Fifty early childhood teachers and 44 mothers of children aged 3 to 5 years were surveyed on their beliefs about listening and methods for encouraging listening in children. Although mothers and teachers held similar views about the components of good listening for children, teachers' educational levels were associated with the nature of their…

This article describes an environmental inventory, "Analyzing the Communication Environment," which allows the evaluator to analyze the extent to which specific activities encourage functional communication for particular students with severe communication impairments. The inventory may be used to compare different activities across the student's…

Describes two aspects of metacognition, knowledge of cognition and regulation of cognition, and how they relate to domain-specific knowledge and cognitive abilities. It is argued that metacognitive knowledge is multidimensional, domain-general in nature, and teachable. Four instructional strategies are described for promoting the construction and…

Word learning in a supported-learning context is described for 30 preschoolers with specific learning impairment (SLI) and 30 controls. Daily production probes assessed number of words learned and daily posttest assessed comprehension of the words. A minority of children with SLI learned to produce significantly fewer words. (Author/CR)

Development of the concept of division was studied in two experiments involving a total of 124 5-, 6-, and 7-year-old students in England. Partitive tasks, more similar to sharing, were easier than quotitive tasks, suggesting that children's initial understanding of division might be based on the action schema of sharing. (SLD)

Describes a dissertation model used in teaching a critical-thinking course for developmental freshmen. Students learned how to create knowledge by linking the five-chapter model with the elements and standards of critical thinking, and by writing and defending their own 10-page dissertations. Discusses course strengths and weaknesses. Contains 13…

Explains the importance of student self-assessment skills and how, by sharpening these skills, students and teachers can see excellent results both in and out of the classroom. Self-assessment is explained as the central part of the evaluation section of the Big6 information problem-solving process. (LRW)

Explores steps that teachers can take to integrate strategic-reading instruction into their second-language (L2) classrooms. The steps can help teachers systematically address their students' reading-strategy needs in classes that are devoted either to reading skills alone or to integrated skills, content-based instruction. (Author/VWL)

In an effort to combat juvenile speech patterns of "mallspeak" and engage students in intelligent conversation, classes in oral communication are appearing among the general education requirements at colleges, and speaking-intensive classes are emerging in all disciplines. Communications faculty feel the skills should be taught within their…

Discusses how the World Wide Web can be used as a major resource for teaching projects and building team skills. Presents a project assignment using the World Wide Web that might be included when teaching a unit in the primary grades on likenesses and differences. (CR)

Reviews studies designed to teach students to be more able thinkers in particular subject areas. The interventions reorganize thinking by teaching strategies, metacognition, thinking dispositions, distributed cognition, and transfer of learning. Students are provided with psychological resources to think better across a range of contexts. (MMU)

Multidimentional assessment procedure was used to evaluate effects of the Treatment and Education of Autistic and Communication Handicapped Children (TEACCH) program principles and strategies on 18 children and adolescents with autism after 12 and 18 months of structured intervention. Results showed an increase in working skills and functional…

Discusses distance-learning-program redesign for Internet delivery and suggests strategies for successful delivery, including hiring faculty specifically for the distance-learning program; orienting first-time students; comprehensive administrative support; adequate faculty training; virtual librarians; communication; and teaching students needed…

Describes the development of an online self-assessment of students' technology skills based on a summer program for middle school students. Explains how the course design was based on feedback from a student survey that indicated a need to learn PowerPoint and Web-page-design skills rather than word-processing skills. (LRW)

Explains the use of FLIP it! worksheets that are frameworks for learning activities in school libraries and classrooms that promote innovative thinking. The format includes focus topics; links or likely sources of information; input, or information needed; and payoff, or product format and presentation. (LRW)