The headmistress of an English school in India explains how a group of eight year olds responded to finding a "ghost" in a tree in the school courtyard. First-hand observation, exploration, and hard evidence led students to a more objective interpretation of the elusive tree spirit. (MLH)

Disagrees with several points in Mike Males's teenage pregnancy article in the March 1993 "Kappan." Males emphasized that family formation among teenagers mirrors larger societal trends. Recent evidence shows otherwise. The economic and societal costs of early childbearing are worsening; 60% of teen families live in poverty. Providing adolescents…

Explores first-year students' understanding of fundamental calculus concepts using written tests and interviews. Analysis of the written and verbal responses to the test items revealed significant misconceptions on which students' mathematical activities were based. Describes some of those misconceptions and errors relating to students'…

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) provides an eight-phase emotionally corrective experience described as a "learning catalyst" for reprocessing traumatic events. The originator of EMDR discusses the experiences that influenced her innovative approach. EMDR is discussed as a learning catalyst, and many misconceptions about the…

Contends that the concept of description educators present in their art criticism models differs from the concept of description in ordinary language; instead, it is a technical concept borrowed from the literature of aesthetics. Delineates differences between each concept, describes how the confusion arose, and discusses implications for art…

Counters Fenwick English's supportive treatment of postmodernism in this issue. Criticizes key concepts of postmodern-postconstructuralist thought, namely rejection of the metaphysics of presence and metanarratives and emphasis on textualism and deconstruction. Finds postmodernism seriously flawed, with little to offer educational administration.…

Adresses student understanding of quantum phenomenon. (Author/CCM)

Examines elementary science methods textbooks to determine how magnet concepts are presented. Focuses on the organization, sequence of concepts, and potential misconceptions, and includes types of investigations. Analyzed 11 elementary science methods textbooks in detail and found great variation in the magnet concepts presented, general omission…

Hospital employees (n=95) who attended experiential workshops on aging had significantly higher posttest scores on the Palmore Facts on Aging Quiz, indicating increased knowledge and improved attitudes about aging. (SK)

Describes a framework for identifying and classifying students' alternative conceptions and unscientific patterns of reasoning within a particular scientific domain. Provides a basic system for indicating how much researchers know about students' non-scientific conceptions and reasoning. Suggests how the framework may prove useful for…

Discusses the effects of expectancy on learning in a life science instructional laboratory exercise. Contends that prior knowledge directs the act of observing. Investigates the role of prior conceptions on secondary school students' ability to observe scientific phenomena. (Contains 30 references.) (YDS)

Discussion of performance improvement in human performance technology focuses on the fact that not all favorite solutions may produce useful results. Highlights include a focus on meeting goals, not implementing solutions; three case studies that show popular misconceptions; determining instructional effectiveness; and how to check out popular…

Presents activities designed to introduce the concept of fossils to middle school students and to clarify students' misconceptions about what is, and is not, a fossil. (JRH)

Discusses three misapplications of progressive thinking that have damaged the quality of mathematics learning in British schools: individualized learning, spiral curriculum, and applications of mathematics. (MKR)

Pre- and posttests and interviews concerning misconceptions and alternate conceptions of rates of change were administered to (n=42) students in first-semester calculus using a conceptually-motivated curriculum. Suggests that an emphasis on visual representations through construction and interpretation in conjunction with teacher-student analysis…