Providing teacher background on the concepts of productivity and capital goods, this document presents 3 teaching units about these ideas for different grade levels. The grade K-2 unit, "How Do They Do It?," is designed to provide students with an understanding of how physical capital goods add to productivity. Activities include a field trip to…

This document includes an introduction to the role of government in the production of public goods and services and 3 brief teaching units. The introduction describes the nature of a mixed economy and points out why most people identify the production of goods and services with private enterprise rather than government. It develops a rationale for…

A problem solving procedure known as the Tab Item was used with 21 undergraduate education majors who minored in reading to give the students an opportunity to apply their knowledge in a nonthreatening environment. The problem solving activity centered on a hypothetical fourth grade teaching position that opened at midyear. The students were told…

A sequence of action-oriented games and initiatives is provided in this guide for group therapy leaders who wish to employ activities to promote trust, problem solving, and cohesion among group members. Introductory material discusses the objectives of action-oriented therapy, the adaptation of traditionally outdoor activities to indoor settings,…

Secondary school teachers can benefit from teacher centers that use an experiential approach. Experiential learning involves the immersion of the teacher in experiences that necessitate the use of new skills. A new approach to a problem leads teachers to examine both old and new skills and their professional attitudes, practices, and beliefs. This…

TORTIS (Toddler's Own Recursive Turtle Interpreter System) is a device which can be used to study or nurture the cognitive development of preschool children. The device consists of a "turtle" which the child can control by use of buttons on a control panel. The "turtle" can be made to move in prescribed directions, to take a…

This study describes how the lesson plans of preservice teachers differed from the inductive learning cycle planning model, and relates these differences to persistent naive conceptions about effective science pedagogy held by preservice teachers. Strategies based on the science misconceptions literature that methods instructors can use to…

Moving problem-centered, experiential programs into the mainstream of graduate and professional education will require more formal mechanisms for leadership. Students of graduate education programs that infuse the disciplinary study of academe with the applied perspective of professional practice gain broader contact with the problems of the…

Describes the development of product design engineering, a successful student-centered interdisciplinary elective that blends critical thinking with curriculum integration, authentic assessment, practical problem solving, and hands-on engagement in a Virginia high school. The goal is to analyze the meaning of engineering as a profession and…

Discusses the concept of cooperative learning and its application to library and information skills. Topics include Bloom's Taxonomy of Instructional Objectives; interpersonal skills; circles of learning; meaningful-use tasks, including decision making and problem solving; and suggestions for cooperative activities for library information…

There is evidence to suggest that mature students learn particularly effectively in a problem-solving environment, and that they appear to be especially responsive to analogies and metaphors. Three examples are given of domains where the student has to convert a formulation into an equivalent diagram. Arguably, the process of performing this…

Recounts the implementation of Problem-Based Learning (PBL) in a cooperative learning environment by a teacher in a technical- and professional-related discipline. States that PBL frees students from restrictions and forces the instructor to release control of the learning process. Sample worksheets appended. (Contains 11 references.) (AUTH/NB)

An English-as-second-language teacher feels that everyone has creativity and imagination, and the teacher's role is to nurture those qualities. Drawing on the Foxfire core practices, she acknowledges and reinforces those moments when learners reveal their own unique insights into learning, and she facilitates exploratory and innovative thinking…

Describes an inquiry-based scooter activity in which students learn the mathematical concepts of measurement and proportionality and the science concepts of force, motion, velocity, and acceleration while using their problem solving skills. Explains strengths and weaknesses of the activity and includes suggestions for assessment. (YDS)