A study investigated use of homework assignments in lieu of course examinations in a pharmacy course on over-the-counter drugs. Teachers read homework and commented on it without grading, and students predicted their grades based on the comments; an overall feedback sheet was also provided to students. Students felt this a good alternative to…

Examined cognitive competencies and motivation in economically advantaged and disadvantaged preschoolers and kindergartners over a two-year period. Found that disadvantaged children had poorer cognitive scores than advantaged children. Cognitive gains were equal after one or two years in school, with socioeconomic status (SES) differences…

Studied discrepancies between Canadian first-graders' home and school literacy contexts regarding the contexts' potential to promote self-regulated approaches to reading and writing. Examined the extent to which differences were reflected in the children's attitudes toward and engagement in reading and writing at school. Found some discontinuity…

The Parallel Curriculum, a problem-based curriculum at Bowman Gray School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, is described through each year of study. The curriculum increases learning enjoyment by making medical students responsible for scholarly exploration and integration of knowledge and skills with faculty support. (Author/GLR)

A model of personal and environmental influences on students' valuing of two deep-processing strategies for studying expository texts is described. Questionnaire data from 281 high school science students indicated that students' task orientation and perceptions about teacher expectations were central to students' attitudes. (TJH)

Ten principles of interactive language teaching and learning link language pedagogy today with that of fifty years ago. Topics discussed include: (1) student as language learner; (2) language learning and teaching; (3) classroom communication; (4) knowledge and control of language; (5) testing; and (6) scope of language teaching. (MSE)

Examines the cognitive and affective impact of a multimedia editing task. The study examined how junior high school students used multimedia to teach science topics to themselves and others. The results showed that, although the technology had an important role in student activity, the task itself was the main motivational aspect. (Contains 34…

Surveys United Kingdom local twinning links with the aim of obtaining a detailed picture of the extent and scope of twinning activity and its perceived benefits. Twinning can bring an increasing awareness to the public at large of the benefits and delights which can result from acquiring foreign language skills. (CK)

Investigates the possibility of conducting adult education courses based on the Accelerated Learning (A.L.) methodology and of evaluating its advantages and disadvantages vis a vis more traditional methods. It is not clear that the A.L. materials produce better results. Further study is needed to evaluate the effectiveness of the entire A.L.…

Critiques current understandings of children's motivation for literacy learning, and argues for a reconceptualization of motivation that centers on the learner as agent in the social construction of meaning. Uses vignettes and examples from studies conducted in whole-language classrooms to investigate children's perspectives of their own literacy…

Discusses reading and writing activities in a foreign language. Implications of emergent literacy research for foreign-language instruction focus on when to initiate these activities, what sorts of literacy materials to use, what kinds of tasks to utilize and how to direct novice foreign-language learners. (46 references) (CK)

This study of third graders examined whether qualitatively distinct cooperative computer environments (using LOGO and curriculum-based instruction in writing) engender social experiences that enhance motivation and self-concepts as learners; and the extent to which differences in motivation and self-perception accounted for differences in…

Discusses the importance of affective considerations when designing instruction for distance education. Topics discussed include learner motivation based on Keller's ARCS model (Attention, Relevance, Confidence, and Satisfaction); communication patterns that facilitate interaction between students; and ethics involved with marketing programs,…

Prospective and retrospective studies of 1,659 secondary school students and 198 workers in England and Malaysia found positive relationships between intrinsic motivations for learning and working. The "diploma disease" thesis, which posits negative relationships between examination-oriented schooling in developing nations and intrinsic…

Theories of motivation suggest three approaches to enhancing college student learning: (1) reshaping students' overall achievement orientation; (2) creating the expectation of success; and (3) increasing the value of academic outcomes by helping students develop personal goals and identify means of achieving them. (MSE)