Concludes that children have well-developed knowledge of the purposes of reading materials and instructional procedures and that their perceptions of basal readers are very negative. (FL)

The importance of educating students about obesity is stressed. Desirable instructional goals include: (1) providing accurate information about obesity; (2) preventing obesity (if possible); (3) treating it; and (4) making students aware that much of the prejudice against fat people is irrational. (PP)

Uses qualitative research methods to document the experiences of six technophobic students as they progressed through a technology-rich anatomy and physiology course. Analyzes data collected and condenses them into common themes. Makes some recommendations to help instructors better accommodate students who have difficulties and fear of…

Common causes of program failure are failure to meet expectations; presentation method; lack of interaction time; failure to adhere to schedule; lack of applicable information; poor service; lack of assistance in implementing new ideas; failure to account for cultural diversity; content already known; and failure to give presenters information…

Scientists have used educational presentations and "bug banquets" to alter widespread negative attitudes toward invertebrates. In this article, the authors explore whether such presentations have a measurable affect on attitudes. Junior high, high school, and university students completed an attitude survey focusing on invertebrates in…

The author suggests strategies for forcing success on students who seem determined to fail and for altering their negative opinions of their own ability. (SJL)

Per se, increased knowledge about substance abuse has not been effective in altering social workers' negative attitudes towards substance abusers or their failure to recognize or address substance abuse problems among clients. In this paper, we describe an experiential abstinence assignment integrated with the content of an elective substance…

Presents exercises to help change students' negative perceptions of Africa. (MM)

This paper reports on teachers' views of the effects of compulsory numeracy testing in Years 3, 5, and 7 in Queensland schools. Teachers were surveyed on (i) the validity and worth of the tests, (ii) the impact the tests had on their teaching of mathematics, and (iii) how they were using the results of the tests. Although the results reveal a…

Histories of alcohol use and of alcohol education indicate that the teaching of responsible drinking for those who choose to drink is a more relevant model of alcohol education. (JN)

The paper describes elements of engineering organizational cultures and structures in higher engineering education from the European project WomEng. Hypotheses, based on state of the art, refer to: women friendly presentation, attractiveness of interdisciplinary teaching methods, single sex education, perceptions of minority status, feelings of…

In an impression explanation of counterdefensive attributions, the tendency of subjects is to accept primary responsibility for negative outcomes and to deny credit for positive outcomes. Counterdefensive attributions represent attempts at maximizing the esteem in which observers hold the actor. To test this hypothesis, a 2 x 5 simulation was…

Despite the fact that group work in speech communication classes is assigned to aid students in learning to work productively in groups, there are many people who avoid it and who express a sincere dislike for any group activity in the academic setting. This negative initial reaction toward group work was studied in order to compile a taxonomy of…

Evaluative commentary is presented by Virginia L. Brown, Coordinator: Learning Disabilities, Indiana University. (RD)