Research supported by U.S. Public Health Service grant K3-MH-10, 749. Disadvantaged Youth

This paper reviews literature on subcultural differences in language development to find out what the literature suggests about the nature of a language program for lower class 4-year-olds. The following conclusions are reached: (1) differences in syntactic and phonological competence are not important barriers to communication for the lower class…

We examine eight cases of argumentation in relation to a proportional reasoning task--the "Paint" task--in which the "constant sum" strategy was a significant factor. Our analysis of argument follows Toulmin's (1958) approach and in the discourse we trace factors which seem to facilitate changes in argument. We find that the arguments of "constant…

Contains a systems analysis of the Mankind-Education System and a block-diagram model of this system. (DD)

Author's discussion is based on the following assumptions: (1) the greater the degree of correspondence between the student's language and his world, the greater are his chances for sanity and survival; and (2) creativity consists of seeing new relationships, forming new organizations, or building new cognitive structures. (Author/MB)

Argues that phonemic awareness in young readers may be knowledge that is constructed in the unique situation of trying to match speech to an alphabetic orthography. Stages of learning about print, teaching children about written language, and the roles of alphabet recognition and perceptual-motor skills in learning to read are discussed.…

Textbooks and teaching methods for adult basic education courses are frequently inappropriate for the cognitive ability level of the students. The assumption that these students have formal reasoning skills is often erroneous. (JD)

This article discusses the feasibility of and the skills needed for teaching basic economic concepts such as supply and demand in an informal learning situation, in this case the simulation of an economic system based on barter. (CJ)

Discusses issues stimulated by Elizabeth Hatton's examination of teachers' work as "bricolage" in a prior article. Explores the connection between creative potential and pedagogic knowledge and the science of the abstract and the concrete. Presents potential reforms that could enhance teachers' capacity to gain pedagogic knowledge. (JS)

Specific teaching strategies to help hearing-impaired secondary students comprehend abstract concepts include (1) pinpointing facts and fallacies, (2) organizing information visually, (3) categorizing ideas, and (4) reinforcing new vocabulary and concepts. Figures provide examples of strategy applications. (DB)

Describes a map skills unit used in a second grade classroom in which teachers and students engaged in activites that moved from the concrete to the abstract and from trips around the school neighborhood to a "trip" to Europe. An insert includes two map study ideas for use in intermediate grades. (SM)

(MDH)

Nine students (ages 7 to 11) with math disabilities were effectively taught using an instructional sequence that moved from the concrete to the semiconcrete to the abstract. Subjects needed between three and seven lessons using manipulative devices and pictures before being able to do abstract-level problems. (Author/DB)

This study of 52 learning-disabled children, aged 8-13, found that direct feedback and practice improved metaphor interpretation. The approach was highly successful in teaching students to generalize concrete concepts to abstract ones. Further descriptive analyses indicated that grade and reading levels of subjects correlated with metaphor…

An instructional program designed to help middle school students with severe learning disabilities learn about story themes, and focused on enhancing ability to generalize to themes not included in the instruction, was evaluated. Findings indicate students with learning disabilities can profit from instruction geared toward abstract higher order…