Educational games have become the lightning rod for learning and preparing a future skilled workforce. Both the people, who argue against and for games agree that learning is possible, but what is learned is another issue. However, the claims about games for learning lacks substantial research and for the most part remains merely philosophical…

As the field of sociolinguistics has emerged, its terminology, which like many other emerging disciplines contains many neologisms and new usages, has sometimes been called insensitive. This reaction may interfere with serious examination of the field's content. Areas of disagreement or dispute include terms used for the speech of black…

This paper argues that during the past two decades, research on teaching effectiveness can be identified with three differing paradigms: (1) the technical/"scientific"; (2) the humanistic; and (3) the person-centered paradigms. It is further proposed that if teaching is viewed as an art or craft and learning as an ever present process,…

The arguments for and against Thomas Kuhn's paradigmatic thesis are presented in this paper as a means of discussing the appropriateness of Kuhn's thesis to the emerging composition discipline. Section one of the paper introduces the topic, noting how the term paradigm is used in composition to define a system of widely shared values, beliefs, and…

The paper asserts that learning disabilities is a "cherished ailment" in that so little is definitively known about the condition or about effective treatment, and further, that school systems and practitioners benefit from the large numbers of students diagnosed as LD. It is suggested that the traditional view of LD precludes alternative…

To assess whether gains in vocabulary and comprehension would result from the use of the cloze procedure as a teaching technique, 222 students in 12 fourth-grade classrooms were randomly assigned to one of four groups: a control group and groups that were taught with cloze deletion patterns involving deletion of every tenth word, deletion of…

Environmental education is mandatory in the New South Wales, Australian curriculum and yet the research to date shows that while some teachers include environmental education in their programs, many do not. It is argued in this paper that the problems in environmental education require research for their solution. This paper intends to make a…

The research related to laboratory work in science instruction is reviewed in this position paper. The history of the laboratory is outlined from its roots in the nineteenth century, and the goals of the laboratory are enumerated from a review of the literature. Research findings are critically analyzed regarding the effectiveness of laboratory…

The communicative approach to second language instruction has gained disproportionate publicity in the language teaching profession through the Communicative Teaching Project in Bangalore, India. Because of a series of articles and books and presentations at conferences advertising the project's alleged innovativeness and effectiveness, it has…

Previous research on class size has serious limitations because factors such as the abilities of pupils or the experience and teaching style of teachers were not controlled, and because of inconsistent criteria for large and small classes and for criteria of success. A major two-year study was mounted with four class sizes, random assignment of…

Problems involved in providing practical research experience in research methods courses are discussed. The two points in the research process where time is most critical are selecting measures and data collection. This paper suggests using a data base from previous research and having students conduct simulated studies based on randomly selected…

A review of computer assisted instruction research and recent meta-analytical reports suggests that all research on the learning benefits of the instructional uses of computers should be halted until there is a plausible reason to expect that computers are instrumental in learning, since all existing evidence indicates that computers do not yield…

Noting that research examining the SQ3R study strategy has raised more questions than it has answered, this paper presents a review of such research, taken from the ERIC database, "Psych Abstracts," and "Dissertation Abstracts." The paper divides the studies by educational level: elementary, junior and senior high school, and…

Some of the problems in research on aptitude treatment interactions (ATIs), are discussed. Among these problems are the inconsistency and lack of generality to many ATI findings, especially in classroom-based ATI investigations. It is suggested that such investigations may be of limited generality due to the nature of the phenomena. The importance…

This paper questions both what was being tested in prior instructional media research on the educational value of film and television and the value of some of those findings. An alternative way of conceptualizing the communication process that occurs when students view an instructional film or television program is proposed, which places viewers…