Fourth- and fifth-graders were taught how to design simple unconfounded experiments using one of two instructional methods differing only in whether children manipulated physical or virtual materials. Results indicated that the two types of materials were equally effective in achieving several instructional objectives, including the design of…

This study compared flow of information and peer- and teacher-directed scaffolding evident in whole class discussions during Years 1 and 2 of a middle school mathematics teacher's efforts to change classroom practices. Results showed that in Year 2, the teacher removed herself as the analytic center to invite greater student participation.…

Compared tutoring episodes where tutoring did and did not cause learning in university physics students to inform design of intelligent tutoring systems. Found that when students were not at an impasse, learning was uncommon regardless of the tutorial explanations employed. When students were at an impasse, tutorial explanations were sometimes…

Two studies examined the viability of assessing reading strategies using a think-aloud protocol combined with latent semantic analysis (LSA). Findings demonstrated that the responses of less-skilled readers semantically overlapped more with focal sentences than with causal antecedent sentences, whereas skilled readers' responses overlapped with…

Investigated the development among fourth-graders of two-dimensional space concepts within a mathematics unit on grids, coordinates, and rectangles. Found that students' knowledge of grid and coordinate systems related to levels of competence in number sense, spatial-geometric relationships, and the ability to discriminate and integrate the two…

Proposes that fifth-graders' emergent and sustained controversy in a unit on endangered species from a "Fostering Communities of Learners" classroom exemplifies productive disciplinary engagement. Shows how engagement was supported by the students' and teacher's treatment, by students having authority to resolve the issue while being accountable…

Three studies examined high school and college students' proficiency with sourcing, contextualization, and corroboration skills when working with history documents. Findings indicated that students using "Sourcer's Apprentice"--a computer-based tutoring system to teach sourcing and corroboration--instead of regular classroom activities or a…

Examined how varying levels of geographic expertise facilitated reasoning with maps as representations of the earth's surface. Found that geography experts performed significantly better than novices and preservice teachers, and experts' performance was differentiated by the reasoning in which they engaged. Explored implications for understanding…

Explored how adolescents use their knowledge of history when interpreting current affairs. Found that students expressed their thoughts contrasting "then and now;" used different events and ideas to conceptualize; and represented the same story differently, depending on their backgrounds. Derived cultural resources students exploited, and a…

This classroom study supported and documented the emergence of multiple senses of mathematical similarity. Findings showed a shift toward modeling, which introduced an epistemological dissonance between mathematics and science. Postinstructional interviews suggested that most children came to appreciate the mathematical generalizations afforded by…

Investigated the ways teachers' content knowledge affected implementation of mathematics education reform by observing teachers during a reform-based algebra lesson. Found that teachers learned during this process by modifying existing content knowledge and developing new content knowledge and appropriate strategies, and that teachers negotiated…

Compared two types of case-based hypermedia for teachers' professional development: one in which cases are episodes of classroom teaching and learning, the other in which cases are narratives that structure the episodes. Comparison showed that while both types helped teachers learn the material, access to narrative cases afforded greater…

Investigated the influence of first-person, personal narratives on high school students' engagement with a historical reading-to-write task. Found that students who began the task by reading a visible author tended to hold mental conversations with these authors, make judgments about them, and think more about the historical topic. Also, their…

Three experiments tested whether it is possible to teach college students who are not trained investigators to comprehend information regarding knowledge of conservation problems and mathematical equivalence conveyed through children's hand gestures. Findings suggest that instructing adults to attend to gesture enhances their assessment of…

Five experiments explored a potentially more productive application of educational technology in which an individual learner has the opportunity to develop a social relation with a computer by interacting with an animated pedagogical agent. Results support the introduction of interactive pedagogical agents to promote meaningful learning in…