Links to Articles

Note: Some artilces are in PDF format. You will need Adobe Acrobat to read these files. To download the latest version go to get.adobe.com/reader.

History of Probeware
Robert Tinker, President Concord Consortium

This is an overview of the development and dissemination of "Probeware." Also called "microcomputer-based labs", MBL, "Calculator Based Labs", and CBL, probeware represents one of the most valuable contributions of computers to education. By connecting probes to a computer running suitable software, students can observe real-time data in a variety of formats. When placed in an inquiry-based learning context, this capacity can significantly increase and speed learning.

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Teacher Uses of Highly Mobile Technologies: Probes and Podcasts
Robert Tinker, Paul Horwitz, Stephen Bannasch, and Carolyn Staudt, The Concord Consortium, and Tony Vincent
Educational Technology, vol. 47, no. 3 (May-June 2007)

This article introduces two contrasting ways of using highly mobile information technology for educational purposes. The first example uses mobile devices and scientific probes to gather information; the second uses a combination of mobile and desktop computers to disseminate it by way of podcasts. The examples also show that mobile devices complement, rather than replace, desktop computers.

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