Presents a conceptual framework for building an intelligent documentation system (IDS) for computer software by integrating hypermedia and expert systems technologies. The need for online computer documentation for end-users is discussed, and elements of the synergetic model are described, including knowledge representation, the hypermedia…

Raises questions regarding what students are perceiving when concrete models are used to represent abstract scientific concepts. Discussion of several exploratory investigations on the role of models in science teaching is presented in three areas: (1) interactions with students; (2) effectiveness of models; and (3) spatial ability and models.…

Focuses on political and bureaucratic factors that retard the reform of U.S. economic development policy. Several models for economic development are examined, as are the policy preferences among them. A typology is presented of different development policies integrating the various political, bureaucratic, and environmental factors. (GLR)

Some examples of the conflict between the child-centered educational approach and the development of objectives-based programs are drawn from experiences in Ontario (Canada) concerning student achievement assessment. Educational implications of these two conflicting models are considered, highlighting weaknesses of the child-centered approach.…

Outlines the principles and components of the "Classroom Community," a model used in an urban high school for students with emotional and behavioral problems. The model employs a shared-responsibility approach to facilitating the development of self-discipline and social responsibility. (MKA)

Reviews four perspectives that education and school reform writings fall into: technological, psychological, ideological, and sociological. Provides suggestions and recommendations to educators wishing to launch school reform initiatives grounded in the template of the perspectives. (AEF)

Considers an action-based approach to the development of teaching skills in higher education through peer observation and collaborative reflection. The central features of a three-phase process model are described and explored, and the preliminary results of a pilot scheme at the University of Bradford (United Kingdom) are reported. (Author/LRW)

Acknowledges that early-childhood education is a global practice and examines underlying images of the child. Questions the adequacy of current research to encompass global childhoods, how child development is conceptualized within early-childhood work, and children's status within early-education research and practice. Notes a current paradigm…

Investigates how the design, creation, and revision of animated models that tell a science story can assist young bilingual children in science learning. Findings show that the animated software provided students with access to a world that is normally unavailable in real time; they were also able to manipulate science concepts and connect…

Examines the possibility that parent-child relationships contain horizontal qualities paralleling comparable qualities in child-peer relationships. Argues that these qualities allow children to experience and practice horizontal skills later used with peers. Focuses on reciprocity and shared power, especially in parent-child play and control…

Evaluates Science Education in Pacific Schools (SEPS), a project addressing science-education deficiencies in 12 small Pacific Island countries. The assessment revealed inadequate, outdated, and unattractive science teaching resources in some countries; badly sequenced and duplicative curriculum projects across the region; and lack of teacher…

Describes statewide professional development programs in Michigan that were developed to train teachers in technology use. Discusses Teach for Tomorrow, which combines online learning with local facilitators and peer support networks; and the Great Lakes Education Network Best Practices project, which combines lesson plans from the Web with…

Librarians at Harvard University have written the most comprehensive guide to selecting research collections for digitization. This article applies the Harvard Model to a digitization project at Indiana University in order to evaluate the appropriateness of the model for use at another institution and to adapt the model to local needs. (Contains 7…

Tested model relating girls' pubertal timing to mothers' history of psychopathology, mediated by family discord and father absence/stepfather presence. Found that mothers' history of mood disorders predicted earlier daughters' puberty, with the relation fully mediated by dyadic stress and biological father absence. Stepfather presence best…

Reviews the research and theory supporting the potential utility of measures of nonverbal social communication skills (such as joint attention) for young children with autism. Examples relate these types of measures to current issues, including the "recovery hypothesis," the "pivotal skill hypothesis," and the relative effectiveness of discrete…