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With the advent of new English textbooks, course book evaluation has become an indispensable ingredient in all English Language Teaching (ELT) contexts. Thus, the present study aimed to contribute to this area in the Iranian context by evaluating newly published junior high school (13 to 15 years old) course books (the Prospect series) and examining their weaknesses and strengths from students' points of view. In so doing, this study employed Litz's (2005) questionnaire to examine 417 junior high school students' perspectives. Also, nine students took part in follow-up interviews to elaborate their perspectives about the strengths and weaknesses of the textbooks. The results of the questionnaire showed that students believed that this series requires some modifications regarding the design and layout, authenticity in activities, diversity of registers and accents, variety of subjects and content, and cultural presentation. In addition, the students asserted in the interviews that there are some other problems with the textbooks in terms of the selected topics, accessibility and quality of the multimedia materials, organization of the content, and the learning goals that are set. Iranian EFL instruction relies on the Prospect series, and all Iranian junior high school students are taught using these books. The improvements suggested by the students in this study can facilitate development of English course books to better support learners' goals in the future.

Textbooks are one of the primary sources for students to obtain knowledge, so they should present accurate knowledge through textual and visual representations. The goal of the current study is to examine the representations in middle school science textbooks based on the diagram coding scheme to find out a general picture of how representations used in the science textbooks over the fifteen years. The sample consists of 6247 representations from twelve middle school science textbooks (four each of sixth, seventh, and eighth grades) from 2002 to 2017. Content analysis was used to analyze the representations in textbooks, which were gathered by document analysis. The representations were evaluated concerning the combination of two main diagram coding schemes. Findings showed that iconic representations are prevalent in middle school science textbooks. There are limited charts, graphs and augmented reality representations in the science textbooks. Furthermore, there are more male representations than female ones, representations are mostly indexed in the main texts, and captions are mainly problematic in middle school science textbooks. The findings based on the two diagrams coding scheme are mainly coherent with each other. Science textbooks should encourage students to interpret and translate between different representations to enable them accurate knowledge.

Images, such as photographs and diagrams, play an important role in the teaching and learning of science. To optimize student learning, educational science images should be designed to facilitate the cognitive processes relevant to comprehension. One such process is comparison, which involves aligning multiple representations on the basis of their common relational structure. This structural alignment process can be facilitated by cognitive supports that are inherent to an image, including its spatial layout. Yet, little is known about the extent to which students must engage in comparison to learn from science images, and whether widely-used educational materials are conducive to structural alignment. To address these issues, we sampled multiple chapters from each of three popular U.S. middle school life science textbooks. We coded each image for the presence of prompts for comparison using cues within the images and surrounding text. For each image that prompted comparison, we coded whether its layout facilitated relevant structural alignment ("direct" placement of matched pairs) or obscured alignment ("impeded" placement). Overall, we found that comparisons were prompted for more than a third of the images. However, fewer than half of the images that required comparison had a spatial layout that provided strong support for comparison--that is, direct placement of matched objects/parts. We propose that, in concert with other cognitive supports for learning from multiple representations, spatial supports for comparison could be applied broadly to increase the effectiveness of educational science images. [For the corresponding grantee submission, see ED622772.]

Developing English reading fluency (ERF) is challenging due to cross-linguistic differences between L1 and L2. This study replicated, with modifications, prior study of "syntactic enhancement and secondary school EFL Students' reading fluency in South Korea." The current project investigated the impact of visual-syntactic text formatting (VSTF) on developing ERF components (i.e., parsing skills, reading speed, and comprehension) in an Iranian context. In order to reformat block-formatted English text in a way to be more concise, the VSTF technology was used. For 20 weeks, two experimental groups (76 intermediate EFL students) read reformatted passages, whereas the control group (n = 38) read their block-formatted textbook. After analyzing the pre-and post-test results, it was demonstrated that reformatted texts could support EFL students to enhance their ERF elements. The researchers also found that VSTF can be used as a syntactic enhancement, making it simpler for EFL learners to receive English syntactic information as input. Findings have led to the reasonable interpretation that learning L2 reading fluency components (RFC) was more productive when the VSTF technology was utilized for the learning processes.

The aim of this study is to evaluate the "Traveller" textbook series from teachers' perspectives. Areas of evaluation are the textbooks' activities, skills, and appropriateness. The study implemented a mixed-methods approach using two instruments: content analysis, and questionnaire. The data collection of the content is carried out by analyzing the content of the six textbooks, from "Traveller 1" to "Traveller 6"; the questionnaire themes were used for the content analysis. 94 teachers responded the questionnaire. The results show that textbook is effective according to the layout, accessibility, activities and skills but teachers hold mixed perspectives regarding its appropriateness. Moreover, results revealed that there might be an association between the teachers' attitudes and the teachers' training and class size.

This study aimed at evaluating EFL textbook for secondary stage in Saudi Public schools. Participants consisted of (100) male teachers and (73) female teachers teaching secondary stage students in two cities: Madinah and Dowadmi. The tool of the study designed to cover five dimensions: layout and design, the objectives of the textbook, teaching methods and activities, language skills, and evaluation. The results revealed that EFL textbook for Saudi secondary schools needs more development to be more effective in learning and teaching EFL. Clarity of the textbook objectives was one of teachers' negative comments about the current textbook especially female teachers who disagreed that the objectives were treated effectively in the current course. The content of the textbook is not helpful in applying teaching theories and practices. In addition, the content of the textbook has no helpful tests or procedures to evaluate the achievement of the students effectively.

Dyslexia is one of the most common developmental disabilities; it is a disorder manifested by difficulty in learning to read despite conventional instruction, adequate intelligence, and sociocultural opportunity. The current study focuses on the potential benefits of the use of information and communication technology (ICT) to support children with dyslexia in reading. This paper addresses the need for dyslexia-friendly online text by introducing a dyslexia-friendly font for Arabic scripts called Arabolexia. An important question is asked which is 'Is Arabolexia font an effective reading aid for children with dyslexia?' In this work, the author presents the first study that measures the impact of a dyslexia-friendly font for Arabic scripts on reading performance of native Arabic speakers. Fifty-two students aging between 8 and 26 years old were participated in this study. Descriptive and deductive statistical analysis showed that Arabolexia font has an impact on the reading accuracy of children with dyslexia.

Implementation of ICT in the educational process has allowed us especially in the last decade to fully develop cognitive and psychomotor skills of students. A typical example is the use of multimedia, through which the learner gradually formed and developed their skills in the area of sensory perception. The paper is focused on one of the modern tools of education geography for interactive textbook for grammar (high) schools. The new generation of interactive IRS systems allows not only listen to audio files of the book, but the book also communicate with the computer. This function can be used in on-line teaching process, where the teacher receives immediate feedback regarding the work of students in class. The new generation of interactive textbooks it can perform the function of the voting equipment. Talking books as exercise books are intended primarily for testing and practicing curriculum.

This study aims to investigate the acceptance of ICT teachers pertaining to the use of Scratch as an Algorithm Visualization (AV) software in terms of perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness. An embedded mixed method research design was used in the study, in which qualitative data were embedded in quantitative ones and used to explain the results. The data were collected from 214 pre-service ICT teachers studying in four large public universities. Data was gathered through a questionnaire adapted from David's Technology Acceptance Survey (1989) and through open-ended questions. T-test and Pearson correlation, as well as descriptive statistics, were used to analyze quantitative data and constant analysis techniques were used to analyze qualitative data. Both kinds of data were mixed and are presented in the results section. The results show that pre-service ICT teachers mainly have positive and similar Scratch acceptance scores in terms of usefulness and ease of use. The factors explaining participants' perceived usefulness are identified as visual interface (37%), pedagogy (36%), and computational thinking (27%). The majority of the participants also found Scratch to be easy to use. Pre-service ICT teachers explained that what makes AV software easy to use is color separation (40%), drag and drop (30%), and familiar interface (30%). Additionally, no significant difference between the acceptance scores of the participants was found in terms of gender, years of programming experience, programming background, and the high school they graduated from as indicators of programming experience. Results congruent with previous studies regarding Scratch were found by the current study.

With the advent of numerous newly-published English course books, textbook evaluation has turned into a very critical area in English Language Teaching (ELT). This paper aims to evaluate the English textbooks being taught in Iranian Junior high school ("Prospect" series). In so doing, an evaluation questionnaire was distributed among 27 female and 42 male junior high school teachers. Having collected the survey data, in order to obtain a richer understanding of teachers' opinions, follow-up interviews were conducted with 11 teachers. The results indicate that although "Prospect" series can be considered a breakthrough in comparison to the previous English textbooks, they suffer from some critical shortcomings in terms of activities, methodology, topics, design, and insufficiency of teaching hours. Overall, the findings suggested that the textbooks fell short of Iranian teachers' expectations and need critical improvements to reach their bests. Results of the present study have implications both for English material developers and curriculum planners.

The purpose of this study was to shed light on the cognitive processes underlying the expertise reversal effect related to multimedia signaling. Multimedia signals highlight correspondences between text and pictures, which is supposed to support text-picture integration and thus learning from multimedia. Previous research suggests that learners' prior knowledge moderates the multimedia signaling effect in that they only aid learners with low prior knowledge (LPK). We conducted an eye tracking study with students in secondary education who learned with a digital textbook in one of the two versions: (a) a basic version with mostly text signals only (e.g., bold face), or (b) an extended version with additional multimedia signals that aimed at supporting text-picture integration (e.g., color coding of corresponding text and picture elements). In addition to learning outcomes, we assessed students' cognitive load and gaze behavior as process measures. Results revealed that only LPK learners were supported in learning whereas HPK learners were not affected by multimedia signals (partial expertise reversal). A moderated mediation analysis revealed that multimedia signals affected gaze behavior of LPK students in that they looked earlier at pictures. For high prior knowledge students multimedia signals lead to a higher subjective germane cognitive load. Thus, multimedia signals affected processing of materials. However, the process measures did not explain the expertise reversal of the signaling effect regarding learning outcome.

Computer animation in the past decade has become one of the most noticeable features of technology-based learning environments. By its definition, it refers to simulated motion pictures showing movement of drawn objects, and is often defined as the art in movement. Its educational application known as educational computer animation is considered to be one of the most elegant ways for preparing materials for teaching, and its importance in assisting learners to process, understand and remember information efficiently has vastly grown since the advent of powerful graphics-oriented computers era. Based on theories and facts of psychology, colour science, computer animation, geometric modelling and technical aesthetics, this study intends to establish an inter-disciplinary area of research towards a greater educational effectiveness. With today's high educational demands as well as the lack of time provided for certain courses, classical educational methods have shown deficiencies in keeping up with the drastic changes observed in the digital era. Generally speaking, without taking into account various significant factors as, for instance, gender, age, level of interest and memory level, educational animations may turn out to be insufficient for learners or fail to meet their needs. Though, we have noticed that the applications of animation for education have been given only inadequate attention, and students' personality types of temperaments (sanguine, choleric, melancholic, phlegmatic, etc.) have never been taken into account. We suggest there is an interesting relationship here, and propose essential factors in creating educational animations based on students' personality types. Particularly, we study how information in computer animation may be presented in a more preferable way based on font types and their families, colours and colour schemes, emphasizing texts, shapes of characters designed by planar quadratic Bernstein-Bézier curves. The study has found out that both choleric-melancholic and phlegmatic-sanguine gained the lowest and the highest percentages in selection of different colour groups as cool, warm, and achromatic. We have experimentally confirmed the theory of Nabiyev & Ziatdinov (2014) which reports that planar quadratic Bernstein-Bézier curves with monotonic curvature function may be not aesthetic. Finally, based on the survey results, we have clarified how school students understand the fundamental principles of computer animation. We look forward that this study is likely to have wide benefits in the field of education. Developing educational materials with the aid of obtained empirical results, while considering the personality types of students' temperament, seems to be a promising avenue to improve, enrich and deepen the learning process in order to achieve its maximum effectiveness.

Video viewing can be a valuable resource to expose students to large quantities of input so they can improve their vocabulary and content comprehension. Most studies so far have used short clips and have not explored in much detail the effects of individual differences (IDs) such as aptitude, listening skills and vocabulary size. This paper aims to address this gap by exposing 57 Grade-10 EFL learners and 60 university students to captioned video. On a weekly basis over an academic term, all learners were pre-taught a set of target words (TWs); half of them (the experimental group) were additionally shown captioned episodes from a TV series containing the TWs. All learners were pre- and post-tested on the TW forms and meanings. Results revealed significant differences between experimental and control groups in the learning of TWs in the high school population, but not among university participants. A main effect for proficiency was observed on the learning scores for both TW forms and meanings. However, language aptitude was only a significant factor for TW meanings. Results are discussed regarding how video viewing and these IDs mediate vocabulary learning.

This study aims at exploring the potential of extensive TV viewing for L2 vocabulary learning, and the effects associated with the language of the on-screen text (L1 or L2), type of instruction (pre-teaching target items or not) and learners' proficiency. A total of 106 secondary school students (Grade 8) divided into 4 classes participated in a one-year pedagogical intervention, viewing 24 episodes of a TV series under four experimental conditions with each class being assigned to a different treatment: (1) captions and pre-teaching, (2) captions and non-pre-teaching, (3) subtitles and pre-teaching, and (4) subtitles and non-pre-teaching. Following a pre-/post-test design, form recall and meaning recall gains were examined. Results showed that participants learnt vocabulary in all four conditions, with greater gains in recalling form than in recalling form and meaning. The analysis also showed that, overall, groups that were pre-taught the target items performed better, independently of the language of the on-screen text. An important finding is the role of learners' proficiency prior to the intervention, with higher proficiency related to higher gains. The study contributes to the area of foreign language learning through audio-visual input with results from a longitudinal, classroom-based study with adolescent learners.

Despite the effects of new technologies, textbooks will certainly continue to play an important role in the process of language teaching and learning. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the English textbook which is taught in Iranian first grade high schools. For this purpose, the weaknesses and strengths of the English textbook are explained using 13 criteria which have been drawn on various checklists. The study was carried out at four schools of Tabriz, Iran. The data were obtained from a total of 126 language students, both female and male. It was collected through a questionnaire with 34 close-ended questions which were related to the seven sections of the book including the layout or physical make-up, vocabulary, topics and content, grammar points and exercises, language skills, pronunciation practice, language function, and social and cultural activities. Quantitative data were analyzed via SPSS. Meanwhile, qualitative data which were obtained through interviews with teachers and students were analyzed interpretatively. The results show that this book cannot meet the Iranian students' and teachers' needs and wants. It can be concluded that the English book 1 is grammar-based. So, the writers of the book had better modify it by employing more communicative tasks in order to motivation both teachers and students.

This article explores the emergence of multimodality as intrinsic to the learning, teaching and assessment of English in the Twenty-First Century. With subject traditions tied to the study of language, literature and media, multimodal texts and new technologies are now accorded overdue recognition in English curriculum documents in several countries, though assessment tends to remain largely print-centric. Until assessment modes and practices align with the nature of multimodal text production, their value as sites for inquiry in classroom practice will not be assured. The article takes up the question: What is involved in assessing the multimodal texts that students create? In exploring this question, we first consider central concepts of multimodality and what is involved in "working multimodally" to create a multimodal text. Here, "transmodal operation" and "staged multimodality" are considered as central concepts to "working multimodally". Further, we suggest that these concepts challenge current understandings of the purposes of, and possibilities for, assessment of multimodal text production. (Contains 4 figures and 6 footnotes.)

A large body of research has drawn attention to the importance of providing engaging learning experiences in junior secondary science classes, in an attempt to attract more students into post-compulsory science courses. The reality of time and resource constraints, and the high proportion of non-specialist science teachers teaching science, has resulted in an overreliance on more transmissive pedagogical tools, such as textbooks. This study sought to evaluate the usage of junior secondary science textbooks in Australian schools. Data were collected via surveys from 486 schools teaching junior secondary (years 7-10), representing all Australian states and territories. Results indicated that most Australian schools use a science textbook in the junior secondary years, and textbooks are used in the majority of science lessons. The most highly cited reason influencing choice of textbook was layout/colour/illustrations, and electronic technologies were found to be the dominant curricula material utilised, in addition to textbooks, in junior secondary science classes. Interestingly, the majority of respondents expressed high levels of satisfaction with their textbooks, although many were keen to stress the subsidiary role of textbooks in the classroom, emphasising the textbook was 'one' component of their teaching repertoire. Importantly, respondents were also keen to stress the benefits of textbooks in supporting substitute teachers, beginning teachers, and non-specialist science teachers; in addition to facilitating continuity of programming and staff support in schools with high staff turnover. Implications from this study highlight the need for high quality textbooks to support teaching and learning in Australian junior secondary science classes.

This study analyses the use of audio description in teaching physics concepts, aiming to determine the variables that influence the understanding of the concept. One education resource was audio described. For make the audio description the screen was freezing. The video with and without audio description should be presented to students, so that the potential of each video could be tested. The sequence of presentation of the videos was alternated to ensure better analysis. The proposal was tested in three moments: first with a group of 14 people who were blind or had low vision. In a second step, the video with audio description was tested with a group of adult education that had a student with low vision included. The third time, the video was used with students of the second year of high school; none of the students of this stage had visual impairment. The results show that audio description made in times when the screen is frozen can be a solution to make audio description of videos ready. [Paper presented at the Inclusive and Supportive Education IV Conference Congresso Internacional da Pró-Inclusão (8th, Lisbon, Portugal, July 26-29, 2016).]

The usability of interactive whiteboards vs. computers was evaluated on three dimensions (visibility, legibility and comprehension) in the secondary school pupils. The visibility assessment consisted in detecting a visual stimulus varying in luminance using a staircase procedure, legibility was assessed with a target-search task, and we administered narrative and explanatory texts with or without illustrations to evaluate comprehension. The results of the visibility test showed that pupils found the light signal easier to detect on the IWB. For the legibility test, we observed differences in error rates and discriminability according to medium, font size and congruence between target and the distractor letters. Performances in the comprehension test were similar for both explanatory and narrative texts. Moreover, the presence of illustrations does not improve comprehension. These results could be related to the hierarchical structure of the texts, which facilitate comprehension.

The use of modern technologies has been widely prevalent among language learners, and video, in particular, as a valuable learning tool provides learners with comprehensible input. The present study investigated the effect of silent and freeze-frame viewing techniques of video materials on the intermediate English as a foreign language (EFL) learners' listening comprehension. To this end, 45 intermediate EFL learners participated in this quasi-experimental study. The results of one-way ANOVA revealed that there was a statistically significant difference between the experimental groups (using two types of viewing techniques) and the control group. While the difference between the two experimental groups was not statistically significant, the experimental groups outperformed the control group significantly.

When students read their school text, they may make a coherent mental representation of it that contains coherence relations between the text segments. The construction of such a representation is a prerequisite for learning from texts. This article focuses on the influence of connectives ("therefore," "furthermore") and layout (continuous placement of sentences vs. each sentence beginning a new line) on the dynamics of the reading process as well as the quality of students' mental representation. The results shed light on the cognitive reading processes of students in secondary education, which allows us to explain effects of text features on off-line comprehension measures. Our eye-tracking data emphasize the importance of connectives: Connectives speed up students' processing, especially when texts have a continuous layout. In contrast, students' processing slows when they read texts with a discontinuous layout. Our data also show a correlation between reading times and scores on bridging inference tasks: Students who read faster have higher comprehension scores. These findings indicate that explicit texts with a continuous layout place fewer processing demands on students' working memory.

The commercial media is an influential sociocultural force and transmitter of health information especially for adolescents. Instruction in critical media health literacy, a combination of concepts from critical health literacy and critical media literacy, is a potentially effective means of raising adolescents' awareness about commercial media and its influence on their health. We first provide background on critical media health literacy for adolescents. We then discuss the potential for involving adolescents in creating multimedia to demonstrate basic principles of critical media health literacy skills. Using excerpts from two of our research projects to illustrate our ideas, we draw conclusions and suggest future research in critical media health literacy for adolescents.

This paper explores the possibilities for pedagogy inherent in the reading practices which emerged from an extra-curricular graphic novel reading group set up in a Scottish secondary school. The research is presented within the framework of the new literacy studies and its focus on "practices" and "events" but, more specifically, it uses the framework developed by researchers working on the Literacies for Learning in Further Education Project conducted recently in the United Kingdom. This framework allows a more detailed exploration of "events" by unpacking the fine-grained aspects that compose a literacy practice. This paper aims to identify, trace and analyse the aspects of the emerging new practice of this reading group. While the framework it employs is based on an opposition between curricular and non-curricular practices, the data presented in this paper derives from an extra-curricular activity uniquely positioned inside the school but outside of the official curriculum. By focusing on notions of identity and process in particular, the paper presents a critique of the ways in which literacy practices which take place outside of the classroom have been undervalued or ignored by educational policy and practice.

Graphic novels offer an exciting new medium across the curriculum, but classroom research must be done. Anecdotal evidence is a start, but reform requires thoughtful study. Teachers are in the best place to do this research, as they have ready access, currency, and credibility. Teacher research on graphic novels, indeed all new media, is also needed for teacher professionalism in the Knowledge Society.

Previous research has shown that presenting educational materials in slightly harder to read fonts than is typical engenders deeper processing. This leads to better retention and subsequent recall of information. Before this extremely simple-to-implement and cost-effective adaptation can be made routinely to educational materials, it needs to be shown to benefit all students, or at the very least not to hinder any particular group. The authors found that students across the ability spectrum demonstrate a significant improvement in retention and recall when presented with information in a disfluent font. Significantly, those students with dyslexia are also found to greatly benefit. (Contains 1 table and 1 figure.)

This study aims to explore the impact of different captions on second language (L2) learning in a computer-assisted multimedia context. A quasi-experimental design was adopted, and a total of thirty-two eighth graders selected from a junior high school joined the study. They were systematically assigned into four groups based on their proficiency in English; these groups were shown animations with English narration and one of the following types of caption: no captions (M1), Chinese captions (M2), English captions (M3), and Chinese plus English captions (M4). A multimedia English learning program was conducted; the learning content involved two scientific articles presented on a computer. To track the learning process, data on oral repetition were collected after each sentence or scene was played. A post-test evaluation and a semi-structured interview were conducted immediately after viewing. The results show that the effect of different captions in multimedia L2 learning with respect to vocabulary acquisition and reading comprehension depend on students' L2 proficiency. With English and Chinese + English captions, learners with low proficiency performed better in learning English relative to those who did not have such captions. Students relied on graphics and animation as an important tool for understanding English sentences.

Literacy educators might advocate using graphic novels to develop students' visual literacy skills, but teachers who lack a vocabulary for engaging in close analysis of visual texts may be reluctant to teach them. Recognizing this, teacher educators should equip preservice teachers with a vocabulary for analyzing visual texts. This article foregrounds three analytic concepts preservice teachers can use to examine the role issues of design play in eliciting their response to images--specifically, those in graphic novels. To demonstrate how the concepts function, the author applies them to his own reading of panels excerpted from a critically acclaimed graphic novel for adolescents. (Contains 6 figures.)

Every so often, a technology will saturate the market to the extent that the name of the product becomes a stand-in for the technology itself. While it belongs to the broader genre of slideware, Microsoft PowerPoint is perhaps the best example of software that has achieved that level of ubiquity. Despite Apple's Keynote, the Presentation Editor within Google Docs, Zoho Show, and others, the visual display of sequential slides (most typically during an oral presentation) has become synonymous with PowerPoint. Although it has achieved this level of popularity, PowerPoint is also considered by many to be synonymous with mind-numbing boredom, painful expository bullet points, and the overexposure of the Microsoft clip art library. That is, PowerPoint may be used widely, but it is just as widely disparaged, and often used only begrudgingly. In this article, the authors argue that when used in dynamic, inventive ways, slideware can become an integral and productive part of pedagogical and technological repertoires. They believe it is time to set aside one's mistrust and disdain for software like PowerPoint and consider carefully how it might aid in the teaching of writing. Using the presentation format Pecha Kucha as a model, the authors offer productive reasons and ways to reconfigure the role of slideware in the composing process. Slideware design and delivery can play a creative and inventive role in students' making of writing. (Contains 5 notes.)

Expanded captions are designed to enhance the educational value by linking unfamiliar words to one of three types of information: vocabulary definitions, labeled illustrations, or concept maps. This study investigated the effects of expanded captions versus standard captions on the comprehension of educational video materials on DVD by secondary students who are deaf or hard of hearing. Participants were assigned randomly to two groups, with each group experiencing both conditions in counterbalanced order. Scores from pretests and posttests of vocabulary and informational content revealed no statistically significant differences between the two conditions. The findings are discussed in light of student preferences for expanded captions and screen-capture data that revealed low access levels for the expanded material.

Frequently writing is now no longer the central mode of representation in learning materials--textbooks, Web-based resources, teacher-produced materials. Still (as well as moving) images are increasingly prominent as carriers of meaning. Uses and forms of writing have undergone profound changes over the last decades, which calls for a social, pedagogical, and semiotic explanation. Two trends mark that history. The digital media, rather than the (text) book, are more and more the site of appearance and distribution of learning resources, and writing is being displaced by image as the central mode for representation. This poses sharp questions about present and future roles and forms of writing. For text, "design" and "principles of composition" move into the foreground. Here we sketch a social semiotic account that aims to elucidate such principles and permits consideration of their epistemological as well as social/pedagogic significance. Linking representation with social factors, we put forward terms to explore two issues: the principles underlying the design of multimodal ensembles and the potential epistemological and pedagogic effects of multimodal designs. Our investigation is set within a research project with a corpus of learning resources for secondary school in Science, Mathematics, and English from the 1930s, the 1980s, and from the first decade of the 21st century, as well as digitally represented and online learning resources from the year 2000 onward. (Contains 9 figures.)

This article seeks to provide an introduction to Extensible Markup Language (XML) by looking at its use in a single source publishing approach to the provision of teaching resources in both hardcopy and online. Using the development of the International Baccalaureate Organisation's online Economics Subject Guide as a practical example, this discussion reflects on some of the key technological and educational strengths and limitations of using XML for this kind of approach. (Contains 2 figures and 8 notes.)