Discusses the problems presented to writing center tutors by traditional research paper assignments. Recounts typical definitions of student research papers according to current-traditional rhetoric. Advocates writing centers helping students transform research papers into meaning-making activities in which students construct knowledge. (HB)

Describes a number of projects through which elementary school students in Massachusetts learned about their local and state community and gained skills needed for active citizenship. (PRA)

Suggests a method for translating graduate education in qualitative methods into undergraduate teaching. Focuses on intensive interviewing and its benefits for both graduate students and for undergraduate teaching as a means of bringing the subject into the real world. Discusses planning the interview assignment, developing interview questions,…

Presents a hand-out given to students at the University of Canterbury, New Zealand, concerning expectations and guidelines for finishing laboratory reports. Topics covered are accuracy, data collection, and write-up format that includes introduction, materials utilized, procedures, results, discussion, conclusion, tables and illustrations, units…

Presents a lesson plan for seventh-grade students in which they learn respect for themselves and others and apply social studies skills. Explains that the students create timelines, interview someone of an older generation, and create a Venn diagram comparing that person's life to their own. Includes suggestions for writing assignments based on…

Reviews the recent growth of interest in qualitative geography. Discusses whether or not qualitative research can be accepted on the same scholarly level as quantitative research. Contends that qualitative methodology has much to offer geography and geography instruction. (CFR)

Presents a student research project in which students discover the history behind everyday kitchen inventions and popular food items. Pupils achieve the following objectives: (1) distinguish fact from opinion; (2) evaluate relevant information; (3) compare and contrast events; (4) locate and verify conflicting information; and (5) organize,…

A survey of 567 graduates of 3 medical schools (Pennsylvania State University, University of Connecticut, and University of Massachusetts) showed medical school research involvement to be strongly associated with postgraduate research involvement. In residency specialty training, fellowship training, academic appointments, career practice choices,…

A Northwestern University (Illinois) medical residency program requires each student to complete a research project. Project goals and structure are specific, but residents may choose any project that is original, ethical, and scientifically sound. So far, one-third of the projects have been published or presented at a regional or national…

Elementary students can investigate U.S. geography and exercise critical thinking and research skills by compiling a computer database on state facts and figures. As they research and work, they develop their own questions to ask and answer and make thoughtful hypotheses about how and why facts may be related. (SM)

Middle school students empowered as researchers examined the structure and conditions of their school. They identified problems in the classroom learning environment, care and connection, and valuing of individuals. Their recommendations were used in efforts toward school improvement. (SK)

Explores how social-studies student teachers think about and write about history through an examination of their historical thinking, use of sources, and writing. Focuses on constructing historical accounts from multiple sources. Discusses common patterns in thinking and writing. Suggests way to improve student teachers' engagement with historical…

Describes how high school biology students use the clam to study the bivalve body plan anatomy. Employs an open-ended investigation format that is rich with measurement opportunities including body mass, valve mass, and volume. (DDR)

Finds significant improvements (at both a Title I school and a middle-income school) in fourth-grade students' ability to find and use information after a year of research-strategy instruction that was integrated with the demands of inquiry-based content-area projects, rather than skills taught out of context. (SR)

Describes an instructional model that develops English-as-a-Second-Language students' linguistic and academic skills through extended study of discipline-based content presented through multimedia. Illustrates the approach via a sample lesson from a unit on environmental science. Discusses the use of focus-discipline groups that research class…