Researchers are skeptical about the role of authoritative sources of information in a constructivist learning environment for fear of usurping students' critical thinking. Taking a social semiotics perspective in this study, authoritative sources are regarded as inscriptions of cultural artifacts, and science learning involves meaning-making of…

Four decades of early childhood policy and program development indicate that evidence-based interventions can improve life outcomes, and dramatic advances in the biological and behavioral sciences now provide an opportunity to augment those impacts. The challenge of reducing the gap between what we know and what we do to promote the healthy…

The most important thing for learners in Programming Language subject is problem solving. During the practical programming project, various problems may occur and learners usually need consultation from the senior programmers (i.e. the experts) to assist them in solving the problems. Thus, the inquiry-based learning with learning forum is applied…

This article deliberates the possibilities for Regional Centres of Expertise (RCEs) to become "experiments" in social learning. The purpose of the article is to advance the broader research agenda of RCEs through reflection on the empirical research agenda of one RCE, Makana RCE in South Africa. As such it opens questions on how we might…

What is the role and meaning of emotions in the second language learning process? To respond to this question, this article focuses on how learners' emotions manifest in their verbal communication over the course of a semester-long joint task. Recognizing interpersonal, functional, and developmental aspects of emotions, I illustrate how a group of…

In this paper, we introduce the Exploratory Behavior Scale (EBS), a quantitative measure of young children's interactivity. More specifically, the EBS is developed from the psychological literature on exploration and play and measures the extent to which preschoolers explore their physical environment. A practical application of the EBS in a…

The implementation of e-learning by companies in France is ongoing. One of their issues is to improve the learning experience of their employees. From our point of view, this implies that they must better understand the learning experience of the employees. This paper suggests a qualitative approach to learning in order to identify the diversity…

Background: From the perspective of self-regulated learning, the interplay between learners' individual characteristics and the context of testing have been emphasized for assessing learning outcomes. Aims: The present study examined metacognitive processes in children's test-taking behaviour and explored their impacts on performance. Further, it…

Evidence supporting Problem-based learning (PBL) fostering students' self-directed learning (SDL) in hybrid PBL curricula is inconsistent. To explore the influence of PBL in a hybrid curriculum on students' SDL, the authors investigated the following: (1) students' self-assessed SDL ability, (2) students' perceptions of the influence of curricular…

Models of reading aloud have tended to focus on the mapping between graphemes and phonemes in monosyllables. Critical adaptations of these models are required when considering the reading of polysyllables, which constitute over 90% of word types in English. In this paper, we examined one such adaptation--the process of stress assignment in…

This paper empirically investigates elder care nurses' negative knowledge. This form of experiential knowledge is defined as the outcome of error-related learning processes, focused on how something is not, on what not to do in certain situations or on deficits in one's knowledge or skills. Besides this definition, we presume the existence of…

We discuss an emerging program of research on a particular aspect of mathematics learning, students' learning through their own mathematical activity as they engage in particular mathematical tasks. Prior research in mathematics education has characterized learning trajectories of students by specifying a series of conceptual steps through which…

Total quality management (TQM) strives to improve organizational functioning by carefully studying the interface between an organization's mission, values, vision, policies and procedures, and the consumer that the organization serves. Central to this approach to revitalizing economic institutions is the importance placed on client satisfaction.…

The goal of the Inquiry Synthesis Project was to synthesize findings from research conducted between 1984 and 2002 to address the research question, "What is the impact of inquiry science instruction on K-12 student outcomes?" The timeframe of 1984 to 2002 was selected to continue a line of synthesis work last completed in 1983 by Bredderman…

That summative assessment drives learning has become one of the most frequently stated maxims in the literature of assessment and learning in higher education. However, a careful review of the empirical research often cited in support of this proposition may cause us to reconsider its veracity and to seek a more nuanced understanding of the…