Suggests that business communication curricula should include instruction in critical thinking, and offers ways in which students can practice their critical thinking skills using business curricula. (JC)

Applications of social judgment theory are discussed with respect to policy formation and decisionmaking in educational contexts. Interactive computer technology is described, which can execute social judgment analyses, provide cognitive feedback to the policymaker on selected policy parameters, compare the policies of several policymakers, and…

Reviews the background leading to the development and evaluation of problems to examine student ability to do qualitative reasoning, applying concepts rather than algorithms. Describes creation of quantitative and qualitative problem papers, summarizes results, and proposes distinctions based on cognitive difficulty. (JM)

A semantic differential measure of the attributions of the term feminist was developed and administered to 768 college students. Principal components analysis resulted in five factors: general evaluation, behavioral characteristics, political orientation, sexual preference, and gender classification. Internal replication and stability of the…

A model of how the human cognitive system operates in its natural social context is presented. The model focuses on both input and output variables that have been ignored in the development of most other cognitive theories. Unique predictions of the model and empirical evidence bearing on them are discussed. (Author/LMO)

Examined the relationship between 7-, 9-, and 11-year old children's performance on a battery of selected Piagetian measures and on a proportional reasoning task. Found a strong relationship between stage level and (1) the complexity of hypotheses used, (2) the use of the proportional hypothesis, and (3) the overall use of logical hypotheses. (HOD)

Two experiments were conducted to test the hypothesis that first-grade beginning readers could evaluate the referential-communicative adequacy of simple, two-word messages better if they received oral-plus-written messages rather than oral-only messages. Results indicated that oral-plus-written messages were significantly easier for children to…

Reviews prior research on television programers' information processing in making decisions on what programs to broadcast, focusing on attribute information, information integration, and information processing styles. A field experiment conducted to determine importance programers attach to programing information, how they make judgments, and…

Shared experiences between teachers meeting regularly in small groups help them to recognize, value, and utilize their own skills and experiences in professional growth and problem-solving. (JD)

This paper presents a reasoning taxonomy to explain reasoning objectives, strategies, and habits available to the advanced thinker. It begins by explaining the first part of the taxonomy, objectives of reasoning, including the need for skilled thinkers to reason with a purpose and to understand how the world works so that they can engage with it.…

An attempt has been made in this article to show cause for training in critical inquiry for prospective teachers of art. (Author/RK)

Presents an inquiry into the nature of principals' written accounts of observations of classroom teaching. (Author/RK)

Discusses the nature of "right" and "wrong," considering how the terms apply to science in general and to the ideas of Einstein, Newton, and other scientists in particular. Indicates that, in one sense, the terms are not questions of science but matters of dogma. (JN)

Student characteristics needed for professional literature reading were compared in first- and fourth-year students. Fourth-year students read more, valued reviews over original research, valued journals' reputations more, but were less willing to admit uncertainty. Medical education's emphasis on specific answers rather than analysis is faulted.…