The current trend in First Year Experience (FYE) courses is to add critical thinking through reading and writing. Research now suggests this design for a learning strategy based FYE course improves retention rates. This paper provides methods of incorporating critical thinking through reading and learning into the FYE course curriculum through a…

Describes a three-week summer theater program for middle and high school students. Discusses the reconstructing of Shakespeare's play "Hamlet" by students in the class from prior viewings of movie versions of the play and from students' past experiences with the play. Includes the play script as rewritten by the students. (CR)

Provides an empirically supported rationale for increasing student learning rates by improving the efficiency of learning trials. Describes several procedures that have been shown to improve learning rates without increasing the time allocated for instruction. Examines learning mechanisms that may be operating to improve student achievement. (RJM)

Argues that providing students with a repertoire of important learning strategies is one crucial way of helping all students to become independent readers, thinkers, and learners. Describes a third grade reading environment and the practices of the Students Achievement Independent Learning Program (SAIL). (PRA)

This paper begins by pointing out that approximately 15-20% of college students suffer from a fear of public speaking, and that a 1993 study of 369 students at Northern Kentucky University revealed high levels of speech apprehension (SA) at the beginning of the semester in the introductory speech course. The paper reports that although…

The use of the feature film "12 Angry Men" (1957) as an integrative review of social psychology is described. Students view the film, and then discuss the many aspects of social psychology represented in the interactions among the jurors. Discussion involves tying the movie examples back to social psychological research and theory as…

These appendices present the protocols used in research (reported in Volume 1) on the cognitive processes of students while learning from teaching. Curriculum outlines are given for the videotaped lessons used in the second and third studies: lessons in sleep and elementary psychology. Included in the appendices are: (1) the illustrative script…

Describes a partnership formed between Bentley College (Massachusetts) and General Mills to improve an undergraduate New Product Development course. Highlights include a team approach; the role of videoconferencing; developing a prototype product in the chemistry laboratory; feedback from General Mills; student reactions; and future possibilities.…

A study of college students revealed weaknesses in learning strategies and metacognitive skills. The students' experience using LOOPS simulation software to create program loops suggests that computer programming coursework may have substantial value for non-majors. (LRW)

Describes two studies carried out at the Open University (United Kingdom) that investigated students' perceptions of, and reactions to, a tutor's comments on written assignments based on the Kelly Construct Repertory Grid technique. Outlines two theoretical perspectives: schema theory within cognitive psychology, and social constructivist theory…

Examines the characteristics of school television programs used in British primary schools in light of attainment targets for the National Curriculum. Describes four case studies that investigated what made the programs a useful teaching and learning aid and how they influenced students' reactions and facilitated their learning from the programs.…

This article presents two statistical tasks, one on comparing data sets, another on repeated sampling, both of which have powerful connections to proportional reasoning. Students' work and reasoning on these tasks are included, as well as suggestions for ways to use these tasks with middle school students to connect statistical thinking to…

Discusses interviews of English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) students' conducted to assess their reactions to a tutorial project for improving cognitive performance in content courses through the use of talk and writing as learning tools. The study concludes that ESL learners should be given opportunities to use their own language resources to…

Discusses research on teacher thinking, noting the types of information available from a simple procedure for collecting pupil responses to lessons taught by student teachers. Pupil response patterns shift as student and cooperating teachers alternate instructional processes. Pupil responses to lessons allow prospective teachers to learn to think…

Describes self-regulatory processes that promote achievement in the basic skills of reading (clarifying purpose, understanding meanings, drawing inferences, looking for relationships, reformulating text) and mathematical problem solving (clarifying problem goals, understanding concepts, applying knowledge, monitoring progress). Experiences in…