Reports a study describing children's learning about controlling variables in an environment where student autonomy is maximized and teacher controlled instruction is minimized. (SL)

This article represents the findings of a small-scale, classroom-based investigation of 11- and 12-year-old pupils working in self-directed groups. It shows how a more holistic understanding of group work can be achieved when teachers and pupils "think together" to explore the dynamic, ambiguous, and often provisional links that exist between…

Findings of a series of interviews with several professors and administrators in the Swedish school system; research partially supported by the Swedish Institute. (DD)

This book is an actual school year's work, written by three teaming, open classroom teachers in grades one, five, and six. It is designed for teachers of grades k-6 who are working right in the classroom with their students, for school administrators involved in curriculum development, and for parents expecting the best tangible results from an…

Discusses the major benefits that emerge for students and teachers when groups of six students discuss a book they are reading without teacher questions to structure and guide their interactions. Shows that books mixing narrative and exposition have the greatest potential to enhance student discussion. (SR)

This report describes the results of two surveys designed to gain information about conditions of implementation and extent of utilization of Individually Guided Motivation (IGM) in schools across the country. The objectives and motivational principles of the IGM system and the instructional programming model on which it is based are presented in…

Student team techniques, involving two conceptually distinct components--a cooperative reward structure, in which students are evaluated and rewarded based on the performance of the group as a whole, and a cooperative task structure, in which students are encouraged to peer tutor--have had positive effects compared to control methods on academic…

Authors summarize some simple, basic ways innovative teachers have sought to extend and unify learning environments for boys and girls in elementary schools. (Authors/CB)

To enliven her fourth-grade class on rainy days, the author grouped the students into five teams to study the Westward Movement in the United States. Each team became a wagon train, tracing a different pioneer route and marking their progress with group reports, research projects, and diaries. (SJL)

Analyzes the Human Sciences Program (HSP) in the light of some issues related to basic skills. These issues are: (1) HSP and the three Rs; (2) HSP and other basics; and (3) HSP and classroom discipline. (HM)

Elementary school physical education students plan and design their own games. Working in small groups, they write rules, measure playing areas, draw diagrams, and compile a game design book. Art, language arts, and mathematics teachers assist at various stages in the game design process. (PP)

To study the effects of structured cooperative learning environments on helping interactions and behaviors in the early, middle, and later primary school years, a study was conducted in 11 classrooms across 4 schools in suburban Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. Subjects were 172 children (56 in year 2, 68 in year 4, and 52 in year 6). Through…

This paper analyzes some of the educational assumptions that underlie the use of free-choice situations in the classroom and describes a study that examined the effects of giving students control over their curriculum. Subjects for the study were 38 fourth- and fifth-grade-students in a low-income school. Students were divided into two groups that…

Founded in 1975 as a magnet school, Isaac Dickson school adopted the Foxfire approach in 1992. Instead of a one-size-fits-all process, students participate in planning their own learning, and teachers serve as facilitators, ensuring that each learner has developmentally appropriate subject matter and resources. Test scores verify that this…

Findings of a study that examined the effects of teacher behavior and organizational factors on student behavior in peer work groups are presented in this paper. Methodology included observation of one classroom from each of 10 Dutch elementary schools that frequently used forms of peer work groups and teacher interviews. Findings indicate that…