The 13 articles in this information packet are intended to assist individuals involved in developing plans to improve student thinking within a school or a school district. The topics discussed include (1) the need to improve student thinking, (2) obstacles that stand in the way of teaching thinking skills, (3) practical approaches to improving…

In 1981 and 1982, pre- and postnatal medical, financial, demographic, and maternal social support data were collected from 220 lower socioeconomic status (SES), "high risk" mothers and their newborn infants. An analysis of data on the oldest 100 children in the sample found that 14 families had been referred to a children's protective services…

The reading/writing project described in this document examined the basic cognitive activities children engage in when reading and writing, involved 67 children from grades 3, 6, and 9, and addressed these questions: Since reading and writing both involve the development of meaning, is there a common language core, or routines, that children…

This is a final report of research in dichotic listening performance (DLP). The purposes for the research were to study the development of DLP in children and adults, to examine DLP as a function of verbal information presented in a task, to determine the contribution of perceptual and mnemonic factors affecting DLP by controlling order-of-report…

Designed for integration into existing school curriculum, this is the fifth in a series of five career education curriculum kits for teachers of grades K-3. Each kit pertains to one of five specified career education program goals. The goal for this curriculum kit is, "Students will develop physical and mental skills related to occupational…

The paper presents an overview of Piaget's theory of cognitive development and a review of research in the measurement of formal operations and the impact of the domain of expertise on cognitive functioning. The role of the teacher as described by proponents of Piaget's theory is explored, along with an extensive description of Piaget's stage of…

Intended for parents as well as professionals, the text provides information and practical suggestions on dealing with spina bifida and hydrocephalus. Part I (chapters 1 and 2) concentrates on the medical and physical aspects of the condition with discussions covering such areas as spina bifida's development, locomotor problems, and the role of…

This volume reports on several aspects of the Bristol (England) study of language development in pre-school children. The study was comprised of two overlapping investigations: the first covering the range from 15 to 42 months and the second, the range from 39 to 66 months. The introductory chapter gives an overview, and provides a statement of…

This experiment tested the hypothesis that combining operational strategies with free verbalization facilitates development of competencies, percepts of self-efficacy, and interest in arithmetic activities. Children lacking division skills received treatments in which they either verbalized division strategies, verbalized freely, did both, or did…

The results of an investigation of the development of children's knowledge of addition and subtraction concepts before they start school are detailed. The purpose of the study was to test the predictions of the three-stage model about the distinctions between the last two stages. Twenty-four children participated in the investigation. None of…

Volume 8, No. 2 of Investigations in Science Education contains critiques of articles dealing with science education research about various aspects of instruction. Also included are five responses from authors of articles to critiques of their work as it has been reported in professional journals. In total, this volume contains 10 critiques and…

Although student evaluation of instruction forms are used by colleges to provide information to instructors and administrators, personality and cognitive style variables of the student raters are rarely considered. A cognitive developmental measure, the Paragraph Completion Test (PCT), two cognitive style measures, Bieri's Modified Rep Test and…

Descriptions of language learning and reading behaviors are presented, in this paper, within the context of a model of cognitive processing that reflects a continuum for the logical procession of language skills in human maturation and learning. Portions of the paper differentiate silent and oral reading in terms of cognitive load, which is a…

Since the traditional information-based curriculum does not adequately meet contemporary needs, it should be replaced by a process-oriented curriculum that fosters skills in information processing, concept formation, problem solving, and other higher order cognitive processes in conjunction with the development of language skills. There are many…

This report offers the premise that a psychology of reading instruction has a set of questions of its own, questions that concern the ways in which the environmental interventions called instruction interact with cognitive processes to modify competence. The report discusses two streams of psychological research as they relate to reading…