Novelty is inherent to creative processes. A positive effect of novelty on creative task performance was therefore predicted. However, creativity can benefit from divergent, as well as convergent thinking. Subsequently, novelty may benefit creative performance when divergent thinking is required, but it could inhibit creative performance when…

The purpose of this study was to categorize 35 Ethiopian undergraduate physics students' alternative conceptions in the concepts of electric potential and energy. A descriptive qualitative research design was used to categorize the students' alternative conceptions. Four independently homogeneous ability focus groups were formed to elicit the…

This study investigated the relationship between problem familiarity and students' learning in a problem-based course. Problem familiarity in this study refers to the extent to which a problem fits with students' prior knowledge and experiences. As part of regular course work, 172 students were given two problems on different occasions.…

This study investigated 438 Year 10 students (15 and 16 years old) from Western Australian schools, on their understanding of the greenhouse effect and climate change, and the sources of their information. Results showed that most students have an understanding of how the greenhouse effect works, however, many students merge the processes of the…

This study inquires ethical evaluation of teachers, investigating their moral reasoning to ethical decision making, in Turkey. Specifically three hypotheses were tested: Overall ethical awareness of teachers is high; Teachers will identify reasons for ethical evaluation related to philosophical values such as justice, deontology, utilitarianism,…

Research examining the importance of surface-level information to familiarity in recognition memory tasks is mixed: Sometimes it affects recognition and sometimes it does not. One potential explanation of the inconsistent findings comes from the ideas of dual process theory of recognition and the transfer-appropriate processing framework, which…

The influence of a model's age on young children's behaviour has been a subject of considerable debate among developmental theorists. Despite the recent surge of interest, controversy remains about the nature of peer influence in early life. This article reviews studies that investigated the influence of a model's age on young…

The Statue of Liberty has traditionally served as a symbol of freedom and liberty for citizens in the United States and around the world. Lady Liberty was often the first symbol European immigrants saw as they arrived in New York Harbor. Many of them were escaping dire conditions back home and seeking a better future for themselves and their…

Three kinds of knowledge usually recognised by epistemologists are identified and their relevance for curriculum design is discussed. These are: propositional knowledge, know-how and knowledge by acquaintance. The inferential nature of propositional knowledge is argued for and it is suggested that propositional knowledge in fact presupposes the…

This study examined three processes crucial to reading comprehension ("semantic access", "integration", and "inhibition") to identify causes of comprehension impairment. Poor comprehenders were compared to chronological-age controls and vocabulary-age (VA) controls. When listening to homonym primes ("bank")…

Individuals' feelings, beliefs and attitudes toward people with disabilities have an influence on their willingness to engage in the social relationship with people with disabilities such as forming friendship at the workplace or romantic relationship with people with disabilities. This study explored the attitudes of students toward people with…

The authors examined the difference in standardized test performance when familiar versus unfamiliar examiners tested 26 preschool and elementary-aged children with autism. The children were matched by age, severity, and developmental level and then randomly placed into familiar and unfamiliar examiner groups. Familiarity with the examiner was…

Special preparation for tests has been a relatively contentious issue. The controversy has entailed (a) disagreement over the effectiveness of such preparation, (b) concern over unequal access to it, and (c) worries about its impact on the validity of test scores. This paper provides a brief history of ETS's involvement with, and contribution to,…

This article considers the practice of learning poems and the value of poetry in the memory, and emerges from the Cambridge Poetry Teaching Project, a small-scale research study co-ordinated through the Faculty of Education at the University of Cambridge. Drawing on the subset of findings in relation to learning and memory, the essay locates the…

Participatory digital media--broadly defined as media such as the Internet, social network sites and cell phones that allow users to interact--are ubiquitous among today's youth. Among teens ages 12-17, 95% have access to the Internet; 70% go online daily; 80% use social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter; and 77% have cell phones. Many…