One important line of inquiry in educational psychology involves the study of change of individuals' cognitive-motivational processes. The conjunctive use of longitudinal data with latent growth curve modeling procedures has, for example, allowed researchers to identify initial levels and to trace trajectories of theoretical variables such as…

Mastery learning can be described as a set of group-based, individualized, teaching and learning strategies based on the premise that virtually all students can and will, in time, learn what the school has to teach. Inherent in this description are assumptions concerning the nature of schools, classroom instruction, and learners. According to the…

In evaluating its first year of the Student Progress Plan (SPP), the District of Columbia Public Schools found that more students were promoted under SPP than would have been promoted under the traditional policy. Implemented in grades 1-3 in 125 schools as part of the school district's competency-based curriculum, SPP is a skills mastery plan in…

A project was undertaken by three faculty members at Northern Kentucky University (a history teacher, a reading specialist, and a composition teacher) to apply their own experiences and the research of others into a systematic and comprehensive mastery learning program for developmental classes in the spring of 1980. The program was designed to…

The aim of this project was to develop a curriculum for first-year algebra students to provide a wide range of applications of mathematics. This type of application would permit students to understand how algebraic symbolism develops out of natural needs. A pilot draft of the materials was field-tested during the 1974-75 school year, revised, and…

Designed to serve as an introductory manual to mastery testing in science, this guide provides basic information about a variety of related topics such as mastery learning, criterion-referenced and norm-referenced testing, how to develop a mastery test, when and how to use a mastery test, limitations of mastery tests, and a list of mastery tests…

The effects of specific testing procedures on learning were studied, using the chunking method of teaching and studying, which involves the learning of small units of information. The size of the unit is related to the student's cognitive processing capacity (CPC)--the amount of material recalled after a brief exposure. Subjects were undergraduate…

This study was designed to determine whether mastery learning instruction at the secondary level is more effective than other instructional strategies. Seven teams of teachers in five school districts participated in the investigation. Subjects taught were middle school history and language arts, high school government, mathematics, history, and…

This doctoral thesis analyzes the effect of mastery and nonmastery teaching procedures upon student achievement and attitudes in an introductory college-geography course. Mastery learning is the teaching strategy where each segment of materials must be mastered before instruction can begin on the next segment. A classroom lecture-discussion method…

Mastery learning is an approach to learning whereby students are expected to demonstrate competence of one level, or unit, of learning objectives before advancing to the next level. Most junior college instruction is group-paced, with the instructor determining the rate with which units are presented. One compromise between existing instruction…

An individually-paced, open-entry/open-ended mastery learning approach for a state-wide civil engineering technology curriculum was developed, field-tested, and evaluated. Learning modules relying heavily on audiovisuals and hands-on experience, and based on 163 identified competencies, were developed for 11 courses in the curriculum. Written…

Evaluates the report of the Commission on Reading, "Becoming a Nation of Readers," which focuses on giving attention to classroom teaching, testing, and teacher education. It gives recommendations for changes in the way reading is taught and includes the list of 17 recommmendations from the report. (MD)

A New Jersey elementary school's new instructional program, based on a holistic concept of brain function called Proster Theory, is described. Attendant changes in class organization and teacher roles are discussed. (MCG)

Two studies examining the role of present and possible (future) academic selves are presented. In the first study, the relations between present and future selves, and changes in grade point average between the sixth and seventh grades, were examined. Results indicated that positive present and future academic self-concepts were related to…

Computer-based adaptive instructional strategies for concept learning were investigated. Selection of the number of examples according to on-task information was more efficient than pretask or pretask plus on-task information. A response-sensitive strategy was preferable to a response-insensitive strategy to determine the presentation order of…