Moral development is viewed as a matter of progression in the cognitive reasoning and rationale underlying choices and judgments. Traditionally, retrospective reports of rationales have been used to measure moral development levels, resulting in unreliable information. Information Integration Theory attempts to assess individual differences in…

The psychology of personality has always attempted to define the individual in relation to normative data. However, personality theory should be attempting to define individuals from an interactive measurement model, examining the individual in terms of his own subjective impressions about what he does, with a conception of what he does not do.…

Research on teacher thinking has established a place for itself within the international educational research enterprise. What is not so clear is how studies of teacher thinking may be of use in improving the quality of teacher preparation programs. This paper promotes a consultant role for researchers on teacher thinking in relation to teacher…

Teachers' knowledge and understanding of classrooms is perceived in this study in terms of interpretation of non-verbal and situational cues. Two sets of videotapes of classroom episodes were prepared, one in Hebrew and one in Dutch. These tapes were viewed by Israeli and Dutch teachers in cross-cultural settings. Teachers responded in writing and…

Designed for community college social science instructors, this compilation of materials provides an overview of the literature on critical thinking. Following introductory comments, ideas are presented concerning the importance of teaching critical thinking, the conflicting opinions about the essence of critical thinking, the pros and cons of…

This book presents six alternative teacher evaluation approaches in six chapters. Each contributor was directed to respond to an identical stage-setting stimulus; then the chapter was immediately relayed to a public school practitioner who was asked to supply a "from-the-field" reaction. The reactions follow each chapter under the heading, "From…

The process of introducing students to alternative approaches and giving them the opportunity to debate their views about a work in order to develop critical thinking skills can start in the elementary school grades. George Hillocks' seven-level hierarchy represents an appropriate scheme by which teachers can sequentially move students to higher…

A number of laboratory studies have addressed the question of how people integrate different pieces of information to form an overall evaluative judgment. Models of information integration, i.e., the adding model and the averaging model, were tested by gathering questionnaire data from 233 respondents in 17 groups who were expected to vary in…

This paper develops a comprehensive and coordinated strategy for teaching critical reading and rational decision-making skills to college students. Five skills are identified as essential for developing sound reasoning processes: (1) developing an objective viewpoint, (2) identifying and clarifying an evaluative statement--the difference between…

Sixty-five female undergraduate students who were either standing or reclining listened to a tape-recorded counterattitudinal speech containing either strong or weak arguments. Their evaluations revealed a significant interaction between posture (standing or reclining) and quality of arguments (strong or weak) on a measure of attitude change.…

Evaluations occur within a political decision-making mileau, where multiple stakeholders are contending for limited funds. Given the subjective basis of empirical information, different conclusions or recommendations about a program may result from different ideological, theoretical, and disciplinary perspectives. The logic behind the…

Decision making processes among older adults were investigated within the context of grocery selection, using a stimulus array involving two product classes (bread and cheese) with 10 items per class. The sample (N=580) was stratified by sex, household status (living alone or with spouse), and age, employing three age groupings: 25-34 (young),…

This second edition of "Beyond the Wasteland" provides an updated review of broadcast criticism. It offers teachers information to sharpen their own critical capacities and help for exploring media criticism with their students. It also provides suggestions and contextual insights for the mass media researcher. The book is divided into…

Suggestions and learning activities to help secondary students learn social studies skills are contained in this document. Social studies skills make it possible for the learner to employ those intellectual processes necessary in obtaining or handling knowledge. Five selected skill development areas are discussed; each area contains a number of…

Doublespeak can be defined as language which is purposely ambiguous, deceptive, or evasive. If we want to promote integrity between act and word, we must teach by living out of the kind of consistency which we hope for in others. Functioning honestly in departmental and pedagogical as well as other personal dealings can be the most effective thing…