Determined which of 10 rational thinking powers are measured by 12 commercially-available standardized science tests. One result reported is that 90 percent of the test items required only recall. The conclusion was drawn that the producers of standardized tests are not concerned with measuring student achievement of the rational powers.…

This research investigated the value students attached to the laboratory activities while studying physics using the learning cycle curriculum construction and teaching procedures. Among the procedures used to supply students laboratory data were video-taped demonstrations, "live" teacher demonstration, presenting data in written form…

Secondary physics students were interviewed to determine their expectations/actions in laboratory work. Results indicate preference for laboratory activities because such exercises help students remember, are less confusing, and more concrete. Use of the laboratory as an introduction to a concept, followed by discussion, was a key component to…

A learning cycle consists of three phases: exploration; conceptual invention; and expansion of an idea. These phases parallel Piaget's functioning model of assimilation, disequilibrium and accommodation, and organization respectively. The learning cycle perceives students as actors rather than reactors to the environment. Inherent in that…

Discussed is the philosophy of the educational purpose of science education, the science involved, and the relationships of students and learning and students and content. A list of 14 references is included. (CW)

Investigated the influence that changing the form of the learning cycle's exploration/expansion phases had on the content understandings developed by students and their attitudes toward the learning procedures used. The naturalistic data presented show that students believed learning physics is enhanced by the regular-form learning cycle (which…

A learning cycle consists of three phases: exploration; conceptual invention; and expansion of an idea. These phases parallel Piaget's functioning model of assimilation, disequilibrium and accomodation, and organization respectively. The learning cycle perceives students as actors rather than reactors to the environment. Inherent in that…

Presents data which leads to the construction of a response to the question of how different phases of the learning cycle influence physics students' content achievement and attitudes. Discusses the importance of the learning cycle in science instruction and the strength of using contrasting techniques (qualitative and quantitative) in research.…

The research reported in this study was done to evaluate the understandings developed by students who meet science concepts through a textbook. Findings indicated that concrete concepts were better understood by eighth grade students than formal concepts and that students achieved some understanding of some formal concepts. (CW)

Different learning cycle sequences were investigated to determine factors accounting for success of the cycle, compared learning with conventional instruction, and examined relationships between Piaget's theory and learning cycles. Results show that the normal learning cycle sequence is the optimum sequence for achievement of content knowledge in…

Students (N=22) enrolled in secondary school biology were evaluated for their abilities to use: combinatorial logic; correlational reasoning; separation and control of variables; exclusion of irrelevant variables; proportional reasoning; and probabilistic reasoning. Each student responded individually to six Piagetian tasks designed to measure…

Students (N=49) enrolled in a physics course for elementary teachers were evaluated for their abilities to use: (1) combinatorial logic; (2) separation and control of variables; (3) proportional reasoning; and (4) reciprocal implications. Performance of four Piagetian tasks during interviews was treated as a measure of the degree to which students…