Resource teachers' and regular teachers' ratings for 32 elementary-level learning-disabled (LD) students were compared to identify teachability characteristics and behaviors. Though the two groups of teachers did not note differences in problem behaviors of the same LD child in different settings, differences in cognitive/motivational and…

In a short-term, intensive parent-training program, mothers of developmentally delayed infants are shown how to teach their children toy play behaviors. This study evaluates intervention effects on parents and children, with a focus on maternal behaviors. Results indicate improved maternal teaching behavior and generalizability of positive…

Examines operations of generalization, identification, discrimination, and synthesis in mathematical concept development from early childhood to late adolescence according to Vygotsky's theory of development. (MDH)

This study, involving 9 students (ages 8-11) with learning disabilities, found that 1 session of self-instruction training was not sufficiently powerful for students to learn a strategy for solving arithmetic problems, but a second session and access to tape-recorded cues resulted in improved performance. Effects did not generalize to student…

Used 2 12-year-old children to investigate deductive and inductive reasoning in plane geometry. A LOGO microworld was programmed to measure distances and turns relative to points on the plane. Learning environments like this may enhance formation of inductive geometrical understandings. (Contains 44 references.) (LDR)

This case study of an 11-year-old boy with moderate/severe mental retardation, seizures, and behavior disorders in an inclusive classroom setting describes how a program of assessment and intervention eliminated the behavior problems, was maintained following the intervention, and generalized to 3 nontargeted problem behaviors. Intervention…

This document reports the results of a 4-month experimental study designed to determine the effectiveness of using computers with interactive software programs to teach higher-order thinking skills. The effects of CAI (computer-assisted instruction) on affective domains were assessed, as well as the effectiveness of CAI with interactive software…

This study examined the effect of using an outdoor nature investigation program on the ability of third-grade students to transfer knowledge. Specifically, the study determined whether the program enhanced students' ability to transfer declarative (facts and concepts), procedural (process skills), and schematic (experience) knowledge to a set of…

Some of the reasons efforts are being made to reform education are discussed, and how these reforms are likely to affect U.S. schools is explored. Data collected annually by the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) indicate that almost all states have some form of assessment that is administered to all students at one or more grade…

This learning module, which is intended for use in inservice training for vocational rehabilitation counselors, deals with procedures for teaching clients behaviors that they are not presently exhibiting. The following training strategies are covered: prompting (verbal prompts, modeling, and physical guidance); fading; discrimination training;…

This issue of the newsletter focuses on the teaching of mathematics to mildly handicapped students. The feature article reviews the theory of generalization and its application to specific practices in teaching arithmetic. A set of six-step guidelines is offered for the teacher to follow in ensuring that generalization of arithmetic skills takes…

This research review examines the effects of instructional variables on the learning of handicapped and nonhandicapped individuals. The research review begins with an historical look at learning disabilities research. An overall analysis of the differential effects of instructional variables on learning-disabled and nonhandicapped individuals…

Social and affective objectives are being increasingly accepted as integral parts of the school curriculum. Generalization effects produced by a training program in classroom participation skills were analyzed for two classrooms of seventh-grade boys with reading, writing, and disciplinary problems. Subject, situation, and behavior variables were…

An updated version of Taba's 1966 "Social Studies Inference Test" and "Application of Principles Test" for elementary students is studied. The original tests measured students' abilities to generalize and draw inferences from short paragraphs containing data relevant to social studies. The "Social Studies Inference…

A framework, based on the idea that social studies curriculum should be founded on conceptual understandings and processes drawn from the various social science disciplines, suggests how concepts and related generalizations from each of the disciplines may be used as initial building blocks for developing curriculum. The disciplines are considered…