INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY IN EDUCATIONAL SCIENCES
Year:2014 | Volume:4 | Issue:4 (16)|Papers Count:9

This study aimed to assess the blind usage of ICT and special information media for meeting the information needs. Regarding the purpose, this research was applied and regarding the data collection, it was analytic which conducted in 2012. The statistical sample size determined based on the Krejcie & Morgan table was 384. The data was collected using a researcher made questionnaire with 0.85 reliability coefficient. For data analysis, descriptive statistics such as mean, standard deviation, percent and inferential statistics including the Friedman test and Binomial test were used. Results of the study of certain information media showed that item "listening" had the highest usage and items "Podcast" and "Vodcast" had no application. Most of the blind people's use of special information resource was "listening" and the lowest use of information resources of the blind people was "talking". More than half of the blind people used lower than the average size of Information Technology (electronic and internet resources). The most frequently used of the tool and technology for the blind people was "computer" and least used was "blog design and blogging". From the viewpoint of the blind people, the most resources required for training and guiding were the use of special software; guidance of librarians and talking books and the minimum of needed resource was "self-training".

The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of e-content based on Gardner's intrapersonal ‎and interpersonal intelligences on students learning. In this quasi-experimental applied research, the pre-test - post-test with control group method was conducted in the academic year of 2012- 2013. Sixty third grade computer students of vocational ‎schools in Isfahan participated in this study. They were selected through multistage cluster sampling method and randomly divided into two experimental and control groups. Background characteristics and ‎profiles of multiple intelligences were measured in both groups via Mackenzie questionnaire and homogeneity of the two groups was ‎evaluated. Cronbach's alpha reliability of this instrument was calculated 0.738. Both groups (experimental and control) were trained same lessons in 8 sessions (each 70 minutes) in conventional method. Students of experimental group used a researcher-made e-content for learning, beside the conventional method, in ‎their class. In both groups the same pre-test and post-test were ‎performed. Multivariate covariance ‎analysis revealed that learning achievements in the group trained with the e-content based on ‎intrapersonal intelligence was significantly higher than the control group, but in method based on ‎interpersonal intelligence, there was no significant difference between the learning achievements of ‎the two groups.‎

The purpose of this study was to compare the impact of blended learning with traditional instruction on critical thinking and happiness in third grade students in Qods township. The research method was a semi-experimental. The statistical population included all the third grade secondary school students in Qods town studying in 2012. The statistical sample was selected via available sampling method. Thus one school was selected since it was equipped with the necessary facilities for implementing blended learning. Two classes of third grade in this school were chosen as experimental and control groups. The tools used in this study were California Critical Thinking Test and Oxford Happiness Test. Both groups were given a pretest, and at the end of the semester a posttest was performed. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics including mean and standard deviation and inferential statistics including Covariance analysis test. The findings showed that blended learning was more effective in increasing students' critical thinking and happiness compared with traditional instruction.

The object of this research was to compare the effect of education based on interactional media and that based on non-interactional media on student learning styles. The research method was semi-experimental by pretest and posttest design with control group. Statistical population included all high school students in Babol city in 2013. 160 students were selected by multi-stage random selection as sample and divided into two groups of experimental and control. The experimental group received education through interactional media including educational software of ActivInspire, intelligent board and educational PowerPoint, whereas the control group received traditional education and did not receive interactional media. The research instrument was Kolb learning style questionnaire. SPSS software, version 16 and covariance test were used for data analysis. The result showed that in posttest stage, the score for learning style had increased meaningfully in experimental group compared to control group. In general, the results revealed that education based on interactive media did have more effects on convergent, divergent, absorbent and adaptable learning styles in students compared to education based on non-interactive media.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the quality of e-content from students' viewpoints of Mashhad University of Medical Sciences. The study was a descriptive cross-sectional survey. The statistical population was students in e-learning courses of Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, among whom a number of 250 students were selected based on stratified sampling method. Data collection instrument was the quality assessment of e-content production process questionnaire. In order to analyze the data, descriptive statistics (mean and standard deviation) and inferential statistics (t test, ANOVA and MANOVA) were used. One sample t test results showed that the mean scale of quality of electronic content and its components, (access, organizing, layout, resources, language and evaluation) in the sample was more than assumed. The results of t test and MANOVA showed no significant difference between the mean scale of electronic content quality and the quality of its components with respect to gender. MANOVA and ANOVA results also showed a significant difference between the mean scale of electronic content and its components in students of different fields of study. In general, it can be said that the quality of e-learning course content from views of students majoring in Mashhad University of Medical Sciences was relatively adequate.

Information technology together with effective patterns on its acceptance is considered one of the important issues in the field of organizational studies, among which Technology Acceptance Model of Davis provides a suitable framework to identify the most important affecting variables. Using this approach, this study was conducted with correlational method aiming to show the external variables affecting the dimensions of perceived usefulness and ease of use, as two dimensions of information acceptance model. There is little research on this model in organizational context. Thus to develop the model, this study has focused on job relevance as a moderator between perceived ease influence on acceptance intentions and perceived usefulness. In addition, experience variable has been considered as an external variable. The statistical population was West Azerbaijan agricultural extension experts (N=180), among whom 120 people were selected randomly using the Krejcie and Morgan table. The required data were collected via questionnaire. The face validity of the questionnaire was confirmed by a panel of experts. The Chronbach's alpha coefficient was between 0.730 and 0.816 for different dimensions of questionnaire. The partial least squares method as a new approach to structural equation modeling was used for data analysis. The results showed that experience variable had significant effect on perceived usefulness and it was able to explain 77% variance of perceived usefulness. Furthermore, technology acceptance model in this study could predict 71% of the real use.

With the rapid spread of using technology in education, investigating constructs relating to how students interact with computers and other technological tools is of vital importance. One of these constructs is computer anxiety that causes apprehension, confusion, fear, and finally withdrawal from working with computer. Due to the importance of measuring this construct among users of academic centers, this study investigated the psychometric characteristics of the Persian version of Computer Anxiety Rating Scale (CARS) (Weil & Rosen, 1995) among Iranian high-school students. To attain this goal, the translated version of CARS was distrusted among 789 high-school students who were selected randomly. To calculate validity and reliability of the scale, item analysis (item discrimination coefficient and Loope method), exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, and internal consistency method were used. The result revealed that 18 items out of 20 items of the scale are statistically and psychometrically suitable for Iranian high-school population. The result of exploratory factor analysis detected 3 factors. The result of confirmatory factor analysis showed that there was a good fit with the suggested model and the gathered data. Cronbach’s alpha of the 18-item scale was found to be 0.90. The findings showed that the translated Persian version was a reliable and valid instrument to measure Iranian high-school students’ computer anxiety.

The purpose of this study was to predict the relationship between learning styles, cognitive styles and academic achievement in electronic schools. It was a descriptive correlational study. Participants of this research were 150 first year male students enrolled in electronic schools in Tehran in 2013, who were selected using random cluster sampling method. They answered the Kolb learning style inventory measuring four learning styles (convergent, divergent, assimilation and adaptation) and Witkin's Group Embedded Figures Test (GEFT) measuring two cognitive styles (field dependence and field independence). The average scores of the students at the end of the school year were also used to measure academic achievement. The data were analyzed using Stepwise Regression and Pearson Correlation Coefficient. The findings revealed a significant relationship between participants' learning styles and academic achievement. There was also a highly positive and statistically significant relationship between their cognitive styles and academic achievement. The style mostly preferred by the students as the dominant style was absorber (51.3%) and the least preferred style was accommodation (6%). The findings also revealed that both learning and cognitive styles could play an important role, as two important variables, in students' academic achievement.