The Self-Determined Learning Model is designed to teach adolescent students to set goals, take action on those goals, and adjust their goals and plans as needed. The program resulted in dramatic changes in 17 of 19 students (ages 14-19), at levels that exceeded teachers' expectations. Additional social validation data from both students and…

Suggests that encouraging students' exploration of and experimentation with different styles of writing can help strengthen their abilities as readers and self-confidence as writers. Provides student examples that illustrate how strong rhetorical models may inspire those who are learning to write English as a Second or Foreign Language.…

Describes "Giant Steps--St. Louis," a program for children with autism characterized by a holistic approach, the use of "invitational" equipment, continuity between home and school, and integration into the neighborhood school for part of each day. Provides a case study showing a child's typical day Program effectiveness is…

This commentary on C. Addison's Stone's paper on the scaffolding metaphor for the learning disabilities field suggests: (1) repositioning the metaphor in its theoretical frame; (2) considering the ways in which contexts and activities, as well as individuals, scaffold learning; and (3) examining the relationship between scaffolding and effective…

Describes a graduate seminar on teaching in sociology in which the students develop their own undergraduate course. Presents a literature review on critical theory, feminist theory, and humanist perspective. Discusses the outcomes of the seminar including student evaluations and the teaching performances of two former seminar members. (CMK)

Identifies strategies early childhood educators can use to create an environment that encourages character development in young children. Provides reflective checklists for specific areas of character development and character education addressed: (1) content; (2) communication; (3) clarification; (4) community; (5) critical thinking; (6) context;…

The effects of three conditions (no model, a teacher-presented reading model, and a computer-presented reading model) on the reading of four students with emotional or behavioral disorders, found the teacher model resulted in the greatest number of words read correctly per minute and the greatest percentage of words read correctly. (Contains…

Discussion of J. Renzulli's Enrichment Triad and School Enrichment Models finds them supportive of broader inclusion of students from diverse backgrounds yet notes the continued under representation of such students in programs for the gifted. It suggests that addressing the models' implications for access, generalization, long-range impact, and…

Describes three approaches to adapting courses to distance delivery: the most common "dive-in" technique (little preparation other than adapting print on transparencies, practicing with technology controls, and test-running); the "chunking" approach (considering how the major "chunks" of teaching can be transported to…

This article presents the strategies instruction model as an effective intervention for students with learning disabilities. It describes the model's components (curriculum, instruction, environment), its theoretical basis, the teacher's role, teacher-student interaction, and appropriate contexts. Studies of the model's effectiveness are…

Following a preliminary evaluation of the Web-mediated School for All in 2002, this study further examines the online teacher role and explores the possible pedagogical models in this Web-based informal lifelong learning context through a long-term innovative e-learning project over a 2-year period. The author documents the educational rationale,…

Describes the exchange that takes place between an English and a Nursing professor when a student writes a paper about Shelley's Frankenstein that incorporates Maslow's hierarchy of needs in the analysis. Discusses the collaborative conversations that took place as a result of this essay and the new pedagogical ideas this discussion generated.…

Integrating "The West Wing" in public relations courses can effectively dramatize the concrete and abstract dimensions of public relations. In turn, students see public relations in action (albeit fictionally so) and learn much about it through structured lessons. From individual writing assignments about situations in "The West Wing," to the…

In recent decades, teachers of second languages in many countries, including Australia, have been encouraged to use an approach known as communicative language teaching (CLT). This approach advocates the development of communicative competence as a primary goal through the extensive use of the second language as a means of communication during…

Science teachers continually search for effective ways to help students make sense of science concepts and principles. For students to learn to think more like scientists, science teachers must decrease the number of lectures and "follow-the-recipe" laboratory experiments and increase the use of activities that incorporate student inquiry.…