Connects the personal classroom experiences of a sociology professor with the changes in teaching methods over the last 30 years. Unequivocally, supports the more interactive teaching methods such as collaborative learning, role playing, simulations, and debates. Valuable appendix includes detailed descriptions of six group activities. (MJP)

Provides electronic mail addresses for resources and discussion groups related to the following academic majors: art, biology, business, chemistry, computer science, economics, health sciences, history, literature, math, music, philosophy, political science, psychology, sociology, and theater. (AEF)

Discusses the use of teaching portfolios and portfolio-based conversations with colleagues to enhance teacher effectiveness, presenting a portfolio conversation guide that highlights the importance of conducting the sessions properly, organizing an appropriate group, and focusing on specific portfolio contents. Implications for teacher education…

Describes the "number 2 arithmetic challenge," an activity in which students score points by creating examples using the number 2 that satisfy an unknown rule. Computers are utilized to verify and record examples. Conflicts with computer responses create situations to explore negative numbers, fractions, mixed numbers, the order of…

Analyzes one of Henry Ward Beecher's sermons to teach about the northern antislavery movement between 1830 and 1860 and to illustrate how sermons can be used as primary source documents. Provides six field-tested guidelines developed from an introductory U.S. history survey course to explain how students analyzed the sermon, held discussion, and…

Presents a discussion illustrating student reasoning while using LOGO to draw tilted squares and rectangles. Suggests that teachers recognize that many students use visual imagery to reason and discuss visual reasoning with students. Gives examples of tasks to promote discussion. (MDH)

Presents the results of a survey of 165 seventh grade students asked to respond yes, no, or maybe to 21 metacognitive statements about their cognitive activity on a mathematical word problem. Suggests how to use the responses as a basis for developing classroom activities. (MDH)

Maintains that citizenship education is a major goal of elementary school, social studies instruction. Explains four strategies to establish democracy in the classroom: discussions, democratic decision making, modeling, and examining reasons for democratic behaviors. Stresses linking rights to responsibilities and promoting respect for self and…

Offers suggestions for teaching the concept of constitutional government. Differentiates constitutional governments from autocratic systems. Includes a handout containing excerpts from a model constitution. Involves students in comparisons of this model to the U.S. Constitution and discussions about clauses in the model. Reveals at the lesson's…

Reflects on the author's role as kindergarten teacher in the classroom and the impact of a session on the Reggio Emilia preschools. Focuses on changes in the author's perspectives regarding the roles of teacher, student, and parent and their relationships. Discusses struggles with implementing Reggio inspired projects and the increasing use of…

Describes "reader response" teaching techniques to enhance young children's critical thinking skills, build a sound literacy foundation, and clarify the relationship between reading and writing. Provides examples of response logs/journal entries, aesthetic responses such as drawings and dramatic reenactments, and student discussions…

Purpose: The focus of this paper is to highlight the issues impacting technology-enhanced learning (TEL) in an industrial setting in Ireland. The paper uses the output from a community of practice (CoP) set up to identify and discuss these issues. Seven companies participated in the CoP. Their experiences represented the full spectrum of…

In an extensive review of research on teacher preparation, Wilson, Floden, and Ferrini-Mundy (2001) pointed out that "study after study show that experienced and newly certified teachers alike see clinical experiences (including student teaching) as a powerful--sometimes the single most powerful--component of teacher preparation". They go on to…

The purpose of this study was to explore the effects of employing preservice teachers as leaders in technology to change teacher education curriculum, and to mentor and support inservice teachers, teacher education faculty and preservice teachers. We describe the evolution of the design of this program by comparing the first and fourth year, and…

Over the past few years, asynchronous web-based technologies have been examined for their usefulness in promoting collaborative learning among university students. Variations in implementation of this technology will determine to what extent students' learning is actually collaborative. This article discusses curricular adaptations made in the…