The Charleston County School District's efforts to increase the percentage of students meeting high school graduation requirements at the appropriate age and the percentage of students who graduate within 6 years of entry into grade 9 require a well-designed plan for monitoring their success. Evaluation of those efforts depends upon the use of…

Discusses a variety of ways that teachers at all levels are using databases in their classrooms, how students respond to working with databases, the relationship of databases to inquiry learning, and how databases can be integrated into the curriculum. (RS)

Exposes erroneous ideas related to the use of databases for teaching thinking skills. Reviews the importance of databases for teaching social studies; describes the teacher's role in helping students use databases; discusses effective teaching strategies; and outlines what is needed to teach thinking skills. (Author/LS)

Presented is a class activity that uses the database feature of the Appleworks program to create a database from which students may study endangered species. The use of a local zoo as a base of information about the animals is suggested. Procedures and follow-up activities are included. (CW)

Describes the work of four Wyoming high school students who created a CD-ROM collection of Oregon Trail documents for use by fourth graders. The students reviewed 60 boxes of diaries, government documents, prints, and artifacts, becoming historians themselves as they created the electronic database. Includes photographs and illustrations. (MJP)