Executive SummaryInformation techno

Executive Summary

Information technology is a powerful aid to the organization and delivery of instruction, and to student assessment. Extensive research on computer-assisted learning (CAL) indicates that, on average and over a wide range of subject areas and grade levels, CAL helps students learn both significantly faster and significantly better as compared to traditional teaching methods. Part of the reason for this is that CAL provides a method of implementing some of the results from educational research in curriculum, instruction and assessment.

In addition, CAL fits in well with a "any topic, any time, any place" approach to learning. Thus, CAL is likely to be increasingly used in our formal and informal educational systems.

Accountability is a driving force behind many of the national, state, and local educational reform movements. These initiatives strive to set high standards, assess how well these standards are being met, and hold both students and the educational system accountable for results. This research report focuses mainly on use of information technology (IT) as an aid to meeting high standards in curriculum, instruction, and assessment.