Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of using a jigsaw learning strategy integrated with computer simulation (JLSICS) on the academic achievement and attitudes of students, along with exploring the relationships between them in the process of learning about acids and bases. Design/methodology/approach: The research…

In this article, we describe how literacy strategies can be adapted for playing (and reading) video games--games that embed disciplinary content in multimedia texts. Using close viewing and guided playing strategies with online games and simulations, we share ideas for helping students navigate and comprehend multimedia texts in order to learn…

This edited volume offers an insightful theoretical conceptualization of issues central to 21st century foreign language learning and teaching. Drawing on research results obtained in the fields of pedagogy, social psychology and sociology of education, this book provides a comprehensive practical exploration of issues experienced by researchers…

Students with high incidence disabilities (i.e., specific learning disabilities, emotional disturbance, intellectual disability, etc.) exhibit impairments in the areas of attention, memory, perception, processing linguistic information, and reasoning that affects their ability to learn. Hence, the ability to design and deliver explicit, enhanced…

What is on the five-year horizon for K-12 schools worldwide? Which trends and technologies will drive educational change? What are the challenges that we consider as solvable or difficult to overcome, and how can we strategize effective solutions? These questions and similar inquiries regarding technology adoption and transforming teaching and…

Providing learners with opportunities to engage in activities similar to those carried out by scientists was addressed in a web-based research simulation in genetics developed for high school biology students. The research simulation enables learners to apply their genetics knowledge while giving them an opportunity to participate in an authentic…

Involving two or more academic subjects, interdisciplinary studies aim to blend together broad perspectives, knowledge, skills, and epistemology in an educational setting. By focusing on topics or questions too broad for a single discipline to cover, these studies strive to draw connections between seemingly different fields. Cases on…

Suggests that the most effective way to motivate student enthusiasm and interest in the social studies classroom is through the use of educational simulations. Discusses the advantages and disadvantages of simulations, and presents three of the most effective commercial simulations available today. (DB)

In the spring of 2001, illegal drug use had risen by 40% among teens in the town of Springdale, Utopia. School administrators and the Springdale Police Department decided to implement a crackdown on teen drug use in all high schools in Springdale. A high school principal received a tip on a hotline that Jamie Davidson, a senior, had been seen…

Economics teachers at the secondary and postsecondary level are provided with an overview and general recommendations for effective use of games and simulations. Material is divided into two sections. In section 1, a description of card games, board games, activities, and puzzles is followed by a discussion of the advantages of each of these types…

This simulation allows students to learn about the struggle of daily life in Plymouth Colony. Students experience the hardships of life in the New World as they make decisions and face consequences as the Pilgrims did nearly 400 years ago. The unit is divided into nine phases with each phase taking approximately one hour of class time. Students…

Describes writing exercises that stimulate learning while not burdening the instructor. Discusses simulations in which students are asked to write a diary entry about the daily experiences of a 75-year-old, to formulate a marriage contract, and to write a letter to a friend describing the student's worst job experience. (KO)

This study discusses the effectiveness of the use of simulations in a social studies classroom. The purposes were to: (1) define a simulation; (2) discuss its origin and underlying educational philosophy that advocates its uses in the classroom; and (3) analyze the current literature available and answer some of the controversial questions posed…

Electing the U.S. President and Vice President is a basic right and responsibility of every citizen of voting age. Even though it occurs every 4 years, the complexities of electing the president is not a concept that every person understands. This resource book aims to fill the gap in understanding by providing students with a learning-by-doing…

This simulation allows students to experience the mystery of exploration and the hazards and perils of colonial life. Students are divided into 4- to 6-person colonizing groups. After acquiring some background information they then become colonists. They spend the remainder of the simulation making decisions, working, coping, surviving, and…