"Improving Mathematics in the Early Years and Key Stage 1" reviews the best available evidence to offer five recommendations for developing the maths skills of 3-7-year olds. Recommendations include integrating maths into different activities throughout the day -- for example, at registration and snack time -- to familiarise children…

Discusses four classroom writing activities that can be subsumed within the content area learning environment: anticipatory questioning, notetaking, using graphic organizers, and writing summary paragraphs. (FL)

It appears that the value of providing students with strategies to activate their prior knowledge base or to build a base if one does not exist is supported by current research. Creating an opportunity to challenge students to call on their collective experiences (prior knowledge) is essential. Through this process, teachers move students from…

The issue of assessing adult learning prior to formal college level study is examined and presented in this handbook. The handbook offers guidelines for setting standards, provides a review of some of the proven techniques and practices that have been used to evaluate previous learning, addresses a series of issues relevant to particular subject…

Examines how the aquarium has attempted to move from a transfer view of knowledge to a constructivist approach in its most popular general public program--the killer whale presentation. The process of change that staff underwent is similar to conceptual change processes among learners of science. Describes constructivist strategies of conceptual…

Previous research has cast doubt on children's ability to use specified evidence when making causal inferences, or, indeed, to differentiate between the specified evidence and their own preconceptions, or "prior theories." The present study continues previous work by distinguishing between children's reasoning in conditions where…

Examines the concept of the cognitively active learner and discusses the following categories of learning strategies: rehearsal, elaboration, organization, comprehension monitoring, and affective. (NKA)

British students in four age groups--4 to 5, 7 to 8, 11 to 12, and 15 to 16 years old--were observed in their classrooms in order to explore the relationships among the learner, knowledge, and thinking, and the role that writing plays in what is learned. In the infant classroom, writing was quite visible in the form of labels, questions,…

A growing body of research supports a purposeful and transparent approach to learning. Within the field of cognitive science, learning is defined as a purposeful, goal-directed activity. An ongoing goal-setting process is integral to effective learning. Purposeful and transparent learning builds on learners' prior knowledge and experiences to…

A key concept underlying Equipped for the Future (EFF) relates to its contextualized approach to curriculum and instruction. While drawing on the body of cognitive research, research on the transfer of learning is of key importance for this principle. Effective learning requires not only acquisition but also active application of knowledge,…

Research findings related to constructivism have been applied to development of the Equipped for the Future (EFF) Framework and Continuum of Performance, a multi-dimensional developmental description of performance serving as a foundation for EFF-based instruction and assessment of learner progress. Acquiring expertise is a complex developmental…

Noting that teachers sometimes fail to draw on students' prior knowledge, this guide focuses on helping teachers both to think about the cognitive processes involved in learning and to design activities that provide students with a solid introduction to various learning tasks. The first section briefly discusses current theory and research in…

People use and extend their knowledge of the physical world constantly. Understanding how this fluency is achieved would be an important milestone in understanding human learning and intelligence, as well as a useful guide for constructing machines that learn. This paper presents a theoretical framework that is being developed in an attempt to…

This book's 18 chapters provide a multi-disciplinary analysis of lifelong learning and the learning society by doing the following: (1) examining the way that these phenomena have emerged; (2) analyzing the concepts; (3) discussing ways in which the learning society functions; (4) assessing the implications of the learning society for other…

A content area literacy course is examined to assess how teacher educators might respond to prospective teachers' beliefs in light of the particular goals of a particular course or teacher education experience. Content Area Literacy is a methods course that emphasizes teaching strategies and the rationales underlying them. It is examined to reveal…