Describes how using conferencing software in a computer-assisted writing environment became a catalyst for a distinctive learning ecology that interrelated prosocial student behaviors, learner-centered teaching, and assessment. Argues that the conferencing class not only helped students apply critical thinking and problem-solving skills in…

Describes how an online conference was used in a graduate poetry class with students not accustomed to using technology in their coursework. Suggests that it extended the depth and quality of discussion, opening up new areas of discourse; and that students went beyond assigned topics to create and engage in their own discourse enriched by their…

Research-based learning (RBL) is a model for merging research and undergraduate education. To link RBL with a curriculum across the institution, the authors used discipline-specific RBL strands, each of which is a set of interconnected course options that couple out-of-class research experiences with an established curriculum. Student learning is…

Explains the Core Skills framework which emerged as part of the Higher Still Development Programme in Scotland at the same time as similar developments of Key Skills in the rest of the United Kingdom. Describes the unique aspects of the Scottish program. (WRM)

Compared the effects of three cooperative-learning environments on Israeli seventh graders' mathematical problem solving (metacognitive training, direct strategy instruction, and neither). Pencil-and-paper testing assessed students' problem-solving abilities. Results indicated that students exposed to metacognitive training significantly…

Favored explanations for the achievement gap between black and white students reflect experts' positions on the ideological spectrum, while overlooking fundamental problems with the educational delivery system. The situation of black students is not hopeless, thanks to new research that abandons whites' academic performance as the norm and…

Describes the cooperative learning activities and writing process techniques used in writing classes that include students from 14 different countries. Most students report greater confidence and comfort learning writing through group work. Teaching the process of writing helps the majority of students to recognize and appreciate the value of…

Describes a form of assessment called the inverted test within the context of a ceramics class where students work in groups to create test questions and then test the teacher. Addresses the students' reactions to the inverted test, the positive outcomes that resulted, and applying the inverted test in other classes. (CMK)

Examined what one middle school teacher learned as she directed her students to complete a structural engineering task as a cooperative learning activity. Found that students were on task and collaborated to accomplish the goal, but that the teacher's decisions about how tasks were set up, carried out, and completed affected students' interactions…

Describes distance education in an elementary science methods course using newsgroups and electronic mail discussion groups via computer. Compares the newsgroup to the discussion group and points out the importance of interaction in cooperative learning. (YDS)

Addresses the Niles Firebrick Project, an outreach program from Youngstown State University that has traveled to nine schools in six Ohio school districts, with a majority of the classrooms visited in middle schools. Explains that the project centers on the use of primary documents about the Niles Fire Brick Company. (CMK)

Discusses the use of student-based focus groups as one component of university course evaluations. Steps in planning and conducting focus groups are detailed and applied to the evaluation of a freshman-level general health course. Finds that participants wanted to retain the health content but add more of a teaching emphasis to the course.…

Discusses why group presentations are a valuable activity for humanities courses illustrating how presentations elicit discussions, enable students to share their talents, and make the study of art and history relevant to the students' lives. Addresses the formation of groups, the guidelines for assignments, and the evaluation of the group work.…

Describes implementation of concepts of collaborative learning, learning communities, and interdisciplinary learning to help students integrate into college life and improve retention at Portland Community College (Oregon). Also summarizes implementation of these concepts at six other institutions. (DB)

A work of art documents the artist's perceptions. The conundrum of how to communicate one's perceptions effectively is the foundation of art. Making art in the classroom involves dialogs between artists and themselves, and artists and their audience. An entire class collaborating on a work augments the learning experience. Instructions are given…