University of Hawaii medical school workshops retrain faculty for their roles as tutors in the newly adopted problem-based curriculum. Assessment of trainees' knowledge and skills before and after the sessions indicate the training was successful and also identified common problems faced by traditional teachers in the new role of facilitator.…

The potential of concept mapping, a learning strategy, coupled with assessments oriented toward problem solving used to facilitate meaningful learning, is examined. How students make and use concept maps in studying and the factors that influence the way they are made and used are discussed. Sample concept maps are included. (KR)

A way in which to shift the focus away from lecture and the professor during class time to student-centered discussion groups is presented. An exercise used in a course on chemical process analysis that uses the group discussion method is included. (KR)

Describes experiences of a fifth grade teacher who converted her classroom to a whole language teaching and learning environment. In her child-centered classroom, she emphasizes student empowerment and decision making, cooperative learning, and flexibility. Her top priority is for students to participate and learn critical thinking and…

Normally achieving students (n=119) and students with mild handicaps (n=83) in grades 3-6 were instructed to create and answer computation items similar to samples given. Students with mild handicaps understood item characteristics enough to create like items, though averaging three years behind normal achievers. A sample instructional activity is…

This paper reviews the process-product literature on effective teaching and suggests a conceptual framework focusing on teacher behaviors associated with development of higher-order thinking and problem-solving abilities. These behaviors involve, among others, embedding instruction in meaningful and purposive activities and promoting classroom…

Proposes helping students understand fractions by establishing connections between students' informal knowledge of fractions and the mathematical symbols used to represent fractions. Sample dialogues demonstrate how these connections can be made. (MDH)

Discusses "connectionism," an alternative learning model wherein meaning resides in the function of the whole state of a network, rather than being localizable in certain symbols or areas. Topics discussed include integration with other learning models; the culture of the mathematics classroom; and characteristics of alternative…

Discusses a pedagogical approach to calculus based on the question: What kinds of problems should students be able to solve? Includes a discussion of types of problems and curriculum threads for such a course. Describes a projects-based calculus with examples of projects and classroom activities. (Author/MDH)

Describes Socratic Dialogue Inducing (SDI) laboratory methods and procedures developed to increase conceptual understanding in introductory physics laboratories. Gives an example of a typical beginning SDI lab manual section and a representative Socratic dialogue. Describes several examples of laboratory experiments developed for the SDI method.…

Presented are simple activities that can be completed by students at home with the help of a parent. Activities include the topics of sorting, patterning, counting and numbers, geometry, adding, subtracting, and measuring. Each activity describes a series of sequenced tasks related to one of the topics. (KR)

Several types of physics activities that use real-world problems to motivate learners, use computers to assist in developing conceptual understandings, connect problem situations to mathematical models, and use the models to analyze other real-world problems are presented. The topics of racing sports, sailing, and damped harmonic oscillations are…

This problem-solving activity book offers tools for attacking problems in the classroom and beyond (a reproducible card set explaining problem-solving skills, a math problem-solving grid, problem-solving lessons in science, language arts, and social studies, and a poster following scientists as they fight to reclaim an endangered species). (SM)

This chapter discusses the origins of the case method, looks at the question of what is a case, gives ideas about learning in case teaching, the purposes it can serve in the classroom, the ground rules for case discussion, including the role of questions, and new directions for case teaching. (MLW)

Described is a theorem which is generally not present in most high school geometry textbooks. Presented are two proofs and two cases which illustrate the use of the SSA theorem. (CW)