Educators consistently identify student motivation as a top concern, particularly during the transition to college, but often feel helpless to influence it. Some assume that students are simply motivated or not. Others are daunted by trying to shape an unobservable psychological phenomenon. "Invisible Forces" provides a framework for…

Great teaching is not just a matter of talent or creativity or passion. Teachers are made, not born, and great teachers know "why" they do what they do in their classrooms. They do it strategically and purposefully based on technique. "Teach on Purpose!" demonstrates a high-quality research-based and practical approach to…

The present study was designed to identify and characterize the major factors that influence entering science teacher candidates' preferences for different types of instructional activities, and to analyze what these factors suggest about teacher candidates' orientations towards science teaching. The study involved prospective teachers enrolled in…

Teachers educate children in a way that potentially leads these learners to become active agents in constructing a better world. The present study examined teacher candidates' beliefs about the characteristics of self-regulated teacher. Specifically, teacher candidates (N = 71) described the characteristics of a teacher with high teacher's…

Presents suggestions for improving textbook and classroom word problems: (1) Avoid composing exercises that inspire unanswerable questions, (2) State problems in terms of the future instead of the past, and (3) Find motivation for solving a problem beyond idle curiosity; some advantage should be gained from solving the problem. (MKR)

Tutoring teenagers is as much about building self confidence as teaching skills. This paper states that teenagers who have disengaged from reading probably had difficulty learning to read in the primary grades. According to most research, at this critical age, they missed the pleasure of getting lost in a story or discovering new information in…

This study was designed to: (1) determine whether there was higher achievement by students assigned homework or by those not assigned homework; (2) determine whether there was higher achievment by students assigned preparation homework or those assigned practice homework; and (3) determine whether there was higher achievement by females or by…

This collection of community mathematics modules, or "math trail", is appropriate for middle grades and high school students (grades 5-12). Collectively, the modules pay attention to all 10 of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) standards which include five content standards (Number and Operations, Algebra, Geometry,…

Because videos are self-motivating for students, they are highly successful in the classroom. The two schools of videos--Visual Music and Visual Lyrics--are described, and how videos can be used in music classes is discussed. (RM)

This paper discusses the book, "Guide to Social Studies Teaching in Secondary Schools," (Leonard S. Kenworthy), as a social studies teaching resource containing activities and ideas. The paper notes that Kenworthy defines motivation in two different ways: in its inclusive sense, motivation is everything that teachers understand about…

Presents the concept of using posters that deliver their message in a cartoon format and language aimed at engaging the attention of secondary school students to promote awareness of the relevance of physics and generate enthusiasm for physics among students. Provides information for ordering the posters. (JRH)

Uses a graphing calculator to show examples of misrepresentations of periodic functions to help increase student interest and explore mathematical relationships. (MKR)

Discusses the failure of students with learning disabilities to complete their homework assignments, lists criteria for planning assignments to motivate secondary students, and offers suggestions on procedures and outcomes for inviting students to participate in the assignment completion process. An Assignment Idea Chart is provided. (CR)

Economists use nonrandom sampling and self-selectivity models to analyze a variety of issues. Individuals are not homogeneous and self-select into those alternatives where they have a comparative advantage. Examples where self-selection models have been applied include analyzing schooling, labor supply, and career choices. A student's…

The Teenage Health Teaching Modules (THTM) program is a health education curriculum for adolescents. Each THTM module frames an adolescent health task emphasizing development of self-assessment, communication, decision making, health advocacy, and self-management. This module provides information on the many physical and psychological benefits of…