AbstractsComputer Science

Twenty years ago the use of computers as instructional machines was only an idea that was being considered by a handful of scientists and educators. Today, the idea has become a reality. Computer-assisted instruction (CAI) has undergone an amazingly rapid development. The development can be attributed to the potential of CAI for answering today' s need in education for individualized instruction. This graduate project exemplifies fulfillment of the need by presenting useful programs for pre-algebra. These programs were written in the belief that CAI offers students faster learning through individual pacing, personalized tutoring, and automatic measurement of progress by recording of responses. CAI relieves the teacher of much record keeping and repetitious drill. As such the project contains teaching, learning, and review programs. The first program presents an easy equation of the first degree, x + 2 = 6. Then follows an explanation of the skill involved in solving the equation. Two further examples and eight problems complete the learning unit. After each problem the student types an answer into the ccrrrputer. If the answer is correct, another problem is presented to the student. If the answer is incorrect, the same problem appears a second time. Should a problem be answered incorrectly two more times, the correct answer is given the student. Then the next problem is presented. At the end of the unit the student is informed as to how many problems were answered correctly. Mastery is set at 70% correct. If the student achieves less than this, he is directed to a sub-routine for more instruction. This same format frames all the units. An overview of CAI introduces the reader to the project.