Recounts a teacher's experiences with a small group of elementary school students as they explore different forms of the combinatorics problem of choosing two out of five objects. Describes how students examine the connections between the problems and a proof of the relationship. (MDH)

Used match between problem and recommendation, difficulty level of recommendation, and degree to which recommendation was built on client's strengths to predict whether clients would implement treatment recommendation suggested by their counselor. Findings from 37 archived videotaped counseling sessions showed that strength, matching, and…

Examines academic performance as a function of the variables labeled type of presentation (traditional vs. Africentric) of the Wason task of logical reasoning and type of rule (positive vs. negative). Findings collected from 195 black college students are discussed as being supportive of the Africentric cultural models concerning black learning…

Describes the use of a weekly blackboard session as a way to improve instruction in an organic chemistry lecture. The instructor writes problems on the board and either alone or in groups, students write the answers on the board. Later, they explain their solutions to the class. (PR)

This study investigated conditions for optimizing college students' analogical problem solving. Students given pictorial (not verbal) representations of solutions to source problems were better problem solvers, as were students given a longer time. Students who derived personal solution principles to source problems were not superior to students…

Examined relationship satisfaction and commitment among African-American (n=34 couples) and white (n=61 couples) dating heterosexual couples. Found that extent to which variables from interdependence, individual differences, and problem-solving models were linked to both relationship satisfaction and relationship commitment did not differ for…

Presents an experiment carried out at the University of Groningen where pretest-posttest design was used including two experimental conditions with the graphics calculator (TI-81) and one control condition without the calculator. Results point toward a change in teacher instructional behavior and in pupils' problem-solving approaches. Contains 14…

Presents an activity on transformations that employs a story from children's literature. Emphasizes that books and stories that use mathematical problem solving not only engage children in the narrative but also give them opportunities to see how mathematics is used in everyday life. (ASK)

A survey of the mathematics teachers of 1,484 students with deafness assessed the degree to which the National Council for Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) standards were being implemented through deaf education programs. Results indicate that mathematics curricula in classrooms for students with deafness are not fully meeting the NCTM standards.…

Examines adults from China and Canada solving single-digit multiplication problems. Reports that Chinese adults were faster and made fewer errors than Canadian adults, and Chinese adults made more errors that reflect verbal-production processes that may occur after retrieval whereas Canadian adults made more errors that reflect retrieval…

Mathematics plays an exceptionally important role in biological education and the history of biology. Ten equations and descriptions of their historical importance are presented to draw students' and faculty's attention to mathematical models that have been intrinsic to many of the significant discoveries in biology in the 20th century. Each…

Creativity exercises, or creater-cizes, can help camp staff generate ideas and solve problems. Common techniques are brainstorming, story-boarding, analogies and metaphors, association and free association, spinning, and lists. Defines and gives examples of each technique. (SAS)

High school physics, if taught properly, should be accessible to 50% of students rather than the currently estimated 20% of students. Suggests changes that need to be made in course format, including giving plenty of problem-solving help, improving high school texts to conform to principles of learning, and designing a course so that all can…

Examines the nature of prior mathematical knowledge that facilitates the construction of useful problem representations in the domain of geometry. Indicates that high achievers build schemas that are qualitatively more sophisticated than low achievers, which in turn helps them construct representations that are conducive to understanding the…

Focuses on attitudes toward mathematics and correlated outcomes in a college-level social-statistics course. Examines differences between males and females, African-American, Hispanic, and Caucasian students. Contains 27 references. (DDR)