Students of reasoning have long tried to understand how people revise systems of beliefs. This paper maintains that people often change their beliefs in ways driven by considerations of explanatory coherence. In this report, a computational model is described of how experimental subjects revise their naive beliefs about physical motion. First,…

Reviews and analyzes research related to the teaching and learning of science completed in 1985. Includes: (1) reviews of research; (2) evaluation; (3) student characteristics; (4) attitudes toward science; (5) conceptual reasoning; (6) instructional treatments; (7) cognitive skills; (8) laboratory work; (9) microcomputer applications; (10)…

Discusses the relationship of school size to understanding of scientific concepts. Results indicated that students in small high schools had fewer instances of understanding and more instances of misunderstanding of the concepts of diffusion and homeostasis. No difference was observed for concepts related to food production in plants and…

Describes the use of a microcomputer-based laboratory (MBL) in teaching the concepts of heat and temperature to eighth grade students. Discusses the advantages of being able to instantly display the results of their experimentation with the use of temperature and light probes, and heat pulsors. (TW)

The activities in the guide will help you connect the suggestions and strategies in Classroom Motivation from A to Z to your real-life teaching experiences. For each of the 26 chapters in the book, you will find a series of three activities that will help you reflect on your current practices. They ask you to ACT now and turn your classroom into a…

Learning activities that promote student pride in rural living include examining the misconceptions and prejudices associated with rural living, exploring the variables of a rural lifestyle, student research of their town's history, and reading books that positively portray rural living. Includes a bibliography of 69 adolescent books with rural…

Describes a classroom exercise designed to illustrate the economic aspects of common ownership, individual ownership, government regulation and to examine how these relate to conservation. The exercise involves the incremental distribution (via a turkey baster) of water between buckets marked "now" and "future." Different rules replicate different…

Discussed are possible reasons behind the inconsistencies in the learning of calculus. Implicated are students' beliefs, mathematical paradigms including concept image and concept definition, language use, and curriculum sequencing. (KR)

Discussed are the issues of inconsistencies and compartmentalization and the use of inconsistencies in the classroom. Included are discussions on paradoxes, the naive student, logical reasoning ability, and the development of the students' cognitive structures. (KR)

Discusses a system of classification for students' inconsistent ideas in mathematics, the sources of students' mathematical inconsistency, and instructional strategies for helping students to resolve apparent learning inconsistencies. Language, curriculum, and instruction are included in the discussion. (KR)

Interviewed 800 police chiefs asking whether the Bill of Rights prevented police and prosecutors from protecting citizens against crime and found the answer was no. Urges more equitable funding for the criminal justice system, more public defenders for the poor, and teaching about justice in a free society. (NL)

Uses of calculators to teach the concept of exponents are described. Topics covered on activity sheets include powers of two, number systems, and powers as repeated multiplication. Cooperative learning is emphasized. (KR)

Discusses recent research in cognitive psychology that identifies how students are likely to respond when controversial issues are included in course content. Points out that controversial material may lead to misunderstandings and forgetting. Provides teaching ideas to enhance student learning and remembering, to deal with emotions, and to foster…

The use of programs on the topic of dinosaurs in interdisciplinary exercises which may include mathematics, science, history, and language arts is described. Reviews of 16 different computer programs are included. Possible misconceptions and how they are dealt with in various programs are discussed. (CW)

Points out the power that television has in shaping opinions and in promoting and banishing stereotypes. Presents examples of positive role models in both entertainment and news programing. Emphasizes the importance of reflecting a pluralistic society in news reporting. (LS)