The question considered in this essay is: Given what we know about research and development in education, what might reasonably be expected from a National Institute of Education (NIE)? Two suggestions are made. One way to figure out what an NIE might be good for is to make up a list of what's wrong with American education and dream up some…

Many studies have suggested that supervisor performance and employee knowledge of organizational policies are related--that the better supervisors are those who are more sensitive to their communication responsibilities so that they tend to give clear instructions and keep their subordinates properly informed. A study was devised to test this…

Experiments were conducted to test the effectiveness of self-instructional programs to teach the operation of two pieces of technical equipment, SAGE track monitor and intercept director. Three groups of trainees completed each program: (1) naive trainees; (2) trainees familiar with other components of SAGE; and (3) trainees with limited…

The study describes one phase of an Adolescent Pregnancy Project. Based on a sample of high school youth, this analysis focuses on their understanding of the consequences of childbearing during adolescence in terms of health of the mother and the child and its impact on family life. (Author)

This study examines how some of the country's future professionals perceive the aged. The data indicate that among social work, law, and medical students there is a striking absence of knowledge of the most basic facts about the elderly. (Author)

Investigates the influence of contraceptive knowledge among young persons on sexual involvement, personal responsibility, and perception of options in the event of unwanted pregnancy. (Author)

Study of the School Health Curriculum Project for fifth-grade students revealed no apparent effect on students' perceived vulnerability to illnesses and accidents but substantially improved knowledge and attitudes toward cigarette smoking, though there were differences due to variables such as sex, ethnicity, income, and reading levels. (MJB)

Two exercises are described for teaching about perception and knowledge in an introductory sociology course. One involves the use of a series of anomalous playing cards; the other uses a series of printed statements. Both force the students to experience perception and knowledge as socially constructed and problematic. (Author)

Reports results of a study conducted to determine the level of occupational knowledge of fourth, fifth, and sixth graders and the extent to which these levels are influenced by the rural community in which the students live. It was concluded that a career education program would provide more knowledge of non-local occupations to give rural…

Suggests that qualitative studies of how knowledge becomes organized and retrieved over long periods of time would be of great interest not only as a more naturalistic counterpart to the laboratory experiments on memory, but also for education generally. (Author/AM)

A summary is given of investigations examining the attitudes of five- to twelve-year old children concerning (1) definitions of health and illness, (2) concepts of causation and prevention, (3) perceptions of vulnerability, and (4) use of health care providers, and suggestions are presented for implementing specific educational processes based on…

The author describes the use of the task analysis approach in health education curriculum development and describes several instruments developed for this purpose. (MB)

Members of the Minnesota capitol press corps were polled concerning their assessment of their peers' knowledge about legislative issues and their interest in presenting the truth. (GW)

States that educational researchers have very little knowledge that they know for certain. Provides an overview of the relationship between research and philosophy, addressing three questions: (1) What is real in education? (2) What can be known about educational reality? (3) What is the relationship between educational research and what we know…

Introduces four categories of teaching knowledge: the "folkways of teaching,""local mores,""private views," and "teaching expertise." Analyzes the "folkways of teaching," arguing that they are known by acquaintance, through participation, and as common sense. (Author/JDH)