Examines, within a situated-cognition framework, the teaching and learning of a concept in biomechanics, the manual techniques and tactile discrimination skills that accompany it, and the diagnostic frame of mind that informs concept, technique, and skill. Draws on observations of a class of physical-therapy students. (Author/SLD)

The sensory status of four nonverbal adults with mental retardation and severe self-injury was examined using skin temperature measures prior to opiate antagonist treatment. For each participant, the body site targeted most frequently for self-injury was associated with altered skin temperature and reduced by naltrexone treatment. In all cases,…

This schools fourth-grade language arts curriculum includes two stories that deal with blindness. The stories prompted Carol Vincent to invite one of her students' parents, who participates in a guide dog program by raising puppies, to bring one of her dogs to school and explain the training of guiding-eye dogs, and the ways in which they can be…

Middle school students represent a wonderful target audience for introducing neurological concepts. The preteen years of the middle grades represent a time of incredible physical and mental development. Students in a seventh-grade classroom are experiencing dramatic physiological and psychological changes. Understanding the parts and functions of…

Recent studies have suggested that unusual visual processing in autism might stem from enhanced visual discrimination. Although there are also many anecdotal reports of auditory and tactile processing disturbances in autism these have received comparatively little attention. It is possible that the enhanced discrimination ability in vision in…

Four experiments studied the perception of the unity and boundaries of objects by 88 4-month-old infants who manipulated them out of the visual field. Infants perceived the unity/boundaries of these objects by detecting the motion patterns they themselves produced. Discrimination between motion patterns transferred from touch to vision. (SLD)

Describes a study performed at Kenyatta University in which comparative reading and comprehension rates were investigated between five blind and five sighted students. Results indicated that blind students require longer reading time than the sighted students, but comprehension levels remained the same between the groups. Implications and…

This article investigates categorical perception as a phenomenon which can be understood in terms of adaptation level theory. Data from four experiments, two visual and two tactual-kinesthetic, supports the idea that categorical perception is a pervasive characteristic of perceptual organization. (JAZ)

The use of a nonvisual tactual and auditory tutorial method to teach initial reading skills to 16 reading disabled children (ages 7 to 14) was evaluated. The method was shown to be less effective than sighted methods. (DB)

Reports two studies of infant exploration. In the first, age and characteristics of the object stimuli influenced 6-, 9- and 12-month-olds who manipulated a series of objects. Results of the second study suggested that different kinds of manipulation are used to explore changes in shape, texture, and weight. (Author/CB)

Discusses the value of touch as a counseling tool with handicapped students. Delineates the mechanical and neurological components of touch and identifies tactile stimuli that are processed and evaluated during a learning experience. Academic and affective factors are also reviewed. (JAC)

Analysis of audio and videotapes revealed an increase from an understanding of 5 to 469 words after training with a vibrotactile device and traditional aural-oral teaching techniques in a deaf two-year-old. Compared to younger hearing children, she exhibited similar developmental patterns for rate of acquisition and stages of lexical…

To assess the performance characteristics of synthetic and leather basketballs, individuals were asked to discriminate perceptually between the leather and synthetic basketballs under four treatment conditions. Rebound characteristics on five playing surfaces were measured. Leather basketballs rebounded significantly higher; no significant…

The reinforcing properties of four sensory stimuli (continuous and flashing light, vibration, and sound), which were under the subject's control, were examined and the effect on stereotyped behavior of 24 severely retarded and autistic children were observed. Findings were interpreted to support the self-stimulation theory of stereotypy despite…

Four severely retarded and four nonretarded adolescents learned compound discriminations in the haptic (touch) modality using D. Ray's conflict-compound procedure. Subjects evinced selective attention effects in posttraining tests conducted in the haptic modality. Visual transfer tests revealed the effects of conflict-compound discrimination…