A theory of memory is introduced, which seeks to respond to the shortcomings of existing theories based on metaphors. Memory is presented as a mechanism, a comparison process in which information held in some form of immediate storage (whether based on perception or previous cognition or both) is compared to previously stored long-term storage.…

Developmental dyslexia is a specific learning disability characterized by difficulty in learning to read. Some dyslexics also may have difficulty learning to write, to spell, and to speak or work with numbers. Some researchers estimate that as many as 15 percent of American students may be classified as dyslexic. Children with dyslexia are not all…

Stephen Krashen's L2 (Second Language) Acquisition/Learning Theory and Georgi Lozanov's method of teaching through suggestion are compared in both their underlying theories and classroom applications. The seven component hypotheses of Krashen's theory and their neurological implications are analyzed for their agreement or disagreement with the…

A review of research on the effects of aging on motor performance provided evidence that age-induced changes within the central nervous system, particularly in the functioning of the non-dominant cortical hemisphere, result in diminished fluid abilities. The loss was most clearly manifested behaviorally as a decreased capacity to perform…

Drawn from several comprehensive bibliographies and computer searches of volumes by speakers at the Conference on Thinking, this brief bibliography presents resources for researchers and practitioners interested in the areas of cognitive and critical thinking skills. The materials are divided into the following topic areas: (1) general, (2)…

This final report on the relationship between orthographic characteristics and reading behavior consists of five chapters. The first chapter examines writing in its variety of forms in different cultures, noting that such differences can provide important clues to how the brain processes visual information. The second chapter addresses the issue…

A literature review of communications, psychological, physiological and other sociobehavioral research literature reveals a number of paradoxes regarding the emphasis by information gatekeepers, media, and audiences on messages that are negative, critical, pessimistic, conflict-and-tension-producing, skeptical, punitive, threatening,…

Recent research has confirmed that hemispheric patterns of dominance are related to reading skills. Reading is more complex than speech because it includes a visuo-spatial element. In the great majority of people, the left hemisphere deals with speech and sequencing skills. Visual matching of printed words requires the spatial skills of the right…

Implications of three basic facts about very young infants are delineated in this summary. Normally, human infants are capable of a wide range of functions, such as "appetitive responses" (e.g., the rooting reflex) and defensive maneuvers. They experience pleasure and feel pain. Additionally, they undergo a transition from subcortical to…

Fifty partially sighted children (7 to 18 years old) were studied along 143 variables to provide a comprehensive profile in the areas of cognitive, psychomotor, academic, and neuropsychological development. The Halstead-Reitan Neuropsychological Battery was the principal data collection instrument, supplemented by the Stephen's Piagetian Battery…

This paper reviews research and opinions concerned with the lateralization of brain functions and cognitive development as described by Piaget. Optimal cognitive functioning in humans is a product of the complete development of interhemispheric communication in the brain. Growth spurts in brain development have been found to correlate closely with…

This abstract bibliography cites recent ERIC documents and journal articles concerning the differentiated functioning of the brain hemispheres. Entries include resumes from Resources in Education (RIE), October 1973 through December 1977, and citations from Current Index to Journals in Education (CIJE), November 1974 through December 1977.…

Fluid intelligence (Gf) is a general relation-perceiving capacity determined by each person's cortical, neurological connection count development. Its processes are involved in reasoning, concept formation and problem-solving, where acculturation has little effect. Crystallized intelligence (Gc) manifests knowledge and general comprehension,…

One niche in which scholars have not looked for keys to the composing process is the sometimes illusory but vital area of nonlogical discourse, which includes fantasy, hallucination, dream, reverie, vision, trance, and meditation. Abundant evidence exists about the genesis, importance, and use of nonlogical discourse, but this evidence comes…