The cognitive learning processes of assimilation and accommodation are critically examined in this paper. A special focus is given to an analysis of the process of assimilation as it is proposed in Hugh Petrie's book, "The Dilemma of Enquiry and Learning." Initially, Piaget's biological metaphor of assimilation-accommodation is reviewed…

The report discusses a program incorporating cognitive therapy with microcomputer technology for head injured students. The goals of cognitive rehabilitation are introduced, the nature and extent of the head injury problem analyzed, and social, emotional, and educational considerations of adolescent head injury illustrated through a case study.…

This paper briefly reviews research on tasks in knowledge-rich domains including developmental studies, work in artificial intelligence, studies of expert/novice problem solving, and information processing analysis of aptitude test tasks that have provided increased understanding of the nature of expertise. Particularly evident is the finding that…

As comprehension failure results whenever readers are unable to infer missing causal connections, recent comprehension research has focused both on assessing the inferential complexity of texts and on investigating students' developing ability to infer causal relationships. Studies have demonstrated that texts rely on four types of causal…

The concern of this book is to examine written language and its relation to what is ordinarily understood by the term oral language, the process of its acquisition, and the place of written language in the process of mental development. The eight chapters (1) examine the relation of written language to oral language and trace the phonocentric…

Development of geometric congruence and motion was studied through tasks that tapped transformational imagery, correspondence matching, measurement operations, and transformation combinations. Results showed even the youngest children studied could generate strategies for verifying congruence. The dominant strategy in younger children was edge…

Preschoolers 4 and 5 years of age were found to use four strategies differing in temporal characteristics as they solved simple addition problems with sums of 10 or less. Three strategies had visible and/or audible aspects, and one was covert, involving retrieval from memory. The harder the problem, the more often the children used an overt…

Examples of explanations students give during science lessons are used to demonstrate that there are a number of very different modes of explaining. In addition, it is suggested that the peculiarly scientific method of explanation is fraught with difficulties, some of which current learning theories may just be able to describe. Areas discussed…

The combined methods of observation and interview were used in a study examining how English teachers conceptualize instruction in literature. Nine high school English teachers from two midwest, suburban high schools served as the subjects. In the first two meetings, the teachers were informed that two people would be observing and taping one of…

This study sought to identify prerequiste concepts for a child to perform length measurement meaningfully. Conservation of length and use of transitive reasoning were major areas identified. Implications for teaching are given, especially concerning the use of a number line as a model for presenting arithmetic operations. (LS)

Uses and explains the Piagetian model to provide a conceptual framework for a discussion of intellectual growth in relation to science education and points out inadequacies of the model. (PEB)

The hypothesized central role of cognitive development in resolving moral dilemmas was examined in sixth grade and college-age females. Results indicated that sophisticated cognitive operations are a prerequisite to advanced moral judgments. (ST)

The first part of this publication is a study of students' math skills and logical abilities and their success in an introductory college chemistry course. A 29-item instrument was developed and administered to 343 students. Test scores for students who received either A or B in the course were compared with scores for those who received either D…

This is the last in a series of studies of experimenter and student supplied cognitive strategies for acquisition and retention of concepts in science. A lesson in electrochemistry was used as the subject matter with 96 undergraduate college students. A verbal multiple choice test and a graphic recognition test were used to measure retention.…

Reflections on psychological perspectives of aging are focused around issues of biological changes and mental functioning, genetic factors in aging, psychological changes with aging, individual differences in mental functioning and the intellectual decline of the aged. (EH)