A study of fifth and sixth grade public school students in Israel suggests that grades and other norm-referenced methods are less effective than task-involving evaluation methods in enhancing student performance, interest, and motivation. This article consists of two commentaries on the findings, with suggestions for implementing task-involving…

Two aspects of verbal ability are required for performance of verbal tasks: verbal comprehension (given the most attention); and verbal fluency (slighted by researchers). An information processing approach to how words are generated was used in two studies of 104 third and 61 sixth graders to clarify the relationships between verbal fluency and…

Presents results of a study which interviewed sixth graders from three North Carolina schools to determine what they think of their school librarians. Results indicated that children's perceptions are affected by personalities and behavior of individual librarians. Sidebars focus on how the study was conducted and what students noticed most about…

Describes a model of adaptable learning that takes into account the interaction between affective and cognitive variables in learning situations, introduces an instrument for measuring relevant aspects of this model, and presents initial results of the application of this instrument to (n=30) 6th-grade students. (53 references) (Author/MKR)

This study investigated the relationship between the level of conservation of displaced volume and the degree to which sixth graders learn the volume algorithm of a cuboid, i.e., volume = length x width x height (v = l x w x h). The problem is a consequence of an apparent discrepancy between the present school programs and the theory of Piaget…

Fifty fifth and sixth grade students participated in a study attempting to document motivational differences that may be associated with two approaches to classroom writing instruction. Thirty of the students were involved in the process-oriented approach where students are encouraged to write multiple drafts of assignments, attending to issues of…

Describes and explains the classroom group process and group leadership of a sixth-grade teacher in an urban classroom. Discusses the importance of classroom grouping and its implications for teachers. (MLF)

Discussion of the amount of mental effort children invest in television viewing versus book reading focuses on a Dutch study based on Salomon's model and his studies with children in Israel and the United States. The depth of information processed is discussed, and differences in results are examined. (18 references) (LRW)

Reports on the second phase of a cognitive study of multimedia and its effects on sixth graders' learning that focused on the relationship among text, animation, and captions. Results show that a combination of text plus animation and captions resulted in greater recall, inference, and comprehension. (Author/LRW)

Illustrates an approach to the study of writing that integrates ethnographic analysis of classroom interaction with linguistic analysis of written texts and teacher/student conversational exchanges, using a case study of writing in a sixth grade classroom during a writing assignment. (MM)

Argues that science may be presented as a continuing effort to improve existing knowledge. Analyzes a three-month discourse by sixth graders, showing that the basic commitments enabling scientific progress can be realized in elementary schools. Suggests that people need to be able to move freely between scientific and other modes of thought to be…

Describes study that examined the effects of combining word processors, spelling checkers, and spelling drill and practice programs to individualize spelling instruction for fifth- and sixth-grade students. Treatments for the experimental and control groups are explained, selection of software is discussed, and suggestions for software development…

Describes a study of fifth- and sixth-grade students that investigated the patterns of peer interaction among students working cooperatively in small groups on a computer-based problem-solving task and the effects of gender and group composition on peer interaction. Suggestions for future research are included. (Contains 86 references.) (LRW)

A study explored how small groups of student readers interacted in a classroom over time to interpret short stories assigned by a teacher who functioned as participant/observer. The study focused on multiple readers in actual classroom situations to consider the relationship between the social and academic elements observable during day-to-day…

The first part of this document presents the results of a survey of early entrance testing procedures in 25 Florida districts and details teacher ratings of 486 first-grade and 154 kindergarten students whose entrance test results had permitted them to enter kindergarten a year earlier than other students with birthdays between October and…