This theme unit includes elementary-level language arts, math, science, art, and critical-thinking activities about gardening. A full-color poetry mini-poster and an idea for growing a special Mother's Day tea are also included. Students learn about different types of gardens as they grow their own plants, and develop a vocabulary of flower names.…

Australia's Griffith University introduced computer assisted language learning (CALL) to existing language curricula in the Department of Asian and International Studies, offering professional development to support the faculty. Evaluation of faculty and student attitudes and program outcomes indicated that with appropriate support, CALL had a…

Argues that prevailing assessment methods in higher education confuse the adult learner, fail to place the instructor in a facilitative mode, and hamper attempts at learner empowerment. Descriptions of more appropriate evaluative methods are offered, including instructor, peer, and self-evaluation, accompanied by student responses to these…

Links the literature on learned helplessness with best practices in teaching children who are deaf-blind. Defines "learned helplessness" and "mastery motivation;" considers identification of learned helplessness; and offers suggestions such as rewarding independent rather than dependent behaviors and integrating orientation, mobility, and…

Describes an approach to needs and syllabus design that is illustrated by way of pedagogic elements comprising the learning environment of second-year Japanese college students, doctors in training, who read, discuss, and write in response to medical case studies accessed and mediated through the Internet. (Author/VWL)

Chronicles the leadership role that liberal arts colleges have taken in reforming science and mathematics instruction and curricula. This reform movement has been made possible by new federal funding strategies. Highlights a number of specific institutional curriculum development efforts. (MSE)

Asks how art should be taught in a culture in which television and electronic media constitute the primary media with which young people interact. Suggests that art educators should focus on how students use technology, the production and viewing of technological images, and the ways that such images have meaning. (DSK)

Compares the negative attitudes of professors toward pressure to integrate information technology to similar reactions to audiovisual materials 30 years ago. Presents a case study conducted at the University of Central Florida, outlining student and teacher reactions to Web-based courses. Suggests that faculty should maintain a proactive outlook…

Three different approaches to the evaluation of higher education in European and Scandinavian countries are examined: evaluation of a single discipline across institutions (Finland, Norway, Portugal, Spain, United Kingdom, northern Germany); evaluation of several disciplines within certain institutions (France, Germany); and internal evaluation of…

States that today, more than ever before, at-risk learners are enrolling in community colleges. Asserts that educators can better serve these students with learning differences (LD) and attention disorders (ADHD/ADD) in the foreign-language classroom by learning to identify them, defining their language-learning difficulties, and identifying types…

Presents a four-stage model for dioceses wishing to integrate media literacy into elementary and secondary religious studies and parish youth programs. Describes the Vatican's 1992 Aetatis Novae: Pastoral Instruction on Social Communications, and its effect on Catholic curricula. (VWC)

Proposes an index of school performance to assess progress in meeting goals of academic achievement, equity of educational outcomes, citizenship, social ethics, and health. Details relative weights: core academic outcomes, 40 percent; citizenship, health, teamwork, and social ethics, 25 percent; school completion, teacher qualifications, and…

This article discusses how a first-grade inclusive classroom immersed students in multiple sign systems to foster literacy, including art, drama, and music, science, and movement activities. The second part profiles a boy with learning difficulties and what was learned about him in an attempt to take an aesthetic stance toward assessment.…

Describes "Concept to Classroom", a series of free, online workshops developed by channel Thirteen/WNET New York and Disney Learning Partnerships to help teachers explore issues in education including multiple intelligences, constructivism, academic standards, cooperative and collaborative learning, assessment, curriculum redesign,…

Describes a model of comprehensive individualized support for young children (ages 24 to 48 months) with severe developmental disabilities, including autism, based on a triad of essential elements: (1) development of functional communication skills; (2) supported participation in socially inclusive environments; and (3) multifaceted family…