Background: Learning conceptions may be studied as specific implicit theories based on theory of mind. Previous studies suggest that a developmental shift from a direct implicit theory of learning to an interpretative one occurs during childhood. Here we explore the development of children's autobiographies of learning to write by adopting this…

This collection explores the range of uses of autobiography from the 19th century to the present and from Africa, the United States, Middle East, France, New Zealand, and Britain. The chapters draw on a number of approaches, including historical and literary methods. They are frequently about the retrieval and reclamation of previously hidden or…

This book is a practical guide for teachers at the postsecondary level to improve their teaching by utilizing the principles of adult learning and becoming critically reflective teachers. Chapter 1 lays out the concept of reflection in general terms and then focuses on explaining what is distinctive about critical reflection. Chapter 2 explains…

In his autobiography, Mark Monroe relates his life experiences as a Lakota Sioux Indian in White America. The book begins with Monroe reminiscing about his happy childhood on the Rosebud Reservation in South Dakota. In 1941 his family moved to Alliance, Nebraska, and his father Dakota. In 1941 his family moved to Alliance, Nebraska, and his father…

This book presents a series of autobiographical profiles that demonstrate how educational organizations often marginalize and silence different groups. The book suggests that the development and critical analysis of personal histories of those who have been silenced and denied access in schools and in society represent ways of attaching meaning,…

Stories can have powerful effects on others. An autobiographical account of a behavior specialist's supposed descent into a severe emotional disturbance (SED) is presented here. Written as a narrative, the story opens with a description of what it is like to think differently from everyone else. It is conjectured that either the years spent by the…

A teacher education program designed to adequately prepare preservice teachers to instruct culturally and linguistically diverse students in their classrooms is described. Under the supervision of a professor and a graduate assistant in a required methods course at a private midwestern Christian university, 24 preservice teachers, who use a…

This collection chronicles the development of the field of special education through the writings of Samuel A. Kirk and comments by contributing scholars in the introductions to each section. The selections of Kirk's work evidence his contributions to the many domains of special education. The testimony and comments by contributing scholars place…

In 1932, Myles Horton founded the Highlander Folk School in Monteagle, Tennessee. Horton created an adult education center dedicated to helping groups of primarily poor and uneducated people strive together to solve their social, economic, and political problems and conflicts by mining their own experiences and awareness. In this book, Horton…

This activity is one of a series of 17 teacher-developed instructional activities for geography at the secondary-grade level described in SO 009 140. The activity investigates the role of story telling as illustrative of human values and as an appropriate medium for environmental education. The author identifies a need for individuals to know who…

The autobiographical stories of one college student about her childhood are used to help prospective teachers at Brooklyn College (New York) understand individual and child psychology in social context, particularly the roles of adults in the child's world. This may be useful to teachers in understanding their own relationships with students. (MSE)

Addresses the dearth of literature about preparing teachers to teach African American students, the attempts by scholars to fill this void, and the need for ongoing research in this area, highlighting: the uniqueness of the African American cultural experience; strategies for improving teacher preparation (e.g., autobiography, restructured field…

This book synthesizes over 100 autobiographical accounts by American Indians recalling their schooling in government and missionary institutions. From 1850 to 1930, such schools were established or supported by the federal government to "civilize" Indian children through acculturation. Chapters cover: (1) the use of autobiographical…

The rationale for using critical autobiography projects in English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) instruction is discussed, and procedures for implementation are outlined. Writing a critical autobiography involves the student's presenting a personal narrative while exploring external factors influencing his life. Critical experiences in life provide…

The concept of liberty has been in the forefront of the minds of African Americans ever since the beginning of slavery, and its importance continues to the present. To cope with the inability to achieve complete freedom, and with the oppressive state created by a lack of liberty, they developed ways to express their feelings about the elusiveness…