Findings from prior research are drawn together to create a learning model for elementary school mathematics in the cognitive-constructivist tradition. A potential teaching/learning process consistent with the model was developed and applied in a longitudinal collaborative arrangement between university personnel and a local elementary school…

Three learning modules are described and investigated as they reflect different students' conceptions of and approaches to learning. The Schoolwork Module (SWM) focuses on task performance and involves a passive, incremental, piecemeal, and rote memory method of learning, parallel to what might be implied by the Information Processing model of…

This study examined whether the inquiry-based problem solving model supports sustained exploration of a multimedia database. This model contains five steps: (1) analyze the discrepant event from which a problem question is generated; (2) generate questions; (3) gather data; (4) analyze information; and (5) evaluate self. A group of 24 seventh…

Strategic leadership is perhaps the area where undergraduate students have the least experience. Therefore, a focus on developing these skills is critical for college-level leadership educators. Teaching strategic leadership requires that educators design programs that make explicit, direct, and formal links between theory and practical…

This report describes the first of three stages in a study in the domain of problem solving: the definition and explication of schema knowledge. One objective of this research is to understand how schema knowledge is acquired and used in the chosen domain. The focus is on ways in which instruction influences the development of specific knowledge…

Construct validity of a prototype baccalaureate generic problem solving skills test was explored through a structural analysis. The assessment method used three real-life problem situations crossed by six generic skills, namely Decision-Making, Communication, Analysis, Synthesis, Valuing and Execution. There were six written responses for each…

This training guide and reference manual helps educational leaders learn to be facilitators in the program called "Improving the Human Environment of Schools" (IHES), a participative problem-solving method designed to improve a school's "quality of life." An introductory chapter reviews the history of IHES and outlines IHES…

Several empirical and theoretical analyses related to scientific problem-solving are reviewed, including: detailed studies of individuals at different levels of expertise, and computer models simulating some aspects of human information processing during problem solving. Analysis of these studies has revealed many facets about the nature of the…

The design and results of a program evaluation of the Department Chairpersons Project in Florida are examined. The objective of the 1982 project was to design and test a model for planned change in higher education using Florida's university chairs. After presenting the history of the project, the following major project goals are described:…

This monograph presents 13 papers dealing with various aspects of elementary problem solving. They are: (1) "Training for Effective Problem Solving" (Gary A. Davis); (2) "Patterns of Problem Solving--A Campus-Wide Course at UCLA" (Moshe F. Rubinstein, L. Robin Keller, Edward A. Kazmarek); (3) "A Taxonomy of Problem-Solving Activities and Its…

The Program of Research and Evaluation for Public Schools (PREPS) is a consortium of public school districts in Mississippi working with the Bureau of Educational Research and Evaluation in the College of Education at Mississippi State University. PREPS is designed to provide data to local decision makers and aid them in problem identification.…

The use of Bayesian decision theory to solve problems in test-based decision making is discussed. Four basic decision problems are distinguished: (1) selection; (2) mastery; (3) placement; and (4) classification, the situation where each treatment has its own criterion. Each type of decision can be identified as a specific configuration of one or…

The first report of an ongoing case study examining the impact of using a laboratory of microcomputers as a tool for teaching science and social science courses in a high school, this paper reports on a sociological investigation of the organizational change in the structure and functioning of the school brought about by the introduction of the…

The history of divergent-thinking tests suggests that new approaches to creativity testing are needed. Research has focused on the relation of creativity to insight, divergent problem solving, problem finding, and intelligence. A proposed situational model of creativity defines creativity as a meaningful response to open-problem, open-solution…

The papers presented in these proceedings are organized into seven categories: (1) number and number operations (13 papers); (2) spatial representation and geometrical understanding (10 papers); (3) developing and/or using models of mathematical learning (15 papers); (4) mathematical concept formation (17 papers); (5) the mathematical learning…