Research Topics: Human Computer Interaction

Human Computer Interaction

CI 141 Human Computer Interaction   Assessment 2   Your task is to analyse two interactive products, which may be software or hardware; one that you think is well designed, and the other you find badly designed. The good and bad examples don’t have to be the same type of product.   Your model is the “Hall of Fame” and “Hall of Shame” web sites that have appeared over the last few years, such as:   http://www.baddesigns.com http://digilander.libero.it/chiediloapippo/Engineering/iarchitect/shame.htm   You can also find some examples from last year at: http://www.it.bton.ac.uk/staff/lp22/gallery/index.html    You must include:   ·         a brief description of the aspect of the software or hardware you are analysing (you won’t be able to analyse a complete system, obviously). If possible, you should include both a graphic and a textual description, e.g. a screen shot plus commentary   ·         an explanation of what  is so good or bad about this particular example   ·         an explanation of the principles (e.g. usability principles) that are being followed or flouted   ·         conclusions that you draw. For instance, you might suggest an improvement, or draw a general lesson from the example you choose.     Deliverables   The analyses are to be made as html pages which may eventually be added to the Brighton Interaction Gallery.   The required format of the pages can be downloaded from there.  You should follow the format as closely as possible. The best twenty or so of the analyses will be added to the Brighton Interaction Gallery in the Hall of Fame or Shame as appropriate.   Make sure that you structure your files so that graphics display properly when the files are transferred, i.e. keep them either in the same folder as the main file or in an Images folder stored with it. Last year several students submitted work with missing graphics files.     Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com

Human Computer Interaction

CI 141 Human Computer Interaction Assessment 2 Your task is to analyse two interactive products, which may be software ...

Human Computer Interaction

Interactive products are very interesting and highly innovative products that are enticing to the market especially now in the changing world where most people demand for products that is sophisticated yet with the easiness and convenience of using it.  Thus, the interaction design of the interactive products are pivotal as it creates a representational dialogue between the people or the users and the intelligent products.  As the evolution of technologically driven products has recently become more complicated but gaining support in the marketplace and acceptance from the users.  Interaction designers with capabilities to innovate and redefine the features of these mini powerful interactive products that would cater to the many disparate people who have diverse taste and preferences.  As the number of people wanting this interactive products increases, interactive products on one hand, have become a lot more functional and operable.  Additionally, equipping it with more features, functionality, and capabilities.  Moreover, the success of interactive products in the marketplace depends on the three factors namely, the design of high-quality, engaging interactive experiences and good interaction design. In this paper, we would be exploring two interactive products hardware, one that is greatly designed and the other one as badly designed.  Along with the brief analysis and description of its hardware aspect, an explanation of what makes it good or not good, the usability principles and the drawing of conclusions that would be based on the assessment and the analysis of the good and bad interactive products.  For the well-designed interactive product, iPod would serve to be a great example, as it is loaded with great features and user-friendly interface and the hard to resist design which makes it very pleasing and popular.  On the other hand, the badly designed interactive product is a mobile unit from nokia and that is N3650.   The Ipod 60 GB model   Description: For people who need to have a dose of their favorite music and videos everyday, instead of buying two interactive products, all can be found in an iPod 60GB model from the makers of Apple Computer.  Indeed, an interactive product that has successfully incorporates both sound and vision into one amazing gizmo. Not only does it come up with innovative design but it gets rid of the bulkiness and come up with a slim design that surely is appealing and in fact, emulated by some competitors to their products.  The hardware input and output components of an iPod dock connectors, 3.5-mm stereo headphone minijack, an audio and video output and the s-video output.  With the size having a height of 4.1 inches, width of 2.4 inches, depth of 0.55 inches and a weight of only 5.5 oz, an iPod spells handiness.  Analysis:   An iPod equipped with a stylish Apple Click wheel makes accessibility a lot easier as one can browse on the entire music, photo and video library features of the gizmo with just from one thumb makes it a well-designed product that suits the taste of the people.  In terms of learnability, despite of the fact of its sophistication yet simplified accessibility for the user makes the iPod very learnable, even without going to the fuzz of learning everything in the manual.  The speed, accuracy and memorability aspects of usability is reinforcing for the users since learnability aspect is easy and can be readily gratified.  Moreover, with the first four aspect of usability being gratified, the level of satisfaction for that matter would likely increase.   Conclusions:               The impact of iPod in the market creates and provide alternative means for the people to enjoy both music and videos altogether with a style.  iPod’s design, innovative features and the easiness of browsing and making use of the gadget, seemingly does not need improvements anymore. Although, the constant redefinition of its functionalities and the operability, would make the iPod product stay long in the market.   The N3650 Description:             Nokia being the most preferred mobile phones makers for some time is known to bring out innovative line of phone models.  However, with the tough competitors around producing their own innovative and stylish phone models  it is really hard to tell if Nokia still is the most preferable brand.  The N3650 of Nokia packed with features such as an integrated video recorder, player and camera, among the first to offer the MMS, wireless technology devices such as bluetooth, triband, and so on, are innovative features that people can indulge into.  Nevertheless, the design of Nokia with its bulkiness, makes it not interesting for the people who prefers to have smaller enhanced mobile phones compare than that of bringing a phone that cannot fit in to the jeans with small pockets. Analysis:             N3650 did not make it big to the market because of its bulky design and discouraging keypads which makes the model badly designed.  Discouraging in a sense that the letters are far from each other making the manipulation less interesting, especially in the composition of an SMS.  With the uninteresting look of the keypads and the distant keys makes the browsing quite difficult particularly for the inexperienced users.  The learnability of the phone is not that easy because of its complexities there is an obvious need to go through with the manual.  Further, the speed and accuracy would be limited to a minimum of the fact that the keys are distant from each other.  Likewise, the memorability would be susceptible to forgetting since the learnability as what has been stated is not easy.  Lastly, the level of satisfaction aspect would likely be low.  Low satisfaction because with the degree of difficulty in the learning aspect combined with the minimality in speed and accuracy makes the users less satified with the product. Conclusion: The point of interactive designers of Nokia is to produce a design that is innovative but with the distant keys, which may at first be attracting because of its uniqueness, would in the long-run makes it less interesting.  In fact, as Nokia sense the unattractiveness of the distant keys, they follow-up the N3650 with an N3660 that has improved design and keypad.  People would always prefer handiness in the design of the interactive products and demands for easiness  in the operability.  Therefore, the design of N3650 makes it discouraging even if it been equipped with innovative features. Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com

Human Computer Interaction

Interactive products are very interesting and highly innovative products that are enticing to the market especially now in the changing...

Thesis Chapter 4: Children and Computer-based Learning

Chapter IV Children HCl             This chapter explains the Human Computer Interaction or HCl. Its use in todays modern computer world. How people change views regarding the necessity of computer and the powerful contribution it brings to the nation building.              Now, more than ever, “computer proficiency” needs to become a top priority among nation’s parents, teachers, students, businesses and government agencies. Just as literacy has received national attention, computer proficiency, or computer literacy, needs to be addressed with similar high level and grassroots efforts. In fact, the two campaigns share many common platforms and, in the end, achieve many of the same goals. Computer literacy — a familiarity with the use and value that computers, software and related technologies can bring to our everyday lives — can provide individuals of all ages with new opportunities and open new worlds to them. Just as learning to read prepares people to work and live in the “real world,” learning to use a computer as a tool plays a similar role. Computers and software can also play a major role in improving the educational skills of youth and in preparing them for the next century. Work has just begun. With computers, software and people working together, the possibilities are infinite.             Computers offer children highly individualized learning experiences. Increases in student attendance, motivation and attention span have also been reported.” Computers can also be very accommodating — they can reach students at different study levels, any time of the day or night. Additionally, the sense of independence and accomplishment a computer offers children helps fuel their self-confidence. Relying on a computer as a tool may be one of the most effective ways to build both a child’s learning skills and self-esteem.             As children enter the workforce in the coming decades, they will undoubtedly discover that to continue to be effective in their jobs, they need to keep pace with the onslaught of new information. They will need to continue to learn and to take advantage of new technologies that allow them to learn and work more efficiently and productively. Learning does not end once school is over. Now, more than ever, people in the workforce are returning to school or taking courses that will help them learn to use computers and software to think and create in new ways and to access information that was once “out of reach.” Every effort should be made now to introduce children to computers because computers should be a learning, creativity and productivity tool for everyone.             On the economic side, computer equipment and the myriad of software programs beneficial to a child’s educational development cost real dollars. Remember, just fifteen years ago, there were no computers in the schools. Now, imagine if this year, every school in the country had to buy all new textbooks and all new desks and chairs for the more than 45 million students enrolled in elementary and secondary schools in the country. The cost of doing this would be astronomical — literally, out of control. That’s what schools are facing with purchasing computers and software. Slowly, schools are building an inventory of equipment and software and making sufficient quantities available to educators and students. This trend needs to continue if computer proficiency among our youth is to become a reality.             As part of a cross-departmental government review of provision for young children, Oliver et al (1998) reviewed research in the UK and other countries on the effectiveness of a variety of early interventions. The authors concluded that the most effective projects utilize children’s instinct for play and allow them to be physically active, and that this is effective because it increases a child’s receptivity for learning. They also suggest that building self-esteem is a key element in securing positive long-term outcomes for children and point out that some of the most effective early interventions involve parents in their child’s cognitive development, either at home or within a pre-school centre.   Reference and Bibliography Cragg, B. G. 1975. The development of synapses in the visual system of the cat. Journal of Comparative Neurology, 160: 147-166. Rakic, P. 1995. Corticogenesis in human and nonhuman primates. In M. S. Gazzaniga (Ed.), The Cognitive Neurosciences (pp. 127-145). Cambridge MA: MIT Press. Education Commission of the States. 1996. Bridging the gap between neuroscience and education. Denver, CO: Education Commission of the States. Huttenlocher, P. 1990. Morphometric studies of human cerebral cortex development. Neuropsychologia28(6): 517-527. Wiesel, T. N., & Hubel, D. H. 1965. Extent of recovery from the effects of visual deprivation in kittens. Journal of Neurophysiology, 28: 1060-1072 Chow, K.L. & Stewart, D. L. 1972. Reversal of structural and functional effects of long-term visual deprivation in cats. Experimental Neurology, 34: 409-433. Mitchell, D.E. 1989. Normal and abnormal visual development inkittens: insights into the mechanisms that underlie visual perceptual development in humans. Canadian Journal of Psychology 43(2):141-64. Review. Piaget, J. 1954. The construction of reality in the child. New York: BasicBooks. Kuhl, P.K. 1998. The development of speech and language. In Mechanistic relationships between development and learning, ed. T.J. Carew, R. Menzel & CJ Shatz (pp. 53-73). New York: Wiley. Mehler J., Jusczyk P., Lambertz G., Halsted N., Bertoncini J. & Amiel-TisonC. 1988. A precursor of language acquisition in young infants.Cognition 29(2): 143-78. Pinker, S. 1994. The language instinct. New York: Morrow. Butterworth, B. 1999 The mathematical brain. London: Macmillan. Gelman, R. & Gallistel, C.R 1978. The child’s understanding of number.Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Hughes, M. 1981 Can pre-school children add and subtract?Educational Psychology, 1: 207-219. Nunes, T. & Bryant, P. 1997. learning and teaching mathematics: aninternational perspective. Psychology Press, Hove, U.K. Piaget, J. 1965. The child’s conception of number.NewYork:Norton. 1997. Impact of Computer Use on Children’s Vision  American Optometric Association 243 N. Lindbergh Blvd. St. Louis, MO 63141 Oliver, C., Smith, M. & Barker, S. 1998. Effectiveness of early interventions. Paper presented at the Cross Departmental Review on Provision for Young Children Ministerial Seminar hosted by Joseph Rowntree Foundation, Institution of Civil Engineers, 11 March. Papert, Saymour.  1996. Computers in the Classroom: Agents of Change The Washington Post Education Review Sunday  Paper, Seymour. 1993 Preface to The Children’s Machine: Rethinking School in the Age of the Computer Basic Books (New York) Papert, S. 1999 Papert on Piaget article appeared in Time magazine’s special issue on “The Century’s Greatest Minds,” page 105, March 29, 1999. P. L. Blenkhorn, “The RCEVH project on computer assisted learning”, The British Journal of Visual Impairment, IV(3), pp. 101-103, 1996 P. L. Blenkhorn and M. J. Tobin, “Report on computer hardware in schools and units for the visually handicapped”, University of Birmingham, Research Centre for the Education of the Visually Handicapped, 1983. Sally Bowman Alden, THE ROLE TECHNOLOGY CAN PLAY IN PREPARING OUR CHILDREN FOR THE 21st CENTURY accessed on 21/4/2003   San Francisco Chronicle,  2002. “Online children’s library makes searches easier”  University  of Maryland institute for advance computer studies accessed on 20/4/2003   The Children’s Internet Protection Act  signed by President Clinton on 21 December 2000 as part of the Omnibus Consolidated Appropriations. The Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA)   Computers in British Schools: 2000.  A Brief History accessed on www.readingonline.rog/international/medwell/history.html accessed date: 20/4/2003 Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com

Thesis Chapter 4: Children and Computer-based Learning

Chapter IV Children HCl This chapter explains the Human Computer Interaction or HCl. Its use in todays modern computer world....

Thesis Chapter 5: Children and Computer-based Learning

Chapter V Advantages and Disadvantages of Computers on Children               This chapter will focus on the advantages and disadvantages of computers on children. How they are benefiting with the presence of it and the way they acquire knowledge on its behalf, also how it influence their way of life, thinking and behavior.             Sally Bowman Alden,  Executive Director of the Computer Learning Foundation has the following viewpoints on the advantages of computer not particularly on children but to all COMPUTERS AS LEARNING TOOLS:             Memory Practice: Regardless of whether it is multiplication exercises or spelling, there are certain facts that children must learn through memorization in their early educations. And the key to learning these is memorization. Computer software is available to provide children with memory recall exercises — from math facts to science definitions to English vocabulary words. Using a computer to practice facts is fun, which for most children means spending more time with the exercises. Computers are also infinitely patient, and (unlike many of us) will work with a child even if it takes 100 tries before they provide the correct response. Plus, children receive instant feedback — no more waiting until the next day to see the results — so children do not practice mistakes.             Tutoring: There are times when a student needs extra tutoring help and possibly a different approach from the way that a teacher has presented the material during class. Computer tutorials offer students a new approach to the subject, as well as one-on-one assistance. Many educational computer software programs are designed to present information in a step-by-step manner and allow a child to catch up on the steps and concepts they were not able to understand in the formal classroom setting. With computer tutorials, children are free to work at their own pace.             Experimenting: While no teacher or parent can allow children to experiment with dangerous chemicals unsupervised or to cut up cadavers to see just how human body parts fit into place, computers can. Science and math simulation software programs make these and other worlds come alive, safely, right on the screen. The programs encourage children to learn through discovery and experimentation. Even medical students rely on experimental interactive learning tools to help guide them through their courses of study. With the help of a computer, for example, medical students can run through a series of exercises that challenge them to diagnose and treat “computer” patients.             Experimenting with computers goes well beyond the science and math lab. Asking “what if” questions about historical facts can help children draw their own conclusions — and increase their memory and understanding of the results. At the same time, simulations allow children to pretend that they were there during different periods of history. Simulations help children develop decision-making skills, which are critical for children’s futures. In social studies simulations, for example, children learning about American history can actually make decisions and, from within their computers, change the course of history for a minute and see what would have happened. COMPUTERS AS CREATIVITY TOOLS:             Some students shy away from art and music because they are not immediately proficient using traditional tools. And, even though they have a wealth of creative ideas, they fail to express them because others in the class seem to be better painters or composers. With computers, all students have access to a new array of creativity tools — from computer painting and drawing tools to musical composition and desktop publishing programs — making it easier for them to express and explore their creativity. COMPUTERS AS PRODUCTIVITY TOOLS:             With computers, productivity is always on the rise. Word processing and database management programs help students, young and old, organize their thoughts and information. For example, if a high school student uses a computer and a word processing program to prepare a term paper, there is no problem revising the first page. Before computers, the student would have been forced to recopy the entire document, but with a computer, they simply key in the changes and reprint. By making written communications easier, computers can’t help but boost our children’s productivity and communications skills. COMPUTERS AS RESEARCH TOOLS:             Here’s another area that students can explore with the help of a computer and a database program. Now, pulling together background information on a topic takes on new meaning. Besides the traditional resource materials — encyclopedias, books, etc. — there are software and computer tools that provide students with access to online database information and research reports. In addition, there are a number of research analysis and organizational tools available. COMPUTERS AS COMMUNICATION TOOLS:             Like the telephone, computers have the power to bring people closer together. Through networking technology, computers across the room or across the world can be connected to allow people to communicate, share thoughts and information. Children in the United States and Russia, for example, have recently established electronic “pen-pal” relationships. Through an electronic mail program and modems, students in each country can tell each other about their activities. Through these types of electronic communication links, children can strengthen their ability to express themselves in writing and prepare themselves for the increased use of electronic communications in the workplace. COMPUTERS AS ENTERTAINMENT TOOLS:             Computers can be a lot of fun. In addition to fund educational software programs, there are a number of entertainment software titles available that can keep children “working” on the computer for hours. Besides just being fun to play, many games are educational in nature and many others develop eye-hand coordination and strategy skills. Played alone, with a friend or parent, these games can also help to bring people closer together, even if it is in the spirit of computer competition.             Computer manufacturers and software developers are doing their part to produce some state-of-the-art products that will help our children learn more, and just as importantly, to enjoy learning. The key for parents and educators is to increase a child’s access to computer technology and encourage them to explore the possibilities. We invite you to participate in Computer Learning Month each October. Experience the benefits of computers for yourself, and share these experiences with your children. Together, you will discover the magic of computers and software as tools — for learning, creativity, productivity, research, communications and entertainment.             Given as the above are advantages of computers and there are also disadvantages. One of the disadvantages are in focus of health, in Impact of Computer Use on Children’s Vision.              When first introduced, computers were almost exclusively used by adults. Today, children increasingly use these devices both for education and recreation. Millions of children use computers on a daily basis at school and at home.             Children can experience many of the same symptoms related to computer use as adults. Extensive viewing of the computer screen can lead to eye discomfort, fatigue, blurred vision and headaches. However, some unique aspects of how children use computers may make them more susceptible than adults to the development of these problems.             Children often have a limited degree of self-awareness. Many children keep performing an enjoyable task with great concentration until near exhaustion (e.g., playing video games for hours with little, if any, breaks). Prolonged activity without a significant break can cause eye focusing (accommodative) problems and eye irritation.             Accommodative problems may occur as a result of the eyes’ focusing system “locking in” to a particular target and viewing distance. In some cases, this may cause the eyes to be unable to smoothly and easily focus on a particular object, even long after the original work is completed.             Eye irritation may occur because of poor tear flow over the eye due to reduced blinking. Blinking is often inhibited by concentration and staring at a computer or video screen. Compounding this, computers usually are located higher in the field of view than traditional paperwork. This results in the upper eyelids being retracted to a greater extent. Therefore, the eye tends to experience more than the normal amount of tear evaporation resulting in dryness and irritation.             Children are very adaptable. Although there are many positive aspects to their adaptability, children frequently ignore problems that would be addressed by adults. A child who is viewing a computer screen with a large amount of glare often will not think about changing the computer arrangement or the surroundings to achieve more comfortable viewing. This can result in excessive eye strain. Also, children often accept blurred vision caused by nearsightedness, farsightedness, or astigmatism because they think everyone sees the way they do. Uncorrected farsightedness can cause eye strain, even when clear vision can be maintained.             Children are not the same size as adults. Since children are smaller, computers don’t fit them well. Most computer workstations are arranged for adult use. Therefore, a child using a computer on a typical office desk often must look up further than an adult. Since the most efficient viewing angle is slightly downward about 15 degrees, problems using the eyes together can occur. In addition, children may have difficulty reaching the keyboard or placing their feet on the floor, causing arm, neck, or back discomfort.             Children often use computers in a home or classroom with less than optimum lighting. The lighting level for the proper use of a computer is about half as bright as that normally found in a classroom. Increased light levels can contribute to excessive glare and problems associated with adjustments of the eye to different levels of light.             Also disadvantages are the tendencies that a child may expose to internet obscenity, pornography and sites that are harmful to minors. And so with this, there are regulations being implemented to prevent children committing such acts.              The Children’s Internet Protection Act was signed by President Clinton on 21 December 2000 as part of the Omnibus Consolidated Appropriations. The Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA) and its companion legislation, the Neighborhood Children’s Internet Protection Act, require that schools and libraries receiving federal funding through either the Universal Service (E-rate) subsidy of network access, Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) or title III of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), now meet certain requirements in order to continue to receive funds.             In summary, it requires libraries and schools receiving any element of funding which supports networked Internet access to address the following: Internet safety policies addressing minor access to “inappropriate matter” (to be defined by local agency);  Minor safety when using electronic communications provided through the local agency; Unauthorized access; Unauthorized disclosure of personal information about minors; and, Restriction of minor access to harmful materials. Agencies receiving funds must conduct a public hearing on the Internet Safety Policy. They also must certify they have implemented use of a “technology protection measure” that blocks or limits Internet visuals that are obscene, child pornography, or harmful to minors (when used by minors).             Agencies that do not receive such funding are not required to adhere to these regulations.  Despite the title of the legislation, the filtering of visuals so defined is required for children and adults. The filters may be disabled for “bona fide research or other lawful purposes”. If an agency receives E-rate funding, only adults are entitled to “bona fide research”; if an agency receives only ESEA or LSTA funds there appear to be no age restrictions on who may conduct “bona fide research”. If a library receives E-rate funds and LSTA the library should assume only adults have the right to request the filter be disabled. The act provides no definition of “bona fide research or other lawful purposes.” The act does not extend any protections to the authorized staff person allowing such access if the end user is offended by any material encountered accidentally. The lack of protection, common for librarians affected by local Harmful to Minors legislation, coupled with the vague expression “bona fide research” would certainly produce a chilling effect on active professional practice. A similar chilling effect would impact the library patron required to justify their right to research any particular topic unencumbered by a particular viewpoint.             Another variation based on the source of the funds (E-rate or ESEA) is related to the actual monitoring of computer use. E-rate funding requires the active monitoring of computer use by children, particularly their online activities; ESEA funding has no such requirement. The legislation does not indicate if such monitoring is intended to be physical, i.e., over the shoulder monitoring, or electronic, which would involve secretive monitoring of behavior.             While obscenity and child pornography are not protected speech, the harmful to minors’ definition would include areas of heretofore-protected speech. But, given the unsophisticated nature of the filtering software, it cannot discriminate between obscenity and protected speech, or child pornography and protected speech, if the particular images are not verbally identified in some way as obscene or depicting children engaged in sexually explicit activity, or if the source is not identified as a source of sexually explicit materials. Protected speech is obviously (a) included in the legislation and (b) swept up in the exercise of the restrictions.               To “prevent the abuse of children who are made to engage in sexual conduct for commercial purposes, ” This legislation eliminates a class of speech from any type of First Amendment protection, in order to extend personal and individual protection to minors unable to determine the full scope of their activity for themselves. It is the clearest demonstration of an overriding government interest in restricting speech, even as that speech is restricted to visual depictions: “Here the nature of the harm to be combated requires that the state offense be limited to works that visually depict sexual conduct by children below a specified age. The category of ‘sexual conduct’ proscribed must also be suitably limited and described.”             Generally, it can be concluded that children and computer-based learning is an essential ground to maintaining and achieving school’s standardization and modernization.   Today’s era speaks up of new technology and information super highway.  With this, countries like United Kingdom, is benefiting from the existence of this wonderful invention, the computer. It has been explored from the study that before UK is led the world in computer based learning. Having almost of their schools, both high school and elementary one computer as part of teaching. Yes it has also mentioned that UK met downfall and they did not maintained the goal of computerization after a decade but eventually they are still moving toward the realization of their goal.             In the existence of computers in their learning institutions, it can be said that children are advantageous with the help of computers. Online libraries had been arisen and are beneficial in terms of knowledge gaining, computer know-how, mind enrichment and computer literacy.  Children now tend to touch the modern and fast moving world with their knowledge on computers. Now that schools offer computer courses for very young children, the more the children will be able to access better knowledge enhancement.  The more the children are digitally aware the more the children will be wrapped by the needed information they can’t just easily be absorbed from merely browsing the thick pages of their books.                Like the International Children’s Digital Library plans to offer 10,000 books of 100 titles from 100 cultures by year 2007, that will allow children to read them on desktop computers, laptops and mobile devices.             This eclectic library lets children hunt for books based on what color their covers are, how they make them feel, what kind of characters they depict and under categories that adults might find rather strange. One of its goals is to test novel ways of navigating the pages with graphic rather than textual cues.             An equally key goal is to bring together publishers, librarians and software developers to explore thorny copyright issues that arise from making books publicly accessible on a Web site. Nobody knows how the traditional public library concept of book lending will play out in the digital arena, where material is more easily copied.             Children under the age of 14 helped design the library, working with professors to figure out what kind of new visual aids might help youngsters explore books more easily.             Such library as this may be able to help children of all ages be knowledgeable enough to face his learning tasks and competitive enough to face his greatest fear in school. Reference and Bibliography Crag, B. G. 1975. The development of synapses in the visual system of the cat. Journal of Comparative Neurology, 160: 147-166. Rakish, P. 1995. Carcinogenesis in human and nonhuman primates. In M. S. Gazing (Ed.), The Cognitive Neurosciences (pp. 127-145). Cambridge MA: MIT Press. Education Commission of the States. 1996. Bridging the gap between neuroscience and education. Denver, CO: Education Commission of the States. Huttenlocher, P. 1990. Morph metric studies of human cerebral cortex development. Neuropsychologia28(6): 517-527. Wisely, T. N., & Hubbell, D. H. 1965. Extent of recovery from the effects of visual deprivation in kittens. Journal of Neurophysiology, 28: 1060-1072 Chow, KILL. & Stewart, D. L. 1972. Reversal of structural and functional effects of long-term visual deprivation in cats. Experimental Neurology, 34: 409-433. Mitchell, DUE. 1989. Normal and abnormal visual development in kittens: insights into the mechanisms that underlie visual perceptual development in humans. Canadian Journal of Psychology 43(2):141-64. Review. Piaget, J. 1954. The construction of reality in the child. New York: Basic Books. Kohl, O.K.. 1998. The development of speech and language. In Mechanistic relationships between development and learning, ed. E.G.. Care, R. Mensal & CJ Shots (pp. 53-73). New York: Wiley. Mahler J., Juicy P., Lamberts G., Halted N., Bertoncini J. & Amiel-TisonC. 1988. A precursor of language acquisition in young infants.Cognition 29(2): 143-78. Pinker, S. 1994. The language instinct. New York: Morrow. Butterworth, B. 1999 The mathematical brain. London: Macmillan. Gelman, R. & Gallistel, C.R 1978. The child’s understanding of number.Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Hughes, M. 1981 Can pre-school children add and subtract?Educational Psychology, 1: 207-219. Nunes, T. & Bryant, P. 1997. learning and teaching mathematics: aninternational perspective. Psychology Press, Hove, U.K. Piaget, J. 1965. The child’s conception of number.NewYork:Norton. 1997. Impact of Computer Use on Children’s Vision  American Optometric Association 243 N. Lindbergh Blvd. St. Louis, MO 63141 Oliver, C., Smith, M. & Barker, S. 1998. Effectiveness of early interventions. Paper presented at the Cross Departmental Review on Provision for Young Children Ministerial Seminar hosted by Joseph Rowntree Foundation, Institution of Civil Engineers, 11 March. Papert, Saymour.  1996. Computers in the Classroom: Agents of Change The Washington Post Education Review Sunday Papert, Seymour. 1993 Preface to The Children’s Machine: Rethinking School in the Age of the Computer Basic Books (New York) Papert, S. 1999 Papert on Piaget article appeared in Time magazine’s special issue on “The Century’s Greatest Minds,” page 105, March 29, 1999. P. L. Blenkhorn, “The RCEVH project on computer assisted learning”, The British Journal of Visual Impairment, IV(3), pp. 101-103, 1996 P. L. Blenkhorn and M. J. Tobin, “Report on computer hardware in schools and units for the visually handicapped”, University of Birmingham, Research Centre for the Education of the Visually Handicapped, 1983. Sally Bowman Alden, THE ROLE TECHNOLOGY CAN PLAY IN PREPARING OUR CHILDREN FOR THE 21st CENTURY accessed on 21/4/2003   San Francisco Chronicle,  2002. “Online children’s library makes searches easier”  University  of Maryland institute for advance computer studies accessed on 20/4/2003 The Children’s Internet Protection Act  signed by President Clinton on 21 December 2000 as part of the Omnibus Consolidated Appropriations. The Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA) Computers in British Schools: 2000.  A Brief History accessed on www.readingonline.rog/international/medwell/history.html accessed date: 20/4/2003 Huttenlocher, Peter, Dendritic and Synaptic Development in Human Cerebral Cortex: Time Course and Critical Periods, Developmental Neuropsychology, Vol. 16, 1999 Huttenlocher, P. 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Thesis Chapter 5: Children and Computer-based Learning

Chapter V Advantages and Disadvantages of Computers on Children This chapter will focus on the advantages and disadvantag...

Thesis Chapter 5: Children and Computer-based Learning

Thesis Chapter 5: Children and Computer-based Learning

Chapter V Advantages and Disadvantages of Computers on Children This chapter will focus on the advantages and disadvantag...