Status of introductory computer education in the Netherlands: results of a survey

The International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) is conducting an international comparative study on educational computer use in more than 20 countries. This paper analyzes some of the Dutch results of the IEA survey on the use of computers in lower secondary schools. The findings show that at present computers are mainly used for introductory computer courses, but that the integration of computers into existing subjects is still limited. The main problems identified in the study are: insufficient availability of courseware and hardware, time constraints and a high need for teacher training

Cyclic transfers in school timetabling

In this paper we propose a neighbourhood structure based on sequential/cyclic moves and a cyclic transfer algorithm for the high school timetabling problem. This method enables execution of complex moves for improving an existing solution, while dealing with the challenge of exploring the neighbourhood efficiently. An improvement graph is used in which certain negative cycles correspond to the neighbours; these cycles are explored using a recursive method. We address the problem of applying large neighbourhood structure methods on problems where the cost function is not exactly the sum of independent cost functions, as it is in the set partitioning problem. For computational experiments we use four real world data sets for high school timetabling in the Netherlands and England.We present results of the cyclic transfer algorithm with different settings on these data sets. The costs decrease by 8–28% if we use the cyclic transfers for local optimization compared to our initial solutions. The quality of the best initial solutions are comparable to the solutions found in practice by timetablers

An Evaluation of Computer Aided Learning (BRAC-CAL) in Secondary Schools in Bangladesh.

BRAC initiated Computer Aided Learning (CAL) programme, the first ever in Bangladesh, to introduce ICT based materials in teaching-learning in 2004 Along with digital contents of Science, English and mathematics of secondary level, this programme provided basic ICT and content delivery training to the teachers of programme schools. A qualitative evaluation following the Realist Evaluation framework was designed to evaluate the programme mechanism, context and outcome. Data were collected from six secondary schools selected purposively. Findings showed that both teachers and students enjoyed the CAL materials and also believed that those materials had changed classroom scenario by improving learners’ attention and participation in classroom activities. However, significant difference was not observed between CAL and non-CAL classrooms. Teachers struggled to organise collaborative learning tasks such as group and pair works. Students also had limited participation in teaching-learning process. Irregular electricity supply sometimes hampered use of CAL materials. Furthermore, students had limited access to these materials. Bearing this context the recommendations were to focus more on teachers’ pedagogic improvement and to create more scopes for students’ self use of these materials

Lessons from two Dutch projects for the introduction of computers in schools

The systematic introduction of computers in schools for general secondary education in The Netherlands started in the early 1980s. Initially, the Dutch government experimented in 1983 with a project in 100 lower general secondary schools limited in scope to gain experience with educational computer use (100-school project). In the period 1985¿1989 the government implemented a second stimulation project focused at all lower secondary schools: New Information Technology in Secondary Education. This project consisted of the provision of hardware and courseware to all general secondary schools, organizing nationwide in-service teacher training, and the intensifying of software development.\ud \ud With respect to the 100-school project the question was whether there would be any differences in computer implementation and problems with computer use at schools in the 100-school project as compared to other schools which could only profit in the second promotional program.\ud \ud The question addressed for the second promotional program concerns the use of software packages and courseware which were provided to all schools for general education during the NIVO-project.\ud \ud An important conclusion for The Netherlands is, that the provision of hardware, software and in-service training was adequate to introduce computer education (called: information and computer literacy) as a new subject in nearly all lower secondary schools. But the set of stimulation activities does not seem to be adequate or sufficient to realize the integration of computer use in existing subjects

Staff development as a condition for computer integration

Staff development is a basic and necessary component of the continuing education of teachers, administrators and other staff as they extend their professional or technical knowledge (Orlich, 1989). Codianni and Wilbur (1983) compared the findings of seventeen major studies on effective schools and found systematic staff development a

An XML format for benchmarks in High School Timetabling

The High School Timetabling Problem is amongst the most widely used timetabling problems. This problem has varying structures in different high schools even within the same country or educational system. Due to lack of standard benchmarks and data formats this problem has been studied less than other timetabling problems in the literature. In this paper we describe the High School Timetabling Problem in several countries in order to find a common set of constraints and objectives. Our main goal is to provide exchangeable benchmarks for this problem. To achieve this we propose a standard data format suitable for different countries and educational systems, defined by an XML schema. The schema and datasets are available online

Virginia Earth Science Collaborative Astronomy Course for Teachers

We describe the development and implementation of a professional development course for teachers of grades 4-12 designed to increase their content knowledge in astronomy, space science, and the nature of science using interactive presentations, and hands-on and inquiry-based lessons. The course, Space Science for Teachers, encompasses the astronomy and nature of science components of the Virginia Standards of Learning for grades 4-12 [1]. In addition to increasing their content knowledge, teachers gain experience using innovative teaching technologies, such as an inflatable planetarium, planetarium computer software, and computer controlled telescopes. The courses included evening laboratory sessions where teachers learned the constellations, how to find specific celestial objects, and how to use a variety of small telescopes. Participants received three graduate credit hours in science after completing the course requirements. Space Science for Teachers was taught at the University of Virginia in Summer 2005 and 2006, at George Mason University in Summer 2006 and 2007, at the University of Virginia Southwest Center in Abingdon, Virginia in Fall 2006, and at the MathScience Innovation Center in Richmond during Summer 2005 and 2007. A total of 135 teachers participated in the courses

How and why do student teachers use ICT?

This paper examines how and why student teachers made use of information and communication technology (ICT) during a 1-year initial teacher education programme from 2008 to 2009. This is a mixed methods study involving a survey (N = 340) of the entire cohort and a series of semi-structured interviews with a sample of student teachers within the cohort (N = 21). The study explored several themes, including the nature of student teachers' use of ICT; variation in the use of ICT; support for, and constraints on, using ICT; attitudes to ICT and to teaching and learning more generally. It was found that nearly all teachers were receptive to using ICT – more so than their in-service counterparts – and made frequent use of it during their placement (internship) experience. The Interactive Whiteboard (IWB) was central to nearly all student teachers' use of ICT, in good part, because it was already used by their mentors and was widely accessible. Student teachers' use of ICT was categorized in three levels. Routine users focused mostly on the use of the IWB for whole class teaching; extended users gave greater opportunities for pupils to use ICT for themselves; innovative student teachers used ICT in a greater range of contexts and made more effort to overcome barriers such as access. ICT use was seen as emerging from a mix of factors: chiefly student teachers' access to ICT; their feeling of ‘self-efficacy’ when using ICT; and their belief that ICT had a positive impact on learning – in particular, the impact on pupils' behavioural and affective engagement. Factors which influenced ICT use included mentoring, training and support. Limitations on student teachers' use of ICT are explored and it is suggested that new teachers need to be supported in developing a more discerning use as they begin their teaching careers