Investigates the age effects on the abilities of older and younger adults in Canada to use contextual information to resolve ambiguous pronouns. Findings reveal that both groups were equally influenced by the contextual information available, although older adults responded more slowly and were less accurate than the younger adults. (50…

Investigates the relationships between the process of encoding and the resulting comprehension and representation of second-language (L2) sentences that are causally related. Results suggest that integration and elaboration had a critical effect on L2 readers' comprehension and memory of the sentences. (37 references) (Author/CK)

This study found that violent or horrible images in news stories increased attention, amount of capacity required to process a message, and ability to retrieve a story; facilitated recognition of information presented during a video; inhibited recognition for information presented before; and indicated that negative images increased the…

Assessed third-graders' phonological sensitivity, working memory, syntactic processing, word recognition, pseudoword reading, and reading comprehension. Found that phonological sensitivity was a strong predictor of reading performance after working memory and syntactic processing had been partialled out. Syntactic processing failed to predict word…

This study compared the effectiveness of spaced retrieval (SR) and a modified cueing hierarchy (CH), for teaching persons with dementia a strategy goal involving an external memory aid. Training of 25 persons with dementia found that the SR procedures resulted in significantly more goals being attained and maintained at both 1-week and 4-months…

Examined the relationship between emotions and the autobiographical narratives of 3- to 5-year-olds. Found that the expression of emotions congruent to events in a laboratory scenario involving separation of two friends was not related to narrative content apart from the specific separation event. Narratives were longer and emotional content more…

Presents a study that examined the reactions of students to a classroom exercise in which students observed how gender stereotypes influenced memory processes. Explains how one student tells a story to second student; that student tells a third student; and the third student tells the entire class the story. (CMK)

Surveys the growing body of research on formulaic language units--or ready-made chunks and sequences of words. Evidence suggests that these multi-word lexical units facilitate long-term memory storage and fluent language production. Examines formulaic language acquisition in children and adults and discusses applications for teaching. (Author/VWL)

Two experiments examined the communicative bases of preschoolers' object appearance-reality (AR) errors. Found that AR performance correlated positively with performance on a control test with the same discourse structure but nondeceptive stimuli, and on a naming test. Overall findings indicated that the discourse structure of AR tests elicits a…

The influence of selected cognitive factors on age-related changes in speech recognition was examined by measuring the effects of recall task, speech rate, and availability of contextual cues on the recognition performance of 10 young listeners (ages 18-40) and 10 older listeners (ages 65-76). Hearing loss affected performance. (Author/CR)

A study of 27 British children (ages 5-19) with Down syndrome investigated the effects of using a memory training program at schools for children with severe learning difficulties. Results found a small but significant improvement in memory spans for children who were trained by teachers or teaching assistants.(Author/CR)

Maintains that Demetriou and his colleagues' project shows how developmental scientists can assess concepts from multiple frameworks and relate them through explicit modeling and targeted research to build explanations powerfully grounded in data and theory. Presents doubts related to specific conclusions because of issues related to the design of…

A study investigated temporal resolution of auditory perception (TRAP), verbal working memory, and speech perception in 15 children with language impairment and 99 controls. No deficits in TRAP were found in the subjects and thresholds were similar. There were significant differences in performance on speech perception and verbal working memory.…

Reflects on a personal experience that occurred when listening to a Holocaust survivor informally speak. Discusses the importance of teaching about the Holocaust to promote understanding and collective remembrance about this historical event. Addresses the reasons why remembering the Holocaust is vital. (CMK)

Presents a taxonomy and a rationale for measuring three domains of online search competence--affective, cognitive, and sensorimotor. Implications for bibliographic instruction are explored, including the desirability of teaching users affective skills that will permit them to acquire the complex cognitive skills required to conduct more…