This document reports on a project with the following aims: (1) to identify and discuss the important issues about using curriculum materials in bilingual-bicultural education and multicultural education through a comparative analysis of these conditions in the United States and Australia; (2) to identify and analyze relevant research in the…

Several reform reports on American education that focus on improving the quality of instructional materials are reviewed. This project had three aims: (1) to survey the scope of the reports emanating from the reform movement and to describe the process of their selection for review; (2) to present reviews of reports by the Paideia Group, the…

This is the third of three volumes reporting a project to develop an instrument to evaluate instructional materials used in bilingual education, community language education, and bicultural education programs in Australian schools. The project had three purposes: (1) to examine the research literature on the development of models and instruments…

This paper reports on the outcomes of a pilot project to support secondary teachers of science in rural and regional Tasmania. The pilot project involved eight regional schools and was based on the provision of a kit of materials and an associated learning program that used brine shrimp or "sea-monkeys" to test for water quality. The…

This is the second of three volumes reporting a project to develop an instrument to evaluate instructional materials used in bilingual education, community language education, and bicultural education programs in Australian schools. The project had three purposes: (1) to examine the research literature on the development of models and instruments…

Presented is an activity for teaching linear algebra to grade 7 or grade 8 students. The activity is taken from the "Victorian Secondary Reality in Maths Education" (RIME) Pack. The activity called "Backtracking" builds on intuitions and understandings that students already possess. (RH)

Mathematics games are widely employed in school classrooms for such reasons as a reward for early finishers or to enhance students' attitude towards mathematics. During a four week period, a total of 222 Grade 5 and 6 (9 to 12 years old) children from Melbourne, Australia, were taught multiplication and division of decimal numbers using calculator…

The University of Sydney is a large, research-intensive, campus-based Australian University. Since 2004 a strategic initiative of project-based eLearning support has been creating teams of non-academic and academic staff, who have worked together to develop online resources to meet identified needs. The University's aims in continuing to provide…

This guide is designed to provide a basis for the effective design of instructional materials for distance education. Organized around a model of instructional development which encompasses both external structural factors (factors that are largely outside the direct control of the individual instructor but which must be investigated) and internal…

Learning and understanding of science instructional material was examined from a cognitive load perspective. Diagrams were expected to reduce cognitive load by allowing students to process information using fewer elements in working memory than an equivalent text-based format. Two experiments using different chemistry instructions confirmed these…

Notes an extreme shortage of Vietnamese teaching resources available in Australia. Recounts how a migrant teacher from Vietnam had to go back to Saigon to buy video tapes and illustrated books for LOTE and bilingual programs. (NH)

Included are two curriculum guides, Section D and Section E, which continue instruction of the three guides in SE 012 723. Counting (by ones, by twos, by threes, ..., by twelves) is extended to 144 in Section D and to 1000 in Section E. The creation and manipulation of more complex equations are taught, including the notion of substitution. The…

Mt. Lawley College in Australia initiated a project to develop curriculum extension project packs (CEPPS) for elementary grade students who demonstrate outstanding ability in one or more subject areas. (Author/MC)

This is the first of three volumes reporting a project to develop an instrument to evaluate instructional materials used in bilingual education, community language education, and bicultural education programs in Australian schools. The project had three purposes: (1) to examine the research literature on the development of models and instruments…