Executive function (EF) skills are the attention-regulation skills that make it possible to sustain attention, keep goals and information in mind, refrain from responding immediately, resist distraction, tolerate frustration, consider the consequences of different behaviors, reflect on past experiences, and plan for the future. As EF research…

Defines metacognition and describes the effects of incorporating metacognitive aspects into instructional design. Three types of knowledge--declarative, procedural, and conditional--are discussed as necessary components of metacognitive awareness, and positive effects on the learner in terms of motivation and performance are described. (Author/LRW)

Teaching and learning are highly social activities. Seminal psychologists such as Vygotsky, Piaget, and Bandura have theorized that social interaction is a key mechanism in the process of learning and development. In particular, the benefits of peer interaction for learning and motivation in classrooms have been broadly demonstrated through…

To test two competing paradigms of the arousal-learning relationship--(1) increases in subject arousal will lead to increased learning in all but extreme cases of excitation, and (2) high subject arousal yields poor immediate memory but high ultimate memory--92 college students were presented with a tape recorded message in varying classroom…

Suggestions for designing instructional practice activities, based on prominent instructional theories, are reviewed, and this is followed by a synthesis, in the form of a set of prescriptions for designing practice for various types of learning outcomes. The review of theories includes behaviorism and George Gropper's instructional model; Gagne…

The paper develops a method for learning improvement which incorporates the learner in the development of the learning/instructional strategy. To this end, a rate limiting model using topographical brain mapping as an educational intervention is presented. It is suggested that such intervention programs focus on those factors which are…

This report addresses the relationship between education and creativity in Japan, with a focus on four issues. First, the definition and measurement of creativity is discussed. Approaches to the measurement of creativity are presented and criticized, and different meanings of creativity (i.e., originality, deviation from the group,…

Investigates teachers' perceptions in two studies regarding extent to which various teaching methods are differentially appropriate for various types of students. Results of both studies indicate teachers do differentiate among appropriateness of various methods for different students, and their decisions tend to agree with existing research on…

Discusses the uses and benefits of Narrative Assisted Instruction (NAI). This technique uses a story or narrative to illustrate specific content instruction thereby increasing student motivation, comprehension, and memory of the material. Uses NAI to illustrate these concepts by recounting the story of the Wild Boy of Aveyron. (MJP)