Agricultural literacy materials on incubators in the classroom were used by 373 Indiana fourth graders and 19 teachers. Comparison of the treatment group's pretest/postest results with those of controls (363 students, 20 teachers) showed the materials increased student and teacher knowledge of agricultural professions; students were significantly…

Surveyed attitudes and knowledge of parents with children in a university-based preschool regarding developmentally appropriate preschool practices (DAP). Found that many parents understood developmentally appropriate practice. Most parents believed that children learned through play with other children and exploration of the environment. Mothers…

Presents an activity in which students in grades three to six can create looms and learn about weaving. Discusses the process for weaving. Includes ideas for furthering the students' knowledge of weaving, a list of vocabulary and materials, and directions for creating the loom. (CMK)

Provides a copy of the British benchmark statements for geography in higher education by the Quality Assurance Agency. Includes the introduction, aims of an honors program, knowledge and understanding, student skills, abilities and attributes, processes and contexts of learning, assessment, standards and levels of achievement, and the conclusion.…

Reports in detail on the results of a study indicating that physics students' prior understandings of key concepts are systematically related to the way they approach their studies, their perceptions of learning context, and the quality of the outcomes of their studies. Includes references. (CMK)

Evaluates four modules, created by the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, for educating students about industrial/organizational (I/O) psychology. Reports that students' knowledge about I/O increased, and their interest in taking an I/O psychology course also increased. (CMK)

Seven fifth-graders developed concept maps depicting their knowledge of meat product development. Despite their rural background, they lacked understanding of agriculture concepts and had mixed knowledge of agricultural literacy benchmarks concerning food products. Their language did not reflect scientific terminology in the benchmarks. (Contains…

This study examined relations among sensitivity to words, syllables, rhymes, and phonemes in older and younger preschoolers. Confirmatory factor analyses found that a one-factor model best explained the date from both groups of children. Only variance common to all phonological sensitivity skills was related to print knowledge and rudimentary…

Studied adolescents' (N=163) formal operational reasoning in relation to Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) knowledge, AIDS fear, sexual knowledge, and reactions to AIDS victims. Found that advanced reasoning predicted better AIDS knowledge and general sexual knowledge. Advanced reasoning and AIDS knowledge were also linked with heightened…

Explored effectiveness of one-session classroom presentations about recently initiated school counseling services with grades five through eight students (N=207). Following presentations all grade levels on average were able to provide four reasons for seeking counseling, offer a definition of counseling, and report two methods of securing an…

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)

The Caregiver Information Project trained 200 clergy, lay religious volunteers, and social service providers about caregiving issues and ways to disseminate information to family caregivers. The project succeeded in improving knowledge about aging and caregiver issues, increasing perceived competence in working with family caregivers, and…

Discusses issues related to the movement toward minimum competency in secondary education. Addresses the problem of defining minimum competency and the dangers of imposed standardization. Identifies three conceptualizations of minimum competency as: (1) the narrowly educational standpoint, (2) the concern with functional literacy, and (3) a more…

The study found that instructing 13 learning-disabled junior high students in the necessary prior knowledge (information and vocabulary concepts) led to superior reading comprehension performance. Textually explicit text structure also improved reading comprehension. (DB)

Analysis of questionnaire responses of 107 Black adolescent male college students indicated that, while 85 percent used some contraceptive method, most subjects had less knowledge regarding the effectiveness of certain contraceptive methods, suggesting a need for more in-depth sex education programs. (CB)