Over the past decade calls for reform in higher education have emphasized that education should become less instructor centered with students taking a more active role in their learning. Moreover, there is increasing pressure on university professors to implement student centered teaching strategies that negate time and place restrictions of the…

Traditionally campus-based courses rely on student evaluations to provide instructors with feedback about their teaching effectiveness. However, current student evaluations of teaching instruments do not adequately assess many of the essential constructivist-based teaching practices recommended for quality online learning experiences. One of the…

This report describes a program employing the theory of multiple intelligences and individual learning style in order to increase time on task, increase retention of academic material, and decrease fluctuations in distracting behaviors in classrooms. Seventeen third grade students in the targeted classroom of an elementary school were surveyed on…

In this book's essays, teachers describe and reflect on the practice of experiential education in elementary, secondary, college, and outdoor settings. Major themes of these narratives include the insider's view of the teaching experience; active learning that requires student autonomy, imagination, and responsibility; and the view of experience…

This paper uses inquiry-based learning to introduce primary students to the concepts and terminology found in four introductory engineering courses: Differential Equations, Circuit Analysis, Thermodynamics, and Dynamics. Simple electronic sensors coupled with everyday objects, such as a troll doll, demonstrate and reinforce the physical principles…

Written for writing teachers by writing teachers, this book celebrates local knowledge and the engagement of teachers and students with their communities through writing. Ten members of the Nebraska Writing Project invite readers into their rural classrooms and communities to explore the rich writing and active citizenship that emerge when writing…

This report summarizes the results of a research study conducted to assess the intellectual development of students in the QUANTA Learning Community at Daytona Beach Community College (DBCC) (Florida) in the 1989-90 academic year. QUANTA is a freshman interdisciplinary program with 75 students and three faculty. Three courses--English, psychology,…

A two-tier intervention study was designed to provide descriptive models of constructivist learning environments supported by appropriate technology, as they emerged in project classroom. Tier 1 was a collective case study of approximately 150 classrooms in 5 southwestern states whose teachers received training in applying technology. Tier 2…

Teaching adults should be different if adults learn differently than children do. Theories or perspectives on adult learning, such as andragogy, make a number of assertions about the characteristics of adults as learners. If there are indeed distinctive characteristics of adults, on which claims for the uniqueness and coherence of adult education…

This paper argues for peer evaluation of writing, in addition to peer editing, for a complete student-centered learning experience. The proposed peer evaluation model addresses three shortcomings of the current writing class model: (1) instructor workload; (2) the problem of students' writing for an audience of one; and (3) the problem of…

Presents an account of a week of learning and instruction from a high school physics course to provide a context for discussion of the role and demands of teacher inquiry. Argues coordination of student inquiry and traditional content is a matter of discerning and responding to students' particular strengths and needs. (Author/KB)

Describes a research project in which the students examine data showing the income disparity between men and women. The students decide on which sociological theories might explain this discrepancy and devise a study to test this hypothesis. Includes instructions for the assignment and guidelines for cooperative learning. (MJP)

Describes the process of problem-based learning (PBL), discusses the history of the movement, and analyzes the advantages and disadvantages of PBL. Explains the advantages of PBL in developing desirable attributes in biochemistry graduates which include being able to generalize, being able to interpret data, and possessing knowledge of relevant…

Maori pedagogical and research principles provide a foundation for an alternative model of Maori schooling that emphasizes empowerment, student-teacher co-construction of knowledge, and the critical importance of cultural recognition. Principles include self-determination, uniqueness of each child, reciprocal learning, home-school relationship,…

Equity pedagogy involves teaching strategies and environments that help diverse students attain necessary knowledge, skills, and attitudes for functioning effectively within a just, democratic society. The article examines how equity pedagogy interacts with other dimensions of multicultural education (content integration, knowledge construction…