The study explores teachers' experiences of teaching a context-based chemistry course, "Salters Advanced Chemistry", as compared with teachers of a conventional course. Second, main factors that appear to influence decisions over whether or not to adopt context-based courses are investigated. Two hundred and twenty-two teachers' views of a…

This article describes an activity in which students plot collections of ordered pairs according to prescribed set conditions. The coordinate plane sets can have rich variety, and their construction fosters critical thinking, attention to detail, and algebraic reasoning. (Contains 3 figures.)

The framework of Tharp and Gallimore (1988) was adapted to form a ZPD (Zone of Proximal Development) Model of Mathematical Proficiency that identifies two interacting kinds of learning activities: instructional conversations that assist understanding and practice that develops fluency. A Class Learning Path was conceptualized as a classroom path…

This article describes the use of commercial games in mathematics to help teach algebraic reasoning, spatial sense, and multistep problem solving. It also provides a description of how one teacher implemented the use of games.

This article aims to contribute to the theory of mathematics instruction by highlighting and analysing Leen Streefland's work as a teacher in a primary school. Core ideas of Streefland's are discussed as part of a recent wave of educational innovations using the idea of learning communities. I present a case study of a lesson co-taught by…

A study of the impact of a major recent language education reform project in Italy employed a combination of qualitative and quantitative data collection methods, some of which could inform other studies of language learning and teaching. Impact study findings suggested interesting differences between the perceptions of learners and teachers on…

Kruse and Roehrig present a study designed to assess teacher's misconceptions as related to their background and refer to research showing that teaching science, as inquiry requires a "highly structured and deep conceptual knowledge base". Some of the methods that require strong conceptual knowledge include guided-inquiry laboratories, cooperative…

Teaching and learning in a second or third language has become a common phenomenon in South African schools. This phenomenon leads to learners finding themselves in schools where the language of instruction is not known well to them. One of the main contributing factors as to why this is happening could be attributed to the challenges in the South…

Lave and Wenger have proposed that learning is situated and occurs by means of legitimate peripheral participation within a community of practice, in contrast with conventional schools which are based upon the assumption that knowledge can be decontextualized. I argue that their perspective is inappropriate for science teaching, because a newcomer…

Learning can be viewed as a communication process that puts the learner in contact with concepts created by others. A result of communication is that an act of interpretation starts, which invokes a process of conceptualization. According to Mayes, successful conceptualization will need the support of learning activities. Hence, machine mediated…

The "Cultural Journeys in the Information Society" is a dynamic hypermedia environment, which proposes the "Electronic Roads" as a meta-form for exploring cultural information that can form "Cultural Journeys." The Electronic Roads meta-form facilitates travelers to explore the information space in a natural and…

This article describes the critical experiences of a middle school mathematics teacher as she progressed from a novice to a knowledgeable creator of technology-enhanced learning activities for her classroom. During an eight week intervention, cognitive apprenticeship strategies (Collins, 1991) were utilized in a partnership with the teacher until…

Least squares regression is the most common method of fitting a straight line to a set of bivariate data. Another less known method that is available on Texas Instruments graphing calculators is median-median regression. This method is proposed as a simple method that may be used with middle and high school students to motivate the idea of fitting…

Many sectors in American postsecondary education are experiencing rapid growth, largely due to the maintained and increased need for educational services, research capabilities, and public outreach, community service, and civic engagement opportunities. The factors shaping the institutional responses include demographic changes, pressure for…

Inquiry learning is student-based exploration of an authentic problem using the processes and tools of the discipline. Often inquiry learning is presented in a fashion that mirrors the scientific method, proceeding from identification of a problem to reporting of findings. In post-secondary settings, these scientific-method inquiry exercises…