Franklin University, a private urban university with 4500 students located in Columbus, Ohio, completed the initial phase of a long-range, campus-wide technology plan. The plan creates a well supported and managed computing and communications infrastructure focusing on: user support systems; classrooms and laboratories; offices; outside access;…

A questionnaire on use of cooperative learning was distributed to all faculty (76 respondents) in the College of Technical Careers at Southern Illinois-Carbondale (SIUC) and a sample of the membership (66 respondents) of the American Technical Education Association (ATEA). For both samples, the main use of groupwork was with laboratory…

This paper explores the practical and philosophical issues involved in Web site construction so that the finished site truly reflects its creator. The author uses the term "syllaweb" for a hyperlinked syllabus and declares that it was an outgrowth of Vannevar Bush's original description of computerized graphical communication as a web,…

The shift from traditional classroom education to computer-mediated distance learning poses enormous challenges to instructors and learners. The concept of the classroom where students meet to interact with other learners and the instructor no longer exists. Learners lack a natural social outlet to engage with other learners thus leading to…

Two graduate teaching assistants (TAs)--one taught language arts methods and the other taught social studies methods--who were office mates at a large university in Florida formulated a plan to create one end-of-course project that would both satisfy requirements and combine the social studies and language arts. That way, students could see that…

This paper examines the integration of instructional technology (IT) in a Web-assisted, first-semester composition course at Middle Tennessee State University, particularly the use of interactivity tools for in-class and cross-class collaboration. Beyond the benefits of making course materials available 24-7 and linking students via email, IT…

In order to provide teachers and students with electronic learning environments that support mentoring and collaboration through electronic means, the authors developed software that supports same time/different place educational collaborative activities over the Internet. These activities focus on teaching students how to organize and systematize…

Recounts an in-class group exercise where students individually rate 10 employee behaviors of a questionable ethical nature (use company car, call in sick). The students then calculate mean group ratings for each behavior and determine appropriate consequences for some of the actions. Includes statistical data and student responses. (MJP)

Discusses cooperative problem solving among Open University physics and math students and describes three studies that investigated how to design effective computer-based support for collaborative learning in distance education. The value of peer interaction for learning and problem solving is discussed, and students' attitudes to group work are…

Three groups of secondary school teachers received different types of training with regard to teaching at-risk students. Teachers who learned techniques of experiential cooperative gaming for use with at-risk students demonstrated an increase in self-confidence in dealing with at-risk students, while teachers who received only information…

Presents an interview with Phil Nyden, a professor at Loyola University (Illinois). Describes his qualitative methods course. Includes his suggestion of a group project rather than individual research projects enabling students to focus on methodology rather than substantive issues. Lists course objectives: learning qualitative methods, applied…

This paper discusses theories and practices of the politics of curriculum reform tested while working to establish a freshman seminar course at the University of Prince Edward Island. The step-by-step procedure for negotiating the approval process is relevant to all types of curriculum reform. (Author/MLW)

An experimental study was designed to study the effectiveness of Problem Based Learning (PBL) in the context of higher education in an urban-city university in Lima, Peru. In the fall semester of 2004, eleven sections of Chemistry 1 were offered to first year students in the College of Science at this University. In six of these eleven sections…

The Rhodes College (Memphis, Tennessee) History of Opera class collaborated with Opera Memphis to create a documentary on regional opera production, to present online information about Opera Memphis through a World Wide Web home page, and to construct a class home page to be used as a repository for examples of creative writing. The project…

A college student orientation program is described which incorporates outdoor adventure activities. The purpose of the program is to challenge the participants and encourage cooperation between individuals. The two general categories of adventure activities used in this program are low risk (initiative games, nature walks, camping, and nature…