Presents an analysis of the development of the basic themes of geography (location, place, relationships, movement, and regions) by selected southwestern Pennsylvania public schools. Concludes that students in grades three through six are most often exposed to the location theme and that sixth graders have the greatest overall exposure to all five…

This report summarizes and compares the views of six experts in art education concerned with teaching art for students' conceptual understanding at the elementary level. Two art education professors and three public school art specialists who teach art at the elementary level engaged in comprehensive written exercises to address issues related to…

In this comparative essay, I examine how musical ways of knowing inform my educational research. To understand this question, I employ dual perspectives as a musician and qualitative researcher. I use Eisner's concept of the art of educational evaluation (1985a, 1985b, 1997)--particularly as educational evaluation relates to connoisseurship and…

This handbook is intended to be a ready source of reference for educators who want to find out about STS (Science, Technology and Society). Ideas, strategies, and models for implementing STS in the classroom are provided in this volume. The articles that appear here reflect current thinking in the field of STS education. These articles encompass a…

Describes seven learning techniques that cognitive psychologists have identified as leading to substantially heightened learning across a variety of situations: attention; curiosity and learning; thematic lesson organization; high information flow; mnemonics; concrete representations; and Zeigarnik effect. Research on their effectiveness and their…

Making a case for the value of literature-based instruction, this book presents an overview of the extensive knowledge base supporting literature-based approaches to literacy instruction. It notes that literature-based instruction goes beyond simply changing the kinds of texts children read--also required in literature-based instruction are an…

By examining the trends in equity and academic excellence, this monograph interprets America's history of educational reform. The first section, "The Legacy of Reform," analyzes themes after colonial times. William Penn and Benjamin Franklin advocated humanitarian, middle-class education following the American Revolution. By the late…

This book is designed to help social studies educators better understand international conflict management as they learn about instructional methods and begin to teach. The book brings together current scholarship on major topics in the management of international conflict and methods for teaching that are especially important in globally-oriented…

This program presents units of instruction by inter-disciplinary teams of preservice teacher education students showcasing student developed curriculum integration ideas. Lessons integrate the areas of social studies, language arts, business, science, industrial technology, and health. Presented in four sessions, Session 1 includes the following:…

Elementary preservice teachers (n=185) in a blocked program of methods courses developed integrated thematic units focusing on social studies and science that viewed reading, language arts, and mathematics as tools students use to study the major content areas in the elementary school program: social studies and science. This was a complex task…

Some special needs groups (for example dyslexia) have argued strongly for the need for particular specialist approaches. In contrast, many proponents of inclusion have argued that "good teaching is good teaching for all" and that all children benefit from similar approaches. Both positions fail to scrutinise this issue rigorously and…

This paper identifies two broad types of "critical" ethnographic research. One type attempts to empower social actors by providing emic-oriented accounts which tend to emphasize the integrity of their constructs, thus laying the groundwork for a redistribution of social power. The other type attempts to combine analysis of phenomenal, micro-level…

This book describes issues, trends, and practical teaching concerns that surround cooperative learning. It puts forward specific organizational plans and content area lessons for teachers who would like to become more familiar with active team learning in the classroom. Major themes include collaborative approaches to multicultural education,…

Illustrates the social construction of scientific knowledge by examining the modernist literary works of Chekhov, Ibsen, and Kafka. Demonstrates philosophical conflicts among the authors centering on the benefits and drawbacks of scientific inquiry and modernism. Students also read textbooks and treatises on the history of science. (MJP)

Argues that, far from being a dangerous and destructive break with the past, various factions of postmodernism actually parallel modernist beliefs. Both movements share groups whose creative revisionists approach seeks a constructive accommodation. Similar parallel destructive approaches also exist. (MJP)