Eleanor Duckworth's teaching techniques, based on Jean Piaget's learning theories and the Elementary Science Study, are applied to teaching deaf students. The method calls for painstaking explorations that enable pupils to be confident they really know something and are not just parroting facts. (JDD)

Discusses the importance the outdoor environment in early childhood development programs. Suggests development of special places for direct interaction with the natural world. Concludes with a redefinition of playgrounds by transforming outdoor areas of preschool programs into special learning places. (BAC)

Although logotherapy has been generally seen as a therapeutic technique, its usefulness in other areas cannot be underestimated. This paper examines museum education from a theoretical "logos" perspective and from a practical application of effective museum utilization for students. While museums will never replace schools in the formal…

Reveals how teachers can direct their students to experience history as a process through active questioning, searching for meaningful answers, and especially by tapping readily available and vivid resources in the immediate community. (NEC)

Research shows that hands-on science education is more effective than a textbook and lecture approach. This suggests that the "new curriculum" introduced in science classes in the seventies was more effective than was thought. (JM)

Pupils' natural questioning attitudes lead them to discovery in a learning center, in contrast to the lecture method, by which information is forced on students regardless of their interests. This paper describes learning experiences built around rocks. Materials placed in a rock center (rocks, stones, pebbles, magnifying glasses hammers, and…

This article describes "Math Their Way" techniques for experiential learning of math concepts by deaf children. Finding, comparing, and creating patterns are emphasized at conceptual, connecting, and symbolic levels. Graphing, counting, and measuring exercises are described, as well as ways to steer free time and exploratory learning toward math…

This ERIC digest synthesizes research findings relating active learning to student achievement, reviews the status of active learning practices in today's social studies classrooms, presents examples of active learning practices in specific areas of the social studies, and provides a list of suggestions and resources for integrating active…

This experiential education course was designed as part of an experimental program in education leading to a master's degree for teachers and administrators living in an isolated, rural area in Maine. Course outline, assignments, references, and lesson plans are provided. Elementary aspects of archaeology were used as the content from which to…

Asserts that children in science education must have hands-on experience to discover and make sense of their world. Emphasizes that there is a need for teachers who enjoy both language and science. Argues that children need to discover that they use science, like language, daily. (MM)

Problem-based learning (PBL) is an experiential form of learning centered around the collaborative investigation and resolution of "messy, real-world" problems. This book offers opportunities to learn about problem-based learning from the perspectives of teachers, students, parents, administrators, and curriculum developers. Chapter 1 tells…

Describes a model of inservice education that is consistent with current view of language and learning, is capable of uncovering teachers' current beliefs about the nature of learning and the translation of those beliefs into practices, and has the potential for promoting and building alternative perspectives. (HOD)

Defining moments are situations that ask us to step forward in irreversible courses of action that shape our personal or professional identities. These moments of truth happen quickly and reveal something new about ourselves that had been hidden or only partially known. In a process known as "edgework," experiential educators and…

Prepared for use with the Research for Better Schools experience-based career education model, this handbook is designed to assist school personnel to formulate concrete and flexible responses to the challenges of developing exploration programs in collaboration with personnel from community resource sites. The handbook is divided into five…

When studying nature and its wonders, children need to be the explorers, the innovators, and the teachers. The adult assumes the role of a facilitator, an observer, and a mediator. If the adult in a given situation is simultaneously and genuinely exploring the area (not just observing children acting upon it), then a bridge may be started to the…