Discusses the implications of a research study of more than 2000 students aged 11 to 15 that explored why the students interpret algebra in certain ways. Recommends strategies that can help teachers deal with prior knowledge that students may bring to their study of algebra. (DDR)

Proposes activities that promote students' awareness of the structure of the information involved in their everyday activities, and builds the concept of function from students' mental representations of phenomena. Recommends the use of spreadsheets to provide external representations of these functions. (DDR)

Presents an extension of the hog game that satisfies the mathematical process activities of observing patterns; forming, testing and proving hypotheses; and applying and extending proved results. Discusses use of technology in the investigation of problems and in the process of devising and validating general rules. (ASK)

Contains 10 miscellaneous mathematics questions and their answers that teachers can use in their lessons. Topics include estimation, prime numbers, line equations, and investment strategies. (ASK)

Describes an activity whose objectives are to encode and decode messages using linear functions and their inverses; to use modular arithmetic, including use of the reciprocal for simple equation solving; to analyze patterns and make and test conjectures; to communicate procedures and algorithms; and to use problem-solving strategies. (ASK)

Discusses the role of school counselors as conflict resolution consultants. Describes a strategy for teaching others about conflict resolution, relying on a model that emphasizes strategies and roles within conflict situations. Procedures outlined are appropriate for use in preventive workshops on conflict and have also been used with those…

The University of North Carolina's rigorous Principals' Executive Program (PEP), modeled after Harvard University's leadership training program for business executives, serves about 40 principals annually. The program stresses nitty-gritty management skills and knowledge of self and others. PEP also provides conferences and symposia for alumni.…

Describes Mathematics in Context, a middle-level mathematics curriculum developed by researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the University of Utrecht, in the Netherlands. Instead of proceeding from a generalization to specific examples, the math originates in real problems; conversely, the mathematics learned is used to solve…

The paper outlines how the principles of the "Thinking Actively in a Social Context" (TASC) model have been adopted to provide an extension program through Telematics, which delivers lessons to remote sites using teleconferencing equipment, fax machines, and computers linked by modems. Describes use of the TASC model for remote…

Explores ways in which expert and novice roles are constituted and maintained in an academic counseling encounter. Characterizes the meeting as a socializing, problem-solving event and uses functional linguistics and discourse analysis to describe how the counselor and student mark stance through linguistic choices such as polarity, modality,…

Students role-play one method the government uses to make decisions: a town council meeting. Groups express opinions for or against proposed resolutions and town council announces its decisions to the groups. Students learn how government resolves issues and develop criteria for making decisions. The example used is whether a limited deer hunt…

Considers the use of technology, particularly programmable or graphics calculators and computer software, in the transition years from secondary to higher education. Discusses use of software systems like Mathematica in the extended investigative, problem solving, and modeling Common Assessment Tasks of the Victorian Certificate of Education.…

Describes a series of activities in which students collect data on personal information and interests and use them to create a database file. Constructing a database gives students the opportunity to satisfy their natural curiosity and use numbers as they make predictions, develop number and operation sense, and explore data, fractions, and…

Describes how a software package that includes a spreadsheet, a relation grapher, and a dynamic geometry can contribute to teacher training through an exploratory problem-solving course. Discusses the ways in which technology-rich environments enhance and extend traditional topics. Contains 17 references. (DDR)

A study of interactions among Swedish intermediate-grade students as they solved a nonstandard mathematics task confronting the phenomenon of infinity shows that the children can reach a considerable understanding of the problem by contextualizing the problem in different ways. The collective orchestration of problem variations results in enhanced…