Strengthening Learning Progression (LP) for students' reasoning abilities is important, especially learning about diseases in Indonesia. This study aimed to map the learning progression of disease in Indonesia, compare and analyze its similarities and differences with the LP designed by National Research Council (NRC). This qualitative research to…

Opinions about whether comments, grades, or both are the most effective forms of feedback vary widely among teachers, school leaders, and even grading and assessment consultants. Thomas Guskey maintains that the truth is not as clear-cut as some suggest. He reviews the research, going back to the 1950s, to better understand when certain types of…

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…

Learning progression research has the capability to connect thinking in the education sciences and geography. Learning progressions provide a map of the various pathways that students take to master a topic. The aim of this paper is to illustrate significant conceptual ties between learning progressions and disciplinary geography. Two construct…

Exciting developments for New Zealand education have provided opportunities recently for teachers and other educators to express their professional aspirations in assessment. The mantle of fostering teachers' professionalism through strong relationships across the education sector and relevant stakeholder groups, and the provision of timely…

Using the participants-oriented approach, this study evaluated public schools' out-of-school time academic support programs, corresponding to the corrective/enrichment stage of Bloom's Mastery Learning Model and offered outside formal education's weekday hours and on weekends. Study participants included 50 principals, 110 teachers, 170 students…

The Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) is one of the world's leading educational research centres. Since it was established in 1930, ACER has built a strong reputation as a provider of reliable support and expertise to education policymakers and professional practitioners. Each year, ACER is involved in a large number of research…

Scientists, science teachers, and serious students recognize that success in science classes requires consistent practice--including study at home. Whether balancing chemical equations, calculating angular momentum, or memorizing the steps of cell division, students must review material repeatedly to fully understand new ideas--and must practice…

Dispels some discouraging myths about authentic learning's context, mastery, originality, entertainment value, and task complexity. The main point is to let students encounter and master situations that resemble real life, which has its tedious and unengaging moments. Educators should work toward more (rather than complete) authenticity, exploit…

Learning is not a spectator sport but requires active learners who integrate new experiences into existing cognitive structures. Principals can help students develop self-responsibility by initiating discussions on this topic, identifying and sharing multiple learning resources for student use, and modeling uses of assignments based on mastery…

In this interview with Executive Editor Ron Brandt, Bloom answers criticisms of mastery learning and explains why he believes it is so important. (Author/JM)

Reviews recent research that can inform educational practice. Includes the influence of high school students' epistemological beliefs on academic performance; effects of cooperative and mastery learning on students' ability to generate higher-level questions; effects of knowledge maps on undergraduate learning; and comparison of learning by…

This paper presents a new European teaching model based on ideas and methods of Socrates, Jean Piaget, and Lev S. Vygotsky. The starting point for this new model was the use of Socrates' dialectical method in teaching 906 primary and secondary school students the reduplication of a square. Results of this exercise were compared with Piaget's and…

Two questions are addressed: (1) What are the motivational characteristics of a child who is most likely to achieve in school at an optimal level? and (2) What kind of educational environment fosters these characteristics? Evidence suggesting that external rewards and punishment can have negative long-term effects on achievement motivation is…

The inservice programs in this publication demonstrate varied approaches to staff development. The programs range from districtwide efforts with a particular topic, such as thinking skills, to the creation of teacher centers and highly individualized growth plans such as a voucher system. The programs demonstrate a commitment by the district to…