Describes a web-based instructional tool known as "WWWBoard," or World Wide Web Board, that was used with films in a comparative class on Middle East politics. Discusses the advantages and disadvantages of WWWBoard and a survey of student reaction. Provides a sample discussion and other instructors' experiences. (CMK)

Describes an exercise designed to encourage active learning in which groups of students compared and contrasted the content of historical introductory psychology texts with contemporary ones. Reports that student evaluations suggest the exercise helps students understand the history and development of psychology. (CMK)

Focuses on helping students develop historical skills in a U.S. history survey course using active learning strategies that incorporate small group work with primary sources. Describes four activities used to teach women's history: (1) visiting a museum exhibit; (2) attending a convention; (3) deciphering census data; and (4) examining political…

Discusses the use of historical research in a theater classroom. Describes a variation of this exercise in which students in a college history course study a play about U.S. History, write diary entries, research the era and place of the play, and give a group presentation. (CMK)

Gettysburg College (Pennsylvania) developed a program which centered on NCSA Mosaic as a vehicle for collaborative learning. The project involved a select number of incoming freshmen who lived together in the then-experimental residential college program. Goals included mastery of basic library and computer skills, gaining familiarity with…

In an Adolescent Development course at the University of Wisconsin, La Crosse, activities are employed to encourage students to become active learners, to become critical consumers of information regarding adolescents, and to develop an empathetic understanding of adolescents and their experiences. One activity that promotes critical thinking…

In 1987, a computerized laboratory component was incorporated into a traditional lower division, lecture-oriented, cognitive psychology course at State University of New York College at Plattsburgh. At first, eight computerized experiments were available for students to participate in as subjects, while students were simply assigned the activities…

Cooperative learning may be defined as a structured, systematic instructional strategy in which small groups work together toward a common goal. It differs from collaborative learning in its emphasis on highly structured techniques for ensuring positive interdependence within groups and its insistence on individual accountability rather than…

The role of Information Systems within organizations is constantly changing. Undergraduates concentrating in Information Systems need to acquire the knowledge and skills to compete in this dynamic arena. The undergraduate curriculum must not only address technical knowledge, but also communications and collaborative skills necessary for…

This paper discusses "Guided Design," a method for teaching course content which engages students in group decision-making, where problems are solved or issues are resolved in a step-by-step process using instructions and feedbacks especially prepared to make students think for themselves about subject matter rather than depend on the…

Group activities in the classroom can be a useful way to explore various standard rhetorical patterns. For descriptive writing, students can select and write about unsigned collages made by classmates. The writer can try to find a unifying theme that characterizes the artist's personality. A narrative component can be added to descriptive writing…

Instructional designs are described that respond to the personal needs of adult learners, the general education needed for employees in contemporary, complex organizations, and the need for effective instruction models for use with adult students. Following a discussion of the changing expectations in the work environment that result in a need for…

There are three general characteristics of a small group that merit analysis and application to a forensics squad: oral interaction, identification of a collectivity, and potential for unified action. Cohesive groups have a high energy level that is typically focused upon facilitation of productive group functioning. In order to develop and…

Collaborative learning, in which students form small groups to analyze their own writing, can cause students who recognize good writing and know the "rules" to reexamine their own writing and writing processes and then produce an acceptable product. Given eight sample paragraphs from their own writing, 20 freshman students working in 5…

The Faculty/Management Forum, a nontraditional approach to improving understanding and relationships between business and higher education, is described in this guide. The primary objectives of this forum center around involving faculty and business managers in joint problem-solving to help break down the barriers to mutual understanding.…