Objective: Although behavioral weight-loss interventions produce short-term weight loss, long-term maintenance remains elusive. This randomized trial examined whether learning a novel set of "stability skills" before losing weight improved long-term weight management. Stability skills were designed to optimize individuals' current…

It is known that there are many factors affecting students' problem-solving abilities. In this study, the influence of seventh-grade students' affective factors, their academic success, their gender and their families' educational levels on their problem-solving achievement was examined. To achieve this aim, a Problem-Solving Attitude Scale, a…

The new mission of schools should be to prepare children to work in jobs that do not exist, to solve problems that are not yet apparent, using technologies that are still to be invented. That means equipping them with the ability to apply and reapply knowledge in inventive ways. Yet today's schools, even schools with excellent "results," fail to…

In configuration problems, such as the construction of a weekly study schedule, decision makers must assemble a combination of parts under a set of constraints. Interactions may be present between the parts, and more than a single objective function may exist, such as minimizing the number of days on campus and maximizing the interest level of the…

This investigation examined how children and adults negotiate a challenging perceptual-motor problem with significant real-world implications--bicycling across two lanes of opposing traffic. Twelve- and 14-year-olds and adults rode a bicycling simulator through an immersive virtual environment. Participants crossed intersections with continuous…

The study of student representation use and specifically the distinction between analytic and visual representations has fueled a long line of mathematics education literature that began more than 35 years ago. This literature can be partitioned into two bodies of work, one that is primarily cognitive and one that is primarily social. In spite of…

"Building Everyday Leadership in All Kids" emphasizes that anyone can be a leader--and it's never too early to start learning what leadership means and how to lead. This resource engages all emerging leaders, at all emotional and academic levels, by taking a full, practical approach to building personal and group leadership attitudes.…

Rhetoric about the importance of students being equipped to apply mathematics to relevant problems arising in their lives, individually, as citizens, and in the workplace has never been matched by serious policy or curricular support. This paper identifies and elaborates authenticity implications for addressing this issue, and describes aspects of…

In this paper, we propose and describe in some detail a framework for helping low achievers in mathematics that attends to the following areas: Mathematical content resources, Problem Solving disposition, Feelings towards the learning of mathematics, and Study habits.

This paper examines possible improvement to problem solving skills as a function of playing the video game "Portal 2." Stealth assessment is used in the game to evaluate students' problem solving abilities--specifically basic and flexible rule application. The stealth assessment measures will be validated against commonly accepted…

Society is faced with more complex problems than in the past because of rapid advancements in technology. These complex problems require multi-dimensional problem-solving abilities that are consistent with higher-order thinking skills. Bok (2006) posits that over 90% of U.S. faculty members consider critical thinking skills as essential for…

Computational estimation is an important skill necessary for students' mathematical development. Students who can estimate well for computations rely on an understanding of many mathematical topics, including a strong number sense, which facilitates understanding the mathematical operations and contextual evidence within a problem. In turn, good…

This study examined the use of collaborative interdisciplinary authentic tasks as a context in which learners develop and use self-regulated learning (SRL) processes. Participants included sixty-four students from a U.S. middle school whose residents are largely from low-income families. Students worked in groups to design and carry out an…

The problem-posing process represents one of the forms of authentic mathematical inquiry which, if suitably implemented in classroom activities, could move well beyond the limitations of word problems, at least as they are typically utilized. The two exploratory studies presented sought to investigate the impact of "problem-posing" activities when…

Simulations are of growing interest within the social studies in terms of research and practice. Although the findings of early research were unfavorable to simulations in terms of student learning, recent research has revealed new and interesting findings related to different domains of student learning that earlier research did not. In light of…