This is the remarkable story of the Hoffmann School for Individual Attention, where the principal believed in a diverse, challenging, and challenged group of students--with extraordinary results. With a definition of gifted that included all children, Ann Hoffmann embraced students that other schools had failed, and she helped them not just to…

The Tactical Language and Culture Training System (TLCTS) helps learners acquire basic communicative skills in foreign languages and cultures. Learners acquire communication skills through a combination of interactive lessons and serious games. Artificial intelligence plays multiple roles in this learning environment: to process the learner's…

This article shares thoughts about motivating young adolescents from the perspective of middle level students. The most compelling thread to emerge from the interviews with students was the fact that teachers matter. Teachers have a direct and significant impact on students' motivation to achieve. This article identifies three ways in which…

This paper reviews research literature in the area of student engagement to discover curricular and pedagogical ideas educators might successfully use to better engage student learning. Student engagement has historically focused upon increasing achievement, positive behaviors, and a sense of belonging to help students remain in school. The…

Correctional Education provides an opportunity to use instructional methodologies that may not be appropriate for mainstream education classes. It is important to remember that students can be valuable sources of cultural information and motivational strategies if they are allowed to guide instructors to their own success. In this article, the…

Latinas/os, the largest and fastest growing minority ethnic group in the United States (impels research that focuses on the education of Latinas/os and the need to reduce the achievement gap that persists between Latinas/os and other groups. Such research has gained in popularity; however, it is still very limited. I use my teaching experience…

Until the past decade, college wasn't much of an option for students who have significant intellectual impairments. Vanderbilt University's Next Steps program is one of many created for students with severe cognitive disabilities in the last 10 years. The programs have grown in number from about 15 in 2002 to almost 170 now, as tracked by Think…

This paper describes the use of a student conference as a novel experience aimed at motivating students enrolled in various computer architecture courses, such as Microprocessor Systems. The goal was to increase student engagement, to decrease failure rates, and to introduce students to the world of research. This multidisciplinary experience…

Animations have become a ubiquitous component of computer-based instruction. Despite their widespread use, however, the evidence concerning their effects on learning is rather ambiguous, suggesting that one needs to have a closer look at the conditions under which animations will aid learning. Accordingly, three sets of moderating variables were…

As lecturers of English and Spanish for international students in higher education, we frequently read reflections supporting the notion that the interaction between teacher and student has a direct influence on their learning and possibly even on their future studies and lives. Using examples taken from language learning histories, student course…

In the conventional English as a Second Language (ESL) class-based learning environment, teachers use a fixed learning sequence and content for all students without considering the diverse needs of each individual. There is a great deal of diversity within and between classes. Hence, if students' learning outcomes are to be maximised, it is…

Surprise is of great value for learning, especially in cases where deep-seated preconceptions and assumptions are upset by vivid demonstrations. In this essay, Jonathan Adler explores the ways in which surprise positively affects us and serves as a valuable tool for motivating learning. Adler considers how students' attention is aroused and…

This article presents a profile of author Gilda O'Neill and a description of how she became a writer. She left school at 15 after being told by a teacher that "girls like her" never became writers. Now a best-selling author, she hopes her work will inspire others to regain the love of learning they lost at school. She always knew that stories…

Poems offer a compact and highly expressive alternative to traditional prose and lengthy written texts typically used in middle grades classrooms. The author describes how ESL teachers can use poetry to introduce English vocabulary and grammar to English language learners and help their students develop writing skills.

When learners spend a period of time in the L2 community, as students on exchange programmes, as immigrants, or even on holiday, they are surrounded by listening opportunities that are far more varied and numerous than those of the classroom. Drawing on learner data from Erasmus and Study Abroad students on placement at a UK university, this paper…