Knowledge about the nature of science has been advocated as an important component of science because it provides a framework on which the students can incorporate content knowledge. However, little empirical evidence has been provided that links nature of science knowledge with content knowledge. The purpose of this mixed method study was to…

The availability of teaching units on the nature of science (NOS) can reinforce classroom instruction in the subject, taking into account the related deficiencies in textbook material and teacher training. We give a sequence of teaching units in which the teaching of Newton's gravitational theory is used as a basis for reflecting on the…

Research was reviewed on small-group instruction for learners with disabilities. The review was conducted for articles published between 1990 and 2010 on the application of small-group direct instruction to teach discrete skills using prompting procedures. A total of 47 articles with 197 participants and 687 replications of effects was located.…

With the increased emphasis on standardized testing from state and federal mandates, the need for reading remediation has intensified. Programs directed toward increasing student test scores have been put in place nationwide with mixed results. These initiatives include response to intervention (RTI), direct instruction, and individualized…

Considerable research evidence supports the provision of explicit instruction for students at risk for reading difficulties; however, one of the most widely implemented approaches to early reading instruction is Guided Reading (GR; Fountas & Pinnel, 1996), which deemphasizes explicit instruction and practice of reading skills in favor of…

The purpose of this study was to conduct a content analysis of the types and occurrences of explicit instructional moves recommended for teaching five essentials of effective reading instruction in grades 1, 3, and 5 core reading program teachers' editions in five widely marketed core reading programs. Guided practice was the most frequently…

Student misbehavior in the classroom is often reported as an area of concern for teachers. Having to focus on classroom management rather than content results in a loss of important instructional time, which can have a deleterious impact on student academic achievement. The purpose of the study was to examine whether a character education program…

This research study compared learning of 6-9th grade deaf students under two modes of educational delivery--interpreted vs. direct instruction using science lessons. Nineteen deaf students participated in the study in which they were taught six science lessons in American Sign Language. In one condition, the lessons were taught by a hearing…

Several studies found that direct instruction and task structuring can effectively promote children's ability to design unconfounded experiments. The present study examined whether the impact of these interventions extends to other scientific reasoning skills by comparing the inquiry activities of 55 fifth-graders randomly assigned to one of…

The use of hypertext systems for learning and teaching complex and ill-structured domain of knowledge has been attracting attention in design of instruction. In this context, an experimental research has been conducted to explore the effectiveness of instructional design oriented hypertext systems. Cognitive flexibility hypertext theory is…

There is limited research demonstrating Direct Instruction (DI) as an effective reading comprehension intervention for students with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and developmental disabilities (DD). Previous research has shown that DI, when portions of the program were implemented, resulted in increased skills (Flores & Ganz, 2007; Flores…

The main purpose of this study is to explore preservice science teachers' mental models of science teaching. Additionally it is investigated whether there is a significant correlation between their gender and grade levels in terms of mental models. The sample of this study composed of 300 (111 males and 189 females) pre-service science teachers…

This Issue Brief will explore the integral role that career and technical education (CTE) curricula and programs can play in addressing the leadership skills gap facing employers. CTE fosters future leaders by providing leadership training in class and through related activities, by placing students in workplace contexts where they can receive…

This study examined the effectiveness, generalization, and maintenance of a multi-element intervention consisting of brief direct instruction social skill lessons, a prompting procedure, and a fading procedure to promote social engagement in an integrated lunchroom and playground setting for three elementary age students with developmental…

This study investigated the effects of the "Expressive Writing (EW)" direct instruction curriculum on the expository writing skills of secondary grade students with serious emotional and behavioral disabilities (EBD). The "EW" program targets writing mechanics, sentence writing, and editing but does not include pre-writing…