Describes the implementation of two graduate courses in education where doctoral students completed their major assignments as multimedia projects rather than as written papers. Discusses affordable software; minimal in-class time; personalized feedback; parsimony; personalization; individual differences; interactivity; student motivation; and…

Describes a project that explored the use of Web sites with adults with learning disabilities. Highlights include advantages and weaknesses of Web-based learning for adults with learning disabilities; creating multimedia work related to the Web sites; motivating effects; and Web site access difficulties for people with low literacy levels.…

Interviews with an urban Los Angeles first-grade teacher and observations of her class illustrate how social and cultural issues are brought into the classroom, creating an environment in which students learn to "read the world," acquiring social and cultural literacy as well as the more commonly perceived personal literacy. When…

Describes a lab that introduces agarose electrophoresis techniques and basic information on proteins to middle school and high school students. Insists that, built around a scenario in which students must solve a crime, the lab has real-world applications that should spark student interest. (KHR)

Investigated the singular and collective impact of athletic identification and motivational goals on global self-perceptions among high school student athletes. Findings indicated positive relations between various dimensions of athletic identification and scholastic, social, vocational, and behavior competence among athletes adopting a high…

Three authors describe their motivations to write and influences on their writing careers, including love of reading, desire to escape other occupations, and influential teachers. Advice for teachers includes using the writers' workshop model; encouraging editing and revision; steering students toward literary, rather than mass media sources;…

Examined how peer tutors' skill levels affected novice learners' swimming achievement motivation and performance. Data on French high school seniors indicated that skilled tutors yielded the best skills for boys, whereas skilled and intermediate tutors yielded the best skills for girls. Skilled tutors led to higher self-efficacy for improvement…

Describes features of the concept of involvement, or quality of a child's activity, and a training package for observing children's involvement at child care centers. Recounts use of Leuven Involvement Scales to examine activities of over 600 children in 8 German child care centers. Findings reveal the prevalence of sex-typed activity preferences…

Students use various approaches to learning based on the interaction between their personal characteristics, task characteristics, and the learning context. While students may appear to demonstrate a particular style over time, this style may change. In fact, the ability to draw on multiple strategies for different tasks distinguishes good and…

Explains a strategy that school librarians can use to transform their programs into vibrant elements of K-12 education. Discusses articulating a vision and an agenda, including information literacy instruction, reading advocacy, and information management; strategic management and planning, including flexibility and using a systems approach; and…

Presents a laboratory exercise on spicy food and body temperature that introduces the scientific method to introductory biology students. Suggests that when students perform their own experiments which they have developed, it helps with their understanding of and confidence in doing science. (Author/SOE)

To improve students' standardized test performance, schools must organize their priorities to reinforce the message that student learning comes first--everything else is secondary. (Author/MLF)

This article explores the teacher's role as an advocate for gifted education. It discusses applying the principles of learning to the process of advocacy, including using motivational strategies, scaffolding, and metacognitive skills to advocate. The importance of facilitating the transfer of knowledge is stressed and an advocacy checklist is…

Emotional intelligence involves a cluster of skills, including self-control, zeal, persistence, and self-motivation. Every child must be taught the essentials of handling anger, managing conflicts, developing empathy, and controlling impulses. Schools must help children recognize and manage their emotions. Educators should model emotional…

Focuses on the merit of extensive reading in English as a tool for advancing the reading comprehension of non-English-speaking students. The article emphasizes that students who read more will eventually surpass their classmates who have not developed the reading habit. (four references) (Author/CK)