Section archive - ICT & Teaching

Student response system (SRS) technology is one of many tools available to help instructors create a rich and productive learning environment. The authors describe a study designed to measure the effect of an SRS on student interest and retention. Two sections of an undergraduate management class participated in this study. Section 1 served as a control group by participating in a typical class without SRS; section 2 used SRS throughout the semester to facilitate active learning. Results indicate that although the classes were comparable at the onset of the semester, those students who used the SRS as an integral part of the classroom reported greater interest in the class and higher expectations of success, performed better on a midterm exam, and more importantly, performed better on a knowledge-retention test administered at the end of the semester. The authors argue that SRS technology can have beneficial outcomes for student performance and knowledge retention.

Today, the lifelong learning has become a necessity in most professions, especially in computer science where people are constrained to follow fast developments.This learning is predominantly informal, based on selfstudying. Internet has turned into the most important source of all kind of information. Many Web sites provide tools and services for exchange of knowledge between people sharing a common concern, and that has a significant influence on self-studying. Personal learning environment provides an opportunity for the user to create and manage his or her environment for learning and knowledge exchange. This article describes a model of personal learning environment based on available free Web services.

This article examines how an experienced elementary school teacher in Singapore, becomes an expert technology user. It highlights major milestones in the teachers trajectory of learning and explain how structural factors at the policy, district and classroom levels afforded and constrained Cassie's learning and how she, in turn, slowly changed her pedagogy incorporating technology.

Technology integration is achieved in teachers acting in the capacity of main change agents. The study explores the possibility of relations between teachers' beliefs about teaching and the use of technology. The study shows that a belief in constructivist teaching correlates significantly with both constructivist and traditional uses of technology.