This paper summarizes knowledge about team building acquired from participation in a Michigan Adult Education Practitioners Inquiry Project. The first step in team building is to understand the dynamics of the entire group and to identify the unique traits of each member. The paper describes techniques and activities for enhancing communication,…

These five papers are from a symposium that was facilitated by Susan Dougherty at the 1995 conference of the Academy of Human Resource Development (HRD). "The Relationship between Productivity and Work Team Autonomy and Team Process Effectiveness" (Candice L. Phelan) reports that correlation analysis of results of a study of 21 work teams revealed…

This book contains hands-on science laboratory activities for grades 4 through 9 that use discrepant events to challenge students. All of the "puzzlers" are based upon science principles and include directions for building gadgets that explain the "puzzlers." Topics covered include: volume conservation, magnetic phenomena,…

Problem solving in mathematics incorporates abstract thinking skills, number logic skills, and a nearly endless list of other factors. One problem-solving task required in university-level mathematics courses is integration. This study investigated instructor presentation of a specific problem-solving strategy and whether it impacted performance…

A project adapted an existing problem-solving curriculum to help unemployed or underemployed displaced homemakers and single parents qualify for job placement and training. Forty-five adult learners from the New Choice program participated. Handouts adapted from a prior Math Employment project and instructor-created materials were used. Handouts…

This book summarizes and synthesizes current thinking on problem solving and explores ways in which computers can be used in problem solving to help users gain expertise in their domains of interest. Topics in the nine chapters include an introduction to problem solving including a definition of problems; an overview followed by detailed…

Items in the North Central Regional Educational Laboratory's (NCREL) School Development Library series are multimedia packages consisting of print, video, audio, and CD-ROM resources designed to support educators in their efforts to improve classroom instruction. This particular set consists of a 35-minute video and a printed booklet focusing on…

Items in the North Central Regional Educational Laboratory's (NCREL) School Development Library series are multimedia packages consisting of print, video, and CD-ROM resources designed to support educators in their efforts to improve classroom instruction. This particular set consists of a 40-minute video and a printed booklet focusing on Dwight…

Learning organizations constantly question and make appropriate changes in their "mental models." Mental models include the images, assumptions, and stories that everyone carries around in his/her mind---personal mindsets of what an individual considers to be "reality." For example, "high work performance" or…

In this study, a conceptual change model serves as a theoretical underpinning for analyzing what might count as evidence of conceptual change. Theoretical components of the conceptual change model include the status a conception has for learners, and the conceptual ecology of knowledge within which conceptions are believed to survive and have…

This workbook offers a variety of quick language activities that are designed to develop grade 2-4 students' associative-reasoning and problem-solving skills. The activities in the workbook cover vocabulary development, classifying, sequencing, following directions, and word recognition. Sections of the workbook are Categories; Ordering;…

Describing competency only in terms of individuals' technical capabilities is fast becoming inadequate. Practitioners in the 21st century must be able to apply the technical capabilities of their professions as they work with others within and external to their professions. A perception of the professional as a package of capabilities is the…

This study examined the relationship between children's gender-typed conversational styles and joint problem-solving performance. Sixty preschool children between 4 and 5 1/2 years completed three problems with a same-sex or opposite-sex peer. Two structured tasks, copying a Tinkertoy model and stringing beads; and one unstructured task, building…

This document presents activities in the physical sciences. Activities are grouped in the following chapters: (1) "Science and Measurement"; (2) "Measurement Units"; (3) "Introduction to Chemistry"; (4) "The Periodic Table"; (5) "What is Inside an Atom?"; (6) "Bonding"; (7) "Formulas and Equations"; (8) "The Bursting Atom"; (9) "Relationships…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of a problem solving based instructional model on earth science students' achievement and alternative frameworks. Students' opinions toward the instructional method were also investigated. The investigations employed a pretest/posttest control group design to detect any significant change.…