Taking a test on a passage one has just studied is known to enhance later retention. This effect was influenced by the type of initial test used. It was evident in the case of the initial short-answer test, but not in the case of multiple choice and free recall tests. (Author/RD)

The orienting role of objectives was examined in relation to text organization--defined in terms of ideational prominence of elements. Ideational prominence, which was manipulated, did influence learning, but lost its effect when relevant objectives were provided. Both orienting factors were also found to be little influenced by a time constraint.…

Two experiments with 172 undergraduate students (70 males and 102 females) examined the relationship among spatial, imagery, and verbal ability and the multitrial free recall of brief prose passages. Results suggest that the psychological mechanisms underlying prose learning performance clearly differ depending on the ability being examined. (SLD)

Presents a study of metacognitive responses of English school children examining four common metacognitive function measures. Discusses the content of each measure, the search for developmental commonality, and statistical relationships. Concludes that no evidence supported a common metacognitive factor or unified construct, although a common…