Examines ethical dilemmas encountered during an ethnographic study of how the concept of competence at a Scottish teacher-education institution included the need to prepare future teachers as critical professionals able to handle diversity. The paper discusses negotiations in the fieldwork, constraints imposed upon it, and potential for developing…

Describes an exercise, step-by-step, for developing critical thinking while exposing students to electronic-data skills. Argues that the exercise enhances critical thinking by forcing students to deal with issues of data definition, collection, and interpretation, and by providing an active learning experience with real-world data. (DSK)

Research and two teaching experiences support the notion that social location influences the way students learn; therefore, a place-based, Appalachian-based curriculum in the region's colleges and universities would enhance student learning. Appalachian studies should be integrated throughout the college curriculum, but that requires a well…

Cantonese tertiary-level students taking a general education course taught in English at the Chinese University of Hong Kong were asked to rate their own English language skills development in relation to six specific areas. They were asked to identify what they had learned in relation to other aspects of the course. Responses indicated that…

This study compared face-to-face seminars with asynchronous computer conferencing in the same information management class to determine if computer supported co-operative learning (CSCL) could maintain learning quality and if computer mediated communication (CMC) could promote critical thinking. Concludes face-to-face seminars are better for…

Profiles a class exercise that teaches the importance of developing an accurate definition of a psychological construct (guilt, control, altruism). The more precise the definition, the easier it is to choose an appropriate technique to measure that construct. Discusses the Health and Psychosocial Instrument File, a recent measurement database.…

Discusses Stephen Brookfield's book, Becoming a Critically Reflective Teacher. Presents three categories of assumptions he believes teachers must make about their teaching: paradigmatic, prescriptive, and causal. States that Brookfield encourages engaging in critical conversation with peers in order to improve teaching methods. Provides strategies…

In a cooperative research program, classroom teachers and university researchers developed and implemented a contextualized performance-based assessment in mathematics. The assessments were intended to model what students may do in the course of daily activity and designed to assess problem solving, and conceptual and procedural understanding.…

Offers suggestions to librarians on how to teach Internet use and Web searching to beginners. Highlights include active learning, including small group assignments; Web addresses; Web site authority, currency, accuracy, commercialism, and scope; critical thinking skills; the training environment; student exercises; and educational resources for…

Reviews a variety of information models developed to provide support for student research that will help school library media specialists meet the needs of diverse learners when providing course integrated library instruction. Each model assumes learning as an active and creative process and promotes the development of critical thinking skills.…

Reports on the success of a pilot program at the University of Missouri-Kansas City library in course-integrated information literacy instruction in the field of medieval studies that stresses critical thinking skills to properly evaluate Web sites. Discusses faculty-librarian collaboration and future collaboration possibilities. (Contains 13…

Reports on a study of critical thinking goals in senior capstone courses. Finds that: (1) independent research and group projects are the most effective methods to teach critical thinking, according to faculty; and (2) students felt that they expanded their intellectual curiosity and learned to think more effectively because of these courses.…

Discusses the role of academic librarians in expanding information literacy to teach critical thinking; describes the New Media Classroom (NMC) that teaches how to use primary sources on the Web; and shows applications of NMC inquiry activities in a library setting, including a case study that involved collaboration between the librarian and…

This report describes an experiment to introduce freshmen science students to inquiry-based learning. The overarching theme was the communication of scientific information to the public by the mass media. Students, working in groups, deconstructed news items (many dealing with basic biomedical issues) and assessed the veracity of statements with…

Alvermann urges teachers to "listen to their own students for guidance in adapting their instruction," calling it both "feasible and worthwhile." She says, "But having personal access to good directional ideas is not enough. Finding ways to turn those ideas into sound instructional practices (based on principles derived from equally sound…