Examines the relationship of achievement in reading, spelling, and arithmetic with a variety of other measures, including tests of visual memory and visual-motor association. Concludes that visual association is more closely related to achievement in reading, arithmetic, and spelling than is visual memory. (HOD)

Four teachers suggest a number of research topics they believe deserve investigation, including grammar instruction and teacher effectiveness. (RBW)

Offers examples of lessons in conflict in reading material that can lead students to read critically, to seek further reading, and to enhance their comprehension.(HOD)

Investigated whether dropouts and other students having difficulty with physics could be identified by including mathematics reasoning items along with mathematics skill items on a 13-item mathematics pretest and by using records of past performance in conjunction with the pretest. Sample included 483 students in an introductory, noncalculus,…

Points out the untestability of a heredity explanation for the differences in IQs of Black children and those of White children. Suggests an environmental explanation, arguing that Black children, simply have not had the opportunity to develop their potential for abstract thinking. (HTH)

Research has revealed distinct differences in the problem-solving approaches of high- and low-aptitude students. As a consequence, content area teachers can focus on thinking skills by having students describe their mental processes and giving them feedback on erroneous or incomplete reasoning. (TE)

A correlation exists between verbal ability test scores and name identity minus physical identity reaction times in a letter matching task. The present results support Carroll's (1981) suggestion that the reaction time difference is related more to speed than power component of standardized tests and is not optimum for prediction. (Author/RD)

Reports on three studies that investigated the knowledge gained by students, ranging from grade 3 to graduate school level, from exposure to single examples of literary types. Concludes that students of all ages showed evidence of some pick up of rhetorical knowledge, although of limited complexity. Contains materials used in the study. (FL)

Investigated the efficacy of an instructional program designed to induce students to construct a mental scheme in which experimental design and natural experiments are understood as facets of the same problems and which incorporates a general solution procedure applicable to both. Results show a highly significant posttest achievement by the…

Teachers producing their own worksheets can now make ones that include questions that stimulate such higher level cognitive processes as analyzing, interpreting, and synthesizing. Suggestions are given for assignments which utilize word searches and partially filled outlines in both group and individual activities. (IS)

Compares the performance of Black, Hispanic, and Anglo students on a story unscrambling task to determine if sociocultural differences in story schemata affect reading comprehension. Shows some effects suggesting that the three groups have somewhat different strategies for choosing initial and final sentences and for making narratives coherent.…

Although adult education as a field has shown interest in theories of situated cognition, it has misappropriated some of its central concepts. Proponents of situated cognition posit that learning is not something that happens in independent isolation, or just inside the head, but instead is shaped by the context, culture, and tools of the learning…

Spontaneity has been linked to high quality learning experiences in mathematics (Csikszentmihalyi & Csikszentmihalyi, 1992; Williams, 2002).This paper shows how spontaneity can be identified by attending to the nature of social elements in the process of abstracting (Dreyfus, Hershkowitz, & Schwarz, 2001). This process is elaborated…

This issue of the quarterly newsletter, "PLAINTalk," is the first in a four part series, reprinting chapters from Sharon and Craig Ramey's book, "Going to School." This issue presents practical and useful techniques for parents, covering the following topics: (1) How Parents Can Help Children Learn; (2) How Does Your Child's Brain Work; (3) The…