This study reflects a social constructivist theoretical framework in which the zone of proximal development (ZPD) is a central element, as two teaching approaches, communicative language teaching (CLT) and explicit focus on form (FonF) are examined. Research questions include: Are CLT and explicit FonF conducive to reaching the ZPD? Is there a…

This investigation examines Thai college students' motivational goals for learning the English language. Thai student volunteers (N = 1387) from two types of educational institutions participated in this survey study which combined measures of goal orientations based on two different goal constructs and motivation models. Results of two-step…

In many school districts, the pressure to raise test scores has created overnight celebrity status for formative assessment. Its powers to raise student achievement have been touted, however, without attending to the research on which these claims were based. Sociocultural learning theory provides theoretical grounding for understanding how…

Learning is a changing phenomenon, depending on the advances in theory and research. This book presents a relatively new approach to learning, based on meaningful human activities in cultural practices and in collaboration with others. It draws extensively from the ideas of Lev Vygotsky and his recent followers. The book presents ideas that…

In this paper the online construction of disability is investigated and the implications for educators working in virtual worlds are considered. Based on the analysis of data collected through interviews with deaf residents of "Second Life", it is argued that research into online identity, disability and education needs to allow room for…

In a knowledge-based economy, economic and social well-being depend on the development of human resources, and those with access to education benefit from higher lifetime earnings, lower rates of unemployment and poverty, a greater sense of engagement at work and society, and healthier lifestyles. This environmental scan considers the major…

Accountability and evidence-based decision-making have become the mantra of government policymakers, and even private foundations. Yet most attempts to foster cultures of evidence have not brought about change in practices, notably because they are treated as management tools rather than learning processes. Equity for All is an approach to…

In the past five years, social networking has rocketed from a leisure activity to a "phenomenon that engages tens of millions of internet users," according to the Pew Internet & American Life Project, a nonprofit that follows the impact of the internet in differing social environments. In a recent national survey on teenagers and social networking…

Vygotsky proposed the concept of the zone of proximal development (ZPD) but did not elaborate the concept of "peer," leaving open the question of how capable a peer should be and how practice or outcome might differ according to a peer's level of capability. These issues were investigated in a sociocultural study of first-year Vietnamese…

The use of the "Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders" (DSM IV) as a teaching tool for social workers to understand mental illness has been debated for many years. The general consensus is that social workers need to be "familiar" with this classification system. Social Work's person in environment perspective, however, requires…

The overall intent is to clarify relationships between psychological constructivist, sociocultural, and emergent perspectives by grounding them in attempts to understand what might be happening in a variety of teaching and learning situations. The first part of the paper outlines an interpretive framework developed in the course of a…

The workbook is an English vocabulary development text focusing on words associated with traditions, customs, and background of holidays celebrated in the United States, and in some cases also in Canada and elsewhere. The special vocabulary is presented in seventeen readings, written in repetitive style so the student can learn the definitions of…

The French feudalistic economic and social system of 17th and 18th century Detroit is described. (DE)

This paper presents a model for turn-taking in conversation that is locally managed, party-administered, interactionally controlled, and sensitive to recipient design. Several general consequences of the model are explicated. (CK)

Suggests that patterns of abilities are the best cross-cultural evidence for the effects of environment and culture upon memory development. An object and place recall task was administered to 5- and 7-year-old American and Guatemalan children. (Author/SDH)