Fifth grade children's (n=16) understandings of simple fractions such as 1/2, 1/3, and 1/4 were investigated. The study identified three alternative conceptions of fractions: (1) 1/"N" is one of "N equal" parts, (2) 1/N is one of "N equal" parts, and (3) parts must fit together to form the whole. In addition, many…

It has been shown previously that many students solve chemistry problems using only algorithmic strategies and do not understand the chemical concepts on which the problems are based. It is plausible to suggest that if the information is presented in differing formats the cognitive demand of a problem changes. The main objective of this study…

Article considered how learning takes place by examining the transfer of attitudes and principles at the heart of the educational process. (Author/RK)

Author presented a selection of examples of the role of connective analogies in invention/discovery. (Author/RK)

The formal operations skills and problem solving performance of 60 gifted girls (grades 4 through 6) were investigated. Ss were given Piagetian tasks which involved conservation of mass and weight, use of proportion, oscillation of the pendulum, and projection of shadows. Among findings were the following: (1) no relationship between IQ and either…

The study relates performance on a cognitive-style measure of perceptual sensitivity and grade point averages to several indices of creativity as affected by a checklist procedure and verbal pretraining. Subjects were 76 students, half of which received verbal pretraining requiring them to list adjectives under five categories. The pretrained…

This study was planned to examine differences in the ability to stop and think, and knowledge of comparative concepts, among children who succeeded or failed in solving verbally presented class inclusion problems. Thirty third-grade boys were classified as non-Inclusion subjects, and 30 others as Inclusion subjects. The children were classified as…

The purpose of this experiment was to provide further information on how an individual's strategy and his performance are affected by increasing the amount of relevant or irrelevant information he receives. The subjects were sixty volunteers from an undergraduate course in educational psychology who were randomly assigned to one of six treatment…

Seventy-two Ss attempted to solve four "who-done-it" type deductive reasoning problems which varied in mode of representation, type of logical connective employed, and affirmative versus negative statement of information. Affirmative and conjunctive problems were solved more frequently than negative and disjunctive problems (all are defined in the…

THE EFFECT OF PLANNED GUIDANCE ON THE PROBLEM-SOLVING BEHAVIOR OF ELEMENTARY STUDENTS WAS INVESTIGATED. FACTORS RELATED TO CHANGES IN PROBLEM-SOLVING BEHAVIORS WERE IDENTIFIED. APPROXIMATELY 50 PERCENT OF THE SIXTH-GRADE STUDENTS INCLUDED IN THE STUDY WERE GIVEN INQUIRY TRAINING 30 TO 60 MINUTES DAILY FOR 3 WEEKS. AN INVENTORY OF SCIENCE PROCESSES…

Caution is urged in applying the normative-descriptive distinction to selection models, because ambiguities arise when the distinction is actually carried out (AA 529 125). A multidimensional structure may be needed to account for strategy, and the relationship between strategy and such nontask variables as intelligence is needed to clarify the…

A distinction is made between basic computational skills and skills related to applied mathematics and verbal problem solving. The advantages of using calculators for teaching the latter skills are discussed. (MP)

Choice and use of problem-solving strategies were monitored during a picture comparison task for 90 kindergarten, second and fourth grade boys and girls. (SB)

Considers a particular environmental movement, the "clean up the environment" movement and one specific argument, the "eyesore argument" which has been given in support of this movement. Brings out the argument's full strength by discussing a line of attack against the argument and some alternatives for countering this attack. (Author/RK)