Reviewed are the various purposes that discussion may serve for science education--for carrying out practical work, for interpreting results, and for understanding social issues. The importance of students contributing their own experiences to a discussion is discussed. (KR)

Suggests using classroom discussion as a tool in learning geographical concepts and critical thinking skills. Provides structure for preparing class discussion in small group environments. Considers direct student participation to increase the likelihood of long-term retention and interpersonal skills development. Presents an example of discussion…

Proposes helping students understand fractions by establishing connections between students' informal knowledge of fractions and the mathematical symbols used to represent fractions. Sample dialogues demonstrate how these connections can be made. (MDH)

Discusses prerequisites that help students develop multiple strategies for solving problems as recommended in the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics'"Curriculum and Evaluation Standards." Presents two examples of activities involving addition, subtraction, and permutations that promote multiple strategies. Suggests ways to…

Discusses the use of the computer software MINITAB in teaching statistics to explore concepts, simulate games of chance, transform the normal variable into a z-score, and stimulate small and large group discussions. (MDH)

Compared date rape attitudes in college students who did and did not complete a mixed-gender date rape workshop. Survey results indicated men were more tolerant of date rape than women; control group students were more tolerant than treatment group students; and men exhibited a greater program effect than women. (SM)

Describes Socratic Dialogue Inducing (SDI) laboratory methods and procedures developed to increase conceptual understanding in introductory physics laboratories. Gives an example of a typical beginning SDI lab manual section and a representative Socratic dialogue. Describes several examples of laboratory experiments developed for the SDI method.…

Argues that free expression is an important concept to teach to introductory advertising students. Explains how free expression can be taught through student role playing within a talk show format. Reports research showing student enthusiasm for the method. Concludes that the method can be successful in the large lecture classroom format. (SG)

Examined parents' role in the development of their children's moral reasoning. Differences in interaction style in discussions of hypothetical and of real-life dilemmas were found. Children's moral development was best predicted by a parental discussion style involving supportive interactions and the presentation of higher level moral reasoning.…

Maintains that discussions can become powerful forums of examination when teachers (1) know what it is they are teaching for; (2) know what ideas they hope students will understand; (3) thoughtfully apply principles of good questioning; and (4) are open to the self-scrutiny they need to improve their questioning skills. (BB)

Tries to make explicit race/class/gender connections in an undergraduate seminar on stratification. Students learn about models of social class and mobility and ideas of inequality. Attempts to balance the syllabus by including material about different groups and a representative group of scholars. Describes classroom discussions and experiences.…

Answers and rebuts an article by Larry Johannessen (in the same issue of the journal) that offers ways for teachers to deal with and help alienated remedial students. Addresses the issues of administrative help, the effect of the interests and enthusiasm of the teacher, and the inner resources of teachers in despair. (PRA)

This chapter discusses the origins of the case method, looks at the question of what is a case, gives ideas about learning in case teaching, the purposes it can serve in the classroom, the ground rules for case discussion, including the role of questions, and new directions for case teaching. (MLW)

Four problem-based tutorial groups (n=23 students, n=4 faculty) in Harvard University Medical School's New Pathway track were studied to determine what interactions characterized student-directed discussion. It was found that students selected most topics discussed, that tutors questioned infrequently, provided limited information, and tolerated…

Asserts that, although many researchers and teachers have written about the use of cooperative, or collaborative, learning groups, their work has focused on small classes. Reports on a study of informal cooperative group assignments used in a large (225 students) college-level Introduction to Sociology class. (CFR)