Over the last three decades, many studies have been conducted to identify students' preconceptions on various science topics. It is time now for a synthetic study of preconceptions to enhance our understanding of students' everyday cognition and to benefit our effort in developing effective instructional inventions for conceptual change. Through a…

Male perpetrated sexual aggression has long been recognized as a serious problem on college campuses. The purpose of this multiple regression correlation study was to assess the relationship between levels of moral development (measured by the Defining Issues Test) and the degree to which first-year college men (N = 161) ascribed to rape…

In this case study, we are able to take a close look at a situation not often encountered in the literature on ICTs in emerging economies: a private company from an emerging economy provided much-needed funding for a US NASA higher learning consortium through a contract for training and research and development in 3D visualization. This study…

Explores how some of the work in the history and philosophy of science might develop a more adequate understanding of students' untutored ideas. Describes how students' views can be interpreted. Explains and discusses the merits of commonsense-scientific theory analogy. (YP)

When interviewed, 105 third-grade students indicated that they did not view retardation as a set of behaviors, but as a trait, defined abstractly and perceived to be both predetermined and largely irreversible through personal effort. Children did not assume that being retarded excluded being pretty, athletic, or smart. (Author/JDD)

Guidelines for managing the child with diabetes in educational settings address the nature of diabetes, attitudes of students with diabetes, common misconceptions, effects on students in the classroom, helpful strategies, and resources. (DB)

Students come to the classroom with theories that they have actively constructed from their everyday experiences. However, some of these theories are incomplete half-truths. Although such misconceptions interfere with new learning, students are often emotionally and intellectually attached to them. Some common mathematical misconceptions involve:…

Discusses how student errors can be utilized to understand the nature of the conceptions that underlie students' mathematical activity. Looks at why errors are made in mathematics, how teachers and students perceive errors, and how to use errors in the classroom. (MDH)

It can be inferred from the corpus of misconception research that an assumption that students come into secondary and college classes with a relatively homogeneous view of the world has been made. This paper takes the position that this assumption keeps researchers from a more comprehensive understanding of the factors that lead to science…

Discusses the use of feedback from students and the analysis of students' error patterns to understand why students develop misconceptions in mathematics. Looks at learning vis-a-vis the abstract nature of mathematics and the students' cognitive development. (MDH)

A range of alternative approaches to student work in science is presented. The approaches are illustrated by examples of students' work including cartoons, cards, poems, and posters. A number of audiences other than the teacher is identified as a potential focus for students' written work. (KR)

To make elementary science students grasp the scientific concepts being taught, teachers must not ignore their preconceived ideas. Instead, teachers must identify misconceptions then help the students test them. The article presents a step-by-step approach that can serve as a model for teaching any science concept. (SM)

The purpose of this study was to discover what teachers believe about problem solving in mathematics and to what extent their beliefs are reflected in the beliefs of students. Ten 5th-grade teachers in a large rural school district volunteered to participate. Each teacher identified one student perceived as successful and one perceived as…

Presents contributions by six mathematics teachers responding to the question: "How has the history of mathematics mattered to me in my mathematics teaching?" Answers touch the topics of how and why, how benefits are accrued, use of original texts, integration into core curriculum courses, and pitfalls of history. (MDH)

Maintains that misperceptions or incorrect mental images about relative location and size are common in geography. Reports on a study of 708 students ranging in age from junior high school through undergraduate school. Finds that misperceptions are widespread and exist across grade levels. (CFR)