New media, new knowledge practices, and concepts point to the need for greater understanding of cognitive processes underlying knowledge acquisition and generation in open informational worlds. The authors of the articles in this special issue address cognitive and instructional challenges surrounding multiple document comprehension--a…

Advanced verbal ability is a trait associated with giftedness, and as a teacher, the author observes that many high-ability children flourish in the classroom when they are encouraged to explain their thoughts and reasoning. Engaging children in discussion helps students gain knowledge, think creatively, and develop critical thinking skills.…

Performance appraisals traditionally have been studied quantitatively, from the manager's point of view, without considering their value or lack of value to workers. The absence of this information indicates that workers' perceptions and feelings have not always been considered. Therefore, the purpose of this phenomenological study was…

This article presents an interview with Allan Wigfield, professor and chair of the Department of Human Development and distinguished scholar-teacher at the University of Maryland. He has authored more than 100 peer-reviewed journal articles and book chapters on children's motivation and other topics. He is a fellow of Division 15 (Educational…

In the last two decades, fundamental changes in information distribution, in the general economy, and in the behaviors of faculty, students, and library staff have problematized the question of an academic library's value and how it can be measured. This article reviews those changes and, drawing on research linked to the Collegiate Learning…

Despite the great value of student learning outcome assessment (SLOA), faculty have not fully embraced the assessment movement, and many remain locked in debates on its merits. To gain faculty buy-in and explain why many faculty were motivated to engage in outcome assessment, the modified CANE (Commitment And Necessary Effort) model was used to…

This article outlines a new approach to the study of learning and the improvement of education. The approach consists of two elements: a theory of learning cultures and a cultural theory of learning. Learning cultures are different from learning contexts or learning environments in that they are to be understood as the social practices through…

Teachers at eight elementary schools in a large metropolitan school district participated in a multi-year program of professional ethical dilemma discussions that took place at monthly school meetings over a two-year or three-year period and focused on real-life situations faced by elementary school teachers. Discussions were structured using the…

Do moral judgments hinge on the time available to render them? According to a recent dual-process model of moral judgment, moral dilemmas that engage emotional processes are likely to result in fast deontological gut reactions. In contrast, consequentialist responses that tot up lives saved and lost in response to such dilemmas would require…

Delay discounting is the decline in the present value of a reward with delay to its receipt. Across a variety of species, populations, and reward types, value declines hyperbolically with delay. Value declines steeply with shorter delays, but more shallowly with longer delays. Quantitative modeling provides precise measures to characterize the…

The aim of the International Society for Technology, Education, and Science (iHSES) conference is to offer opportunities to share ideas, discuss theoretical and practical issues, and connect with the leaders in the fields of "humanities," "education" and "social sciences." It is organized for: (1) faculty members in…

The author says it's not enough just to have less homework or even better homework. We should change the fundamental expectation in our schools so that students are asked to take schoolwork home only when there's a reasonable likelihood that a particular assignment will be beneficial to most of them. The bottom line: No homework except for those…

Demonstrating the value of library and information services has been a theme in library discussions in recent years. The application of many different approaches to evaluation has waxed and waned together with the development of theories of evaluation across the humanities and social sciences. Over the past two decades research and activity on…

Using typography as its exemplar with its lack of clear performance criteria, this article questions what is good design and how to measure a designer's accountability. Evaluation criteria are teased out from various perspectives: credibility, ease of use, stakeholder inclusion in the design process, respect for cultural dimensions and whether it…

Last year, beginning on New Year's Day, as president of the National Council for Geographic Education (NCGE), the author wrote one tweet every day beginning with "What is Geography? 1 of 365" and posted them to his Twitter page. His goals in the series were several. He sought to point out as organization president how the NCGE serves the geography…