Multimedia is one of the biggest buzzwords around in education in this age of computer technology. Multimedia is short for multiple media and simply means using computers to bring together words, photographs, sounds, animations and video. In this article, the author talks about multimedia presentations as a powerful education learning tool. It is…

Human resource development is conceptualized here in terms of levels of action: representations, experience, relations, and communities. Functionality is taken as a hallmark of good human resource development in these. Yet reflecting on what works, and on innovations in human resource development, factors other than those associated with…

Lance and Loertscher warn that it is possible to use high-quality information resources and still create ineffective learning experience for K-12 students. To illustrate, they discuss the ?bird unit,? the type of research activity where students search for information in order to fill in worksheets that they transform into essays and…

This paper seeks to explain how constructivism addresses career as narrative. First, the narrative approach to career is briefly contrasted with traditional ones. Next, the theory of narrative is outlined, and some of the relevance of narrative for understanding career is presented. The notion of constructivism is then discussed from the…

The explanations of thirty primary pupils for changes in matter were recorded through individual, semi-structured interviews. The analysis of data pointed to the construction of a system for classifying pupils' explanations of changes in matter. A parallel analysis of data focused on the identification and interpretation of associations between…

Criticisms have recently been voiced of constructivism, the leading metaphor of human learning since the 1970s. Inspired by inconsistencies in interpretations of constructivism in current literature, we examine the underlying epistemological beliefs of popular constructivist theories and their criticisms. We find that popular constructivist claims…

Professional learning communities have become one of the most talked about ideas in education today. Many K-12 schools are working to become professional learning communities in the hope that student learning will improve when adults commit themselves to talking collaboratively about teaching and learning and then take action that will improve…

The National Council for the Social Studies has explicitly advocated technology integration into the social studies classroom to transform the teaching and learning of key social studies content and skills. While the call for technology integration into the social studies classroom is clear, the application of technology within the realm of social…

The purpose of this study was to examine how incorporating technology into teaching methods (including the phases of organizing video conferencing sessions) promotes college students' construction of knowledge. Video conferencing technology via the Internet afforded an enriched environment in which students interacted with educators at different…

How should the relationship between immediate interaction and verbal convention be understood? The present article argues that dialogism transcends the distinction between interactionist and constructionist social theories of written communication, as presented by Nystrand and colleagues. The theoretical argument is illustrated by a study of one…

There is widespread acceptance of formalized cooperative learning (CL) programs in the schools. Research evidence of CL's power has been documented, (Vermette, 1998) but there is still an interesting dilemma for early childhood educators: a great deal of the research on CL has been done at grade levels above those holding children from 4 to 8…

The effects of a cancer diagnosis can be devastating and far-reaching. Expressive-supportive group therapy has proven useful for treating patients struggling with many of these effects. In addition, individual therapeutic writing methods have shown benefit for many individuals addressing a variety of difficult life circumstances including cancer.…

The similarities and dissimilarities between teachers' and students' conceptions of language learning were addressed through a questionnaire survey concerning the nature and methods of language learning. The results indicate points of congruence between teachers' and students' beliefs about language learning in respect of eight main areas.…

Fractions are often difficult for students to fully comprehend. Teachers must find a variety of strategies to use in the classroom for teaching fractions. This study was conducted to identify effective strategies used by middle school teachers in order to find ways to improve fraction instruction. For four months, data were collected in 12…

Conceptual change researchers have made significant progress on two prominent but competing theoretical perspectives regarding knowledge structure coherence. These perspectives can be broadly characterized as (1) knowledge-as-theory perspectives and (2) knowledge-as-elements perspectives. These perspectives can be briefly summarized in terms of…