Contrasts the communicative approach to foreign language teaching with a proposed cognitive-anthropological approach. The primacy of comprehension over action is argued, and topics are listed for foreign language/culture study that correspond to universals of human experience proposed by anthropologists. (Author/LMO)

Analysis of statements by 869 students and 21 faculty at Queensland University of Technology (Australia) concerning learning, using the SOLO (structure of observed learning outcomes) Taxonomy, identified key concepts in learning in eight categories: learning definitions; factors influencing learning; learning strategies; learning styles; aspects…

Analyzes student use of a multimedia chemistry instructional program used in an undergraduate chemistry course. Examines student time spent on the software and student use of the software's media components. Finds that students have different usage patterns for completing the same assignment, indicating that students are able to use individual…

Thirty postgraduate librarianship students learned about PRECIS indexing using a system that responds as flexibly and intelligently as a human expert to natural language queries. Interactions were logged and analyzed. The evidence obtained supports the notion that individuals employ distinct strategies when interacting with information sources in…

Self-evaluation is a learning strategy that can help college students, particularly nontraditional students, build coherence through their educational experiences. Faculty need to approach students' reflective, self-evaluative writing as learners, listening to what students say and using it as a guide to aid student development. (MSE)

Describes a study investigating the learning styles and personality types of community college and private university students. Identifies three broad types of learners (cooperative, independent, and competitive), suggesting significant correlations between experimenting personality types and learning style preferences. Discusses the role of…

Compares the development of two students' understanding of addition and subtraction. One student's understanding is based on memorized rules and the other's on understanding the concept of place value. Discusses the effects of different goals for instruction and the importance of understanding place value. (MDH)

Tells a first grader's story of his struggles learning to read in a traditional school setting, where he experienced significant reading anxiety, and highlights the ease with which he learned to read at home and in the community as he proceeded through his day. (SM)

Reports a survey of students' satisfaction in a cooperative learning college-level introductory biology course offered, with changes, over 3 years. The survey found that cognitive diversity increases group conflict and concluded that there can be no "perfect course" due to the diversity of cognitive styles found in any class. Using a…

Among 32 ESL students who received training in metacognitive strategies for mathematics problem solving, those students who were the highest achievers in mathematics and whose teachers were involved extensively in project activities were better problem solvers than less able math students or students in low implementation classrooms. Includes…

Describes how a mathematics teacher's knowledge level can be supported or justified by a criterion different from test scores of teacher's students, namely the ability of the teacher to justify teaching practices by appealing to concurrent learning method. Two examples are provided that formalize theoretical justifications as practical arguments…

Theories of cognitive, racial identity, affective, psychological, and moral development can be helpful in designing college student leadership training programs. Course design must take a variety of learning styles into consideration so as many students as possible can successfully understand the material and integrate it into their leadership…

Researcher Howard Gardner discusses the extent of students' application of learned concepts to real life; Project Zero research on alternative educational assessments; evaluation of children's multiple intelligences and aptitudes in the Spectrum classroom (combining free play and structured activities); teacher's role in providing each child an…

Presents an alternate form of assignment, called "Special Problems," that incorporates writing in journals into the mathematics classroom. The method requires students to provide process narratives to accompany selected homework exercises. Allows the teacher to monitor the student's thought processes and development. (MDH)

The game "Pythagoras" is an adaptation of the tangram puzzle. Describes the process of finding all the possible convex polygons with seven sides to prove that the solution to a given puzzle shape of seven sides difficult to find was not possible. (MDH)