This paper discusses a pilot program for a writing course taught by four teachers at Drexel University. One of the primary assumptions was that a course in writing was also one in language. The object of the course was to ask the students to become conscious of themselves as learners and writers and to attempt to discover the function of language…

The paper considers a teaching experiment carried out with secondary school students (9th grade), who face modelling tasks to approach some basic concepts of algebra and early calculus. The focus is on an embodied analysis of students' cognitive processes. The analysis highlights the use of metaphors as a means of sharing knowledge. (Contains 2…

Discusses the work and inventions of Thomas Edison and their use in making teachers and students aware of the importance of electrotechnology in their lives and in their futures. Enables students to learn about science, experimentation, research, the process of invention, and the thrill of discovery. Describes educational resources available from…

Describes a physics experiment investigating temperature prediction and the relationship between the physical properties of heat units, melting, dissolving, states of matter, and energy loss. Details the experimental setup, which requires hot and cold water, a thermometer, and ice. Notes that the experiment employs a deliberate counter-intuitive…

Focuses on three key ideas students need to understand in order to become master students: the importance of ideas or concepts in thinking, how to think within the ideas of a subject or discipline, and how to learn important ideas from textbooks. Makes suggestions to students, including creating a glossary of ideas learned in each course. (NB)

Tells stories of children in their first year of school (mostly age five) who were using calculators for the first time. Implications are that children's thinking moves from a rough to a more thorough and refined grasp of the whole. Learning mathematics with calculators is more like the learning of language than traditional classroom mathematics.…

Analyzes the time children of different ages, sex, and proficiency levels spent on various compositional processes while creating a melody. Suggests that the amount of time used for exploration, development, repetition, and silence has an effect on the subject's ability to replicate the melody. Finds developmental differences in strategies for…

After a discussion of the creativity often found in those outside the mainstream, this article describes the five stages of the Laureate learning cycle model of talent development: romance, inquiry, involvement, expansion, and insight. The importance of individual ownership of the learning process is emphasized. (DB)

Recently, adoptive parents have successfully sued placement agencies for wrongful adoption or fraudulently misrepresenting or neglecting to give a child's medical or family history. Adoption agencies' policies about disclosing the medical and social history of adoptees have been cyclical and have developed because of specific social factors; such…

Gives an example of an open exploration using trigonometric relationships in which the law of cosines can be deduced from the law of sines. Discusses the characteristics and value of the exploration process. (MDH)

Discusses an activity-based, exploratory-centered model of instruction based on the Piagetian theory of developmental learning that bridges the gap between the expected and actual levels of student reasoning. Applies the method to learning the mathematical concepts of circumference, area and volume, and division by zero. (22 references) (MDH)

Describes an approach to teaching undergraduate anthropology focused on anthropological modes of thought rather than accumulation of exotic data. Central technique is use of a journal focused on relating classroom material to students' daily lives. Aim is to teach students to be participant-observers in their own cultures. (Author/JS)

Describes a unit on magnetism that utilizes hands-on activities in which students make hypotheses for discrepant behavior, discover whether a magnet attracts one object through another, measure the strength of magnets, explore levitating paper clips, and play a game dependent on magnetic attraction. (MDH)

Examines relationships between middle school/junior high student latchkey status and experimentation with alcohol, tobacco, and drugs. Results indicate latchkey youth who were home alone two or more days per week were four times more likely to have gotten drunk in the past month than youths who had parental supervision five or more times a week.…

This document suggests uses ways of using inventions and technologies to teach history. A list of inventions and technologies can suggest topics for student research. Books about inventions and technologies are plentiful and a good source of information for students. A field trip might be helpful, or students can interview people who are in a…