Two experiments were conducted to test the hypotheses that the ability to draw inferences from a text about an unstated agent is based on the quality of information available to the reader, and that the quality of the information is itself based on the unique nature of cues embedded in the text and on the relevance of prior knowledge held by the…

Two experiments investigated the effects of preceding sentence context on the naming times of sentence completion words in third-grade children and college students. In the first study subjects were shown incomplete sentences with four types of target words: best completions; semantically and syntactically appropriate, but less likely completions;…

A study was conducted to determine the validity of the Op-In procedure in measuring global comprehension and to identify patterns of integrative thinking similar to those of pilot study subjects. The Op-In procedure is a type of cloze procedure that deletes every other sentence ending from a passage. Three sixth grade level scientific passages…

Argues that a computer-based programming tutor for novice programmers needs to take into account not only the types and frequency of bugs found in the programs, but the intentions and knowledge state of the programmer. A first version of such a program was developed on the basis of the bug types found in a number of pencil-and-paper studies with…

This report describes PROUST, a computer-based system for online analyses and understanding of PASCAL programs written by novice programmers, which takes as input a program and a non-algorithmic description of the program requirements and finds the most likely mapping between the requirements and the code. Both the theory and processing techniques…

Intended for elementary school language arts teachers, this paper outlines some recent work in the area of cognitive functioning and shows how this highlights the necessity for great care in fostering a child's language competence at two different stages: very early childhood and early to middle primary school. Following an introduction, the paper…

A study tested the cumulative acquisition model proposed by S. H. Chaffee and A. R. Tims to explain the development of adolescent patterns of news media use. The Guttman scale procedure was used to analyze patterns of news media use across a three-wave panel survey of 366 parent-child pairs over a 2-year period. In each wave, interviewers talked…

To lay a foundation for the design and effective use of low-cost, part-task and low-fidelity training devices, this report identifies dimensions of skill performance in terms of modern learning and behavior theory, and analyzes cognitive and motor skills as they relate to information processing. Cognitive processes discussed include task…

Research on adult memory for nonverbal representations has found a significant age-related decrement in performance. To investigate age differences in adult locational versus featural information in visual memory, 90 adult women (29 young women with a mean age of 21; 30 middle aged women with a mean age of 43; and 31 older women with a mean age of…

To ascertain whether cerebral lateralities can be considered aptitudes or individual difference measures within an aptitude-treatment-interaction (ATI) framework, hemispheric asymmetries and cognitive psychometric tests were administered to 50 right-handed, Caucasian, male Navy recruits. Principal factor analysis with varimax rotation was computed…

A study investigated the size of the perceptual span within which adults use visual information to distinguish among letters as they read. The eye movements of fifteen college students were monitored as they read passages from a cathode-ray tube. On occasional fixations, letters in specified visual regions were replaced by other letters. The…

Two modes of assessment (an interview and a drawing task) were applied to investigate first, third, and fifth graders' understanding of their own feelings and their understanding of the feelings of others, specifically those of their parents. In the interview session, each subject was asked first a set of questions about happy feelings and then…

This paper examines the neurobiology of fluid cognitive functions of the prefrontal cortex and considers learning disability as a specific example of a group of developmental disorders characterized by fluid skills impairment in the presence of crystallized intelligence in the normal range. Research indicating fluid cognitive impairments in…

In a test administered to Spanish-speaking students of English as a second language at the elementary and intermediate levels, the results indicated the subjects' reliance on the strategies of overgeneralization and transfer was qualitatively different. Implications of the results are discussed. (Author/RM)

Examines the possible effects of four important school variables on the cognitive preference styles of students. The variables are the school environment, the attitude of the teachers toward an inquiry oriented approach, the nature of the curriculum and that of the subject matter. (Author/DEP)