This report on ability grouping or "streaming" in secondary schools is an overview of research on the subject done in schools in many different countries. Referring to an extensive bibliography, the author gives examples of conclusions reached through observation and experiment on the part of educators. The complexity of the subject is revealed by…

In a study of differences and similarities between children's oral and written stories, 23 third grade pupils wrote stories about a given topic and then, two weeks later, told stories about the same topic. Analysis of the stories revealed five types of narrative structures, of which the most commonly used was a "situation-problem-solution"…

The development of alternative instructional activities for use in the basic writing classroom and a description and analysis of four levels of basic writing are the results of a study of basic writing teaching techniques. The linguistic concepts of immediate and transferred utterances and nominal-verbal pairing, and the work of L. Vygotsky on…

Nine moderately/severely retarded adolescents and young adults were trained to use coin-operated washing machines using three types of materials: artificial (pictures), simulated (cardboard replicas), and natural (realistic). Most students increased their laundry performance with all three sets of school-based material, but generalization to…

Difficulties encountered by students when solving problems were examined using Program of Actions and Methods (PAM) for systematic problem solving in science. Difficulties encountered included those in analyzing the problem, planning the problem-solving process, executing routine operations, and those related to the ways teachers solve problems.…

Readability formulas applied to materials for hearing-impaired students do not account for important factors in reader-writer-text interaction. Factors include the reader's purpose, cultural background, and extent of background knowledge; writers' assumptions about readers; the text's structure, content, and cohesion; and the role of…

This paper reviews studies that have used instructional variables as nonaversive interventions for problem behaviors of individuals with severe disabilities. These include student choice of task, task variation, pace of instruction, interspersal of high probability tasks, partial versus whole task training, decreasing task difficulty, and a…

Challenges in applying cognitive strategy research to complex knowledge domains in students with learning disabilities include the need to focus on deficits in domain-specific knowledge; adaptation of assessment designs to answer cognitive questions; and procedures for individual cognitive strategy instruction in group settings. A research agenda…

Diagrams are considered to be invaluable teaching and learning tools in biochemistry, because they help learners build mental models of phenomena, which allows for comprehension and integration of scientific concepts. Sometimes, however, students experience difficulties with the interpretation of diagrams, which may have a negative effect on their…

This study looks at a specific application of Ainsworth's conceptual framework for learning with multiple representations in the context of using multiple sequential graphic organizers that are student-generated for a process-writing task. Process writing refers to writing that consists of multiple drafts. It may be a process of re-writing without…

A study assessed the cognitive level of academic challenges incorporated into courses offered in the College of Agricultural Sciences at the Pennsylvania State University. Eleven faculty members from nine departments provided copies of all academic challenges used in their courses. They were categorized by type: activities, problem sets, written…

The guide to courseware for computer-assisted instruction and computer-managed instruction in bilingual education, English as a second language, and second language instruction contains entries from the National Clearinghouse for Bilingual Education's database and selected courseware for the related areas of special education, vocational…

Two "sacred cows" inherent in reading instruction for disabled readers are rejected: Disabled readers must be taught with simple reading materials, and most teaching time must be spent on reading skills. Two case studies illustrate the teaching of decoding skills and "dyad reading" of books selected by the disabled reader.…

Goal setting is examined as an influence on student learning and self-evaluation. Goal setting results in increased motivation, on-task behavior, effort, and persistence and conveys information concerning individual performance capabilities and personal accomplishments. (JN)

Fifty-five males with learning disabilities and 55 average-achieving males in grades 6-7 studied paired associates of varying difficulty levels, through image construction or pairing rehearsal. Regardless of item type or presentation rate, both groups of students benefited from imagery instructions, with great similarity in between-condition…