This report describes a microcomputer system which collects data from students in classrooms on a daily basis and is then used to evaluate concept achievement and attitude changes through a time series analysis. Two pilot studies in two junior high schools in Ohio are detailed, where eighth grade students' progress in an earth science study unit…

One of the most striking developments in understanding science learning has been the discovery of the extent and persistence of the naive conceptions about the natural world students bring with them to the classroom. In physics and other sciences, students (even those who do well on textbook problems) often do not apply principles they have…

The effectiveness of a pedagogic strategy which involved the development of descriptive tactics and individual exploration into the meanings and significance of photographic images was investigated. An additional purpose of the study was to reveal methods which enhanced student responses toward photographs, and their production, function, and…

Through everyday experience people acquire knowledge about how moving objects behave. For example, if a rock is thrown up into the air, it will fall back to earth. Research has shown that people's ideas about why moving objects behave as they do are often quite inconsistent with the principles of classical mechanics. In fact, many people hold a…

Students have well-formed but incorrect theories of simple motion. As children, they interpret many phenomena related to motion before encountering any formal science education. Since most adults have misconceptions, children's questions are not answered correctly, so the misconceptions persist. Thus, every science teacher must face the prospect…

Both evaluation and planning typically begin with an attempt to define the conceptual territory of interest; this paper presents an approach to such conceptualization. The term, structured conceptualization, is used to refer to any definable set of procedures which can help a user develop a useful conceptual representation. Structured…

Included in this booklet is an account of children's concepts of death at various ages. Specifically, the discussion examines the "average" or "normal" reaction of children from birth through 2 years; 3 through 5 years; 5 through 8 years; 9 through 10 years; and at 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, and 16 years. Children's reactions to the death of a pet and…

This study attempted to determine if students learn science concepts better when laboratories are used to verify concepts already intorduced through lectures and textbooks (verification laboratories or whether achievement and retention are improved when laboratories are used to introduce new concepts (directed discovery learning laboratories). The…

The premise that using language is a thinking process is central to the computerized diagnostic test being developed by Educational Testing Service (ETS). The test developers are making a significant educational contribution by describing the reciprocal and dynamic relationship between language and thinking. Reading comprehension has been…

In this short article I present a case for developing a new theory of music education, arguing that advances in music technology have undermined some of the most basic conceptual frameworks we currently possess. I describe some problems that might make the development of a new theory difficult and suggest some ways in which they might be overcome.…

A study was designed to develop an instrument and methodological procedure to assess transitive relations within seriation problems in elementary school children using three criteria: explanations, judgments, and strategies. A secondary analysis to assess transitivity used the three criteria according to whether the children were conservers, in…

Stimulated recall from videotapes of the lessons of six teachers in two elementary schools was used to obtain data on teachers' interactive thoughts and cognitive processes. A content analysis system was developed and used to examine the transcribed recall interviews. The information processing of all six teachers conformed to a broad pattern.…

This collection of articles about children's literature contains the following articles: "Books in the Life of the Young Child" and "Traditional Literature: Children's Legacy" by Bernice E. Cullinan, "Encouraging Language Growth" by John Warren Stewig, "Promoting Language and Concept Development" by Dorothy S. Strickland, "Fostering Understanding…

This project had as its specific objective the development and field testing of a procedure for identifying the structure of technical concepts possessed by a group of selected quality control specialists. The associative theory of verbal behavior served as the rationale by which conceptual structures depicted by graphical maps of technical…

This paper examines some basic principles of learning theory that have been developed within the discipline of psychology. A brief resume of the psychologist's efforts to analyze the phenomenon of learning within a scientific setting is presented as well as attempts to apply this research to a practical situation (e.g. the classroom). More…