Home PublicationsJRTEPast IssuesVolume 26 Number 1

Edited by Dennis W. Spuck and William C. Bozeman

formerly Journal of Research on Computing in Education

Volume 26 Number 1 -- Fall 1993

Table of Contents

Effects of Question Complexity and Reader Strategies 

on Adults' Hypertext Comprehension

Mark G. Gillingham     page 1



A Practical Research Tool for Assessing Ability to Use 

Computers:

The Computer Ability Survey (CAS)

Robin H. Kay     page 16

  

Logo With Low Achievers

David Giles     page 28



The Changing Nature of Teaching and Learning 

in Computer-Based Classrooms

Karen Swan and Marco Mitrani     page 40



Integrating Computers Into the Curriculum: 

An Evaluation of Nine Project CHILD Model Schools

Ora M. Kromhout and Sarah M. Butzin     page 55



Structured Computer Learning Activities at School 

and Participation in Out-of-School Structured Activities

Jeffrey B. Hecht and David J. Dwyer     page 70



The Impact of an Interactive Multimedia System on the Quality 

of Learning in Educational Psychology: An Exploratory Study

Victor R. Delclos and Alision Hartman     page 83



Improving Higher Order Thinking Skills by Teaching 

With the Computer: A Comparative Study

J. Bradley Cousins and John A. Ross     page 94



Macintosh Clip Art: Are Females and Minorities Represented?

Gregg Brownell     page 116



Information Technology: A Missing Link in Educational 

Research

Moshe Telem     page 123





                            ABSTRACTS



Effects of Question Complexity 

and Reader Strategies on AdultsÕ Hypertext Comprehension



Mark G. Gillingham

Washington State University at Southwest Washington



ABSTRACT

When adults read a hypertext for the goal of answering 

specific questions, they are mostly unsuccessful. Hypertext 

is a different kind of text structure for readers who may 

find it difficult to use traditional text strategies. Thirty 

adults read a binary-tree-structured hypertext to answer 

three 2-part questions on the topic of cosmology. Results 

confirmed the following hypotheses: (a) successful readers 

chose only important nodes to read, (b) questions that 

required more node traversal were more difficult to answer, 

and (c) successful and unsuccessful readers had different 

hypertext reading strategies. Although most readers found the 

two-part questions difficult to answer, the more successful 

readers chose important hypertext nodes more often and read 

them relatively longer than unsuccessful readers. In 

addition, questions posed to the hypertext readers differed 

in difficulty as a direct result of the complexity of their 

traversal paths. Readers who adopted a depth-first search 

strategy were more successful than readers who used a 

breadth-first search strategy, and readers who reinspected 

their responses were more likely to be successful. 

Comprehension may fail for readers who are unfamiliar with 

the domain or structure of a hypertext. However, there are 

specific strategies that could be taught, including knowing 

and using the hypertext structure, searching deeply before 

giving up on a search path, and reinspecting oneÕs response 

to see if it answers the question. Hypertext may be 

beneficial as a writing medium wherein readers respond to 

writers by writing within the format of a hypertext. 









A Practical Research Tool ;

for Assessing Ability ;

to Use Computers: ;

The Computer Ability Survey (CAS);



Robin H. Kay;

University of Toronto



ABSTRACT

Most definitions of computer literacy or ability are either 

too narrow or too broad, making it difficult to sort out 

conflicting research results. A multicomponent measure of 

ability to use computers, isolating independent constructs, 

is needed in order to clarify and interpret future research. 

In this study, the 22-item Computer Ability Survey (CAS) was 

administered to 647 preservice teachers to assess four 

distinct components of ability to use computers: software 

ability, awareness, programming skill, and perceived control. 

The internal reliability coefficient for the full measure was 

.96. The alpha coefficients for each of the ability 

subscalesÑsoftware/awareness (a = .94), programming (a = 

.93), and perceived control (a = .89)Ñshowed a high degree of 

internal consistency. The principal components factor 

analysis showed that each construct was relatively 

independent. Significant positive correlations (p <.001) 

among all ability subscales, attitudes toward computers 

(another measure of software skill), and mathematical ability 

supported the external validity of the CAS. Researchers and 

educators could use the CAS to evaluate and predict 

performance of adult learners. 





Logo With Low Achievers;



David Giles;

Palmerston North College of Education, New Zealand



ABSTRACT

Logo learning environments that encourage social interaction 

through the use of cooperative learning strategies and that 

directly teach thinking skills have been shown to result in 

significant cognitive and social improvements for students. 

This study investigates these factors in relation to low-

achieving students in their first year of secondary 

education. With the construction of a socially interactive 

and reflective learning environment, students revealed a 

significant change in postprogram results. These students had 

experienced failure with conventional learning methods in the 

classroom. 





The Changing Nature ;

of Teaching and Learning ;

in Computer-Based Classrooms;



Karen Swan;

State University of New York at Albany



Marco Mitrani;

Interactive Generation



ABSTRACT

The study reported in this article provides evidence that the 

use of computers can change the nature of teaching and 

learning at its most basic levelÑthe level of interactions 

between students and teachers. The study compared 

interactions between high school students and teachers 

involved in computer-based instruction with interactions 

between the same students and teachers during traditional 

classroom instruction. Its findings reveal that student-

teacher interactions were more student-centered and 

individualized during computer-based teaching and learning 

than during traditional teaching and learning. We argue that 

such changes may be a McLuhanesque reflection of the 

computerÕs inherent interactivity, and suggest that more 

profound changes are likely if computers become more fully 

integrated into our schools. 




Integrating Computers Into the Elementary School Curriculum:;

An Evaluation of Nine ;

Project CHILD Model Schools;



Ora M. Kromhout and Sarah M. Butzin ;

The Daniel Memorial Institute



ABSTRACT

Project CHILD (Computers Helping Instruction and Learning 

Development) is a computer-integrated instructional program 

for the elementary school. It provides for curriculum 

realignment and a restructured organization for the 

elementary school to facilitate the integration of technology 

into the classroom. This paper reports on a longitudinal 

evaluation of the effects of the program on student 

achievement. The effect was positive and statistically 

significant, across grades and schools, for the three areas 

measured: reading, mathematics, and total battery scores on 

standardized tests. The effects were largest for students who 

had been in the program more than one year, as well as for 

students from schools with larger minority and free-lunch 

populations. 






Structured Computer Learning Activities at School and 

Participation ;

in Out-of-School Structured Activities;



Jeffrey B. Hecht and David J. Dwyer;

Illinois State University



ABSTRACT

Student participation in structured activities, both in and 

out of school, has been positively associated with increased 

academic achievement. Learning to use a computer and 

application software can be a structured activity. This study 

investigated 220 students in three high schools participating 

in a special program, one goal of which was teaching the 

students to be proficient computer users. A significant 

relationship was found between reports of higher use and 

comfort with the targeted software applications and a greater 

participation in out-of-school structured activities. These 

results provide support for using the process of computer 

learning as a method for modeling successful engagement in 

other structured activities. 







The Impact of an Interactive Multimedia System ;

on the Quality of Learning;

in Educational Psychology: ;

An Exploratory Study;



Victor R. Delclos ;

University of New Mexico



Alison Hartman;

Tulane University



ABSTRACT

A problem-solving approach with an emphasis on the concepts 

of situated cognition and anchored instruction was used to 

guide the creation of an interactive multimedia learning 

environment for an introductory educational psychology 

course. Classroom analyses produced by students who 

participated in the course using this environment were 

compared with papers from students who took a traditional 

course on the same material. Students from the multimedia 

course used more research and theory to support their 

analyses and integrated their presentations of observation 

and theory better than those in the traditional course. 

StudentsÕ responses to the multimedia environment were 

gathered through individual interviews. Though preliminary in 

nature, this study provides evidence of the potential for 

using interactive multimedia environments to develop analytic 

problem-solving ability in a specific content domain. 







Improving Higher Order ;

Thinking Skills by Teaching ÒWithÓ ;

the Computer: A Comparative Study;



J. Bradley Cousins ;

University of Ottawa



John A. Ross;

The Ontario Institute for Studies in Education



ABSTRACT

This study investigated the use of the computer as a tool for 

improving studentsÕ correlational reasoning skills. A total 

of 42 teachers and 483 geography students in Grades 9 and 10 

participated in the research. Four student treatment groups 

outperformed a control group on four dimensions of 

correlational reasoning. Students in task-specific computer, 

cooperative group learning, and whole-class treatments 

performed equally well and significantly better than those in 

a general-purpose computer treatment. Increased 

sophistication of software may have distracted students in 

the general-purpose computer treatment. Within the two 

computer groups, student attitudes toward computing and 

geography were found to predict performance on the thinking-

skills test. Implications for research about tool-mode, 

computer-based instruction are discussed. 






Macintosh Clip Art: Are Females and Minorities Represented?;



Gregg Brownell;

Bowling Green State University



ABSTRACT

As schools increasingly integrate computers and technology 

into the curriculum, students are given the opportunity to 

develop skills deemed important in an Information Age 

society. Two groups identified as at risk regarding such 

opportunities are women and minorities. There appears to be a 

cultural stereotype that casts computers and technology as 

the domain of white males. Cues regarding this stereotype 

come from many sources, one of which may be the computer 

itself. This study investigated the representation of women 

and minorities in computer clip art available for the 

Macintosh computer and raised the following question: Are 

women and minorities represented in the clip art they use on 

the computer, or are they primarily exposed to images of 

white males? Two coders rated 1,474 images of Macintosh 

computer clip art from five different software publishers. A 

chi-square test revealed that women were underrepresented and 

men overrepresented (p < .001) when compared to the 

proportion of each group in the general population. A second 

chi-square test (p < .001) indicated that blacks and other 

minorities were underrepresented and whites overrepresented 

when compared to the proportion of these groups in the 

general population. Implications and suggestions for helping 

educators balance these cues are presented. 





Information Technology: A Missing Link in Educational 

Research;



Moshe Telem;

Tel-Aviv University 



ABSTRACT

Although information technology (IT) seems destined to change 

educational administration drastically, an extensive 

literature review, an analysis of the programs in education 

offered at scientific meetings, and an investigation of the 

activity areas of special interest groups (SIGs) affiliated 

with leading educational professional associations showed 

that educational administration and educational technology 

disciplines have not developed an underlying base of 

knowledge essential to support the theory and practice of IT 

in educational administration. A conceptual categorization 

and classification developed for the purpose of this article 

indicates that at the primary and secondary school level, IT 

issues in educational administration received only very 

partial, sporadic, and unsystematic attention. 

Recommendations for steps to be taken are offered. 

A PDF file of each full article is available. Contact: jrte@iste.org. Please specifiy Volume and Issue number and article name.