The concept of a qualitative model is used as the focus of this review of qualitative student models in order to compare alternative computational models and to contrast domain requirements. The report is divided into eight sections: (1) Origins and Goals (adaptive instruction, qualitative models of processes, components of an artificial…

The origin of effective schools research (ESR) is discussed in the context of a review of the pertinent literature. Debates over this topic have involved impacts on student achievement, methodology, the allegations of the Coleman report, and various effective school models. The Coleman Report (1966) concluded that family background was the…

Quantitative assessment instruments have been developed to identify those skills or behaviors which individuals with developmental disabilities need in order to become competitively employed, and to measure individuals' progress in the program and hence measure program effectiveness. Such assessment instruments are problematic, as each employment…

This study was part of a continuing exploration of the naive misconceptions of students in the physical sciences conducted within the context of current literature in alternative frameworks. The sample was selected from among those students registered for a liberal education physical science class at a small private college. The method used was a…

This article focuses on the linkage between the quantitative and qualitative distance education research methods. The concept that serves as the conceptual link is termed "complementarity." The definition of complementarity emerges through a simulated study of FernUniversitat's mentors. The study shows that in the case of the mentors,…

The success and safety of flight in actual instrument conditions is dependent upon the communicative competency of the individuals involved. The more obvious elements of communication involved include crew coordination and communication both verbal and nonverbal, aircraft and ground communication links, pilot interpretation of verbally and…

This article highlights initial findings from a qualitative research study in Aotearoa/New Zealand exploring the discursive production of children's sexuality in early childhood education. The article draws attention to teacher talk about and around sexuality. Drawing from heteronormative, developmentalist and biological discourses and discourses…

Metaphorically, going places without a map was a significant shift for me. Experiencing a sense of disconnection both professionally and personally became a catalyst to undertake a journey of re-connection. This coincided with an experience of displacement and what transpired was the making of new meanings around being an educator and around…

Calls for reform in science education stress the need for inquiry-based, integrative methods that provide students with opportunities to solve authentic problems. Project INSITE, a four-year professional development effort in Indiana, was designed to help teachers integrate problem-centered science methods in their classrooms. This approach was…

Teaching a course entitled "Introduction to Theories of Education" requires that one practice what one is preaching. We describe an attempt to organize and provide undergraduates enrolled in an introductory course of 300+ students, with a viable, yet more collaborative and "product-based" alternative to the familiar lecture and…

A phenomenological approach to library research utilizing qualitative research methods is contrasted to a positivist-behaviorist approach utilizing quantitative methods. Psychological understanding of a situation attained by means of accurate description, and subjectivity and associated intentionality are presented as part of the phenomenological…

Native French speakers (N=56) were critical of French slang expressions spoken by French youths. A previous study found that the native speakers considered Americans' use of the same slang even less acceptable, suggesting the need for careful consideration of teaching such terms in French-language classrooms. (Author/CB)

Data drawn from a qualitative study of teachers' perceptions of work stress is presented. Linkages between teacher stress and teacher performance are firmly established. Study data are discussed in terms of the Performance Adaptation Syndrome, a term used to describe the deleterious effects of prolonged work stress on instructional ability.…

New trends in language teaching have resulted in a move towards research in the language classroom. A brief overview of classroom research reveals three distinct but inter-related research paradigms: classroom-centered research, classroom process research, and qualitative research, respectively.

This paper charts a cognitive history of the concepts of quantity and quality from three inter-related and inter-dependent perspectives of mathematics, logic, and physics. In so doing, other notions associated with the evolution of these concepts are identified and explicated. It is argued that the concepts of quantity and quality, considered in…