Evaluators frequently make use of indirect measures of participant learning or skill mastery, with participants either being asked if they have learned material or mastered a skill or being asked to indicate how confident they are that they know the material or can perform the task in question. Unfortunately, myriad research in social psychology…

Over the years, the author has tried to make the case that literacy instruction for faculty does not end at the point of hire, just as it does not end for students at the point of graduation. In fact, for both, the journey toward literacy has really just begun. This article was originally delivered as the College Celebration speech at the 2010…

The commentary discusses phenomena highlighted in the studies of the special issue such as the hypercorrection effect, overconfidence, and the efficiency of interventions designed to increase monitoring accuracy. The discussion is based on a broader theoretical framework of self-regulation of learning that stresses the inferential character of…

This paper claims that the current theories of Self-regulated learning (SRL) are short-sighted. The author provides a comprehensive, but brief, overview of SRL which addresses such issues as (a) SRL processes, (b) SRL strategies, (c) compartments of SRL, (d) theories of SRL, (e) agency in SRL, and (f) models of SRL. He then presents a new model…

Most teachers hope to make a difference in the lives of their students, but whether they accomplish this with any regularity is often left unclear. With a topic like the Holocaust, the stakes are greatly raised. In this essay, the author discusses the place of the Holocaust in the liberal arts. He argues that the content of Holocaust education…

Scholars and teachers within the field of composition have long heralded the merits of reflective writing. Whether written intermittently throughout a course or near the end (typically in the genre of portfolio cover letter), reflective writing assignments are thought to promote cognitive development by helping students become more aware of their…

The ultimate goal of "student-centered" education is to empower students to learn beyond educational programs. This means nurturing students' autonomy and fostering the development of their own motivation and mechanisms to become self-directed learners. This idea has been embodied in the "lifelong learning" mantra that pervades contemporary views…

Howard Gardner, a Harvard professor of education who is best known for his multiple intelligences theory, published his "Unschooled Mind" in 1991. In his chapter dealing with the social sciences and humanities, he paraphrases the work of Gaea Leinhardt, who described the complex "moves" that good history teachers typically make. Her depiction of…

During discussions with students the author often says, "I ask questions because I wish to know what you think. I already know what I think." Recently, he has taken his own advice, in a way, and has carefully considered what he does think and how those beliefs shape and are shaped, by his practice. Several questions with the author's answers are…

Depth of knowledge is a common measure of rigor used extensively at the state level to align assessments with state content standards. However, the use of depth of knowledge at the classroom level is just beginning. In this article, we establish a link between depth of knowledge and the questioning strategies teachers should consider employing…

At a recent conference, the author heard a head of mathematics say with some emphasis that when she applied for a job she felt that she had to say that she recognized no ceiling on the amount that pupils could achieve in mathematics. She went on to explain that she needed a prospective employer to understand this as it affected the way that she…

The goal of this article is raising awareness of several issues recently brought to the authors' attention. Among them are concerns that rubrics are a pervasive assessment tool in current educational settings. The authors posit how the pervasive use of rubrics broaches concerns about teachers' grading practices with rubrics and students'…

In this essay, the author explores the notion that the focus of learning in classrooms and schools extends beyond the learning of individuals to create a collective body of knowledge that is larger than what any one person knows. This idea was examined in a collaboration between Project Zero researchers and educators from the municipal preschools…

This paper critiques the historical partnership between Education and Psychology in their coordinated search for theorizations of learning and teaching. Psychologists' construction of learning as an integrated set of processes (albeit complex and multifaceted) subserves the historical imperative of this preparadigmatic science to achieve…

In this Research Connections column, Editor David Moore interviews Cynthia Greenleaf, Gayle Cribb, and Heather Howlett. Greenleaf codirects the Strategic Literacy Initiative and leads professional development projects in its Reading Apprenticeship instructional framework. Her approach to disciplinary literacy instruction is based on her findings…