Using Interactive Technology to Support Students’ Understanding of the Greenhouse Effect and Global Warming

In this work, we examine middle school students?? understanding of the greenhouse effect and global warming. We designed and refined a technology-enhanced curriculum module called Global Warming: Virtual Earth. In the module activities, students conduct virtual experiments with a visualization of the greenhouse effect. They analyze data and draw conclusions about how individual variables effect changes in the Earth??s temperature. They also carry out inquiry activities to make connections between scientific processes, the socio-scientific issues, and ideas presented in the media. Results show that participating in the unit increases students?? understanding of the science. We discuss how students integrate their ideas about global climate change as a result of using virtual experiments that allow them to explore meaningful complexities of the climate system.     

Working memory and mathematics: A review of developmental,individual difference,and cognitive approaches

Working memory refers to a mental workspace, involved in controlling, regulating, and actively maintaining relevant information to accomplish complex cognitive tasks (e.g. mathematical processing). Despite the potential relevance of a relation between working memory and math for understanding developmental and individual differences in mathematical skills, the nature of this relationship is not well-understood. This paper reviews four approaches that address the relation of working memory and math: 1) dual task studies establishing the role of working memory during on-line math performance; 2) individual difference studies examining working memory in children with math difficulties; 3) studies of working memory as a predictor of mathematical outcomes; and 4) longitudinal studies of working memory and math. The goal of this review is to evaluate current information on the nature of the relationship between working memory and math provided by these four approaches, and to present some of the outstanding questions for future research.     

Document familiarity, relevance, and bradford''s law: The getty online searching project report no. 5

The Getty Online Searching Project studied the end-user searching behavior of 27 humanities scholars over a 2-year period. Surprising results were that a number of scholars anticipated—and found—that they were already familiar with a very high percentage of the records their searches retrieved. Previous familiarity with documents has been mentioned in discussion of relevance and information retrieval (IR) theory, but it has generally not been considered a significant factor. However, these experiences indicate that high document familiarity can be a significant factor in searching. Some implications are drawn regarding the impact of high document familiarity on relevance and IR theory. Finally, some speculations are made regarding high document familiarity and Bradford's Law.     

Facilitating Positive Peer Interactions Among Handicapped and Non‐Handicapped Students

Legislation in U.S.A. mandates participation of handicapped students within the regular classroom to the maximum possible extent; however, research tends to substantiate the rejected status of these students. The purpose of this paper is to review programs and procedures which have been developed to modify peer acceptance of exceptional children in the regular classroom.     

Multifaceted Assessment of Inquiry-Based Science Learning

To improve student science achievement in the United States we need inquiry-based instruction that promotes coherent understanding and assessments that are aligned with the instruction. Instead, current textbooks often offer fragmented ideas and most assessments only tap recall of details. In this study we implemented 10 inquiry-based science units that promote knowledge integration and developed assessments that measure student knowledge integration abilities. To measure student learning outcomes, we designed a science assessment consisting of both proximal items that are related to the units and distal items that are published from standardized tests (e.g., Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study). We compared the psychometric properties and instructional sensitivity of the proximal and distal items. To unveil the context of learning, we examined how student, class, and teacher characteristics affect student inquiry science learning. Several teacher-level characteristics including professional development showed a positive impact on science performance.