The relationship between normative patterns of social interaction and children's mathematical thinking was investigated in 5 classes (4 reform and 1 conventional) of 7- to 8-year-olds. In earlier studies, lessons from these classes had been analyzed for the nature of interaction broadly defined; the results indicated the existence of 4 types of…

This study explores the views on learning, technology and classroom practices of both students and teachers in a technology-enriched classroom environment. It examined the characteristics and uniqueness of 4th-6th grade students' views and the changes in their teachers' views as result of longitudinal experiences of an innovative approach to…

Inconsistent performance by gifted students has been a source of frustration for both parents and educators for decades. Several studies on gifted under achievement point to a connection between student learning styles and classroom performance.This study examined the learning styles of gifted middle school students, student perceptions of the…

The purpose of this study was to describe how one primary teacher of poor and working class rural students promoted small-group dialogue about books and literary concepts. Specifically, we focused on how she guided the students from the beginning of a lesson in ways that later led to dialogue during a videotaped four-day lesson sequence. We…

In this paper, we present the development and implementation over the period of more than 15 years of learning materials focusing on industrial chemistry as the main theme. The work was conducted in the Department of Science Teaching at the Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel. The project's general goal was to teach chemistry concepts in the…

Several studies have examined the pedagogical implications and cautions concerning the use of humor in teaching. Humor has been associated with a host of positive physiological and psychological effects. Researchers have identified that educators who use humor in their instruction are more positively rated by their peers and their students; others…

The Third International Mathematics and Science Study represents the most comprehensive international assessment of educational contexts and student achievement yet conducted. As part of the examination of the effects of contextual factors on student achievement, a model was constructed that considered the effects of variables such as…

This article presents a design of educational software employing group competition using a large interactive electronic whiteboard, and a report on its experimental use. Group competition and collaboration are useful methods to cultivate originality and communication skills. To share the same space, the same large screen, and face-to-face…

This paper reports on an Appreciative Inquiry project called "Growing Talent for Inclusion" which has been running since 2002. The project grew out the authors' work in a Local Authority Support Service assisting schools to meet the needs of pupils with a range of additional educational needs. Faced with a large number of individual referrals,…

Through research and classroom observation undertaken while conceptualizing and implementing the Intensive French program in Canada, many new insights were gained into the development of communication skills in a classroom situation. Five lessons learned about the development of spontaneous oral communication are presented in this article: the…

Australia and New Zealand are two South Pacific nations with a shared history of British colonisation and close links maintained through kinship, travel, shared media and business relationships. Our public education systems also reflect a shared history of educational ideas and responses to the challenges of increasingly heterogeneous populations.…

This study was a pilot effort to examine the relationships among a series of factors within the practice of a teacher who is attempting to implement the Facing History and Ourselves (FHAO) curriculum into his/her classroom. The factors included the content being taught, the pedagogical choices made, the "intentionality" of the efforts related to…

This paper discusses the use of online classroom collaborative environments to support the face-to-face teaching of a graduate course in English Literature. Online data from graduate students and the professor were collected and analyzed. Results show that students benefit from the online interaction to learn English Literature. There are,…

This paper discusses a complex issue: why teacher education input and interventions have limited or no impact in the classrooms. It discusses some practical examples and issues and their implications for teachers' learning and motivation to develop teaching. Analysis of the findings suggests that as teachers re-entered the reality of the school…

This article discusses a theoretical aspect of composition studies concerning the development of "an irenic multicultural composition classroom." The author notes that such a classroom environment, where all parties learn how to get along and perhaps learn to "agree to disagree," has been a long-time goal of composition studies theorists. However,…