This ERIC Digest concerns the constructed knowledge (also called nave knowledge or prior conceptions) held by students and the changes required to alter students' framework to understand and believe the true science concepts involved. This process is called conceptual change. Theoretical framework of conceptual change, what exactly is conceptual…

This collection of the National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS) presidential addresses seeks to provide a valuable window to NCSS and the field of social studies from 1970 to 2000. Following "Introduction to the NCSS Presidential Addresses, 1970-2000 (J. J. Sheehan), Volume 2 contains the following addresses: 1970: "Exploring the…

This digest provides a guide to improving student achievement in mathematics education and suggests resources for further study. It provides recommendations for the classroom and is a companion piece to "Improving Student Achievement in Mathematics, Part I: Research Findings." Recommendations include that students can learn both concepts…

Homeschooling has grown over the past several decades. It is estimated that 923,700 to 1,275,098 children will be homeschooled by the 2001-02 school year. Homeschooling families come from all major ethnic, cultural, and religious backgrounds and all income levels. Homeschooling parents are commonly active in their communities and join community…

This Digest addresses the benefits of formative assessment and provides examples and resources to support its implementation. Formative assessment is the diagnostic use of assessment to provide feedback to teachers and students over the course of instruction. Since the goal of formative assessment is to gain an understanding of what students know…

This digest suggests that bibliotherapy is a potentially powerful method for school teachers and counselors to use on many levels and in every school grade. It begins with a brief review of the history of bibliotherapy; continues with a discussion of some approaches to bibliotherapy (interactive, clinical, and developmental); then addresses the…

Within the last 5 years, policymakers and practitioners have confronted the challenge of replacing many retiring educational leaders. To address this issue, standards for educators themselves have been proposed, some modeled around those of the Interstate School Leadership Licensure Consortium (ISLLC). Attention is also turning to advanced…

Explaining that interest in law magnet programs has grown substantially in the 1990s, this ERIC digest analyzes these programs on the basis of information provided by 24 mostly urban magnet schools. The digest places law magnet programs within the broader context of law-related education (LRE). The primary purpose of law magnet programs is to…

During the past 30 years, there has been a global surge of democracy. For most people of the world today, democracy is the prevailing source of political legitimacy. In 2002, 121 of the world's 192 sovereign states could be recognized as democracies in terms of the minimal global standard for an electoral democracy. This digest discusses: (1) the…

This Digest outlines five skills that will increase the likelihood that school counselors interpret test information correctly. These skills are: (1) understanding what norm-referenced tests are and what they do; (2) understanding the properties of a normal curve; (3) knowing the properties of common score types; (4) recognizing the difference…

Teaching through inquiry can take many forms with most descriptions of inquiry emphasizing investigations. Though inquiry-based teaching strategies typically engage students in investigations, it is not the physical activity that defines inquiry. Teaching through inquiry is distinguished by its emphasis on a questioning attitude, gathering data,…

The "ERIC Review" announces research results, publications, and new programs relevant to each issue's theme topic. This issue focuses on school safety and violence prevention. An introductory section includes two articles: "How Safe Is My Child's School?" (Kevin Mitchell) and "Making America's Schools Safer" (U.S.…

In the information age of instant access to libraries, databases, information centers, organizations, government agencies, and self-appointed experts worldwide, it is hard to decide where to turn for accurate, reliable, and up-to-date information about mathematics education. This digest provides an annotated listing of World Wide Web resources and…

This digest tries to sort out issues related to the question of whether students should be tracked in math or science. Tracking is differentiated from ability grouping, and a brief historical overview and literature review is provided. It is suggested that the answer to this question is neither yes nor no. (Contains 15 references.) (ASK)

In response to the educational trend of using online resources, this digest provides a list of 19 selected online resources most likely to help educators plan and design their curricula. Preparation of the digest began with a retrospective view of language arts-related questions received over the last 5 years by the reference staff of the ERIC…