Developing innovative science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) curricula that elicit student excitement for learning is a continuous challenge for K-12 STEM teachers. Generating these lessons while meeting conflicting pedagogical objectives and constraints of time, content, and cost from various parties is truly a challenging task…

This study aims to explore how the naturalist approach can be used to improve learning. 60 novice teachers were encouraged to provide a question on a topic in education that interested them. The data analysis was based on a qualitative methodology using ATLAS.ti 5.0. The findings indicated that most of the questions could be accounted for by a…

Presents the 1999 winners of the Foxfire Exemplary Classrooms Awards. The winners were diverse in grade level, urban and rural settings, years of experience with the Foxfire core practices, and ideas about how to implement the Foxfire approach. Activities and experiences from each winning classroom are highlighted. Criteria for winning an award…

Moving active learning forward calls for a focus on learners' actorship, not program activities, and requires distinguishing between active learning and active teaching. Experiential education offers an alternative to didactic approaches, not a more attractive form of it. Accepting traditional principles and procedures of…

Recollections of a small childhood neighborhood suggest that the theory and research on integrating curriculum and community can be implemented by sharing curriculum mandates or standards with students. Once they know what they need to learn, students can draw on shared experience to identify places and people in the community where they might…

The realization that students' and teachers' collaborative efforts are more creative, innovative, and academically challenging than traditional teacher-controlled instruction is the underlying premise behind these awards given by the Foxfire Fund. Describes the learner-centered experiences of seven award-winning classrooms from around the United…

A rural British Columbia K-12 school facing closure due to declining population implemented intentional learning, student-directed learning, and learning groups as core units for developing communities of learners. A computer-managed learning system and online scheduling enables delivery of a full range of courses despite decreases in teaching…

Examines ongoing shifts in education/learning related to technological change and students' growing technological literacy. Discusses shifts toward hypermedia learning, constructivism and discovery, learner-centered education, navigation of information sources and information synthesis, lifelong learning, customized learning, learning as fun, and…

Because new information-age learning models incorporate experiential education theories and practices, integration of information technology is an opportunity to integrate experiential methods. Scenarios are presented for integrating technology into experiential curricula. Problems include cost, training, lack of quality software, and…

Maslow's (1971) theory of primary creativeness is used as the basis for a self-actualization model of education. Examples of how to use the model in creative homeschooling are provided. Key elements include digressive and immersion learning, self-directed learning, and the integration of work and play. Teaching suggestions are provided. (Contains…

Problem-based learning (PBL) is a teaching technique that educates by presenting students with a situation that leads to a problem for them to solve. Rather than finding a single correct answer, students interpret the question, gather additional information, create possible solutions, evaluate options, and present conclusions. This book shows…

Foxfire awards were presented to a professor of education who helped found a Foxfire-affiliated teacher network and develop new courses, and four elementary-secondary teachers who implemented Foxfire classroom approaches that included learning centers; student tutoring; individual folder work; student-researched stories of family, community, and…