Orem (Utah) High School is a suburban, predominantly white high school that consciously strives to create a welcoming atmosphere, where students are treated with respect, programs are varied and innovative, and fun and participative decision making are highly valued. The school's participation in the National Network for Educational Renewal has…

Argues children's natural drive to discover is intrinsic and that adults cannot instill it from the outside. Dispels common myths about child motivation and describes the optimal conditions for self-motivated learning. Provides examples of how the Montessori-prepared environment makes the most of children's inborn curiosity, interest, and wonder.…

Identifies dramatic changes in higher education and argues that developments in information technology will make significant contributions to learning and teaching. Concludes that future developments will involve academics in changing the attitudes of staff and students, promoting a mixture of on- and off-campus provision, raising student…

This article describes how to identify sources of children's learning opportunities, how families and practitioners can work together to choose natural learning environments as a source of learning opportunities, how to use children's interests for involving them in everyday learning opportunities, and how an intervention plan can increase…

Examines the status, issues, and trends of multimedia instructional support. Presents examples associated with the development of CD-ROMs and interactive Web sites to illustrate important considerations for such development. Some issues considered include: degree of interactivity, performance, accessibility, dependability, and development dynamic.…

Presents findings from a three-year evaluative study, plus a follow-up study four years later, into the implementation of a student-owned portable computer program in a secondary school in Perth, Western Australia. Discusses computer use, student computer attitudes, teacher attitudes, the role of teachers in curriculum integration, and…

A study evaluated a Czech Outward Bound course for international participants that used dramaturgy to incorporate cultural, social, creative, and psychological activities and enrich the traditional range of outdoor physical activities. Observations of 55 participants and followup surveys indicated that the main outcomes involved personal and…

A teacher at an alternative school draws upon his and other educators' experiences to illustrate that learning within relationships and learning about relationships are fundamental to the educational process. Schools must provide safe, caring environments where kids can establish enduring relationships with each other, teachers, and mentors, and…

Explains how media specialists can play an active role in providing staff development that helps teachers use technology to teach in a changing learning environment and integrate technology in the curriculum. Highlights include key research about staff development, the changing role of the media specialist, and examples of successful staff…

Describes a study of fifth graders interacting with their teacher, local, and distant peers over a telecommunications network, that focused on how the information exchanges impacted students' development of audience awareness in written compositions. Analytic and holistic scoring procedures were applied to determine differences in students'…

School leaders can create an environment that supports highly effective beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors in teachers. Effective teachers believe every student has abundant, innate potential. Instead of watering down standards and expectations, they modify three key variables (time, grouping, and methodology) to help specific students achieve…

Suggests that the communicative approach plays a role in English language teaching in China, but that aspects of this approach must be applied selectively partly because of the educational environment there. The article argues that the approach embodies significant Western culture-specific assumptions regarding learning processes. (15 references)…

Examines the occupational, managerial, and personal factors contributing to teacher burnout. Briefly reviews the relevant literature covering key characteristics and definitions. Includes a discussion of active and passive coping strategies. (MJP)

Proposes an approach to school health education that implements key features of the worksite health promotion model, summarizing the general program characteristics for school health education and worksite health promotion, explaining the school-based health promotion model, discussing social marketing, and examining program and educational…

Presents an overview of the Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act, a key federal program that provides funding directly to states and local educational agencies to facilitate drug and violence prevention programs. The Gun-Free Schools Act is also examined, and the major challenges communities face in correcting school safety problems are…