Using a semantic mapping technique for vocabulary instruction, a study explored how children of diverse groups bring different cultural backgrounds and prior knowledge to tasks involved in learning new words. The study was conducted in three sixth-grade classrooms--one containing rural Native American (especially Menominee) children, another…

The aim of this paper is to present some results of a pilot study designed to find out the extent to which English words and expressions are already familiar to Swedish-speaking children before they start studying English at school, that is, at the end of their fourth school year. The study drew data from a simple productive and receptive English…

A study examined primary grade children's comprehension processes while reading a particular story in which specific areas likely to pose reading difficulty had been identified. Based on the children's readings and on their answers to questions concerning the text, five problem areas were identified: (1) poor decoding or word attack skills (2)…

A study investigated the relationship between text organization and children's reading comprehension of expository material. Upgraded and downgraded versions of both macrostructures and microstructures were combined to produce four texts on the topic of insect-eating plants. Forty-three seventh grade students were randomly assigned to one of the…

A study examined the international knowledge of beginning journalism students. Subjects, 220 beginning newswriting students from five schools and departments of journalism at large, state-run universities across the United States, were given a questionnaire adapted from another source which asked students questions on global issues and their use…

This study examined the science process skill of prediction problem solving using naturalistic research methodology and information-processing theory. The think-aloud interview led to the identification of several specific program exploration and prediction behaviors. A total of 14 high school biology students made predictions concerning the…

To determine how much prior knowledge affects students' performance on a reading comprehension test, a study was undertaken to examine the prior knowledge factor in a reading competency test developed for college freshmen in New Jersey. The passages used in this test are based on common, everyday topics. Subjects were students in two sections of a…

This guide is intended for use by counselors, providing them with credit recommendations and course descriptions to assist the process of granting credit to students for learning acquired in noncollegiate activity. The guide is divided into two sections. Section 1 contains course exhibits for courses which have been reviewed and recommended for…

A study examined the effects of prior knowledge and the explicitness of text connectivity on various measures of reading ability. Subjects were 130 eighth grade students who read 6 prose passages that had been manipulated for content familiarity and for use of explicit connectives and implied connectives (those brought about by the author's…

Two studies investigated the relationships between readability, prior knowledge, and interest in the material being read. In the first study, 169 college freshmen read cloze passages of materials from the Nelson-Denny Reading Tests, then one week later read the whole passages and completed the related multiple choice questions. A control group…

Describes a study of the effect of incongruent prior knowledge on fifth- and sixth-graders' text comprehension, indicating that text structures that explicitly contrasted the reader's misconception with the correct information were more effective than those that simply gave correct information. (HTH)

Major issues in models of student learning (Carroll's, Bloom's, and Glaser's models) are discussed, and a model that retains the salient features of these models (time, prior learning, and learning processes) is outlined. The final model also addresses other facets having unique effects on achievement and interactions among facets. (TJH)

Several lines of social psychological research that indicate possible biases in assessment of students' written work are reviewed. These are sex bias, physical attractiveness, and prior knowledge. There is evidence of likely biases from all three areas; further research in real, as opposed to simulated, assessments is required. (Author/CH)

Describes two experiments that investigated the effects of two thematic retrieval cues on the types of information recalled from short stories by elementary school children and adults. Shows adults and fourth graders, but not younger children, spontaneously generated thematic retrieval plans which enabled them to remember information from both…

Compares kindergartners' and third and sixth graders' understanding of an illusion reported by the philosopher John Locke, in which two hands simultaneously experience two different temperatures from a container of water at one temperature. (HOD)