Interim testing of studied information, compared with restudying or no treatment, facilitates subsequent learning and retention of new information--"the forward testing effect." Previous research exploring this effect has shown that interim testing of studied information from a given domain enhances subsequent learning and retention of…

Two studies examined the relationship between phonological sensitivity and 5-year-olds' acquisition of new words that systematically differed in the familiarity of their sound structures. Found that phonological sensitivity was related to pair-associated learning of phonologically unfamiliar, but not familiar, words. Following phonological…

A study of feedback delay, expectation, and development was conducted in grades four, six, and eight, to assess whether feedback on a school related learning task serves an informational or reinforcing function. Results indicate that feedback serves an informational function and delayed feedback facilitates retention, contrary to reinforcement…

To test the hypothesis that a bidirectional or hierarchical relationship exists between self-efficacy and mnemonic self-concept, an investigation was made of the relationship between a task-independent learning strategy and self-efficacy for a variety of cognitive skills. A total of 60 second graders were pretested for self-efficacy on four…

Thirty-six normal 5-year-olds and 60 educable mentally retarded (EMR) students with a mean age of 7 years were tested to determine whether specific formats of interrogatives would be instrumental in inducing the generation of effective verbal mediators. Ten EMR Ss and 6 normal Ss were tested on 21 paired associates in each six experimental…

It was hypothesized that freedom to choose words to be learned, but not the actual choice of words per se, improves performance in paired-associate tasks. Subjects offered an attractive or meaningful choice performed significantly better than subjects offered an unattractive choice, which was equivalent to no choice at all. (Author/CP)

Individual differences in fourth grade students' abilities to profit from experimenter-provided picture adjunct aids on prose recall tasks were examined. It was hypothesized that poor paired associate learners would benefit from picture adjunct aids to a greater extent than good paired associate learners. A secondary aim was to assess the effects…

As part of a research program to identify training methods which optimize skill acquisition and retention, three studies were conducted to assess the effects of type of training, amount of practice, and guided discussion in cognitive learning strategies training programs. Undergraduate students enrolled in educational psychology courses were…

We examined the wildlife knowledge of primary (aged 4-12) schoolchildren. In particular, we examined the effects of children's age and gender, as well as the taxonomy and origin (indigenous versus exotic) of wildlife, on the degree of knowledge about different species. We used illustrated "flashcards" of mammals, birds and arthropods,…