Explores the tension between passive and active learning among master's degree students working on their teaching certificate in science. Emphasizes the developmental nature of learning and that constructionist pedagogies need to be clearly integrated in university courses, especially those focused on teaching. (EV)

Describes a study of undergraduates that investigated the influence of interactivity on the learning outcomes of users in a multimedia systems environment, based on behaviorist, cognitivist, and constructivist learning theories. Proposes a measurement scheme for interactivity, considers users' learning environment and attitudes, and discusses…

Discusses electronic learning and what makes it different from learning in traditional classrooms. Topics include information architecture; user interface design; the importance of focusing on content; constructivism; self-directed learning; learning motivation; reflective approach; learning styles; and experiential learning. (LRW)

This study documented one child's development of conflict resolution skills when a peer problem-solving model was used in a constructivist-designed classroom. Findings revealed that this child progressed from a power assertion style of conflict resolution to a more sophisticated form of negotiation. The study supports current thinking that young…

The coordinated use of performance-based assessment and curriculum-based assessment is explored. Criteria are suggested for evaluating the advantages and disadvantages of each assessment method, and a framework for integrating the two methods is proposed. Specific recommendations are given for use with students having learning disabilities. (CR)

Responds to Major's (1996) and Ioup's (1996) criticism of this author's theory of language acquisition. The author agrees with both critics that abstract systems of phonology are acquired. He concludes that the proper study of language acquisition is to chart the course by which perceptual, motoric, and cognitive functions induce structure. (31…

Considers the mind of the epistemic psychologist, a constructivist knowledge creator within a scientific framework, guided by the social world of scientific institutions. Suggests that Piaget and Vygotsky shared respect for complexity of phenomena and were consistently developmental in their theories. A reconsideration of their common heritage…

Identifies the major tenets of a preservice secondary education program, knowledge structures that beginning science teachers have constructed about the teaching and learning of science, and the correlation between them. Findings indicate that aspects of the program such as student-centered learning, cooperative learning, general pedagogical…

The educational technology course for preservice teachers at Texas A & M University incorporates a constructivist model for professional development. A study of this model examined how it helps teachers change from disseminators of information to facilitators of learning and how it underscores differences between preservice and inservice…

Discusses whether teachers should teach what they believe to be mathematics, teach the mathematics of students' backgrounds and aspirations, or teach the mathematics they think society expects them to teach. Suggests that teachers define mathematics and share those definitions with students. (DDR)

Describes the use of computer-mediated communication to develop a cooperative learning community among students in a Web-based distance education unit for practicing science and mathematics educators in Australia and Pacific Rim countries. Discusses use of the social constructivist and constructionist conceptions of teaching and learning.…

This case study uses activity theory to analyze the conceptualization of teaching for an elementary school teacher in her first full-time job teaching a kindergarten/first-grade class. Findings center on teacher's use of integrations and the decentering of the classroom. Rather than sustaining concept of constructivist teaching, the teacher…

Reports the findings of a study that examined discourse patterns and the ways in which such patterns affected student learning in a 6th grade mathematics classroom. (KHR)

Focuses on the use of cognitive mapping within sociology. Describes an assignment where students created a cognitive map that focused on names of theorists and concepts related to them. Discusses sociological imagination in relation to cognitive mapping and the assessment of the assignment. (CMK)

A computer-assisted learning/teaching model is conceived with implications of constructivist theory and an analogy between the traditional art form Shuanghuang and the teaching/learning environment. The virtual character of the model interacts with the learner, in the form of human behavior and speech supported by recognition biometrics,…