This paper describes part of the results of a study investigating how adolescents, between the ages of 14 and 15, construct and share meaning about their local environments. Specifically, the results presented focus on how adolescents perceive and interpret spatial and three-dimensional data presented in various formats, such as in terms of…

In this article it is described how the department has encouraged learning outcome discussions among the teachers and students. The typical development process of a new course is described. A two dimensional learning outcome model is also briefly introduced. This model is used to discuss what kinds of knowledge and skills are relevant in a…

This paper explicates a pattern of scientific argumentation in which scientists respond to causal questions with the generation and test of alternative hypotheses through cycles of hypothetico-predictive argumentation. Hypothetico-predictive arguments are employed to test causal claims that exist on at least two levels (designated stage 4 in which…

This article examines ways in which more explicit connections might be forged between students' experiences as humanities students, and their experiences as part-time workers. The purpose is to connect particularisations of meaning with the development of a coherent whole, by using Van Oers' (1998) framework for contextualisation. It is argued…

Very few studies have specifically addressed the formation of self-concept in the Alaska Native, or how the relationship between culture and education ultimately impacts its development. Most often, this phenomenon is mentioned in passing and is contained within the context of a larger study (e.g., an ethnography). While the discussion of the…

This article examines the potential of personal storytelling as a pedagogical method. When incorporated into the educational experience, autobiographical stories serve as a primary and fruitful link between lived experience and curricular content, a connection integral to adult learning. These stories enable learners to identify congruencies and…

When interactive computer technology is used in meaningful and connective ways, it both enhances and provokes the focus and purpose of art instruction and learning to be expansive and personally relevant. In this paper, we describe an approach to interpretation and curriculum design that requires users to make visual and conceptual associations…

This article presents a conceptual analysis of collaboration scripts used in face-to-face and computer-mediated collaborative learning. Collaboration scripts are scaffolds that aim to improve collaboration through structuring the interactive processes between two or more learning partners. Collaboration scripts consist of at least five components:…

Research on conceptual change is still a powerful framework for empirical investigations on students' learning of science. During recent years, an increasing body of research has explored students' concepts prior and subsequent to instruction, leading to an extensive documentation of students' concepts including the difficulties and opportunities…

This paper presents the development and evaluation of a web-based lesson--Lesson Rainbow. This lesson features multiple representations (MRs), which purposefully deliver concepts in relation to distinctive disciplinary subject areas through story-based animations that are closely related to learners' life experiences. The researchers selected 58…

Purpose: The study explored the views of leading human resource development (HRD) academics regarding five main issues: the disciplinary bases of HRD, the historical milestones in HRD, the constituent components of HRD, the leading contributions in terms of journal articles and books to the development of HRD and the future of HRD.…

Malathion is an organophosphorus insecticide, which is often sprayed to control mosquitoes. When applied to aquatic habitats, malathion can also influence the embryogenesis of non-target organisms such as frogs and fish. We modified the frog embryo teratogen assay in "Xenopus" (FETAX), a standard toxicological assay, into an investigative…

The "East Asian learner paradox" refers to the apparent contradiction between the "teacher-dominated" learning environment in East Asia, which is generally perceived to be non-conducive to learning, and the outstanding performance of East Asian students in comparative studies. This study attempts to explain this phenomenon…

This paper examines 6th grade children's local conceptual development and mathematization processes as they worked a comprehensive mathematical modeling problem (creating a consumer guide for deciding the best snack chip) over several class periods. The children and their teachers were participating in a 3-year longitudinal teaching experiment in…

College students often experience difficulties in solving physics problems. These difficulties largely result from a lack of conceptual understanding of the topic. The processes of conceptual learning reflect the nature of the causal reasoning process. Two major causal reasoning methods are the covariational and the mechanism-based approaches.…