Observation of machine or production operators in a Singapore factory for insight into their need for English language skills, existing skills, and the results of a basic English language program in which many were enrolled revealed that, although the workers were generally poorly educated and had minimal English skills, they were able to decode…

The purpose of this book is to help athletic coaches improve the way they teach sport skills. Section I covers the athletic coach's instructional responsibilities for a single season, and ways of adjusting teaching styles to the learning needs of athletes. Section II offers guidance in presenting sport skills and how to introduce, explain, and…

Research indicates four sources for the use of the first language in the second language classroom. Environment and the learners cannot be easily controlled, but materials and teachers can. The goal of such control is to increase second language input primarily at the macro level for reading, listening, and speaking practice, thus speeding up the…

Sixty high school juniors and seniors participated in an experiment testing the effects of learning strategies on performance. The experiment was run in two identical sessions except for the type of test administered. Information on classifying six types of sailboats was presented through slides and an oral explanation. Subjects were then given a…

Relationships between media format, sensory channel, and cognitive information processing are not straightforward. Media format does not determine information processing and storage except when a deliberate attempt is made to model cognitive processes by manipulating the medium. Sensory channel only affects processing and learning for relatively…

According to Benjamin Bloom's (1981) concept of of mastery learning, most students--given the appropriate instruction and learning resources, adequate time spent learning, and perseverance--can learn a particular academic skill. Because a classroom often does not provide enough time or resources for developmental students to master necessary basic…

Attempts to train learning strategies have not produced marked or lasting increases in academic IQ, probably because current training models fail to recognize the evolutionary nature of strategies acquisition. Empirical and theoretical evidence supports an incidental learning model, which engineers the instructional environment following study…

Early adolescence is a time when students require adult assistance to become accurate and effective decision makers and problem solvers. Because of the fragmented nature of society, the family structure, and the schooling process, schools need to establish a nonthreatening environment in which students can discuss the issues related to growing up.…

An assessment study was conducted on the effectiveness of a cognitive education program, Feuerstein's Instrumental Enrichment, in meeting the needs of a class of low achieving adolescents at a vocational school in Calgary, Canada. Fifteen students participated in an Instrumental Enrichment class for one 45 minute period five days a week over two…

Because of the limitations of two recent major reviews of the research on studying another review of the literature was conducted. Articles chosen for this review supplied adequate information about levels of processing and encoding specificity, investigated the effects of student-generated as opposed to teacher-provided study aids on…

Through the years teachers have developed a systematic approach to teaching logic, order, and structure. This approach has put to use the capabilities of only the left side of the brain, neglecting the right-brain activities of visual literacy and visual clustering. To help students organize information efficiently, teachers should provide…

This paper argues that the information processing model provides a promising basis on which to build a comprehensive theory of instruction. Characteristics of the major information processing constructs are outlined including attention, encoding and rehearsal, working memory, long term memory, retrieval, and metacognitive processes, and a unifying…

A top-level structure learning strategy is described in this paper. Topics covered in the paper are (1) strategic use of knowledge about top-level structure, including how the strategy works, the spontaneous use of the strategy, and the acquired use of the strategy; (2) fundamental steps in programs of instruction involving the top-level structure…

Examines the effects of mastery criteria on the performance and attitudes of undergraduate students who were divided into three treatment groups with mastery criteria set at 70 percent, 80 percent, and 90 percent respectively. Their performance and attitudes were also compared when mastery criteria were increased, decreased, or kept constant…

Discusses a preliminary and sketchy hypothesis of second language comprehension based on empirical investigations into strategies and processes specific to second language comprehension. (Author/CB)