Uses letters of John Kay, a Union Army soldier, to initiate a technology-based project that illustrates reasons for fighting in the Civil War, the daily life of a soldier, and the tragedies families endured. Explains that students learn that history is filled with real people who lived and died for their beliefs. (CMK)

When students take their first upper division mathematics course after an introduction to proof course, they are often overwhelmed by the prospect of writing in a mathematics course. In mathematics, unlike other disciplines, students are very seldom asked to respond via writing to a reading assignment, to write an essay about a topic they have…

Participating in small group activities has emerged as a trend in online learning events. However, little is known about how graduate students experience online group work and what instructional behaviors are perceived as helpful during the group process. This article discusses a qualitative research project that revealed how online health care…

This activity geared for grades 5-9 involves students in creating museum stations on eight solid waste and energy topics. While working in groups, students present their station topic to other students who are conducting a "museum tour." In doing so participants are encouraged to enhance their reading, writing, public speaking, and artistic skills…

This report describes a program for improving social and conflict resolution skills of primary students in three middle class suburban schools located in a northwest suburb of Chicago, Illinois. This program was recognized by teaching staff who found students lacking in social skills, problem solving strategies and the ability to solve conflicts.…

In recent years, many schools have turned to Integrated Learning Systems (ILSs) to facilitate instruction and assist with raising state standardized test scores. Typically, these ILSs are utilized in a computer lab with students working individually on computer-based instructional lessons for an allotted time period. Using ILSs in this manner has…

The purpose of this study was to compare the effects of assigning students to a version of an instructional program (cooperative learning version or individual version) that either matched or did not match their pre-assessed preferences for cooperative and individual learning. Students' preferences for cooperative and individual learning were…

Alternative teaching strategies such as cooperative group work should be followed by cooperative assessment strategies. Teachers of teachers use various teaching models but may fail to also model a similar variety of assessment strategies. When the emphasis is on cooperative learning, especially with an issues-oriented approach, then the…

This book contains innovative hands-on science laboratory activities designed to teach 4th- through 9th-graders about the environment. The background materials and instructions included in each activity are written for students to work together in teams. Activities cover subjects such as smog, symbiosis, soil, trees, ecosystems, recycling,…

Increasingly, schools are faced with the necessity of finding ways to shoulder a greater share of the burden of producing respectful, responsible citizens. Along with traditional academic subjects, schools must teach acceptable standards of conduct and the attitudes and attributes that foster them. This book provides ways to help teachers instill…

To facilitate learning, teachers often employ varied teaching strategies and activities to accommodate different learning style preferences in students. This study explored elementary school students' preferences for learning environments, providing a pilot validation of the 40-question "If I Were in Charge of the Class" learning preference…

Students in an undergraduate course in abnormal psychology annually employ a cooperative active learning model to conduct a 4- to 6-day, values-oriented public policy forum (PPF) within the class itself on a general topic of concern to the field of mental health. A comprehensive and structured five-phase model for a PPF is detailed for course…

This reading list contains 140 books, reports, resource guides, conference proceedings, directories, and journals pertaining to adventure and outdoor education, adventure therapy, group work, developmental work, and at-risk youth. Most entries were published from 1984-94. Entries are listed in the following categories: adventure (general); outdoor…

This manual is designed to support Iowa's library-based summer reading programs for children of all ages, though its primary focus is on elementary age children. Following a general information section, the manual is divided into eight parts, dealing respectively with: (1) publicity and programming, including sample print and radio announcements…

This brief report summarizes a longer document with the same title. It reviews literature on the importance of using active learning teaching techniques in the classroom, describes what active learning is, discusses how this technique can be incorporated into the classroom and identifies barriers to the use of this approach. Strategies that…