In this article, the author describes Penn High School's writing center, a technology-supported writing classroom which began in July 1994. The Penn writing center operates as a true "center"--a place for students and teachers, technology and talk, thinking and writing to come together. Every day, more than 200 students visit the writing…

Clear verbal communication is a key skill for the modern scientist. In this article we describe two model science courses, one given to a small class and the other to a large class, in which verbal communication is emphasized as a key learning objective. Both courses use a form of problem-based learning (PBL) with an end point that involves…

New Literacy Studies is the theoretical basis for this research, providing a social view of literacy. Recent work in New Literacy Studies has extended further the notion of literacy and demonstrated the ways in which people engage in practices in their everyday lives that do not always get translated into their studies. This article draws on…

The calls for the transformation of how science is taught (and what is taught) are numerous and show no sign of abating. Common amongst these calls is the need to shift from the traditional teaching and learning towards a model that represents the social constructivist epistemology. These calls have coincided with the Internet revolution. Through…

Engineering design graphics education has come a long way in the past two decades. The emergence of solid geometric modeling technology has become the focal point for the graphical development of engineering design ideas. The main attraction of this 3-D modeling approach is the downstream application of the data base to analysis and…

This paper describes the development and implementation of an after school program designed to introduce the Spanish language to children between the ages of 5 and 9. The program consists of 8 to 10 weekly units, each lasting 50 minutes, that provide students with basic vocabulary and grammar in an interesting and motivating format. Each unit…

This practicum project developed and implemented a program to teach young children reading readiness skills before they entered first grade. A target group of 20 students ranging in age from 4 to 6 years old in an elementary school kindergarten class was established for the program. During the 12-week implementation, the target group participated…

A self-paced introductory French course sequence offered at Francis Marion College (South Carolina) was begun in response to nontraditional students' difficult study schedules and varied language backgrounds and knowledge levels. This program of individualized instruction has objectives identical to that of standard French instruction at the same…

Designed for use by persons interested in simultaneously initiating a child-care and parent literacy instructional program, this handbook presents a model for the literacy education of families with young children. The handbook begins with definitions of family literacy and discusses the rationale and purpose of a family literacy program. Part 1…

Although high schools typically concentrate on preparing students to enter baccalaureate degree programs, it is estimated that by the year 2000 more than 70% of the jobs in America will not require a four-year college degree. The Tech Prep program is designed to provide technically oriented backgrounds to the middle fifty percent of high school…

The Oral and Written Communication (OWC) course at Ngee Ann Polytechnic was originally intended to equip students with occupational skills (e.g., report- and letter-writing, public speaking) but has expanded to be a course aimed at helping third-year mechanical engineering students to develop third-year project reports. This has been done through…

The purpose of this project was to implement the principles of Outcome-Based Education (OBE) in the "Fort McMurray (Alberta, Canada) Roman Catholic Separate School District (RCSSD) No. 32" and to collect data related to student achievement, responsibility, and attitudes in mathematics to help assess the effects of the implementation.…

Information on reading and study skills programs in four-year traditionally black institutions was collected. A 20-item questionnaire administered to 66 institutional representatives elicited information concerning: the status of current reading and study skills programs from an organizational viewpont; the emphasis placed upon student testing and…

This paper discusses the value and role of mass media education, defined as teaching about or by means of: (1) the press in all its forms, including daily papers, magazines, reviews, and strip cartoons for the young; (2) radio and television; (3) tape recordings; and (4) photographs (prints and slides), films, and records. It is noted that mass…

This profile describes "Teaching Reading Comprehension," a series of 14 30-minute video programs designed to expand K-8 reading teachers' understanding of the new view of reading as a constructive process and strategic behavior. Each video features at least one nationally recognized reading researcher and educator presenting the findings of his or…