Author(s): Jennifer G Cromley

Institutional affiliation/Agency/Program: NCSALL

Publication date or date of most recent update: 2000

Number of pages: 1

Website URL: http://www.ncsall.net/?id=303

Type of product (lesson plans, curriculum, training product): Training product (overview, literature review)

Key words: teaching, learning with technology, internet learning resources, technology planning, computer assisted instruction

Target population: Instructors, Administrators, Researchers

Abstract: "While computers in particular hold much promise, we must understand how they can and cannot help students, and what they are and are not currently capable of doing. Why does some computer-assisted instruction improve students' learning, while other does not? What does research tell us about the most effective ways of using technology in instruction? Researchers who have looked at the use of commercially available software in classrooms have not found marked differences between how learning happens when a computer is used and when it is not. Instead, effective use of technology reinforces several learning principles already used in successful ABE instruction."

What the experts say: This resource is a short literature review of available research related to integrating computers into instruction. The article provides a list of eight effective attributes of computer-assisted instruction, and then reviews the research behind each one, and provides teaching suggestions. She lists effective uses of technology and provides tips on how to use the computer to enhance learning, emphasizing that educational software needs to be used in the context of other instruction and supported by interaction with the instructor and other students. The five implications drawn at the end of the article will be particularly useful to teachers.

Although there is little in the way of definite conclusions, the resource provides concrete suggestions for ABE teachers, such as "put computer use in context by having discussions before and after use," and "use drill software sparingly and strategically." A further example of useful information is the clarification that listening to text being read aloud while also reading it is helpful for some kinds of learners in mastering content, but does not improve reading. This is a practice often used in reading software, so this is important information for teachers. These suggestions and implications are supported by the research, and important for teachers to be able to access.