Having spent over two decades training teachers, Iveta Kovalcíková writes in this editorial that she has lately been attracted by ideas bridging the growing gap between neurological and psychological research findings and their practical application in practice. Here she argues that outcomes of research on learning processes are insufficiently…

An experienced cello soloist recorded her practice as she learned and memorized the Prelude from J.S. Bach's Suite No. 6 for solo cello and gave 10 public performances over a period of more than three years. She described the musical structure, decisions about basic technique (e.g., bowing), interpretation (e.g., dynamics), and five kinds of…

In a virtual environment, blocking of spatial learning to locate an invisible target was found reciprocally between a distinctively shaped enclosure and a local landmark within its walls. The blocking effect was significantly stronger when the shape of the enclosure rather than the landmark served as the blocking cue. However, the extent to which…

In the last issue of "About Campus," the author outlined the research studies that she presented with Eric J. McIntosh, Denise Nelson, and Shannon Pothovenin in 2009, which led to the creation of the Thriving Quotient, a reliable and valid 35-item instrument that measures the changeable psychological qualities in students that affect their ability…

A student's inability to keep pace with the demands of the classroom can produce feelings of inadequacy, performance anxiety, depleted motivation, and even behavioral maladjustment. Too often, schools respond to such students with well-intentioned procedures or guidelines that fail to meet the needs of the thwarted learner. However, in recent…

When students ask for a study advice, many professors would say something like this: "Read carefully. Write down unfamiliar terms and look up their meanings. Make an outline. Reread each chapter." That's not terrible advice. Some scientists would say that professors left out the most important step: "Put the book aside and hide the notes. Then…

Jean Louis Nicolet is a Swiss teacher of mathematics who found his subject so fascinating that he was puzzled as to why so many pupils could not share this enjoyment in their studies. He came to a conclusion which is now supported by the results of psychological research into the learning process: he suggested that the mind does not spontaneously…

Our research on learning enhancement has been focusing on the consequences for learning and forgetting of some of the more obvious and concrete choices that arise in instruction, including: How does spacing of practice affect retention of information over significant retention intervals (up to two years)? Do spacing effects generalize beyond…

E. Hirshman, J. Fisher, T. Henthom, J. Amdt, and A. Passanname (2002) found that Midazolam disrupts the mirror-patterned word-frequency effect for recognition memory by reversing the typical hit-rate advantage for low-frequency words. They noted that this result is consistent with dual-process accounts (e.g., R. C. Atkinson & J. F. Juola, 1974; G.…

A central problem of psychological research in education is to determine how to make learning more effective and productive. A psychological theory of educational productivity is summarized, the syntheses of the evidence relevant to the theory is discussed, and prospects for educational policy and subsequent research are presented. (Author/MLW)

The author describes his program of research over the past 25 years. This research falls into 6 areas that are interdependent and that inform each other. The overall program is guided by 3 bioecological principles that posit the need for proximal processes and motivation to actualize biological potential. The author presents examples of…

Recent reforms in social education have emphasized the study of history and global education. Thus, educators expect students to develop historical empathy and the ability to take divergent cultural perspectives. In other words, students should be able to see the world as others see it. From a psychological perspective this capacity is known as…

Discusses current learning theories, indicating that though many psychologists and ethologists now agree on using a mechanistic approach, some linguists doubt its adequacy. Implications of research on the mollusk "Aplasia" to understand the learning process are included. (JN)

Addresses implications drawn from contemporary research in cognitive psychology which deal with the impact of nonconscious mental structures and processes on an individual's experience, thought, and action. Discusses the information-processing perspective, automatic processes, subliminal perception, implicit memory, hypnotic alterations, and the…

Since the publication of their seminal article entitled, "Transmission of Aggression Through Imitation of Aggressive Models" (Bandura, Ross, & Ross, 1961), the work of Albert Bandura and his co-authors has had an immeasurable impact on the field of psychology, in general, and educational psychology, more specifically. The purpose of this report is…