Observed fluctuations in problem-solving and classroom behaviors for 43 nonmedicated pupils who had attention deficits with hyperkinesis. Results showed that on problem-solving tasks except Digit Span, pupils performed better in the morning. In classroom behavior, all pupils exhibited more interference, off-task, noncompliance, and minor motor…

Recent research has substantiated long-standing beliefs of classroom teachers about the relationship between pupil engagement and achievement; one of these is that increased pupil involvement or attention to the learning task increases learning. Additionally, consistent teaching behaviors and classroom variables are frequently associated with…

Much effort has been invested in time-on-task research. Time-on-task is described as a proxy term for the notion of "attention," and the findings of time-on-task research are described as less relevant to the classroom teacher than information contained in methods texts. (JN)

Informal practitioner designed materials and activities, such as audiovisuals and word games, for training auditory attention and memory span in young language impaired children are described. (PHR)

Robust interference effects were found which declined with age. Manipulating discriminability of the relevant stimulus dimension resulted in large changes in sorting time, but interference effects did not vary with baseline difficulty. These results were interpreted as strongly supporting both an absolute decrement model and a developmental trend…

The purpose of this paper is to examine critically the research to determine the lecture method's strengths, weaknesses, and uses; and to explore possible ways of improving it by altering the lecture itself and by combining it with other modes of instruction. (Author/SJL)

Results of discriminating and monitoring tasks indicate that performance deteriorates over time when a specific object must be distinguished from previously presented nonspecific objects in a display which changes quickly. The results offer a basis for distinguishing between perceptual and response processes underlying the vigilance decrement.…

Attempts the theoretical rapprochement of two theoretical constructs on working memory, neo-Piagetian models and Baddeley's model. Summarizes both types of models, then discusses their similarities and differences. Presents the results of a longitudinal study that supported the idea that these models might be complementary rather than…

Three experiments examined infants' perceptions of their own leg movements as presented to them via online video that varied the spatial orientation and directionality of movement. The infants looked significantly longer and generated significantly more leg activity while looking at the view displaying a left-right inversion than while looking at…

Study determined what parts of teacher behavior actually affect students and why students only pay attention at certain times. Researchers observed preschool teachers interacting with students, recording all behaviors. Results indicated only 58 percent of teacher behaviors were effective. The more cognitively complex demands ran greater chance of…

Reviews the increased use of Ritalin in the United States and offers some reasons for its growing use. These include public misconceptions about the benign nature of the drug, the political and medical clout of organizations promoting its use, unclear concepts of attention-deficit disorder, and a desire to have children behave compliantly in…

Describes a study of primary school children in Western Australia that was conducted to assess student attitudes towards a computer-based interactive arithmetic test. Examines whether the simple format of the test would capture the attention of the children long enough to gather the required statistical data. (Author/LRW)

"America's Kindergartners," a National Center for Education Statistics report, suggests that kindergarten is becoming increasingly academic. Children's scores on the 1998-99 Early Childhood Study-Kindergarten reflected their mothers' educational and racial/ethnic backgrounds. Two-thirds of black and Hispanic kids fall into the lowest…

A study compared the academic and learning characteristics of three students with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorders (AD/HD), three gifted students, and three gifted students with AD/HD. Giftedness conferred benefits related to specific talents but did not offer protection from the negative outcomes of AD/HD, such as inattention and…

Sees learning as a component of development. Explains how cognitive growth can result from dialectical interactions among modes of learning and attentional mental capacity, and that these modes and components of attention relate to contextual function areas which, being neuropsychological units, can be clarified as to function by connectionist…