Several Canadian universities and colleges have been working together for years to build Web-accessible computer-based applets to help students learn physics concepts. This paper reports the findings from a study that evaluated the effectiveness of these applets in enhancing conceptual learning. We integrated quantitative and qualitative methods…

This article illustrates a step-by-step hypothesis refinement activity that is consistent with constructivist pedagogies and the perception of culture learning as a process of discovery. Postsecondary students identified stereotypes about the cultures of French-speaking countries, conducted open-ended investigations, and accepted or rejected the…

The aim of this study was to detect primary students' conceptions about the origin and conveyance of electric current and about the connection of household electric appliances. In total, 383 students (aged 11-12) from the town of Volos, Greece, participated; 213 of them drawn from experimental classes and 170 from control groups. The results…

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…

This article explores an issue of great current concern: how do we help primary aged children to engage with, and to benefit from, information from the Internet? The notion of "engagement" is considered in the context of constructivist learning theory. A short case study based on a small-scale research project in a primary school classroom in…

Literature on the related notions of 'teaching for understanding' and 'exemplary teaching' tends to be interpreted as prescribing certain classroom approaches. These are usually the strategies often identified with constructivist teaching, which involve a redefinition of the teacher's role: rather than being seen as a source of knowledge and…

At home, children often have pets that they take care of and play with; even in the classroom it is not uncommon to find a wormery, an aquarium or an ant farm. However, children rarely have the opportunity to own and care for a plant over a lengthy period of time, let alone a tree. The authors describe a project in Portugal aimed at improving…

This article explores the nature of developmental and cognitive constructivism as it has historically been related to the early childhood curriculum. The author reflects upon her personal experience in moving from a developmental to a socio-cultural theoretical perspective as an informant to her understanding regarding the education of young…

The information explosion characteristic of a knowledge-based economy is fuelled by rapid technological changes. As technology continues to permeate our lives, there will be fresh demands upon the conduct of learning and teaching to ensure that learners are equipped with new economy skills and dispositions for creating significant and relevant…

In a project-organized problem-based learning curriculum, students are encouraged to learn through a process where they write questions and find their own answers. Their supervisor has an important function in facilitating this process. When it comes to project assessment, this pattern is often changed to one where the supervisor asks the…

The focus of this study is to begin to answer the question of how sociology majors come to learn their discipline. In this article, I report on the findings from the first study in a multi-method project on this topic. I conducted a group interview with honors sociology majors from around the United States. Students discussed several questions…

Self-efficacy and perseverance of mid- to late-life adults committed to extraordinary involvement in challenging new pursuits was the subject of dissertation research conducted as a constructivist grounded theory. Eight participants over age 50 were purposefully selected for homogenous criteria. Findings disconfirmed perseverance as a contributor…

Preservice teachers studied texts about three fundamentally important science concepts. They read versions with no analogy, versions with a simple analogy, and versions with an elaborate analogy. An elaborate analogy is one that consists of text and pictorial components in which similarities between the analog and the target concept are made…

Web-based collaborative Problem-Based Learning (PBL) environments have great potential for learner improvement in solving ill-structured problems in practical situations. Web-based environments, however, offer learners relatively few chances to solve problems through face-to-face interactions compared to traditional classrooms, thereby making it…

The technology information age mandates that teacher education programs integrate technology into the curriculum. Yet, as the demand for technology use in K-12 classrooms increases nationwide, many teachers feel unprepared for this task (Sprague, Kopfman, & Dorsey, 1998). Traditional face-to-face teacher education and professional development…