In literature on problem-based learning (PBL), it is often difficult to determine whether the educational approach being described is actually PBL. Provides planners and assessors of PBL curricula with a framework for analysis. Educational activities can be categorized as PBL according to three core principles and four criteria concerning their…

Describes two classroom activities that introduce critical-thinking skills into social studies instruction. One is a debate, followed by position papers, on the contribution of Christopher Columbus. The other is a simulation of a Constitutional Amendment conference. Discusses which parts of the lessons specifically focus on critical-thinking…

A literature search to identify and analyze mathematics interventions for students with mild-to-moderate mental retardation found the focus of instruction has shifted since 1989 from basic skills instruction to computation and problem-solving instruction. Techniques such as constant-time delay, peer tutoring, time trials, and direct instruction…

Factor-Q is a problem-solving computer assisted instruction system for teaching polynomials in grades 9-12 that addresses the limitations of most problem-solving programs, among others, the user interface. The system is designed to help students master the skills of factorizing polynomials. It demonstrates the ease with which inadequately trained…

Claims that readers can conduct dialogue with many inner audiences through reading, and readers who manage to do so are likely to develop more sophisticated strategies for learning. Describes different kinds of dialogues, specifically, dialoging with reader's experience, with the author/illustrator, with genre, with problems, and with culture.…

Describes how a primary teacher handled an argument among her students over what to do about army worms defoliating an apple tree, thereby illustrating how she cultivates a classroom community that nurtures democracy. Such stories of morally coherent practices counter the bureaucratic insistence on a narrowly construed outcomes-based education.…

Discusses the meaning of a "contextual approach" to teaching physics. Advances a model of contextual physics teaching that can also be applied to other science disciplines. (Contains 54 references.) (Author/WRM)

Compared use of problems and the conventional case method as methods of instruction at the Utrecht University Law School (Netherlands). The problem method required students to find, frame, and analyze issues and provided training seminars in legal problem-solving skills. Students using problems spent more time on learning activities and performed…

In this paper, we look backwards to educational development principles and practices as implemented in the 1990s at Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden, and forward to ideal principles and practices for the design of courses for teachers in higher education. The bridge between the two lies partly in an evaluation study, which we will…

The purpose of this study was to get more insight in the effects of written assessment tasks integrated in a problem-based learning environment. Both the influence on students' performances and students' perceptions were investigated. Students' final exam results were used to find out whether students who make the assessment tasks do better than…

This article explores some way that technology can be used to promote mathematical thinking and problem solving. Specifically, it focuses on the use of technology for multiple representations. (Contains 8 figures.)

Fostering students' mathematical thinking requires regularly presenting them with challenging problems and involving them in the processes of mathematical inquiry (e.g., representing and solving problems; making, testing, and justifying conjectures). The Inverting a 36 Penny Triangular Array problem (called the Inverting problem, for short) is a…

The article discusses the ways that less successful mathematics students used graphing software with capabilities similar to a basic graphing calculator to solve algebra problems in context. The study is based on interviewing students who learned algebra for 3 years in an environment where software tools were always present. We found differences…

The National Inquiry Standard for Science Education Preparation requires science teachers to introduce students to scientific inquiry to solve problems by various methods, including active learning in a collaborative environment. In order for science teachers to comply with this inquiry standard, activities must be designed for students to…

Incorporating inquiry-based learning in the college-level introductory biology laboratory is challenging because the labs serve the dual purpose of providing a hands-on opportunity to explore content while also emphasizing the development of scientific process skills. Time limitations and variations in student preparedness for college further…