This paper outlines a constructivist theory of learning with a more concrete and specific approach to the types of problems addressed in Piaget's equilibration theory. Knowledge, in this constructivist view, results from the subject's transformational activity on the world and his/her real efforts to organize that activity. The first section…

This report addresses how the influence of cognitive science is developing and what future directions it may take as a theory of instruction. The discussion of the recurrent findings and the prevalent themes emerging in cognitive science includes: limited-capacity learners; the role of prior knowledge in learning--schema theories of reading and…

The literature of antonymy, though disjointed and inconclusive, has found that opposition is important to development, learning, psychological health, and creativity. To investigate the role of dialectics in cognitive processes and human learning, four empirical studies were undertaken. In study one, to investigate the dialectic process in…

The focus of this paper is on cognitive science as a model for understanding the application of human skills toward effective problem-solving. Sections include: (1) "Introduction" (discussing information processing framework, expert-novice distinctions, schema theory, and learning process); (2) "Application: The Expert-Novice…

The world presented to our senses is essentially continuous in space and time. The simplest observations of children have shown that we are not born with ways of "breaking up" the world. The structures of our knowledge must be developed, and the major issue this paper considers is how those structures develop. The discussion focuses on Jean…

Varying approaches to mathematics were raised in a Philosophy of Mathematics course. Students were asked which foundational schools they preferred and these preferences were compared with scores on hemispheric tests. The results indicate that preferences may be related to the brain's hemispheres. (MNS)

Utilization of technology in secondary schools is varied and depends on the training and interest of the individual instructors. Even though technology has advanced way beyond its utilitarian roots of being viewed solely by educators as a useful machine for teachers to key exams and worksheets on, there are still many secondary educators who still…

A general learning impairment model and a reasoning insight model, both in rats, were reviewed for parallels to theories of human cognitive deficiency, leading to the conclusion that animal models of the cognitive deficiency states of mental retardation are underutilized and that human mental retardation researchers would benefit from greater…

Arguing that goal knowledge is as important to intelligent machine activity as it is to human activity, and that it also must be well understood and explicitly represented in an instructional system if that system is to be successful in fostering learning, this report presents an architecture for intelligent tutors that explicitly represents…

Discusses prevailing ideas of how children learn language and addresses the argument of rules versus analogies in learning to form the past tense of verbs. Cites cases involving connectionist models. (ML)

Included are a general introduction to the topic of metacognition, a discussion of how metacognition is involved in mathematical performance, and a short section on metacognition and instruction. (MNS)

This report uses mental model theory to create a taxonomy of picture functions in order to relate these functions to learning theories. A rough outline of picture functions is presented, consisting of a retrieval function, a focus function, a construction function, and a supplantation function. It is suggested that this taxonomy could be helpful…

Like any apparently novel approach to the basic epistemological problems of "knowledge," the constructivist ideas that have spread in the last 20 years continue to generate a host of negative as well as a few positive reactions. This document focuses on some aspects of Radical Constructivism, as distinct from "trivial"…

According to Humean framework, relations are judged to be causal to extent that they are characterized by regularity, continuity, and covariation among college students and college-bound 11- and 14-year-olds. Presents subjects with information about one of the following indices: potential causal factor covaried with effect and potential causal…

Traces the relationship between human development and education through various philosophies. Explores differences in early forms of understanding, the goals of education, and the kinds of knowledge that specific fields require. Encourages a form of apprenticeship to provide students with a model for bridging the gap between scholastic and…