Although frequently discounted, imagery plays an important role in the intellectual development of gifted students. It can be useful in helping students remember, create (in the arts and in sports), and develop flexibility in thinking. Imagery may also be involved in gifted adolescents' career and life decisions. (CL)

Considering content, task-execution and subject variables in metacognitive and cognitive performance, analogies with integral or separable attributes were solved by selected undergraduate students with training in one of three task strategies or no strategy training. Training success, subject awareness of variables, score correlations, and…

Diagnostic problem solving was examined in 36 hyperactive, 36 normal, and 25 nonhyperactive reading disabled boys from grades two through six. On a matrix solution task, hyperactives used less efficient questions and strategies than the other two groups, despite the task being designed to maximize performance of hyperactives. (Author/SW)

Literature on problem solving is reviewed, a conceptual scheme of problem solving is proposed, and several research issues related to the nature of problem finding and its relation to problem solving are identified. Some implications for educational practice are mentioned. (SW)

The author discusses the phenomenon of incubation in creative problem solving, distinguishes it from "creative worrying" and "tip of the tongue" experiences, and reviews research to indicate a lack of evidence of incubation's existence in well-controlled studies. Note: For related information, see EC 120 232-238. (CL)

Findings indicated that, among college students, problem finding ability is independent of intelligence and field dependence. (Author/SBH)

Three experiments assessed kindergartners' performance on simple concept-like problems in which the correct solution could be selected from a specified set of possible solutions by using the information provided by a single positive or negative stimulus. (Author/DB)

Two organizational problem situations were worked on by 61 teams in 4 conditions: (1) controls, (2) traditional process (goal clarity, commitment, decision making), (3) team learning (assumption surfacing, dialog, reflection), and (4) combined 2 and 3. Team learning produced significantly more double-loop learning. Controls achieved more…

Investigated the effects of caregiving experience on adults' thinking about a child-rearing problem. Study 1 found that, of 192 adults, parents were better than nonparents at diagnosing the cause of a baby's crying. Study 2 extended the first study's findings to 42 mothers and 42 nonmothers. (SKC)

Technology education practitioners (n=225) identified how often 27 mental processes were used in solving technological problems. Analysis resulted in five factors: researching the problem, searching for solutions, creating innovative solutions, analyzing data, and evaluating results. (SK)

Introduces the Mystery Festival at the Shrewsbury Middle School in Massachusetts. Claims that this program will enable the children to collect and analyze data, carry out necessary tests, and develop a scientific approach to solving crimes. Describes the process of setting up this festival and recommendations for adapting the program to suit…

This study investigated the roles of problem structure and strategy use in problem encoding. Fourth-grade students solved and explained a set of typical addition problems (e.g., 5 + 4 + 9 + 5 = ?) and mathematical equivalence problems (e.g., 4 + 3 + 6 = 4 + ? or 6 + 4 + 5 = ? + 5). Next, they completed an encoding task in which they reconstructed…

The internal use of language during problem solving is considered to play a key role in executive functioning. This role provides a means for self-reflection and self-questioning during the formation of rules and plans and a capacity to control and monitor behavior during problem-solving activity. Given that increasingly sophisticated language is…

Investigations related to expertise in problem solving and ability to transfer learning from one context to another are important for developing strategies to help students perform more expertlike tasks. Here we analyze written responses to a pair of nonintuitive isomorphic problems given to introductory physics students and discussions with a…

This longitudinal study investigated the academic and cognitive characteristics of persistent mathematics difficulty (MD-p) from first to fourth grade. Ninety-nine children were retrospectively categorized into one of three groups: MD-p, transient mathematics difficulty (MD-t), or typically developing. MD-p was defined as persistently low…