Responding to recent advances in developmental and cognitive science research on knowledge acquisition, this report presents a theoretical framework for analyzing cognitive development as a process of learning. The first section summarizes three developmental characteristics recognized in both the Piagetian and the quantita experimental tradition:…

This study examined the effect of formal and concrete instruction upon science achievement and intellectual development of sixth grade students. Formal instruction, which emphasized oral and written language, included lecture, discussion, oral quizzes, written assignments, reading assignments, films, film strips, written tests, and quizzes.…

To investigate young children's understanding of metaphorical language, 90 chidren from preschool to third grade were read stories ending with metaphorical sentences of varying degrees of difficulty--sentences representing more or less predictable story outcomes and differing in the complexity and explicitness of their figures of speech. After…

The purpose of this study was to compare the relative merits of two causal models in which moral reasoning, sex, and social class were used to predict classroom behavior problems. Model A implied that conduct problems would decline linearly as moral maturity increased. Model B implied that the lowest as well as the highest levels of moral maturity…

Educators and researchers nationwide are examining the contributions of induction programs to new teachers as they enter the profession. This time of transition is being held by many as increasingly important for the successful occupational adjustment of new teachers and the retention of quality teachers. It also is believed to affect the degree…

Eighty-six mother-infant pairs were studied to determine the extent to which maternal and child variables predicted maternal involvement. The infants, ranging in age from 3-36 months, were examined on temperament and developmental status. Maternal characteristics studied were temperament, locus of control, and socioeconomic status. Criterion…

This document is a plan for tracking students' social growth by the college resident assistant and for evaluating the students' growth and the resident assistant's performance. The plan, based on Bloom's Taxonomy of Affective Cognitive Processes, includes a clarified purpose, objectives for implementation, shared assessment values, and continuing…

Perry's theory of intellectual and ethical development of college students is briefly reviewed. This theory was based on work with Harvard University students, and addresses dualism, multiplicity, and relativism. In the first stage, a student sees the world in right-wrong, black-white terms, with no room in the thinking process for conditional or…

Methodological issues which confront researchers using the concept of the family career include the selection of appropriate dependent variables; the efficacy of historical versus immediate effects; and scaling the family career (a proposed replacement for the "family life cycle"). The issue of which dependent variables should be…

Few studies concerning siblings have taken a lifespan approach, i.e., studying sibling relationships from childhood to old age. To outline the developmental changes that occur in the quality of the sibling relationship during various periods of the life cycle and to test the feasibility of devising a coding system to identify such changes, 47…

The relationship between younger and older children's stated preferences for television characters and their conceptions of those characters was investigated among students in the second and fifth grades. Of particular interest was the possible effect of children's preferences on the developmental shift from external to internal attributes. Using…

This document opens with a brief discussion of the views of Jean Piaget and his contributions to psychology. The material moves into a presentation of several research studies that have attempted to look at large and representative samples of adolescent pupils, and presents data for comparison in a cross-cultural context. The main sections cover:…

A 20-year study to monitor moral developmental stages is summarized with a focus on the invariant sequence and internal consistency of each stage. It is theorized that an individual passes through several stages in attaining moral judgment. As children grow older, they are able to integrate diverse points of view on a moral conflict. Each stage…

Experiencing the loss of a loved one can be one of the most traumatic events in a child's life. Grief resolution must be attained no matter how trivial a loss and it becomes even more important when a child's parent dies. School psychologists need to understand how the age of the child influences his ability to grieve and what behaviors might be…

A review of recent sex education literature is presented in an attempt to integrate observations and recommendations related to both program development and innovation acceptance. A Developmental Research and Utilization Model is employed to systematically guide planning, implementation, evaluation, advocacy, and institutionalization. Curriculum…