States that current research reveals the widespread misuse of student evaluations. Argues that while student evaluations of faculty performance are a valid measure of student satisfaction with instruction, they are not by themselves a valid measure of teaching effectiveness. Presents 15 less-than-accurate variables related to high student…

Reports the outcomes of a video conferencing trial in an undergraduate mass lecture context. Highlights effects on students and staff, and supports issues through a formative and summative evaluation. Surveys, focus groups, interviews, video recordings, exam results and reflective diaries provide data for the evaluations. (Author/AEF)

Describes the Learn Online project at Grant MacEwan Community College (Alberta, Canada) that was developed to convert selected distance education courses to a Web-based format. Discusses team-based course development; positive student responses to accessibility and flexibility; faculty responses; and the need for faculty training. (LRW)

Describes the use of literacy portfolios in an eighth-grade classroom. Discusses the growth of self-awareness, the strong sense of personal commitment, the connection between analyzing and critiquing individual work through the eyes of a reader, the creation of a community of writers, and student reflections on their writing experiences. (SD)

The Education Network of Maine, the distance education arm of the University of Maine, delivers courses over an interactive television system, and has begun offering courses using the Web, videotapes, and other modes. Evaluations reveal that students have been satisfied with: logistics of courses offered, professors, and technology. An area of…

Analyzes perceptions and attitudes of a two-way video tele-educational system between on-site students and remote-site students in elementary schools in a rural area of Korea. Concludes that instructional design and strategies should be approached separately to accommodate the different interactions involved in on-site and distance education. (AEF)

Summarizes an interdisciplinary course that uses humanities resources to illuminate social science concepts related to nationalism and multiculturalism. Combined fiction and nonfiction sources to discuss the determining factors of national and personal identity. Includes relevant examples, as well as a list of required texts, and student projects.…

Utilizes a 17th-century Italian sculpture and an African fetish figure to illustrate essential qualities and characteristics of figurative sculpture. Points out the extreme differences and the many similarities between the two and offers explanations. Includes a process for leading students through "reading" the sculptures. (MJP)

Describes a pilot study where choral conducting students used miniaturized scores (simplified scores that focus on specific gestural problems). Students received three simplified scores, each one highlighting a different approach. Students overwhelmingly favored the simplified score using a cuing technique. Includes, score excerpts, student…

Presents a folkloristic analysis of two history teachers' performances of lectures in an eleventh grade U.S. history course. Discusses educational research on teachers as storytellers, a folkloristic framework for analyzing teachers' storytelling, and the reception of stories by students. Reveals that the history lectures combine both anecdote and…

Presents a study of interactions among eight-year-old students working with computers. Students' communicative interactions in front of the computer were compared with interaction occurring in other activities. Students interacted more when they were using the computer. Most of this interaction was concerned with problem-solving. Students…

Discusses reading with pre-teens Francine Pascal's "Sweet Valley Twins: Best Friends," one of a series of pre-romance novels featuring identical twin sisters. Interviews six girls using the Symbolic Representation Interview (SRI) about the good girl/bad girl dichotomy in novels and other media. Provides comments by Tom Romano and Diana Mitchell.…

Asserts that assessment tools created by instructors or counselors can be effective in exploring students' individual needs and providing a foundation for appropriate interventions. Presents a Student Information Sheet, which elicits basic information, and two measures created to explore academic self-concept and students' self-concept related to…

Describes two methods of introducing computer-assisted assessment (CAA) using Question Mark software. The University of Luton uses CAA for summative assessment; Loughborough University uses CAA mainly for formative assessment. Both have central units to provide support and development for staff wishing to use CAA in instruction. Students at each…

Examined diaries kept by undergraduate students during an English language course at the National University of Singapore. Investigation comprises preliminary content analysis of the diaries, learners' responses to a questionnaire, an account of learners' engagement with language issues in their diaries, and a commentary on teacher feedback and…