Examines the importance of levels of questioning and types of feedback in designing courseware for computer-based education. Test results are analyzed for four groups of high school students who completed different versions of a computer-based science lesson, and recommendations for future research are given. (Author/LRW)

Library circulation records for five years in one Hawaiian elementary school were analyzed to discover patterns according to sex and grade level; identify titles, subjects, and types of books circulated; and determine circulation of Hawaiiana and books about Asia. Bibliography of 129 titles mentioned in text is included. (11 references) (EJS)

A descriptive model of how people make judgments under ambiguity is proposed. Two factors are reflected in the model: (1) the amount of ambiguity, which affects the size of the simulation, and (2) one's attitudes toward ambiguity. The model is tested in four experiments using individual and group analyses. (Author/LMO)

Examines thought processes closely linked with intellectual development and transcending boundaries of many disciplines. Among the topics discussed are: nonuniform change without calculus; discrimination between observation and inference; asking one's own questions; hypothetico-deductive reasoning; and types of knowledge. (JM)

Explains the use of contingency tables as a tool in assessing variables to determine whether a relationship exists. Develops an example hypothesis step-by-step, noting the scientific processes and attitudes being addressed. Cautions that a large difference, which suggests a relationship, is not explanation since correlation does not guarantee…

One valuable ingredient that is missing from common teacher practice is the measurement of ongoing student performance in the classroom in a way that supports improvement in student performance and in teacher instruction that can be shared with parents, teachers, and other professional colleagues. Treatment-only designs (TODs) with self-recording…

This book provides information on what works in education, how teachers can find what works, how educational research can find its way into classrooms, and how teachers can apply it to help individual students. Data come from a meta-analysis of research studies on instructional strategies that could be used by K-12 teachers. Nine research-based…

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between working memory and text coherence in Chinese text comprehension. Eighty-six subjects were asked to complete an operation-character working memory span task to classify them into low-span and high-span and a reading task to measure the time to detect inconsistency as well as their…

Describes laboratory activities which encourage students to develop and test hypotheses related to the effects of changing environmental factors on plant growth. Uniform (fair) testing and careful observation and measurement, supplemented by graphing, are emphasized as important in reaching valid conclusions. (JM)

Argues on the basis of Piaget's theory that self-regulated cognitive activity of the student plays a crucial role in the construction of logical reasoning strategies used in testing hypotheses. Proposes six sequences in the development of hypothesis-testing conceptions and provides alternatives. Also distinguishes three families of teaching…

Empirical findings lend credence to the postulation that differences among teachers regarding content knowledge ( being more pronounced in the upper grades regarding cognitive attainment of course specific content), instructional skills, and teaching experience do result in cognitive attainment differences among classes of learners. (Author/RL)

Focuses on the acquisition of negation in American Sign Language (ASL) and the developmental relationship between the communicative and grammatical (or linguistic) headshakes for negation in deaf children acquiring ASL. Results indicate that the systems for communication and language are differentially mediated. (35 references) (Author/CK)

Though research is exploratory, it suggests ways in which individuals' a priori beliefs in available social support might affect their reactions to new information and the mechanisms that could underlie the maintenance of these beliefs in light of that information. Evaluates implications for the stability of perceived support availability. (LSR)

Describes study designed to examine the effects of textual and/or computer animated orienting strategies and practice on rule-using and problem-solving skills of elementary school students using computer-assisted instruction. Four different versions of a lesson based on Isaac Newton's Law of Motion are described, and results are analyzed. (28…

Discussion of the selection of appropriate statistical procedures by educators highlights a study conducted to investigate the effectiveness of decision aids in facilitating the use of appropriate statistics. Experimental groups and a control group using a printed flow chart, a computer-based decision aid, and a standard text are described. (11…