In an experiment, students doing preclinical work in the clinic did not perform significantly better on practical examinations than students working in a typical laboratory environment. Other factors such as enthusiasm, motivation, satisfaction, operator comfort, and long-term productivity should be examined. (Author/MSE)

A program of seminars designed to explore student perceptions of the emotional and psychological aspects of physician-patient interactions, part of a clinical diagnosis course, used graduate medical students to act as patients in videotaped interviews, interview evaluations, and lectures and demonstrations on interpersonal communication skills.…

Describes a study which used a graduate-level business game to examine consequences of objectively determined fit between managers' specialized competence and their functional roles in terms of individual and group performance. The game simulates a work environment of top-level management in industrial firms with responsibility for making…

Discusses the assessment center approach to employee selection and describes its background, history and use, methodology (including simulation and observation), and possible applications, including its use in a professional certification program for instructional/training designers. (MBR)

Study of the social psychology of juries used innovative methodology high in experimental and mundane realism to make participants (48 Anglo and 48 Chicano college students) believe they were on juries (6-person, both sexes, multi-ethnic) whose decisions would affect defendants. Results highlighted importance of ethnic factors in jury research.…

This paper examines the forces behind political integration through the lens of school district consolidations, which reduced the number of school districts in the United States from around 130,000 in 1930 to under 15,000 at present. Despite this large observed decline, many districts resisted consolidation before ultimately merging and others…

This simulation exercise requires participants to practice critical thinking, problem solving, and negotiating skills as they role play real-life conflicts concerning working conditions in a factory in Guatemala City, Guatemala. Participants also learn about Guatemala's history, its social, economic, and political status as of April 1994. Based on…

This report documents the technology initiatives of the Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards, and Student Testing (CRESST) in two broad areas: (1) using technology to improve the quality, utility, and feasibility of existing measures; and (2) using technology to design and develop new assessments and measurement approaches available…

This simulation allows students to learn about and participate in many of the aspects of ancient Greek life that have influenced present institutions and way of life. The phases of the unit include: (1) academy; (2) assembly; (3) Acropolis; (4) Theater; (5) Olympics; (6) Symposium; (7) Festival; and (8) Panhellenic Quiz Bowl. Each stage of play…

This simulation allows students to learn about the lands and customs of the people living in the countries found along the western rim of the Pacific Ocean. The class is divided into eight teams. The phases of the unit include: (1) research; (2) activities; (3) race; and (4) summing up and festival. Each stage of play involves completion of tasks…

This text asks students to analyze the mix of interests and values that have drawn the U.S. into the Middle East. High school students are to consider the principles and assumptions driving the expanded presence of the U.S. into the Middle East. Part 1 surveys the history of U.S. involvement in the Middle East up to the Persian Gulf War. Part 2…

This lesson plan imagines the student as part of a delegation to a special meeting of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)-sponsored Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council being held in Brussels, Belgium, where the topic of discussion is a proposal by several NATO members to invite independent republics of the former Soviet Union to become…

In this lesson plan, students role play members of the Cabinet of the President of the United States. Cabinet members must define and defend their highest priority programs for the coming fiscal year. Students must identify a pressing current issue before their particular Cabinet department and prepare an action plan, with possible alternative…

The Water in Africa Project was realized over a 2-year period by a team of Peace Corps volunteers, World Wise Schools (WWS) classroom teachers, and WWS staff members. As part of an expanded, detailed design, resources were collected from over 90 volunteers serving in African countries, photos and stories were prepared, and standards-based learning…

This CD-ROM provides interactive, multimedia software that enables students to investigate many aspects of Native American and European encounters in the Mississippi Valley through study of original historical sources, including texts, maps, artworks, and archaeological finds. The Lower Mississippi Valley was chosen as the study area because of…