The first of this series of studies on the ability of young children to follow directions was designed to find out which is easier for a preschool child: to follow directions given only by demonstration or given only verbally. Subjects were 108 white, middle class, 4-year-olds enrolled in a nursery school. Each teacher tested the children in her…

To determine if students learn better in a teaching situation that emphasizes their positive involvement and decreases the emotional threat to their self-esteem produced by the traditional question-answer approach, a study was conducted to compare the average achievement levels of two groups of literature students--one taught traditionally to…

An examination was made into the problems of development of creative reasoning. Historical comments regarding the probable development of creative thought were amplified by glimpses into the lives of several mythical prehistoric characters. Contemporary classroom techniques designed to stimulate creative thought were presented for use in the areas…

Experiments conducted to find ways of teaching two and three year olds mathematical concepts were found to have general implications for concept learning. The failure of an initial attempt to teach the concepts "fat" and "skinny" led to a design of instructional procedures that would utilize a concept's name while trying to teach its semantic…

This study of the cognitive-developmental approach to primary grade value education emphasizes the involvement of the reasoning process in solving moral dilemmas. This approach is in contrast to those which focus on clarifying values and developing an awareness of other cultures' values. Educational intervention in the cognitive-developmental…

The effectiveness of acceleration training with children who were in a transition period was examined. Forty-eight kindergarten children were separated into four groups on the basis of their status (Preoperational vs. Transitional) and whether or not they received three sessions of inversion-negation training. The results of the immediate and…

This study examines problems related to (1) the development of children's understanding of temporal cycles, and (2) the relationship between cyclic concepts and cognitive development. Piagetian tests of classification and seriation and a variety of specially designed cyclic tasks were administered to 62 children, ranging in age from 4 to 10 years.…

Three experiments tested the application to art of an hypothesis from the concept attainment literature, that conceptual learning is enhanced by providing multiple examples prior to test trials. Subjects were given discrimination tasks involving surrealistic and non-surrealistic paintings. The feature abstraction model proved inadequate in this…

Discusses the nature of the internal representation of cognitive structure, the methodological problems involved in mapping it, and the proposed kinds of "maps." Reviews research on the organization of scientific concepts in semantic memory. (GA)

Provides a review of research on scientific reasoning in persons between ages 14 and 18. For the application, the ability to separate variables or use the concept of "all other things being equal" is termed scientific reasoning. Over 50 studies are referenced. (CP)

Examined the relationships among two psychometric measures of nonverbal cognitive ability - The Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revised (WISC-R) and the Woodcock-Johnson Psychoeducational Battery-Tests of Cognitive Ability (WJPB-TCA) and a neuropsychological test of abstract reasoning and concept formation (Halstead Category Test) in 25…

Considers the period of adolescence and describes how cognitive-developmental concerns might apply to the understanding of adolescent problems in interpersonal and affective adaptation. Also investigates ways in which intervention practices with adolescents might be placed within a cognitive-developmental context. (PCB)

Ten remedial mathematics exercises are provided for children who have failed to integrate or apply their math skills. The exercises provide remediation through systematic experimentation, rather than abstract drills, by using number-configuration distinction with blocks, fractioned candy bars, decimal match sticks, graphed pictures, etc. (JDD)

This study investigated the effects of combining interactive microcomputer simulations and concrete activities on the development of abstract thinking in elementary school mathematics. Students in grades 2-4 were assessed on tasks involving designs and patterns. (MNS)

Three research areas relevant to the relationship between writing and reasoning are reviewed: (1) cultural consequences of written language, including changes in reasoning ability; (2) individual consequences of particular writing experiences; and (3) the status of writing activities in American schools. Further research is needed to establish how…