High school students in South Australia were administered in group fashion the pendulum and the chemical color change developmental tasks. The major conclusion of this study is the fact that it is possible to translate into group form, administer, and assess rapidly and with considerable reliability Piagetian problem indicators of developmental…

A sample of 108 eight-grade students using Intermediate Science Curriculum Study (ISCS) were tested with four Piagetian tasks: two tasks were related to ISCS concepts, two were not. Concludes that no students were formal operational, most were concrete operational, and most performed better on the non-ISCS related tasks. (MLH)

This investigation explored the relationship between scholastic grades in science in junior and senior high school students and ability of students to perform formal operational tasks. The findings indicated that at certain grade levels and in certain subject areas, public school science students who demonstrate formal operational logic tend to…

The efficacy of small group instructional programs in classificatory, seriation, and combined class/series skills was evaluated for a sample of 60 urban, middle-class, 4- to 5-year-old children in a transfer of training design. Significant curriculum-specific transfer effects were found for the seriation instructional condition, whereas little…

The conceptual views of homeostasis held by students (n=300) in seventh grade life science, tenth grade biology, and college zoology were examined. A biographical questionnaire, the results from two Piagetian-like developmental tasks, and a concept evaluation statement of homeostasis were collected from each student. Understanding of the concept…

The purpose of this study was to develop a paper-pencil test of Piagetian levels of proportional thinking for junior high school students in the context of physical science. Two thousand twenty-seven students were tested to develop the instrument and the description of its characteristics. The final form consisted of 24 items with four subtests…

Explored was the relationship between performance and gender for junior- and senior-high students (N=108) on six Piagetian-type tasks developed to measure infralogical spatial groupings. Results indicated a significant relationship between performance and gender on four tasks, in which males outscored females. Implications for science teaching are…

Research is described concerning a factor analytic view of adolescent thought in Piagetian context. Included are a description of Piagetian tasks used for determining stage of mental development, studies concerning Piagetian task factor analysis, and the current factorial structure of adolescent thought. (DS)

A 1-year lag was found between the effect of an intervention intended to promote formal operational thinking in students initially 11 or 12 years of age and the appearance of substantial science achievement in the experimental groups. A one-year lag on cognitive development and an age/gender interaction were also reported. (Author/KR)

The purpose of a study was to explore the link between conceptual understanding, free exploration of hands-on science center exhibits, and Piagetian cognitive developmental levels. In this primarily qualitative study, which is based upon interview and observational data, patterns in children's behavior relating to specific hands-on science center…

Presents a study to examine the effects of a verbal teaching strategy versus a strategy providing instruction using activities and manipulatives in four seventh grade earth science classes with students of varying cognitive abilities (n=83). Results indicate that students with more cognitive structures perform better and that using manipulatives…

Designed for high risk children with learning needs in the development of academic, social, physical, or conceptual skills, this manual identifies and presents, in a developmental sequence, a preschool program for disadvantaged and migrant five-year-old children. The program's fundamental goal is to prepare each disadvantaged and/or migrant…