Presents a critique of the social and political contexts in which the idea of construct validation developed. It outlines rhetorical, empirical, and philosophical dimensions of the concept and offers an alternative viewpoint for the conceptualization of construct validation. (SLD)

Ethnomathematics is a program that looks into the generation, transmission, institutionalization, and diffusion of knowledge with emphasis on the sociocultural environment. By drawing on the cultural experiences and practices of individuals and of communities, ethnomathematics allows for an easier flow of scientific ideas with children, reducing…

The experiences of elementary teachers who invited their students to verify geometric theorems prior to the introduction of protractors form the basis of a pedagogical strategy for a sequence of learning activities offered here. Discussion focuses on the students learning strategies about angle concepts utilizing the dynamic interpretation of a…

Experiences with an instructional strategy which enabled students to build for themselves the appropriate scientific concept for energy are described. This was done by pupil/teacher dialogue in small groups, in which students were expected to create for themselves a "generalization mechanism" based on their own frameworks. (KR)

Discusses the contribution of Zoltan Kodaly to music lesson planning. Emphasizes preparation, presentation, and practice as the three important strategies in teaching concepts and skills to be included in a lesson plan. Includes a sample lesson plan covering a semester and advice on choosing song material. (DK)

Behavior disorders of children are conceptualized in terms of resistance to intervention; children are considered to have a behavior disorder if their behavioral excesses or deficits or situationally inappropriate behaviors persist at unacceptable levels after school-based interventions. The factors that contribute to resistance to intervention…

The differences between drill activities and practice activities and the reasons why there are differences are discussed. Two games that uses playing cards to provide students with untimed opportunities to practice their facts are described. (KR)

Indicates how Afrocentricity interacts with the fundamental motivations within African-American life. Presents an overview of Afrocentric ontological and epistemological orientations and those developed in terms of time and logic. A third section illustrates that the way one thinks about time determines the role history plays in social change.…

Two students with moderate to severe mental retardation learned delayed matching to sample in which some of the trials involved complex sample stimuli, each consisting of a picture and a printed word. Matching to either the preceding picture or printed word sample was reinforced. Evidence for the formation of equivalence classes was observed.…

Nine students (ages 7 to 11) with math disabilities were effectively taught using an instructional sequence that moved from the concrete to the semiconcrete to the abstract. Subjects needed between three and seven lessons using manipulative devices and pictures before being able to do abstract-level problems. (Author/DB)

Three curricular approaches to spelling instruction are discussed: whole word; phonemic; and morphemic. Sameness analysis is used to indicate the theoretical potential of each approach for helping students with learning disabilities to achieve generalization in their spelling, and the influence of generalization upon retention and transfer is…

Speculates that the prewriting technique of "clustering" can be an effective tool for multicultural college students learning sophisticated scientific concepts. Asserts that teachers must be willing to take risks and nurture students' creativity and self-confidence if such techniques are to succeed and supplant or supplement the lecture…

Identifies two steps to teaching economics, contending that economics learning can be helped with the use of graphs. Divides graphs into two types, concrete and abstract, and compares the two. Presents an exercise on teaching supply and demand utilizing abstract graphs. Plots supply and demand variables and interprets data. (RW)

An ex post facto study of 1,486 education majors reported that 53.5% of participants were at the formal operational stage and 43.9% were at the transitional stage. Students with more science courses in grades 10-12 had significantly higher scores for cognitive development and science process skills. No significant differences were found in…

This article describes an empirical investigation of the extent to which incorrect arithmetic algorithms persist over time. Results with 30 fourth-year and third-year English students over up to 3 months shed light on "bugs," or students' learning of incorrect concepts, and indicate that they are not very stable in children of this age.…