Examines the use of four versions of narrative inquiry with preservice teachers: response to practicum experiences, responses to reading, small and large group discussions, and reflection papers. Each helps students explore narrative assumptions that contribute to their images of teaching, enabling them to explore unexamined parts of their…

Investigates fifth-grade students' conceptual changes toward the greenhouse effect and global warming due to sociocognitive interaction developed in small and large group discussion in an authentic classroom context during an environmental education unit. Classroom discussions led the children to integrate new scientific knowledge into their…

A qualitative study examined the effects of a hypermedia program on diversity training completed by 65 undergraduate students. Results showed that when different types of implementation groups were utilized, discussion (considered vital to diversity training) only occurred on a regular basis in facilitated groups, and to a lesser degree in pair…

Presents observations of 15-member literature discussion group in a fifth-grade classroom. Shows that even in such groups, intended to create a more democratic forum where students' voices are heard and valued, factors like gender, cultural background, and status play a role in whose ideas get expressed and are actually listened to. (SR)

Discusses the benefits of collaborative writing in a writing workshop and the value of a social cognitive approach to learning for middle school students. Examines a taped collaborative writing workshop to demonstrate themes of using exploratory talk to stimulate thinking, promoting conceptual understanding, internalizing language to gain…

Describes a Web-based tool, WebGuide, being developed to mediate and structure collaborative learning. This software uses an innovative mechanism to define a flexible system of perspectives on a shared knowledge construction space. WebGuide provides an electronic and persistent workspace for individuals and teams to develop and share distinctive…

Examined the comparative efficiency of inquiry-group instruction and traditional teaching methods on Taiwanese junior high school students' achievement and attitudes toward earth science. Surveys of students in both groups indicated that students in the inquiry group had significantly higher achievement scores and significantly more favorable…

Focuses on four aspects of the interaction process in distance education: (1) justification for interaction in the pedagogical process; (2) definition of interaction as it applies to the process of learning; (3) relationship between the current technologies and interaction; and (4) methodologies for integrating interaction into distance education.…

False teeth among children are a Public Health problem which has not received adequate attention in Uganda. This study was therefore developed as a community-based descriptive cross-sectional carried out in Kanungu District using qualitative methods of data collection among caregivers of children, Community Owned Resource Persons and Service…

The article reports from a qualitative study of family group conferencing in Wales. Family group conferences are meetings of extended family networks that are convened in order to plan for a child's care and welfare. They are an attempt to enable families to have a greater say in welfare decisions and often particularly encourage children's…

Given the current diversity of communication tools at an educator's disposal, what role (if any) does the discussion forum play in the development of a strong sense of community among students? This study sought to investigate the relationship between discussion forum interaction and perceived student sense of community. The results of the study…

Institutions across the U.S. have designed and implemented first-year experience programs that have gone a long way toward affecting student success. Retention rates have increased at some institutions as a result of these interventions, and first-year students often get the support they need to negotiate the transition into college. Now many…

The aim of this paper is to compare the effects of different communication media on the quality of arguments and the development of argumentative reasoning. The study involved 73 undergraduate students. It consisted of a pre-test, an intervention session consisting of either an asynchronous online discussion or a face-to-face discussion, and a…

Many mathematics educators share a view of mathematics as a social and cultural phenomenon and believe that the learning of mathematics concepts is developed and enhanced through the use of learning communities. Electronic discussion boards provide one avenue for supporting such social learning. This paper discusses the use of a Question and…

High-risk behavior in youths related to HIV transmission continues to occur despite large-scale efforts to disseminate information about safe sexual practices through education. Our study examined the relationships among knowledge, decision-making strategies, and risk assessment about HIV by youths during peer group focused discussions. Two focus…