It is recognized widely that learning is a dynamic and idiosyncratic process of construction and reconstruction of concepts in response to new experiences. It is influenced by the learner's prior knowledge, motivation, and sociocultural context. This study investigated how year 11 and 12 physics students' metacognition influences the development…

An action research study investigated how the multiple tasks found in WebQuests facilitate fifth-grade students' literacy skills and higher order thinking. Findings indicate that WebQuests are most successful when activities are carefully selected and systematically delivered. Implications for teaching include the necessity for adequate planning,…

This article describes a subset of results from a larger study (Rubel, 2002) that explored middle school and high school students' probabilistic reasoning abilities across a variety of probabilistic contexts and constructs. Students in grades 5, 7, 9, and 11 at an urban, private school for boys (n = 173) completed a Probability Inventory,…

This article describes the journey one elementary school took to implement a standards-based mathematics program and increase student achievement by putting research into action. After learning that Evansville Elementary School (Evansville, Wyoming) had failed to meet the annual yearly progress (AYP) in mathematics, as mandated by the No Child…

Although second language (L2) research has explored connections between sociopsychological variables and L2 socialization processes, relatively few investigations have compared heritage language (HL) learners to traditional foreign language (FL) learners in the North American context. This descriptive study compares the learning and acculturation…

Chemistry Is in the News (CIITN) is an innovative project aimed at enhancing higher-order cognitive skills (HOCS) via connecting university-level chemistry to everyday life and real-world issues. The CIITN project and its related Web tools were presented in a workshop to illustrate their conceptual framework, educational potential, and…

The 37 essays in this collection describe the usefulness of general semantics in different daily situations. After an introduction by Alvin Toffler, "The Relevance of General Semantics," essays in the collection include: "Time-Binding To Build a Fire" (James D. French); "To Be a Poet a Thousand Years Hence" (James…

This practicum was designed to improve critical thinking skills and reading abilities in fourth-grade students in a rural elementary school. A test administered prior to implementation of the practicum revealed that students' reading ability ranged from primer to third grade level. During the practicum, 15 students who were members of an…

Three new computer-administered item types for the analytical scale of the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) General Test were developed and evaluated. One item type was a free-response version of the current analytical reasoning item type. The second item type was a somewhat constrained free-response version of the pattern identification (or…

This teacher's guide is to enable the teacher to promote thinking through the use of geography. The book lays out the rationale in learning theory for an issues-based, question-driven inquiry method and proceeds through a simple model of progression from identifying key questions to developing generalizations. Students study issues of geographic…

The aim of this study was to develop a criterion of graduate school success as an alternative to first-year average. Faculty rating scales of students' analytical abilities were developed as a potential criterion against which to validate both the current Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) analytical measure and its future modifications. The…

This study sought to determine: (1) what children understand about "chance" when they begin secondary school?; and (2) how common and how influential the use of informal heuristics, approaches, and biases is in their thinking about probability in the school context. Children's understanding of chance, attributions of events to…

This book explores teaching techniques and adaptations that have proven effective in teaching mathematics concepts and skills to students with learning disabilities, with a focus on reasoning methods rather than algorithmic calculation. Emphasis is placed on topics that potentially can or commonly do cause the most difficulty for students with…

The use of numerical simulations to design and analyze new products requires both conceptual and operational knowledge. This paper describes COMPANION: an intelligent multimedia system for vocational training used by engineers and technicians. A key concept in terms of training methodology is that of "situated learning," or continuous…

Many chemists want to be effective teachers but have little background in psychology or education on which to build successful practices. The primary audience for this book is chemistry teachers at the secondary and tertiary levels, and its purpose is to encourage readers to construct a new understanding of how their students learn. This book is…