Exploring New Mexico through Project-Based Leaning includes 50 well-thought-out projects designed for grades 3-5. In assigning your students projects that dig into New MexicoÕs geography, history, government, economy, current events, and famous people, you will deepen their appreciation and understanding of New Mexico while simultaneously improving their analytical skills and ability to recognize patterns and big-picture themes. Project-based learning today is much different than the craft-heavy classroom activities popular in the past. Inquiry, planning, research, collaboration, and analysis are key components of project-based learning activities today. However, that doesnÕt mean creativity, individual expression, and fun are out. They definitely arenÕt! Each project is designed to help students gain important knowledge and skills that are derived from standards and key concepts at the heart of academic subject areas. Students are asked to analyze and solve problems, to gather and interpret data, to develop and evaluate solutions, to support their answers with evidence, to think critically in a sustained way, and to use their newfound knowledge to formulate new questions worthy of exploring. While some projects are more complex and take longer than others, they all are set up in the same structure. Each begins with the central project-driving questions, proceeds through research and supportive questions, has the student choose a presentation option, and ends with a broader-view inquiry. Rubrics for reflection and assessments are included, too. This consistent framework will make it easier for you assign projects and for your students to follow along and consistently meet expectations. Encourage your students to take charge of their projects as much as possible. As a teacher, you can act as a facilitator and guide. The projects are structured such that students can often work through the process on their own or through cooperation with their classmates.

Lead students through powerful learning experiences with Reinventing Project-Based Learning, a guide for educators, administrators and professional development specialists who want to make the shift to a more student-driven learning model. Explore proven strategies for overcoming the limitations of the traditional classroom, including a wealth of technology tools for inquiry, collaboration and global connection to support this new vision of instructional design.

Critical thinking is an essential skill for learners and teachers alike. Therefore, it is essential that educators be given practical strategies for improving their critical thinking skills as well as methods to effectively provide critical thinking skills to their students. The Handbook of Research on Critical Thinking and Teacher Education Pedagogy examines and explains how new strategies, methods, and techniques in critical thinking can be applied to classroom practice and professional development to improve teaching and learning in teacher education and make critical thinking a tangible objective in instruction. This critical scholarly publication helps to shift and advance the debate on how critical thinking should be taught and offers insights into the significance of critical thinking and its effective integration as a cornerstone of the educational system. Highlighting topics such as early childhood education, curriculum, and STEM education, this book is designed for teachers/instructors, instructional designers, education professionals, administrators, policymakers, researchers, and academicians.

In today’s digital world, it is critical to ensure technology is utilized appropriately and best practices for adoption are continuously updated, particularly when it comes to education. New technologies provide myriad opportunities for improvement within early childhood development; however, further study is required to fully understand the different tactics and strategies. The Research Anthology on Early Childhood Development and School Transition in the Digital Era considers how technology can assist with the development of young children and identifies different technologies that should be utilized within education for the benefit of students. Covering key topics such as instructional design, learning, literacy, and technology, this major reference work is ideal for administrators, principals, researchers, scholars, practitioners, academicians, instructors, and students.

Problem-based learning (PBL) has been deployed as a student-centered instructional approach and curriculum design in a wide range of academic fields across the world. The majority of educational research to date has focused on knowledge-based outcomes addressing why PBL is useful. Researchers of PBL are developing a growing interest in qualitative research with a process-driven orientation to examining learning interactions. It is essential to broaden this research base so as to support PBL designs and approaches to leading students into higher-order thinking and a deeper approach to learning. Interactional Research Into Problem-Based Learning explores how students learn in an inquiry-led approach such as PBL. Included are studies that focus on learning in situ and go beyond measuring the outcomes of PBL. The goal is to further expand the PBL research base of qualitative investigations examining the social dimension and lived experience of teaching and learning within the PBL process. A second aim of this volume is to shed light on the methodological aspects of researching PBL, adding new perspectives to the current trends in qualitative studies on PBL. Chapters cover ethnographic approaches to video analysis, introspective protocols such as stimulated recall, and longitudinal qualitative studies using discourse-based analytic approaches. Specifically, this book will further contribute to the current educational research both theoretically and empirically in the following key areas: students’ learning processes in PBL over time and across contexts; the nature of quality interactions in PBL tutorials; the (inter)cultural aspects of learning in PBL; facilitation processes and group dynamics in synchronous and asynchronous face-to-face and blended PBL; and the developing nature of PBL learner identity.

As a movement, transhumanism aims to upgrade the human body through science, constantly pushing back the limits of a person by using cutting-edge technologies to fix the human body and upgrade it beyond its natural abilities. Transhumanism can not only change human habits, but it can also change learning practices. By improving human learning, it improves the human organism beyond natural and biological limits. The Handbook of Research on Learning in the Age of Transhumanism is an essential research publication that discusses global values, norms, and ethics that relate to the diverse needs of learners in the digital world and addresses future priorities and needs for transhumanism. The book will identify and scrutinize the needs of learners in the age of transhumanism and examine best practices for transhumanist leaders in learning. Featuring topics such as cybernetics, pedagogy, and sociology, this book is ideal for educators, trainers, instructional designers, curriculum developers, professionals, researchers, academicians, policymakers, and librarians.