Cognitive scientists investigate mental models (how humans organize and structure knowledge in their minds) so as to understand human understanding of and interactions with the world. Cognitive and mental model research is concerned with internal conceptual systems that are not easily or directly observable. The goal of this research was to…

Every year 1.3 million U.S. high school students drop out of school with one quarter of female students failing to graduate on time. Female dropouts are more likely to be unemployed, to earn less when they are employed, to become pregnant before the age of 20, to become obese, to smoke, and to drink more heavily than their male counterparts. This…

Alternative approaches to evaluating critical thinking skills are needed, as pencil and paper assessments may not accurately predict simulated or actual clinical performance. To ensure patient safety, it is imperative to determine how to best promote and measure critical thinking skills. Few studies have examined how these skills are related to…

The Test of Logical Thinking in Science and tape recordings and notes from a scientific inquiry lesson were used to evaluate the relative effectiveness of the regular and new science programs in developing scientific thinking among elementary school pupils. The findings, limited by sample size and short-term experimental design, indicated that the…

This study assessed some of the cognitive and affective elements for both the traditional and mini curricula. The hypothesis, stated in the null form, was there will be no difference between students in the mini-course curriculum and the traditional curriculum on a number of stated cognitive variables (focusing on critical thinking and reading…

To investigate the impact which continuity in children's programs might have for children's longterm cognitive and noncognitive development, effects of a prekindergarten (PreK) program on children's performance was measured using two cognitive measures at the end of the subjects' first grade year. Staff development activities in selected districts…

More than 1,600 middle school students, including an experimental group exposed to the Biological Science Curriculum Study (BSCS), were administered the Modified Nature of Scientific Knowledge Scale. Results indicate that the students utilizing the traditional science curriculum possessed a significantly better understanding of the testable nature…

This Manual has been designed to provide step-by-step guidelines for conducting an evaluation of a structured training sequence. The assessment design to be presented involves essentially: the testing of a group of trainees before and after a sequence of instruction by administration of the same set of objective-form items under structured testing…