Noting that parents have the opportunity to help their young children build a strong foundation for learning, this book shows parents of 3- to 5-year-olds how to make learning and discovery fun while developing attributes such as competence and curiosity. The book contains 600 creative and low-cost activities, based on the work sampling system,…

A phenomenological hermeneutic approach was used to explore the process of being and becoming a distance learner and ways the distance learning environment is inhabited or known. The study's author analyzed her own distance learning experiences and those of three other individuals (two females and one male) with an interest in education and…

Provides middle-level teachers with suggestions for evaluating their classroom environment to guarantee a positive classroom climate that will enable students to develop a positive self-concept and achieve academically. Presents six evaluative factors that address challenge, freedom, respect, warmth, control, and success issues. (SD)

Considers 3- to 6-year-olds' work cycle, looking first to the Montessori concept of normalization, manifest as increasing depth of concentration. Offers guidelines for a "protected lesson," designed to foster independence. Discusses interest and purpose as the basis for work, work "curves," control of error, presentation…

Investigates the comparative effectiveness of two teaching strategies, large-group and individual/small group singing activities, on kindergartners' developmental music aptitude. Examines improvements in children's singing and musical aptitude in order to ascertain length of time and types of instruction necessary to affect improvement. (MJP)

A participatory action research process was used to support an Aboriginal men's group in Queensland (Australia). Using a reflective approach, the men's group defined principles and values to which they aspired, then identified four strategies to enable them to become constructive members of the community: personal development, employment,…

Maintains that the Russian educational system is going through an era of uncertainty. Asserts that one source of this uncertainty is the multitude of interpretations regarding the content and structure of the national educational system. Provides recommendations to create a sociocultural educational environment that fosters individual development.…

An experimental colloquium course at the University of Delaware focuses on ways students read and respond to texts. Using nontraditional activities including image making and symbolic expression, the course discourages passive learning as it explores literature and its effect on the reader's inner world. (JB)

An approach to higher education curriculum that focuses on curriculum's potential to produce desired outcomes is outlined. Signs of need for such an approach, forces for change, and signs of hope in current educational trends are noted, and 11 principles for action are proposed. Principles focus on active, integrated learning and assessment. (MSE)

Constructs a model applying evolutionary biology theory to the development of children's sense of justice. Maintains that competition for scarce resources causes many of the moral problems involving justice. Examines the place of emotions in the sense of justice. Hypothesizes rules of justice that predate cultural history. (CH)

Reports on ideas discussed at the second meeting of experimental teachers held in the Soviet Union in 1987. Considers teaching innovations that promote student development and seek cooperative teacher-student relationships, while serving social production needs. Emphasizes student creativity and personal responsibility. Builds from earlier work on…

Comments on research problems raised in this special issue. Suggests that recent research highlights the nature of the multiple processes underlying variability in child and adolescent adjustment. Views variability as a function of covarying influences from multiple domains, operating on specific developmental outcomes across a background of time…

Provides preliminary draft of proposal to kindle thought about what a Montessori secondary school could look like. Suggests ways to think about integrating a farm model and its extensions to adolescent students. Emphasizes the universality of work, the nature of commitment and contribution, the meaning of community, and an optimistic view of…

Examined links between the match between adolescents' developmental stage and the family and community environment and their psychosocial outcomes, implications for later outcomes, and impact of adolescent diabetic status. Found that even after controlling for psychosocial factors during adolescence, the benefits of developmental match were…

Based on the criteria of Ramsden (1992) of contextual factors that encourage a deep approach to learning, an independent, open-ended field-based activity for students of behavioural ecology was designed and implemented. The project was designed to create an authentic learning activity that allowed responsible choice in the method and content…