Good teachers are storytellers. They use stories to promote interest in the classroom; to help students understand and remember events, places, people, and ideas; to provide context for teaching abstract concepts and systematic processes such as math and research skills; and to promote understanding of other cultures and people. Storytelling can…

This book deals addresses how the development of the human capacity for mathematical cognition occurs through educational experience. Chapters include: (1) "The Development of Math Competence in the Preschool and Early School Years: Cognitive Foundations and Instructional Strategies " (Sharon Griffin); (2) "Perspectives on Mathematics Strategy…

I, a teacher-researcher, present my fifth graders with an interesting but incorrect student-constructed proposal first seen in 1996. The students used the patterns they had detected while solving the chessboard task to formulate counterarguments. The five types of counterarguments which emerged offer insights into the children's understanding of…

This study addressed the problem of how a prospective mathematics teacher's active engagement in a scientific inquiry can deepen the meaning of her extant mathematical concepts. We used a constructivist framework to analyze a 2-hour interview with a prospective mathematics teacher as she solved an open-ended problem of graphing a 3-D landform. We…

This paper addresses the first year of a three-year, longitudinal study which introduces mathematical modeling to young children and provides professional development for their teachers. Four classes of third-graders (8 years of age) and their teachers participated in the first year of the program, which involved several preliminary modeling…

Simulations and games have been used in education for decades, but most of this development has been in the areas of business and economics. Well-designed simulations and games have been shown to improve decision-making and critical thinking skills as well as teaching discipline-specific concepts. Active learning also helps students develop…

This report provides key findings from the 2003 Program for International Student Assessment (PISA). The report focuses on the performance of U.S. 15-year-olds in the two major areas assessed in 2003, mathematics literacy and problem solving, compared to their peers in 38 other countries. Information about achievement in reading literacy and…

This paper studies the modes of thought that occur during the act of solving problems in mathematics. It examines the two main instantiations of mathematical knowledge, the conceptual and the structural, and their role in the act. It claims that awareness of mathematical structure is the lever that educes mathematical knowledge existing in the…

This paper presents preliminary hypotheses about the relationship between faculty goals for the introductory calculus-based physics course and their beliefs about student learning of problem solving. All faculties have problem solving as a major goal for their courses. There appears to be however, an instructional paradox. When discussing how…

This volume contains the proceedings of the 7th international conference on Adults Learning Mathematics--A Research Forum held in July, 2000 in Massachusetts. It includes posters and short oral reports under these section headings: (1) Research into Practice; (2) Large- Scale Issues: Frameworks, Standards, and Assessment; (3) Theoretical…

This book illustrates how problem-based learning (PBL) can enliven curriculum and lesson planning by encouraging students to play a more central role in their own learning process. It provides a framework for efficiently and effectively teaching problem-solving skills, tapping children's interests and previous knowledge, and making the curriculum…

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has produced a distance learning series of four 60-minute video programs with an accompanying Web site and companion teacher guide. This teacher guide accompanies the first video in the series. The story line of each program involves six ethnically diverse, inquisitive schoolchildren who…

This book shows how faculty can help students develop skills in research, problem solving, critical thinking, and knowledge management by using Web-based collaboration tools. This innovative approach to teaching and learning emphasizes the use of virtual spaces, "knowledge rooms," where students "gather" to collaborate. The chapters are: (1)…

NASA CONNECT is an annual series of integrated mathematics, science, and technology instructional distance learning programs for students in grades 6-8. This program is designed for students to learn about the evolution of flight. The program has three components--television broadcast, Web activity, and lesson guide--which are designed as an…

This book illustrates an approach to achieving a positive, harmonious classroom environment which enables educators to evolve effectively from managers to leaders by rethinking their roles as teachers, discussing how to create classrooms where students are more self-managing and demonstrate mutual respect, self-esteem, and responsibility. Key…