Many learning strategies endorsed by curriculum and instruction publications have never demonstrated their worth in objective experimental evaluations. Most researchers agree that cognitive strategies should be taught in conjunction with content and in response to learner needs and capabilities. Teacher modeling and self-regulation lie at the…

Teachers have many expectations for students that are never explicitly verbalized. The Yale Practical Intelligence for School curriculum is based on three kinds of tacit knowledge necessary for adapting to any environment: managing oneself, managing tasks, and working with others. Includes 16 references. (MLH)

James P. Comer, a distinguished Black child psychiatrist born of sharecropper parents, credits his family's values and continued support for his success in college. In 1968, Comer and his colleagues developed a school-based management team to help poor families and schools develop trust and mutual respect. The program is widely used in New Haven…

Grace Pilon's Workshop Way system succeeds because it communicates inner security to students and promotes intelligent self-control. Program components include specific teacher guidance, high and intelligent student involvement, daily student-teacher contact, satisfaction of diverse needs, promotion of living-learning truths, and respect for…

To help strengthen their students' self-esteem and increase their chances for success, teachers must assume an attitude of 100 percent responsibility, focus on the positive, monitor their own self-talk, use classroom support groups, identify personal strengths and resources, set goals and objectives, use guided visualization, take action, and…

The problems of education stem from system design, not faulty operation. Traditional education is based on autocratic principles, or order without freedom. The innovative Individual Education design, based on democratic principles, gives students control over their own learning and promotes the development of responsibility, respect,…

In 1987, as a vehicle for improving student performance, Moss Point (Mississippi) Schools embraced semantic or cognitive mapping. Using highly structured computer programs, students learn to construct visual maps representing the relationships of major ideas, subordinate ideas, and explicit information. Includes six references. (MLH)

Drawn from the postmodern view of nature, this essay discusses the distinction between two kinds of knowing (grounded and technical) and explores the implications of this distinction for selecting and teaching science curricula. The concept of presence needs to be incorporated into a curriculum overly concerned with the observing mind and external…

The DeLasalle Education Center in Kansas City, Missouri, accepts only students who are confirmed educational failures. The school is private, charges no tuition, and demonstrates that educational programs can succeed when the teacher and the student agree on the learning materials, how they are to be used, and the expected results. The center has…

Like many educational innovations, mainstreaming has suffered from inflated promises and inadequate resources. Effective prereferral consultation can help address these problems if supported by a comprehensive plan including consultant selection, consultation training and support, administrative sanction, teacher training and support, parent…

A University of Georgia research project identified and verified 12 dimensions of supervisory practice. Although the 1,075 respondents surveyed verified all 12 dimensions as important, communications, staff development, and instructional programs were rated somewhat more important than community relations or research and program evaluation. Human…

Many policymakers believe that student achievement will not increase markedly until high standards are set and quality work by all students is expected and rewarded. Performance standards are being set for the three grade levels measured by the National Assessment of Educational Progress, and a national exam is winning support. Includes seven…

Brains are biological, but minds are cultural achievements. What really counts in schools is teaching children the excitement of exploring ideas, helping youngsters formulate their own problems and resolution strategies, developing multiple literacy forms, imparting the importance of wonder, creating a sense of community, and recognizing each…

The only way to improve schools is to ensure that faculties judge local work using authentic standards and measures. Concrete benchmarks are needed that obviate both eccentric teacher grading and simplistic standardized testing. A school has standards when it adopts high, consistent expectations of all learners in all courses. Includes 11…

From their experience with open-ended tests requiring higher-order thinking and problem-solving abilities, schoolchildren in the USSR learn to think before answering. U.S. students instead train for rapid response, learning how to take tests rather than how to solve problems. Tests should be part of the curriculum, not separate from it. (MLH)