The present work examined the influence of topic interest on the strength of different components of text representation and long-term retention according to the model of text processing by van Dijk and Kintsch (1983). A Series of relevant personality characteristics were assessed to control for alternative explanations of interest effect, A total…

This study examined the opinions of 170 Turkish elementary students in grades 6-8 about what makes a good teacher. Students completed surveys that asked about how they would describe a good teacher, what a teacher should do to be good, and what they would do and would not do if they were good teachers. Questions were open-ended to elicit student…

Models of teacher training have tended to emphasize development of competencies in teachers that emphasize cognitive aspects of learning, and minimize affective factors. Second language teacher education has adopted this emphasis on learning as cognitive rather than as a strong interaction of cognitive and affective factors. In fact, affective…

Because gifted girls so often fail to achieve their potential, they require specialized programming and counseling. Three factors in this longstanding pattern of underachievement and associated issues are: (1) biological (girls lack the innate ability to achieve); (2) environmental (aspects of the environment do not encourage female achievement);…

The trait-state model, a framework for understanding adult literacy, draws heavily on the social psychological literature. Allport (1961) first proposed the notion of trait. The overriding characteristics of focus on trait is the individual's possession of language control. Cattell (1950, 1979) emphasized the notion of state in relation to trait…

The purpose of the research program described here was to investigate college students' approaches to learning, and to determine the extent to which these reflected the effects of teaching and assessment demands rather than representing relatively stable characteristics of the individual learners. There were six main areas within the program: (1)…

Because mathematics and gender(sex) is a research area of increasing international interest, a worldwide survey about research concerned with special problems of girls and women when learning mathematics was conducted. Reports included in this document were submitted from Australia, Canada, Dominican Republic, England and Wales, India, Ireland,…

The issue of whether or not to correct errors in students' writing is controversial. Some scholars argue that error correction is helpful, while others argue that it is ineffective, perhaps even harmful. What is missing from the literature are studies about how error correction might affect the performance of specific types of students. This…

Reviews the career and contributions of George Combe, an Edinburgh lawyer who proselytized for the cause of using phrenology in education. Although dismissed today as pseudoscience, phrenology (attributing various character traits to specific locations in the brain) was taken seriously as a science during the early 19th century. (MJP)

Compares 117 Finnish and 351 southern U.S. college students for the following: (1) paranormal beliefs; (2) personality adjustment constructs (anomie, death concerns, alienation, and death threat); and (3) relationships between the beliefs and constructs. The secularization process, further advanced in Finland than the United States, moderates…

Japan's economic success may have its origins in its educational system, which instills the values of persistence and hard work in children. This process is begun by Japanese mothers, continues throughout preschool and school, and is reinforced by cultural beliefs and practices. In one study, task persistence was significantly greater among…

Presents the results of a survey on how student teachers experienced their teachers, with special emphasis on personality features evident in those teachers most liked and disliked, and those most worth cultivating. Finds interconnections between these spheres, and explores differences based on gender and students' target school level. (DSK)

Predictors of school dropout and their stability over time were studied in 791 white French-speaking Canadian students aged 12 to 16 years in 1974 and 791 similar students in 1985 through self-administered questionnaires. School, family, behavioral, social, and personality variables predicted dropping out in both samples, and these predictors were…

The aim of this research was to explore unwanted sexual behaviour amongst young people. Sexual aggression was operationalized at three levels: "verbal", "non-verbal/intimidating" and "physically violent". A total of 1,700 Dutch adolescents completed a questionnaire that included six clusters of possible determinants…

This book uses biographical, longitudinal, and reflexive methods to chronicle, analyze, and theorize about the personal and sociocultural dimensions of motivation in the biographies of adult learners. Following an introduction and explanation of research methods, chapter 3 examines the problem of stated reasons for learning and the arbitrariness…