Kappan's editor talks with Tracey Tokuhama-Espinosa, a leader in the international movement to translate findings from neuroscience into usable knowledge for educators. Topics include neuromyths (common, but erroneous, beliefs about how the brain works), the current scientific consensus about how people learn, and the contributions that the…

When Trudy Knowles needed a change in her elementary curriculum class, she decided to teach her students to juggle. Her excuse was that juggling would impress their future students, but she soon realized that learning a skill like juggling can give teachers a better understanding of how students feel when they learn something new. Here, she shares…

What can educators do to help students care about their learning and become more invested in their own success? Chase Nordengren describes how a school district created a goal-setting culture in all classrooms at all grade levels. The district began with a complex, research-based, prescriptive program that teachers found did not work well with…

Ruby Payne refutes allegations that her work is built on "stereotyping" and negative depictions of poverty. Instead, she says her work is built on a theory of cognitive determinism, that is, a belief that everyone has a mind and educators are able to develop every mind if they understand learning styles for children of poverty.

There are some who believe that getting rid of the testing required by No Child Left Behind (NCLB) will solve current educational problems. In this article, the authors argue that, with or without NCLB, both students and teachers need spaces of liberty for meaningful learning. Teachers need spaces in which they can negotiate the curriculum in…

In their respect for tradition, educatiors have failed to learn how to face crises realistically, to analyze them for deeper underlying factors which past generations have overlooked. This article deals with such overlooked learning factors. (Author)

John Bruer previously stated that "brain science has little to offer educational practice or policy" and urged attention to cognitive science. In conjunction with knowledge from other sources, neuroscience findings are yielding additional insights into the learning process. Educators should know about findings on enrichment, constructivism, and…

A declaration of independence of the machines, the packages, and the systems that rob teachers and students alike of their humanity. (Author)

Students in various curricular domains, including science, mathematics, and social studies, may be superficially exposed to vast amounts of material resulting from overstuffed textbooks and an overemphasis on elaboration, interference, and practice. Some elaborations provided by teachers and textbooks may hinder the realization of key educational…

Changes in the social setting of the 1970's could eliminate the need for a special curriculum for the disadvantaged child, with the exception of preschool programs. A more critical need appears to be improved teaching methods capable of rewarding and improving the self-image of disadvantaged children. (JH)

Based on recent critiques of Soviet and American textbooks, this article discusses educators' differing assumptions concerning what students should learn, who should decide what they learn, how students learn, how geography and history curriculum should be organized, and how much choice teachers should have. Includes eight references. (MLH)

A developmentally appropriate curriculum can never be standardized in a multicultural community. Thoughtful teachers can use child development principles to make the new context of school meaningful, to attach new kinds of learning to what children have already achieved, and to safeguard children's growing self-image and self-confidence as their…

True educational reform will come about only when we replace the reigning psychometric educational psychology with a developmentally appropriate one. The developmental approach is superior regarding its conception of the learner, the learning process, the information to be acquired, and educational goals. Includes 14 references. (MLH)

Educators can improve children's thinking skills through the following five steps: (1) identifying and defining the desirable thinking skills, (2) identifying the components of these skills, (3) providing systematic skills instruction, (4) integrating the teaching of thinking skills with various content areas, and (5) improving skills testing.…