Introduces some of the core concepts of ecological economics and describes sample activities that can be used at various grade levels. Presents a hands-on simulation on manufacturing. (YDS)

Investigated foster parents self-reported needs for good parenting of their foster children. Categorized parents' reported needs within five themes: good working relationships; cultural sensitivity; harmonious and stable family relationships; adequate payment for services; and range of personality characteristics and parenting skills. (JPB)

Studied the effects of a combination of student collaboration, concept mapping, and electronic technologies with 26 students in a graduate level learning theories class. Findings suggest that concept mapping and collaborative learning techniques complement each other, and that students found the combined approach useful. (SLD)

When one thinks of a "concept map," they usually think of a chartlike graphic that describes a concept and its various relationships, with general concepts at the top, specific supporting concepts toward the bottom, and words and lines showing the connections and flow between the concepts. Some think of concept maps as tools for teachers of upper…

This pilot study introduces a scale to assess structural knowledge in concept maps. The need to increase our understanding of structural knowledge through improved assessment is made evident in a review of research that indicates that its quality is related to problem-solving abilities. The new scale is derived from Biggs and Collis' (1982)…

Suggests that instructors can foster the growth of thinking skills and promote science literacy by incorporating active learning strategies into the classroom. Describes situations in which a variety of learning strategies were incorporated into large earth science courses for non-majors. Improvements in student achievement, retention, and logical…

Preparing, organizing and planning care for patients is challenging for nursing students as they must learn to link theory to practice. Concept mapping has been suggested as an effective strategy to facilitate meaningful learning and promote critical thinking among nursing students (Baugh & Mellott, 1998; Schuster, 2003). Utilization of concept…

The perceptions of a group of 5-6-year olds were tested against two disparate hypotheses, one for nested hierarchies, the other for symbolic representations in language and learning. There is evidence that young children have the foundation for tackling more sophisticated and challenging ideas than is usually recognised. Linguistically, children…

A major policy objective of the Australian Government is to provide all young people with strong foundations in numeracy. This article reports on a national project coordinated by Deakin University. The project, entitled "Primary numeracy: A mapping, review and analysis of Australian research in numeracy learning at the primary school…

High-stakes accountability policies such as the federal No Child Left Behind legislation require districts and schools to use data to measure progress toward standards. In doing so, such policies assume that practitioners can and will use data to enhance decisionmaking and improve teaching and learning. However, educators use and make sense of…

Previous research on students with learning disabilities has indicated that they benefit most from explicit instruction. However, few studies have examined how explicit instruction may be translated to the logistical demands associated with large-group instruction in high school general education settings in ways that are socially acceptable to…

With the exception of the procedures developed by Porter and colleagues (Porter, 2002), other methods of defining and measuring alignment are essentially limited to alignment between tests and standards. Porter's procedures have been generalized to investigating the alignment between content standards, tests, textbooks, and even classroom…

The design of a web-based hypermedia learning solution requires a robust design process--a full iteration that conceptually, metaphorically, structurally and navigationally defines a solution with the end users at its core as exemplified by Kommers (2001). Initially this process was considered as a sequential, hierarchical pyramid from conceptual…

This paper is based on a study of how students' read nature in different ecosystems. Its focus is on ecology and the context is outdoors. This literacy has to do with an ability to recognise organisms and relate them to material cycling and energy flow in the specific habitat that is to be read. A teaching sequence was designed in order to develop…

A number of elements of scaffolding are identified that contribute to the operationalization of real world video production projects as authentic learning environments in which students can learn the intellectual television production skills necessary for working in the television industry. Three key elements are identified. Firstly projects must…