Challenges and Successes at Laptop Institutions, Part I

Gregory MacKinnon

Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference 2004 (2004) pp. 1262–1266

We are quickly approaching a decade since the introduction of the "laptop institution" concept. A visit to the site (http://www.acck.edu/~arayb/NoteBookList.html#Acadia) provides evidence of an astounding and ever-growing number of institutions who...

Two Innovative Approaches to Using Databases in Teacher Education

Gregory MacKinnon

Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference 2005 (2005) pp. 2959–2965

The education of teachers necessarily involves instruction around the use of computer technologies. Acadia University, a laptop institution, offers a unique setting where students are immersed in the critique of pedagogical applications of computers....

Topics: Databases, Educational Technology, Teachers, Computers

Determining Useful Tools for the Flipped Science Education Classroom

Gregory MacKinnon

Contemporary Issues in Technology and Teacher Education Vol. 15, No. 1 (March 2015) pp. 44–55

This paper reports the results of a 3-year longitudinal study on the perceived utility of supplying elementary science teacher interns with four asynchronous tools to assist them in creating their first lesson plan of a constructivist nature. The...

Topics: Elementary Education, Physical Education

Implementing Technology in Teacher Education in Developing Countries: A Case Study of Guyana

Paula MacKinnon; Gregory MacKinnon

Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference 2012 (Mar 05, 2012) pp. 3254–3259

This paper deals with the particular challenges of implementing computer technology in a developing country. Specifically the country of Guyana in South America is attempting to maximize the impact of external investment in their public school...

Technology Integration in the Schools of Guyana: A Case Study

Gregory MacKinnon; Paula MacKinnon

Computers in the Schools Vol. 27, No. 3 (2010) pp. 221–246

The following study examines the implementation of learning technologies in Guyana, South America. Specifically, the study addresses the impact of using interactive radio instruction for teaching mathematics and SuccessMaker software for enhancing...

Canadian Champions: A Hybrid Drug Education Resource

Gregory MacKinnon; Keith MacKinnon

Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference 2014 (Mar 17, 2014) pp. 2326–2331

This research paper reports the findings of a two year project to implement an educational video in adolescent classrooms. In a partnership between a teacher educator and the regional police drug education division (RCMP), a student-based video and...

Topics: Science Education, New Possibilities with Information Technologies, Information Technology Diffusion/Integration

Teaching Biotechnology: A Model for Building a Resource Base

Gregory MacKinnon

Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference 2004 (2004) pp. 4701–4704

Abstract: Biotechnology is an increasingly important strand of applied broad-based technology. Acadia University, School of Education has introduced a new course entitled "Teaching Biotechnology". This course has been designed to prepare students...

Topics: Educational Technology

Negotiative Concept Mapping in Science Education

Gregory MacKinnon

Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference 2002 (2002) pp. 2124–2125

This paper introduces a model for "negotiative concept mapping". The action ressearch described took place in a science teacher education classroom at a laptop university.

Computer-Mediated Communication and Science Teacher Training: Two Constructivst Examples

Gregory MacKinnon

Journal of Technology and Teacher Education

The education of science teachers necessarily involves instruction around the use of computer technologies. Acadia University, a laptop institution, offers a unique setting where students are immersed in the critique of pedagogical applications of...

The Unique Challenges of Preparing Teachers in the Caribbean to Teach With Technology

Paula MacKinnon; Gregory MacKinnon

Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference 2017 (Mar 05, 2017) pp. 620–623

This paper summarizes the challenges encountered when technology professional development was attempted with teachers in the Caribbean within the context of several initiatives funded by the development banks and regional governments. The cumulative ...

Topics: International Education, Technological, Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK), Teaching and Learning with Emerging Technologies

Electronic Concept Mapping in A Laptop University: A Cross-Curricular Study

Gregory MacKinnon

Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference 2009 (Mar 02, 2009) pp. 1016–1022

Abstract: This study looks at the implementation of electronic concept mapping in three university course settings namely: 1) Introductory Physics, 2) Gods and Classical Myth and 3) Teaching Biotechnology & Science Teacher Education. In each case...

2-d Concept Mapping and the Study of Contentious Issues in Science Education

Gregory Mackinnon

Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference 2006 (Mar 19, 2006) pp. 4009–4013

Using a survey and follow-up qualitative research design, an elaborate model of technology integration has been studied in a science education classroom. Specifically the software Inspiration was used to create concept maps which were in turn linked ...

Topics: Educational Technology

Contentious Issues in Science Education: Building Critical Thinking Patterns Through Two-Dimensional Concept Mapping

Gregory MacKinnon

Journal of Educational Multimedia and Hypermedia Vol. 15, No. 4 (October 2006) pp. 433–445

Using a survey and follow-up qualitative research design, an elaborate model of technology integration has been studied in a science education classroom. Using a coding system known as cognotes, teacher-interns were first taught how to recognize...

Topics: Science, Preservice Teacher Education, Teaching Methods, Instructional Design, Teachers, Educational Technology, Information Communication Technologies

Highlighting the Importance of Context in the TPACK Model: Three Cases of Non-traditional Settings

Gregory MacKinnon

Issues and Trends in Educational Technology Vol. 5, No. 1 (Jun 07, 2017)

This paper presents three cases of technology intervention in classrooms where the TPACK model seemingly falls short of a due consideration of context. The argument is made that context can drive pedagogy, technology and content independently whilst ...

Exploring Possibilities for Virtual Education: Three Studies in Progress

Gregory MacKinnon

Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference 2012 (Mar 05, 2012) p. 3689

This poster presentation will outline three independent research projects that have been designed to evaluate the impact of 1) virtual manipulatives in biology, 2) virtual manipulatives in sport science case studies and 3) avatar virtual worlds for...

The Utility of TPACK in Deconstructing the Impact of an Innovative STEM Curriculum in a Chinese International School

Gregory MacKinnon

Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference 2017 (Mar 05, 2017) pp. 2397–2403

A mixed method research study was undertaken at a private school in Shanghai, China. In an effort to align with international best practice, the Qinghua Pacican International School sought to employ a new grade 6 STEM curriculum. This paper uses the ...

Topics: Research & Evaluation, Technological, Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK)

Classroom Observation: Challenges of Moving From a Paper Instrument to the iPad®

Gregory MacKinnon; Paula MacKinnon

Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference 2016 (Mar 21, 2016) pp. 1105–1109

The Stalling’s classroom observation tool (Stallings & Kaskowitz, 1974) has been modified and supplemented with qualitative observation scales based on an experience using the original instrument in a broad-based Caribbean education project. In an...

Topics: Research & Evaluation

An Enhanced Studio Physics Model: Which Technologies are Productive?

Gregory MacKinnon; Peter Williams

Journal of Computers in Mathematics and Science Teaching Vol. 25, No. 1 (January 2006) pp. 29–40

The notion of problem-based physics laboratories enhanced by computer technology has been coined ?studio physics? (Wilson, 1994) and has been practised at various institutions for some time (Cummings, Marx, Thornton, & Kuhl, 1999; Williams,...

Topics: technology, Technology integration, Integration, teaching, Science, Science Education, computer mediated communication, Inclusive Education

Multimedia Case-based Learning Sports Injury Assessment Educational Tool: Using TPACK principles to enhance athletic therapy education

Colin King; Gregory MacKinnon

Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference 2019 (Mar 18, 2019) pp. 2469–2474

Multimedia scenarios can be used as effective constructivist instructional tools that create contextually authentic injury experiences, while also scaffolding instruction to help students move beyond their current skill/knowledge base. In the...

Topics: Teaching and Learning with Emerging Technologies, Technological, Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK)

Video Databases: An Emerging Tool in Business Education

Gregory MacKinnon; Conor Vibert

Education and Information Technologies Vol. 19, No. 1 (March 2014) pp. 87–101

A video database of business-leader interviews has been implemented in the assignment work of students in a Bachelor of Business Administration program at a primarily-undergraduate liberal arts university. This action research study was designed to...

Exploring the Use of Electronic Discussion Group Coding with Pre-service Secondary Teachers

Lynn Aylward; Gregory MacKinnon

Journal of Information Technology for Teacher Education Vol. 8, No. 3 (1999) pp. 335–48

Investigated the impact of electronic discussion group coding on student teachers' learning processes and experiences, examining whether coding provided a scaffold for critical thinking. A hierarchical series of discussion codes, applied to students'...

A Promising Model for Incorporating the Computer in Science Learning

Gregory R. MacKinnon

Journal of Computers in Mathematics and Science Teaching Vol. 20, No. 4 (2001) pp. 395–404

Computer technology continues to emerge as a viable tool for classroom instruction. This article presents a case study of a high school chemistry classroom where the computer is being used in a unique way to deliver and direct the study of acid-base ...

Topics: Classrooms, Curriculum, Computers

The nature of learning in an integrated interactive technology setting: A case study of high school chemistry classroom

Gregory Rodney MacKinnon

(2000) pp. 1–231

Computer technology is emerging as a viable tool for classroom instruction. This thesis work represents a case study of a high school chemistry classroom where the computer is being used in a unique way to deliver and direct acid-base curriculum....

Assessing the Impact of a Classroom Management Resource in the North American Context

Lisa Langille; Gregory MacKinnon

Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference 2003 (2003) pp. 3030–3033

The Scottish Interactive Technology Centre at the University of Edinburgh has created a CD ROM resource entitled "Dealing With Disruption". Though initially prepared on a small scale, the instant success of this multimedia teaching aid prompted...

Topics: Teachers, Students

Evaluating the Impact of a Virtual Environment Tool for the English Classroom

Jon Saklofske; Gregory MacKinnon

Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference 2010 (Mar 29, 2010) pp. 2355–2359

A virtual environment based on the identified potential for educational gaming has been developed for teaching the social and political culture typified in Mary Robinson’s Romantic period novel, The Natural Daughter (1799). The multi-user...

Middle School Education and CD ROM Technology

Gregory MacKinnon; Joseph Bellefontaine

Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference 2001 (2001) pp. 1444–1449

This paper presents a cursory overview of CD ROM applications to instruction. This is followed up by a specific example of how a CD ROM resource was created for use in a Middle School Teacher Education Course. The CD ROM was purposefully designed...

Topics: Middle School Education, Instructional Design

Models for Integrating Technology in Higher Education: The Physics of Sound

Gregory MacKinnon; Peter Williams

Journal of College Science Teaching Vol. 35, No. 7 (2006) pp. 22–25

Institutions that place laptops in the hands of every student offer unique opportunities to integrate technology into instruction. The following is a description of how various technologies have been introduced into a new undergraduate physics...

Technology and Pedagogy: The Evolution of A Curriculum

Margaret Brown; Gregory MacKinnon

Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference 2001 (2001) pp. 1552–1556

Acadia University was the first laptop university in Canada. Being first has had its challenges. This paper discusses how between 1996 and 2000 a School of Education has adapted to the new technologies and made efforts to incorporate them...

Topics: Teachers, Educational Technology, Curriculum, Faculty

Computer-Mediated Communication and Science Teacher Training: Two Constructivist Examples

Gregory R. MacKinnon

Journal of Technology and Teacher Education Vol. 12, No. 1 (2004) pp. 101–114

The education of science teachers necessarily involves instruction around the use of computer technologies. Acadia University, a laptop institution, offers a unique setting where students are immersed in the critique of pedagogical applications of...

Topics: Computers, Educational Technology, Computer Sciences

The Dilemma of Evaluating Electronic Discussion Groups

Gregory R. MacKinnon

Journal of Research on Computing in Education Vol. 33, No. 2 (2000) pp. 125–31

Discussion of electronic discussion groups as an instructional technique addresses the dilemma of whether instructors should associate assessment schemes with the electronic discussion forum. Presents a coding technique as an example of how...

Evaluating the Impact of a Virtual Environment Tool for the English Classroom

Jon Saklofske; Gregory MacKinnon

Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference 2010 (Mar 29, 2010) p. 2049

A virtual environment based on the identified potential for educational gaming has been developed for teaching the social and political culture typified in Mary Robinson’s Romantic period novel, The Natural Daughter (1799). The multi-user...

Teacher as Planner and Presenter: A Diagnostic CD ROM Resource

Gregory MacKinnon; John Vaillancourt

Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference 2004 (2004) pp. 4696–4700

Abstract: Through the support of a McConnell Foundation Grant, a CD ROM resource was created to support teaching methods courses in the School of Education at Acadia University. In particular, the CD ROM deals with two topics namely: 1) teacher as...

Topics: Teaching Methods

Evaluating the Pedagogical Impact of a Virtual World Using Concept Mapping

Gregory MacKinnon; Jon Saklofske

Journal of Educational Multimedia and Hypermedia Vol. 20, No. 3 (June 2011) pp. 267–281

A virtual world was created in an effort to supplement the study of the novel “The Natural Daughter”. The educational impact of the virtual world experience on college students of English Literature was assessed using concept mapping as a measure of ...

Coding Electronic Discussion Groups

Gregory MacKinnon; Lynn Aylward

International Journal of Educational Telecommunications Vol. 6, No. 1 (2000) pp. 53–61

Acadia University in Wolfville, Nova Scotia offers a unique set-ting for research in Computer-Mediated Communication (CMC). Acadia, in the fall of 1996, embarked on a laptop project with IBM corporate support now coined "The Acadia Advantage." Of...

Topics: Communication

Assisting the Hearing Impaired in Jamaica: Choosing Appropriate Technologies for a Digital Sign Language Dictionary

Gregory MacKinnon; Iris Soutar

Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference 2016 (Mar 21, 2016) pp. 951–956

The Jamaican Association of the Deaf (JAD) in their responsibilities to oversee deaf education in Jamaica, has demonstrated an urgent need for a dictionary that assists students, educators and parents with the practical use of “Jamaican Sign...

Topics: Early Childhood Education, Special Education / Assistive Technology, New Possibilties with Information Technologies

Concept Mapping: A Unique Means for Negotiating Meaning in Professional Studies

Gregory R. MacKinnon; Mike Keppell

Journal of Educational Multimedia and Hypermedia Vol. 14, No. 3 (July 2005) pp. 291–315

Abstract Concept mapping (Novak & Gowin, 1984) has been used extensively as a graphic organiser in classroom teaching. This paper addresses two particular approaches to using concept mapping that go beyond classroom planning into the realm of ...

Topics: technology, collaborative learning, Preservice Teacher Education, eLearning, computer mediated communication, Computer-supported collaborative learning, Authoring tools, Human Computer Interaction, Programming

Coding Electronic Discussion to Promote Critical Thinking: A Cross-Curricular Teacher Education Approach

Joanne Pelletier; Margaret Brown; Gregory MacKinnon

Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference 2002 (2002) pp. 1372–1374

Acadia University in Nova Scotia, Canada offers unparalleled opportunities to conduct action research on the innovative use of instructional technologies. This laptop institution (the first in Canada) supplies some 4000 students with ...

Topics: Networking Technologies, Educational Technology, Computers

Models for Building Knowledge in a Technology-Rich Setting: Teacher Education

Gregory MacKinnon; M Aylward; M Aylward

Canadian Journal of Learning and Technology / La revue canadienne de l’apprentissage et de la technologie Vol. 35, No. 1 (Sep 03, 2009)

Technology offers promising opportunities for creating new types of classroom learning environments. This paper describes three technology models used by teacher education interns: electronic portfolios, negotiative concept mapping, cognote...

Critical Thinking and Electronic Discussion

Margaret Brown; Gregory MacKinnon; Joanne Pelletier

Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference 2002 (2002) pp. 80–84

Certain processes of coding electronic discussions have been shown to improve the quality of argumentation styles in online discussions. This paper addresses a) a teacher education course in physical education where cognotes are used to prompt...

Topics: Physical Education, Inclusive Education

Biology Labs Online: Gauging Productive Technologies

Gregory MacKinnon; Eric Alcorn; Trevor Avery

Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference 2012 (Mar 05, 2012) pp. 1974–1980

Science teachers have a compounding number of technological tools they might access for the classroom. This case study of an online biology lab considers the potential for three such technologies to supplement or replace traditional approaches. In...

Employing STEM Curriculum in an ESL Classroom: A Chinese Case Study

Gregory MacKinnon; Kate Greene; Edward Rawn; John Cressey; William He

K-12 STEM Education Vol. 3, No. 1 (Jan 24, 2017) pp. 143–155

Mixed methods action research was undertaken in a grade 6 classroom in Shanghai, China to identify the challenges of implementing science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) curriculum in an English Second Language (ESL) classroom. The...

Language: English

Electronic Discussion: A Case Study of the Range of Applications in a Laptop University

Gregory R. MacKinnon; M Lynn Aylward; Joseph Bellefontaine

Computers in the Schools Vol. 23, No. 1 (Jul 21, 2006) pp. 59–71

This review paper examines ongoing research on a range of applications of electronic discussion in a laptop university teacher education program. The findings and challenges of employing electronic discussion are discussed and the authors make a...

The Tension between HyperText Environments and Science Learning

Gregory R. MacKinnon; Charles P. McFadden; Therese Forsythe

Electronic Journal of Science Education Vol. 6, No. 3 (2002)

Computer technology has afforded opportunities to design science curriculum experiences that capitalize on hypertext environments. Though these settings may provide students with flexibility as they explore science, the question remains, Does...

Evaluating classroom interaction with the iPad®: An updated Stalling’s tool

Gregory MacKinnon; Lourens Schep; Lisa Lunney Borden; Anne Murray-Orr; Jeff Orr; Paula MacKinnon

International Journal of Education and Development using ICT Vol. 12, No. 3 (Dec 31, 2016)

The Stalling’s classroom observation tool (Stallings & Kaskowitz 1974) has been modified and supplemented with qualitative observation scales. In an effort to promote efficiency of observation and data collection, the tool has been reconfigured as ...

Factors That Impact the Implementation of Virtual Literacy Coaching in the Eastern Caribbean

Gregory MacKinnon; Terry-Ann Marsh-Roberts; Yvonne Jones; Delise Williams; Ann Hamilton-Dopwell; Colin King

Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference 2019 (Mar 18, 2019) pp. 1950–1958

Coaching of teachers to implement literacy instruction using international best practice has been complicated in Eastern Caribbean Countries due to travel constraints and limited human resources. In an effort to mitigate this situation and respond...

Topics: Teaching and Learning with Emerging Technologies, English Education