This article is about a computer lab project in which prospective teachers used Geometer's Sketchpad software to create two-dimensional nets for three-dimensional shapes. Since this software package does not contain ready-made tools for creating non-regular or regular polygons, the students used prior knowledge and geometric facts to create their…

While astronomy has recently re-emerged in many science curricula, there remain unresolved teaching and learning difficulties peculiar to astronomy education. This paper argues that mental model building, the core process in astronomy itself, should be reflected in astronomy education. Also, this crucial skill may promote a better understanding of…

Much has been written about literacy and popular culture but less about the role, if any, of popular culture in children's play. In view of the fact that play is recognized by many as a primary mode of learning, particularly in the early years, and also as an essential process in the representation of ideas and feelings, this is something that…

Reading is a complex skill, vital for the postgraduate student. However, many international postgraduate students experience considerable difficulty when applying their reading practices learnt in their own countries. This paper, part of a larger study, aims to provide insights into the reading practices of Indian/Bangladeshi postgraduate students…

Based in a constructivist paradigm, socio-cultural views of literacy place a high degree of importance on how students connect to what they read. This means that instruction must follow constructivist principles and allow ample opportunity for discussion and learner-centered activities. In addition, this framework requires careful attention be…

In San Diego, California, 800 public school students from the inner city are attending a program called School in the Park (SITP), for approximately one-fourth of their 3rd-, 4th-, and 5th-grade education. This unique program blends rigorous academic standards (formal learning) with hands-on, experiential curricula (informal learning), using…

Since 1989, the Mathematics Education Project (PmatE--Projecto Matematica Ensino) has developed several strategies to improve the success of students in Mathematics. The most important of these are mathematical games for all grades above primary school. The online evaluation of Mathematics subjects is one of PmatE's goals. The implementation of an…

Distance education as a stand-alone approach has grown tremendously in the past 10 years. The other form of distance education, often called hybrid, supplements traditional classroom instruction with online resources. The instructors deliver classroom lectures, but homework, assignments, and supplemental material may be retrieved online.…

The term "culture" has been in common use for a long time. However there is no universally accepted definition and hence it is important to define clearly what culture means in a particular research context. The research reported here is part of a project undertaken at a large Australian university in late 2005. The overall aim of the…

This study analyzed gender differences in achievement emotions in the domain of mathematics. Based on Pekrun's (2000, 2006) control-value theory of achievement emotions, we hypothesized that there are gender differences in mathematics emotions due to the students' different levels of control and value beliefs in mathematics, even when controlling…

Prior research on oppositional culture theory has generally focused on beliefs about the opportunity structure, or the "acting white" hypothesis, as an explanation for racial differences in school achievement. However, little attention has been given to the mechanism by which these beliefs affect achievement: schooling behaviors. The authors posit…

The term scientific literacy is defined differently in different contexts. The term literacy simply refers to the ability for one to read and write, but recent studies in language literacy have extended this definition. New literacy research seeks a redefinition in terms of how skills are used rather than how they are learned. Contemporary…

Learning is an active process, and, as such, interactive lectures are considered as the educational best practice. This study investigated the efficacy of interactive lecturing in a module of eight respiratory physiology lectures in a second-year Physiology course with two distinct subcohorts: students with strong science backgrounds and those…

This is a manual for those considering the role of Tutor in an educational programme following Open and Distance Learning (ODL) methodologies. To introduce the concept of self-learning, the manual is designed to be self-instructional: (1) Self paced; (2) Easy to read; (3) Easy to follow the instructions; (4) Illustrated with examples to enhance…

This study sought to determine the effects of prior knowledge on the achievement of undergraduates in an economics course at the Open University of the Netherlands (OuN). A total the four law and seven economics students were given four instruments to test prior knowledge of economics, presented with a learning unit from the course "Economics…