This book describes the major differences between men and women in cognitive or problem-solving abilities and discusses the possible biological contributions to such differences. The book argues that sex differences in cognitive patterns and in motor skills arose out of complementary evolutionary histories of men and women and that evidence for…

The research reported here focuses on the cognitive processes involved in creole genesis: relexification; reanalysis; dialect levelling; and parameter setting. The role of these processes in creole genesis is documented in a detailed comparison of Haitian Creole with two of its major source languages: French, its main lexifier language, and…

This case study describes how one autistic learner, an 11-year-old boy, became a co-researcher with university literacy instructors to investigate how hypermedia can help him develop language and literacy skills. Data was collected for one year from video taping, journal notes, interviews with teachers and parents, test scores, and student…

This study analyzes examination questions and papers in 12 academic departments and seven faculties at a Kenyan (Africa) state university between the 1989-1990 and the 1994-1995 academic years, charging that the findings reveal impoverished university training. The paper argues that the emphasis in most examinations is on the lower mental skills,…

Adolescents, ages 11-12 and 13-14, were tested for maturity of judgment about stability-change situations and about time perspective. (CP)

Contrasts the consistency, the self-concept, and the new look formulations of cognitive dissonance. The study demonstrates that dissonance occurs when a behavior and its consequences contradict an individual's self-concept. Findings both support and diverge from various aspects of the three formulations of dissonance phenomena. (LSR)

Presents the results of two studies where children were taught to identify textual cues, syntactic and semantic, in order to locate main ideas. The children also built graphic representations of these structures and were taught relevant questions to ask regarding comprehension. Results showed significant improvement, especially with older…

Delineates a generalized difference between men and women in approaches to ethics. Reiterates Carol Gilligan's theory that men generally believe in a morality of rights whereas women subscribe to a morality of relationships. Discusses other aspects of this dichotomy including ideas of good, evil, and sin. (MJP)

Investigates the potential interaction of conceptual representations and linguistic systems during language acquisition. The study examined language-thought interactions in American, Finnish and Polish children, focusing on the conceptual and linguistic development of space and time. Findings reveal that spatial and temporal linguistic systems and…

Provides specific and useful guidelines for utilizing learning styles to increase instructional effectiveness during choral rehearsal. Broadly identifies students as either "analytical" (inductive reasoning) or "global" (deductive reasoning). Includes a chart containing specific rehearsal activities designed to interest each group. (MJP)

The 63 items on skills in acquiring and using information from written documents contained in the Survey of Young Adult Literacy in the 1985 National Assessment of Educational Progress are analyzed. The analyses are based on a qualitative cognitive model and an item-response theory model. (TJH)

Describes the history and current issues of curriculum, instruction, and evaluation in elementary social studies. Emphasizes teaching for understanding and higher-order applications. Concludes that higher-order goals of social studies instruction are comparable to those in other subjects. (BB)

Maintains that much of the high school curriculum, particularly in social studies, contains innumerable facts that have no use except to pass school tests. Reviews research on effective instruction as applied to social studies. Includes 17 characteristics of highly engaging social studies teaching and learning. (ACM)

Examines instructional strategies for improving the education of English language learners. The strategies reviewed were ESL in the Content Areas, Effective Use of Time (EUOT), and a combination of the other two. The EUOT group had the highest scores on reading and language arts achievement and the combined treatment group, the lowest. (34…

Presents an inquiry-based approach to promoting critical thinking in psychology. Maintains that the model emphasizes helping students ask thoughtful questions. Discusses research results supporting the use of questioning techniques to enhance critical thinking. (CFR)