Niche-based success in CAL

In reflecting on which pieces of computer-assisted learning (CAL) stand out as strikingly successful, this paper argues that there are no generalizations about what features of technology or software type makes a piece of CAL successful, but that on the contrary the most definite successes seem to come from a close fit between a piece of courseware and its situation of use that is specific to that niche. These are usually cases where a teacher analysed what was particularly weak in an existing situation and thought of how technology could be used to address that bottleneck. Often the technology is not particularly innovative, but it is a close match to the needs of that niche. This paper develops this argument by reference to a number of pieces of software which have little in common with each other, but all of which have proved to promote learning powerfully. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.