Reports on the Network for Experiential Projects and Adventure Learning, a two-year training program in Germany developed to prepare teachers to integrate elements of adventure education into their curricula. Program sequence consists of 12 workshops, divided into 5 levels, including a participant initiated adventure project. Includes participant…

Discusses problems of maintaining higher education geography fieldwork in an era of increasing class size. Presents and describes 13 strategies for coping with these problems. Recommends that individual teachers and geography departments redesign their fieldwork programs in accordance with their priorities. (CFR)

Contends that the success or failure of an undergraduate research project can hinge on one or two decisions made at an early stage in the process. Describes a "Snakes and Ladders" board game used to remind students of good and bad research design practices. Includes game rules and a listing of the good and bad practices. (CFR)

Maintains that history is stories of extraordinary and ordinary people confronting problems not unlike today. Presents and discusses five keys to history: (1) time; (2) place; (3) people--achievements and failures; (4) society--contributions and failures; and (5) connections between past, present, and future. (CFR)

Restructuring middle-level education calls for broad, fundamental, and multifaceted changes in schooling. Such changes must be based on a clear articulation of how early adolescents learn and supported by congruent practices and expectations. Forward-thinking middle schools stress interdisciplinary teaming, active learning, responsible…

Maintains that, because elementary students and teachers are together all day for an entire school year, the opportunity to teach social justice and democratic values is great. Contends that the transmission model of social studies must be discarded in favor of a transformational model. (CFR)

Discusses how teaching about quilts and quilting in elementary social studies provides a more complete view of social history and includes the voices of women and men of different races, cultures, and social classes. Provides suggestions on teaching about quilts and identifies seven children's books on the topic. (CFR)

Details the process of implementing problem-based learning in the classroom, illustrated by a planning course. Problem-based learning is a promising method that helps students acquire the skills and knowledge to be more effective practitioners by tackling real-world problems. The instructor, as cognitive coach, ensures that students are active,…

Describes the North Star Approach to educational technology which challenges students to master the foundation skills: reading, writing, problem solving, communication, and citizenship. Outlines the six categories of computer tools (creativity/expression, drafting/building, exploration, communication, problem solving/innovation, and…

Identifies two frameworks that limit teachers' vision: (1) a transmission perspective on learning; and (2) a limiting conception of and anxious approach to technology. This study helped teachers break free of these restraints by providing an opportunity to become learners in a technological context based on developmentalist views of teaching and…

Discusses using Donna Haraway's concept of affinity and affinity politics as a foundation for structuring collaborative pedagogy and feminist syllabi. Outlines the goals and assumptions of affinity-based pedagogy, and relates classroom experiences that illustrate its functioning. Notes the lessons that both students and teachers have taken away…

The ultimate learning environment is the Internet itself. Digital media are helping educators and students shift from linear to hypermedia learning; from instruction to construction and discovery; from teacher- to learner-centered education; from absorbing to synthesizing material; and from school-time to customized lifelong learning. (MLH)

A class of fourth-graders-turned-film-producers created an animated video about national parks. The experience helped students acquire academic skills and knowledge, use technology meaningfully, feel confident about themselves and their learning, value cooperation, understand the creative process, sustain a vision, and have fun in school. (MLH)

Established in 1973, a progressive Charlotte, North Carolina, elementary school has been subjected to trends and pressures (particularly the back-to-basics and direct- instruction movements) that threatened its integrity and survival. Irwin Avenue must cover citywide academic objectives, but organizes its curriculum around themes and active,…

Defines case methods, a potentially valuable instructional tool for encouraging authentic, active learning. Describes an approach to the design and use of instructional design (ID) cases, and reports on the design and use of a Web-based ID case in a team case competition involving six universities. Team collaboration and competition were noted as…