Describes a collaborative project that allows students to explore the role of culture in child development and education through an in-depth study of mathematics education in the United States and Asia. Reports that the assignment is effective in helping students to understand cultural influences and the ecological model of child development. (DSK)

Outlines a classroom exercise that assists white undergraduates in recognizing their racial privilege and the effects of racism. Forces students to unknowingly assume roles analogous to those held by dominant and nondominant social groups while working in collaborative groups. Reports that students' reflections on the project provide evidence of…

Argues that being aware of students' concerns about teaching can improve teachers' pedagogy. Reveals that undergraduates most frequently mention organization and planning, mechanics, lecture styles and techniques, and testing as concerns. Notes the response of faculty members involved in a survey of undergraduate psychology classes. (DSK)

Argues that a problem for teachers of large sections of introductory psychology is developing high levels of student interest. Describes a method for creating and maintaining such interest that involves using students' written responses to a question about changing their lives as material for classroom discussion of relevant topics. (DSK)

Proposes that a game called Black Box is a useful tool for introducing various features of scientific reasoning to introductory research methods classes. Outlines the rules of the game and suggests analogies that instructors can make between the game and concepts commonly mentioned in discussions of scientific reasoning. (DSK)

Analyzes a set of undergraduate syllabi for a survey of the history of psychology. Identifies several trends: most instructors rely heavily on textbooks for course organization, three texts accounted for more than 60% of book choices, and newer areas of historical interest did not appear to any substantial degree. (DSK)

Asserts that service learning seeks to provide students with real-life, community-based experiences related to the content offered in the classroom. Discusses methods used to support students in writing about their service learning experiences and considers the value of reflection journals and group discussion in the learning process. (DSK)

Observes that mentoring programs for new faculty have grown in recent years. Argues that such programs, although having laudable goals, may have unintended, undesirable consequences. Discusses several possible problems associated with formal mentoring programs and suggests that emphasis would be better placed on improving the graduate training of…

Describes the introduction of the World Wide Web into an advanced course in social psychology using activities that entail collaboration and knowledge sharing, direct experience with information in various formats, and manipulation of information into new formats. Discusses the strengths and weaknesses of using the Web in this context. (DSK)

Details an exercise for social, personality, and introductory psychology classes in which students form implicit personality theories based on information provided by social psychologists on their Internet pages, and then create a personal home page presenting the information and their analyses. Reports students' reactions to the project are…

Describes the demonstration of DYASIM, a program that performs various statistical computations to assess the degree of similarity of dyadic data, in classroom settings to illustrate the conceptual difficulties associated with measuring dyadic similarity. Presents the demonstration within the context of the similarity-complimentarity debate on…

Presents an instructional activity in which graduate students examine information about a case, then render an opinion based on the referral. Uses a computer program to create an interactive format in which students can experience authentic cases. Suggests that case studies be used as the basis of class discussion. (DSK)

Argues that the bulk of most undergraduate psychology curriculum is geared towards preparing students for graduate study. Proposes several specific curriculum changes designed to give the general undergraduate a working and useful knowledge of some of the fundamental concepts concerning psychology. Includes course outlines and structured…

Summarizes the results of a survey that revealed several dichotomies between what instructors felt introductory psychology courses delivered and what students wanted. Students desired a knowledge of people and relationships while the instructors felt the courses provided a broad overview of the discipline. Includes statistical data and analysis.…

Reviews four case studies that stimulate classroom discussion of critical ethical issues faced by teachers. Avoids some of the pitfalls of the case study method by including variations for each case and by highlighting the relevant principles of perceived justice. Includes counter arguments and commentaries for each case. (MJP)