Evolution is a central underlying concept to a significant number of discourses in civilized society, but the complexity of understanding basic tenets of this important theory is just now coming to light. Knowledge about evolution is constructed from both formal and "free-choice" opportunities, like television. Nature programs are commonly…

Schools, districts, and states across the nation are changing the way educators are paid. Through the Teacher Incentive Fund (TIF) and other publicly and independently funded programs, educators at every level are designing and implementing modified pay and reward structures for teachers and principals. Sometimes these initiatives are called…

An audience response system (ARS) has become popular among educators in medicine and the health professions because of the system's ability to engage listeners during a lecture presentation. No one has described the usefulness of ARS technology during planned nonlecture peer teaching sessions in gross anatomy instruction for health professionals.…

This article describes the implementation of a module that utilizes drama students to teach social work students how to use active listening skills in an interview environment. The module was implemented during a semester-long micro skills practice course taught to 13 undergraduate social work seniors in a western liberal arts university. Four…

In this article, the authors offer an approach to teaching that can help students prepare to write for the workplace and in the community: a case study of community-based writing. In this case-study project, students work in groups to study the writing needs and practices of a community-based group or organization, such as a local public library,…

One can scarcely open the newspaper without finding examples of smart, well-educated people who have behaved in ethically challenged ways. What is frightening about ethical lapses is not that they happen to the ethically outrageous but that they can sneak up on just about everyone. An informal classroom "experiment" recently performed by this…

This article looks at best practices in basic writing instruction in terms of non-traditional audiences and writerly authority. Much conventional wisdom discourages participation in service-learning projects for basic writers because of the assumption that their writing is not yet ready to "go public." Countering this line of thinking, the author…

This article explores the role of publication in taking forward the work of the doctorate. Low publication rates from doctoral degrees have been noted as a problem in the quality of doctoral education for preparing students to participate in research cultures. At the same time there is ambivalence and some resistance among doctoral supervisors and…

In this article, the author outlines how she used qualitative research methodologies to translate her research findings into a social-realist narrative film that has engaged multiple audiences. This process raises questions about what translation means when research is represented in the form of an imaginative text and how education researchers…

The profile and needs of today's undergraduate students have changed, and family and consumer sciences (FCS) departments will benefit from taking a proactive approach to adjust their recruitment strategies to meet those needs. California State University, Sacramento, implemented successful efforts in the areas of virtual contact, direct contact,…

The advantages of peer feedback in business writing classes are clear in that feedback comes from different perspectives and sometimes carries extra credibility coming from fellow students. However, students also hesitate to criticise their friends and prefer praising in a general way rather than suggesting improvements, which requires…

Since 1973, the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) has gathered information about student achievement in mathematics. Results of these periodic assessments, produced in print and web-based formats, provide valuable information to a wide variety of audiences. The NAEP Assessment in mathematics has two components that differ in…

English 302: Writing about the Arts is a practicum course offered at the University of Windsor for upper-level English undergraduate students. The course asks students to write about a variety of art forms and requires engagement with multiple genres of writing as a way for students to effectively order their experiences, reconstruct meaning in…

Despite years of formal education, approximately one-third of all undergraduate students still cannot explain the causes of the seasons. Student manipulation of a handheld model is one approach to teaching this concept; however, the large number of students in many introductory classes can dissuade instructors from utilizing this teaching…

With her recent book, "Paint the Wind" (2007), hitting the shelves this fall, author Pam Munoz Ryan delivers a welcome addition to the 25 plus books she has written for young people, including her award-winning novels "Esperanza Rising" (2000) and "Riding Freedom" (1998) and picture books "Amelia and Eleanor Go for a Ride" (1999) and "When Marian…