The orthodox view of reading as the accumulation of isolated skills continues to dominate classroom practice. Under this framework, prescriptions for problem readers usually involve intensified drills in the same basic skills to which the students failed to respond in the first place. Prevention entails the early and often precipitous examination…

While no one method can possibly solve all the problems in an educational system, the Personalized System of Instruction (PSI) addresses many. The PSI method is a self-paced, mastery learning approach based on reinforcement and personal attention. It is typified by five characteristics that help to meet or minimize the adverse aspects of…

The developer of the two-cone model of second language teaching and learning outlines the original model and its concepts, and presents some further ideas concerning it. The model represents the native and second languages as two cones with pronunciation at the apex, morphology and syntax (grammar) at the center, and vocabulary around grammar and…

This report presents first year (1984-85) findings of The Writing Project, a 2-year school-based study of the use of word processing to improve learning disabled children's writing skills. Based in three Massachusetts school districts, the project focused in the first year on intensive observation of 14 fourth grade children as they wrote with…

Communicative proficiency, defined as native-like ability to use the language as a medium of two-way communication, is most effectively and efficiently achieved through instruction emphasizing development of listening and reading comprehension skills, and virtually excluding training in production. The comprehension approach avoids the teaching of…

The papers in this document were prepared by representatives of seven innovative teacher staff development projects in Northern Virginia. They describe networks of inservice and staff development activities which were originally designed and implemented in the schools. The following papers are included: (1) "TESA: Teacher Expectations and Student…

Developed by a graduate seminar class, this guide is intended to help teachers use museums to integrate the arts into the elementary social studies curriculum. Although many of the resources included pertain specifically to Pennsylvania, the guide can serve as a model for educators in other states. Many different resources are provided. There is…

Vocational education teachers can use a variety of teaching methods and classroom techniques to help their students develop good work attitudes. First, the teacher can serve as a role model, acting as students should act when they are employed in industry. Along with role modeling, teachers should make sure that attitudinal development finds its…

An instructional model based on a learning cycle including correlation, analysis, and generalization (CAG) was developed and applied to design an instructional module for grade 8 students in Taiwan, Republic of China. The CAG model was based on Piagetian theory and a concept model (Pella, 1975). The module developed for heat and temperature was…

This instructional module is intended to train adult educators in integrating competency-based education (CBE) and state-of-the-art instructional technology in their adult basic education (ABE) classrooms. It is divided into seven instructional units. The following topics are covered in the individual units: the tenets of CBE and its role in ABE,…

The formal development of critical thinking is discussed, and guidance is provided to help faculty insure that critical thinking becomes an integral part of learning. Theory, research, teaching practice, and college programs pertinent to the development and role of critical thinking are presented in order to show how educators have shaped…

A new approach to the teaching of reading education is needed which is not focused totally on method but (1) is sensitive to the situations and contexts in which methodologies are to be applied; (2) encourages the active participation of students and values their views about reading pedagogy; and (3) creates a forum in which ideas grounded in the…

This manual provides suggestions for investigating simple machines and the teaching of certain basic concepts which pertain to them. Many of the lessons are designed to be used with the commercially available LEGO kits, in an effort to teach concepts in a way in which students must translate pictures shown in two dimension into three-dimensional…

This resource guide is designed to help principals acquaint themselves and their teachers with instructional television (ITV) programming and to assist in the supervision of ITV use to obtain the optimum educational value for students. A brief introduction presents a rationale for the educational use of television and describes the Nebraska State…

A model for course planning that provides a way of looking at college instruction and an approach to preparing effective courses is presented. It is suggested that: teaching is an experimental activity, there is no correct way to teach, a teacher sets up the conditions for learning, and both the course and teacher need to assume part of the…