Use of teacher programmed computer interactive videodisc in an elementary life science laboratory

This project evaluated lessons authored for interactive videodisc in an attempt to automate identification, remediation and re-testing of 5th and 6th grade students deficient in general knowledge of common English animal names. A similar cycle was used in an advanced lesson on Phylum classification. A laser videodisc player, interfaced to an Apple IIe computer, was programmed via commercial authoring software by a classroom teacher to display text on the computer monitor and still pictures from an archival videodisc on a standard television. These displays were distributed to a classroom network of televisions for large group participation. This approach resulted in students originally deficient in general knowledge of naming animals achieving on a par with others in Phylum classification.