Tests of teachers' ability to learn teaching through repeated use of closely defined curriculum indicate that familiarity with content and practice do not necessarily increase effectiveness. (JD)

A situated/sociocultural (SC) view of assessment "emphasizes questions about the quality of students' participation in activities of inquiry and sense-making, and considers assessment practices as integral components of the general systems of activity in which they occur" (Greeno, Collins, & Resnick, 1997, p. 36). This presentation addresses two…

Learning to juggle has become popular among corporate training programs because it shows participants how to appreciate mistakes and use "Intelligent Fast Failure" (learning quickly by daring to make a lot of simple mistakes at the beginning of a process). Big business also likes the way juggling can get executives "out of the…

This paper explores the impact of limiting one's theoretical views of early childhood to deficit-based models on research designs in two areas: instrumental music-making and talking on telephones. Both research projects are described as involving populations of children in nursery school classes attached to primary schools. Both involved…

This yearbook contains essays that examine the construction of knowledge. The 10 articles, which are called "opinions," are divided into 5 sections, most of which examine the construction of scientific knowledge. An editor's introduction begins each section. Section 1, "Constructivism as an Epistemology and Philosophy of…

Discusses multiple intelligence (a pluralized approach to understanding the intellect) teaching and learning of science at the higher education level, specifically within community colleges. The purpose of this study was four-fold. The first purpose was to investigate adult learning through Multiple Intelligence Theory (MI) at the community…

This paper reports the results of a two-part qualitative study into student strategies for learning in distance learning courses offered at Teachers College, Columbia University. Verbal Protocol Analyses was used to gather information on the cognitive strategies students used to solve problems encountered as they navigated through the site. A…

Over the past five decades, there have been a countless number of science-oriented programs that were viewed on television. In the last two decades, research has blossomed on informal science teaching, effective informal science teaching techniques, and the ideal environments for increasing science literacy in informal educational settings. This…

During the past 15 years, physics education research has revealed many surprising things about the difficulties introductory physics students have in learning physics. At the same time, the ongoing revolution in information technology has led to new tools for creating innovative educational environments. In response to these two developments, a…

The mission of an effective mentoring program for beginning teachers is critical to their successful professional development. In order to successfully prepare veteran teachers for the role of mentor to beginning teachers, a combination of cognitive coaching and Pathwise Performance Assessment (PPA) is suggested. Included in such a staff…

This paper proposes a model for teaching and learning complex thinking skills developed from a synthesis of theories and research. The model functions like a concept map or a graphic organizer with five major components, each discussed in this paper: (1) presence of complex authentic life situations within a context; (2) activation and execution…

This booklet is the seventh in a series on educational practices that generally improve learning. The psychological principles described in the booklet summarize important findings of recent research on learning that is relevant for education. The principles attempt to integrate research coming from diverse areas of psychology, including…

Successful adult students employ strategies to learn, and effective adult education programs attend to the development of learning by enabling students to study learning processes in addition to content. Good learners have the ability to identify goals and the steps required to achieve them, identify the strengths of their own learning, actively…

This article is a primer for educators hoping to choose instructional software for their classrooms. The following four basic principles that all quality educational software has in common are discussed: (1) an adherence to learning theory, including behavioral and cognitive theory; (2) employment of gaming features; (3) culturally sensitive…

This paper focuses on some of the most important factors that appear to have strongly influenced the development of the dominant research designs used in mathematics education research. Factors discussed that have influenced research design in mathematics education include a concern about increasing the relevance of research to practice and the…