Key elements in the construction of an operation were an integral part of an empirical study designed to test practical, pedagogical implications of the Piagetian model of cognitive growth. A total of 49 kindergarten children were pretested to determine their levels of seriation and classification operations. Pretests were conducted with a battery…

To determine the analysis of variance among different assessments of teaching competencies shown by preservice education students as student teachers, 32 undergraduates certified in 1985 and 42 from 1986 were studied. Data were obtained on their self-evaluations of 25 teaching competencies. Evaluations by their cooperating teachers (35 in fall…

This master's thesis presents the results of a survey designed to study the control of state documents by state document authorities. A questionnaire was developed and sent to the institutions in each state which are responsible for the official collection of their state's documents, in an effort to determine the degree of adherence to guidelines…

As studies of organizational development have focused increasingly in recent years on stages of decline and death, theories of revolutionary adaptation have gained currency. The theory of organizational retrenchment developed in this paper is divided into five chronological stages: (1) preresponse, (2) emerging awareness and buying time, (3) alarm…

While much of microcomputer-based instruction (MCBI) is oriented to provide self-paced instruction to adjust for individual differences, there is some indication from cognitive theory that self-pacing may not be the best approach to improving learning. In addition, research in the area of cognitive imagery mediation has indicated that imagery…

The purpose of this exercise is to introduce college students to basic research methodology and concepts for social class in the United States and to the useful library sources and techniques to aid in the research. The underlying theory is that social classes do exist in the United States, and students can validate this theory through…

Organizational theorists have viewed organizations as "mini-societies" based upon commonly held cultural values and assumptions, which may serve to revolutionize organizational practices or to bring about new organization structures. The middle school is an example of an educational institution that has arisen as a result of a particular set of…

Consequences of population turnaround for rural economic development are examined in a 9-county region of Northern Lower Michigan. Data from census reports and 374 usable responses to a questionnaire mailed to a random sample of property owners drawn from 1982 county tax assessment rolls were used to test competing hypotheses about rural…

This study tested the effects of two instructional sequences--principle-procedure and procedure-principle--on the application and transfer of learning. It was hypothesized that a principle-procedure sequence would result in better near-transfer and far-transfer and that students would prefer this sequence. The 38 freshmen enrolled in a business…

An analytic procedure, efficiency analysis, is proposed for improving the utility of quantitative program evaluation for decision making. The three features of the procedure are explained: (1) for statistical control, it adopts and extends the regression-discontinuity design; (2) for statistical inferences, it de-emphasizes hypothesis testing in…

Three studies of children at two developmental levels were made to assess subjects' understanding of the verbal terms "easy" (to do) and "hard" (to do). Such understanding was studied in the context of statements about personal competence at depicted activities. Behavioral criteria of levels of understanding were employed;…

Two studies were conducted to extend the application and explore the parameters of the concept tree and rational set generator instructional design techniques. The first study was conducted with high school English students. Results indicated that students who studied the concept tree performed no differently on the classification tests than…

The secondary social studies lessons in this publication are intended to help teachers improve instruction. Lessons are provided for the curriculum areas of social inquiry, ethical development, and civic competence. In the social inquiry lessons, students learn to describe and explain human behavior. In the ethical development lessons, students…

This study tests the general hypothesis that preschool experience has a measurable effect upon children's noncognitive development between the time they enter and the time they leave the preschool program. The California Preschool Competency Scale (CPSCS) was administered to 4-year-old children in a prekindergarten program (PreK) in the fall of…

A review of research on "incomplete text," which refers to a variety of adaptations of cloze procedures, illustrates how construct validity has been considered and will need to be considered in future research on the subject. Much of the early research on incomplete text focused on product--providing quantitative assessments of…