A constructivist analysis of the concepts of communication and environment may go against the traditional ideas of realists. Both concepts are treated as subjective constructs of a cognizing agent. It is held that the basis of the constructivist theory of knowing as the idea that knowledge is a mapping of ways of acting and thinking and the result…

There has long been dispute in mathematics between the drill and practice orientation that focuses primarily on memorizing mathematics as meaningless rote algorithms and the approach based on understanding and making creative use of mathematics. This 25-chapter book, based on a 7-year study at the University of Illinois, seeks to explain and…

After a review of the literature on cognitive "cause maps" in organizational decision-making, this study describes a midwestern elementary school from the perspective of individual sensemaking, captured through individual cognitive maps of cause-effect relationships. Data were collected with an adaptation of Bougon's (1983) Self-Q…

From a search of (mostly French) literature, a hypothesis was formulated that students with both academic training and work experience would solve a practical learning problem more easily than students with academic learning only. A study was conducted at the Conservatoire National des Arts et Metiers in Paris to test this hypothesis. Two groups,…

Describes two studies investigating the development of recursive thinking in 60 Dutch children five, seven, and nine years of age. The first study replicated earlier research employing a verbal production procedure. The second study used verbal comprehension procedures and concluded that development appears two years earlier than indicated by the…

Twenty-six deaf adolescents received instruction in a structured program of cognitive education called "Instrumental Enrichment." The program addresses, among other processes, comparison, classification, logical progression, spatial orientation, analysis and synthesis, and syllogistic thinking. Following training, the subjects showed…

Outlines a path analytic interpretation of data collected in light of the theoretical formulation of a dynamic model of memory. An investigation of industrial trainees' capacity to differentiate various ferrous and nonferrous metals is described which emphasizes the role of relational, strategic, and empirical knowledge in cognitive skill…

Discusses what is meant by meaningful learning, the conditions necessary for meaningful learning to occur, the importance of vocabulary instruction to comprehension, and how to insure that vocabulary instruction is meaningful. (HOD)

The demise of the behaviorist paradigm and the rise of the social, cognitive, and interactionist models of second language acquisition (SLA) have led to the understanding that constructivist mechanisms are part of the process. Given the variety of empirical findings and understandings research in the field has yielded, this study attempts to offer…

Reports the results of a non-randomized study of 45 history Ph.D. students in England and discusses the results in terms of the theory of knowledge structure and the modification of knowledge structure due to information. Topics include information as process; a model of stages of the information process; and grounded theory. (Author/LRW)

This longitudinal study investigated the relation between mothers' descriptions of mental states portrayed in pictures and 2- to 4-year-old children's theory of mind. Mothers described pictures to children at 3 different times during the year. Findings indicated that mothers' use of mental state utterances at early time points correlated with…

Two experiments investigated kindergarten through fourth-graders' and adults' ability to evaluate the certainty of deductive inferences, inductive inferences, and guesses, and explain the origins of inferential knowledge. Findings indicated that children rated their own deductions as more certain than guesses, but when judging another person's…

This study examined the classroom knowledge of experienced teachers and ways in which this knowledge was articulated to preservice teachers. Results indicate that differences in knowledge structures and reflective capabilities of cooperating teachers have potentially powerful consequences for the quality of student teachers' experiences. (SM)

Presents a descriptive study of the influence of the learner's cultural schemata on instruction. Finds that students interpret new information in the light of cultural knowledge already possessed. Implications are that instructional designs that ignore the influence of background knowledge take a naive approach to the development of a…

Investigates the effect of parental separation on the divergent thinking abilities and creativity potential of 116 single- and two-parent family children in grades three through five. Findings indicate a comparable level of divergent thinking between both groups; single-parent children scored significantly higher on creativity potential.…