three Elementary Statistics Tutorial Modules. Journal of Educational Computing Research, 22
(4): 411-436.
• Hativa (1994). What you design is not what you get (WYDINWYG): Cognitive, affective and social impacts of
learning with ILS – An integration of findings from six years of qualitative and quantitative studies. International
Journal of Education Research, 21 (1): 81-111.
• Kulik, J. A. (1994). Meta-analytic Studies of Findings on Computer-based Instruction. In Baker, E.L. & O’Neil, H.F.
(Eds). Technology Assessment in Education and Training. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
• Washington, N., Parnianpou, M., & Fraser, J.M. (2000). Evaluation and Assessment of a Biomechanics Computer-
Aided Instruction. Computers & Education, 32: 207-220.
• Wheeler, J.L. & Regian, J.W. (1999). The Use of a Cognitive Tutoring System in the Improvement of Abstract Rea-
soning Component of Word Problem Solving. Computers in Human Behaviour, 15: 243-254.
1
A summary of the evaluation is found at www.carnegielearning.com/k12/mathematics/research/ whitepapers; the evaluators
are part of the Carnegie Learning organization.
2
The authors recognize that hardware limitations hurt the efficiency of the multimedia module.
3
This review did not look into the effectiveness of CAI for skill training and graduate studies.

Interactive Radio Instruction for Mathematics:
Applications and Adaptations from Around the World1
Andrea Bosch, Education Development Center2
Interactive radio instruction (IRI), a methodology developed Honduras developed another series of primary school math
in the early 1970s to turn a typically one way technology called mental math in Honduras that attempted to introduce
into a tool for active learning inside and outside of the setting and recognizable storylines into the conceptualization
classroom, continues to be an attractive educational strategy of math skills. This series was adapted in El Salvador and
in developing countries after more than two and a half the Dominican Republic. Other integrated IRI programs
decades. Fourteen applications of IRI mathematics have have emerged that are heavily tied to the communities they
been developed in twelve countries worldwide either as part serve. Both versions of IRI math and the integrated series
of an integrated educational series, or as the sole subject that have been evaluated thus far have proved to be highly
matter for the radio program. (See "Are You Talkin' to Me? effective in improving educational outcomes.
Interactive Radio Instruction,” TechKnowLogia,
November/December 1999). IRI mathematics in Venezuela, Other IRI series have also been developed. Since the
the largest of the IRI programs, has reached over 3 million original Nicaragua Math, twenty-six countries around the
students in first to third grades since 1995. (See "Interactive world have developed IRI programs for a multitude of
Mathematics for Basic Education: The Venezuelan subjects, including science, health, English, Spanish and
Experience with IRI,” TechKnowLogia, May/June 2000). Portuguese, environmental education, early childhood
IRI Math in Bolivia helped teach math to over a million development, conflict prevention, teacher training, integrated
students from 1987 to 1998 before it was discontinued due to secondary education, and adult basic education. In each
political changes. IRI Math in Guinea promises to reach out case, local specialists have designed the series specifically to
and transform a struggling African education system in West be engaging and to meet learning objectives in that country.
Africa. In the Dominican Republic and Zambia, Many of the series have not gone to scale, yet after twenty-
mathematical skills are integrated with language lessons and six years and repeated studies on pedagogy, cost and
other subject matter to make education accessible to sustainability, the interest in IRI does not seem to be waning.
populations that otherwise might be bypassed – children of
agricultural workers and children left orphaned by the What makes IRI different from other distant
devastating effects of HIV/AIDS. These examples and other
versions of IRI math continue to improve the quality of the learning methods?
learning process, to expand the reach of educational services,
and to reduce the equity gaps that exist between rural and IRI is distinct from most other forms of distance education
urban students and between girls and boys. because its primary goal has been the improvement of
educational quality. Unlike many distant learning efforts that
The original model for IRI math, created in Nicaragua by a are primarily designed to address issues of access, IRI began
team from Stanford University in the early 1970s, sought to as a tool to use in the classroom to counteract low levels of
combine the low cost and high reach of the radio medium teacher training, poor achievement among learners, and few
and a clear understanding of how people learn. While this resources. While IRI has demonstrated that it can be used to
IRI series was abandoned with the onset of the revolution in expand access and increase equity in both formal and non-
Nicaragua which resulted in a change of government, these formal educational settings, it retains a development strategy
original scripts served as the basis for adaptations in grades 1 and methodology that requires that active learning, attention
and 2 in neighboring Bolivia, and in various levels in to pedagogy, and formative evaluation are included in the
Thailand, Cape Verde, Haiti and Guinea. IRI teams in design.

The IRI methodology is also different in that it requires that For countries plagued with high hopes but small educational
the learners stop and react to questions and exercises through budgets, difficulties in training teachers, providing
verbal response to radio characters, group work and physical educational materials, maintaining quality and increasing
and intellectual activities while the program is on the air. access to meet the educational needs of a broad populace of
For both the teacher and student, the lesson becomes an learners, chosen strategies and technologies must be proven
immediate hands-on and experiential guide. Short pauses are to be effective, reliable, and meet country needs. Many
provided throughout the lessons after questions and during other technologies increasing in popularity today have high
exercises to ensure that students have the time to adequately learner to technology ratios, making it difficult to address
think and respond. Interaction is also encouraged within the problems of quality, access and equity simultaneously for a
learning environment among the teacher and learners as they reasonable cost. Rather than explore the different programs
work together to conduct short experiments, do activities, and approaches that have been developed as a part of the
and solve problems using local resources and imaginative history of IRI, the purpose of this article is to provide an
situations and stories. overview and elaborate some of the commonalties and
research findings about IRI programs in an effort to explore
The pedagogy of IRI is more deliberate than active learning what makes IRI and radio a useful technology that still
alone. IRI series guide learners through the learning process addresses many educational concerns in developing
through a progression of activities related to measurable countries today.
learning objectives. Educational content is organized and
distributed across lessons so that learning is built upon What is known about effectiveness?
previous knowledge and new learners can more easily
construct an understanding of the subject being taught.
Activities and problems are first modeled by radio characters The attraction of the IRI approach can be at least partially
so that the teacher and learners have an idea of the process attributed to well-evaluated projects that have repeatedly
they are undertaking and the skills and support that may be demonstrated learning gains for students using IRI programs
required. All of these elements are knit together through as compared to students in control groups. In the first pilot
storylines, music, characterization, and other attributes year in Haiti, third grade students using IRI Math gained
available through the audio medium. almost 13% from pre- to post tests, while control students
gained only 7% (Morin and Royer, 1997). In a partial
IRI programs are catered specifically to the audience and the academic year in Guinea, second grade students using an
situation where they will be used. One of the most important integrated French and math series gained approximately 8%
aspects of the design, therefore, is the reliance on audience over their counterparts who did not use IRI (unpublished,
research, participation, and field level formative evaluation 2000). Other studies, shown below, demonstrate IRI’s
to ensure that lessons are engaging, relevant and that learners effectiveness not only for math, but also for a variety of
can achieve the educational objectives. The format, subjects and age groups. While these data are impressive at
activities, and pauses of a program change with each cycle of face value, they are more impressive when effect sizes are
feedback and observation. analyzed (taken as the effectiveness quotient in cost-
effectiveness studies).
Figure 1. Comparisons of Mean Posttest Scores
90
80
70
60
50
control
40
30 experimental
20
10
0
B olivia (m ath) N icaragua Thailand- P apua N ew South A frica H onduras (adult
(m ath) northeast(m ath) G uinea (science) (English) ed.-Spanish/
fem ales)
Effect size: .94 .58 .24 .36 .72 .54
Sources: Tilson, Jamison, Fryer, Edgerton, Godoy-Kain, Imhoof, Christensen and Roy (1991); Leigh, 1995; Corrales, 1995.

In most cases, students show progressively greater increases were compared to students who were in regular formal
in achievement over time. In South Africa, for example, schools for more than twice the amount of time. Studies
students who received less than 33 English in Action lessons showed that first graders using the RADECO programs
improved by 6.7%, students who received between 34 and responded correctly 51% of the time on posttests, versus
66 lessons improved by 13%, and students who received 24% of the time for the control group. Second graders using
more than 66 programs improved by 24% (Leigh, 1995). IRI gave 10% more correct answers. Overall, even though
Similar results were found in Bolivia. In 1991, evaluators these students had enormous obstacles, for both grades,
found that the average score of second graders using Radio students who used IRI for an hour a day had comparable
Math jumped from 47.0% to 66.23%. (The mean score of results in reading, writing and language when compared to
the control group was 35%). Of these, the experimental the control group, and performed significantly better in math
students who had already completed one year of the radio (reported in Goldstein and de De Jesus, 1995). Based on the
lessons did much better (51.9% correct) and those students early successes of the RADECO project, IRI programs are
who completed two years of radio programs scored even currently being developed in other areas where different
higher (61.6%) (Tilson, et al, 1991). types of obstacles are in place, such as the failing schools of
Haiti, non-formal early childhood development centers in
What about hard-to-reach or out-of-school Bolivia and Nepal, and adult learning centers in Honduras.
Most recently, IRI series are being developed in Zambia to
populations? provide educational services to community-based AIDS
orphans.
These types of results have been found in IRI programs for a
variety of subjects and learning environments, leading Can IRI help close equity gaps?
evaluators to assume that it is the basic tenets of active
learning and the IRI methodology that make the difference. Evaluations of IRI programs also indicate that they can make
IRI seems also to ameliorate other obstacles to education and a substantial impact on educational equity. In Figure 2,
substantial learning gains have been demonstrated in IRI evaluations conducted in Bolivia, Thailand, and South Africa
projects that were used in non-formal settings or were used show rural students with much higher total gains than their
in unusual ways to overcome a particular educational barrier, urban counterparts, who have greater access to materials and
such as poorly trained teachers, a lack of schools, or higher trained teachers. This distribution of evaluation
incompatible school scheduling. In the Dominican Republic, results follows a pattern that has been demonstrated in other
for example, an IRI project called RADECO was created for countries and indicates that the IRI programs are not only
children who had no schools and has now been broadcasting increasing quality, as reflected in gains in achievement, but
for twelve years. In early evaluations, it was discovered that are also making an impact upon urban/rural equity gaps.
children who had just five hours of integrated instruction a
week using IRI and thirty minutes of follow-up activities
Figure 2. Urban/Rural Diffe re ntials
80
70
60
50
40 control
experim ental
30
20
10
0
B olivia-urban B olivia-rural Thailand-central Thailand- South A frica- South A frica-
plain northeast urban rural
Sources: Tilson, Jamison, Fryer, Edgerton, Godoy-Kain, Imhoof, Christensen and Roy (1991); OLSET,
1995

In a retrospective analysis which looked at the potential of This finding was demonstrated in science in upper primary
IRI to help close gender equity gaps, a similar trend was school in Papua New Guinea, English in lower primary in
discovered (Hartenberger and Bosch, 1996). While girls South Africa and adult basic education in Honduras,
were achieving about the same as boys in the posttests, suggesting that the age of the learner and the subject taught
because their baseline scores were lower, the total did not necessarily matter.
achievement for girls in the experimental groups was greater.
Figure 3. Total Achievement in Mean Posttests by Gender
14
12
10
8 girls
boys
6
4
2
0
P N G Science H onduras m ath H onduras Spanish South A frica English
*Scores are represented as percentage correct and represent differences between in achievement between control and experimental groups.
Sources: Hartenberger and Bosch (1996); Tilson, Jamison, Fryer, Godoy-Kain and Imhoof (1991); Project LearnTech, (1994); Leigh, (1995).
Another study of learning gains conducted in Honduras the products are relevant and effective. Because most of the
shows that the combination of IRI and other interventions radio programs have gone through this extensive formative
may have synergistic effects. The study found that when IRI evaluation and have built-in strategies of training, active
programs are introduced with new textbooks, the impact learning and quality control, high level use can be
upon learning gains almost doubles the impact of just maintained relatively easily over time and the dilution of
providing textbooks (with an effect size of .61), indicating quality associated with some other strategies, such as
that a well constructed multi-channel approach where pyramid training schemes, can be avoided. Teacher training
different educational strategies are deliberately aligned and and other recurrent costs stay relatively consistent over time
traditional and nontraditional approaches reinforce each after the development stage and vary depending on how
other may have the greatest impact upon learning (Godoy- much training is integrated into the program, subject being
Kain, 1991). taught, and the special circumstances of the country. Other
recurrent costs include airtime, distribution of simple
What is known about the economics of IRI supplementary print materials such as one page worksheets
inserted into local newspapers or distributed at the beginning
projects? of the year, batteries and radios, and the maintenance of a
management system or unit focused on IRI.
Alongside the data on learning gains is a growing body of
literature analyzing the economics of IRI. A brief description IRI is also different from many other educational strategies
of how IRI projects are generally designed and implemented because of the wide reach of the radio broadcasts. As a
will help to understand the implications of these studies. IRI result, increasing the number of learners increases the cost
projects are front-loaded, that is, they have higher initial very little. In contrast, most other interventions with high
fixed costs associated with creating management and variable costs will require a proportional number of new
training systems and producing audio and print programs, as school facilities, textbooks or teachers as additional learners
compared to far lower recurrent costs associated with are added. In an IRI project, these extra factors do not
permanent staff, dissemination, training and maintenance. dramatically influence the cost of the program and because
While IRI projects have capacity-building components, they the primary product, radio programs, are broadcast, the cost
are also product-oriented and are evaluated continuously per learner decreases proportionally with an increase in
during the early design and production stages to ensure that users.

teachers officially used the math programs in 1996, and that
Governments using IRI projects have experimented with if the shadow audience were included, that is, the incidental
various cost sharing and income generation schemes to pay listeners or formal or non-formal learners who discovered
for recurrent costs. These strategies have been specific to the series over the airwaves and used it on their own, the
the special circumstances in each country, but three figures would be even higher. As the cost of airtime had
interesting examples include Lesotho where a tax pays for a also been distributed among a variety of radio stations
portion of the costs, Honduras, which is currently around the country, it is likely that the overall cost per
experimenting with private-public-NGO strategies of cost- student in 1996 was even lower than previously projected.
sharing on the municipal level, and the Bolivia early
childhood development series which is experimenting with A study was conducted in Lesotho in 1991 to attempt to
decentralized methods of sustaining IRI programs through understand how the same type of program would compare in
local municipalities. It is also important to say that most IRI a country with completely different circumstances. Using
projects are at least partially sustained through partnerships the same methodology, an annual per student cost of
between ministries of education and ministries of US$0.94 was derived, of which only US$0.24 per student
communication and broadcasting. would be covered by the Government. While the per student
cost is much lower than Bolivia’s, the cost actually
What do cost data show? constitutes a greater percentage of Lesotho’s total education
budget than in Bolivia. However, compared to other options,
the IRI programs are considered to be cost-effective and are
Most cost analyses of IRI programs have incorporated these still being used today.
factors into their design and project per student costs over
time using the underlying principle that the cost of
development will be offset when more learners use the Is IRI cost-effective when compared to other
programs (Tilson, Jamison, Fryer, Godoy-Kain and Imhoof, interventions?
1991; and Cobbes, 1995). In a study of Honduras math
programs conducted in 1990, for example, it was discovered
that the annual cost per student of using IRI mathematics A number of cost-effectiveness studies have also found IRI
was US$2.94 in the first year when development costs were to be a highly competitive educational strategy when
included (based on 200,000 students and including a compared to other interventions. As early as 1988, Lockheed
discount rate of 7.5%), but the incremental cost to continue and Hanushek published a study that compared cost-
the program fell to US$1.01 per student per year thereafter, a effectiveness data on three IRI projects, two textbook
cost that would be distributed across learners and projects, and four teacher training projects. Cost-
Government and reduced dramatically if airtime, the highest effectiveness was measured as a ratio of incremental
cost item, were provided or if the number of learners were effectiveness (units of effect size) to incremental cost
increased. (dollars per student per year) and referred to as efficiency.
The study shows that providing textbooks results in an
A similar study of Bolivia Math in 1991 found that the cost attractive efficiency ratio of about .2 effect units per one
per student would be US$1.51 in the first year including dollar per year (with the exception of one case in the
program development costs and a reach of 200,000 students Philippines where the gain was 1.5 per dollar). All other
or US$1.04 if the number of students was increased to interventions were considered less cost-effective than
600,000. The incremental cost of sustaining the programs textbooks, with the exception of IRI, which proved to be
for 200,000 students per year, however, dropped to US$0.81 more cost-effective with efficiency ratios in the .3 to 1.3
per student after the development stage (Tilson, 1991). When range.
compared to the traditional math classes, the cost-
effectiveness ratio of IRI programs was found to be 64% Finally, in recent cost analyses conducted in South Africa
higher, assuming 200,000 students per year were reached evidence suggests that IRI is still proving to be cheaper and
(Jamison, 1991). more effective than other alternative programs. The 1995
study showed that when the cost of South Africa’s English in
Early criticisms of this analysis suggested that the projected Action was compared to other English language programs,
number of learners was too high and that Bolivia would not the cost per student of English in Action ranged from one
be able to provide and sustain the use of IRI programs for third to one half of other options (Cobbes, 1995). Like other
very long. In 1996, after nine years of broadcasting, projects, South Africa’s English in Action is now broadcast
however, over a million learners had used the Bolivia Math across country, indicating that the recurrent costs associated
and Health programs as part of the Ministry’s national with sustaining the programs are considered justifiable.
curricula, a number that even ambitious project evaluators
did not anticipate. Records show that 184,490 students and

How has IRI evolved since the early days? the work and investments of their neighbors. Because of the
high level of participation required during development, each
new series is still catered to unique educational goals, design
There are certain trends worth noting in the evolution of IRI and implementation needs, and cultures, while core elements
since the 1970s. For example, the original concept of of the original design still play a role.
making programs “teacher-proof” has been largely
discarded. Instead, most newer programs serve as a guide or
tool for the teacher, and in some cases, are used for teacher What conclusions can be drawn?
training. The early childhood development series used in
Bolivia, Nepal and South Africa, for example, has learning IRI applications differ in the degree of activity required of
objectives for two audiences, the young learners and their the learners, the subject matter, the age and background of
teachers and caregivers. This arrangement has been the learners, the learning environment, and background of
particularly important as the radio characters point out the teacher or facilitator. One might even say that the
elements of early childhood development while the differences are greater than the similarities. But despite
caregivers interact with the young children during the IRI these differences and the adjustments that IRI has undergone
program. It has made it possible to use the series as both a over time to become more culturally intriguing or
non-formal radio program for children and a hands-on educationally up-to-date, studies consistently demonstrate
training tool for caregivers and kindergarten teachers. The high learning gains, decreased equity gaps, and cost-
strategy has recently been adopted for English programs in effectiveness across projects. Something about the basic
Dominican Republic and Costa Rica so that teacher training structure and methodology of IRI has worked well enough
is an intrinsic part of the total system. that it is has been effective in projects around the world
twenty-three years later.
Strategies were also created to make IRI more entertaining
and culturally appropriate for a variety of subject matter. It is difficult to pin the relative successes of the IRI
For example, a soap opera/novella style was designed for the methodology on any one characteristic. More likely, a
fifth grade environmental education programs in Costa Rica. combination of the key factors converges to provide the
As a result, story and drama have become popular ways to needed conditions for active and supported learning. The
demonstrate interactions between teachers and learners or to consistency of these factors seems to be able to fill a needed
initiate more constructivist styles of learning in various gap and provide an impartial educational catalyst for
segments of other IRI programs. teachers and learners across traditional boundaries, such as
gender, distance, and access to the highest quality schools.
What about adaptations?
Bibliography
One of the characteristics of the IRI methodology is the de- • Anzalone, S., “Educational Technology and the Improvement
velopment of a basic framework to teach a particular subject of General Education in Developing Countries,” in
matter or to engage a particular audience. As a result, pro- Educational Technology, chapter 2, 1991.
grams have been copied and adapted by many countries and • Ayala Carlos, Jorge, “Resumen Ejecutivo de la Vida del
used over an extended period of time to reach millions learn- Proyecto de Aprendizaje Interactivo por Radio en Bolivia,”
ers. The design elements of IRI programs and training mate- PAIRB, La Paz, Bolivia, 1996.
rials have traveled well and countries have benefited from • Bosch, Andrea, Interactive Radio Instruction: Twenty-Three
Years of Improving Educational Quality, Education and Tech-
nology Notes, vol. 1, no. 1, World Bank Human Development
Original series Subsequent series Department: The World Bank, 1997.
• Bosch, A., and Crespo, C., Jugando en el Pidi: Active
Nicaragua Math ⇒ Thai Math; Bolivia Math 1-2 , Haiti Math Learning, Early Childhood Development and Interactive Radio
2-4, Guinea Math Instruction: Supporting Caregivers, Parents and Young
Children, LearnTech Case Study Series #4, USAID,
Kenya English in ⇒ Lesotho English; South Africa English;
Washington, D.C., 1995,
Action PALOP Portuguese; Costa
Rica/Dom.Rep. English/Teacher training • Cobbes, James, The Economics of Interactive Radio
Instruction: The Case of South Africa, LearnTech Case Study
Honduras Mental ⇒ El Salvador Math; Dom. Rep. Math Series #7, USAID, Washington, D.C., 1995.
Math • Corrales, Cárleton, Adult Basic Education in Honduras:
Managing Multiple Channels, LearnTech Case Study Series
Early Childhood ⇒ Bolivia ECD, Nepal ECD, Ecuador Critical
#9, USAID, Washington, D.C., 1995.
Development Thinking Skills (the Bolivian series is also
used in areas of Ecuador, Colombia and • Friend, J., “The Development of Instructional Methods Used
Honduras) in Interactive Radio Instruction,” British Journal of
Educational Technology, XX, 2, 1989.

• Fryer, Michelle, Ministry, Union, the Church, and Teachers: • Moulton, Jeanne, Interactive Radio Instruction: Broadening
Bolivia’s Partners in Innovation, LearnTech Case Study Series the Definition, LearnTech Case Study Series #1, USAID,
# 6, USAID, Washington, D.C., 1995. Washington, D.C., 1994.
• Galda, K.; Beach, K.; Friend, J.; Gamero, G.; Kozlow, S,; • Olsson, Micael, Institutionalizing Radio Science in Papua New
“The Impact of Honduras Mental Arithmetic Radio Programs Guinea: A Response to Teacher Demand for Interactive Radio
on Student Achievement in Grade 1 and 2,” Education Instruction, LearnTech Case Study Series #2, USAID,
Development Center, Radio Learning Project, Newton, MA, Washington, D.C., 1994.
1990. • Silcox, Harry, A How-to Guide to Reflection: Adding
• Goldstein, B., “Illustrative Costs of Distance Education for Cognitive Learning to Community Service, Brighton Press,
Teachers and Interactive Radio Instruction,” Education 1993.
Development Center, Washington, D.C., 1996. • Tilson, T.; Jamison, D.; Fryer, M.; Edgerton, D.; Godoy-Kain,
• Goldstein B. and de De Jesus, A.; Multi-channel Learn- P.; Imhoof, M.; Christensen, P.; and Roy, T.; “Sustainability in
ing: Connecting All to Education, LearnTech, the Global Four Interactive Radio Projects: Bolivia, Honduras, Lesotho
Bureau, United States Agency for International Devel- and Papua New Guinea” in Technology and Teaching, chapter
opment, Washington, D.C., 1995. 6, The World Bank, 1991. (unpublished)
• Hartenberger, L., and Bosch, A., Making IRI Even Better for • Vargas, German, Econauts: Mission Nature: Radio Drama for
Girls, ABEL2 Project, USAID, Washington, D.C., 1996. Environmental Education in Costa Rica, LearnTech Case
Study Series #5, USAID, Washington, D.C., 1995.
• Leigh, Stuart, Changing Times in South Africa: Remodeling
Interactive Learning, LearnTech Case Study Series #8, • Tilson, T.; Jamison, D.; Fryer, M.; Godoy-Kain, P.; and
USAID, Washington, D.C., 1995. Imhoof, M.; “The Cost-Effectiveness of Interactive Radio
Instruction for Improving Primary School Instruction in
• Lockheed, M.; Hanushek, E.; Improving Educational
Honduras, Bolivia and Lesotho,” paper presented at CIES
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1
Portions of this article were previously published by the World Bank Technology Notes series as Interactive Radio Instruc-
tion: Twenty-Three years of Improving Educational Quality, Education and Technology Notes, vol. 1, no. 1, World Bank Hu-
man Development Department: The World Bank, 1997.
2
Andrea Bosch has been working in the development of educational technologies for the past 12 years with a particular em-
phasis on interactive radio instruction. She specializes in combining creative inputs with good pedagogy. She can be reached
at: abosch@edc.org
For countries plagued with high hopes but small educational budgets, difficulties
in training teachers, providing educational materials, maintaining quality and in
i n-
creasing access to meet the educational needs of a broad populace of learners,
chosen strategies and technologies must be proven to be effective, reliable, and
meet coun
country needs.

E Instrucction:
valuating Computer and Web Instru
New Opportunities
Gregg B. Jackson*
Computer and Web-based instructional resources hold much promise, but they are expensive to use and
thus government and aid agencies will demand evaluations of their benefits.
An article in the May 2000 issue of TechKnowLogia, “How to Evaluate Educational Software and Web-
sites” offered suggestions on how to identify available computer software and Web-based instructional
sites and to assess their suitability for given instructional purposes. That article noted that there has been
relatively little evaluation of the impact that these resources have had on student learning. This article will
discuss both the old challenges of conducting such evaluations and several new opportunities that arise
from the technologies.
Old Challenges exposed to the innovative program. Then changes in the

targeted outcomes are measured in both groups. Sometimes
the students and teachers are randomly assigned to the ex-
The main challenges in impact evaluations are (a) establish- perimental and control groups. More often in educational
ing controls necessary to determine whether the innovative innovations they are not, and then the degree to which the
program actually caused changes in the targeted outcomes, two groups are well matched affects the validity of the re-
(b) ascertaining whether the program was implemented as sults.1 Matching is more difficult than it may appear. Ideally
intended, and (c) measuring the targeted outcomes. Each is you want to match experimental and control students on both
briefly discussed below. their background characteristics that are known to affect
learning of the subject matter and on their current level of
knowledge and skills. If you match only on initial level of
Determining Causality the outcomes, you might have the following situation: a
group of average ability students with excellent prior in-
struction are matched with a group of high ability students
Impact evaluation has to determine the effects that new re-
with poor prior instruction. If the latter group were the con-
sources have on student gains in knowledge, skills, habits,
trol group, the results would under-estimate the true effec-
and aspirations. It is not sufficient to just assess those gains,
tiveness of the new instructional resources.
because other factors may cause them or contribute to them.
Some outcomes are affected by biological maturation, some
The data needed to match the experimental and control group
are affected by non-formal learning outside of school, some
students can also be used to examine whether the innovation
are affected by other instruction within the school, and some
has particularly strong or weak effects with students of cer-
can be affected by the very experience of taking initial tests
tain characteristics. For instance, does it benefit boys more
of the outcomes.
than girls, or high ability students more than those of modest
ability?
There is a need to control for these other factors in impact
evaluations. This is usually done by establishing a “control
group” that is similar to the “experimental group,” but not

Ascertaining Actual Instruction While some of the new objectives, such as applying estab-
lished knowledge for new purposes and integrating strands of
knowledge, can be assessed by new examinations, others,
There is a long history of promising educational innovations such as curiosity, collaborative inquiry skills, and construct-
that failed because they were not implemented as planned.2 ing new knowledge cannot be assessed by examinations.
There is also a considerable trail of innovations that initially One alternative to examinations is performance assessments,
succeeded when pilot tested by outstanding teachers, and in which students are confronted with real life situations and
then failed as the innovations were adopted more widely by asked to respond while being observed by experts or trained
less able teachers. Finally, there have been some cases judges. While this is sometimes a superior mode of assess-
where the innovation “spilled over” to the control group, ment, it is far more time-consuming and expensive than
compromising the evaluation. For these reasons, it is im- “written” examinations. Portfolios of students’ work are also
portant to ascertain how the innovative instructional re- sometimes used to judge students’ progress, but they are
sources are being used by the teachers and students, and how time-consuming to review and assess.
that instruction differs from what is taking place in the con-
trol groups.
New Opportunities
This has traditionally been done with classroom observa-
tions, teacher logs, and surveys of teachers and students. It The technologies underlying computer and Web instruction
is very time-consuming to train observers to a consistent offer new opportunities to ascertain the actual instruction
standard, to maintain that standard over an extended period taking place with computers or the Web and new means of
of time, and to deploy the observers several times to some- measuring the student outcomes.
times widely dispersed classrooms.3 For these reasons, class-
room observations have been used far less frequently in the
evaluations of educational innovations than might be ex-
New Ways of Ascertaining
pected given the central importance of what happens in the Actual Instruc
Instruction
classrooms. Maintaining logs is inconvenient for teachers,
and under certain circumstances some teachers may report
Computer instructional software can be designed to track
what they know is wanted rather than how they actually used
students to determine what resources they have used, when,
their time. Surveys can provide a relatively inexpensive
for how many minutes, and with how many subsequent re-
broad-brush assessment, but they are sometimes difficult to
turns. Server log software provides the same capability for
distribute and retrieve.
Web instruction. This provides unprecedented opportunities
to determine how students are actually using the learning
Measurement of Outcomes resources. Good teachers have always tried to observe that
within classrooms, but often they can do so for only one or
two students at a time. Software can do it for all students all
Sometimes educational innovations use new means to estab- the time they are using the electronic resources. Equally
lished objectives, and when that is the case, commonly used important, the software can automatically provide summary
measures of those objectives may be quite suitable. At other reports that show each student’s patterns of use as well as
times, however, educational innovations target new objec- show overall use. That can be used by teachers to guide in-
tives, and when that is the case, commonly used measures dividual students, and by the instructional designers to iden-
usually do not cover the new objectives. tify those resources that students are rarely using as well as
troublesome ones that require more of students’ time than
Computer and Web instruction has developed at a time in thought necessary.
history when there has been considerable re-thinking of the
objectives of education in both developed and developing Computer-based surveys can facilitate distribution to, and
countries. Some computer and Web instructional resources return from, students and teachers who regularly use e-mail
mainly target the old objectives. Others target new objec- or the Web. These surveys also can be designed to dump the
tives such as developing curiosity and wonder about the survey responses directly into a database, eliminating the
subject, applying established knowledge for new purposes, need for data input.
integrating various strands of knowledge, learning how to
engage in collaborative inquiry, and constructing new Classroom instruction usually integrates the computer and
knowledge. Web resources with other learning activities. The manner of
integration is often thought key to the effectiveness, and it
Traditionally student learning has been assessed by teacher- cannot be monitored by the means of electronic tracking that
made tests and by commercial or government examinations. can be built into these resources. For those classrooms that

have Internet connections, it is now possible to install video the correct answer, why, and where the instructional materi-
cameras that record events in the classroom and transmit als addressed the relevant matters. Responses can be auto-
them via the Internet to a central facility for review and cod- matically saved in a database that allows the instructor to
ing. By sampling a few hours of instruction from each monitor student progress and provides an overview of pro-
month, it is possible to gain a good sense of how a given gram participants progress on the targeted outcomes.
classroom is operating. Sampling has the advantage of dra-
matically reducing the amount of video that has to be trans- Computer and Web instruction currently offers few opportu-
mitted through the Internet. It also makes review or coding nities for dealing with essay-type questions. There are some
of each teacher’s videos far more manageable than if the efforts underway to develop software to assess student essays
video were streamed all day long every day. A central team on widely used topics, but these are still being perfected.
can then code the videos. This saves the time and expense (See “New Technologies for Automated Essay Test Scoring”
of having observers circulate among dispersed schools. It in the January/February 2001 Issue of TechKnowLogia.)
also facilitates their training and retraining as may prove
necessary. Coding can be done by any of the methods devel- It is widely acknowledged that traditional written tests can-
oped over the past 50 years for in-person observations of not measure many important skills such as manual dexterity
classrooms.4 with laboratory equipment, design tasks, and collaborative
work skills. Performance assessments are widely considered
In distance learning by Web, instructors usually communi- the only way to assess such outcomes, but they are time-
cate with students by e-mail and it is possible to archive the consuming and expensive. Computers and the Web can cre-
e-mails. Electronic discussions also can be archived. Ar- ate simulations of some (but not all) of these performance
chived messages then can be reviewed and coded.5 In a se- assessments. For instance, students can be engaged in a
mester-long distance class of 25 students with weekly dis- simulated work collaboration where they have to make
cussions, there are likely to be 500-1,000 e-mail and discus- moves in response to those of their simulated colleagues, and
sion messages. Often it will be necessary to code only a the software can judge the appropriateness of their responses.
sample of the messages.
Conclusion
New Ways of Measuring Outcomes
The main challenges of evaluating new computer and Web
instruction are the old ones of determining causality, ascer-
Computer and Web instruction offers several new ways of taining program implementation as intended, and measuring
measuring student learning. Quizzes can be imbedded in the student outcomes. The underlying technologies of these new
instruction. Any knowledge and skills that can be judged by resources offer new opportunities for the latter two chal-
multiple-choice responses can be automatically scored, pro- lenges. They allow collection of more data, more reliably,
viding immediate feedback to the student. Feedback can be and at lower costs than ever before.
accompanied by debriefing comments that indicate which is
____________________
*Gregg Jackson is an Associate Professor and Coordinator of the Education Policy Program at the George Washington Univer-
sity.
1
Campbell, D.T. & Stanley, J.C. (1963). Experimental and Quasi-Experimental Designs for Research. Chicago, IL: Rand
McNally.
2
Odden, A. (1991). Education Policy Implementation. New York: State University of New York Press.
3
Evertson, C. & Green, J. (1991). Observation as Inquiry Method. In M. Wittrock (Ed.), Handbook of Research on Teaching.
New York, NY: MacMillian.
4
Ibid.
5
Rourke, L., Anderson, T., Garrison, D.R., &Archer, W. (2000). Methodological Issues in the Content Analysis of Computer
Conference Transcripts. International Journal of Artificial Intelligence in Education 11(3). [lrourke@ualberta.ca]

Of Web and Multi-Media Learning Materials in Science and Mathematics
Norma Garcia and Laurence Wolff

Inter American Development Bank
The rapid growth of a wide variety of educational materials, Resources Information Center) system covering all of educa-
both web- and software-based, has created a real need of tion, which can be accessed at www.ask.eric.org. The ENC
both teachers and parents for objective assessments of these collection of math and science curriculum resources is the
materials. Awareness of this need has led to the develop- most comprehensive in the nation, containing over 18,000
ment of web sites that offer non-commercial objective judg- resources collected from federal and state agencies, profes-
ments of the quality of the material offered, usually provided sional organizations, commercial publishers, local school
by knowledgeable practitioners following checklists deter- districts and individuals. This collection includes software,
mining appropriateness to learning. This article describes a videotapes, CD-ROMs, useful Internet sites and print mate-
few of these web sites. In particular, the Eisenhower Na- rial.
tional Clearinghouse (www.enc.org) provides and assesses a
wide range of US based K-12 science and mathematics in- ENC’s comprehensive, user-friendly web site includes an
structional materials of interest to teachers, school principals extensive database, features the on-line version of the ENC
and other educational practitioners. Focus: a Magazine for Classroom Innovators and offers its
visitors selected links to web sites that contain useful infor-
Several less ambitious sites (www.childrenssoftware.com mation on additional curriculum resources. The web site is
and www.childrenandcomputers.com) are designed for par- visited on a regular basis by educators, students and parents
ents seeking developmentally appropriate materials for their all over the country because it provides a great selection of
children, many of which are in the areas of math and science. math and science education materials on-line and it enables
It should be noted that the judgments in these web sites de- users to request free quality products and services. In addi-
pend on "expert" opinion rather than “objective” measure- tion, ENC Information Services staff provides individual
ments of learning. Only a few educational materials, usually assistance for those users searching for specific math and
those developed under government grants to non-profit re- science education information.
search groups or universities, have been evaluated scientifi-
cally.1 ENC constantly receives submitted material from different
sources. ENC staff carefully scan vendor catalogues, search
various web sites, hold discussions with educators and staff
The Eisenhower Na- working in professional organizations, read different journal
tional Clearinghouse and magazine reviews, and take into account suggestions
coming from publishers and users on an ongoing basis.
(www.enc.org) Material selected to form part of the ENC collection must
meet certain basic criteria-- it should be in tune with state or
national education standards and be appropriate for K-12
Since its creation in 1992, the math or science education, professional development, refer-
Eisenhower National Clearinghouse (ENC) has been playing ence use, or for pre-service education. Once math and sci-
a major role in efficiently identifying and disseminating ence education specialists determine that the material meets
high-quality mathematics and science material to improve K- the desired criteria, they inspect the material in a detailed
12 education on a national level. The clearinghouse is located manner and decide how and if indeed it will be catalogued
at Ohio State University and receives funding from the U.S. and/or used in special education programs or projects. The
Department of Education’s Office of Educational Research specialists pay particular attention to material that has been
and Improvement. It is part of the overall ERIC (Educational

previously reviewed by third parties and material prepared signed for children. The "Haugland Developmental Software
with federal funding. Scale" and the "Haugland/ Gerzog Developmental Scale" for
web sites provide 10 dimensions of review and assessment,
Materials that are considered to be “exemplary math and with scores and sub-scores on the areas of age appropriate-
science educational resources” are highlighted in ENC’s Fo- ness, non-violence, technical features, process orientation,
cus magazine, which is distributed quarterly in print to over real world model, clarity of instruction, independence, trans-
200,000 educators free of charge and is also available on-line formations, expanding complexity, and child in control. For
for review. The criteria used to select materials that appear in products to score a "1" on each criterion, the characteristics
the magazine are determined on an individual basis depend- described must fully exist. The highest score is “10.” This
ing on the theme that is chosen for any given magazine issue. systematic rating leads to a single number on the quality of
Every selection of Focus materials includes information on the software and web sites. To this score is added a score on
how the materials were selected. All the web sites men- the extent of "anti-bias" in the software.
tioned in the magazine can be accessed directly from the on-
line version. This site also provides annual developmental software and
web site awards for programs that do an exceptional job in
While ENC does not evaluate in depth all the materials fea- meeting children’s interest, needs and abilities. The awards
tured in its collection, the staff examines each product care- are featured at the annual meeting of the National Associa-
fully in order to describe the philosophy behind each prod- tion for the Education of Young Children.
uct, its intended audience and its components. Staff watches
videotapes, try out the games and manipulatives, load and
use software material, and make an effort to track and in-
clude any available evaluative information that can provide Children’s Review
users with links to that information. This type of information www.childrenssoftware.com
can usually be found next to the products’ catalog records.
In addition, the specialist team selects 12 web sites each A recently established real and virtual sub-
month that it considers exceptional in both technical and scription magazine, Children’s Software Re-
academic content. These sites are called the "Digital Dozen" view www.childrenssoftware.com, provides
and are featured every month. objective reviews of children's educational
software, is not funded by any providers, and
takes no advertisements. This site utilizes a six-dimensional
CHILDREN AND COMPUTERS checklist for rating software. The dimensions are as follows:
www.childrenandcomputers.com can the child use it with minimal help; is the software de-
signed with children's reality in mind; what can a child learn
It is reported that 25% of the products designed for children from this program; is the program fun to use; what design
in the USA now consist of software and/or web sites. The features does the program have; and what is its value in con-
web site www.childrenandcomputers.com includes a system- sideration of the price. While the magazine’s main focus is
atic classification system for software and for web sites de- on educational materials it also reviews games.
1
For an example of a rigorous evaluation of math software, go to www.carnegielearning.com, K-12, white paper on research.

sciLINKS: The World’s a Click Away
Tyson Brown
Manager, New Products and Services, NSTA
sciLINKS, an innovative initiative by the National Science into the classroom, capturing the Web’s constant growth and
Teachers Association, links science textbooks to the Internet. making the Internet a useful tool for teaching and learning
Launched just two years ago, sciLINKS harnesses the power science.
of the Internet by linking relevant, age-appropriate, peer-
reviewed Web pages to the pages of science textbooks by “sciLINKS has the power to make the ever-growing Internet
placing sciLINKS icons and codes in textbook margins at a manageable, useful tool for teachers,” said Gerry Wheeler,
key subject areas. NSTA Executive Director. “It shortcuts the path to the
teacher and to the learner and provides easy access to the
latest information and technology. In fact, when researchers
recently found liquid water in a meteorite that fell on Texas,
we had information about it in sciLINKS the next day.”
Many teachers take advantage of the Internet to show their

students materials that enhance or extend the content covered
in the curriculum. These materials are available in the public
domain, but they often are difficult to find. NSTA believes
that by utilizing textbooks as a portal to good online content,
more teachers and students can be reached than with the tra-
ditional search engine or pointer Web site. This is aided by
the fact that 90% to 95% of students learn science through
the pages of a textbook.
Textbook Links to Web Sites
With sciLINKS, the reader goes to the free sciLINKS Web

site, he or she types in a code found on the pages of that text,
and the sciLINKS search engine reports the five to 15 pages
selected by the sciLINKS search team. When the user clicks
on one of these sites, a new browser window opens, points to
the selected Web site, and connects the reader directly to the
content provider.
A page from a sciLINKed textbook.

Since the textbook is the starting
point, the sciLINKS team estab-
By accessing the free sciLINKS Web site lishes sciLINKS by collaborating
(http://www.scilinks.org) and entering a code, students and with a publisher’s editorial team
teachers are guided to professionally selected Web sites that to develop a customized service
support specific science subjects from the text. Whether stu- for each textbook or supplementary title. Working together,
dents are learning about new endeavors in space exploration, the team and editors identify the areas in the textbook that
the migratory path of whales, or the diversity of life in rain- would benefit from online extensions. These are areas in
forests, sciLINKS creates a continuous flow of information which students experience misconceptions, or would benefit

from computer modeling or interactive presentations, or pre- selections. The ink may dry on the page, but the science it
sent useful assessment opportunities. Each one is tied to a describes will always be fresh.
specific keyword, which is highlighted in the text and re-
peated in a “call-out” box that contains the sciLINKS icon The sciLINKS Review team--made up of educators and sci-
and URL. In the sciLINKS database, the keywords are cor- entists--patrols the database to ensure that the featured Web
related to the National Science Education Standards and pages remain up-to-date and are among the best Web pages
given a grade level appropriate to the text. These identifiers available. The reviewers evaluate sciLINKS Web content in
enable the sciLINKS search engine to filter in Web materials their discipline. A reviewer starts with the supplementary
that are appropriate for specific textbook pages and content. title or textbook, launching from the page content that fea-
tures a sciLINKS keyword, and compares the Web pages that
How Web Pages Are Selected are reported back to the content on the printed page. The
content of Web pages can change frequently, so those that
A similar process happens to the Web pages, which are se- are no longer appropriate are removed from rotation or re-
lected by science educators and are chosen for accurate and correlated for use elsewhere. Web sites that compare unfa-
age-appropriate content and good pedagogy. Selection starts vorably with other Web pages correlated to the same key-
with a two-stage process. word are removed from rotation as well. The goal is to keep
the overall number of Web pages to about five to 15 per
First, science education majors at four universities around the sciLINKS keyword. sciLINKS is intended to save teachers
country are assigned a list of keywords to research on the and students time and focus their attention on a few exem-
Internet each month. The list corresponds to the keywords plary materials. About 33% of the Web pages featured in the
that were selected by the sciLINKS team and the publisher’s database are removed each year, because they are no longer
editors. These words connect the printed materials to the available (the dreaded “page cannot be displayed”) or the
online materials. The students select Web pages using a sim- page is no longer among the exemplary. In two years, the
plified selection criteria designed to identify the fundamental sciLINKS team of student searchers, teacher correlators, and
areas that are important to sciLINKS: “scientific accuracy,” teacher and scientist reviewers has churned through nearly
the “authority to promote or discuss a scientific idea or con- 100,000 Web pages, selecting about 10,000 for the database.
cept,” and “basic page design.” The students submit this Web It is a huge job.
page fodder to a sciLINKS back end Web page, which auto-
matically places it in a database for further review. How sciLINKS Is Used
In the second stage, the pages are collated by discipline and Feedback from users is positive and has illustrated how
are forwarded to a group of science teachers for review and classrooms are using Web-based materials in their curricula.
selection. The criteria for selection is available at Students, not surprisingly, are using the Internet as a research
http://www.scilinks.org/criteria.htm, but again, the teachers tool, according to their teachers. What may be surprising,
are looking for scientific accuracy and good pedagogy. Once however, is the number of teachers who are using Web con-
a teacher selects a Web page, he or she resubmits it to the tent to shore up their own knowledge of various disciplines.
sciLINKS Website and adds the following components: This may be due to the number of teachers teaching out of
field who are in need of support in their day-to-day curricula.
! Correlation to the National Science Education Stan- It may also be due to how quickly understanding of scientific
dards. concepts changes. Supplemental materials and hands-on ac-
! A brief description that identifies one or more of its tivities follow next in terms of classroom use of Web-based
salient characteristics. content, and rounding out level of use are data visualization,
! One or more icons that will describe the page in educational games, and online field trips.
shorthand.
! Grade level(s) appropriate for the Web page. NSTA continues to seek more information about the best
uses for Web content in the classroom. In April 2000, it re-
This ensures that Web pages reported to the end user are ap- ceived a National Science Foundation grant to establish a
propriate for the content and grade level of the topic that is three-year research initiative called the Webwatcher Institute,
featured in the sciLINKed text. which trains K-12 teachers in the selection and use of Inter-
net materials. Their work, a series of online units that focus
Updating the System on “Big Ideas” in science – ideas like energy flow through an
ecosystem, Earth structures, forces and motion, and heredity
The underlying database changes constantly, eliminating – will be featured on the NSTA web page. Each unit contains
dead or revised sites or simply replacing them with better the underlying sciLINKS engine, so the materials will remain

up-to-date and pedagogically appropriate. More information tured in textbooks, CD-ROMS, journal articles, and other
on this project is available at: supplementary materials. Just about any curricular material
http://www.nsta.org/profdev/nsfwebwatchers/. that benefits from sciLINKS’ updateable, peer-reviewed
format can utilize the service.
Next Steps:
Languages and Modalities Accessibility
Only a fraction of the web content featured in sciLINKS The sciLINKS service is free to all teachers, students, and
comes from servers based outside of North America, partly parents who have a textbook. Publishers pay NSTA a li-
due to the fact that participating publishers are based there, censing fee to connect their textbooks to the service, which
but also because their materials are presented in English. NSTA created with the aid of a grant from the National
Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). It currently
The sciLINKS team is trying to rectify this myopia. Working appears in 20 textbooks, 12 supplementary titles, nearly 40
with educators in South America, sciLINKS is developing a journal articles, one CD-ROM, and one poster. Sample codes
Spanish-language version of the service. Depending on re- are available on the sciLINKS tour at
sponse to this effort, other language versions could follow. http://www.scilinks.org/tour/. For further information,
please contact Tyson Brown at 703.312.9395 or via e-mail at
The service can also appear in just about any media and mo- tbrown@nsta.org.
dality, not just textbooks. sciLINKS is currently being fea-
sciLinks
sci LinksUses
Usesininthe
theClassroom
Classroom
by
byGrade
GradeLevel
Level
F ield T rip s 9th - 12th
F ield T rip s 9th - 12th
5th - 8th
E d . G am es 5th - 8th
E d . G am es
K - 4th
K - 4th
D ata/V is.
D ata/V is.
H an d 's O n
H an d 's O n
S u p . M at.
S u p . M at.
P ro f. D ev.
P ro f. D ev.
R esearch
R esearch
0 20 40 60 80 100
0 20 40 60 80 100

This issue of TechKnowLogia presents
selected Math and Science
web sites of interest to
readers of all ages.
These sites cover the
spectrum of simulations,
animations, problem-solving, lesson plans,
exhibits, and related links in English, Spanish,
French, Italian and Chinese.
Selected by Sonia Jurich
BrainPop
http://www.brainpop.com
For elementary school children and people of all ages interested in science, Brain Pop is an interactive site that
includes quizzes, activities, information and a large selection of movies on science and technology. Using cartoon animation,
the movies explain in simple words and graphics the process of photosynthesis or fuel formation, or other physics, chemistry
and biology topics, including health education. The site also has a selection of movies about technology, such as how radio
works, what is the binary system, and others. In English.
Cité de Sciences et de l’Industrie

http://www.cite-sciences.fr/francais/indexFLASH.fs.htm
Although this site focuses on the exhibits and programs offered by the City of Sciences, in France, it has plenty of
information, games, and activities related to science. The section on “Internet: une nouvelle façon d’apprendre” (the Internet:
a new way to learn) includes a discussion of the ways the Internet will change education, with links to centers for research on
technology and education. In French.
Eisenhower National Clearinghouse

http://www.enc.org
The mission of the Clearinghouse is to identify effective curriculum resources for mathematics and science teach-
ers from K-12. The site offers information on curriculum resources, articles, lesson plans, and links to other math and science
sites that are of interest to English-speaking teachers across the world. For U.S. teachers, the site includes information on
training, funding opportunities, and professional organizations. In English.
Enseñanza de las Matemáticas Asistida por Computadora

http://interactiva.matem.unam.mx/hjw/ensmat/ensmat.html
This site of the Universidad Autónoma de México includes a number of animations done with the Geometer’s
Sketchpad program. The site contains animations related to geometry and calculus. Animations range from simple geometric
figures to an exquisite “gallery of transformations.” Although the site targets college students, younger students who enjoy
mathematics may like the interactive games. In Spanish.

Facoltà de Scienze, Università di Pavia
http://www.unipv.it/webbio/welcome.htm
This site of the Science School at the Pavia University, in Italy, has an impressive number of international links
related to the areas of Biological Sciences, Anthropology, Paleonthology and Primatology. In addition, the site has links to
research conducted across the European Union, African newspapers and universities, and a number of other sites. The Web
Search connects to four different Meta search engines (monster crawler, savvy search, mamma.com and search spaniel). By
clicking on some of the animals on the front page, the user may be taken to a virtual tour of the University’s museum, to their
library (with a number of online scientific journals), or some other place of interest. In Italian (some information is in Eng-
lish).
Fisica en la red
http://www.terra.es/personal/felix061/
This site, created by a professor in Tenerife, Spain, is geared toward college students but offers information that
can be utilized at the high school level. It includes a list of experiments that students and teachers can replicate with simple
materials, links to sites related to astronomy and physics, and a series of animations (applets) that teachers can utilize to dem-
onstrate physics properties. Among the links, it includes an interactive physics course (física con ordenador) and a gallery of
astronomic images taken by satellite (NOAA) and by the observatory of the Institute of Astrophysics in Tenerife. In Spanish.
L’ Institut Pasteur
http://www.pasteur.fr/recherche/BNB
The Bio Notebook, at the Institut Pasteur’s web site, has close to 6,000 links to sites related to the most diverse
aspects of biology. Fortunately, the Notebook has a powerful search engine that enables complex searches. For college stu-
dents who are thinking about going into some of the biology fields, including bioengineering, the site helps locate research
centers, professional organizations, forums and conferences, and courses. Links to sites of special projects, such as the Human
Genome Project, are also found. In French and English.
MadSci Network
http://www.madsci.org/
Based at the Washington University Medical School, USA, the site includes a network of actual scientists that
answer questions posed by school children. The questions and answers can be accessed through a search engine. The site also
has descriptions of experiments (not online) that teachers and students can replicate, and links to virtual museums, libraries and
sites related to science. In English.
Maths Year 2000

http://www.mathsyear2000.org
This site is pleasant for the eyes and rich in information related to mathematics. It includes games and activities at
different levels of complexity, history, book reviews, tests, a database that can be used for classroom practice, and
links to other math-related sites. The section “matrix” mimics a virtual math museum and the section “sum” reproduces a jour-
nal with news about mathematics, including the formula to attain a perfect golf putt (if this is possible). The site also includes
a career preparation page that has testimonies from individuals in different occupations of how they use mathematics in their
jobs. In English.
MathNet Korea
http://mathnet.kaist.ac.kr/english/index.html
The site is maintained by the Information Center for Mathematical Sciences of the Korea Advanced Institute of
Science and Technology. The “education” section has suggestions for teachers, homework help, interactive exercises, Java
applets, and information on math competitions. The resources range in complexity from elementary school to college. Al-

though the math dictionary is no longer available, their encyclopedia has a number of interesting information, including biog-
raphies of great mathematicians and a list of unsolved math problems. In English.
The Virtual Blackboard

http://www.virtualblackboard.com/
Developed by Tramline, Inc. and sponsored by the ATT Learning Network, the Virtual Blackboard helps teachers
develop effective Internet presentations. The site provides (for free) virtual web tours for K-12 students on different subjects
including history and social studies, mathematics, science, technology, language, music and fine arts. Other services are tuto-
rials on how to do effective web search (using Alta Vista engine), use digital photography (some commercial links attached),
and create individual virtual tours (teachers can download the software for free to test, but individual licenses are sold in the
U.S. for $7.50). In English.
Applets/Simulations – two examples of virtual labs for science and math are:
ABC –An object-oriented instructional system - http://www.public.iastate.edu/~abc/
ABC is a programming system designed for the development of instructional material. For those who are brave
enough to try, the program can be downloaded (for free) and a detailed tutorial takes them through the ABCs of creating a
simulation. The not-so-brave group can go to http://www.public.iastate.edu/~abc/java/lessons.html. This site offers five
simulations that can be useful at secondary and/or college level: graphing equations, energy budgets, radiation balance, adia-
batic cooling, and AdvectionSim (exercises on predicting temperatures). The last simulation (The Rain in Spain) deals with
prediction of flood but requires a special plug-in (Cosmo Player 2.1). In English.
NTNU Virtual Physics Laboratory

http://www.phy.ntnu.edu.tw/java/indexPopup.html
This page is a creation of a Chinese physicist, Professor Fu-Kwun Hwang and has mirror sites around the world
(the URL above is for the original site in English). The page has a number of simulations related to mechanics, dynamics,
wave, thermodynamics, electromagnetism, electronics, optics and light, and other topics. Physics teachers at secondary
schools may want to check the page, but even elementary school children will have fun manipulating the applets. In English
and Chinese.
Nobel e-Museum
http://www.nobel.se
The Nobel e-Museum is an online hall of science and culture. It recently introduced virtual laboratories that will
allow high school and university students to simulate electronically some of the experiments that led to Nobel prize-winning
breakthroughs. During the experiment, if a student is stuck, Eve, the virtual lab assistance, will lend a hand. After the experi-
ment is finished, users can play and online game to test their knowledge. E-Museum uses databases, text, images, audio and
video, and 3D virtual reality and webcasts, to provide information about Nobel prize winners since 1901. In English.
Interactive Mathematics on the Internet

http://wims.unice.fr
This site contains a number of interactive games, graphics and exercises on mathematics, including algebra, ge-
ometry and other topics. The graphic games rely more on logic than knowledge of mathematics and can be interesting for 6th
graders and older children. The exercises are quite challenging and require good knowledge of mathematics concepts. When
necessary, the page connects to a glossary of mathematics terms. The French flag takes the user to the archives of the Depart-
ment of Mathematics of the Université Nice - Sophia Antipolis, where the user can enroll to participate in a math forum. The
site also offers virtual math classes at the secondary and tertiary level (enrollment required). The address takes you to the
French site; also in Chinese, English and Italian.

Animation
Breathing Life into Objects
Rafael Chargel
The Potential Perhaps the most powerful software in the world, rendering
engines calculate all the information within the mesh, as well
as lighting and camera information, and transform them into
Fifteen years ago, making a movie like Jurassic Park would
the two dimensional image seen on the computer screen.
have required the use of sculptures, engineers, animatronics
specialists, puppeteers, loads of man-hours, and hoards of
money just to animate the dinosaurs. Luckily for Steven
Spielberg, the world of digital animation is upon us.
Animation is not a new concept. Cartoon flipbooks are older

than photography. With the birth of film it was only natural
for flipbooks to progress into Loony Toons and Mickey
Mouse. The increase in the public’s desire to see cartoons in
the early half of the 20th century, led Disney to produced the
first full-length animated feature films. As time went on,
filmmakers and artists began incorporating animation and
live footage into movies like Anchors Away, where Gene
Kelly danced alongside a cartoon mouse. Eventually, pio-
neers like Steven Spielberg and Jim Henson introduced pup-
pets and animatronics to the world of animation.
Although animation has progressed extensively over the past A variety of 3-D applications are available, ranging in power
one hundred years, it should come as no surprise that the and cost. Maya, the application used to create movies like
digital revolution has changed everything. Today’s anima- Jurassic Park, is at the super complex, super performance,
tion labs are not packed with dozens of cartoonists and ink and super expensive end of the spectrum. Averaging at
stains; they are lined with computers running complex about $17,0002 per station (for a one year lease), Maya is
graphics software. This software comes in a variety of designed to provide fluid animation and the ability to create
forms, each configured towards a highly specialized need. organic models.
3-D Animation Perhaps the most important 3-D modeling application is

AutoCAD. This highly specialized program is geared toward
engineering and architectural development. Originally de-
Three-dimensional software is the latest form of digital ani- signed as a two-dimensional drafting tool, AutoCAD was one
mation. Slightly older than a decade, this new medium was of the first commercial applications to venture into 3-D. It is
popularized by the movie Terminator II: Judgment Day. now used by engineering firms to demonstrate working mod-
These applications are more akin to sculpting than to draw- els, and by architects, as an alternative to expensive hand-
ing. An animator begins by creating a 3-D model, aptly made maquettes.
called a wire mesh. Lines and vertices within the mesh form
the polygonal surfaces, which make up the 3-dimensional Slightly lower down the scale are applications like 3D Studio
object. More than twenty-two thousand polygons make up Max and Lightwave 3D. These programs are often used to
the surface of the skull1 in this image. A component soft- create video games and virtual reality simulators. With a
ware called a rendering engine produces the actual image. cost of only about $3,000, programs like these provide high-

powered simulations, without the high cost of Maya. As the that can take less time to download than a regular HTML
technology improves, the disparity in strength between these page with static images. A good example of a Flash website
mid-range applications and programs like Maya is constantly can be found at: http://www.matinee.co.uk. The only limita-
shrinking. Less expensive programs are available, some for tion to vector based web pages, is that they require a plug-in
as low as $100. Unfortunately, much is sacrificed in the to be viewed. Although most of these plug-ins are free,
name of savings. Many of those programs, like Infini-D, many people do not want to spend time downloading soft-
have been taken off the market. ware. Fortunately, both Netscape 5.0 and Explorer 5.0 al-
ready include most of the necessary plug-ins, including the
On-line Animation3 Flash viewer.
The world of digital animation is not limited to films and Applications

simulators. Like everything else, animation is going on-line.
Traditionally web animation was at best highly limited. In As the technology grows the need and uses of animation also
order to create an animation a web designer had to build lay- grow. Already, animation is being used in fields where only
ered images, which require massive download times. With five years ago it would have been considered impractical.
the birth of Java things improved. Java scripts allowed web Interactive CD-ROMs are used for portfolio presentations.
designers to create simple interactive animations, but they Architectural firms are using 3-D fly-overs as a visual tool
were still choosing between sacrificing image quality or infor their clients. Engineers also use 3-D animations to dem-
creased download time. onstrate their own working models. Over the web, anima-
tions are used for job training and classroom exercises. The
The answer was vector animation. Vector images are based growth of interactive animations is even allowing developers
on mathematical equations, rather than pixels. In a bitmap to create on-line laboratory simulators, like the one seen be-
image, such as a JPEG, each pixel’s color information is low.
stored as a separate piece of data. Because vector images do http://www.public.iastate.edu/~abc/java/budgetsim/budgetsi
not use pixels, their file sizes are significantly smaller, plus m.html
they have the added bonus of being much clearer. Although
vector graphics are not new, it was only a few years ago that Where is animation
they began being used in animation software. Once it was right now? The
possible to animate with vector images, the World Wide Web increasing number of
became its greatest benefactor. web animators is
producing new
At the forefront of enthusiasm towards
vector animation is the World Wide
Flash. Costing less Web; artists are
than $400 it is an finding a new media; classrooms are using animations to
inexpensive program, replace expensive laboratories; the military are using ani-
with the ability to mated simulators to train pilots and navigators; and doctors
create fully interactive are using interactive animations to rehearse surgery. What
animated web pages, does the future hold? The human imagination is the limit.
1
3D Skull model from 3DCafe.com.
2
All quoted prices are Standard Retail Prices from November 2000.
3
Introduction à la Physique Quantique (http://www.cesam.qc.ca/site-eduweb/c2k/0606/index.htm#) is an example of the use of
animation programs which associate arts to scientific information and capture people's attention.

AED/LearnLink:
AED/LearnLink:
Affordable Access to Modern ICTs in Bulgaria
AED/LearnLink uses information and communication technology (ICT) applications to support

global development. Activities range from public communication and Internet access
telecenters to teacher training, professional development, distance learning, organizational
networking, e-commerce, and institution capacity building. Lessons from project experiences
are shared to contribute to the body of knowledge on using ICTs for development.
Purpose:
To create viable telecenter businesses in communities lacking modern information and communications technologies (ICTs); to
promote social and economic development in small towns and rural areas through ICT access; to help extend the benefits of
ICTs to educational and social service sectors; to increase digitized Bulgarian-language content focused on socioeconomic
development; to assess the impact of usage subsidies to selected groups to promote use of Public Computer and
Communication Centers (PC3s); and to contribute a new model to the global telecenter experience.
Description:
Started in September 2000, this pilot project provides entrepreneurs with equipment, subsidies, and technical assistance to
establish PC3s. On a fee-for-use basis, PC3s offer a mix of information-based products and services, such as Internet access,
email accounts, CD-ROMs, desktop publishing, telephone, fax, and photocopying. Later, more advanced activities can be
offered, including training in computer and Internet use and applications, web site development, and e-commerce for small and
medium-sized businesses. Established outside major cities, PC3s are designed to meet the needs of communities of about
5,000-30,000 and may be owned and run by individuals, businesses, or local organizations.
To stimulate PC3 use, especially by educational and

social service groups, and to minimize risks for the
business partners, prepaid access cards that can be
exchanged for PC3 products and services of equivalent
value are distributed to students and teachers, health
workers, agricultural cooperatives, and other “change
agents.”
Scope of Work:
After issuing a Request for Proposals, AED/LearnLink
selects individuals and organizations wishing to operate
PC3s. To help operators establish their businesses,
reduce initial financial risks, and build client demand,
LearnLink assists with PC3 business planning and
computer and network design. Other assistance includes
supplying PC3s with some Internet connectivity
subsidies and computer and network equipment, and
distributing prepaid access cards, redeemable for PC3
services, to potential users.
To increase Bulgarian language computer-based and Private telecenter in Septemvri (a town southeast of Sofia)
Internet-accessible content on economic and social

development, LearnLink digitizes existing material, translates others, and then distributes content to PC3 operators to offer
their clients. Finally, LearnLink monitors use and outcomes and documents useful lessons for future activities.
Desired Outcomes:
Each PC3 is intended to become an independent, self-supporting business. Operators should be able to sustain profitable
enterprises and gain experience in managing the PC3, maintaining its equipment, and providing quality customer service.
Small business spin-offs, such as the sale of peripherals, desktop publishing, and equipment repair, are expected to emerge
from the PC3 presence in the local economy. Successful PC3s should make it possible for local residents, including the
educational and social service sectors, to have better access to information and communication options. Bulgarians can access
and apply the Bulgarian-language content, relevant to their social and economic development needs, that is made available on
the Internet or CD-ROMs.
In the long term, affordable access to modern ICTs is expected to

stimulate economic growth in the communities served by
increasing competitiveness, catalyzing the launch of spin-off
businesses, contributing to higher levels of employment, and
connecting mid- and low-income communities to the global
economy. Social development is expected by increasing
education and training opportunities, improving communication,
and facilitating the provision of government and social services to
under-served populations outside urban centers. Finally, the
project is expected to demonstrate to USAID and its partners that
this telecenter model is feasible and can be profitable and
sustainable.
Key Challenges:
The further a community is from Bulgaria’s largest cities, the
greater is the gap in economic development. Infrastructure and
access to ICT hardware outside cities is limited. Few Internet
service providers (ISPs) operate outside urban areas, and where
they do, fees are almost twice as high as in cities. Less than 10%
of Bulgarians speak English, and the availability of Bulgarian
language material on the Internet is minimal.
Unique Aspects:
PC3s are a form of telecenter that features up-front collaboration
with the private sector and offers for-profit and “public good”
services within a sound business plan.
Owner advertising his telecenter services
Launching PC3s with local entrepreneurs as partners, distributing
prepaid access cards to stimulate use and reduce risks for operators, and providing hardware, technical assistance, training, and
Internet connectivity subsidies demonstrate a new approach to sustainability and contribute a new model to the global
telecenter repertoire.
LearnLink Project, AED

1825 Connecticut Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20009
Fax: (202) 884-8979
Email: learnlink@aed.org
http://.aed.org/learnlink

in the E-9 Countries
By Teresa Murtagh, UNESCO
*
This article summarizes a study on the use of distance education for basic education in the nine high-
population countries (E-9). It was commissioned by UNESCO and conducted by the International
Research Foundation for Open Learning (IRFOL).
Despite their huge differences of culture and wealth, the nine Indonesia, for example, runs a highly successful
high-population countries (Bangladesh, Brazil, Egypt, China, primary-level program and both Brazil and Mexico have
India, Indonesia, Mexico, Nigeria and Pakistan), usually experimented with broadcast-based alternative primary
referred to as E-9, have educational challenges and demands schools. But, given the imperative to provide primary
in common. All face demands for more primary-school schools for all children, this has not been the main task
places, for an expansion of junior secondary schools and for for distance education.
more and better-qualified teachers. All have educational
backlogs of people who missed out on some or all of their • Second, there are some long-standing and successful
education and who are illiterate today. To varying degrees, examples of the use of distance education for junior-
all tend to offer more education to boys than girls. Given that secondary schooling. Brazil and Mexico have
these countries are home to 70 percent of the world’s adult developed very large projects and India and Indonesia
illiterates and more than half of out-of-school children, the E- more modest ones.
9 Initiative was launched to accelerate progress towards
education for all through joint activities, information sharing • Third, a variety of programs by both governments and
and resource mobilization. The initiative comes under the non-governmental organizations (NGOs) have been
personal purview of the countries’ heads of state and developed to meet the needs of adults. In some parts of
government. the world NGOs have been particularly active in this
area but their work tends to be under-reported.
Since the UNESCO-backed E9 initiative started in 1993, the
nine countries have committed themselves to using distance • Fourth, distance education has been widely applied to
education as one means of addressing some of their needs in teacher training, both in an attempt to meet an
basic education. This study sets out to examine how well emergency teacher shortage and to upgrade their skills.
distance education is working in the nine countries and to
provide their policymakers with some indications of where to Going to Scale
go from here. It draws on a review, conducted by UNESCO
and individual ministries of education, and carried out in The huge populations of the E-9 countries make them ideal
1998-1999. territory for distance education whose economics demand
large audiences. Most of the nine have been able to develop
Distance Education: For What Purpose large-scale distance institutions operating at various levels of
education. The Central Radio and Television University of
The E9 countries have used distance education for four China is perhaps the largest educational institution in the
different purposes: world. According to official 1996 figures, almost a quarter of
China's 5.8 million students in higher education studied
• First, it has occasionally been used either as an through distance education. In Mexico, scale has led to the
alternative to formal primary education or to support it.

creation of Telesecundaria that has been providing secondary satellite distribution for their large audiences. Dedicated
schooling to over 800,000 rural learners (1997-1998 figures). national broadcasting channels and the use of television
Brazil’s Telecurso 2000 is the world’s largest secondary (despite its relatively high production costs) becomes a
education equivalency distance program for adults and possibility for high population countries that does not exist
Nigeria’s National Teachers' Institute in Kaduna trained for small states.
some 300,000 teachers between 1984 and 1992.
In BANGLADESH, while educational broadcasting goes
Particular conditions have led to the establishment and back many years, distance education for a range of levels
success of these large institutions: acceptance as part of the (e.g. tertiary and secondary) and groups (e.g. teachers,
regular education system; economic opportunity; educational disadvantaged rural audiences) has been dominated by print-
demand and strong policy direction. centered courses produced by Bangladesh Open University.
Different trends are discernible: only in Latin America and BRAZIL has a long experience of using broadcasting for
Indonesia have governments created non-conventional out-of-school and adult education and concentrates mainly
institutions at school level on a large scale. The Indonesian on programs at junior secondary level of which Telecurso
Packet A program is the only large-scale example of a 2000 is said to be the largest pre-tertiary distance-education
program offering the equivalent of primary education. It is program in the world.
aimed at out-of-school 6- to 13-year olds and is reported to
have trained 8 million nationwide since 1978, 60 percent of The population and size of CHINA makes satellite
them female. As yet, the open schools of India and broadcasting economically viable. Large numbers of
Indonesia are attracting a much smaller proportion of the age teachers have been trained but there is also experience of
group. India’s National Open School, for example, is an using broadcasting and computer-based technologies in
alternative route to schooling for disadvantaged groups such school and of some adult basic education in agricultural
as women and girls, scheduled castes and tribes, rural and skills.
urban poor, and the unemployed. It provides secondary,
senior secondary and vocational courses. Enrolment figures Although EGYPT reported using communication
in 1998/99 reached 130,000 learners although this is a mere technologies in school and both radio and video-
drop in the ocean (0.6 percent) when compared to the 68 conferencing for teacher education, the level of using
million secondary school learners (in 1996). distance education is lower than in other E-9 countries.
While the large Asian countries all have national open INDIA has used distance education both for junior
universities with a variety of functions, Egypt, Nigeria, secondary education and for teacher training. Given the
Brazil and Mexico have not chosen to establish them. number and the vigor of NGOs in India, their work in
distance education may be under-reported, especially in adult
Differences within the countries spring from different views education. The National Open School, which has recently
about the role of the state. Bangladesh, Brazil and India, for been joined, by state open schools, offers the equivalent of
example, all have strong pluralist traditions where NGOs and junior and senior secondary education using printed self-
the private sector play a significant role in education. This learning materials, personal contact programs, audio, video
affects the audiences and the size of the audience reached and some TV broadcasting. Print-centered courses dominate
through distance education. At junior secondary level, for distance teacher education although there has been
example, the alternative distance programs in Brazil and innovative use of interactive video technology.
Mexico mean that large numbers of adolescents - otherwise
excluded from mainstream schooling - can receive an INDONESIA has used distance education programs both to
education, while smaller numbers can in south Asia. Despite support the work of regular schools and to create a network
huge potential demand, China, Egypt and Nigeria have yet to of institutions for out-of-school children, principally at junior
be persuaded of the value of this approach. secondary level. Broadcasting, especially on radio, has been
central to much of this work. Indonesia has also used
Technology distance education for teacher upgrading, with students
numbered in the millions.
Two features dominate the technology scene: first, the
simpler technologies, and especially print and radio, are the In MEXICO, Telesecundaria dominates the scene. It has
most commonly used - they can reach remote parts of large more than thirty years of experience in offering an alternative
countries at modest cost; the second concerns the issue of junior secondary education, mainly in rural areas using
broadcasting itself. The scale of the nine countries mean television broadcasts that support the work of monitors. It
they can afford to use direct satellite broadcasting or indirect has become an established part of the education service.

Only limited use of distance education for teacher training possible for Indonesia, for example, to set the costs of its
appears to have been made. open secondary school at 60 percent of those for regular
schooling. If the measure used is cost per successful student,
Of the distance education activities in NIGERIA, two it is more difficult to establish the economic case for distance
predominate – a program of basic education for nomads, education. One simple conclusion is, however, possible.
making use of radio, and the work of the National Teachers Given the numbers of students to be expected in mainstream
Institute in training teachers. It is a freestanding, perhaps educational programs in these large countries, it should be
unique, dedicated distance-education institution for the possible to design distance education alternatives that
education of teachers. compare favorably with the conventional model in terms of
cost per student.
PAKISTAN’s
PAKISTAN Allama Iqbal Open University has dominated
distance education within the country since its foundation in The biggest gap, however, is in the use of distance education
1974. It runs print-centered courses, and radio and TV for non-formal adult education. While countries committed
broadcasts. While much of its work is for regular university themselves in Dakar to achieving a 50 percent improvement
programs, it has also carried out a number of experimental in levels of adult literacy by 2015, little work is reported
projects, using distance-teaching methods for basic either of education directly to an adult audience or for
education, and also runs teacher-upgrading programs for extension agents and health workers who work with large
primary-school teachers. rural publics.
The Gaps The Way Ahead
The study underlines the serious shortage of data on The evidence, albeit rather piecemeal, suggests that
outcomes. Figures about the size of audiences reached by a possibilities for expanding distance education exist in three
program or project are common but little is known about the areas: school equivalence, teacher education, and non-formal
effectiveness of distance education. This shortage is adult education. Special emphasis could be placed on
characteristic of developing countries where there is a limited increasing participation of girls and women and on health
research tradition and where, as in the E-9 countries, issues, particularly AIDs. Strategies for all these areas have
stretched resources and geographical expanse make data been developed that could usefully be applied in most if not
collection logistically difficult. all of the E-9 countries. Egypt and Nigeria seem to provide
opportunities to use distance education at junior secondary
Nevertheless, the data available on examination results for level, China at senior secondary. Distance teacher education
junior secondary programs make it possible to be positive seems ripe for expansion in all countries, with the probable
about the effectiveness of the model within its own exception of China and partial exception of Nigeria. In all the
environment. There is also positive evidence on completion E-9 countries, distance education could make a significant
and examination pass rates for some teacher education contribution towards adult and non-formal education.
programs, including the National Teachers' Institute and the
Asian open universities. Where completion rates are high, as However, even with identified needs in these three areas,
in many teacher-education projects, favorable results are educational policy-makers in the E-9 countries are unlikely
being achieved in terms of cost per successful student. to commit themselves to any initiative, large or small, on the
basis of inadequate information about costs and
The cost of distance education is another factor for which effectiveness. To address this, a critical review of existing
data are scarce. Here, the evidence is consistent that, given data in the three fields needs to be made available to E-9
adequately large numbers, the cost of distance education is decision-makers, and new research must be initiated to
likely to compare favorably with that of conventional address the gaps in the existing data.
education provided it is measured in terms of cost per
student. Large numbers bring down unit costs. It has been
*
This study, currently in print, can be obtained from Wolfgang Vollmann, E-9 Co-ordinator, UNESCO. E-mail:
w.vollmann@unesco.org

Innovating with ICT on a Shoe-String
Errol Miller*
The Joint Board of Teacher Education, JBTE, is a part- 1. The modernization of instruction to bring colleges in
nership in teacher education in the Western Caribbean line with technology now common in homes, offices,
involving three Ministries of Education, fourteen col- factories, commerce and entertainment.
leges training teachers, three teachers unions and as- 2. The improvement of the quality of teacher education in
sociations in the Bahamas, Belize and Jamaica and the the light of the higher education standards required by
University of the West Indies, Mona Campus. Estab- the information and knowledge society.
lished in 1965, the mission of the JBTE is to guarantee 3. The need to provide continuing professional develop-
the quality of teacher education in the Western Com- ment to teachers in-service. The rapidity and profound
nature of the changes taking place in society and the
monwealth Caribbean. The Joint Board certifies teach-
generation of new knowledge about learning dictate ca-
ers trained at the undergraduate level in colleges in the
reer-long professional development by teachers in order
Bahamas, Belize and Jamaica. The Secretariat of the to keep abreast of the transformations in progress.
JBTE is located on the Mona Campus of the University 4. Shrinking resources as structural adjustments and the
of the West Indies, UWI, Jamaica. Since its inception financial woes of the country continue to threaten, and
the JBTE has certified more than 60,000 teachers in actually impede, the flow of resources to the education
the three member countries. sector.
5. Globalization, especially with respect to the internation-
The JBTE carries out its quality control and teacher alization of educational standards particularly at the ter-
certification mission through exercising final authority tiary level.
with respect to the determination of entry standards for 6. The necessity for Caribbean societies to become not
admission in teacher education programs, the approval only consumers but also producers of knowledge.
of curriculum, the setting and marking of examinations
for students employing a system of external examiners In response to the demand to meet these challenges, as well
and in the awarding of professional credentials in as to find solutions to these very real problems, as they affect
teaching. Over the thirty-five years of its operations the teacher education, the JBTE has identified information and
JBTE has always carried out its quality control functions communication technology as a critical resource and has
in an interactive and participatory manner that inti- embarked upon the following initiatives:
mately involves the principals and staffs of the fourteen
member colleges and external examiners drawn mainly 1. Developed a Management Information System, College
Manager, to allow colleges to manage their operations
from the Ministries of Education and the UWI. The
more effectively in the face of severe financial con-
Secretariat of the JBTE is located in the Institute of
straints as well as manage their communication more ef-
Education, which supports the work of the Secretariat fectively with the Joint Board Secretariat and the Minis-
by engaging research and activities in the areas of cur- try of Education.
riculum, material, staff and institutional development, 2. Established Local Area Networks (LANs) in both the
project cycle management and policy advice. Institute of Education and the Joint Board Secretariat
and integrated them so that there is on-line connections
CHALLENGES IN THE 1990s through the UWI network backbone. The intention is to
facilitate research and development activities through
The decade of the 1990s brought new challenges to the JBTE access to more accurate and precise data available
partnership. These included: through the College Manager database.

3. Established a Web site that is designed as the hub of tions in all three years of the different teacher education pro-
many of the JBTE operations. The site has been de- grams.
signed to:
• Provide information about the JBTE programs, The practical implications of these reforms for the JBTE Sec-
courses, regulations, personnel, publications, cur- retariat was that from producing examinations for a single
riculum, examinations and events. year in all countries, it now had to produce different exami-
• Provide training and technical support for School nations for the three countries for all three years of the
and College Manager. teacher education programs. The number of examinations to
• Host the JBTE On-line Conference capability. be produced each year jumped from about twelve to over
• Be the center of the JBTE Distance Teaching op- three hundred courses. At the same time, the resources pro-
erations. vided to support the reform did not match the magnitude of
• House the tutorial system planned to assist students. the increased responsibilities of the Board. The JBTE Secre-
4. Purchased from Simon Fraser University the license for tariat met this challenge successfully by employing personal
Virtual U, a course management and conference system, computers in the production of its examinations. Indeed, with
which is intended to give Boards of Studies the means, only a modest increase in staff and resources the Secretariat
through asynchronous conferences, to share best prac- was able to produce better quality examinations at the same
tices, archive their decisions and knowledge in ways that time that the numbers of examinations increased dramati-
are easily retrieved, share teaching and Internet re- cally.
sources, and assist in the delivery of staff development
through short courses and seminars. By the early 1990s, the JBTE Secretariat began to be inter-
5. Started to deliver some UWI Masters in Education ested in using computers not only to produce the JBTE Ex-
courses on-line, beginning with courses in teacher edu- aminations but also to process them. The Secretariat there-
cation. fore commissioned PROSOFT, a small Jamaican software
6. Planned to develop a tutorial system designed to support firm, to build a student and staff record system that would
the full and part-time instructional programs in colleges capture biographic data of staff, health data, confidential
and instruction through distance teaching operations. information, courses taken by students, courses taught by
The tutorial system is currently on the drawing board. staff, examinations, profile information, activities in college
and other information.
This article seeks to document some of the experiences
gained and the lessons learned in establishing the College THE DEVELOPMENT AND FEATURES
Manager Information System and database. This is still very
much a work in progress. This innovation has been con- OF COLLEGE MANAGER
ceived and executed with no external assistance but totally
from the resources of the colleges and the JBTE Secretariat. Very early in the design phase of the student and staff record
It is fair to say that this innovation has been done on a shoe- system, the other partners in the JBTE, namely the colleges
string in terms of resources but with the determination of the represented by their principals and the Ministry of Education,
partners involved to use information and communications Jamaica, became interested in the extension of the system
technology to improve the quality of teacher education being developed to address issues that were important to
through the better management of their operations. them. College principals were interested in a system that
would facilitate and improve their relationships and respon-
THE GENESIS OF THE INNOVATION sibilities with the JBTE but also in features that could be
added that would enable them to manage their institutions
better.
Over the period 1981 to 1984, the JBTE partnership executed
major reforms in teacher education and the operations of the In Jamaica, while the Government has devolved final
JBTE itself. First, it adopted the policy of aligning the authority to the JBTE with respect to admissions require-
teacher preparation programs in each country to the national ments, curriculum, examinations and the award of credentials
curriculum of the country and to award credentials consistent in teacher education, they have retained the powers to deal
with the programs in each country. Second, it adopted the with policy, finance, administration, and the discipline of
policy that for each credential that the JBTE awarded there staff and students. In addition, while the Colleges through
would be common admission criteria, common curricula, and their Boards of Directors, are fairly autonomous with respect
common examinations, in all five programs by which teach- to the selection of students, the appointment of staff and the
ers were prepared. The third policy was to adopt a semester expenditure of funds must comply with Ministry guidelines
structure for the delivery of the teacher education program with respect to the qualifications and experience of staff,
and to require external examinations for semester examina- student enrolment quotas, tutor student ratios and salary

scales. The Ministry of Education, therefore became inter- the operation of the school. It can also be customized at the
ested in obtaining more accurate data that would facilitate level of the college’s operation. The School Fee Manager
their planning, administrative and budget processes in par- keeps record and accounts of all fees paid by each student.
ticular.
Other modules in varying stages of development include:
What was therefore originally conceived as a student and
staff record system eventually expanded into a comprehen- 1. Time Tabling and Scheduling
sive human resource management system. The expansion of 2. Curriculum Manager
the design concept was facilitated by the fact that PROSOFT 3. Governance
had been successful in developing banking software that had 4. Teacher Appraisal
obtained the seal of approval of the Bank of Jamaica. College 1. Grounds Manager
Manager, therefore became a product jointly owned by JBTE 2. Equipment Manager
and PROSOFT. 3. Materials Manager
4. Playfields Manager
Features of College Manager 5. Sanitation Manager
College Manager has the capacity to manage both single and
distributive databases. College Manager therefore comes The database and the program are separated so as to facilitate
with a college site server version that allows each institution the customization of the database, which does not necessitate
to manage its own affairs using its LAN. By design, College a change to the program and vice versa especially with re-
Manager also affords online connectivity with the JBTE, gards to upgrades.
Ministries of Education, Project Units or any other central
body. However, the aggregated database allows only entities College Manager has a
with vested interest access to the database at a particular What was therefore powerful Report Designer
level. College Manager therefore is also available in a Super- originally conceived as a whose output can be
opened and used by any
server version that has the capacity to facilitate the creation student and staff record of the Microsoft Office
of databases for each of one hundred or more levels of ag-
gregation on the criteria specified for up to 65,000 institu- system eventually ex
ex- suite applications. This
facilitates mail merges
tions. panded into a compre
compre- using information from
College Manager is designed on a modular basis. Nine mod-
hensive human resource the College Manager da-
ules come standard with College Manager and they are: management system.
system. tabase and MS Word or
Excel Spreadsheets or
1. College Profile Module Access Database or MS
2. Student Module Project. Further, the Report Designer output files can be
3. Staff Modules, three (Academic, Administrative and opened in SPSS, which facilitates statistical analyses using
Ancillary) the full range of SPSS functionality.
4. Attendance Module
5. Student Assessment Module The Developmental Stages
6. Report Designer College Manager was first released in September 1996 using
7. Security Module Windows technology. As colleges began the process imple-
menting the system, two major problems were encountered.
Other supplementary Modules include: First, some colleges were not able to afford the Pentium
computers that were needed to establish the administrative
1. Financial Manager LANs on which College Manager would run. Second, fre-
2. School Fees Manager quent crashes of Windows required regular site visits to cor-
3. Data Transfer rect problems that arose in the database. Neither the colleges
4. Continuing Professional Development of Teachers nor the JBTE Secretariat could afford the maintenance costs
5. Payroll Manager involved. These two problems stalled the JBTE-wide imple-
6. Accounts Reconciliation Manager mentation of the system.
The Financial Manager is a fully functional resource and Using web and browser technology tools that became avail-
accounting package that is totally integrated with the data- able in late 1997, College Manager was upgraded to a web
base of College Manager and is capable of keeping record of and browser based software. This resolved the two major
all student accounts, all investments made by the school in problems that had stalled implementation since only the
major currencies and all regular transactions undertaken in Server was required to be a top-end machine. Other machines

on the LAN only needed to be able to support a standard reliability of the JBTE Wide Area Network and College
browser starting at the level of Netscape 3 or Explorer 3. Manager database.
Second, corrections to the database could be made on-line 5. The huge burden of the initial data entry. The start up of
once access was granted to the College Server. Also training the system requires biographic data to be entered for all
in the use of the software could be developed on-line to pro- students and staff members in each college. While time
vide just-in-time training. Prime Minister P. J. Patterson of saving measures have been devised for entering courses,
Jamaica officially launched College Manager in November subjects and examinations data, there is no shortcut for
1998 at the JBTE Exposition in celebration of the 50th anni- the biographic data that must be entered individually.
versary of the founding of the UWI. This became a major problem for two reasons. First, the
clerical and administrative resources of the traditional
OBSTACLES ENCOUNTERED AND manual systems operated by the colleges are concen-
trated at the reporting end of the system. The computer-
OVERCOME SINCE 1998 ized management information system makes reporting a
breeze, just a few clicks. However, the data must first be
Since 1998 several obstacles have been encountered and entered. Second, Jamaican colleges training teachers are
overcome. These can be listed briefly as follows: understaffed, hence the pressures and urgencies of the
manual system generally poses substantial problems for
1. Debugging the software. Like any newly developed the time needed for data entry. While the automation of
software, College Manager has had its share of bugs, management addresses and relieves the understaffing
which were made evident in moving from testing under problem, getting over this hump constituted a significant
laboratory conditions to implementation in the real obstacle that the larger colleges stumbled on. The Min-
situation. College Manager is as bug free, as it is possi- istry of Education provided the solution by making a
ble with any application, given the current state of web grant to each college that allowed it to employ tempo-
and browser technology. rary staff to do the data entry. By October 2000 all col-
2. IP address and network issues related to the fact that the leges had entered their student and staff data.
JBTE Secretariat is part of the UWI, Mona campus net- 6. Turnover of clerical and administrative staff in the col-
work, and the JBTE has its own IP address class that is leges is a continuing challenge in that new staff need to
distributed to the networks in the colleges. A proxy be trained, but often are assigned responsibilities before
server solution was developed to resolve the issues in- receiving the necessary training. The solution developed
volved. for this obstacle has been the provision of periodic
3. The management of the college LANs and databases. training for new staff and the production of a self in-
Those colleges that have been able to employ full-time structional CD.
systems administrators/database managers, of the re- 7. Fire destroyed the administrative buildings of two col-
quired technical competence, have made progress at a leges. In one instance, the fire occurred just prior to the
much faster rate than those that have had to rely on less commencement of the College Manager initiative. This
available and/or less competent persons. Indeed, there delayed implementation at that college because the tem-
have been two horror stories involving the wiping out of porary accommodation, used until new buildings were
the college’s database by persons running into difficul- constructed, was not conducive to the location of the
ties in managing Windows NT and re-installing it with- administrative LAN. In the other instances, the colleges
out properly backing up the College Manager database. had entered all of their student and staff data, and had
In one instance the particular college had already put on backed up their data on tape, but both server and backup
its entire student enrolment and the person responsible tapes were in the building that was burned. Both col-
for the error tried to pass it off on the staff of the JBTE leges have overcome their setback and came on stream
Secretariat who uncovered the error. Resolving the is- in 2000.
sues that resulted from this situation took almost one 8. While some colleges and the JBTE Secretariat were up
year. and running early, because some colleges lagged behind
4. Coordinating the work of the systems administra- in implementation, for different reasons, the system-
tors/database managers in the colleges with the compa- wide implementation of the initiative was significantly
nies contracted by the colleges to service the hardware delayed. From conception of the idea, to all colleges en-
and JBTE Secretariat central system administrators who tering data that is shared with the JBTE Secretariat has
designed the College Networks and installed College taken seven years.
Manager. It was a challenge to establish systematic
channels of communication between these groups of
persons, all of whom are critical to the functioning and

BENEFITS applicants. Analysis of these data could have important
implications for guidance of students in secondary
schools intending to enter the teacher profession as well
Notwithstanding all the obstacles that have been encountered as to issues related to policy and planning. This new ap-
and overcome, the delays and setbacks in implementation, proach has the potential to improve the overall quality of
the JBTE partnership is now well on the way to reaching applicants admitted to teacher education in Jamaica.
their intended destination and have derived several important Further, for the first time the Ministry of Education, the
benefits from this initiative. Without attempting to be ex- JBTE Secretariat and the Institute of Education will have
haustive, it is important to list at least some benefits. These access to accurate data concerning persons applying to
are: enter teacher education.
5. The JBTE and PROSOFT now have a new revenue
1. The JBTE partners now have installed a state-of-the-art stream. When some principals of secondary schools
management information system, customized to the heard of the initiative being taken to develop College
JBTE operations, which they could not afford to pur- Manager, they voiced their frustrations in trying to find
chase on the open market. While each partner has an affordable and appropriate management information
probably contributed more than they envisaged origi- system for their schools. JBTE and PROSOFT re-
nally, that contribution pales in comparison to the cost of sponded by developing Secondary School Manager and
comparable products and their customization to the spe- Primary School Manager which are now being marketed
cifics of the JBTE operations. and sold to schools in Jamaica. Recently, under com-
2. Colleges now have a management information system petitive bidding JBTE/PROSOFT won the contract to
that has the potential to relieve their perennial problems provide the educational management information system
of understaffing in handling student and staff matters, for technical high schools in Jamaica.
which makes information more readily retrievable and
allows on-line transactions with the Joint Board and the
Ministry of Education and Culture. CONCLUDING COMMENT
3. The JBTE Secretariat now has in place a central data-
base that has the potential to significantly speed up the While College Manager took longer to develop than was
time for processing and producing the JBTE examina- originally envisaged by the JBTE partners, the losses due to
tions results and will allow much more sophisticated delay were somewhat compensated for by the decrease in
techniques to be used in ensuring common standards computer prices and the increase in power of the later
across the colleges. The Institute of Education has read- equipment. The decrease in price and increase in power has
ily available a database that should facilitate the conduct been a major boon to this initiative, especially with respect to
of research and facilitate project cycle management. such issues as the size of databases and archiving and backup
4. The system that has been put in place has the potential to of data and in time of processing data and producing reports.
allow the partnership to address issues that were not en- The JBTE partners have learned a tremendous amount from
visaged originally. For example, students in Jamaica ap- this initiative that have put them in good stead in subsequent
ply to a specific college and compete for the places projects involving the application of information and com-
available at that college. While each college admits the munication technology to other aspects of their work. The
‘best’ from among it’s applicants, as a whole the col- major challenge still facing the partners is the full use of the
leges certainly do not admit the ‘best’ applicants from technology and the system that has been put in place with
among the total applications to enter the teaching profes- respect to decision making, improving practice, formulating
sion because the quality of applicants are not evenly policy and in generating knowledge that will improve and
distributed across colleges. As a result of discussions in- enhance the preparation of teachers and subsequently the
volving the Jamaican colleges, the Ministry of Education improvement of learning of students in schools. The outcome
and the JBTE Secretariat, it was agreed that for the col- depends on their willingness to learn, the readiness to change
lege year beginning in August 2000, colleges receiving the culture to take account of the new ways of operating, and
large numbers of applications would overbook their ad- the openness to deal with the unexpected and unintended
missions by 20 per cent and send all other qualified ap- developments. Success to date has been in no small part due
plications to a common pool to be held by the JBTE Sec- to a key core of persons within the JBTE Secretariat and in
retariat to which all colleges would have on-line access. the colleges to stay the course through all the ups and downs
Those colleges not satisfied with the quality of their ap- of the various stages. No doubt it is this capacity that will
plicants, and needing additional applications to complete make it likely that the full potential of this initiative will be
their admissions could go to the common pool for such eventually achieved.
*Errol Miller is Professor of Teacher Education and Director of the Institute of Education, University of the West Indies,
Mona. emiller@uwimona.edu.jm

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Volume 3, Issue 2 March/April 2001

This issue is co-sponsored by:

Thematic Focus: Technology for Science and Mathematics Education

5 Touching the Untouchable

7 New Trends in Science and Mathematics Education

10 Capacity Building for Science and Math Education

! 1 ! TechKnowLogia, March/April, 2001 © Knowledge Enterprise, Inc. www.TechKnowLogia.org

21 The Jason Project: The Search for the Golden Fleece

25 Learning by Doing Science: Two Internet-Based Cases

30 Science Literacy: Project 2061/AAAS Experiences in Panama

34 The IMMEX Project: Technology for Problem-Solving

36 Realizing the Possibilities: A Technology-Assisted Learning Center at Universidad Mayor de

! 2 ! TechKnowLogia, March/April, 2001 © Knowledge Enterprise, Inc. www.TechKnowLogia.org

42 Computer Drill and Practice Tutorials: Are They Effective?

52 Evaluating Computer and Web Instruction: New Opportunities

57 sciLINKS: The World’s a Click Away

! 3 ! TechKnowLogia, March/April, 2001 © Knowledge Enterprise, Inc. www.TechKnowLogia.org

63 Animation: Breathing Life into Objects

65 AED/LearnLink: Affordable Access to Modern ICTs in Bulgaria

67 Distance Education for Basic Education in the E-9 Countries

70 A Western Caribbean Profile: Innovating with ICT on a Shoe-String

Editorial Calendar for Year 2001

! 4 ! TechKnowLogia, March/April, 2001 © Knowledge Enterprise, Inc. www.TechKnowLogia.org

Touching the Untouchable!

! 5 ! TechKnowLogia, March/April, 2001 © Knowledge Enterprise, Inc. www.TechKnowLogia.org

! 6 ! TechKnowLogia, March/April, 2001 © Knowledge Enterprise, Inc. www.TechKnowLogia.org

Nature of Scientific Knowledge

! 7 ! TechKnowLogia, March/April, 2001 © Knowledge Enterprise, Inc. www.TechKnowLogia.org

Foundations of Mathematics Education

Drill and Practice View Problem Solving View

Goals of Math Mastery of isolated facts and skills Understanding of mathematical

Goals of Learning Applying computation skills and Problem solving; understanding

! 8 ! TechKnowLogia, March/April, 2001 © Knowledge Enterprise, Inc. www.TechKnowLogia.org

! 9 ! TechKnowLogia, March/April, 2001 © Knowledge Enterprise, Inc. www.TechKnowLogia.org

! 10 ! TechKnowLogia, March/April, 2001 © Knowledge Enterprise, Inc. www.TechKnowLogia.org

! 11 ! TechKnowLogia, March/April, 2001 © Knowledge Enterprise, Inc. www.TechKnowLogia.org

! 12 ! TechKnowLogia, March/April, 2001 © Knowledge Enterprise, Inc. www.TechKnowLogia.org

! 13 ! TechKnowLogia, March/April, 2001 © Knowledge Enterprise, Inc. www.TechKnowLogia.org

T he integration of modern information and communica-

! 14 ! TechKnowLogia, March/April, 2001 © Knowledge Enterprise, Inc. www.TechKnowLogia.org

A lthough modern pedagogy emphasizes the use of inquiry

! 15 ! TechKnowLogia, March/April, 2001 © Knowledge Enterprise, Inc. www.TechKnowLogia.org

! 16 ! TechKnowLogia, March/April, 2001 © Knowledge Enterprise, Inc. www.TechKnowLogia.org

S cientific work has always been dependent on communi-

Information and communication technologies, as the name

! 17 ! TechKnowLogia, March/April, 2001 © Knowledge Enterprise, Inc. www.TechKnowLogia.org

! 18 ! TechKnowLogia, March/April, 2001 © Knowledge Enterprise, Inc. www.TechKnowLogia.org

! 19 ! TechKnowLogia, March/April, 2001 © Knowledge Enterprise, Inc. www.TechKnowLogia.org

Source: The Chronicle of Higher Education Source: ITWeb

Under-Privileged South Africa Sylvan International Universities

! 20 ! TechKnowLogia, March/April, 2001 © Knowledge Enterprise, Inc. www.TechKnowLogia.org

Dr. Ballard has published over 50 scientific articles, writ-

! 21 ! TechKnowLogia, March/April, 2001 © Knowledge Enterprise, Inc. www.TechKnowLogia.org

To bring these multimedia tools to educators and students

The Benefits of JASON’s Expeditionary Approach

Focusing on Learners: Student-Centered Programs

The research expedition excites and engages learners. The

! 22 ! TechKnowLogia, March/April, 2001 © Knowledge Enterprise, Inc. www.TechKnowLogia.org

While many educators are finding innovative uses for tech-

! 23 ! TechKnowLogia, March/April, 2001 © Knowledge Enterprise, Inc. www.TechKnowLogia.org

! 24 ! TechKnowLogia, March/April, 2001 © Knowledge Enterprise, Inc. www.TechKnowLogia.org

Information and communication technologies provide the