Wynn, Mosholder, & Larsen (2014, 2016) studied the effect of problem-based learning (PBL) on the development of postformal thinking (PFT) skills among first-year learning community (LC) students and attributed the significant PFT gains, in part, to the metacognitive reflection component of their PBL method, recommending it as a way to…

"The Lost History of Western Civilization" is a wide-ranging consideration of the academy's role in producing America's contemporary political and cultural divisions. The report traces the ways in which the 1988 controversy over the teaching of Western Civilization at Stanford set the pattern for today's "Cold Civil War." The…

Suggests that teachers of required history courses have a particularly challenging task in their first class meeting because of the captive nature of their audience. Proposes using the technique of providing humorous information and intriguing anecdotes to stimulate student interest. Provides a list of such items for teacher use. (KO)

Oral history has not been widely used in required high school history courses. Time, money, transcribing interviews, lack of teaching manuals, and the difficulties in evaluating students were cited as problems associated with using oral history as an instructional tool. Yet oral history projects do not have to be major productions to be…