This study examines the influence of selected performance factors and social role participation upon Piagetian cognitive funcitoning during the aging years. By administering a battery of concrete and formal reasoning tasks and measures of fluid intelligence, the effects of varying instructional set and age of E on the cognitive performance of 80…

Article discussed some educational implications of hemispheric lateralization of the human brain. (Editor/RK)

Composition can play an important role in helping our society move away from being a "mentally handicapped" left-brained culture because composition is one of the few "bispheral" activities; left and right brain functions seem to alternate during the writing process, supplementing the insights of each other. Currently, however, most teaching of…

This paper assesses certain properties of human mental processes by focusing on the tactics utilized in perceiving speech signals. Topics discussed in the paper include the power spectrum approach to fluctuations and noise, with particular reference to biological structures; "l/f-like" fluctuations in speech and music and the functioning of a…

A treatment approach to adolescents with learning disabilities which incorporates remediation and psychotherapy is explored through two case studies of two youngsters (ages 14 and 17). After a review of earlier studies, the author focuses on the diagnosis and treatment of a 17 year old boy with a ninth grade education. Once a diagnosis of dyslexia…

Background music has significant implications for the teaching-learning process in special education. Unobtrusive or background music is a powerful medium which can accentuate, maintain or attentuate overt behaviors in response to conscious sensory stimuli, and special educators could use music as a tool to increase the effectiveness and…

This paper presents background information, an introductory statement of theoretical positions, and brief abstracts of research papers from a symposium on the functional specialization of cerebral hemispheres in infants and children. According to one view of the development of cerebral specialization, the two hemispheres are initially…

Piaget and Inhelder, in The Child's Conception of Space (1956), described the coordination of viewpoints (CV) spatial operation as one of the prerequisites to the development of the rotation and development (RD) spatial operation. This study investigated this developmental dependency notion and also evaluated the effects of age and sex on the…

Developmental and post-traumatic dyslexia are discussed in terms of a dysfunction of the central nervous system resulting in reading disabilities. The relationship of reading to other language functions is considered, with emphasis on the temporal aspects of speech and reading. An interdisciplinary approach is held necessary for the diagnosis of…

The direction of subjects' first gaze shift following questions designed to elicit verbal-linguistic or visuo-spatial processing was examined in three experiments under video camera and face-to-face interview conditions. In all three experiments, verbal questions elicited significantly more downward gaze shifts than spatial questions. However,…

The Binational Dance Conference was organized into three focal themes--verities, values, and visions in dance--to emphasize the known and accepted worth and value of dance, and to stimulate through knowledge and idea exchange, imaginative directions for dance in the future of both the United States and Canada. This thematic structure is also the…

The author cites the existence of parallel brain and mind growth spurts (phrenoblysis) in the periods 2-4, 6-8, 10-12, and 14-16 years, and suggests that early intervention programs for retarded children should be based on periods of greatest brain growth. (CL)

Describes some general methods of promoting creative thinking and learning that can be used to focus attention, increase depth of conceptualization, and make the curricular content relevant and enjoyable. (Author/RK)

Explains the hierarchic structure of the mammalian visual system. Proposes a model in which feedback pathways serve to modify sensory stimuli in ways that enhance and complete sensory input patterns. Investigates the functioning of the system through computer simulations. (ML)

Mind mapping, which challenges the right side of the brain, is recommended as a technique for designing classroom work and stimulating more effective and efficient comprehension. (MSE)