Discusses some central ideas emerging from a systematic approach to teaching scientific problem-solving skills. Areas considered include: insights derived from naturalistic studies; effective problem-solving methods; problem-solving procedures; characteristics of the knowledge base (focusing on functional conceptual building blocks, knowledge…

Describes the development of a curriculum to improve problem- solving ability when faced with uncertainty by (1) encouraging students to examine their thought processes, (2) presenting fallacious arguments, and (3) providing better tools for decision making. Relevant psychological research, some problems of teacher training, and a small-scale…

Discusses three avenues of problem-solving research: misconceiving natural laws, processing information, and constructing solutions. Suggests that the change in emphasis from problem to problem solver and the key role of "physics" problems are unifying aspects of the research. (JN)

It is suggested that there are three levels of difficulty posing barriers to successful problem-solving performance: (1) entry into the problem; (2) basic skills; and (3) general cognitive skills. The levels are described in some detail and suggestions for instructional methods are given. (MP)

Three research questions are explored relating the psychological phenomenon of premature closure to (1) age, (2) Piagetian developmental level, and (3) ability to generate hypothetico-deductive strategies. Children (N=141) in grades 1-6 were interviewed and administered light-and-button tasks to describe these relationships. (CS)

Examined the relationship between spouses' (N=58) attributional styles for marital problems and their negative social reinforcement in a laboratory interaction procedure. Results indicated wives who attributed other couples' marital problems to undesirable personality traits or negative attitudes were more likely to verbally criticize their…

According to Hypothesis (H) theory, learning should be very difficult when the number of Hs the subject samples from is very large and/or the correct H is not available. These assumptions were tested with third- and fourth-grade children. In general, results supported these assumptions. (Author/MP)

Suggests that problem-solving ability of science students is associated with students' ability to organize the information provided in a problem into memorizable patterns. This hypothesis, derived from research studies, is exemplified by reference to chemical problems and its educational implications. (Author/GS)

The effectiveness of a procedure for identifying certain cognitive processes used during problem solving is explored. The procedure was used to: categorize types of conceptual thinking problem solvers employ; study the use of trial-and-error behavior; and investigate abilities to coordinate multiple bits of information. (Author/GK)

An investigation was conducted to identify and compare the reasoning strategies used by above-average and average readers in reading comprehension. Findings indicated that both groups used various types of reasoning strategies in comprehension, but that there were significant quantitative differences between the groups in application and success…

Three studies of elementary school children's problem-solving procedures in intentional discrimination tasks are reported. Subjects were children selected from kindergarten and grades 2, 3, and 6. (Author/MP)

Two experiments were conducted to test the generalizability to children of a theory of analogical reasoning processes, originally proposed for adults, and to examine the development of analogical reasoning processes in terms of five proposed sources of cognitive development. (MP)

It is argued that a young child's perceptual skills form the basis for all future conceptual and mathematical learning. An experiment supports the argument. (MP)

Discussion of constructivist learning environments focuses on the concept of grounded design, a process that involves linking the practices of learning systems design with related theory and research. Topics include directed versus situated learning environments, situated cognition and anchored instruction, social constructivism and problem…