Argues that consideration of constructivism's epistemological implications suggests that educational technologists need to convince learners of a problem's authenticity rather than to promote environments that deliver "preauthenticated" problems. Proposes guidelines to assist developers of educational technologies in accommodating the essentially…

Observes 16 students from five elementary science classes to examine how students use tools when constructing new knowledge during science instruction, how control of tools is actualized from pedagogical perspectives, how language and tool accessibility intersect, how gender intersects with tool use, and how competition for resources impacts…

Describes a constructivist model of an online course being taught at the University of South Florida on science, technology, and society interaction (STS) and its relationship to science teaching. Accommodates varied approaches to learning and differing levels of prior knowledge and includes a virtual resource center with free access and embedded…

Describes a laboratory-based program in physics designed to help students build effective links between the mathematical equations used to solve problems in mechanics and the real world of moving objects. Conducts the study among senior college students and points out the value of laboratory work in science education for development of thinking…

Presents an activity on waves that addresses the state standards and benchmarks of Michigan. Demonstrates waves and studies wave's medium, motion, and frequency. The activity is designed to address different learning styles. (YDS)

Focuses on constructivism and its implications for curriculum theory and practice. Warns against relying on theory, stating that no single theory can provide an adequate foundation for educational practice. States that the constructivist and situated learning movement offers a challenge for curriculum theory, practice, and research. (CMK)

Studied how college students acquire academic literacy through their writing. Findings for six South African students for whom English was a second language show the difficulties students have in using their own words and in distinguishing different voices in writing. Explicit assistance from lecturers was found to assist students in understanding…

Reviews Constructivism and the sources of its influence over Israeli educational discourse. Describes examples of Constructivist projects, several Constructivist schools, a summary of obstacles to implementation of such projects, and two basic flaws in the Constructivist view. Introduces a post-constructivist autonomy-oriented educational…

Describes constructive play and its importance to young children. Offers suggestions for facilitating constructive play outdoors including: (1) providing access on the playground; (2) bringing the classroom outside; and (3) addressing the challenges of loose articles outside. Calls for reversing current trends that discourage outdoor constructive…

Explores social education and the nature of social knowledge, focusing on reconstructivism, John Dewey's criticism of reconstructivism, the two developments that unraveled the reconstructionist counter-socialization argument, and the current emphasis in social education on the loss of respect for the core values and objective methods for…

Discusses the limitations of experimental studies of learning and the emergence of alternative paradigms such as constructivism. Examines the growth of teacher research and its historical influences, including Montessori, Dewey's Progressive Movement, and Lucy Sprague Mitchell. Discusses current trends in teacher research, asserting that it is…

Proposes a socioconstructivist environmental education. Explains that the challenge of environmental education is to enable students to gain a more complex representation of the sciences. Contains 35 references. (DDR)

Describes World Englishes (WE) that are global varieties of English and provides a rationale for teaching WE. Explores suggested activities and materials for teaching about WE, such as learning WE from videos, teaching the history of English, using international newspapers and guest speakers, and having students conduct a country study. (CMK)

Focuses on the use of storytelling as a means of teaching history. Explores the ideas presented by Charles McMurry in his handbook "Special Method in History" that addresses the use of stories in teaching. States that McMurry thought history could be interesting and tangible for even the youngest child. (CMK)

Points out that constructivist approach to science education is recognized as a valuable approach for building deep student understanding of scientific content and inquiry. Introduces a constructivist approach in two teacher training courses in the Spring 2000 semester and assessed their resulting content knowledge with examination-based…