This book discusses modern scientific inquiry and examines the procedures of inquiry into human behavior used in the behavioral science disciplines. Psychologists look at the individual's adjustive procedures and the evolution of those adjustments within a species. Anthropologists inquire into the behavioral similarities and differences of human…

Controversy exists regarding the nature of the creative process and strategies which hold maximum promise for accelerating creative production. This paper provides a structural overview of the major problems and issues found in the scientific study of creativity, primarily in regard to dimensionality and criterion choice. (KS)

A problem solving case method of teaching practical pathology is described, illustrated, and compared with more traditional teaching methods. Advantages include: emphasis of the relevance of pathology to clinical medicine; encouragement of self-assessment; economy of equipment costs and staff time. (Author/LBH)

Conducted to determine whether use of computerized file-management programs can enhance the development of information processing skills, this two-treatment experiment found that seventh through twelfth grade students in the computer-using/structured activities group received significantly higher mean scores than the…

A family case study of a 12-year-old hearing impaired girl who refused to attend a new school when her family moved indicated anxiety about meeting the new school's standards, her mother's return to work; her siblings' adjustment to their new school; and her father's focus on work activities. (CB)

A project to (1) develop and apply a microcomputer simulation program to enhance clinical medication problem solving in preclerkship and clerkship students and (2) perform an initial formative evaluation of the simulation is described. A systematic instructional design approach was used in applying the simulation to the disease state of rheumatoid…

Evaluates the effectiveness of a sixth grade experimental language arts program designed to teach higher-level thinking skills. Reports on different types of instruments for measuring higher-level thinking skills, including verbal and nonverbal tests of divergent thinking, a nonverbal test of flexible thinking, and a verbal divergent production…

Student teachers (N=21) in elementary classrooms for mildly handicapped learners were randomly assigned to training and supervision in either databased problem-solving instructional approaches or conventional treatments. Teachers in the databased condition had significantly greater effects on reading achievement and off-task behavior control. No…

Europe and America share a host of similar rural problems but not a common approach to solving them. Social and political differences make it unlikely that we can easily adopt European programs, but observing the similarities can help us understand the global nature of rural development issues. (JHZ)

States that students who simultaneously acquire subject matter concepts and high-level thinking skills are more likely to learn, remember, and be able to apply the concepts. Provides an example for assisting faculty in developing better decision-makers. (RT)

Discusses the need to teach undergraduate students the critical thinking processes necessary to formulating and researching a topic, rather than the technicalities of online catalogs. The development and design of an online catalog at Dickinson College, which forces students to make informed choices throughout the search process, is described.…

Summarizes current developments in alternative frameworks research in science education. Covers concept maps, learning as conceptual change, classroom strategies, problem solving in physics and where research should be going. (CW)

Contrasts two models for bringing about school improvements: the Dissemination Efforts Supporting School Improvement (DESSI) model, and the school-based, problem solving approach, and notes that each recommends an implementation plan, ongoing staff development, and a focus on academic goals and instruction. (JC)

Listening and reading comprehension are seen as problem-solving activities, which require instruction in thinking skills. An instructional technique, reciprocal teaching, is conducted as a group problem-solving activity to teach remedial and special education students to predict, question, summarize, and clarify while reading and listening to…

This discussion of how to design a training program to teach professional judgment and performance focuses on a model for training police officers. Open job skills are explained, appropriate choices and actions are described, and the components and objectives of open job skill instruction are presented. (LRW)