Problem areas with the curriculum at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey-Rutgers Medical School were identified: imbalance in class hours in the academic schedule, excessive number of lectures, and need for more small group sessions during the basic science education. (MLW)

Among the barriers to acceptance of clinical problem-based medical education are institutional complacency and lack of rewards for teachers with academic competence in education rather than biological research and clinical care. (MSE)

This study evaluated the effectiveness of an intervention for increasing the arithmetic performance of four underachieving fifth-grade boys in their regular classroom. The intervention, which trains students to use student-administered procedures within a group context, was effective in increasing the students' arithmetic performance to where it…

Summarizes results of a University of Nebraska study on effects of different teaching methods on student performance in a computer literacy course for business administration students. Merits and weaknesses of the large class approach--the more successful method--are discussed, and academic achievement as a function of gender is analyzed. (MBR)

Discusses the differing viewpoints of a classroom teacher and a researcher on the use of small groups as a teaching technique to illustrate the conflict between the researcher/teacher perspectives. (HTH)

A comparison of traditional medical lecturing with a technique using a videotaped lecture that can be interrupted by a tutor for discussion or questions showed similar academic achievement rates but higher student ratings for the videotape method. The technique is recommended for specialized topics or areas in which the supply of expert lecturers…

Summarizes research exploring six solutions to the "2 sigma problem" of devising teaching-learning conditions that will enable the majority of students under group instruction to achieve at levels now possible only when students are tutored. Recommendations include using mastery learning, improving the home environment, and emphasizing higher…

Describes several techniques for making discussion groups function well in a composition classroom. (AEA)

Determined differences between lecture-demonstration and small-group laboratory approaches on students' (N=74) chemistry achievement and attitudes toward science. Findings indicate that students taught by the laboratory approach achieved better on immediate/delayed posttests than students taught by lecture-demonstration method. More desirable…

This book contains patterns and activities designed to supplement core literacy instruction, showing students how to work together within large- and small-group settings, independently in learning centers, or at home with their parents. Section 1, "Essential Elements and Skills of a Balanced Literacy Program," provides ideas on how to…

This unit is designed for a high school English class and can be used with students in 10th through 12th grade. The lessons are made for classes that are 50 minutes long. The unit is based on classes that have about 25 students, and the small group activities will consist of five groups of five students. The unit prior to this one will have been a…

This research brief highlights findings from a qualitative study of the contextual factors that shape engagement in adult literacy education. Engagement is mental effort focused on learning and is a precondition to learning progress. Some researchers focus on engagement as a cognitive, or mental, process closely related to such things as…

The central research question in this study was whether structured active learning affects the abilities of science and engineering undergraduates to relate abstract concepts and realistic applications more than a relatively traditional instructional method. More specifically, the research was designed to determine whether differences in the…

This paper examines research on students' learning in small tutorial groups, highlighting: (1) cognitive processes elicited by small group discussion and their effects on achievement; and (2) the influence of tutors on student learning. The studies examined problem based learning (PBL) in small groups in high schools and universities. Researchers…

This study considered the ability of small groups of students aged 13-15 years to structure and argue an evidentiary case in which the limitations of the evidence are recognized. The findings of this study indicate that these student groups had developed some of the characteristics of argumentation and group process skills used in building and…