| Education is facing a paradigm shift under the rapid development of information technology. The new paradigm of learning, the digital paradigm, requires special techniques of course design, special instructional models, and special methods of evaluation. Computer technology, multimedia, the Internet and World Wide Web are the driving forces for new forms of educational delivery.; This study has attempted to: (a) investigate the instructional practices and applications of computer technology and multimedia integrated in teaching business education at the public high schools in the Northwest Arkansas region; and (b) develop an instructional model for teaching business education curriculum based on the instructional practices and applications of computer technology and multimedia.; To fulfill the research purposes, a survey questionnaire was developed. The survey was composed of 56 short items related to computer technology and multimedia applications and instructional practices and design. The survey was distributed to all available high school business education teachers in the Northwest Arkansas region. The total number of valid responses was 41 out of 61 teachers surveyed. The data collected were analyzed using percentages, mean, and the Chi-square static to test whether or not there was a significant difference in the proportions of how often the participants respond to each item in the survey.; The data analysis indicated that computer technology and multimedia integration is one approach that could be used to enhance business education teachers' instructional practices. The most common instructional applications of computer technology and multimedia in teaching business education were: word processing, retrieving information from the Internet and other electronic resources, desktop publishing, spreadsheets, asynchronized and synchronized communication, and content specific CD-ROM.; The business education instructional design process was found to be linear. The new learning and instructional paradigm needs a dynamic and nonlinear instructional design process in which teachers and students can share their vision and responsibility with each other. In the new instructional model, learning is model-driven. Learning occurs in an open learning environment, in which teachers are facilitating, scaffolding, and coaching their students while they are searching, emerging, sharing, and constructing their knowledge. Recommendations for further research are proposed. |
