Susan Milovich

 

Study of Recent Usage of “Authoring Tools” in Education

            Students use computers for research, problem solving, drill and practice, and to create a variety of projects using “authoring tools”.  For the last ten years school districts around the country have been purchasing technology with the understanding that incorporating the use of computers into the curriculum will have a positive impact on student achievement.  Students are reaping the benefits. 

Teachers are also using authoring tools to help “initiate active learning for students with severe behavior problems”.  Reganick (1994) designed a project that incorporates Microsoft Publisher to create a “seasonal publication of classified ads” that would be sold, as an active project-based learning experience to improve students’ writing skills and their attention to task.  This process was also designed to minimize students’ behavior issues by maximizing the immediate feedback gained on a computer versus that gained through traditional instruction.  The students’ success in the program was monitored as a condition for their return to the mainstream school environment.

Okemos High School in Michigan conducted two years of student training and an “intense summer camp” program on Web page authoring, as reported by D’Ignazio and Davis (1997).  The programs offered students the chance to learn authoring skills: including word processing, the creation of audio links, scanning, importing and creating graphics, digital photography, and interfacing between the computer and a laser disc player.  The educators who created this program feel that their students are now ready to “to capture the up-to-date information in all subjects that is emerging as standard for classroom learning” in the 21^st Century.

McCabe and Skinner (2003) reviewed 20 studies by the North Central Regional Education Laboratory (NCREL) and 31 studies by the Stanford Research Institute International (SRI) that were conducted prior of 2002.  The NCREL’s meta-analysis “suggested that teaching and learning with technology had a small but positive effect on student outcomes when compared with traditional instruction.”  SRI’s study “suggested a somewhat stronger association between educational software and student achievement than in the NCREL meta-analysis”.  The authors reviewed additional articles including several by the Milken Exchange who cite an 11% gain on basic skills scores in West Virginia and “significantly better” scores on 2002 Missouri Assessment tests when multimedia is included in the curriculum.

Gatlin (2004) discussed teachers in Georgia who feel that using of the ACTIVboard Collaborative Classroom System has created classrooms where students are “more involved and motivated to learn”, therefore enhancing their achievement.  The ability to project the Internet and write directly on the board facilitates easy information transfer to multiple students.  Information generated can be downloaded directly into an authoring program.  Through the use of authoring tools children can easily process the information generated from these lessons directly into their own work.

            In his article in Technology Teacher in May/June 2004, Deal III suggests that teachers use Macromedia’s Flash technology for motivation and as an alternative authentic assessment means throughout middle and high school. The purpose of assessment with authoring tools is “to improve student learning” by allowing students to generate exciting and innovative products.  Authoring tools should be used “to encourage learners to synthesize and reflect on what has been learned and describe it in an interactive manner using media and technology”.

These statistics and the creative projects referred to in this paper suggest that using authoring tools and technology do affect achievement.  I use authoring tools in my classroom to help the children organize their thought, to present their ideas and to create attractive projects.  The children enjoy most of these activities, except for the typing!

 

Bibliography

Deal III, Walter F. (2004). Resources in technology. Technology Teacher, 63(8).

D’Ignazio, Fred, Davis, Joanne (1997). Young authors at home on the web. Multimedia Schools, 4(3).

Gatlin, Mike (2004). Interactive whiteboard system creates ‘active classrooms’ for rural georgia school system. T H E Journal, 31 (6).

 

McCabe, Melissa, Skinner, Ronald A. (2003). Analyzing the tech effect. Education Week, 22(35).

 

Reganick, Karol A. (1994). Using computers to initiate active learning for students with severe behavior problems. T H E Journal, 21(11).

 

 

Standard IV