Two studies involving 60 graduate and undergraduate students explored the role of structured imagination in story creation. Results indicate representational knowledge was an important influence on story meaning and originality and that meaningful and original stories were more likely to contain abstract concepts than were nonmeaningful and…

Finds that two strategies led to significantly higher scores on a final exam in a communication course: reviewing the concepts delineated on the study guide, and silent reading of class notes. Finds in a second study that student motivation was positively related to public-speaking competence, but not to the demonstration of communication…

Examined the change in number knowledge and number strategies from school entry to year end among kindergartners. Found a wide range of knowledge and a broad span of achievements at both times. Overall, many children displayed considerable numerical competence at school entry, most displayed marked improvement over the year, whereas a small…

Studied preschool children's inability to distinguish fantasy from fact utilizing the case of the popular movie Jurassic Park and the subsequent false information children obtained about dinosaurs. Described attempts made by teachers to address the resultant aggressive behavior and false knowledge gained and replace it with constructive knowledge.…

This statement signed by 52 researchers outlines conclusions regarded as mainstream among researchers on intelligence, especially on the nature, origins, and practical consequences of individual and group differences in intelligence. The survey from which the statement was developed is described. (SLD)

The influence of information level on the production of accuracy of 20 children was examined. Data were children's productions of nouns in sets of utterances referring to triplets of pictures representing noun-verb-noun utterances. (Author/JL)

This study investigated the impact of the rural experience on rural teachers' knowledge and understanding of students with special needs, perceptions of their own teaching effectiveness and job satisfaction, and perceptions of the accessibility and availability of support systems within schools and school districts. Recommendations are made for…

In this literature review on attitudes of the hearing toward people with deafness or partial hearing, research is organized according to methodological focus of the studies, such as involvement of brief impersonal exposure to deaf or hard of hearing persons, presence of personal contact, presence of personal contact with information, and…

Examined reports by mathematics teachers of their degree of familiarity with various standards and assessments, then compared these reports with teachers' reports of their instructional practices in the classroom. Teacher awareness of state curriculum guides and state assessments has increased since 1995. (SLD)

Surveys of 3,346 rural and small-town residents of Kentucky and 138 rural prenatal service providers found that neither males nor females were knowledgeable about the harmful effects of alcohol use during pregnancy, with males having significantly less knowledge. Service providers identified barriers to health promotion and prevention efforts and…

Two studies examined whether infants' category discrimination in an object-examination task was based solely on an ad hoc analysis of perceptual similarities among the experimental stimuli. Findings indicated that 10- to 11-month- olds' responses varied systematically only with the presence of a category change, but not with the degree of…

Collected qualitative data through interviews and triad elicitation with 5-year-olds in London to determine children's current knowledge and understanding of their "making" activity and of Lego construction kit components. Data provided triangulation for another study that found that young children could achieve a great deal with…

Syntheses of research findings from major studies of school-based management (SBM) generate eight elements of schooling associated with successful SBM: An active vision, meaningful decision-making authority, distribution of power, development and use of knowledge and skills, collecting and communicating information, rewards for progress, shared…

Examined the effects of an exercise physiology program on high school students' physical fitness, body satisfaction, and physiology knowledge. Intervention students received exercise physiology theory and active aerobic and resistance exercise within their biology course. Data from student surveys and measurements indicated that the integrated…

Discusses seven issues affecting assessment: (1) selection of texts, (2) use of oral and written assignments, (3) characteristics of grades and evaluation, (4) opportunities for self-assessment, (5) retention of learning, (6) psychology of students, and (7) the development of new tests. Suggests ways that economics faculty can improve assessment…