This paper addresses the issue of how Harvard Project Zero's "teaching for understanding" might evolve over the next 100 years. Schools pitched to an Information Society seek ways of increasing the chances that learners will understand domains deeply and master the new basic skills. Such 21st century schools build upon Paulo Freire's…

Postmodernism is a multi-faceted movement of people who share a dissatisfaction with knowledge claims that embrace universalism. In contrast to science, the centerpiece of the Enlightenment, postmodernism sees only power games of discourse with no external reality existing as the ultimate arbiter. In science education, postmodernism is seen in the…

There is a frequent misperception that the move from behaviorism to cognitivism implies an abandonment of the possibilities of decomposing knowledge into its elements for the purposes of study and decontextualizing these elements for instruction. Cognitivism does not imply outright rejection of decomposition and decontextualization. Two movements…

The "paradigm dialogue" is an attempt to examine the philosophical positions of competing social science "ways of knowing" in the hope of establishing a dialogue among these different schools of thought. Three paradigms--postpositivism, critical theory, and constructivism--were examined in regard to their stances on three…

Arguing that the task of the teacher leader is not to dispense knowledge but rather to provide opportunities for teachers to construct it, this article reports on activities in which teacher leaders engaged during a session on the constructivist approach during the 1996 Teacher Leader Institute. It outlines five principles of learning that…

This paper examines teachers' perceptions and attitudes concerning science as well as their methods of instruction. The paper reviews the literature concerning constructivism, which is the belief that people come to know the world through mental activity that organizes and transforms their perceptions. Constructivism is the notion that people…

This paper discusses designing learning environments based on the Internet, as seen from a constructivist/situated learning point of view. First, some of the main principles of learning theory are examined. The structuring of virtual learning environments and integrated use of services on the Internet within the following five areas are addressed:…

Challenges the perception that students' research capabilities are limited to historical topics. Suggests that every student can do subject-based mathematical research on topics of importance within their normal curricula. By having opportunities to do research-oriented mathematics, students can connect what they are studying with the mathematics…

Describes a mathematics teacher's experience and change from a traditional behaviorist dispenser of knowledge to a constructivist facilitator of meaning during professional development. Compares the stages of teacher development metaphorically to the stages of a butterfly. Contains 11 references. (ASK)

In a learner-centered school, teachers and learners generate questions and seek solutions together in an environment that supports risk, tolerates ambiguity, and is flexible. Learner-centered schools value individual and organizational growth and change. (SK)

There is an interplay between emotions and learning, but this interaction is far more complex than previous learning theories have articulated. This article proffers a novel model by which to regard the interplay of emotions upon learning and discusses the larger practical aim of crafting computer-based models that will recognize a learner's…

A panel of experts proposed and rated categories and indicators of constructivist-compatible principles for Internet-based courses. The categories and associated indicators provide an initial framework that may help educators apply constructivist principles to the development of Internet-based courses. (EV)

Contrasts the dominant view of distance education as mass production and independent study (industrial model) with an emerging view incorporating interactive communications technology and personalized and collaborative learning (postindustrial model). Argues that computer conferencing is the most feasible and effective postindustrial technology…

Presents a blood type puzzle that provides a visual, hands-on mechanism by which students can examine blood group reactions. Offers students an opportunity to construct their own knowledge about blood types. (JRH)

The prevailing model of school knowledge is bounded, verifiable, controllable, and external to the knower, reinforced by textbooks, curriculum guides, and standardized tests. A better vision of schools is one in which multiple and diverse voices are heard, and knowing as a process is valued over knowledge as a product. (JOW)