A study examining the effects of systematized feedback on mathematics performance was conducted in natural classroom settings to extend the external validity of previous feedback studies. A posttest-only, internal-external control group design was used with three sixth grade classes serving as subjects. All classes utilized a "step" approach to…

A teaching intervention study was conducted with sixth grade students to explore the interconnections between students' growing understanding of arithmetic expressions and beginning algebra. Three groups of students were chosen, with two groups receiving instruction in arithmetic and algebra, and one group in algebra without arithmetic. Students…

This paper illustrates the value of applying the law of parsimony to canonical correlation analysis solutions. The primary purpose of parsimony is that the more parsimonious the solution, the more replicable the model will be. The ultimate goal is to estimate an equal or reasonable amount of variance with the smallest variable set possible. A…

Describes the vision that prompted the author to place the characters of her prize-winning novel in a small West Virginia town--a place where love has no conditions on it. Thanks readers for sharing her vision. (ARH)

Growing out of the belief that children need to acquire tools that will help them understand and interact with people from different cultures, a study examined the effect of a global education unit about Africa on the images of Africa held by sixth grade students, specifically investigating whether such instruction would reduce existing…

The effects of low and high levels of test-situation stress on creativity test performance were examined. A group of 60 fifth and six graders was randomly assigned to stress situations (high, low, and control) in which verbal subtasks of the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking (TTCT) were administered. Verbal fluency scores from the TTCT…

The aim of this research is to advance understanding of how mathematical knowledge functions in the proving in geometry. We focus on the rules whose mobilization is due rather to the mathematical knowledge at stake than to the proof. We observed students who are asked to solve construction problem and proving problem. The problems require to…

Continuing work led by D. A. Infante, A. S. Rancer, and C. J. Wigley, (i.e., Infante, 1982, 1992, 1996) and others, on argumentativeness and verbal aggressiveness, this study utilizes two instruments recently adapted for use with adolescent populations (A. J. Roberto & M. Finucane, 1997) to assess the effectiveness of communication training. A…

A sample of 12 recent and older sixth grade social studies textbooks was examined to determine their level of explicitness, one of the criteria used to determine the "friendliness" or comprehensibility of a text. Researchers randomly selected three samples--usually chapters--from each of the 12 textbooks. The Explication Inventory…

A study extended word association methodology beyond isolated word stimuli to investigate the effects of written context on the meanings that proficient readers impart to words. A repeated-measures design was used to assess the responses of 62 sixth grade readers to target words at three levels: no context, limited context, and expanded context.…

In this study we explored the effectiveness of individualizing instruction using a system that diagnosed students' knowledge gaps in pre-algebra and provided individualized instruction and practice. One hundred middle school students participated, and received either no instruction or individualized computer-based instruction. Diagnosis of…

This two-year study explored the academic lives of three boys in a combined fifth-sixth grade classroom. As these case studies illustrate, viewing students' academic worlds from multiple perspectives can lead to more accurate, comprehensive evaluations and efficacious adaptations of students' learning environments. Richard Snow's aptitude theory…

Our study concerns the analysis of teacher and student activities. Secondary school 6th grade students were confronted, for the first time, with solving equations. We used our cognitive models of students and experts (in algebraic calculations) for analyzing the teaching process and the cognitive functioning of students. Our model led us to…

This study was an investigation of the influence of word-problem context--the nonmathematical, verbal aspect of a problem--on fourth- and sixth-grade students' preferences for and problem solving performance on word problems. Problems were parallel in mathematical structure but differed by major context category--fantasy and real-world.…

Incentive programs in the form of token economies (the granting of points or counters which can later be exchanged for tangible rewards such as free time, listening to records, or candy) are widely used in schools today. The Pizza Hut restaurant chain promotes a motivation plan called "Book It" with free pizza as the reward for increased…