This paper describes the personalized system of instruction (PSI), a teaching method based on a high student involvement in the learning process, immediate feedback, mastery learning, and careful planning and instructional design of the course content. With PSI, students proceed through the course at their own pace and are required to demonstrate…

Today's teachers need access to a wide range of information to function in the classroom. They need a thorough understanding of how language figures in education, and for that reason they must receive systematic and intensive preparation in educational linguistics. A thorough grounding in linguistics would support teachers' undertakings overall,…

Examined effects of teaching method (self-directed, group-directed, teacher-directed), academic ability, student assessment of treatment, and allowed time on achievement in three Individualized Science Instructional System (ISIS) biology minicourses. Results, among others, indicated that individualized instruction favored high-ability students and…

If real growth is not made in teacher attitude and training and in institutional structural change to enhance the quality of interaction between "mainstreamed" students and "normal" students, mainstreaming will fail. (Author/LC)

Discussion of older adults in the workforce focuses on methods for training them how to use computers. Topics discussed include changes in processing information into memory, learning skills, learning processes, the learning environment, content planning, self-pacing materials, group and cooperative learning, and the instructor's role. (five…

Examined is a basic skills/remedial mathematics program at Medgar Evers College from 1978 to the present which uses computer assisted instruction and computer managed instruction. Described is the program and a systems approach. Investigated are the learner, instruction, and teacher parameters. (MVL)

An eighth-grade science teacher shares her successes and strategies for designing and implementing an individualized scientific investigation approach for students with three major problems: (1) low reading ability, (2) high absenteeism, and (3) limited background in science. (ZWH)

Proposes guidelines for introducing enrichment materials in the Montessori classroom, focusing on the introduction of numbers to young children and recommendations for specific mathematics activities. Suggests that one reason for adding materials is to revitalize the classroom environment, as children expect novelty and change. The risk is that…

Draws parallels between Montessori's mathematical curriculum and the evolution of numbers and counting. Suggests that children share with ancient Sumerians a basic human tendency to develop "the mathematical mind." Argues that children do not need to be surrounded by math; rather, the classroom must supply them with the means to explore…

Although it is true that today's education needs improvement, schools today are not all bad. The opinions of the following five experts, whose views are worth hearing are introduced: (1) Thomas Hopkins; (2) Ralph Tyler; (3) E. F. Lindquist; (4) Walter Cook; and (5) Harold Benjamin. (SLD)

The diagnostic-prescriptive approach to teaching clinically focuses directly on the student. The diagnosis and identification of the strengths and weaknesses of each student, both cognitive and emotional structure, establishes the teaching prescription of instruction. The changed behavior of each student in thinking, feeling, and activity is the…

The 2002 restructuring of the national curriculum in all Japanese public elementary and secondary schools includes a reduction and reallocation of instructional hours, and the addition of a new "integrated studies" course, with an emphasis on more individualized, cross-curricular thematic projects. This reform comes at a time when a…

This case study examined the effects of a parent-presented Direct Instruction decoding program on the reading and language skills of a child with high functioning Autism Spectrum Disorder. Following the 23 hour intervention, reading comprehension, listening comprehension and fluency skills improved to grade level, whilst statistically significant…

Struggling adolescent readers need interventions that provide them with opportunities to read more and to read better. The authors examine two case studies of interventions at work and propose criteria on which to evaluate intervention programs. Their review of the evidence on these programs for struggling adolescent readers suggests that at least…

One Texas elementary school's teachers uncovered a straightforward method to raise achievement for every child who wasn't succeeding.