Seven professors and faculty members from Brigham Young University’s McKay School of Education were among those chosen to speak at the Global Chinese Conference on Computers in Education earlier this month in Hawaii.
The four-day conference brought together scholars and educational leaders from around the world in an effort to promote and increase the use of information technology in education, specifically in developing Asian regions.
Andy Gibbons, chair of the Instructional Psychology and Technology Department, was one of two featured speakers.
His presentation, “Achieving the Promised Power of Technology,” focused on the successes and failures related to technological development in the United States over the past 30 years. He suggested ways the Pacific Rim countries with developing technologies could follow and improve on U.S. advancements while avoiding the same mistakes.
In addition to Gibbons’ address, Barbara Lawrence, Paul Wangemann and Aaron Popham of the Center for Improvement of Teacher Education and Schooling demonstrated how the McKay School of Education has pioneered the use of a program called LiveText to improve data collection, analysis and program assessment.
The focus of their presentations was on how this improvement can help increase both individual student performance and generalized organizational efficiency and productivity.
Nancy Wentworth and Eula Monroe of the teacher education faculty demonstrated the use of an Internet tool called Webquest. Made popular with Utah educators during the Salt Lake City Olympics in 2002, Webquest provides controlled, teacher-directed Internet access to students in a safe environment that allows students to gather data from around the world, communicate globally and learn valuable computer skills.
Two doctoral students, Clint Rogers from Provo and Su-Ling Hsueh from Taiwan who have been working with Stephanie Allen of the Instructional Psychology Department, presented research they have performed investigating cultural influences on learning in the United States and China.
For more information, contact Roxanna Johnson at (801) 422-1922.
Writer: James McCoy
