The study was conducted to determine if the cognitive environment of the child from a high ability family could be classified as expansive or restrictive. It was concluded that mothers of gifted children have both styles available to them. The individual orientation of the high ability mother dictates the s tructure utilized. (CD)

Explains Piaget's concepts of "subject-object" and "subsystem" interactions in problem solving and describes a test that substantiates Piaget's hypothesis and points to antecedent conditions that appear to stimulate imaginal structures. (SB)

This paper describes the rule-assessment approach to cognitive development. The basic question that motivated the rule-assessment approach is how people's existing knowledge influences their ability to learn. Research using the rule-assessment approach is summarized in terms of eight conclusions, each illustrated with empirical examples.…

Researchers concerned with the issue of children's play are urged to read the book "Children's Play: Current Theory and Research" edited by D. J. Pepler and K. H. Rubin which provides an up-to-date review of the conceptual, methodological and developmental issues related to children's play. (MP)

The "Think It Through" videodisc and computer program is designed to develop independent thinking skills in intermediate-age hearing impaired students. The program combines a videodisc (visual storage medium) and a microcomputer to present interactive problem solving tasks. (CL)

Examined effects of cognitive focusing training in early and late concrete operational children. Focusing was manifested by the late concrete operational children regardless of whether or not they had been trained. The amount of negative feedback and the nature of the probe techniques affected the manifestation of focusing. (Author/DB)

Class inclusion problems differing in size of the array and in superordinate class were given to 84 boys and girls in grades 1 through 4 in a first experiment, and 41 boys and girls in grades 3 and 4 in a second experiment. The experiments sought to determine performance variables explaining the developmentally late appearance of class-inclusion…

To determine the effects of a teacher's level of questioning on the development of children's problem-solving ability, children were exposed to three five-week treatment conditions in a half-day laboratory nursery school program. High-level cognitive questioning seemed to result in children's ability to generate significantly more alternative…

Explores the relationship of an individual's reliance or nonreliance upon concrete cues in problem solving and performance on a model-based measure of hierarchical classification. Level of cognitive development, as determined by performance on Piaget-type tasks, generally predicted hierarchical classification ability of junior- and senior-high…

The effects of two instructional methods on the questioning strategies of 40 10- to 12-year-old learning disabled children were investigated. Results indicated that both the question formulation instruction and the cognitive modeling/self-verbalization instruction were effective in improving their questioning concerning novel problems. (Author/DB)

Explores the development of understanding of the concept of average with students from grades 3 to 9 through interviews. Observed six levels of response based on an hierarchical model of cognitive functioning. Documents usage of ideas associated with the three standard measures of central tendency and representation as strategies for problem…

Examined relationships among theory of mind construct of intention and false belief, problem-solving ability, metacognitive regulation, and strategy use in 39 preschoolers. Found significant correlations between strategy use and theory of mind, and metacognitive regulation and theory of mind. A moderate, but nonsignificant, correlation was found…

This paper explores the development of students' knowledge of mathematical procedures. Students' tendency to develop rote knowledge of procedures has been widely commented on. An alternative, more flexible endpoint for the development of procedural knowledge is explored here, where students choose to deviate from established solving patterns on…

The purpose of this study was to examine the pre-college leadership skills of first-year students and examine differences by gender on eight distinct scales. The Student Leadership Outcomes Inventory defined these eight scales. A total of 296 participants were chosen to participate in the study from a population of all first-year students at a…

In two studies, children participated in route-planning tasks in which they were asked to find the shortest path to retrieve certain items. In Study 1, children participated in two versions of the task (standard versus feedback) differing in the amount of contextual support. Forty-eight children, ages 6, 8, and 10 years, had to help their…