A general learning impairment model and a reasoning insight model, both in rats, were reviewed for parallels to theories of human cognitive deficiency, leading to the conclusion that animal models of the cognitive deficiency states of mental retardation are underutilized and that human mental retardation researchers would benefit from greater…

This chapter from a longer work concerns the ability of children to solve arithmetic word problems. The studies reviewed suggest that, with age, children's improved ability to solve word problems primarily involves an increase in the complexity of conceptual knowledge required to understand the situations described in those problems. Considered in…

Provides a brief summary of current research in mathematics education at the college level. Explores the current needs of college-level faculty. Suggests ways of coping with the apparent perception that some of the best contemporary research is useless or irrelevant from the practitioner's point of view. (22 references) (JJK)

What makes a fraction meaningful and a definition of the quantitative notion of fractions are discussed. Then observations from teaching experiments are presented. (MNS)

Cognitive science is briefly reviewed, and its implications for instructional design are discussed. The application of cognitive science to instruction requires knowledge of cognitive science, the subject content taught, and the system in which the instruction is imbedded. The central concept of cognitive science is mental representation--the…

This paper examines the possibility of developing a conceptual framework on which future research on the application of electroencephalography (EEG) to computer-assisted instruction (CAI) could be based. Consistent associations between EEG and cognitive functions for learning and instruction have the potential for bringing cognitivism into the…

A study reviewed 88 doctoral dissertations written during a 4-year period in the 1980s on the use of feedback for performance improvement. The purpose was to sugget applications of the findings to teaching improvement in postsecondary education, and to determine the extent to which faculty development centers contribute to this research.…

A major focus in all areas of education today is the impact of education on students' ability to use higher order thinking skills. Understanding and improving the knowledge, cognitive abilities, and dispositions that guide, organize, and form effective action in the workplace, home, and community are significant problems for vocational education.…

Reactions to H. Lee Swanson's paper "Toward a Metatheory of Learning Disabilities" are outlined, and his arguments are applied to reading disabilities, focusing on the importance of the scientific attitude, the misuse of ecological validity, interpretation of Thomas Kuhn's work, modularity and reading disability, and scientific progress…

Describes research in two different domains: novices learning programing, and school pupils interpreting Cartesian graphs. Findings in each domain are discussed, but the main focus is an examination of the extent to which general principles and issues apply across both domains. Research implications for instructional design are discussed.…

An overview is first given of some main theoretical frameworks underlying current European research in mathematical thinking, learning, and teaching. Together with the information-processing and the (neo)-Piagetian approaches, both well known in the United States, two other research paradigms can be distinguished: the action-oriented approach to…

This first volume of a review prepared for the Cockcroft Committee of Inquiry into the Teaching of Mathematics in Schools in Great Britain, and its main conclusions were incorporated in their report, "Mathematics Counts." Its aim was to display the main outcomes of research relevant to the teaching and learning of mathematics. The…

This fourth yearbook on research on mathematics teaching in Finland contains five articles, four in English and the fifth in German. "Mathematics as a Cognitive Science" (C. Letteri) examines cognitive aspects related to teaching and learning mathematics, with the focus on the different levels of comprehension and an analysis of basic…

This review of the research on the cognitive effects of computer-assisted instruction begins with an overview of the ACCCEL (Assessing Cognitive Consequences of Computer Environments for Learning) research program at the University of California at Berkeley, which consists of several interrelated studies examining the acquisition of such higher…

Intended for reading educators and researchers, this handbook characterizes the current state of methodology and the cumulative research-based knowledge of reading. The book's three sections cover methodological issues, basic reading processes, and instructional practices. The 25 chapters discuss the following topics: (1) reading research history,…