Describes how using conferencing software in a computer-assisted writing environment became a catalyst for a distinctive learning ecology that interrelated prosocial student behaviors, learner-centered teaching, and assessment. Argues that the conferencing class not only helped students apply critical thinking and problem-solving skills in…

Camps developing inclusive programs can incorporate ideas and strategies from a successful inclusive recreational program in Hong Kong. Strategies focus on participants' structured interactions, extensive personal contact, joint participation, equal status, cooperative interdependence, communication, and age-appropriate behaviors. Lessons learned…

Examined what one middle school teacher learned as she directed her students to complete a structural engineering task as a cooperative learning activity. Found that students were on task and collaborated to accomplish the goal, but that the teacher's decisions about how tasks were set up, carried out, and completed affected students' interactions…

A study examined experiences of nature among eight adolescents during a 12-day wilderness trip. The trip generated feelings of good will toward nature but no increase in environmentally responsible behaviors. Group norms emphasized social interaction and constrained attention to nature. Outdoor educators should consciously plan for transfer of…

Discusses the use of student-based focus groups as one component of university course evaluations. Steps in planning and conducting focus groups are detailed and applied to the evaluation of a freshman-level general health course. Finds that participants wanted to retain the health content but add more of a teaching emphasis to the course.…

The physical nature of adventure activities is closely intertwined with the cognitive and emotional growth of the participants. Immersion in the physical challenge and accompanying fun opens people to the learning opportunities. An example of a teacher's inability to scale a wall illustrates how proper debriefing can turn a "failure"…

Uses three examples to illustrate how adventure education encourages the development of community: it is voluntary; it taps a human need to demonstrate competence and skill; and it provides opportunities for people to rally around a common need or goal, often in the service of others. Discusses similarities and differences of community- and…

Describes a visit to the Moscow State University of Culture which includes the largest library and information science program in Russia. Highlights include lecture formats and topics; the lack of instructional technology; visits to other libraries; language barriers; the value of smaller group interactions; and recommendations for program…

Reports on the development of a systematic means of identifying, addressing, and assessing students' group skills. Describes a two-year research project that identified students' perceptions of their weaknesses when working in groups. Describes specific ways those weaknesses were addressed with only modest adjustments to the business communication…

Students from an Albany (New York) free school spent a week repairing storm damage in a Puerto Rican village with a rich history of community solidarity. The students learned how good it feels to help others and the power of cooperation. They also encountered another culture, discovered they could cope with challenge, and experienced appreciation…

Compares two formats for modeling how peers can critique each other's works, one that follows a traditional sequence of drafting, peer response, teacher conferences, and revision, and the other a revised version of this approach in which teacher conferences precede peer responses. Finds that training students in peer response groups during teacher…

Examines a kindergarten in which half the students are learning English as a second language. This ethnographic study describes communities in which two newcomer children participate peripherally; the identities, social practices, and resources available to newcomers; and the organization of each community's social structure, its power relations,…

Among the 156 employees of a Canadian corporation, group initiatives and ropes courses were equally effective at improving overall trust toward their organization. However, the ropes course diminished acceptance of others' ideas, while group initiatives built acceptance. The ropes course enhanced encouragement of others' efforts, while group…

A major challenge in implementing educational change is redefining leadership and power. A broader conceptualization of leadership includes teacher empowerment, shared decision making, and facilitation. Ideas valuable to facilitating leadership for change include not relying on one leader, not relying on force to oppose force, and honoring the…

A small instructional group operating on the theories of group dynamics and cooperative learning can be used to effectively teach subjects in adult training programs. Describes useful techniques for developing a supportive and productive climate for adult training, focusing on group organization, group leadership, group characteristics, and…