An attempt is made to clarify the aims of critical training in academic subjects at the higher education level. Additionally, common motifs of thought in the extensive material of cognitive criticism are considered, and the material itself is synthesized. Attention is also directed to the criteria of essentiality and implications for teaching. Two…

The purpose of this paper is to present a conceptual basis for advocacy of an inquiry-based instructional model. Focusing on the teacher as inquirer, the paper discusses the nature of inquiry, presents its conceptual framework and describes in detail the use of question strategies in the preschool program. The definition of inquiry analyzes…

This introductory book of a two-part publication, designed as an in-service tool for teachers of grades K-9, is based on the postulate that a teacher should become a better problem solver in order to teach problem solving more effectively to students. This booklet provides an overview of problem solving as a process used daily by all individuals…

The purpose of this study was to identify the working memory capacity (M-space) for a group of 139 children (4 to 8 years of age) enrolled at Sandy Bay Infant School in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia. Four M-space tests -- The Counting Span Test (Case and Kurland, 1978), Mr. Cucui Test (DeAvila and Havassy, 1974), the Digit Placement Test (Case,…

The concept of general education, its specific goals, and its role in the college curriculum are discussed. The goals of general education appear to center around teaching students to think analytically and to synthesize ideas into a general understanding. It is suggested, however, that these objectives tend to get lost in the specifics of…

Theoretical and empirical studies of decision-making were reviewed to identify results applicable to training decision-makers. The review is organized in terms of the following component tasks: information gathering, data evaluation, problem structuring, hypothesis generation, hypothesis evaluation, preference specification, action selection, and…

Grounded in a review of existing theories and research on problem solving, the theoretical base and new instrument development efforts discussed in this publication have been sounded against the needs of an innovative, interdisciplinary curriculum project called Unified Science and Mathematics for Elementary Schools (USMES). It is the work on new…

Controversy exists regarding the nature of the creative process and strategies which hold maximum promise for accelerating creative production. This paper provides a structural overview of the major problems and issues found in the scientific study of creativity, primarily in regard to dimensionality and criterion choice. (KS)

Conducted to determine whether use of computerized file-management programs can enhance the development of information processing skills, this two-treatment experiment found that seventh through twelfth grade students in the computer-using/structured activities group received significantly higher mean scores than the…

Evaluates the effectiveness of a sixth grade experimental language arts program designed to teach higher-level thinking skills. Reports on different types of instruments for measuring higher-level thinking skills, including verbal and nonverbal tests of divergent thinking, a nonverbal test of flexible thinking, and a verbal divergent production…

Administered neuropsychological tests to alcoholic subjects before and after their participation in two weeks of memory training, training in problem-solving techniques, or no training. The problem-solving group showed greater improvement on problem-solving tests but not on memory or perceptual-motor tests. Younger subjects in the memory training…

Groups of retarded and nonretarded children were investigated as they learned three rules underlying problems adapted from the Raven Progressive Matrices Test: rotation, imposition, and subtraction. Results were seen as consistent with theories that emphasize transfer flexibility as one potential source of individual and comparative differences in…

Described is a project in a third grade class in which problem-solving skills are developed through activities with patterns. Activities for growing picture patterns, making number tables, and developing open sentences or formulas are discussed and illustrated. (MNS)

Students in experimental group received continuous feedback on learning performance and were allowed to make instructional decisions to determine whether learner control of instruction can be facilitated by directly affecting the student's perception of learning need. Results are discussed in reference to an information-processing approach to the…

In 2003, the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) and Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) included a special focus on problem-solving. This report reviews the problem-solving aspects of each study in order to compare and contrast the nature of problem solving in each assessment. The report's authors develop…