In their junior or senior year, biochemistry majors at the University of Detroit Mercy are required to take a two-credit biochemistry laboratory course. Five years ago, the format of this course was changed from structured experiments to a more project-based approach. Several structured experiments were included at the beginning of the course…

A comparison of peer evaluations conducted outside the classroom to those conducted inside revealed that the ones conducted outside were more critical and less supportive of the students being rated. Moreover, the evaluations conducted outside the classroom provided more copious and critical answers to an open-ended question. It is suspected that…

This phenomenological study examined kindergarten children's development of spatial representation in a year long mapping project. Findings and discussion relative to how children conceptualised and represented physical space are presented in light of theoretical notions advanced by Piaget, van Hiele, and cognitive science researchers Battista and…

The "Hands on CERN" education project makes it possible for students and teachers to get close to the forefront of scientific research. The project confronts the students with contemporary physics at its most fundamental level with the help of particle collisions from the DELPHI particle physics experiment at CERN. It now exists in 14 languages…

Three Web-based case studies for use in capstone chemical engineering design courses have been developed. Supporting materials have been developed for each case study, including a problem statement, an exemplary solution, and a summary of the difficulties and typical errors that might be encountered. This paper will review the course structure and…

This descriptive narrative presents a university/school partnership that led to an inquiry-based approach to language arts instruction, resulting in increased opportunities for reflective teaching and learning, students' environmental awareness projects, the integration of science, and the individualization of instruction at the middle school…

From November 8 to December 12, 2007, Peter D. Hart Research Associates, Inc., on behalf of the Association of American Colleges and Universities, interviewed 301 employers whose companies have at least 25 employees and report that 25% or more of their new hires hold at least a bachelor's degree from a four-year college. Employers are satisfied…

The current staffing status at translation departments in Saudi Arabia is inadequate in terms of instructor qualifications, areas of specialization, teaching load, course assignment, and preparation future translators and interpreters. Since the employment of qualified instructors who are specialized in translation is one of the triad in the…

Instructional reform movements in the 1990s called for an effective and concurrent integration of various educational components. For effective classroom instructional reform, it was suggested that teaching method (pedagogy), learning theory, and technology be promoted concurrently to form synergistic relationship. Thus, the primary purpose of…

A recent employer survey sponsored by the Partnership for 21st Century Skills found that the skills new job entrants most need for success in the workplace--oral and written communication, time management, critical thinking, problem solving, personal accountability, and the ability to work effectively with others--are the areas in which recent…

The Martin Luther King School in Boston and nine other Massachusetts public schools used a grant from the Massachusetts Department of Education to expand their school days by at least two hours. Each school lengthened the time students spent in reading and math instruction. Farbman focuses on the Martin Luther King School's foray into an extended…

This is a compilation of reports on international literacy research. The report includes 3 separate reports on Argentina, Mexico, and France. In the first report, Melina Porto reports on a new implementation of a teacher-education program currently underway in the province of Buenos Aires, Argentina, under the leadership of teacher-researcher…

Unfortunately, many students, are failing to learn history. Fifty-seven percent of high school students scored "below basic understanding" on their knowledge of United States history. Interestingly, less than half of the students were familiar with Patrick Henry, the War of 1812, the Marshall Plan, or the Great Society. Perhaps the time…

Eisner, Gardner, and others have argued that the arts should be better integrated into the K-12 curriculum. In this study we examine three high school senior boys who, as part of a unit of instruction on identity, each produced a mask through which he artistically expressed his sense of self. Using a sociocultural framework based in the work of…

The benefits of cooperative learning strategies, such as group project work, have been advocated in a wide range of educational contexts. There is however, scant information on the outcome of such programs on students of low academic ability. In this study, interviews were conducted with four groups of low-ability students, with the aim of…