In this research we explored the relationship between spatial activities in the home and spatial ability at the start of formal schooling at age four. In total, 30 children participated in this research. Data sources included a demographic questionnaire, a survey of at home spatial activities, and standardized testing in verbal and non-verbal…

Chinese and Japanese immigrants to the United States and Canada have survived years of discrimination and oppression and today demonstrate academic and professional achievements that are often better than those of whites. However, the Asians continue to obtain higher scores on nonverbal/spatial tests than on verbal tests and tend to be…

Language used in situations in which speakers cannot rely on shared social, physical, or historical contexts has been referred to as "decontextualized." Many researchers believe that the use of decontextualized language is at the core of literacy--that reading and writing are consummate acts of decontextualization. Somewhat intermediate…

Since research on the effect of questions adjunct to written materials has usually ignored learner aptitudes, this study was designed to explore the interaction of a verbal aptitude measure (vocabulary ability) with two types of questions following a prose selection on logical implications. Two hundred fifty-two tenth-grade students were randomly…

This report summarizes the findings of a 2-year longitudinal study of a number of aspects of the effects of television on three small Canadian communities, one of which began receiving broadcasts for the first time during the study. The three communities were roughly matched for population (650-870 people), population of areas served by the towns,…