This paper reports on a qualitative case study investigation of the knowledge and use of learning strategies by 16 students in a final year high school biology class to expand their conscious knowledge of learning. Students were provided with opportunities to engage in purposeful inquiry into the biological, social and ethical aspects of cancer. A…

Because of its centrality to school success, social status, and workplace effectiveness, oral and aural skills development has been increasingly emphasized in Canadian curricula, classrooms and, very recently, large-scale assessment. The corresponding emphasis on group processes and collaborative learning has aimed to address equity issues in…

Despite the widespread use of digital video and, increasingly, multimedia in listening instruction throughout second language programs, little is known about how learners attend to dynamic visual elements in comprehension. A lack of research in how listeners engage with videotext retards the development of computer-based listening skills. This…

Appreciative Inquiry (AI) is an organization development (OD) philosophy that utilizes and builds on past successes, using these as positive momentum for future change. AI provides student affairs with an alternative and generative approach to improving their organizations' processes and culture. As student affairs professionals look to the future…

Constructivist learning theory holds that "learning consists less in recording information than in interpreting it. To interpret what is received and is attended to, the learner must personally construct meaning for it." Unfortunately, opportunities for interpreting conceptual information are often lacking in classroom…

The concepts of social cognition and cognitive structures are important aspects of constructivism and human communication theory. By asking students to listen to different musical selections and fill in a simple rubric, different schemas become apparent. This creates an opportunity to discuss how cognitions relate to communication. Students who…

This paper outlines the establishment and running of an after-school Computer Clubhouse, describing aspects of the leadership, mentoring and learning activities undertaken there. Research data has been collected from examination of documents associated with the Clubhouse, interviews with its founders, Director, session leaders and mentors, and…

This article is about enhancing critical thinking as a crucial aspect of the competence citizens need to participate in society. First empirical research into the question which instructional strategies are "effective" in enhancing critical thinking is reviewed. Characteristics of instruction that are assumed to enhance critical thinking are:…

This study, based on constructivist learning theory, examined how effectively preservice chemistry teachers (N = 43) can be educated to think flexibly and to reorganize their thinking in a way that may complement diverse ways students approach the subject domain. The teacher's cognitive structure was assessed prior to and after a conceptual change…

This study examined relationships between conceptual understanding, self-efficacy, and outcome expectancy beliefs as preservice teachers learned science in a constructivist-oriented methods class. Participants included 49 preservice elementary teachers. Analysis revealed that participants increased in self-efficacy, outcome expectancy, and…

This article presents the nontraditional research of four teacher educators who used their own stories about teaching and their responses to those stories to problematize their work with preservice elementary education teachers. The data were analyzed using qualitative data methods of coding, categorizing, and interpreting. Among the themes that…

This study examined the validity of using stories to appraise career dispositions and problems associated with career adaptability. Premedical students (63 women, 37 men) wrote narratives about Thematic Apperception Test cards (TAT) and responded to the Strong Interest Inventory (SII). Independent raters identified identical career adaptability…

The education of science teachers necessarily involves instruction around the use of computer technologies. Acadia University, a laptop institution, offers a unique setting where students are immersed in the critique of pedagogical applications of computers. The current trend to employ constructivist approaches in teaching provides a backdrop for…

In this article, the authors examine the prerequisites for leadership preparation programs with regard to implementing and institutionalizing professional learning communities as an instructional strategy. First, the authors posit that as faculty they must examine and reflect on their own teaching practices and how they influence their reciprocal…

Although the Bartholomae/Elbow debate is often framed as a modern conflict between the advocates of "academic" and "personal" writing, it is more appropriately viewed as the most recent manifestation of the historical clash between expressivism and constructivism. However, both sides of this conflict, which split over whether to see writing as a…