Before one can have the freedom to express ideas in open debate, however, one must have freedom of conscience: the right to arrive at one's private beliefs, without being coerced into an artificial unity by those who wield power over him/her. After all, the freedom to speak is a dead letter if one lacks the freedom to think, to believe, or to…

Outlines instructions for conducting a student forum addressing the relevance and appropriateness of character education. Five students agree to portray fictional members of the panel (teacher, minister, single parent). The rest of the class researches the issue and asks questions. (MJP)

In Kenya alone, where the infection rate is estimated to have reached 13 percent of the population, 27,000 teachers will die and more than 2 million children will lose one or both parents to AIDS in the next five years. The Kenyan project uses "study circles," in which teachers learn together about HIV, script new sexual behaviors for…

The purpose of this study was to (a) develop an analytical framework that represents classroom talk and questioning in science, (b) find out how teachers use questioning to engage their students in thinking about conceptual content that enables the construction of knowledge, and (c) identify the various forms of feedback provided by teachers in…

This study utilizes observation, survey and interview methodologies to investigate the impact of student race on participation in discussion in introductory sociology courses at a large Midwestern US university with a minority enrollment of approximately 15 percent. While results are mixed there is some evidence that white students participated at…

The disparity between the ethnic and cultural makeup of our teaching force and the ethnic and cultural makeup of the student population demands initiatives on the part of teacher preparation programs. Preservice teachers need to learn about the various cultures of their students in order to increase communication and understanding. As preservice…

Scope and method of study: Using Mary Douglas' (1982) Grid and Group Typology, the purpose of this case study was to explain the distinctive patterns of student engagement, communication and community in the culture of four online courses. The participants were four online instructors and four of their students who completed online courses at…

Students need a strong foundation in reading, writing, math, and numeracy to be successful in GED preparation, in work readiness programs, and in post-secondary education and training. The resources in the Basic Skills Collection that will assist in providing this foundation include research articles, materials and curriculum based on research,…

Purpose: This paper aims to explore the concept of Winnicott's intermediate space as a method of understanding the role of learning spaces in the development of technology-enhanced educational organisations. Design/methodology/approach: The approach takes the form of a comparative analysis of interaction within face-to-face and online learning…

Asynchronous online discussion has been widely used by faculty members and students in schools and universities. Previous research has examined how factors such as the discussion activity, knowledge about the discussion topic, and the behaviour of other participants can affect learner participation. This study explored student facilitators'…

This study integrated collaborative problem-based learning (collaborative PBL) with blended learning to explore the emerging process and function of online learning communities among preservice teachers. Thirty-two preservice teachers participated in a 16-week instruction program. Analyses of online group discussions and portfolios found that (a)…

With social networking sites playing an increasingly important role in today's society, educators are exploring how they can be used as a teaching and learning tool. This article reports the findings of a qualitative case study about the integration of "Ning" into a blended course. The study draws on the perspectives of the students, the…

This article reports findings from a follow-up study of teacher education students who utilized multimedia cases in coursework in preparation for teaching students with emotional/behavioral disorders. The purpose of the study was to examine the extent to which knowledge, skills, and attitudes gained through multimedia case-based instruction were…

This study examined how message-response exchanges produced in the interactions between active learners only, reflective learners only, active-reflective learners and reflective-active learners affected how often active versus reflective learners posted rebuttals to arguments and challenges across four types of exchanges that believed to promote…

An action research approach called soft systems methodology (SSM) was used to foster organisational learning in a school regarding the role of the learning support department within the school and its relation with the normal teaching-learning activities. From an initial situation of lack of coordination as well as mutual misunderstanding and…