Active learning has been shown to improve student learning and engagement in many 4-year institutions; however, large-scale studies on the efficacy of active learning in community colleges are lacking. In this study, we investigate the effects of active learning in a first semester majors' general biology course at a large, suburban community…

To explore factors that may inform teaching and learning in STEM education, we investigate individual and situational factors influencing students' cooperative versus competitive responses in a classroom, extra-credit problem social dilemma in core biology and engineering courses. We were curious how our competitive academic environment coupled…

This study investigates whether differences in learning styles exist between students in online and face-to-face (FTF) sections of political science courses taught by three instructors. Some studies suggest that student preferences regarding online or FTF formats are influenced by their preferred modes of learning. Independent learners, for…

This article discusses two multidisciplinary courses created at the Colorado School of Mines that were developed to integrate ethics into the first-year engineering curriculum: "Nature and Human Values" (NHV) and "Innovation and Discovery in Engineering, Arts, and Sciences" (IDEAS). In both NHV and IDEAS, our objectives are to…

Recognizing the limitations of traditional research assignments, the two authors of this article--one a librarian and one a historian--set out to redesign a history capstone seminar to focus on the research process as much as on the research product: tipping the iceberg to look at what is underneath. The article begins with a brief overview of the…

A Colorado district develops a two-year program that gives teacher teams an opportunity to learn how to use digital tools in the classroom. Called the Digital Learning Collaborative, it is built on three things about professional learning: (1) Learning takes time; (2) Learning is a social process; and (3) Learning about technology should be…

The Colorado Statewide Systemic Initiative for Mathematics and Science, funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF), has organized norms and tools for an Exemplary Teaching Practice project. This document identifies the norms of exemplary practice and provides an instrument that allows educators to develop a vision of how exemplary teaching…

The purpose of this study was to examine the nature of teacher learning in a cohort-based, master's degree program in curriculum and pedagogy that was intentionally designed to be responsive to teachers' personal needs and preferences. The program aimed to: (1) provide teachers with the confidence to connect what they do in their classrooms to…

The Indicators of Quality Schools is a series of checklists of schoolwide practices or conditions found in schools known to have an effective instructional program. The instrument is designed to help schools identify areas of strength and areas where improvement is needed. The instrument consists of three parts: (1) the environment for learning,…

THIS REPORT IS A DOCUMENTATION OF THE EFFORTS OF THE STAFF OF THE ASPEN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, ASPEN, COLORADO, TO INDIVIDUALIZE THE INSTRUCTIONAL PROGRAM IN GRADES K-6. INVOLVED IN THIS WERE APPROXIMATELY 450 STUDENTS AND A STAFF OF 13 TEACHERS. THE INDIVIDUALIZATION OF INSTRUCTION WAS ACCOMPLISHED THROUGH THE MODIFICATION OF THE TEACHING-LEARNING…

This standards review is the first in a series of annual reviews of the Colorado Model Content Standards. Its purpose is to identify student performance over time on measures of exiting mathematics standards, identify ways to affirm and strengthen standards and more clearly articulate the practices used by Colorado schools to promote student…

This conference provided a forum for presenting research findings to educators and other audiences interested in marketing education. The following papers were presented: "Turnover of Marketing Education Teacher-Coordinators in Secondary Programs" (Allen); "An Empirical Investigation of Marketing Education Completers"…