Many educators are shifting their teaching strategies and approaches to include more emphasis on critical thinking skills, the communication of ideas, a variety of approaches to content emphasizing varied student learning styles, and the need to draw explicit connections among topics for retention of learning. Real-world assessment measures, then,…

Goal five of the National Education Goals of America 2000 calls for dramatic improvement in the educational attainment of the nation's adult population. Encompassed in the goal is a charge to increase the number of college graduates who can think critically, communicate effectively, and solve problems. This paper focuses on measures that can be…

A quantitative synthesis of multivariate studies in science education during the past ten years yields evidence to support a model of achievement in science very much like that currently proposed in the literature of expert problem-solving. Despite previous claims, spatial visualization and verbal ability predict additional variance in achievement…

Based on the idea that questioning designed to elicit and practice different language structures can promote language development, 10 questioning techniques are presented. They are designed to be used in the context of the whole language approach to instruction, to promote both language and thinking skills. The techniques are to be used as parents…

This case study examined the extent and nature of the critical reflection and critically reflective teaching evident among three secondary preservice teachers, noting factors that hindered and supported the instructor's attempts to promote critically reflective teaching and discussing social reconstructionist factors. The paper emphasizes the…

Engaging in lifelong learning is rapidly changing from an option to a necessity for remunerative employment, competent citizenship, and everyday personal life. This booklet examines why today's students need to become lifelong learners, the kinds of attitudes and skills required, and the kinds of preschool-through-grade-12 educational practices…

Use of educational games to supplement traditional classroom lectures is purported by some researchers to increase interest, motivation, and retention, as well as to improve higher order thinking and reasoning skills. This paper reviews proposed benefits of using games as cognitive tools, and discusses the complexities of assessing those benefits.…

This is volume 4 of the series of translations of books from the Soviet literature on research in the psychology of mathematics instruction and on teaching methods influenced by the research. The introduction to this English language translation highlights the fact that significant advances have been made in the understanding of both the…

A study assessed third- through sixth-grade children's comprehension of selected problem-solving segments from SQUARE ONE TV. A sample of 140 children, equally distributed among the four grades, with 49% girls and 51% boys, and an ethnic composition of 56% White, 22% Black, 19% Hispanic, and 3% other, and 3% other, were randomly assigned to…

This study examined how three dimensions of college students' experiences affect critical thinking skills: (1) curricular exposure, (2) formal classroom and instructional experiences, and (3) out-of-class experiences. The study used a 1-year, longitudinal, panel study design using data collected as part of a pilot study for a national,…

Trends in the workplace and legislative mandates have forced community colleges to consider how to integrate general education with vocational training successfully. The technological base of American industry has changed dramatically in the direction of greater complexity and interdependence, requiring workers to possess not only higher levels of…

This book provides practical, commonsense strategies successfully used by teachers to help students become active, responsible learners. In general, these strategies are centered on mutual respect, not bossiness; collaboration, not isolation; commitment to learning, not fear of failure; and the dignity of all, not praise or rewards for a few. Each…

Designed for teachers of preschool to enable children to learn how to solve the problems they have with others, the underlying goal of the program is to help children develop problem-solving skills so that they learn how to think, not what to think. Originally developed for four-year-old children in a preschool setting, most three-year-old…

Designed for teachers of kindergarten and the primary grades to enable children to learn how to solve the problems they have with others, the underlying goal of the program is to help children develop problem-solving skills so that they learn how to think, not what to think. The 89 lessons are adaptable for various levels of ability throughout the…

Designed for teachers of intermediate elementary grades to enable children to learn how to solve the problems they have with others, the underlying goal of the program is to help children develop problem-solving skills so that they learn how to think, not what to think. The interpersonal cognitive problem-solving (ICPS) program includes both…