Meaning making in new media is rapidly presenting new opportunities and new challenges for those working in formal and informal educational contexts. This article provides an overview of current theory, thinking and commentary in order to map the field of digital literacy and to identify key questions for research and policy development. It…

Editor-in-Chief James L. Morrison interviews Scott Howell, the co-editor of a three-volume book series entitled "Online Assessment and Measurement" that was published in 2006 by IDEA Group. In discussing his own research, Howell first highlights the value of test blueprints as a valuable tool for ensuring an effective alignment of…

In the essay, "The logic of convergence and uniformity in teacher production", Loomis et al. advocate that teachers are experiencing a shift from individualistic programs that prepare them toward uniform, common teacher preparation resulting from top-down agenda-setting and mandated regulations. In their theoretical stance, the knowledge…

The development of the Internet and the online collections accessed by it has created major adjustments in all library functions, including collection management and budgeting. The authors share how two public libraries have come full circle in electronic collection management, beginning with early selection, followed by current weeding programs…

As an increasing number of researchers have been trained to use programs such as Atlas/ti, NUD*IST, Nvivo, and ETHNOGRAPH their value in analyzing qualitative data has gained greater recognition. Drawing on the experience of two PhD candidates at the University of Tasmania, this paper reflects upon some potential uses of a suite of computer…

In contemporary society, information technologies and communication technologies (ICTs) are playing crucial role in dissemination of knowledge and information the world over. Universities/ higher education institutions, particularly distance education universities in developed countries are making best use of these technologies for effective and…

The convergence of United States federal science and economic policy that began in earnest under the Reagan administration formed the First Stage in an emerging post-Cold War drive toward technological innovation. A frenzy of new state-based initiatives now forms the Second Stage, further promoting universities as decisive tools for economic…

Most of the time, technology in the classroom is a "we" or "they" issue: On one side are the people who deploy and operate the systems, on the other, the academics and staffers who use them. But, typically, on both sides, everyone is so busy trying to prepare for the next class or the next term that there's little opportunity…

With computer technology permeating the academic landscape, and the Net Generation dominating the academic scene, educators are called to reflect on and reconfigure curriculum design, facilitation, and evaluation to align with the e-learning era and learners' orientations and preferences. The purpose of this article is to present research findings…

Background: The literature on immersive virtual worlds and e-learning to date largely indicates that technology has led the pedagogy. Although rationales for implementing e-learning have included flexibility of provision and supporting diversity, none of these recommendations has helped to provide strong pedagogical location. Furthermore, there is…

Plagiarism is certainly not new to academics, but it may be on the rise with easy access to the vast quantities of information available on the Internet. Students researching on the Internet do not have to take handwritten or typewritten notes. They can simply print out or copy and save whatever they find. They are even spared the tedium of having…

Metaphysically speaking, the idea of self-reflection has been the subject of discussion for thousands of years. The idea carried human beings through the Renaissance, and an entire movement tied to it sparked a sociopolitical movement called the Enlightenment. In more recent times, thought leaders such as Immanuel Kant, Karl Marx, and Sigmund…

For all the value that a virtual world can bring to teaching and learning, there are potentially negative consequences that must not be ignored when considering the role of technology in education. In his commentary, Robert Sanders draws upon a 1909 short story by E.M. Forster ("The Machine Stops") as well as his own experience with students to…

The events of September 11, 2001, the terrorist attack that destroyed the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York changed the world, and while the effects were much reduced in faraway Australia, they became immediately apparent online. Any view through the global window was likely to be changed, an impossible to anticipate. To me,…

Classroom practice in the real world has become increasingly incommensurate with the lived experience of students. Young people, consisting of all age cohorts and class fractions, have never known their world to not include the Internet. They have been utilizing this technology since before they started kindergarten, whether it was in games that…