Presents research findings regarding motivation's role in music education. Explains that students in grades five through eight provided reactions to a fictitious band student's experience with failure. Reports that many respondents believed that the student would perform better, try harder, and receive the teacher's and fellow students' support in…

Utilizes a sample of 225 first graders and 246 seventh graders to examine the imagery developed in response to neutral words. Finds that the children developed sex-specific masculine imagery in response to neutral messages, with boys doing so more frequently than girls, but the seventh graders used more inclusive imagery than the first graders.…

This project was designed to: (1) assess 7th-graders' metacognitive beliefs and processes and investigate how they affect problem-solving behaviors; and (2) explore the extent to which these students can be taught to be more strategic and aware of their own problem-solving behaviors. The primary assessment was conducted by analyzing video tapes of…

This study investigated several aspects of a teaching experiment which focused on five seventh grade students' performance on nonroutine number theory problem-solving with a close look at the role of heuristics, concrete models, and the relationships between these variables. In the experiment, students were given a series of lessons on number…

Children in the United States and other industrialized countries grow to adulthood in an age of science and technology. Satellites, television sets, microprocessors, and microwave ovens are as common as the sun and trees. The context of socialization to adulthood in the last half of the 20th century is far different in kind than any previous…

Reports on a study which investigated the effect of instructional objectives on seventh grade students' attitudes toward science. Results indicated that students in the integrated science program had better attitudes than those receiving traditional instruction. (TW)

Assessed the level of cognitive demand inherent in the manner in which students were held accountable for activities and tasks in seventh grade life science classes. Notes that most tasks placed minimal cognitive demand on students, as they involved copying or simple step-by-step procedures. (SKC)

Study examined how environmental and physical characteristics contribute to the emergence of adolescent girls' dating behavior. Subjects were girls who attend dance schools and girls who do not.

Reports on test development and validation research in computer literacy among elementary and secondary students. Empirical data collected in testing 3,000 students in grades four, seven, and 11 are presented which evidence psychometric properties of the testing instruments and address questions of interrelationships among student and classroom…

This study examines the influence of duration and amount of soap opera viewing by sixth and seventh graders on their perceptions of relational fragility and importance of talk in managing relationships. Mediating variables of viewing motives, experience with peer relations, and family structure are also examined. (Author/MBR)

Meta-analysis was used to assess the effect of metacognitive instruction on reading comprehension. Twenty studies from the reading research literature were compiled and quantitatively synthesized. Results affirm the effectiveness of metacognitive strategies, especially for junior high school students. Textual inconsistency awareness,…

Examined is the role of middle school science textbooks in dealing with sensitive social and scientific issues. Ten widely used textbooks are compared to determine the amount and depth of content presented on five major global issues, including nuclear weapons. Implications are discussed within the context of a television culture. (KR)

This paper examines theories of human development within the context of the models presented by the schools of cognitive learning, behavioralism, psychoanalysis, and humanistic views of growth. Stress is placed on the stages of human development that provides a means of better meeting the needs of students ages 10-14 in the middle school milieu.…

The educational television series "Across Cultures" was evaluated to examine the effectiveness of the series and how the programs were structured to attain objectives. Designed to complement sixth- and seventh-grade social studies textbooks, the series on world cultures is composed of thirteen 15-minute programs about three widely…

This collection of papers was solicited from a variety of educators in an effort to provide direction to teachers, curriculum developers and textbook publishers on topics in mathematics education that are consistently mentioned in recent national reports and study groups. The consensus of reports sponsored by various professional associations…