Environment-based education (EBE) focuses on the interdisciplinary integration of the subject by using constructivist, team teaching, self-learning, and student-centered instructional approaches. This report defines environment-based education and discusses advanced developments in learning skills and character education. Contents include: (1)…

This issues paper, the second in a series of eight, is intended to distill formative evaluation questions on topics that are central to the development of the higher and further education information environment in the United Kingdom. Issues Paper 1 introduced a framework for thinking about "good" learning. This paper complements Issues…

This dissertation depicts my paradigmatic shift from traditionalist approach to constructivist approach of teaching and learning of mathematics. I have used autoethnography as the genre of writing and research that connects the personal to the cultural placing the self within a social context (Reed-Danahay, 1997). Employing autoethnography, I have…

Educators are often hesitant to use techniques of public relations and marketing communication to attempt to alter undesirable understandings of the rationale and processes of education held by external constituencies. This paper shows that contemporary practice in public relations and marketing communication can be conceptualized as an…

This report contains conference papers on geometry teaching. There were five plenary talks given and a review of Hungarian geometry teaching. The plenary talks addressed background theories of the psychology of learning such as constructivism, perceptional psychology, and motivational psychology. The themes of the 21 short talks were on a varied…

Three groups of children aged 8-10 who scored below the 22nd percentile on the PATests were taught basic math skills for 16 hours. One group received individual instruction using Precision Teaching and Direct Instruction, the second group received group instruction using Precision Teaching and Direct Instruction, and the third group received group…

Quantitative aspects of biology play an important role in understanding biological phenomena; however, most students find mathematical tools difficult to understand and use. This paper offers a teaching approach to this problem and presents a research study investigating 9th grade students' learning achievement when a constructivist teaching…

This paper discusses the changes in instruction needed to make the transition to teaching an online course. It discusses both traditional and alternative teaching methods a first-time online instructor might choose to use. The advantages and disadvantages of online courses are explored through a review of the literature, and ways in which online…

Based on the work of theorists Dewey, Piaget, Vygotsky, Feuerstein, Gardner, and Diamond, this paper presents the constructivist or brain compatible classroom as illustrated by descriptions of classroom activities of students from kindergarten through twelfth grade. The paper explores how teachers, the "new architects of the intellect,"…

This study sought to answer three questions: (1) How do teachers perceive constructivist teaching and learning? (2) What are their perspectives after implementation of a constructivist curriculum? and (3) What are the problems pertaining to a transition to constructivist teaching and learning? The study analyzed the views of six third-grade…

When teachers try to dramatically change the "pedagogic contract" - the prevailing classroom norms - their efforts are frequently met by resistance from students. My central question is: what do students' and teachers' voices tell us about breaking the pedagogic contract through the use of creative/imaginative writing in science classrooms? This…

In 1956, Dr. Albert Ellis presented his seminal work on Rational Therapy, subsequently renamed Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT) in 1993. This paper explores the origins, theoretical foundations, applications, and implications of REBT and provides a look at the empirical research available in support of the approach's efficacy. REBT is…

Integrating Vygotsky's sociocultural theory of the mind and cognitive science's computational model, this book focuses on how the computational mind uses language to mediate the internal and external worlds during thought. The first part of the book establishes the basis for unifying social and computational approaches to mind through language.…

This paper discusses the traditional lecture-based instruction method. Strong experimental evidence suggests that social context affects knowledge construction and depends on prior knowledge. Engagement in the inquiry process using constructivist viewpoints can make the characteristics of science, scientific knowledge, and scientific method easy…

This exploration of constructivism begins with a discussion of constructivist epistemology and learning theory, explaining that constructivist epistemology is difficult to label, though many writers, educators, and researchers have come to an agreement about how this constructivist epistemology should affect educational practice and learning. The…