Frustrated by her ninth graders' misbehavior with a substitute teacher, a high school English teacher shelved her recriminations and engaged miscreants in a problem-solving exercise examining the incident. Establishing a protocol to talk about problems openly, without fear of retribution, made a big difference. Boys admitted to some poor choices;…

Describes the use of chess instruction to develop abstract thinking skills and problem solving among gifted students. Offers suggestions for starting school chess programs, teaching and evaluating chess skills, and measuring the success of both student-players and the program in general. (PB)

This study examined differences in electroencephalography (EEG) alpha activity between gifted and nongifted Slovenian student-teachers (N=17 each). Gifted students showed greater left hemisphere activation than nongifted subjects in relaxed states, but lower activation during problem solving. The same pattern was observed in overall hemispheric…

Politicians are increasingly pressuring school districts to improve instruction while holding down costs. To achieve this aim, western New York school districts are experimenting with mutual gains bargaining, an alternative negotiation process based on Roger Fisher and William Ury's 1991 book "Getting to Yes." Instead of bargaining from…

Information on writing competitions for elementary and secondary grade students is provided including the Future Problem Solving Program, the Scenario Writing Program, the Ann Arlys Bowler Poetry Contest, and the "Kids Are Authors" contest. Summarizes four references for young authors on getting published. (DB)

Addresses a problem originally published in the September 1994 issue in an article entitled "Creative Teaching Will Produce Creative Students" by Krulik and Rudnick. Problem stated: "Find all rectangles with integral dimensions whose area A and perimeter P are numerically equal." Presents solution to a rectangular solid,…

Suggests use of the quadratic formula to build understanding that connections between factors and solutions to equations work both ways. Making use of natural connections among concepts allows students to work more efficiently. Presents four sample problems showing the roots of equations. Messy quadratic equations with rational roots can be solved…

Reports research designed to explore the possibility that conceptually different forms of common-fraction understanding can be identified. Such forms may be associated with differences in fraction problem solving-performance. Contains 50 references. (DDR)

Presents a word problem designed to encourage students to create systematic methods for counting and develop probability concepts. Involves sharing eight cookies between three people. (KHR)

Features responses to a problem that appeared in the January, 2001 issue of this journal. The problem concerned finding all of the shape combinations of two colors of blocks in four-block combinations. (KHR)

Proposes a system to help at-risk students develop problem solving skills. Provides some teaching methods and evaluation ideas. (KHR)

Discusses the cognitive approach to instructional design (ID) and how ID practitioners can design training differently. Highlights include how learning occurs; categories of learning; a model that summarizes the components of a well-designed lesson; a framework for ID based on cognitive psychology; and a table to use as a job aid for designing…

Presents an interview with Mike Eisenberg, co-founder of Big6, that explains how the Big6 process for information-based problem-solving can be used to address the challenges educators face related to the No Child Left Behind legislation. Highlights include the need for teamwork between principals, library media specialists, teachers, and…

Examines the balance model and identifies the issues that divide scientists. Describes learning situations that were the subject of the empirical study which involved 40 students in two 8th-grade classes. Shows the presence of negative numbers gave rise to many errors. Discusses the relevance of the balance model and analyzes the arguments put…

Examined, over 1 year, relations between information processing efficiency, working memory, and problem solving in sample of 8-, 10-, 12-, and 14-year-olds. Identified three-stratus hierarchy with individual dimensions organized in three constructs: processing efficiency, working memory, and problem solving. Found that individual dimensions were…