"Smithtown" is an intelligent computer program designed to enhance an individual's scientific inquiry skills as well as to provide an environment for learning principles of basic microeconomics. It was hypothesized that intelligent computer instruction on applying effective interrogative skills (e.g., changing one variable at a time…

This descriptive study explored understandings of five learners in a third-grade mathematics class during a year in which their teacher attempted to change her teaching method. The study also examined the teacher's self-images of teaching while using the new discourse-based approach. Data was obtained from: (1) interviews with the teacher…

This study examined the similarity among 45 sibling pairs in the third through fifth grade, in their social and academic adaptation to the school setting as evaluated by multi-agent and multi-method assessment of adjustment. Measurements included teacher ratings and rankings of academic skills, social behavior, and peer acceptance; peer…

A study investigated the relationship between formal and conversational logic. Thirty-two male and 32 female college students evaluated the conclusions of conditional syllogism and participated in an interview adapted from Deanna Kuhn's (1991) monograph, "The Skills of Argument." Students were asked to provide explanations for several…

As individuals mature, they show increasing responsibility for events in their lives, but with variation in this form of maturation from one individual to another. These individual differences can be observed in doctoral candidates' activities associated with completion of the doctoral dissertation. The purpose of this study was to assess doctoral…

Functioning effectively within a family requires the ability to communicate with diverse and unique individual family members. Appreciating the different ways that people interact with one another may reduce the number of family disputes caused by lack of effective communication. This manual is designed as a practical guide to increasing…

The impact of parents as socialization agents for the gender development of their children is controversial in the literature. This study tested the assumption that parental socialization influences found to be of importance for one kind of variation in gender development are not necessarily the same as those that are of relevance to explain…

"Advances in Education Research" reprints previously published journal articles reporting on research supported in whole or in part by the Office of Educational Research and Improvement (OERI). The articles are selected from peer-reviewed/referred journals; the journals used are described briefy at the end of the volume. The articles in…

Differences among students can yield rich benefits as well as pose difficult problems during collaborative learning. Students can draw on diverse individual experiences to exchange information, to understand different expressions of shared commonalities, and to construct new possibilities jointly. However, they also face the potential pitfalls of…

Case studies of six foreign adolescents participating in a 3-week immersion English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) program at the American Village language camp in Big Sky, Montana, are examined, including the students' motivations in learning and using English. Research focused on exploring student motivations toward learning and using English at the…

The history of Western social thought may be examined by focusing on the linkage between dominant legitimating ideologies and various institutional structures of the social formation. As society moves in the direction of postindustrialism, the development of a constructivist, rather than deconstructive, form of postmodernism is needed.…

This study examined temperament characteristics in children with Down syndrome (n=191) when compared with normally developing children (n=388) matched according to broad developmental levels (infancy, toddlerhood, early childhood, and early school age). The study looked for: (1) possible differences in temperament between children with Down…

This paper demonstrates how Q-methodology combines artistic and scientific procedures to allow social science researchers to develop and test theories about differences in persons. Q-methodology is based on factor analysis. In R-technique factor analysis, the most commonly used technique, variables define the columns and persons define the rows of…

This book is intended for early childhood educators, student teachers, practicing teachers, and parents who are interested in improving observation and assessment processes for children from infancy through the elementary school years. The book covers the history, philosophy, and practice of observing, recording, and analyzing children's behavior.…

This study examined the associations between preschoolers' behavior in their family and a couple level index of parenting style. This index is defined as the difference in the amount of emotional interaction between mothers and fathers with their children. Thirty-eight families with a preschool-aged child took part in a laboratory visit, and…