When interviewed, 105 third-grade students indicated that they did not view retardation as a set of behaviors, but as a trait, defined abstractly and perceived to be both predetermined and largely irreversible through personal effort. Children did not assume that being retarded excluded being pretty, athletic, or smart. (Author/JDD)

Examines the effect of inserted questions with and without feedback on students' estimates of posttest performance. Finds that requiring students to answer inserted questions and then providing students with feedback on their responses leads to more accurate student estimates of posttest performance. (MG)

Philosophy is a basic subject that should be required in high school and in college. It is an essential element in an educated person's body of knowledge, interesting in its own right at the elementary level. (MSE)

A questionnaire concerned with various aspects of hearing aids was completed by 88 speech-language pathologists from six southern states. Results indicated some deficiencies in knowledge, exposure, and attitudes concerning hearing aids and hearing aid wearers. Implications and suggestions for graduate education and continuing education are…

Survey responses of 341 North Carolina public school teachers were used to determine frequency of teacher contacts with children with chronic health conditions and needs related to the educational management of these children. Information on teachers' greatest concerns and most helpful resources regarding these children was also sought. Results…

A stochastic version of a knowledge space is developed in which knowledge states are considered as possible epochs in a subject's learning history. It specifies how a subject is channeled through and progresses along a "gradation." The model's application to artificial data is described, based on maximum likelihood methods. (TJH)

Assesses whether students possess information about gangs that could be useful to primary and secondary education providers. A sample of 193 inner-city high school students, representative in terms of ethnicity, gender, and grade level, completed questionnaires. The data revealed that students are a feasible source of data on gangs. (GLR)

High school students (n=25) enrolled at a state school for the deaf in the southwest were tested on 50 middle school mathematical terms, phrases, and symbols. Mean comprehension score was 46%. Recommendations include teaching concepts and vocabulary together, integrating language arts into mathematics instruction, and using manipulatives. (MDH)

Knowledge and perceptions of agriculture were measured for 668 rural and 453 inner-city high school students. Both were most knowledgeable about natural resources; rural students were least knowledgeable about plants, urban students about policy. Rural students had significantly higher knowledge scores but more favorable perceptions only in the…

A study was conducted of differences in processing speed and recall with 61 10th-grade biology students studying a unit on plants and controls who took only the unit tests. Processing speed and recall improved as much for students completing the unit as for controls. (SLD)

Relational knowledge of 21 derivational suffixes was investigated with 120 children (grades 3-8) and 40 adults. Results obtained from a nonsense-word model indicated that suffixes were comprehended with greater accuracy than they were produced, particularly by the children. Children and adults demonstrated greatest accuracy in comprehension and…

Item analysis of a measure of knowledge of sexual abuse prevention concepts, the Children's Knowledge of Abuse Questionnaire, was utilized in an evaluation of an elementary school program which served 111 children in grades 1, 3, and 6. Findings revealed differential responses by children of different ages to certain prevention concepts. (DB)

Knowledge/skills statements were rated by 102 teachers of students with emotional/behavioral disorders as to importance, proficiency, and frequency of use. Means for all responses to the 201 knowledge/skills statements and weighted means for the 11 statement categories are reported, highlighting items similar to those published by the Council for…

Examined environmental characteristic differences between a stratified sample of 624 Kentucky River Basin rural and urban residents. No significant differences were found in individual's environmental world views, concern, knowledge, and actions, but differences were found by education and income. Recommends promoting population equity to ensure…

The effects of students' conceptual levels and teachers' instruction patterns on students' motivation to learn academic course content were investigated. An examination of 63 students indicated that for low-conceptual-level students, direct teaching methods maximized motivation to learn course content. For high-conceptual-level students, nondirect…