The mission of this conference was to explore and promote the integration of experiential learning with diverse communities and settings. The 60 presentations, workshops, and preconference events included in this proceedings manual are organized under the following topics: (1) foundations; (2) urban, school, and corporate environments; (3) social…

The goal of this paper is to sketch the epistemological roots of constructivism, to clarify certain implications of Piaget's constructivist theory for science education, and to explicate the issues surrounding a specific research study and its replication. Constructivist epistemology is described in terms of its emergence from rationalist,…

This study investigated young children's ability to solve probability problems and studied the cognitive processes proposed by Piaget and Inhelder as necessary to solve probability problems. The effects of tutorial and self-discovery training were measured and discussed. Results from 168 first-graders in five training conditions indicated that:…

Instructions are given for a first graders' science and mathematical lesson entitled: "Stone Soup" (based on a popular story by Marcia Brown). Activities include reading, discussing, collecting materials, cooking, growing plants, and observing physical and chemical changes. (CR)

This paper suggests model lessons that elementary or secondary social studies teachers can use to integrate field-trip experiences directly into instruction, specifically, inquiry teaching. The Ohio Historical Center and the Ohio Village in Columbus, Ohio, are used as example museums. To illustrate the instructional activities, the authors…

This document is a collection of reports presented at a programable calculator symposium held in Seattle, Washington, in April, 1980, as part of the annual meeting of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM). The session was designed to review whether the programable calculator has a place in the school mathematics program, in light…

A six-year project providing training for prospective elementary school science teachers is described. Phase one, a period of three years, involved a longitudinal study of a pilot group of students as they encountered science content and science teaching methodology, coupled with early and continued field teaching experiences. In the final three…

A field experience program in which all undergraduate psychology students at the College of St. Scholastica spend about 10 weeks away from campus in an applied setting of their choice is presented. Components of the program are described in terms of: (1) selection of sites made by students in consultation with faculty advisors; (2) proposals…

Prepared for use with the Research for Better Schools experience-based career education model, this handbook is designed to assist school personnel to formulate concrete and flexible responses to the challenges of developing exploration programs in collaboration with personnel from community resource sites. The handbook is divided into five…

The objectives of this research pilot project were (1) to train 3- and 4-year-olds in cognitive and tactile discovery tasks; (2) to provide guidance for parents, enabling them to reinforce and review the concepts taught; and (3) to establish training and employment, as tutors, for central city high school and junior college students. A "discovery…

Preservice elementary teachers enrolled in a mathematics course were randomly assigned to one of two treatment groups for instruction on computation in bases other than 10. Group 1 (Min-M) involved minimal guidance and a concrete level of abstraction, while group 2 (Max-S) had a large amount of guidance and dealt with concepts at a symbolic level.…

The journal synthesizing activity is intended to combine aspects of the formal essay with that of a diary. Activities associated with lecture topics are written up as short journal entries of approximately five typewritten pages and are turned in during the weekly class session at which the related topic is being discussed. The journal project…

The broad purpose of the Western States Small Schools Project (WSSP), an Elementary and Secondary Education Act Title III project, is to improve education in small rural schools. Undertaken by WSSP, SPURS attacks the lack of specialized education services and general lag in implementing improved educational practices in rural areas. A long-range…

The product of a Special Studies Institute, this teacher developed resource guide for the emotionally handicapped (K-6) presents concepts and activities relative to sound and movement as explored in the urban out-of-doors. Emphasis is on integration of cognitive and physical learning ("if a child physically feels a concept, his learning of that…

This curriculum guide, part of a series of science units, stresses concept-learning through the discovery approach and child-centered activities. It is intended that the unit will be studied in depth by grades 3, 4, 5, and 6. Kindergarten pupils will study the unit in less detail. "Our Useful Rocks" is studied in the kindergarten,…