Describes an active learning strategy used in a college ethics course to direct students into exploring multiple perspectives in case studies. The technique expands on collaborative learning methods by adding role-playing and reflective writing. The technique has been successful in a journalism ethics course and is adaptable to any field in which…

This article briefly reviews assessment trends in higher, secondary, and elementary education and argues that approaches to evaluating learning evolve slowly with experience and commitment to change. It also notes that qualities that lead individuals into education may militate against their being interested in--or able to--grade others. (JB)

The average university curriculum is based on a mistaken form of rationality. Universities have failed to critically examine the rational world view, including its fundamental assumptions and their consequences. Negative social effects of the rational assumptions in biology and economics suggest the need for a better definition of rationality and…

This article examines undergraduate course tests, letter symbol grades, and grade point averages within the context of three dominant undergraduate models of instruction: (1) information dispensing; (2) training of scholars; and (3) personnel selection agency for society. Argues for critical examination of these forces and models to prevent the…

Argues that examinations and assignments shape the way students learn, read, write, and think, and that authentic testing is the most powerful step toward improved student learning. Assignments must pose real questions addressed by practitioners in the discipline in question, must make scholarly sense, and must challenge students to perform rather…

This article provides information on designing a college course grading plan. It reviews the history of grades; describes and discusses common approaches to grading; examines the purposes of grades, problems with current practices, and situational factors to consider in selecting an approach; and proposes eight principles to observe in developing…

This article addresses issues of multicultural education and feminist pedagogy in the context of knowledge and its transmission, self-understanding, cultural and individual beliefs, and transformation of the teacher and the college curriculum. (DB)

This article argues that obstacles to cross-cultural awareness are rooted in Americans' reductionist understanding of culture and structural obstacles within the university. It describes materials and methods used in a cross-cultural teaching approach that highlights the limitations of this view of culture and generates self-reflection by…

This article explores the meaning and importance of alternating currents of study and work in the Antioch College (Ohio) cooperative program from student and teacher perspectives. Examples are given of how students integrate their work and academic experiences and how teachers find their teaching is influenced by the school's cooperative program.…

This article describes the effort to prepare college students for lifelong learning through "connected learning," in which learning occurs through active engagement. It also offers guidance for classroom practice including class discussion, reading lists, journals, cooperative learning, questioning and listening skills, and listening and teaching.…

Examines how information processing theory provided a way to retrieve and structure an individual's 25 years of practical public school administration experience. Describes the resulting framework of "knowledge boxes" including: declarative knowledge, procedural knowledge, conditional knowledge, and enabling knowledge. Organization of…

Discusses how spreadsheet software can be used at the college level to teach mathematical algorithms that rely on iterative procedures. Describes an application in an Australian college class for second-year mathematics students including curriculum, structure, and projects. Argues that this approach can reverse declining interest in mathematics,…

Good college teachers are masters of their subjects; are organized, prepared, and clear; demonstrate that they know and care about their students as individuals; display listening skills; create a positive environment for learning; and relate abstract ideas to the realities of everyday life. (JB)

Argues that a growing realization and acceptance of the complexities of college teaching is behind many current trends in the field and suggests that college teaching's complexities lie in changes in the communication process including the population, paths, levels, methods, and assessment in teaching and learning. (JB)

A college professor and his undergraduate student daughter discuss student motivation, relate this to the daughter's desire to own a horse, and discuss six concepts for motivation: giving students choices, placing material in context, arousing curiosity, being enthusiastic, giving students a sense of control, and knowing students personally. (JB)