In light of extensive research demonstrating widespread misconceptions about electricity, this paper describes a learning study that targeted the most likely source of difficulty--failure of middle school pupils to develop a mental model that serves as a bridge between static and current electricity. During the intervention, pupils first envision…

Preadolescents in three subcultures--city, kibbutz, and Israeli Arabs--were compared on the realistic-relativistic dimension of moral judgment. City children were more relativistic in their judgment. The results were explained in light of Wright's theory of moral behavior and attributed to the differences in socialization pattern in the three…

Discusses differences in the way immigrant students (Grade 8) from the Soviet Union and North America adjust to the Israeli educational system. Reports that North American students are peer group-oriented (like Israeli students), whereas Soviet students are adult-oriented, and thus more likely to experience congnitive dissonance. (KH)

Describes the achievement of Israeli fourth and eight graders on the performance assessment of the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS). The Israeli educational system has stressed practical tasks, and as expected, performance of Israeli students on the TIMSS performance assessment is quite high. (SLD)