This paper argues that if conclusions about children's grasp of logical concepts are to be reached and acceptable lines of research followed, then more precise definitions of the concept "logical necessity" must be formulated. The paper defines logical necessity as "the unconditional guarantee of truth that accompanies valid…

Asserts that individuals are limited in knowing by the threshold of their available means of perception. Everything exists in relation to other things; a person's assumptions and methods participate in creating results he or she sees, thus social science research problems are part of a pattern of interaction. Advocates isolating not entities, but…

Presents the idea that playwrites adapting plays for children often simplify it so extensively that they do not serve the developmental needs of the child or the artistic conception of the play. Suggests that developing a thematic point of view for the play would help playwrites create fuller characters that are still understandable and enjoyable…

The relationship of cognitive development to learning science is considered. Views of thinking from both a psychological and a scientific standpoint are compared in order to shed light on current science teaching practice. Metacognition and problem solving are discussed. (Author/MT)

Explains the theoretical positions of Russian Marxist psychologist and educator, L. S. Vygotsky, and their philosophical foundations. Discusses Vygotsky's major psychological theories regarding cognitive development, the development of scientific and spontaneous concepts, the zone of proximal development, and language's relationship to thought.…

Piaget's theory of cognitive developmental levels is criticized on the grounds that it blends empirical and philosophical issues of knowledge and, therefore, confuses genetic psychology and epistemology. (JN)

Discusses the nature of wisdom and its function in the developmental process and how it differs from cognitive ability. Compares these two constructs with respect to the domains of behavior they represent, the operational tasks used to assess them, and the relationship of logic and time in their development. (Author)

Presents a model used to help students of instructional technology conceptualize the range of instructional designs they might utilize and which could be used to classify existing materials for easy reference. (CHC)

Explores ways to organize skills which aid in developing the reasoning process. Suggests a social studies curriculum which focuses on a skill network composed of facilitating skills (observation, classification, spatial relationships), processes (inferring, predicting, hypothesizing), and operations (communications, interpretation, social…

An examination is made of dependency in the area of educational analysis and policy formation on the use of metaphorical thinking. A clarification is made of the conceptual difficulties that arise from the inability to understand the difference between the phenomenological world and the symbolic world. (JN)

Comments on the articles presented in this issue devoted to the Japanese perspectives on conceptual change. Discusses the overall conveyed message: The human cognitive system is a thematically organized knowledge base with agentive causality as the main mechanism for explain phenomena and analogy as the main mechanism for promoting conceptual…

Comments on the articles presented in this issue devoted to the Japanese perspectives on conceptual change. Suggests that different approaches to knowledge acquisition and conceptual change should be carefully examined in light of their implications for the teaching of science. Discusses critically the issues advanced from the Japanese…

Discusses the historical, cultural, and pedagogical roots, as well as reasons inherent in mathematical thought that may explain U.S. students' resistance to learning mathematics. Concludes that bridging the gap between theory and practice can be facilitated by a hands-on approach that employs experiments and model making. (PR)

Applies discourse analysis to an interview with Noam Chomsky to show the use of language to facilitate authority. Discusses idealism and scientism, change and the role of the intellectual, Chomsky's dualism, his "problem," his method, creativity and composition, activism and the intellectual, and the future of intellectualism. (PRA)

Presents the first of two articles examining Alfred North Whitehead's notion of the rhythm of the university, discussing the rhythm of teaching and learning, the importance of academic freedom to an imaginative faculty, and the relationship between Whitehead's own pedagogy and his considerable administrative practice. The paper's purpose is to…