Describes the steps involved in shifting an American Literature curriculum from teacher-centered to student-centered. Includes strategies to provide learning that is cooperative and dynamic, as well as a process of negotiation, consensus, and disagreement. (NH)

Investigated the effectiveness of cooperative study groups among high-achieving first-year preservice teachers. Intervention group students participated in groups led by peers or upper-year students. Students completed surveys assessing the groups. Researchers compared intervention and non-intervention students' grades and survey data. Results…

This article first discusses the characteristics of students who are learning English as a second language and of students with disabilities that affect academic achievement. Then it describes strategies for use in the general education classroom including: (1) developing listener-friendly lectures, (2) adapting textbooks, (3) adapting…

Studied the interpersonal interactions during group work by children designated by their peers as bullies, victims, and bystanders. Results for 117 Italian elementary school students suggest that cooperative group work had an impact on the expression of some emotions, although the tendency of victims to deny their feelings in comparison to the…

Describes a program that puts students through a 10-week summer internship at a non-profit organization and provides them with experiences in career choices in the biological sciences. Explains three parts of the student training and evaluates the program. (Contains 32 references.) (YDS)

Discusses the need to study the social interactive dimension of learning, attempting to formulate a definition of togetherness on a theoretical basis. Explores processes in early childhood that relate to understanding how children learn to maintain togetherness in their group activities, and how a strategy for togetherness may prepare children for…

We present a case study of two students engaged in an investigation of number theory concepts in the computer environment, "Geoboard". The two students struggle with significant problems to communicate mathematics, and the computer plays a vital role in helping them overcome these difficulties. In fact, the students constantly use the screen…

Developments in forms of peer learning 1981-2006 are reviewed, focusing mainly on peer tutoring, cooperative learning, and peer assessment. Types and definitions of peer learning are explored, together with questions of implementation integrity and consequent effectiveness and cost-effectiveness. Benefits to helpers are now emphasised at least as…

Group projects in computer science are normally delivered with reference to good software engineering practice. The discipline of software engineering is rapidly evolving, and the application of the latest 'agile techniques' to group projects causes a potential conflict with constraints imposed by regulating bodies on the computer science…

Educational experiences need to (1.) increase student activities inside and outside the classroom; (2.) promote knowledge acquisition and educational performance; (3.) increase group-based and cooperative learning; and, (4.) assist students in developing solutions to real-world, complex problems. To address these issues, this research blended…

The Quality of Working in Groups Instrument (QWIGI) was used in this research to measure students' fluctuating psychological need states as well as their situational interest online. Based on previous research with the QWIGI, it was predicted that the variance in university sophomores' situational interest in each of the five different topics of…

In what ways can information and communications technologies (ICT) be integrated into classroom practice to create a 'community of learners'? This paper describes an action research project, over a six-month period, in which a class of seven-year-old and eight-year-old children in a metropolitan South Australian school created digital images to…

This research describes a methodology for applying design- and management-based scaffolding techniques aimed to enhance cooperative behavior. Based on assumptions of how successful online learning groups act together, we developed feedback-based mechanisms that aimed at contributing to group functions of well-being, member support, and productive…

The article analyzes a constructivist view of music education. A constructivist music classroom exemplifies deep learning when students formulate questions, acquire new knowledge by developing and implementing plans for investigating these questions, and reflect on the results. A context for deep learning requires that teachers and students work…

The purpose of this study was to use a component of Everett Rogers' theory of diffusion of innovations to understand adult literacy instructors' perceptions of the consequences of adopting the Internet into their classrooms. This study provides information about the types of consequences they saw and their perceptions about the desirability,…