Cites observations about social studies education in the United States by two Australian doctoral students in social studies education. Observations include that concept teaching is limited, social studies is treated primarily as a collection of social science disciplines, teaching is generally expository in nature, student needs and interests are…

Preliminary data were gathered at the University of Iowa about learning styles and instructional preferences of two groups of family practice physicians: those who attended and those who did not attend a multidisciplinary university-sponsored refresher course. Implications for continuing medical education are discussed. (LBH)

An experiment in teaching mathematics to non-science, non-mathematics majors by two different methods, lecture and "open classroom," is reported. The primary findings of the study indicate that students learn equally well in either setting and that student personality characteristics may have a slight effect on individual gains. (JMD)

A description of a study which tried to establish the sequence of language development in a language other than English (Farsi) and to measure the syntactic complexity of the first language against that of the second. Results indicate a direction toward the construction of better course materials and tests. (AMH)

Investigated the effects of a lecture training program and an independent study on the knowledge and attitudes of law students (N=102) toward the mentally retarded offender. Revealed that the instructional methods of lecture and independent study did not produce a significant difference in the mean gains in knowledge and attitudes of law students.…

Proposes a model of target- and native-language proverb comparison which can be used to assist proverb analysis in the language curriculum, using examples from Mandinka, a West African language. (Author/CB)

Ways in which pronunciation of English as a second language can be taught through listening are presented, involving such activities as: identification tasks; minimal pair sentence tasks; inference, word counting, and dictation tasks; and stress and intonation tasks. (CB)

Describes a study which compared the instructional effectiveness of a team-based, peer-review approach to teaching programing skills to secondary school students, with that of a traditional approach. The discussion covers students' attitudes and programing skills development resulting from the implementation of the experimental approach. (Nine…

Suggests teaching Paul Zindel's HARRY AND HORTENSE AT HORMONE HIGH in conjunction with Charles Dickens' GREAT EXPECTATIONS to ninth graders and Homer's ODYSSEY, and teaching HARRY AND HORTENSE in conjunction with CATCHER IN THE RYE to seniors. Provides discussion questions for HARRY AND HORTENSE. (MM)

Discusses similarities and differences in the use of puppets and computers as teaching tools in the classroom. Teachers' resistance to puppets is discussed, and four new puppet programs are described. (LRW)

Focuses on the curriculum, methods, and intellectual orientations of postgraduate training for adult educators found within British and American universities. It argues that we should regard the methods, curricula, modes of evaluation, and intellectual terrain of postgraduate adult education as sociocultural products. (CT)

Achievement and attitudinal effects of three mathematics instruction methods directed in varying degrees toward accommodating diversity in student performance levels were compared in two randomized field experiments with third- through sixth-grade classes. Treatments included Team Assisted Individualization, Ability Group Active Teaching, the…

The communicative approach has brought second language instruction a long way from strict grammar-oriented pedagogy, carrying with it a return to meaning, less repetition, emphasis on the learner, and attention to the social and pragmatic aspects of communication. (MSE)

Reports a study in which the effects of the changeover of a French course in a London comprehensive lower school from a structural to a unit-credit course were observed and evaluated. A pre-test post-test model composed of 10 measures was used to measure the effects of the change. (SED)

Two teaching formats--lecture and case presentation--were compared to determine which is more effective in continuing medical education. Physicians attending case presentation sessions were more likely to increase their cognitive knowledge, but retention was only slightly higher than in the lecture group. (Author/MLW)