Abstract/Notes: Portfolios have gained wide acceptance as a learning and assessment tool. Yet, little research has been reported on the practices of teachers who are actually using portfolios within their classrooms and how those practices are moderated by contextual variables. This research examined the instructional, learning, and assessment roles of student portfolios, and explored, from the perspective of the classroom teacher, variations in portfolio applications associated with teaching level (primary versus intermediate) and classroom environment (self-contained versus multiage/teaming). Teachers for kindergarten through grade 5 in 3 elementary schools (n=314) completed a survey questionnaire regarding the instructional and assessment uses to which portfolios are put within their classrooms. To further examine patterns of portfolio use, a subset of 44 teachers was interviewed to explore teacher perceptions about the impact of student portfolios on themselves and their students. Results suggest that these teachers make deliberate decisions regarding uses of their students' portfolios, decisions that appear heavily impacted by the maturity or skill level of the child, the purposes of the application, and the classroom environment within which the application occurs. They also depend on whether the portfolio product is in a formative state (working portfolio) or final state (performance portfolio). (Contains 7 tables and 14 references.) (Author/SLD)

Language: English

Published: Montreal, Canada, Apr 19-24, 1994

Abstract/Notes: Discusses the conversion of an old bowling alley into the Via Marsi Montessori School (Milkwaukee, Wisconsin).

Language: English

Abstract/Notes: Well into the 1930s, the Italian Maria Montessori stated at the European Congress for Peace in Brussels that ‘preventing conflicts is the work of politics; establishing peace is the work of education’. She explicitly linked peace to education and promoted a kind of learning that deviates from mainstream traditional education. Learning for peace was a way of showing that education is not simply about the teaching of literacy and numeracy skills but that it serves a larger purpose, a ‘public common good’. As we gradually approach the twenty-first century, there is a need to rethink about ways in which our educational system can respond to the global challenges. This chapter shows that there are possibilities to build on age-old legacies and theories to improve the quality of education and contribute to a more sustainable future. The focus is on Maria Montessori who somehow appears to be a rare name in the philosophy of education and peace literature.

Language: English

Published: Cham, Switzerland: Palgrave Macmillan, 2020

ISBN: 978-3-030-48671-6

Language: English

ISSN: 1060-8559

Abstract/Notes: This volume provides an examination of the theoretical basis for preschool through elementary school multiage grouping, a realistic picture of what it looks like, some guidelines for planning and implementing a multiage model, and recommendations from practicing multiage teachers. Chapter 1 defines multiage grouping and provides a brief history of the movement. Chapter 2 supplies the theoretical framework by examining which theories contribute to the creation of a solid foundation upon which multiage grouping is built. The theories are cognitive, social learning, sociocultural, psychosocial, and ecological. Chapter 3 provides the readers with the common beliefs and the curricular, instructional, and assessment elements inherent in multiage settings. Chapter 4 describes four sites that are currently using multiage models. Chapter 5 follows with some down-to-earth advice on how to get stared and how to be assured that a program will be solid enough to overcome some of the barriers

Language: English

Published: Thousand Oaks, California: Corwin Press, Inc., 1995

ISBN: 0-8039-6267-3

Abstract/Notes: Multiage/multiability grouping is when more than one grade level of students is grouped in a classroom. This report summarizes the research on multiage/multiability grouping in the primary grades. The paper, which is intended for use in Kentucky's educational system, focuses on quantitatively based comparative research syntheses. The text describes the Primary Program and looks at factors that may explain improved learning and test results. It asks numerous questions: "What are the problems in implementing the multi-age/multi-grade grouping attribute of the Primary Program?""Does the multi-age requirement limit implementation of other critical attributes of the Primary Program?""Are there inconsistencies between the Primary Program and other components of the Kentucky Education Reform Act?""What are the findings from research studies on multiage/multigrade grouping?" and "What effect has Kentucky's Primary Program had on the number of children labeled 'exceptional' in grade 4?" Each

Language: English

Published: Lexington, Kentucky, May 1997

Abstract/Notes: This guide provides conceptual as well as practical information for meeting the needs of all learners in heterogeneous classrooms. The first six sections discuss the growing heterogeneity in today's classrooms, the rationale for differentiated teaching and learning, the changing roles of teachers and students, the importance of creating classroom communities that nurture diversity, helpful ideas for organizing a classroom in which differentiated teaching and learning is practiced, and a step-by-step process for differentiation. The seventh section provides many examples of how to differentiate teaching and learning in four areas: (1) what students learn; (2) how students learn; (3) how students integrate and demonstrate what they have learned; and (4) how students and teachers utilize assessment throughout the learning process. Sections 8 and 9 include an in-depth look at actual classrooms through case studies. The first case study describes how two multi-age elementary classrooms

Language: English

Published: Minneapolis, Minnesota, 1997

Abstract/Notes: Looping refers to the increasingly common practice of keeping groups of students together for two or more years with the same teacher. This booklet, first in a series of "Themes in Education" provides information on the educational practice of looping and includes selected current references on the topic. The booklet outlines the history of this practice, delineates its operating principles, differentiates looping from multi-age placement, and describes the academic and social benefits of the practice. Using a question and answer format, the booklet also answers questions commonly asked by parents, students, teachers, and administrators about looping. The booklet concludes with a description of the responsibilities and mission of the Northeast and Islands Regional Educational Laboratory at Brown University. Contains 32 references. (KB)

Language: English

Published: Providence, Rhode Island, 1997

Language: English

ISSN: 0898-865X

Language: English