Investigated the effects of cooperative instruction, individual instruction, and learner control of instructional elements (practice items, summary material, review material) on 128 undergraduate students' test performance, attitudes, option use, and student interactions and found that posttest performance was not influenced by either learner…

Presents survey results that reveal that most political science departments have clearly defined systems of summative teaching evaluation. These systems, however, lack diversity. Most rely solely on student assessment and use this primarily to identify potential problems. Recommends adopting more flexible and constructive approaches. (MJP)

Analysis of data from 5 years shows that students enrolled in the Dalton Junior College (Georgia) first-year seminar, although similar to a comparison group in age, sex, standardized entrance test scores, degree objectives, and group grade point average, attempted more course hours, showed a higher retention rate, completed more hours, and had a…

Discussion of the use of classroom television focuses on the need for effective instruction rather than sophisticated technology. Highlights include math activities developed by teacher Kay Toliver; a PBS (Public Broadcasting Service) series for elementary math students; integrated learning, with an interdisciplinary approach; and teacher training…

Contends that teacher's decisions regarding textbook use can be understood through public choice theory. This theory claims decisions are made balancing competing interests of scarcity, time, costs, benefits, and incentives. Teachers use textbooks because of their efficacy in organizing and providing instructional material. (MJP)

Defines guided composition as composing music with as many prescribed parameters as a young composer needs. Although the melody should never be proscribed, instructional "controls" can be built into the rhythm, length (and repeats), scale, and clef. Includes excerpts from three K-4 compositions using this technique. (MJP)

This discussion of educational technology and the role of computers is based on the author's experiences with the United Kingdom's National Development Programme in Computer Assisted Learning (NDPCAL). Highlights include curriculum development; teachers' roles; research and development; evaluation; control group experiments; instructional…

Presents several instructional techniques. Discusses cueing, set, continuous reinforcement, and using positive feedback. Considers the learning styles of students and the type of classroom that is conductive to learning. Provides examples. (MVL)

Examines the organized contradictions linked to the simultaneous bureaucratization and professionalization of academe that restrict excellence in undergraduate instruction. Presents a general systems model that points out the need for a coordinated set of changes which, if institutionalized, could lead to an academic revolution. Responses by Lee…

Describes study conducted at the University Sains Malaysia with pharmacy students that compared a videotaped demonstration with a conventional laboratory experiment in physiology to determine the short-term and long-term effectiveness of the instructional media. Treatment for the experimental and control groups are described, and results are…

Discussion of the effectiveness of combining instructional strategies to produce methods of group instruction that are as effective as tutoring focuses on a study of undergraduates that assessed the cognitive, affective, and sociometric outcomes of an instructional system combining cooperative learning, enhanced student participation, and advance…

An exploration of the effectivenes of college overseas study programs on improvement of foreign language skills addresses student motivation, academic expectations, curricular changes, language pledge requirements, communication with native speakers, and the purpose and image of study abroad programs. Suggestions are made for improving…

Discussion of hypermedia-based instruction focuses on studies of eighth-grade junior high school students that investigated differences in cognitive style during information-seeking behavior and learning, the effect of social context (collaborative versus individual study), and the effects of magnet school students' self-regulation of study time.…

This article asserts that social work is failing to fulfill its professional obligations, partly because educational institutions are failing to provide appropriate training to social workers; also, claims of the effectiveness of social therapeutics and professional techniques are exaggerated. Better research, shifts in curricular emphases, and a…

Examines the role of mathematics in the Montessori curriculum. Suggests three areas important to the strengthening of prenumber concepts: logical quantification (one-to-one matching); logical classification (including open-ended sorting); and recognition, continuation, and creation of patterns. Suggests activities that establish foundations for…