This study of social capital employs data from the Longitudinal Study of Adult Learning (LSAL), funded by the National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy (NCSALL) and conducted at Portland State University to increase understanding of the learning process of adults with limited formal education. It provides longitudinal data on…

This paper's charge is to lay out the central ideas about learning and teaching that run throughout contemporary educational discourse. It details nine concepts of learning, knowledge, and teaching that have formed the basis for recent education reform. Specifically, this report explores the nine concepts that emphasize "active construction of…

Research findings related to constructivism have been applied to development of the Equipped for the Future (EFF) Framework and Continuum of Performance, a multi-dimensional developmental description of performance serving as a foundation for EFF-based instruction and assessment of learner progress. Acquiring expertise is a complex developmental…

Adult mentors have proved to be important contributors to the academic and personal success of many students. This publication reviews the literature on mentoring programs for at-risk students and presents information on both the goals and challenges of mentoring programs. It also describes key elements of effective mentoring programs. It begins…

Analyzes responses to a questionnaire from 10 samples of primary and secondary school students from Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Malaysia, Beijing, Hong Kong, and Canada. The questionnaire covered learning strategies, approaches, and motivation. These data were then analyzed using six different structural equation models. Includes discussion of the models…

Outlines three basic learning modalities--auditory, visual, and tactile--and notes that technology can help incorporate multiple modalities within each lesson, to meet the needs of most students. Discusses the importance in multiple modality teaching of effectively assessing students. Presents visual, auditory and tactile activity suggestions.…

Discusses the use of new information technology in schools and reviews research on the psychology of learning and instruction. Highlights include a theory of expertise; individual differences in learning; the role of prior knowledge; social interaction and learning; transfer of cognitive skills; and designing computer-based learning environments.…

Describes activities of the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) in the United Kingdom related to ways that information technology may contribute to learning. Topics discussed include cognitive science; evaluation of changes in learning; language skills; learner-machine interface; policy and management issues; teacher education; computer…

Provides excerpts from videotaped dialogue between two third grade students and their interactions with their teacher while solving a counting problem to describe student thinking and communication during the task. Discusses the teachers' role in the dialogue and implications for classroom practice. (MDH)

The purpose of this study was to determine the extent of congruence between teachers' and undergraduate education majors' learning styles in selected colleges and if the style congruence was related to student perceptions of the classroom learning environment. A related purpose was to identify needed changes in classroom environments based on the…

Cognitive style is an important variable that can affect the educational process in several ways. This study, a continuation of previous research, considers two learning styles--field dependent (FD) and field independent (FI). FD learners are attuned to social interaction; they favor structure, teacher direction, and feedback; and they benefit…

The five essays in this volume address broad trends and issues in foreign language education. "Bandwagons Revisited: A Perspective on Movements in Foreign Language Education" (Frank M. Grittner) suggests that the bandwagons flourish because of lack of standardization and centralized authority in American education. Characteristics and results of…

This report summarizes a project in which a number of new approaches were taken to improve learning in undergraduate basic music instruction for music majors. The basic viewpoint proposed was that music activities can be seen as skilled problem solving in the areas of aural analysis, visual analysis, and understanding of compositional processes.…

This book is a collection of essays forming a mosaic of theory, research, and practice directed at the task of spreading mathematical knowledge based on the learning theory of constructivism. The authors collectively address questions raised by the observation that current practice frequently generate in the student an aversion to mathematics.…

This guidebook is based on research on the human brain and the way it processes information. It is noted that research on the learning process has studied the differing functions of the left and right hemispheres of the brain. This research supports the theory that students are inclined to learn through different modalities (tactual/kinesthetic,…