Many mathematics classrooms use cooperative learning to support equitable learning environments for all students. Past research in the field has focused primarily on increasing achievement rather than on contexts that support equitable interactions. This year-long study in 3 secondary mathematics classes compares 2 activity structures--a group…

Spain is currently implementing the regulatory modifications promulgated by the Declaration of Bologna, which should result in the updating of the structure of university degrees, and the inclusion of the European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System (ECTS) methodology. In some Spanish universities, the experimental adoption of this methodology…

Problem-based learning has been at the core of significant developments in engineering education in recent years. This term refers to any learning environment in which the problem drives the learning, because it is posed in such a way that students realize they need to acquire new knowledge before the problem can be solved. This paper presents the…

At present, it is difficult to assess the quality of learning in Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL) environments, because standard pretest and posttest measures do not capture the differences in the learner's ability to engage in the material, pose interesting new questions, engage others in learning and work collaboratively. This…

The rewriting of a first-year university sociology course provided the opportunity to introduce the use of digital narratives into the classroom. This technological change in course delivery led the authors to consider the ramifications of the "digital native" debate in teaching university-level youth studies. The focus of this article…

Multi-age classrooms feature the purposeful grouping of students from two or more grade levels in order to form communities of learners. During the past 40 years, multi-age education has been examined in literature and research in many different ways and contexts. In the subject area of visual art, however, little literature can be found that…

Telecollaboration is an approach to intercultural learning that uses Internet technology as a tool to facilitate intercultural communication between classes of learners in different countries. The question of what language learners can gain from telecollaboration is fundamental in putting the case forward for its place in a language course. This…

In this paper we present a general framework, called NUCLEO, for the application of socio-constructive educational approaches in higher education. The underlying pedagogical approach relies on an adaptation model in order to improve group dynamics, as this has been identified as one of the key features in the success of collaborative learning…

In this study, we investigated the influence of individual learners' motivation on the collaborative discovery learning process. In this we distinguished the motivation of the individual learners and had eye for the composition of groups, which could be homogeneous or heterogeneous in terms of motivation. The study involved 73 dyads of 10th-grade…

In this article, the authors offer an approach to teaching that can help students prepare to write for the workplace and in the community: a case study of community-based writing. In this case-study project, students work in groups to study the writing needs and practices of a community-based group or organization, such as a local public library,…

Graphing is a key skill in the study of Physics. Drawing and interpreting graphs play a key role in the understanding of science, while the lack of these has proved to be a handicap and a limiting factor in the learning of scientific concepts. It has been observed that despite the amount of previous graph-working experience, students of all ages…

As educators we must ask ourselves if we are meeting the needs of today's students. The science world is adapting to our ever-changing society; are the methodology and philosophy of our educational system keeping up? In this article, you'll learn why web logs (also called blogs) are an important Web 2.0 tool in your science classroom and how they…

Purpose: Group-based tasks or assignments, if well designed, can yield benefits for student employability and other important attribute developments. However there is a fundamental problem when all members of the group receive the same mark and feedback. Disregarding the quality and level of individual contributions can seriously undermine many of…

This study investigates video recordings of design reviews in architectural education, focusing on how presentations and discussions of designs are contingent on the specific tools employed. In the analyzed recordings, three different setups are utilized: traditional posters, digital slide-show technologies, and combinations of the two. This range…

Background: Constructivist views of learning have brought conceptions of learning to attention again. Conceptions are considered important determinants of effective learning. Students can differ in their conceptions depending on their educational experience. Aims: The present study investigated students' conceptions of constructivist learning. Do…