In designing materials for use in a contructivist learning environment, instructional designers still have a role in selecting the situations that may provide a stimulus for knowledge construction and providing features that support students and teachers in using these materials. This paper describes the process of designing a series of case-based…

This study attempted to describe and interpret informal staff development among 23 first grade and kindergarten teachers, and a counselor working together to create a new language arts curriculum. This report of the research includes data from 11 participants. The paper begins with a review of relevant literature covering research on staff…

The Research Libraries Group (RLG) hosted a symposium to explore opportunities for cooperative action--to take advantage of technology and to improve electronic access to information--particularly in the RLG context, and to develop strategies for making the most effective use of technology and electronic information in support of research and…

Ways that both cultural differences and learning styles affect a child's ability to learn and use language are discussed and applied to the situation faced by Native American students. Cultural differences are cited as holding the answer to questions about the Native American student's lack of success on standardized tests and in the American…

This outreach program for black parents is based on the knowledge of how much they care about their children. It identifies some of the ways that black parents can become involved in their children's schooling. Black organizations and churches have historically championed the cause of education for black children, and this program adds a tool for…

This paper focuses on the Vicarious Learner project, at Glasgow Caledonian University and the University of Edinburgh (Scotland) that is looking at issues concerning the role of dialogue in learning. Efforts to understand how the value of dialogue in learning depends on the structure of the environment in which it takes place are discussed. The…

Student interaction and computer-based communication tool appropriation patterns were examined in two different communication assignments requiring active use of computer-based communication tools. University students completed either: a set of communication assignments and activities with the instructor as sole audience; or a set of communication…

Intended for use by rehabilitation professionals counseling small groups of disabled people, the Occupational Choice Strategy (OCS) was designed to be responsive to both the needs and desires of the disabled and the cost and time constraints faced by rehabilitation counselors. OCS incorporates: (1) concise occupational information easily accessed…

This paper describes the use of the Nominal Group Technique as a tool to assist community leaders in 23 Georgia counties, most of them rural, in identifying and prioritizing community issues. The counties and individuals involved were participants in the Georgia County Perspective, a 12-week leadership program designed to give local leaders skills…

The processes entailed in facilitating or leading workshops or seminars for researching the curriculum in Technical and Further Education (TAFE) were examined by using a modified Delphi process, which was followed by a 2-day workshop. Participants in the study were all experienced curriculum development specialists with knowledge of one or more of…

In order to provide students training to teach handicapped learners with practice in acquiring and utilizing information about individual pupils in classroom situations, a guided design approach was implemented in a course on decision making that covered the major assessment techniques. A modified guided design book was written for the course…

The study described in this volume investigated the talk of thirteen-year-old boys and girls, recorded while they were working in small groups on tasks set by their teachers. Specifically, research focused on the interplay between cognitive and communicative functions of speech in contexts planned for learning. "The Children and Their Talk"…

For use with unit four of the bilingual social science program developed for second graders, these revised supplementary teaching materials and ditto packet are designed to help the teacher carry out learning activities which center on the concept of the child and his neighborhood. A teacher's guide corresponding to this unit gives the timetable…

A North Carolina study attempted to evolve and test a futures planning methodology and generate useful program planning data to help meet the needs of adult part-time students. Using a variation of the Focus Delphi process, the study focused on the following question: considering the existing resources of higher and adult education in North…

Students in a small group discussion class offered as part of a speech communication curriculum found that testing their knowledge of the theory of the course in small groups was a positive learning experience. Each self-selected test group was made up of three students and was formed at least two class periods prior to the exam. Time was given in…