The Sequential Mathematics Sequence provides an integrated course of study for grades 9-11 in New York City. This document presents lesson plans for part one of the first-year course, designed for ninth grade. The curriculum interweaves algebra, geometry, logic, probability, statistics, and trigonometry, with the emphasis in the 60 lessons in this…

Critical thinking skills were taught to students in a lower-track freshman English class through the use of cross-disciplinary subject matter. Given a set of three transmission electron micrographs, or photographs of magnified tissue used in histology and pathology, students were asked to support their conclusions on which two of micrographs A, B,…

A conceptual model was developed and assessed to examine the relationship between critical thinking and political participation. Although the empirical and theoretical bases for the model are not fully discussed, findings based on path analysis are presented. Based on data from 118 graduate and undergraduate students, the model affirms the…

Constructive controversy has many benefits in the classroom. The benefits of constructive controversy, however, depend on the way the teacher structures the controversy, the skill level of the students, and the materials and resources available. The controversy model involves eight steps: (1) introducing the controversy; (2) assigning groups and…

This study explores the usefulness of a creativity construct for arts education. It is hypothesized that an arts orientation is a valid personality construct, that this orientation is correlated with contrasting cognitive skills, and that these skills are manifested in creative behaviors. Sixty-five high school seniors were given the ACT Interest…

In response to a series of problem symptoms related to the influence of television on students, a team of professors at the Universidad de Playa Ancha de Ciencias de la Educacion in Chile undertook a project designed to train television viewers to become critical viewers of the medium. Specific objectives of the project included: (1) to design a…

The Success Project was initiated by the San Diego Community College District in 1985 to improve remedial instruction and support services, increase faculty participation in instructional decision making, and provide a means for following up on decisions. In the first year, task forces on instructional assessment, student assessment, remediation,…

Designed for developmental educators involved in a Telementoring Project, this instructional unit identifies common causes of poor academic performance by students enrolled in developmental programs. The sections of the unit address: (1) students' lack of personal and/or academic autonomy in terms of expected success, locus of control, and…

The first part of this report reviews an extensive series of studies concerned with the reciprocal teaching of comprehension fostering and monitoring strategies--an instructional method in which an adult teacher and a group of students take turns leading a dialogue aimed at revealing the meaning of the text. The studies reviewed indicate that…

A study was made to determine characteristics of teacher-composed classroom tests, with emphasis placed on describing the levels of knowledge addressed by the test items. In this preliminary investigation, 19 mathematics and 16 science teachers working in 4 high schools in a mixed suburban/rural school district were asked to: (1) complete a brief…

Elementary students will develop an awareness of the many facets of sex-role stereotyping through these 10 lessons. The broad concept areas of the individual lessons correspond to the general areas of a basic elementary social studies program. Foci of the lessons are reflected in their titles: (1) Self-Realization: Feelings and Expressions; (2)…

This paper examines problems involved in designing an integrated system to teach and assess critical thinking skills in the classroom, and describes the Monitor Achievement in Pittsburgh (MAP) Critical Thinking Project, an attempt to draw upon research from diverse disciplines in developing an effective pilot project in the Pittsburgh public…

Christine Counsell draws upon her recent work in developing definitions and practice concerning pupils' thinking about historical significance. Here she tries out those ideas in relation to the 19th century campaigner against the Contagious Diseases Acts, Josephine Butler. Counsell explains why she developed her own set of criteria for structuring…

Thinking skills are important and education is expected to develop them. Empirical results suggest that formal education makes a modest and largely indirect difference. This paper will describe the early stages of an ongoing curriculum initiative in the teaching of critical reasoning skills in the philosophy curriculum on the Howard College Campus…

This report contains discussion papers presented at a workshop held in 1981 by the Multiculturalism Directorate of the Canadian Department of the Secretary of State to consider the effects of television on public attitudes and to develop approaches for educating viewers to analyze critically what they see. The papers include (1) an overview of the…