Examines starting pitches and tonality in singing familiar songs when no reference pitch is given and how adults unify key during singing. Indicates that the subjects showed significant differences in starting pitches depending on the beginning pitch range and melody type and lowered or matched their leaders key when establishing a unified key.…

Describes a simulation project used in social theory courses where students work in groups of four or five to plan and present a television program. Explains that students choose the format of the show, take the roles of theorists, and present responses to contemporary issues that they think the theorists would offer. (CMK)

A survey of the participants explored the competing interests involved at a national debate tournament, including: (1) how the desire to maximize competitive prowess trades off against socialization among students; (2) how increasing the number of elimination rounds for reasons of judge equalization adds another round to an already crowded…

Teachers at both college and pre-college levels have long realized that collaborative writing is an effective learning tool for beginning writers. Many have pointed out that collaboration in writing groups properly shifts the focus from the teacher to the student, and allows writers to take more responsibility for their own composing processes.…

For many engineers, writing skills have proven to be almost as important as technical background. Many prominent engineers have found that writing often consumes one-fourth of their time; they are expected to submit reports and proposals and give presentations. Many engineering schools now require either additional writing courses or integrate…

Organizing writing students into three-member editorial groups is a teaching technique that focuses student attention on the stages of the writing process, their progression, and their interrelation. The technique also increases peer cooperation and evaluation, while enabling teachers to spend less time grading homework and more time working with…

The Academic Foundations Department at Rutgers University developed an alternative method for encouraging writing that allows the students to work together in small groups. This method, called group composing, has many advantages: it is process-oriented rather than product-focused; it allows students to become aware of the options available to…

This workbook is intended for use in a Simulated Admissions Exercise (SAE). Done in group settings, the SAE establishes mock admissions committees which work through simulated student applications to choose a certain number to be "admitted" to a hypothetical class of students. The applicants are seeking positions in a health services…

Guided design, an educational strategy based on the conviction that students are educated better by working through an ascending order of well-designed problems than by passively accumulating knowledge, employs small groups of students attacking open-ended problems. This paper describes guided design--its operation and advantages in the…

Results of a two-year followup study are reported of students in a course on social work with groups in which the only mechanism for evaluation of learning was a small group oral examination. The effectiveness of the method is discussed regarding responsiveness to student self-image and promotion of theory/practice integration. (Author/LBH)

Describes the activities, goals, and benefits of the Regional Program for Nursing Research Development, a regional approach to stimulating clinical nursing research, conducted under the auspices of the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (Division of Nursing). (TA)

Examined the effectiveness of an interpersonal life skills course on college students' (N=200) self concepts, responding, and locus of control. Results indicated there were short-term changes in locus of control. The need for a typology of such courses is discussed. (Author/BL)

Describes a nonthreatening method for introducing videotaping to a speech class by allowing students to construct videotaped projects, such as news programs or interviews in groups. (HTH)

This annual serial volume offers readers glimpses into learning communities, demonstrating how students are brought together for the common purpose of learning. It gives a view of the teacher as learning guide and facilitator of group discussions and activities. The articles are a primer on how to build one's own learning community. The overriding…

Describes the "Participation Classroom" model for foreign language learning which provides students with opportunities to participate in teaching, evaluating, and goal setting. Based on students' needs, this model provides a noncompetitive teamwork approach to achievement. This article outlines teacher's and students' roles in creating a…