TECHNOLOGY & EDUCATION DIGEST
Digest No. 98-6 -- August 17, 1998
A Moderated Mailing List
Steve Wildstrom (steve_wildstrom@businessweek.com), Moderator

Return to Technology & Education

From the moderator: The Future of the Tech-Ed list.

Because of a combination of technical problems, the press of other business, and a shortage of postings, the list has been silent over the summer months. With a new school year upon us, I would like to revive it, assuming that there is interest out there. I would also like to change its format from a digest-only approach to sending out the postings as they come in. This could be moderated, which means that I would approve the postings before the go back out, or unmoderated. The main advantage of a moderated list is that I do receive some spam messages addressed to the list and I would be able to stop their redistribution. This list is going to have to move to a new list server anyway and that would be a good occasion for a change in format.

Please let me know, by sending me an e-mail message or better yet, a posting what you think our future should be. If the list no longer fills any real need for most of you, I'm content to let it die a natural death.

I also apologize for having failed to send out a couple of interesting posts that have been sitting in my inbox for a very long time. They are belatedly included. - Steve Wildstrom, Moderator

Sharon L. Fox (sfox@waldenu.edu) writes:

If you are a secondary computer teacher or technology coordinator, I would appreciate your taking a few moments to complete this brief survey of 10 questions. Participants will be provided with the results, once they are collected and compiled.

Thank you.
Sharon L. Fox

Survey for Computer Instructors

This survey is designed to examine the learning processes involved in both standard 4-step algebraic problem-solving and spreadsheet skills. You may refer to the proposal at www.geocities.com/Athens/Parthenon/9442/index.htm. The results will be used in a thesis paper designed to compare these learning processes and consider the effects of spreadsheet education on students’ algebraic problem-solving skills. Please consider carefully each of the following questions and answer as many as possible. The final paper will be submitted to Walden University and posted on an Internet site that will be provided to all survey participants. Also, a brief summary of the survey results will be sent to all survey participants once this material has been compiled.

Please respond to the following questions as they apply to your classes from the 1997-98 school year and prior years.

Name:
School:
Classes you have taught:

1.How do you explain or define spreadsheet cells to your students?

2.Which do your students use more frequently, teacher or textbook-created formulas or their own original formulas?

3.Which do your students use more frequently, original formulas or spreadsheet functions?

4.Please explain briefly the techniques you use to guide your students through the creation of a spreadsheet formula.

5.Tables are a frequently used method of organizing data, and a natural function of spreadsheets. Is the creation of data tables a natural process for your students, or do you find they need a lot of practice?

6.Project-based education is a popular teaching approach. Completing major projects requires the use of previous solutions in later problems. Do your students participate in any major project-solving activities? If so, please comment on the spreadsheet role in these activities.

7.Graphs are a natural function of spreadsheets. Do your students use graphs in problem-solving exercises? If so, how often and how are they used?

8.Do your students use fill-down options in spreadsheets? If so, within what types of activities?

9.Students use a variety of methods to analyze the solution to a problem. What techniques have you found to be most effective for your students?

10.The purpose of the research is to determine the connections between basic spreadsheet skills and standards algebraic problem-solving skills. This research may lead to further studies of the effects of spreadsheet education on algebra students’ problem-solving skills. Briefly comment on your thoughts of the use of spreadsheets in an algebra curriculum. Also, include any other relevant comments that you feel may be useful to this research.

Sharon L. Fox
St. Joan Antida High School
Math/Computer/Chemistry Teacher
sfox@waldenu.edu
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Parthenon/9442/index.htm

I'm beginning a long-term research project on new and specially tailored technology used in distance learning applications and would appreciate information on any periodicals or journals anyone on this list is away of which concentrate on DL, or cover it with some regularity.

Please feel free to respond privately, unless this proves to be an item of general interest.

Thanks,

Joseph Riser
TBC

Chuck Farrow (Farrow@admin3.usask.ca) writes:

Jeff Drobman's ideas on classifying the various elements which comprise Computers in Education are intriguing, if not somewhat unwieldy. Most importantly, it forced me think about what I actually meant when I utter the phrase (Computers in Education) in various planning sessions here at my university.

For my part, as I attempted to "build the perfect beast", it seemed that much categorical crossover exists- so much so, that I soon found that I had constructed a hypertext like document more than a straight forward organizational scheme. Thoughts?

Chuck Farrow
Medical Imaging
University of Saskatchewan, Canada

Jeff Drobman said:

"Computers in Education" is multi-dimensional.

All too often, the term is used loosely, with its meaning left open to interpretation. I am suggesting that this "moderated" discussion group could use a framework for classification of topics. To that end, I am herewith suggesting a classification (taxonomy) of the term "Computers in Education," viz.: (Details removed).

I agree with this very strongly. As a long-term Electronics Engineer and Systems Analyst at IBM, I'm disgusted with the schools that teach students a word processor and a spreadsheet application and then call it 'Computer Science' or 'Technology Education'. This is like teaching Carpentry and then calling the graduates Architects.

Next, in the same digest I see:

Most everyone, including the US Dept. of Ed recommends putting computers in the classrooms and the library. Forget the lab.

Mike

I just had this same conflict with the school system I volunteer in (teaching a year-long 6th grade class 'The Engineering Design Process').

Mike is right if what you want to do is show How To use TOOLS and give access to TOOLS. BUT how the heck do you teach a class of students to program in PASCAL or LOGO when the computers are distributed all over the school?? (I KNOW lots of University classes expect all hands-on work to be done elsewhere by the student, but I don't think much of it).

I've taught Programming and Computer Architecture (and other funny stuff) to IBM Engineers and Technicians, and in the cases where I was forced to have a classroom without computers, and programming was all done as homework, the progress was a lot slower and the frustration and dropout rate was obviously higher than the classes which were held in 'Computer Labs' with 1 or 2 students per machine.

Read Jeff's excellent definition of what the difference is. Then accept that the teaching of Computer Science is so different from enabling the use of Computer-Based tools for staff and students that you should NOT expect them to be provided in the same environment.

Regards,

Terry King
..In The Woods in Vermont
tking@together.net

Hi list!

One of the best things about this list is how many educators are on, trying to push the limits of the technology in measureable, effective ways.

White Pine has a great new case study of how ClassPoint was used in the real world (during its beta test cycle) to deliver graduate level citriculture courses at the University of Florida. This study really points out that distance learning is not just videoconferencing, but about the application of the conferencing technologies in an appropriate context.

You can read about this study at: http://www.wpine.com/products/classpoint/cp-case-study.html

As always, you are welcome to submit your own stories, suggestions, and input to CU-EDUCATION@wpine.com for possible inclusion on our web pages.

Regards,

Gary
Gary Dietz, White Pine Software, Incorporated.

ClassPoint(tm)
http://www.wpine.com/classpoint

CU-SeeMe(R) Videoconferencing
http://www.wpine.com/cuseeme

MeetingPoint(tm) Conference Server
http://www.wpine.com/meetingpoint

Global Schoolhouse CU-Schools
http://www.gsn.org/join

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