Presents four primary objectives for written assignments. Describes the use of writing assignments in a college probability and statistics course. Maintains that this approach requires students to show statistical and writing skills rarely elicited elsewhere in their coursework. (CFR)

Presents a project-based curriculum, Foundations of Science (FOS), that integrates the physical and biological sciences. Consists of three years of integrated science based on: integrating science disciplines, project-based science, inclusion of authentic problems, and routine uses of technology. (nine references) (JRH)

Examines the background to behavioral applications to children's learning. Provides a brief description of three approaches: task analysis, direct instruction, and precision teaching. Looks at assumptions of these approaches, their similarities, and their interrelationship during continuous assessment. Discusses the role of a behavioral approach…

Study investigated teacher preferences for certain modes of helping students (enactive attainment, vicarious experience, verbal persuasion, and anxiety reduction). Preservice and inservice teachers read six scenarios of students with learning difficulties and ranked helping responses. Overall, they preferred verbal persuasion; they tended to…

This article discusses incidental references to alcohol and drinking in selected children's books and the appropriateness of these references. Books that afford a comprehensive view of alcohol and its effects are discussed, and suggestions for teachers concerning the use of such books are offered. Two book lists are provided. (LB)

Describes three activities that the teacher can employ to help students develop thinking skills through mathematics instruction: (1) memorization using the technique of chunking; (2) higher order thinking with magic squares; and (3) predicting games. Identifies eight facets of the teacher's role in promoting thinking skills. (MDH)

Described is a course designed to teach students about fractals using various teaching methods including the computer. Discussed are why the course drew students, prerequisites, clientele, textbook, grading, computer usage, and the syllabus. (KR)

Presented are exercises that demonstrate the application of standard concepts in the design of algorithms for plotting certain fractals. The exercises can be used in any course that explains the concepts of bounded or unbounded planar sets and may serve as an application in a course on complex analysis. (KR)

Presents an experiment to examine the relative effects of cooperative groups versus independent practice in helping students encode problem-solving strategies into their long-term memory. Four classes of 126 prealgebra students were randomly assigned to employ the 2 methodologies. Students who practiced in cooperative groups demonstrated greater…

Describes how college students enrolled in a course in elementary algebra apply graphing and algebra to data collected from a seismic profile to uncover the structure of a subterranean rock formation. Includes steps guiding the activity. (MDH)

Three learning activities--story generation, reasoning from historical information, and computer modeling--that are designed to help students move toward a more coherent understanding of biological mechanisms are described. A method used to measure a student's level of understanding and their progress during instruction is also described. Ways to…

Presented are four activities which allow students to work with rhombus patterns. These activities encourage students to search for, test, and verify patterns and to also practice computation and work with ratios. Diagrams needed for each activity are included. (KR)

Recommends that secondary social studies teachers help students recognize their own thought processes to develop critical thinking skills. Provides examples of applying the Social Studies Strategies Survey's cognitive strategies to case studies dealing with first amendment issues. Contends that teachers must understand their own cognitive…

The apprenticeship model can be adapted to teaching and learning cognitive skills in reading, writing, and mathematics, as illustrated by three successful examples. A cognitive apprenticeship framework is presented for the design of learning environments incorporating content taught, pedagogical methods, sequencing of learning activities, and…

Describes the development of a college mathematics course for liberal arts majors designed to engage students in the mathematical process of making conjectures, testing those conjectures, and communicating the results. Presents six specific learning objectives for the course. (MDH)