Science notebooks can be a formative assessment tool for both teachers and students to determine: (1) prior knowledge and existing science ideas; (2) how conceptual understanding is being built; (3) procedural understanding; (4) mastery of curriculum goals; and (5) the ability to apply/transfer ideas to new context (Volkmann & Abell, 2003). Using…

Formal curriculum guidelines reflect prevailing understandings and political will, and help to shape the resources available for implemented curriculum. The understandings embodied in such public curriculum reinforce patterns of social violence and injustice, yet at the same time may provide diverse students with opportunities to develop…

For four years middle-level students and science teachers have participated in a two-week summer workshop outreach project collaboratively designed and implemented by School of Medicine and Department of Education faculty. The project's goals included improving the attitude of student participants toward the study of science; increasing…

English as a second language (ESL) programs in community colleges are as diverse in the models they follow as the students they serve. This volume provides a detailed look at how faculty and administrators are tailoring their ESL programs to best serve the needs of their students and the missions of their institutions. The authors of the thirteen…

The Pennsylvania Adult Literacy Practitioner Inquiry Network (PALPIN) project was conducted to establish statewide and regional inquiry groups to help adult literacy practitioners improve their performance by raising and investigating issues meaningful to their day-to-day practice. The conceptual framework underlying Philadelphia's Adult Literacy…

The impact of an inquiry approach on both teaching and learning in a technology-rich grade-1 classroom participating in the Cooperative Alliance for Gifted Education (CAGE) is described. CAGE is a partnership project that combines the resources of the Cleveland (Ohio) public schools, Kent State University, and International Business Machines Corp.…

New teaching methods and curricula that show promise in their ability to provide limited English proficient (LEP) students with a good education in both science and English are discussed and illustrated. Discriminatory practice has led to the clustering of LEP students into low ability tracks without consideration of their actual abilities and…

This survival guide helps elementary school teachers successfully manage their classrooms. Some of the techniques are also appropriate for middle and high school teachers, church school teachers, and preschool teachers. The 24 chapters focus on important classroom management issues, and each chapter includes quick tips for immediate use. A…

Group investigation is an organizational approach that allows a class to work actively and collaboratively in small groups and enables students to take an active role in determining their own learning goals and processes. As part of reform and restructuring efforts, Beaverton High School (Oregon) implemented the Group Investigation model with…

The history of philosophy is examined, and what the practice of philosophy may portend for the future of education is discussed. The traditional prohibition of philosophy being taught to children is much indebted to citations from Plato's "Republic." Plato thought that the dialectic would subvert and corrupt children. But just as…

This instructional manual is designed to accompany "Lisa," a philosophy reader for 7th, 8th, and 9th grade students (ED 137 215). The aim of the course is to encourage children to consider and reflect upon their moral values. Concerned with ethics, "Lisa" is an attempt to understand moral conduct. Emphasis is on having the students learn to think…

The paper discusses the theoretical basis of elementary social studies curriculum. Using a categorization tool developed by Eisner and Vallance, the author examines recent elementary school social studies literature in order to determine the underlying of curriculum philosophies. Five philosophical positions are revealed. The first, academic…

Emphasis in this third-grade component of a teacher-developed K-eighth grade program on crime resistance is on responsibility for personal behavior. Major objectives of the program are to help teachers promote and maintain positive student attitudes and behavior, assist students in meeting their responsibilities, and help students insure their own…

The intent of this curriculum guide is to help students learn how attitudes help determine values. The document is the fourth-grade component of a teacher-developed K-eighth grade crime prevention program. General objectives of the program are to promote and maintain positive student attitudes and behavior, to assist students in meeting their…

The intent of this curriculum guide is to help students understand the relationship between actions and values. The document is the fifth-grade component of a teacher-developed K-eighth grade crime prevention program. General objectives of the program are to promote and maintain positive student attitudes and behavior, to assist students in…