What distinguishes inquiry from other instructional modes is what can be called its critical manner of teaching. One way in which this critical manner can be practiced is in the form of a conversation. Conditions necessary for conversations in the social studies classroom are discussed. (RM)

Evaluates the comparative effectiveness of three methods for making decisions in task groups. Examines group members' satisfaction with each decision-making method and the extent to which each method builds consensus among members for decisions made by the groups. (Author/JAC)

Nominal group technique is a small group decision-making process for problem identification and resolution. Used with 55 elementary school teachers in a study funded by five National Education Association affiliates to identify significant job stressors, the method appears to be a meaningful way to involve teachers in defining their perceived…

Intensive tutoring, weekly teaching experiences, and discussion are necessary to give preservice teachers insight into the causes and effects of teaching-learning experiences. When competent faculty spend sufficient amounts of time on seminars and field experiences, the quality of future teachers, and teaching, will be enhanced. (MT)

Elements of context, which include the individual perspectives and expectations of individuals, are discussed in this article. Transcribed discussions of young adults in professional training are used to illustrate various group discussion skills. Implications for language learning are stated. (DF)

This study investigated the effect of class discussion, one-to-one interaction, or no prewriting activity on the voluntary writing decisions of fourth graders. No differences were found for boys; however, the proportion of control group girls who chose to write was significantly higher than those in the class discussion group. (Author/MT)

A study of the effects of variation in student preparation and leadership (emergent vs. assigned) in discussion groups found that both factors influenced verbal inactivity. The leadership effects were explained in terms of interaction-expectation theory and behavior modelling. (MSE)

Argues that the teachers' role in teaching Shakespeare is to raise questions that will alert the class to the implications in the text. (HOD)

The knowledge of antibiotic therapy among students taking an elective course in antibiotic prescription following a course in antibiotics and infectious diseases was compared with those not taking the follow-up elective course, and it was determined that the elective course reinforced existing knowledge. (MSE)

The use of foreign language classroom conversation as a prewriting exercise, to help students discover composition topics, discuss the pros and cons, shape the narrative or thesis, and gather detail in a coherent way, launches the composition process and makes the homework of writing and proofreading more interesting and initially less difficult.…

This article presents a practical model for a biology classroom discussion on evidence and inference, and on changes that have taken place in accepted ideas of what constitutes reliable evidence. (EB)

Reports on a study which shows that, at the community college level, the lecture method is still the most valuable single teaching technique. (DC)

The NCEA's National Conference of Directors of Religious Education met at the Franciscan Renewal Center in Scottsdale, Arizona and pondered the theory and practice of prayer and its implications for education today. (Author/RK)

The most common consequence of setting up an "electronic discussion group" for a university class or a group of faculty is a flurry of initial greetings followed by an enduring silence. Only a small proportion of computer users are active and sophisticated enough to read regularly and feel disposed to participate actively. Written…

This paper discusses an Owen Wister poem published in 1920 in "The Atlantic Monthly" and brought to the attention of a university class without any information as to its context or its references, and read in various ways by various individuals, as information about the poem's context was gradually discovered. The central issue explored…