This experimental study evaluated the effectiveness of direct teaching of new vocabulary items in reading passages. The study compared vocabulary learning under a reading only condition (incidental learning) to learning that is aided by direct communication of word meanings (explicit learning). Three levels of vocabulary knowledge (form recall,…

Recent studies have tested the addition of worked examples to tutored problem solving, a more effective instructional approach than the untutored problem solving used in prior worked example research. These studies involved Cognitive Tutors, software designed to support problem solving while minimizing extraneous cognitive load by providing…

It is important for special educators to have a strong repertoire of diagnostic methods to determine how well students with high-incidence disabilities are accessing, reading, and remembering content from textbooks used in their middle and high school classes. Suggestions for using the diagnostic information to guide specialized instruction…

The development of computer science, statistics and other technological fields, give us more opportunities to improve the process of evaluation of degree of knowledge and achievements in a learning process of our students. More and more we are relying on the computer software to guide us in the grading process. An improved way of grading can help…

In this paper, we introduce the Exploratory Behavior Scale (EBS), a quantitative measure of young children's interactivity. More specifically, the EBS is developed from the psychological literature on exploration and play and measures the extent to which preschoolers explore their physical environment. A practical application of the EBS in a…

Objective: The Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) requires a sufficient medical knowledge base as one of the six core competencies in residency training. The authors judged that an annual "short-course" review of medical knowledge would be a useful adjunct to standard seminar and rotation teaching, and that a…

Introducing a mystery object is an easy strategy to implement and allows teachers to pre-assess students' knowledge about local natural resources. Misconceptions can be noted as teachers record initial inquiries and wonderings on charts. Using the constructivist approach, students can explore and construct their learning as they continue to use…

The wealth of assessment options that exists offers teachers and students a "menu" of selections. Just as matching appetite needs with appropriate food selection is fundamental to a successful dining experience, matching assessment options to targeted achievement needs is crucial to an effective assessment experience. The author uses a…

During the past 6 years, the authors have worked and interacted with twice-exceptional middle school students as well as with their parents at an annual residential summer camp. Through surveys and interviews with the parents and their children, the difficulties that twice-exceptional students encounter at school emerged. Furthermore, parents'…

This study aims to develop and apply a rubric to evaluate the solutions of pre-service primary science teachers to questions about Newton's Laws of Motion. Two groups were taught the topic using the same teaching methods and administered four questions before and after teaching. Furthermore, 76 students in the experiment group were instructed…

This Research & Policy Brief addresses the aspect of the teacher support system that is perhaps the most important and often the most weakly implemented: teacher learning and development. This brief includes the following to help state and district leaders select professional learning activities that are worth the allocation of scarce resources:…

As more states have become engaged in kindergarten assessment efforts, early childhood educators and assessment experts have recommended developing such efforts within a coordinated assessment system that provides data about children's progress over time, (pre-k through grade 12), and is designed to address both educational policy and practice…

This study aimed to find out assessment and evaluation approaches in a Mathematics Teacher Training Department based on the views and experiences of student teachers. The study used a descriptive survey method, with the research sample consisting of 150 third- and fourth-year Primary Mathematics student teachers. Data were collected using a…

This study presents a new approach to estimation of a nonlinear growth curve component with fixed and random effects in multilevel modeling. This approach can be used to estimate change in longitudinal data, such as day-of-the-week fluctuation. The motivation of the new approach is to avoid spurious estimates in a random coefficient regression…

Teamwork skills are required at work, but teacher efforts in many countries to track achievement within this context have been hindered by lack of assessment tools and input from students. The Teamwork Skills Inventory relies on peer and self-evaluation to establish accountability, identify competencies, and detect learning needs. Twenty-five…