Central in this study is the degree to which the pedagogical-didactical approach in undergraduate programmes aligns with the pedagogical-didactical approach in secondary schools, and how this is related to first-year achievement. Approaches to teaching at secondary schools and in first-year university programmes were examined by interviewing…

This article provides a cultural-historical (CHAT) analysis of the practices used by an effective teacher of Latino/a children previously classified as "underachieving" and "beginning/novice" English Language Learners. Although the teacher would not describe her practices in strict CHAT, or sociocultural theory (SCT) terms, our analysis shows that…

This study at a large midwestern university evaluated the use of a web-based simulated classroom, simSchool, with pre-service and in-service special education students, to determine if use of the simulated classroom influences students' perceptions of inclusion and teacher preparation. The project used a nonequivalent comparison group,…

This study aims to investigate the effects of the computer-based instruction on the achievements and problem solving skills of the science and technology students. This is a study based on the pre-test/post-test control group design. The participants of the study consist of 52 students; 26 in the experimental group, 26 in the control group. The…

Computer-assisted learning, in the form of simulation-based training, is heavily focused upon by the military. Because computer-based learning offers highly portable, reusable, and cost-efficient training options, the military has dedicated significant resources to the investigation of instructional strategies that improve learning efficiency…

Augmented reality (AR) provides huge opportunities for online teaching in science and engineering, as these disciplines place emphasis on practical training and unsuited to completely nonclassroom training. This paper proposes a new concept in virtual and remote laboratories: the augmented remote laboratory (ARL). ARL is being tested in the first…

Although technology-mediated learning has its advantages, it does not come without operational tradeoffs. Thus, consideration of the effectiveness of new modes of teacher preparation in comparison to traditional, longstanding, research-proven methods is necessary. In this study, we evaluated one large southern urban university's implementation of…

In this paper I evaluate the effect of student aid on the success of academic studies. I focus on two dimensions, the duration of study and the probability of actually graduating with a degree. To determine the impact of financial student aid, I estimate a discrete-time duration model allowing for competing risks to account for different exit…

The literature on teaching and learning heralds the benefits of discussion for student learner outcomes, especially its ability to improve students' critical thinking skills. Yet, few studies compare the effects of different types of face-to-face discussions on learners. Using student surveys, we analyze the benefits of small-group and large-class…

This article describes the use of fractal simulations of African design in a high school computing class. Fractal patterns--repetitions of shape at multiple scales--are a common feature in many aspects of African design. In African architecture we often see circular houses grouped in circular complexes, or rectangular houses in rectangular…

This paper examines online versus face-to-face organizational structure and pedagogy in terms of education and the teaching and learning process. The author distinguishes several important terms related to distance/online/e-learning, virtual learning and brick-and-mortar learning interactions and concepts such as asynchronous and synchronous…

In a multilingual context, this study investigates the role on mathematics achievement of the provision of instruction in the home language. It compares characteristics of 5048 Grade 6 learners in 275 Namibian schools. The outcome variable is the standardized SACMEQ mathematics score collected in year 2000. Hierarchical linear modeling is used to…

This study focuses on teachers' perception of what works for them in managing students with emotional and behavioral difficulties (EBD). The main purpose is to compare the current findings in mainstream schools with the study that was conducted in special schools in 2006-2007 to see if there are any discrepancies of approaches implemented by…

I. Analyzing and comparing student-generated inscriptions in chemistry is crucial to gaining insight into students' understanding about chemistry concepts. Thus, we developed two methods of analyzing student-generated inscriptions: features analysis and thematic analysis. We have also demonstrated how these methods are able to discern differences…

Zentall and Singer (2007a) hypothesized that our failure to replicate the work-ethic effect in pigeons (Vasconcelos, Urcuioli, & Lionello-DeNolf, 2007) was due to insufficient overtraining following acquisition of the high- and low-effort discriminations. We tested this hypothesis using the original work-ethic procedure (Experiment 1) and one…