Introduces the growing body of research on development of scientific reasoning skills, focusing on reasoning and problem-solving strategies used in experimentation and evidence evaluation. Maintains that current research examines strategy development and use in moderately complex domains to examine conditions under which subjects' theories…

Reports the effects of a preventive intervention program on dropping out of school in a sample of disruptive boys from low socioeconomic status. Results show that the program had an indirect effect on later school dropout problems through its impact on grade retention/special education placement. The reduction of grade retention/special classroom…

Examines the effects of adding a prediction/discussion phase at the beginning of a three-phase learning cycle involving exploration, term introduction, and concept application. Finds that the instructional innovation produced significant gains relative to the use of process skills, logical thinking skills, science concepts, and scientific…

This learning activities notebook presents creative, elementary- and secondary-level, standards-based learning activities for teachers by teachers. They include a November-December teaching almanac, mathematics activities, language arts activities, science activities, and social studies activities. A reproducible sheet presents a Santa Sightings…

Asserts that students' emotions should be nurtured in the educational process to help foster positive reactions to instructional materials. States also that the relationship between the cognitive function of the mind and the affective, or feeling, dimension must be understood so that students will develop critical-thinking skills. (VWC)

Discusses online teaching and the learning process. Topics include distance education and the teacher's role; creating a detailed class syllabus; moderating online discussions; authentic assessment; and cultivating critical thinking skills. Includes a pre-discussion paper and post-discussion summary. (LRW)

We aim to clarify Matthew Lipman's definition of critical thinking. The research project was conducted during a complete school year among eight groups of pupils from three cultural contexts: Australia, Mexico and Quebec. We worked in an inductive manner, inspired by the grounded theory approach, and analysed transcripts of the pupils' exchanges…

The present study explores how suppositions which conflict with accepted beliefs are represented and reasoned about. Two studies test the predictions regarding the nature and developmental changes in children's ability to represent and reason about hypothetical or make-believe suppositions which violate their everyday knowledge and beliefs. In…

Environmental education promotes the use of higher-order thinking skills, encourages informal experiences in school as well as outdoors and brings together children and adults in order to make a contribution to the environment. Its holistic nature, that encompasses various subject matters, learning environments and teaching methods and encourages…

This paper outlines the types of verbal interactions teachers engage in to challenge children's thinking and problem-solving during cooperative learning. The paper also provides examples of how children model many of the verbal interactions they have seen demonstrated in their discourse with each other. It appears that when teachers are explicit…

This article describes different ways that teachers and students interact in mathematics classrooms and the implications of those interactions for students' opportunities to share their thinking. (Contains 1 figure.)

This article describes the author's struggles, journey, and resolve to reform her teaching practice to align with her beliefs about teaching and learning mathematics. (Contains 6 figures.)

View Park Preparatory High School, a charter school serving low-income urban students in Los Angeles, makes critical thinking the center of its literacy curriculum. The school's literacy program has a single, measurable goal: By graduation, every student will be able to write a 500-word sustained argument free of mechanical error, reflecting his…

This article describes an alternative way of testing--a performance assessment--that is different both in process and goals from typical tests, but closer to what teachers believe assessment should be. Teachers who have helped to create, refine, and use this new generation of tests find them valuable because they measure the skills and concepts…

This study compared the quality of child care programs serving children receiving government subsidies to those not serving such children. Thirty-four classrooms in full day programs serving preschool aged children (19 subsidized, 15 unsubsidized) were observed using the Early Childhood Environment Rating Scales-Revised (ECERS-R). (1) Research…